Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, etc, etc. This isn't a Ino/Shika, Ino/Chou fic.
Also, this is like.. A day or so after the scanlation of Chapter 328 came out, so… for future reference, obviously this story won't follow the Naruto storyline after this. This fic is supposed to be a ONE SHOT. Yet, possibilities exist… anyway, read on!
"... let's find the place where sight begins
and see the things that we saw when our
eyes were bright and wet against the light
and hold on
hold tight
open daylight
we will overcome"
Thrice, Flags of Dawn
The sky was still pouring as team 10 and their ninja comrades slowly walked through the gates of Konoha carrying the still and cold body of Sarutobi Asuma. Shikamaru was still clutching the pack of cigarettes and lighter that he had taken from his sensei, while Chouji was walking next to the ninja carrying Asuma.
None of the ninja present knew how they were going to tell Kurenai, and none hoped that they would have to be the one's to speak to her.
In midst of the rain as the gate of Konoha closed behind them, Ino held her arms tightly around herself, trying to fend of the cold that had suddenly overcome her. As a medic-nin, she now felt the full weight of what it was like to not be able to save a comrade-in-arms.
She unconsciously shivered, trying to keep in her body's warmth to keep the seeping cold of death from clawing at her skin. It was a terrible feeling, her personal doubt at being able to make Asuma proud in the wake of, and after his death. Ino could already feel her rock-like resolve dissolving like salt in the midst of the storm. Her eyes burned from her now depleted tears, and her vision was blurred by the rain that helped to replace the lack of them. Her body felt heavy from the weight of what had transpired that day, and suddenly she was struck with a desperate need.
Slowly, she felt the buildings of Konoha tower over and enclose themselves upon her as a sense of claustrophobia set in.
Run!
The word echoed throughout her mind and body, over and over again until she finally succumbed to her instinct.
Shikamaru was too dazed to notice her frantic leave while Chouji couldn't go after her, for he had finally come to the decision and felt that he should be the one to tell Kurenai about Asuma's passing.
So Ino ran through the streets, from rooftop to rooftop until she found herself at the edge of the stream that snaked it's way through Konoha. It was there, in the light encompass of trees that she collapsed onto her backside and pulled her knees close to her chest, hugging them as a lifeline as she buried her face into her knees. She heaved a loud, yet silent sob as she shook in the cold and unrelenting downpour of rain. She wanted to be alone, away from the sympathy and looks. She couldn't stand how desolate Shikamaru looked, how accepting Chouji was in light of his tears, how silent and mourning the other ninja were…
Time passed as Ino mourned her sensei, her clothes thoroughly drenched as much as she was to the bone. Slowly throughout her time spent by the stream, she had started to feel tired from the cold and her grief, and slowly let her mind succumb to much-needed sleep.
Yet, just as she was about to let go of her consciousness completely, the rain slowly began to stop and dry warmth suddenly surrounded her. Her body jerked into awareness, causing her stiff joints to protest rather loudly as she became aware of her surroundings once more. The sun was lightly shining through the grayed sky, though it still seemed to hold the melancholy of grief. It's warm hands slowly wrapped around her chilled skin, slowly seeping into her core as she stared out into the expanse of sky. It was after a long while that she finally realized that there was more than just the sun warming her.
Ino shifted her body, slowly getting her blood to circulate as she slowly put her arms through the sleeves of the black and orange jacket that had been placed around her. She slowly stood up and stretched out her limbs before understanding finally came to her mind.
Looking around her, Ino took a deep breath, pulled Naruto's jacket closer around herself, and started walking.
Ino pondered the fact that Naruto had found her, placed his jacket around her, and than left her in peace without so much as making the sound of a breath. Had she really been that out of it, that she hadn't sensed the blonde come into her own personal space?
She breathed deep, taking in the scent of the freshly fallen rain, and Naruto's own personal scent. She suddenly found herself surprised that his jacket smelled of something that reminded her of fresh morning dew in the midst of something just barely citrus in nature instead of something like musky ramen. Ino smiled slightly as she passed the inquisitive stares of a few villagers who had decided to brave the outdoors and get some last minute shopping in before dinner. No one approached her though, as they gave her enough room to pass by like a phantom through the streets of Konoha, before coming up to her family's flower shop and entering with a small chime of the bell placed above the door.
Her mother was slightly startled by her sudden appearance, and watched as Ino simply nodded in greeting before going up to her room silently to get out of her soaked clothing and take a bath to fully warm and cleanse herself. Ino removed Naruto's jacket, asking her mother if she would please dry it out a bit so that she could wear it by the time she was finished, before picking out a few things and entering her bathroom.
When she was finished, Ino dressed herself and then entered her room while toweling her hair a bit to get the extra water and moisture out before blow-drying it. While she did this her mother silently entered her room and put Naruto's jacket upon her bed and paused for a moment.
After a moment's insecurity her mother spoke, "Ino…? Are you going to be alright?"
Ino paused in her hair-drying and looked at her mother for a moment, contemplating before answering, "I don't know."
He mother nodded and smiled softly, "Well, just don't forget that you have friends and family to help you through, alright?"
Ino nodded slightly and returned to her current task. Once finished, Ino left her hair down and instead put a clip in her hair to keep her bangs out of her face before going over to her bed and picking up Naruto's jacket. She examined it a moment, contemplating, before putting it once more. She then walked downstairs to where her parents were setting up dinner, her father giving her a very slight apologetic smile.
Ino smiled slightly even though she was still a bit down, before speaking, "Uhm… would it be alright if I went to Naruto's for a little while? I'm not sure for how long that I'll be out but… I'll be back later tonight, alright?"
Her parents nodded in understanding; even in their apprehension they knew that Ino didn't need their sympathy and that Naruto would probably be the best person for their daughter to be with for now. All of their lingering personal trepidation and prejudice was shoved aside for their daughter in the wake of her grief, for what demon would bother themselves to try and keep their daughter from a death of a cold if he had no heart? No feelings? The two parents knew that there was no need for the hatred towards the fox-child, and fully let theirs go. If the younger children and some of the ninja could respect him, they could as well. They had felt this way for a long time now, but now these feelings reinforced themselves as they watched Ino silently leave with a small chime to follow her exit.
Ino on the other hand, simply made her way towards where Sakura had told her that Naruto lived, ignorant of her parents' acceptance of the village "menace."
It took her a good 15 minutes on foot to reach the somewhat run-down apartment, and another few to walk up the dingy stairs up towards the floor Naruto stayed. Ino made the note that no one had used the stairs for quite some time since they were in a pretty sorry state, and that it was probably expected that it was a ninja living there alone, as she heard no other residents/civilians in the complex.
When Ino finally found herself in front of Naruto's door, she suddenly felt a sense of awkward self-doubt fill her. What if this wasn't Naruto's apartment? What would she say to him if it was? She soon found herself exasperated and sighed heavily before finally knocking on his door loudly.
It only took a moment for him to answer the door, yet it felt like ages to Ino as he suddenly swung the door open with his eyes scrunched up together in agitation, "What's with all that loud knocking!? All you had to do was knock twice! You probably upset the whole neighborhood with how loud you were!"
Ino took a step back, startled by his greeting. Well, if anyone could be himself, it was Naruto, even if yelling was not something one usually would do to someone who was grieving.
It was after his outburst that Naruto opened his eyes and blinked a few times in recognition, "Ino..? What are you doing here…? I thought you'd be with that lazy bum or Chouji…"
Ino shrugged off her slight annoyance and looked around herself a moment, suddenly feeling uncomfortable, "Uhm… Would you mind if I came in Naruto?"
Naruto's eyes widened a moment before he seemed to suddenly check himself and moved aside, fully opening his door, "Uh.. Sure. There's not much to look at so… Don't get too excited."
Ino gave a ghost of a smile before going in and taking a look around her. To her amazement, Ino found that Naruto's apartment carried his scent around as well along with the fact that it was clean.
Clean and orderly did not fit her image of the most hyperactive ninja of Konoha. Yet, Naruto was always good at surprising people…
Ino found herself smiling as she looked around his apartment, enjoying the simplicity of it all, despite the signs that Naruto seemed to be updating a few things (such as his wardrobe) at the time.
Naruto rubbed the back of his neck as he watched her for a moment before asking, "Would you like some tea Ino..?"
She looked to him and nodded slightly before moving into his 'living room/bedroom' and examined the large ink painting that hung over his bed. It wasn't that it was some sort of masterpiece, but somehow, the simplicity of the work caused her to look at it for a while.
In the meantime, Naruto prepared the tea and watched her from the corner of his eye, half wondering if she was ever going to return his precious orange jacket to him. At the same time, he found he wouldn't mind if she kept it for some strange reason.
Shrugging himself out of his momentary trance, he took out the package of tea he'd received as a welcome home gift from someone (he couldn't remember who) and fixed up two cups.
"Hey Ino?"
She turned and looked at Naruto, taking in his black shirt that had an orange spiral design on the back, and his black pants. It was odd to see him with so much black, but at the same time, she decided that even Naruto needed a small break from all that orange.
It was that, or he had his regular orange pants in the laundry.
She then noticed that he also wasn't wearing his hitai-ate, leaving his hair to be even more unruly than usual. It amazed her that a simple headband could tame his hair the way it did, yet, without it on she found him to actually be rather… attractive. His eyes seemed a tad less open-like-a-book and a tad more mysterious and serious this way. It was is if he were just barely becoming the phantom of… someone she simply couldn't place.
Naruto watched Ino check him out (after being with Jiraiya for 3 years, and getting hit on by girls who thought he was just "So cuute!" he stopped getting nervous about it) and decided to snap her out of it, "Oy.. Ino? Earth to Ino!"
Ino seemed to bolt into coherence and blushed lightly, realizing that one of Naruto's arms was slightly outstretched, trying to hand off to her some tea. She smiled a little in thanks, finally realizing just how thirsty she was. Taking in the scent of the tea she sipped it quietly, finding that Naruto could make a perfect cup and in just the way she liked it. Her smile grew and she appreciated the warmth that the cup of liquid was lending her still slightly chilled body.
Of course, while Ino was enjoying the tea, Naruto decided to check her out. Honestly, it was the return favor for spending time actually ogling him. It was a nifty trick he'd realized when dealing with girls. Honest flattery was everything. Of course, that was also within reason. Telling a random girl she had a nice bust and so forth usually caused injury on the speaker's part, which he'd learned from watching Jiraiya get slapped around all the time.
Her figure was decent for having been a ninja, and he snapped to the attention that her hair was down. This fact alone enhanced her looks and caused him to admire her hair color and length, along with the way it shaped her face. Yup, Yamanaka Ino was rather stunning with her hair down. Of course, the fact she was wearing his jacket still somewhat threw him for a bit of a loop, as it didn't detract from her figure too much, and looked just about right without the necessity of perfection. He also noted that she was wearing pants similar to his own to match the black of his jacket. This caused Naruto a moment of oddity, as black and orange were very un-Ino-ish colors to wear.
He was amazed she could stand it, really.
Of course, this made him smile a little as he finished his tea and set his cup in the sink to wash later. "So, Ino… Why are you here?" To be truthful, Naruto didn't think Ino would immediately come to return his jacket, since he figured she'd be too dazed from Asuma-sensei's death…
He shuddered, thinking back to when the Old Man had died, and felt a bit of grief seep in.
Ino watched him for a moment before replying, "I was wondering what you were doing near the bridge…"
Naruto paused before pulling up a chair and sitting on it. He motioned for Ino to sit, so she did; on his bed. It wasn't like there was a large space between them since Naruto's apartment was insanely small, which gave her a greater understanding of probably why he loved to run around so much. Being on his bed also told Ino that he must have just recently replaced the mattress, since it had a feeling of 'new' and not 'used.'
Ino watched Naruto squirm a little bit before he finally answered her, "Well, I was nearby when I saw you suddenly run off from your comrades and… Well, Chouji noticed me when you guys returned and kind of signaled for me to follow you when you ran and I uh.. Well, I was there the whole time you were and uh.."
Ino's face turned from listening to agitated as he went on, "You mean you were there when I was-!"
Naruto stood abruptly, flailing his arms a bit, "Don't assume I was stalking you or something!! Honest! I was just watching you to make sure you didn't do anything stupid, or, or uh.. Well, passed out in the rain! You could've gotten pneumonia or something, with how long you were in that rain!!!"
Ino huffed and pouted for a moment, deciding to give Naruto the benefit of the doubt, "So, if that's the case, why didn't you come out and talk to me or something?"
Naruto blinked a moment, tilting his head to the side questioningly, "Would you have wanted me to talk to you?"
Ino stared at him a moment, "No."
Naruto nodded, leaning back in his chair, "Exactly! I could tell you didn't want anyone to bother you, so I stayed hidden until I realized you were falling asleep. After I left, I went and told your mother not to worry about you, and that you'd probably be home within the hour."
Ino looked at him skeptically before deciding to ask, "How would someone like you be able to tell that I needed time alone to myself..?"
Naruto blinked at her, a flash of hurt going through his eyes for just barely a moment, causing Ino to wonder if she'd seen it at all as he shifted in his chair and turned his head away from her. He propped his chin on a propped hand as his gaze dropped downwards, "I need time to myself too, Ino." Even if I hate being alone.
She blinked, suddenly feeling a bit guilty, as if she had assumed that Naruto never had his feelings hurt, "That's… not what I meant to say…"
Naruto smiled, "I know."
Ino watched him for a longer moment, the silence causing him to look at her. After a moment, his stare turned slightly curious, "What?"
Ino tilted her head slightly to the side, "For some reason you remind me of someone, yet… I can't even think of who it could be."
Naruto rose an eyebrow, "Uh… ok..?"
Ino paused a moment, "What's with the scar's on your cheeks?"
Naruto jerked slightly, startled as if he'd been burned, "What about them..?"
Ino shook her head, "Nothing, never mind. I shouldn't have said anything, but anyway… I'm glad to know I wasn't alone, even though I hadn't known you were there at the time. If I'd been truly alone and someone had come to attack me… It would have been the end for me, neh?"
Naruto shifted, "Uh… probably."
Ino nodded to herself, placing her empty tea cup on the floor beside her feet and got up, stretching herself out, "Thanks, Naruto. Maybe we should hang out more often, even if you are still a Genin."
With that she gave him an honest smile, opened the door, and left him with a small click of his door shutting behind her.
Naruto blinked a few times while he stared at his door dumbly, "What was all that just now..?" Suddenly, realization struck as he straightened out and stood, "Hey! She's still got my jacket!"
Author: Hoped you enjoyed it. Please review!! XD This was 7 pages almost exactly, and for some reason took me like… 3-4 hours. How troublesome.
If you have a feeling this should go somewhere, I'm open to ideas. Whether or not I act on them is a completely different story, though. Please Review.