Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do not own my degree. I am in debt to the system.

Every chapter before this one has been edited. I would highly recommend rereading them. A few things have changed, but only slightly. I hope they are far more enjoyable the second time around.

Chapter 9:

Contrary to popular belief Shikamaru was an early riser, his occupation called for it. He however wasn't particularly fond of it. Today was no exception as he rolled out of bed shortly before seven am. He was surprised to find that like himself, Choji as well as a few other occupants of the room were also up getting ready for their day. He rubbed his eyes and decided he was in desperate need of a shower and then hopefully a nap, considering how little sleep he managed to get last night.

"I hear breakfast is served at seven. I think I'll head over to Ino's and see if she wants to come along, you coming?" Choji was the real morning person on team 10, especially if there was food involved.

"I'll catch up with you in a bit. I gotta catch a shower first." He half mumbled, half yawned, grabbing a towel from one of the nearby racks.

"I'll grab one after I eat. You think they'll let us talk to whoever's in charge today? It doesn't take a genius to know somethings not quite right here." Choji asked, strapping on his last piece of armor. It went without say that they were in no way getting comfortable here.

"I'll make sure of it buddy." Shikmaru handed the bigger man his missing shoe, which had somehow ended up over by him. There was a small frown on his face. He didn't like the direction things were going. You would think they'd be a little more eager to work with them rather than lumping them together with everyone else and offering them a half assed story with more loopholes than a sponge.

Deciding to get to the bottom of it today, he waved his friend goodbye before heading towards one of the designated showering area. The reason he hadn't gotten much sleep the night before wasn't because he didn't make it back at a decent hour or even that his bed was uncomfortable, because it was. His troubles came from his inability to erase the feeling of soft skin and wide blue eyes from his mind. He wasn't entirely sure what their new relationship would bring but he couldn't deny having feelings for the girl. Whether those feelings ran as deep as he hoped he didn't know, but that's what they were trying to find out, wasn't it? Images of the night before kept running through his mind, and he grimaced when he found his pants getting tighter. A cold shower it was then.

The shower didn't help much. His mind was still flooded with vivid images of the night before. Walking back towards his dormitory he couldn't help but belittle himself for forgetting to bring a change of clothing. Was his mind really that preoccupied earlier? With only a towel wrapped around his torso he felt miserably cold as he stomped back to his room. He would have to get better at keeping her from his thoughts, less he turn stupid all of a sudden.

He saw a familiar figure approaching and he mentally cursed for the tenth time that morning. He tightened a hand around his towel and wiped the water droplets from his chest that dripped down from his wet hair. What was she doing over here anyways? The dining hall was on the opposite side of the place, and the women's showers were located in that direction too, which meant only one thing. She was looking for him, great.

"Well don't you just look like a ray of sunshine." Temari held an amused look on her face, as she approached him.

"Hm" He grunted, walking past her. Out of all the people that could embarrass him, he had to run into the only one.

"What's wrong Nara, woke up on the wrong side of the bed?" She teased, keeping pace with him, not at all put off by his cranky exterior, any of his exterior for that matter.

"I forgot my clothes." He mumbled, cheeks turning slightly warm at the admission. He hated being caught in any form of vulnerability around her. Her wit was too quick, and it never failed to knock him down a peg.

"Since when do you forget anything?" She raised one perfectly shaped eyebrow. Last she checked he wasn't the type to just forget something.

He frowned, asking himself the same question.

"Come now, you can't remember everything all the time. Tell me there must be something that wipes your mind clean."

An image of Ino's firm bottom pressed against him flashed in his mind and he mentally groaned. Her wording didn't help much either.

"Some things more than others." He answered her

"Like?" She clicked her tongue

"The same things said to wipe any man's mind clean." He shrugged, knowing full well what he was implying. She wouldn't let him live it down if she caught him lying.

"So you aren't immune to the lulls of a woman then?" She smirked. "Is that what crossed your mind this morning?" She asked, a glint of mischief in her eyes.

"Perhaps or maybe I just forgot my clothes." He shrugged

"Well, whatever the reason, I think we should make it a priority to meet with someone today. Things are not right here. Truth be told I don't think the mist is our biggest concern." She frowned.

"Agreed" He thought just as much, and thankfully they were back at his door. He could finally dress himself properly.

"Hurry up and get dressed. I'll wait for you, and then we can head to the dining hall or where we were held yesterday. The kid who came to assign Ino and I tasks yesterday said to wait there today. He would meet us after breakfast." She finished.

"Just give me a minute." He mumbled, before slipping back into his shared dorm.

He emerged a few minutes later, wearing his regular uniform minus the vest. It was probably for the best, there wasn't much circulation running thorough the underground bunker causing it to be stuffier than usual.

The walk to the dining room was short and relatively uneventful. Temari continued to tease him about the things that could temporarily erase his memory and with it came images of his blue eyed teammate. He would have to take a page out of Neji's book and meditate on it. If there was anyone who mastered the art of juggling work and maintaining a romantic relationship with their teammate, it was Neji.

Walking into the dining area he was surprised to find it pretty packed. He did a quick scan and found Choji relatively easy, next to him was Ino, talking animatedly about something or another. Her hair was braided loosely over her shoulder, draping down her left side, rather than in a long ponytail down her back. Her hands were currently looping the last strands of hair together, before wrapping a band around the tresses. He would have to ask her why. She rarely changed the way she wore her hair.

There wasn't much of a line to get food, which he was thankful for. He quickly grabbed what he needed, and walked over to where the rest of his team was already settled. Temari had taken a seat next to Choji and Ino sat across from him, leaving the seat next to her open. He took his seat and was not surprised to find that his soup was barely edible.

"Did you guys sleep well?" Ino asked

"I slept alright, better than sleeping on the ground that's for sure." Choji mumbled through a mouthful of rice.

"It was fine." Shikamaru shrugged.

"I'm just glad they have hot water. I wonder how that works. How does any of this work?" Temari gestured around with a pair of chopsticks in hand.

"I was thinking we stick around and see if they make good on their word and actually fill us in today, and if not then we split up and do some searching of our own. This is still a mission guys, captive or not." Shikamaru whispered, in a tone so low that they mainly just followed the slight movements of his lips as he raised his spoon to his mouth. It went without say that they were more than likely being watched.

He half frowned at the lack of flavor in his soup, maybe Choji had an extra protein bar somewhere. He would have to ask him later. His attention was momentarily shaken when Ino gracefully crossed her legs next to him, her right foot lightly hitting his calf in the process. His eyes shifted slightly, appreciating the way her skirt stretched tightly against her thighs, while trying to be as discreet as possible at a table full with trained ninja.

"The hair suits you Yamanaka." Temari decided to break the silence.

"Thanks." She smiled, but for some reason avoided eye contact with the sand kunoichi.

"Yeah it covers up that weird bruise I pointed out earlier." Choji perked up, reaching for a roll off Ino plate. She smacked his hand but let him take it anyways.

"What weird bruise?"

"It was nothing, probably from falling yesterday or something." She waved Temari's question away easily.

"You could easily heal it, couldn't you?" She asked

"Choji wanted to get to breakfast as quickly as possible. He only pointed it out right as we sat down. It's not a big deal." Ino explained.

It would be easy for her to heal it, but for some reason her chakra still felt slightly off from the day before. Choji and Temari weren't filled in on what happened in the hallway and truthfully she'd prefer if it stayed that way.

Shikamaru was inwardly smirking, knowing damn well what she was hiding. He wasn't necessarily gently when caressing her skin the night before. It's not a surprise she didn't notice it until Choji pointed it out. There weren't exactly any mirrors lying around.

"I'm done." Temari announced

"Me too." Shikamaru was quick to stand, choosing to leave before his focus completely left him for the day. Ino's skirt was running dangerously short all of a sudden, and he found it to be in everyone's best interest if he made himself scarce for the next few minutes.

"I'll meet you in yesterday's room." Temari walked away to dispose of her dirty dishes.

"I'm not done yet." Choji mumbled.

"I guess I'll keep you company then." Ino rolled her eyes playfully. "I'll meet you guys in a bit." She looked up to smirk at him.

"I'll probably catch a shower after this, and then I'll meet you guys." Choji added.

"Right." Shikamaru turned to go then, throwing his bowl in a bin of dirty dished on his way out.

Temari was already in the room when he arrived, sitting cross-legged on the floor. The room looked surprisingly swept and moped. The bulb was also changed, illuminating the room nicely. It was a lot bigger than it felt in the dark.

"Well that's a nice change." He took a seat next to her.

He was slightly surprised when she closed the space between them, so that their shoulders lightly touched. He chose not to say anything on the matter, figuring he could discreetly pull away in a few minutes, with no harm done.

"How long you do you think it'll take you to figure this place out?" She asked, tilting her chin up to him.

"I have a theory, but I need to ask Ino what she knows." He took this opportunity to lay back, tucking his arms underneath his head and crossing his ankles.

"Why would Ino know anything?" Her eyebrows knitted slightly in confusion.

"Ino has a way of attracting information, word travels, and where there's smoke there's usually fire. Ino's never too far off with what she hears."

"Figures." There was a twinge to her voice that knocked on Shikamaru's curiosity.

"What do you mean?" He asked

"She just has that vibe to her, gossipy and loud, but I guess if she's good at what she does then props to her." She shrugged.

"That's one way to describe her." He agreed, closing his eyes. He wasn't particularly fond of the way Temari described her, but Ino was not a safe topic of conversation at the moment. He, better than anyone knew she was certainly gossipy and most definitely loud, but he also knew that she was loyal to a fault and despite what many though, she was pretty damn smart.

Shikamaru wasn't much of a sharer however and it wasn't his job to explain Ino to anyone, he'd just keep all her better qualities to himself. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. He should really be focusing on more pressing matter but all he could picture were wide eyes, soft lips and the slow stir of desire deep in his stomach. This was years in the making, having her so close now didn't feel real, so his body took it upon itself to remind him just how real she was.

He felt a hand play with one of the zippers on his vest and opened one eye casually.

"It suits you, you know." Her voice was soft.

"The vest?" He asked

"Being a leader, it's your calling, as much as you deny it." She leaned her body closer towards him.

"You sound like my teammates." He went back to closing his eyes, distancing their interaction.

"Then I'm not wrong, after all they would know." Her voice was slightly closer.

"I just do my job, and unfortunately my job got troublesome quick." He mumbled his response

"You're as stubborn as the day I met you." She half laughed.

"Hm" He answered

His arm tensed when he felt her handpicking a few stray pieces of lint off his dark pants. Her hand was dangerously close to a certain part of his anatomy, which was just itching for a reason to spring up.

"We've really grown up since then, huh?" She asked

"Well it's been years Temari." He answered her in as neutral as a tone as he could.

"I suppose it has, smartass." She laughed lightly and he found that he didn't mind the sound.

"Anyways I was going to take a shower this morning but they were all full earlier so I think I'll take one now." She stood, adjusting her clothing in the process.

"Alright." He went back to emulating sleep, hearing the door shut lightly.

Just as he was about to drift off into a state of bliss he heard the door handle turn. He opened an eye to see a flash of purple coming his way. He saw long smooth legs, and as she turned to close the door behind her, he got a good view of her backside. He inwardly groaned, but figured he could at least have a little free time with her now. He sat up, about to greet her but instead caught a glimpse of the pretty little cherry spot on her neck and a switch went off inside him.

"Hey!" She started, taking a seat next to him. She was excited to tell him about a joke Choji had told her just a minute ago.

She didn't even get to finish her greeting however, before a pair of arms pulled her from her sitting place.

Next thing she knew she was saddling Shikamaru, his mouth eagerly slanting over hers. She felt him already hard beneath her and she couldn't help but frown slightly.

She pulled back from his kiss, fixing him with an uncertain look. "What were you and Temari taking about?" She could feel a prick of something behind her eyes but she didn't let it show.

He grimaced, leaning back to lay flat on his back again. That was definitely not the response he was expecting.

"Nothing really, she did most of the talking." He sighed, hands still lightly holding her hips.

"What exactly do you two have going on?" She knew she was being blunt, but she wasn't in the mood for anymore surprises.

He contemplated her question for a second before sighing. "Don't get mad." He almost winced at the facial expression she made.

"I'll get mad if I get mad!" She snapped

"Ino" He narrowed his eyes at her, not liking her ability to go from calm to furious in a matter of seconds. She moved to get off of him but his hands tightened around her hips, keeping her in place. She was about to protest but decided she much rather hear what he had to say.

"I'm going to be honest with you, but I don't want you to take it the wrong way." He already had a feeling she would. "Temari, for a while now, hasn't exactly been subtle in showing her interest towards me."

"I see." She could feel her anger bubbling, and that prick behind her eyes intensify. She blinked rapidly to push it back.

"Do you like her?" She was surprised how steady her voice came out, compared to how she felt.

"I've never given her a reason to think otherwise."

"That wasn't the question!" She snapped, attempting to remove herself from him but his grip was tight.

"Ino" He frowned and she hit him with a glare worthy of how she felt.

"I wouldn't have agreed to see you if I was interested in someone else."

"Answer my question, do you or do you not like her?" She said through gritted teeth.

"It was harmless flirting Ino. It never got passed that. I consider her a friend, so of course I like her."

"You considered me a friend up until yesterday." She didn't miss the way his eyes flickered between her face and where she sat on him, which was directly on his groin. It was only once and for no more than a second, but it irritated her to no end. She suddenly got the feeling of being used, one she was all too familiar with.

"Only I made the mistake of letting you into my pants, so no real competition there." She spat, her vision suddenly becoming blurry with the unshed tears she was desperately trying to hold back.

His eyes narrowed as he sat up abruptly. He was so close their noses almost touched. It caught her by surprise but she didn't flinch. She leveled him with a teary glare.

"Why would you say that?" He asked, he sounded angry. He had no right to sound angry!

"Why?" She huffed, like he was stupid for asking. Maybe he was.

"I walk in here after the two of you being alone, just as Temari walks out, and I don't even get a 'hey' let alone get to finish my own greeting before you drag me onto your lap. You're already aroused and you expect me to take care of a hard on that's not for me!" She was furious, having said it out loud. She didn't know when she started hitting him but her hands were defiantly connecting with his chest.

"Well I'm not hard now." He deadpanned

She didn't even see it coming, when her hand connected sharply with the side of his face, a loud slap rang across the room. She hadn't meant to, or maybe she had. She got off his lap then, and he let her. She didn't know whether to leave or say something. At least her eyes were no longer teary. They were solid.

"Ino." He sighed, looking less annoyed than she thought he would, as he rubbing the side of his face. Okay so maybe he deserved that. "I didn't do anything with Temari if that's what you're implying." His previous agitation wavered a little. He could see how she would come to such a conclusion. Ino had a bad habit of discrediting herself.

She was silent, waiting for him to continue.

"Troublesome, look Ino, I haven't exactly stopped thinking about what happened the other night, between us." He emphasized.

"My mind wondered off. I mean you didn't exactly make breakfast easy." He mumbled

She wanted to believe him but how could she be sure he wasn't messing with her. It suddenly struck her that she might not be ready to explore her teammate romantically, not when so much was at stake if it ended poorly.

"Maybe this isn't a good idea." She had to look down as she said it. "You and me, maybe we're not as compatible as we though. We should just quit while we're ahead." Her voice was slightly strained

"Is that what you want?" He asked. His face gave nothing away.

"Why don't you stop asking me what I want and figure out what it is you want!" She looked furious and he couldn't help but appreciate it slightly. This was Ino, her emotions had no filter.

"I told you what I wanted." He reminded her.

She stood up to leave then. She would wait outside the door for Choji to come back from his shower. She couldn't stand to be in here with just him right now. She needed to think about him, but unfortunately a mission was the worst place for her to do just that.

It was another forty minutes before Ikuto finally greeted the four of them. He wore the same attire as the day before, looking slightly more refreshed. Ino couldn't help but noticed he looked far better when he wasn't attempting to intimidate them. She would even call him handsome.

"I've been put in charge of figuring out what it is we are up against here. I am under the impression that you were sent here to do the same. I apologize for casting you aside the last few days, but I was in the mist of planning a funeral shortly after your arrival. A comrade of mine perished while rescuing you from the creatures outside."

There was heavy pause in the room as everyone tensed over this new found information. They weren't sure if it was an accusation or simply a matter of explaining the delay in involving them. "We apologize for your loss. We would like to pay our respects to your fallen comrade, if you would allow it." Shikamaru's voice was sincere but strong.

"It is not necessary. We are all aware of the dangers of stepping outside, but the people would appreciate the gesture." He nodded

"I would like for the four of you to work with me to resolve the matter at hand. I take it you are all very capable ninja, and I could use your assistance. I have my suspicions but I'm in need of some assistance, as we are short of people with your type of training here." He added.

"We would be honored to assist you in all that we can." Shikamaru spoke.

"It goes without say that you are not bound to the rules that are in place here. I simply gave you a tour so you would get an idea of how things usually run around here. You, however may roam as you please, as I'm sure you're all capable of behaving yourselves. I trust Konoha and I see no need to place restrictions upon you. I only ask that you keep an eye on the people here. They are not used to ninja and they are in need of our protection." Ikuto made sure to make eye contact with each one of them as he said this.

"In two days' time we will be sending a group outside to gather as much information as possible. We've been working on a strategy and we're hopeful that it will prove useful this time around. I would like it if two of you would accompany the group." He asked.

"I would like to take a look at this plan of yours, as well as everything else you've gathered so far." Shikamaru wasn't taking any chances. He couldn't remember the last time he was taken down so easily, it was downright embarrassing. He wasn't about to make the same mistake twice.

"Of course, I would like as much input as possible. As of today, ninja of the leaf, your only priority is helping us eliminate the plague that holds us prisoner.

They all gave one sharp nod, as a newfound determination showed in their eyes. A man died trying to save them. They would return the favor tenfold.

"This room will be furnished by the end of the day. Two sets of bunkbeds are being moved here as we speak. It's yours as long as you're here." Ikuto finished.

"We appreciate it, thank you."

"It's no problem. The group is meeting at three today to discuss the details of the mission. I would like you all there. I must take care of some things before than however, so please get to know the place, gather any question or suggestion you may have until then. We would like to hear them." He reached out to shake Shikamaru's hand, which he quickly accepted.

"I will be on my way now." And with that he left the room, leaving them to their thoughts.

Shikamaru casually announced his departure, making his way towards the restrooms, before looking down into the palm of his hand. A small strip of crinkled paper was staring back up at him with four distinct words written across it.

Tread lightly, they're listening

Thank you for reading, and if you find the time I would really appreciate your feedback.