[OOC] In the Shadow of the Cherry Trees | A Naruto RP

[Genkai]

Two smart shinobi find love in a hopeless place.

...Gosh, that describes most Naruto pairs doesn't it?

Well this is our ShikaSaku hideout, I swear I'm gonna help you fall in love with these two:

Prompt: Taking place during the two to three year gap when Naruto is gone. Shikamaru confesses to Sakura his feelings for his teammate, Ino. Shikamaru and Sakura decide to start dating in order to make Ino see Shikamaru as serious boyfriend material. Both Sakura and Shikamaru begin pretending to date and it quickly catches the eye of Ino. as planned. Shikamaru is visiting the hospital where she and Sakura train under Tsunade, seemingly happy to take Sakura out for lunch. They hold hands around town and take shopping trips together. Shikamaru even helps train Sakura for her upcoming Chunin exam. Eventually Ino soon confronts Sakura about the sudden romance and Sakura insists it's genuine attraction but Ino isn't so sure. Ino decides to try and figure out the truth for herself. Essentially either Shikamaru or Sakura will soon develop real feelings for the other as feelings become mangled, even more so when Tsunade sends Shikamaru, Ino and Sakura out on a mission together.

So we're thinking they're 16 years old, it's likely the first 2-3 months since Naruto and Sasuke leave Konoha, we'd start with Shikamaru approaching Sakura? Likely at her house or someplace secluded where Ino wouldn't catch him approaching her pink haired friend?

[SoleAccord]

Oooh, a house call... that's when you know he's serious. That could work, or he could run into her on her way to Tsunade's since Ino might have mentioned her training with Sakura under Tsunade and how it's going. No option is a wrong one here. I will take Sakura's home or running to catch up to her while she's on her way to work with Tsunade. Maybe her mother told him he just missed her, etc, etc.

[Genkai]

Yep, so many options.

1. Shikamaru catches Sakura on her way to work at the hospital and they walk and talk on the way. Ino manages to catch Shikamaru and Sakura from the window?

2. Sakura is heading home after a long day of physical training and medical training, Shikamaru could be waiting outside the hospital or by her home.

3. It's the weekend, she's off and Ino is working, thus a perfect time to pay Sakura a visit, gets suckered into staying over for lunch or something.

Choices choices...thoughts? On one hand, Ino spotting them now wouldn't be too weird, it might be what Shikamaru wants, to kinda drive Ino crazy. Or he wants it to be seriously established in secret and to have Ino find out after the fact they're now dating.

[SoleAccord]

Actually, I think option 1 would work, but I don't see Ino thinking anything of it except finding it odd that Shikamaru approached Sakura for anything in the first place considering they never, ever talked until the Sand attacked the Leaf. It starts innocent enough. Ino's a teasing girl but I don't think she'd just jump into the whole "Over Sasuke already, I see." and suggest that Shikamaru was anything other than cordial with her. The point is for Ino to see Shikamaru as someone worth being with, but I don't think she sees him as more than a good friend at the moment.

[Genkai]

I could start us off with option one. Somehow in the background, Ino and Naruto will totally happen and it'll be Sakura's turn to give Ino a smug look. It must happen.

[SoleAccord]

It'll be about three years from now but I can certainly see NaruIno happening, and I'm not just saying that because I like the crackness of that ship. Nope. Not at all.

You can have her on her way and I'll have him catch her in my own post. But it sucks because, well, I think my intro-making abilities are in serious decline xD

[Genkai]

Those blond rascals...can't no to them.

Gotta pump up your intro skills bro. I'll get the intro up once I'm done with Sapphire. I should probably start Sapphire. So behind on posts for RP and school. Better than doing nothing lol

[SoleAccord]

Not at all.

It's just different because it's fresh. You gotta work with your own content. It's kind of like starting a drawing for a beginner artist, where do you begin? And take your time. We've got a pretty big load all around. It's different now than it was when you didn't log on for like a month or two.

[Genkai]

Considering we'll have 5 RPs, I think them getting 1-2 posts a month is probably what's gonna happen, depending how work and school look for us. I think with GoT kinda being the wild card where when I can reply, I will before anything else, I don't want to fret about order too much but we'll find a balance.

[SoleAccord]

Yeah, and that's assuming our peak times and troubles aren't maxed out. Otherwise we might be looking at one a month X.X but I don't want to dwell on a possible future like that.

GoT is the wild card rp and we've discussed your situation regarding it already. Your windows for replying to it demand a combination of privacy and the proper mind to get into that grit. Everything else we do now is basically fluff with some tension here and there, but nothing in comparison to Westeros.

We'll figure it out as we go, definitely.

[Genkai]

Our projects are so fucking ambitious. 5 roleplays. We are gonna die but I refuse to let these ones die. We gotta break the cycle man. Honestly though, I'd be fine with slow ass posts as opposed to feeling burnt out trying to play catch up constantly. The good thing about different roleplays is that there are different moods and situations so it's not like we're doing the same thing five times and getting bored of writing the same issues.

I better focus on getting into Sapphire though, so I may be a bit quiet until I've worked it through.

[SoleAccord]

WE HAVE SO MUCH AMBITION THAT LIFE CONSTANTLY GETS IN OUR WAY TO STOP US. We are totally gonna fucking die for all these freakin' rp's but I'm with you on the slow ass post thing. Just take it a post at a time. We both have lives outside of this... which sucks because there's nothing better than creating with someone you respect and have great chemistry with as a writer, RARE these days might I add.

You worry about Sapphire tho.

[Genkai]

Nooo no no these roleplays will be so fucking slow but they will not die. I swear to fucking god, we are seeing these to end! Our lives do come first of course, and yes one post at a time is a good way to approach instead of worrying about other posts or things in the future. I'll come back after dinner and start this intro, then I may tap out for the night.

[SoleAccord]

Dude tap the fuck out whenever you want. I don't even NEED this tonight. You encourage me to get rest before any sort of writing and I encourage you to do the same. This can wait. I, myself, may need another night's rest before I crack my fingers and start making some magic.

[Genkai]

I know, :3 I probably have another post in me, it's only 7:30 for me but it's a bit later for you. I do need to do a bit of homework tonight as well, so I will likely tend to it after the intro. I was also supposed to meet a friend tonight but he may be a no show...

[SoleAccord]

I'm three hours ahead and I'm already out of it. Rarely do I have energy on Sunday.

If you think you can do it, by all means try. I'll try to get to everything before returning to work. Peace for now~

[Genkai]

Enjoy your rest, don't worry about the fuss before work kicks up for you again. As you said, we're in no real rush. I think once we get all of these off the ground, it'll be easier to juggle. Someday our sixth RP will Harry Potter...someday.

Ahem.

Good night. :) You'll have a post tomorrow, dream of awesome things in the meantime.

[SoleAccord]

Took me long enough, right?

Lol maybe one day we will do a Harry and Hermione thing, even if it's just a oneshot. I adore you too much to let some of your big dreams die. That's why we're back to ShikaSaku~

So I highlighted his insecurity a lot. He grew up around all the girls his age really craving for Sasuke, and natural good looks and flashy talent aren't things he can compete with, so I brought that up a few times. I just wanted that to be clarified in case you thought he believed himself an ugly person. Not ugly, just... not what a girl his age wants as a person.

I think there are a couple options from here to get into the main plot point, which is the fake dating:

A) Sakura mentions that the best way to show his desirability is to be taken, and she brings up fake dating someone, and he looks at her for it, so we go from there.

Or

B) Sakura tells him she'll talk to Ino and see what she thinks of him already, then get back to him later on, and then Shikamaru comes up with the idea of fake dating instead of Sakura, and she agrees from there.

A and B can be interchanged with who actually comes up with the idea, but A feels a little fast because Sakura has to suddenly get into character about liking Shikamaru who had just fake-asked her to be his girlfriend and she agreed. I feel like that level of acting is something she has to perhaps sit down and think on, or sleep on, because at this time she's been Sasuke-crazy for the last couple months since he failed to be brought back.

BUT if we went with A, and Sakura's faster than I think she is, we can have Shikamaru leaving Sakura to go, and Ino SEES him leaving her, and she asks what it was about. Sakura can CHOOSE to set up the fake dating thing from there to help him out and get back to him later about what she got him into, which could make for a funny interaction.

No option is wrong. It all leads to the same road, just a matter of how we travel. Let me know. And I hope it was an okay post.

[Genkai]

XD A one shot Harry x Hermione would be fucking beautiful you know. Maybe someday when one of these are finished. *dreamy sigh*

And no no no your post was a great, your message got across well, don't worry! I feel bad for the other guys being compared to Sasuke who's a 'hunk' though someday I wanna make SasuHina happen if you're still game, I did it with that one girl and found it utterly awful but I think with you, it would be less of a trainwreck.

I was thinking (without having read the OOC while lurking) Sakura would already know how Ino feels about Shikamaru. I mean girls do gab when they've got free time and I am sure they've talked about Sasuke leaving is such a shame and how they're kinda getting over him or trying to, at least. I was thinking she'd be quick to just relay to Shikamaru how Ino views him like a brother or close pal, but no inclination of romantic feeling, but she could then as you suggested with option A, mention he could date someone else and maybe catch Ino's eye. I don't think either could come to the conclusion on the spot about them pretending to date.

I think Sakura could suggest them dating but it may be a stretch since 'it' itself is a stretch. I like the idea of Sakura parting with Shikamaru, letting him think about dating someone (real or not) to figure out his feelings for Ino and to make her look at Shikamaru differently. I think the idea of Ino prompting Sakura to lie on the spot would be pretty funny. I think after work Sakura would rush to Shikamaru's place before Ino gets there (cause you know she's gonna wanna find Shikamaru and find out what's going on with him and Sakura for realz) and say he now owes her for covering for him and that they're now pretending to date. Maybe Ino gets there two minutes later and expresses her surprise?

That wouldn't happen all in my reply of course but it's a good thought. I think?

EDIT - Got you a post, I figured I'll put Ino in my reply when I also skip to after work? Maybe Shikamaru could go to the bookstore and see if he could read up on dating? Otherwise he could hang out at his house until Sakura comes over? Unless we wanted to go a different route than I mentioned above. :3

[SoleAccord]

I mean we say one-shot but we get attached and can't let it go lmfao. It's been too long and I'm not as immersed in the HP world as I was as a teen. I don't think I'd do Harry justice for you, but, like Shikamaru, I'd do my best for you ^_^~

Okay, whew, I'm trying to get into the exact amount of carelessness while still caring enough to have our plot move. It would suck if Sakura's efforts alone were driving us anywhere, and I think you've mentioned once before that someone had Shikamaru do very little in a past ShikaSaku project. Oooh, you'd do SasuHina for me? Aww~~ It would be hard, admittedly, since none of the areas you know Shippuden help leave room for Sasuke and Hinata to build a meaningful relationship. I think NaruIno would be easier and more relatable for the both of us, so I don't mind having that happen should we get farther.

I like your plan. Let's go with it!

And great post as expected. I'll have Shikamaru hit up the bookstore before going home, try to find some published advice for it, since I think he's too embarrassed to go to his dad about women at the moment. Maybe later though? Who knows~ Ino can catch Sakura quickly telling Shikamaru she volunteers and they can get right into the acting.