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Privacy

Temari shifted her weight around as she tried her best to get comfortable in the attire Ino had provided for her. The yukata was just a few shades darker than crimson. It had very subtle gold embroidery keeping the robe from looking too excessive, something Temari was thankful for. The obi around her waist was a purple so deep that it was almost black. She was always fond of the various shades of reds, but often avoided them as they were always muted by all the sand in her village. Her hair was pulled into a loose bun that sat to bottom right of her head and she had pulled a few stands of her bangs to let them fall around her face. While her pigtails were more efficient for battle, she found them a little too juvenile for formal wear.

Her toned legs curled underneath her as she waited for Ino to finish changing. She wasn't sure what it was, but the weight of the garment caused her lungs feel constricted and made hard for her to breathe. The unsettling feeling in her stomach was constrained by her elaborate outfit despite the fact that she was no stranger to wearing a yukata. The black robe she opted for was based off them, with the only difference being the tailored sleeves that allowed her to easily move in combat. She was even used to the large obi as she personally chose to tie hers into a large ribbon. The yukata hugging her body really was not that much heavier than her usual attire.

Frustrated, she felt her brows coming together when she finally allowed herself to accept the truth: she was nervous. Temari rolled her eyes are angrily stared into space, cursing herself for not being able to feel indifferent about seeing him. She longed for the days when her presence intimidated him, not the other way around.

"I'm ready!" Ino announced as she emerged from the other room. She twirled around to show Temari her kimono. It was a shade of yellow that resembled the sunrise. Like Temari's kimono, it was accented by metallic gold embroidery. It wasn't dark enough to cause the bright color to look dull, but also not light enough to wash out the platinum of her hair. The obi that tied it together was a dark orange with a pattern of white leaves on it.

"Well… What do you think?" Ino asked when Temari didn't say anything.

In truth, Temari was actually quite surprised. She thought Ino would have been predictable by choosing a pink or purple kimono. Perhaps even blue, which she would have assumed the reason being that it would have brought out her eyes. "How unconventional of you," she replied.

"What does that mean?"

"I thought you would have picked something really… girly. The yellow is very eccentric. I like it."

Ino seemed to be very pleased with her answer as a big smile appeared on her face. "C'mon, lets go!"

Shikamaru glared at the road in front of them as they made their way through the crowds. He couldn't believe that after everything he's been through, the hardest war he's ever had to fight was the one going on currently raging on inside him. The urge to stare at Temari since they met up was proving to be nothing short of a challenge. He knew that was going to be an issue before he ever saw her. He wanted to look for anything that might have changed since he last examined her body between his sheets, and was hoping to be able to figure out her thoughts from the expressions that always found their way to her face. She was always easy to read, at least to him. It didn't help at all that she currently looked stunning. Now he's terrified to even glance at her, knowing fully well that he'll probably end up staring at her like an idiot. Once again, Ino had unintentionally made his life much more troublesome than it should have been.

When they finally found everyone else, Shikamaru lazily walked to a wall nearby to lean against it. He took a deep breath and crossed his arms, feeling the friction of his navy yukata. He looked down and pretended to adjust the brown obi as he went over his strategy to observe her while going unnoticed.

'Don't look in her direction, but the ground a few paces below her so you don't get mistaken to staring at someone else either.' He thought as he mentally prepared himself.

His eyes slowly roamed the floor until she came into his field of vision. Carefully, he stare at the space south west of her feet, occasionally glancing up to focus on her face. She was talking to Naruto who was probably looking for Gaara, as per usual. A few of his other friends also found their way to her to ask the other usual questions s like why she's in town and for how long. He secretly smiled to himself. Temari wasn't an introvert, but she hated repeating herself again and again. Still, she appeared to answered them without any grimace. She once told him that like her brother, she was still learning to appreciate the sudden interest in her life that came from having friendly relations.

Once all of their friends finally arrived, the group moved on to grab some snacks and drinks. Shikamaru watched as they ate and chatted happily while trying to listen to Kiba talk about some crazy stunt he did with Akamaru. When everyone felt content, they proceeded to get up to make their way towards the difference games. Shikamaru took out a cigarette and waved it to Ino and Choji, letting them know he'd catch up with them after he take a smoke break.

Kiba caught a whiff of the tobacco and began to make his way to his friend when Temari caught his eye, causing him to halt mid-step. He watched as she followed him and smirked. 'Of course,' he thought to himself.

Shikamaru lit his cigarette once he was far away enough from the crowd. He exhaled the smoke as he rested he back on the wall that encased the festival. He thought about how Temari used to be around him before anything happened between them. They would always talk to each other about something interesting while everyone else mindlessly babble about some nonsense drama. Now they just politely avoid each other.

"Still smoking those?"

Shikamaru felt his body stiffened when he recognized her voice. He turned to look at her. "What?" He managed to mutter quietly. He heard what she said. He just didn't know how to response.

"You heard me." She sneered at him as if she had read his mind.

Shikamaru leered at her as she cockily smiled at him. He then close his eyes and chuckle to himself. She always was a fire cracker. "You mean you don't anymore?" He asked.

"I try not to."

"Are you successful?"

"I have been since the last time I saw you, so… Yes." She said as she took the place next to him against the wall.

"Tch. Are you saying it's my fault?" It was his turn to smirk at her now.

"Not all the time." She playfully answered and smiled when he shot her another look.

Shikamaru continued to stare at her for a few seconds before he slowly closed his eyes again and sigh. "How troublesome," he groaned. Still, small smile found its way on his lips again. Their witty banter was very much missed by him.

"You're trouble." She jabbed back at him. 'Fuck,' she cursed at herself. Her intention was to recreate their dynamic from before anything every happened, not flirt with him. Although, to her credit, that fine line was muddled long ago when they were still adolescences.

His eyes found themselves on her again at that remark.

"Fine," he declared and took another drag. As he exhaled, he handed her the cigarette.

"What?" She asked, looking between him and the cigarette.

"Might as well be 'trouble' if you're going to accuse me of such," he smirked at her again. He watched for her reaction, appreciating the fact that he could finally look directly at her for the first time that night. When Temari continued to stare at him quietly, he started to grow nervous.

'Was that too aggressive?' He thought as he frantically tried to analyze the situation. It was her who initiated this entire ordeal, wasn't it? Trying to justify his behavior, he tried to pin the blame on her but realized how immature that made him feel. Silence is the ultimate weapon in psychological warfare, and she was utilizing it well. He felt his heart jump when she leaned in enough so that he could smell the sake on her lips.

Temari had felt an odd presence around since she was on Ino's property. It followed her to the gazebo and through the festival. Now that she was away from all the commotion, she was sure she was being followed. She wondered if they've been following her the entire time she's been here. Wanting to create a diversion, she pretended to flirt with Shikamaru. At least, that's what she tried convinced herself of anyway.

She stepped into him until she could smell the tobacco on his clothes. She whispered to him, "We're… Well, I'm being watched…" They were so close that her body brushed against his with every word she spoke.

That snapped his attention out of his racing thoughts. Despite the serious tone in her voice, he couldn't help but feel a little intrigued about her approach. Deciding to play along with her game, he brought his lips to her ear and whispered, "By who?"

Temari flinch and tried to suppress the shiver that shot down her spine from the sensation of his breath on her ear and hated herself for it. She hated him even more. He knew what he was doing. How dare he try to mess with her when she was trying to tell him something? Flustered, she wanted to get mad at him, but she couldn't deny the fact that she made the first move. She wouldn't have whispered to anyone else the way she did with him.

His breath grazed over her ear again when a quiet laugh came from his lips, causing her to stiffen up. She initially wanted to lure him away from whoever was stalking her, but she now wasn't sure if being isolated with him was such a good idea. However, she also didn't want to deal with whoever's spying on her by herself. She had a feeling that it had something to do with the new guests in her village and wanted to tell him what was going on.

Temari leaned closer until her cheek brushed against his, "Is there somewhere can we talk privately?"

Shikamaru stared at her when she stepped back to wait for his answer. There was no doubt in his mind that she did have something important to tell him. However, there was also no denying the sexual tension from their exchange just now. He wasn't sure of what to expect. As impulsive and she was, Temari had the ability to compose herself when serious matters were at hand. This could go any direction as far as he was concerned.

"Yeah," he answered as he began to lead her towards the Nara Forest.

Hello! I am not dead! I've gotten your reviews and messages and am so, so, sorry. I understand the frustrations that comes with unfinished fanfics.

In the time that I was inactive, I've moved and went back to school in another city! Lots of changes. I found myself a boy who was taking up whatever remains of my free time. Ironically, we resemble ShikaTema. We're not as cool as my favorite couple, obviously. He's just brilliant, yet aloof and sarcastic. I'm kind of combative and hot tempered. That's... really the extent. I never meant to say that I AM Temari. I'm nowhere as interesting or important... . . It just the dynamic of our relationship. He's cool as a cucumber and I... am not. I actually have ideas for a new fanfic based on our own experience. I might start working on those.

I have some ideas for the next few chapters so hopefully I can find some time to get the out to you!

So... I leave you with a cliff hanger. Kind of.