Child of the Leaf

Chapter Twenty

by operadeglace


Shikamaru could remember a lot of things.

He remembered more information than a normal person should be able to retain. However, the day Naruto asked him to be his assistant, was a time he wished to forget, as it was a bothersome memory that poked to the surface in the face of each relevant situation…

"Come on, Shikamaru!"

"I said 'no' a second ago, what makes you think the answer will be any different ten seconds from now?"

"… … … what about in twenty seconds?"

"NO. Go away, Naruto. I don't want to babysit you and the entire village."

"I won't take 'no' for an answer!"

Shikamaru shut the door and sighed in frustration. Once he turned to walk back into his living room, he was met with the disgruntled face of his wife, Temari.

"I heard everything… why didn't you accept one of the most respectable positions in the village?" Shikamaru groaned at his significant other's question.

He did so because he knew both of them mentally acknowledged three very important facts at that moment and organized them in his head to help him make his next move…

1. Shikamaru was the most obvious and suited choice for assistant to the Hokage, as he now, technically, was the smartest ninja in the village.

Figure A. Konohagakure needed him to be the giant brains behind the giant brawn. Naruto was the strongest ninja in perhaps the whole of the ninja world, but even the most potent combination of all his good intentions and a thousand inspirational pep talks about "not giving up" and all that sh*t alone could not run the village efficiently.

2. If he didn't take the job, Temari would probably wring his neck.

Figure B. Her reaction clearly read, "You will not rob me the honor of being Assistant to the Hokage's wife."

3. There was no doubt that he would do his best to help Naruto on and off the clock, as was his pleasure as one of his closest friends, as was his duty… but how could he do such without being totally loyal and honest to the idiot? He didn't fancy keeping a huge secret from Naruto every day while serving as his faithful assistant.

Figure C. He knew his whiskered friend unknowingly had a secret child tucked away in Sunagakure under the protection of the Kazekage.

Figure D. If he divulged the top secret information, his wife would be obligated to actually wring his neck.

If only he hadn't seen the kid in Suna while visiting his in-laws. Shikamaru immediately figured out who he was.

He really wished that he could forget.

"Fiiiiiiiiiine. I'll do it. What a bother."

Rather than avoiding complications with Naruto, Shikamaru smartly chose to avoid complications within his own household. With his features contorted in distaste, he reluctantly re-opened his front door and submitted to the request of the lingering Seventh Hokage, who sat at his doorstep patiently.

Now, the secret was out, and instead of feeling elated and unburdened, Shikamaru stood in the hall way outside of Ayaka's hospital room, staring at the little piece of paper in utter frustration.

He hated drama.

'I'm leaving Naruto. I need to have some time to myself to think about what my purpose in life is without him in it. Take care of my children. Don't worry about me. I love you.'

Naruto was already having family problems that distracted him from his work, and now this. He immediately calculated what the repercussions would be for Konohagakure's Seventh Hokage to be mentally incapacited for an extended amount of time and frowned at the sum of his calculations. The door in front of him slid open, and the largest secret that he had kept for the past couple years tip toed out.

He scrutinized the boy as he closed the door as silently as possible so that the redheaded girl's rest would not be interrupted. The blonde kid suddenly turns to face the ponytailed man. His broad, Uzumaki smile made the Nara wince.

"Nara-san, was it?" His voice was soft and gentle, so unlike his father's in that instance. "Thank you for taking care of Ayaka-chan. She's very important to me."

Shikamaru bows his head shortly.

"It is my duty to help protect all people within our lands, as your father's assistant." He replies in a purposefully neutral tone. Shinachiku smiles sadly before turning away once more to travel the short distance to his mother's room.

"Ehh…" Shikamaru clears his throat, catching the boy's attention. "Can you do something for me, kid?"

"Sure?" He answers the older male's question with another question.

"I'm about to tell your dad something that will tear his life apart."

Shikamaru statement is oddly simple, his body language etched with a cool, casual confidence. Shinachiku, on the other hand, was startled by the weight of his words, staggering slightly from where he stood. Seeing a change in the boy's demeanor, and knowing the exact cause, Shikamaru spoke slowly so that he wouldn't be misunderstood. Clarity was key in this tense of a situation.

"Remember this… you haven't done anything wrong, Shinachiku." He says as earnestly as he could manage. "After you've spent some time with your mother, I need you to find your father and get to know him better. He will need your support."

The boy's green eyes fall to the floor, causing the dark haired man to put a warm, assuring hand on his shoulder.

"Can I trust you with this special mission from the village Hidden in the Leaves?" Shinachiku looks up to see a rare smirk on the man's face as he spoke to him. "Although, you are a ninja from the sand, you were born of the leaves, and as such, you are one of us. Can I trust you with this mission, Monaka Shinachiku?"

Shinachiku smiles as his heart is warmed by Shikamaru's simple, yet deeply moving speech.

"I will do my best, sir."

As the door to Sakura's room slipped shut, Shikamaru sighed, exhaling a large, shaky breath. He outlined a fail safe plan in his head, as fast as lightning…

1. Give note to Hanabi.

2. Apologize for reading the private note.

3. Tell Hanabi he would talk to Naruto about the contents of note.

4. Let Naruto create a bond with Shinachiku.

5. Tell Naruto that his marriage is over.

6. Shinachiku helps with Naruto's healing process.

7. Get back to the office to finish writing the formal apologies to foreign dignitaries for Naruto's brief absence from his duties.

8. Pick up flowers at Ino's place. Temari is still pissed off about the 'accidental' disposal of the terrible bento she made for Shikadai's lunch, via shadow technique.

Figure A. No kid deserves a peanut butter and squid ink rice ball, no matter how much their crazy mother enjoys it…

"Shinachiku!"

Sakura's entire body seemed to light up with excitement as her eldest son walked into the room. She throws her blankets and Naruto's coat off of her legs and wobbles over to him, throwing her arms around his shoulders.

"Mom…" It was a foreign word upon his lips, but it warmed his heart nonetheless to finally say it to a living, breathing entity. "You should be resting."

"No, no." She takes his face in her hands and smooths her fingers along the bones of his fave affectionately. "I haven't seen you for sixteen years."

Tears of sadness and pain began to spill down her face. "I've missed you the moment you left my arms. I'm so, so sorry, my-" Sakura was shocked as Shinachiku grabbed her arms and pulled her off of him, peering into her teary eyes with his identical, dry ones.

"I don't like this." He says suddenly, his eyes narrowed and determined.

"W-what..?" Sakura says, weakly, sounding much like a wounded animal.

"I do not like this at all." His bluntness seemed to make the pink haired woman shrink into a smaller being.

'He's rejecting me.'

'Of course. You're a monster.'

'What kind of mother would abandon their child?'

'Monster. Monster.'

"Please… Shinachiku…don't…" She shrunk even more in his grasp, the shame cutting into her like a sharp shuriken tearing through her heart.

"I don't like this at all, not one bit." He chanted under his breath, mostly to himself as if he were thinking out loud.

'Monster.'

The conflicting voices laughed and jeered within her mind.

"I don't like you crying, Mom. Crying means you're unhappy… and my mother should never be unhappy, not while I'm around!" Sakura was startled by how naive and Naruto-like his statement was, pulling her instantly from the darkness. He wasn't rejecting her…

"I am here now. As long as I'm with you, I will always try to make you happy. Promise-no! Even better… promise of a... of a… lifetime!" Shinachiku grins and crushes himself into her chest for a gripping embrace.

The sound of the breeze jetting from the open window orchestrated the moment shared between the grateful mother and determined son. Soft, feathery whistles of the wind rustling through the sakura trees outside created a fitting melody to calm their souls.

After a few minutes of letting Sakura hold him, Shinachiku swiftly picks her up with surprising strength, and sits her on her bed. He pulls up a nearby chair to sit close to her and grasps one of her hands tenderly.

"Okay, now that we've gotten all of the emotional stuff outta the way… let's get back down the really important stuff." He says with a serious look on his charming face.

"What is your favorite color?"

Ayaka couldn't help but smile as she sat on the window sill outside of her neighboring room, listening to all that had transpired between Shina and his mom.

She was glad she pretended to be sleepy so that he would leave, and she could witness the special event in her boyfriend's life.

A hawk swooped in the distance, it's screeching call alerting her blue eyes to its position. She raises an eyebrow curiously.

"Something is coming…" Ayaka whispers worriedly, hopping back into her hospital room. To her surprise, a man was sitting in the chair next to her bed, his face hidden by the shadows cast from her curtains.

"Hello, Kumotaka-san."

The End of Chapter 20.

–Story by ODG.


Last Question and Answer session next chapter! Make sure you get in your questions by 5/20/15 and they will be answered! (To any characters in the story! :D)

You are all loved and special to someone. :) Keep doing amazing things and caring for others!

-ODG