Disclaimer: I do not claim any ownership of Naruto or any of it's characters. This story is completely fictional and is just one of my views of the Naruto universe. If you don't like this pairing you have no obligation to read this story.

"Clouds are sure nice."

Shikamaru sighed as he laid on his back watching the clouds slowly drift by. Below him, he could hear the sounds of the village, and in those sounds he knew his friends were going about their normal daily routines. Each one chasing after another, like the clouds over head.

Ino and Sakura both were viaing for Sai's attention now that Sasuke was gone. Naruto was still trying to win Sakura over. Hinata was hoping that Naruto would notice the way she always looked at him. Neji ... wait was Neji chasing after anyone? No matter, Tenten following Neji around constantly, and of course Choji was happily eating somewhere quiet.

Shikamaru let out another sign as he rose to his feet. Slowly his feet began to lead him away from the sounds of the village as his mind continued to wander. His eyes watched the treetops and the light filtering down through them, but he still knew where he was going. He found himself there often.

Finally he stopped. The treetops had changed since the last time he was here, but he could tell that he was in the right spot. His eyes drifted from the treetops down along the trees themselves down to the ground. There, set into the ground was a small piece of carved stone. The stone was a grave marker, his grave marker.

Kneeling down, Shikamaru ran a hand over the words etched into the surface, "Asuma – sensei and friend". As his fingers traced the letters, he could feel his chest tighten. His hands began to shake. Clenching his hands, Shikamaru took a deep breath and willed himself calm. The tightness was still there, it was always there, but it was bearable. He sighed again.

Shikamaru started to fumble in his pockets finally retrieving two items. The first was a pack of Asuma's favorite cigarette's. He gently placed the pack down in front of the marker before looking at the other item. It was one of Asuma's trademark weapons, a trench dagger. It was well worn, but also well taken care of.

He turned the dagger over in his hand several times. As he watched the light play off the dagger, he fought against the tightness in his chest growing. Several time Shikamaru had to blink tears from his dark eyes.

"Another year has past, Asuma." Shikamaru spoke softly, trying to calm his voice. He pushed his fingers through the grip of the dagger and felt the weight of the dagger in his hand. "But everything is still the same."

Shikamaru concentrated on the edge of the dagger. Soon it was glowing with a dark aura of energy. Reaching around to the side of the marker, Shikamaru pushed the glowing tip into the stone and scratched a line next to the other two.

"Three years." He whispered as he slid the dagger off of his hand and stored it safely away. "Its been three years since you ... died." His voice almost cracked as he spoke softly. A tear raced its way down his face, dropping onto marker at his feet.

"I thought I'd find you here."

The voice was calm and crisp with just a hint of arrogance. Shikamaru knew who it was before she was even done speaking. With a quick motion he wiped away the trail the tear had left on his face as he stood. He took another deep breath before he turned toward the voice.

"What do you want Ino?"

Shikamaru looked at the blond girl standing there. She was in the same style of clothing she was normally in. The purple outfit fit her well. She held a bouquet of flowers. She smiled at him, but all he could return was his disinterested gaze.

"What can't I visit Asuma's marker too?" Ino snapped. Her free hand moving to rest on her hip while she cradled the flower carefully. "He was my sensei too."

Shikamaru put his hands up into the air in surrender as he sighed. If there was one thing he had learned over the years of being on a team with Ino was not to argue with Ino. He took a step away from the marker, and watched Ino smile at her victory as she laid the flowers next to his pack of cigarettes. His eyes soon moved from the flowers, tracing over the contours of her hair and down her back.

"He was a great sensei, wasn't he?" Ino said. Her voice trembling slightly.

"Yeah he was." Shikamaru replied. His eyes moving back to the grave marker. "He was the only one that believed in me. Thought that there was more to me than just a slacker."

Shikamaru's eyes jerked back to Ino ash she stood and spun to face him. Her face was flushed, tears rimmed her deep blue eyes as she stared at him. Her eyes seemed to bore into him, but she also looked like she was going to break down and cry.

Ino's eyes dropped to the ground suddenly as she spoke. "He wasn't the only one who believed in you." She spoke quietly. "All of your friends believe in you, Choji, Naruto, Kiba, Sakura, and me too."

Shikamaru was taken back by that. "Right. You didn't even want to be teamed up with me." As soon as the words left his mouth, he wished he could take the words back.

He could see how his words hit her harder than any attack she had taken. Those clear blue eyes clamped shut as tears began to stream down her face. Through the tears Ino managed to speak, her voice cracking some.

"Maybe I didn't at first." Ino said as she sniffed trying to keep her voice calm. "But people can change."

Ino looked up at him for a moment before she turned to leave. Before she could take a step, she felt strong fingers wrap around her wrist holding her were she was. She thought about pulling free, but before she could fully form the thought he began to speak softly.

"Ino, I'm sorry." Shikamaru said. His eyes were fixed on their hands. "Asuma had said that I was a genius, but that was only in strategy. When it comes to people, I'm as bad as Naruto." With a heavy sigh, he let her hand slide slowly through his fingers as he looked up at the clouds.

Ino stood with her back to him, forcing back her tears. Slowly she turned back to face him smiling. "Well maybe you can't plan 200 moves in advance all the time." She giggled.

Shikamaru just grunted a response. His face slowly tilting down to look at her. She was still smiling at him, the tears nearly gone. Her smile was so bright, and before he knew what he was doing he leaned in close to her. Gently his lips brushed hers. He could feel her body tighten slightly, but she didn't pull away.

A few moments past before he pulled back. Shikamaru looked into her eyes, ignoring the redness that had crept onto her face and the same redness he knew was on his, and smiled at her.

Later that night, Shikamaru laid down asleep. His hair was disheveled, his face wet and his eyes red and puffy. Trails of tears criss-crossed his face. It was just same as every other year on this night, but this year he wasn't alone.

Ino had to smile as she looked down at the dark haired boy, his head resting on her lap. Her hand lightly brushing a few strands of his hair from his face as he slept. She brushed a tear from her own cheek as she spoke softly.

"Well Sakura," Ino whispered. "Sai is all yours. I found the one for me."