Chapter 2:

It soon became clear that they couldn't be obvious about this, even if it would make things a lot easier. They couldn't trust Sai not to ask them why and even if they refused to disclose that information, there was nothing stopping him from bringing it up to someone else. Even if they told him not to say anything, there was a very good chance of him bringing it up just to mention that he couldn't say anything about it. So Naruto and Shikamaru were in agreement that they could not ask Sai any pointed questions. They had to keep him in the dark as much as possible.

This just made it even harder for them to find out if Sai had feelings for Ino or not.

"We just have to be subtle," Shikamaru told him.

"Good thinking."

They looked around for Sai and found him sitting on a bench with a sketchbook in his lap.

Naruto went over to him and invited Sai to have lunch with them.

"We can even invite Ino to tag along."

Shikamaru shot Naruto a look.

"Just Ino?" Sai asked. "Why her?"

"I just thought it'd be nice."

Sai seemed puzzled. Usually Naruto never invited Ino to anything.

"Sakura must be joining us, then." Knowing that they were friends, Sai figured that was the reason for the invitation. Naruto must have wanted Sakura to have someone to talk to while they had a meal together.

"No, she-"

Shikamaru slapped Naruto on the back, hard. "Sakura might join us if Ino shows up. We haven't asked either of them yet. We wanted to get your input first. Just in case you wanted it to just be us guys."

"Oh. I don't mind. We can do whatever."

"Great." Shikamaru turned around and pulled Naruto down so he could whisper in his ear. "What happened to subtlety?"

"I was being subtle."

"Could have fooled me. You were being pretty blunt about it."

"Only because Sai won't take hints unless you're blunt."

"Let's just not mention Ino or Sakura for a bit, ok?"

"Fine."

The three of them went to lunch together and talked about things unrelated to girls. They talked about what was new in their lives, missions they had been on and the activities they had been up to recently.

Naruto didn't see how this was helping them find out if Sai had feelings for Ino or not. Then he figured Shikamaru just wanted to throw Sai off their trail for a bit. If they only talked about girls, especially Ino, Sai would get suspicious. It was probably better to do it this way.

When Sai was distracted, talking to the owner of the ramen shop, Shikamaru leaned over to whisper something to Naruto again.

"Maybe if we try conditioning. That could work."

"What do you mean?" Naruto whispered back.

"I'm saying we don't know if Sai likes Ino or not. Maybe he doesn't know either. They hardly spend any time together. Maybe if we get him interested in spending some time with her, we'll have a better way of finding out if he likes her or not. They have to spend time together."

"But we can't tell him to hang out with her."

"We might not have to. That's where the conditioning comes in," Shikamaru whispered. "We have to make Sai associate Ino with good things so he'll be more inclined to hang out with her. When he hangs out with her, he'll get to know her and figure out if he likes her or not."

"Association?" Naruto thought about it. "I think I know what you mean. Sort of like training a dog to sit if they think they'll get a treat. If we get Sai to spend time with her if he'll be rewarded…"

"Ino will be the main factor in all this. That's what we want to enforce with him. Spend time with Ino, he gets a treat. That kind of thing." Shikamaru glanced at Sai who was finishing up his own conversation. "We just have to figure out the treat to give him. Something he'll like."

"He likes art. We can give him paint every time he does something with Ino."

"No, that won't work. It has to be something else. You know what I'm trying to do, right? It's not the same as getting a dog to sit. We're trying to make him want to spend time with her. It's a bit more complicated than training a dog to do tricks."

"But it's the best way we can get him to do what we want without telling him."

"Exactly. Desire by association." Shikamaru put his elbow on the tabletop, resting his head in his hand. "Like coupons. People are more likely to come to the shop again if they think they'll prosper from it. Even if they don't need something, the allure of a good sale is all it takes to lure people inside."

"I like those half-price sales," said Naruto. "I can get twice as much stuff."

"Yeah, but you end up spending the same amount of money and the store will clear out their warehouse faster."

"So both benefit from the sale."

"Unless you end up buying something you don't need. And if you end up spending the same amount of money on stuff, you're not really saving in the long run." Shikamaru sighed. "I tried telling that to Ino but all she cared about was being able to buy two dresses for the price of one, so she told me she was saving money."

"But it's that feeling you want to enforce, right?" Naruto asked him. "The half-price sale thing is just an example."

"Exactly. It's just to get people in the door. Whatever happens after that is up to them. Same thing here. We just want him to notice her."

Naruto looked at his empty bowl, deep in thought.

This was a good way to get Sai to pay attention to Ino without actually telling him what to do. Now they just had to figure out how to get Sai to notice her. To spend time with her without telling him to do so. For neither of them to suspect anything.

"Hmm."

"Thanks for the invitation to lunch," Sai said as he gathered his things.

"No problem."

Naruto looked at the sketch book under Sai's arm.

"See you later." Sai started to walk away.

"Hey, Sai," Naruto called after him. "Hold up a second."

Sai turned around. "Yes?"

"I wanted to ask you something."

Sai stood where he was, waiting.

"I always see you draw landscapes and animals in your spare time. Do you ever draw people?"

Sai nodded. "Yes. I thought you saw me draw people before."

"Yeah, but I mean like a portrait type of thing. With details and shading and all that."

Sai nodded again. "I have. Not recently."

"I was wondering if you could draw me."

Shikamaru and Sai gave him a puzzled look.

"I suppose I could."

"Great!" Naruto hopped off the stool he was sitting on and pulled Sai down the street. They sat on a bench together and Naruto struck a pose. "Draw me like this."

Sai opened his sketchbook to a clean page. "With that pose?"

"Yup. Just like this."

"Hold still." Sai began to sketch him.

Naruto couldn't help but smile as he put his plan into action.

After a while, his arm started to grow tired and he wanted to lower it, but Sai told him to keep still. Naruto knew now to not move from his training, but he wasn't holding an arm over his head when he was doing that. This was a little harder.

Several minutes went by and Sai told Naruto he could move. Naruto dropped his arm and swiveled around on the bench to face Sai. "Well? How's it look?"

Sai turned the paper around and showed Naruto. It was really good. Naruto didn't get art, but he had to admit that this one was well done. It looked just like him.

"I haven't drawn people in such detail in a while," Sai admitted. "It's fun."

"Can you draw girls?" Naruto asked. "You got one of me. Let's make it even by drawing a girl."

Shikamaru understood what Naruto was trying to do. It wasn't a bad plan, actually.

"We could ask Sakura, but I think she's busy. Isn't she, Naruto?" Shikamaru asked him.

Knowing he was playing along, Naruto said, "Yeah, I think she is. We could try sketching someone in the village, but they're moving too much. It'll have to be someone who isn't moving too much. Let's wander around and see."

They led Sai purposely to the flower shop and pretended to be surprised when they saw Ino inside.

"Hey, looks like Ino's working today. How about that?"

"She's just sitting there at the counter. I bet she'd make a good model to sketch."

"She looks pretty bored, too."

Sai peered inside the shop. "Ok," he said with a nod and went inside.

Ino was surprised when she saw Sai enter the flower shop by himself. He was carrying something. She couldn't tell what it was. He was walking right up to her.

Ino straightened up and automatically said, "Can I help you?"

Sai held up the object under his arm. "I was wondering if I could use you as a model. It's for a sketch."

Ino blushed. "Oh? A model, you say?" She looked down in a meager attempt to hide her smile. "Well, I suppose."

"You didn't seem to be doing anything," Sai went on. "It's a slow business day so you're probably sitting around a lot. I need someone who won't move."

Ino was barely paying attention to what he was saying. "If you need a model, what can you do? I'll be happy to pose for you. What do you need me to do?"

"Just stay put."

Ino was still blushing. "Ok." She had never been asked to model before. Not for someone's artbook.

Sai pulled up a seat and sat next to the counter.

"Is this pose ok?" she asked him.

"Try not to look directly at me."

Ino turned her head to the side, staring straight ahead.

Sai studied her profile. Naruto had made a more dramatic pose. Ino's seemed boring by comparison.

"It's a very simple pose," Sai said, looking at her. He wanted to make it look more interesting. "Move your hand slightly."

"Like this?"

"No. More that way."

Ino looked down, bringing her other arm up. "Like this?"

"No. More like this." Sai moved closer and moved her left hand to where he wanted it to be placed on the counter.

Sai was so close to her. She could smell his shampoo.

"Actually…" Sai looked at her. When Sai started touching her, Ino stood frozen like a mannequin waiting to be moved. "Let's move your hand over here. Let it rest above your right elbow. Keep your right arm where it is."

Her hands were soft. He was surprised a ninja's hands could be this soft. Ino probably didn't see much combat, preferring to battle from further away in order to keep her body safe. She relied on her looks a lot and clearly took good care of herself. Maybe he shouldn't have been so surprised her hands weren't rough like those of her male teammates.

This may have been his first time touching her hands, now that he thought about it. He touched Naruto's hands more often than he touched Ino's. He touched Sakura's, too, but she usually wore gloves. He wondered how soft her hands were. The gloves must have offered some protection, even amidst punching heavy stones and thick wooden doors.

He moved to the side, eyeing Ino from a different perspective. He wasn't satisfied yet.

"Tilt your head slightly down."

"Like this?"

"Up a little more. Good. Now turn slightly towards me. No, too much. Back a little."

"Here?"

"Have your chin rest lightly on your right hand. Keep your hand just like that and bring your head down a little more."

Thinking nothing of it, he placed his hand on Ino's jaw and brought her chin where he wanted it. Ino blushed even harder, but Sai barely noticed. To him, there was nothing to blush about. He was just moving a model to where he needed it for his portrait. It wasn't a loving gesture.

"Perfect. Right there."

"Ok." Ino tried to calm down so her face wasn't so red. She hoped he didn't notice. She hoped it wouldn't show up in his drawing either.

Sai picked up his sketchbook and sat down. "Just look straight ahead and don't move."

"Straight ahead from where my head is now?"

"Yes. Now keep still."

Sai started drawing.

Ino did her best to stay still. She wanted to talk to him, but that would require her to move which he didn't want. She stayed perfectly still, staring at the lilies on the table opposite her.

The silence was filled by the strokes of Sai's pencil.

Sai stared at her as much as possible as he drew, mapping out her face on paper. He glanced down every now and then to make sure everything looked right. He started to look at her less. Then he looked at her more.

It was looking good. This was a nice pose. The position of her body flowed nicely on the paper, keeping the eye moving. From her chin, down her arm, to the other arm and back up to her shoulder and head.

Smelling the sweet flowers all around him, Sai decided to add some of them to the background so the page didn't look so empty. It was really sweet in here. He wondered how they could stand being in this shop for so long. Wouldn't the smell get to them after a while? It smelled nice, but over time…

Sai started to add some details to Ino's face. Her makeup made it easier. Her lipstick made her lips more pronounced than someone who wasn't wearing any. The eyeliner made her eyes stand out more. He kept that area dark so her eyes wouldn't be hidden by the shadows cast from her long bangs. Her half-hidden face made for a more interesting picture, but he wanted her face to be noticeable. That was why he had her face turned slightly to one side, so the side that wasn't covered by hair could be seen.

With all this makeup, Sai wondered if she had any perfume on. In a place like this, it wasn't needed. She probably smelled like flowers all the time. When he was moving her around, he didn't notice any perfume, but with all these flowers around, it was probably unnoticeable anyway.

He wondered why he was thinking that. It must have been the flowers. The strong smell must have made him wonder if she wore any perfume because he couldn't tell.

He added detail to her earring next. The jewel was sparkling in the light. Her tilted head made it easier for the light to find the jewel. Sai was careful not to have the earring be the focal point of the piece. It should have been the model's eyes.

Lucky for him, the light also lit up Ino's eyes, making them sparkle like the jewel. He gave special attention to her eyes next.

A little shading here, a little rub there to blend it. Some more detail to her lashes.

Sai studied her face and eyes for a long time. He looked down at his sketch, comparing. It looked good. Just a little more lighting on her cheek, just below the eye. He erased, blended and rubbed. A stroke here and there. Rubbing.

He looked back at her face.

There was so much detail he had never noticed before. He didn't look at Ino very long to begin with, but now that he was sketching her it was hard not to notice all the details of her face.

It was structured so well. From an artist perspective, of course.

Her eyes were beautiful, the earring helped keep the eye moving so the viewer looked at her whole face, and the long hair help frame her body. The flowers helped fill in the background and her arms drew the eye from her chin down and up and back to her face. It all flowed so well.

It looked good. Really good. This may have been better than Naruto's portrait.

He looked from the sketch back to her face.

Her cheek. Right below the eye. The light was hitting it just so.

It looked like white space. Sort of empty. Like something was missing. A certain allure that drew you in.

Sai looked away from the drawing and at Ino's face.

It was no different from her flesh. A good likeness.

Inviting.

Her cheek looked so soft.

Sai's lips tingled, wanting something.

Sai blinked. What an odd thought. What brought that on?

Sai looked at the drawing and back at Ino. Satisfied, he stood up. "All done. You can move now."

Ino stood up straight, stretching. "How's it look?" she asked.

Sai showed her the drawing.

"Ohh!" Ino smiled, her eyes dancing across the page. "That looks amazing."

Sai smiled, proud of his work. He was pleased to see Ino's eyes moving so much. Just as he wanted, the viewer's eyes moved all over the page rather than getting stuck on one detail.

"You're so good, Sai," Ino told him with a big grin. "I look beautiful."

"Thanks." Sai was always pleased to hear someone compliment his talent. His brother praised him as well, and it only encouraged him to do more. Now that Ino was praising him, he felt a sense of pride and joy. It made him want to draw something else. Something else to show off.

He wanted to get this reaction again. What else would please Ino so much that he could draw for her?

Draw for her? Why did he want to draw with her in mind?

It must have been for this sort of reaction. He liked hearing her praise his work and he really enjoyed seeing her smile so much. She did have a nice smile.

"You did a great job capturing my beauty." Ino handed him back the sketchbook. "That was fun. We should do it again some time."

"Yes," Sai agreed. "It was fun for me, as well. I think that was the longest time you've gone without talking. It was nice."

"Idiot!" Naruto almost shouted from outside when he overheard what Sai just said. Before he could scold Sai for saying the wrong thing to her face, Shikamaru threw both hands over his mouth and pulled him behind the building.

"Dammit, Sai," Shikamaru moaned. "Whoever's piloting your brain needs to be replaced right now because he's drunk at the wheel."

Back inside Ino took offense at Sai's comment. He liked that she wasn't talking? That was nice for him? She wanted to smack him for saying such a thing.

But then Sai went on.

"Having you not talk allowed me to work without distraction. Normally, I would try to listen to whatever the person says. When I do that, I'm only half paying attention to both things. With all the quiet, I was able to concentrate completely."

Sai looked at his finished drawing with a smile.

"I was able to focus and pay attention to even the smallest detail. I'm happy with how it turned out. I don't think this would have turned out half as good if I hadn't been concentrating so much."

Sai must have been able to capture her beauty so well because she wasn't distracting him. That's why his drawing looked so good. Ino now believed that Sai wasn't trying to insult her at all. It was a compliment. He was able to devote himself to his work and made it look good for her all thanks to her not distracting him with conversation.

She also came to understand that if she had talked, it would have ruined the drawing because she would be moving. She knew that from the beginning but must have overlooked it. That was why Sai said it was nice she wasn't talking. It wasn't because he didn't want to hear her voice. It was because he wanted the drawing to come out well. He was really thanking her for being a good model and not moving.

Sai never intended to insult her in the first place. He was just blunt, which everyone knew by now. However, in addition to being able to concentrate without distraction and being able to draw someone who wasn't moving around, Sai did find Ino not speaking to be a nice change. She never shut up which he did find annoying after a while. He enjoyed the peace and quiet.

Ino gave Sai a smile. "Thanks for sketching me. It really did turn out great. Let's go it again some time. It's not like I have anything better to do on slow days. Feel free to come in."

"Sure." Sai smiled back. "See you another time, then."

Ino was hoping to interact with Sai a bit more than that. They didn't really have a chance to talk and all he did was sketch her for several minutes. It was nice to spend some time with him, and she did get to see a beautiful drawing of herself from him, but she was really hoping for more. After he was finished drawing, he got up and left.

She wasn't sure what to make of this. She wasn't sure if she should be happy or disappointed. She didn't know how to feel about this. Was this just business for him? Should she just be grateful he walked into her shop and asked to draw her?

Since she did get to spend some time with him, limited as it was, she decided to call it a success and not read into him leaving right after he was finished drawing her.

Outside, Sai looked around for Naruto and Shikamaru. He wondered if they got tired of waiting for him to finish and went home.

"Guys?"

Shikamaru and Naruto showed up. "Hey. What's up?"

"I sketched Ino."

"You don't say." They pretended they hadn't been eavesdropping the whole time.

"Look." Sai showed them his sketch.

"Oh, how cool. You did a great job."

"Thanks. Ino thought so, too."

"Well, it does look like her."

"It's supposed to." Sai turned the paper around and looked at it. He was really pleased with how this turned out.

"You're good at drawing girls. Ino made a really good model, huh?"

Sai agreed. "Yes. She did." He closed the sketchbook. "I'll have to try drawing her again sometime. I had fun doing this."

Shikamaru grinned. "That's good."

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