#( gaara would never have been allowed out of suna but hey )

[shukakuism-blog]

@tinykunoichi liked for a starter

          it was incredibly rare that Gaara would be permitted outside the walls of sunagakure, but certain duties called for the entire kazekage family to travel to the leaf. in theory, Gaara was to be under the strict watch of guards at all times --- however, it was not easy to control the demon child.

          the young jinchūriki had only just found a quiet place to himself when he heard the shuffle of footsteps behind him. he turned, sand at the ready to defend.  “ who’s there? ”

[fanfic-of-fables-of-kitkat]

Naruto OC ship week

Prompt: Hair

@narutoocshipweek

Synopsis: Temari, Kankuro and Gaara were adopted by the well reknowned couple Hatsue (OC) & Sasori, a few decades when the siblings had long been adults, they reunite and reminisce their childhood

[This prompt will become a future chapter to my existing fanfic at FF.net ]

"You know what, our parents are jerks." Kankuro grimaced and then downed his cup. With a tap, he set it down and his younger brother moved to pour more for him.

Temari, the eldest of the Sand Siblings, giggled in her drunkenness, letting out hiccups afterwards, her eyes half-lidded as the alcohol kicks in. "No kidding."

Gaara couldn't help but snort at that, an action he wouldn't be caught doing in a sober state.

"I mean first, there's our birth mother who couldn't keep herself alive." Kankuro complained. "Don't worry, Gaara, I'll say this again and again: you didn't have to anything to do with her death. Mother protested against Father from making you a jinchuriki and strained herself, risking you to be prematurely born."

The red head sipped generously from his cup. "Then there's our birth Father, who tried to have me killed multiple times for the sake of testing my control over Shukaku."

"Which was real shitty of him." Temari concluded. "He was a stellar father... in another life, probably. Kami, he was terrible."

"He was indifferent to me." Kankuro huffed, downing his shot in one go.

"I could never get a single praise out of him, no matter how well i perform my jutsu." The eldest of the three complained, wiping her face with her hand.

"He tried to have me killed. Multiple times."

The three looked at each other and barked a laugh.

"Oh gosh, are we competing on who among us siblings he treated the worst? Gaara wins that contest hands down." Temari grabs the bottle of sake to herself and orders a new one for her brothers.

"Hey, you should slow down, if you drink too much, we'll get your husband and we'll be cutting our reunion short." Kankuro nagged, squinting his eyes at her.

"I can hold my liquor, Kankuro, besides I know my limits, after this one I'll try to sober up before Shikamaru arrives." Temari assures her brothers, and then takes a swig out of the bottle. She looked... solemn now. "Sorry, I couldn't be here for their burial."

Kankuro gave her a sad smile and Gaara nods at her. Burials here at Suna, when a person dies, the body is buried at the same day because of the heat. The hot weather makes a dead body permeate a strong foul odor so funerals are held almost immediately.

"Hatsue-kaa-san was a damn jerk too." Temari says this without bite, her eyes dulled as she remembers memories of their adoptive mother.

"Yep, mom was a jerk." The middle child agrees, snorting in his drink.

"Agreed." The red head nods, not only to affirm his elder siblings' statements but because the room starts to sway.

"She was so disgustingly kind."

"She was. She had no business on what happens to us and yet she goes ahead and adopts us. Strangers. We would have been orphans if it weren't for her."

"In a way, we already were. Mother died early. Father was negligent."

"She let me use her paints, her paint brushes and... she would paint on my face too.", Kankuro reminisced, a nostalgic smile graced his lips. "She used to tell me I was handsome-

"it's either I'm biased to say you're handsome because you're my son or you're really handsome", the three simultaneously quoted.

"Such a jerk, blowing up my confidence like that."

"Yeah, I remember her combing my hair, hated my hair because-" She looks at her brothers alternately then her eyes went back to her bottle. "Kankuro looked like he got his genes from Hatsue-kaa-san, Gaara looked like he got his from Sasori while I look like neither of them. I look like Uncle Yashamaru. that bastard."

"Everyone here in Suna, knows what's the deal with us. It doesn't matter."

Temari shrugged nonchantly "When we would all travel for Sasori's spy network... It was nice to pretend that we were their real children."

"Yeah."

"... The people would give us scandalous looks, doing the math, it would seem they conceived Temari at 16, Kankuro at 17 and I at 18."

The blonde and the raven head guffawed hysterically, remembering the instances conservative people coming up to their mom and passing down unwanted advices. Sasori would hide a smile and Hatsue-kaa-san would turn as red as her husband's hair.

"Hatsue-kaa-san would tell me she loved my hair. She said every time she brushes my hair it's like she's spinning threads of gold."

Kankuro made a vomiting sound. "She was such a... sap."

"... i miss- ... She would hug me the longest."

"She taught me how to care for myself... and I loved it every time she would do her skincare with me." The memories brought the distinct smell of rose scented lotions and citrus moisturizers.

"She would hover around whenever I would get ready to paint my face." Kankuro chuckled fondly.

"You were their favorite." Temari says, a hint of envy was there and there was also acceptance with the way she shrugged her shoulders.

"Me? No way-" The puppeteer tried to deny it; he didn't believe it anyway since there was this saying about middle children often are ignored.

"You are. Hatsue-kaa-san loved that you were interested in painting and Sasori .. bonded with you through puppet making." The red head gave Kankuro a slow nod.

"You don't need to feel bad, our birth mother, Karura's favorite would be Gaara and Rasa's favorite was me, being the first born and all... before he got into the council."

"You were Uncle Komushi's favorite too, Temari, not just father's."

She laughed at that. "Oh, I miss that old man. I think I only became his favorite because of the fact that I was the eldest. He used to say I was what Sasori owed him."

"And Chiyo-baa-san favored Gaara the most."

They had grins on their faces and it slipped quietly to sad smiles. Memories flooded them, brought them happiness and warmth more than they could ever hold, thus it was no wonder if their eyes were a little misty. They blame it on the alcohol.

"I should've spend more time with them." Kankuro opens up, sake really did have a way in making an honest man out of him.

"I should've brough Shikadai more for a visit." Temari regrets

"I should've called him otou-san, at least once."

The three shared a look and couldn't help but be immersed in their shared regrets.

"We should've."

"But Sasori was an asshole."

"Agreed. He made it hard to call him so."

"His guard was up."

"He was stern."

"He threatened to kill me." Gaara paused, and then added. "Understandable since at that time, I recently attempted to kill his wife."

The older siblings froze and stared at the youngest.

"That happened?"

"You never told us."

The red head shrugged.

"But... he was a father to us. In his way. He would find wind technique scrolls for me to learn. When we were younger, I remember him tying my hair up, although Hatsue-kaa-san made him do it but still..." Sasori had a stoic expression the whole time but the slow, barely there tugs as he gently brushes her hair, belies that he cared despite his seeming indifference. Temari remembers catching an almost imperceptible smile he gives her when he was done, and patted her head.

"He told me, after developing my Red Secret Technique... that it was impressive. It was stupid, I admired him and respected him, idolized him even. He was an example to follow as a Puppet shinobi. It was stupid that I-.. I wanted to hear him say he was proud of me." The middle child confessed, whispered his words, one of his vulnerabilities. "But he was such an asshole, he made us look up to him as father figure but we always felt like we weren't allowed to call him that."

"Shukaku was always loud in my head but Sasori- After defeating me, Shukaku was... cautious of him. He'd grumble alot in my head. But he quiets down when I'm near... Sasori made me feel like... everyone was safe because he was there to stop me. That's why I always asked you to go with me and sleep in their room."

"I think we interrupted them a whole lot." Temari snorted.

The three siblings burst a laugh. They remember Sasori opening the door, breathless and Hatsue-kaa-san disheveled, her pajamas looking suspiciously crumpled. Their laughter faded after a few minutes and they sat there for awhile, wondering about their parents. They didn't doubt that their parents loved them but... they wondered if their parents knew they reciprocated.

"I used to think Sasori tolerated us, you know?" Temari waved the bottle, her head was resting on the table. "That us being his kids was only an extension of his love to Hatsue-kaa-san."

"Not gonna lie but I think that's how it was for him in the beginning. Just a bunch of brats he tolerated for mom." Kankuro says, shaking his head a little. "He was a damn good father, though."

"Except... he just didn't make it known that we were allowed to call him that." Gaara stares blankly into his cup.

"Everyone said we could, if we wanted. But I wanted him to say it."

"We were stubborn. And so was he."

"Yet we follow after them. Apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

"Because we love them more."

"More than our birthparents."

"That's why..."

"Our parents.." Temari hiccuped, cheeks red.

"They're..." Kankuro was swaying his head, as if he was hearing a lullaby.

" All..." Gaara rubbed his eyes, trying to keep the drowsiness at bay.

"..jerks!" The siblings all said simultaneously, clinking bottles and glasses.

[misssunflowersandsangria]

Where the Wind can Reach

Hello my lovely dearies!  I've had this in my drafts folder for a while.  I hope that you enjoy some cute Suna family fluff!

Summary:  Leaving Suna to be with Shikamaru wasn't an easy decision.  A quiet moment with her brother reminds Temari about what matters most.

*

** Where the Wind can Reach 

“Hey Tem, you ready?”

Temari turned to look at her brother who smiled brightly at her. Kankurou wasn’t often stunned speechless but this was one of those rare occasions. 

“Well ...who knew that you could clean up so nicely.”  He teased her not used to seeing her in fancy clothes and without a weapon.   She probably had one somewhere.  Seeing her in a sparkling white, elaborate kimono hit home that his big sister was getting married.  She was a vision of excitement and joy. 

“I hate you.”  The smile on her face took the bite away from the statement.  

“I know.”

“You look nice.”  Temari complimented him smoothing down his hair.  It reminded him of their younger days when she’d make sure that he was presentable before any meetings.   

“I don’t know why you insisted that I couldn’t wear my face paint.  I look like dad without it.”  He was genuinely surprised by the request and initially called her a bridezilla.  That earned him a few well deserved slaps to the face. Ultimately, he was smart enough to comply with her wishes. He was there bare-faced and it felt unsettling but there were very few things that she’d asked him to do for the wedding.

Her eyes were soft and contemplative.  “I know you do.  I think that for today, for this occasion.  It’s okay.”  He waited, staring at her confused. 

“I know it’s silly but it's kind of like both you and dad are giving me away.”

Kankuro had to bite back a sob.  He pulled her into a tight hug.  “Damn it Tem, making me cry is really going to mess up my reputation.”

She chuckled returning the hug, hiding her own tears. 

Temari knew that it was strange but there was a part of her that wished that her father was there.  Unlike her brothers, she had a few hazy memories of life before the jinchuriki. When her mother was alive and her father wasn’t a monster.  

Kankuro hated that he looked so much like the previous Kazekage. Seeing himself in the mirror oftentimes felt like a cruel reminder of his father and what he’d done. They’d all tried to work through the issues of their past but the scars remained. Regardless, if Temari wanted to feel like their father was there for her wedding, he’d happily do this for her. 

“To be clear.  I’m not giving you to Nara.  If anything you’re just on loan.  You sure you wanna go through with this?  I could make a big scene, hide you in one of my puppets, leave you in the desert where no one could find you.  It could be like a fun treasure hunt.”

She rolled her eyes, this wasn’t his first time he had some hair-brained idea to stop this wedding.  “You moron.  Shikamaru would find me.”  

Kankurou shrugged.  “He is as stubborn as you are, you’re probably right.  However, say the word and Gaara and I will start an international incident and bring you right back here.”

She began to worry the pendant on the necklace Shikamaru had given her the night before.  She’d been avoiding this conversation but it was now or never.  “Are you two going to be okay without me?”

“You’re talking about the Kazekage and his adviser, of course, we’re not going to be okay.  Being with the deer keeper is what you want so we will survive.”

She sighed before admitting her true feelings.   “I feel like I’m being selfish, leaving you and Gaara, moving to Konoha.”

Kankurou waved off her concerns, not surprised by the admission. “It is totally selfish and it is completely the right thing to do.  If we didn’t fight that war for you to be able to be with the person that you want, what was the point of all of it? You deserve whatever it is that will make you happy.  And Nara makes you the happiest I’ve ever seen you.  Nothing means more than that.”

She knew that she loved Shikamaru and wanted to be with him.  Still, it was hard not to worry about everyone else in her life.  This was never her dream.  She wanted to be helpful and acknowledged by her brothers.  Now, a happy life with Shikamaru was what she wanted. 

Kankurou could see the hesitation in her eyes.  His sister had always been selfless and loyal to the core.  If he or Garra made a fuss she would cast aside her own happiness for them.  He would never allow that to happen.  

He wrapped a comforting arm around her.  “Come on Tem.  It’s like you always warned me when we were kids.  There’s nowhere on Earth that the wind can’t reach.  Even when you’re in Konoha you’ll be here.�� The work that you do will have far-reaching consequences here.  You’re still our Princess.” Temari leaned into his side, thankful for the reassuring words.  Her homeland and brothers would be okay.  She raised them well.  

“How’s everyone doing out there?”

“It’s a circus act.  Tons of dignitaries and important people from all the great nations.  Thanks for saving me from it. Garra is out there playing host. We could have probably sold tickets to this. It’s not every day that the Princess of Suna gets married.”

Initially, she and Shikamaru wanted a small wedding.  They very quickly discovered that was never an option.  Between their respective roles in their villages, the political ties, and familial ones this wedding was going to be an event. She hadn’t realized how many people were invested in their relationship.  It represented not only the bringing together of two families but two nations. Their marriage ushered in a new era.   Proof that peace had been achieved.

“How’s Shikamaru?”

Kankurou was ready with a snarky remark but just smiled reassuringly.  “He’s ready to be married to you.”

He’d check on the groom as one final chance to play the protective brother role. To his credit, Shikamaru hadn’t been intimidated. Whether it was because he knew Kankuro only wanted the best for his sister or that he knew Temari would be more than capable of taking care of him herself, they bonded. Kankuro may joke but he knew that his sister had found the best partner for her.  He recognized without a doubt that Shikamaru would love and protect his sister with all that he had.

“I’m ready to be married to him too.” They’d spent so much of their relationship apart, she was excited to finally wake up each day knowing that he was there. 

“Stop it, you’re being gross and romantic. It’s weird.” 

Temari rolled her eyes but was thankful that he could help calm her nerves.  “It’s my wedding, what do you expect?” 

He just chuckled giving her another affectionate hug.  

“I love you, big sister.”  For so long it had just been the two of them. Eventually, Garra completed their set.  The famed sand siblings against the world. Their lives were much different now. Filled with so many people that they loved and stood by their sides.  It was reassuring to know that at the core would always be the three of them.  They weren’t losing anything their family was just growing. 

“I love you too Kankuro.” 

Surprising them both another set of arms enclosed around them. 

“Garra?”  He just nodded and they held onto each other tightly.  Temari tried to subtly wipe away her tears.  How many times had she held them together just like this in less happy circumstances?  Now it was for something much different.  Her brothers were holding her together. 

‘Mother, father, I hope you can see how happy we are now.’ 

“Ready Temari?”  Garra asked while both of her brothers reached a hand out to her. 

Taking their hands in hers she nodded. “Yes.” 

*

**

Temari held onto her new husband tightly. Shikamaru danced so awkwardly but she refused to let them end the night without slow dancing.

She smiled feeling his warm lips kiss her forehead. 

“I love you wife.”

Wife...she was someone’s wife.  Not just anyone’s wife. She was Shikamaru’s wife. So much for marriage being a drag. 

“I love you too Shika.”

“Have you enjoyed everything?”  It had been a busy and emotional day but she was finally married to the love of her life.  For all that it was, it was perfect for them. 

“It’s been a lot but something I’ll always cherish. Can you believe that we’re actually married?”  She grinned, joy sparkling in her eyes. 

“Honestly, no.”  He chuckled and she couldn’t help but agree. They both probably would have remained single if they hadn’t met.  How their wants in life had changed. 

He placed a kiss against her palm.  His lips meeting the cool metal of her ring the outward symbol of his love for her.   “Still, I don’t think I’ve ever been happier.  Thank you for marrying me.”  She nodded resting her head against his chest overwhelmed by emotion and relief.

“Are you okay?”  He knew all about her worries and anxieties about leaving home. There were moments that he was genuinely afraid that her love for Suna and her brothers would outweigh her need to be with him.  He’d asked her for so much.  For the rest of their days, he would prove that her decision was a wise one. 

She gazed out at the crowd.  The people that they loved the most in the world enjoying themselves, happy and carefree.  Kankuro was celebrating with the best of them and had a pretty intense drinking contest against Killer B.   He was now trying to convince Garra to let loose. 

“Come on Garra! Your sister just got married, you should dance!!!!” 

Temari just smiled to herself watching the scene play out.  Her heart felt at peace seeing them there happy and at ease. She knew that no matter where she was she carried her brothers with her. 

So she nodded settling back into her husband’s arms before reaching up to kiss him. They had all been through so much and could have lost everything time and again.  In the end, she had everything that she wanted.  

“Yes, I have you, we’ll be together. Everything is perfect.” 

*

**

This story was born from the headcannon that Kankurou wears face paint because he looks so much like his dad.  He hates it so the facepaint.  I have a special place in my heart for him being a middle child as well lol I love the Sand Siblings so much!!!!

Maybe one day I’ll actually write out ShikaTema’s wedding. 

Thanks again for reading!  Likes/Comments are never required but always appreciated! 

If you're interested I have a few smutty prompts that were shared with me that I can't wait to get my hands dirty with lol and I have a few other ideas jumping around but work is starting up again soon. :sigh:  I'll be back soon!  Till then take care of yourself and know that I love you!    

[steeltoss]

Pre Shippuden — Shippuden Era

Ages 16 - 22. This is a continuation of the events in Hokkaido's life.

Age 16

I left off on her six month mission in Konohagakure. Backtracking a few months before she turned sixteen, she worked directly under Tsunade Senju amd had slowly reconnected with her old friends, including Neji Hyūga, Kiba Inuzuka, Ino Yamanaka, Sakura Haruno, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akamichi.

That being said, her sixteenth birthday was spent in the Hidden Leaf. The party was small and planned by Ino, complete with a few cupcakes and dango. This was the first birthday she enjoyed after Emi passed away.

Speaking of Emi, Hokkaido constantly worried over Ichika and often wrote letters to the younger one. After all, next year Ichika would start the Amegakure Academy.

Aside from her mission, nothing too big happened this year. Though she found out Sasuke was missing. He had become a Rogue Ninja. Okay that's pretty big but still.

Age 17

Upon her journey towards Amegakure after the six months had passed, the Kunoichi had taken it into her own hands to search for Sasuke. She strayed off the path she should have been taking to go to the Hidden Rain Village.

From here, she runs into some nasty company.

This was the first time she met Pein and Konan. And they looked like they were ready to end her.

Upon activating her sharingan, interest was sparked in her by Pein. She was spared on one condition. Well a few, but one big one.

She was to join the Akatsuki, accept the Rogue life and abandon her old life. This would mean abandoning the Hidden Rain and Ichika.

But on the other hand, maybe she could find Sasuke. She had no clue just how wrong she was. But she agreed nonetheless.

So she was taken back to the base, fron there, she met the other members.

Okay don't kill me but here's what happens when she first meets the Akatsuki: [her opinion and relationships will change over time]

Pein: Of course when they first met, she was intimidated and activated her sharingan, but being spared and hopefully brought closer to her brother, she would do anything he asked, for now at least.

Konan: Seeing her special skills, Hokkaido was intimidated but wouldn't admit so. She seems to be the only female here.

Deidara: I'm sorry Dei, but my little angel thought you were a very beautiful lady until you spoke the first time. Needless to say, she was rather shocked but admired his hair and explosives anyway.

Kakuzu: one word. Fear. This man is huge and crazy tall, also his personality reminds her of what its like to bite into a crabapple.

Hidan: she admired his dedication, but didn't like how he greeted her with “Fuck, there's another one? At least this one has a decent rack”. She punched him. And threatened his life only to find out he's immortal.

Tobi: well, he's very hyper and welcoming at least, but she wondered why he wore that mask.

Kisame: is he a man? Shark? Man-Shark? Either way, she kept a distance and admired his strength from afar.

Sasori: puppets are completely and utterly horrifying and she wanted nothing to do with this weird puppet man. Until she saw how red his hair was and her cheeks dusted a pale pink. It reminded her of someone she met a few years ago.

Itachi: . . . Her brother. Her brother, who had killed the clan was in the Akatsuki. Upon seeing him, she wondered if it was too late to leave the Akatsuki. She rurned her nose away and sighed.

Zetsu: “are you a. . . Big, adorable plant man?” i think it's safe to say Zetsu stared at her and quite possibly closed his trap around himself to save himself the embarrassment or black Zetsu threatening to eat her.

Back to Age 17

Sasuke wasn't with them, and she felt like shutting down completely. She was now at square one again. She had hoped this was her ticket to helping her brother, but ahe didnt know he didn't want help.

And honestly, you can't help someone who doesn't want any help.

Aside from her mind overworking, she now had to face Itachi as he was staring her down.

“hey, Itachi... ”

From there, the two walked around as he explained what really happened that day. She was torn. The Leaf had ordered this massacre?

Maybe she wasn't ready to go home after all.

Age 18

On her eighteenth birthday, she had spent her very first one with Itachi in nine years, and she oncr again, was crying those sappy happy little tears.

She never really expected a group of terrorists to the villages to get her gifts, yet they had.

Konan had gotten her a pair of fingerless gloves; Hokkaido appreciated the gesture because her hands were usually cold and Konan usually got things she needed or wanted anyway as the two had become closer.

Kisame had given her her very first katana, which, she undeniably adored the gesture; and she was extremely pink cheeked, she wasn't in love with him but she really liked his caring and understanding attitude.

Tobi had gotten her a mask to match his, which she never would wear; instead, she retaliated with offering to share dango with him instead. Which results in him squealing.

Sasori had claimed he didn't give a damn about things she wanted but still placed a small wooden figure of well, GAARA, in front of her; which led to the idea he had read her diary and had fully embarrassed her. But this little figure was different. Gaara was dressed as the Kazekage.

Deidara had picked her up some paint; remembering she hsd spent endless nights she couldn't sleep to paint her ceilinv and walls, and was out of it.

Zetsu uh, well, gave her a few seeds for flowers. It was for a joke since he figured she would never use them, but she held o to them. Just wait. These gifts will be brought up later.

Kakuzu, and i can't stress this enough, didn't do shit.

Hidan, on the other hand, tried offering immortality if she converted to jashinism.

Itachi had saved his for last. He had gotten her a journal and pens, as well as her stuffed panda from Amegakure.

A part of being an official member of the Akatsuki meant missions. And she had completed several, but what made her panic would be the one where the hunt for Jinchuuriki began.

It was a silent battle with herself. She had already dedicated herself to the Akatsuki but she knew two Jinchuuriki. Gaara and Naruto.

The day Gaara's One Tail was extracted, she covered her mouth upon hearing those certain words.

“He's dead”.

As if she had been hoping her life wouldn't get worse, she had already made up her mind. She really, really despised Deidara now. And she knew she would be killed if she straight up abandoned post.

However, on her next solo mission, she managed to leave a scroll for the Hokage and wanted word passed silently between the Five Kage's. She was playing both sides as of now, but desperately wanted out.

Would they believe her?

No. Not yet at least.

Age 19

Silence. She had succumbed herself with silence, almost like a vow she had taken. Deidara, Sasori, they were dead and war was coming.

She promised herself she would hate Deidara for what he did to Gaara, but she couldn't help but feel pity. Deidara was only a teenager when he died. [I think he was nineteen?]

With the Fourth Shinobi War coming, she was scared. Having no idea what to even do, Hokkaido assumed she would die.

Because I'm a lil bitch, I'm making you wait until she turns 20 for more details.

Age 20

The Akatsuki was no more. Almost all had died, and Hokkaido felt a slight empty feeling in her heart as she sat in front of the Five Kage's.

This was judgement. Would she be allowed to repent and become a better person or be banished forever, or die? Her mind was going wild.

Though, she couldn't help the feeling of ease as she saw Gaara, the Kazekage and boy she used to know, standing and perfectly fine.

“During the time of my extraction, I could see she wanted nothing to do with the Akatsuki organization. She looked almost forced to be there”.

The words Gaara spoke made her face turn pink and look away. Why was he trying to help her when she had fallen into the wrong group of people?

As if she hadn't already felt like she had succumbed herself in a repetitive cycle of falling for Gaara each day she thought about it, him helping her only dragged her deeper into the pit.

And Kami, he was so beautiful.

“and I'd like to offer that if you don't trust her, that's fine. She can return to Suna with me and Kankurō. She can build herself from there”.

So she moves to Suna and begins working on herself as a person, much of the things she had thought about was the very questions Gaara had asked along the way.

“why help me?” she had asked, the gaze he gave her was hard but he responded with: “you aren't the only one who was in the wrong. It would be wrong of anyone to not let you change yourself. I was given a chance and was once feared and hated, so can you answer this for me, do you wamt to live? Do you want to start a new beginning? If so, keep walking with us”.

And so she walked.

Age 21

Life in Suna was much different than the Hidden Rain or Leaf. Not many people would contact her or look her way for the first few days. After all she was an outsider and reformed terrorist.

Hokkaido had grown close to Temari once more, as well as Kankurō. These two, when free, helped her with the adjustment.

Hokkaido had left Amegakure behind, the ache in her heart subsiding as she realized Ichika had grown into a decent young child and chose to not become a shinobi, considering shinobi had too many hardships and heartaches to deal with.

As for Gaara, the two often spent time gardening and cultivating cacti.

Something from the past had finally been planted. The flower seeds Zetsu had given her way back on her birthday spent with the Akatsuki.

The katana that Kisame had given her was placed on a display.

Her Traditional Japanese Sword Display

The katana which is the most recognized full sized samurai sword and is often the first piece in any collection. It sits at the bottom and has a beautiful violet ito handle wrap.

The second would be the wakizashi which is a mid-sized sword that resembles the katana and the ito handle wrap was midnight blue.

Then the third which is a tanto. The tanto is the shortest of the swords or in many examples can be as short as today's standard survival styled knife. The ito wrap is black.

This is an example of how the stand is:

Age 21

The mask Tobi had given her had brought up bitter memories and had long sense been tossed into a storage box.

Her fingerless gloves had been destroyed during the war, but since she used them for swordplay, Temari had gotten her a new pair as a gift.

The wooden figure Sasori had given her of Gaara was more or less embarassing since she lived with the sand siblings and had hidden it away in the storage box.

Her panda sat on her bed, displayed and untouched except for during the night.

Age 22

Upon the next year, Hokkaido watched as relationships blossomed between many people, marriages and children coming into the world, she began wondering if she would ever have something like this in her own life. She highly doubted it.

Having been back and forth from Konohagakure, she grew closer to Shikamaru once more from childhood as she often joined the male and Temari on days they'd spend time together.

Other times, Hokkaido would stick to Kankurō and help with making puppets, she rather enjoyed painting them.

And occasionally, when Gaara was free, the two would still garden together and had began talking more, sometimes the two would even go out to the village and walk around together.

Her feelings for Gaara seemed to only hrow stronger as she had grown older, and she imagined herself having a future with him. It always made her heart hammer and her face turn blood red.

This year, she had cut most of her hair off to her shoulders as it had grown too long. She soon admits her feelings to Gaara, unsurprisingly, he was silent.

She most definitely assumed she blew it, but nearly a week later, Gaara had shyly asked if she would allow him to court her.

This was most definitely the beginning of a new and beautiful relationship.

I'll pick up with pre boruto - boruto era soon. Though im not sure if these are even good. @temarihime @thefifthkazekage @how-troublesome @houndninja

[scenariosofkonoha]

headcanons for gaara taking care of his newly pregnant s/o who's getting sick a lot?

Hey Anon! Thank yo for the ask! Not sure why but I rewrote these like three times… But they were fun to think over and I did my best to keep them as Headcanons! I really hope you like them! ~ Admin Little Lace 🎀

Gaara was not exactly sure who called birth magical, because from this angle there was certainly nothing magical about it. Perhaps it was birth that was magical while the pregnancy was meant to horrifying. Or maybe his S/O was just unlucky in that way.

The thought of having a child is scary for Gaara. Though most in his shoes would be more concerned if they could be an adequate parent, the Red haired-nin is worried about something else entirely. Being the product of a difficult pregnancy and birth, the thought of being in the same position as his father is stressful. He doesn’t want to lose his S/O in such a way.

This is why he and his lover hadn’t exactly planned for children. With such familial trauma at hand, the two had held off on the decision of children and expanding their family. They had been doing well…until the woman had started to become drastically ill.

Gaara had never seen the woman sick before. Maybe a case of allergies around spring, but nothing to this extent.

“I’m fine love, really,” she spoke with a weak tea smile. Gaara brushed her hair away from her face, his fingers brushing against her clammy forehead.

He may tend to believe her, as long as she is smiling and reassuring him he can’t think that she is too ill. But when the lethargy and dizziness had escalated to vomiting, at this he put his foot down and took her to be examined. After several tests the nin tells them that they are pregnant.

The Kazekage becomes a ball of anxiety and concern at the news. He’s happy yes, but her being ill makes him nervous. And in the coming days she gets only worse. Unlike before there is nothing to be done about this. The symptoms are just that, symptoms. They will go away with time… or so he is told…

And though he is told this, it does not stop from constantly consulting a medical-nin whenever he grows to worried about his bride. Each time he is told to just make her feel comfortable. And he does… to instantly, at any moment if she needs something he has it sent to her.

He’s still the leader of Suna after all, he unfortunately can’t leave to be with her every second. The red haired-nin must continue to run the village. And though he might be sitting at his desk, and he may be going through paper work, his head is not in his work. Sea-foam eyes are staring off into the distance and he has already asked three different ANBU to check in on his wife.

“Gaara you don’t have to be here at every minute” his sister instructed pulling his pen out of his hand. “Go on, go see her. Kankuro and I will handle this.”“Aww why do I-” words died in his throat as his sister raised a brow to him. The challenge clear. Say anything other than yes, and I’ll end you. “Yeah g-go ahead!”

With the help of his siblings, Gaara is given the time he needs to tend to his lover. However, the time is mostly spent in the bathroom. The woman laying her head on his lap, gaining comfort from the feeling of his fingers through her hair. Try as she might, the level of nausea she is experiencing does not allow her to move far from a bucket or the toilet. Thus forcing her husband to join her.

She is a good sport though. In her head, there is nothing she can do but endure it. Although her outlook is one of understanding, she can see how it wears on her love. Every cold sweat, dry heave, or dizzy spell seems to set the shinobi on edge. To ease his suffering she tries to make light of the situation.

“Did you know that female seahorses pass off the baby to the males when they are expecting?” she informed him as they sat on the bathroom floor. Gaara running his fingers through her hair as she rest her head in his lap. Her forehead clammy while her body gave soft tremors.“No, I didn’t,” he said trying to keep his voice light so worry didn’t filter in. “Why are you telling me?”“I just wanted to know if you wanted a turn, that’s all,” turning up to him with a tired smile. Against his will, he gave her a chuckle. “If I could, I would.” he replied gaining a light laugh from her, before her eyes widen. And in a quick practiced manner she returned to emptying her stomach into the toilet.

The man knows that she is worried. Her weak smile while trying not to vomit is an indication. In kind, the man tries his best not to cause her trouble. All of her focus should be on rest, not spending time worrying over him.

There are days she is fine. The lady of the land goes about her day, albeit slowly, tending to all her duties for the day. All of her movements are slow and measured, she does her best. And the change is welcome, Calming the Kazekage’s mind, until she smells food…or moves to fast…or stands too quickly…or simply stays awake longer than an hour. Then she goes right back to ‘resting’ in her room. Resting is what they call it, languishing in her ‘affliction’ is how it feels.

The pregnancy seems endless for both parties. The symptoms never ending and no medical answers besides:

“Some pregnancies are more difficult than others.”

But her extended illness begins to make Gaara believe that maybe there is something wrong with the child. It is almost too early to tell but his head is swirling with all that could happen.

“You know when mother was first pregnant with you, she was filled with energy,” his sister spoke leaning against his desk. Her brother’s tired eyes shifted to her. “I can’t remember everything, but I do remember her dancing with Kankuro and I. And she would stay up all night…reading or embroidery, she once even decided to take up cooking.” the woman chuckled.“Why are you telling me this?” his voice graveled even more so with worry.“All pregnancies are different Gaara. Just because she is feels horrible doesn’t mean you’ll loose her or the baby.”

The words don’t immediately take effect. With her youngest brother they never really do. But slowly they worm their way into his consciousness. The Sand-nin doesn’t fret when she wakes in the middle of the night, complaining of heartburn. Now as he takes care of her, it is a bit more hands on. When his wife vomits, he holds her hair, rubbing her back. Stress not heightening as he helps her.

Before, he had treated her almost as if she were glass. She was already sick why would he make it worse? But now he works to care for her better.

“Sorry about this,” She whispers weakly as he carries her back to bed.“It’s no trouble,” he says softly in her ear.

With the first trimester behind them, the vomiting finally ends. While she works to regain nutrients and over all health, Gaara stays by her side, his work as Kazekage brought to their room. The man not leaving her side.

“Love, I’m well I pro-” his wife’s words stopped as she made a strange face. The man had trained himself in knowing what faces she made. When she was going to be sick, when she was dizzy, when she had indigestion or when she was lethargic. But none of those faces matched the one she was making then.“Are you-?” his question stopped as she took his hand placing it on her slightly distended stomach.

“Feel!” she squeaked happily. He wasn’t exactly sure what she was referring to. He was seconds away from calling a medical-nin before he felt the movement. It was strange feeling movement under the skin but marvelous as a little push brushes against his hand. The push most insistent when Gaara pressed to feel it. “See!” she giggled. “That’s your Papa, little one.” His eyes widened as a dazed smile crossed his features. His child. The movement settled but the face of his love did not. Her features more bright and alive then he had seen them. The woman held a glow he had never seen before. It was almost like it shone from within. Was this the magical part everyone spoke of?

And soon her glow muddled green as she placed a hand to her lips. Perhaps it wasn’t that magical…

[sagemoderocklee]

For the writing meme, pov

hey anon i hope it’s okay but since you didn’t specify i just picked a random fic/pov since none were specific! hope you didn’t have a specific one in mind but if you did feel free to send another asks! thanks for sending this anon! 

—

Terror was a constant in the sinister blue light of his cell. Nightmares flickered at the corners of his vision, dark and spectral; incomprehensible whispers in the dark. Sleep hung heavy against his mind like a shroud, a ghost haunting him; his cot held him against its frigid sheets, a coffin waiting to be burned. The cold fingers of Death stretched across his skin, icy and unavoidable. 

It was his second fear: Dying. His first: Loneliness. 

But somewhere in the fog he realised his worst fear was not loneliness or death. It was dying alone. Alone, forgotten, unloved, unimportant. His existence snuffed out on the whim of someone else–his father, perhaps. 

He shivered. A strange sound–was someone crying?–echoed in the darkness. His past come to haunt him, perhaps? He had no protection from it here. He was weak; exposed; a helpless babe left alone, at the mercy of the cruel and callous. 

Something shifted outside of his cell, in the distance. He didn’t know if it was real or a product of his sleep-deprived mind. He’d fended off sleep and the nightmares it brought with it every day since he’d been locked away; he’d always failed eventually, pulled down into dark oblivion and the disquiet rage of his past. 

Another noise sounded. It had to be real. 

Perhaps it was Shinpiko coming with the executioner. She’d said his death was a sure thing. Or had that been a dream, too?

A grating sound sent shivers crawling across his skin, pulling him from the fog of sleepy death. His heart beat frantically in his chest, his body propelling itself up only enough for him to see. His arm shook beneath his weight, but he couldn’t allow his weakness to show. 

“Kazekage-sama?” 

This was a dream. A good dream. He hadn’t seen a friendly face in what felt like a lifetime. 

“Lee?” he croaked, too exhausted to put any energy behind the name, but a giddiness stirring in him at the way the sound rolled of his tongue. “What the hell are you doing here?” 

“There has been another assassination: Tsunade-sama is dead.”

Reality hit him full force. This was not a dream. The giddiness left him on a quiet, soundless gasp. Shinpiko had not lied when she’d promised to bring death upon him. 

“Who did it?” he asked, voice distant to his own mind. He didn’t remember rising to his feet, but suddenly Lee was right there, almost close enough to touch. His fingers twitched, as though to call his sand to him. 

“You did. Or rather, Temari-san did on your behalf.” Lee’s voice sounded unnatural. Stiff. Cold. Distant. Gaara had never heard him sound so unfeeling. Perhaps this was a dream, or perhaps this wasn’t Lee at all, but an impostor. The Lee he knew was a heartfelt, loving, intensely emotional person. It would be hard to impersonate him, even for the most seasoned shinobi. 

“I see. Then my death is a sure thing.” He said the words automatically, as though this fact did not bother him. He couldn’t let this impostor know the fear that gripped his heart at this news. 

“Please step back, Kazekage-sama.”

“What are you doing?” The way the impostor called him by his title was a perfect imitation of Lee and it sent his heart racing again, faster and faster and faster–a hare seeking cover from a swooping hawk. 

“Shinpiko-san has suggested that the easiest way to put an end to this is to kill you.”

Gaara froze, trapped by the icy hands of death that had caressed him in his dank, dark cell. He watched, horror seeping into his veins, as Lee ripped his cell door from the wall and threw it aside like it was nothing. That was Lee’s strength; that was Lee’s face; those were Lee’s bloody hands reaching for him, gripping him, strong enough to break him and he didn’t have his sand now, he was going to die, he was going to pay for breaking Lee’s arm and leg; Lee was going to tear him apart, rip him to pieces–

“Kazekage-sama, I hope you can forgive me for this.”

And wasn’t that Lee all over? Apologizing for killing him. 

He found his voice, quivering and frail. “Lee, please–”

The plea died as his throat seized up with fear as Lee stared deep into his eyes, his gaze reaching into the pit of Gaara’s soul and seeing him for the monster he was–

Gaara flew into the air, his limbs in tact, his blood still flowing as his heart raced rapidly. His stomach collided with Lee’s shoulder, the breath knocked from him. 

“Please hold on, Kazekage-sama.”

“Lee, what the he—” he wheezed, but the rest of his words were swallowed by the explosive sound of Lee’s speed and the cracking of stone around them. 

Before he knew it, they were sailing through the air, high above Suna, and the chill of his cell was wrenched from him like a poison. He felt his chakra flare, flowing with renewed vigor, still weak but pulsing through him, warming him, strengthening his body and his mind. 

They hit solid ground–a wall, the Kazekage monument that watched over Suna, his own gaze staring down at the valley below. Gaara fought against Lee’s hold, but he could do little more than squirm in Lee’s strong arm. 

“I know this must seem like the worst possible course of action,” Lee said quietly, drawing Gaara’s attention and ceasing his attempts at breaking free. “But this is for the best, Kazekage-sama. Please, hold on.”

“Lee, wait. What are you—” His mind was still muddled by the drain on his chakra and the constant battle with sleep. The shock of seeing Lee, the terror at facing his own death at the hands of a friend–it was all too much to process. 

But Lee was single-minded, as only he could be, and ignored Gaara’s question. Chakra, hot and burning, surged around him. His body felt aflame as Lee crouched down. The ground beneath Lee’s feet cracked, the stone whining in protest. 

And in an instant, they were flying through the air again, scaling the high valley walls, shooting past the Kazekage monument like a shooting star. 

Gaara watched his village grow smaller and smaller, as Lee flew. 

They were leaving Suna.

Lee had set him free.

--

The Art of Love, Chapter 5

[narutostuff101]

Your story was so cute when Temari left her boys to go see her brothers. Little Shikadai is so cute! I was wondering could you make a follow up story. Idk maybe when she comes back and little Shikadai is all happy. Or maybe a story where Temari shows the baby pictures to Kankuro and Gaara. I mean come on. Her baby is adorable!

Hey, thanks for the feedback! 😄 Yes! I know! Baby Shikadai is so adorable and I love him to death. XD I really like your  second idea anon so I decided to write it down. It wasn’t meant to me this long but Idk. Haha. This would also be my first Sand sibs story so please bear with me if it’s not good 🙏 

Enjoy, a sequel to Going away

Temari visits Suna (lol I couldn’t think of a lamer title?) 

The arid and sunburnt barren land of Sunagakure; eternal desert stretching for miles and miles. The intense sun blazes down on this harsh yet amazingly beautiful wilderness of red rocks, the incredible feeling of being the only person with a heart beating within miles sets in.

The landscape never changes, it stays the same; no wind, no rain, just stale raw air. Inconceivable formations of canyons and immense rock structures set in the distance, circling the desert. Every time her eyes wander back to study the distant rocky landscape it seems as if it were merely a projection onto the horizon. It almost feels unreal. 

Temari had been travelling at a fast pace for nearly three days, following a route that she had gone back and forth countless of times prior to migrating to Konoha. The harsh sun beating down on her, did nothing to dampen her excitement and enthusiasm to meet her brothers; to breathe the air of her homeland once more. She was almost there; she could see the the single cleft between the two cliff faces, that was the lone passage in and out of the village hidden in the Sand. Her heart was beating fast with rush of adrenaline and she didn’t need a mirror to know how wide her smile was. 

She was home.

***

“So, how long you’re staying?” Kankuro asked as they walked along the corridor towards Kazekage’s office. Kankuro had been the one to unceremoniously greet her at the village’s entrance, with “You look out of breath,” being the first thing her cheeky brother had said to her. It was their usual way of greeting, there was no need for formalities like bowing heads or hugging, and she preferred it that way. 

“Just a couple of days.” She told him. Her visit was meant to be short since she needed to go home within a week and the fact that the journey home would take another 3 days at the very least did not help at all. As much as she wanted to stay longer, she could not allow her herself such liberty. 

“What’s the rush?” Kankuro smirked, “Can’t stay away too long from Shikamaru huh?” He teased. 

Temari rolled her eyes and punched her brother on the shoulder lightly. “I have a baby to look after.” 

Kankuro burst out laughing at her reply, “Look at you sis! A worried mom! To think I’d live to see this day.” He wiped his wet eye from all the laughter. Once again, Temari rolled her eyes. 

“When will you ever change?” She asked exasperatedly, though she was smiling. Even if she had said that, she actually did not want Kankuro to change his care-free personality. Her dorky brother’s teasings made her recollect the memories of their usual day-to-day siblings banter in the past, with Gaara silently watching over, a small grin plastered on his face. She missed those times. 

They reached Gaara’s office and Temari was hit with a blow of nostalgia, recalling her days as Gaara’s assistant, going through that door every few hours to check on her brother. Without bothering to knock, Kankuro turned the door knob to enter.

“Gaara! Guess who I found on the way here?” He announced in a sing-song voice, as the door swung open to reveal a vast office with shelves of books against it’s walls and a neat sofa set at the corner. The office was rather plain-looking with only a few pots of cacti serving as decorations. In the middle of the room, was a large desk that was covered with high stacks of paper everywhere and they looked like they could topple at any moment. Behind the desk, sat a red-haired man who raised his head from his work when they entered. Her brother looked like he was brutally deprived of sleep but was still smiling gently nevertheless. 

“Temari…” Gaara stood up from his chair and approached her. “We’ve been waiting for you.” He told her pleasantly. As opposed to Kankuro, her youngest brother was a mild-mannered man who spoke to her with extreme politeness. She thought that Kankuro should learn a thing or two from him. 

“It’s great to be back.” She told him. Her eyes wondered around, taking in the appearance of the room, noting that it hadn’t changed at all since she left. “God, I missed this place,” she muttered. 

Behind her, Kankuro snorted. “But not as much as missing baby Shikadai ‘ight?” 

Temari ignored that comment and walked towards the sofa. She slipped her bag off her shoulders to search for the photo album; the main purpose of her visit.

“Speaking of Shikadai…,” She found the photo album and took it out, lifting it up for her brothers to see, “I’ve got something to show the two of you.”

Kankuro was the first to react; he eagerly went over to join her at the sofa and attempted to snatch the album from her hands. But Temari slapped his hands away, glaring at him.

“Wait will you? I haven’t finished talking.” She scolded him. Kankuro scowled, rubbing his hands.

“What is that?” Gaara asked, eyeing the book in her hand. Temari grinned at them. 

“This,” she held up the photo album, “is a compilation of Shikadai’s baby pictures that I have made, for you two to see.” She flopped herself onto the sofa, making herself comfortable.

“Really?” Kankuro asked enthusiastically, his eyes gleamed in delight. Even Gaara broke into a huge smile, his eyes softening at the mention of his beloved nephew. 

Her brothers hurried over her side, leaning forwards as Temari flipped the book open to the first page which contained a big photo of a newborn Shikadai wrapped in a green blanket. Temari had written a short caption under every photo and although it had taken a lot of time to make this, Temari thought it was the least she could do to make her brothers happy. Besides, it was an enjoyable activity to look through photos of her family. 

“Isn’t that the blanket that I gave him, Temari?” Kankuro asked, his voice laced with excitement. 

“Yup. He still keeps it with him these days.” She told him and Kankuro flushed with happiness. “Is that so?” He laughed, scratching the side of his face.

The following pages had more smaller-sized photos of her baby. Gaara pointed out the photo of him holding Shikadai in his arms. He smiled gently, probably reminiscing about how he had struggled to hold Shikadai for the first time. Temari remembered that day quite well; while Kankuro had been eager to hold his newborn nephew, Gaara on the other hand had been very nervous and had needed some encouragement from Shikamaru and Temari. Thinking about it now, Temari thought it was a nice memory. 

“He’s so tiny!” Kankuro exclaimed in disbelief. He folded his arms as if he was holding a baby, his face with wonderment. “I mean, he was like this small,” he used two fingers to prove his point, showing a ridiculous measurement of 3 inches for a baby, “and now he’s like —,” he extended in arms way too much, “—this big.” 

“Don’t be ridiculous. He was never that small.” Temari said, half-amused. “And he’s not that big either.” 

They continued to look through the photo album, with Kankuro gushing over every few cute pictures of Shikadai and even Gaara occasionally commenting on his nephew growth, his smile never leaving his face. 

“This was the first time he spoke a word.” Temari told them as she pointed at the photo of Shikadai in her husband’s arms. 

“Was his first word ‘troublesome’?” Kankuro quipped earning him yet another eye-roll from Temari.

“Of course it wasn’t! It was ‘mama’,” she said smugly. “If it had been ‘troublesome’, I’d have choked that Shikamaru to death.” She added darkly. 

Time flew by quickly and much to Kankuro’s (and Gaara’s) disappointment, they finished looking at every picture in the album. 

“That’s it? Ahh, I wanted to see more.” The older of the two brothers said, crestfallen. 

Temari smirked. “Here.” She thrusted the book into Kankuro’s hands, and he gave her a perplexed look. “Keep it,” She said with a soft smile, her eyes shining brightly. 

“Are you sure, Temari?” Gaara asked tentatively, looking unsure. Temari nodded, “Yup. I actually made it specially for my brothers to keep.”

Their eyes widened in surprise. “Thanks, Temari!” Kankuro said earnestly. Gaara bowed his head slightly and thanked her as well. He then stood up. 

“I have to go now. I need to attend a meeting with the council.” He said somewhat bitterly. “Please get some rest anne-san. You’ve had a long journey.” 

“No, don’t worry about that.” Temari assured him. “I’m not going to waste my time here sleeping.” She said rather haughtily. 

“Haha! Coz there’s no Shikamaru for you to sleep with fufu~” Kankuro snickered, his eyes full of mischief. Her eyebrows twitched in annoyance and her eyes flared. Next thing he knew, Temari had grabbed him by the collar and was shaking him, not-too-gently back and forth.

“What did you say?! That’s enough out of you, Kankuro!” She said through gritted teeth and Kankuro begged for her to stop. Gaara looked over at the ever so familiar scene taking place in front of him. He chuckled, and Temari gave him a threatening glare. 

“What?!” She demanded.

Gaara turned his back on his siblings and murmured, “Nothing… I’ll be back.” He walked over to his desk to gather a few files, tucked them under his arm and made his way to the door. Gaara paused for a moment, glancing back at his sister with a pure smile that touched her heart, and said:

“Welcome back, Temari.” 

The End

A/N: Yes, well thank you for reading. Oh and about the Temari and Mirai fanfic, I might take a longer time to write it. Like a really long time. I had an idea of what to write, but then it figured it wasn’t very interesting. So, I’m back to square one until I can come up with a better idea on what to write. Kudos everyone! 

[darquedeath4444]

Always, Together, Forever

Chapter TWELVE

The fake identity of the Kazekage had been revealed. Tsunade herself was the one who had looked over Sakura when she had been brought to the hospital by a close to hysterical Gaara, his worried looking siblings, and a shocked Sasuke and Naruto.

The medics tried to take her away, but Gaara refused to leave her. After a series of threats and glares, he was allowed to stay. His siblings refused to leave him, and Sasuke and Naruto decided to stay as well.

The Slug sannin had been called down moments after the medics had begun to look over the girl’s wounds, for no one had seen anything like what was currently before them.

Tsunade inspected the wound, hands glowing green. "What-her bone structure..."

"That's Sakura's specialty," Temari supplied, albeit a little uneasily. "She can harden her bones at will."

Tsunade nodded once, adapting professionally to the situation. "What happened?"

Sasuke told her of how his Chidori had pierced through the girl. Tsunade nodded again, then frowned. "The broken shards of the bones need to be taken out," she said. "Now, if you want to stay here, you have to be quiet. If not, I'll kick you guys out, Hokage's son or not." She then glanced at the Suna siblings. "Or the Kazekage's children."

A while later, the emergency treatment had been completed. Gaara refused to leave for Suna without Sakura, and with Sasori's supportive glare backing him up, no one dared to disagree. It helped that Uchiha Itachi and Sasori had been all buddy buddy since the invasion. Apparently, they had fought each other and had come to a wordless understanding. Minato agreed to house the Suna siblings along, with Sasori, for as long as Tsunade deemed Sakura’s hospitalization necessary.

Gaara had been staying in Sakura's hospital room ever since her emergency treatment. Sleep wasn't a necessity for him, but his siblings, Sasori and sometimes Naruto and Sasuke had to bring him food because he refused to leave.

He just wanted her to wake up.

A week after the invasion, Sakura finally opened her eyes.

Gaara, who had been staring blankly out the window, was alerted to her awakening by the shuffle of the blankets. He quickly sat up and pushed her back onto the bed as she attempted to sit up.

Sakura stared up at him. "Gaara-sama?"

"Rest...you need to rest," Gaara murmured. "Just...rest."

Sakura blinked before he felt her relax and watched her fall back onto the hospital bed.

Even after everything, she did not question him.

Unable to look at the girl in the eyes, he vanished in a whirl of sand.

Sasuke and Naruto made their way through the corridor, arguing about whether or not ramen was healthy. The opened the door to find Sakura sitting up, looking blankly at the opposite wall.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed. "You're awake!"

"Where's Gaara?" Sasuke asked, glancing around.

Sakura looked down at her hands. "I'm sorry, but I do not know. Gaara-sama teleported away moments after I woke up." She glanced up. "Am I still in Konoha?" She asked. "What happened to the...." she trailed off awkwardly.

"You collapsed after the fight,” Sasuke explained. “Tsunade-sama looked after you. The Kazekage was revealed to be an impostor. Orochimaru killed the Kazekage and took his place in an attempt to kill the Hokage." 

"What will happen to the shinobi of Suna?"

"Most of them already returned to Suna. The only ones still in Konoha are you, Gaara, Temari, Kankuro, Sasori, and a few Jounin," Naruto answered.

Sakura bit her lip and turned back to clenching her fists.

The two members of Team Seven glanced at each other. "You should rest," Naruto said, after a while.

Sakura nodded, and seemed to hesitate before opening her mouth. "Have I done something to upset Gaara-sama?"

Naruto grinned, but shook his head. "A lot of things changed for him. He just needs some time to adjust." He paused. "He was really worried about you."

The two left soon after, but the warm feeling within Sakura's chest lingered there for a long time.

"Sakura?"

Sakura looked up at her name and saw Temari tiptoe into her room.

Sakura dipped her head. "Temari-sama."

The older girl smiled. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, thank you."

There was a sound at the window, and both girls looked up. Sand slipped in through the gaps and unlocked the latch. Gaara floated in, arms crossed, face blank. "Temari."

Said girl nodded. "Hey, Gaara."

"I would like to speak to Sakura. Would you..."

Temari's smile brightened. "Yeah, sure. Of course. Bye Sakura!" She turned and left, leaving the two of them alone.

Sakura sat there, watching the emotions swim over Gaara's face.

"How...are you?" He asked.

"I'm almost completely healed," Sakura said, voicing what the nurse had told her a while ago. "Thank you for your concern."

Gaara nodded. "When are you..." he trailed off again, but Sakura knew what he had wanted to ask.

"The nurse told me that I am allowed to leave after my check up at noon." Gaara glanced at the clock and Sakura did the same. Eleven thirty. He nodded. "Then we're leaving tomorrow."

Sakura nodded and bowed her head when Gaara turned to leave through the window again. She saw him freeze, like he had remembered something. He appeared to steel himself and he turned around. "I...I'll come back for you once your check up is done," he said. "We're going to go eat something." Then he jumped out the window.

As he had promised, Gaara teleported back into the room the moment he was sure the nurse was gone. Sakura nodded at him like she had known he was there. She probably did.

"Can you go now?" He asked.

Sakura nodded. She slipped out of her bed, and had Gaara not been watching her so intensely, he wouldn't have noticed the faintest of the winces. Nothing showed on her face, though, and Gaara made a note to himself to watch out for similar signs. "Come on." 

After the pinkette had finished gathering her things, he teleported the two of them onto the roof of one of the buildings by the main street. "What do you want to have?" He asked. The words felt foreign on his tongue, for he had never asked others what they wanted; up until now, everyone had moved to accommodate him.

Sakura blinked a few times. "Whatever you want to eat, Gaara-sama,” she said.

Gaara frowned at the familiar reply. Once, that reply had made him happy, for finally, someone cared enough about him to ask. Then it had satisfied him, because it had seemed as though Sakura knew her place to satisfy him, not herself. Now, though, it simply sat like lead in his heart. "No, he said. “What do you want to eat?"

Sakura’s eyes widened and Gaara could see the confusion in her gaze. She looked down at her feet. "I..."

"How about we walk around?" He suggested, and glanced around the streets below.

Chapter THIRTEEN>

<Chapter ELEVEN

Chapter List

[thenarator]

The Genius from Uzushio

so @kineticallyanywhere and i have been tossing around ideas for a naruto au. the basic premise is “what if uzushio was never destroyed?” and from there it kinda evolved into speculation about regional differences, academy curricula and what a typical member of the uzumaki clan would look like. this is a little drabble of a scene that was gnawing at my brain, so i just had to get it out and share it with you guys!

Ever since Hinata had been assigned to Team Seven, she’d felt like a third wheel.

Sasuke was a genius, top of their class at the academy and hailed as one of the most talented of their generation. Not as talented as his brother, but still destined to make Konoha proud. Sakura was clever, easily mastering new techniques thanks to her near perfect chakra control and always earning the approval of Kakashi-sensei. She still spent a fair amount of time fawning over Sasuke, but despite his outward disdain Hinata could see how he preened under the attention. He took it as his due, as a child of the Uchiha clan, still one of the village’s most prominent despite the rumors that they had tried to take over the village and been stopped by the Fourth Hokage some years ago.

Hinata was not a genius, and though she was from a prominent clan she was not someone they were particularly proud to claim as one of their number. She was not very clever at mastering new techniques, and she did not have perfect chakra control. As her two teammates basked in Kakashi-sensei’s praise and occupied themselves with admiring and being admired, Hinata could not seem to keep up or engage with them. Most of the time she felt like she was just one teammate too many.

It had surprised her more than anything when Kakashi-sensei announced that they would all be participating in the upcoming chuunin exams. It made sense for Sasuke and Sakura, who were practically a squad unto themselves, but for him to nominate Hinata as well seemed ridiculous. She was not ready for this, she knew she was not ready for this, but her sensei didn’t seem to care. Either he had more faith in her than she did in herself, or he was too interested in having two out of three of his students pass that he wasn’t worried about the third. Hinata was willing to bet it was the latter.

“Are you honestly thinking of going along with this?” Neji had asked her when he’d found out.

“Kakashi-sensei seems to think I’m ready,” Hinata told him, as firmly as she could, trying to believe it even as she said it.

“There will be ninja from other villages there,” Neji said, “ninja far more ruthless than you. Uzushio is sending a squad this year; rumor has it that one of them is a genius so gifted he’s hailed as the pride and joy of their village.”

Hinata had barely managed to contain her quaking at that piece of news. Uzushio was a small village, but they were a close ally of Konoha. Still, their ninja had a reputation for being fearsome, with the ability to survive nearly any attack thrown at them and live to unnatural ages. They didn’t send a squad every year, but when they were sent to participate in the chuunin exams they never failed to impress.

“Have you . . . heard anything about the other examinees?” Hinata asked Sakura softly as the squad walked toward training the day before the exams were due to begin.

“I hear a genius of the Hyuuga clan will be participating,” Sasuke interrupted before Sakura could speak. “Your cousin, right Hinata?”

“Yes,” Hinata nodded, “but I meant genin from . . . other villages.”

“I know a squad from Uzushio is coming,” Sakura said, confirming Hinata’s worst fears. “They’re supposed to have a genius with them too. A lot of talent on display this year, huh Sasuke?”

Sasuke made an unimpressed noise in his throat. “Itachi warned me about him, but I’m not worried. He might be from an allied village, but I’ll take him apart if he gets in my way.”

Hinata wished she could be so confident. There were clans in Uzushio, clans that produced ninja with such massive chakra reserves that ran so strong and so thick in their chakra networks gentle fist techniques had almost no effect on them. The Hyuuga clan held a wary respect for Uzushio ninja. She only hoped she would not have to fight that particular genius.

Sakura turned and began to walk backwards so she could look Sasuke in the eye. “I know it won’t be a problem for you Sasuke,” she said, hearts in her eyes. “I just know that with you on our team everything will be-”

She stopped, interrupted in both speech and step. Hinata looked up, over Sakura’s head, to see a boy much taller than her with his back to them. He and Sakura turned at the same time, until they were facing one another. The boy was dressed head to toe in black, with a large object wrapped in bandages slung over his shoulder. He wore purple face paint, and a headband that proclaimed he was from Suna. He did not look at all pleased at being bumped into.

“Sorry,” Sakura began, holding up both hands and she stepped backwards toward her squadmates. “So sorry, I-”

“Where do you think you’re going?” asked the boy. His hand shot out and gripped the front of Sakura’s shirt, halting her retreat.

“I-” Sakura stuttered, nearly jerked off her feet by the tug of the boy’s hand, “that is, I-”

“What do you say Temari?” asked the boy, a cruel smile on his face, and Hinata noticed a girl with four blonde pigtails behind him. “We’ve got a little time before he gets here. Let’s mess with these punks.”

As Sasuke advanced on the boy in black, clearly intent on a fight, Hinata began to back away. Fear gripped her, making it hard to breathe, making the edges of her vision blurry and the world tilt strangely on its axis. She had been so frightened of getting into a fight during the exams she’d never spared a thought to what might happen outside the exam. There were no proctors here to regulate, to break up the fight if it got too ugly. There was no one to intervene, no one to-

Hinata was knocked out of her thoughts as her back collided with something solid. She flailed, letting out a small yelp, but before she could fall to the ground two strong hands gripped her arms. They righted her, setting her back on her feet, and Hinata turned around slowly to face the person she’d bumped into.

She was met with the bluest eyes she had ever seen in her life. She’d though the Fourth Hokage’s eyes were blue, but this boy’s eyes were like the sky on a cloudless day. His sunny yellow hair spiked out from his head, three strange whisker marks fanned across his cheeks, and his smile . . . Hinata felt her face heat up. His smile was beautiful.

It took her a moment to realize he was speaking. “What?” she said, feeling stupid.

“I said, are you alright?” asked the boy, eyebrows furrowed in concern, and his voice sent shivers down Hinata’s spine.

“Yes,” she said breathily. She did not know what else to say. She thought she had never been as alright as she was right now, in this moment, staring into this boy’s blue, blue eyes.

“Good,” said the boy, smiling so hard his eyes were forced shut, “‘cuz for a minute there I was-”

He was interrupted by a voice from further down the alley calling “Enough!”

Hinata and the blue-eyed boy looked around, to see that the boy in black had released Sakura and was squaring off against Sasuke. The voice, however, seemed to have come from another boy, this one standing upside down on an upper branch of a nearby tree. He had a mop of red hair, dark circles around his eyes, and a large gourd strapped to his back. The word “love” was tattooed on his forehead, and his expression was deadly serious.

“You’re an embarrassment to our village,” the red haired boy was saying.

The boy in black took a hasty step backwards from Sasuke. “Gaara! I-I was just-” he began, but suddenly the blue-eyed boy was stepping past Hinata toward the knot of people.

“Gaara!” called the blue-eyed boy excitedly.

The red haired boy, Gaara apparently, turned his attention to where Hinata and the blue-eyed boy were standing. Immediately his face softened, a small smile playing around his mouth. The boy in black visibly relaxed, as did the girl he had called Temari.

“Naruto,” greeted Gaara as the blue-eyed boy went to stand below him.

Naruto, Hinata thought. The boy’s name was Naruto.

“What are you doing up there?” Naruto called, staring up at where Gaara was still hanging upside down. “Are you trying to look cool? C’mon, you’re better than that.”

A flurry of sand abruptly surrounded Gaara, and then he was standing on the ground next to Naruto.

“It’s good to see you here,” said Gaara, still smiling gently, as though he were very tired and was finally allowing himself to relax. “I wasn’t sure you were coming.”

“Wouldn’t miss it,” said Naruto, grinning broadly at Gaara, “but that’s no way to talk to your sibling. Kankuro was in the wrong, but you don’t need to call him an embarrassment.”

Gaara turned to the boy in black. “I’m sorry I snapped at you,” he said, dipping his head shallowly in apology.

“It’s cool,” said Kankuro, still sweating slightly, then turned back to Sakura and Sasuke. “And I’m sorry about what I said to you. Just having a little fun, you know?”

“See?” asked Naruto, folding his arms behind his head and beaming at Gaara. “It’s all good, no need for fighting. Hey, you wanna get something to eat?”

Sasuke did not look particularly inclined to take Kankuro’s apology. He looked back and forth between Naruto and Kankuro as though unsure who he was angrier at, but suddenly his eyes went wide as he looked at Naruto.

“You’re the genin from Uzushio?” he asked incredulously.

“That’s us,” said a voice from behind Hinata. She turned, to see two people standing behind her, clearly having entered the alley just behind Naruto. One was a girl with dark red hair and glasses obscuring eyes of the same shade, and the other was a boy with bright blue hair and a piercing below his lower lip. They both wore headbands with the Uzushio symbol on them, and when Hinata turned back to Naruto she could see he wore one too.

Immediately Hinata’s heart rate picked up. Whatever she had expected from the fearsome Uzushio ninja, it was not this bright and smiling boy who caught her when she fell and stopped fights before they started. She had not expected Naruto.

Sasuke was giving Naruto a look that said that Naruto wasn’t what he had expected either.

“I heard there’s a genius in your squad,” he said, looking between Naruto and the other two Uzushio ninja. “Or is more than one squad from your village participating in the chuunin exams?”

“That’s Naruto,” said the red haired girl proudly, crossing her arms over her chest. “He was top of our class at the academy, best student of his generation. He’s the pride and joy of our village.”

“Aw Karin, quit bragging,” said Naruto, but he did not look entirely displeased. His eyes met Hinata’s, and she quickly looked away.

Naruto was not only an Uzushio ninja, but he was the genius, their pride and joy? But he seemed so . . . nice.

Sasuke scoffed. “There’s no way you’re a genius,” he protested. “You’re way too loud and brash to even be a ninja.”

“Hey!” said the girl, who Hinata assumed was Karin. “You take that back!”

Out of the corner of her eye, Hinata saw Kankuro and Temari take a few steps backward, out of the way.

“I’m not apologizing for saying things that are true,” said Sasuke, apparently oblivious to the retreating ninja. “If you’re what passes for a genius in Uzushio then that village must have really gone downhill.”

“You shouldn’t say things like that about other people’s villages,” said Naruto, eyes narrowing. “Someone might take you seriously.”

“You’d better take me seriously,” Sasuke insisted. Immediately he began flipping through the signs for his fire breathing technique, and then he was raising his hand to his mouth and blowing through his fingers.

A jet of fire shot towards Naruto. Before it could reach him however he snapped his hands into a seal of his own, and a row of what looked like clones appeared before him, directly in the path of the flames. They were more solid than clones though, as each absorbed a bit of the fire before disbursing, and by the time Naruto was left standing alone once more the flames had gone out.

Shadow clones. Multiple shadow clones at a time. A jonin level technique.

Sasuke stared, apparently flabbergasted that his technique had not worked. From behind herself Hinata heard Karin laugh. Sasuke’s head snapped around at the noise, eyes flashing.

“You got something to add, you worthless little-“

Sasuke did not get the chance to finish his sentence. One moment Naruto was standing a few feet away from him, his expression neutral but serious. Then, less than a moment later, in the blink of an eye, he was standing right in front of Sasuke with his fist sunk into Sasuke’s stomach.

Sasuke made a retching noise and stumbled back, hunched over and clutching at his stomach. Sakura cried out his name and went to support him, but he shoved her away, and with a slight growl stuffed a hand into his pouch of weapons and pulled out a kunai.

“Why you-” he began, but before he could advance on Naruto the other boy was suddenly standing in front of him again, so fast that he didn’t appear to have moved at all. He was holding the wrist of the hand that held the kunai, and his other hand was drawn back. The nails of that hand looked remarkably like claws, and it was clear he was about to slice those claws across Sasuke’s face.

“Stop!” screamed a voice. At first Hinata thought it might have been Sakura’s, but when Sakura turned to look at her in surprise she realized it had been her own.

Naruto froze, his hand still drawn back to strike at Sasuke. His lips had been pulled back in a snarl of anger, but suddenly he looked only surprised. For a moment no one moved, all of them standing there frozen as they waiting for Naruto’s decision. Then Naruto looked at his own wrist as though in confusion. Hinata reluctantly tore her eyes from his face to see that a thin trail of sand was plucking at the sleeve of his jacket.

“Naruto,” said Gaara, in a voice like sandpaper. “Leave the idiot and let’s go eat.”

Just like that Naruto was suddenly standing beside Gaara, several feet back from Sasuke. Sakura hurried to put her weight behind Sasuke as he stumbled back, looking faintly shocked at what had just transpired.

“Sure!” said Naruto, suddenly all smiles once more. The two ninja behind Hinata came around her and hurried to Naruto’s side, falling into step beside him as he and Gaara began walking in the other direction. Kankuro and Temari went with them, and they all began chatting amicably amongst themselves.

When they had readed the other end of the alley however, Naruto turned.

“Hey cute girl,” he said, looking directly at Hinata. “I’ll catch you later, ok?”

Not knowing what else to do, too shocked to do anything else, Hinata nodded.

[dimancheetoile]

Give me breath

Written for @shikasaku-week

Day One: Duty/Free Will (or read it on AO3)

At first, the drums. A rhythmic, heavy sound, echoing in the storm that's been raging for the past two days. It's loud and sickening and it calls to the hearts of the warriors, crawling in the mud and blood of their allies, over their corpses lying on the mines.

Then, it's the singing. It's just as loud, but synchronised in a way that speaks of past battles and habits. It's hard to make out the words over the storm and the drums, but everyone knows them. How it tells the story of the children of Fire, of the land they're dying for. The story of those nameless faces who are going to fall for what they stand for.

The shinobi of old times, when the job still meant stealth and assassination, are legends by now. Those that are still trained like this aren't in the front lines of this war. Now is the time for battle, and it's an army the enemy will see marching. What matters now is how many soldiers the generals are willing to sacrifice, how many losses are acceptable if it means winning the war.

Back in the camp, where the decisions are made, only the legends remain.

"That isn't an option, Commander. We need to strike at their heart while the troops act as a distraction."

The sneer of Shikamaru's face would make a weaker man stand down. "And I'm telling you that Konoha won't stand for this. If you still want our help, you'll have to accept that."

"Look at you, with your naive morale and principles! This isn't how you win a war!"

"Raikage-sama, with all due respect, you can go fuck yourself. I'm going to check on my men."

Shikamaru marches out of the tent without a glance for the dumbfounded faces of the people around the table. He is seething with anger, his breath shortening as the rage takes over and he needs—

He almost whimpers when a familiar hand slips in his. Shikamaru doesn't need to look to know who joined his steps towards the encampment. Instead, he tightens his hold and focuses on the calloused knuckles and scars he can feel on Sakura's hardened skin.

"How did it go?"

"It's a clusterfuck," he mumbles, glad that the men are purposefully not looking in their direction. "A is a bastard who wants to send our people to the slaughter, Otokaze does his best, but he's only been in position for two days, so it's not much. Ao is still unaccounted for, and they have yet to find a replacement for him. Kurotsuchi is okay, I guess, but she doesn't want to stand too firmly on Konoha's side, not after when let her grand-father die to protect Gaara." He snorts. "The good it did us."

"Hey, stop it. We had no way of predicting what was going to happen. For now, they agreed to put Otokaze in his place, so let him prove himself."

Shikamaru sighs. "You're right. I'm too close to this."

"I'm always right," she smirks, but doesn't disagree with his assessment.

This war is a mess. After the Fourth and the creation of the Alliance, they all thought they would be done with the fighting for a century or twenty. Of course, the universe disagreed. Shikamaru admits that at least they're not fighting each other this time. But apparently, there is a whole continent on the other side of what they thought was an ocean, and revealed itself to be a mere sea. And the people of this new world would put Kiri's bloodlust and Iwa's warmongering to shame on a bad day.

Suna was the first to fall. Its people found shelter in the Land of Fire, where troops from the Alliance where already gathering. And now, they only have to hold. So far, they're not doing that good of a job. Mei was killed on a raid at the border. Tsunade was in a coma and Kakashi was still missing, so they promoted Shikamaru to Jōnin Commander and acting Hokage, until a better solution presents itself. When Konoha had to make a choice between helping an Iwa an a Suna squad, each protecting a Kage, they went for Gaara. Ōnoki didn't make it, and Gaara sacrificed himself a couple of days ago to protect a civilian camp.

As it is, the Alliance is technically winning. The foreign forces are getting thinner every day and the Alliance medics were far better, allowing for their wounded to come back sooner to the front. But it's hard not to think of it as losing, when the death toll forces Shikamaru to stay awake at night, whispering the names of those that died during the day because of his decisions.

The worst remains to watch his friends losing themselves little by little, exhausted by another war so soon after the last. Most of them are put in positions they never wanted, making decisions that haunt their sleep. Shikamaru will never forget the day Naruto came back, covered in blood and grime, with a child's body over his shoulders. He had yelled franticly for a medic, someone to help the boy, but when a young nurse came to help, they realized the child had been dead for over three days.

And Naruto didn't notice. He was taking life after life with the boy on his shoulders, trying to get back to camp at all cost. That's when they all realized that this is a war, against actual human beings, and not Zetsu clones or mythical creatures from old tales. Naruto's laugh doesn't sound the same anymore.

Shikamaru has been helpless to watch his promotion bloody their hands, hurting the very core of what they are, in order to win. He still can't look Ino in the eyes, and he only manages to stay at Sakura's side because she won't allow him to be a coward and run away from his decisions.

The two women are in charge of the war equivalent of T&I. It's only the two of them, when the Alliance need an information and they can be spared from the battlefield. Sakura is a terrifying force, feared by the opposite side whenever she's spotted in their ranks. Ino puts the nightmares in their enemies' sleep with a smile on her face and a dead look in her eyes.

But outside of the battlefield, they are expert medics who know where to cut to hurt the most, and where to press to make people talk. So they torture, and they interrogate, and they give the Alliance the information they need when they ask for it. And after that, Shikamaru collects the pieces and watches them wither away.

When they reach the center of the camp, the shinobi there stop talking. Everyone looks at the pair they make, respect in their set jaw and determined eyes. Sakura braces herself and swallows her self-hatred to smile at the soldiers. She drops Shikamaru's hand and stops by a wounded kunoichi to patch her up. Shikamaru kneels next to a chūnin he barely knows and asks about his comrades. Slowly, the camp starts to live again, with a new spark in their eyes.

Sakura and Shikamaru go on, healing, talking, torturing and ordering. They do their duty and they die a little bit more on the inside. They have a war to win.

[jouissezduprintemps]

Something to Prove, Chapter Three: Who Invited Him

Rating: T Warnings: Swearing Words: 3105 Fandom: Naruto Summary: As Suna prepares for its first independently-held chunin exam since Gaara became kazekage, the sand siblings must make sure that everything goes off without a hitch.

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Ino sat down on the edge of the spring, letting her feet dangle into the hot water. Her pale skin made her overheat more easily, and she’d learned her lesson the hard way several years ago. She secured her towel around her torso before placing her hands on the ground on either side of her hips, leaning back into the sun. When Shikamaru had invited her, she was surprised, and even more so when she heard that it was Temari’s idea. The sand kunoichi had always seemed annoyed by her. Sure, Ino knew she was rather feminine. She liked talking about boys and arranging flowers in her family shop. But Temari was… intense. Not intense in the way Naruto was, but in a serious way. Maybe that’s what happened to women in a kage bloodline; Lady Tsunade could be the same.

Well, there were certainly a few perks to spending time with royalty. When the kazekage introduced himself to the owner of the springs, they’d been given the rest of the day to themselves, at her insistence. It was clear that Gaara was uncomfortable with the treatment, but Naruto’s elation had drowned him out. Ino took a moment to appreciate the quiet; it looked like the guys weren’t done showering. She was going to enjoy it while it lasted.

Sakura had waded into the water until it reached mid-calf. She leaned against the edge of the spring, close enough to talk to Ino. “This is nice,” she commented, referring both to the spring and their solitude.

“Yeah, it is.” Ino agreed. “Must be great to have these perks, huh, Temari?”

She was interrupted by shouting from the other side of the fence. So much for the serenity.

Temari turned to look at her new friend, puzzled. “No, this doesn’t happen too often,” she admitted. “I’m treated much better here than at home. I think that goes for all three of us.”

“Huh,” Sakura mused. “That’s surprising.”

“Not really. When your brother is a jinchuuriki, things can be pretty biased.” Temari stripped herself of her towel unabashedly and waded waist-deep.

Difference in villages, Ino mused, surprised at how comfortable the sand ninja seemed to be. She caught herself staring at Temari, having noticed a long scar that ran down her left side, from just below her breast to her natural waistline.

Temari knew what Ino had been looking at. She’d had it so long that she forgot it was there. She lifted her left arm slightly, taking a glance at the discolored stripe of skin.

Ino received a sharp elbow to the ribs from Sakura, who glared at her before turning to Temari, ashamed. “Sorry about her. She didn’t mean anything by it, really.”

Ino was about to retort that she didn’t need Sakura to apologize for her, but Temari spoke first.

“It’s fine. I know it’s hard to miss.” Temari waved her hand dismissively, refusing to take it personally.

“Do you… mind if I ask?” Sakura questioned. “It’s just that I’m training to be a medical ninja, and-”

“You don’t need a reason. When my brothers and I were still genin, before we met all of you, we were training for the chunin exams in the demon desert. I ended up on the wrong side of a giant scorpion.”

“A scorpion did that?” Sakura asked in surprise.

“What? No.” Temari turned a quarter rotation, baring her right shoulder. A faint mark lingered on her skin. “It caught me here. Really nasty poison, though.”

Both Sakura and Ino nodded, recalling the creatures from their brief time in Suna’s wilderness.

“No, this,” Temari gestured at her side, “was Gaara.”

Ino was taken aback. Everyone in the Leaf knew that the kazekage was the one tails’ jinchuuriki, after what had happened at the chunin exam several years ago. “Gaara?”

“He couldn’t stop the one tails. He flew into one of his rages. I’m almost positive he was trying to protect me. But I got caught in the crossfire… The poison was bad enough, but I almost bled out in the desert. Thankfully, Baki knew better than to leave us unsupervised.” Temari hesitated. “I don’t mention it to Gaara. Our father was furious. That… was not a good night.”

Ino and Sakura looked at her in silence, unsure of how to respond. Temari’s life experiences were so different from their own. Sakura felt immensely guilty for asking. “Temari, I-”

“It’s fine,” she insisted. “That was a long time ago, before he learned how to control the demon. Besides,” she glanced at the fence that separated the springs, “he’s still my baby brother.”

Gaara sank down into the hot water, enjoying how it helped loosen the tight muscles in his back and neck. His insomnia had gone on for so long that it was easy to forget what it was like not to be in pain.

“Yaaaaaaa-hooooo!”

Gaara’s arms flew up to cover his face as Naruto threw himself into the water, creating a splash large enough to hit everyone in the spring.

“Damn it, Naruto,” Shikamaru complained, wringing out his now-damp towel.

“Calm down,” Kankuro scolded, narrowing his eyes at the knuckleheaded ninja. “We’re here to relax, remember?”

“Aww, you’re no fun.” Naruto complained as he resurfaced.

“You call that a splash?!” Lee called from the doorway.

“No!” Shikamaru shouted, whipping around and pointing at Lee.

His fellow ninja seemed crestfallen, but he did as he was told and simply walked into the spring. Shikamaru let out a breath, and he heard Kankuro chuckling to himself. “Why did you two have to tag along?” he groaned, looking at Naruto and Lee. With those two, he never had to worry about coming across as rude.

“Why would I miss a day with good friends?” Lee countered. He’d bounced back quickly, in the way that only he could manage.

“Right!” Naruto agreed. “And besides,” he grinned evilly. “Sakura’s on the other side of the fence.”

“You’re one creepy kid, you know that?” Kankuro eyed Naruto warily. “And don’t even try it. My sister’s over there, and I will kick your ass.”

“Who’re you calling creepy, puppet boy?” Naruto challenged, stepping up to a fight that he wasn’t prepared for.

“Naruto,” Gaara rasped, breaking his friend’s attention away from his older brother.

“Yeah, yeah.” Naruto grumbled, allowing himself to sink down into the water. He glanced mischievously at the hole in the fence, tempted. Damn it, why wasn’t there anyone here who would back him up on this? He was stuck with a group of losers and goodie-two-shoes.

As Shikamaru expected, Naruto and Lee stuck close enough to Gaara to be his shadows. It was funny to watch, if only because he wasn’t a part of it. The kazekage didn’t seem to mind, but Shikamaru didn’t know if that was patience or a complete lack of understanding. At the very least, he seemed to be enjoying himself.

Shikamaru sat down in the water, using an outcropping in the rock as a seat. He looked over at Kankuro, who was leaning against the wall and looking up at the sky. “You know, you look a lot different without your face paint.”

“And you look a lot different with your hair down.”

“Fair enough.” Shikamaru followed Kankuro’s gaze upward, and the two watched the sky in silence.

Meanwhile, Lee was talking to – or rather, at – Gaara, speaking enough for the both of them. To his benefit, Gaara seemed interested in the one-sided conversation, nodding along as Lee prattled on about his newest jutsu.

And no one, in their musings, had remembered to keep an eye on Naruto.

His face was pressed against the fence, as close as he could physically position himself. His hands braced himself on either side of his head against the wood. “Whoa, Temari’s scar is huge!”

Shikamaru’s head snapped so fast that he almost gave himself whiplash. Scar? What scar? He’d never noticed a scar.

“Naruto!” Lee scolded, standing up in the water.

Kankuro was the quickest to move. He grabbed the ninja by his shaggy, blonde hair and forced him down into the water. Unceremoniously, he yanked him back up. “You little brat!” he began to shout, but he chose instead to dunk Naruto back under the water. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” Naruto gasped for air, but Kankuro shoved him down once more before he could respond. “You know what? I don’t wanna hear it!”

“Kankuro!” Gaara snapped as he gripped his much larger brother’s arm. With Lee’s help, the two managed to free Naruto.

“I told him I’d kick his ass!”

“I think near-drowning counts,” Shikamaru commented, although he kept his distance. When Kankuro rounded on him, he held up his hands, palms-out. “Hey, I’m with you on this one.”

“It’s not like I was trying to spy on her!” Naruto attempted to defend himself. “She was standing in the way! There’s no way I could have missed it!”

Gaara closed his eyes and took a deep breath. His friend was an idiot. He let go of his brother, earning a confused look from Lee, who followed his lead and did the same. Even he knew better than to get into the middle of this.

“I’m going to kill that little pervert!” Sakura bellowed, clenching her fist in anger. She had jumped to her feet, and she looked as though she was considering going over the fence to make good on her word.

“Great…” Temari murmured, gritting her teeth as she wrapped herself in her towel. This was the last thing she needed. She wondered if Sakura could hit him hard enough to erase her nakedness from Naruto’s short-term memory. Otherwise, this would certainly stick around to haunt her.

“We’re so sorry, Temari. We should have known.” Ino apologized, seething in her own anger but trying to de-escalate the situation.

Temari could hear her brother shouting, unable to make out his exact words. “It’ll be fine. That’s what Kankuro and Gaara are for. And that’s before we get our say.” Her voice was dark and threatening. Ino wondered if Temari actually planned on killing him.

Temari was mostly concerned about Gaara finding out about her scar. She had done her best to keep him in the dark about it. He’d feel guilty, and Temari felt that he had enough guilt in his life already. “Well, so much for that,” she mused bitterly, wishing that she and Shikamaru had kept the excursion between the two of them. Still, she had no one to blame but herself.

It didn’t take long for the three kunoichi to clothe themselves and leave the bath, but there was no sign of their male companions. At Sakura’s suggestion, they sat down at one of the wooden tables out front. The sun was beginning to set and the air was becoming cool. Still, Temari absentmindedly fanned herself with the small, folding fan she kept on her person. She generously allowed Sakura and Ino to pass it around as well.

“So,” Ino broke the silence, “is everything ready for the chunin exam?”

“On our end, at least.” Temari confirmed. “Mine and Shikamaru’s, I mean. I haven’t had a chance to talk to Gaara or Kankuro about the rest.”

“Shikamaru?” Sakura asked.

“He’s helping proctor the first, written exam portion,” Temari explained. In a slightly annoyed tone, she added, “He refuses to show me the questions he’s made up.”

Ino arched an eyebrow. “Aaaand you’re okay with this?”

“Should I not be?”

“He kinda forgot you at the gate…”

Sakura looked at Ino in surprise; Ino signaled that she would explain later.

“I trust him,” Temari declared. She was caught off guard by the way her fellow kunoichi looked at her when she said it, and she suddenly became rather self-conscious. Her cheeks tinged a light pink in embarrassment at being examined so intensely.

Much to her relief, she caught sight of Gaara and the others. Kankuro stalked angrily over to his sister, making himself appear as large as possible in front of Naruto. Everyone else, for the most part, had seemed to calm down. Shikamaru’s face was unreadable. Naruto, on the other hand, was trying to conceal a very conspicuous black eye and bloody nose.

“Serves you right,” Sakura declared before grabbing her teammate by the ear. She dragged him off, and Naruto’s voice broke in between protests and pleads for mercy.

Lee grimaced in pity, torn because he knew it was deserved, but it was still harsh. He took it upon himself to lighten the mood. “Would anyone like to get dinner? We could go to the new curry restaurant.”

Gaara nodded. “I could eat.”

“Same.” Kankuro felt his stomach growl.

“We could stop by Choji’s and invite him. He’s been wanting to try that place,” Ino suggested.

“I think I’m going to skip tonight,” Temari declined. No one tried to press her. She’d had enough for the day.

“I’ll walk you home,” Shikamaru offered.

“Should we save you a seat?” Ino asked her teammate.

“Nah. I’ll go some other time.”

The group parted ways, and Lee was lost in conversation with Gaara and Ino, thinking of who they could invite to join them.

Temari took a moment to close her eyes, and she felt her body relax. Finally, she was alone. Well, not exactly. Wordlessly, she started off down the road, in the opposite direction of her brothers. Shikamaru kept pace beside her.

Eventually, Temari asked, “Who hit him?”

“I did,” Shikamaru admitted. He looked over at her, and she was staring at him, wide-eyed. That was a first.

“Not Kankuro?”

“No, your brother just about drowned him, though.”

“You’re telling me that you actually punched Naruto in the face. You.”

“He pissed me off. Why’s that so hard to believe?”

“Hm.” Temari shrugged her shoulders and looked ahead once more. She tried, and failed, to keep a satisfied smile from showing on her face. Well, I’ll be damned.

The two climbed up the stairs to her usual room, neither bothering to break the silence between them. Temari inserted her key into the lock and opened the front door to the small apartment. She didn’t bother to close it behind her, a signal that Shikamaru could follow her inside. He did just that and closed the door before taking off his shoes.

“What do you want to eat?” Temari asked, pulling out a stack of menus from local restaurants.

“I thought you weren’t hungry.”

“I wasn’t hungry enough to eat with my brothers,” she corrected. “If you don’t want to stay, that’s fine. I was going to buy your dinner to say thanks for sucker-punching a junchuuriki on my behalf…”

He chuckled, appreciative of the gesture. If he was honest with himself, he was happier to eat with only Temari than with a large group. Her behavior changed greatly when they had company other than themselves, even when it was her brothers. He had yet to figure that one out. “I’ll stay,” he told her, realizing only after he said it that she never doubted he would.

“Here.” Temari shoved the thick stack of menus into his hands. “You pick. I don’t care what we eat.”

Shikamaru threw himself down on the couch, making himself comfortable. He glanced at the names on each menu, trying to find something that sounded appetizing. “Ichiraku delivers,” he suggested, glancing over his shoulder.

“That’s fine,” Temari called from the next room. When she reappeared, she had changed into loose-fitting pants, much like Tenten’s. Her shirt appeared to be one of the long-sleeved ones issued with the Suna ninja gear.

“That’s new,” Shikamaru commented.

“I don’t plan on leaving,” she explained, although she knew she didn’t have to. She sat on the other end of the couch and took the menu from him, looking over her options. Her attention was pulled away when she noticed Shikamaru looking at her. It didn’t seem like he knew what he was doing. He had a puzzled look on his face, and his eyes were slightly narrowed. She waited a moment to see if he would snap out of it. “Can I help you?”

“Oh,” Shikamaru realized what he was doing and immediately shifted his gaze out the window. “Sorry.”

“No, what?” she pried, surprised by his unusual behavior.

Uncomfortable, Shikamaru coughed into his hand. “Naruto might have mentioned you have a scar.” He mentally berated himself for saying so. How rude could he possibly be?

“You want to see it.” It was a statement rather than a question.

“Well, no, I-”

Temari smirked, entertained that she had made him flustered. Shikamaru wasn’t an easy man to shake. If she was honest with herself, she enjoyed it more than she could admit. She also knew that, if they were going to get past this particular hangup any time soon, it was best to just satisfy his curiosity. She used her hands to gather the fabric at the bottom of her shirt and lifted it up, exposing her abdomen.

Shikamaru’s eyes locked onto the scar, well aware that whatever caused it was probably enough to almost kill her. To his relief, the mark wasn’t anywhere inappropriate. It occurred to him that he’d simply never seen so much of Temari’s skin before. If she dressed like Ino, it would have been obvious. He had the urge to reach out and touch it, but he had far more self-control than that.

“Now you know.” Temari straightened her shirt as she pulled it back down.

“I was rude,” Shikamaru admitted, suddenly embarrassed by how bold he had been.

“It’s not like I go out of my way to hide it.” Temari paused before shifting in her seat to face Shikamaru head-on. “Just do me a favor. Don’t mention it to Gaara.”

“Right.”

Temari noticed that his eyes were still fixed on her side. He was a genius; it wouldn’t take long for him to figure out where the scar had come from. In an attempt to lighten the mood, she leaned forward and smacked his forehead with the menu. “Now quit being a perv long enough to order our dinner.”

Shikamaru stammered, much to her amusement. Her laugh assured him that she was only joking, but he was embarrassed nonetheless. To his shame, she wasn’t too far from the truth when it came to his wandering mind at that moment. Trying to save face, he stood and walked to the telephone, which hung on the wall.

“Pork ramen for me!” Temari called, earning a wave of the menu from Shikamaru, whose back was turned to her. Damn it, she was way too troublesome.

[love-marked]

Listen listen, I’m going to tell you about the dream I just had involving these dorks Naruto and Gaara.

So I guess this takes place maybe just before shippuden starts, like a little after Naruto and Gaara fight and Gaara isn’t murderous anymore but still very awkward and conflicting about himself and people in general. Somehow the entirety of the ninja world is like at peace for the time being, so everybody decides to meet up at this gigantic prairie land looking area and have this big old festival. Like there’s vendors and little tents and games and everyone’s just chilling. We’re focused on Naruto and Gaara arriving at this location, not together, but they’re both coming from their own villages. They’re like on opposite ends of this riverside near the festival. Naruto catches sight of Gaara first and grins instantly. He hasn’t seen him since their fight, but he already is ready to greet his former opponent like a brother. Gaara on the other hand, catches sight of Naruto and becomes uneasy. He hasn’t seen that boy since the time when he tried to murder him and his friends. Why would he want to be around a former monster like that? Instinctually, Gaara becomes insecure and recoils from Naruto’s view before walking any further in his direction, just in time to miss seeing an excitedly waving hand from Naruto. He still feels very uncomfortable being around people that once viewed him as the monster he was. He just doesn’t know how to be okay with people yet, somewhat of a social anxiety you could say. He especially feels vulnerable around Naruto. Naruto, upon seeing Gaara suddenly retreat from his sight, frowns and his mood drops instantly. What the hell was that about? Why would he disappear like that after seeing me, doesn’t he recognize me?? Naruto is overcome with confusion, which quickly turns to frustration, and bitterly makes his way into the festival. He finds Kakashi (he sorta just comes out of nowhere) and Kakashi notices Naruto’s bad mood right away by the plain sight of his face and upset noises he keeps making. He finally asks Naruto what’s wrong, so Naruto starts angrily blurting to him about his weird encounter with Gaara. After a moment of contemplating and silence as Naruto looks like he’s about to burst into angry tears, Kakashi laughs. Naruto is shocked and upset. “What the hell are you laughing about?!” “Well, it sounds like Gaara’s just nervous. He doesn’t hate you, Naruto. He just doesn’t know how to be around people after what he’s been through. He’s never had any real friends of his own, and he’s still very wary when it comes to trusting others. You can understand why. I think the reason why he’s so reluctant to run into you is because you’re the only person trying to reach out to him so directly, and he isn’t prepared for that. Considering what you both have in common, I’ll bet he’s wanted to befriend you the most, which is why his nerves are acting up now. He’s just being a bit shy about it.” This little pep talk has Naruto in awe, and his mood is lifted once more, perhaps more than the first time. He has a stupid grin on his face and his cheeks are pink with happiness at the thought of Gaara really wanting to be friends, too. Kakashi tells him to calm down. “Now you can’t just go running after Gaara, that’s sure to scare him. You have to approach him gently, like a cat. Think of Gaara as that cat from your first mission. Hopefully you don’t get scratched.”

Meanwhile, Gaara is stooping around in some semi-secluded area, like some sort of alley (I don’t know why there’s an alley, there just is), and he’s being eaten away by whatever anxious thoughts he has, until someone pops out of nowhere to talk some sense into him. You guessed it, it’s Maito Gai (I don’t know, I don’t know). Much to Gaara’s surprise and mild uneasiness, Gai starts to ask him what seems to be troubling his head. Of course, Gaara doesn’t say much of anything, but somehow Gai already knows (actually, I bet he found out about their encounter through Kakashi, but Gai let’s Gaara think he’s some sort of special mind reader). He asks if it’s about Naruto, and Gaara nods, brow furrowed. Gai chuckles a bit to himself. “You know, that boy really wants to befriend you. We can’t even say ‘Suna’ without him asking a million questions about ya! ‘How’s Gaara doing, what has Gaara been up to, when are we gonna invite Gaara to the leaf village’ he’s nuts!” Gaara just sits there with this wide-eyed expression at Gai, and finally speaks out. “… really?” Gai laughs at Gaara’s shy response “Really really.”(I’m sorry)

They both decide to seek out each other again, and after some searching they run into each other on opposite sides of a crowd. Kakashi and Gai are watching their encounter from a hidden point, like the concerned parents they’re are(actually more like Gai dragged Kakashi out to accompany his eavesdropping). The boys are far apart like before, but Gaara catches Naruto shouting his name over the crowd. Just as Gaara’s about to make his way towards him, he’s taken aback again, this time because Naruto is running straight towards him like he’s going to make a jump attack. Kakashi groans as Gai tries to fight back his laughter. Gaara wants to recoil again, but instead stands his ground and just faces Naruto head on, hands at his side, heartbeat picking up. All at once, Naruto runs into Gaara like a long lost lover and encloses him in a bear hug, a pretty tight one too, probably the first real hug Gaara’s ever received. He is shook. Naruto starts giggling because he knows he scared Gaara but he also knows Gaara’s just shy to his feelings. He hugs tighter. “Hey, don’t think I’m not gonna be excited as hell to see you after all this time! So don’t even try avoiding me!” Gaara finally allows himself to smile back, his anxiety loosening a bit as he reciprocates Naruto’s hug in his own gentle way. After maybe a million questions, they head off here and there, Naruto leading the way mainly, throughout the festival. At one point, Naruto and Gaara are chilling together while taking turns doing transformation jutsus and laughing at each other like the true dorks that they are (by the way, their voices are the Japanese actors, and Gaara is actually laughing, not like that creepy giggle he does when he is about to kill someone, but like a real actual happy laugh and he sounds like an angel and I’m crying). Naruto turns himself into some ugly old lady. They both laugh. Gaara turns himself into a bird. “Why is that funny?” “… because I’m a bird.” They both laugh.(what’s wrong with these kids)

[jouissezduprintemps]

Something to Prove, Chapter Five: Let the Chunin Exam Begin!

Rating: T Warnings: Swearing Words: 3601 Fandom: Naruto Summary: As Suna prepares for its first independently-held chunin exam since Gaara became kazekage, the sand siblings must make sure that everything goes off without a hitch.

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Temari kept her eyes on the west, watching as the beginnings of a sandstorm began to brew. Most of the genin and their jonin captains had made it inside the village walls, but they were waiting on a few stragglers. A squad from the Village Hidden in the Clouds had, apparently, been slowed down by an injury, and sent their comrades on ahead. In her opinion, it would have been best for them to turn back; no genin who was hurt before the exam even started stood a chance.

She glanced down at the clipboard in her hand. They had two hours. Any squads that arrived after that time limit were automatically disqualified.

A gust of wind whipped grains of sand against the exposed skin of her calves, pulling her attention back to the storm. In reality, they had one hour. If that storm hit before the rest of the squads arrived, Suna would have to send a handful of units into the weather. It’d be a miracle to find anyone at that point.

She untied her headband from around her neck and repositioned it, using the black cloth to cover her mouth and nose. She tied the ends securely behind her head. Her breath was hot against the fabric, but that was a small price to pay to keep the grit out of her lungs.

Kankuro was busy registering the squads that had already arrived, and Baki took charge of leading the squads to their lodgings. So far, everything was running smoothly.

Her eyes scanned the vast desert from her place at the top of the wall, searching for stragglers. One squad from the Cloud, two from the Mist, and one from the Rain. Twelve genin. If none of them arrived, the exam would be the smallest in recent memory.

To her relief, she spotted a small group approaching from the east, sticking close to the outer wall. Eight forms. From this distance, it was hard to see, but it was clear that they were the two teams from the Village Hidden in the Mist. That brought the number of missing genin from twelve to six. When the group entered through the gate, she pulled a pen out of her pocket and scribbled on the clipboard.

Footsteps echoed up the stone wall, coming from her left. Temari looked over at her new companion, surprised to see that Shikamaru had joined her. “What are you doing out here?” she asked, the movements of her lips hidden behind her makeshift mask.

“The deadline’s almost up,” Shikamaru informed her. She doubted that someone had actually sent him to tell her that information.

“I know. The Hidden Mist just arrived.” She showed him the clipboard. “You should go inside. There’s a sandstorm coming, and it’s going to be strong.”

“You’re still out here.”

Temari fought the urge to roll her eyes. “I’m a Suna nin, Crybaby. I know how to deal with a storm like this.”

“You don’t give me nearly enough credit,” Shikamaru complained as he took a Suna-issue mask from his pocket. He secured it across his face before explaining, “Your sensei told all of us to take one.”

It was just like Baki to be one step ahead of everyone else. She allowed Shikamaru to study the list, taking the opportunity to look over the desert once more. There was no sign of the other teams. In the west, the sandstorm was picking up speed, and she could already hear the howling.

“This isn’t good,” Shikamaru commented gravely.

“No, it’s not.” Temari crossed her arms below her chest. “I’m hoping that the Cloud squad had enough sense to turn back; one of them is injured. And with only one squad coming from the Rain, there’s no way to know their status.”

“What do you plan to do?”

“I’ll keep looking until the storm is about to hit. If I see any stragglers, we’ll send a unit to retrieve them. If not, we’re not risking any of our ninja for a slight chance.” It seemed harsh, but with the possibility that the last two squads might not come at all, it was senseless to endanger their own ninja on a whim.

If that was the case, Shikamaru thought, she could use all the help she could get. Two sets of eyes were better than one. The next several minutes passed in a tense silence, the only sound the increasing volume of wind in the distance.

“Found them,” Shikamaru declared, gesturing off to the north. A small squad of four was running toward the wall with everything they had. They were making good time.

Temari watched them carefully, relaxing once they had entered the shadow of the wall. “And that’s the Rain.” As Shikamaru scratched out that squad on the list, she looked over his shoulder. “Come on. We need to get inside. At this rate, even if the Cloud is coming, they won’t be in range before the storm hits. If they’re smart, they’ll have enough sense to stay out of it.”

After slipping through the door, Temari took a moment to fix her headband and to brush the sand out of her hair. Shikamaru followed her lead, shoving the mask back into his pocket before swiping ineffectively at his hair. “Come here,” Temari put a hand on the back of his head and tilted him downward, far enough that she could help him. Her touch made the short hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and he could only hope she wouldn’t notice. “We’ll be here all night if you try to do it yourself.”

She was probably right, and Shikamaru knew it. “Thanks,” he offered once she’d let go of him.

“Now come on. We need to meet up with the rest of the proctors.”

Kankuro was acting as registration detail, preferring to work in the background rather than proctor. He wasn’t great with kids. Genin were hardly children, and they certainly weren’t coddled, but Kankuro simply didn’t have enough patience to hold a conversation with one. At least he recognized this quality in himself and stepped to the side.

Gaara wasn’t much better, but he was the kazekage. It would reflect poorly on the village if he didn’t put in any effort. He looked over at his sister when he saw her enter the atrium, and he nodded to the ninja standing by the front door. On his signal, the doors clicked shut, shielding everyone within from the approaching storm. He excused himself from talking to a Suna jonin and wove his way through the crowd, stopping when he reached Temari.

“Everyone’s accounted for other than the injured squad from the Cloud,” Temari informed him, taking the clipboard from Shikamaru and handing it to her younger brother.

“It can’t be helped,” Gaara rasped as his pale eyes scanned the paper. “I need both of you to help Baki organize the genin. I want them to have time to bring their things to their rooms before we provide dinner.”

“Did you rehearse your speech?” Temari asked, momentarily slipping into older-sister mode. It was easy to forget that Gaara was the kazekage at times.

Thankfully, Gaara was more amused than offended. “Unfortunately,” he quipped. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a different jonin trying to get his attention. “And that’s me.” He turned away from his sister and disappeared into the crowd once more.

“I don’t think I’ve heard him joke before,” Shikamaru remarked.

“Enjoy it. He only jokes once every five years.” Temari caught sight of her sensei and made her way across the room, Shikamaru on her heels.

“Great,” Baki remarked when he saw his reinforcements. “This is like herding cats. Here, you two can take this half of the list.”

Temari took the piece of paper from him, reading the first set of names. “Got it.”

“Akemi, Saburo, Komako!” Baki called, his voice ringing throughout the room. A group of Cloud genin made their way to him, and he led the way out of the hall.

Taking Baki’s lead, Temari raised her voice and called out “Konohamaru, Udon, Moegi!”

Shikamaru looked over at the piece of paper she held. So, those three were finally old enough to take the exam. They were fresh out of the academy… something told him that Konohamaru urged his teammates into taking the exam their first year, just like Naruto had done.

“Hey, it’s big brother Shikamaru!”

Shikamaru looked down in front of him, greeted by Konohamaru’s toothy grin. Temari began to exit the hall, and he ushered the genin after her, talking as they walked. “Hey, guys.”

“What’re you doing here? You don’t have a squad.” Konohamaru remarked, looking up at the jonin.

“I’m helping proctor the exam,” Shikamaru explained.

“Sweet! We’ve got big brother Shikamaru watching our backs!”

Temari let out a short laugh, which made Konohamaru frown.

“What?”

The kid was bold, she’d give him that. But he was rude, and she was ready to put him in his place. “You really don’t know what you’re up against, do you, kid?”

Konohamaru bristled, glaring at her back. Before he could come up with a retort, she stopped them in their tracks. Temari opened the door to the room marked 302, gesturing inside. “This is your room. Remember the number, and learn where it is. No one’s here to babysit you or hold your hand if you get lost. Be back in the atrium in an hour.”

She set off down the hallway, leaving the three genin in shock. Konohamaru was fuming, and his mouth opened and closed like a fish as he thought of what he wanted to shout after her. Shikamaru shrugged, looking at the trio with mild pity. “Good luck, guys.” With that, he jogged his first few steps until he caught up with the sand kunoichi.

“They’re not ready,” Temari determined when he caught up with her. “They think you’re going to coddle them because you’re from the Leaf.”

“Give ‘em a chance,” Shikamaru suggested. “You never know what can happen.”

By the time they returned to the atrium, Baki had enlisted the help of anyone who happened to be standing around. The jonin were given their assignments on each floor, placed in rooms that would allow them to keep an eye on the genin.

Kankuro had finished with the registration. He stacked the papers with a look of relief. He had been through his own personal hell and made it to the other side. From here on out, he only had to worry about heading security detail for the kazekage. He handed the papers to his brother, who tucked them away in a file for safekeeping.

“Ah, Shikamaru,” Gaara remarked when he caught sight of him. “We’ve arranged for you to stay in another building. You don’t have a squad, and it’s probably best if we keep anything related to the first exam as far away from the genin as possible.”

Shikamaru couldn’t argue with that logic. “Whatever you need.”

Kankuro clapped him on the shoulder, something he’d never done before. “You’ll be staying with us. We have plenty of room. Besides, no one wants to have to hear dozens of kids for the next few days.”

“You’re not wrong,” he admitted. “Thanks.”

“You’ve got our back, we’ve got yours.” Kankuro assured him.

Huh. If I knew punching Naruto would get me this far, I would have done it years ago, Shikamaru mused.

“The best part is, as proctors, we don’t have to help with any of the festivities,” Temari added, smirking at her brothers.

“Don’t rub it in,” Kankuro complained. Gaara was expected at the welcome dinner, and Kankuro had forgotten that, by extension, he would need to be there, too. “At least we get to eat good food.”

“I’d rather survive off of the Akimichi hangover cure than have to deal with that chaos.”

Shikamaru looked at Temari, surprised that she’d not only encountered the drink, but was apparently able to stomach it.

“Are you sure there’s anything to eat at home?” Gaara asked, genuinely uncertain.

“We have soba, and that’s about all anyone needs to whip something up.”

“Fair enough.” The kazekage glanced at the large clock which decorated the south wall of the atrium. “We need to get going.” For his brother’s sake, he added, “We’ll leave as soon as we can.”

“You really didn’t want to go to that dinner,” Shikamaru commented as he perused the fridge in the kazekage’s kitchen. There wasn’t much of anything to be found. Then again, the three siblings were probably rarely home.

“No, I did not.” Temari lit the flame on the stove, and the fire licked the bottom of a large pot. “Too many people.”

The best Shikamaru could find was a bottle of sauce in the door of the fridge, which he took out before shutting the door. “You guys don’t actually live off of food like this, right?”

Temari laughed at the concern in his voice. “No, we don’t,” she assured him. “I was a little too quick to turn Gaara down.”

“Just a bit.” Shikamaru searched through the pantry and cabinets, still coming up short. Above the stove, his hand found something tucked away. He stood on his toes and reached up. When he came back down, he held a bottle of sake in each of his hands. He turned to Temari and gestured with the bottles. “Seriously?”

“You try living with my brothers,” Temari countered, using that as her reason for both the lack of food and the alcohol he found.

“So we have sake, soba, and some sort of marinade.”

“Seems like it.”

“Wow.”

“At least I’m feeding you.”

As Temari read the directions on the pack of soba, Shikamaru took the liberty of opening one of the bottles of sake. To his surprise, he managed to find two cups inside a well-organized cabinet of dishes. He filled both and slid Temari’s across the counter before taking a sip of his own. He watched as Temari used her teeth to tear open the plastic packaging. She emptied the bag into the water, turning down the heat as she kept an eye on it.

“So,” Temari leaned against the counter, picking up her cup. She avoided eye contact as she asked “Have Choji and Ino said anything?”

“No.” Shikamaru set his cup down on the wooden surface. “Not to anyone else, at least.”

“Good.”

“Hm.”

Temari took the bottle from him and refilled her cup before pulling herself up to sit on the countertop.

“I think they’re a little disappointed,” Shikamaru added nonchalantly. Realizing what he had said, he refilled his cup, drank it, and repeated the process.

Temari turned her face away from him, embarrassed when the fleeting thought crossed her mind that she was, too. Damn it, what was wrong with her? “That’s surprising,” she deflected.

“Not really. They like you.” Shikamaru completely missed the change in her body language.

“Good to know.” Temari slid down off the counter and went to take a look inside the pot, even though it hadn’t been cooking long enough to need her attention.

Neither of them knew what to say next, and it wasn’t a peaceful silence. They were both waiting for the other to say something, although they’d never admit it. They were far too stubborn for that.

A sudden gust of wind slammed against the building, and sand fell like rain against the windows. Shikamaru jumped, caught off guard.

“Don’t worry. That happens.” Temari assured him. She picked her cup back up and took a long drink. It warmed her down her throat and into her stomach, and she was grateful for the distraction. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of the storm,” she added tauntingly.

“I can leave, you know.”

“Go on, then.” Temari smirked as she stared him down, well aware that he wouldn’t.

Shikamaru huffed, nonverbally admitting defeat.

They listened to the wind howl as the water boiled, taking turns filling their cups. By the time the soba was cooked, they both had a little too much sake to care just how pathetic the meal was. Abandoning the counter, the two ninja sat on the floor with their bowls and sake cups, hungrily enjoying their food.

Soon, they were exchanging stories.

“No, no,” Shikamaru gestured with his chopsticks. “That’s not the best part. As soon as he said that, Asuma-sensei walks up to our table and asks ‘has anyone seen my wallet?’”

Temari almost dropped her bowl as she fell into a fit of laughter, grabbing her sides. The voice Shikamaru had used to mimic his sensei was too much. Her laugh was contagious, and Shikamaru was soon wiping a tear from his cheek as he hiccoughed for air. He grabbed the neck of the bottle and tilted it to his cup, but nothing came. He upended it, and all that fell out was a drop. He frowned and read the label, paying attention to the volume of the container.

“We probably shouldn’t have done that.”

He wasn’t sure if Temari didn’t hear him or if she chose to ignore him. Either way, it took her a little longer to catch her breath. She leaned forward and placed her elbows on her knees before reaching out and taking the empty bottle from Shikamaru. She eyed it for a moment before confirming, “No, probably not.”

Shikamaru took that moment to study her face. Her cheeks were flushed, although his were probably the same. She looked carefree, something that he hadn’t seen in her often. She was always worried about something. Her eyes met his as she caught her looking at him. She smiled her wide grin, bearing her teeth, and laughed.

“What?” he asked.

Temari leaned in closer and whispered “We’re going to be so hung over tomorrow.” She laughed, and, in a normal tone of voice, added, “And we have to give the genin an exam.”

“Oh, fuck,” Shikamaru swore, realizing that she was right. “We’re so screwed.”

“I know!” Temari seemed to find the situation far funnier than he did.

“You’re twisted.”

“That’s what makes it fun.”

Suddenly, Shikamaru became painfully aware that her face was inches from his own. He felt a tension in his stomach, but he made no move to distance himself. His heart began to beat faster. Should he? He wanted to, he could admit that much to himself. Did she want him to? He couldn’t quite read the look she wore.

He’d hesitated a moment too long.

“Hey, Temari! We’re back!” Kankuro called from the hallway. He was the first to enter the kitchen. “Oh, son of a bitch. Gaara!”

Gaara walked in and stood beside his brother, more than a bit confused.

“Damn it, we’re gone two hours. The hell, Temari?” Kankuro walked over to his sister and Shikamaru and took the bottle of sake from her hand. “Where did you even find this?”

“Shikamaru did!” Temari informed him, a hint of pride in her voice.

“That’s not even close to what I asked,” her brother sighed. “You’re both wasted.”

“They have to be up in eight hours to proctor,” Gaara pointed out.

Temari laughed at her brother’s serious tone.

“Oh, my god. How is that funny to you?” Kankuro asked, frustrated.

“Please, we’ll be fine.” Temari used the edge of the kitchen table to lift herself to her feet, almost buckling when she stood up. To her benefit, Gaara’s shoulder was there to catch her.

“Kankuro,” Gaara began.

“I got him.” Kankuro helped Shikamaru to his unsteady feet. “You’re both going to be sick as shit tomorrow, I hope you know that.”

“Eh.” Shikamaru uttered nonchalantly, unable to be too worried about the situation.

“Come on, dumbass.” Kankuro began to guide him out of the kitchen and down the hall. “You’d better hope you can sleep this off.”

Gaara followed his brother, having a little more difficulty helping his sister along due to their height difference. “Are you happy with yourself?” he scolded, his voice tired.

“Mmhm.”

“That’s not… Nevermind”

Shikamaru lay awake, staring at the ceiling in the darkness. Now that his eyes had adjusted, he was tracing the cracks in the stone with his gaze, trying to connect them to make shapes. It wasn’t as entertaining as watching the clouds, but he’d take it. The clock on his bedside table ticked away the seconds until his alarm would sound.

He’d never suffered from insomnia before. It was maddening.

The door to his room clicked as the knob was turned. He sat up, propping himself up by his elbow. He had to confirm that he was awake when he saw Temari slip inside, quietly closing the door behind her.

“Shh,” she cautioned before letting go of the door knob.

“What’re you-”

“Scoot over,” she whispered, inviting herself into his bed and under the sheets.

“Temari-”

“I can’t sleep.”

Shikamaru sighed. This was a terrible decision, and he knew it, but he was too drunk and too tired to care. They had to be up in six hours. He sat up, ready to tell her so, but he noticed that her breathing had already become even and deep.

Fuck it.

He lay back down, trying not to think too hard about everything that had happened in the last few hours. That was tomorrow-Shikamaru’s problem. He knew he’d hate himself for it in the morning, but he rolled onto his side and wrapped an arm around Temari’s waist. Yeah, tomorrow-Shikamaru would be awake enough to figure all of this out. He was sure of it.

[jouissezduprintemps]

Something to Prove, Chapter Eleven: Third Wheel

Rating: T Warnings: Swearing Words: 2417 Fandom: Naruto Summary: As Suna prepares for its first independently-held chunin exam since Gaara became kazekage, the sand siblings must make sure that everything goes off without a hitch.

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Far less of the week was spent relaxing than Shikamaru would have liked. As the third exam approached, spectators from other villages and lands began to arrive. Gaara had taken the last two days to welcome the feudal lord of the Land of Wind, and security was at its peak. The third exam was always his least favorite for this very reason; there were too many people, and the constant buzz of excitement kept him from feeling completely at peace.

He took his cigarette between his fingers and exhaled a cloud of smoke. He stood in the center of a large arena, looking up at the rows of empty seats above the walls of the structure. The ground was basically a pit of sand, but the loose earth had been moved into dunes, scattered around the arena. This left a good portion of the arena with a solid, sandstone base, which would allow the genin from other villages to keep their footing. Suna couldn’t be accused of bias.

Temari climbed down a flight of stone steps along the wall, making her way down into the arena. In her left hand, she held a file, which was closed tightly with string. “Everything seems to be in order,” she informed her fellow proctor as she approached. “We’ll have a few more matches than we wanted, but there’s too few of them to hold an elimination.”

Shikamaru held out his hand for the folder, which she passed to him. He unwound the string and removed the papers inside, glancing over the information sheets for the remaining genin. “I don’t think the spectators will mind. We have a solid group this year. It should be entertaining all the way through.”

“That’s what I’m hoping.”

“Still, this is going to take at least two days. The nine, preliminary matches will probably take the entirety of the first day. Even if they’re over quickly, the crowd will appreciate the break.”

“Right. Then we’ll have to have five matches with the winners; one will have to fight twice, if no one drops out. Ideally, we can get through the semi-finals and finals that day, too.”

Shikamaru slid the papers back inside the file and sealed it. “Are any other kage coming?”

“Not that I know of. The only high-profile guest we have so far is the feudal lord.” Temari informed him. “During the matches, Kankuro will be the liaison between us and Gaara. Gaara wants both of us on the field in case we need to stop any of the matches.”

“Is that a little much?”

“Perhaps, but I’m not going to tell him that.” Temari placed her hands on her hips. “I say we leave well enough alone. We’re prepared two days ahead, which is better than we’ve ever done.”

“We’ve got this down to an art,” Shikamaru agreed. The chunin exams were always an ordeal, but he couldn’t deny the satisfaction he felt when they were over.

“Tomorrow, we’ll give the arena a once-over to make sure nothing’s been tampered with. Everything else is planned and ready to go.”

The pair, having finished their task, exited the arena and stepped into the flow of Suna’s now-bustling streets.

“Hey, Shikamaru!”

Shikamaru stuck his pinky finger in his ear and rotated it. Maybe he needed to eat something? Could hypoglycemia make someone hear things?

“Shikamaru!!”

Temari stopped walking and turned, and Shikamaru followed her lead. “Son of a bitch,” she whispered as she drew in a breath.

“Naruto?” Shikamaru asked, extremely confused. The blonde ninja stuck out from the crowd in his bright orange outfit. The flow of traffic parted around them as Naruto rushed over to his friend. “What are you doing here?” he asked, a little more harshly than he intended.

“There’s no way I’d miss Konohamaru becoming a chunin!” Naruto declared, a smile on his face. “He’s gotta have someone here to cheer him on, after all!”

Well, he had a point. After losing the Third Hokage and Asuma, Naruto was the closest thing Konohamaru had to family. It seemed that Naruto had sufficient time to forgive and forget the incident at the hot springs. Shikamaru glanced at Temari, but she just looked annoyed. At the moment, they were public figures. They couldn’t afford any slip-ups.

Naruto became situationally aware enough to realize that Shikamaru wasn’t alone. To his credit, he took a half-step back as he greeted, “Oh, hey, Temari.”

Temari resisted the urge to make a sudden move in his direction just to see if he would jump. She crossed her arms below her chest, narrowing her teal eyes just a fraction. “Naruto.”

“Did anyone else come with you?” Shikamaru tried to change the subject before Naruto had a chance to say something he’d regret.

“Nah. I had to convince Grandma Tsunade to let me come; she didn’t wanna send anyone else.” Naruto raised his arms and put his hands behind his head. “Say, where’s Gaara?”

“He’s attending to the feudal lord,” Temari informed him. “You didn’t really think the kazekage would just be wandering about before the third exam, did you?”

“Yeah, I guess you have a point.”

Shikamaru saw a flicker of indignation in Temari’s eyes. “Listen,” he said to their unexpected guest, “we’ve got a lot to do before the one-on-ones.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “We should probably get going.”

“I’ll come with you! I’m supposed to meet up with Gaara, and he’s sure to show up around you guys!”

Shikamaru looked at him in disbelief, but Naruto ignored him completely. He was unbelievable.

“Well, what’re we waiting for?” Naruto asked, forcing himself between Shikamaru and Temari to continue walking down the street. “Let’s get going!” He stopped mid-step and looked behind him. “Where’re we going, exactly?”

Shikamaru and Temari sat on either side of a shogi board, their pieces scraping and clacking on the wooden surface as they made their moves. To the side, Naruto sat cross-legged, frowning. He did his best to sit in silence, his eyes darting back and forth as the two ninja took mere seconds to take their turns. He growled to himself impatiently before blurting out “I thought you were going to work on the exam!”

“We are,” Shikamaru lied flatly, his eyes never leaving the board.

“No, you’re just playing shogi! Come on, I wanna help!”

“It’s not our fault if you don’t understand the process,” Temari countered, following Shikamaru’s lead.

“You guys are just fucking with me.”

“Listen, Naruto. These exams are the result of months of planning. Everything has to go off perfectly. For that to happen, we have to stick to our method. We wouldn’t be doing this if it wasn’t important.” Shikamaru set his knight down, taking one of Temari’s pieces.

Naruto grumbled. “Man, when’s Gaara gonna get here?”

“He’ll be back when he’s back,” Temari informed him. “No one’s forcing you to stay.”

“I mean, he’s got to come home sooner or later, right? So it makes sense for me to just hang here with you guys.”

Unbelievable, Temari thought to herself. How could a ninja be so oblivious? By this point, they had all but told him to leave. If it wasn’t for Gaara’s request for secrecy, she might have resorted to being completely blunt in telling him that he was an unwanted third wheel who was taking up the few precious hours Shikamaru and she would have alone that day. It was maddening.

Shikamaru knew what she was thinking by the way she made her next move. She was too preoccupied to notice that she’d left herself open to checkmate. He took his rook between his fingers and trapped her, much to her disdain. “That’s a match.”

Naruto looked excitedly at Shikamaru as he brushed the shogi pieces into their box. Finally! “So what’re we gonna do now?” he asked, ready to get to work helping them with the third exam.

With a straight face, Shikamaru informed him that they would “Play Go.”

Naruto gaped at him in complete disbelief. His demeanor changed as he crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “Yeah, you guys are fucking with me.”

When Gaara and Kankuro returned home, Naruto acted like they’d saved his life. He rushed after Gaara, following him to his room while prattling on about something or another. Kankuro watched them go before asking “What’s his problem?”

“He’s been here for hours,” Temari complained as she stood up from the board.

“We ran into him on the street, and he invited himself.” Shikamaru popped his neck. “He refused to leave until Gaara got home.”

“Sheesh,” Kankuro empathized. “Why’s he even here?”

“To watch the third exam,” Shikamaru informed him. “Which means that he’ll be hanging around for another three days, at the least.”

Gaara returned after putting away his kage garb, Naruto still on his heels. “So, yeah, I kinda need a place to stay.”

“We can put you up,” Gaara assured him, ignoring the frantic gestures his brother and sister were making. “But Shikamaru’s staying here, too, so you’ll have to sleep on the couch.”

“He can have my room,” Shikamaru said quickly. “I can take the couch.”

“Wow, thanks, Shikamaru!” Naruto exclaimed.

If Naruto were to stay on the couch, he would treat the entire place like it was his bedroom. They would never be able to get away from him. This way, they could enclose him inside four walls for at least a few hours, giving them all some peace. “No problem. Just give me a minute to get my stuff.”

“He’s a real stand-up guy,” Naruto declared after Shikamaru left the room. “I feel kinda bad, though. He’s taller than me. I don’t know if he’s gonna fit on the couch.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Kankuro said dismissively. “I’m sure he’ll figure something out.” As much as he hated the thought, he knew that Shikamaru would be sleeping in his sister’s bed rather than in their living room. He just hoped the two of them would be careful enough not to let Naruto find out.

“It’s all yours,” Shikamaru declared once he returned.

“Man, I really owe you one. I’m just glad you’re not pissed at me anymore.”

“I got it out of my system,” he said honestly. To his surprise, Naruto laughed.

“I’d say so.”

As annoying as he was, Naruto was perhaps the only person that Shikamaru could hit in the face just to be forgiven a week later. He hadn’t even apologized, but it was all water under the bridge.

“So,” Naruto spoke up. “What’s for dinner?”

Temari lay on her stomach on her bed, her head resting on her forearms. “This has been the longest day of my life,” she muttered, her voice muffled by the mattress. Naruto’s presence was draining on its own. The added obstacle of keeping him in the dark brought the whole ordeal to a new level. It was still early, but she had to take a few minutes to herself if she was going to keep from injuring him.

“He’s not easy,” Shikamaru agreed from inside her bathroom, where he stripped down to his boxers. He could see Temari’s reflection in the mirror above the sink. “But, he’s clueless. Just a few more days, and we’re in the clear. We’ll let him get a head start to the leaf, tell him there’s something we need to do here before I can go back.” He pulled the ribbon out of his hair, letting it fall down.

Temari sat up so he could hear her better. “I don’t know if I can survive a few days.”

“You’re being dramatic. Are you feeling alright?” he quipped before walking further into the bathroom. He pulled back the shower curtain to start the water, but he was caught off guard.

Kankuro had positioned his Crow puppet behind the curtain with the intention to get Temari back for hiding his tools a few weeks before; he was an avid proponent of waiting until she didn’t expect him to retaliate. Of course, Shikamaru wasn’t supposed to be caught in the crossfire.

“MotherFUCKER!” Shikamaru staggered back too quickly, and his step caused the bath mat to slide across the floor. His foot slipped out from underneath him, and he came crashing down on his back.

“Shikamaru!” Temari jumped up and ran over to him.

Gaara opened the door to Temari’s bedroom, fearing for her safety. Kankuro was right behind him, but for a very different reason. The evil smile fell from his face when he saw Temari lifting Shikamaru into a sitting position.

“What the hell was that?!” Naruto demanded as he made room for himself to be part of the scene.

Shikamaru moved his hand from the back of his head, grimacing when he noticed blood on his fingers.

In anger, Temari grabbed Shikamaru’s hairbrush from the vanity because it was the first thing she could reach. She used it as a projectile and sent it flying at her brother. “You are such an ass!”

“It was supposed to scare you, not him!” Kankuro tried to defend himself.

“How does that make this better?!” Temari growled.

After taking a moment to process what had happened, Naruto snickered. Unable to help himself, he burst into laughter at the expense of his friend. “Man, that’s awesome!” he praised Kankuro, who was admittedly pleased that someone found his prank entertaining. “I wish I could have seen his face!”

“I’ve been sitting on that one for weeks,” Kankuro admitted, proud of his work.

Temari was too busy examining the back of Shikamaru’s head to bother with them, trying to stop the bleeding. It was a mild injury, but the less blood he lost, the better.

Gaara sighed, aware that he could do nothing in this situation. “Come on,” he ordered turning his back on the scene.

Naruto was in stitches as Kankuro shuffled into the bathroom to grab his puppet. Temari glared at him with an intent to kill as he made his way back out. She bit down on the inside of her cheek until Kankuro left and Naruto followed him, asking him admiring questions about what other pranks he’d pulled.

“I’m going to strangle him in his sleep,” Temari threatened out of frustration as she threw away the tissues she’d been holding against Shikamaru’s wound.

“Kankuro or Naruto?” Shikamaru asked as he stood up. His head rushed a bit, but Temari steadied him.

“Either. Both.”

“Just wait until after the exam. Fewer witnesses.”

[jouissezduprintemps]

Something to Prove, Chapter Twelve: Third Time’s the Charm

Rating: T Warnings: Swearing Words: 2417 Fandom: Naruto Summary: As Suna prepares for its first independently-held chunin exam since Gaara became kazekage, the sand siblings must make sure that everything goes off without a hitch.

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The spectators’ cheers roared through the arena, welcoming the genin who were scheduled to compete. Temari was surprised at the turnout; Suna wasn’t very central, so anyone not from the village had almost certainly gone out of their way to be here. She took this as a credit to how well she and Shikamaru had executed the last few exams. She glanced over at him, and she saw him flicking the lid of his lighter open and closed. He was impatient to get started, and his head was tilted back as he checked the position of the sun. To anyone else, he appeared to be cloud gazing, lazy as ever. It humored her that he was so frequently underestimated.

As the noise died, he was quick to begin with the rules and structure the exam would take. “Kame and Naoko,” he read off his clipboard, “you’re first. Everyone else can watch from the waiting area.” When he looked up, all but two of the genin scattered. He raised his hand in the air and brought it swiftly down in a signal to begin. Before the genin could move, he leaped to the alcove which served as the exit to the arena.

He stood by Temari’s side, watching the match closely. The two seemed even when it came to skill; this might take a while. Temari passed him two stat cards, one for each current participant. He was right. Their skills in taijutsu and ninjutsu were ranked closely, but the cloud genin had a kekkei genkai. Even so, the match could go either way. The betting tables were probably busy.

The hours seemed to drag on forever, if only because it took Shikamaru and Temari a matter of seconds to predict the outcome of each battle. It was too bad they weren’t allowed to place any bets; they could have made quite a bit of money, from what Shikamaru understood from the reactions of the spectators. As a proctor, he wasn’t supposed to show any bias, but he couldn’t hide his pleasure when Konohamaru and Moegi made it into the second round. Udon put up a good fight, but his opponent was several years older and had taken the exam before.

Shikamaru briefly took on the role of security guard in addition to proctor after Konohamaru’s victory, when Naruto tried to rush the arena. No sooner had Temari called the match did Konohamaru run to meet him in a display that could only be rivaled by Might Guy and Rock Lee in magnitude. He’d awkwardly sent the two weeping ninja back up the stairs to their seats, dreading what their reactions would be when Konohamaru met his next opponent the following day.

To their great relief, no major incidents occurred during the first nine matches. Shikamaru was almost hit with a fire jutsu when he rushed onto the field to call an unbalanced match, but that was the worst of it. For Shikamaru and Temari, it was almost a miracle. After the final match, Temari gave her brother a hand signal, at which he stood and gave his usual closing speech for such an event. The large crowd filed orderly through the corridor, needing no guidance or oversight.

Gaara and Kankuro remained on the upper level, where the feudal lord was taking the time to shake the kazekage’s hand and exchange a few words. Patiently, Shikamaru leaned against the wall and lit a cigarette, relieved that things had gone so well. Temari, who had extended her hand, took the pack from him and did the same.

She had just begun to relax when they were approached by Naruto and Konohamaru, who had remained behind while Ebisu took his teammates back to their lodgings. Temari flicked the ashes off the end of her cigarette, sending the glowing, red dust to the ground. Wanting to avoid stepping into conversation, she lifted it to her lips, providing herself with an excuse not to speak.

Shikamaru, on the other hand, gave Konohamaru an affectionate pat on the head. “You did good today, kid. Asuma’d be proud. Your gramps, too.”

The genin beamed at his praise, laughing to himself. “Thanks, big brother Shikamaru.”

“I’m gonna take Konohamaru out for ramen to celebrate,” Naruto declared. “It might not be Ichiraku, but we’ve gotta stick to tradition. You wanna come?” Realizing he was being rude, he added, “You can join us too, Temari.”

Temari exhaled a cloud of smoke before looking to Shikamaru. It was his decision. She wasn’t offended that she’d been an afterthought. Really, Naruto just assumed they went everywhere together at this point, even though he never asked why. Seeing that she didn’t care one way or the other, Shikamaru glanced up at Gaara and Kankuro. It seemed like they’d be a while, and he didn’t want to have to wait until they were through to eat. And, if they stuck around, they might get sucked into the political dance of formalities they had been able to avoid up to this point with the feudal lord.

“Sure,” Shikamaru agreed.

“Awesome! I saw this ramen place off the main road that looks pretty good.” Naruto suggested.

“No, you don’t want to go there,” Temari informed him, straightening from her position of leaning against the wall. “It’s expensive, and I’ve seen you eat ramen before. I know a place that will give you a bowl larger than Ichiraku for the same price.”

Naruto brazenly threw an arm around Temari’s shoulders, catching her off guard. She had to jerk her right hand away as not to burn him with the end of her cigarette. “Now, that’s what I like to hear!”

Temari shot Shikamaru a look to plead for his help as Naruto steered her along with him out of the arena. Amused, Shikamaru followed along, walking beside Konohamaru.

“You really think Uncle Asuma’s proud of me?” he asked. He knew that Shikamaru had been his uncle’s favorite, and he’d come to see Shikamaru as a surrogate who took his place after his death.

“Sure he is,” Shikamaru assured him. “He’s probably thrilled that you didn’t follow my lead and throw the match.”

“Hey, wasn’t that your match with Temari?” Naruto asked. He removed his arm from Temari’s shoulders and started to walk backwards so he could look at his friend as he talked. He chuckled. “Man, she was pissed.”

“You gave up?!” Konohamaru couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “But she kicked your butt the other day!”

“Watch it,” Shikamaru warned, flicking the back of his head.

Temari smiled to herself and hit it behind the palm of her hand, strategically inhaling from her cigarette. She supposed that a little flirting couldn’t hurt; they’d been doing it for years and no one had said anything. “Don’t tell me you’re still upset about it, Crybaby.”

“Alright, give it back.” Shikamaru gestured with his hand. “You take one of my smokes then insult me? It doesn’t work that way.”

As much as she wanted to turn around and tell him to take it if he wanted it, she knew that would be going a little too far. Instead, she looked back at him over her shoulder and tauntingly blew smoke in his direction.

“Oh, man, you’re just gonna take that?!” Naruto protested, falling back enough so that he could put a hand on Shikamaru’s shoulder. “Man up, Shikamaru!”

“It’s too much of a drag,” he complained, shrugging off Naruto’s grasp. “She’s already smoked more than half of it, so it wouldn’t even be worth the effort.”

“Make her give you one of hers,” Konohamaru suggested, not realizing that the conversation wasn’t about being fair.

“She doesn’t have any. She just takes mine.”

Konohamaru made a face. “So she kicks your butt and takes your stuff. If she’s a bully, why do you spend time with her?”

Shikamaru chuckled. “It’ll make sense when you’re older. Women are strange; they don’t work like we do.”

“Yeah, Sakura kicks my butt all the time, and I still spend time with her!” Naruto added.

“I don’t think that’s the same thing…” Konohamaru pointed out.

Temari laughed at this, enjoying the kid’s naïve wit. She slowed her pace until she was walking beside Konohamaru, on the outside of their small group. “It’s Konohamaru, right?”

“Konohamaru Sarutobi!”

“He’s Asuma’s nephew,” Shikamaru told her, giving a bit of context.

“Ah, I see.” As she looked down at him, she could tell that he wasn’t entirely sure what to think about her. Fair enough; few people did the first time they met her. She turned her gaze away and indicated a side street. “We need to turn here.”

“It looks a little sketchy,” Naruto complained.

“If it’s too scary for you, we can go back to the main street.”

Naruto huffed indignantly, insulted that she would suggest such a thing. “I never said that.”

The group stopped when Temari found the building she was looking for. The only thing signifying that it was a restaurant was the kanji for ramen painted on the façade. She dropped her cigarette into the sand and extinguished it with the bottom of her sandal before leading them inside.

The interior of the building was well-lit. It was small, with only a handful of tables, but the environment was pleasant. They were the only customers other than a family of five, who had tucked themselves away in the corner.

“Lady Temari!” The middle-aged woman in the kitchen beamed. “Sit wherever you like, dear. I’ll be right with you.”

Shikamaru shook his head. “I wish people would stop calling you that. It’s weird.”

“It comes with the bloodline,” she reminded him as she chose a table. Shikamaru took the chair to her left, and Naruto and Konohamaru sat across the table from them. She gestured to the wall by the kitchen, where the menu was painted in bold print. “They don’t have a lot of different things, but it’s all good.”

Temari was impressed. They had taken an entire hour to eat, and Naruto hadn’t annoyed her once. Although, she did need to remind herself that he’d been stuffing his face for a good portion of it.

Naruto patted his distended stomach as they walked, clearly satisfied with the meal. As the main road came into sight, he turned to look at Shikamaru and Temari. “You guys go on ahead. I’m gonna take Konohamaru back to Ebisu-sensei. Just don’t lock me out, ok?”

“Don’t worry,” Shikamaru assured him. “We won’t leave you where a sandstorm could take you.”

They waited until Naruto and Konohamaru had disappeared into the crowd before beginning their trek home.

“That went well,” Temari commented.

Shikamaru nodded in agreement. “I think he’s warmed up to you a bit. And he doesn’t seem to be angry that I punched him.”

“Asuma’s nephew seems like a good kid. But, aren’t you worried that he spends so much time with Naruto?”

“It’s way too late to do anything about it,” Shikamaru admitted. “He’s been Naruto’s mini-me for as long as I can remember.”

The two of them walked in silence for a bit before Shikamaru commented, “I don’t know what Gaara was worried about. Naruto’s completely oblivious.”

“We just need to keep it that way.”

“He didn’t think anything about it when he saw me in my underwear in your bathroom. I’m pretty sure he won’t notice.”

Temari turned the knob on her front door, but it was locked. Gaara and Kankuro hadn’t made it home, then. They dodged a bullet when they left with Naruto, that was for sure. She pulled out her key and inserted it, letting them inside. She turned on the hall light before taking off her shoes. “My back hurts from standing up all day,” she complained, more to herself than to Shikamaru.

“And we have to get up and do it all again tomorrow,” Shikamaru groaned. He’d forgotten that particular detail. He set off down the hall, looking forward to getting a little rest. They both needed it. Between the stress of the exams and the physical effort it took to keep a few of the genin from actively trying to kill one another, they were a little worse for wear.

“Don’t remind me,” Temari grumbled, rubbing her forehead with the thumb and index finger of her right hand. “I just want a hot shower.”

Shikamaru put an arm out against the wall to stop her in her tracks. He leaned forward and pressed his lips against her neck before saying “You know, if you want it hot, I can join you.”

Temari put her hands on his chest and pushed him away, looking at him in disbelief. Seeing his confusion, she burst into laughter, clutching her sides as she doubled over. “Oh my god!” She tried to straighten up, but she couldn’t help herself. “Oh, god, I can’t even look at you! I can’t breathe!”

“I was trying to be sexy…” he huffed, clearly missing his mark.

Temari shook her head as she wiped a tear from her cheek. “Never say anything like that again. Oh, god. Where the hell did you even hear that? It sounds like a line from Makeout Paradise!”

Shikamaru realized that his father and Asuma had more fun at his expense during his younger years than he knew. His complete lack of interest in women had prompted them to give him several unsolicited pointers, well out of earshot of Yoshino or Kurenai. It dawned on him that his sensei managed to troll him from beyond the grave with this one.

Finally able to compose herself, she took him by the hand and led him down the hall. “Come on, idiot.”

[jouissezduprintemps]

Something to Prove, Chapter Nine: Out in the Open

Rating: T Warnings: Swearing Words: 3203 Fandom: Naruto Summary: As Suna prepares for its first independently-held chunin exam since Gaara became kazekage, the sand siblings must make sure that everything goes off without a hitch.

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“To the success of the second test, and a smooth transition to the third.” Baki lifted his sake cup in a toast, which was met by his students and Shikamaru from around the table.

They’d snuck into a hole-in-the-wall restaurant, one that would be easily looked over by the visiting ninja. The village continued to buzz with excitement, as it would until the guests returned to their own lands.

The table was low to the ground with cushions arranged around the sides. Baki had taken a seat at the head of the table, and Gaara had taken the foot. Kankuro had a side to himself, sitting across from Shikamaru and Temari. Shikamaru sat near to Gaara, and Temari was to Baki’s left side.

Shikamaru found it strange that they weren’t given any menus. The old woman behind the counter brought them various dishes from the kitchen without explaining what they were. He wasn’t sure if this was the style of the restaurant or if they were getting the royal treatment, but he found it a little unnerving.

“You’ve both done an excellent job with this exam,” Baki praised Temari and Shikamaru. His admiration didn’t come easy, and Temari was incredibly pleased with herself.

“Thank you, Sensei. It hasn’t been easy,” Temari admitted.

“If it was easy, it wouldn’t be worth doing.” Baki extended a hand and let it rest briefly on Temari’s shoulder. “I’ll admit, I was worried how the other villages would treat this exam, because you’re all still so young. But you three have acted with dignity and earned their respect. Your father would be proud.”

Although the last statement was meant as flattery, Gaara tensed ever so slightly. If Shikamaru hadn’t been so close to him, he would have missed it. It was gone as soon as it came. “Your praise is much appreciated, Sensei.”

“You may be Kazekage, but to me, you’re still Gaara. You’re not so important that I can’t take pride in you.”

The old woman brought a large bowl of rice to the table, and Shikamaru was thrilled to see a food he recognized. He served himself a decent portion and was about to pick up his chopsticks when Baki turned his attention to him.

“And Shikamaru of the Nara clan. I’ve heard a lot about you, but I didn’t think we’d get the chance to meet.”

“It’s an honor to meet the sensei of the Kazekage,” Shikamaru spoke smoothly, no stranger to polite custom and conversation. To his relief, he could tell that Baki was pleased with his response.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but you and Temari faced one another in the Konoha chunin exam. You’re the kid who gave up.”

Shikamaru chuckled. “Yeah, that was me.”

“Who’d’ve thought,” Baki mused, clearly entertained by this fact. “I thought Tema was going to hunt you down and kill you in your sleep after that.”

Shikamaru looked to Temari, who only shrugged. “You pissed me off. Nothing new.”

“But here you are. I don’t know if that’s a testament to your persistence or to Tema’s stubbornness.”

“More than a little bit of both,” Kankuro added, pleased to get a jab in at his older sister.

“These three don’t get along with a lot of people,” Baki admitted. “You’re pretty unique for all three of them to enjoy your company.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Shikamaru grinned, hoping that was how it was intended.

“So I take it you plan on moving to the Sand?”

Shikamaru arched an eyebrow in confusion. “Huh?”

“Well, I assume you’d move to Suna because of Temari’s status. It’d be a social step up for you, rather than a step down should she move to Konoha.”

The way Shikamaru and Temari looked at him told Baki that he had vastly misjudged the situation. There were times he forgot that he wasn’t related to his students, and he wondered if he had overstepped his bounds.

“He’s got a point,” Kankuro spoke up between mouthfuls. “We are royalty here.”

“I’m sorry,” Baki tried to save face. “I’d been under the impression that you two were… well… serious.”

“That’s not what they say,” Gaara mused, putting in his opinion for the first time.

“Hey, you shut up,” Kankuro snapped at his brother. “We don’t need a repeat of yesterday.”

“Kankuro,” Baki warned.

“I’m just saying-”

“Stop. Think about what’s going to come after those words. It usually never turns out well for you.”

Kankuro hunched his shoulders slightly, displeased at being scolded in public.

Baki turned his attention back to Temari and Shikamaru. “Temari, what exactly is going on here? The elders aren’t going to be happy if there’s too much confusion. I’m able to tell because I’ve known you for so long, but it’s only a matter of time before others start to wonder.”

The two exchanged a glance before Temari took it upon herself to inform her sensei. “We’re together, but it’s recent. Just in the last couple of days.” It was uncomfortable to say out loud, simply because she didn’t like sharing her private life. Thankfully, they were the only ones in the restaurant.

“Who knows?”

“Everyone at this table, now.” Shikamaru answered.

An awkward silence fell over the three siblings. None of them had been romantically involved before, for a large number of reasons, both familial and individual.

Baki laced his fingers together as he thought. “Well,” he began. “If that’s the case, I’d tell you to keep it to as small a number as possible. Konoha and Suna may be allies, but we don’t need any questions about loyalty. Of course, this is assuming the kazekage is on board.”

Temari bit her tongue, resisting the urge to rant about how sexist it was to need her brother’s permission. She was angry, and she was looking for an outlet. She didn’t need to unleash on Gaara.

“Temari’s a grown woman. I won’t tell her what to do. I wouldn’t tell any ninja what to do in a situation like this.” Gaara’s tone showed that he’d already put a lot of thought into his response.

“And the hokage?”

“Tsunade seems to be a reasonable enough person,” Gaara concluded. “As long as it doesn’t interfere with missions or loyalties, I can’t see her being opposed.”

“So you’re okay with this?” Kankuro demanded.

“Are you not?” Gaara countered, staring his brother down. “If you want to tell our sister what she can and cannot do, be my guest.” He then turned to look at Shikamaru and Temari. “You’re both highly intelligent shinobi, and I don’t think either of you would take a risk you hadn’t calculated. I trust that you both will be discreet.”

Temari was touched that Gaara had so much faith in her, but she was still walking a fine line between enraged and pleased. “What I do is my decision, not anyone else’s. I’m willing to keep this quiet, but that’s as much say as any of you will have.”

“I think that’s fair,” Baki determined, watching Gaara and Kankuro to judge their reactions.

“Once the exams are over, and the other villages’ ninja have left, I can travel with Shikamaru to speak with Lady Tsunade.” Temari stated, not offering any room for negotiation.

Baki turned his attention to Shikamaru. What was it about this ninja that made Temari so determined? She’d always been stubborn, but she wasn’t digging her heels in the sand this time. She seemed dedicated, far more than most kunoichi would be to a relationship that was only days-old. He supposed she’d always been a particular one. He wouldn’t be surprised if, all this time, she’d simply been biding her time until she found someone worth her energy. And, if anyone could give her a run for her money, it would be the lazy Konoha nin who forfeited a match he’d already won.

“Well, that settles it.” Baki allowed himself to smile, trying to bring balance and peace back to their circle of five.

Shikamaru wasn’t thrilled at the restrictions that had been placed on them, but, at the same time, he couldn’t imagine that they would have done any different. Temari didn’t like others to be in her private life. He probably wouldn’t tell but a handful of people from the leaf – his parents, Ino, and Choji. The only real obstacle was that, now, he had to talk about it with Lady Tsunade, like it was some sort of international issue.

Actually, now that he thought about it, that’s probably exactly what it was.

Baki was never one to leave good enough alone, and he had far too much fun with his students. It was like they were his niece and nephews, and they were always open game. He thought himself hilarious when he asked, “Now, Temari, I don’t have to give you the talk, now, do I?”

Although Temari laughed at his joke, Kankuro snatched the bottle of sake from the center of the table. “I’m not drunk enough for this shit,” he complained. At this rate, he’d be dead of a heart attack by the time the week was through.

Baki parted ways with them as they left the restaurant, making sure to shake Shikamaru’s hand before he left. Shikamaru walked side-by-side with Temari, taking up the rear behind Gaara and Kankuro. The more sake Kankuro had at dinner, the worse his filter became. At this rate, both his brother and sister agreed that the best course of action was to get him in bed.

As they walked through the street, Gaara turned his head so that he could look at Shikamaru out of the corner of his eye. “Baki likes you,” he informed him, catching Shikamaru off guard.

He was surprised that he’d managed to make a good impression, and even more so that Gaara felt the need to assure him of that fact.

“He doesn’t take to people quickly. I don’t know what it is about you, but you’re different.”

“Thanks, Gaara,” Shikamaru said genuinely. As strange and unique as Temari’s family dynamic was, he felt oddly at home in the chaos. He could relate to having a sensei that was more like a parent, and, although he was an only child, he saw similar behavioral patterns in Choji and Ino as teammates. The three siblings were, after all, on the same squad. The bonds formed in that environment went beyond blood ties.

He didn’t say it aloud, but he was relieved that he didn’t have the chance to meet either of Temari’s parents. She rarely talked about her mother, but, from what he’d heard about the fourth kazekage, that wouldn’t have been pleasant in the least. Unfortunately, his family wouldn’t be so easy. Sure, his dad would probably be happy he brought home a girl at all, but his mom would probably give them the third degree. That wasn’t something he was looking forward to.

When they entered through the front door of their home, Temari allowed herself to smile as she took off her shoes. “This is the first night in days that I won’t be sleeping in shifts,” she sighed, elated.

“Oh, yeah.” Shikamaru realized she was right.

“You should sleep in tomorrow,” Gaara suggested. “I have a meeting with the council, but we’ll manage without you, Temari. They’ll understand.”

“Thanks, Gaara.”

Her brother nodded before wrapping an arm around Kankuro. “Come on, I need you to walk with me if you’re going to get to your room.”

“I don’t need sleep!”

“Of course not.” Gaara humored him, clearly amused. “If that’s the case, you can work on your puppets.”

Shikamaru chuckled when the pair rounded the corner of the hall.

“I love them,” Temari reminded herself before shaking her head.

“It’s never dull, that’s for sure.”

Temari walked down the hall to her bedroom, leaving the door open so that Shikamaru could follow her. She began to let her hair down, removing one band at a time. “You know Kankuro doesn’t hate you, right?” she asked. “He’s just protective.”

“I figured,” Shikamaru shrugged. “After the hot springs incident, he was acting like my best friend.”

“That’s about right. And Gaara… is just Gaara.”

“That much I knew.”

Temari smiled to herself, prompting Shikamaru to ask, “What is it?”

“Who do you think will have a better reaction, Choji or Ino?” She turned to face him as she ran a comb through her hair. “I know you won’t be able to keep it from them.”

Shikamaru grimaced. He could already hear the ear-piercing volume of Ino’s excited pitch. “Ino, for sure.”

“Really? Sure, she’ll shriek, but that’s pretty normal for a woman like her.” Temari caught herself. “Not that I mean anything by that.”

“I know,” Shikamaru assured her.

“But I’d expect that. I don’t know what to expect from Choji.”

“You know, neither do I. We’ve been best friends all our lives, but I don’t have a clue.”

“Just make sure Naruto doesn’t find out.” Gaara spoke as he stood in the doorway, startling them both.

Temari gestured with his comb. “He’s right. If Naruto even guesses, it’ll be all over the Leaf.”

“The good thing about that is, if Naruto starts it, no one will believe it,” Shikamaru countered.

“Just a thought.” Gaara straightened from his leaning position against the door frame. “Goodnight.”

“Night,” Temari responded to his retreating form.

“Isn’t it early for him to sleep?” Shikamaru asked.

“Gaara doesn’t really sleep. He gets maybe two hours at a time, if he’s lucky. It’s a cyclical thing, so he’ll sleep, then be awake for a while, then sleep again. He goes to bed early to try to get another cycle or two.”

Shikamaru grimaced, unable to imagine what that must be like. To him, that would be torture. “Can’t a doctor help him?”

“It’s Shukaku,” Temari explained, a look of pity in her eyes. “He won’t talk about it, but it seems like the sand demon thinks it’s a game to keep him awake.”

“Shukaku?”

“Gaara says that’s its name.”

“Damn.” He wondered if Naruto suffered from the same thing. Did Naruto’s beast communicate with him like Gaara’s seemed to? Did he know its name?

“Apparently, if he doesn’t pay attention to it for a few days, it throws a tantrum. When he was younger, that’s when he would transform. Now, he’s stronger than it, and it knows it. Instead of attacking, it acts like it’s giving him the silent treatment. As if that’s some sort of punishment for Gaara. When that happens, he’s able to sleep for one or two nights.”

Shikamaru had a thousand questions as far as Gaara was concerned, but he was too polite to ask any of them. Her brother had scarred Temari both mentally and physically, but in recent years they had developed a sort of peace. He didn’t want to interfere with that by tugging on the wrong string.

Temari noticed that he was on edge and felt a little guilty that she’d said everything she had. She climbed up on her bed and positioned herself behind him, sitting on her knees. She put the comb in her mouth as she untied the band in his hair, setting it to the side once it had been untangled. With the comb in her right hand, she divided his hair into parts with her left, gently working through any knots she found.

Shikamaru leaned back slightly and closed his eyes, enjoying the sensation. They sat this way in silence until she’d finished working the knots out of his hair. He seemed so at ease that she continued to drag the comb through his black locks for a few moments more than was strictly necessary.

Seeing that he was calm, Temari stepped back down off her bed and set the comb on her bedside table. She opened her closet and withdrew her pyjamas, admittedly dissatisfied that her sleep wardrobe consisted of little more than old shirts that were either faded or not quite the right size. She was too preoccupied to notice that Shikamaru had walked up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back against him. His lips brushed against the nape of her neck, and she tilted her head to the side. She let out a satisfied sigh.

She twisted around in his arms so that she was facing him. She rose up on the balls of her feet to kiss him, unsure of when he’d gotten so much taller than she was. Her arms snaked around his neck, and neither of them moved away. It had been three days since they talked, three days spent in the middle of the desert, sleeping in shifts and keeping track of lives.

Within the stone walls, none of that weighed on their shoulders.

Temari’s fingers grabbed a hold on his shoulders as his arms moved down to her thighs, lifting her up to his level. She allowed her legs to wrap around his waist. He staggered slightly as he shifted their weight to just one leg, freeing the other to kick the door shut. Unable to watch where he was going, it took a few lumbering steps for him to move across the room. His hands let go of her thighs as he leaned over, laying her down on the edge of the bed.

His knees came to rest on either side of her hips, and he made the bold decision to let his hands roam, well aware that she would have no qualms about stopping him if she became uncomfortable. Reluctantly, his lips left hers, and he used his core to lift himself up on his knees. His hands knotted in the fabric on the back of his shirt, and he pulled it up and over his head, managing to get both the tactical long-sleeved shirt and his fishnet undershirt in a single go.

He paused long enough to look down at her, trying to judge her reaction. The color in her cheeks made her half-shut eyes seem more vivid. When he didn’t come back down, she looked up at him, her breath hitching in her throat. He hovered over her, his hands supporting him on either side of her shoulders. His hair hung down in his face, and she allowed her fingertips to trace the muscles on his chest. He leaned forward and kissed her deeply, shifting his weight to one hand. The other began to search for the way to remove the red band from around her waist.

She arched her lower back, giving him enough room to find where the fabric was secured. To his credit, he didn’t take long to figure out how to remove it. He tossed the fabric to the side, where it joined his discarded shirts on the floor. With that out of the way, he found it far easier to pull the strings that secured her kimono. His lips trailed lightly down her collarbone and over the exposed skin of her chest. His fingertips caressed her abdomen as he leaned back down to kiss her.

Her hands grabbed his hair, and she pulled him forcefully against her. She’d waited far too long for this to be patient now.