25.

Nara Daen never got off his guarding post after he got it.

Apparently, he was the only one who actually enjoyed watching over the clan heiress and with the next ones in line asking him to be the guard of Nara Shikari again and again as a favor, Daen practically got most of the semi-active shinobi in his clan be on his debt because they kept on doing so up until several months already passed.

Daen didn't mind and Shikaku-sama, apparently, had too much in his mind to actually care that his alternative form of therapy for Nara shinobis wasn't working anymore. After all, on top of Yoshino-sama being pregnant, Shikaku-sama still had to deal with duties that came as Konoha's Jounin Commander and Nara clan head.

And so-

It was safe to say that Daen probably knew Shikari-hime more than his parents at this point in time.

Therefore, when Nara Shikamaru was born and presented in front of a bewildered Nara Shikari, it took all of Nara Daen's hard-won discipline not to laugh his arse off in front of the everyone.

Daen knew he shouldn't find this hilarious, but he knew that something weird would come out of Shikari avoiding Yoshino-sama for months because she was still sulking about the time her mother called her puppy, Hinu, fat.

He didn't expect her to be this taken aback when she was presented with her brother though.

It was as if she didn't know her mother was pregnant, Kami.

Daen let out a chuckle, earning looks from the people around him.

When the lady started to put on weight, the chibi hid from the lady as much as she could and spent most of her time with Itachi and co. as long as she could get away with it.

Yoshino-sama, in turn, busy as she was with helping out in the war effort as much as she could, didn't notice.

So for months, the time spent between the two could be counted on Daen's fingers.

Daen stopped his light chuckles, stiffening.

Was it really possible that she didn't know?

Daen was sure, assured as he was about Shikari's intellect, that the clan heiress actually knew what was going on despite Shikaku-sama's teasing.

That when the lady decided to let out steam by announcing that she wasn't fat, it was the dog who was fat - Shikari would eventually know it was because Yoshino-sama was pregnant.

After all, most pregnant women are insecure about their figures once they started putting on weight. Kami knew Daen's mother was the same when she was carrying his younger brother.

The lady was just letting off steam and went a bit overboard with it (most likely projecting herself on the dog, in Daen's opinion) - mildly threatening the baby that they would return the puppy if Shikari didn't treat her pet right.

(Daen knew because he was on duty on that particular day and he got invited for lunch as thanks for his efforts.)

Seeing Shikari's discontented and mildly insulted face from the announcement, Shikaku-sama gleefully agreed with his wife when asked by the chibi.

Daen couldn't really blame him because Shikari-hime really was undeniably adorable when she sulked, but-

With her father's affirmation, the baby was then convinced that her puppy-rearing skills were lacking despite her best efforts to do right with her pet. She even made the effort to constantly track Hatake Kakashi down for tips on her own when she could have spent the time to find prime napping spots and well-

It all made sense now.

Daen groaned quietly.

No wonder Shikari wasn't as gentle and obedient with Yoshino-sama as she was with Kushina-sama.

She didn't know that her mother was pregnant, Kami.

No, no. Daen shook his head, face twisting - ignoring the increasingly strange stares he got from the people around him.

He should cut the chibi some slack. The kid wasn't stupid.

It was probably more like Shikari-hime did know her mother was gravid, but since she kept grudges like a stubborn mule - she kept on selectively putting it out of her mind.

So much so that Shikari actually, eventually forgot about it.

At least until the chibi was faced with her little brother that was.

Daen coughed when he got patted in the back, hard. Looking back, Daen tried to keep his composure when he saw it was the clan head.

"What's wrong with you, Daen?" Shikaku-sama asked, bemused.

Daen opened his mouth before closing it again.

What should he say?

That his kid actually forgot that her mother was pregnant?

No.

Daen shook his head firmly. "Nothing. I-" He cleared his throat. "Ate something bad. It's nothing Shikaku-sama."

The clan head looked at him, dubious. "Are you sure?"

Daen nodded.

An enthusiastic giggle cut through the air interrupting Shikaku-sama from pushing for more.

Daen could only exasperatedly coo when he saw how Shikari-hime, after getting over her shock, now looked exorbitantly pleased and fiercely protective as her brother held onto her finger tightly.

Daen sighed at the sight, smiling.

Never mind the chibi forgetting. It doesn't matter much anyway.

Author's Note: Will be updating this monthly. Moreover, Little Sister AU - a spinoff of this fic - is now published as a separate work and will be updated monthly, as well. If you're interested in regular updates of this fic on a weekly or even daily basis, please refer to my profile. Thank you for reading!