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Shogi Games	By : sihayadib Category: Naruto > General Views: 928 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
~~~~~~~~~~

�� What
the fuck am I supposed to do without active duty missions?! Huh?!�
The chair slammed back with unnecessary force into the wall. A decent-sized
dent created in the whole ordeal stood out as a shadow beneath the unflattering
florescent light of the hospital. Shikamaru turned around to look at his own
handiwork. Usually he wouldn�t care. Normally he�d throw his hands behind his
head and say, �Good riddance, missions
are too troublesome,� and then go find the closest place he could use to
watch the clouds. But he hadn�t spent much time cloud watching recently. It was
too quiet for him. Instead, he focused intensely on his Shogi game, and even
more so on missions. They had become a constant mainstay in his life, and he
usually spent all of his time working for Leaf in hopes of improving himself
for the village, for the children. To be a role model worth
respecting. He�d take every mission he could get, proving to himself
each time that he wasn�t a lazy little boy anymore. Proving that he could be
sure of himself in something, anything, because he hasn�t felt sure since that
day�
�� He
received his revenge in Hidan�s removal. He did not
need to continue that pursuit. Before he found peace and felt Asuma at his
side, he reveled in the control and authority he held over the situation. Pleasure,
vanity, and pride coursed through him with triumphant clarity, but the strength
he found from completing his mission while ensuring the safety of all his
friends was the most rewarding part of all. The calm he felt afterwards seemed healing,
but doubts always creep back in if you don�t resolve them or if you give them
time to fester. He wasn�t quite sure what was still bothering him, but the calm
and ease always returned during his missions when his mind was active and
flexed. Shikamaru could lay out a plan of action and determine the outcome,
proceeding to victory with no costs or loss. These past few instances where he
returned banged up were simply a fluke.
�� He
turned back from surveying the damage, anger coveting every inch of his
presence. �Where did this harebrained idea come from? I�m supposed to have no
income now? I begged for years to just be left alone, to be poor and happy, and
now I willingly take missions and you want me off them? To be
poor and unhappy? You�re just fucking with me, aren�t you?!�
�� Shikamaru,
shut up.� Tsunade looked out the window with a leveled gaze and a dead set
expression. Turning back, she placed her elbows on the desk in front of her,
and gave a low, measured response to Shikamaru�s
nonsense. �I�m taking you off active-duty missions because you are a danger to
yourself and your team.� Her gaze did not flicker or waver; uncertainty was not
in Tsunade�s vocabulary or body language at this
point. Shikamaru grasped this and knew he was playing a difficult game now. But
how could she even believe that?
�� His
intelligent response was reduced to a muttered, �What? That doesn�t make
sense!� He believed it, too. Tsunade could see the honest confusion on his
face, but his hesitant features showed he knew the truth at least
subconsciously. �I have succeeded in a majority of my past missions. I have had
a 98% success rate, and the past ten missions received were all successful. I
dare you to find another team leader bearing that rate��
�� This
isn�t about field data or percentages.� A humbled, motherly look made Tsunade
appear older than her age-reversing jutsu normally allowed. If a sensible
leader could not appeal to Shikamaru, perhaps an emotional, caring leader
could. She rarely used this during discussions with subordinates, but she
figured it was worth a shot. The kid was too smart; he�d argue logic all day.
However, emotions obviously still stumped him. �Your teammates are worried
about you. We just want to see you safe, Shikamaru, and this seemed like the
best way to��
�� Seemed
best to whom?� Shikamaru interrupted. His growled question did not persuade
Tsunade to answer him, and his continuing attitude made her drop the motherly
act.
�� Seemed best to all of us, Shikamaru!� Now, frustration
colored the both of them as the verbal match really heated up. �You are making
choices that do not factor in your safety.�
�� I�m
factoring in the safety of my team and success with the mission��
�� Which
you unduly place the dangers upon yourself.�
�� Team
leaders are naturally exposed to more danger.�
�� You�re
going out of your way to find exacerbate that danger. Your whole attitude
revolves around the protection of your team��
�� As it should.�
�� Tsunade
glared. She was getting sick of his rapid responses. Most people she was in
charge of knew well enough to avoid interrupting her. She gritted out slowly,
�As I was saying, your� whole� ATTITUDE� revolves
around the protection of your team at the expense of yourself. You are going to
end up dead at this rate, Shikamaru.�
�� No
witty comebacks were returned to the Hokage as a
staring match started. For several tense moments, hard silence was the only
thing that could be heard in the plush hospital office. Then, all at once, like
a swell of energy, both parties exploding, yelling at each other with abandon
and force. Listening intently from the opposite side of the door, Sakura and Shizune knew it was a dangerous place to step into, but
something had to be done.
�� Slamming
the door open to create a resounding thud, the noise and entrance were meant to
stop the two from continuing the yelling match. It didn�t even cause a single
eye to blink. The Hokage stood, beet red and leaning
forward menacingly behind the desk, screaming at the top of her lungs, and
Shikamaru mirroring her just the same. Seeing the boy yelling was a shock to
Sakura; she�d originally thought he was too lazy to put this sort of effort
into anything. Perhaps the problem was more serious than they thought, because
this display seemed contrary to his typical laid-back nature.
�� At
the current juncture, Shikamaru was demanding where all this false information
was filtering in from. Tsunade was telling Shikamaru, �so help me god,� that
she�d �filter his information� if he kept this up. Recognizing
the repercussions of reducing Tsunade to nonsensical and vague threats made
Sakura jump between the pair and attempt to take the heat from Shikamaru.
�� Listen!�
Sakura shouted over the two, her lungs cultivated quite nicely from years of
yelling at Naruto. �You�re too smart for this
Shikamaru! We talked about it and felt��
�� Who?! You and who? I figured you were one of the traitors,
complaining about all my wounds each time I came back!�
�� Thwack! One of Sakura�s fists crashed
down on the top of Shikamaru�s head. �Shut up you
little twerp!� Shikamaru shut up for a minute to rub the sore spot that was
forming, and Tsunade released her tension by letting out a chuckle at the
sight. Sakura took a deep breath and let out, �I became concerned the more I
looked over the field notes describing how you sustained your injury, but
Kakashi-sensei confirmed a lot of suspicions that were growing��
�� Kakashi, huh?� Shikamaru glared off at the corner of the
room and quit rubbing his head. He crossed his arms and pouted to the best of
his abilities.
�� Yes,
Kakashi, and when I talked to the other members of your team, it seemed to dawn
on them, too. You�re pushing yourself too far in missions, Shikamaru. Of all
the plans to choose from, you choose the ones that only put yourself in danger,
that depend so much on you. You know the importance of teamwork and teams to shinobi.�
�� Sakura
let her comments sink in. Tsunade had returned to sitting down in her seat,
eyes closed in contemplation. Her student had summed it up best, and felt no need
to push Shikamaru further. He was probably still focusing his anger on the Hokage, and she didn�t need to sit here and have him take
it out on her anymore.
�� Little
did she know Shikamaru was already contemplating giving a piece of his mind to
someone else, a more integral player in causing this damn situation.
�Fuck you, Hatake.�
The thought crossed his mind, knowing that the fellow man was smart enough to
run through a multitude of scenarios and plans for each mission. Kakashi would
have recognized the fact that there were better plans of action. Shikamaru knew
this, too, but he reasoned those choices away because they involved too much
risk. Well, risk for other people certainly; the enhanced risk to himself wasn�t as much concern.
�� During
the last mission, Shikamaru paused before facing the unexpected fight that
eventually injured him severely, asking himself what he was doing. He knew he
wasn�t logically making the best choice, but he was making the safest choice
for his team. He was alone facing the enemy, and it was a risk he had
considered earlier but downplayed while choosing this plan. Shikamaru felt his
only choice was to prevent this jackass from gaining knowledge or access to his
team. He could take him out on his own. However, he sustained an injury early
in the fight from an unexpected technique, and could not regain his ground. Shikamaru
was lucky when his team showed up during the height of the battle, and
effectively saved his life. Little did he know, Kakashi had sent one of his nin-dogs to trail the younger man and return should
Shikamaru face any trouble.
�� Shikamaru
stood still before the small group of women, displaying his best sullen and
silent attitude. He wasn�t done being angry, but dammit,
it was too troublesome trying to argue with women. They always had an answer,
or a comeback, or fists (Sakura and Tsunade maintained a power he did not feel
like dealing with). He grunted, rolled his eyes, and attempted to saunter out
of the room like this whole discussion and decision wasn�t even worth his time
anymore. But the slight limp from injuries and the radiating anger did not fool
anyone watching him make his retreat. Sakura moved to go after him, but Tsunade
stopped her.
�� It�s
best to give a man some time to digest the facts on his own. He�ll recognize
his own mistakes. When he�s ready, then we�ll figure out a solution.� Tsunade
stopped to look at her student, who was still staring worriedly at the empty
doorway.
�� I
know,� Sakura mumbled. Her face was drawn and sullen as her shoulders hunched
over. �He was so willing to place himself in danger before. Are you sure it�s
wise to let him go off on his own to figure this out?� Sakura glanced at Shizune standing by the doorway who gave a small shrug. The
serious look on her face showed she didn�t know how to read the situation any
more than the other two.
�� I�m
sure he�ll be fine, Sakura. Besides, Hatake has a way
of showing up at the most convenient times. I asked him to check on Shikamaru
after I confirmed with the team that their leader would be taken off active
duty.�
�� I
thought Kakashi was done filling in for Ino, and he
wasn�t going to be a part of Shikamaru�s team
anymore,� Sakura stated.
�� Hmm,�
Tsunade murmured, �I suppose you�re right. Well, Kakashi did ask specifically
to help and report back, claiming he had an interest in the situation.�
�� What?
Why?� Sakura was puzzled now. She knew both men, who were lazy to a fault, and
couldn�t imagine either going out of their way for much of anything besides orange
covered novels or clouds.
�� Well,
in all honesty, he claimed to take a liking to Shikamaru, but I think the real
reason was that he could relate to the situation. Kakashi has been there
before, exactly where Shikamaru is now. It�s a hard place to be, and sometimes,
you just need someone to relate to you.�
�� Hmm��
Sakura mused over the circumstances. She didn�t know much about Kakashi�s past,
but she noticed he always took a liking to the individuals he related most to.
He also had a sixth sense at giving people what they needed when they were down.
She appreciated every single one of his happy little eye creases and annoying
little head pats. Sometimes, when she was sad, she could still hear Kakashi
tell her, �It�ll be okay, Sakura-chan.� Perhaps it would be okay to let Shikamaru go,
and let those two deal with the situation at hand. Placing
her trust in Kakashi eased the tension of the situation for now.

~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for reading! I�m starting a
new year with a new job and a new schedule, and I look forward to writing more.
I should have more chapters soon. Yay� I have time to
write!!! *does a small jig* =) I hope everyone is looking forward to enjoying
their 2008!
- 4
- 5
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Shogi Games