I'm just procrastinating on studying, still on Vacation Mode.

I hope y'all enjoy this chapter.

~.~

Last Time:

"You know what?" I started, "Only someone who's pure evil would deny a cute animal."

Akamaru let up a bark and started licking my face.

"Ah! Stop!" I smiled, putting the dog down.

Akamaru ran around, barking happily, waiting for someone to chase him.

"I think that's your job, Kiba," I told him.

"Oh no! Don't you dare! I'm not-" Ino was cut off as Kiba ran off after Akamaru, dragging Ino along.

"You guys better catch up to them," Shikamaru told the rest.

"Ah geez," Sakura sighed, "We'll see ya tomorrow!" She and Naruto started running after them.

Me and Shikamaru started making our way back home.

"...so what's for dinner?"

~.~

We soon arrived back to my place. I didn't sense that Kakashi was home. But I highly doubt that he was on a mission.

'If he is on a mission then oops, no lunch for him,' I thought as we walked into the house.

We were greeted by Akumu.

"Hi, Akumu," I smiled, picking up the cat.

I snuggled my face against his.

"Poor baby left alone in the house," I said, putting him down.

"Have you ever brought him outside?" Shikamaru asked.

"He can come and go as he pleases," I said, "He just prefers staying inside."

"So, whatcha making for dinner?" Shikamaru asked.

"I'm not," I said, noticing a note on the table, "Kakashi is."

Kyoko,

I went to get groceries, so I'll be cooking dinner tonight.

You should take a break today.

-Kakashi

"Kakashi can cook?" Shikamaru asked.

"You think I knew how to cook when I first got here?" I asked, "Kakashi lived on his own for a while too."

"Is his cooking as good as yours?" He asked.

"You're asking a lot of questions," I told him, "I'm not picky, so I guess it's up to you to decide if his cooking is better than mine."

"I guess you got a day off then," Shikamaru told me, leading me to the living room, "We can just chill."

"Uh, no," I said, tugging on the chain before Shikamaru could sit down, "Let's train a little."

"Kakashi told you that you could relax," Shikamaru told me.

"From cooking," I said, "So let's train."

I brought him outside.

"What a drag," Shikamaru sighed.

"Let's spar, Nara," I asked him, getting ready.

"How exactly are we gonna spar?" He asked pointing at the chain.

"The chain's long enough for Taijutsu," I told him, getting into a fighting position.

"I guess it can't be helped," Shikamaru sighed, "But I don't think I can take you seriously after seeing you gush over Kiba's dog."

"Shut up and get ready" I told him.

As expected, I had to be the one to start the spar. Disadvantage for me, my right hand was cuffed to his left, so I had to use my weaker arm to fight. But, I could use the chain as an advantage somehow. I threw a punch at his face, he ducked down to dodge it. I tried to kick him with my right luck as he ducked down, he quickly jumped above me to dodge my attack. I grabbed on to the chain with my right hand and pulled him down. I got my left hand ready to punch him.

'Shit,' Shikamaru thought, as he was being pulled down. He blocked my attack with his arms, but the force sent him flying across the room, bringing me with him. He fell on his back, I sent a punch straight to his head, he moved his head slightly to dodge. Since I was above him, he kicked my stomach, the force sent me flying upwards.

'Not bad,' I thought as I positioned my self to drop kick him as I fell. The Nara grabbed my leg, stopping my attack in mid-air. He pulled me down, slamming my into the ground.

'What the hell?' I didn't expect that. He's not as strong as me but he thinks pretty fast, 'I can't let him beat me...'

I quickly picked myself up.

'I'm gonna do something childish and really stupid,' I thought to myself.

I eyed him, he smirked.

I ran towards him, getting ready to punch him. He was getting ready to either block or counter my attack. I smirked. I went under him, between him legs, and of course, he's chained to me so I pulled the chain as I slid under him to the other side, making him fall on his back. I flipped backwards to drop kick him with my right leg in the stomach. He block it with his left arm. I swung my left arm at him, he blocks it with his right arm. I use my free leg to kick his side, knowing he couldn't block it. I landed a kick to his side, it sent him to the other side of the room, of course, pulling me with him. As we were flying through the air, I sent another punch which he blocked with both arms. I pushed off of his arms and flipped over to be behind him. I sent a kick to his back, kicking him towards the ground. He landed on his front, I landed beside him.

"Not bad, Nara," I told him.

He sat up.

"I didn't wanna hit a girl," He told me.

I scoffed, "I'm a little surprised though, you being lazy and all, but you're pretty quick."

"Eh," Shikamaru shrugged.

"You should work on your taijutsu then, it's boring when my opponent can't fight well," I told him.

"I wouldn't fight you again, even though I blocked you, your attacks hurt," Shikamaru told me, holding his side.

"Sorry," I said, "That you couldn't handle my strength."

He chuckled.

"If I could use my Shadow Ninjutsu, you would have lost for sure," Shikamaru smirked.

"Don't get so cocky, you haven't seen my Ninjutsu," I told him.

We heard a sudden click, we looked down to see that our handcuffs have been released. I stretched.

"Good timing, I'm tired and sweaty," I said walking back inside.

Shikamaru followed behind me with the cuffs.

~.~

I was hoping that this would be a usual thing, but since his level with taijutsu isn't that good, it didn't feel right to fight him.

"Oh well," I sighed.

Shikamaru went to go shower in the other bathroom, of course. I went into my room and found my cat sleeping in my room. I decided to leave him alone and quickly took a shower and changed into my regular attire.

I sensed that Kakashi had come home and I guessed he already started cooking.

I walked back into my room to see Shikamaru playing with Akumu.

"Hey," He said, drying his hair with the towel that was around his neck.

His hair was still in a ponytail.

"Hi."

'...did he shower like that or something?' I wondered.

"You know what Kakashi's gonna make?" Shikamaru asked.

"I dunno," I shrugged.

I sat down, drying my hair with my towel.

"So, you were pretty chatty today," Shikamaru started.

"Mhm," I hummed.

"It wasn't so bad, was it?" He asked.

"Uh," I thought for a moment, "It's not hard, it's just uncomfortable."

"How uncomfortable?" He asked.

"To the point where I had to catch myself from talking too fast multiple times," I told him.

"How many times did you have to do that?" He asked.

"Didn't count," I said.

"Hmm," Shikamaru hummed, "You did a lot better than I thought."
"Why do you want to help me?" I asked.

"Oh, uh.." He thought for a moment.

"I would think you would think this would be 'such a drag'," I told him.

"It kinda is," Shikamaru told me, "But you seem friendly, just need a little push to open up."

"Hmm," I looked at him quizzically.

Akumu suddenly sat up and ran out the door.
"She hears her food bowl being filled," I said, standing up, "Dinner's probably ready."

"Great," Shikamaru said, standing up as well.

He grabbed the cuffs and we both went downstairs and a familiar scent was in the air.

"...omurice?" I asked, sitting down.

"Yup," Kakashi smiled.

"I haven't had this since I was a kid," Shikamaru said, sitting beside me.

"Kyoko had a phase when she was a kid where she just wanted omurice," Kakashi told him.
"Kakashi!" I exclaimed.

"It was so cute," Kakashi told Shikamaru, "She would say 'omu' every time I asked her what she wanted for lunch or dinner."

"Really?" Shikamaru asked, smirking at the fact that I was embarrassed.

"I had to teach her how to make it herself so when I went on missions, she could make it herself," Kakashi said.

"You mean I watched you make it and found out how to make it?" I said.

"You started making food on your own, and you even made food for me without having to ask you," Kakashi said.

"I'll stop making stuff for you if you continue," I threatened.

"So are those lunches just gonna go to me now?" Shikamaru teased.

"So you got the bento today?" Kakashi asked, "She makes them cute."

"Her lunch was completely different to the ones she makes for you," Shikamaru said.

"I have the cutest little sister," Kakashi said, ruffling my hair.
"Kakashi!" I shouted, pushing him away, "Jeez, you're both not gonna get any food from me."

"I've never heard Kyoko call you Oni-chan or anything," Shikamaru said, "Does she only do that when its just the two of you?"

"I've only called him 'Kakashi', and 'Baka-shi' when he's an idiot," I said, making Shikamaru laugh.

"Maybe I should call you that more often," I told Kakashi.

"Alright, alright, I'll stop," Kakashi told me.

"Good," I said, finishing up my food.

I stood up and put my dishes into the sink. I went to the fridge, thinking about what to make for breakfast and lunch when I heard Shikamaru burst out laughing.

"Kakashi!" I shouted.

"What? He just started laughing," Kakashi told me, his face completely calm.

"You both aren't getting any lunch tomorrow!"

~.~

I noticed we still had muffins so I didn't have to make anything for breakfast. I made lunch for me, Shikamaru, and Kakashi. Although I still think I shouldn't have.

I made the two wash dishes, since Kakashi couldn't keep his mouth shout.

'I don't even want to know what they talked about,' I sighed.

'You did a lot better than I thought,' Fuzen's voice piped into my head.

'Uh-huh, when are you gonna teach me stuff?' I asked.

'Easy there, I can't teach you anything now,' Fuzen said, 'Not when you're gonna be chained to the Nara boy.'

'Ugh,' I sighed.

"Alright, all done," Shikamaru told me, drying off his hands, "Such a drag."

"Blame Kakashi for not keeping his trap shut," I told Shikamaru, but looked at Kakashi.

"I'm just having a bit of fun," Kakashi told me.

"A little too much fun," I muttered.

"Stop muttering," Shikamaru told me.

"I did it on purpose that time," I told him.

"So are you the reason why she's being more chatty?" Kakashi asked.

"Oh, uh I guess so," Shikamaru shrugged.

"I don't really like it," I muttered under my breath.

'You made a deal with him and made a deal with me,' Fuzen said.

'Pipe down,' I told Fuzen.

"So, what now?" Shikamaru asked.

"I dunno," I told him, "We have like..." I looked at the clock, it was 7:15, "Three ish hours, wanna spar again? You can show me your infamous Shadow Jutsu that you believe can defeat me," I smirked.

"We just took a shower, training again will get us all sweaty, won't it?" Shikamaru told me.
"Eh...true...Iruka Sensei really should've given us more time," I sighed.

"All you do is train and study," Kakashi told me.
"Cause that's what I like to do," I told him.

"Honestly," Kakashi sighed, "Learn to take a break."

"No," I told him.

"...well, I tried," Kakashi shrugged.

"Come on," I said to Shikamaru, walking back to up my room.

~.~

"...is...is that your guys' version of a fight or argument?" Shikamaru asked.

"Huh? No," I said, "I just denied his request."

"That...that you did," Shikamaru said.

"So, whatcha wanna do?" I asked, sitting on my bed.

"I dunno, this is your room," Shikamaru told me.

"Right, right..." I thought for a moment, "I have chess somewhere?"

"Somewhere?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yeah," I said, going to my closet, "Hmm...not here."

"When was the last time you played?" Shikamaru asked.

"Years ago," I said, looking in my drawers, "Kakashi brought it home one day. Taught me how to play, and we played every time he came back from a mission. But I lost interest after I started getting more into Ninjutsu and such."

"And how long ago was that?" He asked.

"...we played...maybe 5 times?" I said, "Yeah, its been about three or four years."

"Do you even remember how to play?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yeah," I said, "Kakashi probably put it away somewhere."

"Wanna go ask him?" He asked.

"Naw," I said, sitting back down.
"So we gonna sit in boredom?" Shikamaru asked.

"I feel like you'd be fine with that," I told him.

"You aren't wrong," He told me, laying down.

~.~

We just continued talking about random things. I eventually stood up to walk around my room to stretch a little.

"So, why is Ino so...interested in me?" I asked.

"How should I know?" Shikamaru asked.

"You're friends with her, aren't you?" I asked.

"Our parents are friends," Shikamaru said, "Even if we were friends, I wouldn't understand why she has some sort of interest. It's a girl thing, isn't it?"

"If it is, I didn't get the memo," I told him, "Cause I don't understand."

"Seems like you don't understand a lot of the stuff Ino and Sakura talks about," Shikamaru told me, "Probably cause you grew up with Kakashi."

"Probably," I said, "...what's it like, having a mom?"

"Scary," Shikamaru said almost immediately.
"Your mom seemed nice," I told him.

"Nice to you," Shikamaru said, "She's scary to my me and my dad."

"I see," I said.

"I might not be the best person to ask that question," Shikamaru said.

"It's okay," I shrugged, "I just thought if I had an idea of what it's like to have a mom, I might understand what Sakura and Ino are talking about."

"Well, I don't think that'll help," He told me, "But you don't need to understand them. You guys are different, but are still able to talk to each other so you guys can still be friends."

"I don't really care about being friends," I told him, "I just wanna know when I should be scared or not."

"Ah..." Shikamaru said.

We both turned to the door, hearing scratching noises.

"I forgot about Akumu," I said, walking over to the door.

Just as I opened the door, I was forcefully pulled back by chakra from the cuffs, slamming into my bed.

"Oww..." I rubbed my head.

I looked up at Shikamaru.

"You should really keep track of the time," He smirked.

I looked at the clock...it was 10.

"Wipe that smirk of your face or I'll do it for you," I told him as I got up.

"Yeah, yeah," He said, ruffling my hair, "Alright, well I'm bored."

He stood up.

"Huh? Where are you going?" I asked.

"Let's go for a walk," He told me.

"It's 10 pm," I told him.

"Come on, just follow me," Shikamaru said.

"Uh.."

'Just follow him,' Fuzen told me.

'Butt out,' I told her, but followed him.

Next thing I knew, we were outside.

"Where are we going? What are we doing?" I asked.

"Man you ask so many questions," Shikamaru told me, I narrowed my eyes at him.

"I only asked two questions," I told him.

"I'm leading you to the fields," Shikamaru told me.

"Why?" I asked the back of Shikamaru's head.

"To relax, watch the clouds. Your always to tensed up, always training, studying, I don't understand how you can live like that," Shikamaru explained.

"Well I've lived like that up until now, I think I'm fine for the next couple years," I told him, "Clouds aren't gonna be as visible as they would be in the day.

"Years? I was expecting for maybe the next couple of days because of school, but years? What are you trying to do?" Shikamaru asked.

"Learn techniques? Become stronger? Like any other ninja? Jeez, and you say I ask a lot of questions," I sighed.

"You gotta learn how to take a break," Shikamaru told me.

"No," I told him.

"Why do you make it seem like a bad thing?" Shikamaru asked.

"I'm not, I just don't want to," I told him.

He led me to a field. He stopped at a tree and laid down. He motioned for me to lay down as well. I just sat beside him.

"Hmm," He hummed, "The sunset right now, what do you think?" Shikamaru asked, adjusting himself, using his arms as a make-shift pillow.

"...it's setting," I told him.

He looked at me with a deadpanned expression.

"Yeah, no shit Sherlock," Shikamaru sighed, "I meant about it, it's pretty, right?"

"Pretty?" I asked looking at the sunset, "Yeah, I guess. But once it sets, it'll take the bright light with it, and replace it with darkness," I told him.

"Yes, but even though it's dark, there are things around that-"

I interrupted him,"-can kill you," I finished.

Shikamaru gave me an awkward look.

"No," He said, "Okay, give the sky a moment."

He sat up to lean on the tree.

"Alright, but I'm still correct," I told him.

"So, are you still wondering what Ino was talking about?" Shikamaru asked.

"I'm more wondering about why her thoughts were about boyfriends when we're so young," I told him.

"I kinda have an idea of why," Shikamaru told me, "You know how it was always the girls who bullied you?"

"Thanks for reminding me about that," I sighed, "But yeah, what about it?"

"Have you seen how some of the guys look at you?" He asked.

"No?" I shrugged.

"I think Ino started talking about that because she noticed that a lot of guys in class took interest in you," Shikamaru told me.

"Yeah right, I doubt that anyone would," I told him in disbelief.

"Ino told me that she saw Sasuke's eyes looking straight at you today, I didn't think he would be interested in any girl, but looks like I may be wrong," Shikamaru told me.

"I bet he was just spacing out," I told him, "The Uchiha doesn't have time for anything like that."

"..y'know, you're probably right," Shikamaru told me, "I don't know why I'd listen to Ino."

"Wouldn't she be mad at me if that did happen?" I asked, "Seeing how jealous she gets."

"It's probably cause you told her you weren't interested in Sasuke," He told me.

"That makes sense," I said, "I just hope she doesn't talk about that again. I don't see the appeal."

"Look at the sky," Shikamaru told me.

I looked up, catching the sun's last moments before setting. Seeing the sky turn dark, and the stars started coming out, shining through the darkness.

"...alright, you win," I said, "I see what you mean."

"Yeah?" He asked, laying down, "You're pretty troublesome. Hard to convince."

"I'm a drag, aren't I?" I joked.

I laid next to him, "But I question why you deal with it."

~.~

Tell me in the reviews what you think!

Signing off,

Bluebirb