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Author's Note: This story is completely fan made, and will center mostly around Ino and Shikamaru's relationship after the war. I'm aware Shikamaru and Temari end up together in the canon, however I wanted to write a story about how it might have gone for Ino and himself. Chapters will usually be long in length, so I will not update frequently, but I shall try to update once a week. xoxo Chrissy

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PART ONE

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"Because everything of value that we will know in this life comes from our relationships with those around us. Because there is nothing material that measures against the intangibles of love and friendship."

-R.A. Salvatore

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She raked her hip length blonde hair into a loose ponytail and draped it over her slender shoulder. The tresses fell like silk as she ran a wooden comb through the strands. With her lithe fingers, she broke the ponytail into three sections and began to braid. As she crisscrossed her hair strands, she began to subconsciously hum a little song. Her blue eyes were staring down at her white wood vanity that was littered with pieces of jewelry, makeup, and nail polishes. It wasn't often she got to doll herself up, but she had an addiction to the glitz and glam. Just as she reached the end of her hair, she tied it off and tugged at the crisscrossed sections, shaping them like hearts. Traditionally she would wear her hair up in a high ponytail or a classic ballerina bun, but today was special.

It was Valentine's Day, the day of love. Her family's flower shop would probably be bustling with last minute shoppers. She glanced at the clock on the corner of the vanity and sighed. The shop would be opening an hour earlier than usual to handle the bulk of people. She reached for a tube of her favorite lipstick and pressed it against her lips staining them as red as rose petals. Popping her lips, the blonde gazed at herself in the mirror, the red of her lips contrasted beautifully against her porcelain skin, and curly lashes coated in her favorite mascara. A small sigh escaped her, but she pushed away any negatives to being alone on Valentine's Day. It would be her first Valentine's Day without her father or her two best friends. She didn't often refer to her two teammates as best friends, but she had to admit they were two of the best things in her life.

"Ino! Honey! Are you awake? The store is opening in fifteen minutes!" her mother hollered from the kitchen at the opposite end of the house. Since the passing of her father a year ago, Ino and her mother had taken on Yamanaka Flower's all on their own. For this holiday though, they had to hire some extra help. The young woman called out to her mother, saying she was just getting dressed.

She stood from her cushioned stool and walked over to her closet. Her hands ran over the various types of fabrics in an array of vivid color. Ino was a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf, and a recent inductee of the Torture and Interrogation Unit. She knew her father would have been so proud of her. It was just unfortunate that he hadn't gotten the chance to see her become a member of the TI Unit. Many members who knew her father before spoke highly of him, and assured her that she would exceed his expectations of her. Whether that was true or not would never be known to her, but she liked to believe that was true.

Ino's father had been the Chairman of the TI Unit, and just before the war that took his life and many others, he had brought her along on several occasions. The Yamanaka Clan were esteemed for their brilliance and mastery of mind walking. They were the epitome of sabotage missions, and exceled in collecting Intel from enemies with their signature Mind Transfer Jutsu. Since she was ten years old, Ino had trained intensely to get the most out of that jutsu. According to many other clan members, and her father, Ino was adept in the jutsu and could potentially become one of the best users in the clan. That theory faltered after the loss of her father, Ino had turned away from that jutsu for several months after the war.

Ibiki Morino, her current mentor and longtime friend of her father, had convinced her that she couldn't throw away her father's legacy. He told her that she was far too talented to waste such a gift that her father left her. After hearing those words from Ibiki, Ino finally conceded and began to train for the entrance qualifying exam. Needless to say, Ibiki pushed Ino harder than he pushed most. He tested her physically and mentally for three months, and on the day of the exam, Ino had passed with the highest marks of her class. She deserved to have that kind of accomplishment under her belt. Ibiki had told her that same day that her father would have been so proud of her.

That day happened only a couple of months ago, and since then Ino has been regarded highly among every member of the TI Unit. The other day, Ibiki had brought her to her father's office and told her that it would now be hers. Unfortunately, Ino was not ready to take her father's office. She couldn't bring herself to take all of his belongings out and stuff it in a box for storage. She refused the office, telling Ibiki that one day she would be ready to take her father's office, but that day had not yet arrived.

"Ino!" her mother shouted, jolting her from her thoughts.

Shaking her head, the blonde quickly zipped up her dress and slipped on her favorite pair of dressy floral sandals. She yanked a black cardigan off of its hanger and slipped her arms through and pulled her hair out of it. As she stood in front of the mirror, Ino licked her lips and combed her bangs behind her ear. The skirt of her dress was a silky lavender material covered with two sheer matching colored mesh like material. The bodice was white and embellished with lace, making her appear romantic and classic.

She was beautiful.

Not even a minute later, Ino was in the kitchen where her mother was preparing a bento box for her. The brunette woman smiled as her daughter appeared under the archway, looking as lovely as ever. Taking a white dish cloth Ino's mother, Megumi Yamanaka, dried her hands and cupped her daughter's face in her hands. Ino smiled weakly as her mother kissed her cheek and gushed over how beautiful she looked. The blonde thanked her mom and walked around to the basket of fruits. She plucked out a banana and started to unpeel it while her mother closed up her bento box and handed it to her.

"I'll be there in half an hour," her mother said as Ino took the bento box.

Ino nodded and waved as she dashed out of the house. She skipped down her front porch steps and made her way down the road. Yamanaka Flowers was thankfully only two blocks down from her house. The morning sun was just beginning to seep through the streets as Ino walked on the road. Other shop owners were setting up their stores, cleaning their windows, and sweeping the floors. She smiled and greeted people kindly as she walked past them. Just as she rounded the corner, Ino entered the market district and spotted her family's flower shop on the far right corner just before Main Street.

She stopped in front of the shop and sighed softly. The day hadn't even begun and she already knew it wouldn't be as bright because her father wouldn't be there. He always loved Valentine's Day, because he loved to help men who were fumbling over what to do for last minute gifts. Ino kneeled down and pushed the flower pot by the door aside and reached for a silver key. When she unlocked the door and stepped inside, she flicked on the lights and gazed at the flower shop.

The flower shop had a particular scent, one that her father often smelled like. It was the smell of the earth after a rainstorm. Her father had told her that smell was called Petrichor. She loved that smell, it calmed her nerves and put her in the best possible mood. Ino closed her pretty blue eyes and took in a deep breath. The smell filled her nostrils, and she opened her eyes with a small smile on her face.

Ino made her way to the counter towards the back of the store and placed the key on it. She walked into the small break room they had, which was more like a supply closet with all the equipment they had littering the counters and shelves. There was a small refrigerator tucked into the corner beside the window that viewed the green house and display garden. Ino and her mother worked on it for months, designing it to be the garden her father always talked about. He always wanted to make a beautiful garden with a coffee and tea shop so people could just sit back and enjoy the flowers. Unfortunately, he was too busy to ever get to it. Ino and her mother made time though, they even put in a beautiful stone fountain, which was more of a wishing well.

Ino pushed the window open to let in the cool early spring air. The gurgling of the wishing well sang in her ears along with the soft melody of sparrows. As she walked out of the room, Ino looked around the shop at the plethora of roses, daisies, poppies, orchids, and lilies. She walked over to the wildflower display and pulled it into the middle of the main aisle. Hanging over head was an antique white and crystal chandelier, and it just glamourized the room as it hung over the sunflowers, daisies, and morning glories. She made her way up to the front and grabbed hold of a faded blue wooden wheelbarrow that was overflowing with flowering vines. She put it outside beside the clay flower pot by the front door.

When she walked back inside, she grabbed a couple of flower wreaths she and her mother had crafted yesterday afternoon. They were made of mesh wires with white and red roses weaved within them. It was beautiful as she hung them on the hooks screwed into the small trellis in front of the shop that were covered in dark green vines with lavender flowers. Ino walked into the middle of the street and looked at the setup, grinning at the romantic setting. Nodding her head, Ino went back into the store to organize a few more things before she'd have to open.

"Morning Ino," Sachi greeted. "Sorry I'm late, my son was being a little fussy." The woman who was speaking was in her late twenties, had tawny colored hair, fair skin, and bright green eyes. Ino's mother had hired her for the spring season to help out at the shop, especially since Ino would be working more with the TI Unit when summer came around.

"That's alright, I was just finishing setting up," Ino said with a smile as they both walked into the shop. "I'm going to set the tables out in the back, could you set up the rose display?" The blonde didn't really bother waiting for a reply as she walked out the back door. Sachi was good about her job, she always did as she was told.

The sun was shining bright in the back of the shop. The flowers were in full bloom and covered in a light dew. Ino walked into the middle of the garden and looked around with a smile. On the right side of the garden there was a wooden fence that she and her mother had converted into a wall of succulents. The various shades of green, yellows, and faded blues were earthy and calming. Directly before her was a greenhouse made only of old recycled windows. It took nearly four months to complete, but when it was finished it was the staple piece to the entire garden. Ino walked to the wishing fountain and stared into the water, watching her reflection ripple.

The blonde went to retrieve the white painted tables and chairs to place in the lush green grass. As she was setting up the final table, she heard the sound of creaking wood and turned around. A small smile crept onto her face as one of her best friends, Shikamaru Nara, leaned against the wooden beam of the porch. He dropped his pack on the ground beside him, and smiled at her. Ino placed the blue painted vase on the table and turned to face him completely. He had been on a mission in Suna for four months, and she had missed him every single day. They may have bickered often, but he was the one person that put up with her annoying girly complaints.

"I didn't know you were coming back," Ino said to him, flattening the skirt of her dress.

Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders. "I wasn't going to be back until next week," he explained with a light drawl in his voice. It appeared he'd been traveling all night long, she could tell from the bags under his eyes and the sand covering his shoes. "But something told me I should come back now."

Ino giggled lightly and walked over to him. "You look like shit," she said, and Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"Thank you," he replied sarcastically, and Ino chuckled. "You and Temari like to point that out. She said the same thing when I arrived in Suna."

Ino's smile faltered a bit at the mention of the Sand Princess, Temari Subaku. She was beautiful and smart, but above all else she had Shikamaru's eye. He would never admit it out loud, but Shikamaru liked Temari as more than just a friend. Ino could see them together, married and with children. Of course, Ino hated the thought of it. Not because she was jealous, but because if they ended up together, she feared that Shikamaru would leave. It was bad enough Chouji was hardly around, but now Shikamaru. Ino didn't want to lose any more people that she loved. Shikamaru would swear up and down that she wasn't going to lose Chouji or himself, but Ino knew better. They would be in love and wouldn't have time for her.

"How was your mission?" Ino asked politely when she noticed she hadn't said anything for a bit.

Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders. "It was hot and sandy and boring. Could have thought of better things to do, but it was alright." He gave her a soft smile and leaned down to pick up his pack. "I'm gonna head home."

"Okay," Ino replied softly with a single nod. "I'm glad your back."

"Me too," he said and waved before walking back into the shop.

Ino sighed and turned her back to the door and looked out over the garden. She wrapped her arms around herself and leaned her head against the square wood post. It should have made her happy that Shikamaru had come home, and on Valentine's Day no less. He didn't come home for that though, or maybe he had. The fact of the matter was, Shikamaru was in love with someone else. That really shouldn't have bothered Ino, they had been friends forever. If they became anything more it would be weird, and if they broke up they'd probably never speak to each other again. And that was something Ino didn't want.

"Hey Ino, we got a few customers," Sachi said from the door, poking her head outside. Ino licked her lips and straightened up as she turned around. She smiled at the tawny haired woman and informed her she'd be right in. "Is everything alright?" Sachi asked before slipping back into the shop.

"Yeah. Good," Ino assured her with a thumbs up.

Taking the blonde's word for it, Sachi went back inside to help the customers. Ino lifted her fingers and gently knocked one of the wind chimes. As it jingled, Ino looked back to the garden one more time and made her way back into the shop.

:::

"I think it would be in your benefit," Tsunade said as she scribbled something down onto some paper. She dipped her brush in the black ink and continued to write a little bit more before stopping. When her amber eyes fell onto the lazy genius, she smiled weakly. "I thought you'd be a little happier about this." She smiled weakly and leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms over her busty chest.

Shikamaru rubbed the back of his neck and muttered an apology. The last thing he was expecting to hear from Tsunade was that she was giving him a month of vacation time. She explained that he'd been in Suna for quite some time and he deserved to relax for a while. Granted, Shikamaru relaxed more often than she thought. He smiled weakly and thanked her for the offer, to which she nodded once.

"Is there some underlying reason other than deserving it?" Shikamaru asked her with a raised brow.

Tsunade laughed, he was as sharp as always. "I know you'd catch on."

"Habit," he said with a shrug, and Tsunade nodded her head knowingly. It was very unlike him to not catch hidden meanings or messages. Normally, Shikamaru questioned often and that's what made Tsunade like him so much. He wasn't gung-ho like Naruto, he was methodical and calculating, ensuring the best possible outcome even if there were dozens. Those skills were the signs of a good leader, something that she wished to revere among the Hidden Leaf Shinobi.

"Your father was my advisor," Tsunade said simply, and Shikamaru stared at her curiously. "Aside from that he was head of the Intelligence Unit, and since his unfortunate passing in the war, I have yet to fill the space." She leaned forward, propped her elbows on the desk, and laced her manicured fingers together.

"You want me to take it?" Shikamaru concluded, shoving his hands in his pocket and bent one knee. "Lady Tsunade, I'm barely going to be eighteen this year. I don't think you want someone of my caliber to be the head of the Intelligence Unit." He shook his head slowly and met the Hokage's eyes.

"You're the smartest person in the village, Shikamaru. I can agree you're young, in fact, if you did take the position you'd be the youngest the Hidden Leaf has ever had," Tsunade explained to him, and he pressed his lips together in a tight line. "Take the month off and think about it."

Shikamaru nodded his head in agreement and held up a scroll. He placed it on the Hokage's desk and bowed before quietly leaving the room. When he was out in the main hall, the lazy genius sighed and gently fell back against the door. Of all the things he expected the Hokage to call him for, taking up his father's position was the last. If his father were still alive, Shikamaru probably wouldn't have excelled this far. He'd probably spend more time laying on his favorite hill watching the clouds. His father would be maintain the Intelligence Unit, and would probably even be pestering him to take over it one day. And perhaps one day he would take over it, but he didn't want it to be this soon.

Truth be told, Shikamaru felt he still had much to learn and much to see. Since the war had ended, Shikamaru had formed many relationships with people. He had tactfully led the Allied Forces into battle and kept the morale alive, even the past Hokage's had applauded his skills. While all of that should have encouraged him to take the position his father once held, he wasn't quite ready. The fact that Tsunade thought he was spoke volumes. Perhaps his genius was far ready, but emotionally it just didn't quite fit. For now he was happy being an ambassador of the Hidden Leaf, traveling to different villages to act as a liaison for Tsunade. Many people knew who he was and knew that his strategies were on par with war lords that have seen hundreds of battles.

Shikamaru had begun walking down the stairs. He was going to take Tsunade up on her offer to relax for a while. Four months in another nation had been far more taxing than he expected. When he reached the bottom, he heard someone walking up and lifted his head to see a flurry of pink and green. Shikamaru stopped where he stood and nodded to Sakura as she approached him. She seemed rather surprised to see him, but smiled brightly and waved.

"When did you get in?" Sakura asked.

"This morning," he replied. "How have you been, Sakura?"

"I've been good," she said, placing her hands behind her back. In four months she hadn't changed much at all. Her hair was still the same shoulder length, her eyes were still emerald green, and her outfit was the same as it had always been. Unlike Ino who had looked more civilian, Sakura still seemed geared towards her shinobi lifestyle. "Have you gone to see Ino? Of course, it is the busiest day of the year for the shop."

"I stopped by this morning for a bit," Shikamaru said. "How has she been?"

"You couldn't tell?" Sakura asked with a raised brow.

Shikamaru wasn't sure if she was scolding him or not. When he had come across Ino earlier in the day, she seemed okay. There was something that was a little off, but he attributed that to the fact it was Valentine's Day. Most people normally enjoyed the day of celebrating love, but this was the first year Ino would be spending it without her father. Every year they had a tradition where they would go through the streets of Konoha and pass out flowers to everyone. They also would make these delicious chocolate treats to give out too. When he had seen her though, he didn't get the feeling Ino would be doing such things. The biggest thing of all, her father would make her a beautiful bouquet. Her eyes would always light up and sparkle with amazement.

He knew this year would be hard for her, but he had hoped that Ino would make the most of it. She was like most girls, a hopeless romantic waiting for that one special person to sweep them off their feet. When they were only six years old, Ino's father gave her a beautiful bouquet of pink and yellow roses, and had even made her a flower crown to place atop her head. She had said she was a princess, and told her father that no man would ever be good enough for her. Inoichi, her father, only laughed and knelt down on one knee. He looked Ino in the eye and placed his hands on her small shoulders.

"One day, you will find your prince, Ino," he told her, "but I will always be your king."

Shikamaru looked down at the ground and rubbed the back of his neck. He too had lost his father in the war, and he knew the grief Ino experienced. The day his father died was forever burned into his mind. He could still see the black and red mass flying across the sky. The power of the explosion still shook his bones and the sound echoed in his ears. A year had past, but it was like it happened yesterday. There were times when he'd wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat.

"Shikamaru?" Sakura prompted.

"Sorry," the lazy genius said with a weak smile. "I only spoke to her for a short while, couldn't really evaluate her." He bit his lip and looked past Sakura as Naruto and Sasuke came into view. His eyes fell onto Sasuke Uchiha, who had—for all intensive purposes—turned over a new leaf. Shikamaru couldn't say that he trusted him, but he didn't think he was hell-bent for revenge anymore either.

"Shikamaru!" Naruto greeted, raising his hand in the air and waving it sporadically. Shikamaru smirked and nodded to Naruto. "I thought you weren't going to be back for another week."

"That had been the original plan, but I decided to come back early. Everything went well, so I didn't need to stay in Suna." Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders and looked among the three.

"Figured you would have stayed to flirt with Temari a bit more," Naruto teased, nudging Shikamaru in the ribs with his elbow. "I saw the way you two were looking at each other at the last meeting." The blond shinobi cackled a bit, while Shikamaru snorted and waved the matter off.

"You're imagining things," Shikamaru chided. "I better go, good to see you guys." He lifted his hand lazily and quietly sauntered away before Naruto could say anything more. Shikamaru and Temari were in an odd place, they weren't boyfriend and girlfriend status, but they weren't simply just friends. Really the whole relationship was rather confusing to him, so he tried not to think about it. Not that he had time to think about such things. Tsunade gave him plenty to think about for the next thirty days.

As he traveled through the streets of Konoha—that was now wide awake—his mind wandered. His thoughts were overflowing with Tsunade's offer, then there was Ino, and thanks to Naruto, he was now thinking about Temari. She was a nice girl, or at least she could be nice, she was attractive, smart, and capable. They had come to be very close, they spent countless nights talking for hours while he stayed in Suna. Sometimes they were deep and heavy conversations, and other times they were lighthearted and goofy. He hadn't realized that Temari was actually a very likable girl. Before he saw her as mean and scary, but after a while she turned out to be rather warm and inviting.

There were probably feelings there, actually, there were feelings there. He just didn't want to admit it to himself. And neither did she. Maybe it was because they were both scared of the commitment it would take. Suna and Konoha weren't exactly close together. It took three to four days to get to Suna. Long distance wasn't exactly something Shikamaru wanted to deal with. It would be much too troublesome to travel so far, which then raised the question what if one of them moved to the other's village. That wasn't exactly an easy call to make either. Temari had her brothers in Suna, and her students at the academy there. She was revered as a beautiful and powerful kuniochi. It's not like she could simply pack her bags and move away. By the same token, Shikamaru couldn't really do that either. His teammates were in Konoha, his family, and his father's legacy.

Normally, Shikamaru wasn't one to believe in fate. That had always been Neji's thing, granted Naruto had beaten that out of him before he had passed. Perhaps though, if fate truly existed, and the two of them were meant to be together then they would be. Shikamaru felt a bit guilty for not even asking Temari what she really wanted. He was really only going off of assumptions and small hints that she dropped a couple of times during his stay. They were so subtle though, they might have merely been nice gestures.

"Shi! Shi!"

The shadow user furrowed his brows when he heard someone shouting. His eyes drifted over to a small bakery where he spotted a little girl with shaggy brown hair waving at him. Shikamaru's lips curved into a smile as he waved back realizing the young child was Mirai, his late sensei's daughter. As he walked to the bakery, Shikamaru knelt down to her level and tapped the tip of her nose with his finger. She giggled and threw her arms around his neck. He hugged her back and stood up, holding her in his arms.

"You've gotten so big," Shikamaru said with a bright smile as he looked at the child with bright red eyes that resembled a red dawn. "Where's your mama?" he asked her.

"Shikamaru," Kurenai's voice sounded from the bakery door. The shadow user looked to the black haired woman and smiled kindly. "Welcome home."

"Kurenai-sensei," Shikamaru greeted with a humble nod. When Shikamaru had left the Hidden Leaf four months ago, Mirai was only ten months old. He had come to say goodbye, and she cried and cried and cried as he left. She had begged him to stay, but he couldn't. He had felt bad leaving her like that, but he didn't think that she would have such a bad reaction.

"She missed you, asked about you all the time," Kurenai said, gesturing to the little girl in his arms.

"You missed me, did you?" Shikamaru asked with a smile, looking at the infant. She put her thumb in her mouth and rested her head on his shoulder. Kurenai smiled, happy to see her daughter was so bonded with Asuma's favorite student. Shikamaru never failed to visit them every week, he often played with the little girl and even watched her on his days off so Kurenai had some time to herself. "I missed you too, kid," Shikamaru said to her and rubbed her back gently.

"How was your mission?" Kurenai asked.

"Same old, same old," Shikamaru replied with a small chuckle. "I guess I shouldn't complain, everyone's getting along so well." He glanced down at the child as she snuggled closer to him, gripping the collar of his flak jacket.

"Definitely," Kurenai agreed with a nod. "Looks like you're going to have to take her with you." The proud mother smiled at the little girl, clinging to Shikamaru like she would never let him go.

"If you need to do some shopping, I don't mind watching her for you. I'm on holiday for the next month anyways," Shikamaru offered, and Kurenai's eyes widened in surprise. "It came with a catch."

The genjutsu master laughed lightly at his last words. Her red eyes drifted to the little girl, and she sighed softly. "Tsunade offered you the position as the head of the Intelligence Unit, didn't she?" Kurenai asked him.

"Is it safe to assume everyone knows?" he questioned.

Kurenai tilted her head. "You knew that she would ask eventually," the woman said to him, and he nodded his head slowly. "I think you should think about it carefully. In my honest opinion, I think you are perfect for the position."

"Maybe," Shikamaru answered curtly.

"Don't doubt yourself," Kurenai said to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. Her eyes went back to her child, who gazed back at her. "Why don't you watch her for me? I'll be done in a couple of hours."

"Sure thing," Shikamaru agreed and looked at the little girl. "Should we go visit Chouji?"

"Cho!" Mirai exclaimed, clapping her hands together. Seeing as that the child seemed happy with the idea, Shikamaru looked back to Kurenai who nodded in agreement. She leaned over and kissed her daughter, telling her to behave herself and mind Shikamaru. The little girl smiled and waved to her mom as she walked away to continue her shopping.

"Ready?" Shikamaru asked, looking at Mirai.

"Cho!" she exclaimed again, causing Shikamaru to laugh as he started walking in the direction of the Akamichi household.

:::

Little Mirai was running around the small playground, watching the other kids climb on the huge jungle gym while she remained on the small one closer to Shikamaru and Chouji. After they had gone to get Chouji they agreed to take Mirai to the park so she could play. They were both sitting on the table top of a picnic table. Chouji was filling Shikamaru in on everything that had taken place in his absence. For the most part, it didn't seem like he had missed much aside from Ino being inducted into the Torture and Interrogation Unit. Before he had left though, he knew Ino had intended on pursuing it. She had only briefly mentioned that Ibiki had been coercing her into it.

"You can do it, Ino. You have an amazing jutsu and the village relies on it," Shikamaru had told her that day before he was going to leave. He didn't know if his words had struck a chord in her, but she had smiled at him and agreed. That had been the last they had spoken about it. When he went on long missions, he didn't really speak to his teammates. On some level he hated that, but when he was on a mission, he had to remain focused on the task at hand. Granted ambassador missions were hardly dangerous, they were much more frustrating than dangerous. It was after all—meetings with feudal lords, high paying merchants, and of course village leaders.

Chouji looked at Shikamaru, who had hunched over. His arms were folded on his bent knees and his dark eyes watched Mirai as she climbed up the stairs of the smaller jungle gym. When she got to the top, she smiled triumphantly and waved to Chouji and Shikamaru. The lazy genius smiled warmly and waved back to her just before she turned around to go down the slide. The auburn haired stocky man leaned back on the table, laying his palms flat to support his weight.

"So what are you going to do?" Chouji asked, referring to the offer Tsunade had made. On the walk over, Shikamaru had mentioned it. The food lover wasn't sure what Shikamaru was thinking. There was obviously a lot of turmoil bubbling and stirring inside of him. The offer was a big one, Shikamaru would be in charge of the entire village's strategies, communications, and security measures. Chouji knew that deep down inside, Shikamaru had the nous for it. His father had taught him well, and he never cracked under pressure. Since the days they were genin, Shikamaru had become somewhat of a hero in Chouji's eyes. The pineapple head would deny that title, saying that was Naruto's thing or perhaps Sasuke's.

"I don't know yet," Shikamaru answered truthfully. This decision would be a life altering one. He wouldn't be able to just run away from the troubles, he'd have to face them head on. He'd be an advisor to the village, to the Hokage. In a sense, he was already on the right track to being head of the Intelligence Unit. Many shinobi in other villages knew of him, he'd forged many bonds, and Konoha even admired him.

"I think you should do it," Chouji said, and Shikamaru looked at him in surprise. "You're a hero to the village, to all the nations. You should do it."

"A hero?" Shikamaru repeated with a scoff. "I came up with strategies, nothing more."

"You minimized causalities, aided Naruto and Sasuke, and kept the morale up among the forces," Chouji listed and smiled weakly. "That's not just nothing."

Shikamaru nodded stiffly. Ideally, it would be the right move for him to accept such an honor. There was something inside stopping him though. Not just the fact he didn't personally believe he was ready, but something foreign to him. It was like he still had to take care of a few things before pursuing such a job.

"You're right, but I still don't know," Shikamaru voiced, and Chouji frowned slightly. "I have time to think about it, so let's not talk about it." He waved the matter off and sat up straight, smiling as he saw Mirai playing with a few of the other children.

"How was Suna?" Chouji asked, complying with Shikamaru's wish of changing the subject.

"Hot, sandy, annoying, troublesome," Shikamaru drawled, and his friend chuckled. "It was alright, I missed home though."

The two fell silent after that. Shikamaru looked up at the sky. They were cloudless and an endless blue that seemed to stretch for miles and miles. The color reminded him of Ino's eyes. He glanced at Chouji and licked his lips. His friends were in Konoha, if he took the job of being the head of the Intelligence Unit he would be able to stay. Shikamaru swallowed and sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Tsunade isn't the only one offering me a position," Shikamaru confessed. He left Suna early for a reason, and it wasn't simply because he missed home. It was because a feudal lord located on the northern border of Suna was offering him a position as his head of security. When Chouji stared at him, waiting to hear more, Shikamaru rubbed the back of his neck. "There is a feudal lord in northern Suna, his advisor and security head is retiring. He offered me the position."

Chouji blinked several times. "And?"

Shikamaru took in a sharp breath. "I told him I had a lot to think about."

"And?" his friend pressed.

"He is giving me thirty days to decide."

Chouji let out a breath and shook his head. That was a big deal to be hired by a private hand, but at the same time Shikamaru would be giving up everything. When someone was hired under a feudal lord, they stayed with them and did whatever they were asked. Their late sensei, Asuma, had told them stories about his days as a guard for the feudal lord for the Land of Fire. He would tell them it was an experience that taught him many things that he probably wouldn't be able to learn anywhere else.

"Did you tell Lady Tsunade about that?" Chouji asked.

"You're the first person I told," Shikamaru explained and rubbed his temples. He just wanted things to be simple, he didn't want to pick and choose. "I don't know what I'm going to do." He let his hands fall to the edge of the table, gripping it tight and causing his knuckles to go white. His eyes slowly raised up where he spotted Mirai toddling over to them. She stopped at his feet and reached up to him. Shikamaru obliged and lifted the little girl up and sat her on her lap.

"Home," Mirai said, hugging Shikamaru. "Home."