Ino lay in the queen sized bed she shared with Shikamaru, clutching his pillow tightly. Yet again, he was someplace else rather than here. Of course, it wasn't entirely his fault. Ino's brows knit. It was that blasted Naruto! "Why does he always seem to give Shika the crap missions?" The tiny blond burst out. "None of the other Jounins are called out as often as he is!" She pouted, burying her face in the pillow and inhaling Shikamaru's scent. It was musky, with a hint of cinnamon.
The kitchen was a complete disaster area. There were measuring cups and bowls strewn about, flour and sugar covering the countertops and the kitchen table, spoons and knives coated in batter sitting in a heap in the sink. And in the middle of it all was Ino, wearing an apron in her favorite color, violet, and anxiously hovering near the oven. Shikamaru leaned up against the doorframe, watching his tiny wife in amusement, trying very hard not to laugh and alert her to his presence. Though she never admitted it, Shikamaru was well aware that Ino felt inferior for not knowing how to cook as well as he did, and so spent ridiculous amounts of time pouring over books of recipes, the fruits of her labor usually resulting in their kitchen looking the way it did. It appeared that she had progressed to desserts today. Shikamaru smiled, realizing that his wife had intended to surprise him upon his return.
A buzzer sounded, and Ino, oven mitts on her hands, reached in and removed what had taken her nearly three hours to make, exhaling deeply. "Perfect!" She squealed, setting the cake on the stovetop to cool. "Oh, Shika is going to be so proud of me!" Ino tossed the mitts off and admired her work, her mind filling with some rather naughty thoughts. "Maybe he'll even reward me for my effort." Ino erupted into a fit of giggles. The laughter stopped, however, when a pair of arms wrapped around her from behind, and her eyes went wide.
"My,what a kinky thought." Shikamaru kissed her neck, right beneath her ear, smirking as he did so.
"SHIKA!" Ino hissed, pulling herself out of her husband's embrace and turning to face him. She ignored the tingling feeling that was left behind from his kisses and glared at him. "How long have you been here?"
He only smiled, deciding that his chances of survival would be greatly increased if he didn't answer the question.
Ino stamped her foot. "This was supposed to be a surprise, and you ruined it, you oaf!"
Seeing and opening, Shikamaru leaned forward and kissed Ino's nose, which was streaked with flour. "You really are too adorable for your own good...or mine, for that matter."
The blonde faltered. She had every intention of letting him know exactly what she thought about him at that moment, but found that she couldn't get the words out. He was looking at her with such tenderness in his eyes that saying anything would make her seem like a barbarian, and that simply wouldn't do. Shikamaru watched the play of emotion on Ino's face, silently basking in his cleverness. Ever the tactician, he had manipulated the situation to his advantage by showing affection at just the right moments, causing Ino's resolve to crumble. He smirked again.
Ino was not a stupid girl by any means, and her mind was sharp, despite what some people thought. She caught the smirk on her husband's face, and realized with disgust that he'd duped her. A zillion options as to how to suitably get back at him came to mind, and she decided that seeing him covered in flour would be most rewarding. Reaching behind her, Ino grabbed the container that she thought held the flour and upended it over Shikamaru's head. The result was not what she expected.
Instead of flour, Shikamaru was doused with cinnamon. Ino froze, and Shikamaru stared at her blankly while the cinnamon cascaded down his body. The corners of his mouth started quirking. "That was brilliant, Ino." His laughter finally escaped, bits of cinnamon raining to the ground as he shook.
Ino blushed a healthy shade of red. "I—that wasn't—" Shikamaru's laughter was infectious. It wasn't long before Ino started giggling helplessly, tears streaming down her face. "I really thought that was flour!"
Shikamaru yanked her into a hug, still laughing. "I deserved it. I'll think twice before I try being clever with you again. You know me too well for that."
