A/N: So not a lot changed in this chapter. But I did change the title of it. I am working on the editing and hopefully can update soon. This has been a crazy roller coaster editing and fixing. But I think this is a much better story line and much more of what I wanted for the story as a whole.

Please comment, question and leave a thought!

Chapter 36: A-Ranked Girl

Shikamaru

I knock at the office door.

"Come in," I hear Kakashi say.

I open the door and see that he is standing up and looking out the window.

"Ah Shikamaru, how are things?" Kakashi asks.

"Not good," I begin, "Tooru kicked Kiba and I out of her place earlier. What is going on with her Kakashi?"

"That's what I was afraid of," Kakashi pauses, "She is unstable you can say. And not having people to rely on makes it harder for her to focus on things."

"Speaking of that, I want to know everything that has happened to her. I don't understand why she lashed out like that. Please," I ask.

"I don't know Shikamaru, its long. Plenty of information to be taken in and most of it still is hard for me to wrap my head around," Kakashi begins, "But here is everything."

I sit there for hours listening to him.

Kakashi:

I knew once Shikamaru entered my office he would want answers. I even saw him coming up the stairs. Ibik came and told me what happened with Tooru. She snapped. She hasn't done that since se was little when this all first started. She's… we need to get answers for her.

"Come in," I say.

I hear the door open and know Shikamaru wants answers.

"Ah Shikamaru, how are things?" I ask.

"Not good," Shikamaru begin, "Tooru kicked Kiba and I out of her place earlier. What is going on with her Kakashi?"

"That's what I was afraid of," I pause, "She is unstable you can say. And not having people to rely on makes it harder for her to focus on things."

This has to stop. Only, I have never been able to figure it out. I know that she is starting to hate the village for what Lord Third did to her. Something that we do not need to get through to her. I don't want to keep her like this.

From what Ibik told me, she almost burned Mako's pelvis off. I mean… I don't blame her. But she normally has control over her emotions. Why is she losing it now? Was the punishment too harsh?

"Speaking of that, I want to know everything that has happened to her. I don't understand why she lashed out like that. Please," Shikamaru asks.

"I don't know Shikamaru, its long. Plenty of information to be taken in and most of it still is hard for me to wrap my head around," I begin, "But here is everything."

I turn around a motion for him to sit down. I don't even know where to begin with this. When I talked to Tenzo about this, I was talking so easily. The words just formed. But this is Tooru's only comrade so far. I want more people to understand her, but these rules are preventing me from telling anyone. And I am even the Hokage!

I mean, slightly her comrade. She doesn't seem too keen on wanting others around her. But she needs someone else around her. She needs it. No human can survive alone in a world like this. Yet she has because Lord Third took away any chance of her interacting with people.

These rules that she has is annoying. Nothing changes with them, yet, she can't bend them. She is resisting the rules I've placed on her.

I haven't been able to bend rules. I have started to bend them and breaking the seal a little. Only there is so much pain that Tooru is put through.

"Well, Kakashi," Shikamaru sits down.

"The problem with Tooru is that she has been through a lot, more than you can imagine," I pause, "There are many incidents I can recall with her being the center of them. Not to mention the punishments that she must go through when she messes up. The only problem is there are so many places that I can't decide where to start."

There is a silence. I sit down and place my head in my hands. I have no idea where this conversation will go.

But it is something I must tell. Maybe Shikamaru can break this. The only question is how? How can he figure it out? I know he is smart, but the task at hand is too much for me to handle. And every time I think I am getting somewhere I have no where new to go.

"Start at the beginning," Shikamaru finally speaks.

I sigh, "From her time with her clan or when she became a shadow in the village?"

Shikamaru snickers and thinks. There are so many places, at least he didn't ask about my role in it. That would have been rough. Not to mention the clan leaders thoughts about Tooru when she went into the shadows.

Most were unhappy, but they had to follow Lord Third's wishes. She could have been taken again. We don't know who took her though.

"Her clan," Shikamaru states.

"Very well." I lean on my desk, "You see, they were once the strongest clan in the village, yet they only had about twelve members at a given time. They only wanted single children. So, Tooru was born into the family, her mother was excited to finally have the chance to teach history of their clan to her own kin. The Kato clan was open about their history. They liked to prove they came around from a tool for being a weapon to being okay. They hated their past but knew if they didn't have it they would not have been the clan they became. They welcomed anyone into their house and only would copy people with their consent," I say.

"Kakashi, what does this have to do with Tooru?" Shikamaru asks.

"Hold on," I state, "The Kato's were really never feared by anyone. I remember going over there because Naruto's mother, your mother and Saskue's mother would go over there to visit. I know that the grandfather would sit with me in the tree and wait for me to talk. Which I never did but I knew he was there. Tooru was born about a month after Naruto, so the village was still all over the place because of the nine tail attack. But the family only got a day of rest before someone," I look around he room, "snuck into the village and took the family. No one knew they were gone until about a week later. Lord Fourth would have a lot to say, but he went away as you know. No one could track them for almost five full years."

"Wait, that doesn't explain how the hell Tooru got out of there," Shikamaru comments.

I look Shikamaru right in the eyes, "When we found her she was defensive and already masters basic techniques, so lord third put her in early. She couldn't even read or write, and she was already becoming a ninja. So she went through and when she was six she graduated, which was much faster than Itachi and myself. Two of the village's most promising ninja being outdone by a six year old. So she gained ANBU by the age of 10, right when you started actually learning to be a ninja. But after Itachi killed his clan Lord Third decided that maybe Tooru should be a secret. And only proved it when he saw how she ran away from kids her own age." I look at Shikamaru and see him looking at me, "We don't know what they did to her in the place, but they were ruthless, and she doesn't talk about it."

Shikamaru sighs, "The day Choji shoved a chip in her mouth because he thought she would like one. Only she ran away from us."

"Right. I tried to talk him out of it but once I left he did something. And I found myself unable to bring her up anymore. And most other adults were the same, none of you guys really knew who she was. So, she became isolated." I clench my fist, "Nothing for her to do, and she became the perfect ninja. And Lord Third started her on her own missions at the age of eight. No way should a eight year old be able to perfectly do missions, yet she did them. Apparently Lord Third punished her a lot. First with her emotions, but as you have seen she lost contact with her emotions. No matter what I have tried she never seems to care. And the punishment has been passed down between the Hokage's." I find myself unable to look at Shikamaru, "After the war Jyria was going to look at it for us, but he is no longer with us. I've been looking at the seal he used on her but I have never seen a seal like it," I finish, "Any questions?"

"What kind of punishments does she go through?" Shikamaru asks with no hesitation.

"Many," I answer. "She has had water dripped on her forehead before, many mind numbing questions. A cell that is way too small for her that physically take a toll on her. There is also people throwing things at her, and her being muzzled while someone just cuts her up. There are too many for me to tell you."

Shikamaru slowly nods. I lean back in my chair. I hate telling her story, but she refuses to tell people I allow her to talk to. Tenzo and Shikamaru have both had to come to me. Tooru needs to talk. I need to get someone to know what happened to her. Even I don't know her full story.

"So," Shikamaru begins, "She doesn't trust people?"

I shake my head. In all the time I have known Tooru, she never seems to trust anyone. She didn't even seem to trust any Hokage. Which I am offended by. No matter what we tried she never wanted anything to do with us other than getting orders from us. No matter how hard we tried we could not get her aware of us in a significant way.

"Any reason why?" Shikamaru presses.

"I have a theory," I start, "She was isolated at a young age. So, she has no idea how to trust people. People in the ANBU questions everything she did, and that isolated her even more. Every moment that she didn't have the ability to talk to anyone, the more she refused to want to talk."

Shikamaru gets a look in his eyes, "And what did everyone else think when she moved into the shadows?"

Now it is my turn to pause. Damn this kid. There is no way any one would ask a question like that. Plus, I was hoping that he wouldn't ask that. Just leave it bee.

Too many people were upset, but once they saw how good she was they stopped. She was the perfect ninja. Lord Third asked all of them to stop complaining. Well, almost all of them. Lord Third allowed her to live by herself and make choices by herself. She had that much say. I know three clans at least would have taken her in, but that was never an option.

Damn the Nara's and their ability to focus on small details, his father was the same way.

"I'm guessing by your lack of answer," Shikamaru crosses his arms in front of him, "You didn't want me to ask that."

"Correct," I reply, "But I told you I would tell you everything that there is too know about Tooru. The clan leaders at first were upset by this. But after a while they were happy to an extent. Every person seemed to agree with keeping her a secret, all except your father and Choji's father that is. They wanted to re-weaponize the Kato's ability. Something that had not been done in a very long time. Danzo was the one leading the charge, saying we needed the power to protect the village from Itachi, the nine tails and all the other villages. So, everyone agreed. Now only a few people knew about her, only the Hokage knows all about her powers and what the extent of that power she has." Slowly I turn my attention back to Shikamaru, "Some clans wanted her to live with them, let them teach her about life, but it was denied."

There is a pause. We only look at each other. I watch Shikamaru work through the information and his processing speed is fast. I always knew that it was fast but it has only gotten faster from the last time I actually talked to him. Which, I mean is good and everything only at a time like this is can be annoying.

"And," Shikamaru continues, "What are her powers? She doesn't seem like much of a ninja at first glance."

I snicker, "Trust me, she knows and understands a thousands Justus, though she may not be able to preform them she can understand them, and if she trains with them, she can be very dangerous."

"So," Shikamaru points at me, "She might have done that with you. She can understand it. Sounds like a power Orochimaru would love to have. She can process these and I'm guessing understands how people can combine elemental powers to make the powers we have encountered," Shikamaru tilts his head to the side, "Which means, these powers come at a cost."

I look at Shikamaru. Danm him and his ability to put things together within a few moments. Shikamaru should not have been able to put it together that fast, yet he did. And knowing him Shikamaru will come up with a plan to help Tooru.

I sit there, thinking. There should be no way for any of this to be happening. I don't care, but Shikamaru might be the key to finally figuring out how to bring Tooru out of the shadows for once and for all.

How do we achieve that though? That could take forever just for one other person to understand her. I know that not everyone will be as receptive as Shikamaru is. Not to mention that was one of the reasons I paired the two of them up. I knew that Shikamaru was a lot like his father, friends with anyone, no matter what the others said about them. He was a friends of Naruto and always looked out for him. That is what he did with Choji as well, he works well with people that aren't well known.

Which is why he had a harder time getting along with Sakura and Saskue, they were known in the whole village for their abilities to be cleaver. Yet, that never stopped him from becoming friends with them. No matter what, and his parents taught him that all.

"I do have a question Shikamaru," I finally say after a moment.

Shikamaru simply nods. He sits ready to hear anything I have to say.

I take in a breath, "What are you thoughts about Tooru?"

There is a long pause. Shikamaru's face remains even. I know he it thinking, but he has no idea what to say. He just learned a lot and from the little he has seen of her she is abrasive and hard to follow.

"I think," Shikamaru begins, "That she needs help. No one should be that alone."

"Great," I grin, "I have a mission for you and Kiba than."

Shikamaru:

Kakashi and I sit in silence while we wait for Kiba to come in. I told him we have to cancel the group training since we have a mission he and I are working on.

Kakashi isn't saying a word to me.

The door opens and Kiba walks into the room.

"Yo, what's up?" Kiba walks to stand next to me.

"I have a mission for you two," Kakashi answers.

I look between the two. I don't know what Kakashi is planning for this mission but it should be a good one. I hope we get something good.

Lately I feel like all I've done is paper work. Nothing is special about it either. Financial reports and how the Leaf is doing.

"What is it about?" Kiba asks.

"About Tooru Kato." Kakashi leans forward, "I want you guys to figure out what happened to her clan and if any of them are still alive. I believe that this is a good starting point for Tooru to regain control." Kakashi looks outside, "I want you guys to know everything about her. But I also need to know what happened to the bodies of her loved ones."

"So an intel based mission?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Why did you ask me? Why not Ino?" Kiba whines.

Kakashi turns his attention back to us, "You two know the most about Tooru. I thought it was only fitting," Kakashi writes a few things down, "Plus a mission from the Hokage himself. No one else has requested this mission. It is an A-Ranked mission."

I nod and so does Kiba. We have out work cut out for us.