endgames | 022 -- [Action || Voice]

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022 -- [Action || Voice]

[Filtered to Konoha Shinobi and Temari || 100% Unhackable]

Meeting tonight, at sundown. [What about goes without saying - most of them should know already.] Fourth floor's kitchen. Try not to pull a Kakashi.

[And thus starts off the long to-do-list of Shikamaru's day. The filter goes up in the morning, giving - hopefully - everyone time to see it.

He's decided he needs to talk to Naruto before then. On his way out the building he'll stop by his apartment, or send another filter off to him if he's not around. With everything going on he would be surprised. After he's tracked him down, it's off to the other side of the village to find Tony Stark at his casa, to hand over a project he's been working on for the last several nights. Playing delivery boy again, ugh. No notice this time, though. He's acting like a functional human being again, but he's not up for the sarcastic banter. Once he's done there, it's over to the school to find Katara in the thirty minute window he has after classes let out. Apologies are an order.

Specific things attended to... wow, without Masaomi around this week, he has a lot of time on his hands, huh. Well okay. He goes off to the forest with a bag of coconuts of all things and lines them up at head level when he finds a good spot to sit them for tanto practice - or more precisely: strength training. He's never used his short sword much. The one time he did, he wasn't strong enough with it to do as he intended, so he should work on that now.

And okay, surely by then the sun will be going down... or okay, nope. With a few hours to kill, somehow he winds up at the Seventh Heaven restaurant. In part because he figures it could be a good place to drop off some of the coconuts, and also because he realizes on the way over he hasn't actually eaten yet. Or done much of anything this past week, besides getting Asuma up to speed about Luceti, or working on various projects.

Sooo. Might be nodding off there at the restaurant. Might be napping after he eats, if he doesn't get kicked out for it. SITTING DOWN WAS A TERRIBLE IDEA. Fine, he'll pose a random pointless question to the masses, maybe that'll keep him occupied.]

[Voice]

Wonder why they call this place Luceti. Seems like a dumb name. Does it even mean anything?

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I'm not gonna let him get away with anything. I've got my way of dealin' with him, and I'll do it when I get my chance.

[And here comes a bit of surprising foresight coming from Naruto.] My chance isn't gonna be here, in Luceti.

[It's kind of creepy how he does that; how he knows. Unfortunately, that still leaves his resolution in Luceti in the dark.]

So what. Nothing he does here matters, is what you're saying? Because if that's the case, let me handle it.

No. [His resolution in Luceti may be in the dark, mostly because Naruto is still unsure to a degree of how to handle Sasuke here when he can barely keep tabs on him, but...]

I'm not gonna let you or anyone else do somethin' stupid that's gonna get you hurt.

Why not? It's what we let you do!

And I'll make it work! I know we all have to deal with him in some way, but this is my problem we're talkin' about! I just need to figure out how to handle it without messin' everything up!

[Maybe he can try to do what he wants to do back home here, to see if it'll work. If it works then... it'll all be okay, right? Right?]

[Just. Face in hands over here, man. When it comes to Naruto, there's a lot of things that Shikamaru will bow to just out of blind faith. More than any of their other friends.

But there are lines you just don't cross with him, and they've cleared this one good.

These two things are conflicting hard now. If it were anyone but Naruto, it wouldn't even be a discussion. But it is, and it's getting to him.]

[Naruto just watches Shikamaru, reading his gesture and posture as somewhat of an answer to his previous statement. Or more like him agonizing that he even had to discuss this out with Naruto. That's the same as a retort.]

You understand where I'm comin' from?

I do.

[He doesn't like it, though.]

Then... just lemme handle it when the time comes.

[He doesn't respond right away, watching Naruto's shadow from under his hands.

Cool head, agile mind. Breathe.]

[After a long pause, he finally nods - but it's not without a catch.]

If something else happens, and you're not there... [He lowers his hands now, straight by his sides. The steeliness hasn't left his eyes, but he's calmer still.] I'm not going to hesitate.

[Naruto's expression drops a bit. This is the part where, despite getting what he was aiming for with this whole debacle, he falters a bit. If only because Shikamaru was right. Just because Naruto wanted to handle it, and damn well will, doesn't mean something might happen when Naruto is unable to make a move himself.

Everything with Sasuke is so complicated.] Alright. That's fair enough.

Edited 2012-03-22 03:44 (UTC)

[That was more draining then it had any right to be. All Shikamaru wants to do is sit for a minute, now that it's done. Backing up against the nearest wall, he lets himself slide down until he's on the floor.]

...I'm sorry. I know that had to be tougher for you than it was for me.

[Naruto is just gonna let himself fall backwards onto his bed, staring up at the ceiling and letting out an exasperated breath.]

Don't worry about it. I'm just glad we got that outta the way.

Right.

[That's said more for the sake of saying something at all. Jeez, what a mess. What were they even talking about before? Getting back to the subject is an awkward affair.]

...we can talk more about Madara later. The stuff only you and me can be informed on, at least.

[That's enough to lift his head a little.] Alright, but is there anythin' else we need to talk about right now?

[They covered Itachi. Talking more about his concerns for Sasuke would be a bad idea right now - he'll save it for when he's calmer. Hm.]

...what's your opinion, on all of it?

[Probably for the best on the Sasuke front. Naruto just sighs and lets his head fall back down to the bed.]

Man, I dunno. All I know is that we gotta do something, and fast.

[They'll work on that, without a doubt. He couldn't agree more.]

I ask because while it makes little sense for him to try something here, you've always been a target for him.

True, but... [Hrnnnghhh.] I ran into him when I went to find the Raikage. He didn't try capturin' me back then, even though Kakashi-sensei and Yamato interfered.

I dunno what he's plottin'.

[It makes little sense. According to the records, Akatsuki tried to get him before--

...

Itachi tried to get him before.]

Maybe the Kyuubi is the final ingredient, and he doesn't need you yet.

You think so? [Naruto sits back up again, looking at Shikamaru quizzically.] I guess that'd explain it. But that means that Bee's next on the list, right?

They've already tried getting him once - it explains itself.

But what's stoppin' them from grabbin' me and just hidin' me until they need me? It'd be easier to get what you need as soon as you can, right?

[If this is truly the logic behind what's going on with the Akatsuki and their captures, Naruto wants to make sure he doesn't start feeling a false sense of security. Also, he wants to try and figure out what Madara was up to when he visited him and why he didn't make a move.]

You'd think they'd have tried to nab you years ago, before you could get stronger.

But that could also be the drawback, as they see it. You're unpredictable. Trying to contain you until the proper time would be troublesome, as would dealing with all the people who'd come after you.

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