It was morning as he left his apartment. The sky was heavy with clouds and the promise of rain thick in the air. Shikamaru had surprised himself by leaving his home by 9am. Call it curiosity and the welcomed distraction of a puzzle that allowed his feet to guide him from his bed, and through his morning routine.

He lit a cigarette on the way to his car, knowing he would be finishing it right about the same time he would pull into the parking lot of the library. He patted his pocket to make sure he hadn't forgotten Sakura's list. He hadn't. Everything was going smoothly. He smirked, 'Perfect timing.' His day was right on track, for the first time in awhile.


Shikamaru arrived at the library, was able to pick up right where he had left off the night before. Once again almost all of the cases which were on the list provided by Sakura involved mishandled evidence, missing witnesses, and other oddities that made it so the cases didn't see the light of a courtroom. The majority of them also involved decisions made directly by the district attorney, Orochimaru and the chief of police, Danzo. Call it a hunch, but he felt there was a need to do some more digging into the two of them.

He hated doing it, but he knew that Asuma had a few contacts within the police department, and he was going to reach out and see if they could shed some light on Danzo. The time Asuma had spent in the department had allowed him to make some connections that he trusted, so in turn, Shikamaru knew he could trust them. It would just be a matter of convincing them to speak with him. He wasn't Asuma, but he was pretty sure his best bet would be Ausuma's old partner on the force, Kakashi.

The decision to use one of Asuma's contacts sat heavy in his thoughts and on his chest. He needed a smoke. He would handle it after. 'Just need a break.'

Shikamaru left his spot at the library table, which was now completely covered with papers. He allowed himself to wander outside as he smoked a cigarette. The sky was darkening, and he wouldn't be surprised if it began raining soon. Honestly, he was surprised it hadn't already.

He finished his cigarette, then headed to the front desk. He doubted Kakashi would be in, but he would leave him a message for when he got back to the station. Maybe they could meet tonight or another night this week to talk a bit.

A quick inquiry to the librarian, about using the phone, and he was ringing through to the police station. As predicted, Kakashi wasn't in. He just left a short message, asking it to say that Detective Shikamaru Nara had called and wanted to speak with him. The idea was that Kakashi would know he was trying to reach him, and there was a chance Kakashi might be able to get in contact with him, if Shikamaru didn't first.

Apparently the librarian hadn't gone too far, during his call. "Oh, so you're a detective? Nara was it?"

Shikamaru hesitated, taking in the appearance of the tall, quiet, and ash-grey haired librarian. "Yeah."

The librarian, figgetted and pushed his round glasses up his nose. "Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear." He gave an embarrassed laugh before continuing. "I saw you here last night too. So, doing some research for a case? I'm pretty good at research, so let me know if I can help."

Shikamaru gave a nod, "Will do. Thanks for letting me use the phone."

He headed back to the table to dive back into his research. His goal was to get out of the library earlier tonight, with plans to make it to the club to follow-up with Temari about her words about being "both on the same side" and so far, that looked possible with time to spare.


After several hours of pouring through old paper clippings and for any information related to the names and cases on his list, Shikamaru leaned back in his chair to stretch his aching back. His attention caught on a nearby young woman, in a light tan dress with purple belt. She was so short and petite that she struggled to reach a book on a higher shelf.

She gave cute little hops, as she tried to grab the book. A huff escaping her mouth as her long red hair fell in front of her eyes with each jump.

Shikamaru sighed and slid the list into his jacket pocket as he went to help her. It may be a drag, but his mother hadn't raised a man that would watch a woman struggle, especially when he could easily help.

"Umm… can I help you get something?"

Her brown eyes fell on him. "Oh, I'm so embarrassed! I can't seem to reach a book I'm here for. Would you mind grabbing it for me?" She directed Shikamaru to a hardcover volume on music theory, which he easily reached for her.

"You're so kind. Thank you!"

"No problem."

She tucked a piece of her red locks behind an ear, and glanced at her book. "Do you play, by any chance."

"Music? No, can't say that do."

"Not even sing? You have the voice for it." She bit her bottom lip and looked down shyly.

"Uh, thanks." Not sure how to handle such a complement, Shikamaru rubbed the back of his head. "Well, let me know if you need help reaching any others."

Ten minutes later, she was at his table, with a few books clutched in her hands. "Hello. Sorry to bother you again. I have another favor to ask."

Shikamaru turned and looked at her as she rushed on. "There has been this creepy guy watching me, and I would really appreciate it if you could walk me out to my car. You seem like a nice guy, and I'd really appreciate it."

"Oh, sure." He got up and walked towards the front with her. He was pretty much done, but would come back to put away the materials he left.

"I'm Tayuya, by the way."

"I'm Shikamaru."

"You seem like a real stand up guy, Shikamaru. A real gentleman, walking a lady to her car. You just never know what kinds of creeps are out there, waiting to get you." She paused in the lot before pointing to a dark car in the corner, parked between a couple of others. "That one is mine."

"Yeah, better safe than sorry." an awkward silence filled the air, before he tried at some more small talk. "So, you like music. What kind?"

"Oh, I play flute, but I also like helping people learn to sing." She smiled.

As they reached the car, a couple of very large guys appeared from the shadows of one of the other parked cars. They menacingly closed in on the pair. He quickly realized that he wouldn't be able to fight them, and Shikamaru reached to grab Tayuya's hand. They needed to run back to the library, but she stepped back and closer to her car keeping the smile on her face.

"We need to go!"

"Sorry, but you're not going anywhere, detective." She laughed.

Shikamaru's eyes widened as he realized he had fallen into a trap. He couldn't help but think, 'Just perfect.' as the goons descended on him.

The rain began to sprinkle from the darkened clouds. After all day, the promised rain was here.


Author's Note: Sorry for the extra long delay! I've been really busy - but in a great way, so no complaints here! I took some vacation, went to a couple weddings, and it was ShikaTema week over on Tumblr (not that long ago), where I took part and posted some art. I also wrote a couple stories for it, but I posted the stories here as well. I'm OstaraNight on Tumblr, and you can give a follow, check out my art, or ask questions there if you ever want.

Let me know what you think of the story. Good, bad, or other. I'm curious to know what people think. I'll try to be faster with upcoming updates, but it looks like my weekly update schedule might be unrealistic - either way, I'll do my best to keep the updates coming as quickly as I can. Thanks for reading!