Chapter one
It was foggy out; Shikamaru always noted the fog, because it made everything more of a drag. Two months ago Asuma-sensei died fighting Akatsuki members, he remained strong in front of Ino and Choji for their sakes, but no one, not even his mother, who was by far the most troublesome woman he would probably ever meet, knew how much he had been struggling since then. He strolled down the road towards Hokage tower, Lady Tsunade had summoned him. It started raining as he made his way up the tower steps, as much as he disliked fog, rain was worse, it just served to remind him of how helpless he'd been when his Sensei had died.
When he stepped into Tsunade's office, there was another man standing there, he was middle-aged, shorter than average, with scruffy brown hair that was balding in places, and thick glasses.
"You summoned me, Lady Tsunade?" Shikamaru asked.
"Yes, this is Ken'ichi Stodataaka; you are going to be his bodyguard." She stated.
"Where will we be going?" he asked.
"Our relations with Kirigakure are very good at the moment, and we are trying to form an alliance, so Ken'ichi is going to be an ambassador." She replied.
Shikamaru nodded at Ken'ichi, and then looked back at the Hokage.
"When do we leave?" he asked.
"At the end of the week." She answered.
Ken'ichi left and Shikamaru turned to face Tsunade.
"Not to question you Lady Tsunade; but why am I being sent on this mission, surely a Jonin would better qualified." He asked.
"Originally I was going to assign Genma, but Ken'ichi requested you, he watched your Chunin exams fight with the Kazekage's sister; Temari. He was quite impressed." She said.
"I forfeited that fight, Temari won." He said.
"Never the less, you are assigned and that is that." She said.
Shikamaru could tell by the tone in her voice that the conversation was over, and anything else he said might get him in trouble for insubordination, his mother would use the same tone, occasionally.
"Oh, and Shikamaru" Tsunade said as he turned to leave. "This mission could last for a minimum of two years." She sounded a lot gentler than she had moments ago.
He hesitated in reaching for the door knob. Two years? His mother wouldn't be pleased that he'd gone for so long, yet happy that he was getting such an important mission.
"Alright, I'll pack accordingly." He said.
"I'll be getting a message from the Mizukage soon about your living arrangements; I will let you know what you'll need to take." She said.
"Ok."
He left the Hokage's tower and headed for Yamanaka Flowers, Shikamaru knew he should tell his mother first, but if he went home, he wouldn't want to go back out. Stepping in he saw Sai at the counter talking with Ino.
"Um, black flowers aren't the best thing to give your girlfriend. Sakura's patient with you, but even she has her limits." Ino said.
"But I chose black, because it reminds me of the ink I use to make art, I thought it would be sentimental like she was as beautiful as art." Sai said.
"Well it reminds the rest of us of death. Red roses are best, roses are the flower of love, and red is Sakura's favorite color." She said.
Ino looked up and saw Shikamaru standing in the doorway.
"Oh, Shikamaru!" She said. "Are you here to get flowers for someone?"
I probably should get some flowers for mom, to help break the news
"Yeah, and I wanted to tell you something." He said.
Ino looked at him curiously.
"Well, tell me what you wanted to say and then I'll help you with the flowers." She said.
"I'm getting sent on a mission to Kirigakure. I'm going to be a bodyguard for an ambassador; I'll be gone for at least two years." He said. "The flowers are for breaking the news to my mother."
Ino's face fell slightly, but she put on a cheerful façade almost immediately. "Alright I would suggest one of the bouquets over there." She said pointing to a display.
Shikamaru turned to look at the flowers and saw Sai writing in his notebook.
"Um what are you doing?" Shikamaru asked.
Sai looked up.
"I was taking notes of how to give and receive hard news." He said.
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. After deciding on a bouquet that had lot of his mother's favorite flowers, he said goodbye to Ino and made his way to the Akimichi's house. When he knocked, the door was answered by Choza.
"Ah, Shikamaru, how are you?" he asked.
"I'm fine, thank you. Is Choji home?" Shikamaru said.
"Yes, he's in the living room." Choza replied, letting Shikamaru in.
Choji was sitting on the couch reading, and snacking on his favorite flavor of chips. When Shikamaru entered the room, he looked up and smiled.
"Hey Shikamaru, what's up?" he asked.
Shikamaru decided to get straight to the point; it wouldn't change anything to beat around the bush.
"I have a mission; I'll be gone for a minimum of two years." Shikamaru stated.
Choji put his book down and placed his chip bag on a side table.
"Where are you going or can you not say?" Choji asked
"Kirigakure, I'm going to be a bodyguard." He answered.
"When do you leave?"
"At the end of the week, Lady Tsunade is sending me a scroll about living arrangements, today or tomorrow, as well as the travel papers." Shikamaru saw Choji's face fall, it was more noticeable than with Ino, but then again, Choji always tended to wear his emotions on his sleeve.
"I have to go home and tell my parents." He said.
Choji nodded and showed him out. Shikamaru decided to take his sweet time going home, so he could try to figure out how to tell his parents, namely his mother. She would be upset that he was leaving for so long, and would probably fuss over him until the end of the week. The rain had cleared up since he'd left Yamanaka flowers, and it was just damp out now. He wondered how much contact he'd be able to have with his family, probably just a 'how are you I'm fine' every couple of weeks whether he was or not, that was typically how these missions ran; fabric of a shinobi stitched together with S-class secrets. When his house came into view, he stopped and took a deep breath, then closed the distance.