[one-shot] Naruto - To share the sky

[shono-hime.livejournal.com]

Title

: To share the sky

Author

: shono_hime

Fandom

: Naruto

Pairing

: Shika/Neji

Rating

: G

Disclaimer

: Kishimoto is lucky enough to own them all.


Shikamaru didn’t like many things, mostly because it was too much of a hassle. There were things he regarded as precious, though, things he took for granted. Peace and quiet during his sky-gazing time were among those.

As time passed, he came to realize that his ‘special spot’ was getting more and more noisy, filled with laughter and stupid questions.

He’d made the mistake of telling the others about it, surprising even himself. But now, as he watched Naruto run after Akamaru and Kiba yelling at the blonde to leave the poor dog alone, he was very much tempted to go find Asuma-sensei to let him know his stupid IQ test was definitely wrong...

Naruto passed in front of him, muttering something about mutts and socks, and his brilliant mind supplied the perfect solution. He only had to shift his leg a little and the loud-mouthed brat would be yelling his head off for the final time...

Cruel solution, but after all, geniuses tended to be nasty, he mused.

Only the idea of having to get rid of Kiba as well made him give up on his plan. He settled for a long-suffering sigh and tried once again to concentrate on the sky.

The idiot who had invented speech should have at least forbidden it to idiots like those two...

He couldn’t help but let a lazy smile caress his face as he heard the two boys laugh heartily at something. He wasn’t sure, of course, but he had the nagging they were talking about him. He overcame his neverending exhaustion long enough to raise an arm and flip them off. Not a particularly smart or productive move, but it was at least good for his morale.

Not one to waste any energy, he used the weight of his now dropping arm to roll on his side to turn his back on the now giggling genins. There was suddenly a pause in their whispers, then he heard them get up and, after a few shouted goodbyes that produced no answer, the silence fell again.

Bliss...

Patience had always been his forte, and it didn’t matter if Ino called that laziness. He wasn’t lazy, he just preferred waiting for the best moment to make a move. It was not his fault the best moment always happened when there was nobody else around...

He rolled on his back and let his mind wander among the clouds. How he envied them... No worries, no hysterical teammates or irritating pups or hyper brats nagging him all the time, no laughs, no jokes, no comfortable silences... Nothing.

His over-analytical brain pointed out the right word to describe the life he envied: boring. Damn.

He heard soft footsteps approaching and closed his eyes, trying to school his features, not wanting to show his irritation. If Naruto was back, he was definitely pushing him down the hill.

But it wasn’t Naruto. It couldn’t be; the mysterious intruder was way too silent. The footsteps stopped and someone settled next to him.

He opened one eye, which was enough to glare at the newcomer after all, and found himself drowning in Neji Hyuuga’s snowy eyes. Not that he would ever tell the boy the effect he had on him. It would be way too bothersome. So he settled for grunting and turning his gaze back to the sky.

“I hope I’m not disturbing...”

Another grunt, then the almost silent voice again:

“You look busy.”

It sucked being intelligent, mused Shikamaru as he glared at the other boy in a mute answer to his sarcastic pique. You had to stay calm all the time because anger was only good for idiots. He couldn’t keep the frown for long, though, as he watched Neji lean back on his arms with a soft sigh, tilting his head back.

He couldn’t help but doubt the IQ test again as he heard himself say:

“What are you doing?”

As if it wasn’t obvious...

The pale boy didn’t answer immediately, his milky eyes still fixed on the sky.

“We could share...”

Shikamaru raised a perplexed eyebrow, and Neji offered him one of his rare smiles before whispering:

“You keep the clouds, I take the birds...”

“Could work...”

He fought to keep his tone flat, but from the corner of his eyes, he could see the Hyuuga look mutely at the birds, eyes half-closed to fight the glare of the sun, offering for the whole world to see his icy yet burning beauty, and once again, Shikamaru wished he was a bird himself...

END.