Warning: Minor mention about abuse
His hand grazed her back, or it would have if he hadn't kept it there.
Regardless, Kankuro would have slapped his hand away if not for his sister's unfazed reaction.
"You know for a ninja," the Shadow wielder began, pointing at the large ditch that she would have otherwise fallen into, "you're not very observant." And with his hand still at the small of Temari's back, Shikamaru gently redirected her towards himself.
It was such a meaningless touch.
Really, it should have been meaningless.
But it wasn't. Not with Temari.
Because despite not being close with his sister growing up, Kankuro knew her well enough to know that Temari feared intimacy. Their ruthless upbringing along with childhood trauma was the result of that.
Temari has never initiated physical contact, much less accept them because the closest thing to affection she received growing up was from their father's abuse. And being the only female in a household of men meant that she was most prone to them. That's why she chose to fight with a fan- a long range weapon- that allowed her to attack from afar and minimize close range contact.
It took a long time for even himself or Gaara to be able to touch her and that was usually only when they trained together.
When she was injured, she'd opt to dress her own wounds rather than go to the hospital. When it came to overly crowded rooms, she'd always silently excuse herself before anyone noticed.
Politics complicated things though. Because as the Kazekage's sister, Temari was viewed as a public figure.
So, when other village authorities extend a greeting hand to Temari, it was usually Gaara who takes it instead and redirects their attention on the matter needed to be discussed.
Yes, out of courtesy she should shake their hand. But she doesn't.
And Gaara knows better than to push her.
As does Kankuro.
Physicality wasn't the only thing Temari was incapable of reciprocating. Emotionally, she was distant and skeptical. She was biased against anyone that weren't her siblings. Kankuro never bothered correcting this because he was no different than she was. Almost no different.
He'd be lying if he didn't deny that Temari had it much worse than he did growing up. Because while he and Gaara learned to mask their emotions, Temari was taught not to have them at all.
"Emotions make you weak," is what their father instilled in her. And to be frank, that mindset made her a better shinobi.
She was confident and resilient. She was one of the Sand's greatest asset.
But it had also ruined all possibilities for her to have any normal relationship. Every bachelor was shot down and any 'friend' she ever tried to make was eventually left behind.
That's why it caught Kankuro off guard when the words "I'm not blind Shikamaru," escaped her lips instead of the usual "Don't ever touch me."
No, Temari was never good at maintaining relationships. But it was only then, as Temari lightly hits Shikamaru's arm with the back of her hand- instead of her fan- does Kankuro begin to realize that, undoubtedly, she was starting to.
Hope my main point came across while you guys were reading it. I really wanted to emphasize (but also be slightly subtle at the same time) that Temari was never good at getting close with people (hence why she was never good at maintaining any type of relationship). That's why it was such a big deal for her when she willingly touched Shikamaru.
Anyway, let me know what you guys think. Read, review and thank you!
Side note: I'm Canadian, so there might be some words that I spell differently compared to how you would spell it in your country.
J.R