Obviously I didn't create Naruto - I'm not nearly that cool. Enjoy the fluff.
Shikamaru was doing what he did best – nothing at all. Eyelids half open, he lay sprawled on his back on his favorite Konoha rooftop staring at the sky. A clipped footfall caught his attention, but he didn't stir. Someone was coming up the stairs; it didn't sound heavy enough to be Chouji or quick enough to be Ino. Shikamaru toyed with the idea of moving in order to see who it was, but thought better of it. He would find out soon enough – why waste energy?
"Hey – Shikamaru-kun."
He muttered an oath, and tilted his head to see the speaker better. It was Temari. The sand kunoichi had her hands on her hips and was glaring at Shikamaru as if his very existence annoyed her. Letting out a theatrical groan, Shikamaru sat up. "What do you want? I thought you were interviewing proctors for the upcoming chuunin exam?"
"I was – I still am…" She appeared more annoyed and superior than usual, her toe tapped on roof tiles. "I have two more interviews, but I had a question. However, if it's too troublesome for you, I can always go ask Hokage-sama to give me a different guide.
Shikamaru rolled his eyes. Women: they won't ever just tell you what's wrong, they have to talk you in circles first. He refused to be baited. "What was your question?"
Temari narrowed her eyes and flashed him a condescending grin. "I understand you made a report to Lady Tsunade about the former chuunin exam proctors suggesting you move Morino Ibiki to a different section of the exam."
"That's right."
"Why?"
"Because the last three times he's proctored the written portion of the exam, he's brought in a mysterious 10th question that completely negates the results of the first 9 questions. It's skewing the results so that anyone with enough gall can pass the first portion, whether or not they can gather information at all. Ibiki-san's skills are in torture – put him over the second portion of the exam where he has freer reign and put someone more calculating and less sadistic over the first portion. Then at least the first portion of the exam will actually garner accurate results." He punctuated his soliloquy with a weary sigh.
Shikamaru saw with some satisfaction that Temari's self-satisfied smirk slipped a little. Her voice deepened a bit with awe – or maybe it was skepticism. "You've thought about this a lot haven't you?"
"Not much, really."
Tsunade had asked him his opinion following his promotion to chuunin almost three years ago. He hadn't really considered the incident since.
"Oh, I forgot, you're supposed to be the intelligent one, aren't you?"
Shikamaru heaved a sigh in response. He resumed his reclined position and began once again tracing the progress of the clouds across the sky. Not to be ignored, Temari circled Shikamaru until she was standing directly in his line of sight. Now all he could see was her backlit figure. She had a peculiar look on her face, and her head was cocked to one side. Hands still on hips, Temari spoke again – slightly louder.
"What are you looking at, genius-boy?"
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "I was looking at the clouds."
Catching the hint and ignoring it, Temari glanced at the sky from where she stood. "What? Are you looking for shapes in the clouds – bunnies and fish and… deer?"
"No, I'm just looking at clouds."
"Are you sure? Because that one looks a lot like a duck – or maybe it's a kunai, eh?"
Shikamaru was becoming a little annoyed. Surely she had better things to do than pester him for no reason. "No, it's just a cloud."
"Well, then --" Temari pivoted where she stood and in one fluid motion unfurled the enormous fan she carried on her back. She let out a piercing cry, leapt into the air, and with one wave sent a chakra-filled torrential gust of air skyward. Shikamaru watched as the clouds above his head were blown clear to the horizon – dispersed like a crowd when confronted with a charging bull.
Temari landed neatly and struck a sort of pose with one hand resting on her fan. "I think you should pay attention to more important things, Shikamaru-kun." She turned and stalked off the rooftop and back down the stairs.
The sky overhead was now entirely cloudless, a fierce cornflower blue. "How troublesome," Shikamaru muttered to himself.