Roots
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Chapter Two
z
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He was terminated. Hell, he was ready to jump any bridge. His early morning started just like he had expected, a large grin in the infiltrator as he slowly observed his son getting irritated when he threw a pillow in his face. Forcing Shikamaru to growl. He covered his face with the blankets and raised his hand as a signal for his father to keep his mouth shut. No need to start the torture so early.
"Oh, you're never gonna hear the end of it."
"Shut up. Save us from an awkward lifetime,and just shut up."
"You kidding?"
"Shut. Up."
Shikaku raised and eyebrow, his smirk turned vile when Shikamaru threw the pillow back at him.
"Come on, spit it out." His father scratched the back of his head, yawning loudly.
"Are you so happy to torture your own son, that you're willing to sacrifice a nap? You're low."
"Oh, I didn't hit rock bottom. Unlike you." He chuckled. "Begin the fairytale with the Prince Hyūga and the Damsel Nara."
Damsel? Fuck, he had heard the whole conversation between him and Neji. He lost any interest in going back to sleep, his mind all over the place. One thing was for sure, there was gonna be a payback. Shikaku silently waited for Shikamaru to open his mouth. His glare still amused, but somehow it felt like he honestly wanted to hear everything from his son.
"Man, you're a monster..." he looked at the corner of his room. The walls sure looked interesting today. "We talked...I did something stupidly troublesome. He acted like a moron, I kept chasing and acted like a...Wait a damn minute. Why do I have to tell you everything?"
"So, who's the Damsel?"
Shikamaru smirked. The memory of the time where he had the opportunity to humiliate the Almighty Hyūga on a public restaurant went in his list of top achievements. The Hyūga with too many drinks on him didn't mind the change of hairstyle. A long girly-braid around his head, on top of it two pink-big flowers. And how he had enjoyed asking the same question "Don't you look beautiful,Hyūga?" To which Shikamaru's content Neji glared at him with a smug smirk placed on his face.
A expression so out of place in the rigid Hyūga, who went on to say. "I look more beautiful than Hanabi and Hinata together."
Shikamaru lost it. The whole restaurant saw how he struggled to stay in his sit. Rocking back and fort, Neji glared at him as if offended.
"Why don't you ask, Neji? He was the one wearing braids in public." He stretched. Yawned and slowly got up from his bed"You're not going to hear anything coming out from my mouth. If you don't mind, I got papers to fill."
His father shook his head. Hyūga would have to do.
"Good morning."
He had stayed to sleep in the Nara compounds after all. Shikamaru glanced at him, Hyugas always had the worst timing.
Speak of the devil and he shall appear. There Neji was bowing his head towards Shikaku, his father raised his hand and pointed towards Shikamaru.
"Go sit over there." His voice sounded like a command, Neji didn't knew how to respond and just followed his order. As if he had other option. Shikaku's expression turned like a tyrant, observing both shinobis. "So...Speak."
Neji went rigid.
Shikaku couldn't hold his laughter. Shikamaru covered his face irritated, and the poor Hyūga had fell into the stupid joke. He glared at Shikamaru raising an eyebrow confused.
"Troublesome."
Shikaku walked out of the room. His laughter echoed through the corridors. There they stood stationary in the messy room of Shikamaru. Neji motioned to smack the back of Shikamaru's head. Eyes turning sharp Shikamaru threw his other pillow directly at the Hyūga. Their egos victims to Shikaku's offenses, and what better way to take out their frustrations than with each other. One another blaming themselves for their careless actions.
"He knows..."
Neji's face turned into something that Shikamaru had never seen. Shock and frustration playing out in his expression at the same time. The pillow he was about to return to Shikamaru never reached its objective.
"Nara..."
"Yeah, I'll tell Ino to get two buckets of flowers for a double funeral." His father did the impossible, killed two birds with one stone. "Need any help writing your will,Hyūga?"
"Don't you dare joke about this."
"Want me to act like a drama queen and make everyone suspicious?"
"Just be quiet for a minute,Nara."
The Byakugan-user sat on the bed. He sighed as if he had just been defeated in a battle. He observed how Shikamaru stretched once more, so slowly that he could sworn Shikamaru could be in the middle of the rain and still complain but do everything at his own pace. As if nothing had happened the Nara blinked, turned his head towards Neji. His dead-panned expression irritated, and honestly made Neji wonder how he was so relaxed.
Shikamaru rolled his eyes when Neji shook his head.
"Morning, Lovebirds."
Wearing a yukata and drinking some kind of herbal tea the new resident approached one of them. To Shikamaru's surprise it wasn't him she went to, but instead she pulled something from the long fabric she wore and placed it on Neji's lap. Both looked at her on unison.
A scroll.
"You don't think I found you yesterday just for fun, did you?" She gave another sip of her drink. Blowing some steam off. "But, thanks for the entertainment. Anyway, read it. We got business to deal with ."
Shikamaru brows knitted together. His question came out in a dark tone that made Temari raise her head. Her tea mid-way frozen before she could take another sip, the tune of Shikamaru reached her as if she was about to decapitate the Hyūga or something. As if she was a executioner and came to deliver the date and time to the Hyūga's funeral.
"S-rank?"
"Nara."
Shikamaru turned his head towards Neji. Both fighting with their eyes. He knew he was being a pain in the ass, but fuck it.
"You know damn well that information is priority of the Nations. Why the sudden demand to know where Hyūga is being send to?" She started to get irritated, "Why are you acting like a moron?"
"Says the woman who almost send a squad to their graves in Suna." He viciously spat, " and you calling me a moron?"
Temari froze. A low blow from Shikamaru, her green eyes turn sour, her fist almost reached Shikamaru. If it wasn't for the Hyūga who held her wrist in the knit of time.
"Nara, enough."
"Fuck off, Neji. You wanna go and dance in the middle of battle and get killed like a masochistic bastard."
"You're lucky Hyūga saved your ass."
Temari's drink spilled on the floor, she threw the cup against the walls. Neji freed her, her sharp eyes glared at Shikamaru. No repent from his part as she departed from the room. Now he had to deal with the other pain inside his room.
"Want to fill me in? Why insult her?" Shikamaru rolled his shoulders, "Nara."
"Fuck you,Neji." He said angry. "You lying bastard."
"You know my recovery has been completed." His tune low, "This is a command from Konoha. We are to obey not matter what. You know how orders work."
Shikamaru walked past him, punching him hard with his shoulder. His eyes burned with fury, never glancing Neji's way as he was about to open the door, but Neji's words made him pause.
"Now, who is walking past me as if I didn't care?"
"That's rich." His laugh held no humor, other than the venom his memories held. "You didn't even bother to visit after half a month of your coming-back from the Zombieland. Who walked past me twice, Hyūga?"
Neji pursed his lips. Shikamaru walked out, shut the door hard enough to make a loud sound through the room.
He walked through the corridors. But, paused and blinked in surprise.
"Now, where are you going Shikamaru?" She smiled and crossed her arms. "I was about to summon you to the same mission. I got lucky finding three members of the three teams for the mission, less work for a lady like me."
Was the whole village in some hidden agenda to visit his house? Shikamaru raised an eyebrow , behind him Neji opened the door to approach , it seem someone had beat him to it.
"Tsunade-sama?"
"S-rank." She responded. "Temari told me to answer for her. Now, we got to get moving."
Behind her stood Shikaku. His eyes never met his son. It was Neji who he was looking at.
"Tsunade-sama, before we leave shouldn't we inform the Hyūga?"
Now that peeked Shikamaru's interest. His expression cold as ice.
"Tell him,what?"
"We inform you in our way." She spoke. " Now. Team leader, why don't you go for your the other members."
"Will do."
"Shikaku is team leader?"
Shikaku smirked.
"Oh, you two on the same team. Don't worry about being separated." Shikamaru would have humor him, if it wasn't because the attention was directed to the Hyūga "Not in the mood for a mission,Son?"
Like a cold shower it hit him. He had let his emotions control him. Emotion over brain never worked right.
He yawned and turned his head towards Neji. A facade that he knew worked like magic when he needed his brain to get to work.
"Not gonna let Hyūga get all the credibility for hard work. Even I have some pride."
Maybe the incredulous Hyūga didn't noticed,but it took Shikamaru just the signals his father had given him to know one thing.
Neji Hyūga was pivotal for the mission. Which meant putting Neji in a troublesome turning point.
"How many members, Tsunade-sama?"
"That's shouldn't be the question you should be asking,Neji." She sounded amused. "You should be asking, who? Start packing, all of you leave in the afternoon."
Yeah, it sounded like a troublesome mission. Not really looking forward to it.
Thanks! I'm sorry, but sometimes I let many spelling and grammar errors. Don't have a laptop or computer. Just excuses XD. I