Standard disclaimers apply. I'm just borrowing these characters for a little while.
Author's note: Kishimoto-sensei's plan is to fit the entire 4th Shinobi War Arc into a matter of days in the Naruto timeline, but I'm taking the liberty of extending it since war is never so quick and clean-cut. Events from the manga will be added, removed or shifted around. Please pardon my impudence.
"Uzumaki Naruto-san has escaped our protection with the help of Killer Bee-san, Kazekage-sama."
The Intelligence Division shinobi was inwardly surprised that Gaara was taking the report so well. Concealment of the final two Jinchuuriki's had always been the focal point of their efforts, the main reason why they were at war, and Gaara was still wearing his infamous neutral expression.
What the shinobi did not know was that Gaara had been expecting such an event, and was in fact pondering why it took so long for Naruto to finally grow suspicious of his 'training' with Killer Bee.
It had been a grand total of three days since Sakura and Shizune began their autopsy, and also three days that Sakura spent alternating between blushing and ignoring him completely. She reported that they had exhausted exploring the White Zetsu's corpse with chakra, and have started analysing tissue samples instead in hope of uncovering something new. That summed up all the verbal reports she gave to him – everything else she had submitted in writing to the War Council.
He had no reason to rebuke Sakura – she had continued to perform her duties as a kunoichi to her fullest capacity; she brewed him the chakra tea every night, discussed the progress of the war with him whenever he brought up the topic, and went about her duties as a base medic.
Gaara missed their bantering, though.
There was a war at hand, however, that required his attention.
Even under the brilliant guidance of Nara Shikaku, the tacticians have been unable to come up with a way of identifying the clones from their own. To minimise losses in the current situation, Gaara had ordered a retreat back to the borders for all Divisions – by minimising the chances of enemy confrontation, the clones would not be able to sneak in amongst them so easily without the cover of battlefield pandemonium to mask their infiltration.
"What does the War Council have to say about this?" Gaara asked.
"Raikage-sama and Hokage-sama have left the command centre to intercept Naruto-san and Bee-san. They have handed over the supervision of the war to Nara Shikaku-san for the time being."
Gaara's brows knitted in mild annoyance; Shikaku had enough on his hands already, and the hot-tempered Raikage with his tendency to hit first, talk later meant that a confrontation with the two Jinchuuriki's would not be pretty. He had hoped that the Hokage's presence would encourage the Raikage to think before acting, but clearly it was not the case.
"You are dismissed," said Gaara, "However, I wish to speak to Nara Shikamaru-san."
"I will bring him to you at once, Kazekage-sama," replied the shinobi with a salute.
Shikamaru was not one to go courting trouble, but trouble seemed to dog his every move anyway.
Gaara had been adopting a slightly cooler demeanour towards him ever since the day they talked about Gaara's blossoming relationship with Sakura. Shikamaru was sure that he had not revealed his past dating history with Sakura to anyone at all. In fact, it remains one of Konohagakure's Best Kept Secrets to date.
The Fifth Kazekage, though, has proven to be an unusually perceptive male; there was no telling if Gaara had arrived at that conclusion on his own.
Shikamaru's mind had been working overtime ever since he was summoned to Gaara's tent. He had absolutely no idea why he was being called for, and was silently praying that Sakura did not accidentally reveal their past entanglement.
Somehow, the image of Gaara passionlessly crushing him in his Sand Coffin and then having him declared Killed In Action came too vividly to his mind for Shikamaru's comfort.
Okay, maybe he did intentionally go looking for trouble when he decided to address his concern for Sakura's feelings to Gaara. Why, oh why did he ever agree to Sakura's suggestion to watch out for each other on the romance front to avoid a repeat of their own relationship's disastrous end?
Because it was a good idea at that time; also, I am a total bitch for Sakura's beseeching look.
With that last depressing thought, Shikamaru arrived outside the Regimental Commander's tent and flared his chakra.
"Come in, Nara-san."
Shikamaru squared his shoulders and lifted the tent flap, glancing about to locate Gaara. Unsurprisingly, Gaara was at the table, arms folded across his chest.
What was surprising was how troubled Gaara had looked for a moment, before his usual passiveness slipped back over his face.
Shikamaru decided that living longer was more important than making any observations about the Kazekage's person aloud, so he wisely kept his mouth shut.
Shikamaru moved to stand in front of Gaara, his arms crossed behind his back. "You wished to see me, Kazekage-sama?"
"Nara-san, give me your analysis of our current situation."
That was a far cry from what Shikamaru had expected to be called in for. He understood now that he was being summoned in his capacity as Gaara's second-in-charge and field tactician, and secretly heaved a sigh of relief.
"The White Zetsu clones have forced us to make a tactical retreat in the past few days, and they continue to chip away at our forces' morale through constant night assassinations. Unless my father or the medic corps manages to find a way of identifying these clones or their weaknesses soon, we may have to resort to a straight push into Madara's base. However, we do not have sufficient intelligence from either the scouting parties or the Ambush Squad to make a clean attack. Our losses will be immense, with easily eighty percent or more of our forces being eliminated in the process. But it will be better than playing sitting ducks in the long term."
Gaara was silent, going over Shikamaru's assessment in his head. He had considered a bold assault on the Akatsuki base as well, but there were simply too many unknown factors that could turn the venture into a complete slaughter of their forces. He was both relieved and dismayed to have his suspicions confirmed by Shikamaru.
"Nara-san, how would you feel if I sent you to the War Council to assist Shikaku-san and his team of tacticians?"
Shikamaru blinked, "Kazekage-sama, as the Regimental Commander, you are free to re-assign me without consulting me at all."
Gaara shook his head, "I will not move personnel unless I know they can be of greater value elsewhere."
"With all due respect, Kazekage-sama, Shikaku-san is my father, and a far wiser man than I can hope to be. I do not see how my addition to his team will be of any help, and I certainly do not want anyone to cast doubts on his abilities as the head tactician."
Shikamaru had scowled briefly, and Gaara could see how much the young man respected his father in that instant.
What a far cry it was from his own experience with his father.
"Before I forget, Nara-san," the way Gaara spoke made it sound as if his following words were anything but incidental, "Naruto has escaped and is apparently on his way to join the war."
Shikamaru smirked and shook his head, muttering, "It's about time he caught on."
"Do you think his presence at the frontlines will be an asset or a disadvantage to us?"
"It would be catastrophic if the enemy were to capture Naruto and Bee-san," said Shikamaru, "However, from what I've learnt, Naruto has pretty much perfected his Nine-Tails Mode. Combined with Killer Bee-san's formidable strength as a Jinchuuriki, they would be able to do serious damage to the enemy forces."
"My sentiments exactly," Gaara rose from his seat, "Although, their escape may be for naught, as the Raikage and Hokage have left the war council to stop them."
Shikamaru flinched – he had met the Raikage only once, but he already noticed how the man had a hair-trigger propensity for violence.
Naruto's Nine-Tails Mode had better be really powerful.
Shizune had insisted on mandatory breaks while performing their autopsy on the White Zetsu corpse. The time spent away would let them recharge and also let them look at the seemingly unsolvable problem with fresh eyes.
That was why Sakura was currently moving from tent to tent, checking on the patients and performing an unauthorised healing or two when she was absolutely certain that Shizune was not anywhere nearby to catch her defying the purpose of her breaks.
The next tent held a small surprise for her.
"Neji-san!" she exclaimed, then almost immediately narrowed her eyes in suspicion, "It really is you, isn't it?"
On the same night that the White Zetsu clone infiltrated the medic base under the guise of Neji, Sakura sent word out to the Fifth Division where Neji was assigned to find out if he was alright. A messenger came and reported that Neji was grumpy but very much alive just before she left for Gaara's tent, which helped to calm her frazzled nerves. It was at least good news that the clones did not have to kill the original chakra bearer to possess their forms.
The enemy might be trying to sneak in under the guise of the Hyuuga male again; they might have been expecting her to drop her guard down around Neji now that his previous clone had been eliminated, and there was no telling how many times they would be able to reuse Neji's chakra signature.
"Sakura?" Neji turned his head to face her, and she was surprised by how tired he looked. He had started to show signs of developing dark eye bags, which was an inappropriately amusing sight to Sakura.
"Neji-san, who brought you in?" she asked while retrieving his patient's records, one eye trained on him for any sudden movements.
"Kiba did," he gave Sakura a strange look, and correctly deduced what she was thinking. "This is about the Zetsu clone that attacked you while pretending to be me, isn't it?"
"Well, if you can prove to me that you really are Neji-san…" Sakura left the sentence hanging.
Neji sighed softly and began, "Exactly twelve days after we returned from the Land of Iron, after spending days and nights cooped up in the laboratory, you found out that the plant was no more than a garden-variety flowering shrub."
"I kind of screamed in frustration over that, Neji-san; I think they heard me over in Kirigakure, so you're going to need to do better than that," Sakura rolled her eyes at the memory of her very unlady-like behaviour.
"Alright. Despite the setback, you went ahead and kept the plant anyway. As of last summer, you have exactly fourteen pots of it on your balcony."
Sakura blinked.
"Neji-san, I live on the eighth floor. How can you tell how many pots there are without actually being there physically to count them?" She started to wonder if the real Neji balcony-surfed like it was an everyday occurrence.
"I was trying to locate the source of my… allergies."
It would explain why when she invited the Konoha Eleven to her apartment for a little get-together once, Neji had made an excuse that he had training to do and left. Even though it was close to eleven at night.
"Ok, Neji-san, you're the real deal," she finally broke into a smile, and Neji gave her one of his trademark smirks in return, "So, how did Kiba manage to convince you to seek medical attention?"
"I was bodily hauled here by Akamaru, to be precise."
Sakura could not quite erase the image of Akamaru dragging Neji along like a chew-toy towards the medic base.
"How is your work here at the medic base?" asked Neji conversationally; he was bored out of his skull while being confined to mandatory bed rest – his vocal cords were pretty much the only part of his body left that he could use without getting a telling-off from another medic.
Sakura heaved a tired-sounding sigh, "Not very well, I'm afraid. We're still trying to find out how to identify these enemy clones without having to submit our entire army to interrogations. And you know that's not feasible anyway."
"Sakura," began Neji, "I'm not certain if this will be helpful, but when Akamaru was in his Kiba-clone form, he was also grabbed by a White Zetsu. However, the White Zetsu released him almost immediately and went for another shinobi instead."
Sakura released the breath that she didn't even know she had been holding, prompting Neji to shoot her a quizzical look.
"Neji-san, I think you just gave me the breakthrough we need."
"Shizune nee-san!" Sakura came bursting into the brunette's tent where Shizune was trying to enjoy a cup of coffee. Emphasis on 'trying'.
"Sakura? What is it? Is there something wrong?"
Sakura could barely contain her excitement, and she forced herself to take a calming breath before she started jumbling up her words. This was something important, and she had to convey that to Shizune.
"I just spoke to Hyuuga Neji-san…"
"Ah, another stubborn Hyuuga male – he's not the first one to be brought in for overworking themselves by riding nighthawk almost every day," Shizune made a tsk-ing sound.
"Yes, but listen to this – one of the White Zetsu clones grabbed a nin-dog, but rejected it almost immediately and went for a human target."
Initially, Shizune could not see the fuss over the matter. Yet Sakura looked so earnest that she knew this young woman must have stumbled on some obscure truth.
"I mean, wouldn't it have been even better to adopt the form of animal allies to sneak among our forces? Who is going to notice if a nin-dog is acting strange except for its owner? It certainly is better than going around disguised as a human shinobi whose cover can easily be blown by his friends and comrades," Sakura had a strange gleam in her eyes, "What if – and I'm just speculating – but what if it is an incompatibility issue? If the issue is not with the chakra, then it must be…"
"In the DNA," both women chorused.
Shizune nodded, a giddy smile starting to form on her lips, "It makes sense – some shinobi can borrow animal chakra to conceal themselves, so it's unlikely that the clones cannot do it, seeing how skilled they are at manipulating chakra. However, human and animal DNA, while not very different, varies where it counts."
"Come on, Shizune nee-san. What are we waiting for?" Sakura was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet now.
"Lead the way," replied Shizune, grabbing her flak jacket off the back of the chair as she rose.
Sakura walked ahead, her stride now more confident than ever before.
"Begging your pardon, Kazekage-sama, Nara-san. Tsuchikage-sama is here," announced Baki as he pushed aside the tent flap discreetly.
Both men had been perusing the latest intelligence reports for several hours already when the news came, and Shikamaru rose from his seat at once, awaiting the entrance of Ohnoki. The Third Tsuchikage was his senior in every sense of the word, and it was only respectful to greet him whilst standing.
Ohnoki lifted the tent flap and entered, his eyes quickly scanning the tent's interior. He titled his head towards both men in greeting.
"Good evening, Tsuchikage-sama," Shikamaru bowed at his waist.
The old man gave Shikamaru the once-over, and ventured, "You must be Shikaku's son, aren't you? The resemblance is uncanny."
"Shikaku-san is indeed my father, Tsuchikage-sama."
"Tsuchikage-sama," said Gaara, "I've heard about Naruto and Killer Bee's escape, and that Raikage-sama and Hokage-sama have left in pursuit of them. Do you have any updates on the situation?"
"As a matter of fact, I do. I was just about to leave the War Council when they returned. Apparently, the Raikage had a change of heart and decided to let them go," then he added, "The Kyuubi Jinchuuriki can be very persuasive. Actually, he seemed too eager to get involved in the war, if you ask me."
Gaara found the corner of his lips curling upwards – of course Naruto would find a way to convince even the most stubborn of men to see things from his perspective.
"Also, that kunoichi of yours is quite something; her work at the medic bas…"
The Tsuchikage did not finish his sentence when the sand-cat suddenly jumped off Sakura's bed and padded to the tent flap, purring loudly. A few heartbeats later, a familiar chakra signature flared from outside the tent.
"Enter," said Gaara calmly.
"Kazekage-sama, Tsuchikage-sama," Sakura bowed to both men, and gave Shikamaru a little wave of her hand which he returned almost grudgingly, "We have discovered something about the White Zetsu clones."
Gaara took note of the pink flush on her cheeks and the way she was slightly breathless, possibly having ran all the way from the medic base once her job there could be proclaimed as completed.
Sakura was radiant when she was so immersed in her work.
He was glad to finally see a smile on Sakura's face after what seemed like an eternity, but at the same time, he knew that there were two reasons for her happiness; one of which he did not share her sentiments.
"The White Zetsu clones are using Yamato-taichou's Wood Release bloodline limit technique to create themselves, which would explain why there are so many of them and their seemingly endless numbers. That their attacks came only some time after Yamato-taichou was captured tells us that it takes time for them to be 'grown', so their numbers can be contained if we manage to take out enough of them at once."
"The Wood Release, eh?" Ohnoki said, "That's a kekkei genkai, isn't it?"
Shikamaru rubbed at his chin and tiled his head backwards, searching his memories for a conversation he had with Asuma after Naruto's visit to ask about the wind element.
"If I'm not mistaken, the wood element is based on the combination of the earth and water elements. Earth is weakest against lightning, and water against earth" noted Shikamaru, "We should assign at least one lightning element-based shinobi to each four-man team at once. This is a tactical advantage that we ought to fully exploit."
Shikamaru pulled out a small scroll from his pouch and started writing on it. As Gaara's second, he still had to abide by certain protocols, which included having the Regimental Commander's stamp and approve his strategies before they can actually be employed. It was all very ridiculous, seeing how said Commander was literally next to him right now.
Shikamaru was not a fan of red-tape, but it gave some semblance of order to these chaotic times.
"Shika-kun, do you realise what this means?" Sakura turned her smile towards him.
The Nara prodigy's pen stilled; he could feel the daggers that Gaara was glaring at him. Actually, no – they felt more like spears. Huge, pointy spears.
"Well," drawled Shikamaru, "Obviously, you are not excited over the prospects of an army that can literally grow themselves, so it must be about Yamato-san."
"The clones' DNA has changed to resemble Yamato-taichou and the First Hokage's even more than during the Kage Summit. So that means that they are keeping Yamato-taichou alive!" Sakura grinned, then promptly scrunched her eyebrows, "Oh, wait – that's not exactly good news, is it? If the enemy is sucking the life force out of your captain, I mean."
"Sakura, focus on the fact that he is alive – that's the important thing," Shikamaru tilted his head from side-to-side in an attempt to dislodge the metaphorical spears stuck in his neck, "It is strange, though, that a shinobi as experienced as Yamato-san has not chosen to end his life when he was captured, to prevent by the enemy from gathering any information."
Sakura scowled, "I am trying to focus on the good part, Shikamaru. This is a war, and I will take whatever good news I can."
Sakura then turned to look at Gaara expectantly. This was the part that he had been dreading for days.
"Haruno-san," Gaara prevented himself from sighing out loud, "I know you want to be put on the frontlines now that you've finished your autopsy assignment. However, as you already know, we are currently at a stalemate with the enemy forces. There is little you can do on the field right now, so I think it is best if you continue working on the medic base."
Ohnoki suddenly smacked his fist into his open palm, as if recalling something; that action alone effectively prevented Sakura from protesting Gaara's decision.
"That may no longer be the case, Kazekage," he began.
Gaara felt his blood run cold and unconsciously stiffened in his seat at Ohnoki's next words.
"The resurrected Kage's are on the move."