It All Started With A Smell

The End

Their wedding had been a large affair, something neither of them would have chosen for themselves but after making a guest list that was what they had. In the end, he was glad it was so big. They had so many people important to them that they wanted to share an event over fourteen years in the making. With leaders from other villages coming the Elders tried to turn the wedding into a political affair but surprisingly Naruto was the one who shut the subtle order down instantly.

"No one is using our wedding for politics. Our friends are coming to celebrate us and our lives together, not to make alliances." It had felt like Naruto towered over the two. Shikamaru had to pretend he was putting his fist in front of his mouth in anger or in thought but in truth he was trying to hide his grin.

The Elder had started the conversation in Lord Kakashi's office as though they expected Shikamaru and Naruto to go along with their plan, but by the end they were simply nodding along with the blonde.

He and Naruto had done a majority of the planning for their wedding, even though neither of them found particular enjoyment from organizing events. Their wedding however, was different. Shikamaru wanted to make something good enough for Naruto, and he had a feeling his fiancée had to do something similar. They did have his mother and Aunt Momoji's help, and Iruka-Sensei leant a hand though he had clearly been a bit overwhelmed by Naruto asking him to fill the fatherly role.

They had had a buffet like with Shikamaru's cousin's wedding; Naruto having liked the meaning behind Eiji's tradition. It had also given the other Ninja villages the opportunity to share some of their cultural dishes. In the end the Elders did get what they wanted in a way. Having the chance to simply spend time intermingling, seeing people outside of being ninjas or past enemies helped ease any remaining tension between the villages. Shikamaru had even seen Choji dancing with a woman from the Cloud.

Admittedly, the wedding itself felt like it was over in a flash. He had started grinning the moment he saw Naruto walking out on Iruka-Sensei's arm. His mother had tried to convince them to tone down the orange, but she had lost. Naruto wore a flowy, sparkly dress, the skirt burnt from the same white of the bodice to a rich, sunset orange, which to Shikamaru gave Naruto the illusion of walking on the horizon.

As for him he wore a black kimono with deep green trim. On the cuffs were embroidered the Uzumaki symbol and the Nara symbol, on the left and right respectfully. Although he knew that he would remember the moment Naruto stopped in front of him, smiling brightly, forever, the rest of the ceremony and reception went by in a blur. By the time the two of them fell into bed late in the night even Naruto was exhausted and both their faces hurt from smiling and laughing so much.

/ / / / /

In the two years since Sakura had told them about her tests, the two years that they had been married, Shikamaru and Naruto tried not to think about it. It wasn't a well-known medical trial so short of seeking out information it was easy for them to put it out of their minds. That was, until Sakura appeared on their door step.

Shikamaru had only just woken up. Instead of guessing why she was there he simply stared at her, lazily sipping his coffee. Moments after he had opened the door Sakura had blushed and looked away. It took him a second to look down and realise that he was shirtless and that was causing her discomfort.

"Do you need something?" He asked, not unkindly. "Is there a mission or something?"

"Um, I was hoping to talk to you and Naruto. Is she home?" Sakura shot a look over Shikamaru's shoulder.

He turned to the interior of the house, raising his voice, "Naruto, Sakura wants to talk to us." He waved the pink haired girl in, shooting over his shoulder that he was going to fetch a shirt.