So, apparently all it takes these days to get me to update is a week-long vacation in Italia, a ten hour flight from Rome to New York, and a strong desire to NOT do homework. Ah, the wonders of procrastination…so appropriate, given half the cast of this scene.

But I digress. Looks like I threw quite a few of you for a loop this time by not making this chapter Temari and Shikamaru, didn't I? Despite the fact that they are my favorite Naruto couple (with Neji/Tenten a close second), not all chapters will involve romantic couples. The idea to have Gaara and Shikamaru interact came about from two reasons: 1) They're two of my favorite characters (teh Sexy and teh Panda) and 2) I'm looking for a challenge. I don't even think these two have interacted much in the series, though I could be wrong. I know Shikamaru's character relatively well, but haven't seen much of Kazekage Gaara. In fact, I'm writing out his character based solely on what I've read in other stories and what I've looked up on wikipedia. Wikipedia and YouTube were my two best friends this chapter.

Oh, I've also been adding a lot of in-jokes to the story, both internet-wide and some just between my friends and me. Mostly for my own amusement, and some for yours. Enjoy!

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"The Scenario Series"
Part 3 of 10
by Tsubasa Hane

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Shikamaru stared at the strange-looking object on the desk for the longest time, until his attention was completely distracted from the conversation at hand. He supposed it was some form of container; the faint scent of chocolate and oatmeal permeating the air around it further led him to believe it was a cookie jar. Probably kept at hand much in the same manner Tsunade always had her sake set nearby for whenever her work got to be too strenuous (which, for her, was at least twice a day).

In his opinion, it looked more like a childhood gourd the Kazekage had carried around during his younger years.

Shrugging the mental image of a five-year-old Gaara lugging around a gourd of cookies larger than himself, Shikamaru shifted his focus once more, this time towards a nearby window. Through the crystal barrier, he noticed a series of clouds floating by at a much faster pace than normal. No surprise, given the stronger Suna winds. He also noticed that they were heading towards his home village, and vaguely wondered if they would eventually pass over his favorite hillside.

Clouds are still the same, no matter what village you come from, the lazy chuunin thought to himself. They're still white and fluffy, still change into any number of shapes and images left up to the viewer to interpret. They never affiliate themselves to one single village, and nor can any village try to claim them as their own. But most of all, they're still so carefree; they certainly never have to worry about troublesome women sending them on pointless 3-day long missions to deliver a single letter….

It wasn't that he was necessarily complaining. Not entirely. In fact, he almost preferred the non-troublesome missions Tsunade had been making a habit of assigning him as of late. They were usually ranked at a decent level, not for any danger, but because of their time frame and supposed inter-village importance.

At times, Shikamaru felt like he was being sent on a paid vacation. He also felt, however, that he'd been spending more time in Suna the last few months on these "vacations" than he did in Konoha. His mind swam with this thought in particular. It wasn't that he was bored. Boredom was something he could handle, and barely existed in his vocabulary to begin with. No, at that point it was more frustration than anything else.

Frustration at the lack of knowledge he was given.

At the fact that he hadn't seen many of his friends in weeks.

At that nagging feeling in the back of his mind that there was some underlying reason why Tsunade kept requesting him, personally, to continually make trips to the Kazekage's office.

That last thought circulated through his brain until he thought he would explode. It was frustrating to realize his genius IQ couldn't make sense of the Hokage's suspected hidden agenda, particularly since he was almost certain it involved some scene against him. And not just a little, either. To say that Nara Shikamaru was a little frustrated at that point would be like saying that Uzumaki Naruto was a little hyper, or that TenTen's aim was a little accurate, or that Tsunade's breasts were a little—

"—bigger than your head."

The usually choice of phrasing brought Shikamaru's attention back to the room with a start: "…huh?"

Gaara paused in his document report to look up, one eyebrow raised.

The boy wasn't even bothering to hide his disinterest. Were it anyone else, the young Kazekage would have been furious. However, Gaara was more impressed than angry. It wasn't everyday people treated him so casually, and he'd known Shikamaru long enough by then to understand his actions as merely part of his usual mannerisms, not a sign of disrespect.

Wordlessly returning to the scroll in hand, Gaara quickly skimmed the last few lines—it would be pointless to read them aloud any further—before placing them off to the side. He reached for a clean piece of parchment and quill. Before beginning his reply, he glanced up briefly…only to find Shikamaru once more staring at the clouds.

This time, he was surprised. True, Shikamaru tended to have a short attention span for matters than held no interest to him, but Gaara had never known him to be this easily distracted.

The quill was placed back down on the table.

"She's not here."

Shikamaru turned back to see the Kazekage walk up beside him. His usual sand gourd was left beside the desk, halfway across the room, though he still gave off an aura of authority with the way his arms remained folded over his chest.

"I sent her and Kankuro on a mission three days ago," he explained further. "They're not due back until this evening."

Blood rushed to his cheeks at the mention of the blonde fan-wielder. Truthfully, he hadn't really thought of her until that moment, though now a collage of troublesome thoughts made quick work of his brain. In an attempt to appear as unaffected as possible, Shikamaru quickly shoved his hands in his pockets and looked away.

Taking note of the boy's reaction, Gaara chose to follow his line of sight. The Kazekage office offered a lovely overhead view of Suna, a luxury that grew increasingly rare to enjoy as work continued to pile up. He couldn't remember the last time he'd ever stood where Shikamaru was right then, simply enjoying the sights. With the boy's recent trips to Suna becoming more and more frequent, Gaara wouldn't be surprised if Shikamaru knew the village better than he did by then.

Absently, he touched the tattoo on his forehead, self-inflicted so many years ago. Years of isolation and hatred, both given and received. It seemed like another life to him now, and in many ways, it was. The irony never failed to dawn on him how he would ultimately grow up to become head of the very same village that he had wished to destroy as a child. That he would take a vow to protect what his mother had cursed on her deathbed.

No longer wishing to dwell on the past further, Gaara tore his sight from the window.

"There's something I've been curious about," he spoke up, turning to face Shikamaru, "Why are you still ranked at a mere chuunin level? We both know you are in possession of more than enough skill to advance."

Shikamaru shrugged. "Probably, but I see no need to. Chuunin pay is adequate enough to live off of. Besides, I'm not in this line of work for the glory or acknowledgement."

"Then why are you?"

"Honestly?" The boy gave a half-hearted smirk. "When I was young, I wanted to become a ninja so I could live an easy life in my later years."

Gaara opened his mouth to comment, but Shikamaru beat him to it.

"I know, I know." He waved a hand, as if dismissing the thought, before growing serious. "What I hadn't counted on back then were the experiences I would gain in such a short period of time. You just can't walk away from things like that."

"No, you can't." Gaara agreed softly, thinking of his own past battles fought, both internal and external. "But then," he continued, "what kind of life could you still possibly expect from your chosen path, knowing what you know."

"The same I always have," Shikamaru stated matter-of-factly, as if having answered the question a thousand times over. "Be a so-so ninja and earn an OK salary. Marry a regular girl, neither a beauty nor a hag, and have two kids. First a girl, then a boy. I'd retire when my daughter got married and my son become independent, after which I'd play Go and Shogi all day long, living a relaxed and easy retired life until I die of old age, passing before my wife." He paused, staring up at the sky. "That's the kind of life I wanted then…"

A wave of silence passed between the two shinobi as Shikamaru's voice trailed off. Gaara's expression remained unreadable; he stared, unblinking, at the boy before him. Observing him.

During one of his latest visits, Shikamaru had engaged Kankuro in yet another rousing game of Shogi. The pair had an unofficial rivalry going ever since the first time Kankuro challenged the boy genius, and their matches tended to draw in a healthy crowd of spectators. That time was no different. By the time Gaara had arrived, they were hours into their game, and a large percentage of villagers had gathered to watch the masters at work.

Temari had the best view of all, seated right next to Shikamaru. Understanding how serious the game was, Gaara had been somewhat surprised that the boy would allow her in such close proximity. But he never once showed any signs of annoyance towards her, and she remained obediently silent. In his life, Gaara'd never known his sister to be so happy in a position she would normally have considered demeaning.

Then again, he never knew his brother was so skilled at Shogi.

When Shikamaru eventually won—as he always did—the roar of applause had been nearly deafening. Kankuro had made his usual show of acting outraged for a few seconds before sighing, offering a hand in congratulations as he smirked and loudly declared that next time would be different.

Temari, on the other hand, waited patiently for the crowd to disperse before acting. With a smile that could be considered half pride, half cockiness, she reached up and gave a forceful tug at Shikamaru's jacket, roughly pulling the boy back down next to her. She leaned in close and, not bothering to let go, whispered something in his ear that caused the boy to roll his eyes, but grin nonetheless. It had made for quite an interesting picture.

Presently, Shikamaru wore the very same expression as he had then, almost like he was thinking of the very same memory. Gaara was certain, at the very least, that he was thinking of her. Shikamaru's words echoed in his mind, the declaration repeating over and over again, as he thought about all he had come to learn about the boy. His attitude, his mannerisms, and the way he approached any situation, be it a game or a battle.

When the Kazekage eventually did speak, his eyes had narrowed considerably. His voice, though calm, was low and accusing: "Did you ever really think that plan of yours through?"

The harshness of his tone surprised Shikamaru, drawing his attention back into the room. "What do you mean?"

"What if your wife did not share the same ridiculous ideas as you?" Gaara offered harshly. "What if she didn't want children, for example? Or worse…couldn't have them? Would she still fit into your plan then?"

Shikamaru was left speechless for a moment. Nobody had ever reacted so negatively to what be believed to be a perfectly normal dream before, but even more shocking to him was Gaara's sudden sour mood. It was as if the Kazekage had taken every statement personally.

Turning around completely, Shikamaru leaned against the adjacent wall.

"Don't misunderstand me," he shook his head, "I'd value her opinion as much as I do my own, if not more so. Hell, with my luck, she'd end up running my whole life for me anyway."

"Having another control you in such a manner is no way to live." Gaara's eyes were still narrowed, though his tone noticeably lightened.

"Tell me about it." Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "You should see my parents. I wondered every day how my father could possibly put up with such a troublesome woman, let alone marry her." He sighed. "But he told me something one day, when I asked him about it. Something I'd never forget."

"What?"

The chuunin leaned his head back, closing his eyes as he recited from memory, "'She may be like that, but she has days when she has a kind smile on her face.'" He opened his eyes and stared straight out in front of him. "I didn't understand it at that time. At least, I thought I didn't."

"You thought you didn't?"

Shikamaru hesitated. A sigh escaped his lips. "My father loves my mother unconditionally, just as she really loves him. As much as she yells and bitches at the both of us on a daily basis, I suppose they'd be lost without her." Smiling as if at a distant memory, he continued, "He'd do anything for her just to see that rare smile reserved only for him."

"And this is what you want?" Gaara asked, no longer holding any malice behind his words.

"I think, deep down, it's what every guy wants." Intertwining his fingers, Shikamaru placed his hands behind his head casually. "Somebody to make happy and make him happy. Somebody who, once you've found her, you never want to spend another minute without her in your life. Somebody…somebody you'd feel honored to fight beside in battle. Even die together."

She'd like that… Gaara thought to himself.

Outwardly, he stated, "That's not what you said earlier."

"Yeah, I know." Shikamaru shrugged nonchalantly. "Funny how life can get in the way of life-long plans, huh?"

Gaara chose to ignore his poor attempt at a joke, leaning up against the wall next to Shikamaru. "Even you can't possibly plan out everything. Life isn't like one of your Shogi matches; there are too many uncertainties, too many unknown factors to take into account."

"Meh. Planning makes everything less troublesome," Shikamaru muttered, stifling a yawn. A smirk appeared. "Though, I supposed there's no harm in throwing caution to the wind, so to speak, every so often."

Resisting the urge to smile at the obvious double-meaning, he simply raised an eyebrow in question. "And why is that?"

"Because she'd be worth the trouble."

This time, the Kazekage did smile. It was faint, but it was there nonetheless. Of all the shinobi he had come to know over the years, none held his respect quite like Shikamaru did—not even the Kyuubi boy—and he was only further reminded of the fact at that moment. Closing eyes, he let out a small chuckle as he pushed himself away from the wall, heading back towards his desk.

"When you return to your village," he called back over his shoulder, "inform the Hokage that I would be honored to continue with the negotiations of this alliance."

"Alliance?" Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "Suna and Konoha have been allies for years. Don't tell me that's what all this letter-running back and forth I've been doing the past three months has been all about…"

Gaara paused in his steps just before reaching the edge of the desk.

"You mean you don't know?"

"Know what?"

He turned back around to face the chuunin, a very uncharacteristic smirk tugging at his lips. One not unlike what he used to wear during his sadistic, homicidal days.

Shikamaru raised the other eyebrow.

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Less than half a minute later, he dashed from the room at a speed Gaara hadn't even been aware he could achieve. Were it not for the circumstances, he might have been more impressed. Instead, he was amused. More so than he had been for a very long time. Given the look in Shikamaru's eyes, there was no doubt he was off in search of a certain blonde.

The only question was: which one?