I do not own Naruto...this was going to be a oneshot...now it'll probably be a three or fourshot. I wanted to make more shikatema goodness... Reloaded this story to change some of the gramatical errors (I'm sure I still missed a lot) - nothing new if you've already read it.
XXXSHIKAMARUXXX
I sat in that cozy café with my teammates as Ino droned on and on about something or another. She was either talking about boys, flowers or herself. I had tuned her out half an hour ago, but based on Chouji's expression I guessed the current topic was boys. Chouji listened to every word that came out of Ino's mouth….boy was he patient. In turn, I had mastered reading Chouji's expressions which allowed me to last through conversations with Ino. I didn't have to listen, but still could make relevant comments when required based on the look Chouji was giving. Basically it translated into: boys - concern, flowers - nostalgia, and Ino - gentleness. As for me: boys - bored, flowers- bored, Ino - bored. Haaah, I was especially bored today because I hadn't played shogi in days. That damn woman! She has been flittering around town telling everyone she had beat me at shogi , meanwhile daftly avoiding attempts at a rematch. She seemed to be particularly loud whenever she knew I was in the vicinity of her announcement. Man it was annoying.
"…and then he told me I was beautiful! Oh what do I do, should I go out with him or should I wait for Sasuke? Shikamaru what do you think?" She buzzed before looking at me. I shrugged using the least amount of energy as possible. She rolled her eyes at me before turning back to Chouji and continued her chirping.
----jingle--- The door! I looked up and saw soft pink hair peeking over the top of our booth. Hmm, … today was finally going to start getting interesting. " Actually Ino, if you're still aiming for Sasuke I think you ought to try some new tactics." I dryly said. She instantly stopped talking and looked at me gestering for me to continue. Simultaneously that pink tuft of hair stopped in its tracks and quietly listened. "Ninjas like Sasuke, Chouji, and I have no interested in the latest fashion, or hairstyle, or other crap like that. You kunoichi don't understand that if you want to pique our interest you need to earn our respect. We respect, and are consequently interested in a smart, skillful woman who can hold her own during a mission. Okay I admit your jutsu is pretty cool and you are becoming a good medical nin. Despite the fact that you've gotten stronger and your punches now sting like a sonofa… you still suck at taijutsu. If I were you, I'd find a taijutsu tutor and hone my skills while Sasuke was away. Becoming a better kunoichi than the others is definitely the best way to get ahead of the competition." She looked at me skeptically with narrowed eyes, than over to Chouji. Chouji nodded, shyly mirroring agreement and she slowly nestled back into the booth in contemplation. ---jingle--- That pink tuft of hair was already out the door. Hmm, phase one of the mission is in effect. I thought as I ordered another cup of coffee to help me make it through the rest of this troublesome conversation.
XXXTEMARIXXX
I looked over the paperwork and sighed. Where was that lazy bastard, he was supposed to help me and he's now 10 minutes late. It's really infuriating how damn care free and lackadaisical he is about everything. He has absolutely no redeeming qualities at all, and I still can't believe he made it to chuunin before I did. Aah there he is.
"You're late you lazy crybaby. You know I'm guest teaching at the academy in an hour." I spoke seething in irritation.
"Well sorry for being thoughtful. Here's a hot chocolate, I picked it up on the way." He quipped back as he placed an insulated cup on my desk.
Hot chocolate…I LOVE hot chocolate!!! "Uggh who needs that sweet stuff …well since you made the effort I guess I'll have to drink it." I replied while stifling the excitement I felt at receiving this. "Let's just get this done. I don't have all day."
XXXSHIKAMARUXXX
For just a moment that harsh, scary exterior cracked and I glimpsed a softness, a sweetness, a vulnerability. THAT was the reason I walked 20 minutes out of my way to pick up the best cup of hot chocolate Konoha had to offer. This woman was so intriguing! She was a puzzle, a mystery that drew me further in the more I unraveled and understood. The process was so intoxicating that a great deal of time and thought had recently been consumed by it.
"Nara. This is your half of the work. Try not to fall asleep this time." She warned. As she leaned towards me with the stack of papers, I caught a whiff of her usual scent…cardamom and cinnamon. I knew this because I had previously spent an hour sniffing around mom's kitchen trying to identify the familiar aroma.
--yawn—. I stretched out on my side of the desk and placed my head down. "Nara! No sleeping!" She yelled, her face clearly demonstrating her irritation.
I half opened one eye and replied. "But I'm done with my half. Wake me when you decide to go to the academy, I have something to discuss with Iruka. Ok woman."
As I closed that eye I saw here glaring at me and at her half of the paperwork, silently steaming.
XXXTEMARIXXX
That damn lazy bastard. How did he get done with this so quickly, and he didn't even offer to help me finish my part. Not that I would have accepted his help, I don't need it, but still… Anyway, looks like I'll finish this just on time. Thank goodness for that hot chocolate, it really helped renew my energy. As I gathered up our paperwork, I looked over at him thinking he looked really peaceful . That chauvinistic crybaby, he can be really kind and thoughtful sometimes. Hmm, how should I wake him… I mischieviously plotted.
XXXSHIKAMARUXXX
--CRRACK—"Wh…what's happening? Earthquake?" I yelped as I woke to a deafening noise and a shudder. Looking around I noticed she was standing glaring askew at me with left hand on hip and right hand on the heavy metal fan that was two inches from my face. "You scary troublesome woman, what are you trying to do give me a heart attack?" I scolded.
She simply replied with, "I'm leaving, are you coming?"
XXXTEMARIXXX
We walked side by side in silence and I felt strangely at peace. I had always hated silence. It was silent when my mother died. Silent in that looming, frigid kazekage mansion. Gaara was always silent before destroying an opponent. I guess I had equated silence with death, desolation, and fear. Silence in Konoha was different. There was often silence between us, in shogi games, while working, during sparring…but our silence felt …warm, comforting…exciting. I had recently noticed that even in silence we were connected … by a look, a touch, an indefinable electricity in the air. This silence didn't isolate, it bound us. I looked over at that boy, his hands in his pockets, bored look on his face…he seemed so uninterested, but I knew if I started to lag behind he'd immediately change his pace to match mine. This boy….
An annoying voice shook me out of my thoughs. "Oi Shikamaru and ….Gaara's sister! Are you two out on a date?"
I turned to see Naruto rushing in our direction, carrying that Hyuuga girl on his back.
"Why would I date a lazy crybaby like him?" I nonchalantly replied giving Naruto my best annoyed look.
"Oh woman, still going on about the past are you? " He commented in his defense. " Nah we just happen to both need to get to the academy."
"Oh we came from there, Hinata chan's teaching math and I was bugging Iruka sensei. Hey hey Shikamaru, did you know that Hinata's favorite number is seven? Didn't you say that your favorite was Na…na… Hinata chan?" He enthusiastically explained with Hinata on his back flushed and woozy. "Ah, and fuzzy brows and Sakura chan were there too. Fuzzy brows said he was coming to help with a class; but Sakura rushed in, grabbed him and pulled him away saying something about needing to become a taijutsu expert."
"What! He had agreed to help me out. Now what am I going to do about my demonstration." I wondered aloud.
"Should I come back to help after I drop Hinata chan off at home to rest?" He offered. " Ahaa, Shikamaru can do it right?"
XXXSHIKAMARUXXX
"It's troublesome, but It can't be helped. I guess I can do it." I complained as I brought my hand up to my forehead in mock annoyance.
" Oh great, now I have to deal with you. I'm warning you, I won't go easy on you just because you're a crybaby." She replied back mirroring my annoyance.
"Troublesome!" I murmured, all the while attempting to hide the gleam in my eyes and calm the involuntary increase in my heart rate.
As we walked away, she asked with true concern. "You think Hinata is going to be okay? She looked pretty bad."
"She'll be fine after a rest. That happens every time she tries to confess to Naruto." I commented as I thought to myself…phase two is complete.
XXXTEMARIXXX
"Ok class, today we are going to be practicing close combat. This exercise is meant to develop skills useful in escaping if you are captured. However, you will also pick up means to handle difficult prisoners. We will not be using any weapons or jutsus today." I explained. "Unfortunately Lee sensei …had another matter to attend to so Shikamaru has offered to help with the demonstration." I was surprised by bursts of "Kyaaaa! Shikamaru sensei!" from a group of older girls to my right. Hmm, that caught me by surprise, I usually worked with Lee for this class and he didn't quite garner that type of response. I looked over at Shika who upon catching my teasing gaze immediately replaced his look of embarrassment with obvious cockiness. Hmm this may make out to be an interesting class. "Everybody pair up. We will take turns being the captured and the capturer." I stated as I watched the students pair up. I chuckled slightly as all the boys paired up with boys and all the girls paired up with girls.
His hot breath sent a chill up my spine as he whispered in inquiry "Do you want me to start as the capturer or the captured?"
As a familiar warmth began to replace that chill, I panicked and thought…I need to gain immediate control of this situation. I was NOT going to be embarrassed in front of my students. "The captured." I confidently stated as I turned him around and pulled his arms behind his back holding his wrists firmly in place. "Ok, capturers copy what I'm doing. If you hold the wrists in this position it makes it incredibly difficult for your prisoner to move, even if they are stronger." I explained. As I held his wrists, I noticed that his pulse had quickened. Could this lazy ninja be excited about the demonstration? Or is he just embarrassed by those school girl crushes? I wondered...when I suddenly noticed my own pulse had begun to beat in pace with his. "Aaah Shikamaru." I stated immediately letting go. " Help me make sure they all have the right position." I turned towards the students, correcting those who had not quite grasped the placement. "Now captives, what would you do to get out of this situation…show me." I commanded while watching them squirm, and struggle. "It's hard isn't it? Shikamaru come here, let's show them how to break this hold." I bellowed as I put my hands behind my back signaling that I wanted the roles exchanged.
"Temari, I won't go easy on you." He warned as he grasped my wrists firmly. His grip was definitely getting stronger. Who would've thought this lazy guy actually worked out. "The secret to escaping this grip, is the element of surprise and no hesitation. Watch!" I demanded. I swept his legs from underneath him and as he fell he loosened his grip, allowing me to wrench away before turning around and pinning him face down to the ground with my knee in his back and his hands behind him reversing our positions. Behind me I heard exclamations of "Wow!" mixed in with a few stray "Don't hurt his face sensei!" When suddenly…
XXXSHIKAMARUXXX
I lay there in the dirt…It was going exactly as I had planned. Her fatal mistake was choosing a move she had used on me before. I had come up with a counter months ago for this one. In a flash I brought my knees beneath me and she toppled off me. I tumbled to get my legs through my arms so that they were now in front of me. As she neglected to release my wrists, this motion also brought me behind her and I encircled my arms around her. This of course was met with more cheers and shouts from our audience. I couldn't see her face, but I knew what expression she wore…surprise and determination.
XXXTEMARIXXX
I was shocked that he was now completely in control…he had been practicing. But I wasn't about to let him show me up in MY class. I knocked my head back hearing sounds of "Nooo don't break his nose," mixed in with "Yeah go Temari sensei!" and broke his embrace. I straddled him and held his arms tightly against his body with my legs, I then placed my right forearm forcibly against his throat and used my other hand to prop myself up at a dangerous angle. His hair was loose, having lost his hair tie at some point during the scuffle and his nose was bleeding. As he looked up at me his eyes were shining with excitement and anticipation, and that arrogant smirk was blossoming.
XXXSHIKAMARUXXX
She was straddling me, her face flushed and her hair completely undone as she leaned in breathing heavily with alook of complete confidence and bliss. Man she was enjoying this. Heck, I was enjoying this! I had already thought of 200 moves I could make to reverse this situation and win this fight, but I was playing a bigger game so... "I give up." I said with my ususl carefree smirk. Her expression immediately changed to one of irritation and she got up off of me and turned to her class. Smoothing out her hair, she turned to those starry admiring eyes and instructed them to continue to work with each other and try out various moves similar to the ones we had demonstrated. They enthusiastically got to work. I slowly sat up, and one of the girls brought over a tissue to help stop the nosebleed. I watched Temari as she went from pair to pair encouraging, smiling, admonishing…teaching. She was a natural and even though she was dirty and her hair was a mess, she still maintained her radiance. It's no wonder she was getting mooney eyes from all the male students. It wasn't much longer before class was dismissed and we were sitting together in an empty school yard.
"You're loved." I stated breaking the silence. She turned to look at me with a wide eyed expression. "Uuh I mean by the students. You really are a good teacher, you got them all fired up." I explained.
She looked away at that and replied. "Ah, right. Well, we got them fired up. We gave them quite a show didn't we? But then you had to give up like you usually do. You'd already thought about how to beat me didn't you…I could tell by the way you looked. Why did you stop? It was infuriating"
"Ah well, that's true I did have about 200 moves I could have used to turn that situation around, but it was becoming too troublesome. I mean, those girls were getting all worked up about me getting a nosebleed and we were both getting dirty and bloody, and I didn't want to completely damage your kimono. Aren't girls concerned about things like that?" I explained.
She laughed heartily. "Some girls are I guess. It's not that big of a deal to me, though I sure wouldn't mind a bath right now." She looked over at me with a big grin and stood to leave. "I'll see you later huh Shika."
I quickly reached up to stop her. "You know Temari, your hotel is across town and my apartment is around the corner. Why don't you just get cleaned up there. We'll throw your kimono and my clothes into the washer and dryer. In the meantime you can borrow one of my yukatas."
"Well, um." She started as she contemplated. "It's probably just easier for me to go back."
I continued, "Don't forget your role here is as a Suna representative. I don't think it's wise to walk around town looking dirty and beaten. But hey, do what you want, I don't care. " I knew I had hooked her with that statement. She took a lot of pride in being named Suna's ambassador. For good measure I threw in, "I was planning on ordering some food from that new takeout place. The one rumored to have the best chocolate cake in town. I hear the portions are huge, it would be less troublesome for me if we shared the food, I hate leftovers." I looked up at her and saw her inadvertently lick her lips.
"Well, I guess it would just be easier if I cleaned up at your place." She replied.
I smiled when she turned her back towards me. Phase 3 complete.
XXXTEMARIXXX
I was undressing in his bathroom when I suddenly realized how nervous I felt. My thoughts roamed back to that fight. His hair down around his face, his eyes intense and burning, his grip around my ... Aaah I needed to stop this. This is just ridiculous, how could that lazy, sexist boy have such an effect on me. You know, he doesn't, he doesn't...I must just be excited because of that chocolate cake he was mentioning. I had heard about that cake from a few of the girls in my class earlier this week. It is funny that Shika wanted to try it though, he usually hates sweet things. As I slipped out of the bath, I tied on his yukata and noticed that it was a bit on the short side. Hmm. I walked out of the bathroom, annoyed. "Shikamaru…this is a bit short for a yukata don't you think?"
He turned to look at me and instantly stiffened, eyes widening as they slowly moved up and down with mouth agape.
"Hello Nara, words, speak to me in words." I blared out, as I began to feel a flush in response to his gaze.
"Be quiet you troublesome woman, sorry I guess I grabbed the wrong one. " He stammered. Quickly turning he rifled through his drawer pulling out another similar pattern. "This is the one." He said as he tossed it to me. "I'm going to take a quick shower, the food should be here in a couple of minutes." He quickly disappeared into the bathroom, but not before I caught a hint of redness on the tips of his ears.
XXXSHIKAMARUXXX
I quickly closed the door and leaned up against it, my hand subconsciously reaching up to my chest. What was that? My heart was pounding out of my body, and I couldn't breathe for a second there. I sighed thinking how gorgeous she looked with her hair straightened out by the water. That little hapi coat just barely covering her bosom and those legs ... Hmmm those strong yet perfect legs that just a little bit ago was so tightly wrapped around me with her chest lying on mind. I grinned as I thought back to the fight ... if she knew the ending position that 150 of those 200 moves would have put us in...she would've killed me. As I reviewed those 150 moves, I suddently realized that my body had begun to react in response ... oh #$...I thought as I turned the shower to COLD.
XXXTEMARIXXX
I contemplated staying in that little coat. That look he just gave me was very interesting. I had gotten him flustered before, but that look was something new. The way that look made me feel in response was definitely something new. I wonder if he planned that…he never does anything by accident. Well, if that is the case, I won't give him the satisfaction of continuing to see me in this, I thought as I changed into the more conservative yukata. As I waited for the food, I went to set the table.
"Oi is the food here yet, I'm starved!" he yelled from the bedroom. I looked up and he stood there framed by the doorway wearing a pair of light drawstring pants, while roughly toweling his wet hair.
"Nnot yet. " I replied, rapidly looking away. Damn where did that body come from? My heart continued to race…it must be in anticipation of that chocolate cake.
"Hey do you want to play a game of shogi while we wait?" He asked.
XXXSHIKAMARUXXX
She shrugged and walked towards the shogi board sitting in my living room. I joined her after tossing my towel on the bathroom floor.
"Hmm we haven't played this for a while. Not since I beat your sorry genius ass." She boasted.
"I've been waiting for a rematch. I'll show you it was a fluke." I replied all the while thinking...MISSION COMPLETE!
I looked up at her and she began to furrow her brow. Hmm, she's already concentrating so hard. An all too familiar feeling began to rise up in my chest. I can't believe I'm so ecstatic about being able to play her. Truthfully, playing with HER was more of a thrill than playing with anyone else. I mean I wouldn't have taken the effort to plan a mission to get anyone else to play shogi with me. As I looked up across the board, my heart skipped a beat and I thought…man I must really love shogi, I must really LOVE shogi.
