Okay, so a few people wanted me to make another chapter to this story, so here it is! I don't own Naruto, enjoy the story! And remember to review!

He had no idea why he even bothered to show up to this troublesome outing...not date, just an outing with a friend, a teammate. He still couldn't believe she'd managed to trick him into this. Hell, he couldn't believe she beat him at shogi, no one had ever beat him at shogi. But, then again, this was Ino he was talking about. She was devious, cunning, deceitful, manipulative and most importantly, she was a troublesome girl, which meant that when she wanted something she wouldn't give up until she got it. But then what exactly did she want? A date? No, that couldn't be it. This was INO of all people and she wouldn't want to go on a date with HIM. But what then?

Before the pineapple-haired boy could think about it any further, his cheerful blonde teammate walked out the door. She was wearing a purple dress, the top of it hugging her curves perfectly and flowing freely once it reached her waist. The skirt of the dress had ruffles and reached just above her knees and she was also wearing black sandals with a slight heel. Her hair was down, the platinum blonde locks flowing past her waist. Her bangs, for once, were pinned back so they still framed her face, but didn't fall in front of her eyes. She was wearing baby blue eyeshadow to bring out her eyes, just enough for it to be noticeable, as well as some mascara and a soft pink lipgloss. All in all, she looked absolutely stunning. " Shika! I actually thought you wouldn't show up, but I'm glad you did." Shikamaru gave a small shrug, half in reply to what she just said and half in an attempt to shake off the nervousness he suddenly felt. " Its not really like I have a choice - I lost the bet. How troublesome..." He saw a flash of hurt in her eyes and her smile faltered for a small second before returning with 10 times the intensity. " Hmm... I'm glad you listened to me and dressed nicely, you look good." she said as they started walking. He was wearing a loose olive green shirt over a longsleeve fishnet shirt and loose-fitting black pants that went just past his knees with normal shinobi sandals. " Yeah... You look nice too." He felt like kicking himself. Ino always though looking 'nice' was a way to say someone wasn't ugly, but they weren't pretty either. " Thanks, Shika!" He was surprised to hear genuine gratitude in her voice. They continued walking to the restaurant, Ino happily chatting away about tons of different topics while Shikamaru would answer or put in his own two cents when necessary.

Ino wasn't sure why she was babbling so much - it was just Shikamaru. And right there she found her answer - it was the same Shikamaru that fought alongside her to avenge Asuma, the same Shikamaru that went on missions with her...the same Shikamaru she had grown to love over the years of being on the same team. When she had asked him to teach her to play shogi, she felt silly. When she had lied on impulse and told him she'd never played before, she felt like an idiot. When she had made that bet with him she wanted the earth to split open and swallow her. And when she had actually won against him she felt like she owned the world, and that happiness was what made her suggest this date in the first place. She wanted to spend more time with him and this was the perfect way to do it. All of her actions the previous day had been on impulse. She never planned any of it, but she definitely wasn't complaining.

They soon reached the restaurant Ino had chosen, it wasn't too fancy and it had a cozy feel to it. "Table for two? Please follow me to your table." The waiter led them to a table in the corner and gave them their menus before heading off to the kitchen. "So, Shika, what do you want to drink?" "...I'm going to have a-" "Ino-pig?" A voice interrupted. Ino and Shikamaru turned to the direction of the voice and were met with one pink-haired kunoichi and her blonde teammate. "Oh, hey Forehead." Ino greeted with fake happiness as Naruto looked at her and Shikamaru with a confused expression. "Are you two on a date?" He asked suddenly. Ino was about to reply, when Sakura cut in. "Baka, their obviously just hanging out, y'know, as teammates." "Oh, like when we go to Ichiraku's with Sai and Yamato-sensei?" he asked again, not completely convinced. "Yes, exactly!" his teammate said with a smile. Ino was surprised - she never thought she'd see that day that Naruto was more perceptive than the big-brained pinkette. "But Choji isn't even here!" Naruto cried, earning a few stares and glares from the other people in the restaurant. "He's sick, remember?" ..."Oh yeah! Now I remember!" Sakura turned towards the two members of team 10 "Mind if we join you?" Before Ino could give a 'yes, so get lost' in reply, they had already seated themselves at the table. The small group started to chat amongst themselves and although Ino had put up a happy front, she was furious at the pinkette and her teammate for interrupting her date. 'Why?! Why did they have to show up and ruin my alone time with Shika?' They ordered and continued to chat until their food arrived. After eating and paying the bill, the members of Team Kakashi decided to leave. Ino felt miserable, her date had been ruined.

"We should probably get going." Ino said in a defeated tone and Shikamaru could, for the sake of all that is good and pure in this world, not understand why. Was this really a planned DATE? Did Ino actually want to go on a date with him? When Naruto mentioned a 'team outing', he felt like he had deflated. He had at least hoped there was something more to tonight, but the other troublesome blonde had raised a few very good points. The lazy genius sighed as he stood up, Ino following in suit. They exited the restaurant and for once Ino was completely silent. Had the other two's sudden appearance really upset her this much? Her eyes looked glazed over, as if she was deep in thought. Shikamaru decided that now was as good a time as any to try and find out what tonight was all about. "Ino?" No response. Was she really that deep in thought? He let out a quiet sigh and decided on a different approach. He gently took her hand and laced his fingers with hers. Still no reaction. He let out another sigh, but didn't release the troublesome blonde's hand for the rest of the walk.

Once they reached her home Ino seemed to finally snap out of the trance she'd been in, but she still didn't notice their joined hands. "Thanks for coming along, Shika... Goodnight." She tried to walk forward, only to be pulled back by her hand. Only then did she finally realize that Shikamaru was holding her hand. She looked at Shikamaru quizzically and received only a slight smirk in reply. "You finally noticed?" "W-what do you mean?" He let out a heavy sigh. "I took your hand a couple of minutes ago, even called your name, but you didn't notice any of it. I wanted to ask you what tonight was about." Ino looked down, suddenly finding the ground very interesting. She heard him sigh for the umpteenth time tonight as he released her hand. She took this as a sign that she could leave, but, before she could even take two steps Shikamaru grabbed her by her upper-arms and pulled her into a hug. She was absolutely stunned, but slowly started returning the hug. He pulled away and smiled at her. "By the way, I think the date went well." He turned around and left for his house, but not before giving her a quick peck on the lips, an action that left her a bit stunned. Only after a few minutes did it sink in and she ran into her house screaming "YES!" at the top of her lungs.