Forget the World

If I l lay here,

If I just lay here,

Would you lie with me,

And just forget the world?

-Snow Patrol

My fingers swept through my hair as I gathered the blonde locks into my usual quartet of spiky ponytails. I then deftly tied on my forehead protector, looking quickly at my reflection in the tall mirror mounted on the wall to ensure that everything was as it should be. Satisfied, I turned to pick up the large fan leaning against my bed and slung it over my shoulder, carefully strapping it into place. With one more parting glance at the mirror to make sure there was nothing on my black dress, I turned and headed out of the small apartment, locking the door behind me, and turned to lean on the railing of the tall flight of stairs just outside my door, so I could fully enjoy the view of the rising of the bright orange sun on my final day in Leaf-Village.

I felt the buttery light of a new day caress me, and the already energetic sounds of early village activity floated up to my ears. The day was young, but already you could hear vendors opening up shop, neighbors greeting each other warmly, and the sound of young children playing ninja on the nearby rooftops. I caught myself fleetingly wishing I could stay in Konoha for a few more weeks at least, but the idea was swiftly banished from my mind; I couldn't go much longer without returning to Gaara and Kankuro back in Suna, because not only was I an Ambassador and bodyguard to the Kazekage, I also played the all important role of being a big sister to my precious family. Because, though I admittedly liked being away from the hot desert every once in while, it didn't feel right not being with my brothers. I wonder-

"Oi." A lazy voice called up to me, interrupting my train of thought. I looked down to see my spiky haired guide looking up at me lazily. He was in his standard Shinobi attire and was leaning against a fence across the street waiting for me. "Are you going to stand there all morning?" Shikamaru asked me. "How troublesome."

"Isn't it a few hours to early for you to be up Nara?" I asked, giving him my signature smirk as I rested an elbow on the railing and let my chin rest against my palm.

"Well, I wouldn't have to be up so early if you would sleep in every once in a while like normal people." He retorted, "That's why women are so..."

"Yeah, yeah, troublesome I know." I said with a roll of my eyes. I stood up straight and slowly made my way down the stairs. He waited for me to step onto the street before leisurely walking to join me.

"Where are we off to first?" I asked

"To see the Hokage." He answered, barely suppressing a yawn. "I need to give her my latest report, and she may have something for us to do." Though, from the sound of his voice is sounded unlikely. It seemed like my last day here would be uneventful.

We made our way lethargically to the Tsunade-sama's office, and sure enough, after Shikamaru gave the blonde honey-eyed woman a detailed report of his last mission, the Hokage sent us away with a wave of her wrist, claiming we both needed to "take it easy for today". With a small sigh on my part, and a shrug of the shoulders from the man standing beside me, we left the Sannin's office together heading for the street once again.

Standing silently for a few moments, the Nara turned to me.

"Breakfast?" He asked, his hands moving to slip into his pockets. I thought for a moment, but quickly gave a jerk of my head in assent; I tend to skip the first meal of the day and was always starving by ten or ten-thirty. A small smile curved his lips upwards for a moment as he nodded and began to walk towards a small restaurant.

After scanning the almost completely empty diner, we settled down at a small table for two tucked away in the corner and ordered tea and a light breakfast.

"You know you're paying for this, right?" I asked him smirking.

"Troublesome woman." He muttered with a sigh. I couldn't help but giggle, and was rewarded with a slight grin from lazy genius.

Our orders were quickly filled, and we delved into the steaming food. We ate in companionable silence for the first five or ten minutes before the man across from me decided to break the silence; just as I was finishing the last bite of my food.

"So how long are you sticking around this time?" He asked, an eyebrow quirked upwards. I swallowed the rest of my food and took a sip of tea before speaking.

"I'm leaving tomorrow, actually." I answered softly. The small smile on his lips disappeared.

"So soon..." He mumbled dejectedly. I looked up at him questioningly.

"And what's it matter to you, Nara?" I asked him in the haughtiest voice I could manage, trying to hide my amusement. He looked up at me, flustered.

"Of course it doesn't matter to me." He tried for nonchalance, but he couldn't hide the light blush that began to stain his cheeks. "Leading you around all the time is troublesome...I'm relieved that I'll be able to resume my normal routine soon." He casually flung an arm across the back of his chair and looked out towards the street, avoiding my gaze. I allowed a smile to sweep across my lips for a moment before I reached to drink the last of my tea.

"Temari...?" Shikamaru said, turning back to me. I raised an eyebrow. "I want to show you something before you leave." He stood from the table, but before he could reach for his wallet to pay for our meal, I laid down my own money to pay for the food.

"Now wait just a minute-" He began

"Don't even bother Nara," I scolded "I'm paying for this." My tone was firm, but I had to cut him off again as he made to argue further with me, "Please," I said, "It's to thank you for being my guide whenever I'm here in Konoha."

His glare softened, and he sighed as he reluctantly agreed, though I did hear him mutter something about 'troublesome women'. I smirked once again as we left the restaurant. Shikamaru immediately took the lead with a quick "This way."

We wound through the streets towards the outskirts of the forest sheltered village, passing people who smiled and greeted us with quick 'Hello's' and 'Good mornings'. We strolled to the edge of Konoha, nearing a large hill that served as the home to a large Cherry tree. The soft breeze that began to blow stirred the blossoms, and pink petals danced in the air and spun lazily toward the green grass. I could hear birds chirping in the blue sky, and cicadas singing from the trees.

"Wow." I heard myself gasp. The young man at my side gave me a sleepy smile before gently tugging me towards the top of the hill.

"This is where I come when I want a moment to myself."

"It's...beautiful." I told him, shaking my head in amazement. We climbed onto the grassy summit and Shikamaru sat down in the shade of the Cherry tree before motioning for me to do the same. The grass was cool and soft under my hands, and soon we were both lying down on the emerald ground, staring up at the clouds as they drifted slowly by.

"I've never done this before." I admitted to him.

"Really? I do it all the time." Somehow that didn't surprise me in the least, it seemed like he probably hauled his lazy ass up here every day just to cloud watch. I smirked, but realized that I didn't really have much room to talk in that department. Though when I gazed up at the sky, it was never interrupting my work, because it was always nighttime when the stars were out. I folded one arm behind my head and allowed myself to relax as I found shapes in the clouds for hours and hours.

"Aren't we a little old for finding shapes in the clouds Nara?" I asked laughingly, breaking the long comfortable silence as I pointed with my left hand to a white fluffy cat floating in the sky.

"You're never to old to forget about your troubles for a few hours." He answered half-asleep. I looked over at him, and found him to be in the same position I was in, with one arm supporting his head, and his other hand softly tracing designs in the air in front of him as he found different shapes in the clouds. His face turned towards mine, and there was a look of complete contentment in his eyes.

"Yeah," I conceded, "I guess you're right."

We stayed up on the hill top for the rest of the day, watching the clouds roll by and the sun creep his way back towards the horizon. We missed lunch, and soon it was even nearing dinner. Yet neither of us wanted to leave.

So we didn't.

I would be leaving tomorrow morning to go back to Suna, and who knows when I would be back. So for now, we were both fine with skipping a few meals to just relax next to each other, because we knew we wouldn't be able to do it again for a really long time. I felt at peace lying here next to the Chounin who I had grown rather fond of, and I was looking forward to sunset, and what would follow.

Just as the sun began it's slow descent below the horizon, he turned towards me.

"I suppose we should go get some dinner before I take you back to your apartment, shouldn't we?"

"No way!" I told him, "The best part is about to start." He looked at me quizzically, staring at me as if I had grown a second head. "I told you I had never done this before, right?" I asked him.

He gave a small nod, but still looked as confused as ever.

"That's because when I look up at the sky, I'm looking at the stars...not the clouds." Understanding lit his features, and he nodded as he flipped back over to wait for the sky to darken with me.

Soon enough, the sun disappeared and the moon began to rise. I sighed as the tiny points of silver light I loved so much began to dot the sky.

"Now this," I began in a tender voice, "this I could do for hours, Shikamaru." His name rolled off my tongue, familiar and warm.

"Yeah...I think I could get used to this view." His voice was just as soft as mine had been. I looked over at the Nara, but was surprised to see his eyes on me, and not the sky. I felt my face began to warm, but I found myself unable to comeback with any type of witty retort.

So I did the only thing I could think of, the one thing we both wanted at that moment.

I sat up and moved closer, laying down right beside him, setting my head on his chest, and curling into his side. His arms wrapped tightly around me, and we spent the rest of the night tracing constellations in the ink black sky, falling asleep in each others arms, and dreaming of what we would do together when I would finally return to him again.