Last time…

"Ah, this is such a drag," Shikamaru moaned. "Guess I'll have to keep going. See you ladies in a bit." He then vanished into the woods, a low ruffle heard from his contact with the trees. As he vanished, she noticed his bare shoulders and touched hers, noticing the gray cloth still holding her. Funny…he hadn't asked for it back…

I guess he won't be needing it though. His mesh shirt will help him blend into the background more. I'll have to be careful though. He plays chess, not shinobi. Ami pondered in her head…

Chapter 4: Affections Gone Array!

"Alright, Hinata…this is what we need to do..." Ami started, her eyes mischievous, knowing exactly how to deal with the shadow-nin. "All his strategies revolve around chess or Go, and he's unlucky, because I'm an expert. He's more of a knight then anything else, moving in an unusual formation that can't easily destroyed unless two pieces work together to stop his unusual antics. I'll play the castle, fighting him head on, while you play the bishop, moving in a diagonal formation, avoiding frontal encounters, but still allowed to go on the offensive. Do you understand my logic?"

Hinata nodded at her question and stated, "Ami-chan, I j-just wanted to say t-that your teamwork with Shikamaru-kun w-was spectacular. B-but, it was you who allowed me to b-become stronger. I-I felt l-like I could take on Shikamaru-kun, and you helped m-me believe. Thank you."

Ami stared at Hinata with some type of astonishment, but then shut her eyes and gave her a toothy smile. "Well, you're welcome, Hinata. But now, let's use teamwork to bring our lazy friend down a few notches. What do you say?" Hinata happily agreed. They waited patiently for the three minutes to be over, and they dispersed into the forest.

"Hinata remember plan. Now, shoot diagonally, to the right!" she quietly exclaimed, and Hinata ran off towards the direction. Ami went straight to her target, knowing very well, where he could be.

The knight always has unusual patterns, but usually ends up in the same place it started, in order to destroy the designated target. Ami thought analytically, trying to distinguish Shikamaru's tactics. No doubt, he may go to the same field we capture Hinata to avoid conflict, believing that would be the last place for us to look. Either that or he hasn't finished the 'cycle' yet. He first, must toy with his target.

Ami halted for a second, to hear any movement in a direction other then Hinata's. She quieted her breathing, making she her own heartbeat halted just for a second, to hear the footsteps of Shikamaru. Suddenly she heard…footsteps, approaching quickly behind her! She twisted around, and clashed a kunai with none other then the brown-eyed shadow-nin.

"Hmmm…perceptive. I would have never guessed you would have stopped to hear my footsteps. I have misjudged you," Shikamaru smirked, his brown eyes pouring into her own. The power of their kunai kept them falling off the tree. If they let go, however, the force of their energy would cause them to fall.

I can't let him get away. If we let go, he'll definitely run away, and I have no idea where Hinata is! Ami yelled at herself. I have to think of something. I hope Hinata hears this. Her Byakugan and see everything, but can't hear everything.

"You're not getting away, Shikamaru-kun," she whispered softly, her voice tickling his ears. "You got yourself into this predicament; you won't be getting out of it."

"Oh, really. Now what would that be?" he asked, mischief in his eyes. He obviously was enjoying this. "I see you still have my jacket on. Do you like my scent?"

"Why, of course, Shikamaru-kun," she tried to state seductively, emphasizing the suffix once more. "In fact I like everything about you. Iwant to get to know you better by any means necessary…" she trailed off, knowing exactly how she could keep Shikamaru here. She smiled, trying to glaze over her eyes with any form of lust, the lust she had seen in her father's eyes when he had first woken up with that woman…

"What…what do you mean?" he questioned, obvious discomfort in his voice, knowing instantly he had said the wrong thing.

"I mean…this," and suddenly she threw herself at him, having the force of his and her momentum falling backwards. Luckily, a large patch of grass allowed them to not break anything from the twenty foot fall, but the impact of the ground caused Ami's lips to come in contact with his cheek. Although, at that very moment, she wanted to let go, she was unable to. Her lips were paralyzed to his cheek, his warm flesh embracing her lips.

"Ami-chan, get out of the way!" Hinata exclaimed from above them. Ami awoke from her daze and rolled off of Shikamaru, as Hinata threw a senbon needle straight at his chest. He quickly leapt backwards and dodged the needle. Hinata landed swiftly on the ground, and ran towards Shikamaru, using her Byakugan to anticipate his every movement, allowing her to try and stop his chakra flow.

Ami watched in amazement as Hinata flailed her arms every which way, trying to hit, if only slightly Shikamaru's body. With her gentle-fist fighting style, she only needed to graze him to defeat him. Shikamaru kept rapidly dodging her fast-paced movements, nearly escaping the threat of her palms by mere millimeters. Shikamaru jumped backwards, in a desperate attempt to distance himself from Hinata's fierce palms. He succeeded and before Hinata could close the distance between them, Shikamaru kneeled down, used the appropriate hand signals and shouted, "Kagemane no Jutsu! Shadow Imitation technique!"

Suddenly, Hinata stopped, unable to move. Ami looked down and noticed a shadow had spread across to Hinata's body, obviously Shikamaru's. Knowing what needed to be done, she quickly advanced to Shikamaru, and she placed a kunai to his throat.

"Check, what's your next move?" Ami asked, trying to avoid the uncomfortable situation that she had previously placed herself in him.

"Simple, this," Shikamaru grinned and began to run eastward, away from the kunai, and taking Hinata with him, still under the spell of the Shadow Imitation. Ami followed, cursing herself for not having a back up if he decided to run. But, she realized that if this had been a real battle, if she had killed Shikamaru, she would have killed Hinata.

That was idiotic. How am I supposed to defeat him without defeating my own comrade? She questioned herself, unable to find an answer. She would have to make this up as she went, without damaging the health of Hinata. Her speed quickly led her only a meter length's away from Shikamaru, his shadow still stretching to Hinata's. She noticed, although Hinata had to obey Shikamaru's every command, she could see her comrade was not as fast as him, her body wearing down, incapable of the task much longer. Could she die under the jutsu, if her body could not rest?

Shikamaru! What are you doing you fool! Can't you see you can kill her! Ami could not say these words out loud, this would give away her location; he still hadn't observed that she was right on his tail. Yet, she needed to do something, anything so Hinata wouldn't be under cardiac arrest!

"You won't kill my friend!" Ami roared her eyes ferocious; thoughts of losing a new bond destroying her. She couldn't…she wasn't going to have someone die right in front of her! Never again would she see the eyes of a dying person, she promised herself that very instant.

She pounced on Shikamaru and threw him into a tree. Consequently, the same thing happened to Hinata, but the jutsu was broken, and she was able to move on her own. Ami placed a kunai to the back of Shikamaru's neck.

"Did you know you could have killed her, you idiot?" Ami asked lowly, "What were you thinking!"

"Shut up, I know when someone's about to die. She may have collapsed, but that would have been it," Shikamaru stated calmly.

"How can you stay so calm!" Ami demanded, tears forming at the corner of her eyes. Why was she becoming so emotional?

"Alright Ami, that's quite enough," Hayate emerged from the trees, his face untroubled, and looking at his students with indifference. "Ami, I'm glad that you ended the round with a killing intent. Your loyalty to your comrades seem flawless. Shikamaru, I'm impressed by the way you kept your cool, even though you had Ami breathing down your neck. And Hinata, I'm glad that you were able to pinpoint Ami's location, as there could have been some 'consequences' had you not arrived." He looked at Shikamaru and Ami with a knowing look, causing Ami to blush and let go of her grasp on Shikamaru and keep a distance from him. "The third round will begin shortly. Ami, you are last, but absolutely not least."

Ami wouldn't stare at Shikamaru but instead held her stomach in slight annoyance. She hadn't eaten all day; she realized this since she had been 'interrupted' from her preparations to make breakfast. Still, she wouldn't have her sensei know; she was strong enough to survive this pain, she would prevail.

All I need to do is survive for ten minutes, that's all I need. Hinata lasted 10 and Shikamaru lasted 13 I think... then perhaps I'll go in the middle, last for 11.5. Yeah, that's a good goal. Ami considered. Usually, she wanted to prove herself, to be the absolute in everyway. Yet, right now, all she could do was try and hope to accomplish.

"The third round, begins…now!" Hayate announced, and Ami was off, running through the woods, clenching her stomach, its growl slightly spinning her head. She would embrace the pain, she would be strong.

I'm going to have to stay hidden, I'll just run as fast as I can and stay hidden for as long as I can. If someone finds me, it'll be all over. I won't have enough chakra left to stand. Ami thought, but the analysis in her head caused to ache even more. I'll just have to use my specialty…She swiftly drew her palms in a couple of hand signals and whispered (as to avoid attention to the direction she was in) "Inbijiburu no Jutsu! Invisibility Technique!" Suddenly, she became invisible, able to escape the sights of her team. She then, hid herself in nearby bush, so even though her jutsu would fade, she would remain hidden; Shikamaru's jacket would come quite in handy for camouflage.

She knew her three minutes were up; she heard unusual ruffles from the farther trees. Good thing she didn't have Akamaru or Kiba in her team; they would find her in a blink of an eye, her scent would give away her whole location. She didn't know if Hinata's Byakugan was able to detect her in her invisible state, but she didn't know and at the moment she didn't care.

Three more minutes came by, and she could feel her chakra diminishing. She inwardly swore, knowing that if her chakra became any lower, her disguise would fail. Her head was beginning to spin, and her eyes began to droop, threatening to make her fall into slumber. No! I must last more then eleven minutes! I must! If I don't, I won't be considered a ninja! Ami shouted in her mind, awakening her eyes as well as her body.

The watch in her thoughts was ticking…she was sure four more minutes had passed by…why couldn't they find her? She was mildly surprised…were they trying to coax her out of her hiding place or could they not genuinely find her? She tried not to be too proud of herself, as they had both came to battle, knowing individual skills was needed to pass the exam. A coward she was not, but with limited chakra…what would anyone else do?

Just then, she heard the trees shake violently behind her and saw Shikamaru right in front of her, Hinata nowhere in plain vision. They must have split up, but what would he accomplish?

"C'mon, Ami I know you're near…I can hear your breathing," he stated and Ami eyes widened. He was getting closer, closer, closer…until his face was just five inches away from her.

"Ami?..." he trailed, looking at what appeared to be nothing but leaves and branches. Ami didn't know what to do…fight or stay as quiet as possible and hope he would leave.

Much as I would hate to admit it…Ami thought annoyed, Shikamaru's to smart to not think I'm here. I guess will go with option A. She then pounced backwards off the branch of the tree, swirled around and hit the trees with forward momentum. She could feel that he was hot on her trail, just a few meters separated them. She saw a clearing near to her left; she placed what little chakra she had in her feet and sprinted to her left, falling off the trees and onto to the grass before her. Shikamaru swiftly fell off in mere seconds. Ami turned around; she would not lose without a fight. As Shikamaru approached her, she senselessly began throwing kunai at him, which he easily deflected, using his own kunai to block. Soon, they were in fierce, melee combat; their punches quick and kicks powerful. Ami drove a roundhouse kick to his head, but was quickly blocked by both arms. This gave her the opportunity to use her other leg to drive a kick into his stomach. With the contact, Shikamaru flew sideways about a good foot. She suddenly felt a huge weight on her body, as though one more step would cause her to collapse. She looked at the sky, she was sure more then eleven minutes had passed. She sighed heavily, and noticed Shikamaru was already back on his feet, about to come at her once again…

"Shikamaru…" she said weakly, unable to even speak. Her tone caught his attention and looked at her with curiosity. "I can't go on…anymore." With those words, she felt herself collapse. Yet, she never felt herself hit the ground…

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"Ami-chan! Can you hear me? Ami-chan!" a voice only faintly familiar to her awoke Ami from her slumber. She heard Shikamaru's mumbling in the background, saying that wasn't the way to awaken a lady, and Hinata's furious stutters stating he should be more considerate. She slowly opened her eyes and noticed a pair of deep blue eyes staring at her with anxiety. What was Naruto doing here?

"See, Naruto? Now look what you did, you woke her up," Shikamaru stated annoyed. Ami lifted her body up and sat up right, looking around. Naruto was looking at her worried, Hinata was next to him, blushing as well as slightly scowling, and Shikamaru was on her other side, glancing over her body to see if anything was wrong. She blushed, noticing how close her friends were to her face, and tried to back away, only to have them move in closer.

"A-Ami-chan, are y-you fine?" Hinata asked, worry filling every corner of her eyes.

"Oh, I'm okay…" Ami stated "I just kind of don't remember what happened. And what are you doing here, Naruto?"

"Oh, my team left me on a stump and I had to cut myself off with kunai. I'm sure their getting lunch, but I heard you guys not to far away, and decided to see what the commotion was. Your sensei said you guys passed! Isn't that exciting! We did too!" Naruto's ramblings cheered Ami up; he always did know in the Academy how to put a smile on anyone's face. But, it slightly faded, remembering Hinata was there, and she didn't want attention drawn away from her.

"Anyways…" Shikamaru began, and the other three stared at him, "You said you couldn't go on anymore and began to fall. I caught you, and Hayate-sensei came out of the bushes to see what the problem was. He healed your chakra and noticed that you hadn't eaten all day. Hinata soon came after, and he told us we passed, but we should wait until you woke up on your own (glaring at Naruto) to tell you. He also left us some money so we, most especially you could eat. He said he would come along, but he said something about plans with his girlfriend."

After Shikamaru's lengthy explanation, they all rose to their feet (Naruto being a gentleman and helping both Hinata and Ami) they set out to find a nice place to eat.

"How about theIchiraku Ramen Bar!" Naruto exclaimed excitedly, hoping the others would comply. They though about it, and all three stated at the same time (rather flatly) "No."

"Wha-Why!" Naruto questioned. He looked at Ami, "I thought you liked ramen!"

"Of course I do!" Ami defended, trying to not seem hypocritical, "Well, it's just that we had it yesterday and…" her stomach growled unexpectedly, and she felt light-headed. "Actually, maybe we don't have a choice. The ramen bar is the closest place here." Hinata and Shikamaru reluctantly agreed, and they followed Naruto to the bar.

Upon arriving, Naruto ordered them all miso ramen and they sat down. Ami sat in-between Shikamaru and Naruto and Hinata on the other side of Naruto. Ami believed this to be the perfect time for Hinata to 'introduce' herself to Naruto, but unfortunately, Naruto had other plans.

"So, Ami-chan…after lunch, do you want to go out for a walk or something?" Naruto asked, his eyes filled with hope. Ami inwardly sighed and look at Hinata. She was hanging her head and waiting for the food to come. She could just reject Naruto…but she saw the look in his eyes; the look that was identical to hers when she stared at her father.

They both wanted to be acknowledged for something, for someone to accept them, no matter how others perceived them.

"Um…I'm not free this afternoon, Naruto-kun…" Ami stated, but seeing the hurt in his eyes, she quickly emphasized, "But I bet Hinata-chan would love to take a walk with you. Right, you're free Hinata?"

Hinata blushed a light pink, looking at Naruto with confused eyes, "Um…sure I'm free…b-but…"

"Okay then, Hinata! Me and you can walk together! That'll be fun!" Naruto said, but Ami could see the fake, foxy grin he was giving Hinata, although she was flushing crimson at his stare. Maybe by talking to Naruto, her feelings would begin to mature, and she would step aside the crush, that only seemed to be admiration.

They ate their food, all of them excited that they had become full-fledged shinobi, except Shikamaru, who didn't talk much. After eating their lunch, they parted ways: Hinata and Naruto heading to the lake and Shikamaru and Ami heading the other way.

As they began to walk aimlessly throughout the streets of Konoha, Ami couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable. She had in fact kissed him on the cheek not to long ago…but she wanted to end the silence that was plaguing the walk, as he was making no attempts to speak.

"Um…Shikamaru?" Ami said, turning her head to meet his stare. He wasn't much taller then her, maybe about an inch at the most. His brown eyes looked in her direction, and they showed indifference.

"What's on your mind?" he asked, his voice holding back the typical 'I don't want to talk.'

"Thank you…for not letting me fall," Ami said, trying to suppress the blush about to form on her face. "I was really tired and hungry, and if I had fallen, I don't know what I would have done…" She held her shoulders and was still surprised they weren't bare, but had Shikamaru's jacket still hanging from her shoulders.

"Don't mention it," he insisted, his hands digging into his pockets and took on his normal nonchalant stance. "I wouldn't be considered chivalrous if I hadn't."

She smiled at him warmly, glad he was back to normal. But, a sudden blush crept up to her cheeks as she stuttered out, "Y-you know what happened at the forest? I-"

"I know you didn't mean too," he cut her off. She noticed that a small blush had snuck up over his cheeks as well. "It was an accident after all…right?" It seemed like he needed reassurance, for both their sakes.

"Well, it doesn't have to be, if you don't want it to, Shikamaru-kun" Ami giggled. Shikamaru looked away, an obvious red stain painting his face. Ami realized that with Shikamaru, and Hinata, and Naruto…she could be at peace and be herself. She had friends, and although she would always care for Fuki and Kasumi, that maybe…these friends could develop into something more.

The sun was beginning to set, and Shikamaru offered to walk her home. They talked casually, on such trivial matters as kunai throwing, where to kick a guy when he was really ticking you off, how Sasuke was probably gay, how Naruto should get over his crush for Sakura, how Kiba was an idiot. Yeah, stuff like that.

When they reached her house, Ami sighed. She really didn't want to sleep in there tonight. Her father would probably kick her out for how she acted…not genius material. Shikamaru saw the fear in her eyes, and stated, "Go hide, Ami. I'm going to knock on the door."

"What? Why? Shikamaru-" but Ami cut herself off and ran to the side of the house, as Shikamaru made good of his 'threat' and approached the house. He knocked on the door, and a she heard her father's booming voice.

"Yes, may I ask what you want?" her father snarled. She could tell he was drunk by the way he slurred his words. He always did that the day after a mission, because possibly the next day, he would be off again.

"Hello, sir, I'm on the same team as your daughter, Ami," Shikamaru stated, his voice official and informative, "I'm here to enlighten you that your daughter will be spending the night at my house, as she obviously does not want to be here at this time."

"What? Where is that brat?" he ordered, "And why is she staying over your house?"

"Because she's my girlfriend," Shikamaru declared, and Ami was flushing throughout her whole body. Why was he doing this? On what impulse did he have to do and say those things?

"Your girlfriend! Kid, you better be lying…" he growled dangerously low, but just as she felt her father would tear Shikamaru to pieces, she heard him yell, "Kanashibari no Jutsu! Paralysis Technique!" Her father was frozen under his spell, but what could Shikamaru possibly do?

"Now, I'm going to leave you here. My jutsu allows me to keep you here for a good three minutes. Don't try to follow, or you will face consequences. You shouldn't treat your daughter the way you have, and only when you make amends with yourself, can you see her again. Farewell," with his speech, he grabbed Ami from the side of the house, threw her into his arms and ran towards his house.

"Ami! Don't ever think about coming back here again! You'll just end up like you mother! Remember, she only had you when she was sixteen!" he roared at her, as Shikamaru carried her to the safety of his own house. She began to let tears flow down her face, unable to control the agony of the day. Would she have child in four years? Would she be dead in four years?

Shikamaru halted, and walked up the stairs to his home. "Ami…I'm sorry for putting you through that, but I know it would have been worse had I not been around," Shikamaru stated, obvious worry clinging onto his voice. "My parents will help you, and I'm sure will be able to get your clothes soon." He gently let her stand on her own, but never let go of his embrace of her. "I'm truly sorry, but I won't let you go back there, not until your father accepts who you are and who he is."

"Did you mean what you said?" she asked, trying to hold her sobs, "About me being your…girlfriend?"

He was startled at the question but replied, "Well, I really didn't know what to say. I wanted to get him angry, so I would have excuse to use my jutsu. But, I can be if you want." She raised her head to see him blushing slightly and chuckled softly.

"Fine, but you better treat right Nara," she said, but knowing he was already her knight in shining armor.

"You wouldn't have it any other way," he said, and with that, he walked into the door of his house, expecting the questionable eyebrows that would be thrown at him.

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Crystal Inferno: Yeah, that Chapter was longer then the last one, but I didn't know where to end it! It was actually suppose to be longer! Anyways, thank you Konoha-Salad for reviewing and too all to read! Adios, mon ami!