Is that you?

Temari stared at her reflection in the mirror, still debating on what to do with her hair. Since tonight was the first night of the Suna festival, Temari figure it was a good time to dress up a little bit and enjoy the night. The winning outfit she chose was a light blue 3/4 sleeved dress with minimal beading along the neckline and belt that shimmered in the light. What she loved about this dress was the high-waisted beltline that started just below her bust, making the soft fabric flow out, draping softly over her belly and ending just above the knee. Sari had mentioned that this kind of style was all the rage these days, which Temari still didn't understand how fashion trends worked; but she didn't really care since for her, it was the fact that the dress could comfortably accommodate her ever-growing belly that sold her on it. The fact that it actually looked good on her was just a bonus.

"Temari, are you ok? You've been in there for a while now." Shikamaru called from outside the bedroom

"Yeah I'm fine. I'll be out in a min." Temari made on last attempt to gather her hair in various ways before giving up completely. She groaned in frustration before grabbing her brush and it quickly through the tangles.

"Temari. You al….right?" Shikamaru was speechless. Even though it was simply put together, she looked stunning. The dress hugged her in all the right places on top and flowed out softly below, almost concealing the fact that she's carrying their child.

"Umm…does it look ok? Temari asked nervously

Shikamaru cupped her face, tilting it up so she can see him, "You look amazing." He leaned in to close the gap between their lips, running his fingers through her loose hair. Temari returned the kiss and then deepened it.

"You know…as much…as…I want…to…continue this, I think there's a festival waiting for us." Shikamaru said in between kisses before finally pulling apart.

"Yeah…come on." Temari grabbed Shikamaru's hand and pulled him out the door.


The couple strolled through the busy streets, going from stall to stall, and checking out what everyone had to offer. From a glance, this festival just looked like any other typical village festival. But going through it, Shikamaru could tell that this one was entirely different from the Konoha Festival. Everything from the food, to the games, and to the merchants, had a Suna flare to them. Just walking through it, Shikamaru felt like he was able to understand this place Temari calls home a little more. Although Temari didn't say it, he could tell how happy she was to be here; she seemed to have an extra sparkle in her eyes, and wider smile, and plenty of unfound energy. In fact, she was so busy walking from stall to stall that Shikamaru had to pull her aside a few times to make sure she sat down and took a break before making their way back.

"What are you smiling about?" Temari noticed Shikamaru had this weird smile plastered on his face for a while now.

"Oh nothing, it's just, it has been awhile since I've seen you this happy and energetic."

Temari blushed; she hadn't realized she was acting differently. "Really? I guess I'm just happy to be home. Thank you for letting me come back."

Shikamaru smiled back, "Oh you don't need to thank me. I'm sure you would've came anyways if I had said no. But I am glad I came along. I feel like I know Suna a bit better now."

"Temari? Is that you?" the couple turned around to find a young man in a Suna Shinobi uniform looking at Temari in amazement

It took Temari a second to realize who it was and when she did, her heart stopped for a second. "K-Kaoru?" the man standing in front of her was someone she hadn't seen in years, he looked older, his sandy brown hair was longer but he had the sparkling blue eyes that were hard to forget.

"Oh my god Temari! It is you!" He ran up to her.

Temari was still in shock that this man was standing in front of him, "Kaoru, you're…here…in Suna. What are you doing here?"

"I got transferred back here a few months ago. I asked about you but heard you were on a mission in Konoha" Kaoru explained, he looked at Temari from head to toe. "Wow, just look are you, you look amazing."

"Umm thank you." Temari smiled politely, she figured he probably couldn't see her baby bump through her outfit and decided to leave it at that. She felt Shikamaru brush her arm slightly, signaling to her that he was still there.

"Oh Shikamaru, this is Kaoru Kobayashi, he's…an old friend of mine. And Kaoru, this is Shikamaru Nara." Temari introduced them

"Nara? As in the Nara clan? The renowned users of the shadow justu technique?" Kaoru asked

"Yeah." Shikamaru replied

"Wow! That's amazing. And you're Shikamaru? Oh I've heard about you too, you were the commander of the 4th division in the war. I heard you did some great things, a true war hero."

Shikamaru was speechless, this guy sure knew how kiss up. "Umm, thanks?"

"Quit trying to fill his head with unnecessary encouragement Kaoru, he doesn't need it." Temari said to Kaoru, he was still the charmer she remembered him to be.

"Hehehe, seems like you haven't changed. Anyways, can I talk to you for a bit in private? We have a lot to catch up on." Kaoru asked her

Temari looked at Shikamaru as if to ask for his permission.

"Go ahead, I'm just gonna stroll around here a bit and maybe do some star-gazing. I'll meet you over by the sand dune just outside here." Shikamaru said as they parted ways.

He watched as Kaoru placed a hand around Temari's shoulder as they walked off. Shikamaru took a step forward ready to rip Kaoru's arm off but quickly stopped himself. He couldn't believe that thought had gotten into his head. Shikamaru turned around and walked away in the opposite direction. He took a couple of deep breaths in an attempt to clear his mind and this uneasy feeling in growing in his heart. Why is he getting this feeling?


Shikamaru walked from stall to stall, played some of the games, tried different foods, and chatted with the some of the locals; anything to keep himself from attempting to follow Temari and Kaoru. He knew in the back of his mind that he shouldn't worry about Kaoru so much, she's carrying his baby for crying out loud! And they've been officially together for months and friends for much longer. Heck, they fought through a war together. There's no way this Kaoru guy has anything compared to that.

But that uneasy feeling didn't go away.

"Shikamaru! Hey!" Shikamaru was pulled out of his trance by the two girls who just ran up to him

"Masturi, Sari."

The girls began to shot-fire questions at him "Hey Shikamaru! Fancy seeing you here, but why are you here alone?" "Yeah, where's Temari? Shouldn't she be showing you around?"

"Umm…she bumped into an old friend so they decided to catch up for a bit. But don't worry, Temari showed me around earlier, so I'm sure I can find my way around." Shikamaru explained

"Old friend? Who? Is it someone we know?" Sari grilled him

"Umm I believe his name was Kaoru?" Shikamaru watched as the girls' eyes grew wide.

"Kaoru? As in Kaoru Kobayashi?" Matsuri asked

"Yeah, that's him."

"Oh my god! How could we have forgotten to tell Temari that he was back? Wait…they met? What was her reaction? Was she happy to see him?"

Shikamaru put his hands up. "Whoa calm down! What's going on?"

"Do you know who Kaoru Kbayashi is?" Matsuri asked in a serious tone

"Um…a Suna ninja? Temari's old friend? What is this about, they just went to have a chat that's all." It was now getting harder and harder to shake that uneasy feeling.

"No you don't understand! Kaoru was Temari's lover!"

"They were totally smitten for each other!"

"But then he was arranged to get married to a princess in another land and Temari was devastated."

"He said it was his duty so he went with it and that's the last we saw of him. Well, until a few weeks ago."

"Yeah, we don't know the details of what happened but it seems like the marriage plan fell through and he just stayed and worked for the royal family.

"But then he came back and from what we've heard, he's been asking for Temari since."

"He's probably trying to get Temari back!"

As the girls rambled on, Shikamaru's head began to spin, this was exactly what he had feared, this was why he kept having that odd feeling. Something really did happen between those two in the past and now he's trying to take her back.

"You have chase after them Shikamaru! Don't let the guy who broke Temari's heart take steal her back!"

Shikamaru stood there frozen in place. This was exactly what he didn't want to hear, this was the uneasiness he was feeling since he left Temari in Kaoru's hands. For all he knows, he could be wooing her and she could be melting back into his arms right now. They could be talking about plans to move in together and raising a family here in Suna. The deeper Shikamaru's thoughts strayed the worse they got. Finally, his heart shank at the thought of Temari leaving him forever…


That's all for now!

Hey readers, it's been awhile. I've been hitting a wall with this story and I'm trying to not make it fall flat. But don't worry, I have absoulutly no plans to abandon it. It may take longer than I have planned to write out, but I do have an ending in mind. So please just bear with me. Hope this chapter doesn't make you guys too angry. I have this headcannon that perhaps the reason why Temari is headstrong and cold towards men is because she had her heart broken in the past? But more about that in the next chapter so I guess I'll see you then! Hopefully it won't be too long…