A/N: Last chapter…I really hope that Tessen-in-the-Sand enjoys this. It has literally taken me to the last minute to get this finished, and I'm still making adjustments. I'm sorry if it's not what you were hoping for. If I could've drawn these two worth a darn you would've gotten your gift sooner.

Disclaimer:I own chopsticks, not the rights to Naruto.

Chapter 3

Shikamaru put the rewrapped gifts in his bag, hoping that Temari wasn't playing some horrible trick on him. They'd split up to get the shopping done quicker. Chouji had been easy, he just went to the local barbeque and asked for a picnic basket full of regional food that traveled well. Gaara and Kankurou had proved to be a bit more troublesome. Temari had mentioned that Gaara was attempting sleep now, so he'd bought him a pair of teddy bear print pajamas…she'd also mentioned the Kazekage's love of the furry toy. For the Puppet-Nin he finally settled on a black hooded shirt that had a smoke design on the sleeves but no cat ears. He had given the purchases to Temari minus the wrapping paper so she would know what they were. She'd seemed pleased. He hoped he'd be able to say the same about hers.

o-o-o

It wasn't until much later that evening that Shikamaru finally had the opportunity to visit the onsen. Temari had raved over the view so much that even though it was almost dark he decided to give the mixed bath a try. Luckily, only one other person was there. Unfortunately, it was the old woman who smelled like feet.

"Where's your young lady?" She asked smiling after he'd submerged himself. When he didn't answer right away the old woman laughed softly. "You know I met my late husband at this ryokan. Of course that was when there was only the mixed bath. I'll never forget it, we sat here admiring the view and talking until it was very late. If it hadn't been for the war we would have been married within months, but we had to wait a few years. We came here for our honeymoon. I'll never forget it."

With that, the woman hoisted herself out of the water and left Shikamaru alone with his thoughts.

o-o-o

Temari awoke to someone pounding on her door.

"Who's there?"

"It's Shikamaru, open up."

Yawning, she switched on a lamp before opening the door. There stood Shikamaru clad in the ryokan's yukata, his hair out of it's usual ponytail dripping water on the tatami mats.

"Been to the onsen I see," she smiled. "Your hair's down."

"So's yours," he replied taking in the golden halo that framed her face.

"Well, I was sleeping, I know it's early, but I feel so relaxed here." She eyed him curiously, "hey, is something wrong? Do you need something?"

"Uh, yeah. Can I come in?"

Temari stepped aside so the Shadow-Nin could enter. She showed him to the small couch and then sat down beside him, careful that she didn't show off too much skin in the process.

"Do you want some tea? How'd you enjoy the bath? Did you get to see the view?"

"No tea thanks, but yeah, the view was nice."

"Nice? You're kidding right? That view was incredible."

Shikamaru shrugged, "I've seen better."

"Really?" Temari raised an eyebrow, "I don't think I've ever seen anything as beautiful."

"I have," he whispered and leaned forward capturing her lips in a soft kiss. When she didn't fight he deepened it, slipping his tongue between her lips. Her mouth was warm, and her arms wrapped around his neck pulling him closer. When they finally pulled apart they sat for awhile staring at each other.

"What now?" Temari asked quietly, "where do we go from here?"

"Well," Shikamaru grinned lazily kissing her hand. "We both go home in a few days with a promise to see eachother as soon as possible, and Naruto gets a souvenir that will make him very happy."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the next time you come to Konoha, if he asks us if we're on a date we can say yes, and he can spread some serious gossip."

Temari slapped him playfully on the shoulder, "assuming quite a bit aren't you Nara?"

"Prove me wrong, troublesome woman," he teased leaning in for another kiss.

o-o-o

"Thanks for the pajamas Temari, they're great!" Gaara grinned holding up his gift.

"Temari," Kankurou pouted. "The smoke on the sleeves is cool, but there are no ears on this hood. Weren't there any shirts with ears on the hoods?"

"Only for the little kids," Temari informed her brother. "I'm sure you can add some."

"Didn't you get yourself anything for a souvenir?" Gaara asked.

A blush spread across the kunoichi's cheeks. "Um yeah, about that…"

o-o-o

"Perfect! It's perfect," Ino squealed holding up the purple sweater for Chouji to see. "Isn't it great? It's stretchy, so I can move in it and still look thin! Shikamaru, you're the greatest!"

Chouji, his mouth full of food at the moment, gave a thumbs up to express his pleasure.

"So," Ino leaned forward eager for gossip. "How was it, did you get anything for yourself?"

Shikamaru grinned, "it was definitly worth the trouble."

o-o-oOWARIo-o-o