The Outcast Shadow

Ch. 1 The Loss of a Father

Years had passed and things had died down since the incident with Sasuke Uchiha. Konoha was never the same since that day. This great village thrived once again as their new Hokage took leadership. There was peace and prosperity between the five great shinobi nations, however there was an evil still lurking among the shadows in this peaceful world.

"Lord Hokage, you have a visitor." A shinobi said as he entered the office, bowed and presented his leader with news of a guest's arrival.

"Is it her?" he asked intently.

"Yes my Lord, it is her." He replied just as calm and intently as his leader.

He waved his hand aside. "Please, do let her in."

His assistant shinobi bowed and gave a signal to the guest to come in. A woman in her early thirties entered the office. She was a beautiful looking woman; blonde hair, bright eyes, and a curvy body to boot. She wore a black kimono and around her neck was a Sunagakure headband which was also black. The Hokage rose to his feet with the most serious disposition on his face.

"You may leave us now." He said to his assistant, which his assistant bowed with respect and left the two together.

"Greetings Lord Hokage." The woman said in a mild tone.

He looked back into her eyes and saw pain and the persistency to hold back how she was truly feeling. "Please, sit down. I want to talk to you." He gestured hospitably as so she sat down.

"I'm very sad to hear of your loss." He began.

"You have no idea how I am feeling right now, you have no right to speak to me that way. You've never lost someone you truly loved." She replied subtly as if this were the moment she sought best to show her true feelings. Despite this impolite act, he remained silent.

"It's not fair, why did he have to die? Why Shikamaru?" she said folding her arms on his desk and placing her head on top and crying in her folded arms.

The Hokage merely looked at her and placed his hand on her arm gently. "Is he going to be ok? His son I mean, now that Shikamaru is gone, is he going to be ok not having a father in his life anymore?"

Temari looked up with him, tears and sadness still overwhelmed her face yet beneath it all she had a look in her eye of something serious. "Stand up." She said to him. The Hokage looked puzzled at her but did so. "Come here." She said standing up. He walked around his desk and approached her.

"He is your son, Don." She said to him.

He stood bewildered, "You can't be serious, Temari, how can this be?"

She wiped the tears from her face, "In the later years of our engagement, Shikamaru was accepted to the village council. Do you remember that?" she asked.

Shikamaru entered the dimly lit council chamber. "Please, sit down Shikamaru." One of the elders said. He took his seat and the meeting began. "We have accepted you to this board because we require not only your intelligence and wisdom but of something more valuable than you can think of."

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Is it true that you and the formerly wanted criminal Don were once close?" an elder asked.

Shikamaru remained puzzled, "Yes."

"Can you tell us what he was like growing up?" they asked again.

Shikamaru grunted "You are all making no sense here, tell me what is going on or I will answer no questions."

The council fell silent and looked at each other with serious looks on their faces. "Very well, I think we can trust you to know. You see, since Don had first died, we had devised a plan to create an offspring only containing his dominant traits. He surprised us even more with his resurrection however that was short lived after his assassination, since that assassination, our agenda for this has been pushed constantly to its limits, trying to find a way to make it happen. You see Shikamaru, Don's father was not next in line to become Hokage for no reason you know. Not only was he trained by the former students of the founders of our village, but he has the blood of our founders flowing through his veins. Don's bloodline is too valuable for this country as a whole to lose."

"Then what does this have to do with me answering your ludicrous questions?" Shikamaru asked.

"We just wanted to know if we were making the right decision partially based on his personality. Yes we have heard of the great things he has done but not all of them have been good."

"How exactly did you plan on creating an offspring of Don that has all of his dominant traits?" he asked in curiosity. "We have perfected a delicate and complicated way of gene splicing after conception which would allow us to do so, however the only problem we have had was finding the right couple to bear such a responsibility. This is also where you come in."

"You were expecting me and my wife to bear such a responsibility for you ludicrous old hags?" he said angrily.

"Isn't it true that Don and Temari once were lovers and were very intimate in their relationship with each other?" one of the council members asked.

Shikamaru looked down and sighed deeply. "I see your reasoning behind choosing Temari to be the mother of Don's child." He said angrily. "However do you honestly expect me to sacrifice my own child for the sake of your agenda?" Shikamaru said.

"Shikamaru calm down, he will still be your child only he won't physically show any of your traits." Shikamaru grunted and clinched his fists. "Please Shikamaru we beg of you, please take up this task. We have everything together we just need the right family and we trust that you and your wife will be the right people to give this task to."

He looked down and sighed once more "Fine."

"Thank you Shikamaru, however you must tell no one of what went on here today, not even your wife. When you are ready we will handle the rest." one of the elders said.

Shikamaru got up and slowly walked out of the door. A month later, as Shikamaru and Temari were at a check up; he met up with one of the council members. The council member nodded at him as they watched Temari being led into the back of the hospital. They put Temari to sleep and performed the operation.

Don fell back in his seat, amazed at the story that was just told to him. "Don, now it is your time. Please, help me raise your son." She looked at him deeply. He looked up at her and nodded. "I will."