They changed into their new clothes immediately, posing as a married couple. Ino slipped into her traditional wears and brushed out her hair which was nearly dry by this point. She slipped on her wedding band, stopping for a moment to admire how it felt on her finger. Mrs. Shikamaru Nara… Ino Nara… hnnnn…

As she stepped into the living room changed, Shikamaru walked in from around the corner dressed completely new. He looked like a totally different person. No, he looked like a man. He stood taller, still with his arms crossed over his chest, but somehow his shoulders looked broader. His hair had been let down out of his ponytail and fell around the sides of his face nicely bringing out his high cheekbones. Ino never noticed before how long it had gotten. She admired the colour of it, complimenting his eyes, which mirrored the same dark shade. His eyes seemed as serious as ever, yet not as troubled. The mesh he wore under his shirt exposed his lean, toned chest gently flexing in places as he crossed his arms.

"Wow…" Was all they could say as they took in the changes in each other. They both exhaled as they admired one another. Shikamaru's eyes traveled over Ino's subtle curves. He regretted telling her that she was too thin; she was perfect. Her beautiful golden hair flowed around her face and cascaded down her back. His eyes met hers, her pale baby blues. God she's beautiful he thought to himself smiling proudly. He pulled the band out of his pocket and slipped it over his ring finger. They officially matched now, both dressed in blue, Shikamaru wearing navy and Ino sporting sky blue to match her eyes. Walking towards Shikamaru, Ino stretched out her hand, gently taking his.

"We have to get used to holding hands all the time." Ino spoke shyly, brushing her hair out of her eyes. Shikamaru squeezed her hand, reassuring the blonde that he approved. Tsunade clasped her hands together admiring the wonderful transformation, proud she had luck enough to pick such a couple.

"That's good you two. If you act like that the whole way, fooling the locals will be a snap. I already believe what I see, and I know it's fake. You two will do just fine." Shikamaru's heart fell on the word 'fake'. At some point, he would have to tell her how he really felt.

"Well I guess we better get going, before the whole village sees us dressed like this." Shikamaru half smirked, settling into his trademark slouch.

"Shika-kun! Stop slouching, you look so much nicer when you stand tall.'" Ino spoke softly into Shikamaru's ear, playing it up for Tsunade's benefit. 'Oh, I think I like the sound of that. We need nicknames you know Shika-kun." Ino nuzzled her face into Shikamaru's neck, wrapping her arms around his waist. Shocked by her affection, Shikamaru blurted out the only nickname he thought suited her.

"I see, my flower." Ino released her arms from his waist, and peered wide-eyed at Shikamru. Did he really mean that? Of course Shikamaru tried to remain casual, but his eyes didn't lie. They exposed every ounce of love he had for her in one quick glance.

Ino blushed madly, turning away from her partner. She placed a hand over her mouth, trying to collect herself. Did he… Did he look at me like that? Ino hoped from the bottom of her heart that Shikamaru felt the same way she did. She knew then what she wanted. She wanted him to look at her like that, everyday of their life, forever. She knew that she loved him. She loved him with all of her heart. Seeing him for the man he was, Ino knew that everything she ever wanted had been in front of her nose her whole life.

It was Ino's turn to reveal everything. Her eyes lingered on Shikamaru for a fraction of a second too long. The two were having a silent, private conversation forgetting the person standing behind them. Tsunade huffed a low sigh smiling to herself, and then walked out the door. She had nothing left to say to them and it was clear to her that they no longer needed her. Maybe she'd take the long way home. She was in an exceptionally good mood from her visit at the Yamanaka's.

Meanwhile inside, Ino and Shikamaru were quietly going through their packages, checking that they had everything ready. When they were sure they emptied the contents into separate suitcases, adding their own belongings to the mix. Ino packed her headband, and her uniform. Along with that she packed her brush and a compact bag. Shikamaru was all ready to go, slinging his bag over his shoulder with one hand and picking up Ino's with the other. He smirked at the colour choice, purple.

"You know, you don't have to carry that for me. It's pretty light and I can handle it. I'm not a fragile little girl." Ino frowned at Shikmaru as they walked down the road towards the Konoha border. Shikamaru smirked at the blonde beside him, holding her bag above her head.

"I'll give it back if you can reach it." He said with a lazy grin. If it were any other girl in Konoha, that tactic may have worked. But Ino was relatively tall, and clever. Instead of getting mad, she gently kissed Shikamaru on the cheek. He stopped, frozen and speechless. She managed to remove her bag from his occupation and throw it over her shoulders. Ino smiled wildly at Shikamaru, basking in her small triumph. Besides, it wasn't the bag she was after. She wanted to free Shikmaru's hand so she could hold it. Grabbing his hand, she moved closer to his side slipping under his arm.

Shikamaru looked panicky, wondering if Ino was just putting on a show, or if she really wanted to get close to him. Was she just acting? He hugged her close to him, resting his chin on her head. Ino hugged him closer to her, pressing her face into his shoulder. She listened to the faint sound of his heartbeat grow faster. It was nice. They walked like that, hand in hand nearly forgetting about their mission for some time. They had gotten quite used to the couple act before a voice startled them out of their daydream.

"Hey! Hey Ino, is that you?" Ino froze midstride, fear clearly marked on her face. Sakura's footsteps echoed loudly behind them, quickly getting closer. Shikamaru shot Ino a desperate look; what could they do? But Ino was already one step ahead of him. She steered them both around to face her friend and placed herself between the two, shielding Shikamaru from view.

"Hey Sakura." Ino grinned sweetly at the pink haired kunoichi, fidgeting with the hem of her dress.

"Wow, why are you dressed like that? You look so much… older."' Sakura stared at her friend. Her eye moved over Ino, catching a glance of Shikamaru hiding behind her. 'Hey! Hey wait a minute, who's this you're hiding Ino? Hmmm? Have you got a friend you're not telling me about?" Sakura punched Ino in the arm playfully as she stepped in to get a better look.

"N-no, I'm just, you see… we're on a mission." Ino was having difficulty keeping her cool.

"Oh, I get it. He must be from a different village or something. Is he your contact?" Sakura eyed Shikamaru suspiciously. Ino's mouth dropped open, did she seriously not recognize Shikamaru?

"Yeah, actually…'" Ino pulled Shikamaru into view, holding him close. 'He and I are posing as a married couple for this mission. What do you think?" Ino smiled at the look of shock painted over her friend's face.

"Well, you two make a beautiful couple."' Sakura tilted her head as she allowed herself a good look. Her eyes scanned Shikamaru's face slowly, a hint of blush reddening her face. Sakura grabbed Ino's wrist, whispering in her ear. 'Where did you find him? He's gorgeous! Don't let this one get away, cha!" Sakura winked and gave Ino a quick thumbs up. Shikamaru just watched, confused as always.

"Um… Ino we should get going. It's officially morning now." Shikamaru lazily motioned to the horizon. Before now he hadn't said anything in front of Sakura. Both girls looked shocked. Ino was biting her lip, and Sakura's face quickly turned into a devilish grin.

"You idiot!"' Ino yelled, hitting Shikamaru in the chest several times. 'We were so close to pulling this off! Jeez!" Ino turned her back on both of them, embarrassed.

"Oh are you serious? Is that really you Shikamaru?" Sakura blushed, more wide-eyed and curious than ever. Shikamaru scratched the side of his head, a slight smile forming over his lips.

"Yeah… it's different eh?" He noticed Ino glancing angrily out of the corner of her eye at Sakura.

"Cha! Like good different, who knew you were so pretty Shika-kun?" Sakura laughed touching Shikamaru's arm. Ino shot Sakura a dangerous look, her mouth twitching slightly. She'd better back off of him! Ino felt like breaking that hand. Shikamaru wasn't used to being fawned over by girls. He fidgeted awkwardly, silently begging Ino to help him. Ino gladly took the invitation, stepping between them.

"Okay Sakura, we got to get going. It'll be dark before we reach the border." Ino spoke through her teeth, knowing Sakura all too well.

"Well I'll let you go then."' Sakura paused to smile coyly at Shikamru who in return wrapped his arms around Ino, sending Sakura a clear message. Ino smiled gratefully, and Sakura frowned. 'I get it, you guys have a mission to accomplish." With that she turned and walked back the way she came, clearly less enthusiastic this time around.

It took them nearly half the day to finally reach the Konoha border. But by that time, they had grown even closer. They forgot to feel uncomfortable, even laughing with each other; talking about nothing. Ino didn't seem at all like herself. Shikamaru kept waiting for her to yell at him or throw him a dirty look. But eventually he let his guard down, smiling whole-heartedly and completely dropping the lopsided smirk he usually used. Ino admired the Shikamaru she saw walking next to her. She knew that he was showing her his true self. Maybe she seemed like a different person to him too.

It was close to dark before they reached the inner Village Hidden in the Waterfall. By that point, Ino had managed to twist her ankle, resulting in Shikamru carrying her. Her head rested against his back. She clung to him, pressing her fingers into his collarbone. Shikamaru became painfully aware of how light she really was. She was always dieting and trying to lose weight. He frowned sadly, thinking about how self-conscious she must be.

"Ino, are you awake?'" Shikamaru whispered. Ino nodded softly in response. 'We're almost there, I can see the hotel we're supposed to be staying at." He let her down, both walking through the double doors of the inn. The receptionist at the front desk smiled a fake smile.

"Hello Mr. and Mrs. Nara. Your suite is room is number 922. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call down. Room service is available during the hours of 8:00am to 11:00pm. Would you like to upgrade to a different room?"

"No, we're on our honeymoon. I think we'll be fine there. Thank you." With that Shikamaru swept Ino off her feet, carrying her bridal-style to the elevator. Ino giggled, remembering that they were a 'married couple' now. The receptionist smiled from behind the counter as the two slipped into the nearest elevator.

Once inside the elevator, the tension of being alone finally caught up with them. They stood relatively close to each other. Ino wanted so badly to kiss Shikamaru. She wanted to throw her arms around him and run her fingers through his hair. Shikamaru kept shooting Ino looks of longing from the corner of his eyes. He turned to face her, both leaning in to finally kiss. I can't believe it, Ino thought to herself. She practically lunged at Shikamaru. She wrapped her arms around his neck smiling, about to kiss when the elevator opened with a ding. They stopped without achieving anything, both glaring at the little girl who happened to break them apart. She seemed oblivious to the tension in the enclosed space, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet. Dejected, they walked out of the elevator on to the 9th floor.

Shikamaru mumbled something unintelligible under his breath about kids being supervised by their parents. Ino caught most of it, smiling. He swiped the keycard through the lock, letting them into the suite. Ino's smile turned into a full-fledged grin as she took in the splendor of the room. It was huge! The bed was big enough for at least four people. Shikamaru noticed this too, sighing in relief. He knew all too well what he was like when he slept. He frowned hoping Ino wouldn't notice.

A horrible thought dawned on Ino as she considered sleep. Ino often woke up in the morning with a stranglehold on her body pillow. She didn't usually fall asleep like that, it just happened that way. She bit her lip imagining the closest thing to a body pillow in the suite, Shikamaru.

"You can't sleep with me!" Ino yelled at Shikamaru, blush splashed across her face. Her hands balled into fists.

"Of course not! I... I would never try to do that! We're not actually married…" Shikamaru's voice trailed off into mumbles as he too blushed. Ino tilted her head curiously at the shinobi, understanding dawning on her face.

"Oh! Oh, no I didn't mean it like that, I… I just meant that you wouldn't want too."' She turned away from Shikamaru embarrassed. 'You see I, I have this horrible habit. Where I… I tend to spo-" There she stopped herself midsentence, too embarrassed to say anymore.

Shikamaru's mind wandered, filling in the blanks with all sorts of things Ino could have meant. He pictured her sleeping. What could she mean by 'horrible habit'? Did she sleep naked or something? That thought only caused more problems for Shikamaru, as you can imagine what happened next. He followed one thought to another, eventually picturing her naked body under him.

His face turned beet red, giving him away. He scowled angrily at his dirty mind, sitting on the bed with his legs crossed tight. Ino gave him a bewildered look, concerned. Was he okay? He looked like he was uncomfortable.

"What a pain!" Shikamaru grumbled in a low voice through his teeth.

"What's wrong Shikamaru?" Ino walked over to him, placing her hand gently on his thigh. Her brow creased in the middle, concern marked clearly over her features. She was definitely not making the problem any better.

"Nothing! I guess I'm just tired." He lied, trying to smile through the situation.

"In that case, we should both get to bed. I'm tired too." Ino turned away from him bending over her suitcase, giving Shikamaru incentive to kill himself. She fished through her belongings gathering up her toothbrush, hairbrush and pajamas. She left the room, skipping happily to the bathroom. The moment Ino shut the door, Shikamaru rolled onto his stomach, trying desperately to change the direction his thoughts were going in. Shikamaru employed his master strategist skills and started going through a long list of unpleasant things to cool him off. It worked pretty quick considering. Shikamaru wasted no time gathering his things for the night.