Hi All! It's me again. Story was in my head the entire time I was watching "The Lucky One", although I know that it is not related to any of this plot. I know that there will be much angst and drama here, but hey they came from a war and Team 10, especially the two people in the story lost a lot. I mean who better to understand each other right? You might wonder why I made Shika a coward here or why he decided to leave, but hey some people have experience sadness and weird behavior, and they came from a war after all.

Disclaimer: Once again I don't own Naruto. Although, I would like to force Kishi to make ShikaIno canon.

Coming Home

Somewhere in this world there is a place you know that you can always come back. A place you know you will always return to. A familiar place where you know that will always want to be, change or not. Regardless, if you will know that place will welcome you back, you just know that you want to be there.

He doesn't know if this was a part of a something of a master plan that made him decide to return to his homeland. Or it was in his destiny that he should return, or whether Kami was finally dictating him that he should come home. In the end, he decided it must be his heart. He knew he was gone by far too long.

Too long, he sighed.

He wondered if anyone will want or welcome him back.

After travelling for three days, he can finally see the opened gates of Konoha. There were two red massive doors on a grand gate which stood in front of him. It held the symbol of the fire emblem proudly. He was still a couple of meters away from the gate yet he can already feel the nostalgic feeling coming back. Countless times, it welcomed him before, from going out to a mission or to just returning home. He just didn't think that it will still be there for him after all these years.

He did remember the last time he saw it, it has been 4 years and it was afternoon and before the dark took over the light. He was young then, and the world was still full of possibilities and destinies. And a lot was already offered to him. But being a lazy genius he let the road dictated where he should go. In the end, he was not sure if he was able to follow the correct one. Maybe somewhere he got lost.

And that's why he was here again. He eventually agreed with his brain or maybe his heart that he needed to get back. Because as stubborn as he was, he knew it's time. He was lazy and a coward before and he was sure he was one still. He just needed to find the proper path again, and he thought this place will let him find that way. Maybe finally that loneliness that he felt will finally disappear.

He was just a few steps away and he was feeling the anticipation building inside of him. He clenched his fists and put both his hands in his pockets and willed himself to cross the gate and set his feet inside.

He can't just decide if the feeling he has now was excitement or dread. There was a feeling of excitement, because he will be seeing her and his old self again and he was coming home. Dread since he was not sure if she or anyone will welcome him still. In the end it doesn't really matter, he was here anyway, and somehow he knew he was here to stay.

"Welcome back, Shikamaru!" A familiar voice said, once he was inside the gate.

He turned around, and saw the voice coming from his old childhood best friend and teammate.

"Hey Chouji!" He gave his friend a warm smile. Happy that he was there standing beside the big gate, that at least someone was waiting to welcome him. "I didn't know anyone knew that I am coming back."

"The Hokage informed me and Yoshino-san this morning." Chouji gave him a great pat on the back and a big smile.

Shikamaru gave his friend another small smile. He looked at his friend and saw how much he has changed and that he looked a lot more like his father, now. He still has the swirly cheeks on his face though, as well the kindest smile of all the people he met.

"I'm glad." He replied in honesty.

"Suna, did you well. You look older and wiser." His friend teased noticing the mature look at his face. His hair is noticeably long and his face with unshaven beard. His eyes much darker and heavier than before. He has grown taller and his skin color was darker.

"Che, too much sun." He smirked.

"The Hokage told me that you can proceed to go home and just report first thing tomorrow." Chouji said and proceeded to walk towards the direction of his house.

"That's unlike Tsunade-sama." He gave his friend a surprised look. Although he did follow Chouji and being thankful inside that he can at least delay a troublesome meeting with the Hokage.

"Ha, she is just tired." Chouji grinned.

Shikamaru nodded with understanding. "Training Naruto can be troublesome." He had already heard this news before he started his journey back home.

"Yup." Chouji agreed. "He is to be inaugurated three weeks from now."

They continued on the path toward his house, while Chouji was freely talking about news and things that happened since he last left Konoha.

There was still that afterglow light from the sun and below him he can see the city of Konoha which was starting to look bright under the starting darkness. City lights looking like twinkling stars from below. Konoha was still below, inside a giant crater made by Pein in a past war, he tried to forget.

"Yoshino-san is happy that you are here again. She made sure that I should take you home at once, the moment you arrived at the gate."

He winced, his mother was still troublesome. At least she was still herself and that made him sigh in relief.

"She is doing well. Your mom has been helping a lot with the tasks in Nara clan. She has been guiding Ensui ever since, he took over the clan head temporarily." Chouji continued and gave him a little smile.

Shikamaru need not to be reminded of this. He turned down a lot of roles and opportunities after the war in Konoha. It must have looked like he was running away from things after all. He knew that he caused a lot of people a lot of pain because of his cowardness. But now he was back, he thought at least he can at least ease some of them.

He looked at Chouji and nodded. He was grateful that his friend was still there to support him, and as well as his mother. He wondered if she supported and helped his mother too. Or if she will still extend that support she offered to him before.

Chouji continued to talk about things in Konoha, as he walked with him. He talked about the new barbeque place, his own genin team, the Nara and Akimichi clan news, and some new places, establishments and buildings that started to sprout within the building city. He also gave some news on the old rookie nine, his old friends and comrades, although there was a little update since Chouji is not much of big gossip anyway.

Other than that, Naruto was to be the next Hokage. Naruto and Hinata were engaged.

As Chouji talked, he did noticed that he never once said anything about her. He might as well be avoiding any topic related to a blonde kunoichi. He sighed, of course his best friend was not that oblivious, and he obviously knew that something happened between his two best friends and team mates. It will just be troublesome for Shikamaru to ask anything specific about her though.

After the long walk, they stopped at the front door of his house, just as it started to get dark.

Chouji smiled again at his old teammate and best friend. "Welcome back again, Shikamaru. It is really nice to have you back here in Konoha."

He cleared his throat and answered back in pure honesty. "Yeah, it's nice to be back."

"I'll set up a dinner with our old comrades and catch up, I'm sure that they will be happy that you have returned."

"Yeah…"

"Goodnight and I'll come find you tomorrow. I'll show you around the town; it changed a lot ever since you went to Suna." Chouji offered.

"...Yeah."

He scratched the back of his head, not sure on how he can say the one question that he wanted to ask ever since he arrived at Konoha's gate.

Chouji turned to his back and started walking away from him.

"How is she?" He blurted out unable to stop himself from asking any longer.

Chouji faced his friend as if he was already expecting that he will be asking him this question.

"She is doing fine. She took over the flower shop and started working with Ibiki in the intelligence division."

Shikamaru gave his friend a tight smile.

"Oh ... And she is engaged to be married 2 months from now."

Too much? Please read and review. I would love to read if you have any comments or suggestions. :) I am halfway done with the second chapter and have at least planned out the next chapters as well.