Mind Games

[[ Neji x Ino

Takes place two years after the timeskip begins.

Yes, I know there are OCs. But just pretend they were in the academy in the class one year higher than Konohamaru. The real story isn't about them, believe me.

---

"And here's your new vest. Congratulations on your achievement, Ino." Tsunade said, smiling as she held out a green pocketed vest, size small. Ino grinned in excitement and put it on as fast as she could. This would be a day to remember for the rest of her life. She was a jounin, even before Sakura was! Yes, she would remember this day…definitely.

"Thank you Tsunade-sama!" She said with a wide grin. Suddenly Tsunade's face turned serious in the wink of an eye.

"Now it's time for your team. This will make or break your career as a Jounin, Ino. I've picked it carefully, according to your special skills. First! Inoue Ayako. 12 years of age, as all your students will be. Orphaned. Next, Takahashi Takeo. 12 years, as I told you. Also orphaned. Last…Hyuuga Hinabi. 12 years, and as you'll know, definitely not orphaned." The hokage gave her a crooked grin. "They'll be a challenge, but they're all very skilled. They'll be a handful Ino. Good luck. Oh, by the way, they'll be assigning teams at this very moment. You're to meet them at training ground 4." Tsunade said, winking encouragingly. Ino ran to the door, and into the hall. She remembered when she had felt happy being a Chuunin—this was even better. Over the past two years, she had cut her long ponytail short to the way it had been after the match with Sakura in the Chuunin exams, and had opted for taller boots up to her knees. She kept the purple skirt she wore, and now the Jounin vest over her short purple top. Suddenly, someone grabbed her arm.

"Oi, Ino-pig, where are you running to?" Sakura teased, sticking out her tongue in a good-natured way. Ino slowed and laughed.

"To my new team of course, Billboard-Brow!" Ino said, putting her hands on her hips and smirking. "I'm a Jounin now. And seeing as you're not, I'm now your senpai." Ino teased right back. Sakura glowered and then grinned.

"Good job, Ino-pig. Too bad I'll be beating you soon enough! I'm taking the Jounin exam in a few weeks!" Sakura said, smiling in determination. "You better hurry—you have five minutes!" Sakura taunted her, sticking out her tongue again.

"Shit!" Ino swore and ran out the door and down the stairs of the Hokage's tower. "Bye, Forehead girl, catch ya later!" She cried as she ran.

Ino's life had been going well—maybe that was just because she was an avid optimist. Her sensei had died two years earlier, and a year ago her father had died in a mission. In her depression, her mother died soon after, refusing to eat, and ultimately starving. Ino had been in shock, and ultimately trained every hour until dawn until she became strong enough to be in ANBU. She trained under Morino Ibiki in intelligence extracting information from prisoners until she decided to take the Jounin exams. She became more confident and happier in the process also, figuring that being sad was a waste of her time.

---

Ino skidded to a stop at Training Ground 4. There stood three kids before her, and suddenly she realized she had no idea what to do. 'Introduce yourself, baka!' Her inner self screamed, and she grinned, lifting a fist in determination.

"Alright, team 4! My name is Yamanaka Ino, and I'm your new Jounin Instructor. Let's introduce ourselves—we have a long road ahead of us. How about…name, likes, dislikes, hobbies, anything you can think of." Ino said, finishing, leaning on the fence and turning to the first person on her left. It was a boy with short green hair in a style that reminded her of Naruto's in a way, only a little longer. He had brown eyes and looked bored. His clothes consisted of a T-shirt and typical shinobis' pants with the kunai pack on one leg. He wore his headband on his arm.

"Takahashi Takeo. My likes are…fighting. Dislikes…being surrounded by girls." He said, sending a glare to the two girls next to him. One of them trembled; Hanabi, easy to tell apart by her light purple eyes, remained emotionless. "My hobbies are sparring and target practice." He said, turning away with a glare. Ino made a mental note to remember his obsession to fight.

"Next."

"Uh-uhm. Inoue Ayako." Said the girl next to Takeo. She had straight red hair that went to her waist in a side ponytail. Her eyes were bright green, and she wore a brown dress down to her knees with her head protector as her belt. She had a pack that went around her chest. 'Ah, a young medicnin.' Ino thought, 'Very good.' "I like…ummm…reading is fun…and, uhhhm…I don't really dislike anything…I don't know!" She cried, shaking. 'Obviously shy…' Ino thought with an inward sigh.

"Finally, you must be Hyuuga Hanabi." Ino grinned. "I was a rookie with your sister, Hinata-san."

"Name: Hanabi. Likes: Quiet. Fighting. Dislikes: Boys who think girls aren't good enough at fighting to be ninja." She said, with a glare at Takeo. Ino blinked, and rolled her eyes.

"Alright. We'll start training tomorrow. No use testing now, I know your abilities anyway." Ino said, waving it off. Takeo suddenly looked at her incredulously.

"No you don't! We're supposed to be tested! C'mon!!!" He barked, outraged. Hanabi rolled her eyes at him.

"Baka, don't piss her off." Hanabi said, with a bored sigh.

"Shut up!"

"You want a test, ne?" Ino said, grinning. Takeo stood up straight.

"Y-yeah…" He said, unsurely.

Suddenly Ino turned to him, a wild look on her face.

"SHINTENSHIN NO JUTSU!" She cried, making a quick seal. Ino's body went limp, as did Takeo's. Hanabi's eyes widened, and Ayako shrieked.

"Ino-sensei! INO-SENSEI!" Ayako cried, nudging her still sensei.

"What just happened…" Hanabi said, still in shock.

Suddenly, Takeo stood up from where he was on his knees, and turned to the girls.

"He wanted a test, so I'm testing his will. He isn't fighting against my jutsu. In the world of shinobi and kunoichi, a strong will can be your best weapon. If you have a strong will you yourself are strong inside. In my Chuunin exams, I would have won with this very jutsu, except the person I used it on has a strong will. She's come far from what she used to be. With a strong spirit, almost anything can be achieved. Remember that." Ino (in Takeo's body) finished. Moments later Ino got up and turned away.

"Meet me back here tomorrow, 8'o'clock sharp. Don't be late!" She said sharply. Takeo looked around at his team.

"How did she—I—I—This is no fair!" He wailed.

Suddenly Ino felt a tug on her arm. She looked down to see Hanabi staring up at her, and was surprised to see a grin on her face.

"Ah, I've been told to ask you to come to talk to my family about being my sensei. Sorry about this…they're, ah, protective. Please, if you'd come with me…and thank you for the lesson today…Ino-sensei." Hanabi said, walking alongside her.

---

Ino was led into the Hyuuga complex of houses. In the front garden, there stood Hyuuga Neji. Ino raised an eyebrow and smirked, but said nothing. All she remembered about the Hyuuga 'Genius' was that he walked away from her charms in the Forest of Death (now much to her embarrassment) and how he mercilessly beat his cousin in the Chuunin Exams.

"Neji-nii-san, Yamanaka Ino. Ino-sensei, Neji, my cousin." She said, introducing them.

"No need to introduce us. We've met." Neji said, his words suddenly biting. Ino found he looked angry.

"Ino is my sensei." Hanabi said bluntly, raising an eyebrow, almost seeming to challenge Neji.

"So it would seem. Hanabi-sama, please allow me to speak to your sensei in private.

"Hai." Hanabi said, walking into the houses.

"This must be a mistake. I specifically indicated that Hanabi-sama needed an especially skilled teacher to lead her team. I'm sorry, but Hanabi's not meant for your team. You may go, I just need to speak to Tsunade-sama—"

"Hold on a second there..!" Ino cried, suddenly furious. "Are you saying I'm not good enough to be your cousin's Jounin leader?!" She cried incredulously.

"To a point, yes." Neji said curtly. It was obvious that he was seething. Ino started shaking with fury.

"Obviously you do not know the extent of my skills."

"If I remember correctly, the only thing you have on your side is your so-called 'charm'." Neji said, smirking.

Ino snapped.

Sure, she had snapped before, but this time, she went assassin mode. Must…kill…Hyuuga Neji…

"HOW DARE YOU?!" She shrieked, eyes wide in anger.

In the house, Hanabi heard the yell, and slapped a hand to her forehead. "Hinata!" She cried desperately, when her sister came into her room. "Neji's angering my sensei. Tell him to stop it! Please? He may listen to you!" She begged her sister.

"Ah, um…!" Hinata cried, running down to the gardens. Once there, he saw Ino approaching Neji with a gloved fist, eyes seething fury. Neji looked bored.

"I don't think you should insult Ino, nii-san…uh, um, her s-skills have exceeded many now, and she would be a good sensei for Hanabi! You should, ah, um, approve of h-her." Hinata said quietly, turning red in embarrassment.

"He shouldn't have to approve of me! I was assigned to team 4, no questions asked!" Ino squealed. Her inner self punched the air. 'That's it! Show that bastard who's the genius now!'

"Hanabi needs a wise teacher to lead her to her destiny."

"To hell with destiny! Did Naruto teach you nothing when he beat the shit out of you?" She cried. Neji narrowed his eyes.

"You are no longer welcome here."

"I'll make that decision." Cane a voice from inside. Neji, Ino, and Hinata turned around.

"Hiashi-sama." Neji murmured, suddenly straightening. 'This must be Hinata's father.' Ino thought, looking at him.

"Neji, you're taking this too far. I told you to make sure Hanabi's sensei was not weak. Obviously she isn't. No kunoichi would have a temper that strong and not have skills to back it." He said with an almost-smile. Ino beamed. 'Ha! Take that, Neji!'

"I…apologize." Neji said quietly. Hiashi nodded.

"In fact, we welcome to our home. Come anytime you like to just talk, or even help Hanabi. You're welcome here. Hanabi is a talented genin, and we hope that she'll be a good student to you."

"Thank you. I'll take you up on that offer." She said, smirking at Neji, who glared silently. "I need to be on my way. Tell Hanabi I'll see her tomorrow at training, and thank you for your hospitality." She said, shooting a dirty look at Neji.

---

"Was it really that bad?" Sakura said with a sympathetic frown.

"Ugh, it was horrible! He's a bastard. And he thinks I haven't learned anything in, what, 4 years?! It's nuts! And it sounds like I'll be seeing him on occasion. I've been asked to help Hanabi train 'anytime'. What am I gonna do? He's infuriating..!" She said, banging her head on the ramen counter.

"Hey, watch it! Some people are eating here!" Naruto's loud voice said, annoyed. "One more bowl, old man!" He said, waving his arm in the air. Sakura rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm sure it'll be fine, Ino. I mean, you can just avoid him, right?"

"Ugh, I keep remembering when I tried flirting with him in the Forest of Death. So. Embarrassing."

"Just focus on your team." Sakura said with a reassuring smile. "I'm sure you'll be a great sensei not just to Hanabi, but to the rest of your team too."

"Thanks Sakura." Ino said, smiling at her best friend/rival in pure gratitude. "It's getting late. I should head home. Goodnight Sakura…Naruto-baka." She said raising an eyebrow at the boy who was on his 18th bowl of ramen.

"I'm not paying for this!" She heard Sakura cry as she walked out. Ino snickered.