Pairings: ShikaIno, etc…

Warnings: None really.

Author's Notes: Okay…I didn't want to tell you guys this, but I know who Ino-chan will end up with. Oh ho ho! I think it'll be a cute pairing…but of course, I can't tell you who that lucky person is…Hehehehe…

Thank you for reading, I hope you continue to read and enjoy the story even if Ino doesn't end up with who you want her to end up with.


Give and Take

Diary, I am so happy!

A sunny sky full of clouds decorated the top of the page.

Shikamaru is the best. He visits me about every day even on days that he has to work. I've learned a lot about him these past few days, and I find him more and more amazing with every fact. He works at the medical school, helping the staff make decisions (important ones). Apart from miscellaneous tutoring jobs, he also teaches a writing course for the upper class. For someone who always looks so bored and lazy, he actually works very hard.

The thing I like most is that he works hard to make me happy.

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"Hinata! I don't think I can take this anymore!" Kiba huffed and crossed his arms as he watched Ino flit by happily.

"W-Why not?" Hinata glanced up to the boy. "I think it's nice."

Kiba growled and turned on his heels. That was exactly what the problem was. Everything was too nice with Princess Ino happy. He never imagined happiness could be so absolutely disgusting. She spent all her time smiling and doing things with this incredibly cheerful demeanor. She acted as if she was already married to the scholar. Kiba just couldn't stand it. It wasn't that he didn't like Shikamaru (the source of her happiness) because he had been routing for the boy to win her over, rather than Sasuke, but it was still unnerving.

"Kiba…" a voice called out to him as he walked down the hall. Kiba stopped and turned to the boy.

"What is it, Your Highness?" He addressed Sasuke bitterly. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you!"

"She's still not talking to me, is she?" Sasuke asked. He got no answer, as expected. "It's what I expected…"

"So then why are you asking?" Kiba frowned.

"No…its nothing…" The young prince turned his back on Kiba and continued down the hall. Kiba had to admit that the boy was acting strange lately. He always seemed like he had something important to say, and yet, he never uttered more than a few sentences. He inquired about the princess and often seemed worried…

Neither Kiba nor Hinata knew what turn of events had caused Ino to choose the unlikely scholar over the princely Sasuke.

Kiba sighed and continued his day. It was bound to be a lonely one.

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I don't care about anyone else anymore! No one can make me feel as happy as Shikamaru does.

There were many skipped lines and a change in ink color.

Or so I think…for the moment. I mean, if I love Shikamaru then that means I should marry him and if I marry Shikamaru then I'll never be with anyone else again! I don't think my parents will approve. He's not royalty or even nobility. His mother was a seamstress! And I forgot what his father did, but it wasn't anything too grand. I think he herded deer…

Shikamaru does a lot for me, but…

I feel bad for him sometimes. He buys me ridiculously expensive gifts which I don't think he can really afford to buy for me. Surely Shikamaru is smart enough to know that he can't pay for all these things. With the first gift, I was happy and surprised, but they just kept coming. I love every single one…

Maybe I just shouldn't worry so much?

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Shikamaru sat on a chair with Ino's arm draped over his shoulder casually. The pair seemed relaxed and content. The princess hummed the tune of the piano song they had been playing earlier. As she hummed the lively tune, she studied the emerald on her finger appreciatively.

"Heh…" Shikamaru smirked proudly and took the princess's hand. "You're getting that song stuck in my head…"

"Well. Whose fault is that? I had to start my part over so many times because you kept messing me up. You got it stuck in my head first," Ino narrowed her eyes teasingly and pulled away her hand. "Anyway…it's a good song."

Shikamaru sighed deeply and leaned back. Immediately, he was comforted by Ino's touch.

"You ok? You seem tired…"

"I'm ok," Shikamaru answered without hesitation, even though he really did seem tired in more than just a lazy way.

"Shika…" Ino spoke softly and leaned closer to the boy, "Are you working too hard?"

Shikamaru grunted in response. However, before he could really say anything, the princess continued to speak.

"You keep….giving me things…" She shifted and wrapped her arm around Shikamaru. Her finger flashed with a green spark as she moved. "Is that…ok? I mean how are you paying for all this?"

Shikamaru cracked open an eye and laughed softly with amusement. "Don't worry about it. I have a couple of jobs, you know. Besides…I don't need much for myself…"

"But…"

"Ino. You're a princess. It's your job to get lavished with gifts and all sorts of good things."

"Shikamaruuu…" Ino whined. Even though the boy never said anything directly, he made her feel like such a spoiled girl at times.

"Stop whining," the boy tried his hardest to pull his gaze away from the young girl's blue eyes. Her whine and large eyes were his weakness, even though he tried not to let Ino know that. "Hey, listen...If...you do something for me…we'll call it even, ok?"

Ino blinked. She had no idea what she could do that would equal all the things Shikamaru had given her. Suddenly, a thought flashed in her mind and she gasped at her scandalous revelation. "Shikamaru! I am NOT that kind of woman!"

"What?" The boy leaned forward from his relaxed position, "No! N-Not that…That's not what I meant! Geez, Ino…"

"Oh…" Ino slinked away, slightly disappointed that Shikamaru wasn't asking for what she thought. "Then what…?"

The boy stood up and turned to hide his blush. "Ah….how about just some tea…f-for now?"

"Tea?" Ino perked up. "You want me to serve you…tea? Oooo…hehehe…"

"Why's that so funny?" Shikamaru glared.

"Well…I don't think I've ever served someone tea before…"

"HAH!" Shikamaru tried his best to kept from laughing. In a way, it was so adorable that the girl never occupied herself with doing things for other people. The princess was living in a totally different world than most of the other people Shikamaru knew. "I'm sure it'll taste good if you make it. So hurry up, I'm thirsty."

"Yes, your highness!" Ino stood and bowed profusely before shuffling off to the kitchen.

Ino glided past the halls and snickered to herself at the thought of serving someone that was at a lower station to her. She easily served King Itachi because he was a King, but other than that, Ino had never been caught dead in the kitchen to make anything. Luckily, she caught Hinata on her way there.

"Hinata-chan!" Ino pounced on the girl and received a squeal from her.

"Y-Yes, Your H-Highness…?" Hinata stuttered, but was secretly overjoyed to have the blonde's attention back to her. Even if it was just to order her to do something, Hinata was glad she was with her again. She missed being with Ino.

"You have to help me make some tea!"

"T-Tea? I'll just make it for you!" Hinata beamed.

"No! You can't! I'm making the tea! You just supervise and help me, ok?"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

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Of course I know how to make tea. I've seen it done so many times. It looks so simple (about a thousand times more simple than making a cake).

I remember having a play tea set, but my tea was only air. I loved that tea set so much, but I've forgotten where I put it. Anyway, I called Hinata to help to be certain that everything goes perfectly. I don't want any tea I make to be less than perfect.

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"P-Princess…?" Hinata leaned over the cup as Ino poured hot liquid into it. "How many cups are you going to pour before you take some to Shikamaru?"

"As many as it takes!" Ino glared at the cup as it overflowed. "Aw, damn. Now look what happened! You distracted me!"

"S-Sorry…"

"Mmm! What is that delicious smell?"

Both girls turned to face the man that had entered the kitchen. King Itachi was dressed again in his native royal clothing, looking as fine and regal as a man was allowed. The dark material of his strange attire accentuated his pale complexion.

"Oh!" He smiled and walked forward. "That's the tea I offered to your father…"

"Eh? It is?" Ino looked at the murky fluid in various different cups.

Hinata blinked at the tea leaf that floated to the top of the cup. It had seemed like a very rare tea. It wasn't all that surprising that out of all of the tea in the kitchen, Ino had picked the rarest and probably the most expensive one.

"Yes, but you're wasting it all by pouring it like that…" Itachi said gently and gave Ino an amused look.

"Humph! I am not! I'm just practicing to serve Shikamaru!" Ino pouted indignantly, even though she felt silly doing that.

"Ladies. Sit." Itachi waved a hand dismissively and both girls obeyed. They watched Itachi clean the pot and start the tea-making process all over from their seats at the kitchen table. "Even though it's a different style…larger pot and cups...the process is the same. Don't ever leave the water in for too long and don't forget to clean both the pot and the fresh leaves with hot water first. Like…this…"

"Oooo…" Both Ino and Hinata were amazed at the way Itachi poured tea with the fluid motions of an expert. In seconds, two dainty cups were placed in front of them. Ino sipped from her cup and couldn't believe how good tea made by the king tasted.

"It's good." She placed the cup down and her eyes flashed up to the monarch. "Do you make tea often, Itachi-sama?"

"Of course! In my country we have rituals just for making tea…and I know them all." He smiled coyly and offered to pour the princess another cup.

"No thank you…I should really make some for Shikamaru…" Ino pulled her empty cup away from Itachi's offer.

Something seemed to click in his mind and the King almost dropped the pot of hot tea. "Oh! I almost forgot!"

"Hmm?" the blonde gazed questioningly at the older man.

"I have something for you!" He moved to Ino and held her wrist a tad possessively. It was startling and frightening to Ino, even thought the man's face was sincerely cheery. "I've been meaning to give it to you for a while, but it's like you have been hiding! Come on!"

Ino was dragged from the kitchen and was barely able to soothe Hinata's worried protests. "Hinata! Just clean up! It's alright! I'll be back in a moment!"

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I probably should have told the king that I was busy. It wasn't good to leave Shikamaru waiting in the room while I went off with the king, but he was just so demanding I couldn't resist. Itachi has strange ways of being demanding without…actually being demanding. I don't know how to describe it.

Even though I know I should have stayed in the kitchen…I was so glad I went! Eee! You'd be surprised at what he gave me.

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"What is it?" she asked as she trailed behind the energetic man.

"Shh!" Itachi snickered and continued to haul her to an unknown room.

"Itachi-sama!" Ino whined and hoped it would do something to clear the situation. "Tell me! I have to get back to Shikamaru soon!"

"Patience is a virtue, Princess…" the dark-haired man growled under his breath.

Finally, they arrived at the location where Itachi had placed Ino's gift. By that time, Ino was dying with anticipation. Even if the gift was worthless, she would be thrilled to find out just what it was. The King finally let go of the girl's hand as he went wandering to the hearth. There, beside the glowing fire, Itachi moved a few finely wrapped boxes until he grabbed the proper one.

"Ahh!" He pulled it out and turned to the girl. "Here it is!"

Ino gasped and inched forward. Her first impulse was to rip it from Itachi's hands and tear through the paper. She barely kept herself from doing exactly that. "C-Can I…have it?"

"Well, of course! I got it just for you," Itachi carelessly tossed the gift at the girl.

She caught it clumsily and momentarily studied the paper with her eyes. It was gorgeous. She almost didn't want to tear through it. With care, she ripped the intricately patterned paper to reveal a box. Opening this gift filled the princess with more wonder than any other gift she had opened recently. She was now certain that the contents were amazing.

"Hurry up! I have things to do too, you know…" Itachi complained.

"O-Ok!" Ino yanked the top of the box off and gasped.

A mountain of red cloth.

The girl peered up at the king. "What is it?"

"Take it out!"

Ino obeyed and pulled the material from the box. She almost shivered when she touched it. The material felt amazing, like silk, but not quite. The stitching on it was infinitely more lovely than the designs on the wrapping paper Ino had admired. The red cloth spilled to the ground like magic. The box in Ino's hand didn't seem like it could hold such a large item.

"It's gorgeous!" Ino squealed when she finally appreciated what the gift was. "A cloak! And such a shocking color! The designs are amazing! Where did you find this?"

Itachi smirked at the barrage of happy exclamations. "I saw it when I was out with your parents. As soon as I saw the loveliness and brightness of the fabric…I thought of you."

Ino's cheeks colored and she hid her face under the folds of red. Her cool eyes studied Itachi's face and her heart throbbed. "Why? Why are you giving this to me…?"

Itachi stroked the material of the cloak absent-mindedly. "Because. Well, I owe your family very much for allowing my brother and I to stay here for so long. That tea was a gift from me for the same reason. I have a few other things I have yet to give…"

"Oh…" Ino felt a touch disappointed that this was only one in a series of gifts Itachi was giving.

"You can put it on if you like…" Itachi smirked.

Again, Ino took his words as a command and draped the material over her shoulders. It hung adorably on her and made her seem vividly youthful. "Oooo! Its so light!"

"Mm-Hmm…" Itachi gazed at the girl with satisfaction. "Yes, but don't let that fool you. It will protect you from the cold and the rain…maybe even dragon's claws…"

"R-Really?"

"Hah! Of course not," Itachi waved a hand. "If that were true, I might keep it!"

Ino laughed and unexpectedly embraced the tall man. "Thank you, Itachi-sama…"

Itachi seemed surprised to receive even that small bit of gratitude. He patted the girl lightly on the back and pulled away from her. "I'm glad you like it. Now run along…weren't you making some tea?"

"Oh!"

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Oh, God. That cloak was amazing. I don't know what it is, but it is so wonderfully comfortable. Not only does it scream style and beauty, but it feels as if it was made just for me.

Diary, have you ever gone shopping somewhere and had your eye catch something that you feel you were destined to buy? Well, of course you haven't…silly little collection of paper you. That is how the cloak felt. It's so marvelous that I feel like wearing it all day and sleeping in it. I love it.

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Shikamaru eyed the suspicious red cloth over his cold cup of tea. He didn't mention anything about the unpleasant chill it gave him to drink cold, murky water. He was more disturbed by the distant look in Ino's eyes and the mysterious new item of clothing.

"Ino."

"Yes…?"

Shikamaru sighed. "Where did you get that cloak?"

"Oh, this old thing?" Ino was pleased to turn and show it off to the boy.

"That old thing," Shikamaru glared and felt an uncomfortable feeling rising inside.

"Actually…well…" Ino became more serious when she noticed Shikamaru was not amused. "Itachi-sama gave it to me just now."

"What?" If the boy had been drinking tea at that moment, he would have spit it out. It was incredible. He let go of the girl for one second and someone else was already lavishing the princess with gifts. "T-The King?"

"The one and only…Sasuke's brother…" Ino sighed. "Have you met him yet?"

Shikamaru just looked like he wanted to hurl the cup in his hand at the nearest wall, or conniving monarch for that matter. Before he could answer that, he noticed another thing about the princess. Her dress had shifted slightly lower and a ruby-colored pendant was hanging from her neck. "Did he give you that too?"

"Oh?" Ino looked down to see what Shikamaru was questioning. "No. This is from…Neji…You know…he gave it to me for…protection after the incident with the dragon…"

"Oh…yeah…" the boy looked down.

Ino finally felt something was wrong with Shikamaru. Rather than comfort him, her first instinct was to just get away from him. Jealousy was so unbecoming. Ino could recognize that emotion anywhere. For lack of desire of saying anything, she went to the coffee table and picked up the tray of tea.

"Thanks for the tea," Shikamaru said softly and placed the cup on the tray. Even with his mind filled with unsavory thoughts, he still grinned at the sight of the princess holding a serving tray.

"Hehe! You're welcome…" Ino smiled in relief, but the smile faded when she saw the boy head towards the door. "Are you leaving already?"

"Yea…but I'll be back tomorrow."

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Diary…

I am so tired! After Shikamaru left, I practiced making tea a few dozen more times. (With the cheap tea). I showed Hinata my cloak and she seemed to like it very much. I'm still so proud of it.

You know…I'm starting to wonder…Where have Kiba and Sasuke been all this time?

Alright, I admit, I thought of them mostly because I wanted to show them my cloak too, but I miss them just a little. Especially Sasuke. I feel ready to talk to him again. I even forgot why I was mad...

I suppose I'll do that tomorrow.


END OF CHAPTER 10!

How nice is that? Oh, thanks to the person that was correcting me. I know I make mistakes. Especially with the diary/dairy thing. Again, I'm sorry if I don't catch all those mistakes.

Also…I'm back at school, so I don't think I'll be updating as regularly. I'm updating today because I'm a loser that decided to stay inside instead of going out with my friends. (sobs) Lol! Naw, j/k! I'm so glad to be here…to update. God, I'm tired! Just…er…continue to read and review and I'll be happy and want to write more! :D