A/N - Whew, sorry this was a bit late Puppers. I got occupied playing Pokemon- Alpha Sapphire and Pokemon Go- as I thought about some direction to the story.

I'm glad I managed to wait a couple of days until pushing this out. It isn't the greatest, but definitely better than it would have been if I forced it.

Anyway, Puppers. All for you bro. Enjoy it.

One step towards our adventure. I feel like this where we stop with the slowmo and start taking some real steps.

DISCLAIMER - I do not own Naruto

~For unofficial/official contest winner Puppers for being a truuu fan~

When we stopped that day, I refused to sleep on the ground. It wasn't a luxury we had until I felt like we were safe, but after seeing that sign and not running into the infected for so long, I wouldn't feel safe for a very long time. What worried me was that Warwick would have to stay grounded, but he seemed at ease as we set up camp. There could have truly been nothing to worry about, but I couldn't shake the shivering sign out of my head.

Ino mostly watched as I climbed the tree to create a makeshift hammock. It would have felt just as comfortable sleeping in a car, but there hadn't been one sight of a vehicle all day. Bummer, but we weren't in a rush.

Yet.

Because until Ino figured out what she wanted to do, leave alone or travel together, as of now it was like we were aimlessly walking. I know I had pressed the fact that she wouldn't go by herself, but I also knew that I was being unreasonable. It was her choice, after all.

I was just hoping she'd choose the one most appealing to me.

After sweating for two more hours, I was comfortable with the hammock in the tree. It was hard to choose which spot to place it at, and the amount of rope we had also was a problem, but after safely securing and weight checking I was sure it was safe to sleep in for the night.

Climbing down, I moved to grab the gallon of water I had already slowly boiling in the died out coal from the flames. I knew Ino and Warwick was thirsty, but I wanted to be the first to try the water before handing out the rations. The first sip didn't seem out of the ordinary, so with three huge gulps I gave them an apologetic look and told them to wait one more hour to see if there were any effects.

Ino frowned instantly, "You shouldn't have drank it if you weren't sure there wasn't anything wrong with it."

"It's the only way to be sure it's safe to drink, and I'd rather be sick than either of you," I brushed off after putting the water aside. Grabbing our bags, I dug for the last three cans of beans we had left. The dying fire pit was all but cold, but I was hoping it would still warm up the cans a decent amount. If we were lucky, they could both have a hot meal while drinking clean water. I, on the other hand, chose to stick with the jerky so we could have one emergency can left.

Ino grew quiet, and I only noticed after I was done shifting around. Glancing at her, I watched as she looked at her fingers, her facial expression portraying deep thought. I felt guilt begin to churn through me as I thought of earlier and how I refused to speak to her about leaving and even left her alone out of my own fears.

Taking a breath, I parted my lips to speak but was cut off when Ino said quietly, "I know you said you didn't want to argue about traveling apart, but I'm worried. I'm worried you're giving too much, and you're doing that because you would feel guilty about leaving me alone to go north."

I blinked, caught off guard. Is that what she was concerned about? She thought I was doing this because I felt like I had to? Not because I wanted to? It was so ridiculous that I found myself snorting, and when she watched me with guarded eyes I realized she was serious. Shaking my head in confusion, I replied, "If I felt like I had to take care of you Ino, I just feel like... I wouldn't be as concerned. Guilt or not, I could have left you with those men in that store. Why risk my life if I thought you were a burden in the first place? You don't save someone out of guilt, not in this life time. You save them if they are important enough to save instead of running in fear... Do you get that?"

Her frown pulled low, and I could tell she didn't fully believe me. Sighing, I shook my head and looked away, "I'm sorry to say, but as of right now in this world you don't have the luxury of saving everyone. I don't have the means nor the will to keep someone safe if I don't fully want them around. The only people in this world, as of right now, that I care about are you and Warwick. The only other being in this world I would have ran back for at that store to save is Warwick. Do you understand? I'm not doing this out of guilt... I want you here with me. So I will fight to keep you safe and go wherever I need to go to help you. I don't... know how else to put it to you."

"Why though?" She asked with a frown.

I shook my head, staring at the cans slowly warming, "I don't know. Because you're normal I guess. Because you didn't try to kill me when we first met. Maybe because, out of everyone I have managed to run into, you're the only one I have managed to save twice now and that means something to me."

"You've lost someone?"

Her question was quiet, but it rang through my ears as I thought of the past. Forcing it away with a shut of my eyes, I mumbled, "I've lost everyone up until now. All because I wasn't strong enough to keep them safe. But I feel like that's changed. And I hate to say it, because forbid something happens in the future that will haunt me for the reset of my life, but I feel like out of everyone I have ran into I can guarantee your safety. I'm... stronger than I was back then."

"I do feel really safe with you, and I don't know if I believe you completely about not saving me out of guilt, but if I were being completely honest... I don't want to travel alone."

Her voice was soft and her eyes stared at the ground, but her words caused me to smile miserably. If I were being completely honest myself, knowing she felt so safe with me terrified me. Trust of that magnitude was intimidating, and I felt almost weak at the thought of me failing her somehow in the end. But the need to stay with her trumped all else.

"Then Ino, I say whatever you decide to do make sure it's something you want. At this point our life span is cut into thirds. What's the point of doing things we don't want when we have so little time to live?" She glanced up at me and held my eyes, but I only pulled my smile higher, "It's up to you, but you already know what I'm willing to do. Just think about it."

At her nod I heaved a sigh and stood up, rustling Warwick's hears while saying, "Good. I'm going to make one more round and then we can sleep in our tree. I want to leave early tomorrow. This place gives me the fucking creeps."

"Can I come with you?" She asked quietly.

I glanced back at her and watched as she bit her lip nervously. Smiling slightly, I replied, "Sure. We can all make the round together."

X

The hammock was cramped, and that was being generous. Truth of the matter was that the folded up tent and rope provided hardly enough room for one person up in the tree, two was making a dangerous statement. Though I was confident it could hold both of our weight, I informed Ino that she could have it to herself. With the smaller spare rope we had, I figured I could secure myself upright while sitting on a branch and maybe get a few hours of sleep. It wouldn't have been comfortable, but at least we would be safe.

Ino looked uncomfortable about the idea when I first mentioned it during our rounds. I wasn't sure what she was nervous of, but soon found out after we returned and ate. As always, she began biting her lip while taking small glances at me. I smiled as I pretended not to notice, knowing she would speak up soon enough. Finally, just before we were calling it a night, she spoke.

"Can we sleep together?" She asked quietly after finally gaining the courage.

I frowned, "There wouldn't be much of a point. I doubt you'd be comfortable enough to fall asleep if we both try to climb in there."

"But you won't get much sleep sitting on that branch, right?" She asked with a frown of her own.

I shrugged, "I've come to terms with it. It's only for the night, I can manage until tomorrow."

"You're not doing it to take first watch are you?"

"Not much point of a watch if we're both in the tree," I answered with an amused smile, "So no."

"Then sleep with me please. Or at least take the hammock yourself. You haven't slept fully in two days. If you keep it up, you're not going to make it tomorrow," she begged again.

I heaved a sigh, "I mean you aren't wrong. Just. Doesn't feel right to make you sit on a branch while I sleep in the hammock."

"Imagine how I feel then?" She countered, making a very valid point.

Rubbing the back of my neck as I was cornered, I looked away and muttered, "Alright, you got me. But you're not sleeping on a branch... so I guess we'll share the hammock."

Brightening the second she knew she had won me over, she gave me a grateful smile before helping me hide our materials. Afterwards, I helped her climb the tree, but there wasn't much to help with. Honestly, she was scaling it better than me, and I had been sleeping in trees for awhile. When we finally reached the hammock, I decided to lay down first. Instantly I was wrapped by the tent material, and again I was reminded how little space there was.

But Ino didn't even blink an eye as she carefully climbed on top of me. The branches that held us groaned under the stress, causing her to pause. But as she placed more and more of her weight within the hammock, it withheld.

That was until she lost her grip on the branch she was holding onto, causing her to fall forward.

My heart dropped the moment it happened, my entire body growing tense. In that split second, the sudden addition to weight was bound to be enough to snap the rope, and I knew it would have been a back breaking fall. Eyes shut tight, I instantly darted my arms to Ino and held her tightly against me, preparing for the worst.

But a full second passed, and we continued to be suspended in the tree.

Instant relief washed over me as I dropped my head back against the hammock, giving out an unsteady breath. "Christ," I muttered to myself, feeling a little shaken.

"Are... you alright?"

Ino's voice snapped my eyes open and out of reaction I snatched my arms away as best as I could in the small space. My gaze wandered to her, who was adjusted with her new found small space and freedom. She shifted to look up at me, giving me a small smile.

"What was that about?" She asked, causing me to look away.

"I thought we were about to fall," I muttered in embarrassment.

I could only hear her soft laugh as I stared at the leaves above us, "I could tell... you're heart was racing. I could hear it."

Swallowing, I only shook my head, "I knew it would be able to hold both of our weight but... dropping down like that. I hadn't really accounted for it."

"You need more faith in your rope tying skills," she teased softly, shifting again as she got more comfortable. One of her knees slipped between mine, and her chest rubbed against me as she continued to move. Our quiet conversation soon gave way to silence and the chirping of crickets around us as she settled on top of me, the brim of her nose running across my neck. Eventually, she whispered, "And you wonder why I feel so safe with you..."

As she spoke, I tired very hard to ignore the proximity between us. Struggling with that much, and my wariness rising at the thought that maybe she could feel my heart racing for entirely different reason, I replied, "I just don't understand why you would."

"You're blind," was her only reply for a few minutes after. When I thought she was drifting to sleep, she whispered, "I know it's a lot to ask for Tayuya... I really do. Even now my chest hurts just thinking about asking but... Will you come with me north?"

A small smile pulled my lips as I muttered, "Your blind if you honestly think I wasn't going to try my hardest to anyway."

I felt her lips pull into a smile against my skin as she shifted closer to me, if it were even possible. And despite myself, I wrapped my arms around her once again, running my check across hers as we both drifted off to sleep.

X

The next morning we woke up early. It took me only minutes to detach the hammock while it took me hours to install. As I did so, Ino made a small breakfast with the squirrel Warwick managed to catch just a few feet away from us. The more I spent time with her, the more I slowly began to realize how much I underestimated her. While it was a bit botched, her skinning skills of the squirrel were impressive.

The small things were a constant reminder that she had been traveling alone for who knows how long before I found her.

After I was done, I waited all of a few more minutes before being able to eat. And as we did, there was a silent excited feel in the air. Before it felt like we were simply wandering aimlessly, but now it was like we finally had some direction. North was bound to be a slow agonizing road, but at least we had some sort of plan.

What happened from here was only a step closer towards our destination. And once we packed up and wandered back to the highway road, we took that step.

Together.

Alright like I said, not the best. But. I am glad to get this out because I really do feel like now I have the freedom to do a lot more things with this story.

Hardest part of making a new story, for me anyway, is pushing pass the set up point. Like laying everything out towards a direction you want to go before you go completely haywire and fuck everything up for the fun of it.

Well. Like I said. For me. I'm sure not everyone feels the way I do about destruction :D

Anyway Puppers, are you ready dude?

Are you?

Because you seem to like this story like shit is gonna be cool calm and collected.

Watch yourself man. I know first hand what it's like getting attached.

:D :D :D

Shycadet is passive aggressive. Out!