Just wanted to give everyone that has favorited, followed, and reviewed this story a big thank you. I read every single notification about this story with a glad and happy heart. Reviews are my fuel and every follow reminds me to work on the next chapter ASAP! I really enjoy writing this story and wish I could get it out faster. The next few chapters are about Shisui and Sakura's mission and I am super excited about it. I just hope I can get my notes and thoughts out to you readers in a cohesive and thoughtful way. Well, on with the story….

A Petal on Still Waters

Chapter 11: Feelings Hidden Behind a Mask

Shikamaru Nara arrived at the village gates ahead of the rest of the team. He made sure he was early, so he could take a few minutes to collect his thoughts before leaving on this mission. He sat, leaned up against a nearby tree trunk, and slide his mask to the side and placed a cigarette in his mouth. After lighting it, Shikamaru inhaled deeply and slowly blew out the smoke, watching it rise towards the starlit sky. His quick mind reviewed the special orders the Hokage had given him earlier.

The reasons for his side mission were suspect at best. Shikamaru felt like he was being dragged into one of Tsunade's crazy schemes or, maybe, one of her numerous, unwise wagers that usually involved the shinobi of the village. Considering the ninja he was supposed to watch, he didn't feel like he would be looking for any signs of treason and the Hokage had made it clear she wanted to know about they interacted with each other.

Shikamaru exhaled again, blowing smoke rings into the air. There was no doubt in his mind that this mission was going to be troublesome. He just hoped that whatever was behind Tsunade's interest didn't make it more dangerous.

The soft sound of footfalls drew Shikamaru's attention. He snuffed out the cigarette and replaced his mask but didn't bother to get up from his relaxed position against the tree. Despite being in full ANBU gear, the pink hair gave away the identity of the approaching shinobi. Since they were still waiting for the arrival of two more team members, Shikamaru didn't feel the need to give away his resting place just yet.

Sakura set down her bag and took the spare time to double check its contents. The sharp scent of cigarette smoke told her that the fourth member of the team was lazing behind a nearby tree. She had tried to convince her friend to give up the bad habit but had finally dropped the debate, understanding that it was just Shikamaru's way of dealing with stress. She was just glad that being a medic meant she could counteract most of the damage done by his coping mechanism.

She turned her focus back to the contents of her bag, which was heavier than usual due to her part in the mission. Seduction assignments required more 'specialized' gear and added to the normal burden of her pack. She had decided to buy some of the things she would need in the village they were traveling to. Her task to get close to and seduce the righthand man of a criminal organization was made even more difficult by the fact that the man she loves was her captain on this mission.

Sakura wasn't concerned about losing her innocence on this mission. She had done dozens just like it before and had never had to go to that extreme to complete them. She had powerful genjutsu to call upon that had not failed to protect her in the past, however, having Shisui as leader on this mission could cause problems. He was an Uchiha after all, and experience with the over-protectiveness of men of that clan had taught Sakura to expect the worse. After the first time Sasuke had been her escort on one such assignment, his behavior was so bad that Tsunade had to make sure he was not even aware of any future ones that Sakura was being sent on. The Hokage had begun to refer to them as 'medical herb retrieval' when in the presence of her overly protective teammates.

Once satisfied that her bag was as in order as she could make it, Sakura fastened the closing straps down tightly and slung the pack into place on her back, taking time to secure it in place for the travel ahead. Now all that was left to do was wait for the missing members of the team.

She didn't have long of a wait because Neji came stalking out of the shadows, making a beeline towards her.

He grasped her elbow and leaned in close to her ear to avoid anyone overhearing him, "Can we talk for a minute?" Sakura nodded, knowing something must be bothering the Hyuga for him to approach her so intently. He used his hold on her arm to maneuver her into the shadows that he had come from only moments before.

Once he was satisfied that they were far enough away that a passerby wouldn't take notice of them, Neji slid his mask up onto the top of his head and ran his hand over his face in an uncharacteristic gesture of aggravation. Sakura uncovered her own face to demonstrate to that she was giving him her full attention. "What is it, Neji?"

"My uncle is demanding an update on our 'relationship' and has made it clear that he is unhappy with the amount of time I am devoting to my pursuit of your hand" Neji informed her through gritted teeth. "He gave me several suggestions for hurrying things along that I will not insult you with."

Sakura understood the immense pressure Neji must be under. Having several friends in prominent positions of the powerful clans, she was aware of the burdens they were subjected to by the politics of their leaders. The knowledge that her plan, while ultimately for his benefit, was causing Neji more stress than he was normally subjected to, caused a pang of guilt to tighten in her chest.

She placed a hand on his shoulder, "When we get back from this mission, I will just have to let you take me out on date." She smiled at him when he raised his gaze from the ground to look at her with an expression of relief and gratefulness. "Maybe a trip to the spa, out of town and away from the obligations surrounding us in the village. And, besides," Sakura's smile became a conspiring grin and she gave him a quick wink, "It wouldn't be unheard of if I invited a friend or two. You know, other girls to gossip with."

Neji immediately got her point and returned her grin. Sakura's ability to turn a bad situation into an opportunity never failed to impress him. "Thanks, Blossom. I look forward to it."

"If you two are done with this little romantic interlude, then maybe we can get back to our duty and get on with our mission."

The cold, hard voice coming from the shadows startled both shinobi, and Sakura's hand jerked away from Neji's shoulder with the quickness of a child caught reaching into the forbidden cookie jar. They jumped apart as the terrifying image of an enraged ANBU captain stalked out of the darkness, the bright red flare of an activated Sharingan glowing from the eye openings of his mask. The intensity of his black aura made his figure seem to tower over them, choking them with its power.

Neji covered his confusion at Shisui's fury by pulling his hawk mask back into place and standing stiffly at attention. Sakura just stared in horror at the swirling tomoes that gave evidence to the churning emotions of their owner. She knew that coming upon her and Neji having such a cozy meeting would give the Uchiha the wrong impression and she didn't have the time or privacy at this moment to correct his false assumptions, however, the weight of his displeasure made her want to plead for forgiveness right there and then.

Sakura quickly pulled her mask down to cover the guilty blush on her cheeks. Just how much of her and Neji's conversation Shisui had overheard was a mystery, but it was clear that the Uchiha was not happy at their proximity to one another. She lowered her gaze to the ground, unable to continue to meet Shisui's scrutiny, and mumbled a quiet, "Yes, captain."

Gone was Shisui's normal carefree, happy-go-lucky personality, replaced with this intense, dangerous shinobi that invoked fear in all around him. He glared at the kunoichi for another moment, ignoring her companion all together, before pushing in between them, heading for the open gates. He paused only a second to snarl in the direction of a nearby tree, "You can join us at any time, Stag. That is, if you are done with your cigarette."

Shikamaru, realizing his hiding place was compromised, came out from around the trunk of the tree and joined a stunned Sakura and Neji. Once all three of the younger shinobi had gathered together, Shisui turned around to face them, "Now that we are all here, let's go over our travel plans. We will proceed towards the village of Leeds, silently and in single file, until dawn. Hawk, you will take point. Blossom, you will bring up the rear. Any questions?" When nobody said anything, he nodded sharply, "Good, let's move out."

Neji shot into the trees heading in a Northwestern direction, followed by the team captain. Shikamaru grumbled a little under his breath, but quickly fell in behind Shisui, leaving a bewildered Sakura to take up position in the rear of the group.


For hours, during the dead of the night, the four shinobi traveled the familiar trees of their home at a breakneck speed and without a word passing between them. It was a good thing they were still within friendly territory, because the killing intent coming off their captain in waves had not let up at all during their travels.

Shikamaru couldn't understand the need for such haste. They had been allotted three days to get to Leeds, but if they keep up this pace, it would only take two. He knew the driving force was their captain, who had even made use of the Body Flicker technique to push their point man into a quicker speed on several occasions. What he didn't know was, why? It was obvious that the Uchiha was in a less than stellar mood, but, what Neji had done to provoke this level of 'forceful encouragement', Shikamaru couldn't comprehend.

He was beginning to believe that Tsunade had left out some important details when she gave him this little extra assignment. Details that were vital to Shikamaru's ability to fully grasp the situation that he had been tasked to observe and analyze. He made a mental note to remind the Hokage of how important having all of the facts was for him to give a complete analyst, but, for now, it was taking all of his efforts just to keep up the pace set by his sadistic team leader.

Shikamaru glanced behind him to where Sakura was bringing up the rear of this death march. He could tell her mood was extremely subdued, and not just from exhaustion. She had been giving off a dampened vibe since leaving the Leaf Village, and the group's intense pace had done nothing to lighten it. The Nara heir knew that whatever was causing the problem with this team, the pink-haired kunoichi was at the center of it.

This thought just reinforced the belief that Shikamaru had always found to be true: that women, in general, were troublesome.

Looking forward again, Shikamaru was relieved to note the lightening of the night sky as the first signs of dawn broke upon it. The gentle splashes of pink, orange, and yellow brought the promise of rest and reprieve. The group had plans to stop at an ANBU safe place to rest before continuing to their destination and he was looking forward to some down time to contemplate all the interactions that he had observed between his team so far.

Up ahead, Shisui finally gave the signal for the group to come to a halt. They landed in a secluded clearing, all of them showing signs of weariness and exhaustion. Without a word, their captain walked over to a well-hidden box and opened the lid, pulling out ration packs. He passed them out to each member of the team with a quick, terse order to eat and get some rest before taking his own and disappearing into trees to keep watch over the camp.

Shikamaru walked over to a nearby fallen tree and flopped down on the ground. Stretching out his tired legs before him, he groaned out loud as the muscles released some of the pent-up tension. Once he had gotten as comfortable as could on the hard ground, Shikamaru opened the rations and began nibbling on the tasteless protein bar found within.

He took the quiet moment to observe his teammates still in the clearing. Neji had found a spot to sit, leaned against a tree, and was unenthusiastically devouring his own meal, weariness covering him like a lead blanket. Sakura was standing in the center of the clearing, looking from the clutched ration pack in her hand to the trees that their captain had disappeared into, a saddened expression pulling her beautiful features into a deep frown.

Shikamaru watched as she sighed loudly and turned to exchange a long look with Neji. It was obvious that the two shared something between them that the Nara was not yet aware of. Shikamaru's eyes followed her as she made her way to patch of soft grass. She put the ration pack into a pouch on her uniform before lying down and closing her eyes, deciding to sleep instead of eating.

Shikamaru folded the food wrapper in his hands and stowed it away in his pack, not wanting to leave any evidence of their presence here. He cast a quick glance into the canopy where Shisui was crouched, almost completely hidden among the branches and leaves, watching over their group from the shadows. From this angle, Shikamaru could tell the Uchiha's gaze was focused on the sleeping kunoichi.

The Nara slid down into a more prone position and closed his own eyes shut. He would need more rest to sort through all his companions' unusual behaviors and he had three weeks to ponder this out. The whole situation was a puzzle and Shikamaru loved a good puzzle.

Even though this mission was looking like it would indeed be right troublesome, at least it would be interesting as well.

With that conclusion, Shikamaru fell into a light sleep. The slight smile that spread across his face was, thankfully, hidden from the others' view by a porcelain mask.