The Ardor of Every Day

7.

The day was finally here. Naruto only had to spend twenty-four hours waiting for this moment but it felt like the longest day of his existence. Naruto and his friends were meeting up at the entrance of the market in downtown at 11 am. Naruto would take forever to pick out his outfits in the summer since he didn't like wearing shorts too much. He decided on wearing some loose beige linen pants and a baggy black graphic t-shirt. It was ten-thirty already and he still had to pick Shikamaru up. He grabbed his bag and socks from his room and headed downstairs.

"Hey ma, I'll be leaving now!"

"Wait! Take a water bottle with you." She said as she went to grab one in the kitchen.

"Yeah that's a good idea, and I'll probably be back around six or seven." He was now fully ready with shoes on.

"Ok, have fun!" She waved goodbye.

He left and began driving towards Shikamaru's house. Before driving he settled on his usual playlist. Naruto enjoyed keeping windows down while driving or being in the car during summer, even if the air was hot. Most of the time he had the habit of having one elbow on the window and the other hand on the wheel. His dad had told him to not do that but he couldn't be bothered too much. His hair was lengthier than usual and he hadn't gotten a chance to cut it still. It held its composure less and kept flowing in the wind and interrupting his vision. Soon, he reached Shikamaru's house as it wasn't too far from his. He stopped the car right outside his door and got out his phone to text him.

Naruto: Sorry for being late! I'm here now.

Shikamaru: Ok ok, I'm coming.

Within a minute Shikamaru was opening the door of his car.

"What made you late?" Asked Shikamaru with a raised brow.

"Nothing. I just couldn't pick what to wear."

With that, they steered towards the market. A couple of minutes in Naruto's car, Shikamaru started feeling heated. He realized it was because his friend liked the windows open to feel the air. He didn't say anything because he saw Naruto enjoying himself. He was a really good friend.

Shortly after, they reached the market and Naruto parked his car in the parking lot. All of their friends were waiting near the entrance as Shikamaru had already notified them about their tardy arrival. As Naruto and Shikamaru approached the group, Hinata ran in for a hug from Naruto.

"Leave it to Naruto to be late but still get a hug." Said Kiba in his usual demeanour.

"I'm just that special." Said Naruto playfully mocking him, even though there was nothing special about this.

That was just their dynamic. They had been competitive and cocky with each other since they were little. But they were still good friends. After everyone greeted Naruto, they started walking in pairs of two. Sakura and Hinata, Lee and Kiba and behind all of them, Naruto and Shikamaru.

It was a beautiful day to be outside. The sun was out but the clouds would occasionally hide it while drifting. The air was warm but still cooler than usual. The market was in a huge park so they were surrounded by lots of greenery which made them feel refreshed.

"Ok guys, what do you want to grab first?" Sakura turned back and asked all of them.

"Can we get something cool to drink first? I can feel my youth fading." Lee said while wiping some sweat off of his forehead.

"Haha ok ok, how about this, let's all eat first and then we can play some of these games. Lee and Kiba, you get the drinks. Naruto and Shikamaru, you guys get the snacks. And Hinata and I will get the hot food. After, everyone meets at that red table ok?" Sakura assigned everyone their tasks. She was truly the one to keep them all in line and together.