Her Mask (Shikamaru x Oc)

Chapter Six

“When are you going to go get them?”

Shingami asked as she was sitting under the shade of a nearby tree. Asuma looked over at her actually making eye contact because her mask wasn’t on her face, before taking one last drag from his cigarette and putting it out under his shoe.

“In a minute, I don’t think their all at the meeting spot, yet.”

“Hmm.”

A light honey colored butterfly landed on her hand. It advanced along her nimble fingers before just resting there.

“I think they’ll be there as soon as you are if you go now.”

He nodded in agreement.

“I’ll be back.” 

He started walking in the direction of the Academy, leaving Shingami alone with the butterfly. She was just staring at it like it was a piece of glass that could easily be shattered if she so much as moved, this was solely what her attention was on. She was mesmerized by it.

It was another four to five minutes until the butterfly flew away but in the small period of time it was there, she memorized everything she could about the insect. She could remember every little individual line on the wings, the gentle tickling feeling whenever it decided to walk on her skin, and the way it’s left antena was bent slightly more than it should have been. 

When she finally pulled herself out of her daze she looked up at the sky and looked at the white fluffy clouds wondering if they were as soft as they looked, until someone cleared their throat successfully causing her neck to crack when it snapped to the right only to see it was Asuma and his students.

Her hand slowly slid off of the hilt of her tento and she shoved her mask back on her face out of shame.

It was an instinct that has kept her and others safe but a bad habit to always assume the worst is going to happen. 

“Ok, for those of us who don’t know, Shingami will be working with team ten on the higher ranked missions we will be going on.”

Ino slowly lifted her hand showing that she had a question.

“Yes, Ino?”

“What’s her rank?”

Asume looked at Shingami urging her to answer the question.

“...S-rank, Special Jonin.”

The two of the three students of team ten, Ino and Choji, stared at her in shock while Shikamaru took the time to lay down in the soft green grass and look at the sky as Shingami had been doing before they had desturbed her.

“Then why are you working with Genin?”

Shingami took a millisecond to come out with an answer that the Hokage would probably approve of.

“I have little experience with working in teams so Lord third requested that I do so with team ten.”

It got quiet for a few seconds before Asuma threw a scroll that was still sealed to Shingami who didn’t overt her gaze from the Yamanaka.

“Let's start the mission.”

_____________________________

Asuma and his team had finished their eighth D-ranked mission of the day in a little less than three hours and they just received their ninth.

While Asuma was leaning against the wall of a building, Shingami and the three genin were doing all the work. It wasn’t his job and he had already done these types of missions while he was their age. Shingami was doing most of the heavy lifting with the crates that they were moving into the newly redesigned tea house.