Torune and Shino. I don't own the picture.
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"Hide and seek." Said Shikanai to the 5 boys in front of her. The adults had sent them outside to play intill dinner while they talked to each other inside. The oldestamong them, Itachi of the Uchiha clan, being 8 years old, had been called, had been sent to watch over them. Naruto stood next to her examining each of them excitedly and curiously. Their backs were to the Nara forest Soren waited inconspicuously on a tree.
The two boys to her left, Torune and Shino of the Auberame clan, remained impassive at her proclamtion. Or at least she thought they did. Torune looked to be about 6 or 7 and wore thick, black goggles and a high necked shirt while Shino was the same age as Naruto and Sauske. He had dark glasses and a much higher necked shirt that completely covered his mouth. Their expressions were rather hard to discern. The two of them stood out to her. They each wore thick sweaters that caused Shikanai to perspire just by looking at them and seemed to contrast sharply with everyone eles's formal attire.
Her cousin, Shikamaru, stood next to them on the right, looking as he always did. Bored. However, she had known him long enough to see the slight curiosity in his eyes at her proposal.
Next to him, stood Itachi. He had a serious yet calm demeanor about him and attentive eyes that held slight amusement from the situation. He remained relaxed and silent like the three boys before him.
Lastly was Itachi's younger brother Sauske. A cheerful young boy who looked at her confusedly.
"What?" He asked. He seemed a bit slower than the other 4. Though not as slow as Naruto.
"I'll explain it again." Said Shikanai. We're going to play a game. All of you against Naruto and I. Hide and seek. If you find the both of us, you win and we have to take an order from each of you unquestioningly. However if you find only one or neither of us, we win, and you have to be our friends unquestioningly. We will remain within a 150 yard radius of the forest and you have till dinner to find us. Do we have a deal?"
Shikamaru raised his hand.
"I'm your cousin. Doesn't that mean I'm already your friend."
Shikanai thought about it.
"I don't know. I'm not entirely sure how the rules of friendship work. I've only recently discovered how to make them.
Itachi looked particularly amused by this while Sasuke just looked even more confused.
"We'll do it." Torume suddenly spoke up. Shino nodded in confirmation.
"Saskue, do you want to make friends?" Itachi asked.
"Uhhh, yeah!" Saskue said, jumping back to cheerful.
"Then do it."
"Ok!" He replied.
Shikamaru sighed.
"I guess I'll do it too. How troblesome." He said.
"What about you?" Shikanai asked Itachi.
Itachi's eyes widened in surprise.
"Are you sure you want someone so much older than you as a potential friend?" He asked. This girl was constantly surprising him. He had never considered  gambling as a method of making friends. It wasn't just her unorthodox methods. Her level of diction was insane for a 4 yr old. Far beyond most children his age. He had heard of the Nara's intelligence from his father but he wasn't epecting this. Her younger cousin Shikamaru seemed to be able to form sentences unusually well too.
"Why wouldn't I. Is that a rule of friendship that I didn't know about?" She asked alarmed.
"No, I'll join the game as well." Itachi said.
"Alright, here are the rules."

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Shikanai sprawled gently against a rather large tree with her nearly pronged companion.
Two black, newly budding specks that contrasted sharply against his white coat. His mother was resting nearby.
Shikanai really admired his fur. The color reminded her of her father's eyes.
Soren flew in and landed next to her.
"Sauske is still aimlessly wandering around. The Auberames have long since found Naruto but, they won't be a problem. Their relationship with their bugs has not matured enough for them to thoroughly cover enough ground yet. I have not been able to locate Itachi yet." Spoke a voice in Shikanai's head.
Shikanai nodded.
It startled her the first time he spoke in her head when he introduced himself. He told her his name and how he ended up being her pet. His previous owner was a young man by the name of Fú Yamanaka and he had not died, but was inducted into the anbu black ops but, of course, that was classified. Anbu are not allowed to have personal pets as they could be used to identify the person behind the mask so, Soren was given to Fū's father Fūma, a retired ninja who gave him to Shikanai's mother.
It was Fū whom he learned to arrange his talons just so, in a way that mimicked the Yamanaka clan technique.
"Alright, thank you. It's almost time for dinner, let's start heading back. Scout ahead, I'll follow. Be on the look out for Itachi." Shikanai responded back in thought.
She kissed Byakuya and his mother on the nose then got up and left.
Strolling quietly in Soren's wake through leaves and branches, she wondered about Itachi. She felt as if it should have been more difficult to hide from him. Perhaps she had overestimated him. He wasn't that much older than her after all. She decided not to think about it.

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Itachi peered through the leaves curiously at the young girl as she left the two deer.
He sat on the branch of one of the outrageously tall trees debating on whether or not to capture her and win the game.
It had been surprisingly more difficult than he had expected to locate her. He had been confused until he saw the owl and realized she had been continuously relocating with the help of reports given to her by the owl.
"Friends." Itachi thought to himself. He didn't have many. Just Shisui. And the only person he truly cared about above all eles was his little brother Sauske.
Sauske didn't have many true friends either. He supposed he could give Shikanai a chance. With an imperceptible smile, Itachi ran to the house to wait for Shikanai to come and declare victory.

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Shikanai looked around the dinner table with a satisfied smirk. She now had a total of 7 friends including Soren and Naruto.
"Now that dinner's done, time for desert!" Said Naichigo cheerily. Shikara smiled than got up to collect everyone's plate.
"Oh Kara, let me help you with that.: said Yoshino
"I'll help too." Said Mikoto with a kind smile.
"No no, you are guets. I must insist you stay seated." Shikara replied.
"Are you sure, it's no trouble really." Said Mikoto.
"I'm sure." Said Shikara "I'll be out with desert in a minute. We'll be having a yeast cake among other pastries, fruit, dango, and salad if you don't have much of a sweet tooth."
"Oh surely you must need help all of that!" Exclaimed Yoshino.
"No worries, I got it." Said Shikara with a closed eye smile. By then, Shikara had collected all of the plates and was headed towards the kitchen.
When she came back, she only had one plate in her hand.
"You're not bringing the plates in one at a time are you?" Asked Yoshino with a frown. Fugaku had a nearly incredulous look on his face.
"No, I'm bringing them all at once." Said Shikara with a smirk.
No sooner had she said those words did a dozen black tendrils carrying plates of various loads, appear through doors. It was then everyone noticed the tendrils came from Shikara's own shadow splitting off.
Fugaku eyed them with special interest. He didn't get much opportunity to witness other clan jutsus unless they were criminals and he was arresting them and the Nara's were too lazy for crime.
Mikoto and Yoshino looked at Shikara with stars in their eyes.
"I could get so much house work done with that technique!" Squealed Mikoto.
"Shikaku! Why don't you do that?!" Shouted Yoshino. Shikaku froze with silent horror. Shikara chuckled at her brother's expression.
The plates were set and all was silent save for sounds of clattering silverware, chewing, and the tinkling of cups. Soon, all food was consumed leaving behind nothing but a room full of contented sighs.
This was the part Naichigo had been waiting for all day. Who cares if it wasn't his birthday. This was the best part of every birthday.
It was time to open presents.

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I don't own Naruto.