Chapter 5
It was a few days later, and they were still living in the compound. Shikamaru was still suspicious of Yoshino and Shikaku, but they hadn’t tried anything.
Yet. He would wait until they made the first move before talking with his mother.
Asahi, on the other hand, was still bouncing around declaring Yoshino and her to be best friends.
“Ooooh! We just have to go to the springs! Let’s go!”
“Maybe later.”
“Okay,” Mama looked down dejectedly, but the second she saw him she popped right back up again. “Shikamaru!! Come with me!”
And just like that, they were at the springs.
“Isn’t this great, Shika-baby?” Asahi sighed contentedly.
“Yes, Mama-”, muffled giggling interrupted him. Narrowing his eyes, he gave an absent-minded explanation before walking out and around to the back.
There, he spotted an old guy with long white hair spying on his mother.
Rage filled his body, and before he knew it, he was walking up to him and punching him in the face.
The man turned around and shouted, “WHAT WAS THAT FOR?! I was in the middle of researching!”
“I’m sure. Next time, don’t “research”, he spat the word mockingly, “my mother.”
The pervert gasped. “She’s your mother? You lucky, lucky boy.”
At his cold glare, he smiled. “Nice to meet you, kid. The name’s Jiraiya. And you are?”
“Shikamaru.”
Jiraiya turned serious. “Shikamaru, you say? And how did you get that name?”
“I don’t remember. I just know that Mama said that was the name that I gave her, and that’s the name I shall keep. What of it?”
Jiraiya seemed to shake himself. “Think nothing of it, kid. I gotta go see the Hokage. See you around.”
With that, he disappeared.
Curiouser and curiouser.
When he walked back into the springs, he saw his mother dancing around in the water. He smiled and got in next to her.
"Everything okay, baby?"
“Yeah. It's all sorted. Why are you dancing?”
“Why not? No one else is here to see your embarrassment, baby, so join me in dancing for the bath gods!” was the laughing answer.
“There is no such thing as 'bath gods', Mama.”
Mama gasped dramatically. “No such thing as bath gods? Blasphemy! Blasphemy, I say!”
Shikamaru shook his head in exasperation but joined his mother in dancing anyway.
Unnoticed by the two, Yoshino was just outside, spying jealously on the dancing duo. A moment later, she was joined by her husband.
“Look at her. Dancing around with our son. How dare she?”
Shikaku looked down at her sadly. He understood her pain – that was their son in there, not some random woman’s – but they couldn’t let it blind them to the true objective. Getting Shikamaru back.
“Come on, honey. We have a plan to make. This won’t be for forever, just until Shikamaru realises the truth. Then we can bring him home, where he truly belongs.”