endgames | 018 -- [Action]

[He wakes up to a mostly empty apartment, every scrap of evidence that his best friend shared it with him removed, save for one small kitten. It’s not the first time, with that exception. Chouji’s disappeared like this before – barely two months ago. But he came back.

And now he’s gone again. Shikamaru isn’t sure what to think about that, mostly because he's considered it all before. He knows what Chouji is going back to, knows it's important, knows it will be all right because eventually, he's going to leave this place too and see him again.

He knows he's going to miss him, even though he shouldn't. But that it's okay to admit that too. So with that thought in mind, Shikamaru ends up sitting on the couch, trying to think about nothing at all. At least until he can get his head clear and straight on his shoulders again. He can't afford to sulk all day.

He still ends up checking on Temari’s apartment, just to make sure evidence that she lives in it are still there. (Though if it weren't, that'd be okay. She has less of home here than he does.) And then he takes a deep breath, and goes to knock on Ino’s door. No public announcement, and he’s not going to hunt down anyone else today. If he runs into any of his and Chouji’s friends, he’ll tell them, but if not… everyone else can wait a day.]

[After talking with Ino, and a few hours spent in or around CH1, Shikamaru heads out to take a walk into town. There’s a black kitten with blue eyes grudgingly carried along with him that’s keeps trying to climb up onto his shoulders, or his head. Empty as he thought their - his - apartment looked, there’s apparently still enough in it for one little kitten to wreak havoc with. So not trusting he could leave him alone, said kitten is getting dragged along for the ride.

He shouldn’t complain too much. Most of the stuff Shikamaru is picking up is for him anyways. Food, litter. He doesn’t think the cat needs much else, but feel free to correct him on that if you see him.

For his last stop of the day, Shikamaru makes a detour into the item shop, browsing through the puzzles and games, and the kitten’s mewing isn’t going to make him leave any faster. He needs something new to play.]

Fine, you don’t like the idea of that one. Don’t see how it matters to you – you’re not the one who’s gonna be playing it.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[He totally can. Shikamaru's just going to happily ignore the both of them for the next few minutes.

...well. As 'happily' as he can bother being with his best friend gone again. Which isn't very happy at all, but Naruto has managed to put him in a much better mood, for what it's worth.

He mostly just needed the space to think.]

[Yeah, you got ahead and ignore the two of them, Shikamaru. On one hand, Naruto won't mind because of what he just heard from Shikamaru. Maybe the guy needed from space from the kitten for a bit -- Chouji's kitten. On the other hand...

WHY IS HE STUCK WITH THE KITTEN.

He's just going to slowly pry off the kitten.] C'mon, c'mon...

[HE WAS HANDY.

Hearing Naruto trying to coax the cat gets a smirk out of him. It's pretty amusing. He's almost done here, though, picking through what games he actually feels like bothering carrying back in addition to the furball.

Meanwhile, said furball is probably going to do what many kittens do when faced with such treatment: mew with fright and squirm.]

Hey, don't do that! Calm down!

[He wasn't nearly as prepared for the kitten squirming, even if it's weak because it's a kitten. He just wasn't prepared, so Naruto freaks a tiny bit because the notion of dropping the animal is totally there.] Shh, shh! We're cool, right?

[That's exactly what the kitten is scared he'll do, hence more squirming as he tries to turn himself around to get a grip on his hand.

Shikamaru can't exactly ignore that now, much as he might like to.]

Oi. He's a cat, not a diaper, moron.

[Naruto has an iron grip! He won't drop the kitten! But it's still very not reassuring for the kitten to be moving like that, grips on hands kinda can hurt ow.]

What makes you think I thought he was a diaper? [Geez, Shikamaru, that's a silly statement.]

The way you're holding him out away from you like he smells.

[Just shaking his head. He pockets a deck of cards and tucks a small box - some kind of board game - under one arm and walks back toward them.]

Here, give him to me.

[Okay. This? This is something Naruto can do easily! He continues to hold the kitten out and takes a step forward, towards Shikamaru. TAKE HIM.

And get dem claws off his hand.] I wasn't holdin' him like that! I was just gettin' his off my neck!

Aa? It doesn't look like he scratched you there.

[The neck, he means. When Shikamaru takes the kitten, he'll probably be releasing those hands non-too-gently.]

[Oh well. Naruto has had worse experiences with his hands. ~~lolwat~~]

No... but he could've! You don't know what he would've done!

[~~asdfghjkl~~]

Right, sorry. Forgot to tell you he's an unpredictable, S-Class criminal.

You're not gonna humor me, are you?

This is me humoring you.

THAT'S NOT HOW YOU HUMOR PEOPLE!

I dunno, I think it's funny.

It's not even close to funny!

Damn. Must be losing your sense of humor, Naruto.

My sense of humor's perfectly fine, thanks! Yours is the one that sucks!

It's okay, man.

[Here, let us walk back to the front of the store.]

[Is that an okay for him having a bad sense of humor? Of course it is.] You get what you needed?

[No, it's an okay for 'you'll get it someday'. THERE, THERE.]

Yeah. Was just looking for some new games anyways.

[Shikamaru. You're a jerk. >:C]

To play with the cat?

[Are you just noticing this]

Sure. Think he'll wanna learn blackjack or poker?

[Maybe.]

I dunno if he can hold cards for poker. [Geez, Shikamaru. Use your brain for once.]

[...sigh.]

You're hopeless.

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nextgen-hokage.livejournal.com - 2011-12-17 18:12 (UTC) - Expand