Easy Life

Becoming an assassin was never part of Shikamaru's plan. So when his finger hugged the trigger, he really asked himself if this was what he wanted to be. He was positioned at a vantage point that overlooked the rooftop the target occupied. His eye peered through the scope that magnified his eyesight. His workmate Choji was being lookout, as he always is. His other workmate Ino was being bait, as she always was. They had been a team for about a month, though they had known each other much longer, and Shikamaru still did not know if this was the life for him. Of course, the pay was more than superb, but would a regular life be better than all of this madness? The question crossed his mind more than once and he was too afraid to admit the truth. He should have never gotten himself involved, especially at the age of 18. But it was too late to back out now. If the higher ups found out about any of his internal conflicts, he would be eliminated on the spot.

"Shikamaru, hurry up." He heard her faint whispers through his ear piece.

"Yeah." He zoomed in at the target who was currently chatting away with Ino. They had been conversing for a while now. It was always Ino's job to seduce the target and lead him out of public sight. And that was where Shikamaru came in. He had decided to choose the most mentally and physically challenging role of an assassin, a marksman. His life was dedicated his rifle and nothing else. Why did he do this? He doesn't know himself. At the moment, Shikamaru was jotting down some notes and surveying the area. His eyes scanned the lower floors of the dimly lit parking lot structure. It seemed clear but he could never be too sure. "I'm ready for the shot. Distract him and distance yourself Ino."

The target spontaneously reached out and offered his arm, which she took hesitantly. Shikamaru sighed in annoyance and readjusted himself slightly. "Oi, I can't get a clear shot if you're all up on him like that."

The man lowered himself to the girl's ear and whispered something. Ino violently shook her arm away with wide eyes. She tried to relay her message to her team but found her mouth covered by a hand. The man hooked an arm around her neck, putting her in an effective choke hold. Shikamaru had never encountered a situation as this, not even in training camp (which was stupid because you'd think these scenarios need the most preparation for in assassination missions). Grumbling, he adjusted his aim and zeroed into the target. He immediately recognized the consequences of this shot. He could not shoot, as the bullet was a threat to Ino as well. Or at least, he told himself not to shoot, but a mission is a mission. They had punched that into their heads enough already at the academy. He tried to slow his breathing as much as he could. He accounted for the light wind of the night and the flight of his bullet.

"Shikamaru, you're really going to-"

"Hn." Shikamaru already knew what the end of Choji's sentence was going to be. Choji shakily backed away in awe and decided he did not want to see. He had always feared of this. If they were never going to see Ino, a childhood friend, ever again, he wishes to at least not witness the horror. He could only feel pity for his close friend behind him, armed with a sniper that could potentially kill her. If she were to die by his hands, Choji knew Shikamaru would never forgive himself. But this is the harsh reality of the life of an assassin.

Every beat his heart beat, Shikamaru felt it. He felt every rush of oxygen into his lungs with each steady breath. The lack of blinking dried his eyes as they stared through the cross hairs. As soon as the light wind diminished, his finger involuntarily squeezed the trigger. The sound of the gunshot sliced through the silent night air of Tokyo. Shikamaru saw red splatter everywhere on the opposite edifice. The bullet struck the man in the neck and down he went. Ino fumbled around in panic and rushed to the stairwell.

"We need to get out of here. They knew." Her two teammate's eyes widened and they started to pack their gear.

"Wait, get a positive I.D. on the target."

"No need. He's a fake. I'll explain later Choji."

After climbing a flight of stairs, they finally regrouped in an alleyway nearby. The team of three speedily trekked their way to their vehicle in silence. They now sported black raincoats and scarves. Shikamaru held onto a briefcase and Choji had a backpack strapped on. Ino hung her head low to hide the blood smeared across the left side of her face.

"Hey, you three. What are you doing here so late?"

Their footsteps ceased and they stood in place, frozen.

"I'm only going to ask once more, what the fuck are you doing here?"

Shikamaru turned around and faced the two men. "My siblings and I got lost sir."

He internally kicked himself in the mind for adding "siblings" for whatever reason. They looked nothing alike nor had any family relations. Choji and Ino hesitantly turned to the pair now.

"Siblings? You guys look nothing alike."

"Uh, right...We're adopted." Choji tried his best to flash a smile and sell that there was nothing going on.

"I'm not buying it. There was something going on earlier and it just might be the three of you." One man smiled viciously and raised a finger to Shikamaru. "Hey kid, let me check your briefcase."

If these guys were working for the target and knew of all this, they did not approach the situation very well. But knowing the target and his cheap behavior, he would probably hire dimwitted henchmen anyways. "You want to check? Sure."

Shikamaru tightened his grip on the handle and swung it with all his force. An audible crack was heard upon contact with a jaw. His partner reached into his shirt for a possible gun but before he could grab anything, Ino's hand came out from her pockets and swiped at the man's throat in a flash. A small switchblade was revealed securely wrapped by her fingers. He began to choke and sputter as he fell to the ground. His hands found his neck and attempted to stop the bleeding. The three did not waste any time and dashed off to their destination. They weaved around the tight corners and dodged the open streets of Tokyo. When they had reached the last of their corners, they found a sleek black sedan.

"Hey, Kiba finally hooked us up." Choji examined the interior as he loosened his already messy tie.

"Yeah, well you should focus on getting us out of here quick. I'm in need for a shower." Ino picked up some loose magazines in the back and tried to wipe off the now dried blood on her.

"Wake me up when we get there." Sighing, Shikamaru reclined his passenger seat and raised his forearm to cover his eyes. The life of a hitman. How troublesome.

.

.

It had been at least half an hour when they arrived at the immense pile of metal called HQ. On the outside, it was a luxurious hotel. On the inside though, a luxurious hotel was only half of the story. Within the Konoha Suites, there were countless of "societies". From intelligence to sports, they had it all. The most secretive though was the Anbu Black Ops of the Konoha corporation. The underground operations group possessed an immense network across all of Japan. They were the most well known but then, again not known at all.

Their offices were in the basement and the very top floors of the skyscraper. The assassins were granted housing here in return for their contract kills. There were garages that held their cars and they had open access to the utilities and activities. They lived lives of the wealthy. The life of a professional murderer came with sacrifice though, as they were not allowed to openly discuss any work (of course, who would anyways?) and were not allowed to be out in public that much. On top of the rules, mental sacrifices were inevitable. The constant murder and crime could take a toll on a hitman's mind, even if they were conditioned in academy.

Knock Knock.

"Come in." The metal door slid open to reveal three disheveled teens. "You guys look like shit."

The four of them laughed and the team began to report. When they had nearly ended, Ino gave the most crucial detail of the mission.

"It seems as though our mission was known of from the start. The target was a double and he told me what was happening. That dumbass, revealing their plans like that."

"He must have done it with a motive though. I don't think anyone is stupid enough to do that, Ino." Shikamaru fiddled around with a random pen.

"The Red Cloud Yakuza always has a motive for their actions. I would think this is no different." Asuma puffed some smoke as he examined the stack of papers resting on his desk. "They could have done it to throw us off."

"He certainly tried to strangle her. Maybe he would have brought you somewhere if you had been kidnapped." Choji sat to the side, munching on a power bar.

"Hm. He took hold of Ino, then what?" Asuma set his hands on his desk and let the last of his cigarrette burn out before crushing it in the ashtray. The three silenced and dreaded their leader's eye contact.

"Well, you see Shikamaru was put in a hard place. He had to shoot past Ino to the man...and it was-"

"I see. Well, these things are common. Ino, Chouji from the sound of this, you've all had a long night. Go." The sound of chairs against the tile floor filled the ephemeral silence. "Shikamaru, a word."

The teenager sighed and fell back down into his seat.

"I understand that it was hard to make that decision. But I know you had to."

"She could have died had I missed, Asuma."

"You dwell on the past too much. It hasn't even been 24 hours yet. Focus on the present, that's the difference between life and death. What matters is you're all here breathing still." Shikamaru did not respond and fidgeted his fingers.

"Anyways, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about mainly." Asuma slid a packet of papers in front of Shikamaru's eyes. "I'll be removing you from the squad for a while."

"What?!" Shikamaru shot up from his seat, confusion and anger in his eyes.

"Sasuke has returned from injury and Sai is taking your place. This is only short term, but it is possible it can turn into a long term thing."

"What do you mean?"

"We've had negotiations with our allies Suna. They've sent a representative from their home of Kyoto to us. I expect you to accompany her."

"I have to be there with Ino and Choji. Who's going to look out for them?!"

"Are you questioning Sai's abilities?"

"No. It's just I can't let them go out like that!"

"Shikamaru, you've learned this at the academy. Never let your feelings in the way of your work."

He had lost the fight, but this was his one chance of hope. "Who's decision was this?"

"Kakashi's."

Fuck. There was no way he could argue out of this now. Shikamaru did not care of whatever this task was. He feared not being there for his team. He feared not being able to protect his team and worst of all, he feared his team would never come back.

"I'll explain more tomorrow, it's late. You are dismissed." The teenager did not need to be told twice and bolted out of the office. He navigated through the hallways to his room and shut the door behind him. He sighed at the mess that lay in front of him. Shikamaru had forgotten about the ruckus that took place this morning amidst his rush. He had knocked over his small bookshelf, causing books to be strewn all over his wooden floor. He decided he would clean it tomorrow and trudged his way to the bathroom for a much needed shower.

After finishing all his nightly routines, he finally lay in bed. His eyes met the ceiling, studying the various patterns etched in it. He could only let his mind wander until sleep took him. He thought back to his conversation with Asuma and how he mentioned the representative was a "her". Indeed, this was going to be troublesome.