1. Mad World

His morning started with a quite rude awakening. The dull light of the sun shone through the small window, hitting him perfectly in his half opened, tired eyes. Shikamaru groaned and rolled to his other side, tightening the blankets around his shoulders when he felt his father tugging at them. "Shikamaru, wake up. The Hokage has summoned you," his father whispered. "She said it was an emergency."

Shikamaru's attention sparked and quickly forethought his options. He could simply skip this sudden meeting…. Then again, if he were to skip his meeting with his superior, especially during an emergency, that would mean she would personally hunt him down and give him a good beating, possibly doing great harm to his genitals, which wouldn't be appreciated on his part.

"Do you know what she wants?" Shikamaru grumbled.

"No."

The young man glanced at his digital clock that rested on his nightstand, and he inwardly groaned at the time. What did Tsunade want at six in the freaking morning? Couldn't it wait? Shikaku patted Shikamaru on the hip and told him to hurry - in Shikamaru's head, Shikamaru's conscience screamed his genitals were on the line - and Shikamaru bounced out of his bed and rushed out the door with a toothbrush in his mouth while tugging his shoes on.

The sun barely shone over the horizon of the massive trees surround the village. Shikamaru watched birds tweet and twirl in the neon colored sky as he ascended the lengthy staircase to the Hokage's office. Before he knew it, he was in front of the scarlet doors of her office. Giving the door two quick raps, he announced, "It's Shikamaru; I'm coming in."

Tsunade remained silent. Her fingers clamped onto her ratty, blonde hair as she stared at a file sitting on her desk. Shikamaru strained to see the contents. All he could see was a picture of a young blonde woman with clear, blue eyes and a thin smile. Ino.

Ino. He hasn't seen much of her lately. Shikamaru did recall Ino mentioning something about how excited she was about her first solo mission…. Maybe that's why Anko (insert very pissed off face here) suddenly started accompanying Choji and him on recent missions.

"Ino has been reported missing," Tsunade mumbled. "I just got the message, but Jin says it's been over two weeks since her disappearance." She sighed and rubbed his temples as she glared at the file before her. "I have no idea why he would wait this long to send a missing person report. Ino could be dead for all we know. Inoichi will be heartbroken…."

The words rung in Shikamaru's head, but for the life of him, he couldn't put two-and-two together. Tsunade's eyebrows raised as she waited for his response. Shikamaru inwardly panicked. He didn't know how to react - it was too damn early for emotions, so he stood in front of his superior with a clueless expression.

"Can you repeat that?" he asked.

"Ino is missing," she said, faster than the previous time. "I'm assigning you to a search mission and –"

"Ino is missing…."

"Ino is missing, and I need you to find her now!" Tsunade slammed her hands in her desk and hoisted her weak, sleep-deprived body up. "Goodness, you're useless in the morning."

"You may continue…," Shikamaru mumbled, trying to shake off the useless comment. "I'm going on a search mission…."

Tsunade stared at Shikamaru for a long minute, staying completely silent. Shikamaru rubbed his heels together, waiting for her scrutinizing to end. Shizune, who was asleep on the couch, snored loudly during the awkward silence between the Shikamaru and his superior.

"You're going to find Ino, dead or alive, and bring her home."

"Any regards to her mission?"

Tsunade shook her head and dropped into her spinning chair. She rolled to a file cabinet and began to flip through the files. "Ino can forget that mission. I sent a message to Jin saying I'm withdrawing her from the mission, and he can keep his money - it wasn't great pay anyway. He has his stupid Cloud shinobi to figure out his problems. As for Ino, she won't see a solo mission in the next sixty years! Anymore questions?"

"Why are you sending me?" It was an honest question. Shikamaru didn't specialize in searching. As a kid, he sucked at hide-and-seek. What is the difference between now and then? Searching for Ino is like one big game of hide-and-seek. Only, there are countless number of hiding spots for Ino to hide in and her life could potentially be in danger, or she could be dead this very second…. Shikamaru gulped down the lump growing in his throat and hoped Ino was still alive.

Tsunade turned her attention back to thumbing through the files. "As harsh as it seems, Ino is just one person, and - how should I put this? - she doesn't hold much significance to the village compared to people like Kakashi or you." Finally, Tsunade pulled out a thin file and slapped it on her desk. She was reluctant with making eye contact but forced herself to do so. "I can't be sending a legitimate search team after someone like that. I have to keep teams available."

So she sends the smartest in the village because…?Shikamaru didn't ask that because he didn't feel like eating a knuckle sandwich from the strongest woman to ever walk the planet for breakfast.

The tension circulated heavily through the room. Shizune, who was dead asleep, felt the tension and cracked her eyelids to see the commotion. Shikamaru glared at his superior, who stared blankly back at him. Shikamaru was the first to speak. "I'll find her."

Tsunade pushed the file towards him. "She was last seen in Cloud. Ino's co-worker says Ino left with some 'really hot guy' after her shift at the Blue Pub. I want you to leave before noon, please."

"Understood."

"You're dismissed."

Her body ached worse than usual that horrible morning. Her limbs felt heavy, and it seemed impossible to lift her arms up to pull up the blankets twisted around her sliced legs, which stung immensely if she even thought about moving them. As she moved a leg to lift the blankets up, she bit her lip as a stinging sensation shot up her thigh and quickly snatched the blanket, wrapping it around her shivering shoulders. The pain failed to cease.

The reoccurring nightmares kept her up yet another night. Ino counted the painful, sleepless nights. She glanced at the calendar, counting all the X's that marked the past days, which totaled to thirteen days, and if she counted this day, she's locked herself in the hotel room for two weeks. It's been two weeks since it happened...

"That was good, Ino. You have to be my favorite."

"Get out of my head!" she cried, jerking into an upright position. Her vision blurred from sitting up too fast, making her lay back down. Tears slid down her temples as she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to repress the persistent memories of that night. Repression only worked for a short time. It was only a matter of time until the memories attacked her mind. Until then, Ino could only do what she allowed herself to do.

In two weeks, she hasn't left the small, hotel rooms she rented the morning after the horrific event.

She promised herself she'd get it together and make it back home soon. After hours of thinking, she concluded no one would want someone like her around. Her family would be ashamed of her if they found out. Her friends would never speak or look at her again. Even if she decided to go home, she knew there would be no way to walk back home with all the wounds that persisted to rip open whenever she made the slightest movement. She was weak. Worthless.

Every day that passed, she promised herself hollow promises about finding a job and a permanent place to stay in Kumokagure. She promised she'd get better, and everything would be fine in the end. However, she wondered how anything could get better if she couldn't build the courage to step out of the door. Walking around Cloud didn't appeal to her. Well, nowadays, nothing appealed to her. Even the thoughts of going back home didn't sound pleasing, because of the thoughts of her friends and family knowing her dirty secret, and there was no doubt her secret would spread throughout the village. Her logic concluded to stay gone, away from Konoha, and to start a new life in Cloud.

"I'm feeling merciful tonight, girl, and I've met my quota for the month, so I think I'll spare your life. Does that sound good?"

Ino clamped her eyelids shut and thought about happier things, like her family and life back home.

According to Tsunade, there was absolutely no time for a nap, and he must quickly prepare for his mission. Shikamaru hated extensive missions. On top of hating extensive missions, he hated Kumokagure. It was the village of splitting headaches, nosebleeds, lack of air, and the freezing cold. Of all the places Ino could get lost in, she chooses Cloud.

Shikamaru's parents said their farewells. His mother, like always, kissed his forehead and warned him not to knock anyone up or Tsunade won't be the only one wanting to do serious damage to his genitals. As usual, she was dead serious. Shikaku patted his son on the back with enough force to make Shikamaru lurch forward.

"Bring her back, Son."

Shikamaru smiled and patted his father on the shoulder. "I'll be home soon, hopefully."

He didn't want his parents to walk him to the gate. Shikamaru ended that when he was fifteen. A real man doesn't have parents or any sort of loved one walk him to the gates to say their goodbyes.

Well, I'd like to think the first chaper came out a-okay, if I do say so myself.

:}