A Troublesome Series of Events

Tellnoone_Noonetells: I won't stop updating, don't worry. xD We're finishing this story to the end. All I meant was that 5+ people used to review every chapter and now it's basically just you. I know people are still reading it, I'm just wondering if it's not as good anymore since hardly anyone's reviewing.
xAmbeh: I'm glad you like it so much. 83 But I barely have time for updating, so would you mind just bookmarking it and check it every week or so?
Ninny: O:! Here is moar for you! Glad you like it so much~.

It starts. >8D

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Shikamaru stirred awake, cursing internally since they had forgotten to close the window shades again before falling asleep. After a minute of internal grumbling he audibly sighed and shifted in the bed, stretching.

The Nara let out an undignified yelp as he fell off the bed, landing on his shoulders. He blinked up at the ceiling, wondering why he had been so close to the edge of the bed, and flailed a bit before sitting up and looking at the bed, lips twitching upwards at seeing both males.

“Hmm? Shikamaru?” Sasuke stirred, feeling a warm body pressed against his back. He opened his eyes groggily, seeing the Nara on the other side of the bed, peering at him with lips curved into a smirk. He blinked. If Shikamaru was there, then who was behind him?

“Huh wazzat? Shikamaru?” Naruto’s voice entered his ear, sounding just as groggy as Sasuke felt. The Uchiha stiffened, feeling Naruto nuzzle into his nape, inhaling softly.

“Naruto… what are you doing?” He asked, shifting. Naruto opened his eyes, seeing an up close expanse of soft black hair. He froze, glancing down to see milky white skin.

…Shit. He flung himself away, rolling until he was on the other side, dropping onto his knees and looking at Sasuke wildly.

“Sasuke, what the hell were you doing?!” He demanded, blushing hotly. Sasuke rolled onto his back, giving Naruto an incredulous look.

“I fell asleep next to Shikamaru. What were you doing?’ He said, his own blush on his cheeks though not as bad as Naruto’s.

Shikamaru snickered quietly to himself as he watched them in amusement. After a thought, he turned away and reached across the floor, grabbing his boxers and slipping them on so he wasn’t completely naked.

Naruto’s eyes followed Shikamaru’s movement, widening when he saw what the boy had grabbed. He flicked his eyes back to Sasuke, unable to keep from roving them up and down the Uchiha’s body; blush increasing as he saw a bit of uncovered manhood, slightly covered by Sasuke’s upraised leg.

“I, I came in late at night… and it was dark… but, but, I smelled for Shikamaru’s shampoo! And I felt for his soft hair!” He said, flexing his fingers to emphasize that he’d truly checked to make sure it was the Nara before he’d crawled in and spooned them.

Shikamaru shrugged as he climbed back into the bed; so much more comfortable than the floor. “He has to use shampoo, too,” he pointed out, “but if he doesn’t use mine, I’m sure my pillows smell like it anyway. It’s an easy enough mistake, especially in the dark.”

“But, his hair was soft!” Naruto whined, slumping down with his face in the bed. Sasuke smirked, lying back against the pillow, resting a hand on his stomach. He was tempted to lower his leg, but Naruto seemed to still be shy about that sort of thing.

Shikamaru chuckled and leaned over Sasuke to place a kiss on Naruto’s hair. “And if he’s been using my shampoo it would be,” he said as he pulled away and sat back again.

Naruto raised his head, eyes big as he pouted up at Shikamaru.

“You just think it’s funny…” He said, lower lip jutted out. Sasuke snickered, reaching a hand out and touching Naruto’s hair lightly.

“Of course it’s funny. You’d be laughing too if you fell asleep and woke up being spooned.” He said, smirking. Naruto flushed, pouting even more at the Uchiha but not refusing his touch.

Shikamaru just smiled lightly, watching them interact. It was nice to see them getting along—or at least as close to it as it could get. He let out a soft sigh as he stretched out and laid down again.

“Oh, I see how it is. Don’t even try to deny it.” Naruto said, sticking his tongue out at the Nara. He crawled up onto the bed again, carefully keeping his eyes averted from Sasuke’s body as he did so. The Uchiha remained still, allowing Naruto to situate himself on his side, facing towards himself and Shikamaru. There was a good gap between them, nothing like how close Shikamaru was to him on his other side.

Shikamaru snorted and turned onto his side, propping his head on his hand so he could see both of them. “I’m sure you do, Naruto,” he said, teasing the blond.

Naruto huffed, reaching out to poke him playfully, only to see that he had to really stretch to do it. He blushed, sliding a little nearer, just enough to successfully poke the Nara, drawing his hand back somewhat quickly. Sasuke only chuckled, skin shivering minutely as Naruto’s hand nearly touched, just barely ghosting by.

Shikamaru eyed them both briefly before smirking lightly, almost another smile. He reached his arm over and grabbed Naruto’s hand, lacing their fingers and bringing them back over to rest on Sasuke’s chest.

The blond’s blush increased, his stomach flipping nervously, his mind reeling with confusion as many different feelings assaulted him from the simple contact. Resentment, jealousy, anguish were an obvious, if not expected, reaction; but what confused him was how… excited he was by it. His heart was hammering in his chest, his skin tingling where it touched the other, his mind racing over many possibilities while he tried to keep his eyes from moving down and ogling the unclothed manhood he knew to be in perfect sight now.

Sasuke remained quiet, giving Shikamaru a sidelong, slightly questioning glance as he felt Naruto immediately tense, breathing growing slightly more rapid.

Seeing the other’s muscles bunch and tighten, he immediately unlaced their fingers and just held his hand, running his thumb over Naruto’s knuckles to relax him. He shifted his gaze to Sasuke, raising an eyebrow a little at his expression.

Naruto closed his eyes, burying his face into the pillow. With Shikamaru moving his hand, he was suddenly touching more of the Uchiha’s chest, and as much as he tried to concentrate on the Nara’s attempts to calm him, his mind was raging with the urge to fully splay his hand out, trailing fingertips over smooth pale skin. His darkest fantasies, from before Sasuke had abandoned Konoha, seemed to be welling up all over again.

Sasuke shifted his eyes to Naruto, indicating what he meant by his look. Why was he doing that to Naruto? It obviously made him uncomfortable.

Shikamaru looked back at Naruto and, content with how distracted he was, he scooted closer to Sasuke so he could whisper in his ear.

“I’d like to get him more used to contact,” he said, just loud enough for Sasuke to hear. “Like I said before… I don’t want to leave either of you out. And, well, Kiba wasn’t that far off yesterday.”

Sasuke nodded, glancing back at the boy. From Shikamaru’s shifting closer, he was able to realize that although it wasn’t chilly, he wasn’t exactly toasty warm either. He moved closer to Shikamaru, bringing a hand up and cradling the other’s hand, pulling the other two’s hands down a bit lower so he could rest his arm comfortably.

Naruto’s entire body tensed, his cock jumping as his mind flashed back onto what it could remember of Sasuke’s hard dick, Shikamaru’s mouth wet and open and willing above the inviting length that was just a sparse distance from his hand. His entire face heated up, spilling over to his ears and neck. Before he could even think about it he’d ripped his hand back, rolling so neither of the other boy’s saw his half hard problem as he bolted from the bed, heading into the bathroom and shutting the door hurriedly.

Shikamaru sighed and rested his forehead on Sasuke’s shoulder for a second before pulling away and sitting up. “I’ll go talk with him,” he said. He paused, eyeing Sasuke, and added, “You putting on something would probably make it less awkward for now, too.”

He got up, not waiting for a response, and walked over to the bathroom. “Naruto?” he called out tentatively after knocking on the door.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, muttering under his breath about how it wasn’t his fault this time around. He hadn’t been planning on Naruto coming home and he hadn’t had the chance to get dressed like Shikamaru had.

Naruto ran the tap at the sink, setting it to cold as he splashed his hot face with it, shaking his golden locks as the moisture was sprinkled haphazardly throughout. He almost didn’t respond to Shikamaru, feeling too embarrassed by the way he’d reacted and why.

“Y-yeah?” He asked a bit shakily, closing his eyes and breathing through his nose. At the thought of being able to will his erection down, a surge of rekindled fantasies erupted in his mind, leaving him to bend over and apply cold water to his face hurriedly again.

Shikamaru turned his back to the door leaned against it as he waited for Naruto to respond. He turned his head to press his ear against the wood when he heard an answer finally.

“Can I come in?”

“…Yeah.” Naruto said after a while of debate, looking into the mirror at himself and feeling a wash of shame. Why was he acting like such a baby about this? He could handle a little teenage hormones, no one was denying that Sasuke was hot, why would his hormones? He shook his head, closing his eyes. He wasn’t supposed to think that way about him, he was supposed to be his best friend!

Shikamaru turned and opened the door, slipping inside and closing it behind him. “Are you okay?” he asked, moving over and sitting on the covered toilet. Maybe he’d miscalculated and had pushed it a little too much, too soon.

“Yeah, yeah I just… shit Shikamaru, I don’t know!” Naruto said, starting off strong and ending with his forehead resting against the sink edge, wet hair dripping into the bowl and down his collar. His hands gripped the edge solidly, just wanting the confusion all gone.

Shikamaru sighed and stood up again. He grabbed a towel off the rack and stepped up to Naruto, placing it over his head for him to dry off the soaked edges if he wanted.

“…Do you want to talk it out?” he asked.

Naruto halfheartedly used the towel, scrubbing at his hair as though he were scrubbing his dirty thoughts out of his skull. He almost laughed as the thought ‘Must. Wash. Away. Sin.’ came into his head; before it registered that it was what he was doing in a way.

“Ugh, Shikamaru I feel like such a girl! Having to talk about feelings all the damn time!” Naruto grumbled, turning to look at him with a disengaging pout on his face. If he complained, he and Shikamaru might be able to forget about all these girly feelings.

Shikamaru laughed and shook his head. He quirked an eyebrow and smirked before countering, “Says you, talking to the boy who’s pregnant.” He laughed again, more subdued, and leaned against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. “But you have to vent now and then, female or not, you know.”

Naruto scrunched his nose at the other, feeling amused by what Shikamaru had said but knowing that it didn’t truly make him feel any less… stupid for how he’d reacted. He sighed.

“Didn’t I vent enough last week?”

“Not if you still have problems,” Shikamaru said, traces of amusement gone for a serious expression. He didn’t want to chatter like a girl either, but he did want to know where exactly Naruto stood. And he really didn’t want to lose either of them.

Naruto shook his head, almost stubbornly, crossing his arms.

“I don’t still have problems…” He said, turning his face away from Shikamaru with a small blush on his cheeks.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, releasing a soft sigh. “Then why did you run away to here? If you didn’t want that much contact, you could have just said so and pulled away instead.”

“…Because I have no problems. That’s the problem!” He said as he shook his head again, as if clearing thoughts in his head. He uncrossed his arms, re-crossed them, shifting on his feet. His small blush had increased in his agitation.

Shikamaru blinked, staying quiet and trying to piece that out for a few seconds before shaking his head. “Can you elaborate on that?” he asked hesitantly. He didn’t want to push Naruto too far, but he did want to know and clear things up.

Naruto shifted around, shuffling his feet slightly before finally coming out with it.

“It’s that… I should be having problems, right? I should be feeling mad and pissy and, and, I do, but it… It’s not as bad as it should be! It’s like, if I could only be allowed to join you two I’d be all good, and that’s not good because I shouldn’t be getting a hard on just from touching Sasuke-teme’s chest like that!” Naruto ended panting slightly, feeling as if some weight he hadn’t noticed building below the surface had finally been flung into broad daylight. It wasn’t gone, but he suddenly couldn’t ignore it.

Both of Shikamaru’s eyebrows rose up before he smirked softly, shaking his head a little.

“It’s okay, you know,” he said, shifting to move closer, and he hugged Naruto from the side, resting his chin on his shoulder. “You’ve liked, maybe loved, him too for how long? And I know he wouldn’t mind.”

“But, it shouldn’t be okay… I mean… You don’t think I’m being stupid? Or... or just horny?” Naruto said, eyes filled with genuine worry. He didn’t want to come off as some kind of man slut or anything and didn’t they always talk about getting over those who hurt you, for your own sake?

Shikamaru shook his head, smiling gently. “You’re not being stupid. And it’s not like he has a reason to leave again,” he said, mentally adding an ‘I hope’.

“But, I mean, it’s not stupid to just… forgive him? Well, not entirely, he still makes me mad, but it’s just not as bad as it should be... is it?” Naruto said, turning to Shikamaru. “I’m not being… too quick to forgive him, am I?”

Shikamaru frowned lightly, glancing off to the side. “I… don’t know. That’s not something I can tell you since it didn’t happen to me. But he is trying to redeem himself and there’s only so much someone can do to do that.”

Naruto’s eyes turned away, becoming downcast. He’d been hoping, since he’d been forced to spill, that Shikamaru could help him out. Should he be comfortable with just how comfortable he was with Sasuke? He’d had a couple of days alone time with the other, but that had been spent silently setting up his stuff while Sasuke remained just as quiet, helping with heavier stuff.

Had the Uchiha been trying to be good? Keeping quiet to try and stay on his good side? He sighed in agitation, feeling like he was where he was from the beginning.

“Doesn’t help that my old fantasies are coming back to me…” He whispered in a soft, pouty voice to himself.

Shikamaru’s frown deepened, watching the blond’s expression darken. He knew he could have just said that no, it was perfectly fine to feel like that but… He wasn’t sure, especially if he put himself in Naruto’s place with what had happened over the years.

He started to pull back from the hug but paused, raising an eyebrow as he caught the other’s murmur. “Fantasies?” he echoed.

Naruto flushed all over again, scratching at his neck reflexively.

“Nothing, nothing… So what’s the plan now?” He asked instead, wondering if they were going back into the room or not. He almost didn’t want to, instead liking the idea of hiding out in the bathroom, but then he didn’t want to wimp out.

Shikamaru’s frown lifted into a smirk and he pulled back, though still remaining close. “The plan is that you tell me at least one of these fantasies,” he said, curious about them.

Naruto squirmed under the pressure, face heating up as he shifted, nearly hopping, from foot to foot before the Nara.

“Come on, we’ve all had them, do you really need to know mine?” He said voice a little higher from embarrassment. “You tell me one of yours and I’ll tell you one of mine,” He said quickly, as he guessed the other would more than likely simply say ‘yes’ to his first question.

Shikamaru’s smirk widened as he nodded. “Alright,” he said before taking a moment to think. “Well… One I’ve had is with both you and Sasuke fucking me, er, at the same time.” His cheeks heated up slowly while talking.

“Wow Shikamaru…” Naruto said, thinking on it. Immediately he knew it wasn’t a good idea as heat rushed southward, only enough to make him blush heading north. He shook his head, trying to clear it enough to recollect one of his own, one that he was willing to tell.

“I… Um… I used to imagine Sasuke, um… You know… letting me put stuff on him and lick it off kinda… stuff…” He said nervously, scratching the back of his neck as unconscious proof.

“What sort of ‘stuff’? Ramen?” Shikamaru asked with a grin, joking. Although he wouldn’t be surprised if that had been one of the things Naruto wanted to lick off of the Uchiha.

Naruto blushed harder, not thinking about that particular fantasy but remembering the ones he had had involving his favorite food.

“Yes, ramen! Just that he would like, take some of the noodles and kinda… wrap them around his…” He blushed furiously, closing his mouth and looking the opposite way of Shikamaru.

“Erection?” Shikamaru said, completing his sentence. “That would be a… different way to eat dinner.” He held back a few chuckles, though, really, it was a good idea.

Naruto ducked his head in even more embarrassment.

“Yes, yes, now are we done?” He asked desperately, not wanting to be drawn into another discussion with Shikamaru about what they fantasized doing with the Uchiha.

Shikamaru sighed softly and, stepping closer again, he turned Naruto’s head to face him. He gave him a brief, chaste kiss before pressing their foreheads together.

“It really is okay, you know,” he muttered.

Naruto blushed, laughing nervously.

“Heh heh, of course the fantasies are okay Shikamaru! I told you we all get them.” He said, avoiding what he knew the boy meant. “So are we done now? We can go?”

Shikamaru suppressed another sigh and nodded, pulling back and away. “Yeah,” he said, wanting to push more but figuring it would do more harm than good now.

Naruto cocked his head, feeling like he’d upset Shikamaru somehow.

“Well, I mean… I’m just not used to the idea is all… of it being okay and stuff… you know? It took forever to be able to be comfortable with you right, so now it’s all strange… and stuff.” He said, floundering with his words. He didn’t want this to end with Shikamaru upset at him.

Shikamaru shook his head, with a small smile. “It’s fine, Naruto,” he said, pushing some of his hair back, finally starting to annoy him still down. “I just… don’t want it to get awkward.”

“It’s only awkward because of me being stupid.” Naruto said, trying to placate Shikamaru. “Really, it’s fine Shikamaru, if you say it’s okay, it’s okay, right? Just, let me get used to… being near him again.”

Shikamaru nodded. Of course it would take time even if they just stayed friends. “Alright,” he said, “but you aren’t being stupid. Now, er, why don’t you go back out there—I’ll be out in another minute.”

Naruto furrowed his brows at the Nara, wondering if he wasn’t still upset with him.

“Alright… what are you going to do?” He said, ending with a curious note.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow and let out a snort. “I just woke up after hours of sleeping. What do you think I’m going to do?” he asked, now smirking.

Naruto blinked, before smiling in return. He hadn’t even thought about that since he got out of bed. He never really did actually, until he’d left and walked around a bit.

“Sure thing Shikamaru.” He said, laughing lowly. He stepped out of the bathroom, leaving the Nara in peace. Once outside he was struck with apprehension, wondering if it would be cowardly to just sort of… wait for Shikamaru to get out of the bathroom. He sighed.

“You can do this. It’s just Sasuke.” He muttered, walking back to the room. He didn’t look at the Uchiha as he climbed back onto the bed, lying with his back to the other male. He’d been unable to keep from sneaking a peak, seeing his bedmate had gotten boxers on while he was gone. He felt both relieved and disappointed by this, but decided to just not think about it as he curled on his side. Shikamaru said it was okay to feel this way, and Shikamaru was smart. He trusted him.

Shikamaru stared at the door before heaving a sigh and rubbing at a temple. He knew both of the other boys still liked each other after over three years, even if he was part of the equation now, too. He just didn’t know whether to push them for it or just let it play out.

And really, he thought, it wasn’t as rare for a shinobi to take more than one lover as Naruto thought. But it was one thing to know and another to explain it to the blond jinchuuriki.

He shook his head to clear those thoughts for now and did his business, washing after, and then headed out of the bathroom and back into his bedroom.

Sasuke glanced over at the Nara, then back to Naruto. He raised an eyebrow in question, wondering what it was that had bothered Naruto. Should he and Shikamaru leave, so that he could get the details, or was it not that big of a deal?

Shikamaru half-sighed, rolling his eyes, and motioned for Sasuke to come over. Naruto hadn’t said he couldn’t tell Sasuke after all, so he didn’t have to keep it a secret.

Sasuke got up; slight confusion making its way onto his face. He glanced back at Naruto, seeing the boy looking over his shoulder at him, a blush on his cheeks. Upon meeting eyes, Naruto quickly looked down, only increasing Sasuke’s confusion.

“Yes?” He said when he was standing beside the Nara.

The Nara grabbed Sasuke’s hand and led him out of the room, sure that it would make Naruto way too uncomfortable if he heard them talking—and even if he knew he was telling Sasuke, not being the same room would still affect him less.

Once he thought they were out of ear shot (or at least as much without leaving the apartment or closing doors), he let go of Sasuke and turned to look at him.

“He still likes you,” he simply said.

Sasuke’s eyes widened, his mind reeling slightly from that. He was sure that with that reaction, and all that he’d done to the blond…

“Why did he run away then?” He asked, confusion settling back onto his features.

“He doesn’t think it’s okay to,” Shikamaru said, frowning a little. “And, really, I don’t think it’s about what you’ve actually done, but more about how some people might judge him as… fickle, I suppose.”

Sasuke’s eyes furrowed. This was a touchy subject.

“Naruto’s known for being too quick to forgive, maybe the village pointed that out one too many times?” He suggested, thinking. “He’s always been a shy kid too, when it comes to physical contact with someone he likes. He didn’t grow up with it; he’s not used to that sort of thing.”

Shikamaru nodded and run his fingers through his hair, frown deepening. “I don’t… want to make him uncomfortable, but I don’t want to leave him out either,” he said in a softer voice.

“Yes… But this is Naruto. He needs a push sometimes. I don’t think we’re going to see much of a difference if we let him think it all through.” Sasuke said, smirking as he chuckled slightly.

Shikamaru let out a small snort, frown disappearing. “I guess that’s true,” he said. “But maybe it’s too much, too soon right now?” He shrugged, not completely sure what would be the best.

“It’s never too much with Naruto, as for too soon… well, he’s gone through worse. I guess it’s all about whether we want to tiptoe around him for another few weeks until one of us breaks, or just try it now.”

“Well, given those options, now would definitely be the better choice,” Shikamaru said. If they let this stew, he could only picture something more complicated happening.

“I’m sure we’re over simplifying things somewhere, but it seems like the best course of action to me.” Sasuke said, nodding. “What do we want to actually do though?”

Shikamaru sighed, fingers fiddling a little. “Just… touch,” he said. “Maybe cuddling. I don’t really know, we’ll just… see where it goes.”

Sasuke nodded.

“But, who will be the one touching him first?” He asked. “If it was you, Shikamaru, Naruto would probably be more comfortable with it, but the point is to get Naruto comfortable with me… But it might be easier on the blond if it were you, kind of… getting him in the mood?”

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at Sasuke’s wording but just nodded. “I can go in first and make sure there will be room on his other side,” he said and added, “So come back in after a couple minutes?”

“Alright.” Sasuke said, nodding. He stepped to the side, giving the Nara room to walk by. He gave him a cocky sort of smirk before he left, whispering, “It can’t go wrong. No one can resist me.”

Shikamaru snorted and shook his head, smirk widening. He walked past Sasuke and back into the bedroom. He sat down on the bed and laid down close to the edge, turning to face Naruto.