Off on dream dates, our guys and girls have some much-needed fun. But our schemers are scheming. Who is that? Warning: Shika/Ino mature moment.
Ino walked up to the Hyuuga compound's front door to the main house, as she'd done before so many times. Ino was still a little worried about the plan. 'What if this doesn't work?' Ino was dressed in a plain white blouse and a gray skirt, with plain black sandals. She can't help but be a little bit nervous. Not just about her appearance, though she always chose to dress conservatively around the Hyuuga compound. Ino Yamanaka is already known by the guards as one of Hinata's annoying, pretty and very talkative friends. The guards actually don't mind when Ino, TenTen and Saukra come around. They are nice to look at. But they still have to make sure she is who she says she is. A simple jutsu could disguise a ninja as Ino.
"Ah, Ino. Come in." Ino was greeted at the door by one of the clan's employees to the house. They already know her, as well. "Hinata is ready. She is very excited. It's nice to see a smile on her face."
"Oh, yes. How are you doing this evening, Kaoru?" Ino stepped inside into the foyer to wait on Hinata. Ino didn't like wandering around the compound without an escort, even inside.
"Fine, thank you. I hope you are well, yourself."
"Yes, fine." Ino gave a sweet smile to the kind woman and she escorted her inside.
Kaoru was a very kind middle-aged house servant, possibly in her late thirties. Kaoru had once told Ino that she has worked at the Hyuuga compound most of her life, since her mother had brought them there after her father died. Her mother needed a job, and they couldn't stay in their old home anymore. Servitude was all Kaoru had known. Ino wanted to feel sorry for her, but Kaoru reassured her that living at the Hyyuga compound was wonderful for her. Kaoru is a pleasant woman, and has been a friend to Hinata since she was a small child. Int his family, Hinata really needed friends when she was much younger. Kaoru had fine, wavy, jet black hair fell to her neck. Sometimes she enjoys braiding it, and it will usually be slung around her shoulder. Kaoru was wearing her usual house servant uniform and basic sandals, and an apron. She must have been helping out in the kitchen earlier, because the apron is now dirty.
"Would you care for a refreshment while you wait, Miss Yamanaka? We baked a few fresh berry pies earlier. I personally picked the strawberries in the strawberry pie."
"Oh, that sounds wonderful, Kaoru, but I'm afraid I've already eaten tonight. And Hinata and I are in a hurry. Sakura is already waiting on us at my house." 'Such a lie. Sakura is out having fun at a great restaurant. Hinata is about to join her, too! Play it cool, Ino! But Kaoru wouldn't tell, would she?'
Hinata came peeling down the stairs in a hurry, bag in tow. She was already out of breath. "Ready! Goodbye, Kaoru! I'll see you in a couple of days!" Hinata and Ino had arranged that Hinata would stay over for two nights to recuperate and not give any signs that she's going out tonight. Ino didn't want to know what kind of trouble her friend would be facing if her father catches wind of this. Dating without her father's permission may carry a heavy punishment. Ino didn't want to find out.
"Oh, goodbye! Have fun!" Kaoru bowed to Hinata and returned further into the house.
"Oh, let's go!" Hinata urged Ino to walk quicker, though Ino was pretty stressed out at this point. But Hinata was too excited to slow down. Once they were clear of the compound walls, Ino breathed a sigh of relief. "Whew!"
Hinata stopped and used her kekkei genkai to look around to make sure no one was giving chase. If she and Ino acted suspicious, her father could have a reason to assign guards to follow her and report back. In fact, her unusual panic when packing certainly came across as suspicious. Sure enough, she thought there might be one or two on her tail. But Hinata wasn't worried about it.
"We might have company, but we can shake them if we need to. No need to worry, anyhow." Hinata sounded braver than ever tonight! She has come a long way in her attitude, but this amount of courage was a bit out of character! Ino was surprised! Ino was also worried about any guards who might be following them. She didn't know what to expect.
"Is that okay? Are you sure?" Ino looked over at her friend, who looked as cool as a cucumber.
"Sure, Ino. We are just going to your house. They will follow us all the way there to make sure I get there safely and will then report back to my father. I usually have followers when I leave with you."
Ino felt a little queasy, now knowing that. She never detected anyone following her before. It was worrying enough that she couldn't detect whoever was following them at this very moment.
Ino and Hinata quickly hurried through the Konoha streets and finally reached their destination. Hinata placed her bag down and tried to inconspicuously use her kekkei genkai again. She searched behind her, in the shadows, and saw that both of her followers were already retreating back to the compound to report that she had made it to Ino's house safely. Hinata was a little worried that her father had not trusted her. It had taken a while for her to build up enough trust with her father. It took even longer to recreate a relationship with him after reassigning the title of heiress to her little sister, Hanabi. She didn't want to risk it all, but she just knew an evening with Naruto would be worth it.
Ino had opened the door by now, and picked up Hinata's bag for her. Ino walked through her doorway and into the safety of her home. Though they were guards sent to actually protect Hinata, and Ino by association, they were still a bit unnerving for her. She didn't know they had ever followed them all the way back before. She had been none the wiser.
Hinata walked in to Ino's house right behind Ino and closed the door gently. "Oh, thank you, Ino, but that isn't necessary. I can carry-"
"Don't worry about it. Let's get you upstairs and fix you up for your date tonight! You have to hurry!" Ino pulled the bag up the stairs. Ino placed the bag on the edge of her bed, on the neatly folded fuchsia comforter. Ino fixes her bed by drawing back the comforter to where only the white sheets with pink polka dots are tucked in. Hinata opened the bag and pulled out a very neatly folded garment bag containing her dress, Ino presumed.
"Let's see the gorgeous dress, Hinata!"
Hinata unzipped the bag to reveal a silky emerald green evening dress. It had thin straps and ruching on the bodice. Ino barely noticed, but Hinata's fully-developed form would fill out the top quite nicely. The dress looked expensive. But then again, nothing is too good for a Hyuuga. The dress was likely custom-made for Hinata. This clan does not shop off the rack.
"Oh, Hinata! This dress is absolutely beautiful! You're going to knock 'em dead in this! Oh, Naruto is going to lose his mind!" Ino reached in her bag to find strappy black heels. They weren't as sexy as Sakura's platforms, but Hinata wasn't spicing up her appearance like Sakura was. She was going for a classic look of elegance. Hinata was a bit taller than Sakura, anyway, so she didn't need too much height. The shoes looked expensive, as well. Then Ino reached in to find a little velvety black drawstring bag.
"Y-you really think s-so?" The mere mention of Naruto made Hinata's head spin, She still couldn't believe she was doing this!
"What's in here, Hinata? Jewelry?"
"Oh, yes! Look and see!" Hinata took her dress and went into the bathroom to change. She already knew she wouldn't have as good a collection of makeup as her friend would, so she went in to beautify herself first. "C-could you help me with a little bit o-of makeup?"
Ino wasted no time in opening the little black bag to find a very expensive pearl necklace and matching earrings. "Oh, beautiful!" She didn't even notice that Hinata was getting nervous again. She overlooked the stuttering. "Oh, yes. Hold on, Hinata." She placed the pearls back in the bag and brought them into the bathroom with her. She and Hinata were going to have to hurry!
Kiba and Sakura arrived at the restaurant, arm-in-arm. They chatted casually the whole way there. Sakura had already found that Kiba was actually very funny, and quite a gentleman. She never knew that before. Perhaps it was only with her that he could let that part of himself show? From what Hinata told her about her teammate, Kiba actually can be very protective of her. He doesn't have to worry about Shino, but tends to be overprotective of Hinata on the battlefield. He can be a bit wild and he absolutely loves to fight, but he's loyal to his friends and has a big heart.
Kiba had just revealed how Akamaru bested him in training yesterday. Akamaru ended up accidentally knocking over a tree, and Kiba had to jump out of the way to avoid it. It was unfortunate that he jumped to the left instead of the right, because Kiba ended up splashing right into the river. Akamaru thought he was drowning and jumped in to save him, but jumped directly on him and pulled him under. He thought he was a goner until Akamaru actually succeeded in pulling him to the surface.
Sakura chuckled femininely. "Oh, Kiba! I didn't know that you were such a klutz! I am, too, in fact. I tripped and fell twice, just this morning! The first time, I jumped out of bed and fell right in the floor! I just didn't even try to get up until several minutes later!" 'Maybe I shouldn't mention the reason I jumped up was because I was overexcited about our date tonight! And it's going so well already, even though it just began! Ino is going to get an earful tomorrow morning!'
Kiba laughed heartily. Sakura looked up at him. He really did have very handsome features. He had a strong bone structure, muscles that rippled when he laughed, and those canines showed every time he smiled. 'I wonder what they feel like on my neck. . .oh. . .he could drag them across my skin. . .and nibble just a little. . .'
"Sakura, we're here. Are you okay? You were laughing just a second ago, and then you tuned out." Kiba received a blush and a nod. He smiled and walked them into the entrance of the cute restaurant. Sakura stole a glance at the outside. They had a large, ornate sigh fixed onto the front, and it read: Bella Notte. 'Wow, it is a bit ritzy. Such a small restaurant for the front to have columns outside. Fancy.' Sakura was impressed.
"Are you okay, Sakura?"
"Yes. Oh, sorry. My mind wanders sometimes."
Kiba smiled at her and removed his arm from her grasp, only to wrap it around her shoulders and they walked into the restaurant.
"Good evening. Name, please?"
"Inuzuka Kiba." Kiba looked over to Sakura, who was taking in the restaurant. Then he looked back to the host.
"Ah, yes. Follow me, please." The host led them into the main dining hall. It was even more ornate than the outside. Beautiful painintings and scrolls hung on the walls. The table settings included candlelight, flower arrangements and very nice crystal drinkware. "Haruko will be your server tonight. And here she is. Please enjoy your evening."
Their waitress appeared just as their host quickly walked back to his post to assist someone else. "Good evening! My name is Haruko, and I will be your server tonight. Would you like to see our wine list?"
"Sakura, would you like some wine?" Kiba's eyes flashed over to his date.
"Oh yes, please. I'd like a glass of white wine." 'Kiba must be enjoying himself, too. He can't stop grinning. His eyes are sparkling. I think mine are, too!'
Kiba selected a wine for them that was probably too expensive for Sakura to even comprehend. She smiled at Kiba. 'He must be aiming to impress tonight. Well, have at it.' She and Kiba struck up another conversation before the wine was delivered.
Naruto and Sasuke left the Uchiha compound, dressed in nice suits and polished. Sasuke was a pro at this, but Naruto felt a little uncomfortable. Naruto was also a little nervous. Well, more than a little. He worried the whole way there.
"Oh, Teme! What if Hinata hates this suit?"
"Dobe. It's a suit. Hinata likes you. Besides, you look fine."
"Oh. Thanks, Sasuke! You're right!" The two young men arrived at the restaurant shortly after Kiba and Sakura were seated. They stood outside and waited.
"Do you think Sakura is already here?"
"Hn. Yes. I can sense her. She's inside already." He could sense Kiba, as well. 'Bastard. You just keep your hands to yourself. You may not get them back.'
Naruto was still not sure why Sasuke was there with him, all dressed up. He didn't have a very happy face on, either. It was colder than usual.
"Teme, are you dining with me and Hinata?"
Sasuke looked at him like he wanted to slap him. "No, you idiot. I have my own date." 'Quit asking questions, you imbecile! You're so annoying!'
Naruto looked at him incredulously. "Wha? Where? When did this happen?" Naruto didn't want his two teammates to be in the same restaurant with different dates. He was adamant that Sasuke and Sakura were perfect for each other. It would be a lot of work to pull it off, but it would help if things didn't go so well with Kiba tonight. But Kiba was smooth, handsome, and he really did like Sakura. Naruto noticed that the last time they joined teams for a mission, about a month ago. If it went well, then Kiba and Sakura may be sticking together for a while. Naruto knew that much.
"Hn. An old teammate." Naruto looked at him thoughtfully. He couldn't place a name. Then it him him. 'Did Sai come back from his mission early?' Naruto looked back at his friend and eyed him suspiciously.
Sasuke felt Naruto looking at him and didn't like the look he was getting. "What is it, Dobe?"
"Who's your date? Is it. . .is it a. . .guy?" Naruto squeezed his eyes shut, hoping for the best. 'Well, Sakura, you might as well stick with Kiba.' "Teme, just know that I'll support y-"
"Karin." Sasuke didn't have to look back at his friend to know he was holding back both a gasp and a gag. As if on cue, a fiery redhead in a highly inappropriate red dress walked around the corner. The dress showed way too much, and the material wasn't very flattering. It had a plunging neckline that was not fit for dinner at a nice restaurant. She wore red kitten heels and a tremendous amount of makeup. She wasn't completely unfortunate, though. She might have looked quite a bit. . trashy, but she did have a bit of beauty going for her. And she, of course, was invited to dinner at a fancy restaurant by none other than the unbelievably handsome sole heir to the Uchiha clan.
Ino had rushed Hinata out of her house quickly, escorting her part of the way. But Hinata had a nagging feeling in the pit of her stomach. She knew no one was following her. It soon didn't matter, because a famous head of blond hair appeared in front of her. Naruto was wearing a really nice black suit with a blue shirt and a black tie. He didn't see her yet. Hinata immediately noticed Naruto fixed his hair a bit. It still had the crazy appearance, but it looked a bit tamed. She saw Sasuke standing next to him, so she surmised that the Uchiha must have helped his friend prepare for his date. Noblemen tend to learn how to groom themselves at a young age, in order to always look presentable. She had to giggle a bit at the thought of Sasuke being a personal hairdresser. Something caught Hinata's peripheral vision, and her head darted over to the left. She blinked a few times, because she thought she was imagining something. No, she wasn't hallucinating. She gasped.
There, in a tight and very inappropriate dress, was Karin. She had her hair fixed in a rather plain up-do, which wasn't too flattering on her. She wasn't wearing her glasses. She was walking right up to Sasuke. And he didn't shove her away. He didn't even turn away. He walked up to meet her. 'Oh, my goodness!'
Naruto turned around to see Hinata. His jaw literally dropped. Sasuke wasn't really paying too much attention to Karin, though from the looks of it, that's exactly what she was looking for. He looked to his side to see a dumbfounded Naruto. He looked a little bit past him to see Hinata. 'Wow. She looks pretty great, actually. Why am I stuck with this, then? This cannot stand. Soon.'
"Dobe. Hey, Dobe." Hinata was walking over to them, but Naruto appeared as if he was in a coma. "Hey. Dobe! Naruto!" Sasuke had to resort to smacking Naruto on the back of his head. Naruto lunged forward, losing his footing.
"Oh, oh! H-h-hi, H-Hinata!" He rubbed the back of his head in the spot where Sasuke's palm connected. He was sure there was an Uchiha-shaped hand print there. Then he rushed to his date's side and stuck out his arm for her to grab on to. "Here, Hinata! Let's go inside!"
"Oh, t-thank you, N-Naruto." 'Calm down, Hinata, and stop stuttering.' Poor Hinata thought she was going to faint in front of Naruto. Again.
"Sasuke! C'mon! Let's go inside, too!"
"Hn." 'Damn it all. I'm not going to enjoy this.' Sasuke made no move towards Karin, who was hoping he'd extend his arm out to her, as well. But Sasuke didn't feel like being a gentleman right now. He was dressed in a very nice, expensive suit, and his date was dressed like a cheap whore. She was acting like it, too. He trudged in behind Naruto and Hinata. 'I can't believe I'm actually jealous of Naruto. There's another feeling I'm not used to. And I don't like it.'
Ino stepped back into her home, feeling very fatigued. 'Oh, the things a girl will do for her friends. Even crawling out of her hot boyfriend's lap to rush to their aid.' Speaking of which, she looked over at the couch when she walked into the living room. Shikamaru was nowhere to be found. 'Huh? Where'd he go? He didn't leave, did he? Oh, no!' Ino rushed into the kitchen, hoping he got hungry again while he waited for her. No Shikamaru.
"Shika? Sweetie? You here?" Ino went through the kitchen and into the hallway, leading back towards her office and guest bedroom. She stepped into her office. The light was on, so he must've been in here a little while ago. She had books and scrolls in there. Shikamaru liked this room. On rainy days, he'd bring his own books and read on the really comfy chaise near the back bookcase. Ino liked that chaise. Sometimes she'd ambush Shikamaru on the chaise for a little intimate time. He never complained, even when she made him lose his place.
Ino closed the door and walked into the hallway bathroom. It was very dark, so she flipped the light on. No Shikamaru. The blue chenille curtain was drawn back in the smaller tub, and nothing was out of place on the white porcelain pedestal sink. She turned the light back out and moved into the guest bedroom. She turned the light on. The yellow and blue floral bedspread hadn't been disturbed. The closet door was still only slightly ajar. She could see some of her winter clothes in there for storage. And shoes. Lots of extra shoes. She flipped the light back out and walked back down the hallway.
Ino moved to the stairs. "Shika?" She was starting to get creeped out now. Knowing that guards had been undetected so many times right outside her own home was really disturbing. Her only comfort was knowing her boyfriend was still in the house to keep her safe. Not to mention that scary movie earlier this evening didn't sit well with her. As Ino grabbed the railing for her staircase, she thought she heard something. She was hoping she heard something, actually, because absolute silence usually means something's wrong in the world of shinobi.
Ino reached the top of the stairs. Her bedroom light was off. 'That's strange. I didn't turn it off when Hinata and I left.' She reached over to the wall to flip on the switch. The light came on, but nothing had changed since she had left. 'Strange. . .wait. Is the shower. . .the shower's on! Please, oh please let it be Shikamaru! Oh, the serial killer usually attacks the victim in the shower. Duh.' Ino sauntered over to the bathroom door. Sure enough, the light was on and the shower was running. She put her hand on the doorknob. It wasn't locked, of course. She opened it and slowly cracked the door. Even if it creaked, Shikamaru shouldn't be able to hear it while he's in the shower. Ino looked inside through the cracked door and saw Shikamaru's profile in the steamy shower door. She grinned wickedly and decided to sneak inside. She sidestepped and smoothly crept inside the bathroom. No movement at all from Shikamaru. He wasn't even paying attention. Ino could see a foggy view of his backside and a glimpse of his well-defined torso. 'Not bad.' She tiptoed over to the sink, but didn't quite make it past the shower. But Shikamaru didn't even flinch.
Suddenly, Ino froze. The problem was that she couldn't move, even when she told her body to do so. "Shika, sweetheart. . ."
"Hm?" 'Heh. Sneaky, huh?'
'That smart son of a bitch knew I was in here the whole time, didn't he?' "Uh, would you mind telling me why I can't move? You didn't use your Shadow Imitation Technique on me, did you?"
"Huh? No way, babe." But the chuckling reverberating off the bathroom tiles said otherwise.
"So you're telling me that if I could look down, I wouldn't see merged shadows?"
"Nope. Don't know what you're talking about. You're so tiresome."
"Um, Shikamaru?"
"Yeah?"
"Are you washing your hair right now?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Because, for some reason, I seem to be scratching my head without wanting to."
Shikamaru had to put his hands on the side of the shower wall to remain standing up straight. He was laughing too hard to maintain his balance. But his foot slipped, sending them both crashing to the floor. All Shikamaru could do was laugh and laugh.
Ino, no longer under Shikamaru's control, sat up on the bathroom floor. She was rubbing the new sore spot on her rear end. "Oh, you are so going to get it, mister."
Shikamaru, now able to gain footing back to his knees, opened the shower door just enough to peek around the foggy glass. He expected to see a beautiful blonde charging at him. Lucky for him, he got something a bit different.
"I believe we weren't finished." Ino had already managed to strip herself of her outer clothing. Shikamaru peered out of the shower just in time to see her skirt fall on the floor, pooling at her ankles. Ino walked over to the shower stall to the open slit of the sliding glass door, where Shikamaru was looking up at her with shock on his face. "Well, aren't you going to invite me in?" She was able to see all of him, and a little something was already half at attention.
Shikamaru, the genius that he was, happened to already be calculating his next moves. He already knew what her moves meant. He was actually pretty tall; so even on his knees, he was able to reach up to Ino's back and unclasp her bra. It fell to the floor, right in front of the shower. Ino kicked it out of the way. Then came her undies, which she gladly kicked off to somewhere behind her with just a flick of her foot. But before she put her foot down, Shikamaru, still on his knees, grabbed her foot with his right hand. He brought her foot up closer to him, causing Ino to bend her knee and lose balance a bit. She grabbed the outer handle of the shower door and maintained her balance as she looked down to see what her boyfriend was doing with her foot. He simply began to rub it with both hands. He rubbed circles with his thumbs, and then used his entire hand to caress and rub all over her smooth foot. Then he brought the foot up to his mouth, and he kissed her toes. He let her foot go, and it went down to form her first step into the shower. Shikamaru took hold of Ino's hand and led her in the shower the rest of the way, his left hand now running up her leg. Ino almost forgot her hair was still up, and she reached around to the back of her head and untied her hair from its binding. She flung it somewhere on the counter and let herself be drawn in to the shower.
Shikamaru still remained on his knees. He took the opportunity to put both his hands on Ino's hips. He kissed her stomach. He hesitated, taking his time with her. Then he began to move up, between her breasts, and began to rise as he neared her face. He wasn't even fully standing before their lips connected. Ino wasted no time in wrapping her arms around his neck. Shikamaru still gave her a slow, meaningful kiss. Shikamaru thought that it should be meaningful if he was taking the time to show Ino affection. But only after about a minute, Shikamaru's tongue came out to slide over Ino's bottom lip, begging entrance. Ino parted her lips and allowed Shikamaru's tongue to play with hers. They kissed passionately for several minutes, but Shikamaru's hands just couldn't stay still. His hands that were still resting on her hips began to rub circles. Ino's right hand slid up to Shikamaru's soaked black hair, which was hanging over his shoulders. Shikamaru's right hand slowly crept up her side, tickling her ribs. He slid his hand over to her chest, and immediately upon contact, Ino moaned into the kiss. Shikamaru snapped. He always snaps when he hears Ino's moans. Within minutes, the entire bathroom was fogged up.