The air was cool and damp. The crickets had fallen asleep and the birds were chirping the beginnings of their morning songs. The sky that was the darkest blue was lightening with every passing moment. The man lying in the grass didn't need to open his eyes to know that daybreak was fast approaching.
Ugh…we'll need to leave soon. Guess I need to tell Temari.
He squinted his eyes while slowly opening them, not wanting to let the light in. His face scrunched in confusion, then annoyance when he recognized the cat and rabbit peering down at him.
"Oh, I see you're finally awake," said Tenten in a sing-song voice.
Now I really don't want to get up!
"Hmph," he grunted as he rolled onto his side.
"Ugh…someone's a little too chipper early in the morning," Ino added drily. "Hey, Shikamaru, when's our relief coming?"
Shikamaru sighed. He rolled onto his back and then sat up. He yawned loudly as he stretched.
"I don't know," he mumbled.
Ino reached down and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him to his feet.
"What do you mean, you don't know? We better not have to wait all day!" Ino said through clenched teeth.
This is going to be a troublesome day.
He took a deep breath.
"We don't need to wait for them. They'll get here easily and it's not like Temari's going anywhere yet," he said casually.
"Fine," she spat as she let him go, slightly pushing him away. "Don't stay in there too long. We need to get going."
If I didn't know any better, I'd think she was leading this mission.
I better get this over with.
"Good luck," Tenten said with a small shrug of her shoulders as she and Ino headed back to their lookout points.
He took yet another deep breath and walked to the hut. He paused at the door.
I hope she's asleep. I'd rather catch her off guard, before she gains her composure than deal with her attempting to attack me, even if she is weak right now.
She's going to have so many questions…what a pain.
He cracked the door open slowly. Peeking inside, he saw that she was lying in bed with her back to the door.
She's in bed, but is she asleep?
He tip-toed inside, silently shutting the door behind him.
"Hmm…"
He stopped in his tracks, halfway between the door and her bed, keeping one foot in front of the other in case she spotted him.
She was rolling over.
I'm dead! If she sees me now, she'll think I'm a pervert watching her sleep. She won't even wait for an explanation!
He held his breath until Temari settled down, this time lying on her back with the arm closest to him draped above her head. Her eyes remained shut and her breathing was slow and steady.
Shikamaru sighed deeply.
This woman…
He inched forward slightly. He'd been around her quite a bit in the last 3 days. Yet in all that time, he hadn't really looked at her. He had been too involved with developing his strategy and making sure she was safe.
What's happened to you, Temari?
He'd seen her a few times over the years. Their respective missions ended up coinciding in the same village or area every once in a while. There was even one time that his ANBU team had backed her up.
This woman wasn't even a mask of the one he befriended. Sure, some of the differences were due to the weak state her body was in, but not enough to fool him. She'd aged, just like the rest of them, but somehow it wasn't in the same manner.
Even as she slept he could see that her features had hardened. Her jaw was clenched and her body rigid. There was no longer room in her life for nonsense or play…not even time to relax.
She was, once again, the cruel kunoichi he'd first met at the chuunin exams so long ago.
Geez, she was scary before! I don't even want to deal with her now that she's stronger!
Guess I don't have a choice. This is going to be troublesome…
He took several steps back and put his hands in his pockets.
This should be far enough.
"Hey," he said in a voice louder than normal.
Temari bolted out of bed, eyes wide, taking in the scene before her. Her hair was askew from days of bed rest and torturous medical treatments.
Shikamaru smirked behind mask at the sight of her worried face and physical appearance.
"You!" she bellowed in anger, pointing a finger in his direction.
Crap! She's recognized me already?
"I see you're feeling better," he said as calmly as he could.
"Well enough not to need any more of Konoha's help," she sneered. "I need to get back to my village."
"I can't let you do that yet," he said carelessly.
"Of course not. Tell me, how long do you plan on keeping me hostage?" she asked almost sarcastically.
"We're keeping you safe," he said as he sighed.
"Really, by poisoning me and separating me from my comrades?"
"You've already been told that we had nothing to do with you being poisoned and we had good reason to separate you from them," he said calmly.
"Nothing that Ino or Tenten said could convince me that Konoha is innocent in this matter. For all I know, you could all be lying. Thanks, but I think I'll be safer with people I trust!" Temari spat.
How could Ino and Tenten have been so careless to expose themselves?
"Trust, huh? Like you teammates, right?" he said, his voice rising and his body straightening.
She glared at him, curious to where he was going with this and also daring him to continue.
"Yes, like my teammates," she said. "It's a bond someone like you will probably never understand."
Temari knows me better than that. She must not have recognized me after all…
He sighed, already sorry that he'd gotten into this before he had heard the other teams' reports.
I'll just have to guide her thoughts.
"How do you think you ended up poisoned?" he questioned.
"Those nin must have poisoned me since you profess to be innocent?"
"There was only one person with a poisoned blade that night. He happened to be one of your comrades," he said.
"Akira," she breathed out, her eyes widening.
Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders and looked away from her. He hadn't wanted to be so blunt about it but it couldn't be helped. Now he didn't want to look at her, fearing the look her face may hold. He watched her from the corner of his eye.
"If that's his name," he said.
It was only a moment, but he saw it. She almost trusted him…
She must not have a great deal of respect for that guy.
"That could've easily been an accident," she said adamantly, regaining her composure.
Shikamaru's eyes darted over to her as he lifted his head abruptly.
How can she be defending him?
Her statement had struck him to the core. He would never put any woman in harms' way, but especially not a teammate…or a friend. He had no respect for this man who not only let her get hurt, he caused it.
It's a man's job to protect a woman.
But he knew he couldn't say it out loud.
She'll know who I am right away.
I need her to stay in the dark a little while longer. I don't need her questioning and insulting me for the entire mission.
Ino and Tenten don't have to worry about her taking her rage out on them. It was a dumb move on their part anyway. They know how dangerous it is to expose their identities to any other nation, even if it's an allied one.
"You're not one that's easily wounded. You normally fight from a distance but you have good reflexes. Don't you wonder why your jutsu was having little effect on your attackers or how you got that gash in your stomach?" he said with more emotion, unable to control himself. His hands even came out of his pockets.
"You sure do seem to know a lot about me," she observed, it coming out as a question.
I've fought you, analyzed you, teamed with you, protected you…
"It's my job to know," he stated simply, shoving his hands back into his pockets.
She was silent for a moment, thinking.
"The other nin were strong-"
"No," he said cutting her off.
"I was concentrating on them. I wasn't watching Akira, I would've dodged it if I hadn't been distracted," she said, angry that he'd interrupted her.
"Doubtful."
"What are you implying?" she spat.
"You were drugged before they attacked."
"Impossible!" she snapped.
"You're lucky you were! Whoever did it was probably trying to make it easier to grab you but it wasn't enough to avoid a fight. You were unable to regulate chakra, your attacks were weak, your responses lagged and your brain processes were slow but…it slowed the poison's effect. It gave us several extra hours that Tsunade-sama was grateful for. She had a hard enough time as it was."
She dropped onto the bed speechless, staring at the floor.
"No one should have known that you were traveling yet they seemed to find you easily and attack you when you were weak. We received information of your movement from spies in the Land of Grass. There are traitors among you and the signs lead to one of them being in your team."
She sat silently, not looking at him.
"The Kazekage was notified with the information we received as well as a basic plan. He's suspicious of a traitor as well and has put his full trust in us. You have no reason not to."
He paused to see if she was listening. She didn't move but he could see that she was concentrating, not just sitting aimlessly.
"We have a meeting with the Hokage. I'll expect you to brief me on your comrades when I get back. There will be another team standing guard. Don't leave."
Temari nodded absently.
He took this as his cue to leave.
Temari sat lost in her thoughts, trying to make sense of the last 20 minutes.
That man had woken her up so rudely and then questioned Akira and Yuka's loyalty. The worst part was that it made sense.
Akira and Yuka had plenty of opportunities to drug my food and drink.
But there are others too…the lady in the inn made our lunch that day. My food could've even been tainted before I left Suna.
I can't point fingers at them so easily. They may still be innocent. They may even be scapegoats.
How can that bastard accuse them so easily?
Because it isn't one of his own, that's why.
Can I really trust Konoha? How do I know they aren't behind it all?
It would be a good strategy on their part. Kidnap me, lie to me to gain my trust, I tell them "useful" information, then they use it against us.
If they tell Gaara they have no idea where I am but they're searching, then the treaty will halt, war could ensue and Konoha could profit greatly.
They could even tell him that another country was holding me, or killed me.
Gaara is smarter than that though…
Konoha would profit from a war but not as much as they do now with Suna as an ally.
Plus, the Hokage is peaceful. He avoids fighting until it's necessary.
It just doesn't make sense that they'd be behind it.
Still, they haven't given me any proof they're telling me the truth…
She stood and made her way to the bathroom. It had been too long since she had a shower. After she started the water, she took a look in the mirror.
Ah! I look horrible!
Her normally tanned skin was a sickly pale color. Her lips were colorless. Even with all the rest she'd gotten, her eyes were dark and lifeless. On the other hand, her hair seemed to have a life of its' own. The four ties were still there but with all the tossing and turning she'd done, they held very little hair. The hair that had come loose was crimped and knotted from previously being held and laid upon.
I don't even let my brothers see me like this!
Turning away in disgust, she grabbed the necessary items to rid herself of the grime encompassing her body. She stepped into the shower and scrubbed herself clean.
Oh why did he have to wake me up? He caught me off guard!
I can usually sense chakra nearby but…I didn't even realize he was in the room.
I hope it was just an effect of the drugs or poison!
When she was done, instead of redressing in her filthy clothes, she found a set of men's clothing, a black shirt and pair of black pants. They were too big for her but the fact that they were as clean as she was now instantly make her feel closer to her normal self.
Much better.
She tied her hair up in the normal manner, sighed and made her way to the kitchen. She made herself something to eat and heated some tea. She sat at the table and ate quickly, realizing how hungry she was.
After she finished, she washed her dishes and put them away. She sat back at the table and looked at the door.
I almost convinced myself that man was Shikamaru.
His lazy stance, hands in his pockets, dark eyes and that dark haired pony tail…
Of course, most Konoha men are lazy. And the hair style isn't all that uncommon.
He's taller than I remember Shikamaru being but that's not enough to dismiss the likeness.
It wasn't the same voice but that could've easily changed over the years.
His voice wasn't smooth like Akira's; it was deep and rough yet he made it sound so relaxed. She had felt heat spread from the middle of her chest the more he spoke. She even felt it now just thinking about him. She couldn't help closing her eyes and trying to breath in his cool scent.
She instantly shook her head and exhaled sharply, focusing her eyes on the door once again.
He's not important…
I even could've overlooked such a lazy man being in ANBU…
…But Shikamaru wouldn't have talked to me so condescendingly.
She snickered.
Shikamaru's too much of a coward.
"Well, now that we're all here, let's get started," Kakashi said lazily, leaning back against the windows behind his desk.
On the other side of the room stood eleven ANBU members. Three were in front of the others, obviously the squad leaders of the three teams.
"How is the Ambassador?" the Hokage asked the man in the middle.
"As troublesome as ever," Shikamaru responded through a sigh.
After a few snickers from the others, he continued.
"She's recovering like expected. Whatever she was drugged with is gone and most of the poison is out as well. She's still in a weakened state but we won't be able to hold her here much longer. Three days at most."
"I'm sure you left her in capable hands?" Kakashi questioned.
"Yeah, my dad and Kurenai are around. She's in our part of the forest anyway so the deer will protect her," Shikamaru answered.
"I see. What do we know about the nin they encountered?" Kakashi said, turning his head to the raccoon masked man to Shikamaru's left.
"Decent earth based jutsu. We tracked them to Kusagakure. They've stayed put for a while now. No messages have gone in or out. Konchuu stayed back to keep an eye on them."
"Good. His presence won't be compromised and he'll send word quickly with any new information," Kakashi observed. "What about the other Suna shinobi?"
Shikamaru tensed, feeling the anger bubbling inside him. He hated the fact that a shinobi he knew had been betrayed by a teammate.
This time, a man from the back stepped forward, addressing the Hokage.
"I tracked them back to Suna. They made no stops along the way."
"Hm. I believe we can leave them to the Kazekage," Kakashi stated. "Who left first the unknown nin or the Suna nin?"
"The unknown nin. They didn't bother with the ones from Suna at all. Once they regained consciousness, they left," the man from the back responded again.
"Why hasn't anyone tried to contact the boss though?" Kakashi mumbled.
He asked the question more to himself but having already contemplated the information, Shikamaru decided to answer.
"If his reasons for halting the treaty are important enough to harm a Suna ambassador, I don't think that this is the end. I can think of 2 logical reasons they wouldn't contact him. Either they're running from him, which obviously isn't the case, or they already have orders if they happened to fail. Do we know anything about him yet?"
The man to his right shook his skunk mask.
"No, there have been no new clues," he said.
"Even so, we have the upper hand right now. We are aware of his intentions but he is unaware of ours. The next attempt to prevent the treaty will most likely be an attack on the Kazekage and his traveling party while in route. If they fail again, which is practically assured considering the targets, they may lead us to the leader then," Shikamaru deduced. "Of course that is if the Kazekage leaves them alive."
"Or he may not be pulling the strings. It would have been easier for him to hand over the money and entrust the scheme to his hired hands' discretion," Kakashi interjected.
Shikamaru shrugged.
"Maybe."
The Hokage's eyes narrowed on Shikamaru, not out of malice, just putting the pieces together to make a decision on the best way to move forward.
After a few moments of silence, the Hokage spoke. Not being one to obey the rules (or remember code names), he addressed his subordinates by their real names.
"Alright. Shikamaru, Neji, Lee-you go meet up with the Kazekage. He left yesterday around noon for Iwa. Update him and get instructions concerning Temari-san. The rest of you, get some sleep and report back tonight."
A round of curt nods met him before they all disappeared.
A/N: Sorry for the long wait and shorter chapter. I hope no one is too disappointed! Updates should come a lot sooner in the next few weeks. Please send me your suggestions!