A Couple Steps Back

Chapter 4

Third person pov

Shikamaru took in a slow, deep breath as he opened the door to his room. Sasuke and Naruto had arrived. He didn't need to feel their chakra to know they were here; they were loud enough on their own. It comforted him to know they were here, and that they were okay. That they weren't crying. Although, he was sure Sasuke had snuck out of his home undetected, and that Naruto had avoided any and all civilians. Shikamaru was glad they came here. He would need them.

"Sheesh, you guys don't know when to shut up, do you?" Shikamaru yawned as he entered the living room, wearing a long sleeved shirt and pants. He didn't have ninja sandals yet, leaving him in white sneakers. He didn't look at his father or mother, keeping his eyes trained on Naruto's face. He had to stay strong for the Hokage. That was his duty, right? To protect and serve under Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, the seventh Hokage.

"Shikamaru!" Naruto cheered. Sasuke grinned at him uncharacteristically, and this time not all of it was faked. The Uchiha's eyes glinted slightly at the sight of Shikamaru. "It's too early for this." The war-hardened Nara mumbled, stalking into the room as though weighed down by exhaustion. "Now, now, Shikamaru, is that any way to greet your friends?! They came all this way to see you!" Yoshino's shrill voice made Shikamaru flinch. Naruto instantly put a hand on his shoulder, working hard to make it seem like a friendly gesture rather than a comforting one. 

"Yeah, Shikamaru." Naruto teased. "Shut up, dobe. We probably woke him up." Sasuke scratched his cheek. Shikaku's eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets. Naruto turned to look at Sasuke, nearly groaning out loud. "Sheet." Shikamaru reminded. Sasuke looked down, letting out a frustrated breath of air through his nostrils. The sheet had blown open slightly from the air conditioning, and Sasuke had forgotten to hold it closed. Shikaku had gotten an eye-full of his stump, he was sure.

"Sasuke," The clan head said calmly. "What happened to your arm?"

"I...tripped." Sasuke said pathetically. Shikamaru snorted slightly, slapping a hand over his own mouth. Sasuke rolled his eyes hotly at him. "Sasuke, please jump off a bridge." Naruto sighed, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Hn." Sasuke grunted. "Hn. Sometimes the devil on my shoulders just has to ask: what the fuck are you doing?" Shikamaru did his best Sasuke impression, his face hardening, and his voice deepening. Naruto let out a shriek of laughter.

"What a drag." Sasuke replied blandly. Naruto laughed some more, sputtering at the pair. Sasuke tried to hide his smile, and Shikamaru openly grinned at the blonde. Part of this childishness was an act, but Shikamaru and Sasuke could both see that a majority of it was genuine. That made them happy. Elated, really. Naruto hadn't been happy in a very long time, but this whole time travel thing seemed to bring his hopes up to some extent.

"Sasuke, dear. Do you parents know?" Yoshino asked, clearly concerned. "Of course they know, Yoshino. It's his whole arm." Shikaku sighed at the same time the three boys chorused: "No, sir."

"...Oh." Shikaku deadpanned at them. "Hey, wanna come look at my shogi piece collection? I have some carved out of emerald." Shikamaru boasted, giving a lazy grin. "What? No way." Sasuke scoffed. "No, really! Come on, I'll show you." Shikamaru turned to go, but Shikaku was in front of them, his eyes narrowed. "Hey, hey, slow down kiddos. Sasuke here is missing his entire arm, and Naruto is missing a toe." The Uzumaki as well as his two comrades immediately looked to his foot.

"Oh, that's no big deal. I let one of those guys get too close to me. Don't worry, I'm super duper fast now!" Naruto grinned. Sasuke darkened, and Shikamaru looked at the ground with a harsh glare at these words. The air filled with tension that made Yoshino gulp. "Those guys?" Shikaku's eyebrows shot up. "The villagers that don't like me." Naruto elaborated vaguely, his blue eyes darting left and right. Shikaku's eyes widened in surprise. "They cut off your toe?" The question escaped.

Naruto looked up at him with a look of confusion. "Well, yeah. I'm a monster." Naruto's innocent, sad voice broke Yoshino's heart, and tears welled in her eyes. Shikaku looked like he'd been slapped. "Hey, I said no to use that word." Shikamaru hissed. "You're not the monster here." Sasuke muttered angrily, scuffing the ground with his shoe. "W-What else do they do?" Shikaku asked, clearly horrified. He hadn't heard any of this! Wasn't there supposed to be someone watching him?!

"I dunno, just stuff. It's gettin' harder to avoid 'em." Naruto admitted. Sasuke looked at him curiously. "Is the orphanage letting them in?" The Uchiha questioned. "I don't live there anymore. They kept gettin' me in trouble but I didn't do nothin', honest!" Naruto's older way of speaking was starting to come back to him. He'd talked oddly as a kid, with an accent almost. Nobody had really taught him the correct was to talk. "Whoa, they threw you out?!" Shikamaru turned to him with wide eyes. Naruto had never told him about this. Did the orphanage throw him out last time around?

"Yeah, a while back I guess." Naruto averted his eyes awkwardly. "You boys go play, okay? I'm going to do some grown up stuff." Shikaku's eyes met Yoshino's. The woman was crying. Nodding to her, he stormed out of the house with hell on his heels. Only it wasn't chasing him. It was at his beckoned call, and he was about to rain it down on anyone who dared step foot in his way. "I-I'll make you boys a snack." Yoshino turned away. The three boys looked at each other with wide eyes. That was close. Too close. Sasuke's arm still wasn't explained, and it hadn't been that way yesterday, they were sure. Not the yesterday in this time.

Despite this, they all let out breaths. This was a start.