A/N: Hey all, Shockrider here again.

I had originally planned to write a Shika/Tema Christmas fic, but it ended up being really cliched and boring. So instead, I decided to launch myself into an entirely new fanfic for your reading enjoyment. I hope you like it, and happy holidays.

Disclaimer time! I do not own the Naruto series, nor do I own the characters, places, events, canon plots, etc., etc. I simply own this humble work of fanfiction.

Here it is, Love and War, Chapter 1: A Rocky Start


Thunk! Thunk!

The sounds of two shuriken lodging themselves into a tree filled the quiet forest night. The sounds were barely noticeable, but it didn't take a genius to figure out that there was an attack underway. Regardless, that's just what the attackers were dealing with; the Hidden Leaf Village's most talented strategist, Shikamaru Nara.

He had managed catch the faint whirring of the weapons as they hurled toward him. Just as they readied to connect with his body, Shikamaru had leapt to a higher branch within the canopy of the trees, leaving him unharmed, but unnerved as well.

'This is troublesome,' Shikamaru thought to himself. 'I guess the Hokage wasn't joking about this blockade. It's pretty thorough.'

Shikamaru had been sent on a special assignment to aid Sunagakure. The Land of Rivers, which divided the lands of Fire and Wind, had been blocking any attempts at communication between the two allied nations. The blockade had been particularly effective, and it took nearly every one of the Hidden Sand's messenger hawks to make it through to Konoha. Of the 50 it had sent off with letters requesting assistance from the Hokage, only one had survived to complete its mission.

To break the blockade, Choji, Ino, and Shikamaru were supposed to get to the Hidden Sand Village and deliver battle plans to begin retaking the borders. Unfortunately for them, resistance had been much fiercer than they expected, and Ino and Choji improvised a plan to get Shikamaru through. By drawing off a few squads of enemy shinobi, Shikamaru would be able to punch through the blockade and make it to Suna. As one of Konoha's top strategists, he was the logical choice to go forward.

The plan appeared to have worked, at least until the two shuriken found their way to the spot Shikamaru had been occupying only seconds earlier. Grunting with effort, he pressed forward, knowing his jutsu would be limited in the forest. There was a full moon out that night, but the trees' canopies interfered too much with his shadow to get an easy reading. Shikamaru knew that his only hope would be to get to the desert and onto open ground.

But that would be easier said than done for the Leaf shinobi. As he pushed off one branch, a kunai and two more shuriken flashed in the dim moonlight, giving Shikamaru just enough time to dodge and block them with two of his own kunai. Pushing off another branch, he angled his body toward the ground, constantly moving to throw off his attackers.

As his feet hit the forest floor, Shikamaru heard four more blades sink into the ground behind him. Grumbling, his mind kicked into overdrive, working feverishly to come up with a plan to make it to the desert. 'I think I sense four of them,' he pondered. 'But they're not making it easy for me to be sure. Damn… I just need to stall for time, the desert should be just a few minutes away, tops.'

As his mind wandered, another flash in the moonlight alerted him to an additional kunai, which landing in front of him. A quick flapping motion made him realize that there was a paper bomb attached to its hilt, and Shikamaru wasted no time leaping up to avoid the impending blast. He heard the paper ignite, but as the seconds passed, the silence that followed puzzled him. Still in midair, he gasped as the realization washed over him. 'A trick… This could be troublesome.'

His fears were confirmed as he caught the sheen of a thin strip of metal stretched out in front of him, most likely a tripwire. All it took was a quick calculation to realize that there was nothing for him to push off of. Within a few seconds, he was going to activate the enemy's trap.

Bracing himself, Shikamaru felt his body connect with the wire. It held for a split-second before giving way to his momentum. Two bright lights filled the forest, followed by two earth-shaking explosions. Immediately afterward, he was showered in a rain of kunai and shuriken, propelled by paper bombs that the tripwire had set off. Despite blocking a few of the incoming blades with his own, a number connected with his forearms and shoulders. Shikamaru couldn't tell how many hits he had taken, but he knew the situation had suddenly become much more troublesome.

Groaning, he pressed forward, sprinting across the forest floor. Thinking quickly, Shikamaru reached into his kunai pouch, withdrawing a blade with an explosive tag wrapped around the hilt. He spotted a river ahead of him, and, to his relief, he recognized it as the last one before the Land of Wind. Once he was in the open desert, Shikamaru knew he'd be safe.

But the three kunai that whizzed past his head reminded him that he wasn't in the clear yet. Leaping over the river, Shikamaru hurled the blade in his hand behind him, hitting the base of a tree near the riverbed. A second later, the explosion it caused rocked the ground, sending splinters and branches flying. He hit the ground on the river's far side with a grunt, realizing he had two shuriken embedded in his right leg in addition to the weapons lodged in his arms. It didn't take long for his brain to figure out that if he didn't end the fight soon, he wouldn't be completing his mission.

He leapt from the riverbed up into the forest canopy, racing forward to present a moving target. The blood he had lost was starting to take its toll, however. He could feel himself getting sluggish and slightly dizzy. He also knew that stopping wasn't an option. Shaking his head to clear his vision, a thrill of joy suddenly washed over him; just a few dozen feet ahead of him, the trees ended, giving way to the desert. With the open sand merely a few seconds away, Shikamaru summoned his strength and pressed ahead.

As he neared the forests' final trees, two kunai lodged themselves firmly into the branch underneath him. The two bright lights that followed told him he shouldn't be there. Pushing himself off the tree, two explosions propelled him forward, sending him hard to the sandy ground. Groaning softly, Shikamaru stumbled to his feet, loose sand falling from him as he hastily dusted himself off. As much pain as he was in, however, Shikamaru knew the fight was over. Moving away from the forest, he reached into a pouch on his thigh and withdrew a small, round object.

The moon was to his left, shining brightly and casting a long shadow to his right as he faced the forest. Shikamaru made sure there was enough room between him and the woods to force his pursuers to pass the treeline to attack him. He wasn't sure they'd follow him away from cover, but either way, he knew he was in control. As if to try to crush his hopes, three shuriken flew at him from the woods at different angles. His distance gave him more than enough time to react, however, and with a quick leap back, he was safe once more.

Silence filled the cool desert air, Shikamaru's heartbeat and heavy breathing the only things he was fully aware of. He still didn't know how many shinobi were following him, and he knew that if he didn't find a place to treat his wounds, he would be in danger of bleeding out after too much longer. Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself, his mind beginning to work on a plan of battle. But as he took a step back, threatening to run once more, the enemy made the move he was hoping for.

Four ninja jumped to the ground from the trees, landing on the sand with ease. Two of them sported torn clothes, which he presumed came from the multiple explosions he had caused. What surprised him, however, was the headbands they wore. Each one proudly sported the Land of Earth's symbol, rather than that of the Land of Rivers like he expected. But nothing added up. Blockading two powerful nations like the Land of Wind and Fire was an open declaration of war. While it was possible the Land of Earth had allies, they would have undoubtedly made an attack already.

But before he could think it over any further, Shikamaru dodged a kunai one of opponents had thrown. Grumbling, he murmured aloud, "Alright, this has been troublesome enough. Time to end this."

Gripping the small object in his hand, he imbued it with his chakra and tossed it into the air behind him. A short second later, a bright light shone from behind him, casting a second, very long shadow in front of him. One of the shinobi facing him winced, shielding her eyes and crying out, "Flash bomb!"

Shikamaru simply smirked, thinking as his hands began making seals, 'Not quite. It's a flare. It's not going away anytime soon.' With the Rat seal formed, he took control of his natural shadow and used it to fuel the one his flare had created. He extended it forward and split it into four smaller shadows as it approached his opponents. Still blinded by flare, they were unable to see much of anything as the shadows lifted from the ground and impaled them through their chests, killing them instantly. It was unceremonious end to the fight, but he considered it nonetheless effective.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Shikamaru released his jutsu and reached up to wipe the sweat from his forehead, then caught himself as his body threatened to sway. He had apparently lost more blood than he thought. He could already feel his legs threatening to give out as the adrenaline faded from his system. Regardless, he forced himself to stay up as he wrapped his wounds, taking note as the flare finally faded behind him, leaving him only illuminated by the pale moonlight.

Taking a deep breath, Shikamaru relished in the feel of the night air cooling his body. He was so taken in by it, he didn't notice the glint of light from the treeline. But the sound of the blade cutting through the air caught his attention. Gasping, Shikamaru caught sight of the kunai as it raced toward him, but he knew there was nothing he could do. His body had taken enough abuse, and a quick reaction was out of the question. With the split-second he had, he crossed his arms over his chest to absorb the impact.

But it never came.

Instead, a powerful gust of wind sent the kunai to the ground. Glancing to his left, he saw what was simultaneously the happiest and the most troubling sight he could imagine; Temari was at the scene, her tessen already fully extended. She took a deep breath, focusing her chakra before calling out, "Wind Scythe Jutsu!"

Her second attack tore into the first row of trees, sending timber and leaves farther back into the forest. If the attacker was still there, he wasn't happy. Temari paused for a moment, waiting for a counter attack. When none came, she chuckled, turning to Shikamaru. But before she could begin rubbing in the fact that she had saved his life, she saw his body sway and his legs give out.

She was there before he could hit the ground, catching him in her arms.

"Take it easy," she said softly, her voice comforting with only a hint of mockery. "I've got you, crybaby."


A/N: Well, I hope you liked chapter 1!

As I say with all my fics, please let me know what you liked and, more importantly, what you didn't like. Pull no punches with the good or bad if you feel the fic warrants comment at all.

Also, in all likelihood, this won't be updated as quickly as Checkmate was, but there's always hoping. Anyways, enjoy your holidays.

Adios, and look forward to Chapter 2: No Rest for the Weary.