Cravings

Shikamaru held the door open, leaned forward, and glared for all he was worth in impotent rage at what the depths revealed: fresh vegetables, meat and seafood. He even had an extra order of udon noodles with chicken and seafood from his favorite Akimichi restaurant, but not a single thing capable of curbing his cravings.

He rubbed his belly and muttered a curse at the child who was already screwing up his life, despite not even being born yet.

Figured. The brat was an Uzumaki.

Shikamaru wanted ramen, but not just any ramen would do. No, the quick ramen he could make in three minutes tasted like ash on his tongue. Ichiraku's was palatable, but it did nothing but fill his belly or ease the ache that filled his soul. No, he needed Naruto's recipe for homemade ramen. He wanted it. Craved it. And if his ethics were just a little more grey, he'd be willing to kill for it. A member of Leaf's forces, he meant. He'd strongly consider becoming a traitor for the tasty goodness that was Naruto's three meat ramen.

He didn't need an excuse to kill another village's shinobi. Just a mission.

Not that he could go on a mission, or would be going on one any time soon. The Fifth was pretty blunt about the fact that he wasn't going anywhere for the next few months. The simplest courier missions were a no-go. He wasn't even allowed to think about the C-Rank missions given to the newest minted genin teams.

Shikamaru wasn't going anywhere until the next Uzumaki was born. Under other circumstances, he'd probably thank Tsunade. Unfortunately, normal and Nara didn't exactly go together and adding Uzumaki to the mix just blew the whole thing out of the water. Shikamaru had been feeling restless lately and yet, had nothing to do. Sparing was an exercise in futility.

Trying to move around effectively with a pregnancy belly was just depressing.

Shikamaru would be the first to admit he'd always been a lazy bastard. It was part of his genetic code. Literally. Or so his family claimed. Something about the Nara brain working so quickly and constantly, that the rest of the body didn't get a fair shot at any of the energy produced.

He was starting to think his grandfather might not have been talking out of his ass.

Lately, Shikamaru found himself barely having the energy to get out of bed, let alone maintain his adjusted workout and training schedule. Despite eating all the time, he could barely scrounge up the energy to do anything remotely physical. He supposed all his physical energy was going to creating the next Uzumaki, which was not a problem necessarily.

It was just odd. Despite being called the laziest bastard in Leaf for years, Shikamaru actually felt like he was earning the title now. He was frankly embarrassed.

He sighed and closed the fridge. He'd scooped up the energy to leave the living room sofa to find something to eat. Unfortunately, what he wanted and had were two different things. "Stupid blond."

Shikamaru turned back to the living room when a soft chime ran through the air. He released a second sigh and made his way to the door and then out. He stopped several feet away from the front of the gate that protected the Uzumaki estates, surprised to see Neji standing on the other side.

Thinking hard, Shikamaru wondered if he'd missed a meeting. He hoped not. He'd been a lot more exhausted lately, but the didn't think the fatigue was affecting his memory. He reached the gate and placed his hand against a small indent and feed a little of his chakra through the metal. He remembered the day Naruto adjusted the security seals for him and it always made him thinking fondly of the blonde.

And horny.

He still couldn't decide who was more turned on by the thought of Shikamaru having full access to the property.

"Good afternoon, Neji."

"Afternoon, Shikamaru," the other brunet called as he pushed open the gate. "How are you?" he asked and closed the gate behind it. The click of the lock sounded loud to Shikamaru, but that might be because he wasn't used to getting guests at the estate. Though he'd lived there for weeks now, it still felt more like Naruto's house than his own abode.

"Fine," he replied, even as he shoved his hands into his front pockets. He stifled the urge to rock on his heels nervously.

"I just came to see if you were interested in a game of shoji."

Shikamaru almost sighed in relief. At least the spawn wasn't affecting his memory. "Sure." Then he turned and led the way back into the main house.

He closed the door behind Neji and guided the jounin to the living room. "Would you like something to eat or drink?"

Gentle smile on his mouth, Neji shook his head gently. "No, I'm fine. Just finished eating with my team."

"How was that?" Shikamaru asked as he pulled his board and pieces from the shelf.

He caught Neji's frown as he turned. "The usual. Gai was a little too exuberant and Lee… There is another place we are not allowed to visit for the next three months."

Shikamaru chuckled as he lowered the board to the center table. Setting up the pieces, he continued, "At least it's only three months. As long as you rotate through the restaurants, you'll always have someplace to eat."

"It's what we are doing, but it shouldn't be required."

"Want to trade teams?" he quipped.

Neji grimaced. "I'll stick with Lee. Ino is…" He shuddered. "Fortunately, Tenten was never a fan girl or interested in me."

"Yes, Ino is a handful. Thankfully, she's not talking to me at the moment."

"She isn't?"

"No, she's angry that I won't let her decorate the baby's room."

"Baby?"

"Yeah," he sighed and then patted his stomach.

Neji lunged to his feet and then the distinct veins around his eyes bulged as he initiated his bloodline. "Kami," he whispered seconds later. "You're pregnant."

"Yes. You didn't know?" he asked, because he was genuinely surprised. Ninja weren't known for keeping secrets. He was also shocked Neji hadn't noticed his weight gain. Then again the jounin might have been too polite to say anything. Those Hyuuga manners…

"No, I didn't realize you were in a relationship. May I ask who is your partner?"

Shikamaru couldn't help lifting one eyebrow. "This is Naruto's house."

Neji blinked and slowly retook his seat. "I knew you two were living together, but I assumed you just wanted to live on your own. After all, I can understand the impulse to move out of one's clan lands to get a little piece and quiet… and privacy."

Shikamaru winced. He couldn't understand how Neji did it. The jounin lived in a clan full of people capable of seeing through walls.

Through. Walls.

He could understand and hoped, strongly, that they had seals on the property that prevented that within the compound, but living with the Hyuugas must have been hell for him as a boy going through puberty. He couldn't even imagine what it must be like when it came to dating and sexual activity.

Hmmm, maybe that's why you're all so damned emotionless stick-in-the-muds. Can't even rub one out without worrying about being watched despite the locked doors and closed windows.

His stomach chose to make itself known at that moment. Neji's gaze darted down to his belly and Shikamaru rubbed at the bump in exasperation and embarrassment. "Troublesome," he muttered.

"Hungry?"

"Always." He stood and gestured for Neji to stand. "You should join me. Eating alone is –"

"Troublesome," Neji cut in.

Shikamaru shrugged. If he was willing to be honest he would have said lonesome, but troublesome was close enough.

Neji chuckled. "So, what are we having?"

Shikamaru paused and scowled. He wasn't sure and said as much to the jounin.

"So, you're not having cravings?" Neji asked as he walked beside him.

"I am. I think." He wasn't entirely sure if his recent fixation on ramen was a pregnancy craving or a quirk picked up from Naruto.

"You think?"

"I want ramen," he replied with a deceptively nonchalant shrug.

Neji stopped.

Shikamaru turned slightly to see why the older ninja had paused. "You okay?"

A large grin broke out across Neji's mouth, then the man laughed, long and hard, throwing his head back.

"What is so fucking funny?"

"You… ramen… cravings…Uzumaki has infected you," he gasped and paused. "In more than one way."

Dark blush on his cheeks, Shikamaru spat, "Idiot," and turned back to the kitchen. He was hungry and didn't have time to waste on the Hyuuga jounin.

He opened the fridge and stared inside for the fourth time that day. Why couldn't he find something he wanted to eat in there? It was full of groceries and yet nothing was edible.

"No ramen?"

He slammed the fridge closed and glanced toward the cupboards where Neji stood. "Not the right kind," he admitted.

"I'm guessing you have the instant kind and would prefer Ichiraku's?"

"It would do. Just wish it wasn't so far. I'm not in the mood to walk all the way there," he whined, thinking of the eatery that was across town. He wanted ramen but not that much. "Naruto should have bought one of the houses closer to Ichiraku's."

Neji chuckled. "I would have expected Naruto to say something like that considering his obsession with the stand, not you." He sent Shikamaru an amused look. "Then again this is you, the laziest chunin in all of Leaf – lazier than any other Nara."

"Damn right," Shikamaru replied. He was proud of his title. He also happened to be the smartest chunin so it was a nice trade off.

"I could go pick up something."

Shikamaru eyed Neji and considered the offer. He really, really wanted ramen and Ichiraku's would do in a pinch since his stupid blond was out on a mission, but he wasn't comfortable with the idea of sending Neji out to pick up his meal. "No, I'll manage." He started to turn back to his nemesis, the fridge, when gentle hands landed on his shoulders.

"How about you let me worry about lunch?" Neji gently asked.

Shikamaru nodded. At this point he just wanted something to eat and anything remotely flavorful would do. "Okay."

"Take a seat. Is there anything you don't want?"

"No."

"Anything particular you're craving? Besides ramen?"

Shikamaru sat in the living room at the seat nearest to the kitchen. He started to shake his head when he realized he really wanted some seafood. "Wouldn't mind some shrimp."

"Okay," the brunet replied and drew him into conversation asking him about what he'd been doing since the last time they saw one another. He and Neji talked about his pregnancy, Neji's recent missions and the newly minted jounin's interest in expanding his skills, while the latter cooked. Time seemed to flow quickly and before he knew it, Neji was placing a plate in front of him.

He stared at the seafood medley ramen in surprise. He hadn't even realized they had some of the ingredients for homemade ramen. "Thanks," he choked out, even as he felt tears gather in his eyes. Damn hormones.

"Try it and tell me what you think."

He picked up his chopsticks and said the traditional thanks before diving in. from the first taste he knew he had a problem. The ramen was good, very good. It didn't taste anything like Ichiraku's. It was surprisingly better. While Neji's cooking didn't compare to Naruto's, it was a close second – perfect enough to curb his craving. He gently placed his chopsticks down and asked, "When can you move in?"

Thanks for reading and reviewing. I appreciate you choosing this story out of so many others and taking the time to read it. We're coming up to the end of the snippets. Baby Uzumaki should be here soon. Yay!

I have some original fiction that just came out so if you're interested, you can check me out under my penname Theodora Marie Adams. I exclusively write slash under this name. You can find more information on my profile, including links.

I'm only putting this out there, because there are a lot of fan fiction authors I followed for years who suddenly dropped off the face of the (online) world and I always wondered if that was because they totally gave up writing or if they just transitioned to original fiction. If the latter, I really wished they would have said something because I would have gladly followed them. Because books are made of awesome sauce.

I don't assume I'm that author for anyone - really I don't - but, well, you never know, and I'm all about no regrets.

Once again, thanks for reading and reviewing.

Kisses and Cake,

CRV