When logic fails ...

Unexpected Encounter

In the living room, Naruto and his girlfriend Hinata were busy unpacking the last moving boxes. Hinata noticed Shikamaru the moment he stepped into the open kitchen.
"Oh, Shikamaru, good timing. I was planning to cook something for a housewarming dinner tonight. Naruto asked for ramen, is that okay with you?" she asked with a warm smile.
"Hm," Shikamaru grunted, opening the fridge to check its contents. He pulled out a leftover slice of pizza and glanced at them. "You don't have to wait for me. I've got an introductory seminar and then my part-time job tonight. No idea when I'll be back," he said, biting into the cold pizza crust.

Privately, he prayed that the job would prove less exhausting than he feared. His IT skills were already excellent before university, and handling emergency support for students on campus should be something he could do in his sleep—provided the person on the other end understood what he meant. Otherwise, it would be torture. The same kind he had endured too often whenever Naruto had laptop problems.

His shift began after the seminar, and according to the schedule he was on until 10 p.m. He was only supposed to handle urgent issues. That sounded like easy money to him, and money he badly needed.

The seminar drifted past in a half-sleep haze. Nothing he had not long since mastered, but mandatory attendance forced him to sit through it. To Shikamaru, a complete waste of time. At least nobody bothered him. Nobody cared if he dozed off, and better yet, nobody tried to talk to him.

Half an hour later, he entered the basement rooms of the university IT. A tall young man, hardly older than him, showed him around and pointed out the key spots.
"Usually it's all quiet. And you know the golden rule: reboot fixes most things," the guy said with a grin. "It's rare we actually have to go out, and even then, everything's close by."
After a hearty clap on the shoulder, he pressed a key into Shikamaru's hand. "Don't forget to lock up... And clean the coffee machine before you leave."

Shikamaru nodded, and as soon as his new supervisor left, he sank onto the worn black leather sofa in the corner. The phone for emergency calls sat beside him. He closed his eyes and slipped back into his inner world.

By 9 p.m. it had indeed been surprisingly quiet. Only twice had the phone rung, and both were trivial issues solved within minutes.
Just as he had cleaned the coffee machine and packed up his things, the phone shrilled a third time. With an exasperated glance at the clock, he saw he still had forty minutes left on his shift. He sighed and answered.

"Campus IT, emergency service. Nara speaking, how can I help you?"
"Good evening, I'm in Professor Sarutobi's office and the computer isn't doing anything! I really need help right away!" a stressed female voice snapped at the other end.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes inwardly and took a deep breath. "Have you tried restarting it and disconnecting it completely from power for a few seconds?" he asked, striving for a friendly, professional tone.
"Of course! How incompetent do you think I am? I've been stuck here for two hours, unable to access my files!" she burst out.

Shikamaru suppressed a groan, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Then tell me what you see on the desktop," he probed further.
"Nothing. Just a black screen with white text. Something about Boot failure and Insert system disk. But I don't even have a disk drive... and I really need those files!"

Shikamaru exhaled in frustration. A BIOS error. Without direct access to the menu, there was not much he could do, and the odds of her following his instructions correctly were slim.

"Troublesome," he muttered under his breath, glancing at the clock. On his very first day, and right before the end of his shift, of all times. "It's pretty late. Could you maybe bring the device here? Then my colleague can handle it first thing tomorrow... You must be finishing up soon too..."
An incredulous snort came through the line. "No. It's your duty to ensure I can access my files at all times. I have no intention of losing my student assistant job because of your laziness. Besides, there are documents here that must be finished by tomorrow."

Before he could voice another objection, her sharp voice cut in: "So I expect you in Professor Sarutobi's office within the next fifteen minutes."

Shikamaru hesitated. He weighed whether arguing was worth it, but concluded that on-site it would probably take less than half an hour. That meant an almost on-time finish. If he kept quibbling, it would only drag out, and worst case, she would file a complaint. He could not risk being fired on his first day.
"Fine... be right there," he muttered and hung up.

To his relief, Professor Sarutobi's office was in the same building. He only needed to take the elevator to the third floor. As the doors opened, he was greeted by an eerie silence. The long corridor lay deserted, the air heavy with the stale scent of cleaning products. Only one office was still lit. A rectangle of warm light spilled across the hallway floor, guiding his way.

Shikamaru sighed softly, stepped closer, and knocked as he pressed down the handle. The door swung open, and he froze.

Behind the desk, bathed in the glow of a desk lamp, sat none other than the woman from that morning—his neighbor from the fourth floor, the one he had sworn to avoid. She wore a sleek business outfit, her head buried in her hands in frustration.

When she looked up now, her expression was as startled as his own.