HEY GUYS AND GIRLS. SO HERE'S ANOTHER CHAPTER THAT I KIND OF RUSHED BECAUSE I REALLY WANT TO TRY AND FINISH THIS STORY FOR EVERYONE THAT'S BEEN WANTING TO KNOW HOW IT TURNS OUT AND I WANT TO KNOW HOW IT TURNS OUT AS WELL IF I AM BEING HONEST. I'M SORRY AGAIN FOR ALL THE MISTAKES AND ERRORS.

HAPPY READING

"Where's Kiba?" Ino suddenly asked the group as they stood in the hallway outside the operating room. Nearly 2 hours had passed and there was still no news about Kurenai or her child.

"He and his sister were sent out on a mission." Shino informed the group. The insect master definitely knew more about the village than anyone else probably did. He probably knew more than the Hokage did at times.

"Both of them on the same mission?" Shikamaru critically asked.

"Yes." Shino confirmed.

"Is something wrong?" Choji asked his best friend. Thoughts raced through Shikamaru's mind as to why Kakashi would send both Inuzuka's out on the same mission but only one reason made sense.

"Do you know who they're tracking?" Shikamaru asked Shino.

"No. They headed East."

"How long ago?"

"3 hours." That must mean that they're still inside the borders of the Fire Nation. They couldn't have gone too far yet and they're travelling at night so they're definitely going to be moving slower to be extra cautious. Whoever they were tracking had to be extremely important especially if it required 2 of the best trackers in the village to head out at night.

"Can you two idiots please explain what's going on?" Ino stared at Shikamaru and Shino waiting for one of them to answer. Shino didn't look like he was going to answer, well his expression was still as blank as ever.

"Kiba and his sister went on a mission 3 hours ago and headed East in order to track somebody or a group of people." Shikamaru informed his blonde friend.

"What are you not telling us?" Ino asked them.

"That's as much information as we know Ino. Now you know what we know." At least now she knew what Shikamaru knew. He was pretty sure that Shino had a lot more information stored up in his head that could be used to possibly find out who exactly the Inuzuka's were tracking.

"Oh crap, we didn't get a present for Kurenai yet." Ino suddenly remembered. That slipped his mind as well but the expression on Ino's made it seem like it was a fatal mistake.

"Actually, my mother and I went to the Sarutobi compound yesterday on our way home to ask Konohamaru if there was anything that we could give to Kurenai as a present. Hinata was there practicing with him so she helped us." Choji informed the group. Everyone's attention quickly turned to the shy Hyuga who immediately looked alarmed.

"We found a b-box of Asuma's old things f-from when he was still a g-genin." Hinata stuttered. Looks like her stutter only appeared when she was nervous now. At least she grew out of it, even if it only lessened.

"That's great. There has to be something inside there that we can give as a gift to Kurenai." Ino stated.

"Why don't we just give her the entire box? It is Asuma's things so she should have it. Maybe her child could use some of it just like Asuma did." The lazy ninja suggested. He definitely earned that title with replies like that.

"We first need to see what's in the box." That was a good plan by Ino. At least she was finally using her head.

"Konohamaru also said that if Kurenai and her child needs a place to stay then they can move into the Sarutobi compound." Choji informed them.

"The compound is more than big enough for the 3 of them." Shikamaru concluded. The Sarutobi compound was a little bigger than the Nara's and much more peaceful since there was hardly anyone living there now. The only person that had a permanent residence in the compound was Konohamaru but he was getting more and more missions that required him to leave the village so the place was basically empty.

"Closer to this hospital as well." Shino added. He was clearly seeing the same practicality the Nara was seeing.

"We first have to ask Kurenai-sensei." Hinata softly pointed out. Obviously it was Kurenai's choice but she did say that she was looking for a place that was big enough for her and her daughter and what better place than the Sarutobi compound?

"She'll say yes. We need to start getting that place ready for them. We need to renovate that whole place. It's a little too dull." Ino was definitely getting ahead of herself. She was probably going to turn this into an activity that Shikamaru and Choji wasn't going to enjoy.

"Like Hinata said, we first need to ask her." Shikamaru stated as he heard footsteps quickly approaching them. He looked down the hallway to see who the footsteps belonged to then saw the former Hokage, Lady Tsunade, swiftly approaching them.

"Lady Tsunade." They greeted her with a bow.

"It's too late to be bowing." Lady Tsunade casually replied before entering the operating room. She was nothing if not unusual so her reply was as normal as they were going to get.

"What's Lady Tsunade doing here?" Choji asked them but Shikamaru immediately became worried again. Lady Tsunade was the most experienced and one of the best medic ninjas in history, let alone Shizune and Sakura's teacher so if she was here then this must've been serious. Something bad must've happened if she was here.

"She's a doctor idiot." Ino answered the Akimichi.

"Shikamaru." He heard Temari's voice then found her standing in front of him. "Kurenai and her child are fine. Lady Tsunade is probably here just to do a check up and see how everything is going. They're going to be fine." Temari definitely read his mind. She knew him like the back of her hand even if they hadn't spent any time together recently.

"Yeah Shikamaru, everything is going to be fine." Ino added but he heard the concern in her voice now as well. Suddenly the doors to the operating room opened and time seemed to slow down. Everything around them seemed to slow down as they waited for whoever it was to step outside the room.
Shizune stepped out of the room but what immediately grabbed his attention was the blankets in her arms. The blankets that was perfectly wrapped around a crying baby. The blankets wrapped around Asuma and Kurenai's baby girl.

"Shikamaru." Shizune called him over and he automatically found himself walking towards her. It was as if someone was controlling his shadow and making him do whatever they wanted him to do and right now they were leading him towards the medic ninja holding the baby girl in her arms.
"Meet Kurenai's little girl." Shizune carefully handed over the crying baby to Shikamaru who gently held her in his arms. He looked down at the new born who slowly began quieting. Shikamaru seldom enjoyed babies or being in the company of their cries but something about the young life in his hands seemed to spark a desire inside him to be apart of her life every step of the way. A tear escaped his eyes and splashed down on her soft cheek but she had a cute smile on her face. She was definitely going to be a troublesome little girl.

"Asuma's little demon." Shikamaru repeated Kurenai's words as a smile plagued his face. He immediately looked up at Shizune as Yoshino appeared next to her son to look at the baby in his arms.
"How's Kurenai doing?" Shikamaru quickly asked her.

"She's not doing too good to be honest. This pregnancy put a lot of strain on her heart so we had to deliver her child but Sakura is doing her best. If anyone can help Kurenai then it's Sakura." Shizune stated as she rested against the wall. Shikamaru's heart immediately felt like it was sinking as he took in Shizune's words. Kurenai needed to be okay. She needed to wake up and see her daughter's beautiful face. She couldn't give up, not now. Her daughter needed her.

"Give her to me before you drop her." Yoshino instructed her son as she slowly took the child.

"Her little girl had some complications. When we delivered her, she wasn't breathing and her heart was a little weak but I managed to take care of her. She's okay for now but I want to keep her here to make sure that she's okay." Shizune informed them.

"Thank you Shizune." Yoshino sincerely told her. Suddenly the doors to the operating room opened again but this time Sakura came rushing out of the room. She nearly raced past them without so much as acknowledging their presence.

"Sakura." Shikamaru called her name as he tried grabbing her arm but he was a little too late. A million questions seemed to race through his mind all at once. What was she doing out of the operating room? Where was she going? Was Kurenai okay? What the hell was going on?
She made her way past them so he quickly took after her. If she was Kurenai's best hope then why was she leaving? What was happening? She turned a corner so he followed her then grabbed her hand when he finally caught up to her.
"What's going on Sakura?" He quickly asked her as she turned to face him.

"I need to go." He could see the focus in her eyes so whatever she had to do was important.

"Where are you going? What about Kurenai?"

"Shikamaru, let me go. There's just something I need to go do."

"You said that you wouldn't leave Kurenai's side until she was okay. Is she okay?" A sudden flash of sadness appeared on her face then quickly disappeared again. Was Kurenai dying? Is that what she was running away from?

"I'm sorry Shikamaru but this is more important." Sakura replied then managed to release his grip on her hand and began walking away again.

"What's more important than saving Kurenai? You said you would take care of her. Sakura talk to me." Shikamaru walked after her but she refused to stop and listen to him.
"Sakura, please don't do this. Don't walk away right now." Shikamaru hated begging but right now he would sell his soul if it meant that Kurenai would survive. He'd do anything to ensure that Kurenai would get better and get out of here so that she could take care of her child.

"I'm sorry Shikamaru." Sakura apologized again as she turned to him with tears running down her cheeks. He stopped walking after her and just let her walk away as he stared at her face. A wave of emotions came crashing down on him as she looked ahead of her and disappeared from his vision. What the hell was going on? What was happening right now? He needed answers and he needed it now.
He quickly raced back to the operating room where Kurenai was but he found his mother, Choji's mother and Ino's mother making their way down the hallway along with Shizune carrying Kurenai's child.

"We're going to take her to the nursery so that we can keep a closer eye on her. Lady Tsunade took over for Sakura and is working on Kurenai now. They're both in safe hands." Shizune informed him.

"It's going to be okay Shikamaru." His mother added as she gave him a quick kiss on his forehead then made their way past him. He trusted them to look after Kurenai's baby so he continued on his way to the hallway outside the operating room. He saw that Hinata, Temari, Ino, Choji and Choza were still in the hallway.

"Where'd Shino go?" Shikamaru asked them. Despite the wealth of emotions raging inside him, the biggest one driving him right now was anger. What the hell could be more important for Sakura than saving someone's life and not just a random person but Kurenai? Why would she leave when Kurenai wasn't even stable yet? He had a feeling that whatever her answers would be was going to make him even more angrier.

"He didn't say. Getting anything out of him is a mission on its own." Ino answered him. He was surprised that she was still here right now and not with their mothers looking after Kurenai's child.

"Girls, can I ask you to hold down the fort here?" Choza suddenly asked them.

"Yes sir." Ino formally responded. Despite Choza being like another father to her and Shikamaru, they still felt the need to be formal and respectful towards the older Akimichi all the time.

"Choji, Shikamaru; follow me." He instructed the best friends.

"Mr. Akimichi, with all due respect, I would like to stay here." Shikamaru told him.

"Just come with me son. There's something I need you to see." Choza replied then lightly tapped him on his shoulder and began walking ahead of him. He looked at Choji for answers but his chubby friend just shrugged and began following his father. Shikamaru fought the urge to stay there but reluctantly followed his best friend. If anything, this would help get his mind off everything for a moment.
He followed the two Akimichi's then found himself walking up the stairs of the hospital until they reached the roof. The cold wind rushed past him as the cold air wrapped around him but that didn't bother him for a moment. There were missions he had gone on where he nearly froze. Choza led them to a concrete slab then sat down so the two younger ninja followed his lead and sat down next to him.

"What are we doing here dad?" Choji asked his father as Shikamaru leaned back and placed his weight on his arms so that he could look up at the star-filled night sky. It was different than the starless night sky in the Earth nation but he was really glad about that. This night sky reminded him that he was at home, it reminded him that he was safe.

"Just fulfilling a promise I made to Shikaku." Choza's words immediately grabbed the lazy ninja's attention. He turned his head to the older ninja who was also staring up at the night sky. What did his father have to do with this? What promise did Choza make? Why was everyone giving him such a lot of questions without giving him any answers?
"Well I am a bit too early but this feels like the right time." Choza now turned his attention from the stars above him to the ninja beside him.

"What promise did you make?" Shikamaru nervously asked him. He really didn't know why he was nervous. Choza was like a father to him so whatever promise he made to Shikaku was bound to make him a better person right?

"Look around you, what do you see?" Choza instructed them ignoring Shikamaru's question but they did it anyway. He looked around and saw that he had a perfect view of the village from the roof of the hospital. It was past midnight so most people in the village were probably sleeping. The streets were calm and there was hardly any noise around them except for the occasional whistling of the wind making the poles rattle around them.

"It's peaceful." Shikamaru finally answered when he saw that Choji wasn't going to answer. Maybe Choji was allowing his father and Shikamaru to have a bonding moment.

"It is the time of peace that your father, Asuma, Neji and all the other fallen shinobi across the ninja realm had fought so hard for and had given their lives to create. It's the time of peace that we yearned for and fought so hard to achieve. Now it's up to us to protect it and ensure that the next generation also enjoy this time of peace and that starts now. Kurenai's child is here and she is not going to have a father but she is going to need great male role models to fill in that position so that's why it's time for both of you to step up. That little girl is not only Kurenai and Asuma's child but she is our child. It takes a village to raise a child but it takes parents and in this case, both of you to help Kurenai shape that little girl so that she can be the best she can be whatever she decides to do later in life." Choza's words ignited something in the young Nara. It finally occurred to him, it was up to him to help Kurenai raise her child. It was the last mission Asuma gave him and he was going to do his best not to disappoint him.
"Your father made me promise him that I would make sure that you raise your child better than he raised you but he set the bar pretty high there. I know that Kurenai's little girl isn't your biological child but I'm going to make sure that you help Kurenai raise her little girl and if you need some advice or help then my door will always be open."

"Thank you for this Mr. Akimichi." Shikamaru sincerely thanked the older ninja as he sat up properly now and let the words think in. If that little girl was anything like Ino or Sakura then she was definitely going to be a handful.

"Have one." Choza handed his son a small red ball. Shikamaru knew most of the Akimichi's secret pills but this was one that he hadn't seen before. He knew everyone of Choji's pills that he always carried on him but that was because they were teammates. Shikaku and Choza were teammates so maybe he knew what these small red balls were but he couldn't really ask his father now.

"What are these?" Shikamaru asked as while Choji and Choza swallowed their ones.

"It's something to boost your energy. You look like you need it and with a baby to take care of, you're going to need a lot of it." Choza had a bit of a chuckle at that but it brought a smile to Shikamaru's face as well.

"Mrs. Akimichi always said that Choji was a happy baby while he grew up but how was really?" Shikamaru asked then swallowed the small ball that his best friend handed him. Hopefully talking to Choza about how his son grew up would give him a better idea of how to help Kurenai with her child.

"Can we please not talk about this?" Choji asked them as he looked a bit embarrassed but that just made Shikamaru want to know even more.

THAT'S IT FOR NOW. I HOPE I CAN POST ANOTHER CHAPTER BEFORE THE WEEK ENDS OR BY MONDAY FOR THE LATEST. I HOPE THAT I DIDN'T UPSET ANYONE AS USUAL. I'M SORRY IF I DID, IT'S NOT MY INTENTION. PLEASE DON'T HATE ME BECAUSE I AM JUST ANOTHER STUPID GUY. UNTIL NEXT TIME GUYS AND GIRLS, SEE YA…