Author's note:Oooo, it's the final chapter!!! Who's going to die??? I present to you all (if anyone's actually reading this…) the final chapter of BTCG: titled, well, BTCG
Shikamaru caught sight of a large rocky clearing, devoid of trees. It'll have to do. Pointing it out to Temari, he redirected their course towards the only chance for their survival. With one final leap, the pair landed about thirty feet into the clearing. The dry, sandy ground offered a stark contrast to the lush forest they had just exited. Separating from each other, Shikamaru and Temari turned to see the sound ninja stop at the edge of the tree line, no doubt looking for traps. Examining her surroundings, Temari began to see why Shikamaru had led them here.
Our last battlefield inhibited me, and gave the tree freak a huge advantage. Here it is the other way around. Back in the forest, not only did my opponent have the ability to appear from anywhere around me, but he also had control over all of the roots. Also, the trees acted as windshields, taking some of the force out of my attacks. She glanced over at Shikamaru, impressed at how excellent an analyst he was. He might not be the strongest shinobi, but he just might be the cleverest I have ever met.
Shikamaru continued to examine the hostile jounin, determined to find any weaknesses he could exploit. Oblivious to the admiring look Temari shot him, Shikamaru reflected on what he hoped could help them survive. From what I've seen, the long distance ninja's techniques are extremely deadly and accurate, but he relies on his targets being distracted. As long as we keep focused on him, we should be able to dodge his jutsus. That is where the second jounin becomes a problem. He is fairly slow, but has a knack for keeping people busy dodging him or capturing them with root things. In other words, he's the distraction. With the change of environments, he should be handicapped. Still, there has to be something more. These guys have obviously done their homework on us, so they must have something up their sleeves.
Both sand ninja and leaf ninja broke out of their trances as the smaller of the two jounin began to form seals. Shikamaru gritted his teeth as he realized it was an attack he hadn't seen yet. Face twisting in a grotesque smile, the jounin finished his technique and was propelled backwards slightly as he released a high amount of chakra. Temari and Shikamaru saw the smoke trail coming their way and managed to dive aside as the ground where they had previously been standing was reduced to smoldering ash. Shikamaru held his injured shoulder and cursed under his breath as tiny pebbles cascaded down on his head like a barrage of bizarre rain drops. In a second, Temari was beside him, a worried expression on her face. Taking her outstretched hand, the controller of shadows rose slowly. Surprisingly, the enemy jounin had not made a move and were instead sitting on the ground watching the scene before them, as if they were at some sort of twisted movie theatre.
"That was a new attack. How many more can this guy have?" Temari gritted her teeth and frowned, ignoring Shikamaru's rhetorical question. She felt anger boiling up in her. How can they be so calm?
"Look at them," Temari venomously spit, never taking her eyes off the sound ninja. "It's nothing more than a game to them. They're toying with us." Taken aback at her seething fury, Shikamaru only nodded dumbly in response. Furrowing his eyebrows in deep thought, he knew there was something wrong with the position of the enemy jounin. His eyes widened. The wood guy was on the right before the explosion. Now he's on the left. Why would they switch places? Taking an involuntary step backwards, Shikamaru felt the tiny sharp jabs of branches. A small, insignificant desert shrub was growing in the parched soil. Brilliant. was all Shikamaru thought before shoving Temari hard. She landed several feet away and gave him an aggravated look. Why the hell did he do that?
Her question was answered as the wood ninja sprung into existence from the shrub, punching Shikamaru in the back of the head. Shikamaru recovered in midair and did a graceful somersault, landing with his body facing his assailant. As Temari staggered to her feet, the two men in front of her locked eyes for a brief moment. She didn't notice the second sound ninja's attack until a flash grenade sailed through the air before exploding at her feet and emitting blinding light and a high pitched whining. Senses crippled, head pounding, Temari sunk to her knees, trying in vain to return her vision to normality by vigorously rubbing her eyes. No, pleeeaaase not now. He needs me. Kami, don't do this to me. NO!
Shikamaru would have rushed to her side if he could have, but was a bit busy at the moment. Determined to keep his opponents distracted until Temari recovered, he began forming the seals for his Kage Mane no Jutsu. Before he could finish, the nature jounin grabbed his hands, pinning them together in a vice like grip. The normally impassive Shikamaru became enraged as the bony man holding him smiled smugly. Son of a bitch. I'll give you something to smile about.
Giving out an uncharacteristic snarl, Shikamaru aimed a forceful kick at the man's balls. And found himself unable to do so. Barely able to crane his neck, Shikamaru looked at his skin, which wasslowly changing. At first, there were only specks of brown, but soon these specks grew wider and taller. Shikamaru was only able to watch in helpless horror as his skin and clothing became overgrown with thick, rough bark. The wood jounin did not let go of his hands until the bark covered everything but Shikamaru's head. Admiring his handiwork, the jounin picked Shikamaru up and turned him around, so that he was facing the long range ninja. The lazy chuunin felt dead weight fear in the pit of his stomach as his foe spoke for the first time, in a tone that resembled dead branches scratching against a window pane.
"Konoha pig, I want you to see death coming." The man glanced over his shoulder and gave a ghastly, brittle laugh. "Apparently your little sand whore is coming to her senses. All the better, she'll get to watch you die too. Also, before you go to hell, know this," the man paused to give a look of mock pity. "None of this is personal."
Shikamaru, resisting to the end, growled and spit in his tormentor's face. The wood ninja only shrugged his shoulders and wiped the loogie from his face, before stepping back and giving a thumbs up sign to his teammate. Shikamaru tried to swivel his neck to look at Temari, but found himself unable to do so. He couldn't even have one last longing glimpse of the clouds that floated above him, unaware to the suffering of the cold world beneath them.
Shikamaru looked on from his forced vantage point, feeling a metallic emptiness gnawing away at his core. The sound ninja completed his jutsu, and an invisible bullet flew at Shikamaru's paralyzed body. Despite the fact that the projectile was traveling at the speed of sound, time slowed to a crawl for the trapped Chuunin. Watching the blurry trail that spelled out his demise, Shikamaru felt a single tear run down his cheek.
I don't even get to see Temari one more time. I can't say goodbye to Chouji and Ino. I won't hear my mom's loud voice again. I'll never get to spend time drinking with Dad and Asuma-sensei. A hard, bitter taste filled the leaf ninja's mouth as he realized that he wasn't going to get out of this one. The impact of the bullet shattered his brief, miserable moment. First, he felt as if he had been hit in the chest with a sledgehammer, then darkness swallowed him.
Bright white began to fade, and colors swam back into focus. The incessant buzzing in her ears ceased, and Temari found herself able to see and hear again. She caught sight of Shikamaru encased in wood, and felt as if she were moving in slow-motion. Knees weak, body heaving in exhaustion and apprehension, she dove towards her guide, willing her body to move faster than the speeding bullet. She knew that no matter what happened, one of them would die, whether she failed to get there in time or if she managed to replace his idle form with her own. Am I really willing to die for him?
As fate would have it, she didn't find out the answer to that question. The bullet reached it's target when she was about a foot away from him, shattering the wood that imprisoned him into millions of particles of saw dust. Blood spattered Temari's face and arms as she caught Shikamaru in mid air. Crimson leaked from an unseen wound beneath his ripped chuunin vest, and his body twitched slightly in her arms. His now sightless eyes gazed up at the clouds, as they had done so many times when he was alive. Temari sank to her knees, still cradling him in her arms. A hundred happy memories flashed through her mind: their fight during the Chuunin Exams, rescuing him from the odd girl with the flute, his expression when he had been given the task of being her guide, the hugshe'd given him on the hotel doorstep. A thousand more ideas popped into her mind, this time of things that could have happened.
Vision blurring, Temari continued to look down at him, still unwilling to believe he wouldn't get up and mutter how troublesome the situation was. He c-can't be... Reality finally sinking in, Temari burst into tears for the first time in a long while. The wood ninja smirked behind her, obviously thinking the emotional damage she had suffered had weakened her beyond recovery. Temari however, paid neither of her enemies any attention, instead running a hand through Shikamaru's coarse hair, which had come free of its pony tail during the last attack. Temari angrily rubbed her eyes, determined to stay strong.
You stupid moron. How could you go and get yourself killed like that? ...I never got to tell you how you made me feel. Still sobbing slightly, Temari wiped the blood from her face before leaning down to Shikamaru's face. Closing her eyes, she pressed her soft lips against his in a gentle kiss. Why didn't I do this earlier? Instead of making her feel better, the sensation of his skin on hers only made her want to start crying again. Opening her eyes, she stared at his face. She realized that if she had the choice, she would do anything to switch positions with him.
Her train of dismal thought was interrupted as she heard hysterical laughter coming from across the clearing. The sniper ninja was rolling on the ground, apparently quite amused with the soap-opera-esque scene in front of him. Temari's fists clenched and she slowly rose, her sadness replaced by deep hatred. An expression of twisted rage warped her face, as she picked up her fan and turned to face Shikamaru's murderer. She let out a roar of fury that would have scared the pants off of even Gaara and unleashed her anger with one savage swing of her fan. Her technique, somehow modified by her out of control emotions, formed into a herd of see-through deer, stampeding through the air towards the sound ninja. How did I do that?
Gaping at the powerful jutsu headed his way, the disfigured man tried to dive out of the way and into the safety of some bushes. Too late. A hart at the front of the pack lowered its head and slammed into him, horns sending him flying head first into a tall oak tree. As the jounin's head made contact with the hard wood, his neck gave a sickening crunch and he fell to the ground like a rag-doll. Unable to contain the ire that she felt towards the man who had robbed Shikamaru of his life, she couldn't help but think: "Let's see you laugh now."
Distracted by her chakra-consuming one hit kill, Temari had completely forgotten about the second sound ninja behind her. Returning to Shikamaru's body, she noticed the wood jounin watching her intently, apparently expecting to have to deal with an attack like the one that had killed his teammate. A glint of what might have been fear, shone in his eyes. Exhausted, Temari tried to lift her fan and deliver a second attack, but it slipped from her shaking hands and she felt dizziness overpower her. Shit! I used too much energy with that attack. Ugh, I can barely stand. ...I can't stop now. Not when I'm so close.
If the wood jounin had been in the least bit scared, he had definitely gotten over it. Confidence returned to the man and he began swaggering towards Temari, who was on her knees retching, overcome with nausea. Temari's eyes could barely focus on the man, and the tall blur combined with the crunch of his feet on the loose gravel provided a sense of impending doom. She tried to grab a shuriken from her pocket, but the man caught her wrist and cackled at her pitiful attempt. Grabbing her chin with his long, bony fingers, he lifted her face until she was forced to look into his cold eyes.
"Well, little sand bitch. You gave us quite a run for our money, didn't you? I doubt that Daraboushi will be using his gift anymore, if he is still alive, that is. Oh and you were so close. Dissappointing, isn't it? You may not be as weak as your body suggests, but you are not a match for someone like me." Releasing her chin, he stroked the side of her face, making her shudder in revulsion. "Now, shall I kill you straight off? Or have a little fun first?" Temari shut her eyes, trying to block out the horrors that were sure to follow. Shikamaru...
Shikamaru thought he heard words being spoken. Impossible. Remember? I died. The sound continued. Shut up, I'm trying to be dead in peace. Still, the voices refused to let him be, and even started to become clearer. Both voices were distinctive. Memories started to flood back to him. One is definitely Temari's. The other... is the creepy wood ninja guy. He helped kill me.
Soon, his other senses began to return to him. He tasted and smelled the tangy flavor of blood in his mouth, felt the rough stones beneath his back, and last of all, caught sight of the wood Jounin leaning down to kiss Temari, while she weakly tried to push him away. Ignoring the throbbing pain in his chest, Shikamaru stumbled to his feet, hands shaking with a mixture of exertion and rage. The sound ninja's back was to him, and was too caught up in Temari to notice that the leaf ninja was quietly forming seals behind him. As he finished the last hand gesture, Shikamaru decided to make his presence known.
"Kage-mane no Jutsu!" He watched in satisfaction as the jounin's eyes bugged out and he found himself unable to move. Temari was watching him incredulously, fearing that she had died and this was all a dream. Moving his arms as if he were the one holding Temari, Shikamaru made the man release her gently. Hn. I feel like Naruto, making a flashy entrance and whatnot. Shikamaru's voice was slurred with pain, but its message was clear enough.
"It's not right for a man to do such things to a woman without her consent. Go to hell, scum bag." With that he nodded to Temari, who was gripping a kunai and had shaken off her disbelief. The wood ninja could only watch with wide eyes as the woman he'd been harassing plunged the knife into the middle of his bony chest. He let out out a piercing shriek and crumpled to the ground.
Releasing the sound spy from his technique, Shikamaru found a new hair tie and put his hair up before walking to Temari, trying to keep his eyes off of the murky white blood that spewed from the dying man. At last, he gave one last spasm and was still. Shikamaru cupped Temari's cheek and asked if she was all right.
"I'm perfectly fine. But, how...?" Temari pointed to the wound on his chest, which Shikamaru had barely noticed since he'd woken up. The leaf chuunin rubbed his chin in thought, obviously as puzzled as she was.
" Hmm, good question. I thought I was worm food." Shikamaru gingerly felt around the hole, wincing at the pain it brought him. His hands found the answer. In the pouch that the bullet had pierced, a shuriken had a large dent in it. Grinning sheepishly at Temari, he realized that the sound ninja's attack had hit the pocket which he kept weapons in, and had ricocheted off the shuriken before lodging in one of his ribs. What would have been a fatal blow was instead a mere flesh wound.
Shikamaru held up the lucky shuriken for Temari to see before kissing it and putting it in back in his pocket. Ironic for a weapon to save lives instead of taking them away. Temari began to comprehend what had gone on, and suddenly started yelling at him.
"You mean you were just unconscious that whole time? You left me to deal with two jounin on my own? YOU MORON-CRYBABY!!!" She punctuated her remark by slapping him upside the head. Shikamaru rubbed his the back of his neck and glared in annoyance. Temari could not help but giggle slightly. He's so cute when he's like that.
"Ne, troublesome woman. Did I not just save your ass? Who knows what that weird guy would have done to you if I hadn't been there..." Shikamaru paused as his chest and shoulder continued to throb. Temari caught his look of pain and gently touched his arm. He's lost a lot of blood, how is he even still standing.
"Hey Pineapple head, I think I should dress your wounds. You look even paler than normal." With that, she unzipped his ruined chuunin vest and started to cut his shirt away with a kunai, careful not to cut him. Shikamaru gave her a small, coy smile as he caught her ogling his pecs.
"Ha, you just want an excuse to get my shirt off, don't you?" Grunting in annoyance she shoved him to the ground and bound his two injuries, poking his wounds lightly every time he tried get her to stop. Searching for a distraction from the embarrassing situation they were in, Shikamaru gave her a puzzled look. "Hey what happened after I got knocked out? Where did that other creepy guy go?"
The woman beside him blushed as she remembered all the events that had transpired while he was out cold. Looking away, she muttered a simple response.
"I took care of him. I told you; I can handle myself." Sneaking a furtive glance at his face, she posed a question of her own as her hands finished tying the last bandage. "Sooooo... You really don't remember anything that happened while you were in zonked out?" He shook his head and cocked it to the side examining her closely. What else happened? He continued to stare up at her in quizzical silence at Temari who seemed to be having a heated inner battle with herself. Finally she looked up at him, and for a moment he thought he saw a hint of shyness in her pretty eyes. Then she was grinning suggestively at him, a hand on his uninjured shoulder.
"Well, then I guess I owe you another one of these..." Slowly, Temari bent down and brushed her lips against his, sending shivers down his spine. Shikamaru felt the pains in his chest and shoulder melt away for the time being. Determined not to just stand there like an idiot as he'd done the previous night, Shikamaru sat up, snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her into another kiss. To his satisfaction, she did not pull away, or call him a pervert and smack him. Maybe troublesome women are worth it. Lips leaving his for a brief moment, Temari savagely pushed him back to the ground before climbing atop him, a leg on either side of his waist. She grinned down at him and tugged his hair tie off before swooping back into the fray. Just like beneath that tree. ...I wonder if Kankurou's having as good a time as I am...
She absentmindedly traced her name on his chest gently with two fingers, enjoying her dominance. Shikamaru was not about to succumb, however.I won't lose that easily. His tongue forced its way into Temari's mouth, eliciting a groan of pleasure from her. Taking this opportunity, Shikamaru grabbed her hips and rolled over so that he was on top, grinning down at her in turn. "Having fun?" She breathlessly moaned before punching him in the stomach and rolling over again.
They continued making out until, finally, as the sun went down, they lay side by side. Head resting on Shikamaru's chest, Temari gazed in wonder at the beautiful pink, red and orange clouds that formed the magnificent sunset. "I'm beginning to see why you like watching the clouds so much..." she murmured, still hypnotized by all the colors. Shikamaru, however, was not watching the sunset. Eyes focused on the turquoise orbs that belonged to Temari, he gave her a soft squeeze and nuzzled the top of her head.
"I like it, but there are some things that are better than cloud gazing." Temari looked up at him and smiled softly, before closing her eyes. Some things are much better. Shikamaru gave one last smile and dozed off.
Author's note: Well, this story was really fun to write. It took me only nine days, but I worked about four hours a day (I have no life!!!). The music I listened to gave me a lot of inspiration, so if you're curious I uploaded a soundtrack to this story on my profile. Thank you for reading, and if you liked it, I'll be starting on another story soon (although I have no idea what it will be about…)