Si Vis Pacem -‖- Para Bellum [Naruto FanFic]

Arc V Chapter 1

V

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Arc V Chapter 1

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Once again, a treacherous hangover plagued Shikaku, Konoha’s famed Jonin Commander. He was supposed to meet a certain kunoichi and work together with her, but a terrible headache made his life difficult. His head hurt. What a drag, he was now a tutor for A ... A ... A ... What was her name again? He forgot.

“...” Shikaku didn’t remember her name, but he didn’t worry. He would remember it soon, probably. He rested on his office desk, turning his head away from the window. The morning sun annoyed him. The aggressive sunlight only worsened his migraine. 

Sleepiness overcame Shikaku, clouding his mind. Staying awake proved far challenging than expected. His body demanded some well earned sleep. As it turns out, yesterday was a long night. 

His eyelids closed, as he was taken away into the lands of dreams. But Shikaku resisted. He fought back with the sheer power of his will. “Get a grip of yourself, Shikaku. The village needs you.” He couldn’t allow himself to fall asleep. The meeting was important.

“...” Shikaku forced himself to soldier on, with modest success. The residual alcohol in his blood was still strong. “Damn Inoichi and his rounds.” He cursed his old friend. He was responsible for his miserable state. Once again, his drinking habits caused him more trouble than necessary.

Hadn’t Inoichi ordered a few rounds a week ago, he wouldn’t have turned up to the council meeting the next day, barely conscious. He would have actually bothered to read what the Hokage proposed. He wouldn’t have waved the proposal through just to end the meeting quickly.

“...” Shikaku sighed. This was going to be a lot of fun. Due to his negligence, he was now stuck with Asami, a girl vested despite her age with an unusual degree amount of power.

According to her ANBU dossier, Asami was a talented kunoichi without peer. Her character, however, left a lot to be desired. The girl was arrogant, prideful, assertive, and prone to insubordination and unnecessary violence. Her mental health was ... at times questionable, but such was the case for the majority of high ranking ninja. They were all a bit insane.

“...” Shikaku yawned, waiting for the girl to arrive. She was late.

A tired Shikaku turned his head. He regretted his decision immediately. He forgot about the sun. The brilliant sunlight ambushed him. His eyes surrendered to the onslaught of malicious brightness. “Stupid sun.”

Shikaku protected his eyes with his hands. His eyes adjusted to the brightness and his vision cleared up.

Amidst the brilliant light, there was sitting a girl on a chair, flanked by shades of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. The dawning sun cloaked her,

The girl throned on her chair, inspecting her polished nails. A bored expression bored adorned her face.

The girl smiled, clearly amused by his drunken state. “Shikaku, it seems that you have seen better days, haven't you?”

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Shikaku sprang into action. His mind, his senses, awakened from their alcoholic delirium, surprised by the fact that had she succeeded in sneaking up on him without him noticing? Granted, he might not be in his best condition, but he should have sensed her.

Shikaku scrutinised the girl. Black hair, black eyes, an aura of smug superiority. It was definitely her. It was Asami.

“You know, you are only half as funny as you think, Asami”, Shikaku grumbled. The battle had begun, a battle fought for intellectual dominance.

Asami smirked, played the dying black swan with near perfection. “Probably, but you hurt me. I always considered myself quite a funny person.”

Shikaku rolled his eyes. “Sure, but more important, how did you get in here? I didn’t see or hear you enter.”

Asami stroked her chin. “An excellent question, but to be honest, sneaking past a semi-comatose jonin was not much of a challenge. I was curious how long it would take you to notice my presence?”

Shikaku scratched his head in embarrassment. Her explanation made sense. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Oh my, I would never disturb your little nap, but I hope you slept well. I also hope you had an interesting read. As far as I know, I am quite special.” Asami tilted her head. Her dossier was lying in front of him, openly visible.

“...” Shikaku offered a weak laugh before letting her dossier disappear, hastily shoving it into a drawer. This was not his day. “Anyway, have you prepared anything for today? Any ideas? After all, we are here to discuss the defence of Konoha.” He changed topic. He succeeded.

Asami nodded. “Yes, as a matter of fact, I have.” Her answer surprised him.  

“You do?”

Asami nodded once again. “My task is to protect Konoha. I to counter our threat, to assure victory on the battlefield.” Her words didn’t lack confidence.

Shikaku raised an eyebrow. “Elaborate.”

Asami chuckled. “I will. We should better wait for my secretary to arrive, though. He carries most of the material, but I guess that we can already start with the basics.”

Asami moved to the window overlooking the village, her black kimono following her. Konoha's streets were full of life, crowded by masses of people, crowded by young and old. The village lived. A lovely scene, almost worthy of her protection. “Tell me, Shikaku, have you ever heard about the concept of the battle of annihilation?”

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