Pov: Omnipresent

Pairing: (Female) Naruto X Shikamaru

Disclaimer: I own nothing connecting to the Naruto Franchise

One More Time

Chapter 8: Reality

Itachi Uchiha was a hard man to read. His face had been closed off the entire time they had this conversation. The elder Uchiha hung off every word and each fact presented before him before turning his gaze to settle on Naruto who stood between Shikaku and Shikamaru.

At that moment he was easy to read through. No one had ever seen the older Uchiha look so defeated. So pained, just human. It softened Naruto to see the pain and eased the blonde to know that Itachi believed them.

"Thank you for telling me...Thank you for saving my clan from me..as well." Itachi's face seemed to flinch around the eyes a moment in that comment. Naruto had moved forward and placed her hand on the older man's shoulder gripping it gently but securely.

"You had been manipulated in our first life. There was so much going on that you could not rally against. Don't take it all and drown in your own guilt for it." The blonde let the Uchiha go who only eyed Naruto in contemplation. "We did ensure you didn't have to be forced into the same corner this time. It's better for us to be united for the coming fight. We just have to all quietly lay low for a few years and train ourselves and our friends. Tie ourselves to other villages because we will be in unknown territory now. With all that has changed, we are walking into a battlefield of unknowns." Naruto sighed but Itachi looked torn struggling to come with words to say what was on his mind.

"Several elders have been planning on kidnapping you when you inevitably reject our clan." The room fell into tense silence when Shikamaru shifted forward as if to pull Naruto away from Itachi. "They wish to use a clan Jutsu to enforce you to become my bride." Itachi looked pained to say this and both Naruto and Shikamaru froze. "It was why I was on my way to your location, I wished to warn you. They foolishly assumed I would fall along with their plan because they found out."

Naruto looked to Itachi her throat was suddenly dry but she still croaked out a question. "Found what out?"

Itachi looked exhausted and turned to look outright at Naruto. "I love you. I don't know how or why but watching you grow up with such amazing drive and character. It won me over. You don't wait for others to save you but fight true and hard even if people don't appreciate it I see you try. That earnest nature is appealing." Naruto looked completely shocked and confused practically sputtering in protest.

"You truly do not understand the draw you have, but that is fine. I can and will love you and do not ask you to return my sentiments. If you willingly bind yourself to me it would be something to elevate you into a position in the village that none would fight against. You need someone with power and reputation at your side, you need someone whose strings of fate won't take against either of your intentions." Itachi looked to Shikamaru now to open pain in his face made him hard to ignore.

"I will not foolishly think it is my right to ask this. I can only hope you will give me a true chance in your heart. You could just marry me out of your obligation to your future endeavors though as it too would help keep what little control over what you two have already changed." Itachi eyed Naruto who looked weary and trembled slightly in her frozen spot.

"The retelling of your previous life shows we two are the outliers. Your comrade the younger Nara had a bride that tied power to the leaf village's side, my brother was foolish in his endeavor of the search for power, and Neji and I were supposed to be dead." Itachi watched Naruto's face contort in pain. "You, on the other hand, you were alone unattached and too had no ties crossed or knotted to anyone in a romantic sense before you too were killed to return back here."

"Neji lives but the boy belongs to the Hyuga clan and they will have someone lined up to be his bride should you reject the boy. They have always had someone tied to the boy who may have changed partners after his death and would be fated for him in this lifetime as well. My brother has many prospects when it comes to bride selection as he had not gone crazy with his lust for power. He too already has a bride chosen for him who still lives whereas my own has passed on once more. Shikamaru here can end this farce and return to the arms of his first beloved." Naruto's gaze fell and her hands clenched hearing Itachi's words.

Shikamaru stayed silent at a loss on what to say and cursing himself for not saying it. He was cursing Itachi as well, there was no doubt about that. "My initial intended is gone from this world once more, you and I are the only two whose paths can cross without disrupting too many relations." Itachi was logical and it was painful because it was all true.

They had changed so much done so much already that they were sure if their bonds would affect the future.

Suna became close to Konoha because of Gaara and Naruto's friendship but it was also in part to Shikamaru marrying Temari. Sure it could be in delay because the other bijuu was correcting his village still and the thoughts of branching out to the leaf when they were all weak seemed foolish. Yet there would be lingering doubt to Gaara waiting for Shikamaru and Temari to bring up the marriage again.

There had yet to be a word about Suna's original peace settlement, they still lay in a tense temporary agreement. Suna was struggling with reaching out to the hidden leaf and there could be many reasons to contribute to that fact. It was something that had not happened originally and truthfully it was why Naruto had pushed off agreements of marriage to her time-traveling compatriot,

Gaara remembered but maybe his hands were tied until someone on their end held out an olive branch for the sand village to cling to. Gaara's attack and stealing of his bijuu and Naruto's helping hand to save the redhead had been a big factor in the two villages teaming up against outside forces. It had also been the initial pushes the sand needed to keep permanent bonds with the village hidden in the leaf.

This time Akatsuki was not as big of a threat. This time Gaara had not been attacked and robbed of his partner. This time Shikamaru was not offering himself up to the former Kazekage's daughter for marriage.

Suna had few loyalties to tie to the hidden leaf this time. They had damned themselves but it was meant to be for the betterment of them all. Yet it shot them right in the foot, didn't it.

"What if you're wrong." It was a whisper pain-filled and Itachi softened at the tone. Naruto was near tears now, they all knew whom the blonde's heart belonged to. As much as Naruto tried to fight it the truth had and always would be that she loved Shikamaru. In her first life and in this one, could he say the same for Naruto?

"The question is, could you risk me being right?" Itachi kneeled before the blonde who had tears in her eyes and hated hearing this. She loved Shika with everything she had, but what if there was truth to this. So much can still go wrong if they did not execute events at the right times.

Madara Uchiha would emerge from the dark depths frustrated with the lack of movements in his plans. He would use Obito and whatever resource to go after Naruto who was the epicenter of all his problems. He would not arrive on his own, they had taken down Orochimaru but Naruto had heard terrifying rumors he still lived.

Hell, he could have already altered Kabuto and the main pain in her ass the first time around could be still out in the world. She had been a bit foolish and never thought to collect the bodies of the two she faced. She had been under the false assumption that Jiraiya or Tsunade had done so. She could have been wrong. The regenerative powers in those two could have been replicated already and she could just be fooling herself.

The blonde grimaced but other than the new bonds with the riakage the leaf had no one at their backs for when shit would hit the fan.

They needed Suna, somehow someway and an arranged marriage was soon looking like the only bond the village of the sand would concede to.

"I will leave you to think upon this Naruto, but take my interest seriously." Itachi kissed the blondes knuckles and left the room leaving behind the destruction of emotion in his wake,

Had she been naive in hoping to finally marry Shika? Hell, he had said nothing when Itachi offered him a way out of his bond to the blonde. Did that mean he still loved Temari and was playing his role as her suitor well? Was he feeling obligated to marry her? She had tricked herself, diluted her idiot self into thinking this was where his heart truly went. No, he was just feeling obligated and loyal toward his Hokage.

"Naruto I-" The blonde flinched when Shikamaru touched her shoulder and hoped he would say what she needed him to say. To argue against the logic Itachi dropped on their heads. To push and say they would find another way, that there was another way to get Suna on their side. A way that didn't involve him marrying another woman. Yet, there was only silence that followed.

"Don't do anything drastic, give me some time. If I can't figure something out you can hideaway under the guise of training-" Shikamaru was stumbling over his words and the blonde gather herself up and settled her breathing and tears.

Forcing a smile on her face Naruto turned to Shika wiping her tears in one fell swoop. It hurt Shikamaru to see that and he let his words choke him in his own throat unsure how to fix this.

"I need to go Shikamaru. I will see you soon." The heartbroken smile on her face hurt more but watching Naruto walk away again was the pain that seemed to linger.

Yet what could they do...they were here with obligations despite him wanted to fight it. They could be wrong.

Shikamaru sighed and locked himself in his study, he had some work to do if he wanted to even dare ask something so selfishly from Naruto.

He was Shikamaru Nara and he was still bound and determined to have Naruto as his wife. With the blonde actions spoke louder than words, so now was a time for action.

He needed to prove not to just her, but to himself that Itachi was wrong. Because he knew right now she would not believe his words.

O.M.T

Naruto stumbled through the busy village her body easily taking her forward. She brushed past many of her friends, past the concerned bellowings of Ino and soft words of Hinata.

Even Kakashi had been unable to draw his student away from the hustle of her self tormenting thoughts and hurt mindset.

Step by step move by move she was drawn to the unassuming apartment complex and was knocking on a door awaiting the man inside.

The door swung open and Iruka jolted as the softly crying form of Naruto stumbled into his arms.

Gently he soothed his former student and ushered the girl inside. It would seem he and she needed to have a long talk.

Something was wrong and Iruka would get to the bottom of what it was.

Thank you for reading please review.