Trembling all over, hands shaking frantically as they attempted to heal stubborn, open wounds. Nervousness partnered with outright fear; a young woman who couldn't hold even her head still. She had the pure endurance to resist various jutsu, just not in her current condition.
The kunoichi struggled to stand, knees failing almost instantly. Too weak, too much pressure. Something made it hard to breathe. There was no collecting herself after the mind transfer disconnected, and for the first time in her new days as Jōnin, she realized her chances might have been cut short.
In the crazy years prior, the Yamanaka had accomplished more than she could ask for. Her father would've been so proud. That his little daughter made it to see a promotion, achieved medic status, harbored sensory abilities to be envied. So should she die right there, it would have been a nice life. One she often took for granted.
"And you're supposed to take us back to the Leaf for questioning?" The enemy proved to be of sound mind and prowess."You're a real ignorant girl."
Ino shifted her focus to the guy's companion, who seemed unworried. She raised unsteady hands to form a hand sign, but was forced to recoil. Her whole body ached, energy at an all time low.
"Maybe we'll take you in for questioning," He smirked hatefully, brandishing a pointed kunai in front of her face. "what a pretty prisoner of war you'd be."
Although she knew better than to shed tears on a battlefield, she also knew she would be unable to withstand physical torture. Even if she would boast to her friends how her stamina and sheer willpower was improving every day. Simply couldn't be as strong as either of her mentors.
Ino looked down at her filthy attire, navy blue sleeves torn up to the elbows. Most of the garb reflected her poor situation, even her specially sewn vest tattered in places.
"You don't look so good," The man hoisted her up by the collar, watching as the metal needles dug themselves deeper into pale skin. He would make empty on his threat to do anything but kill her.
She felt herself make contact with dirt after a sudden, sharp pain collided with her right brow bone. No longer had the strength to sit up, so she played dead. It wasn't hard.
"Ino!"
Who or what was that? She couldn't help but think of how much she needed Team 10 right then. She swore she was hearing her name being shouted in the distance, but not before succumbing to much needed unconsciousness.
"I sure hope she's breathing," A sadistic grin shined off the scarred face of Konoha's top interrogator. "for you and your buddy's sake."
He did not check, however. Knew she was strong.
"Who the hell is this old man?"
"Ibiki Morino," He loved telling people who he was, because they usually whitened when they heard the name. He was renowned for running one of cruelest, most horrifying interrogation units around. "but you're likely to forget that after I'm through with you."
"I don't think anybody's been scared of you in years," The opponent flung explosives in his direction, "and if this girl is your protégé, it's no wonder."
Normally frighteningly calm and stoic, that moment was different. He countered with a summoning of chains, yanking the enemy forward and trapping his head beneath his boot. "Say anything negative about my student again, you'll be lucky to remember your own name."
Glimpsing back at her collapsed form, he briefly recalled the days passing after the war; the two almost mutually deciding to work together, with Ino seeming pleased to be taught by him. It was like a continuation of her father's legacy, the most effective way she could help out. He had never had such a promising trainee. He already realized what potential she held, so agreeing to teach her was an easy decision.
"Hell, who am I fooling," Ibiki loosened his grip, stepping back to make a grand reveal of the weapons he kept handy on his person. "I'm going to kill you no matter what, but your death won't come quick."
"It's useless!" She threw her head down, meters away from a barely conscious prisoner. Used for nothing more than the purpose of science. His science, anyway. "I can't get it right. I can't get anything right!"
Ibiki came close to snapping, closing his menacing eyes at the sight. She couldn't even get a reading on a half-dead rogue. "This should not be so hard for you, Ino. Pick yourself up and try again. Now."
"I can't!" She forgot who she was yelling at, "his subconscious is tougher than it looks!"
"The only screams I want to hear are from those imprisoned. Not yours," He hissed sternly, getting a firm hold on the hair of the tortured. "You'll do it successfully this time."
Ino stared into half-lidded eyes that expressed pain, feeling herself withdraw. "Ibiki, please.. I have to quit."
"Dammit," He cursed at the blonde, glaring his signature glare that caused others to avoid him. "What will your future be, then? A failed medical specialist?"
Stung by the unforgiving tone, she clenched her fists. "I'm just as good at healing as this interrogation business! Don't tell me what I can be!"
"Ino, what's best for you lies here," The Jōnin never cared to pick words carefully, but he did that time around. "Your control is not as smooth as you think it is. Your clan's techniques are what you should be mastering."
"Your father would want nothing more. I can tell you that with utmost certainty," He released hold of the victim, allowing his head to bang the table. "Stop taking your gift for granted."
The Yamanaka brought her hands to her face, leaning over the table before she broke down. "I miss my dad."
Her mentor pulled a face, unsure of how to console a sobbing, emotional teenage girl.
"Your father taught you as much as he could," Ibiki continued, hoping he still commanded attention. "soon you will surpass him in your abilities. If I didn't think you had potential, I wouldn't have wasted all this time on you."
Ino raised her head a bit, damp eyes appearing grief-stricken.
"Your father and I never discussed this," He shifted awkwardly, "for whatever reason, I feel a weight of some responsibility concerning you. I only see what is in your best interest."
She suddenly wiped at the tears, newfound determination crossing her features. "Okay. I'm ready to try again. I'll do it right this time."
He was taken off guard by the abrupt change of character, watching as she snatched the hands of the prisoner.
"Words of wisdom: stop hesitating. Your victim will smell the fear on you."
Ino clamped her eyes shut, forcing herself to listen. She remembered the first time she ever laid eyes on Ibiki Morino. During the written test of the first exam. He was a ruthless proctor, and she never dreamed she would take his advice so seriously one day. "Right. What if the mind is simply closed off?"
He stifled a laugh, "No mind is impossible to penetrate. Just concentrate. I know everything there is about the human psyche. If you can't get through to what you want to know, dig up their most insufferable memories. I don't care what it is. Give them hell."
"And if I can't make them feel hell?"
"Then there's always the torture aspect," Ibiki gestured to the array of devices lining the chamber. "or maybe you could use that pretty face to your advantage. Although it's never been a number one option regarding my tactics. It hasn't been a benefit of mine."
Ino shot upright in an unfamiliar hospital bed, not anticipating the throbbing pain that shoved her back down.
"Guess you won't be doing that again, huh."
She was numb, barely making out a dark figure sitting a few feet away. Her eyes were of no use when it came to that voice. Saw him skimming a novel of some sort, but her vision blurred before she could read the title.
"How long have I been out, Ibiki?"
He didn't speak, so it must've been worse than she thought. "Tell me!"
"Not nearly long enough," He glowered, "Calm down. I don't remember exactly. You've been taken care of."
Ino pushed herself up again, this time with caution. "I feel okay," she traced the bandages decorating her sore limbs. Felt unfamiliar stitches on one side of her head. "I don't remember getting a head wound."
"You took quite a beating," he elaborated, "more than I thought a little girl could take."
"What happened? How did I get here? And why does my face hurt so much?"
He resented the barrage of questions, accustomed to asking them instead. "You were face-down when I found you. I brought you back to the village."
She didn't even want to hear about her inevitably failed mission. "Wait.. Weren't you supposed to be doing something else?"
It was the worst thanks he had ever gotten for saving a life. "I know when my pupil is in trouble."
"Then those guys.. got away?"
Ibiki smiled, an infrequent rarity. "Actually, I ended up them murdering them both brutally. If you want the ugly details, I'll gladly go on."
Ino leaned back, sorting through distorted memories of the fight. "But.."
"I assumed they knew little kind of half-believable, worthy information anyways. Nothing that can't be sacrificed."
Her eyes overflowed with tears, having the worst time trying to fan them away. Was she usually so sensitive?
"Thank you.. for being there."
Ibiki's face gained a little color. "Not this whiny stuff again. You've got to stop that, understand?"
Ino got a hold on her mood, going to run a hand through her hair. It felt like a bird's nest of knots; knew immediately she would have to cut a buried hair tie out of the mess.
"So," She still wasn't one hundred percent on what had happened and in what order, but it no longer felt like a time for interrogation. "I know my good-for-nothing teammates have already dropped by a few times?"
"They came by," Ibiki placed his book cover down, "The Nara boy joked about how you would be loving all the attention if you were conscious."
"You came to a couple times, but never managed long."
She wondered how much she truly worried him, if he still thought she had the potential to surpass her whole clan.
"You should rest."
Ino moved her bangs to palm at dried tears, a jab of nagging pain piercing her right eye.
Ibiki got up to take leave, mocking her by covering his own eye. "If you're having trouble seeing correctly, it's because the whole area surrounding your brow is swollen by this hideous black bruise."
"You're lying," She complained loudly, knowing it would not heal fast, "how bad is it!?"
"Let's just say.. I wouldn't look in the mirror for a few days if I were you."
A/N;; Just a short story to highlight the relationship between student and teacher. Tell me your thoughts~ I'm thinking my next story will center around Suigetsu. Good idea? Thanks for reading. ^^