"Describe your family!" the cheery academy teacher smiled, clapping her hands together in glee at the punishment she had just meted out upon her students. Shikadai sighed, this was troublesome to say the least, why did the Hokage have to implement these imbecilic communication courses. Surely friendship and camaraderie could be fostered via less troublesome and irritating ways.
His classmates evidently thought it was troublesome too. It seemed like Inojin was the only one listening. Bolt was snickering some scheme to the Inzuka kid in a corner. Sarada seemed more engrossed reading a scroll. And Chocho had just called in sick… again. She was probably eating dangos or something with Anko. He sank into the soft pillow of his arms, his dad was going to hear about how stupid and ridiculous this new lesson was.
Something hit his head with a soft thunk. "Ow…" he groaned, rubbing the sore spot on his head. He scowled at the excessively happy woman at the front of the classroom, she had probably thrown chalk or something at him.
"Nara kun," his cheerful teacher beamed with what seemed like an impossibly large smile that mirrored the uncomfortably happy suns in kindergarten storybooks, "would you like to tell us about your family?"
"No." he replied shortly, giving her a look of disgust which his mother frequently used to make his father shut up. The teacher's smile became more strained and he could almost see the veins on her forehead throbbing with irritation. Well, wasn't this a pleasant sight. Troublesome but most certainly entertaining. He heard a low whistle from the back of the classroom. He had now caught Bolt's attention, this was probably going to be good.
With a smile that was growing more saccharine and plastic by the second, the teacher struck him with a poisonous glare. "Nara kun, I insist you tell us about your family. One word to describe them is more than enough."
"Fine," Shikadai snapped, "partisan." He sank back down into his seat. The room was stuffy and uncomfortable and the summer heat was making his lethargy even worse. This was the perfect weather for cloud gazing and napping. He could almost see the fluffy white cotton clouds drifting in the sea of azure blue, maybe this lesson would end soon or he could just sneak out and create a shadow clone in his place. But it would all be too troublesome, maybe now that he had just answered that woman's question, she would let him nap in peace.
She didn't. Wantanabe Ikuyo was an ambitious young woman who had her eye on an administrative post in Konoha's education ministry and if whipping a bunch of bratty academy children into shape was what it took to secure her a spot, then she would goddamn do it. Remember to be polite, keep your cool, she told herself as she pushed down the thought of throwing the boy into a well.
"What do you mean by partisan Nara-kun?" she asked, willing the boy to finally be polite for once in his bratty little life and give her a proper answer instead of sarcastic remarks. Ikuyo almost growled when she saw a smile play on the boy's face and he replied.
"You don't understand what partisan means?"
Shikadai almost laughed with joy when the woman had told him to get out of her class and march down to the principal's office. He liked the office, there was air conditioning and he could nap there until his parents arrived. That would take approximately an hour and while his mother would nag, he could easily tune it out. He was more than used to it.
Strolling into the room, he greeted the clerk politely and took his usual seat, the one furthest from the door and nearest to the fan. Peace at last, he almost murmured to himself and closed his heavy lids, drifting to sleep.
The angry and irritated voice of his mother woke him up. "Nara Shikadai! What are you doing here again? Have you not learnt to be polite?" Temari towered over him, her dark green eyes glaring into his. If looks could kill, he would have been begging for refuge in hell.
"Yeah yeah yeah," he replied, rubbing the sleep away from his eyes. His father was standing behind his mother smirking at his misery. Stupid old man, couldn't he just come to his rescue for once.
Grinning, Nara Shikamaru gave a small chortle at his son's fate. Temari immediately turned on him, "What the hell are you laughing at? He's being impudent, how the hell is he supposed to be a good nin if he doesn't listen to orders?" she half shrieked, raining her fury on him. Great, Shikadai scowled, they were arguing again.
"Well, it's a pretty good move to get out of class to nap in the coolest and quietest area in the school," his father offered in his defense. His mother's eyes widened in rage.
"And you're encouraging him?"
"Well, it's a small but brilliant strategy which is a stepping stone to larger better ones when he grows older," his father raised his hands in an attempt to try and placate his irate wife.
He failed. "Are you joking? You're affirming his laziness? My son is not going to be some lazy slacker." His mother had begun pacing back and forth in front of them, her hands balled into fists.
"Calm down, Temari, you're overreacting again. I'm sure he'll buck up. Right son?" his father turned to him, urging for him to give some look of affirmation to help his case. Feeling pity for how whipped his father was, he vigorously nodded his head.
"Don't tell me to calm down!" His mother glared at both male Naras, "He's obviously lying."
Shikadai sighed and slid lower into his seat to the soft whine of the vinyl cushions. Why couldn't they just cooperate for once? He saw Miss Wanatanbe in a corner watching the debacle that was his parents. The look of shock and amusement on her face registered her understanding of his description of his family situation.
Partisan. The Nara family was most certainly partisan.