Konoha: The Village Hidden in the Leaves [Spring Festival!]

Are you excited about the revitalization of Konoha?

Yeah! Looks like bugging the old lady worked!	69.9%	[ 95 ]
Nope. You should've just let it die.	30.1%	[ 41 ]
Total Votes:			[ 136 ]

[Ying - Yang]

"Ino," he said, to give a name to the face.

Jealously was afoot, and Shikamaru could hardly hold a calm face. That was a matter he didn't want to talk about, especially in front of Temari.

"You make it sound like she's going after me. It's only a friendly relationship between us. Nothing like that. But enough about that. We got tea to drink."

He wanted to get off the subject as fast as he could, bringing the cup to his lips and taking a good drink from it.

[o0Temari0o]

Temari cleared her throat, her brow slightly wrinkling as she hid a gentle blush behind the steam wafting out of her teacup. She hadn't meant to make it sound like she was accusing Ino, but being away from Shikamaru to go live in Sunagakure did make her curious from time to time. The kunoichi would never admit to it, but occasionally she'd feel the western wind almost call her in Suna, making her have the strangest urge to run the three day trek to Konoha on just a whim.

Temari pondered over her tea, her teal eyes staring somberly into the pool of oolong cradled in her hands. No matter how she longed to, the Sunagakure Jounin never made that trek-- responsibility had always tethered her behind. She wondered if others suffered the way she did... torn between what her country expected of her, and what she wanted for herself.

Realizing that she'd been staring at it for awhile with not even a response to his diffusion of Ino, Temari shot him a sidelong glare before taking a pause to answer. "Heh. Lazy," she grunted, before taking a long sip of tea. "You haven't changed at all."

[Ying - Yang]

"Would you like me to change? I thought you loved me as I am. Women are so complicated."

He gave a chuckle, looking off in front of him.

"We're all growing up now. There's no need for us to try to skip around the bush for too long. When we find the chance, we'll tell everyone about our relationship. Or we don't have to tell them at all. If they find out, let them find out. It won't mean anything different. It's bad enough that we have to sit like we hate to be next to one another."

[o0Temari0o]

Temari fumbled the cup of tea in her hands, but managed to catch it before she'd spilled. His blunt comments caught her off guard-- she hadn't quite accumulated herself to his direct way of speaking after such a long time away again.

"Shhhh!" she shushed him, looking sternly over at him as she secured her half-filled cup. "You know better than to let anyone overhear," Temari warned, her tone in a low whisper, "It only takes a single messenger back to Sunagakure to have our communications ended. I'm the sister of the Kazekage, and you're the heir of one of the most prominent clans in Konohakagure. If anyone finds out, our families will have no choice but to keep us apart."

Temari's gaze wavered back to her tea, almost lost in it. "And I...," she paused, mulling over her words, "I couldn't bear that..."

[Ying - Yang]

Shikamaru glanced over to her as she strongly complained. The risks were there, but who was to say that the results would not be different. Or, he was just being as careless as ever. He gave a momentary sigh then took another drink from his cup.

"Sorry. But it can't be healthy for us to keep suffering like this. I wonder how Asuma and Kurenai dealt with this. No one knew they were together until his death. I guess the only choice we have is to get advice from Kurenai. I believe she can be trusted still, yes?"

[o0Temari0o]

Temari contemplated his suggestion long and hard, in deep silence. The Sand Village kunoichi was not terribly familiar with Kurenai-- only remembering the condolences that she and her brothers sent upon hearing about Asuma Sarutobi's death. After all, it was grave news to hear that the 3rd Hokage's son was lost in battle to a pair of Akatsuki.

"Do you think she'd see us?" Temari asked, still wavering over feelings of worry underneath her stern demeanor, "Kurenai is likely to have enough on her mind while dealing with both her pregnancy and her grief."

[Ying - Yang]

"She will," he responded. Kurenai and Shikamaru were well acquainted enough to where he saw her as his second mother, while Asuma was like his second father. If anyone could comprehend what they were going through, it was her.

"She's a strong woman. She's been doing great so far. She won't mind helping us with our ordeal. Who knows. She might even give you some advice on how to handle being in her position."

He stood up from his seat, reaching into his pocket and placing some bills onto the countertop as pay. He was implying mothership on Temari, as if in the future, she would possibly be a mother of her own. And it could further be hinting that he would want her to be the one he spends the rest of his life with.

[o0Temari0o]

As Temari lifted herself from her chair upon finishing her tea, she shot him one last glare. She'd swore, sometimes, that she'd just like to strangle Shikamaru for being so suggestive or lovey-dovey in public. Temari just wasn't nearly as up-front as he was-- she had far too much pride.

The glare soon faded, choosing an expression that relayed a stern nature of calmness. "Thank you for the tea," she said in a soft breath, and her teal eyes wandered up to his face. "Shall we go now?"

[Ying - Yang]

He could feel the glare without even looking. A glance confirmed, though, that the remark got her into a fit. And it didn't stop him from giving a smile.

"We don't have to go now. I just figured we would be better off moving to other venues."

He stuffed his hands into his pockets and just walked. He didn't know where he was going, but it was clear that he wanted to at least head into the less deserted parts of the village, which happened to be the forest of his clan. Since no one without permission was allowed there, it was the best place for two people like them to go and just relax for a change.

[o0Temari0o]

"A fair idea," Temari agreed, pushing the drape of the cloth sign from the tea stand away from her face as she passed through it. Striding alongside Shikamaru with her hands gently swaying at her sides, the four-pigtailed kunoichi seemed to be a little more at ease while on the move.

Following him back to the Nara estate, which proved not to be a far walk at all, Temari gave a polite bow of her head to Shikamaru's mother, Yoshino, before welcoming herself inside.

"You know," Temari started as she passed through the entryway towards the gardens, "If you weren't such a lazyass, the Hokage would send you on procession to Suna for the chuunin exams. If you would make the three-day trip, we could see each other every three months, rather than every six."

Temari began to unstrap the fan off of her back, lightening the weight. Once she got to where she would rest, she would lay it across her lap. There was no immediate need to wield it now.

[Ying - Yang]

Shikamaru sat down across from her, his back against a neighboring tree while facing her. His face grew from that careless expression to a more serious look. He was with Temari now, and he felt he had to give a little more dedication and energy to show that she was important. They were grown ups. There were just some things you just had to leave behind.

"Eh, even if I wanted to, that walk would be pretty long. I don't know how you do it, but I'll assume that you make use of that fan of yours to make traveling a bit easier. Using the wind as your vessel sounds pretty luxurious."

[Dirty_Harry1991]

Hmm, A little half past dead ><

[iReDNeckZ]

Agreed