VISITING HOUR
If being smart means what you say, then I'll be a fool for the rest of my life.
Naruto's words still rang in Shikamaru's head like bells that wouldn't stop. Naruto along with Neji, Chouji, and Kiba were left hospitalized from the mission embarked on to save Sasuke from Orochimaru, and, more importantly, from himself.
Hm. I guess revenge is a powerful thing. How troublesome. To think we could have stood a chance against the Sound Four is beyond me. Shikamaru thought as he walked the halls of the Hidden Leaf Hospital.
It took Shikamaru a load of guts to even set foot in the hospital. He couldn't go anywhere lately knowing that on his first mission as a newly made Chunin, he not only failed, but his entire team had been hospitalized, three of them in critical condition and one who had a few cuts and bruises. Naruto Uzumaki, he was an interesting one. He always had that special talent of going the furthest, but leaving with the least.
Of all of us, he was the only one who had gotten to Sasuke himself, and fought to his last breath. From what I hear from Kakashi, Sasuke was able to beat him, even though Naruto was the most headstrong knucklehead he knew. His condition was particularly bad, but Naruto had a special trait about him: his mysterious quality of being able to heal exceptionally fast. It was beyond all understanding. This, of course, is how he was able to get out of his heartbreaking battle with Sasuke with nothing but a few cuts and bruises, while the others fought in the hospital to stay alive while in near-death condition.
Shikamaru signed in with the hospital reception and proceeded down the hallway to the elevator. The receptionist had given him a list of those he was allowed to see, and their room numbers. He looked at the list and realized that the only ones he was allowed to see were Kiba and Naruto. He half expected this to happen. Kiba was badly wounded, but it was nothing that required top priority medical attention. Naruto, well, his battle with Sasuke he assumed was intense, but considering what Lady Hokage had said when he brought him back to Konoha, Shikamaru wasn't surprised that Naruto ended up with minor injuries.
~Flashback~
Kakashi Hatake, also known as 'The Copy Ninja' of the Hidden Leaf, dashed through the trees, carrying an unconscious Naruto in his arms. Naruto was very badly wounded. Kakashi found him unconscious lying down on the cold stone of the Valley of the End, drenched in the pouring rain. Sasuke's Hidden Leaf headband was lying next to him. Sasuke intended to leave everything behind him, and with defeating Naruto in battle, he had accomplished his goal.
Naruto.. Kakashi thought. Knowing you, he must've put up a damn good fight.
Kakashi finally arrived in the Hidden Leaf, rushing him to the emergency center. Once he arrived, he saw the 5th Hokage, trying to organize the hectic activity that was going on in the emergency center. He immediately rushed to her.
"Tsunade."
Tsunade whirled around, expecting to see another meaningless hospital form or paperwork of some sort.
"What!" She yelled, but then stopped herself when she realized it was Kakashi. Her eyes met his, and that had calmed her down. Just by the look in the copy ninja's eyes, she was sent spiraling into a somewhat somber mood.
"We have one more." Kakashi said in a somewhat hushed and somber tone. Tsunade's gaze shifted from Kakashi's eyes to his cargo. Naruto Uzumaki. A moment of silence passed by before Tsunade put her hand on the Genin's wet forehead, then slid down to his whiskered cheek. A tear dropped down from her left eye as she stared at the boy in silence for a moment.
"So. He got Naruto did he..?" She said in a quiet tone. "Who would've thought."
Tsunade took Naruto in her arms and looked at Kakashi with a grateful expression on her face. She was met with a nod of the Jonin's head, who then disappeared. Tsunade rushed Naruto to an emergency room, where he was patched up while in his unconscious state.
Shikamaru waited outside the room Naruto was in, tempted and aggravated at the red surgical light that stopped him from seeing his friend in need. Shikamaru was silent as Tsunade walked out of the emergency room, removing her surgical gloves and mask. She noticed that Shikamaru was the only one in the waiting room. Though this isn't surprising to her, because this was the room Naruto was in. All of the villagers hated him for the 9-tails incident that had happened 13 years before. This thought in mind, she looked at the shadow ninja, and he looked back at her with a worried face.
Tsunade's eyes relaxed as she walked over to Shikamaru, throwing her gloves and mask into a biohazard waste container. She sat down next to Shikamaru, and let a few silent moments pass by.
"Shikamaru, this was your first mission leading as a Chunin, am I mistaken?"
"No ma'am. It was my first mission."
Tsunade looked around the room, trying to find the words.
"Shikamaru, it is absolutely wonderful that you care about your friends. That's why you're here, is it not?"
Shikamaru shifted his gaze from the Hokage to the floor and nodded.
"..Yeah." He sighed.
"Shikamaru, that is why I respect you. You are an excellent leader, by the likes that will go very far in your career as a shinobi. I trust you with all my heart. I know that you would follow your comrades to the very end, and that is why you are an excellent shinobi in my eyes."
He slowly turned his head and looked back at the Hokage, tears streaming down his face from both eyes. He shook his head at her in an angry and sad way. He stood up from the bench and looked right into the Godaime's eyes.
"No, no I'm not!" He yelled. "I'm nothing but a coward. If I was what you said, I wouldn't be sitting here. If I were a good leader and a caring comrade, I would be in one of these rooms, suffering with my comrades! Not waiting for them, hoping that everything was going to be okay like a God damn child!"
He threw his fist at the wall as he yelled and sobbed. He slammed the rest of his arm perpendicular to the wall and dug his face into the crook of his arm, letting it soak up his tears as he cried. Tsunade just let Shikamaru let it out. It was what he desperately needed. After a moment, he somewhat regained control of himself. He walked over to the Hokage, who wore a calm but serious face.
"On top of all that, we failed the mission! We couldn't get Sasuke back, even when we fought until all of us nearly dropped dead. Chouji nearly died of physical exhaustion and a crushed throat, Neji had countless wounds from sand kunai and arachnid venom embedded into his chakra network and is now near death, Kiba and Akamaru are in critical condition from chakra exhaustion and numerous blade wounds,-" Shikamaru paused to bring his thumb up to his left eye and clean a tear off of his face. " and Naruto—"
"Is going to be just fine." Tsunade interrupted.
Shikamaru stopped almost immediately, now staring at the Hokage with wide eyes, eyes holding a glimmer of hope.
"Shikamaru, I see that you have done your homework. You seem to know each of your squad mates' conditions by heart, that is, except for Naruto's. Well, I guess I'll fill you in. He has suffered from severe chakra depletion; he also has multiple wounds caused by kunai and shuriken: three in his chest, two in his abdomen, two on his left shoulder and one on his right thigh. He also has 3rd degree burns on his abdomen and chest from fire style jutsu, and is currently unconscious." Tsunade reported.
The tactician looked into her eyes with utmost disbelief. "But how… how is he still alive after all of that!"
Tsunade just looked at the curious Shikamaru, trying to find what to say next. She knew that only she, the 3rd Hokage, and Kakashi knew about how it is the Kyuubi's doing that allows Naruto to heal himself naturally at an exponential rate. Nobody else knew about how Kyuubi was sealed inside of Naruto, so she knew that she had to be careful with her wording.
"Naruto is going to be fine because his body is of Senju descent." She said.
Shikamaru looked at her like she had two heads.
Tsunade sighed. "You don't know what that means, do you."
Shikamaru shook his head in genuine curiosity.
"Since he is of Uzumaki origin, his bloodline traces back to the Senju clan, the clan of the First Hokage."
Shikamaru's eyes widened.
"Let me ask you something. Have you ever noticed how I can use my chakra reserves that I build up in my forehead to rapidly heal my body?"
"Oh yeah, Naruto mentioned something like that to me when he returned from a training mission with Master Jiraiya." Shikamaru replied, finally understanding a little bit.
"Well, that is because I am of Senju origin also. I am the granddaughter of the First Hokage."
Shikamaru slightly opened his mouth in shock of what he had just heard from the Fifth.
"I inherited my healing powers from the Senju bloodline, which happens to also be linked to the Uzumaki clan. You see, Naruto also inherited this same power, and that is why he was able to stay alive."
~END Flashback~
Shikamaru glanced at the list as he was walking, folded it up and put it in his Chunin vest.
I guess I'll see Kiba first. I know he was pretty banged up.
The raven walked to the elevator, pressed the up button and walked inside. He went up to the third floor, where the majority of his fallen comrades were recuperating.
He stepped out of the elevator down the hall, observing the signs on the doors. He noticed one nurse was removing the nametag on one of the doors. Shortly after, a family of four appeared at the door with tulips and sorrowful faces. Shikamaru paused to observe the scene taking place. Clutching his heart, he said a short prayer in his mind and moved on to see his friend. Further down the hall, he walked up to the door the read "253 – Inuzuka Kiba". He turned the door handle and walked inside.
Kiba slowly shifted his head from staring at the ceiling to look at Shikamaru. He was met with a soft smile as his eyes met the raven's, and Kiba relinquished a laid back smile of his own as his eyes relaxed on Shikamaru's image.
"Hey bud, how ya doin?" Kiba said hoarsely, obviously struggling with letting the words out.
"Ha ha, good one." The raven said sarcastically. "I should be asking you."
"Oh come on, Shikamaru. Do you really think that I would be the kind of guy that worries about himself all the time?"
Shikamaru laughed. "Nope, I guess not. You never were that type of guy. You're way too headstrong to look after yourself."
"Well, as long as we make it out okay in the end, I don't care what happens to me in the meantime." Kiba said assuringly.
A moment of silence passed before the raven opened his mouth.
"Kiba, you really shouldn't think of yourself that way. You're better than that."
Kiba laughed at Shikamaru's heartfelt statement.
"Hey, come on, I thought that you would know me enough by now to realize that I'm all about the team, and not at all about myself."
Kiba sat up in sudden jolt. "Speaking of which, how is everyone else doing?"
Shikamaru paused. "Um, well, last time I checked, Chouji and Neji are still in intensive care, but their conditions have stabilized."
"And Naruto?" Kiba asked as if the raven forgot about him.
"I'm going to see him after we chat. From what Lady Tsunade told me, he was in really bad shape."
Kiba's eyes did not leave the shadow ninja's for a second.
"And what about Sasuke? Did Naruto get him?" Kiba asked anxiously. Shikamaru just looked at him. That was enough for Kiba to know exactly what happened.
Kiba laid back down looking sad and unsatisfied at the very least. Shikamaru wasn't sure if he was mad at him, or if he was just mad at himself. Shikamaru slowly moved his eyes to the ground with a light frown.
"We are so pathetic."
Shikamaru looked up at Kiba at his startling words. Of all the things Kiba could've said, that was about the last thing Shikamaru expected to hear.
"Don't say that Kiba. I am proud of all of you. We all gave it everything we had."
Kiba shot a semi-angry look at the boy. "Yeah, we gave it everything we had, and failed miserably."
"Kiba, there was nothing we could've done."
"Shikamaru, please! Look around you! We gave it our best shot and where did it land us?"
Shikamaru looked back down.
"Four in the hospital and a lost Uchiha." The raven said as he clenched his fists.
Kiba just looked at Shikamaru, half expecting him to get up and walk away. After all, he didn't come to visit him to fight. This made Kiba kind of feel bad for his friend. He knew that it must've been hard for him to accept that his first mission leading as a Chunin was a failure.
"Shikamaru, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you like that. I-"
"No. Don't be. I deserve it." Shikamaru's eyes started welling up with tears. He didn't blame Kiba for getting mad at him in the least bit.
In reaction to his words, Kiba stopped and stared at the tactician, confused out of his mind. Why did Shikamaru deserve to be ridiculed by a teammate? He didn't, well at least to Kiba; Shikamaru wasn't to blame for the outcome of the mission.
"What..? How do you deserve it? You did everything that you could, remember?"
"No. If I did, then I would be the one in the hospital bed."
"Shika.."
"It's not fair to you guys that you are all in medical care while I got out almost without a scratch. I don't know what to tell you, Kiba. All I feel. All I have felt since that mission was filthy."
"Hey Shikamaru, do me a favor." Kiba said. Shikamaru looked up at the sudden words.
"What is it?"
"Come here." Kiba said, beckoning to him.
Shikamaru got up from the chair across the room to Kiba's bedside.
"Closer."
Shikamaru followed his orders.
Kiba whispered into his ear, with a hoarse voice.
"I need you… to shut your trap before I shut it for you."
At this, Shikamaru backed away cautiously about a foot away from Kiba, who was staring into his eyes. He didn't expect that. He didn't expect that at all.
"Wh—what..?" Shikamaru mumbled.
"Shikamaru, when you speak such words about yourself, you insult yourself. And by insulting yourself, you insult my friend, his efforts, and his team's efforts up to this point." Kiba explained.
Shikamaru listened intently to Kiba's words. He was right. If he went on depressed about his mission, he completely dulls and diminishes his team's efforts and morale.
Hm. The tactician thought. Kiba, looks like you're a better leader than I. After all, what kind of leader am I, who unknowingly goes around, swallowing up morale and the efforts of my team?
"Kiba."
Kiba replied with a look into the raven's eyes.
"Thank you." Shikamaru said.
"Anytime buddy. Just remember one thing. You are a Chunin now. Know that you need to take responsibility for a mission, be it success, or failure. And lead the Genin under you responsibly. You need to gain their trust and understand each and every one of them to guide them under your wing so that they will follow you with whatever action you take."
Shikamaru, with one last look down at the floor, nodded. He deeply thought that he failed to do all of these things. His comrades were wasting away in a hospital while he walked the streets unharmed.
"Kiba… I am so sorry. How could I ever lead shinobi when it turns out like this…Why should they follow me?"
"Shikamaru." Kiba said firmly, his voice less hoarse from talking.
The raven looked up into his fallen comrade's eyes, which were sincere in all respects.
"If I knew that you were to lead us on a mission again…"
Shikamaru blinked.
"I would… we would follow you anywhere." Kiba stated.
Shikamaru's eyes widened at Kiba's words as the hospitalized boy struggled to bring his arm up to his own face. Shikamaru glanced questioningly and cautiously at his friend's struggling and grunting, but Kiba ignored it. He slowly moved his hand to his forehead. Shikamaru's expression turned into one of genuine happiness and gratitude when he realized that what Kiba was doing with his hand, was saluting him.
Shikamaru smiled ear to ear as he walked back to Kiba's side and hugged him gently.
"Thank you Kiba. I won't fail any of you again."
Kiba smiled as he shook his head at the boy. "You never did."
At this, Shikamaru just tightened the hug a bit more, as tears of joy fell silently from his face when he closed his eyes amidst Kiba's embrace. He stayed like this for a good 10 seconds until he finally got off of Kiba. He wiped his eyes of the joyful tears. He suddenly noticed Kiba's dog, Akamaru lying on a smaller bed next to his owner.
"So how's Akamaru?" The raven said as he walked over to Kiba's companion pup. He had a small wooden support tied to his front right leg, and a patch on his left ear. His little head was buried in his paws as he slept comfortably.
"He should be fine, thanks for asking. Yeah he looked better than me when all was said and done, so that's good."
Shikamaru turned his head back to Kiba, and gave him a smiling nod. "Yeah, you bet it is."
Kiba laughed as Shikamaru walked back to the door.
"Kiba, thanks for everything. You really did make me feel better."
"No problem Shikamaru, anytime. By the way, say hi to Naruto for me, would you? And tell me how he's doing too, when you get the chance. These God damn nurses don't tell me anything around here.
"You got it buddy." Shikamaru laughed. "I'll see you later, get well soon!" He yelled as he waved his friend goodbye.
