Lean on Me...

Summary: She was found at such a young age, taken in by Shikaku, not as a daughter, but as a wife in training for his youngest son. How will this affect the Nara Clan...more specifically the laid back, easy going, semi-lazy...Shikamaru?

Anime: InuYasha/Naruto

Pairing: Shikamaru/Kagome

Genre: Romance/Comfort/Hurt

Rated: M for Mature

-x-x-x-

(Two Months and One Week Later)

Kagome stopped in front of the Hokage Tower, making her way towards the stairs, she started up the steps and smiled to herself as she thought of everything she'd accomplished to get to where she was.

"Faster Kagome!"

"I'm moving as fast as I can, it just doesn't seem that way because of your eyes!"

"Then out move my eyes!"

Kagome growled, but pushed more chakra to her feet to increase her speed. This wasn't the most beneficial way to improve her speed, but until she'd had time to cultivate her speed, this would have to do.

"I'm going to be an Academy student now!" Kagome grinned, making her way faster up the steps.

"Itachi-Sensei! I'm ready for the water!"

"Are you sure?" Itachi looked at her curiously. "You don't have to if you don't want to. I understand that you had a bad experience with it before."

"I only have two more weeks before I'm done with your training, I want to take with me everything you can teach me...please, Itachi-Sensei!"

"...fine, let's go to Naka River then."

'I learned to walk on water, throw kunai, balance on floating logs, fight using Taijutsu...even learned how to do Itachi's Fire Style Jutsu. Though...he told me not to let anyone see me do it, not unless it's absolutely necessary.' Kagome smiled as she stopped in front of the Hokage's door. "Alright Kagome...you can do this!" She brought her hand to the door and knocked.

"Come in,"

-x-x-x-

(The Next Day)

Shikamaru shook his head as he sat at the breakfast table, watching from a distance as his mother helped the nervous Kagome get ready for school. He just couldn't understand her fascination with the Academy. "You know, all you will do there is sit and listen,"

Kagome turned and stuck her tongue out at Shikamaru before taking Shikaku's hand in hers, "if that's how I'll learn to be a better me, then I'll sit quietly and listen!"

"Tch...whatever."

"Let's go, I'll take you to the Academy since it's your first day." Shikaku commented, then guided her out the front door.

"Mom?"

"Yes?" Yoshino turned from where she stood looking after the retreating backs of Shikaku and Kagome.

"Is that normal?"

Yoshino shook her head, "I don't think so, but then, I also don't think being as unmotivated as you are is normal either."

Shikamaru frowned, looking down at his plate, he finished his food before leaving to find his friends. 'I don't care what anyone says, I'm quite content being "unmotivated"...'

-x-x-x-

Kagome waked with Shikaku to her class, she would be in the beginners class, and was starting to get nervous as he held his hand on her shoulder to guide her to her classroom.

"Kagome,"

Stopping, Kagome turned around to face Shikaku, "yes sir?"

"...starting three months ago, you decided on a path to take. This path is one to protect this village, its Hokage, and the villagers. Are you following me still?"

"I am..." her eyes settled on his as they stopped walking a few feet away from the door to her classroom.

"Then I will continue. This next part is the most important." Shikaku kneeled down in front of her. "What you do from here on out, is not only for this village, but for you, and for Shikamaru. Your role as his future wife, will be determined by the choices you make. Is that understood?"

"...yes sir...?" Kagome frowned, "...you call me Shikamaru's future "wife" a lot...is that really what you want for him?"

"What do you mean?"

"...I'm just a child of casualty...my parents are dead...I have no last name or family to speak of. Why me?"

"...because you have nothing, you will be all the more determined to protect the one person who means the most to you. Perhaps not now, but you will find yourself in love with Shikamaru...one day...and when you do, you won't let anyone or anything, take him away."

'One day I will love Shikamaru?' Kagome smiled, "if you say so, sir!"

"Good, then go to class, your teacher is waiting for you."

Running the rest of the way to the door, she knocked three times and entered when the voice of a teacher called for her to come in.

-x-x-x-

"Our new student,"

Kagome walked forward towards the man with a scar over his nose, "my name is Kagome..."

"I am Iruka-Sensei," the man smiled kindly, crouching down in front of Kagome, "it's nice of you to join us. Why not tell the class a little bit about yourself?"

Kagome looked towards the kids, "...my name is Kagome...I'm five years old...and I am staying with the Nara's. I...I was trained by Itachi-Sensei for three months before coming to join the Academy, so that I'd be up to speed with kids that were older than me...and...well, I guess that's it."

"You're staying with the Nara's? Where are your mom and dad?"

"They were killed." Kagome answered honestly, no longer feeling the sting in her chest at the mention of her mother or father. Itachi had helped her a lot with her emotional trauma. Though, her hand still found its way to the jewel around her neck.

"...I'm sorry to hear that Kagome, loss is hard for everyone."

"Itachi-Sensei says you can only get stronger..." Kagome smiled, "I'll become stronger,"

Iruka smiled, nodding his head he turned back to his students and took a quick look around before pointing, "Neji, raise your hand." A boy in the back raised his hand, his long black hair was tied back out of his white eyes. "Kagome, you can sit in the free spot next to Neji."

"Thank you, Iruka-Sensei." Kagome ran up the steps toward the bench that Neji sat on, scooting in next to him, she smiled his way before turning her attention back to Iruka.

"So, before Kagome got here, we were discussing the Meridian system. Can anyone tell me what another name for the Meridian system is?"

Kagome and Neji were the only hands that went up.

"We will let Kagome answer this one, I'd like to hear what she has to say."

Neji nodded, both placing their hands down. Kagome stood and took a small breath before speaking, "The meridian system goes by two familiar names. Channel network and Chakra network."

"And what does the Chakra network do?" Iruka asked her.

"...the chakra network is the path through which the life energy known as chakra flow. There are many types of Chakra, and throughout the body, many chakra points, that should someone press them in the right way, could actually disable the use of the path. Not counting the basic of chakra points, there are twelve standard chakra points, and eight extraordinary chakra points. The Chakra's follow the most basic of element styles, fire, water, and earth, metal and wood...there of course are others, but these make up the most basic. All types of Chakra are compatible to the body, but there are some that can take life while giving someone their desired strength."

Iruka blinked a bit before smiling, "I see that Itachi taught you well,"

"He did," Kagome sat down and waited for Iruka to continue, not paying attention to the white eyes that strayed onto her small form from the side.

-x-x-x-

Shikamaru sighed, Chouji was next to him with a bag of potato chips in his hands. "Man, what a drag."

"Hmn?" Chouji looked to Shikamaru, the two were waiting for Kagome to finish with her first class. Having not seen her much since her training with Itachi had started, both were feeling the effects of her neglect. Though, they couldn't really say that she was neglecting them, they were really just bored, and yeah...they kind of missed having her around. Popping the last of his chips in his mouth, Chouji looked up in time to see the kids making their way out of the Academy. "Look!"

Lazily, Shikamaru picked his head up and turned his eyes towards the doors of the Academy. He couldn't see Kagome yet, but since the kids were starting to come out, he could only imagine that she'd be out soon too. A familiar laugh pulled his attention from the front entrance where the students were coming out from, to the side of the building where Kagome was walking out from around the back with someone beside her. A boy was next to her, a little older than she was, by the looks of it. Shikamaru couldn't be sure of what the boy had said to get Kagome to laugh, but whatever it was, he really had her beaming. Somehow...this only made him frown. "Oi!" He called out, his voice had a snap to it, one that he wasn't used to. His eyes followed the girl as she stopped and turned her attention onto him. A different smile found her lips and she ran forward and captured him in a hug, though he didn't care to return it, he looked back to the boy and noted the glare that was directed his way. He shared a similar look with the boy before walking with Kagome and Chouji beside him.

Chouji glanced back and forth between Shikamaru and the boy back at the Academy before pulling out another snack.

"Oh!" Kagome turned, "thanks again, Neji! See you tomorrow!"

Those words felt like kunai to Shikamaru, and he watched Kagome turn back towards the direction they were walking, and his eyes just barely caught sight of the smirk on the lips of the boy Neji.

-x-x-x-

Me: Here is chapter ten! WOOOT~! I hope you all like it! Tomorrow is...wait, no, never mind. Tomorrow I work, the day AFTER tomorrow, is MEP's and my TAPAS test. So Wish me luck, everyone~! I'm moving some knew characters in, and going to do a time skip next chapter, this means drama will arise soon. So...with that all said, I hope you all enjoy this update, review and tell me what you think!