"I can't go over to Suna." Haruno Sakura gulped.
"And why not?" Tsunade raised an eyebrow at her.
"I-I'm not feeling so well myself." She exhaled.
"Tell me the truth, Sakura. You're pregnant, aren't you?" Tsunade's forward way of stating it made Sakura shiver – she hadn't even told anyone yet, and she wasn't showing, so how did she-? "Don't look so surprised. I'm a doctor, too, remember? You've also been puking every morning in your office wastebasket." Sakura's face flushed in embarrassment. "Never mind that, let's see," Tsunade scanned through her lists, "what about Yamanaka? She had the same training as you and she just got back from a B rank a couple days ago." Sakura nodded at her, silently thanking and apologizing to Ino. She knew Ino didn't like medical missions as much as combat ones. "Tell the Nara boy to go, too. It's not safe for that girl to be running around in her skimpy outfits alone on her way there. In fact, tell her there's a dress code. She has to cover up." Sakura tried not to snicker and excused herself to find her blonde friend.
"What does she mean 'cover up'? It's the fucking desert!" Ino wailed. Sakura just replied that she was repeating orders.
"More clothes will protect you from the sun." Shikamaru mumbled.
"Yeah of course you'd know, you're always going there to see your girlfriend." Ino rolled her eyes. Shikamaru looked at her weird. Why did people keep saying that? He was forced to escort Temari out of diplomatic duty. Frankly, that girl scared him more than Ino and his mom put together and if he had the choice, he wouldn't have seen her ever again after battling her at the chunin exams.
Ino had ended up wearing an orange, long, high waisted, flowing skirt, flats, a tight black bandeau top, and a straw but stylish sun hat. Shikamaru stared down at her outfit choice. He didn't understand why she insisted on showing her stomach all the time. It made her look promiscuous no matter what else she was wearing and it got on his nerves when men stared.
"Are we there, yet?" Ino groaned impatiently. Shikamaru nodded. The sun was scorching on their skin, a sensation Shikamaru had become accustomed to. A young girl with short brunette hair and a green scarf greeted them at the door. She introduced herself as Matsuri and said she would be their escort since Temari was gone on a mission. Shikamaru secretly thanked the universe that he wouldn't have to put up with Temari and figured this girl was nice enough. She pointed at some popular shops and cafes which they passed by, obviously trying to make a good impression on Ino. It pleased Shika, also, because happy Ino meant no complaining or bickering which equaled happy Shika.
"What kind of person is the Kazekage?" Ino asked Matsuri curiously within the conversation. A pink blush crept across Matsuri's face which told Ino a million things. "Ooo, what do you like about him?" Matsuri looked at her in shock and shook her head desperately. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna tell him or something," Ino giggled, "Is he hot?" Ino tried to remember Gaara's face but didn't recall. She just kept picturing him at 12 years old, being scary and evil. Besides then, she hadn't ever really got a good look at him. What color were his eyes, even? Hazel? Green? Gray?
"Hello, I am Gaara." Ino looked up and gasped quietly to herself. Blue. His icy blue eyes were his most striking feature. They lit up his face, highlighted by deep, dark circles around his eyes. He wasn't her usual type at all, but boy, was he an exception. When she didn't respond, lost in her own mental fantasies, he repeated himself, making her get hot in the face. Shikamaru squinted at her curiously.
"Ano…" She stammered and gave an apologetic smile, "My name is Yamanaka Ino." She bowed a little deeper than usual, trying to show respect. "I'm honored to meet you, Kazekage-sama."
"Gaara is fine." She looked up to find a stoic expression – she couldn't read his face. "We were once all genin together, after all." He turned to Shikamaru and nodded at him, they were more casual with each other since they worked together often. He dismissed Matsuri, who Ino didn't want to look at as she exited because she was scared she would realize she had the hots for the Kazekage, too.
Yet another Ino love triangle fic xD (sorry, its an addiction lol)! This is the last Ino fic I'll be tackling for now, since after I finish this one, cats&dogs, &xmas special I'll probably work on stories concentrated around Tenten & Sakura and such. I'm not sure yet but I think I'm going to keep this one short but sweet! I really hope you'll enjoy & please review your thoughts :) Thank you so much for reading! This is for tatyanac17 I hope you like it :D
