Shikamaru approaches the exams with a sense of apathy ; when he battles the Sunagakure ninja Temari , he defeats her but forfeits his match to her , due to his chakra being low . Despite this loss , he is the only ninja among his peers to be promoted to the rank of Chunin , as the overseers of the exams were impressed by the insight and intelligence he demonstrated against Temari . As a Chunin , Shikamaru is appointed the leader of a team to prevent Sasuke Uchiha from defecting to the village of Otogakure . Although Shikamaru 's team manages to defeat the Otogakure ninja barring their way , Sasuke manages to escape .