Characters: Genma, Shizune
Summary: She just needs to relax a little.
Pairings: GenShiz
Author's Note: Recently, I've started to like this pairing. Not sure why; just do.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Genma likes his afternoon naps. After helping set up the Chunin Exams—preparations for the new one start as soon as the latest Exam is over, so Genma essentially has a fulltime job all-year round—in the morning, he usually gets off at about two, has a late lunch and either trains or just collapses in front of a tree and sleeps until supper. He likes to think he's earned this small comfort.
Just a nice tree with a thick trunk to support his back, and turned to where the sun's shining down on him so it'll be warm, and Genma can gladly say he's one of the happiest men on earth.
God, I don't know why I ever tried to give this up when I was a teenager. Afternoon naps are the best thing on earth.
Right now, Genma's on the verge of sleep, not quite asleep but not quite awake either. The sun's bright on his eyes and beneath his eyelids. He's thinking about what he might like to dream about and all that will come to mind is the smell of pumpkin pie. Not that Genma's really complaining or anything. He loves pumpkin pie. Maybe I should pick one up at that store on the way home.
His fantasizing-dreaming is cut short soon, however.
The light is shining down on his eyelids, but something moves across and the sunlight is cut off by something moving between Genma and the sun.
Genma squeezes his eyes and frowns as a distant voice starts to intrude on his thoughts. "Genma… Genma… Genma!"
Finally, he forces himself to open his eyes. Shizune, holding a clipboard and frowning slightly, is leaning so close over him that the ends of her hair come very close to tickling his face. "Ah," Genma answers casually. "Hello, Shizune."
Her brow knits. "Genma, Hokage-sama wants you in her office in an hour." Genma bites back a groan; a trip to Tsunade's office can only mean trouble and splitting headaches. "It's about the Chunin Exams; Amegakure's petitioning to attend again this year and they want us to lift the embargo placed on them since we discovered they were harboring the Akatsuki."
Oh yeah. Genma has heard something about this, as a matter of fact. He didn't think it would end up involving him, and personally, he hopes his involvement—inevitable now, if Tsunade wants to talk to him about it—won't run too deep; Genma's never been good at politics if it doesn't involve sticking people full of senbon.
Shizune's looking at him expectantly, waiting.
Careful to stifle a yawn—yawning will only make her mad and Shizune is not the sort of person Genma wants mad, especially not at him—Genma blinks up at the Hokage's apprentice/assistant/secretary/right-hand woman and tilts his head slightly. "Shizune, if Hokage-sama wants me in her office in an hour, why are you here now?"
"Because I don't want you to be late," the young woman answers immediately. "Tsunade-sama's not at her best at the moment and if you're late it won't go well for you."
That's fair enough, Genma concedes, and her concern for his well-being is touching; truly it is. But still.
Genma trains an eye on Shizune. Such a pretty girl, but there are shadows under her eyes as usual and she would be so much better off if she would just relax a little bit. "Calm down, Shizune. Hokage-sama won't object if I'm only half an hour or fifteen minutes early."
A frown mars Shizune's face. "Genma, you don't want to do that, trust me. Just come quietly." It's that line that makes Genma think that he's entered the universe of some sort of B-list crime movie. "Just come on."
Shizune puts her hand on Genma's elbow and starts to try to drag him to his feet. "Come on, Genma; we've got to go. You don't want to be a head shorter any more than I do."
Genma smirks internally. Instead of this struggle ending with Genma on his feet, it ends with him jerking Shizune down and her ending up sitting on the grass beside him. Genma smirks externally as he watches the tension go out of her back immediately—Just like I thought—but she still glares half-heartedly at him. "That hurt," Shizune says, but her protest is weak.
"Sorry. But really Shizune, isn't this better?"
Reluctantly, she nods; just as reluctantly, a small smile grows across her face.
"Just take it easy for a little while. Hokage-sama isn't going to miss us for just half an hour."
But somehow, as these things tend to go, they end up sitting beneath the tree trunk for not half an hour but the entire afternoon. For once, neither Genma nor Shizune can bring themselves to care much about Tsunade's possible wrath.
It's just too beautiful of a day.