Author's Notes: Sorry about the late update. Enjoy!

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Realizations

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"A tradition carried down from our ancestors, the Flower Festival is an important part of the history of this village…"

Dressed in flowing, sky-blue silk robes, the daimyo raised his hands, addressing everyone gathered around the large stage. Despite the scorching heat that was enough to bring sweat to Sakura's forehead even though she was wearing a skirt and a sleeveless top, the daimyo seemed oddly cool and composed under his many layers of silk cloth. Even after what seemed to be an hour of talking, the daimyo continued with his speech with as much elegance as he had started.

"… we will continue the traditions as our ancestors had done…"

Sakura desperately wanted the daimyo to finish his speech but judging from the detail he went in last night and from what Kenji had told her about the daimyo, the pink haired shinobi knew that the speech was going to go on… and on. Ignoring Inner Sakura's roaring protests, Sakura kept an ear open while trying to gather more information on the village. Gathering information on her surroundings became something automatic to Sakura after all the training sessions with the Hokage; as a medic-nin, it was important to evaluate situations to prevent further injuries to teammates and yourself and catch potential hazards.

From beside Kenji, Sakura discreetly gazed around the daimyo's back and out at the crowd on the streets. Despite the scorching weather, the street was packed with villagers of various ages –from the elderly to young children who probably didn't understand the meaning of the festival.

The crowd was dressed in bright and eye-catching colors, making Sakura think that Naruto would fit in quite nicely in this village with his orange jumpsuit. Holding back a nostalgic smile, Sakura continued to observe the crowd.

The clothing the villagers wore was quite different from her village. Ribbons and flowing sashes decorated many bright and lively colored outfits. Sakura wondered briefly if the villagers had dressed up for the event or usually wore such beautiful outfits. Looking at the condition of the village, Sakura concluded that the place was very prosperous and the villages could indeed afford such extravagant outfits. Beautiful strings of bright flowers were strewn across the entire street like birthday streamers, and decorated the edge of the roofs that lined the streets. Despite the bright and festive setting, there was a sense of tenseness in the atmosphere.

"… Princess of the Flower Festival…"

The pink haired kunoichi turned her gaze to Kenji, who was dressed simply but neatly in a white, cotton tunic that reached down to his thighs and beige colored pants. The collar and sleeves of the tunic were lined with an ocean-blue colored material, which matched the sash that Kenji had tied around his waist. The young man was focused on his father, his brow furrowed.

Kenji had told her that this festival marked the freedom the village had gained. Perhaps the answer behind the heavy atmosphere was from what did they escape?

Sakura blinked as the crowd started to applaud. Focusing on the daimyo once again, Sakura politely joined in the thunderous applause. The daimyo sauntered off the stage, escorted by a pair of ninja. Kenji's older brother, Ichirou, followed, also escorted by men dressed in ninja gear.

"Do you really expect trouble during the festival?" Sakura quietly asked Kenji as she followed him off the stage. She remembered that during the meeting last night, the daimyo had mentioned the potential of visitors from other villages to attack the prosperous but small village.

Kenji furrowed his brow as he continued walking.

"It would be best to expect anything," Kenji replied, with a small smile.

Running a hand through his locks of cinnamon brown hair, Kenji turned to look thoughtfully down at Sakura. "Try your best to enjoy the festival. There are many dances and performances set up today."

Seeing Sakura open her mouth to question him again, Kenji shook his head slowly. The look he gave the pink haired kunoichi told her to drop the subject for the moment.

The pink haired ninja frowned but decided she would ask Kenji for details later. Sakura wasn't quite ready to stand idly by without solving the question of what threat was bothering Kenji so much.

As the three stood by the street corner, shaded by a particularly large shop, Sakura observed numerous people rushing past them to prepare for their performances. Sakura's eyes were thoughtful as she watched the performers hurriedly set up. Even though they risked delaying their performances, the villagers had still gone to listen to the daimyo's speech. The dedication the villagers had to their leader was admirable.

As they continued walking, villagers stopped to greet Kenji while others gave him a quick wave. Kenji also stopped to ask how some of the villagers were doing. Chatter and laughter slowly filled the once quiet streets.

The group stopped when they approached a wide street with vividly colored ribbons and flowers strung above. The sides of the street were lined with stands, small stages and various other displays. Music drifted out from the arch marking the entrance to the street.

"Let's take a look around, shall we?"

"Come to think of it," Ino suddenly said as she placed an elegant finger under her chin. "You haven't showed us around the village yet. I want to take a look at the shops."

Her finger still on her chin, Ino's eyes glinted brightly as her turquoise orbs focused slyly on Sakura.

"Someone still owes me some hair products."

Kenji laughed as the medic-nin rolled her eyes, claiming that the blond thought too much about her appearance.

"What do you know billboard brow?" Ino snapped.

"More than you do Ino-pig!" retorted Sakura, her emerald eyes blazing.

Both kunoichi glared at each other, their eyes flashing dangerously. Kenji being in the middle of the two kunoichi, stepped back, in order to avoid being fried by the heated glares of his two protectors.

"Now look what you did forehead girl! You scared away Kenji!" Ino shouted, pointing at Kenji.

"I did not! You are the one who started this!" Sakura accused, jabbing her own finger at Ino.

Kenji nervously shifted from his position a few feet away from the girls. Perhaps he should stop the argument before it escalated. Then again, it appeared as if the two enjoyed their arguments. However, they were ruining the mood to the festival. The young man fidgeted. In the end, he decided that it was best for him to end the argument. Unsure of how to resolve the argument, Kenji tried interrupting the two kunoichi.

"Um, Ino…"

"Why are you always like this Ino?" Sakura growled in frustration. "Stop picking fights with me!"

"Sakura, could you—"

"I'm not the one picking fights with you! You're the one picking fights with me!"

"Could the both of you please…"

"Keep out of this Kenji!" the two females shouted.

"Um… alright," the young man mumbled, trying his best to ignore the crowd of chattering villagers that had gathered around them.

Scowling, both kunoichi turned away from one another.

Ino stood there, fuming at Sakura and herself.

No matter how hard she tried, Ino couldn't forget the fact that Sakura had left her for a boy. Though they were too young to really take boys seriously when they were friends, Ino was sure that the idea that no boy could ruin their friendship had applied to them. She knew about Sakura's crush on Sasuke and chose not to say a thing, fearing that it would ruin their friendship. Sakura, on the other hand, kicked her aside as soon as she found out about Ino's infatuation with Sasuke. Despite past betrayals, Ino really did want to be Sakura's friend again. Laughing at how idiotic she was to try and regain their friendship only to have everything fall apart once again because of her own lack of trust, Ino shook her head.

"I'll still buy you the hair products though," Sakura finally said.

"You better," Ino finally replied automatically.

Sighing with relief, Kenji hid his smile as he gazed at the two kunoichi in front of him. They seemed so close –in a way where they could understand each other without missing a beat—and yet, so far apart. .

"Alright, I'll give you a tour as we visit the displays," Kenji agreed, offering a small smile. "Most of the shops are currently closed, but I'm sure we'll be able to find something in the stands. We get lots of visitors during this period and so the villagers are offered an opportunity to make profit."

Kenji nodded towards the numerous villagers setting up stalls and displays around the street.

"Our village is actually quite modest, so don't expect too much. I'm sure we have acceptable hair products though."

Pausing by the first stand, Ino found a small puppet stand. Young children were sitting cross-legged on the ground, watching in complete awe as the puppeteer brought the puppets to life. Continuing along, the group passed by dancers, musicians, magicians and various other types of performers.

Particularly interested in one of the tricks a magician was performing –where the young woman promised to make the bunny in her hand disappear—Sakura pleaded for Ino and Kenji to stop and watch.

"I don't see how that would work," Sakura insisted as she eyed the bunny in the magician's hand closely.

"I see those tricks all the time," Ino said as she eyed the magician. "It's really not that special."

Sakura simply waved Ino's comment aside as she stood transfixed.

"Just don't go wonder too far."

Ino crossed her arms over her chest, slightly annoyed with Sakura. However Ino's eyes softened softly as she watched the childlike expression on Sakura's face. Sakura was always composed and focused on improving herself. Everyday in Konoha, Sakura would be training with the Hokage just so that her chances of brining Sasuke back would improve. Ino supposed that Sakura needed a break, if only for a while.

Ino eyed the childlike expression on Sakura's face for a moment, remembering the last time she had seen those eyes. It has been so long and the two of them had traveled so far apart. Closing her eyes, Ino shook her head angrily and turned away from Sakura.

"Come on Kenji, let's take a look at some other performances."

Nodding, the young man told Sakura that they were going to look around. Sakura nodded absentmindedly as she continued to gape at the musician. Elegantly maneuvering out of the crowd, Ino gazed thoughtfully up and down the street.

"Oh, Kenji! I didn't expect to find you here!"

Turning around, Ino discovered a young woman that was perhaps a few years older than her. Long black hair cascaded down her back and framed her midnight-blue eyes. A simple white cotton dress hung elegantly on her shoulders and hugged her shapely body. Ruby-red ribbons were woven elegantly into the woman's black hair, matching the long red sash tied around her waist.

"Ah… it's good to see you Sora," Kenji replied warmly.

"It's nice to see you as well," the young woman replied after giving a slight bow. Her plum-colored lips formed a beautiful smile as she raised her head and gestured to their surroundings. "The villagers are so dedicated to our village aren't they? Every year, they give such a wonderful display… Ah, sorry, I'm rambling aren't I? I'm actually looking for Nori. Have you seen him?"

"I'm afraid I haven't."

"Well… thank you anyway. It was nice talking to you again Kenji," Sora replied after giving another short bow.

After watching Sora leave, Ino turned sourly to Kenji.

"Why do you think she was looking for Nori?" Ino questioned.

"Why do you want to know?" Kenji asked with a raised eyebrow. Seeing Ino's glare, Kenji chuckled and shrugged. "I think Sora has had feelings for Nori for quite awhile but… Nori doesn't seem to care for her the same way she does. A relationship wouldn't have worked out anyway."

"Why do you say that?" Ino prodded curiously. Her earlier anger had faded away and was now replaced with smugness.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you any more than I've already had," Kenji said firmly.

"Fine," Ino replied, eyeing Sora's back as she walked away. "She's not that pretty anyway."

"I think she's fairly attractive," Kenji replied thoughtfully.

"She wears ribbons in her hair," Ino said distastefully.

"Ribbons are nice. In fact, lots of villagers here wear ribbons –whether in their hair or woven into their garments."

Grinding her teeth, Ino tried to find something else about the woman to pick on.

"She wears a sash. I don't like it."

"I'm wearing a sash," Kenji replied with a raised eyebrow. Kenji pointed out that almost everyone in the village wore sashes. "It might be different from what you're used to, but I think the way our village dresses is unique and beautiful."

"Do you think Nori likes ribbons and sashes?" Ino questioned as her eyes landed on a stall that displayed a rainbow of ribbons. Hundreds of ribbons that were hung over the table on lines of strings that were tied to poles on each end of the table fluttered as a small breeze danced through the street.

"I don't think you should worry about what others think of you so much," Kenji commented quietly.

"Then what's the point of looking good?" Ino questioned as she set off proudly towards the ribbon stand –with Kenji in tow, that is. To her surprise, Kenji didn't complain about how troublesome she was like Shikamaru did whenever she asked him to shop with her. Grinning widely at finally having found a good shopping companion, Ino barged right into the crowded street.

Expertly maneuvering through the crowd without losing Kenji, Ino finally made if across the street to the front of the stand.

"Let's see," Ino giggled as she rubbed her chin. "Which one do you think Nori would like?"

Kenji sighed softly, disappointed that the blonde hadn't taken in a word he had said.

"I'm not sure," he replied. "Why don't you choose one you like?"

Ino sighed, looking slightly annoyed at having to explain to Kenji all over again.

"What's your favorite color?" Kenji asked suddenly, interrupting the blonde.

Frowning deeply, Ino replied that she liked purple.

"Hm…" Kenji murmured as he leafed through the ribbons laid on the table and strewn over strings that hung over the table. "We don't usually make dark colored fabrics since they absorb heat but…"

"But Kenji…"

"You bought the purple outfit you're wearing because you like it, correct?" Kenji questioned. "The bandages tied around your waist and the arm warmers –you like them don't you?"

"Yes, but…"

Ino sighed in exasperation.

"Kenji, I want to impress Nori!"

The young man paused, blinking at Ino with a flabbergasted expression.

"But you won't be staying in this village for that long," Kenji commented after a moment.

Ino nodded but wasn't swayed by Kenji's argument.

"He seems interesting," Ino explained as she reached forward to look for a ribbon herself. The blonde faltered as she came across a familiar looking, wide, red ribbon. Ino's eyes lingered on the red ribbon which eerily resembled the one she had given to Sakura a long time ago. Tearing her eyes away, Ino smiled confidently at Kenji. "I want to get to know him better!"

"But… if you want to know Nori better, I think you should give him the chance to know the real you as well," Kenji replied firmly. "If you don't like ribbons, don't force yourself to wear them."

"I actually do like ribbons. I used to have a huge collection when I was younger…"

"Used to?" Kenji asked curiously.

"Well, that is until Sakura… Until Sakura started wearing ribbons," Ino said. And announced that she didn't want to be friends with her anymore, Ino mentally added. "I wasn't going to wear something that she wore!"

"How about this one?" Kenji announced as he picked out a thin, deep purple ribbon with black, diamond shaped, glass beads that hung from both ends of the piece of cloth.

Ino paused, gazing pensively at the ribbon.

"I guess it's nice," the blonde finally admitted as she reached out and touched the soft ribbon. After another thoughtful glance, Ino told the stall keeper that she would buy that ribbon.

Reaching into the pouch that hung around her waist, Ino searched for her coin purse. The blond frowned softly as she looked down and only spotted her shuriken in the pouch.

"I could buy the ribbon for you," Kenji offered kindly, reaching for his wallet.

"But… I could have sworn that I brought my money pouch with me!"

"Uh oh…"

Turning around, Ino found Kenji searching his pockets for his wallet as well. Frowning, Ino spun around to face the crowd, realization hitting her like a bullet. How could she have been so careless? How could she have not felt anything when they were robbed? The thief could be anywhere!

Trying to think clearly, Ino decided that the pickpocket couldn't have fooled two ninja so the thief must have stolen their belongings after they were separated from Sakura. Gazing at the crowded street, Ino felt a headache coming on.

"Looking for these?" a voice asked.

Turning around, Ino found Nori walking casually towards her with her coin purse and what must have been Kenji's wallet in his hand. The man had his black hair tied back today, and wore a light colored shirt with a green vest overtop and a pair of khaki colored pants.

"During this period of time, lots of pickpockets roam the streets, looking for careless people," Nori commented with a frown as he handed Ino her pouch back. "We explained that during the meeting last night."

A slight blush colored Ino's cheeks as she retrieved her pouch and nodded tersely at Nori.

"Watch out next time," Nori instructed curtly. He eyed Ino for a moment before turning to face Kenji. "Are you alright Lord Kenji?"

"I'm fine, and you shouldn't be so harsh on Ino. I told her to enjoy herself today."

"Her job is to protect you… and as a ninja, I thought that she would have been able to handle any situation that came up even if she didn't pay attention to any instructions last night," Nori said sharply.

Ino felt hurt at Nori's comment. This wasn't supposed to happen! Nori was supposed to be impressed by her, not disappointed. She knew that her performance today was lacking but it was only one small mistake.

And one small mistake could cost you the mission. Her sensei's words echoed through Ino's mind but the blonde forced the echoing words away. Fine, she messed up and Nori was displeased. It won't happen again. She'll let Nori's comments pass, just like she did with Sasuke's hurtful rejections all those years ago.

"I guess I thought wrong about the ninja from the leaf village… and I was so interested in getting to know about them."

Another jab of pain shot through Ino but pride and loyalty kept Ino from letting Nori's comment slide again. Nori couldn't insult the ninja from her village and get away from it. He didn't know about Shikamaru who had an IQ higher than anybody Ino knew about; he didn't know about Chouji who practiced endlessly to be just as strong as the other ninja in the village –Nori had no right to insult her friends like he just did.

"Take that back," Ino shouted, her turquoise eyes blazing. "I admit that I messed up today, but that doesn't give you the right to insult the other ninja from my village!"

"Hn." Nori looked thoughtful as he gazed down at the fuming Ino. "We'll see later on in the courtyard. That is… if you still want to come."

The young man turned around, ready to leave.

"Oh, by the way, my favorite color is ruby-red… I doubt that it would match you though."

For the rest of the day, Ino was in a terrible mood. Not even the hair products that Sakura bought her could cheer her up. The scorching heat wasn't helping either. By the end of the day, Ino was ready to explode at anyone who approached her.

How could Nori be so rude to her? No one got away with talking to her like that except her teammates. Even if her teammates scolded her like Nori had, they probably wouldn't have gotten away without a scratch either. The more she thought about it, the angrier Ino became.

Sasuke never insulted her and he was ten times better looking than Nori. In fact, she didn't think that Nori was that hot in the first place!

After her duties of guarding Kenji were finished, Ino stormed to the courtyard in search of Nori. Just like he had promised the night before, the man was training alone in the courtyard.

Trees surrounded the square-shaped area, with a giant oak tree planted in the middle. Stone benches were placed strategically around the yard with some potted plants placed beside them.

The black-haired man was leaning calmly against the large oak tree, twirling a knife in his hands. Upon hearing Ino's footsteps, the man turned to face the blonde. His gray eyes shimmered with amusement as noticed Ino's balled fists.

"I demand that you apologize for insulting all my friends," Ino demanded angrily.

Raising an eyebrow, Nori threw the blade in Ino's direction. In a flash, the blade had embedded itself in the wall beside Ino's head.

"If you are able to defeat me without using any jutsu, then I'll reconsider what I had said."

"Done," Ino said as she nimbly leaped towards Nori, a kunai in her hand. "You think too lowly of us ninja!"

In a flash, Nori was gone. Landing softly on her feet, Ino spun around, her shoes flinging dirt in the air, to try to find the black-haired man. Narrowing her eyes, Ino scanned the trees that surrounded the yard. The man was gone. Fast. Ino had to admit that Nori was incredibly fast.

"It looks like you think too highly of yourself," Nori's voice taunted, his voice echoing around her.

Ino's grip on her kunai tightened. She wasn't going to lose to Nori. Feeling something rustle behind her, Ino quickly spun around in time to block Nori's blade with her kunai.

Sweat gathered on Ino's forehead as she tried to think up of a strategy. Where was that lazy Shikamaru when you needed him?

"Is that all you can do?" Nori questioned with a smirk as he used his weight to press down on her kunai.

Grunting, Ino admitted that Choji's help right now wouldn't have been bad either. Furrowing her brow, Ino clumsily gathered chakra at her feet. She could defeat Nori without her teammates though.

"Just watch what I can do!"

Without missing a beat, Ino drew back so that Nori stumbled forward and took a swipe at his chest with her kunai. Unfortunately for her, she discovered that Nori was very flexible as well as fast and was met with nothing but air once again.

"Damn."

Pushing charka into her feet again, Ino sprung back. Though her charka control wasn't as good as Sakura's, the blonde still managed to do what she needed to with her charka. Flipping through the air, Ino landed roughly on a tree branch.

Where was he? Ino furrowed her brow as she peered through the thick leaves of the tree branch. Nori really thought too lowly of her if he had chosen to hide in the trees as part of his strategy. Didn't he know that she was used to fighting in areas with heavy foliage?

Hearing something rustle to her right, Ino started silently heading in that direction. Tree branches flashed past as she nimbly maneuvered through the trees. Adrenaline pumped through her veins. Victory was at hand.

Landing expertly on the branch that she had heard the loud rustle from, Ino was surprised to find nothing. That was impossible. Nori couldn't have moved in that period of time without her noticing. Realizing that she had fallen for his decoy, Ino cursed and tried to move but found a knife blade pressed against her neck.

The blonde's heart sunk as she felt the cool metal blade press against her neck. She had lost? Ino closed her eyes, feeling oddly empty as she felt Nori's warm breath on her neck.

"You lose," Nori whispered quietly as he withdrew his blade.

Gracefully hopping off the tree branch, Nori strode over to a bench.

"That was too easy. I guess I was right after all, ninja from the Hidden Leaf Village are useless."

Ino watched speechlessly as Nori walked arrogantly away from her, the reality of her loss slowly sinking in. The blonde tightened her grip around her kunai. How could she have lost to a normal person like him? How could she let him get away with insulting her village? Anger and bitterness welled up in Ino's chest as she helplessly watched Nori leave.

"I'm afraid that you'll have to take that back," a familiar voice said clearly from across the yard.

Nori raised his eyebrow as Sakura walked into the courtyard with a displeased expression on her face. Loosening her grip on her kunai, Ino quietly watched as Sakura rubbed her knuckles.

"You leaf ninja sure are touchy," Nori commented lightly.

"We just don't appreciate you insulting us," Sakura replied with a grim smile on her face. Her emerald eyes were calculating as she eyed Nori. Then with a smirk, Sakura threw her gloves aside and quickly approached Nori, using charka to increase her speed.

The black-haired man appeared surprised as Sakura charged towards him but he easily dodged her punch and leaped into a tree. In a flash a dozen shuriken were imbedded in the trunk of the tree where Nori had previously been. However, Nori didn't escape without any scratches.

Ino noted with amazement that there were a few tears on Nori's vest and pants. The blonde turned to look at Sakura who had a confident smile on her lips. Since when did Sakura get so fast?

A dozen knives came rippling through the air at Sakura but the pink-haired ninja managed to dodged the knives and even threw a few back at Nori. Both opponents barely needed anytime to recover. In an instant, two more knives were in Nori's hands while Sakura started her next attack.

With another charka-assisted leap, Sakura was on the same tree branch as Nori. Ino bit her lip as she watched the two maneuver through the branches. She wasn't sure if Sakura's choice of going into close combat with Nori that was a great idea since the man was holding a pair of knives in his hands and seemed quite adept at using them. Then again, Ino knew that battling close combat with Sakura was no easy feat –especially with her super human strength.

Nori's knives effortlessly sliced through the tree branches Sakura had been occupying though always failed to hit the intended target. The blonde watched breathlessly as Sakura easily dodged all of Nori's attacks and sent him flying to the ground with a strong and well-aimed punch.

Nori seemed to have realized the same thing Ino had and decided to keep a fair distance away from Sakura.

"Do you take back what you said now?" Sakura asked as she landed softly on the ground.

"The battle isn't over yet," Nori said with a smirk on his face.

Sakura seemed slightly surprised at his response but the smile on her face told Ino that the pink haired kunoichi was expecting a response similar to the one Nori had just given. Her emerald eyes traveled from Nori's face to the ground in front of the man.

"In that case, I'll try to finish this quickly," Sakura said, her emerald eyes burning brightly.

Gathering charka in her hands, Sakura formed a fist. At that instant, a couple of knives sliced past Sakura, one scratching the pink-haired ninja's leg. Without wincing, Sakura brought her fist down on the ground.

Dirt and rocks erupted around Sakura as a large crack formed in the middle of the courtyard. The entire courtyard rumbled like deep thunder. Ino gritted her teeth as she held onto the trunk of the shaking tree she was currently perched on. The large crack darted forwards like an attacking snake, swallowing Nori whole.

Rubbing her knuckles, Sakura straightened up with a pleased yet thoughtful expression on her face. Taking one last glance at the giant crack, Sakura walked over to a bench and started healing the cut on her leg. The medic-nin didn't appear concerned that Nori might come out of the crack and attack her at all as she focused on her wound. Ino doubted that Nori would attack Sakura though, after her impressive display of strength.

After collecting her gloves, Sakura glanced towards Nori, who was climbing out of the fissure. The man gazed grudgingly at Sakura's creation for a moment before turning to face Sakura.

"Fine, I guess I was… wrong about the leaf ninja."

Ino gazed at what Sakura had done to the courtyard. She knew that she should be happy that Sakura had made Nori apologize for insulting their village but for some reason, Ino felt oddly empty inside.

When they had fought against each other in their first chunin exam, the two of them had exited as equal ninja. Now… Ino wasn't sure where she stood. Was Sakura stronger than her? The blonde closed her eyes.

Sakura was definitely far stronger than her. Ino couldn't understand how her rival had grown so much stronger without her noticing. Ino gazed down at her hands. What had she done in the past year? What had she achieved? Had she improved at all?

Tearing her gaze away from Sakura and Nori, who were currently chatting light-heartedly, Ino quietly leapt backwards off the tree. Exiting the courtyard, Ino angrily wiped a tear from her face. Not only was she humiliated in front of Nori, she was also out performed by Sakura.