Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

The clouds are nice

Chapter 2

"Well? Are you going to say something or just stand there and stare at me like an idiot?" The girl taunted Shikamaru again.

"Heh. It's too troublesome to say anything to a girl like you, Temari." Shikamaru said and put his hands back in his pockets.

Temari smirked. "You're still an idiot. So what are you doing here?"

"I live here…idiot. I should be the one asking you that. You're not even a part of this country." Shikamaru threw back at Temari. Though he was quite lazy and had no motivation to do anything, Shikamaru always had some sort of a comeback to dish out.

"What's it to you?"

Shikamaru dully stared at Temari. Even though he had his whits, he didn't want to deal with trying to come up with anything to say. There was something about Temari that caught Shikamaru off-guard. Her cunningness and charm overwhelmed him. The street light that was shining on Temari also added an influencing affect on Shikamaru. For the first time ever he was motivated to deal with a girl.

"Troublesome." Shikamaru finally said as he walked closer to Temari.

Temari tried keeping her cool, but the closer Shikamaru got the faster her heart started to beat. She couldn't think of why it was happening to her. Am I afraid of him? NO! Why would I be afraid of an idiot like him? I can still move so he hasn't used his shadows on me. Do I have feelings for him? Temari's eyes grew wide. Was that it? She was frozen in her thoughts and couldn't think of anything. Trying to ignore the feeling, Temari kept her demeanor and didn't show any weakness.

Shikamaru stopped next to Temari and looked over at her. Despite trying to look tough, Temari was actually looking somewhat nervous. "What? I thought you were the tough one here?" Shikamaru grunted and an uninterested look swept over his face. "Gah…women are so troublesome. Later." Shikamaru added and then walked on by Temari.

Temari watched as Shikamaru disappeared into the dark. "Heh. What a weird guy…" She quietly said to herself and then jumped onto the nearby roof to start patrolling the streets again.


"What's up, Shikamaru?" Chouji asked as he grabbed more meat from the grill. "I know you're a lazy, unmotivated guy, but I can tell something's up. You have a look on your face like you're deep in thought. Are you thinking about someone?"

He, Ino, Shikamaru and their teacher, Asuma, were at the barbeque restaurant for their weekly meeting. Chouji was inhaling the food as usual and Ino was complaining about something like normal. Shikamaru leaned on the table in his usual position but as Chouji said, he was thinking about something. Temari.

Asuma looked down at Shikamaru who was sitting next to him. "Chouji does have a point. Care to tell us?"

Shikamaru rolled his eyes and sighed. He didn't say anything.

"SHIKAMARU! You haven't eaten anything yet! You better eat something before Chouji eats it all!" Ino added in.

"We have more than enough, Ino." Asuma commented.

Ino pouted for a moment after her teacher butted in. "What's wrong Shikamaru? It's not like you have girl problems or anything. You're nothing like Sauske-kun so you shouldn't worry." She bluntly said.

Shikamaru started blushing and tried to hide his face. Ino caught right on and slammed her hands on the table. "SO YOU DO HAVE GIRL PROBLEMS!"

"Calm down Ino!" Asuma snapped.

"This is too troublesome." Shikamaru finally said as he looked up at Ino.

Ino stared at Asuma and then directed her attention to Shikamaru. "Tell me all about it! Who is she? What does she look like?" Ino squealed as she began butting into other people's business.

Shikamaru continued his blank glare. "I don't have girl problems. They're too troublesome to deal with anyway." There's no way I can tell Ino about Temari. It's not like I have feelings for her or anything, it's just that if Ino gets any sort of gossip everyone in the village will know before you know it. It'll get blown right out of proportion. It's too troublesome to deal with people who would know.

"So why are you blushing! That's a dead giveaway that you like someone or at least thinking about something related to that person."

"Hmpf." Shikamaru took a piece of meat and turned away.

"Ino, Shikamaru will tell us if something is going on. Or at least want to say it unwillingly. You obviously don't know him." Chouji boasted as he consumed more meat.

"And how would you know? He's my teammate too! I know him just as well as you do." Ino blew up on Chouji.

"Hey, hey! You guys are noisy." Shikamaru complained as he kept a finger in his right ear.

"I think someone's getting jealous…Ino." Chouji smirked as he turned towards Ino and pointed his chopsticks at her. He knew how to press her buttons.

Ino blew up again on Chouji. "What do I have to be jealous of! You know right from wrong that my heart is for Sauske-kun and ONLY for Sauske-kun!"

"Suit yourself."

Asuma sighed as a sweat drop rolled down his forehead. This always happened with his students, but this time around it was more intense. The only thing he could do was watch.

Shikamaru got up and started to walk away while Ino and Chouji continued to argue.

"Hey, Shikamaru. Where are you going?" Asuma asked as he tried to ignore Ino and Chouji.

"Things are getting too troublesome." Shikamaru said and continued walking out. "Later."

Shikamaru. Did you really find a girl? Your actions say it all. Go for it! Chouji smiled and thought as Shikamaru left.

Just like the day before Shikamaru was walking down the streets of Konoha thinking. He stared up at the bright blue sky. There were a few soft clouds floating by slowly. To be a cloud; so carefree, no worries. It's all I want.

"Hey! You again!" Temari called out as she was crouched on a rooftop. "I hope you're not stalking me."

Shikamaru stopped and looked up to where Temari was. He smirked. "Why would I want to stalk a woman, especially one like you? They're too troublesome to deal with."

Temari jumped down and approached Shikamaru. "Oh really? Is that why you always stare up at the sky like an idiot?"

"Heh." Shikamaru looked at Temari. She was acting like her tough self. Shikamaru smiled more. "I like to think. It makes time pass by faster. By the way, don't you think it's kind of odd that we meet again so soon? I think you might be the one stalking me."

Temari flipped her bangs back and turned her back to Shikamaru. "Why would I want to stalk a man? Especially an idiot like you." She turned halfway around and winked at Shikamaru.

Shikamaru folded his arms and sighed. "If we're going to meet like this, don't you think we should start having normal conversations and talk in more proper places than in the middle of the street?"

"Are you asking me on a date or at least insisting on going on one?" Temari turned the rest of the way around, leaned in and poked Shikamaru's chest.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. What a bossy woman. Just like my mom. He began to blush again.

"Fine. I accept." Temari straightened back up and seductively looked at Shikamaru. This guy is so pathetic it's cute.

He sighed and put his hand on the back of his head. "How troublesome. Alright. We'll go somewhere if you insist." Women are too much work. Even I can't understand them.

…"So what are you guys still doing here in Konoha? The Chuunin exam's been over for a couple of weeks now." Shikamaru asked as he sipped his tea.

The sun was still high up in the sky and there were still plenty of clouds for Shikamaru to look at. He and Temari went to a small restaurant and sat out on one of the benches outside. Surprisingly Shikamaru was comfortable around Temari even though she wanted to beat the crap out of him before.

"There was word going around that there were some suspicious people lurking around Konoha. Our Sensei had us stay here under your Hokage's orders because of it. Since the sand and leaf are allies they wanted my team to help watch the streets at night. We're only here a couple more days before we have to go back." Temari explained and then sipped her tea. Her defensiveness was diminishing.

"How troublesome. Something like that happening in Konoha. Eh…I guess it's to be expected." Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders and sighed.

Temari looked at Shikamaru and grinned. "Heh. You haven't changed a bit. You're still lazy and unmotivated as ever. No wonder you gave up when you fought me. Are you even strong enough to be a ninja?"

Shikamaru drank the rest of his tea and looked over at Temari. "Some things are just too troublesome to do. There was no use in me continuing when I couldn't do anything that would let myself win. And plus, I don't like hitting women."

Temari gave him a strange look at first. She turned her head and stared at the grass. This guy is really interesting. Boring but interesting. Though he may not be the brightest crayon in the box, he does know how to respect women. If I remember correctly he's also quite clever. He completely fooled me when I fought him in the Chuunnin exam. Heh…I bet he won't see this coming.

Temari looked back up at Shikamaru. He was focused on the clouds again. A sweat drop ran down Temari's forehead. She hesitated for a moment but then leaned in and kissed Shikamaru's cheek.

Shikamaru's face turned even redder than before. He was stunned and dumbfounded. "Huh?"

"Game. Set. Match." Temari winked. "You're cute when you blush."

Normally Shikamaru would either blow something off or think of a strategy when it came to a situation he was in. This time he had no clue what to do. He had never dealt with a girl like this. Shikamaru closed his eyes and sighed. He lost. Not even his smarts could figure out a plan on how to deal with this girl.

Temari set her tea cup on the nearby table and got up. She knew she had to head back before it got too late. "Thanks for the date. We should do it again sometime before I leave. Later." She grabbed her fan and walked away.

Shikamaru continued to sit in surprise. Once he came back to reality he saw that Temari was gone. Shikamaru got up and looked up and down the nearby road. She disappeared. He could feel his heart drop. How troublesome is this? I'm starting to have feelings for that bossy chick. I wish I were a cloud.

Temari turned the corner and approached the small hotel she and her team were staying at. The sun was getting close to the ground but it was still bright enough that the street lights didn't need to be on yet. When she entered their room there sat her other two teammates waiting patiently for her.

"Kankuro…Gaara…I thought you two were with Sensei?" Temari said surprised.

"No. Things got changed around so we got to stay here all day." Kankuro responded as he sat up from the bed he was on. Gaara was already sitting up on the other one with his arms folded and stared at Temari.

"Where were you today, Temari?" Kankuro asked.

"Just taking in the sights of Konoha." Temari half fibbed. She liked the village since it was so quaint, but she also was with Shikamaru for a quite a bit of time.

"That doesn't sound like you, Temari. Plus, we've been here close to a month. It's not like we've been here for only a day." Gaara added in.

"Hmpf." Temari couldn't tell them that she was with Shikamaru let alone that she might possibly have something for him.

"You were with someone, weren't you?" Gaara began to interrogate.

"So? Maybe I was. Maybe I wasn't."

"It was that guy you fought in the main matches, wasn't it?"

"You're good Gaara!" Kankuro added in and complimented.

Temari felt her face getting warm. She hated it when Gaara was right even when she never knew how the hellhe would find things out. Damn it! I can never keep anything away from these two, can I? At least I can keep away my weakness for him from them.

"You like him, don't you?" Gaara said softly.