Chapter 324 lays bare the deadly rule behind Hidan's ritual. Every wound he suffers rebounds onto Asuma, and the immortal turns his own blade inward until Shikamaru's shadow and sharp mind step in.
Once Hidan shifts into his cursed, blackened form, Asuma discovers a grim truth: any harm he lands on the Akatsuki member echoes back onto his own body. The same holds for the wounds Hidan deals to himself, and the immortal exploits it by driving a blade into his own flesh to lock Asuma in place. When he moves to pierce his own heart and finish his opponent, Shikamaru's shadow snares him just in time. Holding the immortal back through sheer strain, Shikamaru studies the ritual and works out exactly how Hidan has bound his fate to Asuma's.
Hidan's transformed state links his injuries directly to Asuma. Hidan stabs himself to paralyze Asuma in place. Shikamaru's shadow stops Hidan short of a killing blow. Shikamaru deduces the mechanics behind Hidan's blood curse.

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The chapter belongs to the Akatsuki Suppression Mission arc and appears in volume 36. It is the turning point where Shikamaru begins to understand, and eventually unravel, the rules governing Hidan's ritual.
In "Shikamaru's Analysis!!" (chapter 324), Shikamaru Nara traps Hidan with his Shadow Imitation Technique just before the immortal Akatsuki member can drive a blade into his own heart, and begins working out how Hidan's curse links his wounds to Asuma Sarutobi.
Once Hidan shifts into his cursed, blackened form, any harm he takes is mirrored onto Asuma Sarutobi's body, meaning Hidan can hurt Asuma simply by injuring himself.
Hidan stabs himself to paralyze Asuma through their linked curse, then aims to drive the blade into his own heart to finish Asuma off, only to be stopped by Shikamaru's shadow.
Shikamaru Nara studies Hidan's ritual while restraining him and deduces the mechanics behind how Hidan has bound his fate to Asuma's.
"Shikamaru's Analysis!!" is part of the Akatsuki Suppression Mission arc, collected in volume 36, and marks the turning point where Shikamaru begins to unravel Hidan's ritual.
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