You are my Star

Chapter 16 - Death and Chocolate

"See you soon!" Hoshiko waved at Shikamaru as he and a few other teams launched off, in search of Akatsuki that had been sighted. 

Shikamaru smiled and waved. "Be back in a few!"

Hoshiko would be staying in the village to defend it if the need arises. 

Her day started normally. She took a nice walk, then did some training, honing her jutsus well into the afternoon. Then, at sunset, news arrived that a couple of the teams had come back. One of them being Asuma and Shikamaru's team. She hurried to the front gate, a smile on her face. Then she stopped. 

There  wasn't anyone missing, all four people were there.

But one of them was dead.

"Asuma..." she whispered, shocked. "Is he-?"

Kotetsu, who was carrying Asuma's body, wouldn't look at her. 

Hoshiko sighed. "He's completely gone...where's...where's Shikamaru?" she asked looking around.

"He went off in that direction," said Kotetsu, pointing. "But he said he wanted to be alone."

Hoshiko nodded. "Thanks, Kotetsu," and went to report the news to the hokage. 

                                                                    * * *

"Asuma-sensei is dead, milady."

Lady Tsunade's eyes widened. Then she exhaled slowly, putting her head in her hands. She stayed like that for a minute, then looked up. "Tell everyone about the funeral service. We're holding it today."

"Yes, milady."

And so she did. She told everyone about Asuma's death and the funeral service. They all changed into black, then headed to the cemetery, holding flowers, food, anything they thought the dead sensei would appreciate in the afterlife. And it rained, as if even the heavens were mourning for the loss of an amazing man. 

Shikamaru, however, never showed up. He sat on the roof, letting the rain wash over him, took a walk down dark alleys, went to the dumpling shop and ate some food. Finally, he headed to his parents' house. Leaning against a support beam, he looked out at the gray dusk. 

His dad played shogi with him, and discussed Asuma. "He was a great man, he was," his father said. 

"Yeah."

"You were always his favorite student," he tried.

"Yeah."

"You must have been real sad, seeing him get hurt."

"Yeah."

"And now he's dead."

Shikamaru knocked over the shogi board. "Just what are you getting at, dad?" he said, shooting up.

His father stood up too. "Let it out, son. All the hate, the anger, the pain, the sadness, the disappointment. You can't keep your feelings bottled up and still be okay. I know you don't usually express yourself, but the first step to being okay again is to let your feelings out." He walked to the door and closed it. "I'm here for you, son."

Shikamaru stood in the room, his hand clenched into a fist, tears streaming down his face. And he let himself cry.

Hoshiko had a feeling Shikamaru might be with his dad, so she opened a portal to his parents' house. She walked down the hall, and ran into his father. "Oh, good evening," she said, and stepped past him. She continued striding toward the room where Shikamaru usually spent time in. 

She heard quiet sobs from inside, and stopped. "Oh," she said, and turned, walking to the house's backyard. 

"Hoshiko." Shikamaru's father.

Hoshiko turned. "Yes?" 

"Do me a favor. Don't think any less of Shikamaru for this, alright?"

Hoshiko smiled sadly. "I'm the last person you need to tell that to, Mr. Nara." then she continued into the garden out back and formed a perfect sphere in the air with a barrier. She stepped inside, and, sheltered from the rain, laid back and waited for Shikamaru. 

After a while, the cries stopped. Hoshiko walked out of the sphere, the orb disintegrating behind her, and opened the door. "Hey." Shikamaru was lying on the floor of the room, tear tracks streaking down the sides of his face.

He turned in surprise. Then he flushed. "Did you-"

Hoshiko shrugged. "I don't care. It's normal to cry when your teacher's gone."

She laid down next to him, but to the other side, so that only her face was next to Shikamaru. "It sucks, doesn't it."

"Yeah, it does."

Hoshiko sat up. She opened a portal, reached in, and pulled out a box of chocolates. "Here," she said, offering it to him. "I eat chocolate when I'm sad, who knows, maybe it'll work for you too."

Shikamaru wiped his eyes and took the chocolate. "Thanks, Hoshiko," he whispered. "I'm actually starving." He opened the box and took out one of the beautifully shaped chocolates with caramel drizzle decorating the top, and popped it into his mouth. His eyes widened. "This is really good!" he said, eating another one.

"I think it's just 'cause you're hungry," said Hoshiko, chuckling. "But you shouldn't eat sweets when you're hungry. It's bad for you."

"I don't care," said Shikamaru. "It's just one day." 

Hoshiko huffed, then opened another portal. "Thankfully," she said. "I'm prepared."

She pulled out two lunch boxes, still warm, and handed one to Shikamaru, and layed a pair of chopsticks across his box. "Hehe, remember you made dinner for us? You never ate yours, and neither did I, so we can eat now."

Shikamaru stared at Hoshiko. "Sometimes I forget how good of a person you are," he said, then dug into his food. 

"But I made good friends," she said. "I learned it from you guys."

Shikamaru laughed, truly laughed since he had come back. 

"Yeah, right."