So here is chapter twenty! Gahhh already at twenty? O.O This story is getting much longer and involved than I had originally thought! But at the same time that's a good thing...
So I had a few requests for ShikaTem interaction, as well as just hanging around Konoha, and one for using the baby deer I wrote a drabble about a while ago. You guys are going to get your wish ;P Note - I don't do heavy romance. Hell I don't even really know what flirting is in all actuality...so they're just going to be themselves. XD Hope that suits.
Finals week is halfway over, so that means 4 more days and two exams til I can go home! *Insert happy dance here*
Thank you so much to - Hitsugayataichoda, tikitay13, LadyDM, brendabond, Echo Uchiha, maxridelover, Kaiser969, Elita One, Rainbowbondagesocks, Cherrie-san, and BookWormForLife for reviewing last chapter. They all made my day(s)!
Posted - 5/14/2011
Disclaimer -
Temari - It's your turn to do it!
Shikamaru - We don't even have turns at this, troublesome woman...
Temari - Then be a gentleman and take the first turn!
Shikamaru - Why do I have to do it? Hey, won't your brother be upset that I'm talking to you?
Temari - Why would Kankurou be upset?
Shikamaru - Not that one...the other one...
Temari - Gaara? I don't know, he's been kind of protective of me lately...
Shikamaru - Maybe I should leave.
Temari - No! Gaara's not that bad anymore, he's changed! I swear -
Kankurou - Hey, gaki, I would start running, Gaara's headed this way and -
Gaara - Hey, shadow boy! Get away from my sister!
Shikamaru - *sweatdrop* I thought you said he changed!
Temari - He has!
Shikamaru - Then why is a giant cloud of sand hovering over me?
Temari - Gaara, you're really not helping your case here -
Shikamaru - See ya!
Temari - *sigh* Fine. The author in no way owns Naruto or any of its characters. Go have fun and read it. Gaara, anything you destroy you're going to be paying for!
Previously -
Behind her she could feel Shikamaru's shocked eyes on her back and took pleasure from it. She had finally been able to show the genius what she was truly capable of.
"What do you think?" she asked nonchalantly, leaning once more on her weapon. "It's over." Then she turned around and grinned happily at him. "How about it?"
He had this indescribable look on his face, a cross between resignation, awe, and surprise.
She looked expectantly at him as he opened his mouth. "Thank you," he finally said, not quite looking her in the eyes, although it was close.
"Good enough," she decided, slinging her weapon onto her back. "But cut with the man and woman crap, a woman can be much stronger than a man," she poked him authoritatively in the chest, then smirked as his mouth opened soundlessly.
Any further interaction was cut off by the arrival of a medical team, who immediately approached them and began to check both over for injuries.
On Temari they found none, and Shikamaru had only sustained minor non-life-threatening ones that were easily patched up until he could be seen in the hospital.
Upon seeing the medical team, Shikamaru immediately blurted out "How are the others?"
Temari could have answered for him, but remained silent. He wouldn't want to hear it from her.
"Sir, Akimichi Chouji and Hyuuga Neji are both in critical condition. Their status remains unknown. Inuzuka Kiba sustained one deep non-life-threatening wound, and Sabaku no Kankurou is fine. The rest of Medical Team Two has been dispatched after Rock Lee and Uzumaki Naruto."
"And Sabaku no Gaara," Temari interjected, and their heads snapped around to face her. The fear was easy to see. "He won't hurt them," she added, a little miffed she had to clarify.
"If we might escort you back to the hospital, sir?" the lead shinobi asked Shikamaru, although it was obviously more of an order than a question.
"Yeah," he muttered, although she could tell his mind was distracted. Then his eyes sharpened on her. "You're coming too."
"Of course," she told him, eyebrow raising. "My brother is there."
Chapter Twenty – Days in Konoha
Temari leaned against the wall as she and Shikamaru waited outside of one of the Konoha Hospital's intensive care unit rooms. The boy was sitting on the bench opposite her, staring down at his clasped hands intently. He had refused to move from his spot the moment he heard where Chouji was, and she had opted to keep him company.
Not that she cared about him of course, but if he decided to do anything drastic, someone had to be there to stop him.
She sighed, shifting position and finally taking her kyodai sensu off her back. If it was going to be a long wait she might as well be comfortable. The benches in the room were long and there was one on each side, so she took a seat exactly opposite Shikamaru, crossing her legs and spreading her crimson sash behind her.
The blonde girl watched with bored detachment as his hands moved, thumbs playing against his hands over and over again where they were intertwined. His left forefinger was in a splint – the raven had informed her he had broken it himself so as to escape from Tayuya's genjutsu. It was the worst injury he had, something she knew made him feel guilty about his best friend fighting for his life in the room beyond the closed doors.
"You won't do him any good by sitting here worrying," she finally broke the silence, watching him intently. The boy needed a reality check for all he was a genius. "Sacrifices are part of a mission. You've been trained to accept that, haven't you?" If he hadn't, Konoha had no business being one of the strongest villages. A shinobi village with members unable to kill or accept death would decline quickly.
He looked up at her, eyebrows almost meeting over his nose. She could see the dirt smudges and faint cuts littering his head, neck, and clothing even from her distance; he had refused to clean up until he knew his team members were safe.
"A battle is different from training," he finally replied, voice softer than she had ever heard it. "I knew what missions were. I thought I knew what the life of a shinobi was." Something in his face quivered, but she wasn't sure what it was.
Temari let no sign of her own feelings mar her expression – Shikamaru needed to work through whatever was bothering him, and if she was to be the listener, so be it.
"This was the first time I was the leader," he continued, looking down at his hands. "Everything became my responsibility. That's when I knew," his head snapped up as he gazed at her intently, "I'm not shinobi material."
Time for a dose of harshness, Temari decided. The boy was obviously in self-pity mode, hating himself for getting his comrades hurt and possibly killed, feeling sorry for himself for being put in that position. She had gotten over that facet of being a shinobi years ago, and she would be damned if she let the genius in front of her cop out.
"Fragile, aren't you?" Even though you're supposed to be a man," she taunted him lightly, making sure to keep her voice soft and flat. She was goading him, trying to make him work it all out in his head.
Shikamaru stood up, his vest rustling against his shirt as he did so. When he spoke, his voice was husky. "I'm supposed to be the leader. But when it came down to the fights, all I could do was trust them. I was too naïve, I wasn't strong enough…It's all my fault." His fist clenched, nails digging into his palm in self-hatred.
Self-pity, Temari thought disparagingly. If you want to be a shinobi, that's the first thing you have to get over. And yet she felt for the boy, knew what it was like to be put in that position. Her father's harsh training had beaten that aspect out of her when she was young, but she had seen it in other shinobi around Suna. They either got over it or got killed.
She didn't want to see him die.
Her eyebrows furrowed slightly as she looked at his tense form. "Are you afraid of getting hurt?" The question was serious, the one truth about himself he had to answer.
Rather than responding, he turned to walk away, sticking his hands deep in his pockets.
That more than anything answered her question for her. She watched him pace down the corridor, shoulders slumped with defeat. If he couldn't stand up to her, defend himself against her words, he really didn't have any business being a shinobi, let alone one worthy of her respect or attention.
The blonde girl heaved a sigh, leaning back on her bench. Who knew I would fall for a loser?
Then something caught her eye, a flicker of green and black at the corner of her vision, where two corridors joined. Shikamaru stopped just past it, and she could hear a faint voice, too low to make out individual words.
Shikamaru's head turned to answer the person, and his voice carried clearly. "It's not worth it. An argument is too troublesome. I'm not a girl."
She bristled at the last comment. Of course he wasn't a girl, he was obviously too weak to even be that!
Then Temari heard the other person's voice, carrying down the corridor, and her face turned serious.
"Yeah, but you're not a man either. You're just a coward." It seemed as though whoever Shikamaru was talking to was in the same mindset as her. "Even if you stop being a shinobi, missions will still continue. They have to be done, and someone has to do them. Your friends will be sent off, just under a different command. And they might die. But if you are that leader, there's a possibility they might not. By learning from your experience as a commander, you may be better able to complete a mission without casualties." The man's voice turned intense. "If your friends truly matter to you, before you try to run away like a coward, think about how to become a better shinobi for them. That is what true friends are. You coward!" The last two words were spat out almost with malice.
Temari flinched from the vehemence put behind the speech and her face softened, feeling sorry for Shikamaru. She knew exactly what he was feeling, had seen men die in front of her and even in her arms. She hadn't known them all that well, but what did that matter? She had caused their pain, their death.
Just then the light of the intensive care unit went off with an audible click, breaking the spell. Temari's head turned curiously to look at the medical personnel leaving the room, and blinked when she saw the Hokage, blond hair in slight disarray and exhaustion on her features.
The woman had a serious expression on her face, before she gave a small smile. "He's alright now."
The news hit Shikamaru like a physical shock, as he straightened in stunned response at his position down the corridor. Tsunade moved towards the bench Shikamaru had been sitting at, and Temari sat up straighter.
"The continuous cell destruction from the pill's side effects was stopped by the antidote I mixed," the Hokage explained, sitting down with a sigh of relief. Her head turned to address whoever was still hiding behind the corner. "The Nara Clan's medicine preparation manual was a great help, Shikaku. It must have taken a lot of effort to create something like that."
Shikaku. That sounds a lot like Shikamaru…his father? She did say Nara Clan…Temari's mind was busily at work, trying to figure out who had tried to talk sense into Shikamaru besides her.
Then her thoughts were again interrupted by the arrival of a raven haired woman speeding down the corridors, heels clicking against the stone floor. "Tsunade-sama!" the woman jerked to a stop long before reaching Shikamaru, hair flying forward slightly from the momentum of her travel. She paused dramatically for a moment, then announced, "Hyuuga Neji is out of danger! And Hatake Kakashi and Uzumaki Naruto have returned! Neither suffer life-threatening injuries."
Temari wished she could see Shikamaru's face to read the expressions on it. She was sure even the genius boy couldn't keep relief from showing. As it was, she had to settle for watching the tension drain out of his vest-clad shoulders, seeing the ponytail rise up just a bit more as his head slumped down.
Then she realized what their return – and the noticeable lack of a third name – signified. She looked down at the bench in respect of those who had tried to complete their mission and failed, eyes sad. So much effort for one who blew off their village and friends, she thought morosely. This shouldn't have happened.
"Just two…" she heard the Hokage whisper, before her voice grew strong once more. "Shikamaru, it looks like the mission is a failure."
Now instead of relief, the boy's body trembled with suppressed rage and pain. Then Tsunade bowed her head. "But everyone survived. That's what's important."
Does he see it that way now? the blonde genin thought to herself, seeing Shikamaru tremble, attempting to battle his emotions. Or does he just see a waste of effort, senseless injuries put in for a cause that was a failure?
When he did speak, his voice was choked with tears, tears she could see drip down onto the floor in front of him. "Next time…" he whispered, "I will do it perfectly!"
She had no right to console him, no right to be there, but to leave Temari would have to go past not only the Hokage and Shikamaru, but his father and the Hokage's assistant as well. So instead she remained seated, arms braced against the bench and eyes focused on her lap.
Eventually she heard Tsunade get up and walk down the corridor, stopping to place a hand on Shikamaru's shoulder for a moment before continuing on with her assistant. Another set of footsteps receded as well, leaving only her and Shikamaru alone in the hallway.
He was still standing in the middle of the hallway, tears dripping down his face to land with soft 'plips' on the floor.
"Are you going to visit them?" She asked the question softly, not wanting to startle him. The raven turned back to look at her, and her breath caught slightly at the emotion in his dark eyes. Then she checked herself. Stupid! He's twelve! And I have no business falling for a guy at all! It's just the atmosphere.
"Of course," he replied as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "They're my friends."
Then he too walked away, leaving Temari sitting there on the bench.
"Of course," she muttered under her breath. "Not as though you had been hating yourself a moment ago for getting them hurt…" The blonde girl laughed, exasperated with herself. "A guy shouldn't get me this riled up."
"A guy?" Kankurou's voice floated down the corridor. "What guy?"
Temari's head whipped around to look at her brother who was sauntering up the hallway, a smirk on his face. "How did you know I was here?"
"Magic," he informed her sarcastically. "A little black bird with a ponytail told me you were sitting here. Gaara and I have been cleared by the hospital."
"You're getting less imaginative," she told him, standing up and stretching to get the kinks out of her spine. "Time was it wouldn't have been a bird, it would have been a tanuki or something."
They began walking down the hall, heading for the exit of the hospital. "The tanuki is already on his way to our flat," Kankurou responded flippantly, grinning widely at her. "You should be glad it's me who came to get you instead of him, or your boyfriend would be so much a smear on the wall."
She colored instantly. "He's not my boyfriend!"
"Sure, sure," Kankurou smirked at her. "Not your boyfriend in the same way we aren't your brothers, which is why you didn't come check up on us."
"If you're such a baby you need me to hold your hand through a medical checkup – " Temari shot back, then dodged Kankurou's fist. "Can't even hit a stationary target. No wonder you got beat up."
"We can't all be wind fighters," the puppeteer muttered under his breath, but subsided. "They gave us the same flat we had last time," he continued. "We're to stay here until they finish up business back in Suna."
Temari frowned, wrapping her mind around that one. "So our disappearance won't be connected with the political changes?"
Kankurou just shrugged carelessly. "It's politics. I'll leave that crap to you and Gaara. Give me a good fight any day."
"Tch, no wonder you were hopeless at it," Temari groused, taking a fake swing at Kankurou's head. "All brawn and no brains."
"Ah, but it's the brawn that counts in a fight," Kankurou grinned at her. "A department you seem to be lacking in."
Then he shot off, dodging her blows and shouts to "Get back here this instant and fight like a man!"
The next day Temari was woken up by a loud banging on the front door of the flat. Poking her head out of her room, she noticed Gaara's door already ajar and the room empty, while Kankurou's was firmly shut.
As she retreated back into her room to prepare herself for the day – what was the use of going back to sleep after getting up? – she heard the pounding stop and low voices in the front room.
Since Kankurou was asleep, that meant Gaara had to be the one to answer the door…she sped up her preparations.
Not two minutes later Temari sauntered out into the front of the flat, adjusting her kyodai sensu on her back. Her jade eyed brother was leaning against the wall next to the door, looking wary as he eyed another boy who stood awkwardly in the center of the room.
"Why do you need Temari?" the redhead asked in a monotone, although his eyes were sharp.
Shikamaru fidgeted, hands in pockets and shoulders slouched as normal. "Since she's here until the Hokage says she can leave, like the rest of you, Tsunade-sama suggested she help me with my duties."
"Why you?" The question was innocent enough, but with enough killer intent laced through it to make Temari wince.
"Mendokuse," Shikamaru muttered, rolling his eyes. "Orders are orders, I don't question them."
"It's fine Gaara," Temari inserted herself into the conversation before it could get bloody. Mostly on Shikamaru's end if she was reading her brother right. "If the Hokage wants me to do something, I'll gladly help."
"If you're sure," he replied, eyes shifting to look at her. "You don't have to follow her commands. You are not of her village."
That was the closest he would come to telling his sister he would protect her if she didn't want to obey the Hokage. Temari smiled at him, appreciating the gesture, even as she assured him, "I need something to keep me busy during the day anyway. Here's some money for food for you and Kankurou," she fished some ryou out of her sash, "and try not to kill him if he annoys you."
A flat stare met that statement.
"Okay then," she laughed awkwardly, grabbing Shikamaru by the arm. "We'll see you later." She didn't miss Gaara's glare at her hand on Shikamaru's arm, and closed the door a tad hastily.
"You're brother seems…protective," Shikamaru noted as they walked away from the flat on the street below.
Temari shrugged. "I've never seen him like that. What are your duties, and why couldn't Gaara or Kankurou come?"
"Hmm…" the genius contemplated her reply, then answered her second question. "I get to work at the Academy for a few days as a substitute for Iruka-sensei; he's out on a mission. So unless you want either of your brothers around impressionable kids…" He accurately interpreted her startled gargle. "I didn't think so."
"You? Work with kids?" she spluttered, dropping his arm to stare at him in shock.
"Why is that so hard to believe?" he asked her, one eyebrow raised. "I'm not much older than a kid myself, for all I'm a chuunin. Neither are you," and he cocked a finger at her.
"I'm three years older than you," Temari responded superiorly, then smirked. "This will be fun to watch. How did you get assigned that duty anyway?"
This time the eyebrow quirk was questioning, even as he answered, "I'm a chuunin; one of the duties associated with that rank is to teach at the Academy."
"You're going to find them troublesome, and you can't escape," the blonde girl replied, grinning evilly.
"Well you're going to meet them now, so prepare yourself," Shikamaru stated, stopping in front of a huge building with the word 'Academy' written in huge letters on a sign. "I believe you've met three of them before."
He walked into the building, leaving Temari staring at his back, wondering what he meant by that last comment, before she ran a few steps to catch up.
The classroom wasn't too far from the entrance, and he stopped before the door for a second to take a deep breath. "Only two weeks…" she heard him mutter under his breath, before the door was opened and he stepped into the classroom.
Immediately a burst of noise hit her ears, and Temari had to resist the urge to cover them as she stepped into the classroom after Shikamaru.
"Oi!" the raven haired boy stated, as though talking to a quiet class. "If you don't know me, my name is Nara Shikamaru, and this is Sabaku no Temari."
The class didn't lower their volume even a decibel, continuing to talk and yell amongst themselves. Shikamaru simply sighed, lounging against the desk in apparent boredom.
Temari looked quizzically first at him, then at the class, trying to figure out what he was doing. Wasn't he supposed to be teaching the kids, not babysitting them?
They stayed like that for a couple minutes, until a fight broke out in the back of the classroom, two boys each attempting to shove the other down onto the ground which quickly developed into a wrestling match.
With another sigh, Shikamaru pushed away from the desk, walking towards the wall and not stopping once he reached it, but instead stepping up onto it and continuing.
Temari's expression shifted from bored to interested as he walked up the wall onto the ceiling, stepping above the class as though it was nothing. The kids didn't even notice, so intently were they cheering the fight on.
The shadow user stopped directly above the fight, and his fingers formed a seal Temari recognized even upside-down. So she wasn't surprised when two tendrils of shadow shot out of Shikamaru's own, winding down the wall until they had connected with the shadows of the two boys. The children immediately froze, following the black trails up until they were looking up at their new sensei.
"Now," Shikamaru began in that same matter of fact voice. "let me begin again. I am Nara Shikamaru, and that is Sabaku no Temari." He waved a hand in the direction of the blonde girl, forcing the two boys he had entrapped to do the same. Temari grinned at their surprise. It looked as though this was going to be even more fun than she had first anticipated.
"We are filling in for Iruka-sensei for the next two weeks," Shikamaru continued lightly, not at all phased by giving his speech while standing upside down. "Despite how troublesome I find it, Iruka-sensei would hunt me down if I let you fall behind in the curriculum, and so don't expect this to be a free two weeks."
A chorus of disappointment was clearly audible.
"Today we will work on the history of the founding of the village, and in the afternoon work on target practice. Temari-san will help with the afternoon portion." She shot him a glance as if to say, no, really?, and saw him quirk a grin in response.
As Shikamaru released his captives from the shadow bind and dropped lightly to the floor to be swarmed by curious children, she mentally prepared herself for a boring morning.
Surprisingly, Temari found herself engaged by the manner in which Shikamaru taught the course material. It was almost as though he knew exactly how boring rote learning could become, and took efforts – unusual for him – to avoid that. She even learned a bit about Suna's new ally that she hadn't known before.
When he ended the lesson for lunch, Temari could have sworn she heard an audible sigh as he flopped down in the chair behind the desk.
"You know, for a twelve year old, you teach pretty well," she commented, keeping the surprise out of her voice. "And the midgets actually obey you."
He raised a lazy eyebrow at her, barely turning his head. "I took tips from Iruka-sensei, even when he thought I wasn't paying attention. Get their attention with a flashy display and they become focused on you for a few days. After that you have to go by your wits," he grinned wryly. "And I learned a few tricks from my own experiences."
He was suddenly replaced by a whirlwind of leaves swirling in the chair, and Temari stared blankly at the spot before looking wildly around the room. She found him standing at the back of the classroom, leaning nonchalantly against an open window in front of three students with disgruntled expressions.
"But we can already hit the target every time!" she heard the boy in the middle protest as she sauntered over to the scene, weaving between kids running around the classroom. "We don't need to stay here!"
"Being able to hit just the target doesn't mean anything," Shikamaru told them, eyes ranging across the two boys and a girl. "You have to be able to hit exactly where you mean to."
As the girl opened her mouth to retort, Temari stepped up beside Shikamaru. "Besides, there are other techniques you can use with shuriken," she continued for him, accurately guessing the topic of the argument. "You can't skip class with us until you've mastered one of them."
The blonde girl smirked internally as the eyes of all three children lit up at the prospect of learning a new technique. At their age, knowing more jutsu than anyone else was a sign of prestige.
"Mendokuse," she heard Shikamaru mutter under his breath. "Now I have to think of one to teach them…"
"I have it covered," she reassured him with a smirk. For some reason that only seemed to worry him.
They got all the kids lined up in front of a string of targets in the Academy practice area, each readying five shuriken.
"And throw," Shikamaru ordered, watching keenly as each child released one weapon after another. He walked behind them, correcting one's stance, another's grip, as Temari made sure none of them accidentally hit another.
The boy and his two friends that had been trying to escape – who Temari now recognized as the three kids who had run into them at the beginning of the Chuunin Exams – came up to her where she was standing.
"When will you teach us that jutsu?" the leader asked flat out, tugging on the long blue scarf wrapped around his neck.
"When you show me you can hit the target five out of five times," she told him absently, eyes zeroing in on a boy who was turning to look at a classmate, hand ready to throw. "Hey!" she called, disappearing in a wind shunshin and reappearing directly behind the boy, firmly gripping his arm. "Keep the weapon pointed towards the target."
The boy flushed red, but nodded jerkily, facing his whole body back towards the dummy.
Temari sighed, walking back to her previous spot and thinking hard. Despite what she had said earlier, Kankurou and Gaara might do good being around kids that needed to learn basic shinobi arts. And maybe they could pick up some facts about Konoha none of the three knew. Maybe she would run the idea by Shikamaru. After all, exposing Gaara to kids might help him learn to deal with the children back in Suna as well. Yes, that may work out quite well as long as she could get Kankurou to keep a lid on his ego.
Despite their earlier bragging, none of Konohamaru's little group were able to hit the target five times out of five, earning a raised eyebrow and a smirk from Temari.
In return, Konohamaru shot her a challenging look, daring her to mock him. He and his friends didn't leave when Shikamaru dismissed class for the day, instead opting to stay behind and practice their aim some more.
"I'll walk you back," Shikamaru offered as they headed back to the classroom to pick up some papers he would need.
"Such a gentleman," Temari teased him lightly, but smiled. "I accept. I have something I want to ask you anyway."
"Oh?" He scooped up the piles of paper on the desk and headed for the door. "Explain."
"It's about Gaara and Kankurou," Temari began as they stepped outside the school into the bright sunlight. Wherever the sun had been hiding while they practiced weapons, it had decided to be brave and shine fiercely. "Maybe they would do well as teachers here."
That got a reaction from the lazy boy as his head shot sideways to scrutinize her. "Are you sure? With your brothers' temperaments…"
"They'll just get into trouble here if they don't have anything to occupy their time," Temari explained, eyes focused ahead of her on the street. "It would help for them to pass on some of the knowledge they have, and maybe learn some about Konoha in the process."
"Hm." He actually seemed to be considering the idea, something she hadn't expected. "I'll have to ask Tsunade-sama," he warned her. "But I don't see why she wouldn't agree. We're short-staffed."
"I'll ask Kankurou and Gaara," Temari replied, relieved, relaxing her grip on one of the ends of her red sash she had unconsciously grabbed. Ask was a relative term – she would tell them they were going to, and her brothers would do it. Or they would answer to her.
They walked the rest of the way in companionable silence, Temari looking around curiously at parts of Konoha she had been unable to appreciate the last time she had been there.
"Well, see you," Shikamaru told her awkwardly as they arrived at the door to her flat.
"What no kiss?" she teased him, grinning as he flushed bright red. "You're cute." Just to mess with him she swooped in and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, smirking as it looked as though his brain was going to overload. "See you tomorrow!"
With a giggle, she ducked into her flat, and ran straight into Kankurou.
"Not your boyfriend, eh?" he asked her, a leer gracing his painted features. "Walks you to your door, you give him a kiss…shouldn't you introduce us properly first?"
"He's not my boyfriend," Temari told him crossly, good mood fleeing with the interrogation. Why is that bothering me? Kankurou's said that about tons of other boys and it never got under my skin.
He seemed to mirror her thoughts, for he uttered a non-committal "Mhm," and moved over to the window to look out. "Well he's gone now."
"You're going to be working with kids at the Academy tomorrow," Temari told him, just to ruin his good mood as he did hers.
Sure enough, it worked. "What?" Kankurou yelped, spinning around to face his sister as she took off her kyodai sensu, placing it in a corner of the front room. "Temari, I have plans!"
"Oh?" she quirked an eyebrow at him. "Cancel them."
"Temari, that's not fair!" he protested, only scowling as she grinned at him, eyes dancing.
"Why not? It'll be good for you! And remember, they aren't punching bags," the teal eyed girl teased him, watching her brother run a hand over his face in despair.
"But – "
"What does Kankurou have to do?" Gaara asked, entering the front room as well.
"You and he are going to be teaching at the Academy as well, starting tomorrow," Temari informed him, enjoying the shock that rushed over her little brother's features.
"Are you sure?" Gaara asked eventually, jade eyes uncertain as he looked at her.
"Sure, it will be good for you!" Temari reassured him, sitting down on the floor even as Kankurou spluttered protests.
"What do you mean is she sure? Why aren't you protesting this?" the elder brother stared at the redhead, disbelief written on his face.
Gaara took his time before answering, face serious. "It could be a good experience."
"I don't believe this," Kankurou groaned, throwing his hands up. "I'm going out to enjoy my last day of freedom then." He disappeared out the door, taking care to slam it behind him as emphasis.
"Such a drama-queen," Temari announced before it was fully shut, and heard an indignant "Hey!" before Kankurou left.
A strange sound came from the direction of the room Gaara was in, and her head whipped around to see the redhead with a hand over his mouth…as though…
"Did you just laugh?" Temari asked, slightly perturbed.
Her only response was a wide-eyed look, and then Gaara disappeared in a whirlwind of sand, leaving Temari alone in the flat.
"What an odd day…" she sighed to herself, relaxing back against the wall. "I don't know if I could top it."
This time Temari was up long before Shikamaru came by, dumping a cold bucket of water on Kankurou when he refused to stir and dodging the stream of projectiles that came flying at her accompanied by profanities.
"Language language!" the blonde scolded her brother cheerfully, watching as he sat straight up, pushing sopping hair out of his eyes. "You're going to be around little kids now!"
He responded with a rude suggestion that only made her laugh more. "That isn't possible, although you're welcome to try for yourself!"
She didn't worry about Gaara, knowing her brother had been ready for the day for hours – at least physically. Mentally was a different story. He still harbored the worry he would accidentally hurt one of the children, even though he had near complete control over his emotions. Temari had done all she could to reassure him the night before, but only he could master it now. With luck, the kids would prove therapeutic. Or they would drive him crazy, it was a fifty-fifty chance.
She sensed Shikamaru coming before he even arrived at the door, opening it just as he raised his hand to knock on it.
Ignoring Kankurou's jeering call of "Introductions!" she quickly stepped outside, shutting the door firmly behind her, and moving away towards the street.
"What was that about?" he asked, looking between her and the door as he fell into step next to her. Then he seemed to think better of the question. "Never mind. Mom wants to have you over for dinner tonight." The raven averted his eyes as he told her, as if worried about her reaction. "She won't take no for an answer."
Obviously he had tried to convince the woman out of it.
"Sounds fun!" Temari chirped just to irk Shikamaru, and was rewarded when she saw irritation flash over his face.
"Troublesome women…" he muttered under his breath, looking down to compose himself. "We'll go straight to my house after work. I have some chores that need to be taken care of today and I won't have time to walk you back here."
The teal eyed girl raised a skeptical eyebrow at Shikamaru, a little miffed. "I don't get a say in this?"
"A gentleman always walks a lady home, but in this case I'm unable to," he explained as though it was common sense. "Therefore, I will walk you to my house instead, where you can meet the deer."
"Meet the deer?" she repeated, processing the information. "You have deer?"
"The Nara Clan raises all the deer in Konoha," Shikamaru elaborated. "One of my chores is to feed them every other day, others take care of them the rest of the time."
"Very well then," Temari acquiesced. "Kankurou and Gaara can survive without me for one evening."
The second day at the Academy went smoothly, Temari passing Kankurou and Gaara at different points during the day as she fetched materials for the class or worked with the kids at the training grounds. They seemed to be handling their classes rather well, and some kids were even hanging off of Gaara – literally. As she passed him that time, he looked at her with pleading eyes for help, but she just sent him a smile and a thumbs up.
Again she and Shikamaru left the Academy at the same time – leaving behind Konohamaru and his two friends Moegi and Udon to continue working on their aim – but this time in the direction of Shikamaru's compound.
They walked in silence for a few minutes before Temari thought of something. "Why does your mom want to have me over for dinner?"
Shikamaru muttered something unintelligible, not looking at her.
"Come again? I don't speak gibberish," she prompted him, watching as a red flush crept up her neck.
"I told her you were working with me for the next two weeks, and she recognized you as my opponent from the Chuunin Exams, and dad remembered you as being in the hallway. She's convinced you're my girlfriend somehow," he repeated, still not looking up at her as he slouched along.
"Why does everybody think that?" Temari exclaimed, exasperated. "There's no reason to!"
"I don't know," the boy gave a helpless shrug. "But I don't argue with mom. Mendokuse."
She had no answer to that, and they finished the walk in silence. The Nara Compound was quite open, with a high wall surrounding it, but she could see forests behind it that led out beyond the boundaries of Konoha.
Shikamaru led her around behind the main house, where a large bucket rested filled with pellets of some type.
"You can leave your weapon here," Shikamaru gestured to an area next to the doorway. "Nobody will touch it."
Temari eyed him, then the area, eventually taking her fan off her back and resting it against the indicated spot. "I'll hold you responsible if it's damaged in any way," she warned him, completely serious.
"Fair enough," he accepted, picking up the pail as though it weighed nothing. "Come on then."
He left the porch and moved towards the forest, not looking back to see if she followed. For a moment, Temari contemplated just going inside the house and seeing what his mother was like, but decided it could wait. No use rushing the inevitable, and if a woman could instill that kind of fear in her son, she was worth treading carefully around. And with human meat-shields if necessary.
The forest was much cooler, the dappled shade creating pretty patterns on the grass. For some reason Temari felt as though she was intruding on a sacred place, and looked around warily even as she followed Shikamaru, unconsciously rubbing her forearms.
He stopped in the middle of a large clearing, setting down the bucket, and made an odd clicking sound with his tongue, one she had never heard from a human mouth before. The blonde girl backed towards a tree, wanting to have something at her back, when something small and moving bumped into her.
With a barely suppressed shriek – that she would had never have forgiven herself for if it had been let loose – Temari turned around to look at a baby deer, probably not over a month old, that had head-butted her.
Shikamaru was busy scooping out handfuls of pellets and feeding them to adult deer that appeared out of the trees like wraiths, and was too preoccupied to notice the fawn next to her.
Again the tiny deer head-butted her, this time imperiously. "What, you want food?" Temari asked it, receiving another bump as a response. "Fine."
She reached for the bucket, snagging a handful of food and gaining a rather funny look from Shikamaru in the bargain, and offered her palm to the baby deer. It ate the food almost delicately, and she shivered slightly at the ticklish feeling its lips left on her hand.
Her other hand reached out, stroking along the deer's spine tentatively, and feeling the coarse hair that covered it's body. The fawn seemed to lean into the touch, and Temari repeated the gesture, firmer this time. It took a few steps closer to her, always keeping its mouth in the food, until it rested against her leg, body almost level with Temari's waist.
All too soon her hand was empty, as was the bucket, and the adult deer were melding back into the trees. One broke away, heading towards Temari, and looked at her with intelligent dark eyes before nudging the fawn lightly. It head-butted Temari one more time before following its dam into the forest, disappearing into the trees.
Temari watched it go, feeling an odd sense of weight on the clearing.
Eventually Shikamaru broke the spell by picking up the pail, and turning towards her. "It's getting dark," he began, and Temari started; indeed, at least an hour had passed while she stood there, probably more. "Mom will have dinner ready soon."
"Okay," she answered, in a daze, rubbing both hands on her short skirt. Shikamaru led the way back through the forest, sure in his way despite the gathering dark. Not that darkness affected shinobi like them – a shinobi that couldn't function in darkness was a dead shinobi.
A black haired woman was waiting on the porch as they approached the house once more, a white apron on over a blouse and skirt, and hands planted on her hips.
"Shikamaru, what are you doing?" she began, tone fierce as she glared at the boy who quailed.
"I took her to see the deer," he responded, heading for the end of the porch to place the bucket on. "It's no big deal."
"You kept the poor girl out with you while you were doing your chores! Where are your manners?" she continued, berating Shikamaru. "Be a gentleman and invite her inside now!"
Then she turned to Temari, immediately all smiles. "I apologize for my son's behavior, he's just like his father."
"It's quite all right," Temari replied, smiling back tentatively. "I enjoyed visiting the deer, Nara-san."
"No need to lie," the woman told her, placing an arm around Temari's shoulders to guide her into the house. "And you can call me Yoshino."
"Hai, Yoshino-san," Temari responded, sending a glance that screamed "Help me!" over her shoulder at Shikamaru. He just shrugged in reply.
Temari didn't know how she survived the dinner, except that the food was delicious and Yoshino kept up a lively conversation. Shikamaru and his father Shikaku kept quiet except when directly addressed, no doubt in a defense mechanism against Yoshino's domineering personality. For the first half an hour or so, Temari felt completely overwhelmed, but eventually grew comfortable with Yoshino and was able to give as much information as she received.
Once the meal was over, Temari got up as though to help Yoshino clear the dishes, only to be waved back down by the woman. "Let the men do that job," the Nara woman told her comfortably, watching as Shikamaru and Shikaku sighed in unison, standing up and beginning to clean off the table.
As the two men disappeared into the kitchen, Yoshino was finally able to ask the question that had been nagging her all evening. "How did you and Shikamaru begin dating?"
Temari choked at the question, then stared at Yoshino in confusion and amazement. "Why do people keep thinking we're dating?" she demanded fiercely. "We're just friends! And he's my colleague currently as well!"
"Oh, my mistake." Yoshino looked anything but abashed. "It's just that the only other girl Shikamaru spends as much time with and talks about is Ino, and he's most certainly not dating her, so I just assumed…"
"We're not," Temari stated firmly. "We're just. Friends. Despite what Kankurou would tell you," she added under her breath.
Just then Shikamaru appeared in the doorway. "It's late, I should walk Temari back to her house."
The blonde girl got up hastily, all too glad for a reason to leave, and ignored the win Yoshino sent her. "Thank you so much for the lovely meal, Yoshino-san," she told the woman formally, giving her a bow.
The raven smiled up at her in turn. "You are quite welcome, Temari-san. I hope you come by more often."
"Perhaps the next time I'm in Konoha," Temari offered politely, then headed for the back porch to pick up her weapon once more. After a thorough inspection to make sure it wasn't harmed in any way, she followed Shikamaru out of the compound and back onto the streets of Konoha, which were almost deserted.
"Thanks for putting up with that," Shikamaru broke the silence between them. "Mom won't take no for an answer."
"So I'd realized," she responded dryly, thinking back to Yoshino and how she handled her husband and son.
"Yeah…" he cocked his head thoughtfully. "You're kind of like her."
"I'm what?" Temari's head whipped around to look at him, shocked. "No I'm not!"
"Yes you are," he replied placidly, heading for the stairs that led up to her flat. "So I'll never leave the two of you alone together."
He stopped outside her door again, and looked at her for a moment. "See you tomorrow," the raven told her simply, then leaped over the railing and landed lightly on the street below.
Temari stared at the place he had been for a second, wondering why the goodbye had seemed like more than that. Then she shook her head, dispelling any weird thoughts, and opened the door.
"So he walked you home again after being out late?" Kankurou asked from his room where the door was wide open. "Sounds like a boyfriend to me."
"His mother wanted to meet me," Temari responded, knowing exactly how incriminating that sounded. At the moment, she didn't really care. Her emotions for Shikamaru were obviously too knotted up to decipher.
So rather than replying to the rather interesting remark Kankurou made, she headed for her bedroom shutting the door firmly behind her, pulled off her outer armor and collapsed on the bed, looking out the window at the night sky.
The next twelve days passed in a blur of weapons and laughter, and far too much teasing from Kankurou. Two days before they were scheduled to depart for Suna Yamanaka Inoichi and Mitarashi Anko returned from their mission there, signifying a safe return for the Sabaku Siblings.
The day they left, the students from their three classes at the Academy gathered at the gate to see them off, Shikamaru at the front. As the three siblings stood in a line facing the children, they chorused "Arigatou gozaimasu!"
For some reason it was so cute, Temari couldn't help but smile and laugh. "Train hard, all of you," she told them cheerily, watching the expectant faces.
Konohamaru spoke up from his position right behind Shikamaru. "I'll master that shuriken jutsu before you come back!"
He and his two friends had mastered hitting the target five times out of five a week into Temari's stint as a teacher, and she had dutifully showed them the shuriken jutsu, However, none of them were able to hold it long enough for the multiple shuriken to hit the target; most flickered out before impact.
Udon and Moegi quickly agreed from their spots on either side of their leader, Moegi adding, "I want to be a strong kunoichi just like Temari-san!"
Again the blonde girl smiled. "I'm very honored."
Shikamaru broke into the conversation, a genuine smile on his face. "Sorry for making you fill in at the Academy. You would have probably looked around Konoha…"
"What are you talking about?" Temari interrupted him firmly, a lilting tease in her voice. "We did it because we wanted to."
Kankurou knew what he was to say without Temari hitting him. "Yeah, and we were able to learn some more about Konoha's future."
Shikamaru chuckled at that, knowing as well as the three siblings did Temari had originally bullied the two brothers into teaching, but they had ended up enjoying it. "Well, be careful on your way back home."
"Sure," Gaara told him. Temari was pretty sure he held a grudge against the shadow user because of the time she spent with Shikamaru, but she couldn't get him to admit he was being overprotective.
The redhead turned to leave, and Temari and Kankurou fell into step as always, flanking their brother.
But Temari couldn't resist one last shot at Shikamaru before she left. Turning back to look over her shoulder, she grinned at him. "We'll help you again if anything else happens. Okay, Mister Crybaby?"
"Hey, that's not fair," Shikamaru fired back, but he was laughing as he said it. "This is why girls…" he trailed off, not completing the sentence, but knowing Temari knew what came next.
She laughed right along with him, then followed her brothers away from Konoha.
"So, still swear he's not your boyfriend?" Kankurou teased her, smirking at his sister.
"Shut up," she laughed, shoving him to the side. She was in too good a mood to even let Kankurou ruin it.
Wow okay, that ended up much longer than I expected it to be when I started out! (cough 5k cough). Well at least I hope it was enjoyable to read and funny!
I didn't want to go into huge details during the dinner, or this would have been pushing 11k probably! And that would drive me insane! XD
But I did want to do something to do with the dinner, so here goes -
Shikamaru - So tired, why do we even have to do this?
Shikaku - It's just how women are. You learn to accept it.
Yoshino - Be quiet over there! Stop slouching at the table, we have a guest!
Temari - It's okay, Yoshino-san...
Yoshino - Oh, don't worry about it dear. Once you marry Shikamaru you'll learn to handle him.
Temari/Shikamaru - *chokes* What!
Shikaku - That's my cue...
Yoshino - Sit back down, you! Shikaku has told me he's see you two together around Konoha often. Naturally -
Shikamaru - *glares at Shikaku* That's because we work together!
Temari - I'm sure it was a simple misunderstanding...
Shikamaru - No, he knows exactly what he's doing.
Yoshino - Shikamaru, have you been toying with this girl's feelings?
Temari/Shikamaru - *turns red* What!
Shikaku - Okay, dinner is over now.
Yoshino - It's not over until I say it is!
If you don't like either of the omakes I did or just don't want to see them, just say so. Anyway, hope you enjoy the fruit of my labors at...*checks watch*...2:17 am! *grins crazily* I do my best work sleep deprived apparently...Good thing its the weekend!