Second Chance

Summary: Shikamaru, Gaara and Naruto go back in time. Only Shikamaru and Gaara make it to the past.

Chapter 31

Shikamaru didn't dare move a muscle. The monster's – Shukaku's – tail rubbed his skin raw with every movement of its mountainous jumps. Its hold around Shikamaru's body was uncomfortably tight, but bearable.

He didn't try to resist. Not until he knew how much control Gaara had. The demon had broken out, which suggested his friend had none – but why would Shukaku have taken Shikamaru along? Why would it have fled at all?

Shikamaru didn't want to imagine what his parents must be thinking. Perhaps they weren't thinking much of anything. They'd be busy dealing with Danzō and Root regardless of Shukaku's outbreak.

He hoped they'd be alright. Perhaps Shukaku had served as a big enough distraction to allow them to subdue Danzō – though the opposite could be the case just as likely.

Shikamaru forced himself to stop thinking about it. He couldn't change it. It was out of his control.

Shukaku slowed down eventually. Its impossibly wide strides made it hard to guess how far they'd traveled: they must have left many miles behind them.

Its hold around Shikamaru didn't wane.

"There you are," muttered a voice, causing a spark to flare up in Shikamaru's chest.

He tried craning his neck so he could catch a glimpse around Shukaku's massive frame. Someone had called the demon. Someone had called it – and Shukaku had listened.

A growl rumbled through Shukaku's body, starting in its chest and traveling into its tail in vibrating waves. It tingled. It didn't sound like a noise of anger. It sounded almost like Shukaku was communicating.

"You brought who?" The sentence came out sharper than the first.

Shukaku's tail toppled downwards and Shikamaru clutched onto its rough skin so he wouldn't fall. He was set down so abruptly that his knees buckled – he fought to stay on his feet and almost didn't succeed.

Whoever had called Shukaku uttered a soft, "Oh."

Another spark (longing or pain or something in between), brief but intense. Shikamaru screwed his eyes shut and breathed, shaking off his disorientation.

He opened his eyes. He looked around. Someone was standing in front of him.

Naruto's breath caught in his throat. Kurama's remark – something about Shukaku being the least responsible of his siblings – bled into a vague, meaningless background noise. Nothing else mattered other than the sight in front of him.

He'd known Shikamaru would be young. He'd known since the day he'd arrived, and it had sunken in properly on the day he'd snatched Fū out of Taki. She was so young – far too young to be kept prisoner in her own home village – and still she was two years older than Shikamaru and Gaara.

Physically. Two years older than they were physically. He hadn't left two 7-year-old children alone – he'd trusted two of his closest friends to hold their own while Naruto laid the foundation of their happier future. There was a difference, and Naruto had to keep reminding himself.

Is that how small we'd have been if your plan had worked out?

Naruto bit back a laugh. Kurama sounded nothing short of scandalized. Yes. I suppose we would have been.

Thank the Sage it blew up in your face.

Amusement curled his lips, and Naruto huffed out a breath of air.

"Who are you?"

Naruto swallowed down the smile and shoved Kurama to the back of his mind – as much as he was still able. It was more like swatting at his presence and pretending to ignore him. Sharing a body instead of serving as a vessel didn't allow much privacy.

"You look like..." Shikamaru took a step forward. His body was tense and his eyes narrowed – realization dawning, yet clouded in disbelief.

For the first time in weeks, Naruto felt self-conscious about the bandages riddling his body. The wild look of his shaggy hair and his pupils. He'd never minded Kurama's characteristics. Now, standing opposite of somebody who used to know him, it was different. It felt odd.

Naruto swallowed against the dry feeling in his throat. "I look like who?"

A growl tore out of Shukaku's throat and ripped Naruto out of his thoughts. Impossible as it ought to be to forget a Tailed-Beast taller than the trees around them, Naruto had managed it.

"Hey buddy," Naruto said, stepping up to Shukaku. He spoke both aloud and directly into Shukaku's mind. "I know you're agitated, but everything's fine."

What's wrong with you? Shukaku asked.

Kurama gave a huff. What does it look like? We're sharing.

Shukaku bared his teeth. He took the barest step back – perhaps unnerved by his sibling's predicament.

It had taken both Kurama and Naruto a while to get used to it. By now it was difficult to imagine that things had ever been different.

"Do you think you could let Gaara out? I want to make sure he's okay."

He's fine, Shukaku grumbled. Just tired. He wouldn't be if he'd let me out sooner.

"Still," Naruto insisted. He paused, then added. "Please. He's a very good friend of mine. It's been a long time since we've seen each other." Far, far too long.

Shukaku grumbled under his breath – a low, humming sound that seemed reluctant more than it seemed angry. ... Fine.

A shudder wracked through his body and Shukaku's frame shrunk, sandy-rough patches giving way to soft skin. Gaara laid on the forest ground by the end of it – eyes closed, but chest rising and falling. Asleep or unconscious.

Naruto crouched down to check him over for injuries and found none.

"... It's you."

Naruto looked up. Shikamaru's eyes were fixed on Gaara, unseeing.

"It's me." Naruto pulled his lips into a grin.

"How can you be you? You're not… You weren't."

"I know this is confusing," Naruto said. "But I swear, everything makes–"

"How are you here?!"

Naruto winced at the volume. "Gaara's uncle. I gave him these seals so I could find–"

"That's not what I meant," Shikamaru interrupted. "You know that's not what I meant."

Naruto straightened up. There was a dangerous shine to Shikamaru's eyes. "I know. Trust me, I know. It's just..."

Shikamaru shook his head and averted his face. He looked into the direction he and Shukaku had come from: broken trees framed a path through the forest, and deep claw marks were drawn into the earth.

Gaara stirred and saved them both from having to come up with an answer. Shikamaru let out a low breath and hurried to Gaara's side.

Naruto started to follow, but paused mid-motion. His feet took an involuntary step back. How cowardly.

"Gaara," Shikamaru breathed out. "How are you?"

"... Fine." Gaara heaved himself upwards and grimaced, his muscles convulsing in aftershocks of his earlier transformation. "Where...?"

"I don't know," Shikamaru admitted. "Shukaku, it– he brought us... well." The sentence trailed off into nothing.

Gaara followed his line of sight. His eyes widened.

"Hey, Gaara," Naruto said quickly. His lips twitched in an attempt to smile but refused to complete the motion. An anxious tingle crawled its way from Naruto's stomach into his throat. Even if he knew what to say, Naruto wasn't sure he'd manage it.

Gaara accepted Shikamaru's hand to pull him upright, climbed to his feet and brushed dust off of his shoulders, all without speaking. He gave Naruto a long, appraising look. Only the tight pinch of his lips suggested he wasn't as unaffected as he pretended to be.

"We thought you'd died," Gaara said, calmly as though the words didn't force a wedge into Naruto's chest.

"... Well. I didn't."

Shikamaru's lips twitched. Something harsh and ugly flashed through his eyes. The shock must have started to fade. "It's been months," he whispered, his voice so faint that a passing breeze of wind could have carried it away. "Why didn't you– You didn't tell us. Why would you–?"

His voice broke off in a painful crack, and Naruto winced. He'd imagined this moment many, many times. Most often, he'd imagined it going somewhat like this.

Sometimes, he'd imagined it worse.

"I'm... sorry," he said. "I'm so sorry. I wanted to – I did from the start – but… I was so far away from both villages when I arrived."

"Why didn't you arrive in Konoha?" Shikamaru interrupted. "Why are you like... this?" His eyes brushed Naruto's bandages, his eyes, the darker complexion of his skin.

The similarities were there, but slim. Nobody other than Shikamaru and Gaara would ever draw the connection between younger Naruto and him.

"I suspect it's because of Kurama," Naruto said. "Two Tailed-Beasts crammed into one container, just… wasn't going to work."

"Okay," Shikamaru said, an edge to his voice that spoke of defiance and the desperate need to understand. "Okay, that's… sure. What about afterwards? Why didn't you come visit? Why didn't you tell us?"

The wedge buried itself deeper. Naruto's throat was dry. "I'm–"

"Don't," Shikamaru interrupted. "Don't apologize. Please. Just... explain."

Naruto pressed together his lips. "Okay. I can do that." Swallowing felt like sandpaper travelling down his throat. "Okay. Once… once I figured out where I was, I realized it would take me weeks to meet up with either of you. Maybe longer. And I... well. I thought I'd check up on some of the others while I was already here."

"'The others'," Shikamaru repeated. "You mean... jinchūriki?"

Naruto gave a curt nod.

"I met Utakata while traveling to Konoha," Gaara noted. "Was he there because of you?"

Naruto hummed. "He was the second I tracked down."

He paused, thinking back to the first time they'd met. Naruto almost didn't recognize the caring, passionate teenager for the stoic shell of a shinobi he'd once been.

"They were like me when I was younger," he said, trying desperately not to think of the world where he hadn't been there to give them a proper home. "They were feared. Hated. And I couldn't... I couldn't just leave them."

"The Akatsuki were after me," Gaara admitted. "They were the reason I was separated from my people."

"I know." They'd paid for it. Naruto grimaced, thinking of the first time he'd realized the Akatsuki had begun their hunt. "I must have drawn somebody's attention. They made their move far too early. And I... I had to... I still hadn't visited them all, so I didn't know if they were safe. Once I'd taken down one of the hunters, they just... kept coming."

"So you tracked them all down," Shikamaru muttered. "To keep them safe."

"Once I'd started, I couldn't just stop!" Naruto broke himself off and lowered his voice. "It took me longer than I'd hoped. I'm sorry I didn't contact you. I just... I was afraid I would make somebody suspicious, and things just... kept happening."

He couldn't have known what Gaara and Shikamaru had decided on doing. He hadn't known what stories they'd weaved and what cover they'd built. One letter fallen into the wrong hands – one summon observed by the wrong eyes – could have ruined everything for them.

It had been better not to take the risk. Naruto needed to believe that it had been safer.

His lips pulled into a wry smile. "Besides, I knew I could trust you two to handle yourself."

"Who cares about that?" Shikamaru snapped. His fists were clenched at his sides. He looked away, swallowed thickly. Forced out words with a trembling voice. "We thought you were dead, idiot."

Naruto's smile died on his lips. He'd found comfort in the knowledge that his friends would know how to get by on their own. He hadn't considered what it must have been like for them – grieving their friend without knowing that he was continuing the adventure in another part of the Five Nations.

Naruto realized how horribly out of the loop he was.

He was hesitant to break the silence, fearing he would shatter something fragile and scatter its pieces. "Can you tell me what happened while I was gone?"

Shikamaru started talking. He told him about his parents' suspicion. He told him about Danzō's spy. He told him about the political shift in Konoha he couldn't explain, about how he'd been too busy warding off suspicious eyes to delve deeper into the clans' changing power dynamics.

"I've no idea what I'm going to do once I get back," Shikamaru admitted. His voice sounded hoarse in a way that didn't seem caused by the extensive talking. "Dad dragged me into an interrogation room the last time I tried. How am I supposed to put this right?"

Naruto wished he had an answer to give.

Was this the result of the decisions he'd made? Had he gotten so caught up trying to save everybody else that he couldn't even find the time to let his friends know he was alive? Maybe he could have made a difference, or maybe he couldn't have. At the very least, Naruto should have tried letting them know they weren't on their own.

"Does he suspect something about us?" he asked, mulling over scenarios and possibilities in his head.

"He suspects something," Shikamaru said. "I doubt it's anything near the truth. I think he's convinced Danzō is behind most of it."

There'd be no shame letting Danzō take the fall. They'd have needed to deal with him permanently at some point, anyway. "If you let your father come to his own conclusions," Naruto said, "do you think you could play along? Let him believe what he wants to believe?"

"And pretend I was the victim all along?" Shikamaru didn't sound happy about the option. "I considered it, but... well. Maybe."

"If Danzō had actually been messing with you, it would make sense for you to keep quiet about it," Naruto continued. "The less details you give your parents, the more they'll fill in for themselves."

"Probably."

If he played along, perhaps his parents would be able to give him the support he so desperately needed. The support Naruto ought to have offered, but hadn't been there to give.

Setting priorities sucked. Naruto didn't know whether he would choose differently if given the chance to do it all over again.

Gaara was even quieter than usual. "What about you?" Naruto tried not to let his heart sink. "How have you been?"

It sounded like Naruto was trying to make smalltalk. Naruto winced, but didn't try to take the words back.

"You protected the other jinchūriki," Gaara said slowly. "I understand. I would have done the same." Another pause, long enough that Naruto began to dread whatever words Gaara was struggling to form.

He interrupted, unable to bear it. "I kept an eye out for you, too! When I heard about your mission... I followed your tracks until I was sure you were safe with Tsunade."

"And she fixed my seal," Gaara said slowly.

The words didn't register immediately. "She fixed your... what?"

"When we came back, the seal reverted to the one of my childhood. It drove Shukaku mad for weeks," Gaara said quietly. "We couldn't communicate until Jiraiya and Tsunade fixed it."

Naruto's confusion only grew. "No, it should've been fine."

"It wasn't until then."

"No, I fixed it!" Naruto's entire body was tense. The vehemence of his words made his voice rise in volume. "I took care of it from the start! There shouldn't have been anything left to fix."

Gaara kept looking at him. Naruto felt dread sinking into his gut like a boulder in deep water. He grabbed Gaara's arm less gently than he should have. The mere touch was enough to make the seals imprinted on his skin visible.

"There," he muttered, skimming over the scribbles of ink until he found what he'd been looking for. "I didn't forget. I knew he'd be a problem, so I... These were supposed to..."

Gaara continued to say nothing.

"... They didn't work." Naruto sat back heavily. He raked one hand through his hair and couldn't bring himself to look at his friends directly. "It didn't work," he repeated, and laughed, because it figured that of all the times he could have miscalculated in his sealwork, it would be the one when someone other than himself would take the fall. "I messed up."

Gaara gave a small shrug. "I'm better now," he said.

He didn't say that he was fine. He didn't say that it was okay. Gaara wasn't the type of person to lie or sugarcoat his words.

Shikamaru avoided his gaze. He looked reluctant to utter the following words. "There are the ripple injuries, too."

Naruto frowned. "Ripple... injuries?"

Shikamaru started to explain, and the thrill of reuniting with his friends dispersed amidst the sobering realization that he'd lost track of the game by getting too caught up in his own corner of the game board.

The clearing that had served as an impromptu battleground was ruined. Broken trees and leftover kunai riddled the soil where it wasn't painted black by scorch marks. Deep furrows were dug into the ground in the form of claw marks.

ANBU and police force alike followed in Fugaku's wake – those of them left after half had spread out to catch the runaway Root shinobi. They were a cowardly bunch, dashing off in all directions trying to outrun the consequences of their actions.

There was no sign of Mikoto. Fugaku might have felt nervous if Root's flight and her absence didn't suggest Root's loss and their victory. There was no sign of Shikaku or Yoshino either. Fugaku assumed they'd all taken up the pursuit.

(And taken the kid with them? Shikaku's clone had clearly stated that Shikamaru was with him. Why would they have taken Shikamaru along instead of sending someone – anyone – back to the village with him?)

"Over here."

Fugaku followed the call. A handful shinobi (one of Fugaku's, two of Shikaku's) stood around a figure slumped on the forest ground.

Fugaku's gaze sharpened as soon as he realized who it was.

Snapped appendages and crushed bones formed a rib cage that moved too shallowly and in erratic intervals. Fugaku crouched down next to him and waved off a shinobi's offer for medical treatment.

If it wasn't too late to save him now, it would be by the time they returned to the village.

Danzō lips were moving. Even on the brink of death, he managed to muster a derisive glower at the ANBU and police officers standing at Fugaku's command.

Fugaku crouched lower. Danzō's words were almost impossible to understand.

"You're going to ruin Konoha."

Fugaku straightened his spine and watched Danzō take one last, rattling breath. He didn't waste his time answering a dead man.

"Get him back to the village," he said, looking down at the corpse with passionless eyes. "We'll deal with him later."

Going by the emotionless expressions as his orders were heeded, he was not alone in his lack of remorse

The destruction was worse on the other side of the clearing. A path had been torn through the forest, framed by uprooted or snapped-in-half trees. Something huge had forced its way through, likely the same something that was responsible for the claw marks.

"With me," he commanded those shinobi who weren't occupied hunting down rogue Root operatives, and he set out to follow the trail of destruction.

Police force and ANBU alike heeded his orders. Nobody pointed out that Fugaku had no authority over half of them.

A/N: At last. :)

If you're in the mood for a wonderfully engaging Into The Spiderverse AU where original Peter lives, go read Down the Waterspout on Ao3 by Mockingone! :D It's got beautiful angst, even lovelier fluff and wonderful character and team dynamics all around!

Thank you so much for reading! Let me know what you think!

~Gwen