Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Thus you shall go to the stars	By : drakoniss Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Shikamaru/Naruto Views: 3619 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and make no money on the fiction I write.

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Like a bird with shattered wings savoring the last hours of dwindling lifecycle, Shikamaru smoked the night away perched on the parapet oh his roof. The frosty air of autumn that rolled into Konoha early this year felt refreshingly cool on his bare skin; invigorating. Chased away the sticky lethargy brought on by the illness that made him stay in bed past eleven; made him not want to go out and see people; not care about things like autumn, and chilly weather, and stars, anymore.

Come morning, before the first call of a rooster, the beginning of the last days of his life would start to unravel; but he still had tonight. The fairy-tale view of the sky lit from inside by an array of beautiful stars enthralled him, - too bad most fairytales Shikamaru knew could end on a happier note.

Pain in his chest would let him sleep; pain in his heart would not let him think; the woeful longing made him remember things that have long passed.

"

Their "dance" as Shikamaru liked to call it, began when they were seventeen.

By the time the Fourth War ended, Naruto's partnership with remaining members of his team came to an end. Naturally and quite unremarkably. While Sai provided much needed comfort to Sakura, Naruto, running out of the ideas to save Sasuke, decided to pursue his political career. He still tried to find ways to bring him back on his spare time, but by that point Sasuke was beyond saving, - at least in the most conventional meaning of the word.

Naruto moped around a lot, slept around a lot, and hanged out with Shikamaru a lot. Tsunade was getting ready to retire; she gave him a year to put his affairs in order, and then he would need to start working; really working, she'd said. He was not sure if he still wanted to be the next Hokage, - scared to death that he was beyond the point when it was his decision to make. In the midst of all the turmoil, they somehow become very close. Close friends. Shikamaru could not really find any other word for it – even though this abbreviation too, for the bigger part, seemed be incorrect.

"

"I need a scar."

"To reaffirm you masculine vigor?"

"Yeah.'

Shikamaru laughed, propping himself up on his elbows to level with Naruto's face. The Hokage in works looked imposing enough already - why he had doubts about it was anybody's guess.

When they were much younger, he did not really believe Naruto would successfully carry his adolescent charm into adulthood - boys rarely ever did. Just look at Kiba's surly mug or Neji's severe features that somehow gut even gruffer with time. But… Naruto… Naruto always surprised the shit out of everyone that knew him. At fourteen, he was still cute as a button, grinning face constantly striving to please; two more years later matured splendor emerged from beneath the grin, - and just like that, overnight, Naruto became an instant hit. He never got a fat head about it, but did not take it for granted either.

At eighteen, when he held Konoha council on the palm of his hand toying with the idea of an ultimate control over the village, it was mostly the oppressive air of authority that people noticed; He was still Naruto, but only to Shikamaru - to accommodate his friend's ideas of acceptable behavior of a leader. Naruto himself stopped worrying about what other people thought of him a long time ago; which, Shikamaru supposed, was a right thing to do.

"You don't need a scar. Get a haircut."

"Oh?

Naruto reached to tug lightly on Shikamamru's hair. Shikamaru scowled shying away from the touch, still allowing Naruto toy with glossy, springy end of his pony tail.

" Take the tie out. I want to see how long it is."

"No."

"Prude."

"Am not."

"Let me see your hair… please…"

Not the word Naruto liked to throw around often. Reluctantly, Shikamaru met his eyes. Saw the question in them he did not have an answer to because he did not figure it out yet himself; if ever.

"What?" He asked, uncomfortable. Maybe Naruto was right – maybe he was a prude; but it's not like he ever had anything with a guy before.

Naruto let go of the hair. His eyes that seemed eerily light on bronzed face grew colder, more distant. If Shikamaru did not know better he could have sworn Naruto seemed hurt buy his brush off.

"Nothing."

With that, Naruto flipped on his stomach and buried his face in the bed of grass.

"There are only so many times I can tell him to piss off before he gives me what I want."

But they agreed not to go down that road – chemistry, and the pull, and the attraction notwithstanding. The only problem, Shikamaru sometimes had trouble remembering why;

"

"He will sink you like the toy ship loaded up with rock pebbles and make you like it."

Ino warned him more often than Shikamaru liked to hear.

"I know."

"Walk away, Shika. Walk away before it's too late."

"It's already too late."

She already told him, once – the time after he came back from Suna and Temari became a thing of the past.

" Picky, picky. Even the most beautiful kunoichi of our time ended up being … not good enough for you.'

She announced, hands crossed over the ample breasts.

"Whatever."

Shikamaru waved her off.

"When you left me… I thought you've actually fallen for her. I guess I was wrong."

"Come on, Ino. Men don't fall."

"Of course they do."

Shikamaru sighed, impatiently, massaging his aching temples.

"I don't."

"Not yet; But when you do – when you really do fall for someone, Shikamaru, you going to fall so hard you will break you scrawny neck, landing."

"Sounds terrible. " He remarked, grasping the diameter of said neck with his fingers. It did not feel that scrawny to him. "But it won't happen. I am too… reasonable…and possess a supremely logical mind."

Ino only snorted, not amused.

"

He still, had fallen; fallen for Naruto despite the reasoning of his supremely logical mind, - hook, line, and sinker. And even the landing, –even the landing now did not seem like such a terrible of a thing to him; not anymore.

"

"Shikamaru." Naruto patted his back in soothing, circular motion, while Shikamaru leaned over the fence outside of Chouji's house, " You are such a fucking lightweight. You get drunk just from inhaling the fumes from Chouji's breath. How much did you have to drink?

"I don't remember." Shikamaru moaned, feeling like the biggest of idiots.

"Your hair tie is missing."

"Naruto." He raised his head meeting Naruto's eyes with his own, pained ones. "My hair is the least of my problems right now."

It's not like Naruto have not seen it down before; they shared communal showers in Shinobi barracks after a mission more often than once; sometimes he would get a freaking migraine, and freed the silky main to let the aching scalp rest; why, throughout the years it remained the key focus of Naruto's fascination, Shikamaru could only guess.

"Come on, wimp."

"Naruto. " Shikamaru spit some of his dinner mixed with stomach acid on the ground, and stood up with a moan. "You will be the death of me."

"I did not think you were so scared of dying." Naruto taunted, buzzed hair glowing white in the moonlight. "Come on. Let's get you some water."

"I am not." Shikamaru let go of the fence and stood up almost toppling over on the spot. "…Afraid of dying."

Naruto laughed, steadying him. Readily, Shikamaru clutched the unyielding, steel biceps with clammy fingers and with a low sigh rested his head on Naruto's chest. True; he was a lightweight; but Naruto found the worst time to bring that up.

"Come on baby. You smell like the sewer. You are dehydrated. Let's get you inside the house."

"I can't…walk."

"I know."

Like he would with a bride snatched from the middle of a wedding, Naruto threw Shikamaru's drunken weight over his shoulder and carried him inside Chouji's house, swinging the door open with his foot. Like Shikamaru was one of his fucking girlfriends. Chouji scowled at their entrance; nodded his head reluctantly as a sigh of respect to Hokage, and went on with the drinking.

Naruto put him on the worn couch and carefully brushed loose tresses away from his face; tied it in low ponytail, threading knowing fingers through damp locks in a poised, no-nonsense manner, at the same time mindful enough not to disturb Shikamaru's shaky equilibrium. If he lingered too long while doing it, Shikamaru was too drunk – or weak to protest; nothing ever felt so good before.

Weary of Naruto's unexpected company, people at Chouji's party hushed up. Nobody approached them; nobody said anything, save for the reserved greetings; nobody else dared to come to Shikamaru's aid. He was Naruto's to take care of, and Naruto's alone – would be beyond stupid to argue the point. Even Chouji seemed reluctant to try.

This was, after all, their Rokudaime. The unmatched leader of Konoha that led them through two wars, and won; the most powerful man in Shinobi World. Whatever Naruto wanted, he did, and nobody was the wiser.

"Be careful." Chouji warned Shikamaru the next day, unhappy frown gathered between reddish eyebrows." Just… be careful.'

"

"You know it's going to happen…"

Naruto dropped offhandedly when Shikamaru allowed himself another night of drinking inside the locked doors of Hokage's big, uninhibited house. He built in the secluded spot isolated from the rest of the village where the narrow mouth of the River and Konoha Forest met. Surrounded by evergreens, looking out on the turbulent waters outside his windows that beat against the posts of the tall fence during rainy season, Naruto lived here for years. He claimed that he liked it; Shikamaru had his doubts.

"Really?"

"…I know it's going to happen. Even the kids in the village know it's going to happen. Would it be so bad to just let go… and give in?"

On the other side of the table, Shikamaru glared at him over the squared, kaya surface of a shogi board.

"Just for me. You'll be all right, I think."

"You are too smart, Shikamaru." Naruto teased with just a slight trace of mockery. This side of him, Shikamaru liked the least. He brought their faces to together by catching once again the longish end of his tail and yanking it forward." But you are yet to figure out one thing."

Crystalline blue of Naruto's eyes took on a bewitching quality when up close, luring Shikamaru inside their depth ,out of which, he was certain, he would never find a way back.

"What thing is that, Naruto?"

"…No matter how difficult; no matter how long it takes me, or what obstacles I have to overcome, – I always… always get what I want. "

'Always..?

Shikamaru mused, throat getting tight when Naruto traced the outline of his mouth with a feather light caress, bearing sharper than normal canines in a winning, indubitable sort of smile.

"Always."

Bundled up to his ears in a fox fur parka Naruto greeted Shikamaru with a frown.

"These things will kill you, you know."

He stated, referring to the smoke coming from the smoldering tip of a cigarette.

"You don't say."

"I thought I was the stupid, reckless one, and you were the clever, level-headed one."

"Things change."

Naruto huffed.

"Say Naruto… What does Nine Tail says about you using his relative to keep your ass warm?"

"He says if he had any say on the matter, he would be wearing my skin instead."

Shikamaru took Naruto by the elbow and guided his step towards murky waters of the River where their small dinghy waited for them tied to a nearest tree. The frosty morning air had his lungs contract painfully,- or more painfully than usual. He could deal with it, still; without the aid of Tsunade's green powder he seemed to be using more often than he originally intended, of late. Tsunade warned him to make it last till the end – when he would really need it. She'd said she did not have the ingredients to make anymore. He said he would try.

Unpleasant, profound feeling of frustration set in, adding the final edge of disappointment to his tired thoughts. Deep inside he agreed with Naruto's line of thinking –that besides foolish talk, Sasuke never really done anything fundamentally wrong to deserve such harsh sentence. And it had been harsh; chillingly so. But did he ever do anything good? To bring this kind of devotion out people, out of Naruto? If he did, Shikamaru certainly did not recall a single deed. He never asked Naruto – why. He supposed people did not really need a reason to love someone – even if that someone was a coldhearted bastard. So, he never asked, then.

But they had a long way to go, Naruto and him, before reaching the end of the world in a far-away land filled entirely with too much white, and ice, and unfamiliar, where Sasuke's prison stood. With no one but each other for company, with nothing better to do then talk. Maybe he would ask, now. And maybe, Naruto would answer.
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Thus you shall go to the stars