A/N: Thanks for the review(s). At the time I'm writing this there's only one from Reedz22 so I'm going to answer directly. Thanks, the couples idea took me some thinking. I originally wanted to put Lee and Sakura together but then Hinata was there and Kiba wouldn't be a good fit to her and I thought Lee would be helpful with her self-confidence issues and had a good reason to see her often since he's Neji's rival and would probably go to the Hyuuga district several times per week to ask for a spar, thus meeting Hinata often.

Ino and Sakura, well, I feel like Ino was the same for Sakura as Naruto for Hinata but without the hero worship, so it wouldn't be an unhealthy relationship. It's also for the best that Ino and Sakura stop drooling over Sasuke and every handsome guy they encounter. I wanted to give Ino to Naruto, but it would have required gymnastics to even make them take an interest in each other at that point in the story. Their only common thing is caring for plants…

Shikamaru and Chouji, well…Ino wouldn't date any of them because they're too lazy (in our time they would probably be watching the sky while smoking weed all day, which isn't exactly Ino's wet dream). Since they're the only characters around each other who like to spend time with each other and have been like that from a very young age, I just went a step further with them, developing their feelings after the Sasuke retrieval mission.

Here's a short omake chapter if you wonder how they became more than friends. Enjoy or skip, whatever. Just a little character and relationship development for those interested. A little of Ino being more than a Sasuke simp too.

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Chapter 2

- Omake -

Shikamaru and Chouji's relationship

When Shikamaru's role in the Sasuke retrieval mission was over, he suddenly couldn't think about anything but his friends left behind.

'Chouji!' he thought.

He ran back to where he had left his best friend. When he got there, the boy had already been evacuated. He ran back to Konoha and the hospital, half dead from exhaustion, his heart pounding in his chest as if he was having a heart attack.

"Where…is…Chouji…Akimichi…?" he asked the receptionist.

Before she could answer his question, he saw a blond girl approaching.

"Ino…where…is…Chouji…?"

"Whoa! Calm down, Shikamaru! He's alive! Take a break…"

"I…want…to…see…him…! It's…my…fault…that…he's…in here…!"

"Okay, but let me carry you! You're half dead, dumbass! Chouji's gonna kill me if I let you die of exhaustion!"

She put his arm over her shoulders and supported his weight while going back to the hospital room she had just left. The short walk seemed to last an eternity to Shikamaru, but the worst was the moment when he arrived in front of the door. The suspense and guilt made it so hard that Ino decided to open the door for him.

Chouji was on a bed, all sorts of tubes connected to his limbs and an oxygen mask on his lower face. Shikamaru forced himself to move, to take one step and another towards his friend, until he was by his side. His hands slowly rose and grabbed Chouji's, tears rolling down his cheeks.

"I'm sorry, Chouji…I'm sorry…I should have made better preparations…I should…I should have taken more people, so that you could have gotten help…I left you behind all alone…I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…! I'm a terrible friend…!"

"Stop your drama, idiot," interrupted Ino. "What's done is done. Now, all you can do is make up for it. I bet Chouji has already forgiven you. Don't tell him you're sorry and lament over the past. Show him your affection and loyalty with your actions. Come here everyday to keep him company so that he's not alone when his parents aren't here. When he can eat again, feed him his favorite chips or whatever the nurses allow you to give him because I highly doubt they'll let you feed chips to a patient. Stay here, talk to him and when he's back, play games with him to keep him away from his melancholy. Be here for him, that's all you can do and that's all he would ask from you."

"I… You're right, Ino. I'll be here for Chouji…that's the least I can do after leaving him behind…"

'SLAP'

Shikamaru brought his hand to his painful cheek.

"Compose yourself. Stop your self-loathing. It won't help him. Smile, send him good vibes. If you send bad vibes, he won't wake up. If you send him good vibes, he will feel them and wake up. If you need more slaps to wake you up, just ask. I've got a few in my bag. Now I'm going home. I've been worrying since the moment I learned that you left the village without asking me to come. I haven't slept since. I've been itching everywhere from apprehension that something bad would happen. Now that you're both back and alive, I'm gonna eat and sleep like I haven't for years. See you."

She closed the door behind her and Shikamaru found himself alone with his bedridden friend. He tried his best to apply Ino's advice.

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He had been coming everyday without fault for the past weeks when Chouji woke up. Upon seeing his eyes open, Shikamaru cried of joy and hugged him tightly. In the following days, he brought chips in sealing scrolls to avoid detection from the nurses and spent most of his days with his friend. They talked when Chouji wanted to, stayed silently together watching the clouds through the window when he didn't want to talk.

After a month, Chouji was allowed to leave the hospital but was forbidden to do physical exercise above short walks, so Shikamaru brought him out and they spent time cloud watching outside, feeling the wind on their skin. Finally in the open!

Spending all this time together had strengthened their relationship. From that point, the friends were even more inseparable than they used to. And one day, they crossed the bridge between friendship and more. They were close to kissing when…

"Hey guys! What's up?!"

"Troublesome…"

"Whoa! Did I interrupt something? Were you all lovey-dovey when I arrived? So cute!"

And Shikamaru let himself fall back on the grass, plugging his ears not to hear her antics. Chouji patted his leg and did the same.

"Guys! Stop ignoring me!"

Ino made an elbow jump aimed at Shikamaru and he rolled out of the way.

"You're crazy! You could have hurt me!" he yelled in a very unmanly voice.

"You guys start dating each other while I'm not here! So uncool! I want to be here for your first kiss and every other step! Who will tell the whole village if you do everything when I'm not around?"

Shikamaru jumped her and they struggled with each other, pulling each other's cheeks and pinching each other's nose like children. Chouji grabbed one with each hand and separated them forcefully like a parent would with their children.

"I swear you two are worse than children," he sighed.

- End Omake -

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A/N: Tell me if you liked it and if you want more chapters like that, like how Lee and Hinata got together or their first date, or Sakura and Ino. If you have ideas for Kiba, I'm open. He could use a bit of character development, especially becoming less annoying around girls. I know he likes dogs, but he doesn't have to sniff their butt like a dog to get to know them (figuratively of course, I know he doesn't literally do that). He's too sticky and persistent.