Author's Note: I do not own Naruto or the lyrics. The lyrics are from the song "My Fault" by Imagine Dragons. This takes place before Shippuden. This is written for the Song Time Challenge from the Anime and Manga Fanfiction Challenges forum.


Shikamaru stood outside in the cold, wet weather with his team waiting for Asuma to arrive. It had been raining off and on all day. They were talking about what they had done over the weekend while they waited. Shikamaru was debating on joining in and how it would be of any importance. He continued thinking to himself, 'Just to make my mind seem clear.'

Shikamaru finally joined the conversation, "I took a walk on a Saturday night."

Ino and Choji looked at their teammate and silently wondered how he was doing. He had been out of it ever since the girl from the Sand Village had left. Everytime Choji and Ino would mention it, he would change the topic or ignore them. Ino stood there trying to come up with a comparison for how Shikamaru's mind had been working lately. Ino had come up with the answer, "Fog in the air."

Shikamaru and Choji gave her looks like she was crazy. Choji decided to try to change the topic, "I see my breath pushing steam through the air."

Ino and Shikamaru nodded in agreement. Ino stared at Shikamaru, waiting for him to open up about his thoughts. The silence between them continued as they waited for Asuma to arrive. Shikamaru's attention shifted to a puddle on the ground. He noticed his reflection in the puddle, and noticed all his flaws. He saw how weak he was, and how he wasn't brave enough to attempt a long distance relationship with Temari. Shikamaru was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn't notice that it had started sprinkling. The silence was broken when Shikamaru suddenly broke down, "Where do I go from here?"

Choji and Ino stood shocked at how Shikamaru broke down so suddenly. Shikamaru hardly noticed the events going on around him, 'Shaking hands run through my hair.'

Choji went running to find Asuma like Ino had told him to, while Ino stayed to try and calm Shikamaru down. Ino hugged Shikamaru, as he asked, "Is it my fault?"

Ino hugged Shikamaru tightly as she looked around to see if Choji was coming back with Asuma yet. Shikamaru spoke a little above a whisper, "We've been missing each other, Now I stand alone."

Ino decided to unsuccessfully attempt to coax him into going home. Shikamaru's daze continued, 'Asking why I'm here instead of home.'

Ino decided to ask Shikamaru how long he had been going through this. Shikamaru replied, "On the warmest night, in the brightest light, when the world is moving…"

Ino stared at Shikamaru in shock about how calm he had been through the majority of the time that Temari had been gone. Ino hugged Shikamaru, while he finally cried about not being with the one he loved.

Asuma and Choji arrived to the sight of Shikamaru crying in Ino's arms. Choji joined his team in a group hug. Asuma smiled at how well his team was able to get along, how much they cared about each other, and trust one another.