The day Konaha went to hell in a hand basket was surprisingly sunny.

It was a nice, inauspicious day- vendors prepared their merchandise in the markets, and early-duty shinobi raced across roof-tops, all enjoying the warm summer breeze- oblivious to the terror that would shortly begin. The day would be remembered as one of the three times Konoha was declared 'No Man's Land' by the other shinobi nations, the first being the disastrous chain reaction caused by the first Tora mission, and the second being the day Maito Gai discovered green spandex. But presently, there was no inkling of the doom that would soon befall the peaceful village.

Oddly enough, the catastrophe of a day began with a single event- Ino Yamanaka had finally convinced (blackmailed) Naruto into helping her find clothes for a date.

Considering the Yamanaka heiress's history with men and all around acknowledged allure, it wasn't odd for her to be preparing for a date with her chosen victim. What was odd was the company she had chosen to drag along for her wild shopping spree.

Since the blonde war-hero was a diehard tomboy that wore an eyesore of an orange jumpsuit, it begs the question of Ino's sanity that she would bring this particular companion along for a shopping spree of all things. Looking at their opposing interests, they shouldn't even have been friends.

Though they hadn't gotten along during their academy days, what with Naruto being too busy pulling pranks on her poor academy sensei and Ino's disgust of the prankster's fashion choice- along with other… distractions (a certain duck butt-haired boy to be exact), times had changed. After Naruto had returned from her training trip with Jiraiya, they had become, if not friends, at least friendly acquaintances considering the Rookie Nine's semi-regular lunch get togethers.

The fourth shinobi war had only strengthened these tentative bonds, and though the blondes were VERY different, they had found mutual ground in their pride as Kunoichi. A shared hidden love for all things Icha Icha also helped (although that was not public knowledge).

So it wasn't odd to see Ino and Naruto together, but it certainly was an… experience to see the fondly named 'Orange Menace' crammed into a variety of girly dresses, skirts, and blouses while Ino cackled ominously at sale prices. Though they were contributing factors, it wasn't just out of feminine solidarity or the pleasure of seeing the disgruntled tomboy actually acting like a girl that Ino had arranged this outing, however. No, Ino had A Plan. A brilliantly simple plan to get the inside scoop necessary to win The Bet, and the glorious wealth that came with it (shopping trips are expensive, you know!)

The originations of The Bet are unclear, though rumours suggest that it began after the Chunin invasion, while others even suggest after the infamous Wave mission. Regardless of its beginnings, the once small betting pool believed to have been started by the Sandaime himself had evolved into a global phenomenon, participants ranging from virtually all of Konaha, the majority of shinobi from every village, and even a few travelers from the outer continents. Rumours say that even the Raikage, with his well-known hate of gambling, had daned to join The Bet, though that was highly improbable…

Over the years of The Bets growth, numerous contenders had been added as new Intel came to light, and the current pot for the winners had reached Daimyo levels of wealth. Funnily enough, the Fire, Lightning, and Hot Water Daimyo were actually participants of the bet. So what could this mythical bet be, that the winners could become some of the richest alive, their names famous for years to come as 'The Victors'?

…The Bet was who Naruto would confess to and eventually end up with.

Though it may seem ridiculous, the participants of the bet never treated it like a joke. The betting pool that was once small because of the demon container's previous unpopularity had expanded exponentially with her accomplishments and newfound popularity.

It certainly helped as well that the though the blonde in question was a tomboy to the core who wouldn't know fashion sense if it rasenganed her in the face, she had grown to be beautiful. Of middling height at 168cm, with a shapely body, a mischievous smile, bright blue eyes, and short blond hair as fluffy as any dandelion, Naruto had admirers aplenty. But it wasn't who she had ensnared with her… loud brand of charm over the years that mattered- it was who had managed to charm the self-proclaimed most unpredictable shinobi that would determine who became the wealthiest men or women alive.

All contenders had stringent 'loyalists' who had various Intel proving their contender was 'The One', and many shinobi over the years had attempted to guide Naruto to their candidate choice. (The Raikage was said to have only allowed the training trip between Killer B and Naruto as a way to guide the outcome of The Bet, but that was most likely hearsay…). But regardless of mounting evidence for various contenders, no ultimate victor was forthcoming, and Naruto's love life continued to lack to the dismay of many.

Cue the machinations of one self-styled matchmaking extraordinaire, Ino Yamanaka.

As a self-proclaimed guru in all things love, Ino knew that she of all people would be capable of cracking the impenetrable nut- or in this case, Hokage-to-be, and sniff out the information necessary for the ultimate victory. So great was her drive to out the truth that Ino had turned up her nose at the unwritten rules of The Bet: Make sure Naruto DOESN'T find out, no foul play to speed up the outcome, and no sabotaging possible contenders.

Which brings us back to the ill-fated shopping trip. Currently, the blonde duo was browsing one of the more expensive clothing stores, and in particular, the dresses.

Ino emerged from her fitting stall with a twirl, throwing her hands outwards as she posed before the disgruntled Naruto, who was currently testing the ability of the waiting chair to swallow her whole.

"So," Ino began, and gave another twirl of the knee length purple dress for emphasis. "What do you think?"

Naruto raised half-lidded eyes to Ino's sparkling ones, and mustered a pained smile that showed far too many teeth. "It looks great, Ino! You're gonna knock that bastard onto his pale ass when he sees you."

Ino wrinkled her nose in response. "First off, he has a name! Sai was temporarily on Team 7- the least you could do is call him by his name." As Naruto geared up to begin one of her well known rants about the deserved name calling of, "The creepy ass moron! He calls me She-man, you know! He tried to tell everyone I was hiding a dick!", Ino quickly interrupted- she couldn't let anything get her off track of The Plan, after all!

"And if you don't really like this dress, you should just say so. I need some of the Uzumaki honesty! Why else would I make you come shopping with me?" Ino finished, raising a questioning eyebrow at her fellow blonde.

The pained smile and indignation brought about by the mention of Sai were immediately forgotten as Naruto frowned, a small wrinkle forming between her brows. "Uh, pretty sure it's not the 'Uzumaki honesty' crap. You got more brutal honesty in ya then the whole of the Rookie Nine put together. I actually don't know why you dragged me along. We both know I'm not what you would call...girly" Naruto finished with a shudder.

"Oh pish posh, it doesn't matter why you're here!" Ino exclaimed, ignoring Naruto's mutterings of "had to come, the mind reading bitch has good blackmail material…"

"This outing of ours is in the name of love!" Ino crowed, throwing her hands together as though in prayer, eyes ascending to the shoddy dressing stall lights illuminating her with reverence befitting a master shrine maiden.

Naruto raised a disbelieving eyebrow at Ino's display, and crossed her arms in apparent disapproval.

"Love or no love, ya didn't need to drag me along for the ride- or use you-know-what against me. We both know you're just gonna pick the most expensive dress in the store and call it good." A flash of confusion glazed Naruto's eyes, and she uncrossed her arms to bring a callused hand to ponderously rub at her chin. "Don't see why you'd waste the money on that pale shithead though. Sai's got as much appeal in him as a mouldy sock- you would be better off dating Shino than that asshat."

Ino pouted at Naruto's continued abuse of her date, and crossed her arms petulantly under her considerable bust. She also rolled her eyes at Naruto's second point- Shino was boring, unlike Sai, who was a sexy, incredible artist with a mysterious past... Yeah, no contest. She liked having fun with her dates, thank you very much!

The pout Ino had sported soon faded into a devious smirk, however, and Naruto felt an ominous chill creep up her spine at the sight.

With a quick jolt of her arm Ino latched onto the collar of Naruto's orange coat and heaved her into the open changing room she had just exited. Naruto's indignant squawk went unheeded as Ino closed the door behind the orange clad blonde.

"There's a blue dress in there- put it on!" Ino called through the door.

Furious banging and cursing was the Yamanaka's response as she leaned against the door to keep it closed. "Come on Naruto, you wouldn't say no after I went through all the trouble to bring you along on this shopping trip!" Taking the continued banging as the 'let me out of this glorified closet you crazy shopaholic!' that it was, Ino evened the odds. "If you put on that dress and are for once a decent shopping buddy, I promise to never reveal that you write-"

"OKAY! I'LL WEAR THE DRESS! JUST STOP TALKING… and you better keep your word…"

The banging from within the stall ceased, though Ino heard in its place a variety of grumbles. "…-upid pupiless demon, her and her damn dresses…"

After a few tense minutes, the grumbles abated, and a hesitant knock came from within the stall. With a predatory smile, Ino stepped aside from the door while grabbing the handle, opening it in one fluid motion.

A long moment later, Naruto emerged from her temporary prison with a heavy scowl clouding her face, but wearing considerably better attire than when she had entered. The light blue dress that Naruto wore had a modest neckline, halter strapped with an open upper back. Sky coloured fabric was comfortably snug around her bust, and faded into a darker blue laced with a flowery design that flowed to her knees, losing conformity as it drifted down. It wasn't an overly outspoken dress, but the astronomical change from Naruto's usual clothing made her seem a princess in comparison to her every day self.

Ino glided behind the tense form of her fellow blonde and placed her hands on Naruto's exposed shoulders, gently guiding her around the bend of the stalls to face the public mirror. Confronted with her new visage, Naruto had to do a double take, her jaw dropping slightly at the strange new sight in the mirror before her.

"Look Naruto," Ino began. "It's not just about buying expensive clothes, or even wearing girly clothing. It's about making an impression." At Ino's words, Naruto pulled her eyes away from her for once un-orange form and met Ino's gaze in the mirror.

"I really, really want to look good for this date, because I think Sai could maybe be the one. That's not to say I don't look good all the time, because we both know I do," Ino drawled with a lazy smirk. "But I like to go that extra mile for when it matters. I know looks aren't everything- don't give me that look, I'm not that shallow! - But I do think, as kunoichi, we should understand the importance of appearances and making an impact. These dresses are our armour, and they put our targets off balance. In the battle for love, I'll take any advantage I can get."

Naruto maintained Ino's gaze, her eyes focused and considering. People didn't usually see this side of Naruto off the battlefield, so thoughtful and contemplative as compared to her usual prankster self, but Ino's words had drawn it out.

Now was the time to strike.

"…Have you ever been in love, Naruto?" The shoulders beneath Ino's hands instantly tightened. "Have you ever felt like you were falling, the world rushing by into nothing when that special someone looks into your eyes? Have you tossed and turned at night, incapable of sleep because the cruellest of emotions has tied your head and heart in knots? And have you ever felt so alone, so cold and empty, that nothing feels like it can ever be bright or warm again… And then they laugh- they smile that smile, and suddenly the oblivion is history, and all that matters is the present you share with them." Leaning in close so her mouth was in line with Naruto's ear, Ino whispered- "Have you ever been in love?"

Naruto was silent as the dead in response. But Ino was patient, and after long, lingering silence, Naruto's steely withdrawal cracked. "…Yes. I am in love."

Ino barely maintained composure in the face of this blatant admission, internally squealing with glee. She was almost there! That money was practically hers!

"So," the Yamanaka appealed, "are you going to tell this love how you feel?"

Naruto suddenly became interested in the details of her attire, and broke eye contact with Ino to stare down at her hands as they fiddled with the lacework of her dress. "…he already knows how I feel. I've dropped enough hints to crush a damn cow, and he's not an idiot. He knows, but he's never going to acknowledge the truth of how I feel for him. Hell, I even wrote… THAT to get his attention, and he still hasn't confronted me." Naruto's shoulders began to shake with faint tremors, emotions she had previously contained slipping through, her voice becoming louder and louder as she built up steam.

"He's NEVER going to see me the way I see him- he's acting like these… feelings I have for him will go away if he ignores them, and I think he'll never return them because in his eyes, I'll always be that immature kid in the orange jumpsuit, yelling her dreams of being Hokage to the world."

Ino was stunned as she watched Naruto, one of the strongest people she had ever met, crumple in on herself, glassy blue eyes staring sightlessly down to the floor while her hands drooped to her sides, no longer fidgeting. She was the image of defeat, and it broke something in Ino to see her friend this way.

"That is bullshit!" Ino hissed. With a quick jerk of her arms, she spun Naruto around so they were face to face, and once again planted her hands on her distraught friends shoulders as she leaned in, bridging the distance between them.

"Naruto, you are incredible. You have worked hard and earned every scrap of respect and happiness you now have. You are a strong independent woman, and you don't need no man!"

With that final exclamation, Ino finished her tirade with a heavy breath, attempting to calm herself as Naruto stared back with wide eyes, sadness momentarily forgotten as a quiet "Woah!" left her lips.

But Ino wasn't finished. After taking a second settling breath through her nose, Ino let out shaky exhale, and continued once again, this time in a gentler tone. "You are the literal saviour of the shinobi world, the Hokage to be, and the Most Unpredictable Kunoichi. If he doesn't take you seriously, he's a real loser. But I think if you charge in and tell him how you feel," Ino whispered with a wry grin, "You'll make him acknowledge you. Dropping hints is good and all, but I think it's time for some of that Uzumaki honesty. Worst case scenario, he still turns you down. But at least you'll have given it that final shot, and you won't regret a single thing.

"So, Naruto, what are you waiting for?" Ino demanded. "Go give that moron a piece of your mind, and tell him how you feel!" Naruto's eyes were reverent as she gazed back at her friend, and for the first time since entering the store, her signature grin stretched across her cheeks.

"I'm gonna make him acknowledge me- believe it!" With a fist pump to the air, Naruto completed the image of determination. However, an abashed grin took the place of her previously vibrant one, and her raised fist fell down to sheepishly scratch the back of her head.

"Uh, sometime today, at least- I gotta make sure I know what I'm gonna say first!" With a resolved bob of her head, Naruto began to saunter towards the exit of the store, a happy blush decorating her cheeks as she fiddled with the hitai-ate around her neck. Before she could finish her grand exit, she comically froze mid stride, and pivoted on her heel.

"Thanks, Ino!" she called backs with a cheery grin. "I really needed to hear that- it would've taken me forever to build up the courage to do this otherwise!" After giving a boisterous wave to her newfound love-guru, Naruto finally escaped the store, racing to who-knows-where, leaving a bemused Ino in her wake.

The female clerk at the front desk blinked dazedly after the exiting blonde, and mumbled out, "Damn brat didn't even pay for the dress…"

The other sales clerk, a portly man with a rage of blue hair, didn't share his coworkers concerns. "Holy shit, Keiko, who cares if she didn't pay?! You heard what she said, right? Naruto's gonna confess today! The Bet might finally have a winner!"

An ominous chill, much like the one Naruto had experienced earlier, crept up Ino's spine as she registered the clerk's words- her plan had been to fish out information, and use that Intel to discover the blonde's possible love. That had been the whole reason for this shopping trip! But in the face of Naruto's depressing resignation, she had forgotten her goal, and had instead possibly accelerated the end of The Bet, with no reward to show for her efforts.

Fellow shoppers, who had up until now simply been eavesdropping on the blondes conversation (it was a shinobi village, after all), soon reached the same wordless epiphany.

"Dear Kami, the end has come," the female clerk whispered as hell descended upon her store.