Feral

Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I only own the plot and ocs. Please review and let me know what you think. Enjoy.

Silent tears slid down her cheeks as she sat atop the wall that surrounded the village she called home. The sun was setting as the wind played with her long platinum strands. She needed to head home, yet she couldn't force her body to move. She was numb, tired and exhausted of the life she called her own, and yet there was nothing she could do to change it. She wasn't the strategist Shikamaru was. She wasn't a medical prodigy like Sakura. She was a Yamanaka. There was no specific place for her.

" Hey, aren't you getting cold?" the familiar voice reached her ears, causing her spine to stiffen before she glanced over her shoulder to see the normally bright boy looking somber.

" No, not really," her voice sounded odd to her, husky from lack of use and too quiet for her ears. Naruto offered her a soft smile, shrugging off his orange and black jacket before placing it on her shoulders.

" Even if you don't feel it mentally, physically you are. What's it like?" Ino raised a delicate eyebrow in question, unsure what he was asking.

" Being in someone else's mind. I've seen you do it with Sakura, and I've been meaning to ask. It's a talent that most people crave, being able to know what others think," Ino turned her ice blue eyes back towards the setting sun, thinking her words over carefully before explaining to her fellow blonde shinobi.

" It's… Sometimes I don't even realize when I mind walk, it's natural, a fluid movement I'm taught, a limb that I can extend. It's as natural as walking, talking, or breathing. The first time you do it, it's strange. Your body goes numb, the space you occupy, the mind you walk in to, it's foreign, making it cold. All minds are different, but the more you walk, the easier it becomes," Ino paused, drawing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. Naruto sat behind her, his cerulean colored eyes watching the fragile girl in front of him. She wasn't anything like Sakura. Sakura, the rosette, she was strong, so sure of herself. He could remember a time when Ino was like that. What changed?

" But mind walking is a useless talent. Even Choji thinks so. I mean, in battle, what good is Mind Walking? It leaves my body open for an attack, it hinders my comrades. I'd be a nuisance rather than an asset," she commented, lowering her chin to rest atop her knees.

" Mind walking could be a asset. Think about it for a second. If you were to become an interrogator, all you would have to d was walk through the prisoner's mind. If they struggled, you're a beautiful girl, you could easily soften them," Naruto commented, watching Ino's shoulders tense for a brief moment before she glanced over her shoulder.

" Do you think I could be an interrogator?" Naruto frowned slightly, her voice sounded so unsure. He nodded his head, glancing past her shoulder to see the ending of the setting sun.

" If you put your mind to it, Ino, I think you could be the best interrogator Konoha has to offer, one that would make Sarutobi Asuma proud to say he was once your sensei," Naruto watched as the tears silently slid down her cheeks before a soft, ghost of a smile slid across her lips.

" Thank you Naruto," Ino whispered, watching the blonde nod once before leaving her atop the wall of Konoha to watch the stars come out, his jacket still wrapped around her shoulders.

Moon light flittered through the black lace of her curtains, illuminating her room as she sat upright in her bed. A cold sweat covered her body as images of the war plagued her mind. With a groan she pushed the tangled sheets from her body, swinging her legs over the edge of her futon. Her bare feet touched the cold hard wood floor, sending a shiver up her spine as she stood. She stretched her arms over her head, her spine arching in a fashion similar to a feline. Her lips curved upwards slightly as she felt her spine realign itself before she silently padded across the floor that stretched across her bed room. The hallway was dark, yet Ino didn't need light to see her way. The simple lay out of her apartment was the reason she had chosen it. Her ice colored eyes shut as he slender fingertips grazed the wall she was walking beside. She was unsure as to where she was going, allowing her feet to carry her through her spacious apartment until she stood in front of the large window that made up one wall, allowing her to overlook the forest that hid her village. The moon light caressed the leaves of the trees, stars glittered the velvet sky, Ino couldn't stop the pure contentment that washed through her body at that moment.

" Yamanaka," only for it to vanish. With a sigh, Ino turned from her view to meet the mask covered face of child hood teammate.

" Wolf," she greeted him formally, waiting for him to state his reasoning for being there.

" The lady fifth Hokage has requested your presence," Shikamaru spoke, watching Ino close her eyes for a moment, before opening them, nodding once. She brushed past him, making her way back to her bed room to pull on a pair of pants, knowing her childhood teammate and friend would wait until she was decent. The first pair of jeans she found were her ones for training, the legs shredded and barely held together by a few threads. She slid the rough fabric up the long expanse of her smooth legs, not bothering to button or zip them before she left her room, following Shikamaru out the front door.

They jumped from one roof top to another, the flying through the night. Shikamaru led the way, leaving Ino to ponder what the lady Hokage could possibly need her for, unless it was to interrogate a prisoner that had been captured. Shikamaru remained quiet, glancing over his shoulder every few minutes just to make sure the young woman following him was indeed his teammate. Once upon a time, Yamanaka Ino would have demanded answers as to why she was summoned at such an hour, she would have scolded him for his posture, for speaking to her in an abrupt manner, anything. Yet the woman behind him barely resembled his younger teammate. This woman was taller than the Ino he had grown with, standing at a five foot seven now. Her long platinum blonde hair reached the small of her back, still held up in a ponytail. Her ice blue eyes were colder, more calculating. Her ivory skin was littered with faint scars she didn't bother to hide. She was a kunoichi Asuma would have been proud of, hell, he was proud to call her his teammate. Shikamaru didn't understand the change when it first happened after Asuma's passing, yet something or someone had pushed the young kunoichi into the right direction.

They landed in front of the Hokage's tower, entering the building and walking slowly up the twisting stair case that would take them to their leader's office. He glanced at Ino once more, smirking at the sight she presented. She was quiet, strong, and cold, the ice queen of Konoha, was the newest title she had been given. They reached the landing, and Shikamaru knocked once on the oaken door that led to the Hokage's office. A muffled 'enter' met his ears before he pushed the heavy door open and allowed Ino entrance.

" You summoned Lady Hokage?" Ino spoke, her voice slightly husky. Tsunade stood behind her desk, arms crossed under her bust, eyebrows drawn together in concentration as she read over a scroll that was laid atop her desk.

" Yes, I did. I wanted the best Yamanaka, and according to your clan elders as well as your grandfather, that would be you," Tsunade commented, watching the young blonde woman standing six feet away from her.

" I wouldn't say I'm the best," Ino dismissed, with a shake of her head. Tsunade smirked, the corner of her lips curving upward as she took in the younger girl's appearance. She looked tired, exhausted. Her platinum blonde hair tied back in a plait, a simple black shirt barely reached her naval, baring her midsection. Torn jeans rode low on her slender hips, her bare feet peeking from the under the hem. She held this messy appearance, this wild look that would attract most men.

" I have a mission for you, Ino. It's a delicate situation that would require your field of expertise. As a mind walker, you pick through another's mind, correct?" Tsunade spoke, choosing her words carefully. Slowly Ino nodded her head, her brows knitting together in confusion.

" You are able to sort through information, that is what makes a Yamanaka an asset," she continued, walking around the front of her desk until she was five feet away from the young woman. Ino's shoulder's tensed, her muscles coiling with energy as she waited for the Hokage to finish.

" If a mind were to break, would a Yamanaka be able to fix it?" Tsunade watched as Ino thought over her answer carefully.

" In theory, I believe so. However, I've never fixed a mind Lady Hokage. I've always been the one to break them. Wouldn't it be wiser to request my father?" Tsunade could sense the nervousness slowly seeping off the young woman's body, a slight smile curving her lips.

" I would, however he specifically told me to find you. Apparently the shinobi I need you to help, helped you when you were lost. Don't think of this as a mission for the village, think of it as repaying a friend," Tsunade suggested before calling to Wolf to enter with the shinobi.

Ino slowly turned as she heard the door open, vicious snarling meeting her ears. The sight that greeted her was not one she had expected. Shackles binding his wrists, chakra infused chains locking together restrained a shinobi she had attended the academy with. Wild sun kissed locks fell about his bronzed face. The whisker like marks on his cheeks were more defined. His body hummed with energy. Yet none of that frightened the young Yamanaka woman. No, she wasn't afraid, not even his sapphire blue eyes with slitted pupils could frighten her. He looked untamed, unrestricted, wild, feral in her eyes.

" He needs your help Ino, and frankly I don't trust anyone else with him," Ino swallowed, slowly taking a step towards the restrained shinobi who had helped her what seemed like so long ago. Ino had stopped feeling fear when she had requested to be Morino Ibiki's apprentice. She needed to prove herself to the man who would do anything. And she had, that was all that mattered to her. Slowly she inhaled another breath, carefully meeting Naruto's eyes. His snarling stopped, reducing to a slight growl as he watched the young woman in front of him. She didn't smell as the others did. She didn't reek of fear and hatred. She was calm, her heartbeat was even, it was soothing to his ears for once.

Slowly, Ino extended her hand, her pink tongue darting her lick her lips and Naruto's sapphire colored eyes followed the movement until he felt the gentle pressure of her fingertips on his rough cheek. Ino offered him a half smile, speaking to the woman behind her, yet never looking away from the shinobi in front of her.

" When do I start?" she questioned slowly, watching as Naruto lightly nuzzled against her fingers. Tsunade breathed a barely audible sigh, her features softening at the scene before her.

" Tomorrow morning. Be in interrogation room seven by eight," Tsunade ordered, watching the young woman nod once before slowly dropping her hand to her side.

A/N: And that is the beginning. Tell me what you guys think of it so far, I would love feed back.