Hello fanfiction! This is my first Naruto fic, so show a little mercy. I will admit it's slow... But is chock full of all that drama stuff worthy of day-time television! This was originally going to be a oneshot, and I have realized these are what I'm mostly going to be writing from now on, because if you have seen any of my previous fanfics, you will find that I have a knack for not completing and updating my stories. That does not mean that I have given up on my other fics. I will finnish them... eventually... The title is a little misleading I suppose, because every shika-ino fan out there has probably read a fiction similar to this story line. Whatever. Shikamaru didn't see it coming, okay? Hmm, what else? Oh yea!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor will I ever... A girl can dream though, right?
Shikamaru took his seat along with the other shinobi at the long meeting table located in Konoha ninja headquarters. Lady Tsunade, the current Hokage of the Leaf, had called a meeting concerning all of former rookie nine and former rookie nine leaders. The young Nara could only wonder what this gathering could be about.
With Choji at his right and the copy-nin to his left, Shikamaru made himself comfortable, predicting yet another long and troublesome meeting. Being a mature ninja of twenty one, Shikamaru knew better than to voice his complaints. Even so, the young man sat in manner suggesting his displeasure, haunched over with his chin resting in the crook of his arm. The other shinobi looked no better, deep circles under their eyes, sitting in none-too-presentable, I-don't-to-be-here positions.
The Hokage had been working their butts off for the past few weeks, troubling with simple Genin missions on top of their usual Jonin and Chunin missions because of the unusual decrease in graduates this year.
"Hello Shikamaru," drawled the ninja to his left, Kakashi. Shikamaru turned.
"Nice to see you Hatake." Greeted the shadow-nin, in an equally lazy tone. The two ninjas were often seen talking to each other, being classified as the two most lazy shinobi in the Leaf village.
"I heard your latest mission was a success, though you didn't make it out without a few... scratches." commented the older man, cringing at the word. Shikamaru unconsciously rubbed his shoulder, which sported an alarming amount of bandages.
"Yea," he groaned, "do you have any idea what this meeting is about? I mean, what is it, the sixth one this week?" The Nara questioned, lighting up a cigarette. The other ninja were chatting amongst each other, Naruto's voice being the loudest.
"I have no idea, but I think we're about to find out." muttered the Kakashi, pointing to the doorway, where the busty woman known as Tsunade entered. The rooms low buzz of chatter slowly died down.
The Hokages face looked sullen, unusual for the womans normally positive smile. Something was up.
"Hello former rookie nine and former rookie nine leaders. I have gathered you here to announce some depressing news." She looked up and down all of their faces.
"Ino Yamanaka's body was found close to Konoha's border." The room was silent. Words sunk in. The cigarette hung limp at Shikamaru's lips. His ever thinking mind stopped for once, and his black rimmed eyes widened. 'Ino...' The word ran through his cranium. 'No, that's not right.' He couldn't process it. The genius of the leaf couldn't comprehend it, the simple fact that the bright eyed, amazing girl that he loved was dead.
True, the former leaf ninja had been missing for four years. She up and vanished one day, leaving nothing behind except a note pinned to the Hokage's door with a kunai explaining that she was leaving the village. The slip of paper didn't provide any answers or clues for why she was leaving. It was still a mystery today. Search teams set out to find her, Shikamaru being part of most.
After months of searching, she was declared an official rouge ninja and the search teams were called off. Shikamaru was reluctant to call it quits, but soon he too had to admit she was never coming back.
After a moment of respective silence, Tsunade continued. "It appears she was attacked, killed and robbed of her few belongings on a path by the gates." The shinobi bowed their heads. Shikamaru trembled.
"Lady Tsunade," the young Nara broke the silence. "-you said that she was robbed?" he asked, struggling to keep his voice even.
The Hokage nodded. "Yes, by a group of bandits." She supplied. That didn't sit right with the shadow user.
"But- I mean- Ino was a capable shinobi. I've seen her in plenty of battles. She's able to take out powerful ninja! There's no way she could have been robbed, let alone killed, by a mere group of bandits." he said, his brain clicking back into gear. Tsunade nodded.
"She was injured-"
"Even so-"
"-and was protecting her life. As well as another's."
"Another? A traveling comrade perhaps?" questioned Guy.
"Not exactly. Her companion was a little boy, no older than four or five. We believe him to be her... son." She said, not seeming to believe the words she spoke. Choji gasped in surprise. The chair Naruto was balancing on two legs had fallen and Naruto landed on the ground with a thud. The other ninja cried out in exclamation, save for Shino, who shifted positions slightly.
"That's... wow. I can't believe it. Do you think she had a family? A house in some other land?" asked a tearful Sakura. Neji appeared to be deep in thought.
"No Sakura, and we already have a good idea of who the father is." said the blond leader. Shikamaru fidgeted. So Ino had gone from the village, gotten pregnant. Started a new life. Maybe she did have a husband out there. The Nara was momentarily angry. So all those years had been nothing to her after all. Those times when his usual, unmotivated self had changed in her presence were nothing. He had discovered a caring side to himself. Ino of course was the only one to see this view of Shikamaru. He loved the blond more than he cared to admit. It appeared the small relationship they had was nothing more than that. A relationship. She had never truly loved him. What a drag.
"The boy is alive." Tsunade added. The people in the room once again looked up. "Actually, he's in the building, and I'm sure he'd be pleased to meet his mother old teammates." The Hokage smiled, one of a new found warmth that seemed to radiate to everyone else seated at the table.
"Oh, that would be lovely!" squealed TenTen, who was trying to lighten the mood a little. The others nodded in silent approval.
"Alright Shizune! You can bring him in!" Cried the Hokage, her voice almost shaking the walls.
Her assistant shuffled into the room, a young boy tangled in her arms. The room gasped in unison, with the exception of Naruto who- once again- fell out of his chair.
The four year olds brunette hair was pulled back into a tuft, his caramel skin tensed, and his black rimmed eyes darted about the room, leaking tears. He was a carbon copy of a young-Shikamru.
The heads slowly turned from the Nara look alike to the real one.
"Like I said, we have a pretty good idea who the boys father is." repeated the leader of the leaf. The cigarette fell from the shadow-nins lips and his eyes met with the Hokages.
"Shikamaru Nara, is it possible that you could be this boys father?" She asked the now very astonished looking Shikamaru.
"I- I suppose it is possible, now that I- uh- think about it." He said, lips not moving. What! Kid? This was news to Shikamaru. He could feel his teammates eyes boring into him. We had a one-night affair! That's it! The young mans stuttered words reached Ino's son, and his darting eyes rested on his new-found father, who was trembling in his seat.
"My name is Inaru," the boy announced to the shinobi in a semi-confident voice. The room was silent until somebody spoke up.
"Hello Inaru, my name is TenTen. It's wonderful to meet you!" said the brunette kindly. Inaru grinned.
"Mommy told me about you! She said that you are on a team with people named... Lee... and, is it Neji?" he asked, recalling the names. "And she said some of her closest friends were... Sakura, uh- Choji and, Shika- Shikamaru." A loud sniff could be heard from the big boned shinobi, and as Shikamaru looked over to find his best friend in tears. Naruto jumped up.
"Hey Inaru! Did your mom say anything about me?" asked the hyper-active ninja. The boy smiled.
"You must be Naruto! Yea, Mommy told me a whole bunch about you!" Naruto swelled with pride. "She said you were obnoxious, hyper, a gave her a head-ache at the site of you!" Inaru grinned and you could almost visibly see the blonds ego shrinking. Naruto pouted.
"That's Naruto alright." commented Neji, and said ninja glowered at the Hyuga.
"So you mean to tell me, that poor Ino had to raise you're child? All on her own?" cried the pink haired kunoichi suddenly. Shikamaru swallowed, and the other jonine scooted away from the raging Sakura.
"It's not like I even knew I had a kid! I- I mean, she just disappeared one day. She didn't even tell me." he murmured guiltily. He felt horrible. Sakura was right. Poor Ino. He was still trying to comprehend the fact that he she had never told him of her pregnancy, let alone that he had a four year old kid! Wow Shikamaru, you're in some deep shit this time. He couldn't even look at the child, knowing those five long years that Ino had been gone she had been surviving for two.
"Judging by his age, and the time Ino had gone missing, she must have been at least two months pregnant when she left us." said Neji, he too in shock that his lazy comrade had a son.
Kakashi chose that moment to involve himself in the conversation.
"Lady Hokage, I may as well bring up the elephant in the room*, where is young Inaru going to stay? Is he going to be attending the Ninja Academy in a few years of time?" asked the copy-nin. Tsunade sighed.
"Well, I am his father. I suppose he is my responsibility. My flat's big enough for the two of us I believe." said Shikamaru quietly. The Hokage's eyes widened in surprise.
"Shikamaru, you're ANBU! Are you sure that you can handle taking care of a child? I mean, children require a lot of work you know. Lets not forget that fact that you just turned twenty-one. You're a bit young to be taking on a father role-" Tsunade stopped speaking for a moment, remembering she had a room full of jonin still.
"Scat!" she cried, and hurriedly everyone with the exception of Kakashi, Iruka, Shikamaru, Tsunade and Inaru dispersed.
"As I was saying, Nara-"
"I know, I know." muttered Shikamaru. Inaru still stood with Shizune, not exactly sure of how to approach this adult-ish conversation. He stood up.
"Do I get a say in this?" he said, just loud enough for the arguing people to hear. Shikamaru's eyebrows shot up. I suppose he does have a right to say what he thinks.
"I personally wouldn't mind staying with my dad." said the boy. Amazing! This boy... Kakashi thought. His vocabulary has advanced way beyond his young age. His grasp on this adult conversation is pretty firm. He must have inherited his fathers unique IQ.
"Inaru, your dad is a busy man. He has to lead dangerous missions, and wouldn't be able to be home with you all the time." said Shizune. Shikamaru groaned.
"Bothersome." muttered the young boy. Kakashi snickered.
"He's a lot like you, Shikamaru." chuckled the white haired man. Shikamaru smiled a little.
"Tsunade, what if I took a job at the academy. I could work there for a year or two, until Inaru is old enough to stay home alone. Please Hokage-sama." said the older Nara. Never before had Shikamaru wanted something so badly. He knew that this sudden life choice would greatly affect him, but it was a sacrifice he would make for his son. His son. He smirked, trying to get used to the phrase. Suddenly the door opened and Shikaku strolled in.
"Lady Tsunade, you summoned me?" he asked, in his usual growly voice.
"H- hey dad," said Shikamaru in the most pleasant voice he could muster, probably overdoing it with the nervous grin. Shikaku raised a brow.
"What are you doin' here son?" he questioned. Said son shuffled his feet. Kakashi sighed. I don't envy you right now, Shikamaru.
He stepped to the side revealing the slightly confused Inaru, still holding Shizune's hand. If anything, Shikaku's brow rose even higher.
"Well, you see... Uh. Meet Inaru?" Shikamaru said, not sure of how to present his recently discovered four-year-old son to his un-suspecting father. Tsunade face-palmed.
"I am not going to be the one who explains this to your mother." muttered Shikaku.
If anything, this made Shikamaru even more tense.
"Oh gods." he muttered. Mom. I don't know how I'm going to live through this one, that vicious woman.
"Who's the mother?" Shikaku sighed, lighting up a cigarette. Everyone but Shikamaru was shocked by the older Nara's calmness. Shikaku handed the cigarette to his son, who gratefully accepted it.
"Ino." Shikamaru said numbly.
"Ino huh? I'm assuming you found out about this just recently?" he asked. His son nodded. The remaining people in the room described the story in a huddled group, while Shizune talked to Inaru. After hearing, Shikamaru's father still didn't show any surprise, just nodding thoughtfully. Shikamaru looked down at his own son again, to find the boy with a scowl on his face. Before he could even ask, Inaru grunted.
"Smoking is bad for you." he stated simply. Shikamaru looked at the cigarette held in his hand. The two older Naras rolled their eyes.
"Come along, Inaru. We need to get you washed up." said Shizune, taking a moment to kick Shikamaru in the shin for his un-fatherly action. Hard.
Inaru looked reluctant to go.
"Cleaning is so bothersome." he muttered, in a perfect I-don't-want-to-be-troubled-with-such-'effort'-required-tasks look. Shikaku laughed out loud.
"Can you take me to my Mommy?" he asked suddenly, looking up at his father. Shikamaru gawked. Has anyone told him what had become of his mother? Shizune motioned for the shadow user to follow her to a corner.
"He was knocked out during the attack. We haven't broken the news to him yet." she whispered. He nodded. Great.
Shikamaru strode across the room, and knelt down next to his son. "Inaru, would you like to come back to my place? I have some things that I need to explain to you." he said kindly. On the outside, the shadow user was calm and composed, though on the inside he was freaking. How am I supposed to explain to the poor kid that his was mother was slaughtered by bandits? All the hard-core ANBU training in the world couldn't prepare me for this! Jeez, what a life.
Though he was a little unconfident in his ability to care for young children, Shikamaru had worked with Iruka in the Academy for a few months before becoming ANBU, so he had a grasp on how little kids worked. The thought of breaking this to his mom, not to mention the pushed aside grief of losing Ino buzzed in the back of his skull as he prepared himself to have his little 'talk' with Inaru. The Black OPS had changed the Nara a bit through the years, and his childhood laziness still lingered strongly, but he put his duty to Konoha first. He was surprised with himself, amazed at his own ability to mask his battling emotions so well. It had been part of his training, but still.
Kakashi, Tsunade, Shizune and Shikaku stood in amazement as Shikamaru Nara, the laziest man in the village, took charge and left with Inaru.
"Unbelievable. All those years of moaning and groaning about the missions I send him on, and he's actually capable of responsibility? Call me crazy, but I think our little Shikamaru is growing up!" cried Tsunade.
"About time." muttered Shikaku. There was a pause in the atmosphere.
"Welp, that's enough drama for me." Shizune stated, and left out the window. Kakashi sighed.
"Who would've thought. Do you think he'll be okay raising that child?" drawled the copy-nin.
"I could only guess. He was good helping at the academy, so I think he can handle it. Though I'm more worried about his mental state." she muttered. Shikaku and Kakashi gave her questioning glances.
"This is the second time now. First it was Asuma, and now Ino. I wouldn't be too concerned except for the fact that he was just told his old team mate and apparent lover was killed, and he now has to be responsible for his four year old son. Plus the fact that he has to go through telling the kid about Ino and that he has to balance being ANBU and being a father. He didn't handle Asuma's death too well, and don't know how he will handle this one. I know he has been trained to conceal his emotions, but he's only human. Poor kid. And I know that all you ANBU are secretly just bundles of nerves, with all that killing and bloodshed. I know I couldn't handle that job." she said, directing her last comment at Kakashi.
It was true. ANBU had to carry out assassinations almost constantly. Killing does a lot to people, and by the end of their lives, many ANBU are a mess. Even the most hard core shinobi were secretly always trying to cope with their last kill. Shikamaru had enough on his plate as it was, and adding the death of Ino and the responsibility of a son worried Kakashi.
"I'll talk to him later tonight." said Shikaku, and left out the door. Kakashi sighed and glanced at the Hokage, as if saying 'lets see how it works out.' She nodded.
Ok! I'm getting really into this story, so I think I'm going to make it two chapters. Tell me what I should work on! Flames will be used to feed my cute little fire-kitten... Though tips are greatly appreciated! I can't tell if the story is babbling or not. I guess I like it, but is the story line weird? Is Shikamaru too O.C.? I tried to explain his calmness because of his ANBU rank, so this story is a little AU.
*For all those who haven't heard this expression, it means that there is a topic that everyone is avoiding. I know a lot of foreigners have trouble with english expressions. I just learned it myself actually!