Summary: AU. Oddly enough, Nara Shikamaru finds himself to be hired. In his job at the flower shop, he gets to know Ino. But are these developing feelings for her okay, when her mind's on the level of a nine-year-old?
Hallo, everyone! I know you must've heard this countless of times, but here it goes: It's my first story please don't kill me I don't really speak English aaaah! Thank you.
Now, that aside, I present you the first chapter of CY. As I already mentioned, English isn't my national language so prepare for grammar mistakes, but if you necessarily want to yell at me, then also point out those mistakes. Though I don't really encourage you to shout at me…
I think the rating is about right, though there will be cursing, and maybe some violence in later chapters.
Anyway, enjoy and remember to review. (Duh.)
Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters do not belong to me.
-
Shikamaru didn't have a favourite season. At the moment, it was summer, and he was already annoyed by the hotness and humidity, that would just get higher as June dashingly approached.
Autumn was when the schools started and everything seemed to just fall asleep and die. People became depressed, when the last rays of light would hide away. Also, he held a great detest against mushrooms.
Winter was cold and dark, almost lifeless. He disliked the snow, as it only piled up and made moving outside more difficult.
Spring was all wet and overly rejoiced for everything awoke again—reminding him too much of mornings.
And mornings—he thought as he groggily woke up to the voices of someone loudly banging on the door of his room—he hated the most out of every kind of times, spaces, moments, dates and ages.
"Nara Shikamaru! It's already eight o'clock! You died in there or something? You'll be late from your graduating ceremony (1)! OUT OF BED!" his mother yelled and still kicked the door once, just in case if he hadn't yet woken up to the screaming and pounding, and because she apparently enjoyed molesting things and people.
Shikamaru groaned for a reply, and pulled the pillows over his head, knowing it was futile.
With a swift kick, his mother got the door finally open and stormed in, wrenching the covers from him. Shikamaru blushed in embarrassment as his blue-white striped boxers were shown to his mother—who was still a woman nevertheless.
"Moo-oo-oom," he protested indignantly as he curled up, cold.
"YOU GET UP, OR CRY AND GET UP!" his mother bellowed. "I'm absolutely fed up with your constant uninterested behaviour, Shikamaru! Some of these days, I swear to you, your father and I are going to make you work, sweat, and BLEED FOR ALL YOU'RE WORTH, YOU IDLER!"
Shikamaru grimaced as he listened to his mother hysterical rambling. Or that's what it sounded like to him. He pushed the pillows on the floor and sat up to scratch his ear.
"Will you just be quiet? I'm up, I'm up, see… Damn, you have some lungs…"
"Breakfast is served in the kitchen in ten minutes! BE THERE!" Shikamaru's shoulders stiffened in start as his mother's significantly pointing finger stopped just a few centimetres from his face.
Then, with a huff, the angry woman turned and left the room and her son staring after her in slight fright.
After he was sure she was gone, Shikamaru moaned and rolled his eyes, his mouth opening and the saying coming out before he even realized his tongue was working.
"…How troublesome…"
-
"Nara, Shikamaru."
As his name was announced, Shikamaru sighed and walked up to the platform to receive his report.
Iruka-sensei smiled at him and handed him the piece of paper that had haunted him in some of his dreams, but only very, very vaguely.
"Congratulations on graduating," the scar-faced man said sincerely. Shikamaru bowed clumsily, for not being used to such an act.
"Yeah. Thanks," he replied and walked down to his place next to his classmates, where he was to wait until the ceremony was finished.
At some point it was Uzumaki Naruto's turn, and he winked confidently at Shikamaru before gladly accepting his report. Then he skipped down and went to his place, but not until taking a small peek at his grades. Shikamaru caught his eye, sending a questioning look. Naruto shook his head grimly.
Shikamaru inwardly gulped. He was about as good student as Naruto. His mother would have his head on a silver plate, and his dad would cut it off for her.
The teachers rose to say something encouraging to their now former pupils, but it all went through one ear, and came out of the other. Finally Iruka had his turn.
"I wish all the best for your future. Goodbye, and good luck! Have a wonderful summer!" he smiled and everyone clapped, some whistled and cheered. Even Shikamaru cracked something that could pass for an appreciative grin and clapped his hands.
After the ceremony was over at last, the graduated teens impatiently and with shaking hands turned their reports around, pulling in everything, the grades hopping in front of their eyes.
Shikamaru braced himself for the worst and looked.
…
…Well…
It wasn't all that bad…
"NOOOO! Why? WHY?" an anguished shout was heard behind him and suddenly Shikamaru felt weight on his shoulders.
Inuzuka Kiba's face stared at his report from over his shoulder. He backed away almost immediately and looked up at the ceiling as if demanding something.
"This isn't true. Even Shikamaru beat me in history! Goddammit! It's only about REMEMBERING some freakin' years and dates and names! How in the hell did I manage to mess up the whole subject like that!" he raved on. Shikamaru was still too in shock to reply. Kiba's friends, Hyuuga Hinata and Aburame Shino came closer.
"D-did you do well in t-the other subjects, Kiba-kun?" asked the pale girl with a careful tone. Kiba calmed down and let out a deep breath.
"Sort of. I knew I'd get a good grade out of P.E and for some reason I did fairly well in English, too, but you know how I've skipped classes and so on…" he turned to look at Hinata.
"What about you?"
Hinata flushed happily.
"I did good. M-my best subjects were b-biology and home economics. I got f-full points in both of them. I think, that in f-future, I can get to that medical school I w-wanted to," she said and looked up to her companion, who merely stood impassively there with his ever-present dark glasses on.
"Shino-kun did better though."
"Hn," the tall boy replied curtly, but everyone already knew he was on the top of his class, so it didn't come out as a surprise. Kiba scratched his head.
"Good for you two, then. But Hinata, I thought your dad wanted you to go to the Ninja Academy?" he raised his eyebrow. Hinata looked down, but her eyes were determined.
"Neji-kun is already there, so… A-and besides, becoming a doctor is my dream. I won't let my f-father come in the w-way of it," she said firmly. Then she looked at Shikamaru.
"A-are you going the Academy, Shikamaru-kun?" she asked curiously. "Kiba-kun and Shino-kun are."
Shikamaru frowned and was about to answer: "NO," when Naruto and another girl from their class, Haruno Sakura walked to them. Naruto hurried straight to Hinata.
"Whaaat? You're not going to the Academy? Aw! I was looking forward to seeing you and everyone else there again, Hinata-chan!" he moaned and pouted in disappointment. Hinata's face was horrified and she became as red as a fire engine.
"I-I, you see- It's-!" she stammered in panic and Sakura placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"It's alright, Hinata-san. Naruto's just kidding. You are going to see each other anyway on the streets and such," she said and gave a silencing eye to Naruto, who gulped and nodded in confirmation. Then he seemed to remember something and grinned at the pink-haired girl.
"Hey, Sakura! I forgot to ask: How did you do?"
The girl got a glint in her eyes, and smirked proudly at the question. With a: "Ha!" exclamation she shoved her report in front of Naruto's shocked face. His jaw snapped.
"Holy-! Sakura, you got full points in EVERYTHING!" he yelled and stared at her in awe. He glanced at Shino, who had just raised his head towards the scene, as clearly interested as someone who almost never spoke could be. "Hey, Shino. You have a serious rival here."
"Hah, hardly," Sakura said as she took her report back and neatly folded it before putting it in the pocket of her red dress. "See, I don't think I'm going to the Academy either…"
"WHAAAT?"
Shikamaru ignored Naruto and looked around instead, searching for a familiar person.
"Hey, anyone of you seen Chouji?" he inquired. Everyone turned to look around for the boy. Hinata, the most perspective one of them, though you wouldn't believe it when you first saw her, noticed him first.
"There," she had her head turned to the direction where the buffet was. Shikamaru nodded and thanked, leaving the group.
Hinata had been right. Chouji was sitting by one of the tables, stuffing something that looked distantly like muffin in his mouth. Shikamaru smiled and put his hands in the pockets, walking forward.
"Hey, Chouji," he greeted his friend. Chouji's eyes snapped to him and he smiled widely.
"Shikamaru," he said and swallowed. "I was on my way to find you, but I decided to grab something to eat first."
"Yeah, I see. Mind if I sit down?"
"No! Of course not," Chouji's eyes widened and Shikamaru took a chair opposite of him.
"So, how did you do, Shikamaru?" the larger boy asked. The reply was a shrug.
"Poorly," grinned Shikamaru. Chouji grinned back a bit shamefully.
"Yeah, me too," he told him. However, Shikamaru knew that out of their gang of four --he, Naruto, Kiba and Chouji-- Chouji was the most conscientious as a person and as a student.
"So, now we've graduated," said Chouji somewhat dreamily. "What are you planning to do now? I mean… we're already fifteen and all."
"Not sure, but I'm definitely not going to the Ninja Academy," Shikamaru said. Chouji looked taken aback, so he continued.
"I know my family full of ninjas, and logically that's an occupation I should also strive for, as I know all those cool, shadow techniques´… I also know you're going, Chouji, but my decision has nothing to do with you. I- I just don't see any reason for becoming something like a ninja. I mean- picture the hectic life they have: No sleep, no rest, and you are always going to have to put your life on the line and--" he tried to explain, only to realize, that he had started to ramble and give excuses. Chouji smiled understandingly.
"Altogether too troublesome for you, eh?" he asked slyly. Shikamaru gave a laugh.
"Yeah. Exactly."
"And your parents are okay with that? Your dad's a ninja, I'd think he would want for his son to be one, too."
"They don't really know yet…"
"What? Shikamaru, if you don't have any idea of what you're going to do-"
"I don't."
"How are you going to conciliate your parents, then? Especially if they see your report…"
Shikamaru knew he would have to face his parents some time. And when that time came, he'd be doomed. But as Chouji looked at him worriedly from the other side of the table, he decided to lie, just this once, to make them both feel reassured.
"I'll make up something. I always do."
-
"UNACCEPTABLE!"
Shikamaru saw his hope being shot down. His stomach was in overhand knots, and he truly feared of losing right now.
It was the battle against his parents. His mother was red from anger and held his report in her shaking hand. His father never bothered to shout at him, but the look he gave to his only son was enough to make Shikamaru glance nervously towards the dark corners of the living room, unsure, if his father's shadows were somewhere waiting for a moment to strangle him.
"Where did I go wrong? Didn't I love you, didn't I feed you, didn't I give you clean clothes to wear, didn't I ACCEPT you as the way that you are-"
"So why aren't you accepting now?" Shikamaru frowned.
"IT'S A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT THING!" his mother screamed and Shikamaru kept silent. "This time, I am genuinely concerned about you. What are you planning to do, huh, Shika? This
report—" she waved the paper in the air. "is the evidence, that you couldn't be less interested in studying, even for your own future's sake. Shikamaru—"
Shikamaru was taken by surprise, when his mother kneeled in front of him and took his hands in her own.
"—Please: Go to the Academy. They don't care about your report there, as long as you make a good ninja. You're Nara, they'll take you in with open arms. Please, we can't keep you here with us forever…" her voice faded away. Shikamaru watched her with shocked eyes.
"Mom…"
"Your mother's right," his father spoke up.
"I must say, son, that I am VERY disappointed in you… But if that's your decision then so be it. But you have to understand, that if you don't find work somewhere and take care of yourself, we will force you to go the Academy, whether you like it or not."
Shikamaru had only heard his father talk so much, when he was drunk.
"And I guess this is all because you love me?"
His father smiled a crookedly: "Yes, because we love you, even if you ARE a good-for-nothing, lazy, dishonourable, cowardly bum."
Shikamaru winced, but felt relieved.
"Gee. Thanks, pops."
"Don't thank me yet," his father started to walk closer to him. His mother let go of him and moved aside. Shikamaru suddenly got a bad feeling.
"This is not a mushy family-moment with a group-hug. Don't believe, that we're going to let you go so easily…As this issue is far from being dealt with, boy," his knuckles made an evil sounding crack, as he still approached. Shikamaru didn't dare to run away. Not even when his father grabbed him from the collar of his shirt.
"So, Shika´. This is the deal: You better get employed, and pretty damn quick, because if you don't, I'm personally going to drag your ass over to the Academy and make sure you'll get in," he threatened with the same smile on his face. He let go, and Shikamaru staggered.
"Are we clear?" he asked. Shikamaru nodded rapidly. His mother walked next to his father with a smug smile on her lips, and folded her arms in satisfaction.
"Well, my dear son, that is truly a good thing to hear, because I think I might have just the right job for you," she said. "We've got family acquaintances, who own a flower shop. Their name is Yamanaka."
-
End of chapter, hurrah!
In Japan, I think the schools end somewhere in the spring. But its called the author's freedom, so this time their schools end just before June and start…. someday.
In the next chapter Shikamaru gets a job. Oh, dear. And he also meets Ino. But she's far from the same girl you remember from the anime series…
Review. C'mon, you're this far already.