Am I late in publishing this chapter? Pft, only five months or so.

Anyway... My spell check died half way through this, I apologize if I missed anything.

Three times Ino and Shikamaru kiss for the wrong reasons. The forth time they actually get it right.

Kiss

The first time, it was only an experiment.

"Shikamaru, what are you doing?" Ino asked as she plopped down next to the boy sitting under the cherry tree. She was bored out of her mind and figured bothering Shikamaru was a great way to fix that.

"Watching clouds."

"Oh, really? How interesting!" Ino gasped loudly. "I had no idea you liked to just sit around doing nothing!"

"Not doing nothing; watching clouds."

"Uh-huh, that is so fascinating," Ino clutched the front of her shirt theatrically. "Tell me more about these white things in the sky!"

"Ino," Shikamaru said slowly, obviously trying not to sound as irritated as he really was. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm bo-ored," Ino whined, "I have absolutely nothing to do! Everybody's busy doing boring things, and I don't do boring. I never thought school break could be so... Boring!"

"That doesn't answer my question, Ino. What are you doing here?"

Ino bit her lip and watched him wide-eyed with innocence. "Looking for company?"

Shikamaru sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fine, but be quiet."

"Yay!" Ino cheered victorious; she knew he was a sucker for that look. She scooted just a little closer, finding a more comfortable spot to lean against.

They sat a while in silence.

"Do you think Sasuke likes me?"

"Ino," Shikamaru growled in warning.

"Sorry," Ino apologized. Then spoke up again. "Do you think I'm the prettiest girl in class?"

"Ino! If you can't shut up, go somewhere else!" He sounded annoyed, but when Ino sneaked a peek at him, she could have sworn he was the faintest of pink.

"Sorry," she said again, not really sorry at all. An idea took form in her head. An idea Shikamaru would most certainly not approve of, at least not without a little coaxing. She stole a glance at him for the second time, watching his scowl slowly disappear from his face. She hesitated. He looked relaxed and carefree, which made him almost handsome... But she was still bored. And, she must admit, curious.

"Can you kiss me?"

Shikamaru fell sideways of the tree. He looked at her, utterly horrified. "What?"

"I said," Ino repeated. "Can you-"
"I heard what you said, Ino!" Shikamaru sputtered and righted himself again, but didn't move back to his original position, which had been a lot closer to her. "Why would you say that?"

Ino pouted and crossed her arms. "Don't you want to?"

"No!"

Ino had fully expected this, and therefore schooled her features into a mask of dejection. She looked down to her lap. "Oh... I just thought..." She trailed off.

"Thought what?" Shikamaru asked when she didn't elaborate.

"Well, we graduate in a month," Ino said, still not looking at him. "If I am killed on my first mission, I would have liked to have been kissed. At least just once."

Shikamaru groaned and hid his face in his palms. "You do realize the statistics of you dying on the very first mission is slim to none, right?"

"But there is still a chance!" Ino protested. "Do you really want to be responsible for me dying totally unkissed?"

"Why would that be my fault?"

"Because I have no one else to ask!" Ino said hotly. Not strictly true, but he was the easiest and most convenient choice. "So?"

"No," Shikamaru said and leaned back against the tree trunk again. "Too troublesome."

"Please, Shikamaru?" Ino said pleadingly. "I just want to know what it's like! Don't you? Aren't you curious?"

"Not particularly, no," Shikamaru said, pointedly ignoring to look at her.

"Fine," Ino said and pulled out her trump card. "I guess I'll have to ask Reizo Kijima then, instead."

"What? Are you out of your mind?" Shikamaru snapped at her. Reizo Kijima was five years older than them and Ino's very handsome neighbor; his parents owned an expensive shoe shop that was immensely popular among Konoha's elite. Reizo was always seen with a new girl every other day; it was said he had broken more hearts than Sasuke Uchiha. Personally, Ino thought he was disgusting, not to mention old, but Shikamaru didn't need to know that.

She made a show of moving to stand up. Shikamaru's hand shot out and grabbed her arm.

"There is no way I can talk you out of this?"

"No," Ino struggled to keep a triumphant smile of her face. "I'm afraid not."

Shikamaru took a deep breath before leaning forward. Ino leaned forward too, her heart picking up in pace. Which was weird, since she wasn't nervous. Her eyes flickered down to his lips. Nope, not nervous at all.

Ino had hardly time to register Shikamaru's lips on her own before he pulled away just as quickly.

"There, happy?" He grumbled, his face burning. He assumed his earlier position, and glared viciously at the sky.

Ino smiled, her lips tingling ever so slightly, and reclined too. "For now."

The second time, it was only an act of comfort.

The sun was shining brightly, no matter how much Ino wanted it to rain. It should be raining; the world should be weeping too. Not just her.

Her sensei, Asuma, was dead.

Dead.

Never coming back.

The funeral had been a blur of tears and mumbled words. Ino had not heard a thing anyone had said. She had only seen the broken figure of Kurenai, shattered to a million pieces that would never fit exactly right again. The impossibly strong and proud sweetheart of Ino's teacher and mentor, reduced to a shadow of her true self. Would she ever feel whole again?

Would Ino herself? At that moment, it didn't feel like anything could ever be like it was again. This was her first encounter with death, and she had been horribly unprepared.

The tears wouldn't stop.

Ino had clung desperately to Choji for what felt like forever, until he gently pried her smaller form from him, apologizing quietly. He had then engulfed Kurenai instead, rocking the older women in his sure embrace and patting her back. The sight made Ino's tears come even faster. She practically fled the scene, not really caring where she ended up. She only needed to escape. From everything. From pain, sorrow and tears.

She found Shikamaru without knowing she had been looking for him. He sat motionless by a shogi board; he didn't even look up when Ino's shadow fell over him. She sat down next to him without her usual grace.

"Is it over?"

"It's over."

Ino fell into his arms with a quiet sob; in response, he almost crushed her to him, but she didn't care. She trusted him to keep her from falling apart, trusted him to keep her whole. She didn't know whom of them first initiated the desperate, searing kiss; she only knew it was the first time since Asuma's death, she didn't feel like she was standing by an endless abyss, waiting for it to swallow her.

It wasn't a perfect kiss, neither was it meant to be. But it was what they needed to gain the strength to rise again. To exact revenge.

They never mentioned the kiss again. But they never forgot either.

The third time, it was only part of a mission.

Ino slunk quietly through the shadows of the unlit corridor, mindful of not making any noise. Shikamaru was just ahead, two paces in front of her. They had successfully infiltrated an enormous estate in Earth Country where a diamond smuggler had supposedly taken up residence. At least if the information Sakura and Sasuke had extracted from an earlier mission was correct.

Well, Ino thought wryly to herself, if she was filthy rich, she would probably get at castle too. Because that's what it looked like; it was a huge stone building complete with towers and everything. The surrounding grounds were no less impressive with a massive forest and a courtyard full of statues and grand fountain in the middle. Too bad for the owner that all the extra luxury provided perfect cover, and made it riddiculously easy for professionals, like them, to get in.

Shikamaru stopped suddenly just before the hallway made a 90 degree turn, bringing them both to a halt. He cursed softly under his breath.

"What?"

"More guards. Heading this way."

Ino bit her tongue to keep herself from cursing too. Not that the guards would be a problem for them to take out, but because the Hokage had emphasised how important it was for stealth. Their mission was to infiltrate the building, capture the target without engaging in battle and bring him to a location a couple of miles from there where he would, discreetly, be taken into custody. The diamond smuggler was a well-known public figure, and a messy retrieval could potentially damage the chances of putting him on trial. Not to mention, at any sign of battle, he was sure to make his escape like he had every other time anyone had tried to make a grab at him.

"Troublesome." That was the only warning Ino got before Shikamaru smashed his lips on top of her own. It was so unexpected, so out of character, so out of place, she only gasped against his lips at first. He froze instantly, withdrawing half a breath. Her lips tingled slightly from his kiss.

Their eyes locked. In the same instant she heard a faint noice from the direction of the approaching guards, and her mind made the connection to the impromptu kiss. She threw her arms around his neck, drawing him down to her level again. She told herself her heart only accelerated when their lips met again because she was anxious about the approching enemies. His arms went around her waist as he backed her up against the wall. The kiss was aggressive, passionate and rough; all tongue and teeth biting down on lips. A faint stubble on his face scratched her chin none too gently, sending shiver after shiver down her spine. A large hand caressed her back underneath her shirt. A small moan, almost a wimper, escaped her throat without her intention. The sound made Shikamaru tighten his hold on her even further. Ino didn't ever want to stop.

"Hey!" The sudden shout brought them back to reality; again their eyes met. Shikamaru gazed at her with eyes darkened by something she didn't dare analyze at that moment. He gave her a last quick kiss at the corner of her mouth. He turned his head towards the intruders, but did not back away from her. Effectively keeping her trapped between him and the wall. Which was perhaps lucky, since she wasn't sure her legs would support her weight at that moment.

"Do you mind?" Shikamaru said clearly annoyed. His voice was deeper than usual, almost husky. Ino took the oppurtunity to place her lips on his neck, sucking gently, thus making sure the guards knew exactly what they were intruding upon. She tried to ignore the thrill she got from feeling his pulse speed up even further from under her lips. "It's my first holiday in weeks, and I intend to fully enjoy every single second. If you catch my drift..."

She heard snickers from some of the guards, and sure enough, from the corner of her eye she could see them exchanging large grins. They were in luck; the guards were all quite young and all male. She scoffed inwardly.

One of the guards whistled as he tried to get a better look at her. "Where did you find that fine piece of ass?"

Shikamaru turned his attention back to Ino, dismissing them. He ran his fingers down her cheek. "... Around. Now if you gentlemen excuse us..." He took a step back and placed his arm around her waist again, before he began to lead her down the way the guards had come from.

Ino let out the most empty-headed giggle she could muster and attached herself to his side. "You naughty boy!"

"Well, when you're done with her," a guard shouted after them, "send her to us, will'ya?"

A roar of laughter broke out behind them, as Shikamaru tightened his hold on her almost painfully. When they rounded another corner he stopped and hastily released her. Ino found herself feeling suddenly cold.

"Ino-"

"Don't," Ino interrupted with a forced smile. "It was our best shoot at getting away without bloodshed and it payed off. It meant nothing."

Shikamaru briskly resumed walking, looking pointedly ahead and not at her.

"Right," he said. "Nothing."

"Nothing," Ino whispered again, mostly to convince herself it was true.

The fourth time, it actually meant something.

"Well?" Shikamaru said, his eyebrow raised in question, hands in his pockets as he leaned against his desk. "I thought you said you wanted to talk. So talk."

Ino realized she must seem like an idiot. She had raced up to him when he emerged from the Hokage Tower, claiming she wanted, no needed to speak with him in private. He had only nodded once and returned back inside to his office, Ino following half a step behind like a lost puppy. But when the door had closed behind them, silencing the noises from outside, Ino's mind had suddenly and inconveniently drawn a blank. She had only looked at him for several long awkward moments, unable to properly formulate what she wanted to say. Which lead to Shikamaru's impatient prompting.

"I don't like how we are," she began, but paused and frowned. "No, that's not what I meant. I do like how we are, it's one of the best things in my life, but... I don't like how things have been since... You know."

Their mission in Earth Country two weeks ago. When they kissed a bit too passionately to be considered even remotely platonic.

Shikamaru cleared his throat and looked away, but didn't say anything.

"Anyway, um... I ran into Sakura just now and I happened to tell her about it." More like she had stormed into Sakura's apartment, totally freaking out, spilling everthing about their kiss and how she couldn't stop thinking about it and that maybe, just maybe, she might actually be in love with her lazy, good-for-nothing team-mate. "The mission, I mean, and..." She trailed off when blue eyes met with unfathomable dark ones.

"And?" He said flatly.

"And I also mentioned our kiss, you know, just casually, no big deal," she suspected her breezy laugh sounded horribly fake; it was hardly even a laugh really, more like a strangled sound in the back of her throat. "And then she said the most ridiculus thing."

"What?" He asked in a low voice when Ino failed to continue.

Ino took a deep breath. This was it. "She said you have been in love with me for years, and I've just been too stupid and too self-absorbed to notice." The words came out in a rush, and as soon as she said it, she braced herself for his denial that was sure to come.

She saw him close his eyes and sigh heavily. He rubbed a hand against his forehead and muttered a familiar troublesome under his breath. Then he looked her in the eye again, a bittersweet smile on his face.

He said nothing. He denied nothing. He just looked her steadily in the eye.

Ino's mind was reeling. She crossed her arms around her waist to keep herself from... She didn't know honestly; shaking him until he said something or launching at him, kissing him senseless and never letting him go.

"I don't know what you want me to say," he said finally. He sounded annoyed, strangely enough. He continued before Ino had a chance to even open her mouth. "Yes, of course I'm in love with you; how could I not be? Yes, I've probably been in love with you since we were kids and you started bossing me around. Yes, I jeopardized a mission by making the choice of kissing you instead of retreating, just so I could get to feel, at least once, what it would be like to kiss you in real life. No, I don't regret it and no, how I feel won't get in the way of our friendship." He twisted his lips bitterly. Ino's heart constricted painfully at the sight, dimming her elation from his words. "I've managed this far after all. Yes, we can pretend the kiss and this conversation never happened, and go back to how it used to be."

Ino shook her head slowly. "You are the dumbest genius in the entire world." She took two steps closer until there was hardly any space between them, placing her hand delicatly over his heart. He watched her uncertainly, a wary look in his eyes. "I don't want to go back to how it used to be." She could feel his heart thumping steadily, if a bit faster than normal, under her palm. "Do you really think I, Ino Yamanaka, would have been this tongue-tied and awkward if I'd had nothing to lose? If I wasn't in love with you to the point of stupidity?" She scoffed, but couldn't keep a big, goofy, totally undignified, grin of her face anymore. "Now stop talking and kiss me already."

Shikamaru chuckled and caressed her cheek. "Always so bossy." He looked at her with such wonder, disbelief and a tenderness so great, Ino felt her breath catch and her heart soar.

He kissed her again. This time, it was finally for the right reasons.

End of part three.

Next time, Tenten and Neji will sleep in the same bed three times, well four... But the forth time not much actual sleeping is done.