A/N: Disclaimer blah blah. I'll post another chapter in the next few days.
Being a chuunin was okay, he guessed. He had been one for over three years. His superiors and parents were pressuring him to take the jounin exam, but he just didn't feel like it. If he went to the jounin level someone might expect him to join ANBU, and that was not something he ever wanted to do. Talk about troublesome- being an ANBU member was about as troublesome a job as one could get. So, he was content being a chuunin. The only reason he took the chuunin test at all in the first place was so his team members could take the test. It meant a lot more to them than it did to him. None of it mattered now, since they were all chuunin. Of course, he knew he would have to take the jounin exam soon. He was already being teamed up with jounin on his missions. In fact, on the last mission, which had been particularly difficult, his team (on which he had been the only chuunin- very suspicious, that) had met up with a jounin team from the Sand. Temari had been on that team, and had spent all her free time busting his chops about still being chuunin. She had harassed him quite a bit, actually, and had even winked at him a few times. If he hadn't been mistaken, she had also passed her hand over his rear, not once but several times. He tried not to think about it. The incident had made him feel dirty and slightly excited all at once. Stupid puberty. He had hoped that girls would become less bothersome when he became a man, but now he could see that wasn't going to be the case. Hormones only made things worse. What also sucked, in his opinion, was the fact that some of his friends already thought they were men. He knew better. He wasn't sure what made a man, but he knew they weren't there yet.
He walked back towards his home after the mission debriefing. Making reports wasn't fun, in his opinion, and yet whatever team he was on was always making him do them. Since they outranked him most of the time, it wasn't like he could refuse. He suspected it was just one more method they were using to try to get him to become a jounin. Naruto, Lee, Shino, and Neji had all been hanging out in the cafeteria, waiting for their next assignment. They had already become jounin and were loving every minute of it. They had called out to him to join them, but he had declined, of course. He wanted to get home and take a shower.
He soon realized that his hygiene goal would not be accomplished in the immediate future, for as he was strolling down the street he saw Chouji standing outside a building next to his father. Conversation was inevitable, especially when his friend happened to turn and spot him. "Shikamaru! Hey!" the large boy called out, waving.
Shikamaru sighed and walked over. "Hey. What's going on? How are you doing, Mister Akimichi?"
Chouji's father merely smiled and nodded at the boy, then took his leave, shouting at one of the construction workers running around the building. "How was your mission?" Chouji asked, cheeks ruddy as he smiled.
"Oh, it was okay," Shikamaru replied with a shrug. "Temari was a little grabby, but other than that it was fine."
Chouji's eyes sparkled. "Another joint mission with the Sand, eh? You know, I think that Temari's got a thing for you."
"Bah," was all Shikamaru had to say to that. "So what's going on here?"
Chouji gestured at the building. "This? Oh, Dad's expanding his business. The demand for our soldier pills has gone up considerably as of late, and so we're trying to cook up new lines. Of course, the front part of the shop will also be a café."
"Of course."
"Dad hired this awesome chef. He has a strong chemistry background, so he's going to be leading most of the research and development of the pills. The guy's wife and daughter are going to help, too, but will mostly be concerned with running the shop and preparing food for the café customers."
Shikamaru nodded. It all made sense, and Chouji was obviously excited about it. The boy was practically squirming with anticipation. His energy made Shikamaru smile, an expression that broadened slightly when his friend pulled out a bag of snacks and began to chow down. Chouji was taller than him now, and still looked as fat as ever, but Shikamaru knew that his body was strong and hard. The Akimichi clan had deceptive looks, which came in handy plenty of times. Of course, Chouji hadn't been the only one who had grown. Shikamaru was taller than most of the others, too, with the exception of Shino and Lee. Naruto might overtake him someday, too. Shikamaru had them all beat in the facial hair department, though.
"Did you just get back, then? You look like you need to shave," Chouji said, and Shikamaru let his gaze slide back to his friend. He hated it when Chouji seemed to know exactly what he was thinking.
"Yeah," he grunted. "I can't wait until the damn patches fill in. It's stupid to only grow pieces of a beard, you know?"
Chouji chuckled, stuffing some rice puffs into his mouth. "At least you can try," he replied.
Shikamaru shrugged and went back to watching the construction, finally noticing a trio walking towards them. There was a tall, unbelievably thin man with a long red ponytail with a portly woman on his arm. Although she was large, there was grace in her movements and in her smile as she looked up at the man. The man's green eyes twinkled at her, suddenly softening his gaunt face. A girl, who seemed to be about fifteen, walked behind them, sporting long, glossy dark hair and eyes that matched the man's. Her body was lithe and yet soft, her hips and breasts just starting to swell. Shikamaru could appreciate her beauty. Few girls in Konoha were as pretty as this new girl was. "Hey, is that them?" he asked.
He didn't receive a reply. Glancing over, he saw that Chouji's lips were slightly parted, his eyes fixed on the girl. The girl looked his way and smiled slightly, bobbing her head, and Chouji grinned in return, his cheeks coloring ever so slightly.
"I guess it is them," Shikamaru muttered. "Hey, you should go greet them and make them feel welcome."
Chouji's face immediately paled. "What? Me? Now?"
"Yeah, all that. Go on."
"B-but, what if I'm clumsy, or they don't think fat people are nice, or…"
Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Oh, they're not going to care. Besides, you're not fat. You're just husky. Go."
Chouji took a deep breath. "Okay, wish me luck," he said, and went to greet the family. "Hello, I'm Akimichi Chouji, and I would like to welcome you to Konohagurake."
Shikamaru smiled slightly to himself, pleased at the way the girl was smiling at his friend. The parents seemed friendly, too. Seeing that he had nothing else to worry about, he set off towards home once again. It was nice to feel the motion of his rolling gait as he walked down the street, not having to hurry or jump or do any other crazy mission maneuvers. The sky was bright and beautiful, with fluffy clouds meandering overhead. Damn, it was good to be home.
He was almost to his house when he passed a twittering couple walking in the opposite direction. They were cooing to one another and cuddling, making his stomach turn until he caught a flash of eyes the color of the spring sky. Pale blonde hair shone in the sunlight, the ponytail brushing the top of the girl's shoulder. His heart skipped a beat and he took a short breath, hating the slight blush that rose to his face.
"Oh, Shikamaru!" the light voice chimed. "You're back! How was the mission?"
Shikamaru roughly pushed away the memory of Temari's hand passing over his rear. "Hey, Ino," he replied, keeping his hands shoved in his pockets. "Mission was fine."
She smiled at him, her teeth a bright white between her rosy lips. "Great! Hey, are you looking forward to training with Chouji in two weeks?"
"Yeah, actually," he replied, eyeing the guy Ino was with. He was easily eighteen, with dark hair and light gray eyes. He had a scar that ran from the inside corner of his right eye to the hinge of his jaw, but it didn't mar his good looks any. His uniform marked him as a fellow chuunin. Shikamaru wagered he hadn't been on too many missions with jounin, then wondered why he even cared.
Ino caught the glance he sent towards her boy. "Oh, sorry," she said quickly. "This is Kenji."
The two males looked each other over, and Shikamaru knew his sour face and skinny body were no match for the handsome Kenji. He dismissed the other boy and shifted his attention back to Ino, noticing for the hundredth time how much she had grown. Her limbs had lengthened and strengthened, her skin as flawless and glowing as ever. The curve of her hips was tantalizing and muscular, her bust ample. Damn it, he was going to make himself crazy if he thought about it too long. It was bad enough he dreamed about it. "Have fun, you two," he said curtly, nodded to Ino, and took off towards home.
The walk only took him ten minutes from where Ino had been cavorting with her boyfriend, but to him it felt like ten years. He didn't care what anybody thought of him, but he had never had a girlfriend. Of course, he didn't want one. What a mess that would be! Someone always trying to monopolize his time, someone always pestering him about feelings…. It was just too much trouble. Still, he didn't like to see Ino with other guys. He felt…protective…of her. Yeah, that was it. He knew she could take care of herself, but he could still worry. She should feel flattered, because he wasn't the type of person to worry about much. Well, Ino was Ino and she would do what she wanted to. That was that.
He pushed open the door to his house, sighing as he took off his shoes in the entry. "You're home early," he heard his mother call. "What a nice surprise! Do you want to take a bath with me before we get down to business, or do you want to wait until after?"
"What?" Shikamaru replied, utterly confused and embarrassed.
His mother's head appeared around the corner. "Oh, Shikamaru!" she said, blushing. "I'm sorry, I thought you were your father."
"Eww," Shikamaru grunted. "I'm gonna go take a shower."
"Wait," she said. "I didn't expect you back today. How was your mission?"
Shikamaru didn't reply and kept walking towards the stairs. As he got older he understood more why his dad was with his mom, the overbearing harpy that she was, but it grossed him out. He didn't know what all the fuss was about, but he figured he'd probably have to have a wife if he wanted kids, which he did. Someone had to support him so he could retire, after all.
"Hey!" his mother snapped. "I asked you a question, young man. You should have the courtesy to answer."
He sighed and turned around on the stairs. "It was fine. No problems. We partnered with a Sand team, so it went more quickly than normal."
His mother blinked her dark eyes, eyes he knew he had inherited. "Sand? That's interesting."
"Yeah," he agreed. "Hokage-sama's working really hard to keep relations good. I've actually worked with this particular team a few times."
A smile crossed his mother's face. "Well, you go take your shower now. I'll have a snack waiting for you when you come back down." Brushing her hands off on her apron, she turned and went back towards the kitchen.
Shikamaru headed on up the stairs to get his shower and some clean clothes. Maybe he'd even take a quick nap. The smell of his mother putting something on the stove wafted into his nostrils and sent his stomach to growling. Okay, maybe he'd nap after his snack. Sometimes, he guessed, his mom could be cool.