Of the Leaf

Darklight

Disclaimer: All rights to the manga/anime series Naruto belongs to Kishimoto and whoever else is involved in the series etc etc. (Blech, I hate doing these…)

A.N. I got so pissed. I had this chapter nearly done when my computer froze up and gave me the stupid message about having to close down this stupid application. I LOST IT ALL!! I had to go back and re-write. I'm not as happy with this one as I was with the other. But I can't remember how I phrased some of the things! Not to mention the other chappie I had …gone. Gonna have to redo that one too…So ticked. (Sighs)

This skips around a bit so read carefully!

--

/six month's earlier/

Hinata sighed as she repacked her kimono. The last day and a half had been strange. Shikamaru had indeed meant that they go out and get married. After debating a bit longer about alternative routes she had finally conceded the fact that they needed to get married to pull this off. They had gotten up this morning and inquired about the closest temple.

After finding the said temple they had come back to their room. Shikamaru had pulled a very nice kimono out of his pack stating that he "didn't want to be running around Wave country looking for someone to make him a something when he could have been prepared for anything."

Hinata had the same thought back home and had brought several of her own kimonos and one that had once belonged to her mother. This kimono was very strange yet very beautiful. It had been her mother's favorite and Hinata had many memories of seeing her mother in it. She had come to love the kimono as much as her mother had.

Hinata never thought of herself as a fierce person yet this kimono called to her. It was a cream color with no designs on the sleeves front or bottom, its weave was so tight and fine that it left no doubt that it was a very expensive garment. Yet the lack of design would cause many to question its beauty but on the back… Embroidered on the back was a dragon, silvery white in color with just the slightest shading of the lightest purple on its scales and tail. Its long and sinuous body was coiled not to strike but in the most exotic of dances. Clouds so faint in color that they nearly blended with the cream cloth drifted around and in front of it. The dragon's eyes were closed and had often left Hinata curious as to what they would look like if they opened.

She remembered her mother telling her a story about when the dragon opened its eyes. That story had always left her breathless and excited. She would often dream of the dragon opening its eyes for her and then come rushing to her side at her call. Hinata always thought of the dragon as a he.

The obi was also strange. Obi's were meant to contrast and compliment the kimono's they were paired with yet this one was plain, the same off color as the clouds and when tied it appeared as if the dragon was dancing in and around clouds. The effect was, in Hinata's opinion, quiet beautiful.

She had always dreamed of wearing this kimono to her wedding but Hyuuga tradition demanded that she wear the family heirloom that had been passed down through out the generations. Well, at least she had gotten her way in this. She had worn it earlier today to marry Shikamaru Nara at the farming communities' temple.

A large part of the Hyuuga heiress had died today. The ceremony had been simple. The reciting of the vows had been curt. It had been a very unromantic. Their had been no profound declarations of love, no tingle of happiness in the air as she had clasped her hands in prayer, no sense of excitement as they exchanged rings.

Hinata might have been a ninja, she may have been a very pragmatic person but she was still female. She had had the same dreams as other girls when she was younger. Flowers and candy, romantic words and gentle touches. Grand proposals, beautiful weddings and happily ever after's. A larger part of her had died today than she had been aware of.

'Reality sucks.' She thought to herself. 'It's really pathetic when I get married and the highlight of my day is when I get to wear my mother's kimono.' She plopped down on the bed and focused her eyes to the floor. After they had finished the ceremony they had 'encouraged' the monk to say, if asked, that they had been married for a few months. The encouragement included a hefty tithe to the temple and his personal pockets. And now that they were back in their room she had gone about packing both her things and his.

Shikamaru had been very quiet since the ceremony and had kept his distance. Given her current mood that was probably a good idea. He didn't say a word when she grabbed his pack and began rearranging it. She had refolded his clothes and repacked it so that it would be easier to carry. Now that she was done with the busy work she would have to face him.

Taking a deep breath she reminded herself that this was only a temporary thing and that as soon as they completed the trade deal she could divorce the Nara.

Divorce. That word caused knots to form in her stomach. Even if they didn't consummate the marriage she would be labeled damaged goods. As a result she would not make a very good marriage for her clan. Heiress or not she and Hanabi had to make a good match for the clan to grow in power and strength.

This mission had cost her so much already. She hoped and prayed that it wouldn't cost her more.

--

Shikamaru had kept his distance from his teammate since the day before. They had stopped tonight in the forest and had made camp in silence. She seemed upset and in his experience an upset woman was a very bad thing. Hinata may not seem like a troublesome woman but she could probably get troublesome quick when she was in a bad mood. He wasn't going to chance it.

In all honesty he had a pretty good idea what was bugging her. What happened yesterday was no girl's dream come true. And he was no dream guy either. She was probably miffed about the whole thing. He wondered if all girls were like this, going gaga over something like a wedding. He remembered Ino going into a rant about her future wedding. She had the whole damn thing planned out. Colors, dresses, invitations, hell she had even the groom picked out. Though at the time Sasuke hadn't seemed so into the wedding plans.

Although she may now have another in her sights as the groom and Shikamaru wasn't to sure about standing in for the Uchiha. He and Ino had been on the brink of a relationship many times but both had held back. Shikamaru was very aware of the chemistry between them and was also aware that he could fall very very deeply in love with the blond. They had held back out of respect for their team. They were the second best information gathering team in Kohona. Beaten only by their father's team of course.

Sighing quietly he pulled out his travel shogi board and began reviewing some new ideas that he had in his head for a while now. Some time later he felt Hinata's gaze on him and ignored it for a time before glancing up at her. Seeing her staring at the board sealed the smart remark behind his teeth. She looked up at him for a moment then crawled forward to sit before him. Still looking at the board she pointed at a piece and asked why he had moved it like that.

Sometime later in the night found him still hunched over the board but with Hinata on the other side. Playing a decent game against the genius. She was a quick study; he would give her that, though she was too obvious in her approach. He had no problem teaching her advanced moves, her problem was applying them in proper situations.

Seven moves later he captured her king and she gave a gusty sigh. Glancing at his watch Shikamaru realized that it was later than he hoped and that they had to get up early to make a good impression when they arrived in Wave.

Tilting his head in the direction of the tent he told her to sleep. He'd take the first watch. She nodded and crawled over to slip into the covers. As shinobi they had learned a long time ago that zipping the tent closed was an excellent way to get ambushed and cornered easily.

Shikamaru settled himself into his watch position and cleared his mind. Only one thought kept sliding in and out of his mind. This was going to end up being more trouble than it was worth.

--

/one month later/

Shikamaru flopped down on their bed and groaned out loud. He had no idea that a person could get this frustrated and not blow up. Their contacts were of course the merchant family themselves. They were a prominent and very nice family in Trade. The house matriarch was a short plump woman that had never been pretty and going into her old age showed signs of being ugly, yet her smile and laugh could light up a room. Easily a likeable person and genuinely honest to boot. Her husband was an older gentleman with a sharp mind and loud laugh. He had been in the trading business a long time and played the game well. Yet he never turned a bad deal and was honest and fair in all of his dealings. That didn't mean he expected others to do the same for him though. He was a very smart businessman.

A wealthy as the family was he had to have been. Trade was a town that once a ghost town but now was growing exponentially. His family had been at the top of the pecking order for a long time and sought to become a political power in Wave.

'If they do politics like they do business then this country may well be on its way to becoming another powerful nation.' thought Shikamaru. 'Though, I still wish they would stop this dogging our footsteps crap.'

It had been in fact a very long month. After they had introduced themselves as newly weds from their respective clans Namiko and Tenchi had jumped all over them and hadn't left them alone yet. If he moved more than five steps away from Hinata they were calling him back over to see something or to listen in on some story. If he or Hinata had to go to the friggin' bathroom they had to be back within a certain time or a servant was knocking on the door asking if everything was alright. Or if they went wandering around to get some time to themselves they were herded back to whatever room the group was in and chastised for making their hosts worry.

The only time they had alone was when they were in their lovely suite at night. The rooms were gorgeous with a sitting area and reading room and a massive bathroom just off of the bedroom. Yet for all the space the bedroom itself was kind of small and the bed was only a double. There were no doors or partitions closing off the bathroom or other rooms. The shower was even an elegant open air stall. Part of the wall adjacent to the bedroom from the bath was made entirely of crystal clear glass.

So even when their hosts left them alone at night they really had no privacy from each other. Every time he turned around, there she is, just within arms reach. And right now just within arms reach was becoming a problem. He was a strong willed person, he could take a lot but this was getting to him on many different levels.

Shortly after they had arrived he had begun feeling …excited, every time she was close and since they were always in close proximity it was becoming awkward. Especially at night when they had to sleep together on that damnable double bed! There was only so much beautiful curvy sensual arousing woman that he could take. Oh yeah and he was married to her also!

When the devil herself walked in the room he groaned again and turned over onto his stomach. She had looked delectable with her hair mussed from her fingers being run through it and he really didn't need to deal with another erection.

"Shika-kun, please sit up. I want to rub your neck, you seem so tense."

'Insert there: (Shikamaru sit up so we can have another talk and try to understand each others hidden meanings.)' He thought grumpily though they had gotten good at hearing hidden meanings in each others words. They had long ago established that they were actually being watched and recorded in the room. Her Byakugan had come in handy for this sometime ago. So even if he wanted to get down and dirty with her he was no exhibitionist.

"Shika-kun?"

"Ummmhrmmuragh!" He groaned as he sat up. At least he was getting a neck rub out of it.

"Shika-kun" Hinata started after a few minuets. "Shika-kun please take off your vest and shirt. You're too tight for this to be any effective." Mentally scanning her words he found no hidden meanings and did as she asked. He felt her curl up behind him on her knees then she began with a simple shoulder rub.

"Have you noticed that lately Namiko and Tenchi aren't giving us any space?" (What are we going to do about this?)

"Ermmm…Yeah, I have. Annoying isn't it?" (Don't know, will have to play along)

"I wonder Shika-kun; do you think it's because of the trade negotiations?" (Same)

"Who knows?" (Why?!)

"Well…do you think they are waiting to see if we are lying to them?" (Do you think they know we are faking it?)

"What do you mean?" (Same)

"If they think we are not honest with them they would have us under constant surveillance right? Isn't that what they are doing now?" (Going over old material here, play along.)

"Yeah…"

"But since we are …after all…newly married they would expect us to act a certain way right?" (Are we holding up a good act for them to believe it?)

"Relax Hina, ahh lower please, ehh lower …owww!! Right there! Ow! Hnn…… anyways we aren't exactly your normal trade couple. We are after all ninja and we don't act normal by any stretch of the definition. We're here to get a deal for Lady Tsunade and to take a vacation at the same time. Remember this is supposed to be an extended honeymoon. With a mission included. Now tell me how that is normal?" a giggle from behind let him know his words had reassured her that they hadn't screwed it up yet.

A chill raced up his spine and the hairs on the back of his neck rose up. Glancing over his shoulder he saw that she had activated her bloodline limit. She was looking at his back and chewing on her lip, looking up into his eyes she smiled.

"Lay down Shikamaru, your back is a mess of knotted muscles." Laying back down on the bed he gladly submitted to her hands. The woman could send him to heaven with those hands. He never realized how tensed up he was until she worked him into putty.

After about a half an hour of massage Hinata spoke back up. This time her voice was lower, huskier. "Shikamaru? When are we going to get around to the honeymoon bit of this vacation?"

Taking a moment to process her words he realized that there was a hidden meaning in the question. It was just that his lust crazed mind was having trouble processing it. Somewhere in his mind a voice piped up saying he wasn't acting like himself and that he needed to analyze the situation before going any further. Finally it dawned on him that she was asking if they should have sex. Probably to convince their hosts of their sincerity of marriage. The voice screamed that he was jumping to conclusions but the haze inside Shikamaru's head squashed it.

Leaning down further so that her lips touched the outer rim of his ear Hinata murmured "We have already put on a show for those who watch us in the bathroom. Let's just see what happens if we act more like a married couple." (They have cameras in the bathroom. If we do this they may back off of us for a while.) At least that is what he hoped she really said because if he turned over and finished what she had inadvertently started and she not mean it like that…

Turning his head in her direction he replied "Whenever you feel comfortable, Hinata."