The Heart of Suna

The call came in just as she finished tucking in two-year-old Shikadai to bed. The Nara mansion was eerily quiet and her laptop's ringtone seemed to penetrate the whole of the ground floor. Temari hurried to hers and Shikamaru's shared study to answer it.

"I need to pick your brain apart," Gaara said as if testing the words.

"What?" she asked, a little shocked and a bit disconcerted about his statement.

"I need to pick your brain," Gaara said with a slight tinge of red to his cheeks. "Is that better?"

Temari suppressed a chuckle. "Yeah. Very much so. What's this about?"

Gaara turned his gaze towards something that was out of the camera's scope before that said something turned out to be a someone. "Well, you see…we are having a bit of a crisis here regarding ninja training."

Temari blinked twice, willing his brother to continue.

"There's an influx of shinobi students and we don't know what to do with them…well, we do but there's the problem of manpower."

Kankuro nodded, chiming in. "Even after four years, we are still feeling the repercussions of losing great manpower and we are stretched far too thin. Even if missions have slightly dwindled, there's still a big discrepancy."

"And we cannot, of course, turn the willing students away," Gaara nodded. "It's already a feat in itself that a lot of the younger generation have been inspired enough by the latest war to sign themselves up for training."

Temari sat against the back of the chair. "So, you called me to know if I have any suggestions regarding solutions to the upcoming conundrum?"

Kankuro nodded fiercely. "Naturally. It's your fault that the turnout was such a number. A great lot of them were female and was inspired by Suna's Lady of the War."

The Suna-Konoha ambassador rolled her eyes. "That's not exactly a fault, is it? What do I need to do then?"

"Like you've already guessed: suggest a solution," the youngest sibling said solemnly. "If you would be so kind."

"And I'm sensing you had me involved directly so I can rear my hand as an ambassador, and not as an advisor?" Temari queried.

Kankuro smirked. Her sister was the smartest and most perceptive female she had ever encountered. "More or less."

Temari rolled her eyes playfully. "I'll ask some members of the clan. Who better to have as jounin-sensei than the Nara? How many are we talking?"

Gaara bugged his eyes out for a second before his facial expression schooled almost automatically. "Wait, you're going to ask for your clansmen?"

"You seem surprised."

Kankuro opened and closed his mouth a few times. "…We were just hoping you can round up some willing volunteers. Like normal jounins. Hopefully intelligent but not A-grade intelligent Nara superbrains."

The blonde matriarch narrowed her eyes. "You make us sound like some weird mutation."

"It's just a bit unexpected…"

Temari steepled her hands under her chin. "Why? Did you expect that I would hand over half-assed Konoha jounin to train the next generation of Suna shinobi? I would never set my home village up for mediocrity."

"Aren't Nara people lazy, though?"

"Ha!" Temari let out a quick yet boisterous laughter. "That seems to be a trait exclusive only to the men of the main family."

"R-right…" Kankuro stammered.

"When do you need my people then?"

"A month before the term starts. We need time to prepare their home quarters and I would like to give them time to settle in before the school starts. And since it's Nara people we'll be expecting, I think it will be wise to consult them regarding the curriculum as well," Gaara responded.

"Of course."

"Thank you, aneue," the youngest Kazekage said solemnly.

Kankuro nodded. "We'd totally be screwed if we didn't have you."

Temari smirked and then flashed them her signature smile. "I know."

Childhood Memories

It was all black. She knew her eyes were open but it was still very dark. In fact, it was rather comfortable where she sat.

Yet, it was all black. The child's sweat beaded on her forehead and she grit her teeth and frowned when she darted her eyes from one side to another but saw the seemingly inescapable darkness that was before her.

"Daijobu desu ka?" a voice asked and she didn't exactly have to look at the owner of that voice to know that the question was directed at her.

"Un…" she answered tentatively, one hand rising to her temple to scratch at the itch formed by the bead of sweat there.

Suddenly, a flash of light penetrated the darkness and she winced at the sudden assault on her optics. The small child fell backwards into a warm body and she looked up at him, teal eyes round and wide.

"You really shouldn't play with tou-sama's hat like that…" the Fourth Kazekage gently admonished before he smiled down at Temari sitting on his lap.

The toddler giggled cheekily before turning on his lap, laying her head on his chest and sighing. "Tou-sama wears a funny hat."

Family

The little bundle in her arms seemed to be more fidgety than her older brother when he was a newborn. That just meant this one could turn out more like her in terms of personality. After all, she had already inherited her hair colour, eyes (and Shikamaru was thankful for it), face, head shape, and mouth. The only thing that screamed Nara from the newborn was her nose.

Temari scooted to the right to make room for Shikadai. Her movements were sluggish as she still was sore from the birth a few minutes ago. She didn't want to display her discomfort so she had to suppress her wince, hoping silently that her stitches won't come undone. She didn't want to be stitched up again.

The six year-old's face was void of its usual indifferent expression and was replaced with a look that was part-curiosity and part-concentration. Shikadai pursed his lips and blinked down to his baby sister, letting the baby grip his index finger in her palm. A small and satisfied smile managed to peer into his face.

"I think she likes you. Do you like her?" Temari asked softly, placing a kiss on her son's head.

"Lots, but she doesn't do anything yet."

Shikamaru chuckled softly and joined his small family on Temari's hospital bed, mindful of the wires attached to his wife. "She won't be able to do much for quite a time but that's okay. Onii-chan can show her how to do things, yeah?"

Shikadai had a look on his face once more, one that he has whenever his mind is thinking. Shikamaru can't help but notice how he looks so much like Temari every time he puts his 'thinking face' on. He was much like his mother more than people realise. "Yeah, I guess. But what's her name?"

Temari had a soft, reminiscent smile on her face. Her eyes glossed over and she looked at Shikamaru, who nodded both in encouragement and approval. They had long debated on the new baby's name but they haven't settled on it even if the child came later than her due date (the Nara's are lazy even during birth, it seems). The Suna princess gave her husband a grateful smile when he nodded, meaning it was up to her to name their new baby. She wanted nothing more than to pay respect and homage.

"Karura."

The Torments of War

Cheeks down to bone, eye sockets scarily protruding under skin. Hands stick-like, showing no sign of muscle or even untoned flesh. The man seemed like he was far too skiny, far too lifeless for his shinobi uniform and flak jacket.

Her world was at a standstill, the chaos and the noise seeming to disappear as her focus was solely on the man that lay against his best friend, with his other friend telling him to not give up and telling him to stay awake.

Temari's knees locked in position that she couldn't walk, that she wasn't stable enough, and she was sure that she would be knocked to the ground if anyone would shove her even lightly. Temari was in a state of panic as she saw Shikamaru die slowly, agonizingly before her eyes.

His skin was grey, his usual slightly tanned skintone gone. One of the branches of the chakra tree got to him and she cursed herself for even taking her eyes away from him when the situation turned dire. Temari couldn't blink, eyes intent on watching his chest rise and fall in a ragged manner before it stopped.

Temari screamed.

And woke up.

For a few moments, she was disoriented. The kunoichi could feel her heart ringing in her ears, the darkness seeming to amplify her pulse. Her whole body shook at the thought of her nightmare, arms going to hug her knees to her chest.

Nightmare. It was just a nightmare. The war had been won six months ago. Everything was becoming peaceful now. Such were the words running through her head, the words she was using to calm herself down that she didn't notice her companion on the bed stirring.

"Mari?" Shikamaru made her voice jump. "Oi, oi. Are you okay? What's wrong?"

Temari shook her head. "Nothing. It's nothing. It doesn't matter anymore."

She knew it was a lie but she hoped Shikamaru allowed her just this one time. They can always talk about it in the morning. For now, she let herself be uncurled by his gentle hands and settled back to bed. Temari felt herself be engulfed in the warmth of his body, arms encasing her smaller form.

The kunoichi was desperate to sleep again but she knew there would be no nightmares to plague her this time. He always managed to chase them away just by being near her, and she was extremely thankful for it.

Finding Peace

She wasn't one to do this but the call of the trees seemed to enticing to ignore. Temari walked out of the grounds of the Nara mansion, looking at it lingeringly before she closed the back gate that led to the forest.

The kunoichi hasn't wrapped her head around the fact that she lived in one just yet. Shikamaru had his reasons for choosing the residence, but he has been vague about them. To her, it didn't matter where they lived or if they lived in Shikamaru's former quaint apartment in the village centre as long as they were together.

Turning from the enormous house, she started to walk aimlessly into their clan's forest, feeling relaxed at the company of greenery. What she liked best about the forest was how it seemed so alive. She had never a forest at her backyard when she lived in Suna, the place being in the middle of a desert, so she indulged in walks whenever she could just to satiate her flora-loving side.

Temari could hear various animals flittering about, lots of fawns playing on the grounds somewhere. The birds were chirping all around, some of them flying about whilst some of them fed their young in their respective nests. As if a guard on duty, Rikumaru walked to her side and nudged her cheek.

The deer, who shared Shikamaru's birthday, was the one who first approached her when she was first brought to the forest. There was something calming about the animal that she didn't see with the other deers (not that they were unfriendly; Rikumaru was just too friendly).

"Hello, Riku-chan," she chuckled, running a hand through his soft fur. "I'm alone right now. Your buddy isn't here with me."

The stag snorted as if to dismiss the piece of information that she offered. Rikumaru walked with her and she smiled down at the animal when she realised he wasn't going anywhere. "Okay, you can walk with me."

Temari wasn't planning on it but somehow, she ended up at the site where Hidan was chopped up and buried. As if on cue, the Akatsuki member hollered at her, although she was unsure whether the jashinist had any idea whom he was talking to.

"Oi, I will fucking skin you alive when I get out of this ditch you idiot, good-for-nothing, waste-of-space bastard!" Hidan hollered.

Temari's eye ticked. She knew he was talking about Shikamaru and of course, she, as his wife, was taking offence over it. No one was allowed to call Shikamaru that save for her (which she does in jest but her husband understands).

The kunoichi frowned deeply and her eyes narrowed. Rather than making a retort, she sat down on the ground and laid her hand on it. She didn't need her Tessen for this jutsu, if she's just going to release it in a short range.

"Fuuton: Kakeami," she uttered, releasing her Cast Net.

Suna's Princess watched in satisfaction as the wind over the burial site stiffened and then sank down, causing the boulders to break, level by level, from top to bottom. When she heard a deafening scream from under the ground, Temari smiled to herself and sat back against the oak tree. Sighing, she closed her eyes and stroked Rikumaru's head as it laid on her lap.

"You, bitchy little shit! Who are you? You're not the shitty deer kid!" Hidan bellowed. "You fucking cut my head into pieces!"

Oh yes, the Nara forest comes through whenever she sought peace.

Bonds of Friendship

"Temari!"

The sound of her name being called made her turn around to reveal her husband's teammate, Ino, who was waving excitedly at her. Not far too behind her was another kunoichi, but this one sported a head full of pink hair swept to each side neatly.

"Ino," she greeted back, giving the Yamanaka clan head a kind smile. She hadn't seen them or any of Shikamaru's former classmates since their wedding in Suna a week ago. Mostly, they had been busy with moving much of her stuff and arranging the Nara mansion to their liking. It was her first day she'll be spending in Konoha without the need to do housekeeping or meeting with the Nara clan.

Unlike her, though, Shikamaru had to report to Kakashi today just so he could be caught up with whatever he had to miss for the past few weeks while he was busy with their wedding preparations. This was why she found herself, for the first time in a very long time, wandering around Konoha alone.

"I see you've finally settled in. It must be a long week for you and Shikamaru," Ino said, the smile seeming to never leave her face as she neared her. Temari exchanged quick greetings with Sakura once they were in sort of a group circle.

"Yeah. We finished just yesterday. I figured I'd have to memorise all the routes here in Konoha since it's now my homebase. Shikamaru unfortunately has work today so I'm walking around by myself," Temari said.

Ino nodded and placed a hand on her arm. "Well, Sakura and I seem to have perfect timing. We're just figuring out what to do for today since it's our day off. Why don't we show you around?"

Temari was a little taken aback at her offer. "You don't have to do that," she said softly, a little meekly. "I'm sure you two can find more enjoyable things to do than showing me around. Besides, I can somehow remember some of the way after Shikamaru served as my escort since I became ambassador."

"Oh, come now, Temari," Sakura chided in. "We'd be happy to help you out. We're great friends with Shikamaru so there's no need to be so worried about it. Besides, you're his wife now so you share with him whatever he has. And since Shikamaru has us as friends, then we're automatically friends with you as well."

The platinum blonde-haired kunoichi nodded with a smile. "Yeah! And come now, don't act as if we're mere acquaintances. Our batch and you Sand siblings have come a long way since we first met each other. Heck, we've been through war together! So, come on, just cease it with the hesitance and just come with us! Besides, you can't survive living in Konoha with just hanging around Shikamaru no matter how sexy you find him."

Temari blushed at what Ino said. "Wait…w-what?!"

Ino gave her a pained look, but it was Sakura who provided the explanation. "Don't forget she's a mind reader, Temari. So, I suggest being careful with your thoughts around this one. It's not that she means to pry, but sometimes our thoughts jump at her, as she says."

The Suna kunoichi blinked at the two women before her. "I-I see…"

Ino frowned at her best friend. "See when you put it that way, billboard brow, it will decrease the chances of Temari going with us and considering us her friends."

Instead of retorting even with Ino calling her 'billboard brow', Sakura looked mortified. "Shannaro," she said softly in frustration. "Sorry, Ino."

Seeing as she could only watch the scene playing out before her, Temari was silent and deliberated whether to go with them or not. They seemed to be sincere in their offer of touring her around and they wouldn't be doing anything potentially harmful or dangerous. Shaking herself from her overthinking, she nodded.

"I'll go. Please tour me around the village. I'll forever be gratefule," she said, bowing at Ino and Sakura.

The two medic-nins were surprised at her display of formality.

"Iie, iie! It's nothing. Come on; please stand. Don't be so formal," Sakura said in a bit of panic, which made Temari straighten herself and blush a little.

Ino chuckled at the display. "Friends don't need to be so formal with each other, Temari."

"R-right…" she stammered.

Ino sighed in relief, taking Temari's arm and Sakura's hand. "Come, come. We'll show you the best stores first, then the cafes that we girls usually go to for some chitchat," the blonde said. "Maybe we can have lunch in that barbecue place our class always goes to, ne, Sakura?"

"Tadaima."

"Okaeri," Shikamaru greeted, coming out of the living room and meeting her on the foyer. "I didn't expect you'd arrive later than I did. Good day?"

Temari shrugged but smiled. "More or less. Ino and Sakura got a hold of me. I already ate but I bought you dinner."

The shinobi took the plastic from his wife's hand and slid his fingers in between hers. "I'll get to eating it but you have to join me."

Temari chuckled and nodded. "Fine. Had a good day?"

"More or less," he replied with a smirk and began to eat. "So, where did you three go and what did you do around the village?"

"Eh, mostly chatted. They showed me the shopping district, the café the kunoichis of your class favoured, and the yakiniku place where your class always dines," Temari shared.

Shikamaru looked at her for a moment before taking a bite of his gyoza. "There's something on your mind…"

Rolling her eyes, she gave her a small, playful smirk. "Must you always scrutinise me like that?" she asked then sighed. "Just thinking how my expectations were not met…"

"And is that good or bad?"

She pursed her lips, combing a hand through her sandy blonde hair, which was free from its usual restraints now. "Well, I can't say it's bad, definitely. I guess it's good; I'm just not used to it yet."

Shikamaru finished his meal and drank his water. He let out an uncontrollable, loud burp, which made his wife grimace.

"You're a pig."

"I'm the deer. 'Shika'…keep up, love."

Temari rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

The Hokage advisor let out a snort. "It's something you need to get used to, living in Konoha," he said getting back in topic. "If you are friends with one person, expect that you'll be friends with a whole lot more."

"Yeah, that's what I figured. Ino and Sakura seemed like they would lose a million ryo if I didn't let them tour me around, though."

"Of course," he nodded. "They wouldn't want to get on your bad side, cruelest kuonichi."

She was about to land a punch on her husband's shoulder but it would just be proof to his words. So, Temari merely pouted and harrumphed.

"I'm kidding," Shikamaru said, throwing an arm around her shoulder and pulling her close. "They want to be friends with you because you're my wife and I'm great friends with them. Same would be said for Choji, Naruto, Kiba, Hinata, Tenten, Lee, Shino… They'll be like Ino and Sakura, freely offering their friendship. That's how Konoha is prosperous. We're rich with great, true friends. And it's not as if they don't know you. We have a long history of working well together so I'm assuming they'd want to build a relationship that's outside professional bounds."

"You're right," she conceded after thinking about his words. "I should stop overanalysing things. I mean, here, they don't treat me like I'm some sort of royalty to be revered and excluded from the general populace. And I find that rather comforting."

"And you were so worried about making friends," Shikamaru chuckled, squeezing her shoulder and pulling her just a bit closer.

"Shut up; it was a valid worry."

The Nara clan head smiled and kissed her temple. "I know. But there's nothing to worry about now. Rarely is a Konoha citizen without friends."

Temari AU

She sat on the sofa, staring at the telephone as if it was going to go anywhere if she took her eyes off it. Her apartment was quiet, save for the usual drone of the train that ran near the complex of her flat. Temari wasn't a nail-biter when she was nervous but that seemed to not be the case at the moment.

The diplomat was waiting for a call from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She had applied for a promotion that week and her superiors had given her the week off, which she took advantage of by studying the constitution of the land once more.

Today, however, marks the end of the deliberation period for her application and she did many things except for studying. Her mind cannot seem to focus and touching anything related to her career seemed to send her into a minor state of anxiety and panic. It didn't help that her boyfriend was swamped with his own work as well.

Temari was far too focused on the communication device that she didn't notice Shikamaru keying into her door and letting himself inside. Even if her floors were naked after she sent her carpets to the washers, she still could not hear the click of Shikamaru's leather shoes on her tiles.

"Congratulations, babe," Shikamaru said with a large smile on his goofy face. In one hand was a bouquet of her favourite Stargazers, while his other hand carried several food containers. The female envoy jumped at his voice and stared at him with a wild look.

"You're going to jinx it!" she exclaimed, an accusing expression dawning on her face. "There's nothing to celebrate! …yet."

The head of intelligence and analysis service looked at her as if she grew a second head. "What do you mean? You already got the position."

Temari rolled her eyes and huffed, crossing her arms. "Your confidence is very welcome Shikamaru but now is not the time."

"What?" Shikamaru asked, duly confused. "But the people at the office…"

Temari cocked her head to the side. "What?"

"What?"

The envoy shook her head and blinked. The telephone rang, finally.

"Answer it. Answer it and all of this will have meaning to you," Shikamaru smirked.

Rolling her eyes once more, Temari scrambled for the phone. The conversation didn't last long and the silent afterwards was deafening.

"Babe?"

The reaction was not what he expected. Temari sank down to the floor and hugged her knees, burying her face into them. Shikamaru placed the things he carried on the counter and dropped to her level, hugging her close and tightly.

"I got it," she whispered, voice distant and unbelieving. "Shika, I got it."

"I know. That's what I've been trying to tell you. I didn't know they didn't call you yet," he said. "Congratulations, babe. I am so, so, very proud of you, Ambassadress."