Cries of the Forest

25

"Please explain to me: how exactly do you know this person?"

"Ah, well, he's our new supplier of wild mushrooms! You wouldn't know, but our most popular specialty dish was made possible by his contributions!"

"...a supplier, huh." He didn't know when the blond possibly had time to make a merchant of himself, but it was as welcome as it was unexpected of him—especially seeing as how those mushrooms were paying for the numerous bowls of ramen that'd been quickly emptied and stacked messily around the other.  

"Mh! I didn't have 'ryo' last time so I gave her some mushrooms instead! Turns out they're really tasty in ramen, dattebayo!"

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Shikamaru said absentmindedly, wondering how well Naruto would take to teachings of manners and if he should even bother. Ayame (as he'd learned her name to be) simply laughed and went to tend to another customer, leaving him to poke at the halves of boiled egg in his shio ramen. 

He was happy to see Naruto so enthusiastic again, just now noticing how infrequently they'd been well and truly happy lately. The stress had gotten to the both of them, but seeing his partner positively glowing (even if he was making a huge mess in the process) made him feel a bit fuzzy inside. Honestly, you'd think he'd have gotten used to the feeling by now, but it seemed to creep up on him every time.

The ramen was good and he appreciated how small the stand was—crowds had never been his forte and his increased mission load made that especially true now. He didn't often go for streetfoods—ramen even less-so because of Chouji's like for barbeque. He kind of missed those outings they'd had as a genin team those few years ago.

As if a mere thought had summoned them, both Ino and Chouji rounded a corner and made startled eye-contact with the Nara heir, immediately honing in on them and (unconsciously or not had yet to be seen) blocking his exits.

"Long time no see," Ino said, honeyed words just barely concealing her anger. Although he was sure Chouji shared at least a modicum of her sentiments, he seemed even more wary of Ino's temper, having inched a few steps away from her.

"Sorry, I was busy," the brunet said sheepishly, all-too-aware that his negligence warranted a much better excuse than he could offer.

"Oh, with what? Not missions, right? Otherwise, we'd have seen more than a glimpse of you in the past 3 weeks." Her skin was reddening with her anger, a vein visibly popping in her temple. Beside him, Naruto had paused his eating to give her a sour look, restrained only by Shikamaru's intentionally lax posture and the hand he'd placed on his knee in warning.

"I was busy finding some new places to take naps," he joked, not quite comfortable with airing their whole fiasco that may or may not have been highly classified in a food stall. (He meant his apology, though, even if his apathetic demeanor might have pointed to the opposite.)

Ino sighed in irritation and rolled her eyes at his lie, but Chouji had now taken out a bag of chips to snack on (though he still hadn't taken his eyes from him).

"You should do more than just sleep! Ever since we were kids, that's all you'd do if you weren't being forced to do something by Yoshino!" His chest tightened he felt his temper flare.

"I said I was sorry, alright." Ino stopped her nagging to stare at him, having never heard him interrupt her like that, let alone raise his voice the slightest. He sighed through his nose, feeling instant remorse, and worked to settle his frayed nerves. "Sorry," he repeated lamely.

He could tell that his reaction had alerted Chouji that something was going on with him as his closest friend had taken one look at the tan hand that'd been placed over his and decided to settle down in one of the now-unoccupied seats. No one ever gave Chouji enough credit, never bothering to look past his weight and intense love for food. If one took the time to know him, they'd know that the Akimichi heir was an intensely empathetic individual with keen observational skills.