Oh my god, it's actually snowing! Ino thought as she ran over to slide open her front door. Just as she was about to clasp the handle, the door was forced open and two familiar faces smiled back at her. Well, one smiled, the other had the same blank, bored look he usually had. Her two teammates, Shikamaru Nara and Chouji Akimichi stood anxiously in her doorway.
"Hi Ino!" Chouji greeted her happily, waving once with his large hand. Ino glanced at Shikamaru, and he nodded his head in recognition, but kept his hands in his pockets. "I guess you've seen the snow?"
Ino grinned, moving out of the way to let the boys inside. "Yeah, I was just going to see it before you guys came. Did you walk all the way over here?"
"Yeah, it's fine. And I know how you love the snow," Chouji added as he shuffled inside the doorway, "so I guessed you were pretty excited. We thought you'd want to come play with us."
"Oh, yeah, sure, that sounds awesome!" Ino agreed, before realizing what she was wearing. She blushed, looking down at her indigo pajamas. "Oh but I'd have to get ready. Are you guys okay with just waiting in here for a while? I'm sure my mom has snacks or something."
There's nothing like the mention of food to grab Chouji's attention, Ino laughed inside her head. Shikamaru sighed, "Just don't take too long. We have... something to do."
Ino cocked her eyebrow at him suspiciously. "Something to do?" she wondered.
Chouji chuckled. "Lady Tsunade brought some Sand shinobi over to help with a cultural festival we're doing for Christmas. They'll be here for about a month or so. Shikamaru, the kind and selfless man he is, offered to help out with showing them around and things."
Of course it would have something to do with Temari, Ino thought. Temari was a jonin from the allied hidden sand village, which Shikamaru had grown quite a liking to. She was very beautiful, and Ino didn't blame him for being so infatuated with her. She had sandy blonde hair, which she tied back into four ponytails at the back, and piercing blue eyes. Though her personality didn't quite match Shikamaru's laid back attitude, they had spent a lot of time together when Ino's team had a mission in Sunakagure last, and Ino knew for a fact that they'd been sending messenger birds to each other since then.
Shikamaru shrugged, but the annoyance in his eyes was still noticeable. "Tch, they helped us a lot last time we were there, so I'm just returning the favour."
"Sure," Chouji reassured him, patting him on the back. "We know, buddy, we know."
Ino giggled, before saying, "Oh, but I'll try to be quick!" and running off into her bedroom.
Once they had gotten outside, Ino was awestruck. She truly did love the snow, but they usually didn't get snow until mid-January, and here it was looking pure white at the beginning of December.
"Talk about an early winter. Snow is such a drag," Shikamaru grumbled, trudging through the snow covered path towards town square.
"I love the snow!" Ino sang, skipping along ahead of them in her pale violet snow boots.
"Yeah," Chouji and Shikamaru said in unison. "We know."
Ino turned around, and stared blankly at them, confused at their irritation.
"You mention it only about three times per minute. Not a big deal. So not annoying or anything," Shikamaru commented sarcastically, rolling his eyes.
Ino pouted and walked slower so they could catch up.
"Chouji, aren't you cold? You don't have a jacket on or anything," she said after a while. Chouji was surprised at how genuinely concerned she seemed.
He just laughed. "Body warmth, and I have lots of body, so I got lots of warmth."
"Well if you need any more, let me know," Ino winked at him, and walked a bit closer so their hands occasionally brushed. Chouji couldn't stop blushing, and didn't know whether or not to put his arm around her. He thought better of it, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. He didn't know if Ino liked him that way, or if she was just being her usual Ino. Chouji knew quite well that Ino flirted (and did a lot more) with a lot of guys, and could never tell if she was being serious.
His decision was probably the best when he realized it wasn't just Temari they were meeting, she had her younger brother Kankurou, and a Sunakagure elder in tow. The elder looked very fragile (in her late sixties) but still tough to beat in battle. She was wearing an orange, beige, and red patterned kimono, with grey hair tied back into a bun and looked like she hadn't smiled in a very long time.
"Hey," Shikamaru said, smiling a lot more than he usually did. "Welcome to Konohagakure."
Temari replied with a smirk, noticing the effect she had on him.
"Thank you. You are Shikamaru of the Nara clan, are you not?" The elder greeted them, holding out a frail, wrinkled hand. "I am Asari Takahashi, from the village hidden in the sand."
Shikamaru shook her hand, as did Ino and Chouji, introducing themselves.
"Don't worry about introducing us, Granny, they know who we are," Kankurou said conceitedly. Asari turned and smacked him in the stomach, causing Kankurou to keel forward.
"Don't you start callin' me Granny. I might have a few years on you, but it doesn't mean you can disrespect! Now, introduce yourself."
Kankurou glared at the woman, before looking straight into Ino's eyes, advancing his arm forward. "Nice to meet you, I'm Kankurou."
Ino stared at him for a few moments, before realizing she would have to respond.
"Oh, um, yes.. You too," she said awkwardly, shaking his hand and pulling it away as fast as possible.
Ino and Kankurou definitely had their little bit of history, and Chouji and Shikamaru knew it. The last mission they had at the sand, they were there all summer, and Ino had gotten a bit restless without her usual routine of slacking off and partying. She wasn't that big on hiding the fact she tended to sleep around with guys she barely knew, even though she was a bit more secretive with Kankurou.
Kankurou smiled falsely at Asari before stepping back and defiantly crossing his arms. He kept his eyes intent on Ino, an intrigued smirk on his face. Ino avoided his stare and turned towards Asari and Temari.
"We're all so glad you were able to come to the festival. Lady Tsunade was very happy when she received your confirmation letter," Ino said sweetly, smiling innocently. Shikamaru coughed, covered the small laugh that had surfaced. Like Lady Tsunade could be happy about anything, he scoffed to himself.
"Would you like a tour?" Chouji offered. He attempted to grin, but yet he couldn't take the angry glare off his face whenever he looked at Kankurou.