Sadly, I don't own Naruto. YET. MUAHAHAHAHAHA! Okay, weirdness Overload. Warning: ITS FLUFF TIME!
Chapter 4: Rising Flames
Temari stirred. The last she remembered was being lifted up from the ground by… SHIKAMARU! Her eyes burst open at the thought of the lazy ninja. She scanned her surroundings, she was back at the campsite, in her tent, it was around midninght and the object of her thoughts was seated just a few feet away from her. When he sensed her being awake, he crawled forward and rested the back of his hand on her forehead. "Hey…" he said, smiling slightly, "are you feeling better?" Temari nodded, hoping the pink blush was not obvious in the darkness. As she tried to get up, she gasped, feeling pain shoot up her right arm and her vision darken, when warm arms enveloped her. She tilted her head up and looked Shikamaru in the eye. His eyes held so much concern for her, that her heart ached. She longed for him to hold her closer. "Shikamaru…" she breathed, "I'm cold." Knowing that the genius wouldn't risk building a fire to tick the rogue ninja off of their position, he could only do one thing. And he did not hesitate to do so. He held her close to his body, her back to his chest, his hands wrapped around her torso. She smiled and leaned backward, being lulled by the warmth of his chest… "Ouch!" she squealed and jerked up, her back so painful it felt like it was on fire. He shushed her and gently brought her back into his embrace, being more careful with her back this time. After reclining in the safety of Shikamaru's arms, she had to ask. "Shikamaru, am I badly hurt?"
Shikamaru swallowed, eyeing the arm that was hastily bandaged with a tree branch and his spare jacket, the wound in her shoulder that was ragged at the edges, and worst of all, the three long gashes down her back. His futon was stained red from when he frantically tried to stop the flow of the blood. Even so, he had no medical training, and it was pointless asking Naruto. The result was three ten-inch long gashes with rough edges, oozing out sticky yellow pus. He felt helpless, he didn't know how to help her, but he so badly wanted to. "Shikamaru? You didn't answer me…" she asked, turning to face him, wetting her dry lips. He paused, considering how to answer. "Well… your shoulder's healing up, your right arm needs rest and your back… is… well…" She looked up at him, fear in her eyes. "Is it… Is it that bad?" Shikamaru swallowed, then nodded. She sighed, resigned. Shikamaru looked at her dejected form and asked, "Temari… How did they do this to you?" She looked into his eyes, and chuckled regrettably. "I got too complacent. I only saw three rogue ninja and thought, no problem. No need to call for reinforcements. And after I launched my wind cyclone at them, three popped behind me and slashed down my back. I was distracted just for a second and got a kunai in my shoulder and a broken arm." With every word of the attack, Shikamaru's fist clenched tighter until his knuckles were white. "So now I can't use my right arm? I can't use my fan?" Temari asked, her eyes shining in fear and sadness, she closed them, hopeless. Shikamaru's stomach lurched. He had to reassure her that he'll take care of her, he won't let harm come to her… "I'll protect you, Temari. Don't worry." Her eyes snapped open. "I don't need your protection!" she meant it as an outburst, but she was so weak, it was barely a whisper. Shikamaru chuckled. "Sure you don't." Shikamaru tilted her head up lightly, closed his eyes and leaned downwards…
"HI TEMARI! ARE YOU FEELING BETTER?"
Temari jumped. Why did that idiot have to ruin everything? She was so close to kissing Shikamaru! She could still feel his warm breath on her close lips, they were so close. She spied Shikamaru's languid expression, as if nothing had happened. But underneath it, she could sense frustration through the slightly clenched fists and the slightly furrowed brows. Temari sighed. How could she blame Naruto? He was just being nice. "Thanks Naruto… Slightly…" she said, trying to smile. Naruto positively beamed. "Look what I found! This is the Red Moon Berry, known for healing infection! Sakura showed me once!" He said, and squshed the berries in his palm, then rubbed the juice on her wound. As soon as the juice touched her wound, she knew something was wrong. She felt a horrible, stinging pain that made her vision black out and drew a scream from her mouth. She continued writhing, screaming and crying as the pain only grew more and more unbearable. She was barely aware of Shikamaru shouting at Naruto. "Naruto! What did you do to her?! Let me see those berries! … THOSE ARE FREAKING CHILLIS YOU IDIOT!" "How was I supposed to know? They're so much smaller!" "LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE! THERES SUCH THING AS MINI CHILLIS YOU KNOW! FORGET IT, GET OUT OF MY WAY!" Temari felt herself being picked up and rushed through the forest. She was lowered into a stream, and with each lapping of current, the pain seemed to diminish. She shuddered, still weak and numb from all the pain. Shikamaru tilted her head up. "Better now?" he asked, his eyes soft with traces of anger still lingering. She nodded weakly and tried to smile. "Better now that you're here," she said, cringing at how cliché it sounded, but she really meant it. Temari closed her eyes as Shikamaru bent down, his lips about to brush hers…
"TEMARI! I'M SO, SO SORRY! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Naruto shouted. He saw Shikamaru holding Temari gently in the stream and wondered for a moment if he disrupted something. Then he quickly dismissed the thought. Shikamaru just gets angry when his teammates are in danger and Temari is just kind to people who aren't annoying. He grinned inwardly. Nothing romantic at all, he thought.
Less than a hundred metres away, the rogue ninja were planning their next move. "If we're this injured, we have to resort to kidnap and ransom. However, if we take the Kunoichi, the shadow guy will probably become overbearing with rage. We can't take the shadow guy, who knows what he's capable of." All rogue ninja nodded in agreement as the head ninja said, "there isn't another way. We've got to take the puny kid."
A/N: UH-OH! The rogue ninja are targeting Naruto… :O Haha! Anyway, thank you to all of you who are following/reviewing/favouriting my stories! It really makes me so happy knowing that my work is being appreciated! Shout out to kaloobia: Thank you for following and reviewing my story! I really appreciate your feedback and loyalty! 3 you! :D (PS, advertising for my other story, Life of a girl. One more follower, review or favourite and I'll upload the next chapter!) Again, Thanks to everyone!