like it? I thought if we were going out, then we'd be right.” She turned around as if she wanted to present her outfit.
Temari didn't like that at all. She noticed Shikamaru glancing at her.

"Oh, now I understand. You could have told me straight away that you don't have time," the Sabakuno said to the boy. She grinned cheekily at him. Inwardly, however, she was offended. If he was in love with Ino, then she had no more hope. Her heart ached a lot at the thought.

"Well, that's a bit complicated. I didn't know-"
"No, it's okay. I'll leave you two alone. Have fun," Temari interrupted. She looked at Ino, who looked a little confused. But she didn't really care at the moment.

Temari turned and left the property quickly. If Shikamaru wasn't interested in her, then she didn't have to. She knew she was going to be hurt. That was proof that she was right ...


-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.


"What was that just now?" Ino asked. She looked after Temari as she ran away. Shikamaru wanted to call after her to stop her, but he didn't. Now he had missed his chance. He'd probably even hurt her, the way Temari looked.

Ino looked blankly into his face until she suddenly clapped her hand over her forehead.
"Shikamaru!" She exclaimed reproachfully. "What was that supposed to mean ?!"
Ino faced him with crossed arms. She looked a little taken by surprise, but she seemed angry.

"What do you think?", the Nara wanted to know. Why was she so upset now?
The blonde let out a scornful snort. "What I mean ?! You're the biggest idiot in the world! I don't know why I didn't notice this before! I'm probably an even bigger idiot. Shikamaru!"

“What are you talking about ?!” He was shocked to face the blond fury. "Oh come on! Don't pretend! I saw through you, my dear" Her expression switched between offended and amused. Shikamaru never understood Ino very well, but now it was a book with seven seals. All he was capable of was a pretty stupid look on his face.
He had no idea what she was talking about.

Ino looked creepy in the twilight. "Well, then I will probably have to help you on your way. You-are-in-Temari-lost-e-b-t!" She pulled the individual words apart as if she were talking to someone who is hard of hearing.
Immediately, before he really realized what she had said, the blush shot in his face. It was like the world stood still. He couldn't move, couldn't think. Only the one sentence echoed in his now empty head.

Ino watched him closely. Every tiny bit was noticed to be used against him later. As she knew him, he would certainly deny it right away, but Ino knew it was true. She had hit the bull's eye.
Inside, she was as happy as a little child. Oh, she loved playing the matchmaker. The Yamanaka was already thinking of strategies how to best bring the two together.

Shikamaru tried to remember if he had ever told Ino. No, that was his big secret. He hadn't confided it to anyone, especially her. He knew exactly what would happen then. What happened now.
Of course he could have denied it, but he had already given too much away for that.
Slowly his gaze wandered to the blond-haired man's face. "Ino listen. I know what you're up to now, but let it be. Please! That will only bring disaster."

The addressed giggled softly to herself. Finally she let out a loud cry of joy and fell on Shikamaru's neck. "I knew it! You charmer! And how do you want to win her heart?" The shinobi tried hard to get out of Ino's grip, but she wouldn't let go of him. That was exactly why he hadn't told her.

Ino released him and happily jumped on the spot. She acted like a little child, only that she was no longer true. "Can you please stop making such a fuss here? My mother could hear you ..." She started laughing again. Apparently she was enjoying how embarrassing Shikamaru was. He didn't know what was worse. The facts that Ino had ruined his chance to date Temari, or that he had apparently hurt Temari.

While his team mate was still enjoying the new knowledge, he tried to find out why the Sabakuno had looked so offended in the first place.It was strange, she had absolutely no reason to. Fine, he had to decline her suggestion, but nobody looks so sad about that.
Especially not if the person's name is Temari Sabakuno!
But why else? He couldn't think of a plausible explanation.

Meanwhile, Ino start talking to herself:

"You would go together so well!"
"Why didn't I notice that earlier?"
"Probably because you're too big a fool."
"If you get married, our alliance with Suna will be enormously strengthened!"
"If you hurt Temari, the Kazekage will probably kill you ...!"

She fell silent on her last sentence. Hopefully it wouldn't get that far, but Temari wasn't someone who was so easy to say either.
Maybe she would be able to motivate Shikamaru ...

When Ino stopped talking, the Nara took notice. Through the silence he heard a noise. They were steps. Out of the house. They got closer and closer. Panic rose in him.

His mother!

It was like a curse. Why did these bad things happen to him only?
First the house arrest, then Temari and now the pure evil in the shape of his mother!
Shikamaru heard her coming down the stairs, straight towards her!

Meanwhile, his blonde partner seemed to have noticed that something was wrong with Shikamaru. She looked at him worried and was about to open her mouth when someone came before her.

"What's going on here? Shikamaru! What are you- oh. Ino, what a surprise!", It came from Yoshino. Inwardly, the last bit of hope in her son was shattered. Nobody could expect him to endure this a minute longer.

He probably did it out of desperation. He was so close to a nervous breakdown that he forgot his usual behavior and just followed his instincts.

"I have to get out of here !!" he yelled and ran away. He left his perplexed mother and an overwhelmed Ino standing at the door.

...

"What does he have?"
"No idea."


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Temari ran through the streets with tears in his eyes. What she saw there literally pounded her heart. She had never felt so exposed in her life. She had never felt so helpless before. In one fell swoop all their hopes were dashed.

Why did she think she had a chance with him? How stupid she was.
That’s what it was, stupid. She could have slapped herself.

"Excuse me, are you okay?"

With wet eyes Temari looked into the face of the woman who had spoken to her.
In her head she didn't want to think about it and so she just kept staring into her face.

"Is everything all right? Is there anything I can do to help you?"

The woman seemed nervous. She looked strangely concerned.
It was strange. The woman was a stranger, but Temari's concern was good.Suddenly the wind blew a strand of light blonde hair into the woman's face.
At that moment she looked like ... Ino.

Again Temari's tears ran down her cheeks and she pressed her hand over her mouth.

"Wait!" The woman called after her, but Temari kept running.



When Temari stopped and looked around, she was standing on the edge of the Konoha Forest.
Had she gone that far? How pathetic.
That damn Shikamaru! It was all his fault!
Why did she have to fall in love with him of all people! Why did she have such feelings at all !?

Angrily, she hit a tree with her fist. That was good.
She hit it over and over until she stopped crying.
Inside her, the sadness was gone, and the anger was gone as well.
Temari just felt empty.

She sat down on a large stone and looked up at the sky. Above her the treetops left a large hole through which she could see the stars.

In contrast to Suna, the sky here was almost always covered with clouds. Above her the sky had become quite dark by now, so that you could see the stars twinkling, but further back a wave of deep dark thunderclouds came up.
So she couldn't stay here long.

A light wind blew up and blew through her hair.
How nice that felt. It was like stroking her face and playing with a few tears of her hair.
An image formed in her mind: Shikamaru was sitting next to her and slowly ran his hand over her face.

In the first second Temari was terrified, because the pain in her chest made her freeze, but then the image disappeared and she fell back into the sea of ​​grief.

Now that it was over, now that all her hopes had died, she could comfort herself with her imagination.

As she sat there and dreamed, she did not notice that anyone else was here.

"Temari?"

The addressed opened her eyes with a jerk.
This voice!

When she looked at the person she had spoken to, the butterflies began to fly again and her heart burned at the same time.
She stared at Shikamaru in shock.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

Temari hadn't expected anyone here, especially him. After all, he was why she was here in the first place. So what made him go into the woods?
And by the way: where was Ino? Didn't they have a date or something?

"I could ask you the same thing!" She answered him.

Shikamaru looked down at the ground with displeasure. Apparently something was uncomfortable for him.
Strange. Actually, he had absolutely no reason to.
Temari jerked up from the stone and demonstratively stood in front of the brown-haired man.

"Tell me Shikamaru, where did you leave Ino? You didn't just move her, did you?"Outwardly, she tried to look just as cool as always. She tried to put on her typical grin and make her voice sound challenging, but she didn't quite succeed.

Shikamaru's eyes widened a little at the last question, as if something suddenly occurred to him.
"Well, that's complicated, but actually that's exactly what I did ..."

Actually, this was just supposed to be a joke. But had he really just left Ino there? Then