They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder.
“Naomi! What’s the matter with you?”
She stood and dusted herself off, rubbing her nose that had, once again, run face-first into a tree trunk. “Nothing,” she muttered darkly, “let’s just get going.”
Truth be told, she was anxious to see Shika again, however briefly. But from that anxiety sprung self-loathing for harboring such a weakness. With such thoughts swirling in her mind, she often lost track of where she was, resulting in a scolding from Sasuke and a throbbing nose.
“That’s the seventh time it’s happened already, Naomi. If this is going to be a successful mission, you’re going to have to snap out of it and start concentrating! Honestly, you were a bad ninja as a child and you’re still a bad ninja as a young adult!”
“Shut up, Karin!” Naomi snapped. “You know nothing of life when I was little so don’t pretend like you have the slightest idea! No one likes you. I despise you, Sasuke can’t stand the thought of you, even Orochimaru can barely tolerate you!”
Sniffing haughtily, Karin shoved her nose in the air and glared down at her with condescension. “You’re one to talk. Word is, when you were little, no one gave you a second glance. No one cared about you.”
“Shut up if you know what’s good for you.”
“Apparently even your sensei didn’t like you.”
“Karin…!”
“And that Nara boy? He never had real emotions for you. He merely pitied you.”
“Watch your mouth!”
“It’s no surprise you’d have to hang out with the Jinchuuriki. He may be a freak, but I doubt he enjoyed your company, too. He probably felt desperate. Just like you.”
The last word slipped from Karin’s mouth, and Naomi slammed her against the nearest tree with such force that left even Sasuke slightly awed.
“You’re such an idiot. You can insult and abuse me as much as you want,” Nay snarled, clenching her hand around Karin’s pasty neck, “but when you involve Naruto, that’s where I cross the line. Never say anything bad about him.”
“Or what?”
Her grip on Karin’s neck tightened after the pompous red-head choked out those two words. One more word and Naomi would feel compelled to snap her little twig of a neck.
“Do you really want to know?”
Sasuke’s hand slapped away hers as he stood between the two. His face portrayed nothing, no frustration, amusement, or anything. “Bakas,” he grunted, “we’re on a mission, and in order for it to be a success, you two have to get along for about a month. So stop acting like children and get your acts together.”
“Sasuke-kun,” Karin murmured, eyes wide, “it wasn’t my fault.”
“Shut up,” he returned, bringing a smirk to Naomi’s expression, “both of you. If you don’t behave, I will abandon you in the middle of nowhere with nothing but a can of food and nothing.”
“Hey!” Naomi snapped. “Don’t act like you wouldn’t like to sock her in the eye a few times.”
“Sasuke-kun would never!” Karin defended, molding herself to his side.
“Uh-huh, really. Then why don’t you test it? Sasuke?”
Both girls fixed their eyes attentively on their team leader. His own blank gaze flickered between them as he really did contemplate hitting them both. Eventually he sighed, forcing himself to stick to the mission and not let his personal feelings interfere.
“I’m not going to do that.”
The girls exchanged challenging looks but said no more.
“We’ll set up camp here,” Sasuke announced in a conversation-ending tone and approached the folded tents.
Karin grumbled, “I’ll start the fire,” at the same time that Naomi eagerly offered, “I’ll start scouting the village!”
“Stay.” Sasuke’s voice displayed the slightest perceptive hostility, and she flinched in return, stopping short.
“On second thought, I’ll help with the tents…”
This time, he grunted in indifference and proceeded to scribble down the travel’s success on a scroll. The messenger hawk perched patiently, pecking at its auburn plumage and puffing itself into a harmless-looking fluff ball.
Naomi set to work, rolling up her sleeves and placing two pegs in the correct areas. That was simple enough. The hard part was the actual tent…
Sasuke didn’t bother to watch his team as he set to work on the scroll. No enemies perceive. Team members already proving difficult (as expected). Surroundings suitable. Camp location decided. Will begin scouting this evening.
Unlike his two companions, the hawk did not irritate him or fight in any way when he slipped the scroll into the proper carrier and attached it to the bird. He sighed. If only everyone wouldn’t annoy him so.
“HOW THE HELL DO YOU DO THIS???”
It had not yet been ten minutes and somehow Naomi had already twisted herself into awkward and most likely uncomfortable positions using the tent tarp and poles. Balancing herself on one foot, it took little more than a gentle pressure from Karin’s finger to topple her to the ground.
“Naomi,” Sasuke said, sighing deeply to calm himself down, “stand up now and get out of the equipment. I’ll set up the stuff. Why don’t you go be useless somewhere else?”
She instantly flamed up like an inferno. “I am not useless! At least I was trying to help while you were writing a stupid love letter!”
He narrowed his eyes dangerously at her. “It was an important scroll letting Kabuto know that we have arrived safely and are about to begin our mission. You were playing with our temporary homes like toys and not caring whether or not they ripped.”
“Fine! You set it up! I’m going to the village!” The heavy materials and metals flew into his face violently. “And don’t bother to follow me!”
“It’s okay, Sasuke-kun,” Karin giggled, appearing at his side once more, “I won’t leave you like that irresponsible girl.”
Hmm, maybe he should apologize…
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Not much had changed. The streets were still flourishing with busy city life. Children were still running amuck…well, everywhere. The stores still buzzed with merchant life. Everything seemed peaceful, natural, perfect. The academy still trained young, aspiring ninjas, some who reminded Naomi too much of herself. But what was worse, Shikamaru was still talented. And attractive.
Not that she would actually admit that.
From her concealed position in the trees, she watched with secretive eyes as Naruto and Shikamaru faced off in a deadly Shogi battle. Naruto hesitantly moved a piece forward, and Shikamaru instantly pounced on the attack and shifted his own.
“Checkmate.”
“Wha—again?! I object, you cheated!”
“Ruling, Kiba?”
“Shikamaru won. Again. No tricks or lies.”
“You see?” I won fair and square.”
“That’s not fair! I know you cheated somehow. Rematch!”
“Naruto, we can play as many Shogi games as you want, but I will always win every time.”
“No! I will win eventually! I make the first move…”
Naomi studied her childhood companions in amusement as six moves later:
“Checkmate, teme.”
Naruto searched the pieces for an escape, but coming up empty, threw up his arms in frustration. “I give up! This is ridiculous.”
The pineapple-haired boy shot a smug glance at the assembled group of ninja and challenged, “Next?”
No one moved. No one breathed. Naomi had half a mind to approach them and beat his ass.
Sakura suddenly stepped forth, arms crossed. “Wipe that cocky smile off your face. Everyone knows that ever since Naomi was kidnapped, there’s no one in this entire village who can beat you.”
The sound of her name brought a ghostly silence on the audience. It appeared that he name was a strict off-limits trigger amongst the horde of ninja, and clandestinely, she felt rather pleased that they missed her. Maybe she should…
She sighed with exhaustion. Sasuke would kill her for this.
“I’ll play.”
They paused, recognizing the soft voice with that splash of defiance hidden beneath its timidity. At first, they all believed themselves to be hallucinating sp well that they could head her voice, but as they turned and drank in the sight of the womanly Naomi before them, they watched her transform.
She no longer shattered into embarrassed pieces and slunk away. She no longer blushed like a volcano and averted her gaze. No, the older Naomi melted out of her shell, her eyes gaining an authoritative, powerful sparkle, her cute pout slipping into a bold smirk, and her posture straightening into a proud, confident stance.
“Unless you’re too chicken.”
Shika’s stunned, wide-eyed stare was the most satisfying reaction of them all. Finally, Naomi received the upper hand. She finally managed to catch even the great Shikamaru off guard. And now it was finally her turn to beat him.
“Nay-Nay!” Naruto’s bone-crushing glomp surprised her with his newfound strength. “I missed you so much! I always knew you’d come back to us!”
“Naruto-kun!” she laughed, returning the tight embrace. “I missed you, too!”
“Naomi,” Choji muttered through his chips, “welcome back,”
“Thanks, Choji. It’s nice to see you again.” He no-longer shy smile awed all.
“I—I hope y—you’ve been well,” Hinata stuttered as she fiddled with her fingers nervously.
“I have.” Naomi’s response was gentle and tender, and she briefly wondered if she had appeared like Hinata when she was younger.
Further greetings were exchanged with the rest. Everyone spoke at once, asking where she’d been, what she’d been doing, who she’d been with, why and how she’d returned. Never having been so popular in her life, she was nearly overwhelmed. Still, Shikamaru did not approach her.
“What’s wrong, Nara? Cat got your tongue? Or am I just that amazing?” If he wasn’t going to come to her, she decided that she would go to him.
With the spotlight turned, Shika inhaled deeply and gestured at the empty seat across from him. “Troublesome woman, take a seat. Let’s see if you still have that sly brain of yours.”
She cracked her knuckles and allowed the knowledge of her return soak into him before sliding her first piece forward. “As the newcomer and the challenged, I make the first move.”
Showing no objection, he moved is own piece. “What a drag. Let the games begin.”
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“Ten.”
“No way, it’s going to be at least twenty-five.”
“Thirty.”
“Forty-five.”
“Fifty.”
“An hour!”
Kiba snorted. “You’re insane, Naruto. Shika’s obviously going to win.”
“Care to make another wager?”
Akamaru barked his consent, and Kiba clasped Naruto’s hand and sealed the deal. “You’re on.”
Shaking her head, Naomi turned back to Shika in disbelief.
“I can’t believe it,” she muttered, “they’re betting on us.”
When their Shogi game had ended, Shikamaru had reigned victorious. Naomi demanded a rematch, where she triumphed, to the glee of many. For the tie-breaker, they would spar. Their so-called “friends” decided it would be fun to not only bet on how long they would last, but also who would win.
Shika didn’t bother to muster a response. He studied Naomi intently, attempting to decipher any strengths or weaknesses by the way her body moved and the way she responded to things. The old Naomi would shy away from physical contact, something that he used against her often as a child, but he knew that this Naomi had morphed entirely, and that he’d have to start from scratch to relearn her.
He didn’t know it, but Naomi was surveying him, too. She was a master at gathering information while seeming perfectly innocent. In her own little way, she was watching Shikamaru, and she was fully aware that he was watching her, too. Fool, she thought, you can’t even tell I’m assessing you, too. I’m not the weak little girl I was before.
“Well,” she sighed, hands on hips to display her confidence, “if you’re ready to fight then so am I. Shall we begin?”
Grunting, Shikamaru stood to address her. “Let’s.”