Mendokuse

Subtitle: The Woes of a Lazy Shinobi

A ShikaIno story

Summary: (ShikaIno and slight SasuNaru) Shikamaru would like nothing better than lazing around all day playing shogi or goh and watching the clouds; some things were just too troublesome to deal with. Especially hormones. Unfortunately, if there's one thing a teenage boy can't ignore, it's that.

Note: For those who don't know, "mendokuse" means "troublesome" - Shikamaru's favorite word. Mine too, actually.

Chapter Two: The Trouble With Blue-Eyed Blonds/Blondes

Sasuke calmly trailed after a frantic, hurried Naruto. Over time, he had found that this was one of the best ways to devour the attractive blond with his eyes without being noticed. After all, who could accuse him of anything when he was just looking straight ahead like any other wandering person would? The young Uchiha had developed and honed his Naruto-watching skills like no other; he had even mastered manipulating the blond boy into going to anonsen with him in a record time of ten minutes. Onsen plus Naruto equals Naruto in an itty bitty towel. Naruto in an itty bitty towel equals sinfully happy Sasuke.

(onsen: natural hot springs)

What would the people of Konoha say if they knew that the only heir of the prestigious, tragic Uchiha Clan was a dirty-minded voyeur? In any case, Sasuke didn't want to take any risks because he wanted Naruto's chances of finding out his little secret to stay minimal, at the most.

Years under the tutelage of Kakashi-sensei had unconsciously transformed the reserved, proud boy into a veritable closet pervert. It wasn't an unexpected development, especially in an almost fully-fledged male adult who desired something that has no possibility of being acquired. In such cases, there was no other option than to find satisfaction with imagination; and, to be sure, behind Sasuke's cool exterior lay an astounding proficiency for creativity.

"Sasuke no yaro!" Naruto yelled angrily as he dashed from rooftop to rooftop, jolting Sasuke out of his reverie. "Why didn't you wake me up earlier? Now we're going to be late!"

"Hn," Sasuke responded coolly. "Don't try to make me responsible for your stupidity, dobe."

"Teme -" Naruto flushed angrily and glared back at his dark-haired friend. "You're late, too, you know!"

"If you're so self-conscious about being late, then why don't you pick up your pace?" Sasuke asked tauntingly. "Even rookie Academy students can run faster."

"If I'm going so slow, then why are you running at the exact same pace?" Naruto snapped back.

"Hn. Usuratonkachi." Sasuke's insult very conveniently allowed him to evade the blond's question.

A vein throbbed on Naruto's temple. Did Sasuke really think he was that stupid? Honestly, sometimes the dark-haired chuunin really lacked originality. It was just his luck to have fallen for a cold, sarcastic ninja with a bit of a superiority complex. Sometimes Naruto wondered if he had been created for the sole purpose of amusing some higher power with a sadistic sense of humor. He could almost see the annoying little bastard, sitting on his fluffy white cloud, stroking his fluffy white beard and laughing himself to tears. Or herself. Itself? Maybe a hermaphrodite? Oh, well. He didn't really care, anyway. In any case, being irresistibly attracted to an arrogant jerk - a male jerk, mind you - just plain outright sucked.

Naruto allowed himself to glance back at his silent companion. Well, at least he was a very good-looking male jerk. His glossy, silken hair flew wildly into his dark eyes, which were staring directly back at Naruto's bright blue ones. Naruto quickly whipped his head back, a light blush dusting his cheeks.

Damn that Sasuke for having such downright sexual magnetism.

He was suddenly jerked out of his thoughts by an arm circling his waist and a warm hand slipping in between his thighs. Naruto literally froze in midair and dropped onto a roof, blushing furiously and craning his head back to stare at his companion in disbelief. "S-Sasuke," he stammered. He couldn't decide whether to slap him or let him do whatever he wanted.

The dark-eyed shinobi was expressionless. He squeezed the scarlet-faced blond's thigh reproachingly. Naruto's breath was already slightly quick from the run, but he found it speeding up even more. "Stay still, dobe," he ordered, his voice low and throaty. "Your kunai pouch is loose. It was about to fall off."

"O-oh." Naruto was slightly disappointed, but not all that surprised. Close contact between them was actually quite commonplace. Over the years, Sasuke had developed the habit of automatically fixing Naruto's gear or appearance; it simply felt so natural that it was never commented on. Naruto also reciprocated this familiar, almost intimate touch, though motivated by a different purpose; those seductive, lingering seconds of contact somewhat satisfied small parts of him that yearned for a more than platonic relationship with the Uchiha prodigy.

Sasuke's long, graceful, pale fingers finished tightening the strap and trailed slowly up and around along Naruto's leg and hip as Sasuke straightened up. Oblivious to the bold thoughts which were rather obviously running through the Uchiha's mind, Naruto shivered lightly, savoring the feeling.

Gathering his senses, Sasuke quickly withdrew his hand with a faint blush tickling his cheeks. Glancing at the slightly breathless blond beside him, he found himself thanking whatever benevolent super-being was watching over him for the millionth time that Naruto was so unbelievably dense. This was exactly the reason why he'd needed Shikamaru's help, though. Sasuke had found through observation that there was no better actor (or liar, if you would have it) than the young strategist, and at the rate his self-control was going, he would need to develop his acting skills - not to mention his self-control , fast.

Tearing his eyes away from the alluring sight of the slightly disheveled and gently panting Naruto, Sasuke swallowed hard. Yes, he really needed Shikamaru to teach him his perfected art of looking unaffected by any situation whatsoever. Absolute restraint was imperative, at this point.

"Let's go," Sasuke growled before dashing off.

Shikamaru really hated his flak jacket, sometimes. There was something fishy about flak jackets that seemed to attract troublesome matters to their owners -which were, by the way, entirely too troublesome to even think about. Oh, and Shikamaru also was entirely disgusted by his prickly hair. Funny thing was... he'd never had a problem with it, before. At least, not until girls - who are generally a race much too troublesome to deal with - decided that it was "cute" - an extremely troublesome adjective that he thoroughly disliked - and started playing with it - a troublesome action that required a troublesome burst of effort to put his troublesome mass of unattractive black strands back together in a remotely presentable manner before a certain troublesome, blonde former teammate appeared.

Shikamaru scowled. Scowling was his only solace, right now. Anything else would have required much too much effort. So he scowled and scowled away with all his might, in hopes of driving off the horde of troublesome girls as far as the other side of town.

"Shikamaru, you lazy bastard," a familiar, rumbling voice said with a laugh, accompanied by a loud crunch. "Only you can manage to be drowsy and grumpy when you're surrounded by pretty girls."

Said pretty girls tittered in the background and smiled in welcome at the newcomer.

"Chouji?" Grateful for an excuse to escape the giggling group of girls, Shikamaru pushed himself up from his chair and went to greet his friend.

Chouji grinned at his long-time friend around a mouthful of chips. His round cheeks were still decorated with the painted Konoha swirls, and he looked so downright happy when he smiled that poor, miserable, sleep-deprived Shikamaru felt terribly envious of him.

"Long time no see," Shikamaru grunted.

With a flick of experienced fingers, Chouji sent a whole barrage of chips flying into his mouth. "Yeah, you haven't come around to visit in ages. Ino's been complaining about it," he said.

"Really?" Shikamaru asked, effectively concealing his surprise with a mask of utter disinterest.

Chouji momentarily abandoned his bag of chips to sling an arm around his best friend's shoulders. "Yeah," he chuckled. "I've been your replacement while you were gone. Ino came around to see me almost every day to complain. I don't know how you deal with it. I'm really glad you're back; now she'll finally stop nagging me with her Sasuke problems."

"Shikamaru-kun!" One of Sakura's friends slipped her arms around Shikamaru's free one. "This is so exciting! I heard that you went on a dangerous mission in the Wind Country specially assigned by Hokage-sama! Is it true?"

Shikamaru winced. So this was what Sasuke must have been going through all these years. It sure was annoying, and the girl had only said his name. "Aa," he grumbled reluctantly.

"That's so cool, Shikamaru-kun! I can't even begin to imagine how important that must have -"

She was interrupted by Chouji's sudden roar of laughter.

"S-she called you 'Shikamaru-kun'!" Chouji managed to choke out after a few minutes during which people stared at him in puzzlement.

"And?" the girl said defensively. "That's normal. He's my former classmate."

Chouji's eyes were filled with tears of hilarity. "Yeah, but you used that voice," he answered back, still shaking with laughter. "You know, the 'Sasuke-kun' voice!" To prove his point, he had imitated a girl's squeal when he had said the Uchiha's name.

"Chouji," Shikamaru mumbled with embarrassment, "people are looking."

"Shikamaru, seriously, what's up with you, lately?" Chouji asked, highly amused. "First, it's Ino in a towel, and then it's all these girls fawning over you in a ramen shop! When did you become such a lady-killer?"

Shikamaru turned cherry red - face, ears, neck and all. "Chouji!" he hissed.

While Chouji had been talking - let's not forget rather loudly , everyone had turned their attention to the threesome. The girl hanging on Shikamaru's arm looked at him with wide eyes. "What's this about Ino-chan?" she wanted to know.

Shikamaru jerked himself free from her grasp. "It's nothing," he said quickly, trying in vain to rid his face of its dark pink tinge. "Chouji doesn't know what he's talking about." He glared at said Chouji. "Isn't that right, Chouji?"

Chouji got the hint from Shikamaru's murderous glare. Suppressing his desire to laugh some more, he quietly returned to his forgotten bag of chips. "Er, yes, of course," he said in a subdued manner.

Too late, Shikamaru thought spitefully. Damn it all, he knew he shouldn't have come. He had been getting a troublesome vibe from the entire business from the very beginning. Next time... well, there wouldn't be a next time. Shikamaru would personally take care of that.

"Isashiburi ne, Shikamaru?" A female voice said somewhat coldly. It was an all-too-
familiar sound.

Shikamaru swallowed. "Hey, Ino," he said a little weakly.

Chouji paled. "Uh... hi, Ino," he said.

Ino looked so angry right then that Shikamaru and Chouji felt sure that she would make them strangle each other to death with her family jutsu.

"I'd like a word with you two," she said in a dangerously soft voice, pointedly ignoring everyone around her. Swivelling sharply on her heel, she stormed out with two miserable and apprehensive ninja dragging behind her.

"How dare you?" were the first words out of her mouth as she reached a secluded corner in a nearby alley.

Shikamaru opened his mouth in protest. "I didn't say anything! Chouji just suddenly -"

"I don't care who said it!" Ino shouted. "The point is that you have both publicly humiliated me in front of both strangers and friends! I can't believe you two! Don't you have any sense of decency? Noweveryone will think that I -" she spluttered for a split second and turned slightly red "- that I had some kind of sexual relationship with Shikamaru, of all people! What will people think? And..." Dread suddenly filled her face. "Oh, no... Was Sasuke-kun there? Please tell me he wasn't there! What must he be thinking, right now? Oh, god, he must think I'm a completely shameless tramp!" She burst into tears.

Shikamaru and Chouji stared for a minute before remembering their roles as friends and reaching out to her to pat her back and mutter gruff little "sorry"s.

What a wonderful way to sweep Ino off her feet, Shikamaru thought sourly to himself. This is the first time you see her after a long time... and you made her cry. Shikamaru, you idiot.

To top everything off, Chouji ended up being the one who was able to truly console Ino. "Ino, Sasuke isn't here, yet. He didn't hear anything. So don't worry, okay?"

Meanwhile, Shikamaru realized something and narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean, 'Shikamaru, of all people'?" he demanded, slightly hurt.

Ino glared at him through red-rimmed, tear-filled eyes. "I don't think you're in a position to feel annoyed, right now." she snapped. "Besides, you know exactly what I mean."

"No, I don't think I do," Shikamaru replied, his lips pressed tightly together. "Anyway, this conversation is pointless. I'm going back to Ichiraku. I'll see you later, when you're over your little tantrum." And with that, he left.

Ino gaped after him in disbelief. "Why that insensitive bastard!" she said angrily. "Why is he so touchy, all of a sudden?"

"Well," Chouji ventured cautiously, "I think he's been having a bad day. And you have to admit that what you said was a little mean."

Ino narrowed her bright blue eyes. "Really?" she said sarcastically. "It didn't seem like it, from what I saw. He didn't even notice that I had arrived, since he was hanging all over all those girls."

Ah, Chouji thought, face carefully neutral. As likely as not, this was probably the real little thorn in Ino's side, though she may not really realize it. "Er, Ino, I think it was more the other way around. We all know that Shikamaru's not really all that into flirting." As a matter of fact, the mere idea of Shikamaru trying to flirt was enough to knock Chouji out with laughter.

"Oh, please, spare me," Ino retorted. "He was obviously enjoying all the attention bestowed oh-so-lovingly to him by that air-headed Naomi and her stupid friends." She scoffed as she said the girl's name. "Speaking of which, Naomi still hasn't succeeded in becoming a genin, and she's just one year younger than me."

"A lot of people are still struggling with becoming genin," Chouji reminded her. "We shouldn't make fun of them just because we were lucky enough to have Shikamaru on our team."

Ino set her chin stubbornly and didn't answer. "Let's go, Chouji," she said, storming in the same direction Shikamaru had gone.

"How troublesome," Chouji said to himself with a sigh.

Sakura waited anxiously at the door. Where were Sasuke and Naruto? This get-together was not going the way she, Tenten and Hinata had planned. Already, it was obvious that Ino had fought with her former teammates. Shikamaru was sleeping away his troubles on one of Ichiraku's benches, and Chouji was bleeding the restaurant dry of ramen, which is no small feat. Meanwhile, Kiba had started a round of strip poker with a group of girls, Neji was getting upset that he was wasting his time, and Hinata was worrying herself dizzy about some disquieting family business.

I never should have brought the girls from the Academy, she thought sorrowfully as she watched Kiba collect their clothes with glee as he won game after game. She wouldn't be surprised if Ichiraku's amazingly tolerant owner banned them from here, forever.

"Sakura-chan!" A familiar voice yelled.

"Naruto! Sasuke-kun!" Sakura greeted her friends happily, relief washing over her like a cool wave. "You're here!"

"Where's Shikamaru?" asked Sasuke.

Sakura blinked. "Shikamaru? He's over there, in the back, sleeping. Why?"

"Hn," was all that Sasuke deigned as an answer before he swept off to wake up the lazy Nara, barely blinking at the strange sight of Kiba sitting in a circle of half-naked girls.

Naruto didn't take it in as easily. "Sakura, what's going on?"

Sakura sighed. "Let's not talk about it. I'm just glad that you and Sasuke are finally here." She turned around. "Hey, everyone's here," she called out loudly over the noise and commotion, "so let's get moving before we get kicked out."

From behind the counter, the cooks, waiters and waitresses sighed in relief.

Shikamaru glared at the dark-haired shinobi who had shaken him out of blissful unconsciousness. "What was so important that you had to shake me like that?" he demanded grouchily. He distantly took note of Sakura's announcement and the gradual emptying of Ichiraku.

Sasuke crouched down next to Shikamaru's slumped form. "Listen, do you remember when I was trying to talk to you earlier?" he said in a low voice.

Shikamaru stared at him. Not this again, he thought unhappily. "No," he lied, "I don't remember." Before Sasuke could say anything else, he added, "We'd better leave before Sakura bursts a vein or something," and swiftly made his escape towards the door.

"Wait, Nara!" Sasuke caught up with him outside the door and dragged him to the side. "This is really important. Just give me five minutes."

"Yeah, okay," Shikamaru sighed. "What is it?"

Sasuke swallowed, suddenly slightly embarrassed. "Well, I need your help," he muttered reluctantly.

"You've already said that, before. Tch, this is so troublesome."

Sasuke glared at him. "I should have expected this of you. You do remember, don't you!"

Shikamaru yawned and rubbed his eyes. "In case you didn't realize, it's troublesome for a ninja to forget things. Little details can cost you your life in this line of work."

Sasuke forced himself to calm down and tried to repress the urge to hit Shikamaru. "Alright, then," he said, "you remember that I said that I, uh, liked someone, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, lately," Sasuke struggled to find the right words, "I've been... well, I've been kind of losing control of myself."

"That sounds perverted."

"Yeah it - wait, no!" Sasuke took in a deep breath. "I mean, yes, it's kind of like that." He looked away, slightly pink in the face. "Look, I've noticed that you never seem to have these kinds of problems, so maybe you can help me."

Shikamaru blinked. He briefly thought of Ino dressed in nothing but a little blue towel. "Uh, I guess," he said. Not really, he added inwardly. But he would never admit it to anyone. "Well, what kind of 'losing control' do you mean, really?"

Sasuke started to feel that this conversation was taking a very awkward turn. It's necessary if you want to overcome the obstacle, he reminded himself. A shinobi must always be prepared to make sacrifices for a greater good. "I've been... making intimate contact," he said. "Just... touching things I shouldn't, I guess. And I've barely restrained myself from kissing -"

"She let you?" Shikamaru interrupted, startled.

"She?" Sasuke was equally startled before he caught himself. "I mean, er, yes, she has."

Shikamaru raised his eyebrows. "Well," he said, "I don't really see your problem if she's letting you touch her intimately. Have you touched her breasts or something?"

Trying to put his jumbled thoughts together in a seemly order, Sasuke thoughtlessly replied, "No, more like the butt and between the thighs." He's a guy, he doesn't have breasts, he thought reasonably.

Shikamaru gaped at him. "Between the thighs? Are you crazy? And she didn't say anything?"

Sasuke realized what he had said and turned redder. "Well, no."

"No slap, no screaming... no nothing?" Shikamaru weakly clapped a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "Honestly, Uchiha, if a girl lets your hands wander to a place a private as between her thighs, that's a blatant, flashing 'Welcome' sign."

But what if it's a guy? Sasuke thought desperately.

"I mean, that's a really private place for guys as well as girls, so you can just imagine how sensitive it must be for a girl," Shikamaru continued.

Sasuke's mind went blank. Is Naruto actually giving me a 'Welcome' sign when he lets me do that? His brain whirled with a million different possibilities, and they all boiled down to one question: did Naruto actually reciprocate his feelings? Another thing occurred to him. "Well, what if she's extremely dense?" he asked cautiously.

"You're so troublesome. Being dense has nothing to do with it," Shikamaru threw back. "This kind of thing is controlled by human instinct. If she doesn't like you, that zone is a no-no, but since she does, she lets you. It doesn't have much to do with rational thought."

"I'd used his - er, I mean her - kunai strap as an excuse, though," Sasuke said forlornly. "So it's not sure, really."

Shikamaru waved it off. "Girls are pretty perceptive when it comes to stuff like that, though," he said. "It's nothing to worry about."

But what if it's a guy? Sasuke felt like yelling.

Shikamaru sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "Besides, it's you of all people. I doubt any girl would refuse Uchiha Sasuke, really."

Sasuke felt like beating his head against a wall. But Naruto's not a girl...

"If you really feel that you need to learn more self-control, though, I guess you could go do stuff like fight bears in the mountain and sit under waterfalls."

"Are you making fun of me?" Sasuke demanded angrily. "This is serious!"

"This is so damn troublesome. Relax, Uchiha. If you want real advice, here: the only way to learn self-control is to practice. It's as simple as that. And if you're thinking of it as intensive training or something, you could meditate regularly. But, in all honesty, I think you should just go for it, since she seems to be all yours already. Self-control can be an asset where it concerns our job, but you have to remember that everyday life is different from a mission. People appreciate frankness and genuine actions more than carefully thought-out plans and underhand schemes." Shikamaru rubbed his temples. "Which explains why I'm at a disadvantage where the mundane is concerned. How troublesome."

"Sasuke-kun! Shikamaru! What are you doing?" A pink head of hair bobbed into their field of vision. "I actually had to come back all the way here to get you two! Everyone's waiting!" She clamped onto Sasuke's arm. "Mou, Sasuke-kun! It's so unusual of you to be in behind of everyone! I'll bet that Shikamaru was being lazy again and you were trying to get him to come."

Shikamaru lost interest in the conversation and trudged away. "Yeah, sure," he said.

Sasuke shook Sakura off his arm. "Hn," he said, and headed towards the site of the "get-together".

Sakura lingered behind with a frown. That's odd. They seemed to be pretty deep in a conversation. I wonder what they were talking about?

Ino was a very popular girl, there was no denying it. After all, she was blessed with the "golden princess" looks - that is, clear blue eyes and platinum blonde hair , velvety, milky skin, nice teeth, fine features, and a trim figure as neat as if it were carved out of soft marble. She was also stylish, clever, a loyal kunoichi from a good ninja family, a good confidante, and very knowledgeable in the arts of persuasion (or, in the case of those who knew her more intimately, more-than-slightly-forceful coercion). All in all, she was generally made out by others to be a veritable paragon of attractiveness both in the physical and in the personal sense.

But, like every other paragon of loveliness in the world, Ino had moments during which she was less-than-desirable company. And today, she had a little vendetta to settle with a incorrigible flirt - though the nature of this "flirtation" is to be dubiously examined - with pretty, dark eyes and a habit of yawning very frequently; and when Ino held a grudge, thunder and lightning seemed to surround her like mosquitoes would around a light at night.

However, as this terribly dashing flirt seemed to desire nothing more than to lie downlethargically under the shade of a large tree and ignore all visitors of his little haven as well as the friendly picnic taking place a few feet away, settling this little troublesome vendetta was proving to be more difficult than she had ever imagined. After all, in all great literary and cinematographic works, such things were done with active roles from the part of each enemy party in a terribly stylish, noisy way.

"Shikamaru, stop ignoring me!" Ino shrieked angrily, grabbing her sleepy friend by the collar of his net shirt.

Shikamaru slept on.

Ino stared at him for a few minutes, and noticed against her will how adorable a young man could look even when he was dangling off your arm like a limp noodle in his sleep. Especially when his ponytail resembled a dark, silky version of a pineapple. "Damn it, Shikamaru," she grumbled, "I'm sorry." Her brilliant plans of a passionate argument went up in smoke.

Shikamaru stirred for the first time since he had settled himself at the base of the fat pine tree and cracked one eye open. "Huh?" was his sluggish reaction.

A vein throbbed mightily in Ino's right temple. "Forget I even said anything, you idiot!" she yelled before dropping him back to the ground and stomping off. "You're nothing but a lazy halfwit!"

Minutes later, she returned sullenly to face a confused Shikamaru and crouched down to his level on the ground. "Tenten forced me to come back here," she mumbled. With what almost seemed like a pout, she reached out her arms to hug him awkwardly. "I really am sorry about what I had said, okay?" she said quietly, and looked expectantly at him.

Shikamaru froze. It wasn't that it was terribly unusual for Ino to give hugs, but he still had a certain incident in a bathroom freshly embedded in his mind. Though he would never admit it, he had, like most males in the world, a slightly perverted turn of mind. It's those damn hormones, he cursed silently. Wild flashes of thought ran through his mind, running along the lines of soft breasts pressing against his chest and warm, sweet breath filling his sensitive ear.

Before he knew it, Ino had leaned forward and pressed herself against him. Her lightly-scented hair brushed his cheek as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, her nose and mouth resting at the crook of his neck, which was, by the way, also an extremely sensitive part of him. It was a very normal hug, but at the same time, it sent rushes through him that he wasn't sure had been quite as strong before. His body betrayed him by having his arms wrap around Ino's slender waist to pull her closer, and he could not stop himself from turning his head slightly to the side to press his lips against her silky hair. Everything about her seemed soft and pliant, a fact which greatly pleased the male instinct inside him, and his usually quick mind slowed down to a snail's pace to savor the moment.

Ino was suddenly very happy, though she didn't quite understand why. All she was capable of registering at the moment was that Shikamaru smelled strangely dark and delicious, and that the feeling of their bodies so close together was making her heart beat at a strangely fast pace. She didn't want to think - that would have ruined the experience. Instead, she only leaned in deeper, relished the feeling of absolute safety in strong arms, and basked in Shikamaru's distinctly masculine scent. It feels so good, was all that was coherent in her mind. Her eyes fluttered close.

"Hey, Shikamaru!" A loud, cheerful voice abruptly intruded their little world.

Shikamaru almost groaned in annoyance, but caught himself just in time. "Yeah?" he asked while glaring at a very troublesome blond ninja as Ino quickly pulled herself away.

A mischievous grin covered nearly half of Naruto's face. "Nothing," he said innocently. "I was just checking to see if you could even hear me."

Shikamaru desperately tried to suppress the rising blood in his face. "What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded gruffly, not daring to look at Ino.

"Oy, dobe. Stop bothering them and help us set up an extra blanket for the Godaime and the chuunins on guard duty."

Shikamaru never thought he'd ever see the day that he would actually be happy to see the taciturn Uchiha.

"Shikamaru, you too. The Godaime wants to talk to you as well as Naruto."

Shikamaru suddenly did not feel that his opinion of Sasuke had heightened. "This is so troublesome," he groused.

"What could that old hag have to say that's even remotely interesting?" Naruto groused as well, crossing his arms.

"How should I know?" Sasuke asked flatly. "Come on, or she's going to start harping at me, instead."

Shikamaru sighed, and with another comment of how troublesome life was, followed slowly behind Naruto and Sasuke.

Ino sat still just where she had been when she had hugged Shikamaru. What was that? she wondered wildly, unconsciously clenching her hands in her lap. And why did it feel so right?

A.N. Alright, it's kind of a clichéd ending to a chapter, but I felt that it was suited to the story, which is a bit of a cliché, anyway. Besides, I've never written that particular line before, and it was actually pretty entertaining. Anyway, for the next chapter, I'm planning on an appearance of "Team Gai", more ShikaIno sweetness, and a lot more SasuNaru as well. In case anyone was wondering, I'm kind of using the SasuNaru pairing in this fic to sort of act as an omen of ShikaIno action. So, basically, the more sexual SasuNaru gets, ShikaIno will be just one step behind.