HEY GUYS AND GIRLS. THIS CHAPTER TOOK QUICKER THAN I THOUGHT IT WOULD (PROBABLY BECAUSE IT'S WORSE THAN THE OTHER CHAPTERS, NOT THAT THEY ARE THAT GOOD ANYWAY). I'M JUST ANOTHER STUPID GUY SO THANKS FOR SUPPORTING ME. YOU'RE PROBABLY DOING IT OUT OF PITY BUT I PROMISE I WILL TRY AND GET BETTER. I HOPE YOU GUYS AND GIRLS DONT HATE ME.
HAPPY READING:)
You know that feeling where you don't want to feel anymore? That constant painless rush of pain driving you crazier by the second. The torture of your mind repeating the same thoughts over and over making you contemplate banging your head against the wall. That didn't describe half of what he was feeling right now.
Heartbreak, his long forgotten friend. Pain, his ungrateful neighbour. Anger, his unrivalled enemy. Why did they have to come back to him all at once? What did he do to deserve them? Oh yes, he knew exactly what; more specifically who.
The pink haired blossom of a bomb that devastated his world. The superstar doctor that killed his chance of happiness. His minds constant source of comfort now turned into his hearts reason for aching. His solemn vow to never fall for anyone again broken by the spell of the medic ninja who went on to prove that happiness was never his in the first place. He had to accept it now; happiness was not meant for everyone, especially not him. It was just a stupid illusion we hypnotise ourselves into to make life seem more enjoyable. He didn't see how anyone could find life enjoyable. He didn't see how he ever could once again.
"Shikamaru! Breakfast!" His mother's voice came breaking through his thick cloud of thoughts swirling around in the chaotic realm he dared call his mind. He unenthusiastically got out of bed. The cold sting of the wooden floor beneath his bare feet brought a welcomed relief to his unrelenting thirst for a physical pain rather than the emotional rollercoaster of emotions that he couldn't seem to escape from. The sting went away as suddenly as it appeared but the cold wrapped around him like a suit of armour. The rain seemed to have stopped outside but the ominous clouds still hung proudly over the village. He let out a frustrated sigh before continuing on his way to the kitchen downstairs.
"... it's not like he suddenly got over it." Kurenai's voice sparked his idle memory again. He forgot that she slept over. With all the thoughts running through his head, he was surprised that he managed to hear his mother through it.
"It's a step in the right direction." There his mother's voice was again. Hopefully they weren't talking about him. He didn't need more work to do. Hell, the only thing he wanted to do at that moment was drop down on a soft bed of luscious green grass and let the sunlight burn everything away allowing him to drift into a peaceful slumber.
"Morning." He couldn't have given them a lazier greeting even if he tried. The two women silently watched as he lazily took a seat next to the genjutsu user by the table.
"Everything okay?" His mother could definitely sense that something was off about him today but he didn't want to talk about it.
"Yeah, just tired." That wasn't exactly a lie. When he eventually got home this morning, soaked in rain, he couldn't go sleep. Taking a hot shower didn't really help either. Looks like his habit of not being able to sleep returned with a re-energised attack.
"You did come home late this morning after you dropped Sakura at her apartment." Typical of his mother to stay up until he got home.
"Looks like you and Sakura had the after party by yourselves." He could tell that Kurenai didn't mean any harm by that but he felt his already shattered heart aching like its life depended on it. The wounds of last night still burnt fresh in his memory and it felt like it killed him all over again.
"I have to get going to work. I don't know what time I will be home." He stood up from his seat, putting his hands in his pockets as he began walking out of the room.
"You haven't eaten." His mother pointed out.
"I'll grab something on the way." He quickly escaped then made his way back up to his room so that he could dress him in his usual ninja attire. If he went on like any other day then it would just be any other day right?
He left the house without uttering another word to anyone then threw his hands in his pockets and he made his way through the gloomy streets of the village. The mood around the village seemed to mirror the mood he was in; bitter, depressing, tired. He looked around at the villagers trying their best to set up their stalls knowing full well that they would need extra cover because of the expected rain. He admired their grit and determination to make today one of the best days they could have. If only he could have a small chunk of their hope but even hope seemed too far away for him right now.
"You're early Shikamaru." Shizune's spirits seemed unusually high. Maybe it is because he was going to be lightening her load or maybe she liked the cold weather. Tonton certainly didn't like it. The cute little creature tucked between her arms seemed to be looking a little down. If ever there was a better match for Shikamaru right now then it would definitely be Tonton.
"I was up so I thought I might as well get a head start on today." Not a complete lie but if she really knew Shikamaru then she would've known that he would never voluntarily want to work.
"That's good to hear. I look forward to working with you." Looks like she didn't know him as well as he thought she did. Maybe she just wanted to see the best in people. He never saw Shizune angry or upset so that could be true. The only time she showed any sign of aggression, outside of a mission of course, is when Lady Tsunade wanted to drink instead of work or when the former hokage was drunk.
If he thought about it, this is exactly the last thing Lady Tsunade spoke to him about. Being advisor meant that he would have to make sure that he did what was best for the village and its people first. Always make sure that the village survives and comes out stronger than before. He shouldn't show any bias or make any emotional decisions; he didn't need to worry about doing that right now because emotions were something he wanted to ignore right now anyway. One thing he was going to find hard to do was separating the fact that his friends were the ones he was sending into battle. Normally he would be fighting alongside them so being the one at the headquarters giving them orders without seeing what was actually on the battlefield scared him. What if he gave the wrong instructions or created a plan that ended up killing his friends? How did his father do it so calmly? How did he keep his senses and still give the correct instructions?
"We should celebrate you starting your new position. Maybe throw a party for you and a couple of friends. We could..." He tuned out of the conversation like he would do with Ino when she began talking about something he didn't want to do. He just couldn't deal with all of Shizune's happiness right now. Definitely balanced the three of them. He had to be an emotionless tactician, Kakashi had to be the righteous leader having to make all the difficult decisions so Shizune balanced them out with all her positivity and de-stressing she brought. She was the anchor that reminded them that the world could still be a beautiful place despite all the chaos and fighting. She was the hope that shone through all the darkness.
"We could have a drink after work tonight." He suggested interrupting her. "It could get Kakashi out of the office for a while but we do have work to do tomorrow so we can't exactly party."
"I guess you're right. I will spread the word then. Hopefully everyone can be available tonight." She sounded a little less optimistic as she thought about it. They were nearing the hokage tower so he wanted this conversation to end and talk about something productive.
"It doesn't have to be tonight. It can be in a couple of days after I've settled in. That would give you more time to plan it as well."
"Yes. That we can do." Her optimism was back to normal again.
"Kakashi told me to talk to you about my office." That was something productive right? It definitely was more productive than planning a party.
"Oh yes, we put everything you wanted in your office and I added my personal touch to make it more comfortable."
"All I needed was shelves, a cupboard and possibly a couch."
"We added those too." He hoped her humour didn't mean more work for him. He had too much to deal with already; well not really but he planned on burying himself in work.
"Any changes happen last night that I should know about?"
"I don't know. After you left, I began redecorating your office then I made sure that Kakashi got home and had some sleep so I didn't get any updates. You know what they say, no news is good news." Her positivity was ruining his depressing mood.
"Hopefully." He agreed. They entered the warm building immediately replacing the cold blanket wrapped around him with a warmer one. Everything was uncharacteristically quiet which boggled him for a moment but he continued making his way towards Kakashi's office.
"Kakashi, we're coming in." Shizune announced then opened the door. The silver haired hokage sat behind his desk with mountains of paperwork on either side of him. His eyes looked like they were battling stay open. Shikamaru's eyes would've been doing the same if they weren't use to the normality of the lack of sleep.
"Good morning." Shizune seemed to be the only one who enjoyed a great nights sleep.
"Morning." Kakashi definitely sounded as tired as he looked.
"How long have you been here?" Shizune was definitely the mother figure here.
"Couple of hours." He didn't look like he was lying.
"You two need more sleep and something to eat before you do any more work." Shizune told them.
"The village..."
"The village needs the two of you at full strength so stop working. I will be back soon so don't go anywhere." She quickly left the room leaving the two shinobi sighing in the room.
"Is she always like that?" Shikamaru asked.
"Yeah. Unlike Lady Tsunade, we actually seem to want to work." He knew Lady Tsunade didn't like all the paperwork and Shizune often had to resort to threatening the older kunoichi. He found it somewhat amusing watching the two of them when they had their battles.
"So all she has to worry about with us is that we work too much then."
"Definitely not something anyone would think we would be saying." They laughed a little at that. Both ninja were lazy in their own right but everyone trusted and respected their decisions.
"Do you have any update on the village that got attacked yesterday?"
"Nothing good. The bandits that Kiba, Akamaru and Lee were following led them into a trap. All three of them escaped with cuts and bruises. I'm sending Choji, Naruto and Hinata to go help them rebuild the village and protect them. I was wondering if you wanted to go with them. It's less than two hours away from the village if you hurry."
"Are you ordering me to go?"
"There's no need for you to go. I just thought you might want to get out of the village for a bit. You look a little worse for wear." That really surprised him. Despite Kakashi being tired and a looking a little defeated, the Hokage's eyes were as sharp as ever.
"I actually want to stay here and try to figure out who those group of bandits are and where they might be hiding out."
"I thought you might say that. I have other matters that need my attention so can I trust you to take care of that problem?"
"I will do my best. I will keep you updated on my progress."
"Gaara should be sending all the information he has on this group in a couple of days as well."
"If I may ask, why haven't the Kage reconvened after the war?" He didn't know if it was his place to question their decision so he hoped that he wasn't overstepping.
"We haven't really had the time to if I am being honest. We update each other regularly on the state of our respective villages so we know how each village is doing. I guess they just want to make sure that their villages are thriving after the war. Self preservation is the key to surviving." It made sense that the other Kage would want to ensure their respective villages' safety and thriving continuity so he didn't bother questioning their reason.
"I understand that but I am sure that you guys don't want another group like the Akatsuki to form and try to destroy the world. This group of bandits already attacked two villages in two different nations. Who's to say that there aren't even more powerful ninja ready to create a group like that?" He could see that this topic caught the interest of the mysterious hokage. He was definitely intrigued now.
"What do you propose?"
"The continuation of the Allied Shinobi Force. I haven't really thought about it much but it would stand for a united shinobi realm hopefully deterring anyone from trying to launch a full scaled attack creating another war."
"If you can come to me with a fully thought out plan then I could share it amongst the other Kage and hear their opinions about it." At least Kakashi didn't shoot the idea down completely. He knew he was creating more work for himself but this was worth it.
"I will get to work then."
"This is a lot of work you've gotten yourself into. Are you sure you're ready for it?"
"If you want to learn how to swim then get thrown into the deep end." For some reason he felt like he could sense Kakashi smiling under his mask. That inspired a confidence in him that only someone who believed in him could do.
"Good luck then Shikamaru." He gave the hokage an appreciative nod then turned around and made his way out of the office. He let out a sigh of relief once he was in the hallway then allowed fear to creep in as he stepped over to his office. His nerves got the best of him as he opened the door to his office. For someone who didn't want to feel anymore, he certainly had enough emotions running through him right now.
The room he stepped into was certainly not the way it was yesterday. His desk and chair was still in the same position with work waiting for him so that was still the same but everything felt different. Two chairs were placed on the opposite side of his desk. There were two two-seater couches placed opposite each other with a glass coffee table between them. Two single couches were placed on the adjacent ends. There was a huge blue-green carpet placed on the floor so at least it was soft under and a little warmer if he was to walk barefeet. All the walls around the office was fitted with wooden shelves except the one behind his desk. That one had an elegant wooden cabinet with two cupboards on either side filling the walls. Plants were placed strategically around the room giving the room some colour he supposed but he liked it. It reminded him of the trees outside. His office didn't have a view like Kakashi's but he thought it looked much better than the Hokage's.
He made his way over to his chair then planted himself down on it. He looked through the work he started yesterday and instantly got drawn back into it forgetting about everything that happened.
"Shikamaru, can I come in?" He recognised the soft, caring voice of his best friend outside the room.
"Come in." He responded. The door swung open and Choji immediately stepped into the room with two huge packets of his favourite beef flavoured chips.
"Good morning Shikamaru." No matter how Shikamaru was feeling, hearing Choji's joyful tone always seemed to put him in a better mood. Choji's father might have perfected the art of always having a smile plastered on his face but his son definitely mastered the art of bringing a smile to anyone else's face.
"Morning Cho." Shikamaru returned the greeting. He didn't have as much energy or joy in his voice like Choji did but the chubby ninja was used to it.
"Your office is awesome." Choji looked around the room as he made his way to the chairs on the opposite side of the desk.
"Shizune designed it so she should take all the credit." Shikamaru stopped what he was doing and relaxed in his chair as he focused all his attention on the ninja before him. They were basically brothers so Choji deserved all of Shikamaru's attention.
"She definitely knows her stuff." Choji handed him one of the packets of chips which he gratefully accepted. He ran out of the house before he could have breakfast so he definitely needed something to eat.
"Your mom told me to make sure you ate something."
"I am pretty sure she meant something healthier." He released chuckle at that as Choji had a smile spread across his face. "Thanks."
"No problem." Choji was definitely pleased that he achieved his goal regardless of whether or not Shikamaru was going to eat the chips or not.
"Why were you by my house this morning?" It wasn't really surprising that Choji wanted to visit him or even visit his mother. Their homes were always opened to each other so they would never turn each other away. Ino might try to turn them away but her mother would never allow her to succeed. They were family despite not being blood related.
"You mentioned that you were going to work today so I thought we could walk together. I have a meeting with Kakashi-sensei soon so I am supposed to be here." That was thoughtful of him but then again Choji was always like that. Despite Shikamaru repeatedly telling Choji not to do things like that for him, Choji ignored him and did it anyway. It was like Choji needed to do it in order to survive.
He remembered one time when they were younger and only starting out at the academy, Shikamaru got into trouble for standing up to some bullies at the academy who kept harassing Choji about his weight. Shikamaru had enough of listening to their irritating little voices so Shikamaru punched one of the boys jaws sending a tooth of his barrelling out of the bully's mouth. Iruka-sensei saw the whole thing so Shikamaru obviously got into trouble. He told Choji not to wait for him after classes finished because he knew that the bullies weren't going to back down and Shikamaru wasn't going to be there to help him this time. Choji knowing full well what waiting for Shikamaru meant, sat outside the building until Shikamaru was finally released. Shikamaru was angry at first but then all his anger was blown away when Choji thanked him for standing up to the bullies. Shikamaru knew that the two of them weren't going to be able to face the bullies alone forever so that's where Naruto and Kiba came in (but that's a story for another chapter).
"If I knew you were going to fetch me then I would've waited." Not really but then he would've gone to Choji's house and waited for him to get ready.
"I should've told you last night." Choji had his nervous smile on his face which usually indicated to Shikamaru that he had something on his mind that he wanted to talk about but didn't really know how to approach the subject.
Suddenly the door opened again then Shizune appeared pushing a trolley with boxes, cups, saucers and a teapot on the top section while three binders were on the bottom section.
"I thought I told you to wait in Kakashi's office and not to start working." Shizune was clearly annoyed with the lazy ninja. She was turning into Ino and it already irritated him.
"You took too long." Shikamaru replied.
"It's not like there are stalls or restaurants opened this early who are making a lot of things." Yep, definitely reminds him of Ino except that Shizune was right. She continued ranting on as she placed the saucers on the glass coffee table then began placing food from the boxes onto the saucers. Shikamaru and Choji looked at each other and shrugged not knowing what to do. None of them looked like they cared really. They learnt that it was better to let a woman continue their ranting until they were satisfied than to interrupt her and risk ending up in the hospital.
"Now get up from there and come have a proper breakfast you two. Those chips aren't healthy." Both of them put the packets of chips on the table as they obediently stood up and made they way to the couches on either side of the table.
"Looks delicious Shizune-san." Choji's eyes definitely lit up when he saw what was on the plates; sweet treats mostly. There were different kinds of yaki dango and taiyaki on the saucers and one saucer was filled with rice balls stacked neatly on top of each other.
"You definitely outdone yourself. You shouldn't have gone through all this trouble." Shikamaru was basically just following Choji's lead. No one could ever want to beat up Choji or be angry at the gentle shinobi so Shikamaru had more of a Choji surviving Shizune by hiding behind Choji.
"It's my pleasure now eat up and enjoy." Shizune instructed them as she poured some tea into two cups for them. "I'm leaving these binders here for you Shikamaru. Kakashi said you're going to need them."
"Thanks." He replied as she put the binders on the shelf nearest to his desk.
"See you guys soon." She closed the door as she left the two nervous ninja. Both of them breathed a sigh of relief before they began eating.
"Working here definitely has its perks." He didn't even think about it that way. He didn't think about Shizune as a 'perk' either. He thought of her more as a sensei or a partner at best but never though of her as a 'perk'. She was there to ensure that Kakashi was okay and that he finished his work on time. She wasn't there to babysit Shikamaru as well. Shikamaru was supposed to be there to help lighten her workload.
"This is the first and probably last time she does this for me." Even if Shizune did offer to do it again, he wouldn't accept it. She was there to make sure that Kakashi can run the village so she shouldn't be worrying about him. He respected her too much to do so as well.
"Look at all the things she did for Lady Tsunade. She will always make sure that you are okay." Choji wasn't wrong there. Shizune was a doctor as well and a devoted, loyal and excellent one at that. When Lady Tsunade was the hokage then Shizune and Sakura practically ran the hospital. Now that Lady Tsunade was free to run the hospital alongside Sakura, Shizune could run this place like a hospital and make sure that everyone in the building was at 100% health. He had to make a note that he should get Lady Tsunade to help him make sure that Shizune didn't neglect taking care of herself as well.
"True. She's a good person." No doubt about that. "Is there something on your mind Cho?" He might as well ask his best friend now. The setting was perfect; both of them were relaxed and enjoying a meal so if there ever was a time to find out what was on his mind then now it was.
"Kurenai-sensei said that you left after she mentioned Sakura. Did something happen?" There it was; reality finally catching up to him. His bubble of denial finally burst. The pain and agony he forced into a corner was finally brought back to the centre of his mind's attention. He cursed her name under his breath as he refused to make eye contact with his comrade in the room. Everything around him seemed to stop only to remind him of the gruelling events of last night.
Then he turned to look at his chubby friend. His eyes weren't filled with intrigue, wonder or judgement but rather with compassion, caring and empathy. He looked at the lazy ninja not as someone who needed to be fixed but someone who needed a shoulder to lean on.
"We kissed." He admitted it. He couldn't lie to Choji. He hardly deserved to be friends with such a pure man so he didn't want to prove himself right anymore. It's not like Choji was going to tell anyone what they spoke about here so he could openly confess what happened. Things couldn't get any worse right now as it is.
"That's great. I thought I sensed something between the two of you last night." He liked Choji but somehow he needed to teach him to read between the lines and not take things as they are.
"I guess both our senses were wrong then." He sighed as he sunk back into the couch. He was surprised by how comfortable it felt. It hugged his body perfectly.
"What happened?" He could tell that his friend was really concerned right now. He didn't want him to be but he couldn't change Choji and he didn't want to.
"She ran away. Said something about going to help Naruto in the middle of the night." The more he thought about that, the worse he felt. That excuse didn't even make sense. Naruto had Shizune and Hinata helping him study. If Naruto needed to know something about diplomatic relations or political feuds then Shizune was the perfect person to help him. If he needed to know something about fighting techniques or special clan techniques then who better to ask than the Hyuga Heiress? Both Shizune and Hinata had medical training so they could answer any medical questions that he had so what could Sakura possibly have gone to help him with that Shizune and Hinata couldn't? It looks like she really was blowing him off. She might as well have just buried a kunai in his chest.
"Naruto and Sakura were in the same team so their relationship is weird. It's like our relationship with Ino. You always helped her when she needed it so you should understand." That was true. Ino seldom asked them for help but when she did then they never turned her down. Once she dragged Choji and Shikamaru out of their houses in the middle of dinner just so that they could go to her house and give their opinions on a dress that she wanted to wear to go out and party with the girls. Why she needed their opinions was beyond them but they helped her as much as they could.
"She kissed me the night of the party as well. The next day she told me that it was just a kiss and that she didn't want to be in a relationship with me." Everything added up so why the hell couldn't he just accept the fact that she wasn't interested? Was he that pathetic that he pined over a girl who didn't want him hoping that she would finally change her mind?
"Do you want to be in a relationship with her?" Choji really wasn't holding back now. He bit through all the bullshit so that he could get to the core of the matter. Maybe that is what Shikamaru needed; someone to have a heart-to-heart with.
"I do. As crazy as it sounds, I like her. I really like her."
"Did you tell her that?" That was a good question. Choji really knew his relationship advice.
"If she would stop shooting me down and running away before I can say it then I would be able to do it."
"Then she didn't reject you."
"Not yet."
"Stop being so negative Shikamaru. Just tell her how you feel."
"You really don't want me to tell her how I really feel about her right now." That was true. He didn't want to see her right now. He couldn't face her and feel the disappointment rush over him again. He just couldn't handle that.
"Are you upset that she hurt you or upset that you let her hurt you?" Damn Choji, where did he learn to ask these questions. He was really making Shikamaru think right now. He was making Shikamaru face his unforgiving truth. He had the answers laughing at him right but he couldn't go out there and face them.
"I'm upset that I let another girl turn me into a fool." He admitted it. It was pointless running away from the truth when his legs weren't fast enough.
"Then learn from this experience and don't let it happen again." Whoever was teaching Choji needed to be teaching Shikamaru as well. This was master level advice Choji was dishing out to him. Maybe Choji was just that mature and this façade he was putting on was to protect him from being ridiculed. He definitely wouldn't want to be with Choji everyday but if that was really who his best friend was then he wouldn't want him to hide it. He should be himself and damn anyone who didn't like him.
"Easier said than done." Everything was that way.
"It always seems impossible until it's done." His respect for the Akimichi definitely rose tenfold right now. He idolised him but that was an understatement right now. He was definitely seeing a new side of Choji and he liked it.
"It's not going to get done for a while so don't expect any results any time soon."
"Don't rush it."
"That has never been a problem for me." He replied causing both of them to chuckle a little at that. He really needed this talk. His pain, heartache and sadness was still prominently there but at least he knew how to handle it now without walking around like a lost soul.
"Is there any girl that you need help with?" Both of them needed a change of subject so this could be a start.
"No."
"Your parents are probably going to start talking about marriage soon. You are the head of your clan now so they would be concerned about the future of your clan." In that case, he should also get ready for his mother to start talking about that too.
"They won't force me to do something I don't want to do."
"I hope you're right. I don't want to be giving you this talk."
"You won't have to." Choji gave him a reassuring smile bringing peace to Shikamaru's messed up mind. Shikamaru took the last stick of dango as he saw that Choji had eaten nearly everything else already. He was glad that Choji did because there was no way he could've finished it and he didn't want all Shizune's effort to go to waste.
"Has Ino talked to you about getting a gift for Kurenai-sensei?" He nearly forgot about that himself.
"She hasn't."
"We want to get Kurenai-sensei a gift after the baby is born. Something sentimental so we were going to ask Konohamaru if there is something from the Sarutobi clan that we can give to her so that her child can know who her father was."
"That's a good idea. When is Kurenai-sensei giving birth?"
"In about four weeks then we get to meet Asuma's little girl."
"She will be our child as much as she is Kurenai's."
"Just remember that when you have to change diapers and get up in the middle of the night to get her to stop crying." The two of them had a laugh at that. Despite their intense conversation earlier, the mood seemed to change into a much sillier one which both of them seemed to accept. They hardly got time to hangout like this as well so they needed to make the most of it even if he wasn't in the right frame of mind right now.
"I think it's about time for my briefing with Kakashi-sensei." Choji said as he stood up.
"I should probably be apart of that briefing as well. Kakashi-sensei put me in charge of dealing with the bandits." He neatly put all the empty saucers on each other and placed the empty cups next to them before making his way out of the room.
"Shikamaru! Choji!" Only Naruto would ever thinking about shouting down the hallways of the hokage tower. The two ninja turned their heads in the direction of the loud voice then saw Naruto and Hinata making their way to them.
"Good morning Naruto and Hinata." Choji politely greeted them.
"Good morning Choji, Shikamaru." Hinata gave them a slight bow. Shikamaru knew that she only bowed to show them respect towards their respective clans. She was set to be the leader of her clan soon as well so she probably wanted to keep things civil between the two clans. That was stupid of her. She was their friend, she was family. There was no way Shikamaru or Choji would ever turn their backs to her.
"What are you guys doing in the storage room?" Why was Naruto always so loud and happy? Couldn't he just be irritatingly happy like Shizune and Ino?
"It's Shikamaru's office." He could see the surprise on both Naruto and Hinata's faces when Choji told them. Naruto opened the door so that they could look inside. Their stunned expressions told spoke the words their mouths weren't able to make.
"Your office is nice Shikamaru." Hinata nervously replied. He never had any type of relationship with Hinata besides talking to her when their family's had dinner together or when they hung out with the rest of the group but their conversations were always short and to the point. He respected the kunoichi and would always try to do his best to protect her if need be but the nature of their relationship wasn't really known to anyone especially not to them. Maybe that's why she was nervous.
"Your office is awesome. When can we hangout here?" Naruto was definitely too excited about that.
"I'm going to be working in there. It's not a place for hanging out." Shikamaru needed to put his foot down so hopefully Naruto got the message.
"Come on Shikamaru. It's just going to be the guys." Nope, Naruto clearly didn't get the message unless he just chose to ignore it.
"Let's just get this meeting started." Shikamaru opened the door to the Hokage's office so that they could go inside and get the meeting started but everything stopped when he saw who was already inside. The bottomless pit in his stomach seemed to be an endless void of pain spilling out right now. He felt the wave of sadness crashing down on him as soon as they locked eyes with each other. There she was, the reason for his agony and suffering; Sakura.