Author's Note: Hi! This is my first attempt at Naruto fanfiction. I hope I did alright with this first scene. What do you think? Should I continue this story?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. All generic disclaimers apply. ;)

1

"Don't! Choji, stop!", Shikamaru shouted when he saw his friend's hands move to form his trademark jutsu. But it was already too late, the damage was done. A huge giant of a man looked down on them, wearing an equally big satisfied smile on his face. That was, until the enemy adapted, doing exactly what Shikamaru had foreseen.

"Hidden mud prison!", the younger of the two siblings said, accompanied by a series of hand movements. Suddenly, the earth beneath them turned into sticky muck, forcing Ino and Shikamaru to leap onto the boulders of a nearby cliff. Choji, being maximized, had no chance to escape in time and was quickly trapped. The siblings smiled menacingly, their bleak gray eyes promising death and destruction.

"Shikamaru, what do we do?", Ino wanted to know. Her expression was pleading, expecting a miracle as usual. However, this time she'd have to wait. Her own mind-possession jutsu wouldn't work as the siblings were floating in the air, constantly shifting position.

"Combine jutsu: flying brick destruction!", they shouted. The one with the long black hair raised his hands towards the sky in a movement Shikamaru had seen before. He's trapping the wind, meaning he'll release it on Choji soon. Probably with a little something added from the younger sibling. Quickly, Shikamaru performed his Shadow possession jutsu and reached out for his friend. Before he could connect, however, his shadows were intercepted by a storm, which didn't harm them. The stones of various sizes within it, though, would hurt Choji. Concentrating hard, Shikamaru made the shadows multiply and fight off the continuous onslaught of debris.

"We need to retreat. They're both long distance fighters, which hinders my justu. Yours won't work either, Ino. Furthermore, the intel needs to reach the Hokage as soon as possible. No use fighting these two", Shikamaru decided grimly and without diverting his focus. Beside him, he felt Ino straighten and nod. "I'll get Choji, just occupy them a moment longer."

"No, wait", he tried, knowing they were outmatched and needed to stay together. Ino had already leaped off the temporary safety of the stones beneath them and landed on a rock right next to Choji, who returned to his normal size to take hold of the girl's helping hand. Shikamaru watched on from the distance, bothered by more than the slowly decreasing storm around them. That conveniently placed rock… "Ino! Come back!"

The moment he said it, the stone lifted into the air, toppling Ino. She screamed, lost her balance and fell. With a face full of mud, she didn't see the heavy rock that was heading in her direction with great speed. Shikamaru saw it and at the same time noticed the movement of the air in front of the older sibling who was turned his way.

He blinked, calculating the odds and thinking about what a drag this would be, then caught Ino and Choji with his shadows, propelling them to safety. His gaze met Choji's and Shikamaru had just enough time to mouth the words 'intel. Hokage.' before the gust of wind hit him straight in the chest and smacked him off the cliff.

2

"And then he fell down the chasm and those siblings were still after us and we had to fulfill his orders, so we brought the message", Ino finished breathlessly. Tsunade, fifth Hokage of Konoha, noticed the young ninja's fidgeting and sighed. The girl was hoping to lead a rescue mission, but she had to face the truth, harsh as it was.

"The confrontation took place right next to the Falkenland Canyon, am I right?"

"Yes", Ino ground out.

"That canyon no longer carries any water. According to your report of the battle, Nara Shikamaru was hit directly and with so much force that he was thrown off the ridge. The data suggests that he'd have serious head and thorax injuries. He would have been unconscious in the least. Which means that even if he didn't die from the blow, he couldn't have survived the fall. It's more than 200 feet. I'm sorry, Ino, but there will be no rescue mission."

"But…!"

"No. Stay here. That's an order", Tsunade said sternly. The loss of a brilliant strategist like Shikamaru pained her, yet the information she'd received was worth it. Keeping it out of the enemy's hands was paramount now, hence it was doubly important that Ino and Choji were safe.
Being lost in thought, Tsunade had nearly forgotten that Ino was still standing in front of her desk. Nevertheless, the girl had backbone, stubbornly refusing to give up, she had to give her that.

"I will send a team to retrieve the body", Tsunade relented.

"Lady Hokage, please let me..."

"No."

Silence. Then, slowly, a nod. Inwardly, Tsunade smiled, knowing she'd won the argument. The victory felt hollow, though. In times like these, she hated her job. "I will send someone of the Hyuga Clan, just in case", she added, trying to soften the blow. Ino nodded again, stoically turned around and left the room. As the door closed, Tsunade could hear her crying softly. Tsunade, too, had to take a deep breath before she called for Shizune, her assistant.

"The reconnaissance mission was a success", she told the woman, "Unfortunately, the team was followed and during the ensuing battle, Nara Shikamaru was killed. We need to inform his parents. And send for Hinata, Sakura and Naruto. He would have wanted to be brought back by friends." Shinzune stared blankly, which Tsunade attributed to shock. With a little encouragement, the ninja got over it, though, and efficiently started to carry out orders.

While she waited for the parents to arrive, the Hokage leaned back in her chair, watching the clouds like Shikamaru used to do, and sighed.