absence makes the heart go...???

Chapter 1

They aren't friends, not at first; when Naruto Uzumaki and Shikamaru Nara are in the academy together, they spend some time together, but it is not as friends, and neither one is particularly fond of the other. They both like to slack off and cause trouble, so they're often in trouble together, and that is all there is to it. Shikamaru is close with Choji, and no one else, and Naruto has his issues making friends in general.

And, once they graduate and go their separate ways with their separate teams, they don't see each other much at all, and what little bit they may have bonded in detention is easily forgotten, and they hold nothing for one another but contempt. At least, that's where they are when the Chunin exams begin, though, due to Ino and Sakura's odd relationship, the teams are brought together more often than they'd prefer.

The Chunin exams brought a lot of Genin closer together that year, and they're friends before they notice it happening. For instance, Naruto never expects to wake up in the hospital to find Shikamaru watching over him, and though he claims that it's simply because he got bored visiting Choji, there's really no reason for him to have sat there, watching over Naruto for so long.

The experiences that follow with Gaara, the things that they see and that they share, solidify the bond they have been forming, and from that point on, there is no denying that they are friends. Naruto latches onto him, and Shikamaru can't be bothered to try to shake him, and that is how things stay for quite some time.

~X~

It's a busy time, and the forces in the village are stretched rather thin as everyone is made to work where they fit best. With that in mind, it's difficult to pull together a full team to carry out a minor mission, but they manage, no matter how random the assignment may seem to be.

Shikamaru and Ino are still available, but they need two others to complete their team, which is where Naruto and Rock Lee come in. They won't be gone for long, but there are quite a few nights where they stay out together, and enough downtime that they have a lot of time alone together as a team. Naruto never noticed any special connection between Lee or Ino before; hell, he didn't even notice them getting closer during the mission, but one night, the two of them have disappeared, and he is alone with Shikamaru.

"I can't believe she's throwing herself at him like that," Shikamaru mutters, completely out of context.

"Huh? Who's doing what now?"

"Ino," he says, "who else? Come on, she's been making eyes at Lee this whole time. I don't know when all that started, but I knew she was way too excited about this mission." Sighing, he shakes his head. "She's such a pain, I swear."

"Wait, Ino and...and... what ?!" Naruto's eyes widen in disbelief, as Shikamaru's words finally sink in. "There's just no way !"

"Yeah, well, apparently there's some way," he replies. "I don't know what started it. Maybe she's just desperate."

"Maybe...I always thought he was into Sakura, so I don't know when he switched over like that. I guess he just has a type?"

"What? Girls who are loud and a total pain in the ass? If so, they don't seem to be in short supply," Shikamaru mutters, and Naruto isn't sure whether he should laugh, or make some attempt to defend Sakura.

"Seriously, though, you really think that she...that they...?" Shaking his head, Naruto says, "No way, it's just too weird! I mean, you know how Ino is, she would never...would she?"