TT__TT   I'm sorry for not updating for so long. Two things happened: my school life has been chewing away at my butt and I can barely spare any time to write because I do need SOME sleep. The other thing is that I have another fic in mind after this one, and I decided that I would not close things up for certain characters in this fic, but instead do it in the next. This meant changing a LOT of stuff, so that's why it's taking so long. Hope you understand.

Thank you for your reviews, I really appreciate them. I'll work as fast as I can.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters (though that would be nice…I need someone like Naruto in my life….all smiles and optimism.)

SPOILERS: If you have not been keeping up with the manga and you do not want any inkling of spoilers, you may not want to read. But it is up to you.

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Run From You

            By Doskoipanda

Chapter 11: Daring

Sakura knocked, then slowly opened the door to Ino's room. She was greeted by Ino's mother and the overpowering scent of dozens of flowers crammed into a small space.

"Sakura-chan," Ino's mother said warmly. "Thank you for coming."

"Not at all," Sakura tentatively let her gaze fall on her friend. Aside from the bandages covering her torso and stomach, and scratches on her cheeks, the pale blonde still looked marvelously sophisticated and very much in control. Sakura sighed in relief.

"I'll leave you two to talk," Ino's mother murmured before exiting. As soon as the door closed, Ino moaned. "Tell me that you brought me candy. I need something sweet. All they'll give me is porridge."

"Oh? What happened to your diet, Ino-pig?" Sakura asked airily, navigating piles of flowers to sit on the bed.

Ino glared daggers at her, but Sakura merely giggled. "Relax. I brought you some fruit. Can you eat it?"

Ino nodded, and Sakura fell to peeling apples. "I got you some daffodils," she said, not looking up from her task. "Went over to the next county to get them. Of course they're not as great as yours, but—"

"Is the store gone?"

Sakura looked up in surprise. "Your parents didn't tell you?"

Ino shook her head. Sakura sighed. "Maybe they didn't want you to feel bad."

"So it is gone." Ino artfully lowered her eyes to hide the hot swell of tears that sprang to her eyes. I tried so hard…

"Well, actually, it was only half gone by the time it was all over."

"Really?!" Ino's eyes shone with hope, then narrowed with anger. "Don't scare me like that. I was afraid I'd gotten all banged up for nothing. Well, that's good news, we can rebuild."

Sakura smiled. "Your parents must have wanted to kill you."

"Hey, I'm the one with broken ribs," Ino sniffed indignantly. "They have no right to be angry."

Laughing a little, Sakura leaned over to hug her friend gently. "You can always rebuild a store, but there's only one of you, you know," she said wisely. "Thank goodness Shikamaru got to you in time."

The room was suddenly too quiet. Sakura blinked at the silence, then grinned. "It's the talk of the town, you know." She placed a plate of sliced apples on the bed before her friend. "How Shikamaru rushed in there to save you single-handedly."

"Itadakimasu." Ino said politely, reaching for the fruit.

"Has he been in to see you?" Sakura prodded. "Did he say anything?"

Ino took a bite of apple and chewed slowly. "No."

Sakura waited eagerly, but Ino merely finished off the apple piece. "So nothing's happened?" Sakura demanded.

"Why should anything happen?" Ino shrugged. "He saved me from a giant snake. In our line of work, that's not something special."

"Well fine, Ino, call me a helpless romantic, but I think that's fairytale material." Sakura grinned widely. "So what happened exactly? Did he say anything when he found you?"

"I have no idea," Ino selected another piece of fruit. "I was completely out."

Sakura whined in frustration. "Nooo…he must have said something!! Can't you remember anything?!"

Ino frowned. Now that she put her mind to it, something was reformulating in her memory…a face framed by the moon…

Huffing, Sakura took a piece of apple herself. "Tch. How boring. I was so excited too."

"Excited for what?" Ino asked, an annoyed sting in her voice.

"For him to tell you how he feels!" Sakura jumped up from the bed, waving her arms animatedly. "He's got to be in love with you! This whole scenario proves it! He took on a summoning beast by himself to get to you!!" She stopped waving as she noticed Ino's lack of reaction. "What?"

"It's not surprising, is all." Ino shrugged. "I knew he would come."

Sakura blinked. Then she grinned hugely. "WHOAH….what does THAT mean?!"

"It doesn't mean anything, Sakura." Ino's voice was bored. Apathetic. "Think about it, you're a smart girl. Of course he came for me. He figured out where I'd be and he knew I'd have trouble facing that thing alone."

Sakura shook her head. "You know that's not what I mean! Of course he knew you'd be in trouble, but just knowing that doesn't make a person risk their life to save someone else's. There's something else involved."

Ino smirked. "Sakura, come on. I'm a family friend. He's a nice guy. It's not like he'd completely ignore me or Chouji or even you for that matter if you were in trouble. You're just looking too much into it."

Sakura opened her mouth to argue further, but after a moment closed it and pouted instead. "Mou…you don't have a romantic bone in your body."

Ino closed her eyes and smiled loftily. "I don't have time for that kind of mush, you know. I'm a busy woman."

"Oh drat…speaking of time," Sakura looked at the clock on the wall. "I've got to see Naruto before I have to go teach…I'll come back afterwards, ok?"

Ino nodded and extended her arms for a hug, which Sakura gave her. "I'm not giving up on this, you know," Sakura said seriously.

"Fine, do as you like, my dear." Ino gently pushed her away. "Get going before you're late."

And when the door finally clicked shut, Ino hunched over in the bed, drawing her knees up to her chest to hug herself.

She was so good at hiding her feelings, so much better at it than any other girl in the village. A small pang of regret stung in her chest as she reflected on why she could not tell Sakura about what really lurked inside her.

I don't even know…

With that, she let her mind open, let confusion and bewilderment and something painful flow freely throughout her thought processes.

He hadn't come to see her since that night. It was such a trivial thing, such a childish thing, but for some reason, it bothered her to the point of headache. Stupid idiot Shika. Loser. She was lying here in bandages, no less, and he wouldn't come see her? It wasn't like she was disfigured or something. Well then, fine! She didn't want to see him either!

……………………..

Why would he come for her then, and not now?

She had known that he would come. He never failed to be with her in moments of crisis, though all the time voicing his displeasure to be there. In every situation that involved danger or pain, he was right behind her. So why not now? Especially now, as she'd never before been injured to the point of hospitalization.

Had something changed?

Or maybe she was reading too much into it. Of course she was. What would ever change between them? Nothing. Shikamaru was her friend; thus he was obligated to protect her if he could. Such a good friend.

But hadn't she seen something when she'd come to for a moment….something in his gaze? Her eyes narrowed as she recalled his face framed in moonlight and raindrops....

Raindrops?

The pale blue eyes widened as she remembered the clear cloudless night, as she realized what had happened. He was crying, she thought incredulously.

He had cried.

But Shikamaru never cried. The closest thing to tears that she had ever seen from him were the direct results of yawning.

What did it mean? Why did he cry?! What—

She suddenly let out a small scream of frustration. I don't understand you at all, Shika!! she howled mentally. What do you WANT?! Why won't you just say something?! Where do you get off doing so many things for me without explaining yourself?! What IS it?!

And after cycling several times through the limited scope that she had of the previous events, she concluded that she didn't understand, that she hated Shikamaru's guts for messing with her head, and that she needed a nap. Falling back, she let her head hit the pillow with a satisfying thud and turned on her side, wanting to shut out light, sound, everything.

I just can't deal with you.

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The Fifth Hokage closed her eyes and rolled up the scroll that Asuma had just brought to her.

"You mustn't blame yourself, Hokage-sama," Kurenai said gently. "At least the death toll was not high." It was true; after the death of the Sound ninja, the non-contracted summoning animals had been displaced and confused, and were easily disposed of. The deaths and injuries sustained before that point were not heavy, but…

"There should have been no death toll." Tsunade rose from her desk and made her way to the window, where she had an excellent view of Konoha. From this point she could see most of the damage done to the village. "I should have expected something like this."

Kurenai and Asuma did not say anything to that. Tsunade sighed and bowed her head before turning back to them. "Let's begin preparations for the funerals," she said quietly.

The two jounin bowed and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Come on, now," a gruff voice said from the corner of the room. "What's with this long face and the drooping?"

"Stuff it, pervert." Tsunade folded her arms across her ample chest and stared out at the scarred village once more. "Why did he like to cause so much pain?" she asked no one in particular. "Why do things like this?"

Jiraiya shook his grizzled head. "Don't even try to guess. He's dead and gone, and even when he was alive, he never gave us a straight answer for that. Don't waste your time trying to understand him."

"I guess you're right," Tsunade sighed. But the frown didn't leave her face.

The toad hermit smiled and leaned against the desk. "Orochimaru was right to value life, but didn't see the preciousness of it," he said quietly. "That's why he couldn't win, because he couldn't place as much value on life as we could. All our hopes, loves and dreams make our lives more precious, and that much more dear. He hurt people, killed them, tortured them, but for all that, he couldn't win because we are ultimately stronger. And we proved that here again."

Now and forever.

The Fifth Hokage was quiet for a moment, as if digesting what Jiraiya had said. Then she turned to him, a small grin twisting her lips. "That was actually quite touching. Maybe you do have the talent to be a writer."

"I AM a writer, you cursed barrel-hipped washboard-chest!!" Jiraiya howled. "A successful, famous novelist!!"

"Pervert." But she said it fondly. "Thank you, Jiraiya."

The toad hermit snorted and rubbed at his nose to hide his embarrassment.

"Hokage-sama!"

Both of the ninja turned to the teenager who had just burst in the door. "Ah, Konohamaru," Jiraiya grinned gleefully. "You're looking better, son. Shall I give you a sneak peek at my latest manuscript?"

"No time for that sir, sorry!" Konohamaru bowed hurriedly and rushed over to Tsunade handing her a sealed scroll. "It's urgent, Hokage-sama."

She gently ruffled the teenager's hair affectionately, then waited for him to exit before opening the scroll and scanning it briefly. Her eyes narrowed, and she tossed the scroll over to Jiraiya.

After reading it, he looked up and fixed his eyes on Tsunade, who nodded.

"No rest for the wicked," she said grimly, and both of them disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

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            Shikamaru shifted his left arm in its sling in annoyance. Freaking troublesome thing. He knocked, then pushed open the hospital room door.

            "Oi," he said when he saw Naruto sitting on the edge of his bed.

            Naruto didn't seem to hear, but when Shikamaru made his way inside and closed the door behind him, the blonde finally looked up, a smile transforming his face. "Shikamaru!" he said happily. "What're you doing here?"

            "I heard you were in here, so I came to see what was going on." Shikamaru took a hold of the only chair in the room and dragged it to the bedside. Naruto's eyes widened as he noticed the reason why the shadow nin worked with only one hand. "Dude, Shikamaru, what happened?"

            "Snake. Don't ask." Shikamaru flopped into the chair with a sigh, then rummaged about in his pocket. "Here. Found this lying around the house, thought you might—"

            "YOU BROUGHT ME FOOD!!" Naruto howled with joy. Shikamaru rolled his eyes and tossed over the onigiri he had prepared that morning, raising an eyebrow as they disappeared rapidly. "Feeding you is like throwing pebbles down a well," he observed half-admiringly. "Can't ever fill it."

            Naruto swallowed the last of the rice balls with relish. "Man, Shikamaru, you're a lifesaver."

            "Don't call me that, it'd make me out to be some kinda upstanding, hard-working citizen." Shikamaru stretched lazily. "So what happened the other night? I heard you took care of that ninja from the Sound Village. Was he really after you?"

            "Yeah, I guess so," Naruto nodded, eyes drifting to the floor as his thoughts wandered. "I can't really remember."

            Shikamaru grinned. "Don't bother. I'm not that curious."

            They lapsed into a comfortable silence, simply basking in each other's company. Moments like this were extremely rare between them, and Shikamaru was content to just enjoy the pleasant quiet. Then from the corner of his eye, he noticed Naruto's brow furrowing. Sighing, he shook his head. "What's up, Naruto?"

            As if he had known that Shikamaru was going to ask, Naruto lifted his head and looked at him. "You ever scared to do something because it'd be awful if it fell apart?" he asked.

            The shadow nin raised an eyebrow and scratched the back of his head in thought. "Well yeah," he said slowly. "I've been scared to take risks 'cause of that. Probably everyone has."

            Naruto nodded, but his expression did not change. "Is there ever a way to not get hurt?"

            Shikamaru shook his head thoughtfully. "Don't think so. But if you think that way about it, you won't take the risk, and then you might be missing out on something really good, right? So it's probably not a good idea to think that way. If it means a lot to you, you should take the plunge regardless."

            Hypocrite, a voice inside him said with satisfaction. Shikamaru growled and pushed the voice out of his head because his situation had nothing to do with Naruto's. Freaking troublesome thoughts—

            "But," Naruto's voice broke through the shadow nin's inner grumblings, and he looked into blue eyes that seemed to be glinting with an emotion so rarely seen on Naruto's countenance. "What if the thing could really, REALLY hurt you?"

            Was that really fear in Naruto's voice? What was going on? Shikamaru was about to voice his incredulity with laughter, but his heart melted as he saw the need in Naruto's eyes, the need for an answer.

            Shikamaru leaned back in his chair and scratched his head with his right hand. "You're being weird, man," he commented lightly. "Never known you to be scared of anything."

            Naruto shrugged, and turned his face away. Shikamaru frowned as he searched for something within the levels of Naruto's comprehension….something even that idiot would understand—

            He had it.

            "You know, Naruto, when you learned all your jutsu and stuff….like the one Jiraiya taught you…it was hard, right? Even painful at times."

            The blonde didn't look up, but he nodded.

            "Smart people would have given up," Shikamaru continued. "But not only are you brainless, you've got the stubborn stick shoved up your ass. Even though your training hurt like hell, you didn't give up and you kept at it till you got it. You took a risk in hurting yourself to learn it, in a sense."

Naruto nodded again, as if to himself.

"I think it's the same thing, man," Shikamaru said gently. "It's like, even though you know what you're doing could really hurt you…kill you, even….you don't give up, you don't run away, and you keep trying….and then it eventually comes to you, whatever it is." The shadow nin sighed and rubbed at the back of his head. "What I'm saying is, if you just act like the usual idiot you are, you'll win no matter how badly you get hurt trying."

            Are you such an idiot that you don't see the power you have to change people?

            There was a calm, meaningful silence. Then Naruto looked up Shikamaru, a small light beginning to burn in his eyes. "If I don't give up…." he echoed.

            If I don't run away…

            "Yeah," Shikamaru leaned forward, an encouraging smirk on his face. "Something like that."

            Take the plunge…

            Shikamaru suddenly lost the oxygen required to think as Naruto hurtled from the bed and crushed him in an enthusiastic bear-hug. "You're a GENIUS, Shikamaru!!" Naruto yelled happily.

            "Dead…genius…" the tensai choked. "Get off…"

            Naruto moved back a bit and regarded the windless shadow nin warmly. "You're an awesome pal, man," he said affectionately.

            "Stop putting labels on me, freaking troublesome fool," Shikamaru said between gasps of air. But an involuntary grin spread across his face. Naruto's vibrant affection was as unstoppable as it was infectious.

            The grin dropped instantly as Naruto's eyes widened suddenly and his face took on a green pallor. "Naruto?!" Shikamaru asked harshly. "What's the matter?!"

            "………..urgh…"

            "What, you feeling sick? You scared the shit out of me…..heheh, I mean what, were you not supposed to eat anything or something?"

            "……..mmmph!!!!—"

            "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME, YOU IDIOT?! GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME—IF YOU'RE GONNA PUKE, DO IT SOMEWHERE ELSE!!"

            Naruto took the not-so-gentle advice and stumbled off to the adjoining toilet. While Shikamaru reeled over how close that had been, the door opened and Sakura poked her head inside.

            "Naruto?" she called, then her gaze fell onto Shikamaru. "Shikamaru-kun!" she exclaimed, pushing her way into the room. "How's your wrist?"

            "S'fine," he answered nonchalantly. "It was a pretty clean break; shouldn't have any permanent damage."

            "Good." Sakura surveyed him, one eyebrow raised. He stared back, beginning to feel a wee bit apprehensive.

            "Now that you're free, you can go see Ino," she proclaimed. Shikamaru jumped in his chair and instantly put a scowl on his face. "What? Why the hell should I do—"

            "Shikamaru-kun!!" Rock Lee's exuberant voice bounced about the small confines of the room as he burst inside. "Are you well? You fought a courageous battle against a serpent, and all for a woman's sake! You are a man among men!"

            "Th…thanks," Shikamaru said weakly as Lee began to pound him vigorously on the back without showing any signs of stopping.

            "Well, what are you waiting here for?" Lee asked brightly. "Ino-san has been asking for you! You must go to her!"

            What?

            "What're you talking about?" Shikamaru moaned. "Don't tell me that—"

            "She wants to see you, Shikamaru-kun!" Sakura made agitated motions with her hands. "Go on, before she gets mad and comes down here. I don't want her after me."

            "Why should I? Mendokuse." The shadow nin yawned. "She's still alive, right? If I go up there, she's only gonna yell at me and use me as her slave—"

            He stopped as he noticed that the room had taken on a rather red shade, and then he gulped as he beheld the green beast of Konoha blazing with the fire of male chivalry. "YOUR LADY DEMANDS TO SEE YOU!!" Lee roared, eyes aflame with righteous fervor. "YOU MUST GO NOW!!"

            Shikamaru tried to look like he wasn't running out of the room. "You're going to be the death of me, all of you," he threw over his shoulder. "Freaking troublesome people."

            Sakura waved cheerily before shutting the door.

            Lee was instantly at her side, thick eyebrows tilted upwards in worry. "Was I unconvincing?" he asked.

            She shook her head, smiling broadly. "You were great," she said happily. "He's so smart, I was worried that he'd see through me. Having you here was perfect."

            "VICTORY!" Lee roared. Sakura winced, then beamed along with him.

            It's for your own good, Ino-pig. I don't know what you're doing, but I'll give you a little push in the right direction.

            With that thought in mind, she turned her attention to Naruto, who had emerged from the bathroom looking a bit pale and glad to see the two of them. I can only take care of one dummy at a time, you know, she thought with a wry smile.

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Thanks for reading, please review!