Hooray! My first story on my new account! I haven't written anything in so long and I figured that since I now have more time on my hands, I would start over and give it another shot. I love Naruto and adore ShikaTema. Thus this story came to be! This is different from the way things happen in the series. Just an idea that I thought would be interesting! Anyway, reviews would be appreciated. And constructive criticism is always welcome! Enjoy.

Oh, almost forgot the disclaimer. I don't own Naruto or any of the characters. Nor am I in any way affiliated with the people who do!

Chapter One: The Imposter

"This had better work."

The voice that spoke was deep and slow, determination evident in every word. He stared hard at the large blade of the sword that was propped up against the table before him. Although the room was lit only by a few dim lanterns, the tall slender man could see his reflection perfectly within the cold steel. His chocolate brown eyes concentrated hard, looking over his form for any mistakes. Anything that could give him away. There was no problem with the clothing. The shoes, the black pants and accompanying black long sleeve shirt, the green jacket, the headband that bore the symbol of the allied shinobi force tightly secured around his left bicep. Nothing wrong there. His gaze rested upon his face. Although the features were foreign to him, the man knew that there were no problems here as well. A soft sigh escaped thin lips as he tightened the messy ponytail of ebony hair atop his head. One of the earrings in his ear caught light from the fire in the glass case above him. The dark stud shone brightly.

His thoughts were broken by a collection of panicked voices outside. They started out distant and muffled but were getting louder and easier to understand as the seconds passed. Whoever was speaking was coming closer. Suddenly, the flap that served as the door to the tent in which he was standing opened in one swift motion. There in the darkness stood a small group of ninja, worry apparent on all their faces. Their leader stepped forward with urgency. She was also tall, he noticed, though not as tall as he was. Her sandy blonde hair was pulled back into four ponytails except for the bangs, which hung loosely around the headband on her forehead. It was Temari, the sister of the Kazakage.

"Shikamaru," the girl spoke. She was almost out of breath. Had the battle started already? This was not good. If so, all of his plans would be ruined.

"What's going on?" the man asked sharply, immediately realizing she was speaking to him. After all, he wasShikamaru. For the time being, anyway. He held his breath and awaited her reply.

"We have just received word from headquarters that the enemy has been infiltrating our camps posed as one of our own. According to the source, this jutsu is so powerful that not even a difference in chakra can be detected. They are exact replicas of their counterparts."

A mental sigh of relief. He thought he wouldn't get the chance to carry out his mission. Nevertheless this wasn't exactly good news. He was going to have to be extremely careful from this moment on.

"I see." Shikamaru glanced thoughtfully around the group that stood before him. "So the imposter could be anybody, even one of us. We have to proceed with caution."

Everyone nodded in agreement. They all looked at each other, fear in their eyes and suspicion in their hearts. They didn't want to believe that one of their comrades could be the enemy. This situation gave them no other choice. Temari kept her teal blue eyes forward, locked on the man in front of her. Something was different about his stance, she noticed. Normally he stood slouched to one side, his hands shoved in his pockets, all over appearance apathetic. Now Shikamaru stood straight and alert, his expression calm yet serious. He quickly became aware of the way the blonde sand ninja was staring at him. He brought his right hand to the back of his head and rubbed the nape of his neck.

"This is going to be such a pain." he groaned before going to sit at the small table that stood between him and the others.

Temari told the people standing behind her to go back to their respective tents to get some rest. After all, they were still going to have to battle the previous Kage in the near future.

"Don't tell anyone else about the possible intruder." she warned. "There is already so much unrest among the troops. We need to focus on the fight ahead. But be on the lookout for suspicious activity and report any such findings back to me and Shikamaru immediately."

"Understood." was the collective reply before the few people who were gathered made their way outside.

Temari walked over to the empty seat at the table across from Shikamaru and sat down. Neither of them spoke for quite some time.

"Shouldn't you be going to get some rest yourself?" Shikamaru asked, not sure what else he should do. Was she already suspicious of him? No, she couldn't be. Otherwise she wouldn't have said to report anything to the both of them. That is, unless she didn't want him to think she was suspicious.

Impossible! There was no way this girl could know that he was actually Zetsu in disguise. Yet the way she sat there staring at him made him nervous.

"This is bad, Shikamaru."

Finally, the silence was broken. Normally Temari wouldn't be so open with her concerns. But the man that sat before her was her friend. They had come to each other's aid many times, their villages always looking out for each other. She had saved his life and he had saved hers. She was the ambassador to the Leaf from the Sand and he was always her escort. They worked together on the Chunin exams. She could trust him.

"Yeah…it is…" he agreed quietly, looking once again at his reflection in the blade of the sword that was now inches away from his body.

She didn't notice when the corners of his lips turned up in a small smile.