He had found the ideal place for himself. The grass at the secluded hillside behind the Hokage tower was smooth, the sun warmed his skin in just the right amount and the view over Konoha couldn't have been more beautiful. Most of all, it was peacefully serene and deserted up here, so he wouldn't be bothered so easily.

It was the perfect place for a refreshing nap after an irksome mission.

Shikaku let out a contented sigh, crossed his arms comfortably behind his head and closed his eyes. Instantly he relaxed relishing in his silent solitude. Soon, he felt himself gradually dozing off and being lured into the bliss of sweet, sweet daydreams…

Suddenly, something heavy slammed into his stomach and forcefully squeezed every ounce of breath out of his lungs at one go. "Ouff!", he groaned gasping for air. His attacker had no sympathy for his pain, but hammered angry fists onto his chest while keeping him down by sitting on his abdomen. "That *! This is so unfair!", the raging voice of the boy on top of him hollered.

Shikaku struggled to get a blonde streak out of his mouth and caught the assaulting hands in his own. "Inoichi…calm down!", he huffed warily blinking up at his most aggravated team mate, who seemed to finally come to senses. "Troublesome. What happened?" His friend pouted.

"It's Chouza!", Inoichi accused crossing his arms, as soon as Shikaku let go, but refused to get off of him. Tiredly he sighed and lowered his head back onto the grass. Of course it was Chouza, he should have known… "So…what did he do to aggravate you this time?", he murmured closing his eyes again, for the sudden assault had tired him out. It was best to let the blonde rant first, so he would not fall prey to another temper tantrum of the angry boar right after the first was survived.

"Remember when we came back from our mission, today? I nearly collapsed out of hunger, because I had been late for breakfast. I was soo wasted, my tummy's grumbling must have been deemed a thunderstorm in whole Hi no Kuni", Inoichi rambled fast and his lazy friend simply nodded for him to continue. "To make it even worse, I had forgotten my wallet, so I couldn't buy me something – anything! I was dying of hunger! Now, guess what the * fatso did?", the blonde angrily gesticulated wildly, so Shikaku almost got hit. "What?", he mouthed sluggishly.

"He had the nerve to grin at me, take out his loads of snacks and eat them right in front of my eyes, without sharing anything of it with his starving friend! 'Too bad', he said! Can you believe it? Too bad, my ass!", Inoichi hollered trembling with seething anger. "He's so going to pay for that!"

"So troublesome…" Shikaku sighed deeply and turned his eyes skywards. After a brief moment of silence he flashed his friend a lazy smirk and announced: "I've got a plan." He knew the blonde expected nothing less from him, for the angry expression soon turned into a conspirational grin. "Let's go!"

The two boys found Chouza perched on a giant rock at the backside of the Akimichi compound, munching happily on his snacks. Their big friend was obviously totally oblivious to their scheming, when his team mates strolled towards him. He even waved at them. "Yo, Chouza!", Shikaku greeted. "Been busy again?" The corpulent Shinobi grinned broadly, his eyes b* confidently. "So, what's up, guys?" He jumped down to his best buddies.

"Your mother's made some delicious 'little something' yet again. Asked us to give it to you, while we're still here…", Inoichi lifted the huge picnic basket and Chouza cried out with delight. "Oh, she's just the best! Let me see", he exclaimed, grabbed the basket and rummaged through its contents hungrily. Thus, he did not notice Shikaku and the blonde exchanging glances. "Woah! They are all my favourites…so lucky!"

However, before the redhead could dig into the food, Inoichi cleared his throat. "But you know, Chouza…these aren't for you to eat", he said innocently. "Huh?" This was enough distraction for Shikaku to perform his trademark Jutsu successfully. Chouza stared at his lazy friend startled and confused with shock. "Shikaku! Inoichi! What's that supposed to mean? Let go off me!", he shouted but was unable to move.

"No can do, my friend! That would be too much trouble right now…", Shikaku showed a half smirk and forced the bigger Shinobi down with him, as he slumped down on the ground. Inoichi sat right in front of them and announced with a malicious grin: "Today, we're going to teach you a little lesson about true friendship, my dear Chouza…"

"Wha-…?" Bewildered and furious, the redhead watched helplessly as his arm bent against his will, dove into the pastries an mimicked the shadow user's movements. "Oh, no! You don't! Shikaku, I dare you-…! This is not funny", Chouza seethed, when Shikaku stretched his arm forward, as if he was holding an invisible titbit between his fingers. "Say 'ah'!", he murmured while the blonde boy grinned opening his mouth and eating the precious snack right out of Chouza's big hands. "You-…! How could you? My treats…! Inoichi, spit that out; Shikaku, let go already, so I can kill you both!", the raging Akimichi boy threatened while forced to feed Inoichi.

It was hard to maintain the Jutsu against such a strong fellow like Chouza, but it surely was fun to tease him like that. So Shikaku deemed the trouble worth it. The redhead struggled more feverishly under his shadow grip the more often he repeated the movement to serve the blonde the exquisites, which his overweight friend loved so much. "Serves you right, Chouza! Let that be a lesson to you to share with your friends in need, you greedy fatso!", Inoichi quipped munching happily.

"WHAT?" The tone in Chouza's voice alerted the lazy Shinobi, for his Chakra was slowly wearing thin and the comment on his team mate's girth was clearly not the wisest choice: the blind wrath literally skyrocketed. "Inoichi! Get him! I can't hold him any longer", he shouted, pouring every ounce of Chakra, that he could do without, into the Jutsu to give the blonde a split second more time. "Now!"

Inoichi was startled, but quickly regained his calm to focus on his target. "Shintenshin-no-Jutsu!", he called the second the Kagemane-no-Jutsu dispersed.

Shikaku huffed and shouldered the limp body of his fellow conspirator. "So troublesome…Why is it always me to carry you around?", he complained. "Don't fret, Shikaku. Just hurry up and go! We need to have as great of a head start as we could, when fatty here comes after us to hand us our asses on a plate…", he heard Inoichi from within Chouza's body.

Shikaku sighed. "I know. A won game is like a devil. Troublesome", he murmured before he sped off with the load of his companion on his back. He already had an idea where to hide…