If you decide to read this story, let me give you a warning :-)
Do not expect to find a really sensible plot here. Do not expect some fan fiction which is completely true to the Naruto series or to my original fanfic. This here is simply a side story which I write for my own amusement. My aim is to show what is going on behind the scenes, so to speak. My intent is to reveal what is going on in the production of my main fanfic, and weave it into a short side story. So you can perhaps say that I'm taking Shikamaru, poor Shikamaru, and putting him into my shoes as the writer :-D And of course, the lovely and (somewhat arguably) friendly redhead Tayuya will step into the role as my beautiful girlfriend Natasja, the beta reader, editor and muse of my story :-)
As I said earlier, do not expect any major innovations here. This is simply something for me to do when I'm bored or when I lack inspiration to write on the main story. But, reading this, you might be given some hints of my real life, like my favourite foods, my thoughts of fanfic writing and so on :-P
So, if you wish, please read on and enjoy the random crap that is 'NlotSD: Behind The Scenes'!
Oh, and a big thanks to Natasja for being my endless source of inspiration and support :)
Disclaimer: Naruto was still the property of Masashi Kishimoto last time I checked.
Behind The Scenes: Duty Calls
A few birds still chirped outside, even as temperatures sank day by day. Autumn had finally taken its merciless grip on the world, and was slowly squeezing the warmth out of nature. Trees were felling their golden leaves to the still-green grass, showing everyone that winter was rapidly approaching. Soon, the first snow would start to fall, and cover the green in a thin blanket of white. At the moment, the only thing covering the thumb-length grass was a thin layer of frost, a reminder from another cold night. Indeed, winter was surely approaching.
Shikamaru didn't really care. He was content with his existence, no matter what kind of weather it was. The reason was, he mostly spent his days inside. Sometimes he went out to train, but generally he just spent his days relaxing. And relaxing often meant sitting on the computer. Predictably, the Nara boy was currently sitting laid back in the computer chair, his legs resting comfortably on a low dresser next to the computer desk. He looked almost like he was sleeping. The only moving part of his body, betraying his consciousness, was his right arm. His fingers were curled around the computer mouse, which moved incessantly over the mouse pad. Shikamaru had a bored expression on his face, as he clicked twice on the screen with his mouse, moving a black pawn into a threatening position.
It had only been four days since his girlfriend Tayuya had downloaded the Chess Master IV to his computer (Shikamaru sucked with anything involving Torrents or share programs), and he was already on the final level. Sure, the high-level AI opponent was putting up a valiant fight, but it was already clear who would come out victorious. With a final, bored click, Shikamaru moved his black knight forward and to the left, trapping the enemy king between his knight, bishop and the previously moved pawn. A small fanfare sounded from the old speakers connected to the computer, signalling his final victory over the chess program. With a sigh, Shikamaru clicked the 'close' button, cutting the annoying trumpet music off halfway through.
Instead of playing another somewhat challenging chess match against the computer, Shikamaru opened his web browser. His Internet Explorer jumped to life, opening on his start page. Quickly scanning through his bookmark list, Shikamaru finally settled on an internet icon, simple named 'NLotSD'. After a few seconds of loading, the web browser opened up on his favourite fan fiction site, on one particular fanfic. It was the Nara's own fanfic. Shikamaru's eyes scanned the page quickly, and noted with a pleased smile that he had received a few more reviews since the last time he'd checked.
Shikamaru absolutely loved receiving reviews on his fanfic. He especially loved it when the reviews were well-written and insightful ones. A review was a commendation from a reader, which showed Shikamaru that people enjoyed what he wrote. A review was the highest praise he could ask for, and he rejoiced in every single one he received. Shikamaru had even gotten a few faithful readers, who were always among the first to review any new chapter he posted up, and who gave him feedback on nearly every one. It was all the reward Shikamaru wanted, and all the motivation he needed to write more. Deciding that he should reward his readers for the reviews he had already received, Shikamaru opened his document folder and scrolled through it until he found the file he was looking for. Chapter 10 of his fanfic, still unnamed at this point. Shikamaru opened the file, and continued writing. He had only written about 2 pages so far, and he was aiming to keep the length at 8 pages, just like the previous chapters. So he still had some work left to do. He was already running late, being one and a half month behind his intended schedule already.
Shikamaru had written for maybe five minutes when the front door suddenly slammed open loudly behind him. Shikamaru sighed to himself. He already knew who it was. Only one person he knew slammed doors like that.
"Hey Shika." Tayuya grinned in satisfaction, as she lowered her lifted foot. Shikamaru removed his feet from the dresser and turned the chair around to look at his troublesome girlfriend. He then realized exactly why the flame-haired girl had kicked the door open. In each of her hands Tayuya carried two large plastic bags, stuffed to the brim with food. Shikamaru looked at the heavy bags in her hands, and then lifted his gaze to look her in the eyes, raising an eyebrow as he did so.
"You didn't need to buy the whole shop."
"Oh, stuff it, shithead." Tayuya retorted, but her playful grin told Shikamaru she did not mean the insult as harshly as it sounded. "I might not look like it, but I need my daily intake of food." Tayuya added and grinned wider, knowing that her boyfriend was looking at her slender body. The girl stepped inside the apartment, and then kicked the door shut with another loud bang, making Shikamaru wince slightly. Tayuya had always been a loud girl, in many more than one situation, but Shikamaru had learned to live with it. In fact, now he could not really live without it. Love sure did crazy things to people.
"Yeah, yeah." Shikamaru said, shrugging and accepting what the girl said as true. He had long ago learned to never say anything against the fiery redhead. It was less painful, and more pleasant, that way.
"So, what have you been doing?" Tayuya asked as she put down the bags and began stuffing various food articles into the fridge and cupboards. Shikamaru opened his mouth to answer, but was duly interrupted.
"Let me guess," Tayuya said in a mocking tone, turning her head and giving Shikamaru one of those irresistible smirks of hers. "You've been sleepin' in, and then lazing off in front of the PC, while I've been working hard?" When Shikamaru didn't answer, she laughed out loud, a hearty, joyous sound. Despite his apathetic attitude, Tayuya's laughter was one of the things that always made Shikamaru smile. He got up from his chair, and walked over to his girlfriend, greeting her with a soft kiss to her pink lips. In reply, Tayuya pushed her lips against his, dropping the small bag of green apples she had held in her hand. Her now free hand made a quick dart for her boyfriend's behind, but Shikamaru dodged expertly out of her reach, smiling teasingly at her.
"Where do you think you're going, pineapple?" Tayuya drawled softly, eyeing her prey with a smirk. Shikamaru merely smiled and backed away, towards their bedroom.
"Nature's calling me, Tayu." He stated simply, taking some satisfaction from the sight of Tayuya bristling at the use of the nickname she disliked. The girl quickly regained her posture, grinning at him. "Can I come along, then?"
Shikamaru quirked an eyebrow, staring at his girlfriend with an incredulous smile on his lips.
"You want to come and watch me take a crap?" he asked amusedly, aware that he had picked up a few words from Tayuya's expansive vocabulary over the years. The redhead simply barked out a short laugh and turned to continue with the wares. Shikamaru smiled and headed for the toilet.
Tayuya finished putting the goods into the fridge and cupboards, and then tossed the empty plastic bags into the compartment under the sink for later use. She then eyed Shikamaru's computer with a smirk. She wanted to check her email. Tayuya jumped on the computer chair, causing it to spin 540 degrees before stopping perfectly facing the computer. Tayuya swiftly opened her email, and scanned through her inbox, deleting spam mail and adverts for PlayShinobi as she went. There. Tayuya found something worthwhile, and opened it. It was an email from Temari, asking if Tayuya wanted to go to a movie with her and Kin later. Tayuya grinned and pressed the reply button.
You know it. Have nothing better planned anyway.
Just make sure it's not some sappy, fucked-up shit like last time ;-)
Tayuya
After having clicked 'send', Tayuya closed down her email, and was about to walk away from the computer, when the web browser caught her attention. Her curiosity piqued, Tayuya opened the minimized Explorer window and looked at it. At a glance, it looked like some kind of written story, and it had Shikamaru's name in it! Interested, Tayuya read quickly through it. Her smirk grew wider as she approached the end of the first chapter. This was some messed-up shit, but it was kind of arousing at the same time, in its own sick way. She could hardly believe that her apathetic boyfriend had put her into such a context.
The sound of a door opening told Tayuya that Shikamaru was done at the toilet, and she grinned as she reclined backwards on the chair, leaning back until she could look at Shikamaru upside down as he entered from the hallway leading to their bedroom.
"I didn't know you get turned on at the thought of me being forcefully raped, shithead." Tayuya said with a smirk, enjoying the expression of surprise on Shikamaru's face. The boy quickly regained his composure, only a darker colour on his cheeks betraying his embarrassment. When Shikamaru seemed to be at a loss for words, Tayuya just chuckled and headed for the bedroom, punching Shikamaru's shoulder as she passed him.
"I need to get out of these clothes, I'm all sweaty." She said, before shutting the bedroom door behind her. Shikamaru sighed softly to himself and sat down in the computer chair. He knew he should have closed the fan fiction site when Tayuya came home. Now he would never hear the end of it. The truth was that what Tayuya had said was somewhat true. It was one of his forbidden fantasies about his girlfriend, and it was the inspiration for his fiction. He was kind of ashamed of it, which was why he hadn't showed it to her before. He was not sure what she would think of it. As it was, she seemed to be taking it very nicely, although Tayuya had always been a difficult person to read. Shikamaru sighed again. Why were girls always so troublesome?
Something suddenly caught his eye on the computer screen. A small window was blinking orange on the taskbar on the bottom of the screen. Shikamaru smiled and clicked it. Immediately, an MSN window popped up. Shikamaru recognized the person immediately. The username was a dead giveaway.
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: Yo man!
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: Hey Kiba :)
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: What's up buddy?
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: Nothing much. Gf just got home.
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: Oooh! Then why are you still here?
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: ;-)
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: lol
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: She's taking a shower
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: Again, why are you still here then? :D
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: Shouldn't you be there with her? ;)
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: She discovered the fanfic
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: Oh, burn! ;D
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: shut up.
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: Did she take it badly?
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: Dunno. She disappeared for a shower.
SuperMutt – Inuzuka power says: Maybe bad, maybe not so bad :P
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: _;;
Shikamaru was about to write more, but before he had the chance he was interrupted.
"Hey Shikaaaaaa-" he heard his girlfriend's voice calling him. Shikamaru turned his head, and almost swallowed his own larynx. Tayuya was standing in the doorway to the bedroom, her flame-coloured, waist-length hair released and flowing behind her. She was wearing a light blue, simple pair of pants and a matching light blue shirt, and nothing else. She eyed him with a seductive smile, and turned around, throwing him a grin over her shoulder.
"I'm ready for my interrogation now, Nara-sama." She drawled with mock weakness in her voice. Her one hand took hold of her hair and pulled it to the side, revealing a hand-drawn, square mark on the centre of her neck. She was like taken directly from Shikamaru's own fanfic. Without any more words, Tayuya slipped inside the bedroom and out of sight.
Shikamaru stared after her for a few seconds, unable to believe his own eyes. Had he just seen what he thought he had seen? Blinking his eyes a few times, he turned his gaze to the screen. His fanfic was still unfinished, and he had delayed it far enough already. Shaking his head, he pushed the thought to the back of his head. Surely his readers wouldn't die if he delayed one more day? With that thought, he got up and typed a few quick words into the MSN window, before taking off towards the bedroom.
Shika – 3 Tayuya 3 – Lazy For Life :D says: Bbl, duty calls ;)
THE END
Yay! I finished it :D This was a lot of fun to write, and a nice break from my more serious ShikaTayu fic. Now I'm going to go back to continuing on the New Life of the Sound Demon, with refreshed motivation. I might continue this series at some point, if I find any ideas for a new chapter :)
I will try to not take too long to finish the next chapter of the main story line, but I can't promise anything :P Hopefully, I will have it done before December sets in. Until then, take care all :)
Haraio