A Troublesome Chance
A/N While I'm all for ShikaTema, it's a bit tough to set up. There just aren't enough arcs with the both of them... I'll figure it out, and you guys could throw out some more pairings too. I'm sticking with third person here too, it seems to be easier to get a good overall picture of what's going on. Without further ado, Chapter 2
Disclaimer- You have no idea how badly I'd want to own a character like Shikamaru... considering how often I use his catchphrase...
Chapter 1- The Facts of Reality pt1- The Academy
Shikamaru had grabbed his usual grey with green trim jacket to go with his mesh shirt and left to walk to the academy. It seemed like a simple task, well of course it would appear to be. He had been to that area for five years straight and had been familiar with the village for all his life, so why was it so tough? Simple really, blame the Akatsuki. Nagato had ripped a huge hole in the middle of Konoha, completely ruining all the streets people used to get around, so they had to find a new way. Which was generally longer. And that long way made a certain Nara late for the first of many troublesome academy days. He could still hear the young banshee version of Sakura screaming all class long, waking him up. If one thing could change with the next few days, it'd be that.
It was weird for Shikamaru to suddenly have shorter legs and a less mature body. Both would take some getting used to. All foolishness aside, the former Chuunin was spending the entire walk contemplating how he should go about the day, running a few ideas over through his head. He decided, in the end, to not seem too different as to arouse suspicion. Shikamaru paying attention in class was a sign of the apocalypse according to Iruka, and he'd have no idea how right that was. No, he couldn't act different, but he could pretend to improve and show his intelligence on the tests. He'd still get put with Chouji and Ino for their combination jutsu, and it would set the tone for a smarter, more influential version of himself.
He also needed to test and see how much of his abilities he retained. If he kept his chakra control that'd be great, considering it was a function of the brain on how much chakra to release, and assumed his knowledge was the same as previously. With that chakra control and familiarity with the clan's shadow jutsu, he should be able to use Kage Nui (shadow stitching) and Kagemane (shadow imitation) well enough once he builds up the reserves.
With his worries for the present, there was one from his past, err.. future. Asuma Sarutobi. He didn't know if he could act lazy and bored around the man at first and figured his memories would often get in the way of looking his sensei in the eyes. He'd have to deal with it in the time to come, and if his assumptions were right that was about a year.
I've got too much on my mind... he pointed out. I gotta take this one thing at a time, starting with my day at the academy. I'll observe everyone and make sure this is the past before I plan about the future. If they also know of the future, then I won't have to shoulder it all by myself, but I still need to figure out their speech, habits, actions. Anything that differs from what I remember will be cause for curiosity. Troublesome. He really wished sometimes that he had a one-track mind like Naruto and wouldn't find himself overthinking and worrying about the simplest of things. Especially those out of his control.
'Out of his control'... That described what he saw when he walked into the distantly familiar classroom. Naruto was in a one-sided shouting match with Sasuke, only to be knocked on the head by Sakura who was arguing with Ino. Kiba started talking about the jinchuuriki's stupidity, leading to another loud argument. The soon-to-be genin all wore their typical clothing that he remembered. Nothing out of the ordinary, like a Naruto with red hair or a smiling Sasuke.
Iruka wasn't in the room yet, so the tardy Nara was cleared and free to sit... where did he normally sit before? Next to Chouji I guess, he decided.
"Hey, Shikamaru!" Chouji greeted, munching on some chips. He wore the same dull green and grey shirt as before with the two swirls on his cheek and vertigo brown hair.
"Hey, Chouji. I know its troublesome, but do you remember how long from now we graduate?" He worded it carefully in his head, putting out the necessary information to make it seem like he still had the same 'troublesome' personality.
"I can't be more than a month now, I think." Shikamaru resisted using his signature word to reply. This Chouji definitely wasn't from the future. His friend was never one for subtleties, so he wouldn't be able to hide his stronger, more confident personality from the future so well. No, the Akimichi was surely still the overly caring, sorta shy, best friend that the pinapple-head was friends with. It was almost nostalgic and refreshing in a way to see him so innocent.
The madness around the rest of the room was going on, excluding Shino and Hinata, when Iruka walked in, pissed at the scene. "EVERYBODY SHUT UP AND GET IN YOUR SEATS!" His head was demonic and huge when he did that... "Anyways, we are going to have some spars today." Everyone cheered. "After a long lesson about the third shinobi war." Naruto practically died while the rest of the class just groaned in pain.
After muttering a quick troublesome, the Nara lay face-first on the desk and pretended to doze off. In reality, he was more attentive than ever. The events he heard lined up with what he established as the true occurences of the war. Sakumo messed up, huge fight with Iwa, Minato Namikaze, and the relatively minor skirmish with Kiri. Ha! Minor! Yet that one skirmish created so many problems with Rin and Obito. (A/N I'm just saying Shikamaru knew what happened, as it was probably mentioned or alluded to in front of the shinobi alliance during some point in the manga. If thats not the case, let me know.)
Finally, after numerous reminders of a test, the group of academy students was ushered outside for a quick lunch break. Naruto, unfortunately, had resumed his signature place on the swing of depression, while Chouji and Shikamaru had sat down at a table together, ignoring most of the other students. The whipped up some small talk, Chouji asking about his father and various clan matters, while Shikamaru tried his best to respond. He could always just tell Chouji of the future, the genjutsu and his suspicions. Sure I could convince him. But what would that mean for him? I can't place that burden on a friend, and I still don't know if it's a genjutsu or the past. He was more than inclined to say it was the past, as the genjutsu theory didn't align up enough. Naruto's attack could have blocked the jutsu and caused some space-time distortion or something wacky. That kind of theoretical subject wasn't the Nara's forte. In any case, if it was a genjutsu, it was a genjutsu with a similar to exact same past. Basically, to Shikamaru, it no longer mattered if it was either because he's still treat it the same way. There would be no way to dispel a sharingan jutsu used with that much chakra anyways, so might as well enjoy it.
"Shikamaru."
"Yeah?"
"You're going to finish those rice balls, right?" He gave a friendly grin as a response.
"Na, it'll be too troublesome if you want them, buddy." He passed the big bonned boy a couple, knowing he'll probably still be hungry after his lunch. "It'll be great if were on a team together in the future." He just meant it as a topic to get a decent conversation flowing in order to try to get the feel for how he'd normally act. It's definitely a challenge to go from a war zone to an education setting without warning and not be overly cautious or slightly emotionless. Especially after the white Zetsu incident.
"Hmm, I'd love to be on a team with you. Tou-san told me that we will be the next Ino-Shika-Cho. You guys will live up to it , but I'm no good at fighting."
"Troublesome Chouji... You'd be great at fighting the moment someone threatens someone you care about."
"Whatever you say, Shikamaru, you always seem to know this stuff anyways."
"Oh, and don't worry about Ino. She may be troublesome, but I'm sure she'll get over it." Have I revealed too much already? Naah, it's just Chouji. He'd never backstab me 'cause we trust each other with our lives and deepest secrets. Oooh, man now I can't say that one either, but I guess some responsibilities aren't meant to be shared, ne Asuma-sensei? He asked the question, looking up to the clouds as his normal habit. I gotta stop that habit too, Asuma's alive and well. "I think we should go ask Naruto to join us."
"Ya, he seems really lonely. I wonder why," replied Chouji, concerned for his classmate.
The two of them paused mid lunch to recruit the blond, the Akimichi of course grabbing his chips. Naruto was staring at the ground as some kids from fifty yards away pointed at him and laughed. Shikamaru had always thought that Naruto really had a tough life and overcame it in a peaceful, kind way. Even if that way was a little bit frivolous and involved large amounts of water balloons or paint.
"What's got you down, Naruto?" asked Shikamaru, trying not to associate this boy with the near godly powerful one in the future.
Naruto seemed to be surprised, making the Nara realize that no one must have asked him he was before other than Iruka. It immediately brought guilt to him that he never, in all five years of the academy, asked Naruto why he was upset, instead preferring the clouds and his best friend. It took him saving the village from Pein, confronting Obito, and time travel to ask a simple question.
Naruto then tried to put on a quick smile, failing. "It's alright guys, I'm fine."
"You just seem sad," pointed out Chouji. "If I was sad, I'd talk to Shikamaru, but you don't have anyone in our year. So you can talk to us." He sounded determined to help someone out, and that made Shikamaru grin. This is what our village was built on. Everyone caring for eachother and protecting their friends and comrades.
"Yeah, we're going to be your friends from here on out!" Declared Shikamaru, suprising both with his convition and the loudness of his voice.
"It's just that," he paused and gave the two a solemn look, "everyone seems to hate me when I didn't do anything wrong. They ignored me and glared, so I started doing some pranks and it's gotten better but-" He just stopped and leaned forward. "Every day, I see my classmates with their friends and wonder why I can't have any."
Shikamaru placed a hand on his comrade's shoulder and gave him an attempt at a smile. Should I tell him? Would it make him try any less if he knew he was the Yondaime's son? No, he is the epitome of perserverance if he has to go through this every day and still manages to be lighthearted. I'll tell him about the Kyuubi, or Kurama, or whatever his name is. With his new resolve, Shikamaru crouched down to the height of the sitting Naruto and answered his life-long question.
"I'm observant, you see," he began tentatively. "For a few years I've not a few discrepancies. To name a few, your birthday is the day of the Kyuubi attack, Bijuu have to be sealed, not killed, and those idiots calling you a demon."
"What are you saying?" replied the orange-wearing boy. Chouji also gave his friend an odd look, seeing how he never really puts himself into others' lives. He also wanted to know why Naruto was so hated, as he liked the obnoxious kid to an extent, and hated jibes and teasing.
"The villagers think you are the Kyuubi, but you're actually a jinchuuriki."
"WHAT?" He shouted back, standing above the crouching Shikamaru. In a calmer tone he added, "whats a jinchuuriki?"
"It means 'the power of human sacrifice.' The Yondaime sealed the Kyuubi into you because he thought you could control it, but the civilians needed a scapegoat for the attack and the fox was already gone. You understand what sealing is, right?" He was met with a nod, as expected from a Uzumaki. "You are like a scroll and the Kyuubi is a kunai. You contain it and keep it from going on another rampage." He wouldn't reveal knowledge of the masked Obito Uchiha, anyways. "The Yondaime probably wanted to use the power in the future."
Both of the two kids were stunned. Not only for the fact that Shikamaru had deduced all of this, and that what he deduced was completely insane. No, they were also surprised that he didn't add in one 'troublesome.' Chouji wondered what happened to his friend to make him significantly lazy, while Naruto in his overwhelming intelligence didn't find anything unusual.
"So I am the Kyuubi?"
"Weren't you listening?" Sighed Shikamaru. "Troublesome blond. It is sealed in you so you aren't the Kyuubi, and the civilians have no right to call you a demon."
Chouji tried to interrupt the following silence. "Come have some lunch with us Naruto."
"I don't have anything to eat. They shops won't let me buy enough food."
"Ehh, you can lend him some rice balls Chouji."
He nodded to the Nara in response and asked Naruto to follow them without any chance for the jinchuuriki to argue. They went back over to their small able while Shikamaru kicked back on his side and stared at the clouds. While the other two talked, he just thought about the past as he remembered it, and what he could have changed. I tried to do the right thing, Asuma-sensei. But what if the simple thing I changed leads Naruto to hate the village, and he never gets to save us from the Akatsuki? There are too many variables in play for me to calculate this. Whatever happens, I'll fulfill Naruto's dream. "I'll never give up! I'll bring the world true peace, no matter what!" Peace, that'd save us from a bunch of troublesome things... Shikamaru made a silent promise to his former and future teacher and one of his best friends to perservere through what's tough and at least save the future, even at the cost of peace.
He was sure Naruto and Chouji would get along, as they were both kind and overly protective of their friends. Their loudness levels may be a different story, both a challenge for later, but they'll help each other out in that respect.
After a quick remainder of the lunch break and one hungry Chouji later, the three of them followed the other kids into class. Not one person looked sideways at the three as they found seats near the back of the room. As usual, Iruka walked in to find the most infuriating type of kid, a Nara, sleeping face down. Honestly, Shikamaru thought he deserved some rest after holding down the Juubi for a few seconds and working his ass off to help his friends. Sleep was just his way for dealing with a lot of troublesome stuff. Now, Iruka didn't know that. All the other kids, even Naruto, were listening attentively for sparing partners, and this genius Nara had the nerve to constantly disrespect him.
"WAKE UP SHIKAMARU!" He commanded forcefully, throwing a piece of chalk at the boy. Naruto started laughing uncontrollably while the rest of the class seemed to face fault at the coud-watcher's antics. Chouji sighed and nudged his now awake friend to sit up and pay attention. Grudgingly, Shikamaru complied and listened while the matches were read off.
"Ino with Sakura, Naruto with Kiba, Sasuke with Shino, Shikamaru (Iruka shot a look at him to make sure he was focused) with Chouji, Hinata gets this one off." He then listed off the pairings for the next round, guys against guys, and girls against girls. After finishing the third matches, Shikamaru would be fighting Chouji, Naruto, and Shino.
"Iruka-sensei."
"What is it Shikamaru?" He was standing, facing his big-bonned friend in front of the Iruka's and Mizuki's classes, while Iruka stood a few feet away to supervise. They were in a small, chalked out circle that was drawn in the dusty ground to help organize and control the taijutsu spars.
"I can't fight my best friend."
"Why's that?"
"It would be too troublesome to fight someone I care for." That was his excuse last time, right? No matter, Iruka seemed to be convinced and decided to give up on the lazy kid.
"Alrgiht, at least make the reconciliation sign..." Chouji gave him an unbeleiveably grateful nod as they locked fingers. He knew that Shikamaru did it due to the fact that Chouji would never willingly harm anyone without a good reason. I've got to get him out of that phase. Chouji was too gentil until he faced off with Asuma's Edo-tensei in the war. Shikamaru would never forgive Kabuto for that.
"Next up is going to be Ino and Hinata..." Shikamaru took a seat on the ground next to his friend and watched a few fights. Hinata was as shy as ever, but she managed to pull out a win that made her feel sorry for Ino. Kiba lost to Sasuke, and Chouji and Shino just skipped their match, knowing the bug user would win. Thus, it was time for Shikamaru vs Naruto. The pair walked into the circle with the former's hands stuck in his pockets and an irriated frown.
"I'm going to win, lazy ass!" he proclaimed loudly, making Shikamaru sweat drop.
"Winning's too troublesome anyways." He wondered if he should reveal his knowledge of taijutsu skill, but then again Naruto was the dead last, so winning wouldn't reveal too much, right?
"Alright, begin."
The moment Iruka's hand dropped, Naruto flung at the Nara with an obvious left hook. Shikamaru ducked and kicked him in the stomach, not taking his hands out of his pockets. Naruto skidded back, still on his feet. I gotta work on my strength... Again. How troublesome. Naruto skidded backa bit from the kick, nearly landing outside of the white circle. Shikamaru didn't move as the blond came back with a flurry of mismatched punches.
To the Nara, the attack was almost slow motion, making it a piece of cake to dodge the attacks. Quickly exploiting an opening, he kicked at Naruto's chest, but it came up just shy. Stupid, troublesome, short legs... he sighed as Naruto tried to get a solid punch in. Shikamaru simply stepped to the side. The blond fell, crashing to the ground face first and kicking up a cloud of dust.
Shikamaru didnt move...
He didn't even take his hands out of his pockets...
As Naruto struggled to regain his footing, he pointed accusingly at the cloud watcher. "When'd you get so good!" He just sighed again in response. Well I screwed that up, he thought. He had underestimated his future prowess compared to the academy students. A mistake like that would make most lose a game of shogi, but Shikamaru always found a way to turn his own miscalculations into a discrete advantage.
The blond boy backed away and resumed to take his spot next to Chouji, and Shikamaru barely made it out of the circle when he fell flat on his back to watch some clouds.
"Uhh..." Iruka began, clearly stunned, "winner: Shikamaru. Anyways, the next match will be between Sasuke and Shikamaru, seeing how the later has displayed some skills."
"KICK HIS ASS SASUKE-KUN!" Sakura screached which caused many people to cover their ears.
"GO SASUKE-KUN!" Ino added enthusiastically though not as loud as Sakura. Troublesome... Do I really have to deal with the fangirl phase? Why can't the troublesome blond just get over it like last time? Then he remembered that last time Sasuke left the village.
Shikamaru got back up nd walked into the sparring area as the two fangirls started to 'decide' who Sasuke liked more.
"Hn, prepare to lose." This statement made the girls swoon.
"Troublesome." He pulled his hands out his pockets, letting them rest by his black pants.
Iruka stepped between them, then backed away "Begin!"
Sasuke waited for his opponent to make the first move. "Can we use jutsu?" Sasuke asked.
The instructor shrugged. "I don't see why not." He really had it out for the lazy kid.
Without further wait, Sasuke flew through some handseals and declared "Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu (Fire release: Grand fireball technique)" as he was finishing. Shikamaru sighed and quickly formed the rat seal, trapping his opponent in a shadow before he could finish the handsigns. Sasuke seemed infuriated and struggled against the jutsu. The future traitor would have to speed up his handsigns if he were to become stronger. Meanwhile, Sasuke was enraged, thinking 'I'm the last Uchiha, but I got beat by a puny shadow jutsu? How can I hope to beat Itachi without more power.'
"It is better if you do not announce your jutsu until you're finished," he said. "But in my case, it still works. Kage–Kubishibari no Jutsu. (Shadown neck binding technique)" With a quick three seal sequence, the shadow crept up Sasuke's body until it was resting around his neck.
In the mind of all the spectators was one question: How the hell was the lazy ass cloud watcher capable of taking down the Rookie of the Year without moving or breaking a sweat? Shikamaru wondered if he had gone overboard with showing his skills, even if the fight was a fluke. It's not like it was hard to trap Sasuke in Kagemane while he finished up slow handsigns, as the Uchiha was too arrogant to think that Shikamaru could use any jutsu on him. He was thankful that he could still use jutsu he technically hadn't learned yet, even if he had only a few more in his repertoire.
"Forefeit, Sasuke."
"I'll never lose to a non-Uchiha!" He spat.
"You may not lose in a battle-setting confrontation" the duck-haired boy smirked "but even weaker opponents will beat you if you don't use your head. Ne, Iruka-sensei, this match is too troublesome. I forfeit..." The rest of the students couldn't decide to facepalm or be even more surprised and impressed. Chouji wasn't, considering he and Shikamaru knew that they each had a hidden strength. Shikamaru knew the Chouji would become strong to protect his friends, while Chouji knew the Nara was hiding his intellignce and skill, declaring class as 'too troublesome.'
Unknown to the spectators, Shikamaru couldn't keep up his jutsu for much longer. Without his former reserves, it was much more draining to keep the struggling Uchiha in his place. "Seeing as Sasuke is unfit to continue, Shikamaru wins this one. I'd like to have a talk with you, Shikamaru, after class today."
Noooooooooo, of all the times for me to be forced to do something I don't want to. Ohhh, man if I'm not home on time, Kaa-san would kill me.
After Class (Iruka PoV)
Shikamaru was the last remaining in the room, sitting right in front of Iruka, courtesy of the teacher. His head was hung forward slightly in a modified resting pose as his short grey jacket hung over himself. Iruka saw this boy as an enigma with potential, and he really tried to motivate him. Unlike most teachers, he cared for all his students and wished to set them on the path to a sucessful future. Especially Naruto. He may seem tough at some times to Shikamaru and others, but it was just to hide the chuunin's concern and to push to lean.
"Now I want to know. How can you do that all the sudden?"
"Huh?"
"How'd your taijutsu and ninjutsu improve so much over the past day?"
"Hmm, well I've been doing some thinking." At Iruka's puzzled expression, he continued. "I've always known everything you talk about in class, so I just don't pay attention. Sleep was much more important than rehearing things I knew."
"Really, then how do you explain that you have the second-to-last test scores?"
"Well, they're too troublesome, and it doesn't really matter as long as I graduate." Iruka seemed to contemplate it, and realized that this kid was right. The civilian council had taken away almost all of the challange and true teaching away from the academy, turning it into a daycare with an easy graduation test. He wished he'd stepped up his classes education and his expectations, but then he remembered that Naruto would have an even harder time with becoming a genin.
"Some people need this to graduate. It'd be better to show them respect by seeming to pay attenion. And you still haven't told me where your fighting skills came from."
"One thing at a time, Iruka-sensei. I'm sure you're referring to Naruto?"
"Yeah."
Iruka saw him pause for a few seconds, contemplating. He was completely unaware that the person sitting in front of him was contemplating just how mch to reveal in order to maintain a realistic, logical conclusion. "Well the reason he's having problems with ninjutsu is because of his huge chakra reserves due to the Kyuubi. Ya, I know about that, I figured it out a year ago. His genjutsu problems are for similar reasons. He isn't smart because he can't learn through books and boring lectures." He flinched as he mentioned the lectures. "That's because when he was young, no one taught him patience or how to listen, as their hated convinced them that he was the fox. Lastly, his lack of a taijutsu style is from the teachers before you sabotaging his learing and leaving him to use his own, sloppy moves."
Iruka was stunned. Just how smart are you, Shikamaru. I knew you were hiding something, but to think it was this much deduction ability. He will truly be just like his father, and maybe even the jonin commander and chief strategist one day. But just how did his taijutsu get that good? That is something that takes years of practice and is almost impossible to pretend not to have, as he did with his other spars. "How did you hide your skill for taijutsu?"
"I don't actually have any skill, besides the Academy Style. I just am good at finding an opening and dodging, both of which make it easy for me to defeat Naruto."
"Alright, and I assume your ninjutsu came from clan training." he was met with a nod. "Well, you're free to go then, just don't act so lazy in the future."
"Didn't you notice?" Iruka made a puzzled face.
"Notice what?"
"I say 'troublesome' for this entire conversation." Before Iruka could come back to his senses, trying to think of a time the boy no doubt said his signature catch phrase, Shikamaru had escaped. The chuunin expressed a smirk when he realized that the boy was gone.
To borrow the words of a certain shadow user Iruka thought, That kid is way to troublesome. I fear for his Jonin-sensei. Somewhere in Konoha, a bearded man sneezed, forcing a cigarette to fall out of his teeth.
With Shikamaru
He had done it! With a labored smile, he prided himself in not only fitting in on his first day, but with accomplishing all he set off to do. Befriending Naruto, trying to raise Chouji's confidence, beating some arrogance out of Sasuke (which probably was a blow to fangirlism too), and even convinced Iruka-sensei that he was reasonably competent. It would take a few weeks before the exam, which Chouji claimed was in a month, to make his 'improvement' seem realistic. He wouldn't try to be rookie of the year, though, as it could wind up with unexpected consequences.
All in all, as he walked home, the Nara was happy. Actually, he was beyond that. After weeks of depressing, ruthless war, he had a chance to kick back, relax, and work a bit on becoming stronger. No, he would try to work harder for Naruto's sake. He'd try to train his future team too, just to make them all that much more effective. Maybe they could finally surpass their fathers.
He smirked at the thought of what they could do together to fix the future, then groaned out load at the amount of work it would require. Sure he had much more drive, but he always hated the work.
He would walk home, and find both of his parents waiting for him, asking about his day. They were always there to keep up his spirits, even if his mother was troublesome and his father was almost as lazy as himself. Shikamaru regretted only being at home a few days since Naruto had returned from his training trip and all the issues with the Akatsuki started. Between missions and saving the world, he hadn't spent any time with his family. That's what made it hurt even more when Shikaku died. Man, he knew they'd keep him from getting depressed, as they'd always figured out what was bugging him. I guess that's what having an observational genius for a father amounts to ne?
Like the Raikage's fists, a thought hit him. A single variable that he seemed to have ignored. A fatal mistake. How in the world could he explain all of his change, foreknowledge, use of unlearned clan jutsu, and future strength to his father? How long could he hide it before the secret would be spilled?
A/N Chapter 2 (or chapter 1 if you don't count the short prologue) is out.
This chapter was basically to say how just goddamn analytical and smart Shikamaru is, and how good he is with predicting actions and pushing the right buttons. He is trying to combat his laziness too.
After writing this chapter, I can honestly compare myself to him and say we are pretty similar in character, though I'm not near as smart and not quite as lazy.
I'd like some input on this one, even though it isn't as interesting as the first and is more of a character development chapter. I'm probably going to include a tough mission for team 10. Which mission, you won't know for a few chapters ;)
Oh if you catch any really obvious or stupid discrepancies/spelling/grammar feel free to shoot me a message. (This chapter has just been edited)
Oh man, please review guys, I'm practically dying here to know if I'm doing this right O.o
Stay troublesome, fellas
~Waffles
