Naruto 1. As the Clouds Slid By

**Disclaimer:** Shikamaru and Temari are created by Masashi Kishimoto (the creator of Naruto). The situation I have created between them is a result of my imagination, and does not occur in the manga or anime. At least, as far as I know. (I know a lot of people like Shikamaru with Ino, but I like this combination better. If you read and respond, please do not criticize the pairing. The fact that I put them together should not affect the way that the story is written. Thank you!)

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A warm wind blew through Konoha. It rustled through the trees and gently slid the clouds across the sky. It reached Shikamaru, who lay on a patch of grass and watched the clouds with a slightly detached interest. After everything that had happened in the previous months, he needed this time to himself to gather his thoughts. Though he was a chuunin, he made sure that he still had time to engage in his favorite activity. 

Yawning slightly, Shikamaru stretched and shut his eyes. 

"HEY!" called a boisterous voice from his far left. 

Grimacing, Shikamaru opened his left eye slightly. There was the sound of someone striding through the grass, and finally a foot appeared in his field of vision. He closed his eye again, and sighed with exasperation as he felt the foot jostle his shoulder. 

"You dimwit. What do you think you're doing?" the voice said again. This time, from above him. 

"What does it look like I'm doing, Temari?" muttered Shikamaru with his eyes still shut tight against the sun. 

"You should be training! Just because you're a chuunin doesn't mean you can slack off!" Temari crouched down next to him and grinned. "I can't always be there to rescue you, you know." 

Shikamaru opened his eyes and looked at Temari. She kept grinning at him in the way that only she could. He simply rolled his eyes and sighed. 

"It's too hard to train every day," complained Shikamaru. "It's fine if you want to go and train, but don't drag me with you." 

"Get up, you lazy ass," Temari stood up and held her hand out to him. "Or else I'll be forced to pick you up and carry you." 

Ignoring her hand, Shikamaru stood up and started walking off towards the closest training ground. Temari smiled slyly and walked after him. The sound of the wind rustling the trees drowned the sound of their footsteps. Lacing his hands behind his head, Shikamaru looked up at the sky again. The clouds seemed to stand still whenever you were in motion. If you wanted to watch them pass by, you'd have to be as still as possible. 

"Hey, Temari? Why are you here, anyway? Shouldn't you be back at your village?" Shikamaru asked. 

"I'm on a very important mission," Temari answered huffily. 

"All by yourself?" asked a slightly shocked Shikamaru. 

"Maybe. Don't you think I can handle a mission alone?" replied an insulted Temari. 

"Well, usually we take on missions in groups," answered Shikamaru. "Just what _is_ this mission?" 

Temari whacked Shikamaru on the back of the head. 

"As if I'd tell you!" shaking her finger at Shikamaru, Temari stopped in front of him. "If I did tell you what it was, I'd have to kill you. But for all you know, that _might_ be my mission!" With a wink, she started off again. 

Sweat dripped slowly down the back of Shikamaru's neck, and he rubbed at the trail it left behind. There was no doubt in his mind that she _could_ kill him at any time if that was indeed her mission. He somehow doubted that it was. For one thing, Temari could have done it earlier. But maybe she was planning on doing it somewhere else. It wasn't entirely impossible. Shikamaru began to try and plan for the worst. How and why did he allow himself to get into this situation? 

Temari stopped and gazed at the clouds. She seemed to be deciding something. Shikamaru placed a hand on his kunai. With her back to him, it was difficult to tell if she had already drawn a weapon. He'd rather not try to kill her, but if she was going to try to kill him, he'd have no choice. 

"This isn't usually something a ninja should brag about, but I've developed a new taijutsu that's powerful enough to defeat even the toughest guy in the Anbu," Temari cast a backward glance at Shikamaru. "And you're going to be my first test subject." 

_This is it,_ he thought. He braced himself for an attack as Temari whirled around and faced him. 

Shikamaru's grip and resolution faltered as he saw the look on her face. She was smiling in a way he'd never seen before. She didn't look threatening at all. What was this look she was giving him? What did it mean? 

"Shikamaru..." she spoke softly, and stepped closer to him. Shikamaru found that he couldn't move, and wondered if she had somehow mastered the Kageshibari no Jutsu. He tried to speak, but found that he couldn't. All he could do was watch as Temari got closer and closer. 

"Shikamaru, do you want to see my new taijutsu?" Temari asked, slyly. Shikamaru could only nod mutely. 

"My mission...is to give you this." Temari leaned in and gently kissed Shikamaru's lips. A pleasant chill ran up and down his spine several times. When Temari finally pulled away, all Shikamaru could do was stare blankly at her. She was blushing. He never knew she could blush. 

"I like you very much, Shikamaru," continued a flushed Temari. She noticed his blank stare, and turned even redder. "I'm sorry if you didn't like it, but I made up my mind to do it, and so I did it. If you didn't like it, then you can just--" 

Shikamaru reached out and pulled her to him, pressing his lips to hers once again. Temari froze for a brief second, then relaxed and wrapped her arms around his neck. The kiss deepened as Shikamaru wrapped his arms around her waist. 

The warm wind brushed past both of them. Pulling back from their kiss, Shikamaru gazed into Temari's eyes. 

"I like you too, Temari." He grinned at her, and she grinned back. Shikamaru pulled her tighter against him, and cast a glance up at the sky as Temari let her head rest on his chest. He remembered his father's words: 

_"Even the roughest woman is tender to the guy she loves. You'll understand when you're grown up."_

"I finally understand, father," whispered Shikamaru as he and Temari watched the clouds slide by.


	2. A Ghost from the Past

**Disclaimer:** Hatake Kakashi and Kabuto are created by Masashi Kishimoto. The character, "Hanako," is someone from my imagination and does not exist in the manga or anime to the extent of my knowledge. (I'm sorry to the Kabuto fans out there, I don't have anything against him, but I needed a bad-ish person for this story. Sorry!)

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"Kakashi! Kakashi!" called a voice from within the crush of the crowded marketplace. 

Kakashi paused and turned toward the sound of the voice. His eyes widened as he saw who had called his name. She was dressed in a light red dress that flowed in the wind as she ran toward him. 

"Hanako..." he breathed and held his arms out to her. "HANAKO!" 

"Kakashi!" she cried again, and leapt into his arms. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and held her to him. Her hair still smelled the same, and it was still that reddish-brown color that he loved. When she held her head up to look at him, he saw that her eyes were still a lovely hazel. 

"Kakashi," she said and smiled brightly. "We'll always be together, won't we?" 

"Yes, always..." Kakashi tightened his grip on her and closed his eyes. His hand began stroking the small of her back. "Oh Hanako..." 

He paused when he felt something sticky and wet. Opening his eyes, he glanced at his fingers. They were covered in blood. 

Kakashi's eyes widened and he looked around. No longer was he in the marketplace, but deep within the Konoha woods. Hanako was still in his arms, this time dressed for a mission, and bleeding profusely from a wound that sliced across her back. 

He pulled her away from him and her head swayed back drunkenly, her hazel eyes rolled back into her head. 

"No..." Kakashi shook her slightly. "Hanako, stay with me. Stay with me!" 

Desperately, he looked around for something to stop the bleeding. He could hear the sounds of a battle raging just a few feet away. Screams of agony could be heard. 

"Kakashi..." whispered Hanako. She tried to speak and raise a hand to his face, but winced in a sudden flash of pain. 

"No, don't try to speak! Stay still! You need to save your energy," Kakashi brushed her hair back. 

"I can't see them... What's happening, Kakashi? Where's the team?" As she tried to turn her head, Hanako shuddered as pain sliced through her again. 

"It's alright, Hanako. Don't worry," Spotting a pack of bandages nearby, he gingerly laid her against a slightly mossy tree. "Stay here, don't move." 

"Kakashi?" came the tentative voice. 

"I'm just going to get some bandages," Kakashi assured her and reached out for the pack. 

As he did so, a foot stomped down on the pack. Kakashi's eyes trailed upward, and looked into a face shrouded in shadow. He could feel it grin evilly as it raised a meaty fist. 

"KAKASHI!" screamed Hanako, and in a split-second, Kakashi lay several feet away from where he once was. As he stood up, he saw Hanako standing before the unknown beast, kunai in hand, with a steady flow of blood dripping from her back. Her breathing was labored and her hands shook from the pain she felt. But even with her back to him, Kakashi knew she had that determined look on her face. Suddenly, he realized what she intended to do. 

"Hanako! No!" cried Kakashi. "You barely have any chakra left!" 

"Kakashi," she began. "I love you, but you don't control me." She raised her kunai as the beast growled and raised its fist once again. 

"I will do anything to protect you!" she cried, and brought the kunai down. 

Kakashi stood and charged toward her. 

"STOP! HANAKO!" 

Her kunai plunged into the beast's chest and it howled in pain as it swatted her away. Hanako's broken body soared through the air and into Kakashi's arms. He cradled her to him and dropped to his knees. He knew she had died the instant her kunai had plunged into the beast. Meanwhile, the beast howled louder, then stopped as its organs burst one by one. 

Kakashi placed a hand on Hanako's still warm cheek and kissed her forehead. As he leaned back, he gently closed her eyes. 

"Rest now," he whispered, his voice cracking slightly and tears blurring his vision. "You don't have to protect anyone anymore." 

Kakashi bolted upright in bed. His body was drenched with sweat, each droplet shimmered in the moonlight. 

He swung his legs over the side of his bed and picked up a seldom-used alarm clock. It told him that it was 2:30 in the morning. Doubting he'd be able to get back to sleep, he made his way towards the kitchen. 

After retrieving a carton of milk from the refrigerator, he shut the door with a bit more force than required. A photograph slipped out from under its magnet, and floated to the floor. Kakashi stooped to pick it up, and in the moonlit kitchen gazed at the woman he once loved...and still did. 

"Hanako," he said once, testing the way it sounded. It had been years since he had said that name out loud. It still rolled smoothly off his tongue. Slowly, he made his way back to bed, milk and photograph in hand, to wait for morning. 

A few weeks later, Kakashi found himself in deep trouble. His team had spotted the traitorous Kabuto, and against Kakashi's better judgement, had attempted to capture him. Now, Kakashi was all that was left. All around him, the bodies of his fallen teammates littered the ground. 

Kakashi himself was in no better shape. Bleeding heavily from several near-fatal wounds and, feeling the effects of some potent drug of Kabuto's, stumbled around. His muscles seemed to refuse to cooperate. 

"Ha...is this all you can do, Kakashi? I was expecting more of a challenge," Kabuto sneered and pushed his glasses back into place. "Right about now, you're starting to feel a little sleepy, aren't you?" 

Kakashi's vision blurred slightly, then came back into focus as he braced himself against a tree. Kabuto laughed at him, fading in and out of focus. 

Kabuto raised his hand, and charged it with chakra. 

"I used this on the Fifth Hokage once. She survived, of course, but then, she was in better shape than you are right now." 

Kakashi squinted, as he could barely see now. Things were fading in and out of focus much faster than before. 

"DIE!" cried Kabuto as he charged towards Kakashi. 

Kakashi, drugged as he was, prepared himself for the attack. 

But it never came. Kakashi tried desperately to see. He thought he saw Kabuto frozen in place and trembling. As he forced himself to focus, Kakashi saw that Kabuto was indeed frozen in place, his expression twisted into one of pain and suffering. 

"Wh-what ju-jutsu is this?!?!" managed Kabuto. 

"It's no jutsu of mine..." spoke Kakashi. Straining to use his sharingan, he could detect nothing. Kabuto's hands reached up and clawed at his throat in an attempt to free it from the tightly clenched fingers he felt. Finally, Kabuto's limbs went limp and his head drooped to one side. 

Kakashi stood there, astounded as Kabuto's limp body fell to the ground. Cautiously, he approached and found that Kabuto was only unconscious, not dead. He wondered who had done this. 

"Kakashi," came a soft voice from behind. A chill ran through Kakashi's veins. He stood up, and slowly turned around. 

There, in the sunlight that drifted through the trees, stood Hanako. She was transparent, still dressed in the Hidden Leaf Shinobi uniform, but no longer broken or bleeding. Her hair even floated softly in a breeze that wafted through the woods. She was the most beautiful ghost he had ever seen. 

"You..." began Kakashi. "You did this?" 

Hanako smiled sweetly and nodded, clasping her hands behind her back. 

"Why?" he asked. 

"Hatake Kakashi," said the ethereal girl as she placed both of her hands on Kakashi's cheeks. To his surprise, they were warm and seemed full of life. 

"I love you," continued the apparition. "But you don't control me. I will do anything to protect you." 

With that, the spirit of his former lover pulled his mask down and kissed his lips one last time. For a moment, Kakashi felt the familiar warmth and sweet taste of her lips. He closed his eyes, and fought to hold back the tears. He wasn't sure if what he was experiencing was real, but he hoped desperately that it would never end. He felt the warmth and taste slip away, and was left with only a cool breeze to touch his lips. 

He kept his eyes shut as he wrapped his arms around himself, and tried to keep the tears in. 

"Hanako," he whispered. "You defied death for me." 

He raised his face to the sky, and felt the warm rays of the sun hit his face. 

"_We'll always be together forever, right?_" 

"_Yes, always..._"


End file.

Naruto, Romance