Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, I would already have a Naruto headband but instead I have to wait till Christmas!

A/N: This chapter is thanks to Beautihul Miko! Thanks for giving me the idea! Another short but good chapter!

Published November 25, 2006

Chapter 10 - The Mother of All Reinforcements

"You're late for dinner! Were you watching the clouds again?!" A concerned mother shouted.

"No, mom." A lazy Chuunin answered.

Yes, Shikamaru Nara still lived with his parents. Actually a lot of ninja still lived with their parents. (A/N: I really don't know if that's true. I'm just making this part up.) Ino, as you know, lives with her parents, Sakura lives with her parents, Neji and Hinata still live in the Hyuuga mansion, Kiba still lives with his mom and sister (I'm not sure if he has a dad.), and Naruto would live with his parents if he had them.

"The Hokage kept me late to finish some paperwork." Shikamaru answered.

"That's what you said last week and the week before that!" Shikamaru's mother retorted.

"But it's true!" Shikamaru whined.

"Well it doesn't matter anyways. Your father's out again. I made a nice dinner for the two of you and you don't even show up on time!" Shikamaru's mom really knew how to put some guilt into Shikamaru.

Shikamaru sighed. "Sorry, mother." He forced himself to say making him sound like a child. "I think I'm gonna skip dinner. It's too troublesome to eat." Shikamaru was about to take a step up to his room on the stairs, but his mom put her arm out in front of him and stopped him.

"What's wrong?" Shikamaru's mom asked, being the butting-in type of mother.

"Nothing." Shikamaru answered lazily.

"It's not 'nothing'. Even though you inherited the lazy trait from your father, you still eat. Something is bothering you…more than the usual that is." Yoshino (A/N: That's Shikamaru's mom's name.) indicated.

Shikamaru sighed. "Okay…I'll eat…" He said, admitting his defeat to his mother.

"Good." Yoshino smiled. "We can talk about your problem while you eat."

"Great." Shikamaru said sarcastically.

The mother and son walked to the dining room table.

"Here you go." Yoshino put a plate of food in front of Shikamaru. (A/N: Use your imagination because I can't!)

Shikamaru took a couple bites of his food.

"So, what's wrong, honey?" Yoshino asked nicely.

"Nothing." Shikamaru answered as he chewed some meat.

"Shikamaru!" Yoshino raised her voice. "I asked nicely; now answer me!"

"It's too troublesome." Shikamaru responded.

"More troublesome to talk about than me?" Yoshino pointed to herself with her hand.

"Yup." Shikamaru said with his eyes closed, chewing some more food.

"Girls?" Yoshino guessed.

"Yup." Shikamaru answered plainly.

"Well why didn't you tell me before?! I can help you out with girls!" Yoshino grinned.

"Too…" He put some more food in his mouth. "…troublesome."

"Tch. You have to talk about girls sometime. So who's the lucky girl?" Yoshino asked ecstatically. 'I'm so happy my little boy finally found a girl!'

"Actually…" Shikamaru started, continuing to eat his food. "…it's two girls." He admitted.

"Two girls! Oh, I'm so happy for you! So, who are they?" Yoshino asked, still excited.

Shikamaru took a big spoonful of his dinner and stuffed it in his mouth. "I-o n em-a-r." Shikamaru mumbled with his food still in his mouth. He was supposedly saying 'Ino and Temari'.

"What? Don't speak with your mouth full!" Yoshino ordered.

Shikamaru gulped down his food and sighed. "It's I-"

"I'm home!" A voice cheered as he walked towards the dining room.

"Hey." Shikamaru greeted lazily.

"Were you out drinking again?!" Yoshino stood up and shouted at her husband.

"No, no! I was out on a quick mission." Shikaku (A/N: That's Shikamaru's dad's name if you didn't know.) explained.

"Better be…or you'd be in deep trouble." Yoshino muttered under her breath.

"So…" Shikaku tried to get the subject off of himself. "…why are you eating so late, Shikamaru." He looked at his son.

Shikamaru glared at Shikaku lazily, but went back to eating. "Tsunade-sama had me stay late."

"Oh…" Shikaku sighed disappointingly. He thought Shikamaru would have more to say.

"And…" Yoshino wanted Shikamaru to tell Shikaku about his 'problem'.

Shikamaru sighed. 'There's no getting out of this troublesome situation…' "I have a girl problem."

"Oh, looks like you're growing up! So who's the lucky girl?" Shikaku grinned.

"Two girls." Yoshino added.

"Two…a lady's man! Just like your father!" Shikaku grinned again.

Yoshino bonked Shikaku's head with her fist. "You weren't a lady's man and you better not be a lady's man!"

"Yes, dear." Shikaku agreed. "So, Shikamaru, who are the two lucky ladies?"

Shikamaru sighed again. 'Troublesome.' He thought. "Ino and Temari." He confessed lowly.

Shikaku's head tilted as one of his eyes twitched. "Y-You mean…the Kazekage's sister and Inoichi's daughter?

Shikamaru nodded.

Shikaku's head tilted even more and his eye continued to twitch. "I think I'm going to skip dinner. I just lost my appetite." He walked upstairs to his bedroom, closed the door, and locked it. Then he curled up in a corner and rocked back and forth with his arms around his bent legs. "They have their good points, they have their good points, they're not all bad, they're not all bad,

"Umm…okay." Yoshino responded. She didn't understand how Shikaku could lose his appetite but she didn't really care. 'His loss.' She looked back at Shikamaru. "So…Ino and Temari. Pretty and blonde. What made you pick them?"

"I didn't. They picked me." Shikamaru corrected.

"Ooh…did they have a girl-fight yet?" Yoshino raised her eyebrows.

"Kind of." Shikamaru raised his eyebrow. "Why?"

"Oh, nothing. It's just an obvious question to ask." Yoshino smiled. "So, you like them both?"

"I don't know." Shikamaru answered truthfully as he put a big spoonful of food into his mouth.

"When did you find out they liked you?"

"Last week."

"At the same time?"

"Yeah."

"Hmm…"

"Hmm…?" Shikamaru raised an eyebrow.

"You either like them equally or don't want to see one of them get hurt." Yoshino assumed.

"I guess."

"So which one is it?" Yoshino asked.

"I don't know." Shikamaru bluntly answered.

"Ahh…both." Yoshino supposed.

'She's going to continue asking me questions.' Shikamaru sighed. "I don't know what to do. Do you care who I choose?" He asked.

"Yes and no."

Shikamaru raised his eyebrow again. 'Women, they're so confusing.'

"I care that you choose someone who will love you, care for you, and whip you when it's needed." She grinned at the last characteristic. "But I know both of them can do that. So I don't care."

Shikamaru sighed. "That doesn't help." He muttered.

"Here's some advice." Yoshino pointed her finger in the air. "Don't ask your father for advice."

Shikamaru nodded.

"So why didn't you tell me about this problem before?" Yoshino asked, insulted that Shikamaru didn't tell her right after he found out.

"I didn't think I'd need your help." Shikamaru honestly spoke. "But I guess I was wrong."

"Good answer." Yoshino smiled. "Well, I hope you can make a good decision. But you know, it's going to be okay either way."

"Huh?" Shikamaru said dumbfounded.

"If Ino and Temari are equal in your eyes, then it won't matter who you choose. The winner will have the same reaction and the loser will have the same reaction. The results are the same either way so don't stress about it." Yoshino advised. "I like both girls. I know they'll be good to you, even when you don't choose one of them.

"Thanks, mom." Shikamaru smirked. "I still don't know what to do, but thanks."

"No, problem, honey. Now finish up you food so I can finish the dishes." Yoshino smiled.

"Hai, hai (yeah, yeah)." Shikamaru said lazily.

"Only one hai (yes)!" Yoshino disciplined.

"Hai (yes), mom."

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A/N: I thought this chapter was very kawaii! I hope you enjoyed it. I liked writing it. I had to add Shikaku in here! I love his reaction to Shikamaru's 'Ino and Temari' answer.