Mendokuse

Subtitle: The Woes of a Lazy Shinobi

A ShikaIno story

Summary: (ShikaIno and slight SasuNaru) Shikamaru would like nothing better than lazing around all day playing shogi or goh and watching the clouds; some things were just too troublesome to deal with. Especially hormones. Unfortunately, if there's one thing a teenage boy can't ignore, it's that.

Note: For those who don't know, "mendokuse" means "troublesome" - Shikamaru's favorite word. Mine too, actually.

Chapter One: Troubles of Being a Genius

Whoever said that geniuses had everything easy was wrong. Completely, absolutely, absurdly wrong. Obviously, the person who had said that was not a genius, or he would have realized this a long time ago.

Being a genius was definitely hard work. However, it was especially difficult for someone as lazy as Shikamaru, because it meant being constantly hounded by people who want to use you for some purpose or another. Now, this couldn't have meant any less to Shikamaru... that is, if these "purposes" had not been undeniably for the good and safety of his friends and family. Yes, being a genius was a lot more trouble than it was worth.

While at this particular subject of what exactly was troublesome, Shikamaru's generously-endowed mind jumped to the subject matter of girls. Girls were also extremely troublesome. Especially girls with pale blonde hair and pale blue eyes who like to use their fists and lungs a little too much. They had a tendency to pop into a person's mind with alarming frequency at the most inconvenient and troublesome of times.

What with genius and girls already on his back, Shikamaru reflected for the millionth time over just how troublesome his life was in general. He wanted nothing more than a peaceful, boring life; it had all been nicely planned out in his head for years. He would marry a woman who was neither ugly nor beautiful, have two children - a boy and a girl -, and retire when his children got jobs. He would then spend the rest of his life living in comfortable, steady monotony, playing shogi or go and watching clouds pass by on the hills of Konoha.

Sighing lightly, Shikamaru shifted slightly on the grass, feeling his backside getting numb. How long had he been here? Hours, probably. How many? Well, it was too troublesome to try to remember. He adjusted the puffy chuunin vest under his head that he had been using as a pillow, then returned his attention to the fluffy white clouds in the sky.

"Oy."

Sasuke had an extremely distinct way of making himself noticed, Shikamaru noted absently. "What?" he asked, not bothering to move from his spot. Sasuke didn't answer him. Shikamaru glanced at the handsome boy out of the corner of his eyes with negligent care. He seemed to want to say something, but couldn't bring himself to. Shikamaru had a feeling that if Sasuke did open his mouth, things would get troublesome for him. Consequently, he fervently hoped that the Uchiha boy would stick to being quiet. If worse came to worst, Shikamaru was firmly resolved to make a quick escape.

After all, Shikamaru did have a good reason to be wary.

For some reason, after the chuunin exams, he had suddenly become the guy to talk to about other people's problems. Especially problems that involved matters of the heart. Why? This was a complete mystery to Shikamaru as well, and he was the genius with the 200 IQ. He had absolutely no talent in this area; he'd never even had a girlfriend, and he was already eighteen. So why did people constantly seek him out for advice? He really wished they wouldn't - it was too troublesome. Whenever someone came to him for his help or opinion on love, he always ended up being dragged into something he specifically wanted desperately to stay out of.

People claimed that he was extremely helpful, but Shikamaru had his doubts. As far as he could see, they had all done it by themselves; and, whenever he informed them so, they only got bright-eyed and squealed over how selfless and sweet he was despite his deceiving looks. Squealed? Oh, yes, he had forgotten to mention that this was because all - or, at least, most - of his clandestine visitors for topics of this nature were of the female sex.

But, now, out of all people, Uchiha Sasuke suddenly wanted to talk to him; and if it was anything concerning this particular boy, it was sure to be complicated as hell. Why was his life so damn troublesome?

Damn. Sasuke was opening his mouth. Damn. Close it, close it, close it, close it, close it, close it -

"Shikamaru, I need your help."

Damn. Damn it all to hell. This was exactly the way everyone else had initiated their conversation, and how ho got dragged into those troublesome situations. Damn. It was time for the escape plan.

"There's someone I..." Sasuke struggled with his words, "uh, someone I... like." A blush crept into his cheeks.

Dread filled Shikamaru from head to toe. It was too late. Damn it all. He should have left as soon as Sasuke said "oy". Now he had said one of the two L words, Shikamaru was duty-bound to stay by the unsaid rules of basic human compassion. Compassion was so troublesome, sometimes.

"This is so troublesome," Shikamaru muttered under his breath. Against all likeliness, he hoped for a miracle which would snap Sasuke out of let's-talk mode.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Shikamaru raised his eyebrows, impressed. The miracle did come, he thought. I should start wishing for miracles more often.

At the sound of the familiar, shrill voice calling his name, Sasuke winced visibly. "Um," he mumbled to Shikamaru, "maybe later," and ran off.

Soon, Shikamaru spotted a pink head of hair bobbing up among the trees to his right. He quickly closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura called out relentlessly. "Sasuke-kun! Where are you? I made lunch for you! Oh!" She had finally spotted Shikamaru.

Shikamaru wanted to sigh. It wasn't that he disliked her; simply that she was too troublesome at times to deal with, and particularly when it concerned a certain dark-haired Uchiha. He didn't dislike Sasuke either; it was just that he was troublesome, too.

"Shikamaru? Are you sleeping?"

Way to state the obvious, he thought sarcastically.

From the shadow falling over his face and the clarity of the voice, Shikamaru could tell that he was leaning right over him. He made an extra effort to be still and look asleep.

Sakura sighed. "I guess I shouldn't bother him," she murmured to herself. "He's so lazy, anyways. He probably would find it too 'tiresome' to help me find Sasuke." She turned to go away, but suddenly remembered something. "Oh, that's right!" She went back to Shikamaru's side, and, to the latter's frustration, shook him awake.

I guess there's no helping it, he thought, disgruntled, and cracked his eyes open. "Yeah?" he sighed.

Sakura's eye twitched. "You were awake," she stated matter-of-factly.

Shikamaru didn't say anything, though he would have liked to. He knew that what he wanted to say would just earn him a lump on his head. Girls were so troublesome.

"Anyway," she continued, "I just wanted to tell you that all the old genin teams from our year and Lee-kun's are going to have a big get-together. Some of us haven't seen each other for almost a year, after all. Even Gaara-san's team is coming. Tsunade-sama gave all of us a week off, and we're planning on spending it as a group. Ino was going to tell you, but she said that you weren't in your usual spots."

For a reason, Shikamaru added in his mind. He had been purposely avoiding the areas Ino knew he frequented. The last thing he would have wanted was a private meeting with Ino, right now... for various reasons.

"In any case, don't be late, tomorrow," Sakura said. "We're meeting at Ichiraku's - Naruto insisted - at twelve-thirty in the afternoon to have lunch. Well, that's that." She stopped and eyed Shikamaru suspiciously. "You do know where Sasuke-kun is, don't you?" she accused.

Shikamaru closed his eyes again and went back to sleep. "This is too troublesome," he grumbled.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "And it's too troublesome to ask you," she groaned. "Bye, Shikamaru." To Shikamaru's relief, she finally left.

A meeting. Well, it would probably be rather interesting. Troublesome, yes, but he would have to go, or the girls would hunt him down and slice him into hundreds of pieces for missing an event of that had such a "sentimental" value.

"Damn," Shikamaru growled, shifting again. "And I just got back from such a troublesome mission, too."

As usual, when Shikamaru finally got around to going home, the first thing he did was go to his bed. And, as usual, it wasn't very long before his mother stomped up the stairs to his room, kicked him out of his bed, and sent him off to take a shower after giving him specific directions to go fetch his father from the bar around the corner before the old man did himself any harm.

Shikamaru became sleepy just thinking of bringing his lazy father home. Groaning, he dragged his feet all the way to the bathroom. Why was it that he was surrounded by bossy, loud, aggressive women?

"I definitely need to move out," groused Shikamaru, sullenly kicking his clothes into the laundry basket. This line of thought had often crossed his mind for the past year, but he had been too lazy to actually carry it out. He silently promised himself to go look for an apartment, soon.

Sighing, he pulled his hair loose from its tie, leaned his hands against the sink, and stared absently at his reflection in the mirror as his dark hair fell softly onto his shoulders. A remarkably unremarkable man stared back at him from smooth surface. He looked every bit the normal human being that Shikamaru wished he was. Nothing really stood out about his appearance.

Aren't I just the luckiest guy ever? Shikamaru thought sarcastically. The things about me that are considered unique aren't apparent on the surface, and I ended up falling for a girl who's obsessive about physical appearances. Frustrated, he raked his fingers through his hair. Thoughts like these were troublesome; they complicated things in a way that was hard to fix.

He unclasped his earrings and put them down on the edge of the sink. The old, used silver glinted dully. After years in the possession of a ninja - particularly a ninja who wears them every day and at the same time undergoes fierce training sessions daily -, they were battered and worn out. Yet, Shikamaru couldn't bring himself to get rid of them or even get new ones. These were, after all, a symbol of the Ino-Shika-Chou trio. Identical versions of the plain silver hoops hung from Ino and Chouji's ears, though Ino's were in much better condition (for slightly obvious reasons).

Shikamaru allowed his thoughts to stray yet again to his energetic teammate. Ino was the antithesis of everything he had wanted for himself. She was beautiful, vivid... and terribly out or reach. Bossy, loud, and extravagant. All of these adjectives were not in his list of requirements for a love interest. She would insist on bothering him for the most insignificant reasons. She would harp at him relentlessly. She would require endless pointless displays of affection. She would complicate things unnecessarily and make mountains out of molehills. But it wasn't like any of this mattered, anyways. He was too low for her standards. After all, she was extremely popular with everyone and attracted a lot of attention from the opposite sex.

As for Shikamaru... Well, let's just leave it at the fact that he had very seriously contemplated hermitage at the tender age of fifteen.

Honestly, he rued the day Asuma had informed him that he was a genius with an IQ over 200. As the knowledge spread - that damn Asuma had blabbed during the chuunin exams -, people began to look at him differently. He started to get noticed in a crowd, pointed out, and talked to a lot more than he would have liked. They saw potential in him just the way they did in Sasuke and started to pursue him for his unique talents. After all, a mind like Shikamaru's only comes in once in a lifetime - people like Neji and Sasuke, geniuses of kekkei genkai, were much more common.

And after all the trouble I had gone through to make myself unnoticeable, Shikamaru thought grumpily. All her had ever wanted to be was a perfectly average guy with perfectly average ninja skills who would only make perfectly average amounts of money. Instead, he had to deal with being the first genin in years to be promoted to chuunin in his first year, meaning that he had been elevated over the status of the "geniuses" of Konoha; then, as a chuunin, he found himself commanding squads from his very first mission; and, now, five years later, he found himself even leading jounin in important missions. Not to mention that he was technically unofficially the Godaime's right hand in strategics and planning. After Tsunade had discovered just how talented the young Nara was, she had begun to stealthily trick him into doing work for her and sending him to special training classes with jounin in tactics and other intellectually-inclined matters.

Tsunade couldn't fool Shikamaru. He was unhappily aware that the crafty woman was secretly training him to become a top-class Hokage advisor and strategist.

Kuso mendokuse, Shikamaru thought with irritation as he slipped into the shower. Women were so damn troublesome.

"Shikamaru!" A shriek from downstairs invaded his sensitive ears. "I want you out of that shower and in the bar in less than fifteen minutes!"

Shikamaru rolled is eyes at the shower walls. "Like I said, women are so damn troublesome," he complained to himself.

A fleeting thought crossed his mind. I wonder what'll happen tomorrow.

Ino gave her hair a final brush before studying herself critically in her full-length mirror. Kampeki, she thought with satisfaction.

(kampeki: perfect)

A strong feeling of happiness bubbled up in her chest. Today, she would be seeing Shikamaru again after nearly two months of separation during which Tsunade had sent him on another ultra-secret mission. She had heard from Chouji that he had returned to Konoha only two days earlier.

Her smile drooped a little at that. She was disappointed and hurt that Shikamaru hadn't bothered to even let her know that he was back. Recently, she felt like they were growing farther and farther apart, and the thought frightened her. She tried to hold on to him as best as she could, visiting him every day he wasn't on a mission, but he was somehow still slipping through her fingers.

Their old close-knit trio seemed only like a shadow of a memory, now. Cold fear gripped her at the thought of losing two of her closest friends. Chouji hadn't really changed, but he was now mostly with his father, learning the full extent of his family jutsus. Shikamaru... Well, it was complicated, and she didn't quite understand it herself. He became more closed off around her, but all had been relatively well till about three months earlier.

Ino still remembered those two days with painful clarity. It had been just the end of winter, and the Naras and Akimichis had been invited to over by her parents on the weekend. It was actually a frequent occurrence, but Shikamaru hadn't participated for a very long time because of ill-timed missions. This time, however, he hadn't had any plans, and came with his parents.

She had been delighted, and insisted that he stay in the room next to hers, ignoring the sly looks her parents had been sending her way.

"Shikamaru!" She pounced on her friend the instant he stepped inside the house. "It's been so long!" She pulled back a little and looked at him sternly in the eye. "Now that you're here, though, I'm not letting you go!"

Shikamaru turned slightly pink around the edges of his ears. "W-what?" he spluttered.

Ino and Shikamaru's mothers giggled.

Ino stuck her tongue out at him. "Shikamaru, I didn't know you were a pervert!" she exclaimed mischievously, still hanging from his neck.

He promptly scowled. "I am not," he protested. "Mataku... this is so troublesome."

Ino grinned. "I'm just kidding. Anyhow, you're still staying in the room next to mine, okay? That way we can pop into each other's rooms whenever we want."

Shikamaru looked slightly uncomfortable. "Um, Ino... We probably shouldn't do that. We're not exactly twelve, anymore, you know."

Ino conveniently ignored his words. "Anyway, I already set up everything for you in there! Come look! Chouji's already raiding the kitchen, so he won't want to be bothered for a while." She tugged on his arm and looked back at everyone. "We'll be going on up, okay?"

Poor Shikamaru got all flustered when he saw his mother wink conspiratorially at him. "Um, actually... I should probably -" Before he could finish his sentence, Ino had already dragged him halfway up the stairs.

"This is so great," she chattered enthusiatically. "Your parents decided to stay on the first floor with my parents, so you, Chouji, and I have the entire second floor to ourselves. Though," she added as an afterthought, "Chouji will probably want to stay downstairs in the kitchen all day."

Shikamaru suddenly tripped on nothing. Ino stared at him with raised eyebrows. "Are you okay?"

He looked at her with widened eyes. "We... we'll be all alone on the second floor?" he choked.

Ino was offended. "You don't have to look so upset," she snapped. "Mou, Shikamaru, you really know how to ruin a girl's mood."

Shikamaru turned away. "Um, that's my room, right?" he said hurriedly. "I think I'm going to turn in, for now."

"It's only four in the afternoon!"

"I'm kind of tired from my last mission," Shikamaru coughed.

"Oh, ok." Ino instantly changed her demeanor and looked at him with concern. "You'd better go in, then. I'll tuck you in."

Shikamaru frowned. "I'm not five, you know," he said tartly.

"I know," Ino said, insulted. "I just feel like doing it. It feels nice when someone tucks you in bed, though - that's why I offered."

Shikamaru's eyes softened. His lips stretched into the tiniest of smiles. "That's cute."

Ino blushed. "What?" she said disbelievingly. "D-did you just say..."

Without an answer, Shikamaru disappeared into his room, leaving a red-faced Ino in the hallway.

The next morning, Ino saw neither hide nor hair of him. She checked his room, but it was empty. She waited all day for him, but he never came. By the time the sun had set, Ino was in a foul mood.

"Just wait until I get my hands on that infuriating idiot," she muttered to herself as she peeled her clothes off and threw them on her bed. Since no one was on the second floor, she decided that it was safe to use the big bathroom at the other end of the hall. It wouldn't take more than fifteen minutes, anyway.

The first thing she wondered when she opened the door was why there was steam coming out of the bathroom when she didn't hear the sound of the shower. Curious, she stepped inside and clutched her towel tighter around herself before walking further on to the shower. Maybe Okaa-chan took a shower and left the water running, she thought. What she saw made her jaw drop and freeze in her steps.

Shikamaru was standing there, facing mirror and sink, staring at nothing in particular. His gaze was distant and dreamy, and he was obviously not paying attention. His damp hair hung loose and soft down to his shoulders, and drops of water still clung to his bare skin. All he wore was a thin, white towel barely hanging on his slim hips.

Ino's eyes traced slowly over his sleek form, conditioned by years of ninja training, and suddenly felt the urge to bury her fingers in his thick, dark hair. She felt something stir inside her, and her heart pounded against her ribcage.

She squeaked.

At the sound, Shikamaru started and glanced to his left. The sight that greeted his eyes made him swallow hard. Ino was frozen before him, large expanses of skin bared to the humid, warm air. She was richly yet softly curved, her eyes a startling contrast to her pale skin and hair.

They stared at each other for a few more minutes before what was happening registered fully in their minds. Ino really couldn't help it. Automatically, she opened her mouth and screamed. At the same time, Shikamaru let out a terrific yell.

Seconds after, they heard the sounds of approaching, hurried footsteps. Wide-eyed, they realized their mistake and simultaneously made a dash to the door to lock it. Being found together half-naked in the bathroom by everyone in the house was not an option. However, it didn't turn out exactly the way they had meant it to. At the last minute, Ino slipped and gripped the towel rack so as to not fall and break her face on the floor. Shikamaru, not expecting this, slammed into her, pressing her tightly to the wall. They stared at each other, red-faced, fully aware of the intimate contact of their bodies.

Before they knew it, their parents and the Akimichis slammed the bathroom door open, expecting some kind of danger. They were stunned by what they saw.

"Oh," was all that the poor, laid-back fathers of Ino and Shikamaru could say.

Chouji grinned. "Wow, Shikamaru, I never knew you had it in you! I guess the quiet ones really are -" Before he could say anything else, his gigantic father clapped his hand over his son's mouth.

"Let's go," he suggested to the others. "Sorry for, uh, disturbing you." They all hastily moved out and shut the door tightly behind them.

"S-sorry," Shikamaru muttered, pulling away. He politely turned his head from her. "This is so troublesome," he muttered, still a bright shade of red.

"N-no," Ino stammered back, clutching her towel so tightly that she was sure the fabric would rip. "I'm sorry. I-it was my f-fault."

She ran away before Shikamaru could say anything else.

Just the memory of the event made the blood rush up to her face. Since then, she hadn't been able to wipe the image of Shikamaru, wet from the shower and pretty much in the nude, from her mind.

The rest of the weekend had been terribly awkward. They had cleared out everything with their dubious parents and apologized fervently to each other, but they couldn't help feeling strange and uncomfortable around each other and spent most of the time locking themselves away in their rooms. For a month, they had avoided each other like the plague, and then Shikamaru had left on a long mission. Ino hadn't had the opportunity to say goodbye to him because he had gone without warning. Basically, it meant that she hadn't spoken to him since that weekend.

Another memory came to mind. After the incident, Shikamaru had assured her that he thought of her as nothing but a friend. The memory still stung. She had run away from him that day, too. Ino still couldn't understand why she had done that, but she could remember the heaviness in her lungs and the sobs that had later wracked her frame.

At first, she had wondered if it was because she had feelings for Shikamaru. She had actually wondered about this many times over the past five years, ever since he had made his shall we say "grand debut" in the chuunin exams at the age of thirteen. It was then that people began noticing him and setting him apart for his brilliance. For some reason, Ino had felt unreasonably jealous when other girls approached him to compliment him on his performance. She knew she should have been happy for him, but she couldn't help the rising anger inside her when a somewhat pretty girl obviously found his scowl and grumpy mannerisms cute and amusing; Ino had always been good at reading the signs of a crush, since she was an expert in matters of love. The one person she couldn't really see through was Shikamaru. No matter what he did, it was impossible to tell what he was really thinking.

But every time, she had dismissed the possibility of her having feelings for him. It just wasn't likely. Lazy, infuriating, sarcastic Shikamaru? No way. He was just an important friend, and the explanation satisfied her at each moment of doubt.

Ino was determined to act normal when she arrived at the gathering at Ichiraku's. After all, Sasuke would be there.

Shikamaru looked around and sighed. The place was empty. Great. It was just his luck that his mother had decided to adjust the time on his alarm clock so that he wouldn't be late.

"How troublesome," he muttered as he took a seat at a table and looked around. Ichiraku had expanded, since, because a promoted Naruto had brought unexpectedly good business to the place. Now they had a full-blown restaurant, and were very popular with the younger generation. With a sigh, Shikamaru closed his eyes and decided to take a nap.

"Shikamaru-kun?"

Shikamaru opened his eyes. Tenten was standing in front of him, bright and fresh- looking in a light, flowery summer dress. For once, her hair was down and flowing, and she was holding a small purse which matched her dress perfectly. "Tenten," he acknowledged. "It's been a long time."

Before she could say anything, a group of girls arrived. "Ohayo, Tenten!" Sakura greeted, then stared down at Shikamaru. "Shikamaru. You're early!" she exclaimed, startled.

"It's not my fault," Shikamaru grumbled. "My clock was about thirty minutes too fast. Damn mothers."

"Ohayo, Shikamaru-kun," Hinata said shyly.

"Ohayo, Hinata-chan." Shikamaru suddenly realized that he didn't know more than half of the girls who were accompanying the pink-haired kunoichi and the Hyuuga heir. "Um..."

Sakura noticed the problem first. "Shikamaru, don't you remember everyone?" she demanded.

Shikamaru scratched his head. "No... Should I?" he asked.

Sakura gave him a reproachful look. "They're you old classmates from the Academy!"

"Really?" Shikamaru was surprised. "Sorry, you all grew up so much, I didn't recognize you." Inwardly, he groaned. Great, more girls, he complained.

There was a general chorus of giggles. "It's okay," one spoke up. She had light brown hair tied into a high ponytail and blue eyes. "We all remember you, Shikamaru-kun. You've made quite a name for yourself." She giggled again.

I have? Shikamaru wondered. A feeling of suspicion rose inside him. I don't remember being all too popular back at school. How would they remember me? I was pretty much invisible, wasn't I? He stared at the bunch of tittering girls. And was what I said really that funny?

Tenten hadn't seen her sullen underclassman since the chuunin exams which took place when she was fourteen. She had crossed paths with her other younger friends - many times, actually - over the years, but, for some reason, Shikamaru was much harder to run into. According to Chouji, this was mainly due to Shikamaru's reticent personality - the young genius was like an old man in a young body. In the girls-only days she had with Ino and Sakura (both whom she had gotten close to; after all, until she had met them, she had been mostly surrounded by boys because she had been the only girl in her year to become a genin right after graduation), the former often complained that Shikamaru alienated himself from his friends too much. Tenten briefly wondered why it was that the geniuses of Konoha were always antisocial and solitary in nature; Neji was also a prime example.

She had expected for some change to have taken place in Shikamaru, but the result still took her by surprise. His mind, disposition to others, and general behaviour seemed no different from before, but his physical appearance and presence had greatly altered. The features that had been perfectly suited for scowling and various other facial contortions of annoyance had spread and smoothed over supple, sculpted planes of dusky skin. Her attention was especially drawn to his strangely alluring dark eyes and the curve of his full lips - edges tugged down to achieve that distinct look of discontent ever-present on his face -, which gave an oddly sultry quality to his scowl. His dark hair was still as prickly as ever - Tenten used to wonder if hair really did represent the owner's character; in Shikamaru's case, it certainly did -, but for some reason, it now made him strangely appealing to the visual senses.

Like all shinobi, he was built for speed and strength, but his posture was more slumped and relaxed - very much like Kakashi-sensei's - and everything about him screamed idleness and boredom. He had also really shot up in height; he could have easily towered over Naruto, who hadn't really grown much throughout the years and was a little vertically challenged, to tell the truth. Shikamaru was even on par with Kiba and Shino, who were both extremely tall. However, Tenten was startled to find herself wishing that he wasn't wearing his chuunin vest, thus exposing the net he wore underneath which, honestly, couldn't really be counted as a real piece of clothing. A quick glance around her gave her the strong suspicion that the other females in the group were thinking along the same lines.

"Handsome" would not have been quite the right word to describe Shikamaru, Tenten realized. She pondered for a few minutes before into her mind. Sensual. Yes, there was something she couldn't quite put her finger on which was very sexual about him.

She smiled. How people do grow, she thought whimsically.

Meanwhile, Sakura was highly amused at the attention the grouchy chuunin was getting from her friends. You would have never thought that things would turn out this way, she reflected. A quick glance at Shikamaru told her that, at the moment, he would have liked nothing better than taking a nap and was annoyed by the sudden invasion of his personal space.

It was true that the way Shikamaru had grown had taken everyone by surprise. After all, who would have thought that surliness could be so oddly alluring? And Shikamaru hadn't been the only one to take people unaware. The entire group of "losers" from the Academy had taken the spotlight since graduation. Naruto was beyond doubt one of the most powerful ninja of Konoha, and he was still progressing steadily. His dream of becoming Hokage didn't seem so unrealistic, now, what with being so strong and the well-known favorite of the Godaime. Today, to laugh at his ambitions would be proof of deep-rooted idiocy. Kiba was extremely strong and acknowledged as the most promising heir of the Inuzuka Clan since his legendary ancestor. As for Chouji, ever since he mastered his father's special jutsu, he became an indispensable tool for the protection of Konoha.

Lee became a symbol of strength and courage for the entire village. Tales of his tribulations spread throughout the village, and there was a new sense of respect for him. His nindo inspired many people, and caused a major upheaval among the students of the Academy and his former classmates. Without knowing it, Lee had given a reason to people who were considered "average" and who had no motivation to work hard. The adults were pleased by his influence and found him a source for a new zeal to educate and train their young subordinates

(nindo: way of the ninja)

Sasuke became unbelievably strong, too, but was no longer labeled as the strongest of his generation. Naruto had him beat in that category. However, Sasuke still monopolized the domain of male good looks with his naturally silky ebony hair, fierce dark eyes, and pale skin. For her part, Sakura decided to follow the path of medic-nin, and found herself well- suited to the nurturing role. She was by no means a genius like her former teammates, and had a very normal reserve of chakra, but she had trained her sharp mind into a veritable treasure-trove of jutsus and techniques. Besides, being a medic-nin required a lot of memorization. Anatomy was a highly complex subject of study, and Sakura was well- equipped to deal with this kind of knowledge.

Ino was in a different category from her friends, however. Her mind-controlling family specialty jutsus were an important advantage for Konoha. She had a subtlety and mastery of manipulation that were extremely useful in undercover missions and espionage. Her extensive experience in the field of femininity also was an essential factor in her popularity as a spy. With only a few cosmetics, she could completely alter her appearance and still look completely natural instead of suffocating behind special masks which had the dangerous possibility of chipping or flaking.

Hinata had worked hard for years to achieve the level of a worthy Hyuuga head of family with Hiashi and Neji's steady guidance. She also dabbled in the medical arts with Sakura, using her Byakugan as a tool to better analyze someone's state in a critical condition. Hinata had even discovered a way to repair chakra systems thanks to her eyes, and heightened the efficiency of her healing creams. She often worked with Sakura, and they had become good friends, despite the large differences in their characters.

Tenten trained hard, as well, and became the best marks-woman in all of Konoha. Having learned her lesson in the match against Temari five years ago, she also expanded her field of expertise into difficult jutsus. The elders were seriously considering her as a candidate for the position of a hunter-nin because of her accuracy with senbon needles and her skill at concealment.

Neji had found a new place in the Hyuuga family as the future head's most favored cousin and as a prized student of Hyuuga Hiashi, who took special pleasure in training such a talented young man. It was likely that when Hinata would take her position as leader, Neji would be given an extremely important role in the family. This prestige attributed to the genius made everyone address him with the same reverence they did his gentle cousin. Neji also put an end to the fear of the Hyuugas that in having a subdued, soft-spoken leader like Hinata, their importance in Konoha would decline. Having Neji, the clan's strongest member, by Hinata's side was like an assurance that the Hyuuga Clan would continue to prosper, and, in turn, Hinata's sweet and compassionate hand would pacify him and keep him under control.

Temari, the only girl in that circle of friends from a different country, gained a reputation as a analytical genius, and was aiming to become the first female Kazekage. Things seemed favorable for her, as she was the former Kazekage's daughter and had a particular talent for organization and leadership. After Gaara and Naruto's confrontation, she had strengthened her relationship with her two brothers and discovered a strangely strong sense of family within. Gaara had blossomed in the new environment he was surrounded by. He was now much gentler, and everyone discovered that he actually was loving and trusting in nature, much like Naruto, though they had to dig deep to find this side of him. Five years of care and new, solid friendships brought out a will of iron that tamed even the demon inside. He and Naruto had worked together to control the demons within, and the effort had been worthwhile. Gaara could now sleep peacefully. He was still frightening in his own way and a powerful enemy, but no threat to those close to him.

As for what remained of the legendary nine rookie genins of Konoha who saved the country... Well, Shino was Shino. He was the one who changed the least. Having already attained a grave maturity at the age of twelve, all that was left for him was improving his skills. Which he did like he did all things. Very quietly. Er, which also leads us to wonder about what other things he did quietly, anyway. Ahem.

Their teachers continued to do what they always did; after all, they had already undergone the great period of change in their lives. It was no surprise when Kakashi and Iruka got together; the couple caused a sensation in the peaceful village, but they had too much respect for the Academy teacher to badmouth him and feared the reputation of the infamous Copy Ninja. Kurenai and Asuma were still playing their little game of touch-and- go, much to the frustration of their students. Gai took on a new team of genin, of whom two decided to don the formidable green bodysuit and orange stockings, and bleached their teeth a brilliant white.

Sakura smiled. Change was a frightening thing, but can often be for the better. She felt incredibly lucky to be in the midst of all these positive changes, though she sometimes missed the old days.

She smiled even wider when she saw her fashionable light-blonde friend enter Ichiraku. From the look the girl was giving her former teammate who was the center of attention in the restaurant, Sakura had a feeling that, soon, another pleasant change would occur.

A.N. Please review me and tell me what you think! I've been planning on writing this for a long time... I hope I didn't stuff in too much stuff for just one chapter. Writing Shikamaru is strangely addictive, I must say (I know I said that in the author's note in my one-shot ShikaIno fic, but I can't help saying it again). By the way, does anyone know when the third Naruto OST will come out?