HEY GUYS AND GIRLS. I'M BACK. THIS STORY REALLY TAKES A LOT OF ME. IT'S WORTH IT SO I HOPE YOU GUYS AND GIRLS APPRECIATE IT AS WELL. I'M GLAD THAT MOST OF YOU LIKE THE STORY SO FAR SO I HOPE THAT I DO THIS STORY THE JUSTICE IT DESERVES.
HAPPY READING:)
He couldn't focus. Not surprising considering everything that happened in the past couple of months but he wanted to focus. He wanted to get some work done at least. He wasn't the type to procrastinate while he worked. When he didn't want to start working then he would find himself lying under a weeping tree with enough shade to protect him from the burning sun.
This time it was different though. His focus was on too many things that he couldn't focus on any one thing. He found himself sitting on his chair behind his wooden desk while staring at page but thinking about ten million other things in his head. Lady Tsunade really did mess with his mind. Never trust those four dreaded words coming out of a females mouth. It usually never ends with the other person being happy or close to happiness.
"Shikamaru." A voice brought him back to reality. He looked up then saw Shizune standing in the door frame of his office.
"Do you need anything Shizune?" He tried calming down and getting back to his senses. He needed something to focus all his attention to so that his mind didn't lose itself to the thoughts roaming around in his head and Shizune was the perfect person to focus on right now.
"We received an update. Kakashi wants to see you." He almost forgot about that. The hour seemed to fly by so quickly. He wordlessly stood up then followed Shizune across the brightly lit passage to the Hokage's office. Kakashi sat on his chair behind his surprisingly organised desk. Shizune must've helped him sort it out. It was still filled with paperwork and files but it was organised, for now at least. Shizune left the room allowing Shikamaru and Kakashi to talking in private.
"Your plan seems to have worked Shikamaru." That was good news but Shikamaru sense that the bad news was just around the corner. He learnt all too well that happiness is always followed by the reality of life.
"What didn't seem to work?" He knew that he had to be prepared to lose everything but if his plan worked then everything couldn't have been lost, could it?
"Eight men died. The rest are injured. Half the village was devoured by flames. The group retreated. Kiba, Akamaru and Lee are trying to chase them down." Kakashi really did choose the shinobi for this mission very carefully. Kiba and Akamaru could sniff out an ant in a forest while Lee had the strength and speed of an army of shinobi. He did worry that the three of them wouldn't be enough to take down the enemy especially if they are still a large group. He also knew better than to underestimate his friends but realistically, the odds weren't in their favour.
"How many of the enemy were killed?"
"There were only 15 bodies found in the village." That would mean that there were still about 35 of the enemy left. If they were planning on using strength in numbers then he would've breathed a little easier but he didn't know that. He needed to be there in the middle of the battle to find out just how strong the enemy was.
"What about the women, children and elderly?" He nearly forgot about them. He did create the plan so that he could keep them safe at least. They didn't deserve to die by the hands of those bandits.
"They're all safe. They went into the forest when the fighting began but the other villagers went to go fetch them when the enemy retreated." He could breathe a sigh of relief now. They were safe but his relief immediately turned into worry for his friends. He didn't want to lose anymore. He couldn't lose anyone else.
"What help is Kiba, Akamaru and Lee receiving?"
"We can't send them any help. Tenten said that they should track them but not engage them. Whether or not they are able to do that will be clear in the next couple of hours." Kakashi sounded awfully calm about this whole situation. He was one of their senseis so did he really not care about their safety? Maybe he just couldn't afford to express his emotions. Maybe he was expressing an emotion which was blocked by his mask.
"What is the next step?" Yes. This is what he needed. A way to continue moving forward. A way to distract himself from the hurricane wreaking havoc in his head.
"Tenten is supplying the villagers with defensive weapons while the rest of their team sets up a perimeter in case of another attack. We've sent out another team with supplies and other provisions that the villagers would need for the next couple of days while we help them rebuild their village. They will be safe during these next few days. Shizune is out compiling as much information about the attacks as possible. I've sent out a request to Gaara to share information about this group that he might have as well. Maybe we could have a joint mission to take down these bandits." He knew that Gaara wouldn't mind that. Gaara wanted the wind country to do more missions with any other village in order to improve their relationship. Gaara and Naruto shared an irreplaceable bond so when Naruto becomes hokage one day then the fire and wind countries would definitely become great allies.
"That's a good idea."
"The village wouldn't have survived if it wasn't for your quick thinking." Kakashi was praising him, this was new. From what Naruto and Sakura told him; Kakashi wasn't big on openly praising his students or any other student. He seldom encouraged them but he never put them down. Praising them was never something anyone would associate Kakashi with though.
"You and Lady Tsunade would've figured it out. You could've saved everyone." He wouldn't have put it past them. The two of them had decades of battle experience that he didn't have so they could've created a better plan.
"We might not have been able to do it as fast as you did. You saved that village Shikamaru." Was this Kakashi's way of getting him to fully accept the role of his advisor? Shizune let them be alone and Kakashi was praising him; definitely a perfect coincidence.
"Thank you Kakashi-sensei." He gave a polite bow. He somehow felt uncomfortable. Kakashi praising him just didn't feel right.
"Do you like your office?" Kakashi definitely was trying to keep him there. He wouldn't bring that up otherwise. Maybe Shikamaru could test his boundaries a little.
"I do. I could use a few shelves and a cupboard though. Maybe another chair or a couch that I could use if I needed someone's help." He was pretty sure that Kakashi knew what the lazy ninja was doing but could the hokage really afford to lose him right now?
"Shizune and I were in the process of adding more furniture to your office. You can consult with her about that. It would get one more thing off my plate." Turning it into his advantage; definitely a seasoned shinobi.
"I will talk to her about it tomorrow then."
"Are you leaving?" The hokage raised an eyebrow at that. He knew as well as anyone that when Shikamaru started something then he would finish it even if he did complain and take some time with it. One thing that no one could take away from Shikamaru was that he was reliable. If you needed him to do something then he would do it. Yes he was lazy but he didn't let that affect his relationships and he would always help his friends if they were in trouble.
"I have a dinner to get to and my mother would kill me if I missed it. I will start my position as your advisor properly tomorrow."
"I will see you tomorrow then." Kakashi gave him a nod of approval and Shikamaru returned it with a bow then left then room without another word. He thought about going back to his office and sorting out the papers lying on his own desk but he knew that if he went back in there then he would get sucked right into doing some work. He decided to go to Kurenai's apartment rather. He didn't know how long it would take her to get to his house so if he left now then they would have enough time. He made his way out of the elegant building and began making his way through the bustling streets of Konoha but then Lady Tsunade's messages came back to him.
She spoke to him about three things. Three things he knew he needed to confront before starting to work but three things he dreaded. One of the things was his emotional state. She was a certified therapist as well as a doctor, unsurprisingly, so she knew if he was bullshitting her but he knew better than to try and fool the former hokage. He opened up to her about it. He told her about his visits to the cemetery and his lack of sleep. She listened with intent to what he was saying. She had a caring yet professional look on her face. It was like she was trying not to show any emotion but failing to do so. She knew the hardships that Shikamaru was going through all too well. She lost very important people in her life too. The most recent being her comrade and fellow member of the legendary Three Sannin; Jiraiya. If anyone could relate to him then it would be the former female hokage. It opened up old wounds but sometimes things need to get worse before they can get better.
"Are you coming in or are you just going to continue staring at the ground?" He didn't even realise he was already at Kurenai's apartment. He looked up at her as she stood in the doorway.
"I must admit though, it's one interesting looking ground." She couldn't hide amusement anymore. She turned around and headed into her apartment while letting her amusement consume her.
"Troublesome." He muttered then sighed as he followed her. He looked around the apartment, nothing changed. He did notice one thing in the kitchen though.
"You're clearly not hiding it anymore." He motioned to the ramen standing on the marble counter. It was open but he could see that there was still some ramen in it so he must've interrupted her.
"You did say that I could eat it but that I shouldn't eat a lot of it." He knew that he was going to regret saying that. His own words betrayed him. For some reason he felt like he let Asuma down but he was pretty sure that if Asuma was here then he would've given in a lot sooner than he had.
"I did say that." He admitted. "You have less than an hour to get ready." He slumped himself on one of the couches allowing his body to rest.
"Get ready for what?"
"Mom said that you have to come to dinner with us and I said that you have to spend the night."
"Do I get a say?"
"You're welcomed to fight my mother. I certainly won't stop you. If you can take her down then you'd be the first." He could tell that Kurenai was smiling even if he had his eyes closed. She always found it comforting when he would take light-hearted jabs at his mother. She was the only parent he had left so she might've thought that if Shikamaru and his mother could have such a close relationship with each other despite his father not being around then Kurenai and her child could have as close a relationship as theirs.
"I would rather not. Mothers are scary."
"Then you'll fit right in." Suddenly he felt something drop onto his stomach. He opened his eyes just enough to see Kurenai smirk before walking away. He saw that she dropped a bag on his stomach.
"This is my house so I can always kick you out." She made her way into her bedroom as she sent that last threat.
"I have Asuma's key so I will come right back in." He shouted loud enough for her to hear. Took a little more energy which irritated him but complaining about it would take more energy so he let it slide.
"I can have your mother take that key away from you. I might not be able to defeat her but I can get her to work with me." Two threats in a row. Kurenai wasn't planning on backing down any time soon. Why did women have to be so troublesome?
"You know that you can't live without my constant nagging." He couldn't fight fire with fire but he could control how that fire burned.
"I could. I know how to take care of myself. I've been doing it longer than you've been on this earth."
"But that wouldn't be any fun." He replied as she appeared again. She packed some things into the bag then zipped it up.
"Pregnancy isn't really all that fun you know."
"I am glad I'm not a female then."
"Sakura would probably enjoy being pregnant when you knock her up though." Kurenai was still on that. Why was his love life so important to her? Did she know something that he didn't? Did Sakura confide in her? He just needed to know why.
"Not me. I'm pretty sure that Sasuke has a better chance at doing that." Sasuke, now there's someone they could talk about and hopefully change the topic to.
"Sasuke isn't here and I don't think he has any plans on coming back any time soon. You on the other hand..." He needed another topic and he needed it now. She wasn't going to stop. She was like Ino when she found something to gossip about. They never let go until they looked at it from every angle.
"Can we go?" His frustration got the better of him. He tiredly stood up, grabbing her bag as he stretched.
"Why are you trying to change the topic? Trying to hide something Shikamaru?" Her sly smile proudly parading on her face as she made her way to the door.
"If I needed something to be hidden then you wouldn't even know it's gone."
"Am I sensing a little arrogance there?" Kurenai asked as they exited the apartment. She had the upper hand here and Shikamaru had no other option than to defend until an opportunity arose for him to strike back. Patience, the dreaded plan.
"Lady Tsunade told me to stop being modest so I am trying something new." Not exactly the truth but she didn't like his modesty.
"That sounds like her. She's always been too proud. Maybe she passed that on to her star student Sakura." And we're back to Sakura. It felt like no matter what he said, it would somehow result in Sakura's name being brought up.
"I think I am going to exercise my right to keep quiet." If he couldn't stop her talking then he could at least stop encouraging her. Something had to give.
"Such a drama queen." Kurenai rolled her eyes as she hooked her arm around the lazy ninja's unoccupied arm.
"Everything okay?" Kurenai usually didn't hook her arm around his when they made their way around the village. Panic immediately set itself firmly in his head as he went through the list of things that could've been going wrong.
"Relax, I am fine." He could tell that she was trying to hold back a chuckle. "This way you don't have to worry about me bumping into things or whatever you worry about. You can protect me easier like this."
"Both my arms are occupied so I can't weave any hand signs."
"You are strong enough to activate your shadows without weaving any hand signs."
"It wastes unnecessary energy."
"Are you saying that you won't protect me?" Checkmate. He couldn't keep her from winning anymore. The good news was that he could see the Nara compound ahead so they were nearly at their destination.
"If I won't then why did I protect you during Pein's attack?" She might've won the war but he could still go down with flare.
"Maybe you felt sorry for me."
"That's an awful lot of trouble just because I felt sorry for you don't you think?" Now it was his turn to finally get a little victory in.
"Touché." She still had her smile on her face knowing that she won the war but he also had a smile on his face content with the effort he put it. They silently reached Shikamaru's home and he allowed Kurenai to enter it first. He could hear lots of talking, laughter, movement; things that took too much energy.
"Shikamaru!" Ino's tone definitely indicating that Shikamaru was in trouble. He didn't bother even trying to figure out what he had done because he knew that she had no problem calling him out on it. It was like she thrived on proving to everyone that Shikamaru was just a normal stupid boy and not some genius. Shikamaru would've helped her do that but he didn't agree with the way she was going about it. He wanted to be just another stupid guy like anyone else. Being something else was just too troublesome.
"Hey Ino."
"Don't just 'Hey Ino' me. What the hell were you thinking? Letting those bandits burn down a village, what is wrong with you?" She was talking about the plan he created earlier. He thought it would be something more troublesome.
"This building is just a house but the people in it make it a home. The buildings that were destroyed are just buildings. The women, men, children and elderly people are the village. We protect them, not the buildings." That was an intelligent answer. He hoped that would keep Ino quiet for a while so that she didn't attack him. It seemed like it worked since Ino didn't say anything. For once, the blonde was silent.
"Kurenai-sensei." Choji was always happy to see her. She was always happy to see him in return. If she could choose between who she wanted to keep between the two male best friends then she would probably choose Choji since he would let her get away with everything. He knew that Choji would protect her with his life but he also knew that Choji couldn't protect her from herself.
"Hi Choji." He gave her a side hug in order to avoid her very prominent belly.
"How are you doing?"
"I'm great. You should keep your best friend on a leash though. He keeps hounding me." Kurenai sent a sly smile towards Shikamaru before turning back to the chubby ninja.
"I'm going to go put your bag in the room." Shikamaru announced then quickly made his way to the guest room that Kurenai often used when she slept here. Normally she would use one of the rooms upstairs but his mother refused to let her go up any stairs while she was pregnant so she had to sleep in one of the rooms downstairs. It was probably for the best so Shikamaru didn't fight it.
He could smell the delicious food being prepared in the kitchen with every slight movement of wind blowing through the house. He had to admit that he was a little excited for dinner now; more the eating part than the conversational part. He set the bag on the bed then exited the room trying to psyche himself up for tonight but failed miserably.
"Shikamaru, it's good to see you again." Ino's mother was always so nice to him. He always wondered why Ino was so bossy then. She was nearly the complete opposite of her mother. Granted, he didn't know how Ino's mother acted around Ino when they were alone at home but he knew her mother well enough to know that she was a good and kind-hearted woman. Maybe Ino got her personality from her father but Shikamaru couldn't see a lot of similarities. He knew that Ino's father was stern when it came to his work and on the battlefield but when he was at home then he would make awkward jokes especially around him and Choji. Choji would laugh along with him but Shikamaru would just smile so that he didn't seem impolite. Ino definitely was something else. Maybe her bossy personality was just a façade to hide a pure innocent little girl that he knew Ino could be. Maybe not the pure part that much or the innocent part for that matter but he knew that Ino had a caring side to her that she hardly ever showed. Her mother on the other hand didn't mind showing it.
"Good evening everyone." Shikamaru greeted the women in the kitchen. Kurenai was sitting by the table next to his mother who was chopping different coloured pepper while Choji and Ino's mother were busy cooking food on the stoves.
"How did it go with Kakashi?" Yoshino asked him. He could hear that his mother was sincere when she asked her question.
"It went good. Lady Tsunade explained my role there and I helped Kakashi with a mission that is currently taking place." Yoshino raised her eyebrow when she heard that. She probably wasn't expecting him to be helping the hokage so soon.
"Was the mission successful?" Kurenai also seemed intrigued by this now. Why didn't he bring this up when she kept probing him about Sakura? Would she have been intrigued by this then or was she dead set on getting information about Sakura out of him?
"It was the best outcome that we could've hoped for considering the resources we had. There was a group of more than fifty bandits attacking a village close to the border. There were only twenty men that were able to fight but eight of them died unfortunately. They killed a couple of the bandits before they retreated." Hearing that actually made him a little proud. The odds were stacked against them 2-5 but they managed to win.
"What about the women and children of that village? Are they okay?" Choji's mother also engaged in the conversation now.
"They're fine. I had Ino tell the villagers that couldn't fight to escape when the battle started. When the fighting finished then they returned to the village unharmed." Even more good news.
"You're just like your father." Why did that comment unsettle him? He knew Choji's mother didn't mean anything bad by it but it still sent a wave of emotions crashing down on him.
All his laugh he was being compared to his father. Everyone wanted him to be like his father but he never wanted that. He never wanted any of this. Sometimes he wished that he was born into a family that wasn't ninja's. He just wanted to be a normal boy that went to school and after school he would study to be botanist and veterinarian so that he could look after his family's forest and the creatures living in the forest. Then he would have no problem living up to his father's legacy.
But instead, he was born into a family of exceptional shinobi. His mother was one of the leaders of the 'mothers force' or whatever they called themselves. His father was regarded as the smartest man in the village after Lord Third died. His father wasn't just the head of his family but the head of the clan. His clan was the most intelligent in the entire village. His father was the Jounin Commander, head strategist, advisor to the hokage at times; this list just goes on when it came to his clan's and his family's achievements. Everyone looked to Shikamaru to be like his father now; to lead like his father did, to fight like his father fought, to plan like his father planned. It was just too troublesome.
"True. My husband and Shikaku always wanted to make sure that the women and children didn't have to enter the fight. We were women are not some fragile objects you know." Ino's mother was extremely passionate about furthering the status of women in the village. Maybe that's where Ino got some of her passion, albeit passion for the wrong things.
"Exactly. We can look after ourselves. Look at how Lady Tsunade rebuilt the village after Pein destroyed it." His mother always loved to jump aboard a project she believed in so there was no way she wasn't going to stay out of this one.
"On the other hand; under the rule of male Hokage's, the village was never completely destroyed like it was under Lady Tsunade's rule, a female Hokage." Why the hell Shikamaru would say that in a kitchen full of women was beyond anyone. Every single women in that kitchen stared at him like he was the enemy. He could see them imagining how they would kill him with the objects around him which were extremely dangerous on their own. Hell, he was pretty sure all they needed to kill him right now were the things in their hands; Choji's mother had a pot, Ino's mother had a pan, Kurenai didn't need anything since she had her genjutsu, his mother had a knife. He really should've thought that one through. For a genius, he really was stupid.
"I think I should go lay the table." He nervously said as he scratched the back of his head.
"You're lucky I'm not burying this knife in you right now." He wouldn't put it past his mother to do so. He knew first hand how scary his mother could be. He took that as his cue to leave the kitchen and put some distance between him and the women in the kitchen right now. He went to the wooden dining table on one side of the lounge where Ino and Choji were relaxing on the couch.
"What are you doing Shikamaru?" Ino asked him. He would've asked him to help him but he knew full well that she would somehow end up giving him more work to do.
"I'm laying the table for dinner. You guys look relaxed."
"We have work to do tomorrow so we're reserving our energy like you do every day." Ino was clearly trying to challenge him since he completely shut her down when he entered the house. Troublesome women.
"What work are you doing tomorrow Cho?" He knew that Ino basically took over her father's job so she always had work to do but Choji was only a shinobi so unless he had a mission then he wouldn't have any work to do.
"Going to the village that was attacked earlier. Kakashi-sensei wants me to help protect them for a couple of days until construction of the village is completed." He couldn't think of a more perfect mission for Choji. His kind-hearted friend would just at the opportunity to save or protect a village rather than kill another ninja. The only time he ever saw Choji hate someone was when Hidan killed Asuma but even then he was still in control of his emotions. He hated killing and Shikamaru admired that quality in him.
"I will be keeping you and Kakashi-sensei up to date about their progress among other things tomorrow." Ino was the like the bridge that connected Choji and Shikamaru. She didn't like killing either but she didn't hate it. If she really needed to kill another person then she would do it. Shikamaru was different from them. If the mission was to kill someone then he would do it, it's as simple as that. Whatever the mission said had to be done then he would do it. He was a shinobi so that was his duty. Choji and Ino would first try and find out why that person needed to be killed but Shikamaru knew that they were sent to kill that person for a reason. The hokage wouldn't hand out assassination missions without careful consideration; that's how he reasoned it but basically he was too lazy to challenge the Hokage's decision.
"I guess I am your boss then." He knew that quick quip would cause a reaction from her. The only time she would ever recognise Shikamaru as a leader was if they went on a mission. She would give him all her attention and trust that he creates the best plan for them. Most of the time she ends up deviating from the plan but he always created a separate plan that allowed her to do whatever she wanted to do leaving him and Choji to clean up after her. He never told her about that plan but she always knew it was there.
"Kakashi is the boss. You work for him just like we do." Ino was correct but that wasn't how anyone else would see it. She would be reporting to Shikamaru if Kakashi was busy. Shikamaru would be advising Kakashi on different plans if not planning and carrying out a mission himself. He was basically the Hokage's replacement if he was unavailable.
"So you're saying that I won't be able to send you on missions that I see fit?" He was challenging her now and he knew that he would corner her soon.
"Kakashi won't allow you to abuse your power like that."
"So I do have the power to send you on missions then."
"Whatever." Checkmate. He couldn't help but laugh as Ino grunted in frustration. "You guys are stupid."
"What did I do?" Choji asked her.
"Nothing Cho. She's just bitter 'cause she knows she's wrong."
"Oh." He loved Choji but sometimes he couldn't help but wish that his friend would keep at least one ear focused on the things around him when he wasn't on a mission.
"Just shut up." Ino really was frustrated. He felt a little bad but he knew that she wasn't going to stay that way forever. Suddenly a knock on the door drew their attention. He knew that Ino wasn't going to stand up and go answer it after Shikamaru defeated her and Choji never answered the door except when he was at his own house. He sauntered over to the door then opened it revealing the Haruno family.
His eyes automatically landed the young kunoichi standing next to her father. He immediately remembered the last encounter they had with each other; the two of them lying in her bed this morning. He found himself wishing he had more time to do that with her. He really wanted to feel her in his arms again and feel her arms wrapped around his body. He wanted her sweet scent to fill his senses and wanted her breaths travelling over his bare skin. He wanted her.
"Good evening Shikamaru." Mebuki happily greeted him as she carried an elegant pot in her hands.
"Good evening Mr and Mrs Haruno." He gave them a bow then straightened up and stood next to the door allowing them entry. "Please come in." Sakura's mother gave him a smile as she walked past him while Sakura silently followed her. Shikamaru noticed her cheeks reddening up a bit but then she was out of sight.
"Shikamaru." Kizashi put his hands on Shikamaru's shoulders as he stood in front of the young ninja. "How are you doing son?" Shikamaru wasn't particularly afraid of the man standing in front of him but he was a ninja even if he was just a genin.
"I'm good sir. How are you?"
"Well 'Good', I'm better." The famous 'dad jokes'. Didn't take Kizashi long to start them. He laughed when he said that then lightly hit Shikamaru's arm as he walked past him. Shikamaru politely returned the laugh as well before closing the door and following behind his guests.
"Looks like your girlfriend is here Shikamaru." He immediately wished Ino was invisible. Why would she say that when Sakura's parents were in the room with them? What is wrong with her? She couldn't still be upset about losing their conversation.
His emotions then went from anger towards Ino to fear for Sakura's parents. He didn't know how they would react to that statement. He knew that they were a pretty tight family and they loved each other so if Sakura was going to have a boyfriend of any kind then she would have to make sure that both her parents liked him but there was always that possibility of her parents not liking the boy. If there was any chance of Sakura and Shikamaru ever being together then Ino just made that chance nearly impossible.
"Girlfriend?" Kizashi asked. If Shikamaru wasn't afraid yet then he should be contemplating running away by now. Even if he wasn't in a relationship with Sakura, Kizashi was still her father and she was still his little girl.