"If you don't shut your mouth, I'll shut it for you."
The cold edge in Shikage's voice made Nara Kizashi swallow hard, fear flickering across his face.
But he quickly pulled his arrogant mask back on and forced a dry laugh.
"Heh. What's the matter?"
"Even you're out of moves now, huh, Shikage!"
The second the taunt left his lips, he saw Shikage charging straight at him, two gleaming kunai gripped loosely at his sides.
—Is this bastard really trying to kill me?
The thought hit Kizashi like a slap, followed instantly by a wave of burning humiliation.
—Does he really need to go this far?!
He admitted he was weaker. Fine.
But this was the main Nara estate, in broad daylight, attacking a fellow Konoha shinobi — it was obvious Shikage didn't give a single damn about him.
"Shikage, I'm not the same guy from back then!"
"You—"
Seeing Shikage close the distance for pure taijutsu, Kizashi choked down the rest of his sentence and barely raised his own kunai to meet him.
—Damn it, this guy isn't even using jutsu?
—He's looking down on me that much?!
The Nara clan's secret arts made them weak in close combat, so when Shikage rushed in, Kizashi felt both surprise and deep shame at being so blatantly disrespected.
His taijutsu had always been trash compared to Shikage's back in school, so facing the onslaught he looked pathetic.
After throwing everything he had into blocking a few strikes, he didn't even get a second to feel smug before a glint of cold steel came slicing in from his blind spot.
Panic made him flail. He could barely keep his stance.
On pure instinct he tried to block with his arm — it would cut him, but it would save his throat.
Good plan. Except the instant he tried to lift his arm, his body locked up for a split second.
That tiny window was all it took. The kunai was already arcing toward his neck.
Just as the blade was about to open his throat, it suddenly stopped dead.
Shikage had frozen solid.
He stood like a statue on the stone path of the front courtyard.
Body completely locked, but his eyes and mouth still worked.
He looked toward the figure standing on the engawa not far away and smiled.
"Uncle Suzaku, sneaking up on someone isn't very honorable, you know."
Nara Suzaku kept his hands in the seal, his aging face filled with clear displeasure.
"Shikage, he's your clan brother. Was that really necessary?"
"Well, with you here watching, Uncle, how could I possibly hurt Kizashi?"
The sarcastic bite in every word made Nara Suzaku's expression darken even more.
Even so, Shikage didn't show a trace of fear. That relaxed smile stayed plastered on his face.
"Shikage, you lack respect for your elders!"
Just as the tension thickened, a calm voice cut through.
"Enough, Brother Suzaku."
"Shikage is only twelve. Why is an adult picking a fight with a child?"
Nara Suzaku snorted coldly, but still obediently released the shadow binding.
"Shikaku, I know you spoil the boy."
"But geniuses aren't raised with coddling. Without facing setbacks and hardship, how can he ever become a pillar of Konoha?"
Nara Shikaku walked over slowly, hands clasped behind his back, and gave a mild nod.
"You're right about that."
Nara Suzaku, pretending not to notice the obvious dismissal, pushed further.
"Lord Danzō has been very pleased with Shikage's recent performance. He keeps mentioning that the Nara clan has produced a young prodigy."
"Why not let him join Root and get properly forged?"
Shikaku didn't answer right away. His gentle expression stayed in place, but worry flickered deep in his eyes.
—Danzō…
After a moment of silence he shook his head, voice noticeably colder.
"I already have other plans for Shikage."
The answer didn't surprise Nara Suzaku.
He had known the clan head would never agree.
From the very beginning, his real target had only ever been Nara Shikamaru!
Thinking about the recent personnel shifts inside Root, and how more and more heirs from major clans — Yamanaka, Aburame — were being pulled in…
Nara Suzaku felt nothing but helplessness and dread.
Clearly, Danzō's infiltration of the village's great clans had grown even deeper.
Ever since the Fourth Hokage's death, Danzō's moves to seize more political power had become increasingly blatant and aggressive.
Suzaku wasn't officially part of Root, but in every way that mattered he belonged to Danzō's faction.
Now Danzō wanted a foothold in the Nara clan, and his own son, Nara Kizashi, was the perfect candidate.
He followed Danzō purely for wealth, influence, and strength.
There was no way in hell he would actually send his only son into Root as a disposable tool.
But Nara Suzaku wasn't the clan head. He didn't have Shikaku's confidence to casually refuse Danzō's "invitation."
So, to keep his own son out of the abyss, he decided to throw the clan head's family under the bus instead.
If Shikaku had only one son, Suzaku would never have targeted the main line.
But with two sons? Different story.
Hand over one to Danzō — keep Danzō happy, protect his own boy, and hey, the clan head still has another son left!
As for whether he feared retaliation from the clan head…
Please. This was the fair and democratic Nara clan!
So what if he was clan head? The clan head still worked for the Hokage!
Suzaku worked for Danzō, Shikaku worked for Hiruzen — they were basically equals!
"Then let Shikamaru join Root."
Nara Suzaku said it casually, but couldn't resist adding one last "gentle" reminder at the end:
"Lord Danzō really holds our Nara clan in high regard!"
The open threat wiped the mild expression off Shikaku's face.
He stared hard at Nara Suzaku, anger and sorrow mixing in his eyes.
There had been a time when this older cousin — six years his senior — had willingly taken punishment from the previous clan head for his sake.
Everything had changed the moment Suzaku started following Danzō.
"Sorry, Uncle Suzaku."
Shikage spoke for his father.
"Shikamaru can't go to Root."
"Because I'm the one joining Anbu."
"Our family can't have both sons in the 'Anbu,' after all."
He deliberately stressed the word "Anbu," making sure the old man's ears still worked.
Thankfully Nara Suzaku's mind was sharp enough to catch the implication.
He shot Shikage a vicious glare, then turned on his heel and strode away without another word, face tight.
As he passed his son, he slapped Nara Kizashi hard across the face.
"Useless!"
"What are you still standing here for? Move!"
Nara Kizashi still didn't fully understand the difference between Root and Anbu.
He thought Shikage had simply volunteered in his place, so he grinned like an idiot, teeth showing.
He didn't know exactly what either organization did, but his father's attitude made it clear it was probably nasty work.
So he was convinced that Nara Shikage's bad days were just beginning!
That gleeful schadenfreude gave Kizashi a burst of courage. He even turned back and made a throat-slitting gesture at Shikage.
Watching his idiot cousin act like an idiot, Shikage didn't get angry.
He just smiled gently.
"This absolute walnut…"