Anddd finally got this chapter done! It's an extra long one! It's already chapter 8 and I haven't even started the big grand battle. My original intent was for this to follow A Jinchuriki's Husk format be a 10 chapter story, but I don't really think I can wrap the story up in 2 chapters. Look for this one to to 12'ish chapters or so. That's my prediction anyways.
Thanks to all who have reviewed/favorited/alerted my this story so far!
My thanks and shout outs to everyone who reviewed since last time: Toasty Warrior, Echo Uchiha, ZeroTail29, Blazing CobaltX, Jozern, Goddess of Night Eternal Faith, Nutt Man 117, saveme57, Otaku Overlord
Toasy Warrior: Glad you liked the chapter! And at the end of the day, I don't really think Naruto was complaing =P
Echo Uchiha: =)
ZeroTail29: In my opinion, and from my interpretation of Sakura and Naruto's characters from the mangas, if (when) Sakura and Naruto get together Sakura will totally be in charge. Those fists of hers keep Naruto in line as is, just imagine if she could play the girlfriend card. Shippuden Sakura is different from pre-shippuden Sakura in that she really doesn't take shit from anybody. Sakura pre-shippuden just didn't take shit from Naruto. Naruto on the other hand is completely dedicated to making her happy, and I don't see his character minding at all when Sakura bosses him around as long as he's with her. Those are my two cents anyways. I'm really happy to read that you enjoyed the fight scenes though, I was worried about them.
Blazing CobaltX: (He's back =P) Sadly I think my job is going to keep from updating regularly. This chapter took extra long just because I struggled so much with it, so when I had time to write, it went even slower. I'm really excited about the final chapters of this story and basically have them written out in my mind, so when I get time to write they should fly out. I wish I could update more but what're ya gonna do... I'm glad you enjoyed the fight. And hell no Sakura's not weak! She can break bones with her dainty little pinky! =P
Jozern: Ya, I definitely struggled on the battle scenes last chapter. There are none in this chapter, but I don't expect to be struggling on any more of the battles from here on out because I've had them planned since I first started this story! Hope you enjoy this last chapter of happy peacefulness before this story comes to an end as all hell breaks loose! =)
Goddess of Night Eternal Faith: I'm glad the chapter could make your day =) And Naruto's a man, we got our pride!
Nutt Man 117: If only that had been the real Neji that Sakura whooped on. But oh well, she was still pretty badass! Although I hated where her thoughts went the next chapter, but she did have a frown on her face... Glad you enjoyed the last chapter, and I hope you enjoy this one too!
saveme57: Ya... I originally thought about doing that, but I quickly realized while trying to write their fight that I simply didn't know enough about their characters to write a good fight so I had to get out of that a little prematurely. My apologies, but the fights starting next chapter will make up for it... (I hope) =)
Otaku: Hehe, all in good time...I think! And ya, Kabuto is a creepy character. Has his dead master floating around in him, surrounds himself with hordes of zombies... I wouldn't want to hang out with him on a weekend, I can tell you that
Standard disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or else I would be filthy stinking rich and Naruto would've beaten the crap out of Sasuke the first time they saw him in Shippuden. I mean really... I spared you on a whim? What a load of crap, those are grounds for a good butt kicking if I've ever heard one!
Now let's get on with the show shall we? Please do enjoy A Jinchuriki's Strength- Chapter 8: Welcome Distractions
"Well Shikamaru? Do you think Madara was telling the truth?" Shikaku Nara asked his son who was carefully studying Neji's memories from observing Kabuto during Konoha's skirmish. Shikamaru was taking in every single detail. He had been studying Neji's memory for the past 14 minutes and it was obvious Ino was exhausted.
"From observing Kabuto, it would appear that way. But I'll need to view Hinata's memory on the revived shinobi before I can safely reach a conclusion. Thank you Ino, that will be all for today."
Ino sighed in relief and dropped her jutsu. Her legs wobbled slightly, but before she could fall, Chouji reached her side and put a supportive arm around her waist. The blonde gave her teammate a grateful smile.
"What have you deduced about the edo-tensei so far Shikamaru?" Tsunade asked.
"It's definitely an advanced form of the summoning jutsu which means Madara was correct when he said we can't stop the edo-tensei army by killing Kabuto. I have more suspicions, but I'll wait until I've seen the revived shinobi before I say anything more."
Shikaku looked at his son with a look of pride. Shikamaru has grown so much over these past few years… He's grown so much during this past year alone…
"Well if that will be all for now Hokage-sama, I think Shikamaru and I will be taking our leave now." Shikaku said.
"Right. Everyone is dismissed; I will see you all here at the same time tomorrow."
Naruto woke up with a happy grin on his face. Last night had been well worth the embarrassment he suffered in the arms of his emerald-eyed angel. He softly pressed his lips against the top of her pink-haired head and hugged her even closer to him.
It was mornings like this one that made him feel like he was living in a dream. Sakura looked like an ethereal goddess nestled up against him. Sure he always talked a big game growing up, but there were plenty of times that he would dream of his future and he would be alone, while Sakura was happily married to Sasuke.
But here he was, his 12 year-old-self would give him a cheesy grin before yelling "Yatta!" at the top of his lungs if he could see him now. He won. Naruto Uzumaki got the girl of his dreams.
It was during moments like this one that Naruto could temporarily put aside his anxiety for the future. He could temporarily forget that Kabuto and an army of undead shinobi were currently throwing themselves against a barrier so they can get to and destroy Konoha. He could forget about the apparent difference in power between him and Madara.
A yawn brought Naruto out of his thoughts and his sapphire eyes refocused on his favorite kunoichi.
"Morning Sakura-chan!"
"Ah good morning Naruto." Sakura sleepily replied. "What time is it?"
"It's still early Sakura, you can go back to sleep." Apparently, that was the answer Sakura was looking for. Without opening her eyes, she sleepily pecked Naruto's lips and then nuzzled into his neck and tightened the hold she had on him.
Sakura's gentle breaths on his neck gave him a warm and tingly feeling, and lulled him to sleep. Naruto softly kissed the top of Sakura's head one more time before falling asleep himself.
Shikamaru analyzed the shogi board carefully. He hadn't played his father in at least a year, and he was determined to beat his father. Unlike Asuma, Shikaku regularly beat him in shogi while he was growing up.
Shikamaru smirked and moved one of his pieces. A look of surprise momentarily flashed onto his dad's face at Shikamaru's move, but it was gone as quick as it came.
"An interesting strategy…" Shikaku mused. "You certainly…"
"THERE YOU ARE!" A feminine voice interrupted the elder Nara's words. "I've been looking all over for you since the Konoha forces returned to Konoha yesterday!"
"I haven't been that hard to find troublesome woman…" Shikamaru muttered under his breath. He had learned by now that he needed to be careful with his words around Temari, she was a very "pro girl power" kind of girl.
"Troublesome woman?" Temari growled. "You're the troublesome one here! You go off to a battle, and don't even let me know when you've returned? I only knew you were ok after I asked around the village if anyone had seen you."
Shikamaru sighed. "I wasn't even in the actual battle itself. And since when do I have to check in with you all the time? Last I checked I'm not your boyfriend."
Shikaku, while amused at his son's reaction, couldn't help but mentally smack his head. He remembered saying something similar to Shikamaru's mother when they first started dating. That hadn't ended well…
"YOU'RE NOT MY BOYFRIEND?" Temari roared as her eyes turned white. Shikamaru looked up at the angry kunoichi and gulped. Maybe I should've worded that differently…
Here it comes… Shikaku thought with a smirk.
"You lazy no good son of a…" Temari began muttering before taking a deep breath and calming herself down. Her lips turned upwards into a devious grin.
"So if you were my boyfriend you would check in with me regularly eh?"
Crap… Shikamaru thought with a sweat drop. He knew exactly where Temari was going with this, and his mind kicked into overdrive to come up with some sort of defense.
"Well then… from here on out you're my boyfriend."
A small smirk formed on Shikamaru's face. "Jeez, you really are troublesome. Fine. If that will shut you up…"
A tick mark appeared on Temari's forehead as she clenched her fist.
"I'm your boyfriend. I'll try to check in with you next time, even though it's a major pain."
Temari smiled at her now boyfriend and gave him a quick kiss on the lips, before grabbing his hands and pulling Shikamaru up to his feet.
"Sorry Shikaku-san, but Shikamaru needs to escort me around the village. It's been too long since I've gotten to walk around here!"
Shikaku merely nodded as he stared at his son and his son's girlfriend with a dumbfounded expression.
Shikamaru said all of THAT to a woman like THAT and all he got was a kiss? Yoshino beat me into next week when I spoke to her like that all those years ago… Not fair… Shikaku thought as a sweat-drop ran down his head.
"What's the holdup here?" Kabuto snapped at one of his revived shinobi. "I have the strongest ninjas that have ever lived at my command, yet we can't break through this simple barrier?"
"Apologies Kabuto-sama, but at the rate we're going, we're not going to break through this barrier for at least another couple of days."
Kabuto angrily smashed his fist into the revived shinobi's face, which instantly started repairing itself.
If Konoha thinks the extra days this barrier is buying them is going to make any sort of a difference, they are sadly mistaken. In the end, all this barrier is doing is delaying their complete destruction by a couple of days.
"You look calm considering there's an army of undead shinobi about to march on our position Kazekage-sama." The Mizukage noted as the two stood at the top of the main village gate, observing the barrier that was just at the edge of their site.
Gaara regarded his companion with a rare smile. "There's no need for me to worry, we have Naruto on our side."
"You have that much faith in the boy? He seemed pretty strong when I briefly met him, and I know he beat Pain by himself… but you really think he is enough to beat an entire army of undead shinobi?" Mei asked.
"You don't know Naruto as well as I do Mizukage-sama. No matter how badly the situation is stacked against him, he always manages to come out on top. He's done what many considered impossible more times than I can count. Naruto won't lose. And with Naruto on our side, that means our side won't lose. That's why I'm not worried."
"But what of the lives of your people that are going to be lost in this battle? Surely you can't naïve enough to believe that Naruto's strength is enough to prevent a single casualty."
Gaara sighed as his eyes again returned to the barrier in the distance. "Naruto is strong, and Naruto seemingly bends realty to his will with his determination, but he is not a god. I know people from my village are going to die, people from yours are going to die, and people from Konoha shall die as well. But after this battle is over, one of the bigger threats to this world will be dead. Naruto will have defeated Kabuto. The lives our villagers will lose in this upcoming battle will prevent many more innocent lives from being taken."
"I see." Mei nodded. "Your faith in your friend is admirable. I like you; you're still pure amongst the kages. If you believe in Naruto so much, then I guess I'll put my faith in him too."
"Naruto…" Another small smile formed on Gaara's face. "Won't let you down."
Naruto sneezed, waking the sleeping bundle of pink in his arms. Bright sunlight was streaming through the windows at this point, it was getting to be late in the afternoon.
"Mmm… what time is it Naruto?" Sakura groggily mumbled into his chest.
"Well… it's a little later than last time…" Naruto started nervously. Sakura liked sleeping in…to a point. He always had to suffer her wrath if he didn't wake her up by a certain point. She felt like she completely wasted her day if she woke up past noon. Unfortunately for Naruto, it was far past that point. It was 4:00. He had been awake for 5 hours now and he easily could've waken her, but he just couldn't bring himself to wake her when she had such a peaceful look on her face."
Sakura's eyes snapped open at Naruto's words, and she went to move her head so she could see the time on the clock. Fearing for his own life, Naruto restrained her, and held her head to his chest.
"Na-ru-to…" Sakura growled dangerously.
The jinchuriki sighed. "Just remember Sakura-chan… you can't kill me or even seriously injure me. I'm going to be needed in the battle against Kabuto. If you kill me now, you're seriously hurting your home's war efforts!"
Sakura channeled chakra into her neck muscles and broke free of Naruto's restraints, her emerald eyes quickly locked onto the alarm clock on her and Naruto's nightstand.
"FOUR O'CLOCK?" Sakura yelled loudly enough for the entire village to hear, heck Kabuto and his undead army were probably able to hear her yell. "You know I hate sleeping in this late! Why didn't you wake me up?"
"It's not my fault! I'm not your alarm clock!" Naruto quickly countered hoping logic would win him this argument.
"Says who?" Sakura yelled again. "You've been waking me up for the past year! You wake up so early, I rarely wake up before you!"
Naruto opened his mouth to retort, but suddenly the wise words of his deceased master rang through his mind.
FLASHBACK
"If you're dealing with a tired woman, don't bother arguing with her." Jiraiya told a young Naruto as the two sat eating instant ramen under the shade of a large tree after a long day of training.
" No matter what you say, you'll be wrong. You can't win an argument. As a matter of fact, the longer you try to argue, the worse it will be for you in the end, so just give up as soon as the argument starts, admit you were wrong, and apologize. It's your best chance for survival!"
"But Ero-Sennin, I never give up, that's my ninja way!" Naruto whined.
"And it's an honorable ninja way at that, but trust me on this one kid. Your ninja way isn't worth trying to argue with a tired woman."
"No way, I'm never going to give up Ero-Sennin!"
Jiraiya chuckled at his young apprentice. "One day you'll learn, and one day you'll realize the truth in my words."
FLASHIN
Thank you Ero-Sennin. Naruto thought as he nodded his head sagely. Sakura had continued to yell at him while he was lost in his thoughts.
"Ne, you're right Sakura-chan!" Naruto interrupted his pink-haired fiancé. "I didn't do my job as your alarm clock, and I'm sorry."
Sakura's ranting stopped as she blinked at Naruto in surprise, her mouth slightly agape.
"Umm…" Honestly, Sakura had not been prepared for this. She expected Naruto to argue with her, and try to defend his actions when he was clearly in the wrong. Then she would end this "debate" with her preferred method of smacking Naruto upside the head, healing him, and then quickly kissing him on the cheek to get rid of his pouting face. She didn't know how to react to this Naruto who was not only admitting he was wrong, but apologizing.
Ero-Sennin was a genius! I can't believe I haven't tried this earlier! She didn't even hit me, this is awesome! Naruto was bouncing around for joy in his head, flashing the victory sign all about.
"Do you forgive me Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked with a grin, as his fiancé continued staring at him with a flabbergasted look on her face.
"Umm… of course." Sakura sputtered. Damnit, why can't I think of anything? I need to keep him in line! "But don't let it happen again!" She attempted to threaten. Unfortunately for Sakura, she only managed to squeak it out in her current baffled state.
Damnit, I need to retake control of this situation now! Sakura thought as she furiously tried to jumpstart her genius brain.
Naruto on the other hand was too busy celebrating his indirect victory to notice the pensive look on Sakura's face that meant she was thinking. Had he, he may have stopped celebrating and pressed his advantage.
Sakura's face suddenly transformed into a grin, and from his vantage point in heaven Jiraiya smacked his head in disappointment.
"Now, you're going to make it up to me by taking me shopping… with Ino. I haven't had a chance to really talk to her about your proposal yet, and I'm sure Ino would love to have you there while I tell her."
Naruto's mind celebrations came to a complete stop as he stared into the emerald eyes of the love of his life with a horrified expression on his face.
"What? I apologized! Why would I…"
"You did apologize." Sakura interrupted with a grin. I'm back. "You admitted you were wrong, so to make it up to me, you're going to do this."
Naruto groaned. "Fine…" Damn you Ero-Sennin. That was the worst advice I've ever received! I would've much rather been beaten and healed than be the pack mule that Sakura and Ino use to hold their bags, all while Sakura and Ino talk on and on about girl stuff that I could care less about…
"But we're getting ramen afterwards!" Naruto quickly added.
Sakura simply smiled at her fiancé and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "I can live with that." A happy grin instantly lit up Naruto's face.
Oh ya! And people were calling me whipped… Naruto cockily grinned in his head.
"I'm gonna grab a quick shower and then we'll leave." Sakura called over her shoulder as she walked into their bathroom. She caught one last glimpse of Naruto with a cocky grin. She smirked. She had told him she could live with ramen, but she failed to tell him that there's no way Ino would go to ramen on a shopping day. Especially now that the new health food market opened up and had stands where one could get a very healthy and green lunch. She felt a little bad for deceiving Naruto, but she would make it up to him later… This was going to be too funny.
An hour and a half later found Naruto and a few of his clones walking with bags and boxes piled high in their arms. Apparently the threat of impending doom was good motivation for shopkeepers to have amazing sales. Naruto honestly couldn't remember the last time Sakura or Ino had seen something they wanted to buy and did not end up buying it.
The past hour had been torture for the poor jinchuriki. At first Ino interrogated Naruto on his motivation for every single tiny aspect of his plan… which forced him to make up explanations for some things he just did because he thought it would look cool. After her interrogation was over, she instantly declared herself maid of honor and she and Sakura gabbed on and on about Naruto and Sakura's wedding.
At first, he tried to be involved in the conversation. It was his wedding too after all. But when he suggested orange and blue as the color scheme for their wedding all he got was a glare from Ino and a smack to the back of the head from his bride to be. After that fiasco he decided to stay out of it, and only speak up if he really needed to.
"Oh my gosh, have you thought about the food yet?"
"Well no, I guess I haven't!"
Food? That's it… I'm taking a stand! Naruto gathered his courage and a determined look shone in his eyes.
"We're going to have ramen, believe it!"
Sakura sighed, and Ino snorted in laughter.
"Naruto… no one has ramen at a wedding. Jeez Sakura, are you sure you want to marry this baka?" Ino got out in between laughs.
"But…" Naruto started.
"He's my baka Ino." Sakura interrupted her fiancé as she gave him a soft smile. "And this is Naruto we're talking about. I'm alright with having ramen at our wedding for him." At least I'm alright with casting another genjutsu on him to make him think he's eating ramen… Sakura added mentally.
"YATTA!" Naruto yelled in pure glee. "That's one of the countless reasons I love you Sakura-chan!"
Ino sighed. "Fine… you'll have ramen… at your wedding. Sakura Haruno will serve ramen to her wedding guests." Ino repeated the last part to see if her best friend was really ok with serving ramen at her wedding. She knew Sakura's dream wedding, and knew for a fact that ramen was never even close to being involved.
"Believe it!" Sakura chirped, taking a page out of her fiancé's book. They continued to talk about more wedding stuff, and Naruto again tuned the pair out. Before he knew it, they had arrived at Ino's house. Naruto and his clones went inside to drop off her packages and then returned outside where Sakura and Ino were still talking about his wedding.
"Well that was fun Ino, we'll have to do this again sometime soon!" Sakura said with a smile.
"Definitely, although the sales won't be as good after we kick Kabuto's ass!" This caused everyone to chuckle, and just as Naruto and Sakura turned to walk home, Ino's voice stopped them.
"Wait, Naruto?"
"Huh? What is it Ino?"
"I know I ragged on you a lot today, but I want you to know that I'm glad this is happening. You've always treated Sakura right, and your proposal was better than her dream proposal. Thanks for taking care of my best friend, and if you hurt her, I'll hurt you." Ino grinned.
"I would never hurt Sakura… and thank you Ino." Naruto replied with a smile of his own. Without another word he and Sakura began walking back towards his house.
"Well that was sweet of her." Sakura spoke up after a few minutes of walking. "Now why don't you summon some more clones?"
"What? Why?"
"So they can take the rest of these packages home, and I can take you to Ichiraku's. I originally said yes because I knew Ino would say no, but I quickly decided against denying you ramen during shopping today. That's why I decided against all three of us having lunch together."
The only response Sakura received was three poofs of smoke, the sound of bags and boxes transferring hands, then suddenly being swept off her feet and into the strong arms of her fiancé.
"Naruto I told you not to carry me!" Sakura huffed.
But Naruto's mind was elsewhere. After the torture that had been his shopping trip, the promise of ramen consumed his mind. He hurtled off towards his favorite ramen stand at blinding speeds, completely oblivious to the fake protests of his emerald-eyed angel.
Kakashi stood staring at the memorial stone as he had done so many times. He wondered how many new people were going to have their names carved in it after the war. The copy nin let out a heavy sigh. He had failed so many people in his life… Obito, Rin, Minato, Sasuke… That was just a small list. Now here Konoha was about to go into war again, and his two remaining students would be on the front line.
Never one to show his emotion, a casual observer would only see a somber Kakashi staring at the stone. But inside of his mind, Kakashi was worried. He was worried that he would fail to protect his precious people again. Naruto especially was going to be a major target for Kabuto's army.
Even though Kakashi had saved the day numerous times, and done so much good for the village, the lives of those he failed to protect still haunted him. Kakashi clenched his fist and took a deep and calming breath.
I will not let Naruto or Sakura die. This time, I will not fail.
Lee stood in front of a large boulder, punching it with all of his might. He needed help from Gai-sensei, the Anbu and Naruto to fight those two brothers. They were strong, but he could've been stronger.
Everyone will need to be at their strongest in the coming fight. I will use my genius of hard work to become powerful enough to hold my own against all of the shinobi Kabuto has revived!
Lee launched a powerful kick into the boulder and a satisfied grin appeared on his face as his leg smashed through the boulder as if it was butter. The boulder cracked and crumbled to the ground.
Sakura was slightly bored as she sit in the ramen stand with her fiancé, but she couldn't complain… too much. Apparently carrying around Sakura and Ino's bags while they shopped somehow managed to give Naruto an even greater appetite for ramen than normal. It was still bright out when they entered the ramen stand... and now stars were twinkling in the sky.
She tried to push away the feeling of annoyance at spending the past three hours in a ramen stand... but this was starting to test her patience. I have to stay calm, Naruto was so sweet today, he didn't even mumble a single complaint. He deserves this…
"Still hungry Naruto?" She asked her ravenous fiancé who apparently decided not to just go for his new record of most ramen ate in one sitting, but had decided to obliterate the record instead. She hoped that a little conversation would distract her from her growing annoyance. She really didn't want to hit him when she was trying to thank him for being such a sweet heart earlier.
Naruto turned to give Sakura an innocent grin, but he could see the signs on her face. The smile was a little too forced, her posture a little too rigid, and her foot was shaking. She was trying to her best to be patient with him.
Just then, Naruto noticed that it was dark outside and started feeling a little bad. He knew that spending three hours in a ramen stand was not Sakura's idea of a good time. He suddenly started to feel guilty for sitting in the stand for so long. Truthfully, he could definitely eat more Ichiraku's. He couldn't be entirely sure that the ramen stand would survive the pending battle so he wanted to eat as much as he could while he knows it will be around.
Naruto sat down his half-eaten bowl and smiled at his fiancé. "Nah, I'm stuffed Sakura-chan!" He lied. "Ready to go?"
He watched as her smile transformed into a real one and her posture instantly relaxed.
"Yup, don't forget to pay the bill!" Sakura grimaced when she thought of what the price was going to be for Naruto's bill. Tsunade had paid them both fairly well for their training mission, but neither of them had a chance to get a steady income since returning. She had considered going back to work at the hospital, but with Kabuto marching towards Konoha she decided to spend as much time as she could with Naruto.
"Nah, no need. It's on the house." Teuchi announced with a warm smile.
"WHAT? Old man I ate a LOT of ramen. You'll lose a lot of money if you give it all to me for free!"
Teuchi chuckled at the surprised young man in front of him. He noticed that Sakura was staring at him as if he was the savior of this world.
"Consider it a thanks for being my favorite and most loyal customer over the years Naruto."
"But…"
"But nothing. I know you'll come for more ramen after you've led our forces to victory."
"But…"
"Thank you very much Teuchi-san." Sakura interrupted. She decided that now she really would have Teuchi cater her and Naruto's wedding. It was the least she could do.
"Let's go Naruto." Sakura grabbed Naruto's hand and started pulling him out of the ramen stand.
"Thanks old man!" Naruto yelled over his shoulder as Sakura led him to the street.
The two walked towards their house in silence, both marveling in the beauty that was the night sky.
"Hey… Sakura?"
"Hmm? What is it Naruto?"
"Thanks. I know you must've hated being the ramen stand for so long. So thanks."
Sakura smiled sweetly at Naruto. "And I know you didn't enjoy shopping with Ino and me today. So I'd say we're even."
"Nah, it wasn't that bad."
Sakura chuckled. "Oh? So would you like to go shopping with Ino and me again tomorrow?"
"AGAIN?" Naruto gasped. "I mean… erm…"
Sakura stopped her fiancé's stammering by pressing her lips softly against his whiskered cheek.
"Relax, I was just kidding."
Naruto sighed in relief and followed Sakura as they approached their apartment. He smiled. Today with Sakura he had not once thought about the coming battle, and his eventual showdown with Madara. He had been completely stress free. He was too busy enjoying his time with his fiancé to worry about that.
Sakura guided him into their apartment and Naruto mentally thanked kami for putting his emerald-eyed angel into his life.
The following morning found a similar group in the Hokage's office as had been there yesterday, except this time Hinata Hyuga was present instead of Neji Hyuga. Ino's eyes were closed in concentration, and Chouji was watching her carefully, ready to catch her the second she starts to fall.
Shikamaru was both fascinated and horrified as he watched the edo-tensei at work. He spotted some of the most powerful shinobi from the past amongst Kabuto's army. And he watched time after time as the edo-tensei repaired the body of the revived shinobi, rendering the attack that the Konoha nin hit it with completely useless.
The lazy genius took in each and every single detail of the revived shinobi. His eyes scanned for some sort of sign, maybe a second of hesitation, a small twitch of the hand… Anything. But as he feared, Shikamaru could find no weakness in the edo-tensei. He had only been viewing Hinata's memories for 11 minutes, but he had seen everything he needed to, so it made no sense for Ino to completely exhaust herself like she did yesterday.
"That's enough Ino, thank you."
"Well?" Tsunade asked.
"For whatever reason, Madara told you the truth. The edo-tensei is a truly terrifying technique. I could find no weakness in it, and there didn't seem to be a single threat to the user. It's just an advanced summoning technique. Kabuto definitely needs a sacrifice for each shinobi he revives though."
"So for each of those shinobi he is commanding…" Ino started as a look of disgust and horror made its way onto her face.
"He killed someone else. Each shinobi that Kabuto revived symbolizes a life he took."
"So the only way we're going to save Konoha and stop Kabuto is if a Nara or Yamanka can force him to drop the technique, or trick him with a genjutsu?" Tsunade asked.
Shikamaru sighed. "As troublesome as it is, yes. That's the only way I could find."
"What I don't understand is why Madara would tell us all of this…" Shikaku spoke up.
"That thought crossed my mind as well." Shikamaru admitted. "I was actually kind of hoping to find some sort of sign that he was lying, it would've been easier that way. But now we have to figure out why he would betray Kabuto, when he should be strong enough to kill Kabuto himself."
"Maybe Kabuto threatened to send his edo-tensei army after Madara. Even Madara couldn't defeat an entire army of the most powerful shinobi to ever walk the earth." Chouji reasoned.
"No… He couldn't beat them all at once, but over time, he could easily suck all the revived shinobi into another dimension. Kabuto has to have something else on him…" Shikamaru stated.
"But what could he have over someone as powerful as Madara?" Shikaku asked.
"Well, that doesn't really matter right now, does it?" Kakashi's voice rang into the room, and the room's occupants looked to the window to see the famous copy nin leaning against the window as his face was buried in his little orange book.
"What do you mean? Of course it matters!" Ino sputtered. "Madara is the real threat, not Kabuto!"
"Madara is certainly a bigger threat, but Kabuto is the more imminent threat. If we don't deal with Kabuto, Konoha will be destroyed." The copy nin explained.
Ino opened her mouth to retort, but was cut off by Shikamaru.
"Kakashi's right. We need to worry about dealing with Kabuto first before thinking about Madara."
"But if Kabuto has something on Madara…" Ino tried to start.
"Then we'll find out what it is. I have no intentions of killing Kabuto, he has far too much valuable information. We're simply going to force him to drop his jutsu and then capture him.
After the meeting, Shikamaru went and found Temari and walked around Konoha with her. They spent the first ten minutes of their walk or so talking about nothing before Temari turned to her forced boyfriend with a serious look in her eyes.
"So what did you figure out?"
"You'll find out at the strategy meeting tonight." Shikamaru answered. His eyebrows furrowed as he was reminded of the upcoming battle. A battle which his strategies would be depended on. Temari's presence had been a welcome distraction and he had managed to not think about the battle for a little bit. He found it troublesome that Temari could have such an effect on him, but he welcomed it nonetheless. He had to admit it's nice not to be worrying about a battle that would not only decide the fate of his village, but likely the fate of the world as well. At least… it was nice not worrying.
"What? Come on, tell me!" Temari ordered. "I'm your girlfriend, I deserve to know!"
"Temari…" Shikamaru groaned. "Please can we not talk about that right now? You'll be filled in tonight, just as the rest of our forces will be. I've come up with a pretty solid strategy that should work. But right now I don't want to think about Kabuto or his undead army… It's too…"
"Troublesome?" Temari smirked. Being a genius herself, she figured out quickly why Shikamaru didn't want to talk about it. She hadn't noticed it earlier, but he relaxed when he was in her presence. He truly relaxed. His face wasn't furrowed in thought, his posture was relaxed… It wasn't until she just watched his body language change to that of a stressed individual that she realized the only time she had seen him truly relaxed was when he was just with her.
She was flattered and touched that she had such an effect on him, and decided that she would distract him just a little longer.
"Stealing my word now eh?" Shikamaru questioned with a grateful smile. Being a genius himself, he understood what Temari was doing.
"It's not your word, it's your family's word! And I figure since I'll be a part of your family one day…"
That took Shikamaru's mind away from worrying about the war as his eyes bulged out of his skull in surprise.
"You…what?"
"Well obviously we're going to get married eventually Shikamaru!" Temari said with a domineering grin that told the lazy genius he didn't have much of a choice in the matter.
"But we live in different villages…"
"Our two villages are so close that it won't be that big of a deal for one of us to move. Especially once Naruto becomes hokage. That baka will probably try to build some sort of underground tunnel between our village or something." Temari left out the fact that Naruto actually sent a letter to Gaara telling him what a great idea it would be to build an underground tunnel connecting Konoha and Suna and told Gaara that as soon as he became hokage he would get started on construction, and then he told Gaara that he better get started with construction on his end, as Naruto didn't want to have to do all the digging by himself.
"So you're expecting me to move to Suna then?"
Temari raised her eyebrow in surprise. She expected a lot more grumbling from Shikamaru about her announcement. "No, I couldn't do that to your village. With Naruto as your next hokage he's going to need you around to keep him from making some rash decision that destroys the entire world." Temari joked.
This time it was Shikamaru's turn to raise an eyebrow in surprise. "You would move to Konoha?"
Temari smiled at him. "Of course. I love Suna, but living in a desert can get a little old. And we would still visit…often."
Shikamaru simply smiled at the bossy woman who had made him her boyfriend, and now sort of made him her fiancé as well… So this is why dad married mom…
Tsunade sat in her office with a large grin on her face as she read over a letter she had just received moments ago. Another similar letter lay open on her desk.
"Tsunade-sama?" Shizune asked cautiously.
"Shizune, get Shikamaru here right now. I have some information here that might alter his plans.
The stars twinkled in the night sky outside of the window of the large makeshift war room. Shinobi from Konoha, Kiri and Suna were gathered in the room, looking at Shikamaru with expectant looks on their faces.
"Alright, listen up, the edo–tensei is a nearly invincible technique."
The individuals in the room instantly began murmuring their displeasure at Shikamaru's opening comment, but before they could say much, one of Konoha's most powerful shinobi stood up and brought everyone back to order.
"Everyone listen up! Shikamaru is pretty smart. There's no way we'll lose with whatever strategy he devised... Believe it!"
Everyone in the room who knew Naruto stared at him dumbfounded. It typically wasn't Naruto's style to sit and listen to a plan. Sure he had gotten a bit better at planning during his time with Sakura, but he was still a charge first and figure things out later kind of guy.
"Umm… ya. Right. Thanks Naruto." Shikamaru muttered. "As I was saying, the edo-tensei is a nearly invincible technique. The shinobi revived by this technique will automatically regenerate from any wounds we give them, and there is no consequence to Kabuto for using the technique."
More murmuring arose in the room, but it instantly died down when Naruto turned around and gave the gathered shinobi a warning look, again surprising everyone who knew him.
"The only way to stop the edo-tensei is to get Kabuto to drop the technique. To do this, we'll either have to fool him with a genjutsu, or we could use my family or the Yamanka family's clan techniques. And I plan just to do that. The Konoha army will engage Kabuto's army head on in front of the village gates. My father will serve as commander of the Konoha forces."
"Shikamaru-san, I mean no offense, but wouldn't it make sense for Hokage-sama to lead our forces?" Lee asked with a confused look on his face.
"I'm getting to that Lee. Now… to our knowledge Kabuto still doesn't know that Suna and Kiri have arrived in our village. We're going to use that to our advantage. Suna forces will burrow underground to the east of the battlefield, and Kiri forces will burrow underground to the west of the battlefield. When the Konoha commander gives the signal, your forces will burst from the ground and catch the revived shinobi off guard. Suna has a couple of shinobi who can use cloth binding to bind revived shinobi which will take them out of the fight. Gaara, you will be the commander of your forces, and Mei, you will be the commander of yours."
"But what about…"
"When we lose the momentum gained from Suna and Kiri's sudden joining of the battle…" Shikamaru went on, ignoring Lee's question. "That's when we'll use our trump card. Again, the Konoha commander will give the signal. Once he gives the signal, forces from Kumo and Iwa will attack the rear of Kabuto's forces, and we will have them pinned in on all sides."
"Kumo and Iwa forces?" Mei asked.
"We just found out today that both Kumo and Iwa are coming to join us in this battle. They are tailing Kabuto's army at a safe distance and I have told them to attack once they see the signal."
"But what about…" Lee tried again.
"I was just getting to that Lee. Since the only way to stop the edo-tensei army is to force Kabuto to drop the technique, we need to get to him as quickly as possible. Even with the surprise gained by Kumo and Iwa assaulting the back of Kabuto's forces, we would still eventually be worn down by the edo-tensei and be defeated. That's why I've put together a strike team that is going to take out Kabuto.
"A strike team?"
"Yes. This team needs to consist of individuals who know Kabuto well, and know his fighting style. The strike team shall consist of myself, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Kakashi Hatake, The Hokage, Ino Yamanka, Sai and Chouji Akamichi. I will first try to use my clan's technique to make Kabuto to drop the edo-tensei as Ino will risk running into Orochimaru if she enters Kabuto's mind. She will be going as backup in case I fail."
"But what about…"
Shikamaru sighed at Lee's constant barrage of questions. "Chouji is going because he is a apart of Ino and my's team and the three of us work very well together. Naruto and Sakura are going because they are quite possibly the two most powerful shinobi we have, and both are very familiar with Kabuto. Hokage-sama is also going because of her familiarity with Kabuto. Kakashi and Sai are both going because Naruto and Sakura work so well with them, and Kakashi is able to devise good strategies on the fly, so he can lead a group should or strike force be split up."
"Why didn't you include any of my or Kazekage-sama's shinobi on our strike force?" Mei questioned.
"Because the strike force isn't going to wait for any signals. Our goal is to get to Kabuto as quickly as possible and we are going to go after him the very second this battle starts. If he noticed a Suna or Kirin in on the strike force, our element of surprise would be lost." Shikamaru explained.
"Why not wait for Kumo and Iwa's attack before going after Kabuto?" Gaara asked.
"Because that will take too long. Even if he's being assaulted from all sides, Kabuto still has enough power in his army to protect himself. The strike force is going to take advantage of the chaos caused by the sudden arrival of each new army to get closer to Kabuto."
Everyone in the room nodded their head in understanding, and those who didn't know Shikamaru before found themselves with a healthy dose of respect for the lazy genius.
Woooo! An extra long chapter. The fun starts next chapter! I'm so excited!