[34] Stories

At this point, Kagami does not understand why she hasn't moved back in with her brother yet. She is walking into town perfectly fine by herself, only with a little help from Yoshino here and there. But she has walked her way into the restaurant and sat down without any mishaps so far.

Though Kagami has just noticed something while walking into the restaurant, yes Choza and Inoichi are sitting in a large booth towards the back of the restaurant, but so are their wives and children.

A larger crowd than expected. But not the end of the world.

Kagami keeps a straight face as she makes her way towards the booth, though it wouldn't matter if she hadn't because her mask would have covered it from view.

Shikaku smiles widely at his friends, as if he hadn't seen them in years, Shikamaru doing the same to Choji. Though the said boy was too busy giving Kagami an odd look for her choice of attire. On the other hand, Ino was in shock, staring at the girl with her mouth hanging open.

Her and her mother have dressed up in matching kimonos for the occasion, but they are wearing brighter, flowery designs. Kagami and Yoshino do match slightly, but Kagami is wearing a very formal dress, and Ino knows that Yoshino has more informal clothing. A conspiracy has formed.

The four squeeze into the booth, they all fit, just. A few are shoved right up against each other. Kagami does mind, in root you have to share one concrete room with 2 others. She's not fussed about space, though Shikamaru does seem to be a little uncomfortable squished up to a girl he barely knows.

The night is going well, the conversations are flowing and nobody has asked Kagami a single question.

"Shikamaru the Chunin exams are on in a few days, you should watch it." Shikaku looks at his child.

Ino and Choji snicker lightly, their parents giving them odd glances.

"I know Dad," Shikaku continues to look at his child through the corner of his eye as he takes a sip of his sake. "I'm competing."

Sake sprays everywhere. The two other families look at the boy in shock.

"What, that means you two competed as well." Choza stares down Ino and Choji.

"Yeah we did, we got kicked out at the preliminary stage." Ino scratches the back of her head sheepishly.

"And you didn't tell us?!" Ino's mother looks at her child in shock.

"How did your lazy ass get through and not Ino and Choji?" Yoshino leans over to look at her child.

Kagami almost laughed at this, but hid it with a simple smile as she grabs another piece of meat and eats it while the attention is elsewhere.

Yoshino continues, "and why didn't you tell us?"

Shikamaru sighs, "Because it's such a drag." He rolls his gaze over everyone on the table. "Plus Kagami got through too."

Kagami chokes on her meat, not expecting the sudden attention. She glares at the boy sitting next to her. Her mind running through every way to discreetly kill him and dispose of his body.

"It's not fair she got through! I had to go against her and she's an Anbu." Ino whines, throwing her arms up.

Kagami looks at the girl, "If you hadn't gone against me, you would have been paired against Sakura Haruno. You are both evenly matched so you would have both been disqualified anyway."

Ino scoffs, her face going red, she is obviously about to explode before she suddenly smirks. Kagami narrows at her.

"How would you know who was going to be paired with who?" Ino gives a victorious look before Kagami rolls her eyes and grabs some more meat.

"I am the hidden proctor, Moron. I'm here for your safety. I'm the one that pairs you up." Kagami knows she shouldn't have told them, but Shikamaru was the only one left in the competition and he already knew his opponent.

Ino almost screams, "why did you fight me?!" Ino was prepared to scream her way into Kagami's brain cells to get an answer.

"Because Moron, I needed to stay in the competition and I knew I could defeat you." Kagami suddenly takes notice of a man sitting a few booths away, his hair black and long. His face is hidden from here but she knew who it was.

"Because of the threat right?" Kagami snaps to Inoichi who had been nodding along with Kagami.

"What threat?" Choji pauses his eating for a moment to listen.

"Infiltration," Shikaku looks at the kids, "Chunin exams are extremely dangerous not only to the contestants but to the entire village. We let in anyone with a pass. But the truth is, it's not that hard to get one."

Kagami nods.

"Kagami, you would know all about that." Inoichi looks at her, eating some meat. The said girl glares daggers at the man, he was doing this on purpose.

Maybe she'll end his life on purpose.

The girl simply nods, "I went to a Chunin exam in Suna years ago. They were infiltrated by foreign shinobi. A loss of over 1,000."

Ino was about to comment on the statement, how could Kagami possibly be allowed into two Chunin exams when she isn't actually taking the exam, but she is cut off.

"Is that. . . ?"

"No it can't possibly. . . ."

"No way! She's in a dress!"

"Years of hard work, it never paid off."

"But this woman gets her in a dress."

"Blasphemy."

Two men approach the booth. Leaning over the edge to look down at Kagami.

"Hi Mi!"

Kagami cringes at the name.

'He he he he he.'

"Hello Nika, Misha." Kagami acknowledges them without looking at them.

"Oh come on."

"I know, she still doesn't call us by our names."

"I'm telling you, she's a hard nut to crack."

Kagami rolls her eyes at the two.

"What do you want, Toshiro, Masaaki?"

"Le gasp."

"Le gasp."

"Oh jinx."

"Oh jinx."

"Hey!"

"Hey!"

". . . . "

" . . . . "

"Anyway she speaks."

"Anyway she speaks."

"Toshiro I'll speak."

"Masaaki I'll speak."

"You wanna go?"

". . . . . ."

"Alright I'll go."

The booth of 10 people stare at the two people joining them. They smile lazily at the two.

"We just couldn't believe your clothing choice," Toshiro gives a wave at her, "I'm pretty sure I haven't seen you in anything but the Root uniform before. What about you Masaaki?"

The other man nods, "I'd have to agree with you, she never wore anything else. Apart from that time we had to go to that festival."

"Oh yes the festival, when Kagami fell in love with that boy."

Kagami coughs aggressively as she chokes on her meat. She had successfully eaten most of her plate while the eyes were away from her, but they caught her off guard.

The two men start laughing and pat her on the back.

"That was pretty good, huh?' Toshiro keeps chuckling.

"I was wondering how far you were going to go." Kagami glances up at Inoichi, trying to put two and two together.

"Maybe next time we could act as a gay couple?" Kagami glares at the men.

"What do you need?" The two glance around quietly before gesturing for her to follow them.

Toshiro quickly slides into her seat as she stands up, "I'll let you guys in on a secret, Kagami was actually a normal child. That means it's time for Baby stories!"

Kagami tries to ignore him and follows Masaaki to an empty booth in the darker corners of the restaurant.

Masaaki once again glances around before handing her an envelope of paper.

"Apparently you have a secret admirer. These were sent to our Root apartment yesterday. Obviously whoever it was doesn't know you moved out."

Kagami gives a knowing nod, knowing about the little envelopes.

"I've been getting these for years, they are photos. I've resorted to not opening them."

Masaaki's gaze hardens, "Kagami this is serious, someone could be following you around. This could seriously endanger-"

"The safety of the village I know-"

"No Kagami," Masaaki slightly raises his voice at her. "This is seriously dangerous to your safety. Think about something other than the village for once."

"You know I can't Masa, my life is planned around this village, and that's how it will always be."

The man gives her a sad look. Masaaki had watched her grow up along with Toshiro and quite frankly considered her family. But it would seem that Danzo has once again wasted a beautiful soul on his emotionless army.

"Thank you for bringing this to me, I'll stay in touch with you too, now that I know you work in Interrogation."

Kagami stands up, her partner following her. She turns back around quickly and glances back at the booth that the dark haired man was seated before.

"Orochimaru has infiltrated the village. Watch out for him, he might be looking for Root files." Masaaki nods silently, glancing at where she is looking.

She walks back to the booth and gives a very small smile to assume that nothing is wrong.

"Ah, I must leave you all. I'll finish this one next time I see you!" Toshiro stands tall next to Masaaki who gives a light wave before they both disappear into puffs of smoke.

Kagami sits down again in her spot and hands the envelope over to Inoichi begrudgingly.

"The unit may need these. The Root will be handing over a man tomorrow, I have suspicion he has something to do with those."

"You are sneaking information out of the Root?" Choji leans forward, his eyes wide.

Kagami gives him a cold look. He better not ask anymore questions.

"People have been smuggling information out of the Root for years. But something tells me this wasn't sent to the Root." Shikaku gives Kagami a knowing look.

"You can ask me tomorrow at the unit. Don't bring work to the dinner table, Pineapple." Kagami silently goes back to grabbing meat off the cooker.

Inoichi and Choza suddenly burst out laughing. Choza points his chopsticks at the shocked man while Inoichi bangs the table as he laughs. Their wives and kids give them odd loves while Yoshino covers her mouth as she holds in her laughs.

Shikaku gives the girl a surprised look, "That was you!"

Inoichi suddenly can't breathe, so his table banging becomes a little desperate as his daughter lightly taps his back in confusion.

"You're-Hahaha-you are the one that-" Choza just stops talking as his chuckles keep getting caught up in his sentences.

s.h.o.u.t.

"So let me get this straight," Shikamaru gives Kagami a look, "you were the one who spray painted a pineapple on our house?"

"No, I didn't, I just paid for it to happen." Kagami glares at the older Nara,

Suddenly he smirks, "this is because I sent you to the tortue unit instead of the Hokage tower isn't it?"

Kagami's glare intensifies. She will never forget the day she walked straight into a torture chamber instead of an officials meeting. It was the first time in years she had felt emotion, and it just so happened to be embarrassment. Inoichi had dressed up as the Hokage and sat in front of Ibiki who was facing away and pretending to be an official. Kagami had never met the Hokage before and was easily fooled at the young age she was. Little did she know that the meeting had been canceled and no one had decided to inform her.

"You deserved it, I almost made the 10 day trip to Suna and back because of you. I would have surely been counted as a wasted resource if I hadn't picked up on it." Kagami shakes her head.

"But why wouldn't you prank those two? They were in on it too?" Shikamaru points to the heads of the Yamanaka and Akimichi clan. The two said man glare at the boy, ready to start war over his blame game.

Kagami blinks at the boy, "I did."

The two scrunch their eyebrows together, trying to think of a time they had been messed with.

"It was you!" Everyone turns to Inoichi's wife. "Wasn't it? You made our entire flower order one big sunflower order!"

"THAT WAS YOU!" Ino shouts, slamming her hands on the table, "I got grounded for 3 weeks because of that!"

Kagami gives the girl an emotionless look, she has shown enough emotion for the day.

s.h.o.u.t.

The Nara family waves goodbye to their company, they live in the opposite direction to them. Kagami gives out simple nods, her bells ringing slightly as she does. The family starts their journey home, Shikaku's hands behind his head, and Shikamaru's deep in his pockets. Yoshino and Kagami were quietly walking with their hands together. Shikaku sighs contently and glances down at his son, a wide smile stretching across his face.

"So Shikamaru, you got a special someone?" Shikaku's smile doesn't disappear as his son stumbles over words.

"W-What? D-Dad?" Shikamaru stares up at his father.

"C'mon there has to be someone you've got your eye on." Shikaku bumps lightly into his son.

"I don't have my eye on anybody. Troublesome." Shikamaru shakes his head at his father.

"Oh come on! Somebody." Shikaku looks at his son closely, leaning right over. "Is it Ino?"

Shikamaru goes into complete and utter shock.

"What?! No."

"Oh it is isn't it? You like Ino Yamanaka."

"Dad! I don't like Ino!"

"Huh? I though Ino was your friend?" Yoshino joins in, playing with him.

"I do like Ino in that way Mum-"

"So you do like Ino?"

"No I don't-"

"But you just said you like her."

"He did, didn't he? I think maybe he's confused." Shikaku can't seem to wipe the smile off his face. "Oh do you like multiple people?"

"Maybe it isn't Ino." Yoshino has a sudden devilish smile come across her face.

Shikaku catches on quickly, he speaks at the same time as his son.

"Do you like men?"

"Yes, you're right!"

There was a sudden silence, so quiet even Kagami felt uncomfortable.

"NO!"

"HAHAHAHA!"

"The person I like is not Ino, but I'm not into guys." Shikamaru rubs his face with a sigh, knowing his parents were purposely trying to annoy him. That's when he realised his mistake.

"Oh so you do like someone?"

'Shit.'

'He's caught out.'

'Absolutely fucked.'

'He's not getting out of this one.'

'His boy may be my favourite person right now but he is sure dumb for a Nara.'

'Right you are Masaru.'

'Do you two ever stop listening in?'

'Do YOU ever stop listening?"

"Masaru . . . ."

'We are leaving now.'

"Hm? You like someone and you didn't tell me?" Yoshino's eyes suddenly flash red, all jokes aside, this woman is very dangerous when angry.

Both Shikamaru and his father glup, turning slowly to the woman.

"Son, just know I love you."

"Dad, you have lived a good life."

"Hmph."

The two stare silently as the woman glares at them before turning away from their gazes. For some reason this doesn't seem to make the two men feel any better about the way her eyes seemed to be able summon Satan's wrath with a single look.

Shikaku starts to smile anyway. He had won, only one to go.

"While we are on the topic," He looks over at Kagami, "Is there any-"

"No."

"Okay."

s.h.o.u.t.

hopefully the end was a little bit of a brightener compared to the chapters recently, they have been a little depressing.

~shadow