Water

"Ah... Im hungry. I want Ichiraku ramen. Im tired of bugs and worms." Naruto is back in Konoha. He previously sent shadow clones to find Hinata or Neji but both times they were out on missions. So he ends up sulking.

"Tsk. Extending sage mode duration takes so long. I want to practice my Fūton jutsus a bit more but these Hyūgas are always so busy. Aaaah... for real. Must be good to have Byakugans or Sharingans or whatever... pissing me off... pissing me off... and pervy sage took to long to master it but can extend it easily... AAAAH I'M MAD. WHAT IS MY CLAN ? Uzumaki ? Do uzumakis have eyes ? Rasengan ?"

"Well the pronounciation is the same as least. They all end with -gan. Character is different though. Do you want to awaken a Tornado eye ?( Rasen - Gan)" Shikamaru interrupts Naruto's monologue. Hiding behind a wall's angle that that Naruto just passed by. Still swirling the kunain in his fingers playfully, Shikamaru welcomes back Naruto with a smile.

"Welcome back, problem child. How was Mount Myōboku?"

"Shikamaru! How have you been?"

"Between missions and such, it's been a drag. But I'm taking care of Asuma's child and helping out the Hokage with her duties."

"HUH ? You got all important now, didn't you haha" Naruto aggressively pats Shikamaru, who's clearly annoyed and is thinking how much of a drag that is.

"I didn't know he had a child. Who's the mother ?"

"Kurenai Sensei"

"WHA- woah."

"In any case, did you get any better? You still didn't tell me about your trip."

"Right. I was training with toads and controlling nature energy. It's suuuuuuper hard, but I got so strong."

"I see. That's a relief. You might want to take hard missions now."

"YES. I'll ace all the S Rank missions."

"And ... how are you doing ?"

Shikamaru slides a glance at Naruto, with different overall mood than the previous one. Serious eyes.

"Ah... I don't think I'll ever recover."

"Good grief. You have to talk to people."

"Pervy sage is out on a mission. I just came back to Konoha to relax a bit. Eat. See Kakashi-sensei too."

"I can imagine it's hard on both of you. He's been feeling down for a while as well, on the rare occasions we see him. Should've seen Guy sensei's disappointed looks everytime."

"By the way, have you seen Hinata & Neji ?" Naruto changes the subject to divert the mood. Shikamaru is surprised at the idea and is feeling glad that Naruto can take quick measures like this to avoid staying depressed.

"I don't know. What do you need them for ?"

"I've been practicing Fūton jutsus. And I needed some advice on their rotation technique."

"If that's the case, then just give up."

"Huh ?" That was totally not expected.

"Well, yes. Hyūga, Nara, Akimichi and such notorious clans, are always closeted and covered in secrecy. Do you know why ?"

"I dont know. Is that because it's just Hyūgas who possess the byakugan that can use certain techniques."

"Partly if its a Kekkei Genkai (Bloodline lImit). But the important thing is that, even with Kekkei Genkai, each clan has secret Jutsu. Listen, those jutsus are secret not because people can't use them. But it's because anyone CAN use them id they know the recipe. That's why secret jutsu or Kekkei Genkai clans hide that 'recipe'. Same goes for Hyūga's chakra rotation jutsu. They can't tell you anything about it. You'll have to figure it on your own. You can still look and try to copy them though."

"Eh. What a disappointement." Naruto crosses his arms and starts pondering.

"Hey, cheer up. There's good news."

"Hum ?" The light came back to his eyes.

"Isn't your Rasengan just like that, in a sense ?"

"I thought about it with pervy sage, But the inside is not empty unlike with Neji's rotation."

"Hm. Let's think about it then."

"Hooo. Shikamaru's brains helping me, I feel like I might awaken Daibyuakugan.(Great Byakugan)"

"Haha, no way. I won't dwell on it too hard, developing jutsus is such a drag."

"Im hungry though. I wanted to go to Ichiraku's. Wanna come ?"

"Sure thing."

The pair walks in the hustle and bustle of Konoha, passing by the mask merchants, the dango vendors and the bookstore showcasing Icha-Icha tactics. When finally arrived, Naruto pushes aside one of the Noren Curtains and enters in his natural high spirits.

"Yo. Old man Ichiraku."

"Hello." Shikamaru humbly follows.

"Welcome. Oh Naruto. It's been a while."

"Ramen. Ramen . Ramen. Until i pass out. The usual. Then pork. Then..."

"Oi oi,dont blow all your money in one day." Shikamaru warns jokingly.

"No problem! I'll solve S rank missions to make up for it." After ordering and eating 8 people's share of ramen - 7 of which were consumed by Naruto alone - . Shikamaru holds his chopsticks and points at Naruto's last bowl.

"Oi. Give me that."

"No way. Get your own." Naruto holds on to it like a stingy kid, showin comedic hostility.

"Idiot. I won't eat it. I just want to show you something.

Naruto hesitates, then reluctantly puts his bowl in between them.

"Sorry for this , old man Ichiraku."

Shikamaru then grabs new chopsticks for sanitary purposes, holds the naruto topping.

"I'll explain my idea in simple terms so you can understand."

Naruto knows he's being called an idiot but he can't deny it and simply lets Shikamaru continue his idea. The latter takes the naruto topping and lays it on the inside of the bowl vertically, as if it's peeking, and starts sliding it around the rim, making rounds and rounds.

"This is Neji and his rotation."

"Okay."

He then puts down the topping, grabs a chunk of ramen with his chopsticks and stirs in around.

"And this is Rasengan and your new Rasenshuriken, right ?"

"Yes. Although for Rasenshuriken, wind element needs to be infused from the opposite direction."

"Alright. And since you're interested in Neji's rotation i'm assuming you want a defensive move so how about this."

Shikamaru holds his chopsticks alone vertically, then stirs from the side of the bowl.

"Isn't this just like Neji's ?"

"No. Neji's chakra application was the topping and Rasengan was the noodles. Now the Chakra and element are...

... the water."

"Oh. But your chopstick are still turning them."

"Ichiraku san. Could you pass me the kettle?" Ichiraku complies.

"Here you go son."

"Thaa-nk you." Being careful with the handling of a burning kettle, Shikamaru continues explaining his idea.

"Here. The chakra and element are the water. And you're the kettle." He then pours water slightly sideways, making it follow a diagonal spiral path before becoming part of the ramen, all while the kettle stays on top on the bowl itself,as well as making sure the excess water doesn't dillute and ruin the ramen's taste. Ichiraku then grabs a miso bottle and pour some to keep the ramen tasty, doing it exactly like Shikamaru did.

"OH! I think I get it !You're a genius Shikamaru."

"Well, this is still just theory. We'll have to see how it goes in practice."

"YES. I'll finish this ramen and let's get to it immediately." Shikamaru then thinks to himself :

'Let's ? Good grief he's planning on dragging me along. What a pain.'