Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Pairings: InoxShikamaru TentenxNeji SakuraxSasuke HiantaxNaruto

This is not the end of the story! It will not end here, I mean unless you want it to.

Thank you for reading my story. Enjoy and review.

The thunder boomed and lightning flashed as the two girls talked on and wrote cards. Sakura shivered occasionally and Ino had tried to turn up the heat, but no avail. The kunoichi were used to harsh conditions, but decided to get blankets anyway. "Ino, how will we get the gifts to everyone?" Sakura asked as she looked out the window. It was still early in the afternoon so there would be time. However it was not the time the girl was worried about.

"I think we could drive around.h" Ino replied never looking up from her work.

"What if the roads are closed?" Sakura questioned. Due to weather conditions in Konoha, the roads had been closed many times.

"Then we'll get an umbrella and run. I'm sure it won't be that bad. We're kunoichi remember?" Ino told her friend. "There," She stated as she placed a beautifully arranged bunch of flowers on the table in front of her. She used to spend time in her family flower shop learning how to arrange the plants in beautiful ways.

"Wait," Sakura asked, "if your parents own a flower shop, why did you buy your own?" 'She could have been able to get free items. It's also much more convenient to go to the second floor.'

"Sakura, have you forgotten that it's Valentine's Day? People have probably already bought all the good flowers. I wouldn't just take flowers away from the shop today. It would mean bad business." Ino placed all her gifts in a row on the table while Sakura's gifts were on the floor.

"I see," Sakura answered. "Wait," Sakura began again, "They wouldn't have power down there so would the stores have to close?"

"No," Ino replied, "My apartment has backup sources of power that go to only the first three floors." Sakura nodded to her friends answer.

"Are you done with your gifts?" It was about 2:30 in the afternoon and the two young women had spent about an hour on decorating cards and wrapping gifts. Ino nodded her head and walked to the door. "Wait, where are you going?"

The blonde slipped on a pair of boots. "I'm going to check to see it the roads are clear. You stay here, and I'll be back soon." Ino had closed the door before Sakura could protest. 'I hope the roads are clear. I wouldn't want to get dirty when delivering gifts.' Ino ran down the steps knowing that the elevator wasn't working. 'Nobody is allowed to use the elevator unless they live here, or get permission. There shouldn't be anyone who's stuck in there.' She got to the bottom level and leaned against the main exit and pushed. There were two entrances to the apartment. One was for the bookstore. The other was to get to the main stairwell. She walked outside and then began run with the speed that ninja posses.

The rain began to make Ino shiver, but the woman refused to go back until she found out if the road was closed. She shook her head a bit to get rid of droplets of water. 'So the streets aren't closed.' Ino began to head back to her apartment.

Meanwhile, Sakura was sitting on the couch listening to the rain. She was still cold and quite frightened by the thunderstorm. The quietness of Ino's abode made her imagine things that might pop out. Sakura didn't want to protest Ino leaving her alone or else she would have surely been mocked. The flames of candles made shadows dance across the wall. Occasionally, Sakura would turn her head to face a moving shadow and realize it was nothing. The feeling of being watched however did not fade away. 'Calm down Sakura, there's nothing there. You're perfectly safe.' She told herself over and over in hope that it would get rid of her fears. The wind made branches brush up against the window and Sakura began to panic. She decided to start singing to relieve her nerves. The singing did help to calm the girl down and she closed her eyes.

Ino reached her home and opened the door. She found Sakura singing a lullaby that they used to sing together. Ino closed the door as Sakura continued to sing. The pink hair kunoichi was so wrapped up in the song that she didn't notice Ino sit down next to her until the blonde began to join into the song. Sakura opened her eyes startled but didn't stop singing. They finished the song and smiled at each other.

"I'm surprised you still remember." Ino told her friend.

"It just came back. You remembered also." Sakura replied.

"I used to sing that every night since we stopped being friends. I missed you during that time. I hoped you would be my friend again, but I was too proud to admit it." Ino informed. Sakura looked into those eyes that she remembered from the first day they met.

'I always thought she was against me back then. It's only now that I realized that she still cared and was hurt. She's the forgiving one, the strong one.' Sakura thought. "I'm glad we're friends again." Ino nodded.

"The roads are free, so we can deliver the gifts by driving around." Ino told her friend. "I guess we could go together. It won't take too long." She gave her friend a hand in putting the gifts into bags so distribution was easy. They also took the list from before along with them. Ino and Sakura climbed down the many steps each holding three bags of gifts. When they got to Sakura's car they placed all the gifts in the back seat and drove off. Ino looked at the list.

Asuma

Chouji and his family

Kakashi

Naruto and Hinata

Neji and Tenten

Iruka

Kurenai

Shino

Kiba

Gai

Lee

Name by name the girls distributed the gifts driving through Konoha. They handed the presents to each person who they bought one for. In turn, they themselves received gifts. They were joyful when they saw the reactions on their friend's faces. Ino and Sakura were hugged numerous times. Their former teachers had new teams and classes to teach now, but they still kept in touch. The girls had great times with their teachers when they gave gifts and they got to talk a bit. The kunoichi got to see the new teams. The former rookie nine were still friends that met often, but it was still nice to pay them a visit. Tenten and Neji were grateful for their gifts. Tenten crushed them with hugs and the usually cold Neji smiled. Lee was joyful as usual. He didn't lecture people anymore and dressed in different clothing. The eyebrows were still there though.

By the time the young women were done it was around 4:00 P.M. "Sakura, I think we should say goodbye when we get to my house. We have to prepare for our boyfriends when they come home." Ino told her friend.

"Yea, I guess you're right. I have to cook and make the house look nice. Sasuke is probably going to be stressed and we can't have that on Valentine's Day." Sakura drove through the muddy streets and finally reached Ino's home.

The blond hugged her friend. She grabbed her items and waved goodbye. 'I had a great time, now it's time for the actual work.' Ino knew that the elevator still didn't work so she had to climb the stairs. When Ino finally got into her home she had a bunch of things to clean up.

"I have to clean, and then make a dinner. I also have to change and wait for Shika-kun to come home. I hope I hear from him soon." Ino said to herself.

The home was dark and Ino decided to light a candle from the batch that she bought at the mall. Ino cleaned up all the scraps of paper from making card and threw them out. She then put all the writing tools away and placed the Valentine's gifts on the stairs. Ino wiped the floor with a wet cloth and clean the tables. The rain made her feel lonely. She never did like rainy days. You always had to stay indoors and you couldn't enjoy the sunshine.

When Ino was done cleaning she needed to go to the market to buy things to cook. She also needed supplies to bake. "I need a cookbook since I don't cook often. I guess I'll go downstairs." Ino walked down the empty grey stairwell and sighed. Every once and a while she would stop to look out the many windows on the wall. Ino had placed flowers on each windowsill to make things look cheerier. Today, the flowers looked like they were about to die.

Ino finally reached the first level and entered the bookstore. "Mrs. Nara, where are the cookbooks?" Ino asked a woman who was Shikamaru's mother.

"They're over by the first shelf to your left." Yoshino told the blonde girl. The woman smiled and returned to her work at sorting the books on a shelf.

'She's so nice, I can't imagine why Shikamaru is so scared of her.' Ino walked over and found a big cookbook and took it over to the counter. Nara Yoshino came over to the girl and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Ino-chan, you don't need to pay for it. My future daughter in-law deserves a gift for Valentine's Day, ne?" Ino blushed at the comment and shook her head.

"I wouldn't feel right doing that. Besides I don't know if I'll be your future daughter in-law." Ino replied.

"Nonsense, my husband and I adore you. Shikamaru loves you, even though he may call you troublesome."

"I'll pay anyway, think of it as a gift from me." Ino insisted and placed the money on the counter. She was about to be given back the money but slipped out of the room.

"Such a sweet girl. I know Shikamaru will have a happy life with her." Shikamaru's mother looked down at the money and realized that Ino had paid thirty dollars extra. "Generous too."

Ino ran to her car in the parking lot. It was a silver sports car that Ino had gotten from Shikamaru on their one year anniversary a couple months ago. She quickly opened the door and started the car. The rain was starting to die down and the temperature dropped drastically. The rain was beginning to become snow. Ino sat in her car for a while to let it warm up and then buckled her seatbelt. The girl placed her cookbook on the seat beside her and began to drive to the market. "It's so cold, just like the day I went to the fair with Shika." Ino used one hand to tightly clutch the silver locket around her neck.

After a few minutes Ino arrived at the market and parked. She looked through the book to find something she wanted to cook and something she wanted to bake. Ino picked a pasta recipe and a recipe for a vanilla cake. The blonde scribbled the ingredients down on a piece of paper she found in her purse. When Ino was done she exited the car.

The girl walked into the store and grabbed a shopping cart. "I guess I'll start with the pasta," the kunoichi quietly told herself. The girl found noodles for the pasta and placed it in her cart. Ino was having a tough time finding some thing because she didn't come to the big market often. She usually went to the convenience store to pick up things like bread or asked her mother to go and buy things when she needed it. Ino grabbed the ingredients as quick as she could. After twenty minutes she finally found the last ingredient and paid for her purchases. She had two big brown grocery bags filled with food and had a hard time opening the car door. On top of that, it was raining with little flakes of snow that appeared every so often.

When the blonde finally got into the car she placed the groceries in the back seats and turned on the car. "Shika better like the dinner I make for him." Ino sighed and drove back in the direction of her home. She was stopping at a red light when she saw snow begin to fall. The only reason why the blonde saw it was because she was expecting to see rain at that stoplight when she examined her windows. The snowflakes fell at a faster rate than at the stoplight as Ino parked her car. She took her groceries and the cookbook up the long flight of stairs with her. The girl sighed in exasperation because the power still didn't work.

Ino reached her home and she decided to start the cake first. The girl took out the supplies and put on an apron. The battery operated clock showed that if she hurried she'd be done with the cake batter and be able to put it in the oven by 5:45. She assumed that her boyfriend was with some other Jounin planning peace treaties and would come home around 7:00 as he did most of the time. Ino began to get out the supplies and read the directions over. She took the ingredients the book told her to and began to mix them together, being sure to look at the clock occasionally. She then began to measure more ingredients and mix those in as well. Ino was done with the batter and slid it into the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Ino brushed some flour off of her. All the flour in the sir made her sneeze but she went on to making the pasta sauce.

Ino chopped the vegetables to make a sauce. She then put the ingredients in a pot and let it simmer. She added water occasionally. Ino was beginning to like cooking. It made the kitchen smell nice and it was good to know that you made it yourself. Ino turned off the fire, and poured the result into a bowl. The girl decided not to start the pasta until she was done with her bath. She placed the sauce on the kitchen counter and climbed up the stairs to her room with a candle in her hand.

Ino turned on the water and placed the candle on the bathroom counter. Ino brushed her teeth and untied her hair. Ino went to the closet and found a box with flower petals in it. She brought a handful into the bathroom and dropped the petals into the warm water. The smell was calming andthe Yamanakaclosed her eyes. Ino closed that bathroom door, stopped the water, and took off her clothing. She slipped into the warm bath and began to scrub her body. "I love taking baths with these petals. Too bad I save them for special occasions." Ino washed her body clean of any flour or sauce that got on her. She then tipped her head back into the water and scrubbed her hair. 'Mom said that washing your hair in these plants made your hair silk and smooth. I have to give some to Tenten when she gets ready for her wedding. These petals really do work. On top of that, they smell nice.' The blonde haired woman lifted her head back up and relaxed for a while. She was listening to the sounds of cars that were passing by. She thought of what Shikamaru would say when he saw what his girlfriend did. The blue eyed Jounin went out of the tub and grabbed a towel. She wrapped herself in a pink fluffy towel and let the water drain from the tub.

Ino left the bathroom and headed for her closet with the candle in her left hand. She placed it on a drawer in the large closet. She looked through the rows and rows of clothes to find something with red or maybe pink that would match Valentine's Day. The day of passion, the day of relationships, the day of love. 'I think I've found what I want.' Ino told herself as she inspected what she picked. Ino had picked a scarlet corset with black lacing in the back and black lace in numerous other places. She had also taken a matching scarlet skirt that went to her mid-thigh with black laces at the bottom. It had a large black bow in the back that ended at her knees. Ino dressed in the clothing and placed her towel back in the bathroom. Ino let her hair down and tried to dry it as much as possible. She put on her makeup and looked at her reflection and smiled. The finishing touch was the silver locket her boyfriend had given her. "Perfect." Ino whispered and rushed down the steps with the candle in her hand. She took the boots she wore earlier that day and laced them up to her knees.

Ino found her bag of Valentine's Day items and took a dozen roses. Then she placed the candle downstairs. She took the roses to her room. She plucked the petals off some of the flowers and sprinkled some on her bed. Ino then went back downstairs with the remaining roses and placed them on the table which had a black tablecloth. Ino took her cake from the oven and let it cool for a while. The kunoichi began to boil water for the pasta. She decided to take a rest and sit down on one of the kitchen stools while waiting.

When the water began to boil, she took the noodles she had bought from the grocery bag. Ino placed the noodles into the water and stirred with a chopstick. She knew enough that noodles would stick to the bottom of a pan if you didn't stir. She let the noodles soften and let it boil a little while longer. 'I hope Shika comes home soon. I wouldn't want him to miss the meal. My troublesome boyfriend better not be too late.' Ino glanced at the clock one again that said it was about 6:45.

After ten minutes she took the cake out of the mold and put it on a plate. Ino took frosting she had bought earlier and spread it over the cake. She made sure to make it even everywhere and to carefully use a dull knife to keep the cake perfect. The girl stood back and marveled her work. The candle flickered and made the scene look like it was from a romance movie. Ino had a triumphant smile on her face. She took the last rose she had and sprinkled some petals on the top. Ino lit a few more candles and brought out her boyfriend's Valentine's Day gift. They were all put in the dining room. She placed the plates, candles, and silverware on the dining table. Ino sat down and looked at the front door. 'Everything is set, 'Ino thought, 'All that's left to do is wait.'

That's exactly what Ino did, she waited. She sat staring at the door thinking, 'He'll some home any minute', but Shikamaru never entered through the door. Ino was beginning to get tired of waiting and got up after one hour. She went over to the window and sat on a chair. She watched the snow fall and shivered. Ino was sure the heat was working because the bottom levels were all closed and the backup power went to her level now. Something just didn't feel right. The scene outside was beautiful and mad Ino think of the memories the snow held. The blonde rested her head on her knees and waited for another hour. She was impatient but the thought of falling asleep in her Shika-kun's arms made her wait.

The stars were beginning to appearing the nighttime sky when Ino finally decided to change positions. 'What is taking Shika? I hope he's alright.' Ino was concerned about her lover's safety. 'I just hope he's not hurt.' Ino thought back to when she asked Tsunade if her lazy genius had a mission.

A voice that came from behind the door answered, "Permission granted." Ino pulled open the red door. The Hokage looked at the blonde. "What brings you here?"

"Well, does Shikamaru have a mission today?"

"No, shouldn't you have already known the answer to that." Tsunade told her.

"Thank you Tsunade-sama." Ino quietly stepped out of the room. She went back through the door the Anbu was guarding and down the flight of stairs. She went though the many corridors and ran to Sakura's car. 'I can't believe it. Where did Shika go?"

Ino didn't want to panic, but she was hyperventilating. Her face began to pale. She tried to shake the thoughts out of her mind. Ino sang the lullaby her and Sakura used to sing together in hopes of quelling her fear. Ino looked up at the moon. 'Please bring Shika-kun home safely' Ino pleaded. She knew nobody would hear though. It was just like when she ran to the place where her team used to watch clouds. 'Shikamaru found me' Ino thought to herself. Her eyes became filled with tears, but she refused to cry. She kept on thinking about what he would say if he saw her crying. It would ruin the whole evening she had planned.

Ino looked out the window and saw an umbrella. She squinted and saw two people standing under it. They were slowly walking and there appeared to be a boy and girl. Ino turned away unable to bear the though of being alone. The woman made her way to the living room and lay on the couch. She faced the door and looked around her, she had set up candles everywhere. 'He'll be coming home any minute now.' The kunoichi held onto that though and gripped her locket. 'I know he will.'

Despite Ino's waiting, nothing happened. The clock ticked away and rang ten times signaling that it was 10:00. Ino had decided to bring a blanket and pillow from her room to help her get comfortable while she waited. The sleepy girl trudged up the steps and looked at their empty bed. The petals were unmoved and the moonlight hit the satin just right. 'That's where Shika and I are supposed to be right now.' Ino thought. She sighed and went into the storage closet. She took a black silk blanket and a red cotton pillow and made her way down the empty halls of her home. She walked down the steps, listening to the clacking of her boots. Ino looked at the empty rooms and set her things down in the living room.

Ino wanted to see the snow outside and that's what she did. It would also serve the purpose of keeping her awake. She went to her balcony and stood for a while. Though the wind was stinging her face she thought she could hear faint laughter. The girl thought that she felt warm sunshine. She closed her eyes and became engulfed in the sensation. It felt so good to feel this happiness. The blonde thought she heard someone calling her name and opened her eyes. 'That could be Shikamaru,' Ino though excitedly and ran though the house. Ino only found everything right where she left it. Shikamaru was not home. Ino went to her kitchen by the phone and grabbed a pen. She wrote a note hoping that during the night her love would read it and they could still have a wonderful Valentine's Day.

Dear Shika-kun,

I missed you when you were gone. I was so scared that you weren't coming back. Please wake me up when you get home. If you're really hungry I have made pasta, heat it up and enjoy. I also baked a cake for us to share, so don't eat it without me! I hope your day was alright. When you wake me up. I have so much to tell and show you. Then, maybe we can go to bed together and dream of each other.

Your Love,

Ino-chan

Ino then curled up and watch the clock tick. Eventually the blonde fell asleep, dreaming of her lost love. She would call his name in her sleep, but nobody was there to hear her. The moon and stars began to disappear as the night progressed, but still no sign of Shikamaru. Ino would be all alone on the one day that mattered most, Valentine's Day.