The King…!!

" The King…!! " ( 玉…!! , Gyoku…!! , Viz: The Black King…!!) is chapter 342 of the original Naruto manga.

## Summary [ ]

Sakura and Sai locate Shikamaru , only to find that he has already defeated Hidan . Meanwhile, Naruto recovers from his fight with Kakuzu . Kakashi approaches Kakuzu, whose final heart is on the verge of failure, and finishes him off. Team Asuma and Team 7 returns to Konoha and report their success against Akatsuki . Shikamaru visits Kurenai at Asuma 's grave, promising to protect her unborn child for Asuma's sake. He later plays shōgi with his father and explains Asuma's philosophy on who the "king" of Konoha is: the next generation. Shikaku is happy that his son has learned such a valuable lesson, but does not hesitate to win the game.