Shikamaru was a lazy person; sure he was a genius but even more than that, he was a lazy person. He was one who enjoyed his own space and solitude and one who literally ran away from any trouble.
So it wasn't surprising to find Shikamaru lazing on the roof as usual, hiding himself temporarily from the world of Ninja and the world of troubles; gazing at the clouds as they drifted by.
Turning 20 this year, it wasn't surprising that Shikamaru would start considering marriage; after all, he had already drafted out the plans for his entire life at the tender age of 12. Shikamaru fixated his gaze on a particularly grey cloud as he started listing his options:
Haruno Sakura: pink hair; too strong and scary; Sasuke fanatic
Hyuuga Hinata: shy and quiet; stutters too much; Naruto fanatic
Temari: troublesome…
Yamanaka Ino: tolerable?
Shikamaru sighed; he didn't have enough choices to make a wise decision. Why did all of the girls he knew borderline on… abnormal?
"How troublesome" Shikamaru thought as he erased all thoughts on marriage from his head and went back to his cloud gazing and relaxation.
"Hey Shikamaru, can I join you?" Chouji smiled as he ascended the steps.
As much as Shikamaru enjoyed his time spent alone, he loved more the time spent with his friends.
Shikamaru propped himself up on his elbow and was about to smile when he was interrupted by yet another troublesome situation.
"SHIKAMARUU! Save me! Giant Akamaru wants to chew my head off just because I stole one of his doggy treats! It wasn't my fault! I was hungry!" Naruto hollered as he dashed up the steps.
"NARUTO! Come back here!" Kiba yelled, riding a very red and very huge Akamaru.
"Hn…how troublesome" Shikamaru sighed with a smile.
Yup, Shikamaru undeniably loved his troublesome friends; a fact that puzzles even the genius himself.