Engulfed in the silence of the night, a solitary man stood next to a window illuminated by the moonlight. In his arms he carried a blanketed bundle which contained a little girl, mere hours old. As the world lay peacefully slumbering around him, this lone soul, bearing a spiky ponytail and clad in a black attire under the standard dark-green jōnin vest, gazed keenly, yet adoringly, at his daughter as if to permanently etch her features in his mind. Known to the world as Shikamaru Nara, head of the Nara clan and the second most authoritative person in Konoha preceded only by the Hokage, he was amazed at the pure euphoria coursing through him at this moment. So against all his reason and reckoning was the intensity of this feeling, that it befuddled him completely. According to him, since he had already experienced something similar about two years prior when he held his screaming first born in his arms immediately after the infant's arrival in the world, he had expected to be less overwhelmed the second time. Yet, he felt apprehensive, content, and excited as if here were a new father.

This time, however, he was much more protective of his newborn as evident from his actions thus far. Ever since his daughter had entered the world bawling like her elder brother and placed in her father's arms, all cleaned and bundled-up, he had found it difficult to put her down. She seemed so petite to him, much smaller than her brother was, more delicate, and so helpless, that protectiveness flooded him. A sarcastic smile graced his lips. She might have appeared delicate and helpless at that moment, but he knew with time she would end up as confident, headstrong, and independent as her mother; such were the fates of the troublesome Nara women.

A slight whimper from the bundle in his arms brought his attention to the newest member of the Nara family. He rocked her gently trying to lull her back to sleep so her mother could get some more rest after her tiring ordeal earlier in the evening. Thankfully, the infant was not yet as obstinate as her mother and complied without a fuss. Shikamaru carefully placed her in the crib next to his wife ensuring that both his girls slept undisturbed and moved to occupy a nearby chair, so that he too could get some well-merited rest.

However, sleep evaded him on this joyful night and instead his thoughts ran rampant resurfacing his naive and juvenile plots as if to mock him. He had never entertained the possibility when he had, years earlier, planned out his life — step-by-step, clinically detailing every major and minor aspect — that his life could be so radically different. But destiny has a way of upsetting the most carefully devised strategies — a fact he was wholly aware of ever since he had decided to take up the job of the Hokage's advisor. To think that his immature scheme would not vary even after such a life-altering decision was foolish, Shikamaru knew, but he still hoped that he could bring the rest of his plan to fruition. Once again, fate decreed it impossible when he married Temari, a girl so unlike the bride he had thought he wanted but one that he loved immeasurably with his whole being. Now Shikamaru was absolutely certain that his plot was a failure, a fact further reinforced by his first born who was a boy. He directed a sardonic smile at his younger self, for now he wondered how he had managed to imagine his life with such detachment without ever considering his emotions. But, he was now older and wiser, and no longer relied on his juvenile plot because he knew that he could not fight fate. His last thought as he eventually drifted to sleep, cooled by the breeze wafting through the window, was that, perhaps, destiny would shock him once more, to which destiny would soon happily oblige.

By her first birthday, it was obvious Shika — who was named after much deliberation which involved the use of a large fan in enclosed spaces and Shadow techniques to prevent a house from collapsing — had her father wrapped around her little fingers. While Shikamaru always wore a bored and defeated expression and uttered his usual catchphrase, his actions towards his daughter betrayed his true feelings. He was often seen indulging her every whim and spending most of his free time with her. On the other hand, Shika, who had light brown hair, shining blue eyes, and features borrowed more from her mother than her father, was unmistakably daddy's little girl. She would follow him around and demand — and insist — that he take her with him everywhere he went, join her father and elder brother on their training sessions, lay next to him and watch the clouds drift by, and even join in when Rumi — Asuma and Kurenai's daughter — came over play shogi.

When Shika was two, she started displaying signs of her inherited genius and a penchant for mischief. Little by little her personality unraveled, and it was discovered she had inherited much from her parents. From her father, she got her talent for strategizing quickly and efficiently, and from her mother, her domineering attitude and stubbornness. Inside her battled for dominance laziness from her father's side and a thirst for adventure from her mother's side. In the end, the latter won by a margin reaffirming Shikamaru's earlier guess that she resembled her mother in more than just looks. Collectively, it made Shika a destructive toddler who always kept everyone on their toes.

By the time she was three, Shika's social circle had expanded considerably. It was then Shikamaru noticed the danger slowly creeping in. Her confident and adventurous nature combined with her shenanigans made her immensely popular especially among the little boys she would play with. To a genius, overprotective father as Shikamaru had instinctively become, it foretold of a greater danger that was to come in a few years. While at one time he had not given much thought to his daughter's future dating plans, now they left a bitter taste in his mouth. Since he was a boy once and thus knew all about the designs of hormonal teenage boys, he was against any of the over-eager buffoons — as he preferred to call them — coming near his little princess. Now that the thought of imminent danger was firmly rooted in his mind, no amount of logical reasoning — which a little voice of rationality provided him with — would silence the warning bells in his mind. He was aware it was too early to be overcautious, but he decided that his plan could only be effective, in this case, if he started implementing it from early on. With his decision made, he set about devising a method that would successfully protect his precious angel from the pesky buffoons.

One night, after he had futilely thought of — and discarded — many failed strategies despite his magnificent genius, he lay awake still thinking of the best way to achieve his goal. He thought back to how his brothers-in-law might have had a similar notion in their minds when they chased after him through Konoha after he had announced his intention to wed Temari. At that time he had deemed them to be overprotective and irrational, but now, in a similar position, he understood their concerns and begrudgingly acknowledged that there was nothing irrational about that episode.

It was at this moment, a plan began taking shape in his brain. He recalled that before his nuptials, Gaara and Kankuro, two of the strongest ninja of Suna, managed to bring him close enough to question himself on his decision to marry Temari. Shikamaru examined the effectiveness of the teamwork if the number of ninjas were increased. Obtaining a favorable result, he worked meticulously on his approach and steadily added in the details which polished the crude idea in to a strategy which seemed implementable and very effective.

He surmised that should the number of overprotective, extraordinarily skilled, and ruthless ninjas increase to four or five, even Temari or her mini-clone would have trouble going up against them regardless of the latter's penchant for being overbearing and incredibly willful. And with that many malevolent slayers surrounding his precious angel, even the strongest of the unrelenting buffoons would reconsider their decision of approaching her. Satisfied, he determined that a total of at least three sons — including his eldest — would suffice for his plot. His eldest, Shikamaru decided, he would instruct in the deadliest of the Nara techniques. As for his two younger — still non-existent — sons, he would send them to Suna to be trained under the tutelage of their manic, bloodthirsty uncles. This way, the exceptional skills from their training combined with their innate intellect would transform his progeny in to the most lethal assassins Konoha could offer.

Satisfied with the final shape of his scheme, Shikamaru smiled smugly to himself. It seemed this plot of his would yield the most successful results. Indeed, he required two more sons to accomplish it, but to him, it did not seem like a major obstacle. His predicament resolved, he turned over, put his arm around Temari, and closed his eyes allowing sleep to claim him. Tomorrow he would start executing his plan, which was extremely simple.

Now, all he needed to be cautious about was that Temari should never figure it out.

THE END