Pairings: Shika/Ino

A/N: This is my first attempt at this couple, so please be gentle with me! ( ,)

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, Temari would be run over by something big and heavy!

You're My Sky

Ino sighed as she wandered through the streets of Konoha, boredom beginning to weigh her down. She'd spent the past hour or so arguing with Billboard Brow just for something to do. She'd even tried to track down Sasuke, but apparently he'd disappeared off somewhere and not even Ino's fangirl GPS could find him. Sighing once again Ino decided to just go home. Figuring it would at least kill some more time, she took the long way home.

She was passing a hill on the outskirts of the town when she noticed a blob of something on the slope near the top. Her curiousity piqued, she decided to investigate. As she got closer to the top, she realised that the blob was person shaped. Frowning, she tried to figure out who it could be. Not many people wandered out this far unless they had some kind of specific plan, and as far as she could see the person on the hill was doing nothing. When she finally reached the pinnacle, she started her trek towards the mysterious person. A few seconds later she froze, finally able to identify the person lying on the ground. She grimaced and tried to edge back the way she came.

"I already know you're there so there's no point trying to sneak away again."

Ino growled, stormed over and plonked herself down beside the irritating individual. Said individual spared her a brief glance before shaking his head and sighing.

"Troublesome woman."

The glare he was shot was completely ignored, as was Ino herself. After a few minutes of silence boredom set in again. Looking to her left she saw Shikamaru lying back with his hands behind head and his eyes shut. She started throwing grass at him, hoping for a reaction. After about half an acre of grass Ino poked him in the side. A grunt followed by an eye being cracked open in her direction.

"What?"

"C'mon, talk to me or something!"

"You said you prefer when I don't talk in front, near, or around you."

"Well why did you ask me to sit down if you weren't going to talk to me??"

"I didn't ask you to sit down."

"Yes you did!"

"No I didn't. I just said there was no point sneaking away and you came over and sat down."

He smirked.

"Obviously you can't stay away from me."

Ino just punched him in the shoulder. Shikamaru sighed and closed his eyes again.

"But I'm bored!"

No reply. Ino huffed.

"Why do you even come out here anyway? I so don't understand what you get from staring at clouds for hours at a time."

Shikamaru's eyes opened, but he kept staring at the sky. Ino turned to look at him, wondering if he'd answer her. Finally...

"Lie back."

"What?!"

"Lie down."

"What? Why??"

"You wanted to know why I spent so much time out here right? Well lie down and you'll know."

After letting her opinion be known by making a 'pfft' sound, Ino lay down on the grass and looked up. She inhaled sharply. From where they were lying there was no sign of any buildings. No skyline to break the view, no sounds to break the silence. When she looked up, all she could see was blue with patches of white lazily skimming across it. Ino felt all her problems melt away as she was sucked further into the horizon.

"It's beautiful."

She turned her head to look in Shikamaru's direction. He was still gazing at the sky, almost adrift from the real world. She turned her head back to continue staring up at the clouds. Shikamaru glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, wondering if she really did get it.

"It's like nothing matters anymore, everything just goes away until it's just you and the sky."

Shikamaru's eyes widened a little. He never would've pegged Ino as being deep. He nodded and raised his eyes skyward again.

"That's why I like it up here. You can't hear or see the village, it's just you and your thoughts and even they get swept away by it all."

Ino was staring at him now. She rarely heard him say this much in one go. She was a little surprised when he turned his head to look at her.

"Places like this keep a person sane when they're swimming in blood."

Unable to meet the expression in his eyes, Ino returned her gaze to the sky. She could feel him pulling away from her. She realised, now that he was talking to her, she didn't want to lose it.

"You're lucky."

He stopped moving.

"You've managed to find somewhere safe, somewhere you don't have to think about the things we face every day."

She raised her arm and opened her hand, palm out, to the heavens.

"Maybe it's the colours or maybe because it isn't anything really, but you can't help forgetting when you're faced with this. When compared to something as...neverending as the sky, we and our problems seem so insignificant. It's hard to worry about something so small."

Shikamaru was openly staring at her now. He'd never thought somebody else would get it, why he found cloud-gazing so peaceful. And discovering that that person was Ino... The girl in question was facing him, meeting his stare head on.

He'd never told her, probably because he'd never hear the end of it, but her eyes reminded him of the sky. When he looked at her he found the same peaceful feeling as when he stared at the clouds. He told her that her eyes were like the sky to him and she blushed and moved her head away again.

"You make me calm."

She kept her eyes averted but her blush deepened.

"Yeah? Well you enrage me."

He laughed quietly.

"Glad I can be of some assistance."

Her reply was so quiet he almost missed it.

"Likewise."

He smiled as he gazed upwards.

He could sense Ino fidgeting like she was trying to make her mind up about something. Then he felt her shift slightly so that she ended up closer to him. He heard a sigh and a 'hmph' as she tried to make herself not care. When she was settled Shikamaru took his right arm from under his head and left it lying between them. After a moment he heard the rustle of grass, then the feeling of her hand beside his. Their little fingers were just brushing against each other, but that was all either of them needed. Shikamaru smiled as he closed his eyes again.

He was calm.

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