Disclaimer: "Naruto" is property of Masashi Kishimoto, Studio Pierrot, Viz Media, etc.

Shikamaru stretched his legs out over the verandah, waiting for his opponent to make the next move. Knowing his opponent, it was going to be a few minutes until she decided which shogi piece to move and to where. It was a bit bothersome. He was always up for a game of shogi, but this particular opponent had been showing up at his place for the past three days. He already knew what to expect from her. "Do you honestly think you'll win this time?" His tone was more bored than condescending.

Her eyes didn't move from the game board. "I don't have to win; I just need to be better at strategizing."

He looked up at the sky, which today was a clear blue free of clouds. "Can't you find some other way to do that?"

This time she did look up at him, frowning. It was quite apparent that Shikamaru wasn't afraid to express his opinions – although most of the time his opinions sounded more like complaints. "Sorry if I'm not much competition for you, but you don't have to make it sound like I'm a nuisance," she retorted.

"Well, you kind of are," he monotonously replied.

Her leg jerked, bumping against the shogi table. "How can you say that so frankly to a girl? If you keep up this attitude no one will want to date you."

For a moment, Shikamaru seemed surprised, and then thoughtful. "That's a bit of a problem, since I want to have a family."

Her eyebrows rose high underneath her forehead protector. "You do? That's a surprise."

"Huh… I just want to lead a relaxing life."

"What? If you wanted to relax why in the world did you choose to become a shinobi? There's nothing relaxing about that line of work."

"Yeah, that's become clearer to me lately. If I want to have a good life I can't just be idle about it."

That was true. Even if Shikamaru was lazy, she couldn't imagine him bumming around wasting his talent now that she'd seen what he was capable of. She wanted to live as a fulfilling shinobi as well. "Hey, give me your hand."

"Huh? Why?"

"I'll tell you your fortune," she brightly said. "Specifically, what your marriage will be like."

His expression turned from bemusement to dubiousness. "That's ridiculous."

"Come on, it'll be fun."

Shikamaru grumbled a bit at that, but he shifted around to face her and cooperatively held his hand out to her.

A sense of excitement rushed through her as he took his hand in her own. She was pragmatic enough to know that palm readings were not straight profiles of a person, but she got a thrill whenever she saw something that matched. For instance, she laughed a little when she noted Shikamaru's heart line ending at the base of his index finger – a sign he was picky about a partner. Under his index finger was also where his head line started, indicating he was highly intelligent.

She began to look for his marriage line, but instead found her gaze drawn to the lines of influence. There was a sizable star shape at the end of one, which acted as the starting point for a worry line. Her eyes began to trail the worry line, until it intersected with his life line. Her breath hitched, and she dropped his hand on the shogi table where it scattered the pieces in play.

He gave her a strange look. "What happened? I thought you were going to give me a palm reading."

She collected herself and uneasily smiled, trying to look well. "Um… you know, you're right – a palm reading wouldn't be able to tell you the future."

- - -

It had been a few days since Sakura last saw Tenten – not since she and Lee had showed up after their mission. She wasn't particularly concerned, but some part of her had been expecting Tenten to confront her with another challenge of some sort; and yet another part just wanted to see her. She said as much to Ino while they were browsing through the books in their usual practice room.

"Shouldn't you be relieved?" Ino responded as she shelved the book she had been skimming. "The only times she's approached you have been about challenges."

"Well, I don't really mind them," Sakura admitted. "They help me figure out where I stand, and… Tenten's nice."

The bridge of Ino's nose wrinkled. "And I'm not nice?"

"You could be better." Sakura teasingly smiled.

Ino returned it. "Speak for yourself." The enjoyment she got out of their friendly banter was somewhat dampened by a strain of guilt. She had a fair idea of where Tenten might be. The other day Tenten had asked in private where her genius teammate lived, and what he liked to do. Actually, Ino knew for a fact where she was – because when she asked him about it, he had conveyed how much of a bother it was.

Sakura studied the page she had opened to for a few more moments before saying, "Alright, I'm going to try making this one. I'll start by getting this ingredient." She left the book open on the table and pointed at one of the listed items long enough for Ino to glimpse.

When she saw what it was Sakura needed, Ino attempted to call after her, but Sakura was already well on her way to her destination.

- - -

Usually Shikamaru walked Tenten to the outer gate, but when his mother asked him to help her with the chores, Tenten kindly said she could show herself out.

"Gee, thanks," Shikamaru sarcastically said as he stood in the entrance to his house. This was just what he wanted – to get down to work right away.

Tenten hopped down the steps and mischievously smiled at him. "You're welcome. Thanks for letting me come over these past few days."

"It's not like I had a choice."

"Ahh, there you go again; but I guess you're right." This time her smile was honest. "Thanks for putting up with me."

She turned to leave when he called, "Hey," and she looked back at him over her shoulder. He offered her one of his wry grins. "Just to make it clear, I said you were kind of a nuisance."

She smiled again and said, "Dually noted."

Tenten began to cross the Nara compound, and heard the door behind her shut with a soft thump. Aside from all the deer droppings outside, Tenten rather liked visiting the Nara household. It was amusing to see Shikamaru's mother's first reaction when she found her son had a female caller other than Ino at the door. She remarked it was good to see her son making progress 'in that area,' to which Shikamaru responded to with sighs, eye rolls, and the clarification that she was only a peer.

When they weren't playing shogi or watching the sky, Tenten made it a point to visit the Nara deer. The animals were quite gentle, and once when Shikaku had been home, he showed Tenten how to feed them. As she pulled open the door of the outside gate, she wondered if there were any around watching her.

Beyond the gate she heard a soft gasp and saw something pink jump. Her dark eyes locked on to a green pair. "Sakura?"

She was still reeling from surprise. "Tenten… You came to see the Naras?"

"Shikamaru, to be specific." Tenten stepped forward and pulled the door closed behind her. "We were just hanging out."

"Shikamaru? I didn't know you two were so close."

"Hm? Well actually… I'd say our relationship is the same as the one you and I have, minus the rivalry of course."

Her answer only served to perturb Sakura. She wasn't actually sure what the relationship she and Tenten shared could be defined as.

Tenten lifted a hand to wave her farewell. "Later, Saku-"

"When you were released from the hospital, why didn't you tell me?"

Tenten stared at her, taken aback. "Why didn't I tell you?"

"Yes," Sakura firmly replied. "I came to visit you, but I was told you weren't there anymore. You should have let me know, I was –" She cut herself off. It wasn't because she didn't want to say it – she didn't know what 'it' was.

"You were what?" Tenten was looking at her quite quizzically, expectantly, but Sakura still couldn't answer. She noticed how troubled Sakura seemed, and after a moment came forward to place a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. Okay?"

Sakura looked up at her, and at the sympathetic smile that touched her heart. "Yeah…" She was grateful. She was making an apology when she didn't even know why.

Tenten stood back and said, "Well, I have to go meet Lee now." Then her expression became thoughtful. "Maybe we can do something later. Oh, what should our next challenge be? It's not fair that I got to decide twice in a row."

"Er, a challenge?" Sakura scrambled her brainpower together in her attempt to quickly come up with something. She felt the warming effect of the sunlight on her arm, and she grew warmer the longer Tenten stood in front of her, waiting for a reply. "Um… how about holding our breath underwater?"

"Hm, sounds good. I'll meet you by the river outside the village in two hours; head straight there from the entrance to the village."

Sakura consented and Tenten left to meet Lee. It took a few seconds for Sakura to remember what she had come to the Naras for.

- - -

The most troublesome thing about Tenten's jutsu, in her personal opinion, was the inconvenience of having to pick up after herself. Of course, if she was training with another person, the additional pair of hands was certainly helpful. In the case with Lee, cleaning up was thrice as quick because he made a personal speed game out of it. So Tenten didn't mind that today was the third day she had to expend all her scrolls sealed with ninja tools.

She had taken Neji's advice into consideration, and proposed to Lee that they spend some time pitting him against her weapon barrage. He was all for it, as Tenten anticipated. Lee would probably be up for anything that was labeled 'training.'

Where Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation was Neji's saving grace against Tenten's attack, pure speed was Lee's. Once Tenten let the weapons soar, it was up to Lee to physically dodge them by weaving through the onslaught or avoiding it altogether. He only had the first option available whenever, with one scroll, she spun and spiked balls flew out in every direction. She was always alternating her attacks, to keep him on his toes, but he was learning to read her movements.

"I'm out." Breathless, Tenten dropped her empty scrolls and they fell to the ground at her feet.

Lee was covered in scratches, some of them bleeding, but was otherwise perfectly fine. "Your ninja tool assault never ceases to impress me, Tenten."

She looked back at him, and saw him grinning in a way that Neji never did after their sessions. Both her teammates recognized her ability, but Lee was always more vocal about it. Particularly during her chuunin exam match against Temari, Lee and Guy were whooping and hollering from the balcony above the arena. The guilt from before was bubbling, and she needed to do something to quell it.

"Lee, I'm sorry I'm not as supportive as I should be; especially when it comes to you and Neji." Her expression gradually became remorseful. "It was terrible of me to say to give up because you could never beat him. I know I wouldn't like it if someone told me I could never be like Lady Tsunade." She gazed at him, apologetic. "You've worked really hard to get where you are."

It was difficult to tell what Lee was feeling afterward, which was unusual. His face was almost blank, as though he were seeing Tenten for the first time. When he finally spoke, his voice was sincere. "Tenten, I have never once thought poorly of you." His smile was soft. "You are an admirable comrade."

Hearing Lee speak with gentle conviction was a strangely moving experience, compared to his usual animated cheers. It was a bit of a surprise, but one Tenten thought she rather liked. "Thanks." She returned his smile. "You're a good guy, Lee; and a great shinobi."

He regarded her for a moment. Then Lee took a slow, steadying breath, faint rose colouring his cheeks. "The path of a shinobi is a long one. I still have much to learn."

Tenten nodded, still holding her smile. "So do I; let's keep working on it, together."

- - -

Shunk Shunk

She was improving. More often than not, her throws were reaching the center of the target. The guidance Neji's teammate had given her helped more than she thought it would. Now Hanabi was becoming riskier, throwing one projectile after another in succession. It was harder than she had anticipated, having to twist her body in order to throw the second weapon – but she remembered what Tenten had said, and changed her approach to throwing them as one smooth motion. That worked better.

As Hanabi practiced, Neji passed by, on his way to meet Hiashi for sparring. He had seen her working at for the past few days, but today he paused to watch for a while. Her form was quite good, better than his own during in his academy days.

It had quickly became clear to his classmates that Neji was talented, the de facto genius of their year. Written or applied, he could complete whatever was thrown his way, and complete it with finesse. Anything below average was not acceptable to young Neji, for his own, vengeful reasons. It was therefore, in his eyes, a dreadful problem when he discovered a weakness in target practice. His ninja tools would not land where he wanted them to, no matter how much he concentrated. This was unacceptable for someone who was usually a quick study.

"Do you want some help?" a light voice said to him during target practice.

He shifted his eyes to the person standing beside him. It was a girl – the one who was the class example for this aspect of the shinobi arts. She wore a blue shirt with purple accents, and her hair was up in an odango style. He flatly told her, "No." No one had ever offered him help before. Declining was an automatic, defensive answer.

She shrugged, and took the place beside him to practice.

Neji returned to his own training, but was discouraged after a few off-center attempts. The wooden dummy neighbouring his had a few kunai jutting out from the bull's-eye, and then a shuriken zoomed in to join them. Involuntarily, his gaze moved from the dummy to the assailant.

A satisfied smirk played about her lips, and she picked up another shuriken. She released it with a graceful swing of her arm, and the shuriken embedded itself underneath the growing collection of metal. The next time she threw, he examined her posture, her form.

He resumed practicing, and four kunai later, he hit the mark.

When target practice was over, the students began retrieving the weapons stuck in the dummies and lying discarded on the ground. As Neji yanked out a particularly stubborn kunai, he heard the girl next to him say, "Did it help?"

He glanced at her. "What did?"

She pleasantly smiled and said, "Watching me throw ninja tools."

He was brought out of his reverie by the sound of his cousin's voice. "Neji. Neji!" He looked down and saw Hanabi observing him with a peculiar expression. "You'll be late for your meeting with my father."

"Ah, right," he absentmindedly responded, and turned to continue on his way.

- - -

Sakura was sitting on her towel by the river with her bare feet dipped in the cool water. After leaving the Naras she managed to collect the remaining ingredients for the medicine she wanted to make. However, she found it difficult to concentrate making it when her challenge with Tenten was scheduled in a couple of hours. She wondered what had possessed herself to think of this test anyway.

A light blue towel landed next to her. "Hey, have you been waiting long?" Tenten stood beaming at her.

"No," replied Sakura, although she was not really aware of how long she had been sitting there.

"Good, I thought I might be late." Tenten reached for her left arm and began unwinding the bandage wrapped about.

Sakura's developed clinical instinct kicked in. "Should you be swimming if your arm is hurt?"

"I'm not hurt. This is just for protection." She set the bandage aside and began unbuttoning her shirt. "Although, I suppose wearing something like gloves would be more convenient… preferably fingerless so I can still feel my ninja tools."

Sakura nodded and started to unzip her dress. In addition to medical ninjutsu, Tsunade had been training her to be nimble and strong – nimble, to avoid being hurt in the field, and strong, for when she needed to put up a fight. Much of her strength training involved handling and smashing boulders, which wasn't easy on her hands. Perhaps she should consider getting a pair of gloves herself.

Underneath her red dress Sakura was wearing a pink two-piece swimsuit. She looked up and saw Tenten wearing the same, but dark green in colour. She also grudgingly noted the way Tenten's body filled the suit out more than her own did.

"Okay, ready to do this?" Tenten waved a timer in her hand and slid into the water, Sakura following suit. "On the count of three we duck in." Tenten placed the timer on the bank and counted up. On three, they each sucked in a breath, and sunk.

The water swallowed them, encasing their bodies in a liquid cage that molded to their forms. Sakura opened her eyes and through the water saw Tenten staring back, her bangs swaying to the ebb and flow of the river. She could hear the movement of the water, feel its suffocating pressure. The breath of air Sakura had inhaled began to strain against her lungs, then her throat, her mouth, her nose. A prickle of pain followed, and she could no longer hold it. She kicked herself up and broke through the surface, spattering water around her and gasping for air.

A quick glance around showed her that Tenten had not come up after her. Sakura spotted her submerged figure, bent and warped by the rippling water. She waded over to shore and picked up the timer. Only a minute had passed. She hauled herself out of the water and turned to sit at the edge of the river, her eyes moving from the timer, to Tenten, and back. Two minutes. She had passed the average.

As Sakura continued to keep watch, a sort of anxiety started to creep over her. If Tenten wasn't careful, she could end up passing out underwater. Then again, she thought, Tenten was a member of Team Guy. Maybe this was normal for her. Three minutes. Sakura was physically worried now, her fingers incessantly tapping against the ground. She didn't even bother looking at the timer gripped in her hand. Her eyes were on Tenten, her still body hanging in the water. Then Sakura saw it – a stream of bubbles issued from Tenten's mouth, and she doubled-over, but didn't get up. Panicked, Sakura chucked the timer aside and dove into the river, reaching for Tenten. She grabbed her upper arm and dragged her above water, their breaths coming out as a dissonant splutters.

When they reached the shore, Sakura quickly shot a disapproving look in Tenten's direction. "Are you crazy? You could have been in trouble back there!"

Tenten looked back at her with a blithe expression as she climbed out of the water. "Then it's a good thing you're studying to become a medic-nin."

Sakura frowned. "Tenten, be serious!"

They were sitting together on the shoreline now, dripping wet, the towels catching the droplets that fell from their hair. Tenten considered Sakura with a curious gaze. Seeing the younger girl cross with her was somehow amusing. She suddenly recalled her recent mission, how Tsuyuko had been unaffected by her words. Was there a way to practice? Impulsively, Tenten lowered her eyelids and sweetly smiled. "My apologies. It is an honor to know I mean so much to you."

Sakura's lips parted, but she was at a loss for words. Interestingly however, a slight flush was blooming in her complexion. "It's not – I mean –"

"What do we have here? Splashing about in the water instead of training?"

The girls looked up and saw a kunoichi older than either of them standing on the branch of one of the trees lining the riverside. Her golden hair was parted in four and a giant fan was strapped to her back.

Tenten immediately got to her feet. "We are training."

Even from across the river, the smirk on Temari's face was evident. "You could have fooled me," she taunted.

The expression on Tenten's face hardened. "Why are you even here?"

"Oh, I'm doing some work to help build relations between Suna and Konoha. So if you were planning on challenging me to a rematch, you'll have to wait. Later!" A quick tap shortly after signaled her departure, and she was gone from their sight.

From the corner of her eye, Sakura saw Tenten's hands tighten into fists at her sides. She remembered learning from Lee that Tenten wanted to have another battle against Temari. Sakura hadn't seen most of their chuunin fight, as she'd been sitting with Ino against the wall, mulling over her own match. Judging from the older girls' conversation however, it must not have gone well for Tenten. "Lee said it was between Temari and me," she heard herself say. "Why did you choose me?"

Tenten whirled on her. "What?" Her indignation from meeting Temari did not subside. Rather, Sakura's question seemed to prod at the coals of her ire. "Do I really need to say it? Don't you have any confidence in yourself?"

Sakura stared at her, astonished. She moved her gaze to the river, where her reflection rippled on the water's surface. Quietly, she said, "I thought I had become better… I thought I could at last surpass Ino… but we tied during the chuunin exam." She took a breath and gazed across the river. "There's a lot for me to do if I want to be able to work alongside Naruto."

A sudden splash of water surged up from the river, and Sakura lifted an arm to shield her face. When she looked again, she saw Tenten floating on her back in the water.

"As long as you know where you're going, that's fine by me." Tenten righted herself in the water and glanced at the other girl. "I want to fight a strong Sakura."