A/N: Sorry about the lack of updates last week- this site and my schedule just wouldn't work out. Now that this site is up and running again, though, I'll update every day this week to catch up. Also, one of the reviewers asked me some questions, so I'm going to answer them at the bottom of the chapter. Enjoy!

He had fallen asleep by her side, his fingers entwined with hers. The coverlet was soaked with his saliva, and as he sat up he quickly wiped at his mouth, blinking at his surroundings. Yawning, he scratched his head with he free hand, heart feeling like lead as his gaze landed upon the sleeping woman before him. "Good morning, beautiful," he murmured, scooting closer to the bed and holding her hand in both of his, stroking her skin with his thumb. Tears threatened to well up in his eyes, and he squeezed them away quickly, ashamed at his vulnerability.

Hours passed, him simply watching her sleep. Her face was relaxed, and it comforted him to know she was not in pain. The absence of her shining blue eyes, however, cut him to the bone. He would give anything to see her open her eyes and smile at him. There were so many things he wanted to do with her. He wanted to lie with her in the grass, he wanted to take in festivals and music with her, he wanted to just spend time by her side. Ino, despite her loud ways, was actually very interested in intellectual pursuits, unlike Temari. Temari was about battle, heart and soul, and while he admired her more than just about anyone, he really enjoyed Ino's gentle side. If he had to deal with Ino's harpy side to get at that gentleness then so be it.

His flight of fantasy was interrupted by the sound of the door swinging open. He didn't have the energy to raise his eyes, mired in his own despair. "Here," a low voice said, and he saw a food tray thrust in front of him. "I promised Chouji that I'd make you eat."

Shikamaru glanced up to see Lee. "Hey," he mumbled, taking up a biscuit and chewing on it slowly.

Lee pulled up an extra chair, pouring Shikamaru a cup of tea. "How are you doing?"

"Badly. I hate this."

Lee, to his surprise, said nothing for quite some time, his face thoughtful. "I understand," he murmured. "Seeing people you love get hurt is very difficult. That is why we must show one another our love every day."

Shikamaru regarded Lee carefully, trying not to give in to the urge to spill his guts about his fears. If it had been Chouji he wouldn't have had a problem, but Lee was so foreign a personality, even if he was his teammate. "Where's Chouji?" he asked instead.

"His team was supposed to go out on assignment, but he refused. In fact, he raised a big stink about it. Scared the poor administrative ninja so much that she assigned the whole team to trash duty on accident. His team's not happy, but Chouji's pleased he can come back this evening to visit."

"Yeah," Shikamaru sighed. "It's unusual for Chouji to raise a fuss."

"Quite," Lee agreed, still studying Shikamaru. Silence stretched before them, the only sounds that of the machines Ino was hooked up to, contrasting with the birdsong from outside the window. "Is there something you'd like to talk about?" Lee finally asked. "I swear not to tell anyone."

"Nah, it's nothing."

"Come on. Something is always going on in that head of yours."

Shikamaru scowled, inadvertently squeezing Ino's limp hand. "It's just that, well, I never got to kiss her or hold her like I wanted to. I never got the time with her I wanted." He sighed, raising his eyes to the ceiling. "There's just so much left undone, you know? What if we never get to laugh together again?"

Lee nodded, eyelids half-lowered. "She's lucky to have someone who loves her so much."

Shikamaru's eyes widened and he stared at Lee. "What?"

Lee raised a shaggy eyebrow. "You do love her, right?"

He felt his cheeks turn red. "I don't know. I thought I loved Temari, but what I feel for Ino isn't the same thing. Besides, we haven't even been dating that long."

"I loved Sakura for years before she really accepted me," Lee confided, even though Shikamaru had already known that. Everyone in Konoha had known. "She was a wonderful friend to me, and from that closeness she grew to love me in return. Don't you want to be with Ino more than any other person, and not just because she's got great breasts?"

"Lee!" Shikamaru growled, shocked both at his friend'scomment and the sudden rage that filled him. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Lee grinned, raising his index finger. "See? You respect her too much to treat her like an object, and yet you desire her. That's love, my friend. It's love when you'd walk through fire just to see her smile."

A lopsided smile appeared on Shikamaru's face as Lee put another biscuit into his hand. "Do you think she knows I, er, love her?" he asked. The words seemed strange in his mouth, but the clarity in them struck his very core.

"I don't know. You'll have to ask her when she wakes up," Lee said with a wink, putting the tray on the bedside table. "Don't forget to keep your strength up. She needs you."

"Right," Shikamaru said, dumbfounded by the realization he was in love with Ino. It was just so right. He was completely, utterly in love with her, and had been since he was thirteen. Why had it taken him so long to see it?

Lee was almost at the door when he turned around. "Oh, silly me!" he exclaimed, slapping himself in the face. Shikamaru just stared. Lee trotted back over to him, handing him a piece of paper. "The rest of us asked the Hokage for your leave. She's excused you for two months, with half pay."

"Half pay?" Shikamaru said. "But how can she afford-"

"Just because you're on leave doesn't mean the rest of us are," Lee said with another wink, once more standing by the door. "You can count on your team!"

"Thanks," Shikamaru called out after him as he left, tears stinging his eyes. He was blessed to have such wonderful friends. His team was truly incredible. "Thanks," he repeated, reading his notice. Tsunade was earning a reputation for being lenient on lovers for reasons nobody really understood.

"You hear that?" he whispered to Ino. "We'll get to spend some time together, so how about you wake up?" There was no answer, of course, and he sighed.

He spent all afternoon by her side, Sakura stopping by briefly, and Chouji and Naomi visited in the evening with little Inomaru. Hinata and Naruto showed up late, Naruto looking a bit battered but grinning like crazy, as he always did when he was around Hinata. Naruto cuddled Hinata almost constantly, and even though it seemed to embarrass her, Shikamaru could tell she loved that Naruto adored her enough to have the guts to touch her in public. Shikamaru wondered if Ino would want him to show more public affection, if she woke up. His friends left after a while, leaving him alone in the darkened room with his thoughts. He was nodding off in his chair when a soft sound woke him.

"How is she?" Shino asked. "The nurses didn't tell me anything."

Shikamaru gestured to the extra chair. "She's the same." Shino nodded and sat, and something occurred to him. "Hey, have you been standing outside this entire time?"

"Yes."

Shikamaru's eyebrows raised. "Really? This whole time?"

"Yes."

"Wow."

"She's on my team. Ino is an exemplary ninja. She has performed more covert missions than jounin kunoichi twice her age."

He eyed Shino, unable to read his expression, mostly because there wasn't one. "Well, she's lucky to have you as her leader."

Shino merely grunted, folding his arms over his chest.

"Okay, I know how guys like you work," Shikamaru drawled.

"Guys like me?"

"Yeah. Strong, silent types like you."

"And how is that?"

"You beat yourself up like crazy on the inside, and you won't listen to anybody else unless they happen to beat your ass."

Shino appeared to consider that, his head cocked slightly to the side. "And your point?"

"So let's play a game of go. See if you can find a board."

"I'll return shortly," Shino said, and fifteen minutes later returned with a board and stones. They set it up and played a fierce game, but Shikamaru was ultimately the winner.

Groaning, he leaned back in his chair, lacing his fingers behind his head and stretching. "Okay, I beat your ass."

"Yes, I cannot argue with you," Shino sighed. "Congratulations."

"Now you have to listen to anything I say, because I beat you."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. So listen up: it's not your fault. You're not the reason Ino is in the hospital. The enemy is the reason she's here. If you want to beat someone up, go get them."

Again Shino was silent, and Shikamaru could only assume he was processing his words. "It has already been done. The people that hurt her have been killed, I made sure of that."

"Shoulda known," Shikamaru yawned, covering his mouth with a fist. "You want to sit in here tonight?"

Shino shook his head, rising. "No. She would want you by her side. You're all she ever talks about."

Shikamaru stared up at the special jounin, the powerful ninja who had risen through the ranks so quickly and through ANBU. Shino reached out his hand tentatively, and Shikamru took it without hesitation, shaking three times. "Thanks for taking care of her," Shikamaru said.

Shino actually smiled. "I want a rematch tomorrow," he said, and was gone from the room.

"See, I can make friends," Shikamaru told Ino, and held her hand until he fell asleep once more.

A/N Continued: So, Great Saiyaman asked a few questions, and so here are the answers.

Firstly, where's Kiba? Well, Kiba, bless his heart, doesn't show up much in this fic, mostly because he seems to have the least contact with the group of people I write about, in my mind, at least. He doesn't show up in the fight with Genda because none of his team members are there- Kiba's not on any of their teams anymore. Shino doesn't show up, either, and Ino IS on his team in this fic. No, everyone that showed up had a significant other in the battle, except for Chouji, but Shikamaru's like a brother to him, so that's why he's there. Kiba and Shino didn't have a reason to be there, so they weren't.

Secondly, what happened to Sasuke? I have no idea. He is such a wild card at this point that I couldn't even deal with him. So, I tried to make it seem like the characters all knew what was going on with him, but in reality, I have no idea. That's why he's not mentioned often and doesn't appear at all. Sorry.

And lastly, where's Kakashi? He's there, doing jounin-ey things. He does make a really brief appearance later on. Doesn't talk or anything. I figure he's still involved in Sakura's and Naruto's lives, but Shikamaru and Ino wouldn't have a whole lot to do with him, just because of circumstance.

I totally agree about a ninja's life being hard. The series tends to gloss over the fact that basically these kids are trained killers, but I can understand why that is. I think that living life as a ninja, especially the way society is set up in the series, would actually be pretty horrific. That's why I keep re-introducing these terrible injuries and hospitalizations. I think that even though these folks are talented, they'd still end up in the hospital quite a bit. As to why they all don't just quit, well, there'sa lot to be said about the power of society and a person's sense of duty.

So, I hope that answers some questions you all might have. I welcome questions anytime and will do my best to answer them.