A/N: You know the drill, 26 prompts starting with each letter of the alphabet, from a random word generator. Decided to do this as very short drabbles, one or two sentences (or thereabouts) to get my creative juices flowing and push through some writer's block!

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Admiration

Shikamaru, she thinks to herself, although a part of her hopes that somewhere down the line, they're still connected via Inoichi; if he's as smart as his title would suggest, he should know this anyway. Besides, she'd never inflate his ego by way of saying it to his face. You could be a good Hokage.

Boom

The battle has been a blur as it is; chaotic, bloody, he lost her amongst the sea of bodies some time ago. But suddenly everything seems to fall silent: the flash of a white light, blinding; an enormous force of wind that makes him wonder if he was ever on the ground at all; and then, finally, the crash.

"TEMARI!"

Colourful

He has always wondered how one person could wear so much purple, but if he really stops to think about it, it all makes complete sense: the dignity, the honour, the mystery, the magic. Then he remembers her teal eyes, golden hair, sharp wit and sonorous laugh; his world has only become more colourful since she arrived in it.

Distribute

"What do you want me to say?" she whispers, finally at a loss. "It's not fair. Why am I always the one who has to choose between the person I love and the place I grew up? Can't you each have half of my heart?"

Estate

"Looks like marrying the Head of the Nara Clan does have its perks," Temari muses as her new husband carries her across the threshold of their private residence.

Favour

"So, Gaara, Kankuro," he begins, uncharacteristically nervous. He reminds himself that he does have reason to be: he's in front of the Fifth Kazekage and his puppet-wielding bodyguard, but all the more ominous, he's in front of his potential future in-laws. "I have a favour to ask."

Give

"For once," he breathes, voice shot, exhales low and heavy. "Could you be a little selfish and let me do some of the giving?"

Horizon

Before she even realises, tears are streaming uncontrollably down her face, shoulders shaking with happy exhaustion as she stares into the teal eyes of her son. "This is it," she sobs, as her husband wraps a strong arm around their new family. "Our future's here, Shikamaru."

Imagine

"Marriage sounds troublesome," he announces, observing the inane squabbling of his parents and his sensei. "I think I'll pass."

"Yeah," a voice murmurs in agreement. He recognises its owner in an instant.

Especially if I married her, he thinks to himself. Troublesome wouldn't even cover it.

Junior

"I look forward to celebrating your promotion when I'm back," she smiles as they arrive at the gates.

"Huh?" he queries. "I'm still a chunin."

"Exactly," she smirks, leaning in so that her lips brush against his ear. "You'd better get to work."

Key

"Here."

"What's this?"

"A key."

"I got that part, smartass," she rolls her eyes. "For what?"

"Well, uh, my place."

She laughs. "It's about time. I've been coming in through the window for the last two years."

Lonely

"Come on, Shikamaru. You could look a little happy to see us. This is the last time we'll see each other for at least a month!"

"Huh? Why?" Choji asks between mouthfuls of barbecued meat.

Shikamaru tries his utmost to hide the flush of his cheeks as Ino mutters, "Didn't you know? Temari's back in Konoha tomorrow."

Marriage

"Some mail came for you," she says, dropping a stack of envelopes on the coffee table before heading to the kitchen to top up her water.

He picks one up and, inspecting the addressee line closely, calls out, "I think you'll find this is for you, Mrs Nara."

Nerve

"Honestly, I never thought you'd work up the nerve, crybaby," she laughs through tears as she stares at the new diamond on her finger.

Owner

She has never been his property and he would never try to claim that, but when they're alone, sometimes—only sometimes—she will let herself be his, and he will show her all the ways in which he is grateful for that opportunity.

Pottery

"Tem, I love you, but you've gotta stop with all these plants. We don't even have pots for them!"

Quarter

"Happy birthday," she whispers, leaving a gentle kiss on his lips. "How's twenty-five so far? Feeling old, yet?"

"Well, if I look as good as you do three years later, I'm not worried," he smirks right back at her.

Remark

He is angry, and it's a relatively foreign emotion for him; he hasn't been this riled up since the war. He can practically feel smoke coming out of his ears as she tries to calm him with, "It's not worth it, Shikamaru, let's go", imploring him to be the bigger person when all he wants to do is lunge at the man who's just insulted his wife.

Seminar

He's realising only now, four weeks into meeting with this group, that he has not learnt a single thing; except for what type of coffee she likes to drink, how impatient she is, the fact that she has two brothers and the ins and outs of her thesis. She may be his tutor, but she is the only person whose name he's bothered to remember this whole time.

Texture

"Didn't realise you were into kinks, Nara," she teases as he ties the blindfold around her eyes. He laughs as he leans across the kitchen counter with a spoon in his hand, ready for her to try his new Suna-inspired dish. "Open wide."

Unpleasant

He's just returned from a month-long mission, and as he takes off his shoes and moves in on her for a kiss, she keeps him at arm's length and redirects him towards the shower, chuckling. "Not so fast, Commander. You stink of cigarettes, among other things."

Velvet

He feels her body press into his, skin against skin, smooth and sliding like velvet; he's missed this, the very sensation of simply holding her close and refusing to let go.

Weak

"I've always found it funny," Ino begins, glass of champagne in one hand and microphone in the other, "that for two of the most accomplished ninja of their villages—the power couple of the shinobi world—their only weakness is each other."

X-ray

"So, how'd it go?" Temari asks, sitting up as Sakura approaches her bedside. "Do I need an x-ray?"

"I'm afraid an x-ray won't be possible today."

"How come?" Shikamaru asks, suddenly defensive. "If it's because that idiot Lee has done something to himself again—"

"Relax, Shikamaru. Lee is fine, and so is Temari."

"Oh. In that case...I don't follow."

"Well, according to the results of Temari's blood test..." Sakura breathes. "She's pregnant!"

Young

They've been teased on countless occasions regarding their age difference, but if anything, the gap has only made him want to impress her more; made him grow up faster, rise through the ranks quicker, catch up to where she was so she would finally see him as her equal.

Zone

"This is why I specifically asked for twin beds," she mutters as they stand on either side of the double bed in their assigned room. She chucks one of the pillows into the centre. "Alright. That's your side and this is mine. No breaching of the pillow."

"Sure thing, boss," he rolls his eyes, getting into bed on his side as she does the same.

"I mean it, Nara," she comments, turning off the lights and shuffling down under the covers. "If you so much as move a toe over the line, there'll be trouble."

"As if there wasn't going to be already," he smirks into the darkness, knowing that as stubborn as she may be, at some point in the night, she will end up with her head tucked into his neck and his arm will be around her shoulder and they will wake up the next morning and accuse each other of various things and fiercely pretend that there is nothing between them.

Well, nothing except a pillow, at least.