He leant against the doorframe, staring hard at the wooden door until it was thrown open. Naruto glared at him. His eyes scanned over her form, noticing the messy hair, before moving down to her baggy night shirt. It looked… stuffed? That was the best word his alcohol lulled mind could think of. It looked like she had more chest than when she wore a jacket. Maybe she was more muscular than Shikamaru realised. He decided to ignore it and look further down, noticing something else.

"You're not wearing pants!"

Naruto huffed. "That's cause I was sleeping. This is my night shirt."

"You have nice legs."

She shifted uncomfortable as Shikamaru continued to stare at her legs. "Shikamaru, what do you want?"

"You." He finally looked up, seeing the confusion on Naruto's face.

"What are you doing here?"

"Choji left me at the bar and I was meant to stay at his place because my mum would kill me if I came home drunk. So I came here."

"Oh, you want to sleep on my couch." Naruto moved aside so that Shikamaru could walk in. "Why didn't you say so? I'll get you a pillow and a blanket."

Naruto disappeared into a second room as Shikamaru drifted over to the lounge. He stared at the doorway, waiting for the blonde to return. When she did, she dropped a pillow and blanket onto the couch beside Shikamaru before moving to close the front door that the male had left open. She went to the sink behind him, returning with a glass of water that she put on the table.

"Make sure you drink that." She put the pillow at the head of the couch, unfolding the blanket and putting it at the other end. When she noticed Shikamaru's blank expression she sighed, kneeling down in front of him. "You are more hopeless drunk than you are sober." She proceeded to remove his shoes for him.

As Naruto removed his shoes he started to feel overheated. To cool off he undid his vest, throwing it to the floor before struggling to remove his shirt. His arms didn't seem to want to work, making the shirt get stuck halfway over his head. Laughter reached his ears through the fabric before something tugged at it. He was free. Only he found himself looking at Naruto's shirt, making him ponder why it wasn't sitting properly again. The thought was dismissed when he realized she had freed him.

Falling forward, he buried his face in her stomach, wrapping his arms around Naruto's waist. She was warm and soft, making him want to hold her tighter. "Thank you, Naruto."

"No problem, Shikamaru, but is everything alright?"

He let Naruto go, raising a hand to remove the elastic from his hair. "No, I don't know what to do."

Naruto tilted her head to the side, sitting down on the coffee table and crossing her legs. She held out the glass of water. "Don't worry. Pervy-Sage used to get drunk around me all the time. Drink this and try to sleep. It'll make you feel better."

Shikamaru did drink the water, since he was thirsty, but when he was done he looked down at the empty cup, still feeling horrible. "It's not that. It didn't work. Naruto, have you ever loved someone who just doesn't notice."

Naruto crossed her arms, her eyes closing to small slits. She took the cup from him, sitting it next to her. "Maybe."

"It's a drag. Temari would probably call me a wimp." He laid down, watching as Naruto pulls the blanket over him. Reaching over, he put his hand on Naruto's leg, just above the knee. The skin was soft, feeling almost like water running over his fingers. He never wanted to stop running his hands over her skin. "I don't want to feel like this. But I've tried to move on and forget but… I can't. I've felt this way for so long that I don't even know who I would be if I stopped."

Naruto sighed, unfolding her arms and adjusting Shikamaru's blanket so it covered his bare chest better. "Well, maybe you should… make a move. You're a hard guy to read so maybe she doesn't know."

"She probably doesn't want to know," Shikamaru muttered to himself, watching his thumb rub Naruto's leg. He could feel goose bumps rising on her flesh.

"Shikamaru, believe it or not, you have, what's the word Ino used for Sai… appeal. That's it! You have appeal! You're smart, loyal, strong, a good friend, and a good ninja, you don't judge people on appearance or the little things, and you're attractive."

"I am?" If he had a clear mind he had no doubt that he would be blushing. "How do you know?"

"You're half naked at the moment. I think I can clearly determine that you're attractive. And luckily you probably won't remember a thing. You might not realize this but only every second word you are saying is coherent." Naruto grinned at him. "You're really drunk!"

"And you checked me out." Shikamaru grinned, rubbing his hand up and down Naruto's thigh. "You're very attractive too."

"Thanks." Naruto scratched the back of her neck. "You know I've never seen you with your hair down before."

"What do you think?"

He had never seen Naruto blush so dark before. She stood up, making Shikamaru's hand fall from her leg, something he was highly disappointed by.

"You, um, look… different. I'm going to go back to bed. Try and get some sleep, okay?"

Shikamaru grabbed her hand as she went to walk off. "Wait, can I get a kiss off someone who thinks I'm attractive?"

Naruto looked as though she was going to refuse but then she gave him a small smile. "Sure." Then she muttered, "how could this end badly?"

Bending down, she brushed her lips against his, her hand resting on his jaw line. Reaching up, Shikamaru buried one hand in Naruto's hair and the other grabbed her waist, accidently pushing her onto the lounge. The dark haired man felt Naruto's knee brush against his inner thigh when she half laid, half knelt on the couch to steady herself. One of Naruto's hands pressed into the armrest that Shikamaru's head rested on, whilst the other sat on his shoulder. Naruto's shirt brushed Shikamaru's chest. He balled the hem of the shirt in his fist, feeling the skin on Naruto's back brush against his wrist. As his hand ran up her spine he felt Naruto gasp into the kiss, making deepen the kiss easy. Naruto's hand moved from his shoulder down to his chest. Her skin felt cool against the alcohol induced heat Shikamaru suffered.

When Naruto pulled back from the embrace Shikamaru gave a faint whine, trying to follow her. The blonde dropped her head onto Shikamaru's shoulder, breathing heavy. The male kept running his hand up and down the Naruto's spine, enjoying the feel of her skin, the movement of her muscles with each ragged breath she took.

"So was that a better kiss than Haruki's?" he asked, his voice rougher and deeper than before

"Even with the sakẻ breath it was definitely better." Naruto lifted her head so that Shikamaru could see her face. She gave him another small smile, one that did not make her eyes sparkle like they usually would. "Temari will come around. Just show her how you feel… when you're sober and you don't hit on any one without pants." Naruto jumped with a squeal when Shikamaru's fingers danced over her back. She slowly stood up, Shikamaru's hand still on her skin as the other dropped from within her hair.

"Not anyone without pants, just you." His hand stopped on Naruto's behind, under her shirt, his smile stretching into a grin. "You do have really nice legs. Are you wearing satin underwear?" He rubbed his hand over the material, feeling the soft texture.

Naruto closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before removing his hand from her body, putting it on his chest. "You're so drunk that I am worried that you won't wake up in the morning." She refilled his glass of water before retreating to her bedroom.

"It would be troublesome if I don't." He grinned, rolling onto his side and pulling the blanket up to his chin. "Definitely satin."

/ / / / / / / /

The first thing he noticed when he woke was the horrible taste in his mouth. The next was the weighted feeling to his body. Lastly, and the most annoying one made itself known when he tried to open his eyes. His head pounded so furiously that Shikamaru was certain his brain was continuously exploding.

He groaned, gripping his head with both hands, as though that alone would keep his skull intact. Mustering up his bravery, he peeked his eyes open. He wasn't in his room that much he could tell from where he laid. It felt nothing like his bed. Looking around Shikamaru surveyed the room before light forced him to close his eyes with a moan of anguish. He heard a chuckle that sounded like nails on a chalk board to his ears.

"Your head hurting?" someone asked, sounding far too amused.

"Please don't yell," Shikamaru begged, barely glimpsing Naruto before the brightness of her hair forced him to close his eyes.

"I'm not." He heard her walk closer before there was a pressure on the couch, next to his side. She started whispering for him. "Take these, and drink this."

Tentatively opening his eyes, Shikamaru saw that Naruto was holding tablets and a glass of juice for him. "Aren't you meant to take tablets with water?" He sat up slowly, his head protesting every move.

"Probably," Naruto shrugged, "but you probably want to flush out the bad taste in your mouth. I can imagine it's worse than kissing Haruki."

"If his breath is that bad why do you kiss him?" Shikamaru could taste as well as hear the bile in his voice. He took the tables out of Naruto's hand and gulped down the juice. "A necessity of dating him?"

Naruto snorted before it turned into a full laugh that made Shikamaru wince. Seeing his pain she stifled her amusement. "That's funny."

"How so?" Shikamaru snapped, crossing his arms over what he now realised was a bare chest.

"I'll tell you when your head stops hurting." Naruto reached out, pushing the man's hair out of his face. "We should get you some breakfast."

"As long as it's pancakes and bacon." Shikamaru rose slowly, letting the blanket fall back onto the lounge. He didn't miss the fact that Naruto looked over his chest with mild appraise as she handed him his shirt.

"Sooo," Naruto starts as she locks her front door. "Have you ever been drunk before?"

"No. I've had alcohol once before but I only had one so I didn't end up drunk. Ino did. She was embarrassing." A horrible thought crossed his mind as Naruto laughed and draped an arm over his shoulder that was less than comforting. Her cheeky smile practically told him what was coming next.

"You don't remember anything, do you?" When he shook his head, Naruto cackled. "Well there is something you should know. The things you don't remember, particularly the embarrassing things, are liable to come back to you, with time. Can't wait for you to remember drunk Shikamaru. He's a lot of fun."

Shikamaru groans, burying his face in his hands. Knowing his luck he was probably shamelessly, and horribly, flirting with Naruto, who thought it was purely drunken behaviour. His hair, which he hadn't pulled back, was hiding some of his blush at least.

They walked passed Mrs Huruma's door, who stuck her head out. Shikamaru swore he heard her hiss at them. She probably thought they had spent the night together again. Shikamaru hadn't thought to deny it when he had gone off at her. Now, however, he slipped his arm around Naruto's waist, letting his fingers graze her side so she squirmed closer to him. Mrs Huruma turned beet red and if it was humanly possible Shikamaru was sure there would be smoke coming from her ears as she slammed her door closed. Naruto appeared to be oblivious to all this.

With a smile, Shikamaru skimmed his fingers over Naruto's side again, listening to her squeal with laughter even if it hurt his head. She spun out of his hold, grabbing his hand before his fingers could continue their attack. She then proceeded to drag him down the hallway, still holding his hand.

He actually expected interruptions during breakfast but no one appeared. On the contrary, the café they sat in was decently populated so there was enough noise that they could have a private conversation that didn't carry, but not so packed that they risked seeing anyone they knew. The breakfast as well as the medicine Naruto gave him, were working to remove his headache. He was able to hold a conversation with Naruto that allowed him to get answers about Sai from her. He had tried to punch Sai when he had first seen him next to Naruto, recognising him as the one who had attacked the blonde. It had been Naruto who talked him out of it, since he refused to listen to Sakura or Naruto's new captain. Shikamaru also learnt that yet again Sasuke tried to kill Naruto, with a sword this time, but Sai had stopped him.

Shikamaru finally approached the subject of Haruki once he had had two cups of coffee.

"So you and Haruki… are you dating?" Again he received a snort of laughter.

"No. He trained me in chakra sensing. I had trouble at first so he created this punishment game. He would eat foul smelling and tasting things, and if I failed to sense his approach he would surprise me by kissing me. I was forced to taste his awful breath. Once, I don't know what the hell he ate, but I literally threw up after. I was only sorry I didn't throw up in his mouth. That would have shown him."

As Naruto sipped her milk Shikamaru thought over what she had said. Although he didn't like the idea of Haruki kissing her anytime he wanted, especially when Shikamaru had only given her one, short kiss, he couldn't help but feel gleeful that there was no relationship between them. Naruto didn't even appear to have romantic feelings for him at all. Shikamaru returned to his meal with a grin on his face that he couldn't remove.

It wasn't until they left the café, Shikamaru's head clear and Naruto still giggling at his amnesia, that they ran into Choji, who looked relieved to see him.

"Where did you run off to last night? I looked everywhere. Why do you look so happy?"

At Shikamaru's confused frown, Naruto piped up. "He wound up at mine at like two in the morning saying something about staying at yours but you left. He was pretty smashed."

Choji paled, gulping. "Did he say anything else about you… I mean to you?"

"Hm, nothing much." Naruto's eyes were closed as she shrugged casually. Something about her behaviour made him think she was lying. She had been somewhat shifty all morning and more than once Shikamaru had seen pain appear in her eyes when she stared off at nothing.

"Oh, good," Choji sighed. "He was just rambling nonsense to me. But I didn't leave. I just went to the bathroom."

"Sorry. I don't remember." Shikamaru scratched the back of his head, smiling at his friend.

"For a moment I had worried that you went home with the waitress that gave you a free bottle but I saw her still working when I went looking for you."

"There was a waitress?" Naruto asked sounded similar to her childish pouting voice she used in the academy.

"I vaguely remember a waitress. I definitely remember the alcohol." He smiled when Naruto snorted. "I think I'm going to go home and shower… and scrub my teeth raw."

"Hey, all us old rookies are actually free today so I thought we could all get together," Choji remarked. "How about at the Nara Estate? That way if you fall asleep we can wake you when we get there."

"Sounds good. How about around lunch time?"

"Sure. Naruto, you in?" The two males looked at the blonde expectantly.

"Definitely. I just have to meet Haruki and Riko first."

Choji shot Shikamaru a look before a confused expression crossed the bigger man's face. Shikamaru wasn't sure why and he was in too good a mood to analyse it. Instead he turned in the direction of the Nara Estate.

"See you at lunch time," he declared with a single wave.

/ / / / / / / / / / /

The 'Rookie Eight' as Asuma-Sensei had dubbed them, plus Lee's team and Sai arrived at the Nara Estate just after twelve. Sakura and Ino, with the help of Choji's mum, had prepared a picnic for them all, making Shikamaru retreat into his house to find a handful of blankets to spread out on the grass. They were in the middle of lunch, with Shikamaru talking to Naruto about bringing out his shogi board, when his father appeared on the pouch. He was nursing a hot tea and looked as though he was just after fresh air. Lee, however, wouldn't stand for someone not being included.

"Sir, please feel free to join us. There is plenty of food." Lee bowed deeply. "Also, thank you for letting us picnic on your property."

Shikaku looked over the group, his eyes resting on his son, who lounged on his side, next to a blonde mimicking his position. His eyes moved off Shikamaru, resting on Naruto a moment before moving back to Lee.

"Thank you but I'm not hungry. My son's friends are welcome here at any time as well." He sipped his tea before a gleam appeared in his eyes, one Shikamaru knew well. "You all appear to be competent ninjas though, so I would like to pose you a question before going back inside. You have to get to the other side of a wall, but it's too high to climb, too long to go around, the ground is too hard to dig through and the wall is too thick to break down. How do you get through?"

They all sat and thought for a moment before Kiba piped up.

"I could use my Tunnelling Fang over Fang a few times on the wall and that should create a hole for me to go through. Just because it can't be broken completely doesn't mean it can't be drilled through at one fixed point."

It was a good idea, Shikamaru admitted, but it had flaws.

"I could create a bird and try to fly over it, though if it's too tall the air will make my artwork wet with the moisture in the higher altitudes." Sai put a hand to his chin, mulling over the answer.

"Well I could punch the wall a couple of times and then Choji could run into it with his boulder form," Sakura contemplated, not noticing how Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

That was the definition of breaking the wall, which his father had already said couldn't happen. Sakura had probably forgotten, or was overestimating her strength.

"All of those ideas won't really work. Even if you could break through it, after my father said you can't or even if Sai can fly over it, by the time we all get through using whichever method some of us will be out of chakra. We don't know if we will have to fight when we get through and we don't even know if, in this scenario, we're all together and can work together or if we are alone. The more destructive options would also alert whoever is on the other side of the wall." Shikamaru shook his head. He was about to bring his fingers together to think over the question when he noticed the confused look on Naruto's face. He was going to ask the blonde if she wanted him to explain the question but she spoke before he could.

"Why don't we just use the gate?"

"Because there is no gate," Sakura snapped, as though she was fed up with Naruto's stupid questions, except that it wasn't a stupid question.

"Of course there is." Naruto shook her head. "Shikaku never said there wasn't and there are only two reasons you make a wall: to keep people out or to keep something in. Our village has a wall and that's to protect us and keep people out, but if it didn't have gates we wouldn't be able to survive. We wouldn't be able to receive imports or leave to do jobs that earn the village money, we also wouldn't be able to send out exports nor have clients come to the village. If there were no gates we wouldn't survive, making the wall pretty stupid, so why wouldn't the wall Shikaku mentioned have a gate too?"

Shikamaru was impressed. It was obvious yet it had not occurred to him. Looking at his father he saw a pleased smile on the man's scarred face. His eyes found Shikamaru's and he nodded discretely. It wasn't clear if the nod meant the answer was correct or something else.

"Very good, Naruto. You are able to find the simple answers to difficult questions."

Shikaku's praise forced a bashful smile onto Naruto's face. It was something Shikamaru had never witnessed before. Her tan cheeks tinted red and she bit her lower lip. It was definitely one of Shikamaru's favourite smiles.

"Yeah," snorted Sakura, clearly scorned that she came up with the worst answer. "Naruto is the definition of simple."

When Naruto looked down, her eyes becoming cloudy, not caring who saw, Shikamaru reached out and put his hand onto Naruto's, giving it a squeeze.

"There is nothing wrong with that," Shikaku's deep, voice rumbled, holding authority. "Ninjas often expect everything to be complicated and needing elaborate strategy or jutsu. That is not always the case, as you saw with the simple answer of 'the gate'. You all assumed that it would be more difficult than that, to the point that you forgot that a simple gate was an option. We Naras often over think things and need someone in our lives to remind us that there is more often than not a gate. Even if it is hard to see." Shikaku gave Shikamaru and Naruto an approving smile before getting up and walking inside.

Naruto's bashful smile was back. "Do you want to teach me shogi properly now?"

"Now that I know you have a bit of a strategic mind, absolutely." Shikamaru got up, running into his room to retrieve the board. He ignored Tenten's comment that they were supposed to be spending time as a group. It was only natural for such a large group to break off into two or more little groups. Besides, it was time with Naruto. He wasn't going to pass that up.

/ / / / / / /

He would deny it to anyone who asked, but he was avoiding Naruto. Every time he thought of her another thought crossed his mind, one that made him turn red. It had started simply and had surprised and mortified him. Naruto had warned him though. Ino had been talking about a silk dress she wanted to buy whilst they walked to their usual training grounds. Shikamaru was only half paying attention encase the topic changed to something important. Then Choji had piped up with a question.

"Which ones softer, silk or satin? I always forget."

"Satin, I think. Admittedly, I like the feel of both," Shikamaru confessed, getting a raised eyebrow from Ino. "Not on me, but if I come across a bit of satin fabric I'm liable to touch it."

From the depths of his mind his own voice rang. Are you wearing satin underwear? He remembered his hand running over soft fabric that curved as his hand travelled over it. Blue eyes and yellow hair filled his mind. When it dawned on him what must have happened he choked on his own saliva, his face heating and his head becoming dizzy. I practically molested Naruto! Why didn't she slap me?

He forced the thought from his mind and focused on training but when he was alone it came back. Since then he had lost all control over his blush and would find himself dry mouthed and tongue tied when he thought of talking to Naruto. Hence, he had been avoiding her. Unfortunately, Lady Tsunade wanted to speak with Naruto and had decided to send Shikamaru to fetch her.

Knocking on her door harder, he began to wonder and pray that Naruto wasn't home. His knuckles were turning red when the door finally flew open. It took his brain a moment to settle after taking in the sight before him. For some reason Naruto had answered the door in her Sexy Jutsu form, a towel wrapped tightly around her body.

Maybe she is trying to improve it for her competitions with Konohamaru, Shikamaru thought, looking over the form.

He had to admit that he found this form more appealing than her others from the academy days. Her legs were long and tan, soft skin covering strong, lean muscles. Her hips were wide, like in her old form but her waist didn't taper in dramatically, making it look more realistic, yet still alluring. She actually looked like she had meat on her bones in this form. It was hard to tell with the towel on but her stomach still looked flat. Her arms weren't dainty like Naruto usually made them for her Sexy Jutsu. Instead they looked like Naruto's actual arms. Muscular and able to throw a punch, but not bulging. Her damp hair was the same length and style as Naruto's actual hair, being longer than she cut it in her younger days. The chest hadn't changed much, or if at all. It was still ample and creating tempting cleavage at the top of her towel.

As his gaze wondered around her form, taking in every aspect, Naruto shifted, wrapping an arm around her chest, doing little more than compressing them and drawing Shikamaru's eye. It had never been a problem that Naruto had a flat chest but he had never seen a woman wearing so little before, even in a hedge. Naruto's transformations in the academy were something he never bothered to look at unless she was fully dressed. He had seen that version a few times.

"What is it, Shikamaru? I was just about to get dressed."

"I was send to tell you that Lady Tsunade wants to see you." He put his hands in his pants pockets, hoping Naruto wouldn't notice that they weren't sitting right. He turned away but stopped, looking back over his shoulder. Perhaps he spoke up because he was sick of females thinking all men liked skinny women. Perhaps it was because he wanted to know why Naruto showered in her Sexy Jutsu form. He wasn't sure, but he did find himself speaking his thoughts to the blonde.

"I like this Sexy Jutsu form a lot more than your other one. I never saw appeal of women who look like they would be knocked over with a gust of wind. This one looks strong and attractive."

Naruto frowned, looking down at her form before looking back at Shikamaru. "What are you talking about? I'm not in my Sexy Jutsu form! You were just pounding on my door so much that I didn't get a chance to bind my chest."

His eyes widened as he looked over Naruto's form again, noticing how her towel was starting to slip. Turning his head away quickly, he felt warm liquid run from his nose. Discretely wiping the blood away, he listened as Naruto spoke.

"I'll go see Granny Tsunade once I'm dressed."

Shikamaru nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Without looking at Naruto he walked away, focusing on putting one foot in front of the other. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he would have Naruto's gender confirmed in such a way… okay that was a lie. There was one reoccurring 'idea' that went very similar to that but he never expected to find himself so immobilised.

My fiancé had really wanted me to have Naruto not align herself with either gender. Aren't you all glad I ignored him? I've had most of this chapter written since chapter 3!

To those who complain about the story and threaten to drop it… I don't care. I'm not changing the story and going against the characterisation just because you want giant make out scenes in each chapter. If you want a story like that, go elsewhere or write one yourself. I appreciate my readers but I'm not going to butcher my story because a handful of you are unhappy with aspects. Everyone has their own tastes and if my story isn't to yours than the simply answer is to stop reading. I won't mind.

R and R.