Chapter Text
Shikamaru rubs his eyes at the sound of an easy knock and stumbles to the door. He had gotten at least four hours of sleep since his last mission. He had sprinted – which was probably not his best idea but the sheer idea of sleeping in his bed instead of the cold, hard ground was incentive enough – through the forested grounds, through the wet and dreary roads of Amegakure, to reach Konoha. He did this at top speed while functioning as a sleep-deprived, hungry, exhausted chunin. It was dangerous, but a calculated risk, he reasons.
The knocking persisted.
He hisses a curse when he slips on the rug next to the closet and slides open the shoji door. A blob of pink fills his vision, and he blinks rapidly to sharpen his sight. He rubs his face to wake up, "Sakura?"
"Hey Shikamaru," Sakura greets with a small smile and then pauses when she notices his rumpled clothing, "Shit. Did I catch you at a bad time?"
It's a real testament to his well-sought-after mind, that Shikamaru can't manage to string a coherent sentence. "Did you need something?"
Another pause.
"Actually, I was looking for your father."
Shikamaru blinks hard at that, unwilling, unwitting, and unable to process those words into his barely conscious brain. He furrows his brows until his eyes look like two small beams of chestnut. His friends don't look for his dad, they don't ask for his dad, they ask for him. Because it's unfathomable to even think that he was incapable of giving counsel or answers, nonetheless.
He repeats incredulously, incapable of asking anything else, "Tou-san?"
"Yes," Sakura looks concerned at his state of mind. She clears her throat and focuses on a point on the door. "Are you—is he here?"
He shakes his head nonsensically. He slouches trying to think of an appropriate response. He stumbles, "Uh, yeah. He's in his office—c'mon, I'll just..."
Sakura follows him into the house and grabs Shikamaru when he trips over a loose slipper. She hisses, "I don't need to tell you about the consequences of chakra exhaustion, but Sages Shikamaru, you could tell me no and let you sleep."
Shikamaru laughs at that, "And then what? If Ino hears that you asked something from me and I told you to leave, I'll never hear the end of it."
"Who would tell her?"
He has no answer for that.
Shikamaru's house is as traditional as it gets. It looked like it hadn't been updated since the Shodaime's days, and it probably hasn't due to the Nara's reluctance to change. At second glance, there had been some upgrades. New window shutters, and rain-resistant paneling, but the layout and shoji doors remained the same. Sakura hadn't been her in a while, but it was nice to know that some things don't change, or change much anyway, Sakura ponders.
Silence fills the air as the young Nara attempts to find his footing on the hard floor.
Shikamaru knew that Ino and Sakura's friendship wasn't as strained as it was before graduation and the academy – the infamous chunin exams had shattered the disillusionment between them – but they still had a long way to get back to the place they were in before their rift. He knew in hindsight, Sakura's shinobi career coupled with her genin team's antics were on a completely different spectrum than Team Ten—they didn't have their shitty luck, and thank the Sages for that. He probably would've been killed twice over or maimed, at least. It was a sheer miracle that Sakura's team managed to survive those missions—he presses his lips together and glances at the bruised knuckles holding his arm.
Then again, maybe not.
Sakura had changed.
Drastically.
Shikamaru didn't know when that had exactly happened. Maybe after their first mission – the infamous Wave mission that he overheard his father speaking with Asuma-sensei about – or maybe it was the chunin exams. Sometimes, he couldn't recognize her. Normally, she would threaten to expose his laziness and his idleness to Ino without blinking an eye or berate him for it.
Yet, she chastens him with her silence.
No one would ever berate Sakura's determination or her drive.
Ino had watched her semi-best friend turn into someone unrecognizable.
Shikamaru raps his knuckles on the slide in-door to his father's office, "Tou-san?"
"Shikamaru?" Shikaku sounds confused, though muffled from the paper-thin door.
He slides open the door and straightens up despite's Sakura' tight grip on his arm that keeps him from toppling over completely. He clears his throat, "Sakura needed to see you."
Shikaku blinks rapidly and then gives a bemused smile. He closes his book and beckons, "Sakura-chan, come in."
Sakura pauses and glances at Shikamaru, "If I let go of you, can you promise not to walk into a wall?"
Shikamaru gives her a dry look and drawls out sardonically, "I'll reign in the urge."
Shikaku swallows a chuckle.
Sakura releases the grip she has on his arm and walks into the office.
Shikamaru slides the door shut and forcefully removes himself from the door even though he desperately wants to eavesdrop on their conversation, but even he knew that his father would place a sound-repellent seal in the room right after.
.
"So," Shikaku pours her a cup of tea. "What seems to be the problem, Sakura-chan?"
Sakura gives him a shrewd look, "What makes you think there's a problem?"
He stares at her and hands her the cup, "Well, you didn't go to my lazy son for advice or ask the Hokage, so it must be something that even they can't answer or have the resources to help. I assume this doesn't have anything to do with medical ninjutsu since you aren't at the hospital, and I cheerfully hope that this doesn't have anything to do with boys because while Shikamaru is a catch he isn't exactly mature enough to have this conversation."
It's interesting to watch Sakura's face morph from surprise to irritation, to embarrassment, and then to resignation.
Shikaku sips his tea.
Sakura inhales slowly and her chakra flares just slightly; his eyes widen at her control. Generally, chakra flares and surges happen when a shinobi's emotions become too much for them to handle. Taking killing ki, for example, it weighs down the atmospheric pressure causing a heavy weight to fall around those around them and in turn forces their breathing to labor.
Yet, Sakura's chakra flares at the edges like a sharp fan and seeps back into her like a receding wave.
"I don't think it's a problem, per se," she starts off and presses her thumb against the porcelain cup. She admits carefully, "This is more of a hypothetical."
"Hypothetical?"
Sakura nods, "What do you...I mean, what can you tell me about summonings?"
Shikaku frowns, "Summoning animals or the jutsu?"
"Both."
"Essentially, they are the same thing. The summoning jutsu, in its most defined state, is generally used for transport. It's classified as a space-time ninjutsu. The hiraishin is a stripped-down version of the summoning jutsu, instead of transporting a target to a specific area, it uses a seal to bypass the weight requirement in the equation at least. Reverse summoning is the opposite, it transports the summoner to the summon, regardless a contract is needed for the case of living animals," he explains and strokes his chin. "I'm sure you know it's a blood contract."
Sakura digests this knowledge with a swallow of her tea. "Hypothetically, can the contract be rejected?"
Shikaku pauses and tilts his head, "What do you mean rejected? As in the summon rejects its user?"
"When you're signing the contract with blood and the scroll rejects it, as in the blood that you write on the contract is voided. It vanishes from the scroll, basically," she explains blankly.
"That's impossible," he states in disbelief and puts his cup back on the table, "There is some summons that require their summoners to pass a test or some type of challenge—those are usually the more dangerous types of animals that need payment for its services, however, receiving the contract in the end means you pass. Writing your name on the scroll itself shouldn't void the contract."
"Then why..." Sakura whispers softly and visibly wilts. She folds, "Katsuyu-sama rejected my name on the summoning contract."
Shikaku inhales sharply and leans over his desk. He demands, "Tell me exactly what happened."
.
Shikamaru curses his overactive brain.
Of all the times to be speculating and thinking, it had to be now.
He couldn't help his curiosity that Sakura came to his house to speak to his father. Alone at that. Usually, if there were a problem, logically or strategically, she would've come to him—everyone does.
He wrinkles his nose; he changes his mind. That isn't necessarily true, she could've probably figured it out in the end. Now that he thinks about it, Sakura never really came to him for help.
She's never needed help.
Once upon a time, he admired that. Sakura was the only one in their graduating class who could keep up with his intellect and line of thought. She was thorough, resourceful, curious—and intelligent. If she ran into a problem, she would tackle it from all sides, take root in the library, and figure something out through deductive reasoning. This started before the academy. Though now that he thought about it, this happened more or less when he wasn't speaking to her—when Chouji wasn't speaking to her because of Ino.
Shikamaru scowls into his pillow.
Hell, she's never asked for help either, or if she did it was to Iruka-sensei.
But everyone went to him.
So now she's bypassed him and went straight to his father. Is his advice not good enough? Was he not smart enough? Did it even matter? His nails dig into his sheets: why was this bothering him?
The door slides open and Shikaku stands beside Sakura. He says gruffly, "Shikamaru, I'm going out into the forest with Sakura-chan. Tell your mother I'll be back before dinner."
Shikamaru stares at his father incredulously. He cannot be this exhausted. His father wanted to take an outsider into the Nara Forest. Ino and Chouji, obviously were the exception having been on the same Genin team and their family being friends for generations. The Nara Forest is private land, closed to the general population—it is sacred land, meant for his clan and clan-adjacent members.
He scrambles up, "I'll come with you."
Sakura stares at him in confusion, "Are you sure? You were pretty tired earlier."
Shikamaru snaps, "I can handle myself just fine, Sakura."
Sakura flinches at his hard tone and flickers her gaze to her shoes in an attempt to subdue her emotions. She retorts weakly, "Right."
Shikaku flares his nose at the slight and glares at his son in disapproval.
Shikamaru winces at the slight; he's tired and it's not an excuse but right now it has to be.
His father places his hand on Sakura's head and ushers her out of the room.
.
"I guess I didn't have to introduce you," Shikaku comments dryly.
Rikumaru gives Sakura a lick on the cheek and rests his head on her lap, basking in the sun. Sakura giggles and pets his back gently. He is very aware of his antlers, so he angles his head until they face away from the pink-haired girl and peers up at her with wide eyes.
"Rikumaru doesn't even like kaa-chan," Shikamaru says stupefied.
Shikaku doesn't acknowledge his son, and not giving any indication whether he really is pissed at him or ignoring him entirely was another matter altogether. He crouches next to the deer and pats his head gently. "It seems like your obstacle with the contract has to do with the nature of your chakra."
"My chakra is the problem?" Sakura furrows her brows.
"The Nara clan deer are very in tune with chakra. They are not sensitive by any means, but they have feeler abilities as opposed to regular deer," Shikaku explains and reaches into his pouch to give the deer a lump of sugar. "Many of the clan members are compatible with the deer in the forest as is their birthright, however, there are always a handful of members that connect with certain deer. Rikumaru for example, only listens to three members of this clan: me, Shikamaru, and my father. Now, he listens to you."
"He's very sweet," she says lightly and grins when Rikumaru purrs.
Shikamaru grumbles in the background and Sakura tenses ever so slightly at the noise.
Shikaku is going to have to sic Yoshino on his only son if he doesn't get his act together, he thinks irritated.
"Let's do a comparison," Shikaku grabs a stick and starts drawing.
"Hideki's diagram?"
He smiles, pleased, "Let's look at Jiraiya-sama. His summon is frogs, yes? The temperament of the frogs in association with Jiraiya means that they share similarities, otherwise the partnership would cease to work. Orochimaru uses snakes as his summons, for obvious reasons these animals share the same traits as him. I've only met Katsuyu-sama a few times, but her personality is similar to Tsunade-sama, is it not?"
"I don't understand," Sakura says after a moment. "Katsuyu-sama is quiet, gentle, and obedient. She is vicious when provoked and difficult to kill even with her regeneration abilities. Medical ninjas should reflect that. Tsunade-sama is not quiet, gentle, or obedient. She threw a boulder at me when I forgot a brush!"
Shikaku snorts at the mental picture, "Yes and no. Tsunade-sama grew up as the only granddaughter of the Shodaime and Nindaime. As a Senju princess, if you will, Tsunade-sama was raised as an heiress. That means she was raised with rules and regulations. She learned about economics, propriety, and delegations. Political maneuvering and clan responsibilities were part of her education. So yes, Tsunade-sama is obedient. She is also gentle because of her medical ninjutsu. Quiet perhaps, but she is very easily a reflection of Katsuyu-sama."
"And Katsuyu-sama is the Slug Queen, but then there is the natural chakra aspect," Sakura muses and leans up, "The natural chakra and elemental affinities. Tsunade-sama has the same elemental affinities as I do, but she also has more."
"Have you done the chakra substitutions?" he asks surprised by her knowledge.
Sakura pulls out a scroll full of her notes from her back pouch. There are chakra equations followed by practical limitations and fractional elemental affinities that needed division to fit with the seal's parameters.
As Shikaku reads the scroll, his eyebrows raise higher and higher. The depth and analysis that Sakura's done on her research into summoning animals is cryptology-verse based. He vaguely recognizes that he didn't need to explain to Sakura the basis of summoning jutsu and summoning animals, as she figured it out herself. His explanation was more of a reassurance than clarification.
"I think you should've been my apprentice rather than Tsunade-sama's," Shikaku snickers and follows the line of kanji. "Clearly, you already knew this information. The only thing you didn't take account of was the elemental ninjutsu checks and balances."
"Checks and balances?"
"Tsunade-sama has the same elemental affinities as you: water and earth," he confirms. "But she also has fire and lightning. When you balanced your natural chakra with the elemental affinities your affinities held less weight than your natural chakra. In other words, your chakra isn't aligned the way it is with Tsunade-sama, therefore Katsuya can't take you on as a summoner. You can have more affinities with a summon, but never less."
"Then why did you say that you never heard of a summon rejecting a summoner?" Sakura demands, frustrated.
"Because most summons are usually familial," Shikaku winces as her face crumples. "It prevents theft."
Kizashi and Mebuki Haruno were first-generation shinobi. They did not come from a major clan, nor did they have a kekkai genkai. Obviously, there were no summoning contracts that they could pass down to, nor did Sakura have any – that he knew of – strong elemental ninjutsu. It's possible to use elemental ninjutsu without having an affinity for it, but the techniques are limited to the most basic of jutsu.
"And when they are familial their affinities line up because elemental affinities are hereditary."
Rikumaru whines at the distress in her chakra levels.
"So, I guess I can't have a summon," Sakura chuckles bitterly.
"Now, I didn't say that," Shikaku corrects lightly and scratches his chin. "You just have to find the right scroll. Shikamaru can help you with your statistics once you redo your chakra substitutions. Searching for a summon scroll would be your best shot."
She looks at him with wide green eyes, "I can?"
He ruffles her hair and smirks, "Slugs aren't the only summon that is associated with medical ninja. They are the most common, I'll give you that, but there is a whole category of regenerative animals."
"How would I find the summoning scrolls?"
"Research," Shikamaru finally interrupts their bubble. "Fūinjutsu to say at least. Figuring out what summons to use takes a lot of research since you don't have a familial scroll. The Nara clan doesn't have summons."
Shikaku nods his head and turns to look at Sakura, "While we have the Nara deer, they aren't exactly battle-ready. Historically, we have never needed to have a summon's contract because strategists never enter war without a plan."
"You think Shikamaru should have one," Sakura assumes and frowns. She doesn't say the words that are itching in her throat that this is the only reason you're helping me. But she wants to, so very badly.
Nothing in life ever comes free. Tsunade-sama's pity on her was an anomaly. Her master gained nothing from keeping Sakura as an apprentice except bragging rights and the occasional sake expedition. Otherwise, the Hokage had no benefits from taking her on. Her master cared about her in ways Sakura probably would never be able to explain. She was more than a teacher but less than a mother, and more than an older sister.
And she loved Tsunade-sama—more than she realized.
Rikumaru stands up suddenly, wobbling at the knees as headbutts Shikaku's knee and rubs his snout along Sakura's cheek before galloping back into the forest.
"It's better to be prepared for the future," Shikaku answers vaguely.
Sakura doesn't say anything this time but smiles tightly all the same. She can think of this as an exchange of notes between colleagues. A contract in its most basic terms. Sakura gets a summon and in return, Shikamaru gets one too. She gets the distinct feeling that Nara-sama is using her for his own—he is using her for his own gain, she corrects, but this is a transaction. She had noted this type of behavior earlier on in her apprenticeship. When dealing with ninja high on the totem pole, the information or power she receives always comes with a cost.
She was willing to pay it, she believes, and so she remains quiet, fixing the forest an even gaze before dismissing herself.
Both father and son note that Sakura is not what they expected, not at all.