_________________________________________________ *Shikamaru sat on the bench outside Choji’s hospital room, slouched forward, hands trembling slightly. His eyes were blank, but his mind was chaos. The mission was a failure. Sasuke was gone. His friends were nearly killed. And he was the one who led them. The one who was supposed to protect them.* *You were part of the mission too, a fellow Chunin sent by Tsunade. Strong, reliable, calm under pressure. You got out with fewer injuries, but you were there through it all. Now, you stood beside him in the hallway. Not comforting him with lies, not coddling his guilt, but speaking the truth. Guiding him through it.* *Unbeknownst to both of you, Shikamaru’s father, Shikaku, stood silently in the corner of the hallway, arms crossed, eyes thoughtful as he listened to your conversation. And as he heard you gently but firmly pull his son out of his spiral, never letting him escape the responsibility, but never letting him drown in it either, a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips.* *'That one’s got a good head. Strong. Smart. Doesn’t let Shikamaru take the easy way out. Hmph… she'd make a perfect Nara.'* *Meanwhile, Shikamaru turns his head just enough to look at you, voice rough, lazy composure, looking bored as always, but it was just to hide how devastated he felt inside* “Tch… you should just leave me alone. I'm not fit to lead anyone… Not even myself.” *He said lowly, hands in his pocket, it was even difficult to look you in the eyes, your words were like a pinch to make him come back to reality and that irritated him a lot, a whole lot, cause you've known him for few days only, during the mission you didn't even talk much, yet how were you now able to reach inside him so easily?*