Nara OneShots

Step-Mother

When they first met Naruto he seemed a bit younger than what he claimed. He said he was 28 but he looked like he never made it past the age of 18. He was eye-catching and always seemed to be the center of their father's eyes whenever he was brought into the conversation. It was obvious their father was smitten with the red-haired beauty but that didn't mean his children were happy about it even though begrudgingly he looked much happier than when he was with their mother. Naruto was sometimes a bit childish, carefree, like nothing could bother him in the world, and was always willing to help even when they pushed him away for the first few months since they met him.

They thought his uniqueness would eventually bore their father and didn't want to deal with losing another potential parental figure who was just going to try extremely hard to be close in order to sink whatever claws into their father and poison his mind. However, Naruto wasn't like the others their father had dated for a few months. When they got to their first year anniversary their father proposed and the wedding was small and intimate. Naruto was an orphan so he didn't have anybody on his side but a picture frame with a blonde woman and a white-haired man could be seen propped on seats when the reception came.

They came to know they were his godparents as his actual parents died in an accident and those two raised him until they passed away from natural causes. It was the first time they had seen Naruto cry when he kept looking over at the pictures. After the wedding and Naruto moved in was when things started to change. Naruto didn't impose on them. He acted more like an uncomfortable guest the first few weeks rather than a member of the household. Shikaku suggested family pictures but Naruto surprisingly didn't want to. When asked his response was:

"The kids wouldn't like that, they're young and still hope for their biological mother. When they're more comfortable and Yoshino-san sorts out visitation then we can come back to that topic."

It was a big first step and he had earned some of Shikamaru's respect. He was ten years old while his brother was just turning 5 when they had married and at the time Shikadai needed a lot of attention between preschool and his growing hobbies. Naruto naturally stepped up only when the younger boy needed something, he didn't try to force anything and it ultimately paid off. Naruto was unnaturally great with kids to the point Shikamaru felt a bit jealous because of all the attention. He was still cautious but he allowed Naruto to help him whenever he felt stuck with something.

Naruto was always one for affection and seeing this beautiful, kind male with brilliant crimson male hug others made you want a hug from him too. It all came to head when it was the start of a new school term and Naruto, wearing red lipstick kissed Shikadai on the cheek which left an imprint. Shikamaru who was a bit older got his hug but no kiss. He tugged on Naruto's pastel shirt with a small pout. "I-I want a kiss too," He said quietly.

Naruto looked perplexed. "I thought kids your age didn't approve of kisses because it's embarrassing," He said pulling Shikamaru closer while leaning down to his height.

"That's other kids, this is me," Shikamaru replied which made the red-head smile and give him an imprint. Shikamaru wore it proudly since many of his classmates had seen the exchange and couldn't stop asking about his new step-mom.

Eventually, Yoshino had sorted herself out and was now allowed visitation. Shikamaru and Shikadai were obviously excited and the judge ruled that Yoshino would be allowed to have weekends. So Naruto would pack up things on Friday and after school would drive the boy's the Yoshino's much smaller home in the next city over and Yoshino would drop them off at school on Monday.

Immediately Shikamaru could sense the tension when they stepped into their mother's home for the first time. The home looked lovely but his mother had changed, she seemed to age years. And the scowl she gave Naruto who had been smiling so politely was murderous. The boys knew their mother would feel resentment but not this much. "So that's the hussy your father picked up," She sneered as she went to the kitchen to grab a bottle of wine.