.Cadaver.
"Shikamaru!" Temari almost shot the person who cried out, it was so sudden. And so unexpected in the white a metal sterile room of the dead.
A white lab coat topped with bubblegum pink hair shot past her and into Shikamaru, wrapping arms around his torso.
"I can't believe it!" the voice continued, muffled now because mouth from which it was issuing was buried in Shikamaru's chest. "It must be so hard for you!"
Temari almost cringed for Shikamaru's sake, but he just looked weary. He attempted to pat the girl awkwardly on the back, then he gently pushed her away.
"Sakura, come on. I'm coping. Are you going to tell me what you found out so I can catch the guy?" he asked her.
"I'm sorry," Sakura mumbled, having the grace to look sheepish. Then she caught sight of Temari, who sort of felt like she wanted to run at the sight of the apparently excitable ME.
"You must be the SPD Lieutenant." Sakura smiled at Temari, and she relaxed slightly.
"Right. Sakura, this is SPD Lieutenant Temari Sabaku. Temari, KPD Head ME Sakura Haruno," Shikamaru introduced the two women. Temari nodded and smiled as they shook hands.
"So, what do you have for us?" Shikamaru asked. Sakura grimaced, and turned to walk towards a covered table, gesturing for Temari and Shikamaru to follow her.
"I did some preliminary tox tests, and I really don't think any further tests will turn up anything more," Sakura told them as she pulled back the sheet.
Shikamaru closed his eyes briefly as the shock hit him again. Both Temari's and Sakura's eyes shot worriedly to him before drifting back to the small corpse when his eyes opened again.
"I found traces of chloroform in her airways, so she probably didn't feel anything," Sakura said quietly. Shikamaru nodded, acknowledging her attempt to console him.
Temari was silent as she viewed the body. The smiling, happy toddler she'd seen in the photograph at Shikamaru's house was lying pale and cold on the table. Sakura's neat Y-cut in her chest was slightly marred by a rib poking out of her side. Sakura'd obviously made an attempt to clean her up, but there was little she could do to beautify a dead child.
"Have you confirmed the COD?" Shikamaru asked, jolting Temari out of her haze. Sakura also snapped into business mode.
"Yes. Preliminary supposition appears to be correct. All signs point to COD being a fall from a great height. Her spine shattered, and her neck broke. There was also some cranial trauma. Her ribs broke from the impact, puncturing her skin and narrowly missing her lungs. There were pieces of wicker embedded in her back, which I have removed. If the fall didn't kill her immediately, she would have died soon after from exsanguination," Sakura finished.
Shikamaru nodded slowly, staring blankly at Asuka.
"I took the liberty of running the fingerprints I found on her. They're all Kurenai's," Sakura continued, keeping a concerned eye on Shikamaru.
Shikamaru sighed. "Figures," he muttered dryly. He looked up at Sakura. "Do you have anything else for us?"
"No," Sakura replied softly. "Shikamaru-"
"I'm fine," he interrupted. "Thank you. We should go." He smiled tightly and nodded to Sakura in greeting before turning towards the door. Temari gritted her teeth and just barely managed to avoid rolling her eyes.
"Lieutenant," Shikamaru called. Temari smiled at Sakura. "Thank you. It was nice meeting you."
Sakura smiled gratefully at her. "Same. I wish it had been under better circumstances." Sakura glanced at Shikamaru and leaned toward Temari. "Good luck with him," she muttered.
"Thanks," Temari muttered back.
"Lieutenant!" Shikamaru called again.
"I'm coming!" she replied. "Bye," she greeted Sakura. Sakura lifted her hand in greeting before Temari turned on her heel and marched to where Shikamaru was impatiently holding the door open.
"If you've finished dawdling," Shikamaru muttered, just loud enough for Temari to hear, although that may have been unintentional.
"What crawled up your ass and died?" Temari muttered to herself, rolling her eyes.
--
"We should start looking for suspects," Temari said from where she was sitting in the corner of Shikamaru's office.
"You don't say," Shikamaru answered facetiously, causing Temari to glare lightly at him.
"Anyway. Going through the normal question, we need to ask if Asuka had any enemies."
"She was one," Shikamaru said loudly.
"I said going through the normal-"
"Actually, now that you mention it, Kurenai did mention Asuka having a rivalry with one of the little boys at her daycare," Shikamaru interrupted, sarcasm dripping off his words.
"Nara, I'm just going through the normal steps, it doesn't mean we have to investigate that angle," Temari snapped.
"It was a bloody stupid question," Shikamaru muttered, returning to staring blankly at the wall.
Temari shot out of her chair and crossed to his desk in two strides. He didn't notice, and was therefore taken unawares when she slapped him.
Shikamaru shot backwards in his chair and glared up at her, clutching his cheek.
"What the hell was that for?" he yelled.
"You're being pissy," Temari told him crossly.
"What?" he bit out.
"I understand that she's your goddaughter and you're grieving and everything, but you're being pissy and uncooperative. We haven't a snowballs hope in hell of catching the guy who did this if one of the primary investigators and source of information is being a whiny little bitch, okay? You need to snap out of it. If I'm part of a team- and by the way, that's what we are- it had better damn be an efficient team. I could cut you some slack due to the circumstances, but I'm not going to for two reasons: a, I don't think we'd get much work done, and b, I really don't think you'd appreciate it when you've come to your senses," Temari stormed.
Shikamaru glared at her sullenly, but didn't say anything.
He dropped his head into his hands, shaking it slightly. "Fuck, you're right," he muttered. He rubbed his eyes and stood up, walking to the open window. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a packet of cigarettes and lighter, and glanced at Temari. "Do you mind if I smoke?" he asked her.
She shrugged and settled on his desk. "If you want to kill yourself," she replied.
He put a cigarette in his mouth and lifted the lighter to light it. He settled the packet and lighter back in his pocket and blew the smoke out the window, leaning on the sill.
"There are quicker ways to die. We see that everyday in our line of work. Who says I'll live long enough to die of lung cancer, anyway?" he said.
Temari considered the truth of this, especially to him, what with Asuma and now Asuka dead, both before their time.
"Unfortunately, I can't actually argue with that. It's a pity we live in such a world," Temari sighed.
Shikamaru snorted, smoke streaming from his nose. "If we didn't, we'd be out of a job. Look, the business of crime is probably the most beneficial to the economy and circulation of money. It's a very affluent area, when you take everything into account."
"That's a very cynical view," Temari commented.
"But it's also a very honest view. Even if you don't look at the flow of money through the hands of the criminals- drug dealers, thieves, shoplifters, hackers, hitmen, hired thugs, black market goods, slave traders, smugglers, mugger… it's quite a long list. Anyway, even if you disregard these, if the world were crime free, think of how many job opportunities would be either lost or lessened. Law enforcement, security companies, bouncers, bodyguards, anti-virus software programmers, programmers who come up with online security programs, gun manufacturers- any weapon manufacturers- self defense teachers, people who create educational campaigns- such as the 'just say no to drugs' one- border patrol, customs officials, manufacturers of security cameras, security gates, car alarms, house alarms, electric fences, those beepy things in shops and libraries, and personal protection devices, such as pepper spray and tasers. Lawyers, insurance brokers, forensic accountants, those who replace the stolen goods- I think the list might be longer than the criminals. I mean, let's face it- crime pays." Shikamaru brought the cigarette to his lips again.
Temari stared at him briefly. "I'm trying to figure out whether you're simply a hardened cynic, or a marvelously honest genius," she eventually told him.
Shikamaru smirked slightly. "I'd like to believe it's the latter."
Temari chuckled. "So you'd like to believe you're a genius," she teased.
"Actually, sometimes I wish I weren't," Shikamaru told her.
"You're not really telling me you're a bonafide genius," Temari laughed.
Shikamaru shrugged and took another puff. "According to tests my IQ scores over 200, which does technically place me in the realm of genius," he replied.
Temari stared. "You're fucking shitting me," she said disbelievingly.
"Afraid not," Shikamaru answered airily.
Temari narrowed her eyes at him. "You realize I'm going to check you up on that," she told him.
Shikamaru laughed. "You're obviously a cop- naturally suspicious. But be my guest. It's true."
Temari eyed him suspiciously. "I'll leave it for now," she said.
Shikamaru took one last draw on the cigarette at the last of it burned into ash, and as he was exhaling the smoke he leaned out the window and crushed the burning butt out on the wall, allowing it to drop to the streets below.
Temari quirked an eyebrow. "Isn't that littering, and against the law, Lieutenant?" she inquired teasingly.
Shikamaru's lips tilted up. "Leave no evidence," he joked. "I'm not really meant to be smoking in here, but I've worked out a system in which I don't get caught by anyone who would report me. And everyone chucks their cigarette butts into that alleyway anyway, so…"
"Strategic law breaking… interesting…" Temari considered.
Shikamaru laughed wryly. "Okay. I've snapped out of it. Let's get to work."
"Hey, the slap worked!" Temari exclaimed in mock surprise as he headed past her towards her chair.
He chuckled and gave her a light shove off his desk. "Troublesome woman. Get to your chair."
-TBC-
A/N: Okay, so the chapter just sort of ended itself right there… Wrote this in one day. I felt bad for making you wait. Even though it hasn't been that long (COMPARED TO MY OTHER STORIES) but still.
I hope you enjoyed it, and please do review. I always love to know what you think. The next chapter should (hopefully) be up in a week or so. N promises. But maybe. Until then…