"Troublesome," is the first word to leave his mouth the morning after their marriage as he glances at the ring sitting snug around his finger. He's removed it, setting it aside upon the wooden nightstand at his bedside, muttering words unintelligible in his freshly awakened state as his wife gazes on with that stern look of hers that always manages to make him squirm.
"We haven't been married but a few hours and already you're complaining," she mumbles into the crook of his neck, warm breath tickling his sensitive skin. "Typical."
He sighs in that exaggerated manner that he knows makes her skin crawl, and allows her words to settle amongst the otherwise silent morning. His hand traces invisible patterns against the skin on her back, raising goose bumps beneath his fingertips and sending a satisfying chill down her spine; her back arches in response, causing her to further press her bare breasts against the skin of his chest. He manages a lazy smile.
"Wearing a ring on your finger is rather troublesome for shinobi – we run the risk of losing it in battle," he proclaims after some time, brows knitted together as he stares at the ceiling above in thought. "Why wear a ring only to have it slip off and be lost amongst the battlefield?"
"You think too much, I swear," she says. "A ring is a symbol of never-ending love – and also an indication to others that you're off the market; it isn't meant to be 'troublesome', as you see it."
"Troublesome," he echoes his first word of the morning.
"Marriage is troublesome."
A mild punch to the chest earns an oof! from the young man.
"A bit late to be saying such a thing, don't you think?"
He shrugs in response. "Perhaps. I just think it's a bother to waste such money on something that can get lost so easily."
"I never knew you were such the romantic, Shikamaru," she flashes a teasing smile and jabs her finger into his chest; simply from those actions, he can tell that she is less than pleased, although she would never admit it aloud.
Nonetheless, he smiles and snakes his arms around her waist, gripping her hips and hoisting her body fully atop his. "You learn something new every day."
.
.
Just days later, after his shift at work ends and he arrives home, scratching at the facial hair he has begun to grow at the end of his chin, his wife eyes a piece of jewelry that dangles around his neck.
On a new, simple, silver chain hangs his wedding band – something she was afraid he would never wear again.
She thinks back to his view towards wedding rings just days earlier, recalling just how he believed them to be a waste of money if prone to being lost. In her mind, she believes she should have known better, given that she has married a genius. Her husband has found a practical way to wear the ring given to him by his wife on their wedding day – a way to declare that he is a happily married man, without worry of losing such a valuable item.
He catches her staring as he enters the kitchen, heading toward the refrigerator in search of a pre-dinner snack. He glances at her over his shoulder. "Something the matter?"
"No," she smiles softly, teal meeting brown as their gazes lock. "Nothing at all."
A/N: Hello, everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the first of many oneshots and drabbles to come. This is my first attempt at Naruto fanfiction, so I'm hoping I did alright. I usually only write Legend of Korra fics, but after seeing my childhood OTP finally became canon, I decided, to hell with it, let's write some ShikaTema! You can request drabbles or oneshots in the reviews, or you can find me on tumblr under the URL wanbender and send them via my ask box. I can't wait to hear from you!