Summary: Sakura and Ino's talk during the fight in the Chunin exams goes a little differently than in cannon. Ino hasn't actually liked Sasuke in a long time, after all.
"Alright, listen up, Ino. I'm not going to fight with you over Sasuke." Sakura said.
Ino looked surprised, and then she laughed. She laughed like she had never laughed in her life. Chouji and Shikamaru were chuckling. Asuma was smirking.
"What's so funny!" Sakura yelled, pissed.
"You seriously think this is about Sasuke? That this has ever been about that stuck up bastard!" Ino asked her, her stance and tone demanding the truth. Sakura gaped at her.
"This has never been about him Sakura! The only reason I went after him was to piss you off!" Ino continued.
"W-what?" Sakura asked, unable to believe what she was hearing. "If not Sasuke, then what?" she demanded after regaining her bearings.
"You abandoned your first friend, your best friend, for aboy Sakura!" Ino yelled, showing, for the first time since their rivalry started, exactly what she truly thought about such a thing.
"I thought you were someone I could depend on! I thought we were friends! Then you abandoned me because we had a school girl crush on the same boy! Just how pathetic are you!" Ino demanded.
"I-Ino-" Sakura stuttered, before she was interrupted.
"Four years of friendship flushed down the drain because you decided we couldn't like the same guy and still be friends!"
The rest of Team 10 stopped smiling, all traces of laughter gone. Ino had told them the truth of her and Sakura's rivalry the day they officially became a team. They knew how much Sakura's abandonment had hurt her.
"Why didn't you tell me!" Sakura shouted, interrupting Ino's rant.
"I didn't tell you because you showed me what you really were! A stupid, self-centered, selfish bitch!" Ino yelled at her. Sakura flinched.
"Can you at least tell me when you stopped liking Sasuke?" Sakura asked in a small voice.
"Of course, it always goes back to Sasuke for you, doesn't it?" Ino asked bitterly, before saying "I stopped liking Sasuke that day. For awhile I even blamed him for tearing us apart. Then I realized I was being an idiot. It wasn't his fault that you're a terrible friend."
Sakura at least had the grace to look guilty, after finally figuring out how much she must have hurt Ino that day.
"Then I decided to play along with our little rivalry, just because I knew how much it would piss you off! I know Shikamaru figured it out on his own, I told Chouji and Asuma-sensei. I think Hinata, Kiba, and Shino figured it out too. From what I've seen, they're good at seeing through masks. (1)What I don't get, is how after being my friend for so long, you didn't figure it out. It really doesn't matter of course, but it doesn't stop me from wondering." Ino explained.
"Now that you know, let's fight!" Ino yelled.
(Insert rest of Ino vs. Sakura fight from cannon)
Ino slowly woke up, feeling slightly groggy. Then the pain registered.
"Oww . . ." she said, whimpering slightly. She wasn't used to taking hits, after all. Taking hits wasn't her role.
"Morning sleeping beauty." Shikamaru said dryly from his place next to her.
"It isn't morning." She said, slightly confused. Asuma chuckled.
"Sakura must have hit you harder than we thought. You didn't even make a smart ass remark, you'd usually just hit him over the head." Chouji observed, looking concerned.
"I'm fine. It's just a headache." She reassured him. He nodded his acceptance.
"Do you feel better? Emotionally, I mean." Asuma asked.
She smiled, albeit shakily, and nodded slightly. Then she turned to Shikamaru, burying her face in his jacket, and silently cried. This alone showed how shaken she was. Ino didn't like showing her weakness infront of those she didn't consider family. Shikamaru just held her, Chouji sat on her other side, and Asuma stood infront of them to block the view of the ninja from other villages as best as he could. Their silent support was all she needed, and she was better in the time it took for the fight to finish.
1) Okay, so you're probably wondering why I think Hinata, Kiba, and Shino could see through masks. Shino, no one really knows about his abilities, but I imagine he's the observant type. I see Hinata as being able to read others well. And Kiba and his nose could probably smell the difference between Ino and Sasuke's other fangirls. Think of it like smelling emotions, or hormones, whichever.
A/N: You're also probably wondering why Ino didn't win if she's taking being a Kunoichi more seriously. There are two reasons. One: the way I see it, Ino's never had to fight on her own before. Asuma would focus on teamwork for a genin team, especially seeing how well they work together. She always had Shikamaru and Chouji by her side, meaning she doesn't know how to fight on her own. Two: I really didn't want to make this a chapter story, I've already got enough I'm working on. (Because besides Darker Than Pure I have others that aren't yet posted that I'm working on.) But, if someone wants to build on this they're more than welcome to. My only requests would be that she be with Shika or consider all of Team 10 family, does not end up with Sasuke, and that you tell me about it.