A/N: Hey everyone! I'm really sorry for not updating this, once again due to my incredible laziness, enormous and prolonged writer's block, and general lack of free time. Lethal combination for writing stories, I can confirm.

I can't believe so much has happened. Like Kishi, HOW COULD YOU HAVE KILLED NEJI AND SHIKAKU. WHY KISHI. My whole story and motivation practically died when Shikaku died. Ehhh.

Regardless, please review! I'm eagerly awaiting the day I can start on the next few chapters hohoho.

Chapter 7: Mission

"So let me get this straight and as crystal clear as possible," Shino said in his usual crisp, deep voice. "You injured Shikamaru in your sleep, then woke up and healed him, and after you two had a long conversation, at one point in time through the night you fell asleep and by the time you woke up, Kurenai-sensei had already asked me over."

At this, Hinata cringed. You make it sound like I've done something wrong, she thought, and focused on finishing her slice of buttered toast. Her eyes caught Shino's, and just like always she knew he had read her mind.

The man smiled, not bothering to hide his bemusement. "Oh, I'm not saying you did anything wrong, Hinata," he assured her, and he chuckled his uniquely Aburame chuckle. "In fact I'm very interested in what he's said to you, and pleased that he's finally had a decent night's sleep." Shino paused here, and then continued, "Shiho had to analyze some of his medical data for Tsunade-sama; it seems he hasn't slept consecutively for more than three hours since the war ended."

Her chewing stopped. She swallowed hard, her brow now furrowed. Without bothering to lick the crumbs on her lips, Hinata cocked her head slightly to her left. "That's terrible. I'm surprised he hasn't collapsed or died while on missions." She set her semi-eaten breakfast on her plate and let the news sink in. Granted, Hinata had heard gossip from here and there about how badly Shikamaru had been living since Temari died, but surely his sleep deprivation wasn't the result of something that had happened four years ago?

Shino simply nodded. "Not many people know about his situation for certain," he said, and Hinata returned confidence with a slight nod of her own. "But he's been doing rather well on missions, so nobody's really worried yet. It's just close friends and family that have taken notice." He gestured for Hinata to continue eating.

Kurenai came into the kitchen at this time, holding still-asleep Hiruzen in her arms. "Is he still asleep?" she wondered, but all three of them knew she wasn't talking about her son. Shino nodded in confirmation, and she smiled somewhat before she placed Hiruzen on a chair and began preparing his breakfast. "Let's not wake him, I think he needs his rest when he can get it."

Hinata was about to ask Shino about the possibility that Temari was the cause of Shikamaru's distress, but once again Shino seemed to be able to predict her question, and he managed a subtle, grim nod. Hinata realized it was probably unwise to discuss Temari unless in private, and she began to eat more quickly.

"When do you think he'll wake up?" Kurenai mused. Shino noticed Hinata's pale face reddening at her consideration of the older woman's innocent question, and he raised his eyebrows mentally.

Finished with her toast, Hinata placed her plate in the kitchen sink and gulped down a glass of milk, then grabbed her hanging jacket and kissed Hiruzen on his forehead. "Sorry, I have to rush – there's a clan meeting soon that I have to be present for," she murmured off-handedly, just as she heard movement in one of the bedrooms down the hallway. Biting her lower lip, Hinata's face colored even more as she bid Shino and Kurenai goodbye.

When the front door shut, Kurenai set Hiruzen's breakfast down on the table and took Hinata's seat. The boy groggily reached for his spoon and stuffed gruel in his mouth, his large eyes still half-closed and his fat cheeks rosy. "She left in a rush," Kurenai commented, intrigued. "Last night she didn't mention anything about having a meeting this early."

Shino shook his head, now highly bemused. "That's because there's no such meeting," he explained coolly, and he crossed his arms while he turned to look at his former sensei in the eye. He was thoroughly interested now, more for his friends' sakes than for his own entertainment, but his face was almost smug. Shino leaned backwards even more in his chair and he smiled a very small smile. "What do you think those two talked about for so long last night?"

~X~

Shikamaru was unintentionally late. This was a new thing for him – not the late part, but the unintentionally so part. It was the first time in a long time that not being punctual was not a result of careful calculation and purposeful actions, and Shikamaru found that he preferred being late on purpose than being late because he, well, overslept.

Overslept! The incredibly adept killer laughed cynically, inwardly. How ironic was it that just three weeks earlier his boss decided to subject him a health checkup and found – much to everyone's shock – that he was extraordinarily sleep deprived? Shikamaru would probably never live this down; he was supposed to be a diagnosed insomniac, he was supposed to have been suffering from a condition he had no choice in having. Shikamaru liked to term his circumstances 'helpless grieving' – it's not like he didn't want to move on. He did indeed want to live normally again; just, he wanted a life with her.

He stopped himself here, Hinata's comments from last night cutting into his sense of righteousness. The man shook his head in annoyance; what did she know? She knew nothing about him, save for second-hand information retrieved from eavesdropping on gossipmongers. Shikamaru grunted in disgust as he swung the door to the Hokage's main office open. Suddenly he felt very tired, despite not having cried at all last night.

"You're late," Tsunade observed but didn't look up from her scrolls of paperwork. Her black-framed spectacles slid a little further down her nose and she sniffed irately as she hurriedly took them off. Quickly, Tsunade pushed said scrolls of work away from her main space on her desk.

Shikamaru shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant. "As usual."

Now it was Tsunade's turn to shrug. "You look a little better now, though. I trust my insomnia medicine is working for you?"

He remembered the unsealed package of pills that were sitting at the bottom of his trashcan in his room back in his parent's house. "They helped a lot," he smiled and added curtly, "Thanks."

Tsunade snorted, but let the subject drop. "Well enough with polite conversation then," she sighed as she pulled a blue scroll from one of her drawers. "You said to tell you when there's a mission to Lightning country ASAP, preferably before your annual leave for Suna." At this, Tsunade waved the scroll, "Here it is."

Shikamaru began walking towards the Hokage, preparing to take the scroll and listen to the subsequent briefing. Tsunade stopped him before he managed to take three steps, however, with a wave of her hand. She placed the blue scroll back on her desk and regarded her subordinate very carefully. After a few moments Tsunade breathed out deeply and relaxed in her chair.

"Shikamaru, please tell me why you're going to the lightning country."

He wasn't taken aback by the question, really. But Shikamaru was irritated nonetheless. "I've wanted to go to Lightning country for a while now. Might as well go when there's a mission."

"You didn't have to get to ANBU for a mission in Lightning." Her answer was sharp, but Shikamaru didn't flinch.

"ANBU get more missions in Lightning."

Tsunade nodded in agreement at this, "That's right, because you're more likely to die there." She stopped here, but added shortly afterwards, "And you know this." It wasn't a question.

Shikamaru didn't answer.

"Even if you're going to Lightning for revenge or any other personal agenda, please consider your position and Konoha's position." Tsunade was beginning to sound like an outraged Kage, and her volume increased steadily. "Look at yourself – if somebody else could take this mission, I would have preferred it. You're barely functioning."

Shikamaru frowned at this. "I'm a perfectly capable shinobi, and you know that." There was silence for a while, that Shikamaru broke with a more forceful, "You've been preventing me from going to Lightning, haven't you?"

"I can't lose another excellent ninja."

Shikamaru started towards her again. "Then you agree – I am capable and I can get that done."

Tsunade almost shouted, "Stop being so selfish!" There was a thin film of moisture over her eyes now, and her lower lip trembled from her impatience. "I'm looking out for you, I don't want you dead. Stop being so melodramatic – first you practically become the living dead then you join ANBU and then you say you want missions that have a death possibility of 80% and over? Are you insane?"

Shikamaru stopped at her desk, and his frown turned into an irritated grimace. "I've just had that conversation so could we please just move on to you assigning that mission to me." He held his hand out, his palm open.

"Tell me seriously – what are you going to do in Lightning country?"

Shikamaru heaved a sigh. He stuck both hands in his pockets. "I want to kill those medics that allowed her to die. Then I'm done. I'll be at peace." He maintained his indifferent gaze, strange determination flashing in his tired eyes.

Tsunade let a few minutes pass before she slowly passed the scroll over. "You have a few days before you're needed. Everything's in there," she said quietly, and Shikamaru took the scroll gratefully and bowed his head. The Hokage watched as the heir to one of her village's most prolific clans turned and headed towards the door.

Shikamaru had his hand on the knob when he heard Tsunade searching through her drawers. He paused, waiting for her to say one last thing.

"Hey," her authoritative voice very nearly made him turn around once more. "Those pills I gave you were for your body aches, not for insomnia." She threw another packet of pills at him, and Shikamaru caught them with ease. "Take those before you leave for Lightning, they'll make you sleep like the dead within seconds."

Shikamaru considered thanking his boss for not outright calling him a liar, or even a bad liar, but he only managed to smile a small smile while he slouched even more. His hand turned the knob.

"Helpless grieving," Shikamaru said softly but loud enough for Tsunade to hear. "I'm not insane; I'm in a state of helpless grieving." Then he allowed himself one audible lazy yawn as he could nearly feel Tsunade smiling sadly, and then he was out of her hands.