I do not own any of the Naruto characters or places. I do however own the plot.
Village Hidden in Time: Legend of the Infinity Shinobi:
They are legends, just legends, of blind shinobi with the ability to bend time. They are said to have lived in the Land of Fire in the Village Hidden in Time, but no record of any such village has ever been found. However, sightings of blind ninja with head bands that had the infinity symbol. Strange deaths have become more frequent. Maybe there is more to the legend that meets the eye.
Chapter One:
Askari knelt down in the undergrowth of the forest, her eyes trained on her teammates, Ichi and Hani. She leaned forward on the balls of her feet as she reached up and touched the ear piece of her head set.
"What are you two waiting on?" she hissed. "We'll lose the target."
There was a pause and Askari could just imagine Ichi rolling his dark brown eyes.
"We haven't been told to do anything yet, you idiot," snapped Ichi.
Askari bite back an angry retort. Of course Ichi was right. Ichi was always right. Hani sighed over the airway and static rushed at them. She quickly darted forward and duck behind a tree. She was really pushing it. If the target caught sight of her too soon, their cover would be blown sky high.
"Go," said their sensai.
Askari, Ichi, and Hani all rushed forward. Ichi dove head first at the target and grabbed it by the legs.
"I got you, you dumb mutt!" cried Ichi triumphantly.
"Confirmation?" inquired their sensai.
"Got it," said Hani. "A blue crescent dog tag."
There was a puff of smoke, a loud pop, and their sensai appeared. Ichi held on tightly to the struggling dog and sat up.
"Well done," said their sensai.
"Shika-sensai, is there any point to this at all?" asked Hani.
Shikamaru Nara surveyed the three young genin. They really were such an odd bunch. Ichi was a bossy know-it-all with a sharp tongue. Askari was wild and loud. But Hani was a shinobi after his own heart. Meaning she didn't see the point in staying awake during class, excelling in school work meant nothing to her, and her IQ was just short of Shikamaru's own. It was safe to say that Shikamaru and Hani were almost just alike.
"The point is to bring money into the village," said Shikamaru, "but other than that there's no point whatsoever."
"I thought as much," said Hani.
Ichi and Askari exchanged a quick look. They both knew they were on a team with a couple of lazy bums. Ichi tucked the dog under his arm and stood up. They four made their way back to the village.
"Once we return the dog, I'll take you three to lunch," said Shikamaru. "My treat."
"Alright, Shika-sensai!" said Askari loudly, punching the air. "You do rule."
Shikamaru dug his hands into his pants pocket and managed to hold onto his nonchalant attitude. He liked the genin, but he would never let them know it.
The mission's office was crowded for sure. There were genin, chunin, and jonin everywhere. The dog's owner, a fat woman with a very red complection, was over joyed at the sight of her 'puppy' (the thing was about half the size of Akamaru, Kiba's nindog) and promptly began to bury it in hugs.
"What a drag," said Shikamaru.
Hani nodded in silent agreement and went to lean against the wall next to him. Ichi rolled his eyes. Askari laughed. It was amazing how much Hani and Shikamaru looked alike. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail like his and she had the same bored expression. You'd swear they were related if you didn't know better.
"Yo, Shika!" shouted a blonde woman.
Shikamaru rolled his eyes. He looked up and saw Ino making her way towards them with her genin.
"What do you want, Ino?" asked Shikamaru like he was trying to get rid of her. "I'm really busy."
"Shikamaru, we've been friends since before we can remember," said Ino. "You've never been busy a day in your life."
"Of course I have," said Shikamaru. "After this I have lunch, and then I'm going home to do nothing which is very tiring so I will have to take a nap and when I wake up I'll be hungry. I'm very busy. My whole is booked."
"Wow," said Hani. "Four whole sentences."
A smile twitched at the corner Shikamaru's mouth, but he managed to suppress it. There was no way to deny it. Hani had a way of making him smile that no one else could, well except for Ino.
"Well, we must be off!" said Ino brightly.
She leaned over and kissed Shikamaru on the cheek. Hani folded her arms across her chest and glared at her feet. Shikamaru watched Ino leave before turning back to his own team. He looked down at Hani. He smirked and put his head on the top of her head.
"What's the matter, Honey," teased Shikamaru.
He knew very well that she hated that nickname, but didn't mind horribly when Shikamaru said it. Hani scowled at him and looked away.
"Is my little girlfriend jealous?" said Shikamaru.
"Get away from me, you child molester," said Hani.
She shrugged away from him and went to stand by Ichi, her back to her sensai.
"You really shouldn't tease her that way," said Askari. "It's a little mean."
Ichi hugged Hani only to get elbowed in the ribs. He jerked back and Shikamaru rolled his eyes. He checked his watch. It was lunch time now and he was actually planning on cooking for them.
"Let's go," said Shikamaru.
The three followed him, Hani still sulking. They went to edge of the village where the Nara's lived. It was a giant hilly expanse where they raised reindeer whose antlers were used for medicines. Shikamaru had lived with his parents until he was eighteen. He still lived on the grounds, but he had his own house, his own life, completely separate from his family's. his house sat about eighty yards from the main house. It wasn't big, but since he was the only one living there it didn't matter. He unlocked the front door and they went inside.
"It's a bit messy," said Shikamaru. "Lady Hokage's had me running around so much I haven't had time to clean."
It was understandable. Their sensai had been busier than usual, but there was absolutely no excuse for this. There were dishes strewn everywhere. He had vest hanging from the backs of chairs and his shoes were kicked around the room. Ichi, who was a annoyingly OCD, nearly had a heart attack. It was taking everything he had to not start cleaning the place. Hani didn't really seem to mind. If you'd seen her room, you'd know why. Askari was speechless. They had been to their sensai's house before, but it hadn't looked like this before.
"I like it," said Hani. "It has a homey feeling."
Ichi and Askari looked at her like she was mad.
"You're being polite, right?" whispered Ichi into Hani's ear. "You don't mean that, right?"
"Of course I mean it," said Hani coolly. "Why wouldn't I mean it? I have no reason to lie to Shika-sensai."
A shudder ran t he length of Ichi's body. Hani could be a little scary sometime. It was something about her eyes. They were cool and bored, but it was like they hid some unspeakable danger. They were laughing at him, too. Like she knew something that no one else did and she enjoyed rubbing it in.
The big reveal for lunch was ramen.
"You know we could have bought some ramen from the village," commented Askari. "We didn't have to walk all they way here."
"It's free meal, isn't it?" said Shikamaru. "No complaining."
Hani didn't say a word until she had finished with her bowl and then she only paused to ask for seconds.
"What is wrong with you?" asked Askari.
Hani wiped her mouth clean with a napkin and didn't answer.
"What now?" asked Ichi once Hani had finished her third bowl. "We're free for the rest of the day."
"Training?" suggested Askari.
"Too troublesome," said Hani and Shikamaru in unison.
"You two have been spending too much time together," said Askari. "It's not healthy."
Ichi nodded in agreement, but didn't say anything. His ribs were still aching a little from the when she had elbowed him. Shikamaru dumped the dishes into the sink. He would probably wash them later. He heard something slam overhead and he looked up towards the ceiling.
"I must have left the attic window open," muttered Shikamaru. "Will one of you go up and close it?"
"I'll do it," said Hani.
She got up and made her way up the stairs. She opened the door to the attic and sure enough the shudder was open and was hitting the side of the wall. Hani looked around. The attic was cleaner than the rest of the house, just a little dusty. Everything was in neat stacks and there were no cob webs. One the window were pale thin blue curtains that were blowing in the wind. Hani went over to shut them, but a particularly strong burst blew open a box and papers went everywhere. Hani forced the window shut and went to pick them up.
They were pictures of Shikamaru when he was younger. His old team. Ino, Choji, and Asuma. She was so caught up in the pictures that she didn't notice her sensai come up behind her.
"I see you've found my old box," said Shikamaru.
Hani started and whipped around. A blush crept up her face.
"I'm sorry," said Hani.
Shikamaru laughed quietly and went over to her. He knelt down beside her and picked up one of the pictures. A smile softened hi face.
"Choji was always eating something," said Shikamaru. "He even tried to eat Akamaru. He kidnaped him and brought him to his house. When Kiba found out there was absolutely no mercy for him."
"How do you steal something that big?" asked Hani, thinking of Akamaru.
Shikamaru dug through the pictures and found one. He held it up to Hani. It was of Kiba when he was younger. He was standing with his sister in front of her clinic. A small Akamaru was sitting on his head.
"Akamaru wasn't always that big," said Shikamaru.
"He was absolutely adorable!" said Hani. "Kiba's not that bad either."
"I'm going to forget I've heard that," said Shikamaru.
"How touching," said a voice.
Shikamaru's head snapped up as a strange ninja jumped out from behind a trunk. Hani got to her feet a fraction of a second after Shikamaru. She grabbed a kunei knife from her bag and stood at the ready.
"Stay back, Hani," said Shikamaru.
Hani back away so that she was pressed against the wall. Shikamaru made a series of hand signs.
"Leaf village, shadow possession jutsu!" cried Shikamaru.
The ninja froze, unable to move from the jutsu's effect.
"Hani," said Shikamaru.
"Yes, Sensai?" said Hani.
"My chakra won't hold for much longer," said Shikamaru. "It's up to you. Kill him."
Hani's eyes went wide. Kill him? With a shaking hand Hani raised her knife ready to throw it. She released it and slashed the ninja's arm. Unfortunately that was the moment that the shadow possession jutsu wore off. The ninja threw a knife of his own. It went home. Straight into Shikamaru's chest.