- Thanks for all who reviewed and alerted! Next chapter, I'd love reviews on it since it's really transitioning the story. Enjoy!
- Spoiler for 400+
Mind Gardens,
fauxPROJECT
The mind grows sicker than the body in contemplation of it's suffering. - Ovid, Tristia, Bk. IV.
Chapter One, cross one's mind.
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"We have to quickly make some decisions in favor of the Hyuuga household, Hiashi." An elder scowls.
"Konohagakure has impending doom looming over it's head—why on earth would we do something drastic?"
Neji's brow crinkles slightly at the heated discussion as he's seated in one of the back tables for the Bunke House. They all remain silent as the Soke House elders, leaders, and heirs argue away. A headache's begin to throb behind his eyes as the chatter just continues. It pounds his head and makes his heart beat faster—but he doesn't move. He sits there occasionally casting Hinata Hyuuga a glance from the corner of his eyes.
"Grooming needs to start now, Hiashi-sama."
Suddenly Neji pauses his breathing and his ears captures their every last word.
"Which will it be?"
"Choose,"
The head of household stands up abruptly. He is as stern as ever. It's humorous, Neji finds, that his feathers may get a little riffled from this heated discussion from the entire clan.
Hinata tentatively begins to raise her hand to suggest—but she is denied her right to speak in front of the clan members.
"We will meet in seven days." The Soke House leaders announces, a hard look burning into Hinata's and Hanabi's very being.
Neji's chest feels like it will collapse as he privately grinds his teeth as everyone is being dismissed.
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"Just what were you planning on doing?"
"Oh, Neji-nii-san. She doesn't deserve it—I can handle it."
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"I have faith in you." Tsunade tries to carefully piece her words together as the white blonde chuunin stands about ten feet before her. Her blue eyes hold such dimension and hunger for more—determination and utter victory is all she craves. This is the spunk she likes to see in her shinobi, but Ino is far, far different. She releases the seal on the scroll and takes in the information that it holds and lets it sink in one more time.
"But you know the risks—" For once it's hard to assign Ino to these things.
"Tsunade-sama," Her voice is loud, and holds such substance and pride. "This is in time of need. Some are being bumped up to jounin early—some even ANBU! I may not be permanently ready to be moved up but I'm specifically trained for reconnaissance. If I'm better than most special jounin, ANBU, why not send me?"
Tsunade holds her breath and they both fall quiet.
"Only your captain will know about this.." She breathes and as she's talking she realizes that she could never deny Ino Yamanaka her right to be a kunoichi no matter how much of a good medic her heart tells her to be.
Being a kunoichi is all she has.
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"You either have flowers crammed to your asshole or you have a shot in your hand."
Ino raises her glass to her lips and hurriedly tilts her head so the alcohol ripples to the back of her throat. With a slam of the glass back on the counter, and a throaty cough she is already feeling tingly and a little too good.
"Kiba-teme," She growls, placing chin in hand and trying to block him out with just body language. But some dogs are just too dumb to teach and instead he throws an arm around her and jerks her around a little. "What the hell do you want?" She mutters before raising her hand for another drink.
"I can't go out for a drink?" He rolls his eyes as if she's the idiot.
"I thought alcohol was too rough on your canine senses," Ino notes, while pinching his nose hard.
"Ah! Hey!—" He swats her hand away, "I never said an alcoholic drink, broad."
She snorts with something that's supposed to resemble laughter before jerking her head back with another drink. Ino smacks her lips and they're feeling tingly and a little sluggish. Perhaps she's getting a little too inebriated.
"Mission?" Kiba asks simply, nothing heavy under toned.
"Yeah," She starts, drawing figure eights on the counter with her finger, "Eight day mission, they say."
They both hum under their breath, and the talking begins to fade. But suddenly Ino can feel her form being pierced by his eyes, something just isn't—
"Where were you during the funeral?" He asks finally, with a raise of an eyebrow.
"None of your business." Ino retorts, pulling her face from his view.
"Ah," He begins to say something but she goes to stand up and she wobbles a little bit before regaining her balance. Kiba stares long at her but nothing seems to be coming out of his mouth. People start disappearing, and you're suddenly becoming real shinobi—it changes people. Some are hit a little harder.
"—How's Sakura?" Instead flows from his lips. Ino merely shoves him away from her and takes her leave.
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"I didn't mean to, Shikamaru. It wasn't my fault—Just believe me."
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"So, Neji," Hiashi begins walking a few steps ahead of Neji. "You won't be there for the second caucus?" The words make Neji boil—with anger, anguish, betrayal, and helplessness. His uncle throws his head up in his aristocratic manner and pretends to be upset which in contrast he is indifferent. But Hiashi Hyuuga is head of household and he will manipulate his family and any Bunke member any way he wishes.
"I will be there."
"Ah, the Hokage said eight days." He comments, while running his fingers over the petals of the inpatients that are starting to wilt from the cool air. "And, I don't believe I mishear such important details."
"Yes, but shinobi can return early." Neji off-handedly states and the air becomes thick as Hiashi begins to walk through to the gates to the Soke house, a place where Neji is forbidden. He keeps walking before casually remarking a, "I'll see you once you've returned." Then disappears.
Neji fists his hands for a moment, trying to release the tension that has seeped through his muscles and into his nerves.
White blonde and blue catches his eyes. And it's that kunoichi. She's too busied to notice him as she's carefully examining the bouquet of flowers stuffed into her lank arms.
Neji finds his feet moving and he can't stop. Her hair is tied up and she is in her regular purple clad kunoichi outfit instead of the hospital white-cotton kimono. She is smiling at her flowers—probably meant for Tenten, and Neji will not let them get to Tenten.
He is right behind her for a little while in the crowded streets and Ino is headed where he thought she was going. But she turns right—and Neji is simply bewildered and halts his following.
The memorial stone is left, not right. His white eyes trail her form a little more, and instead she disappears inside the hospital. And for once, Neji leaves it at that.
"Neji-nii-san?" A voice pipes up and Neji snaps from his trance and slacks his head slightly to look down at her peering face. "What are you doing out here?" Her voice is quiet, and if she could quell her stuttering it'd be a voice that could lull you to sleep. Neji glances up to see the blonde kunoich, flowers still in her arms, waving at Hinata—because shyly Hinata is waving back.
"A walk." Neji decides is a good enough reason. "What are you doing with her?" It came out more scornful than he wished. She winces at his tone before wetting her bottom lip.
"Well, I was here visiting and I heard Ino-san was going on a mission—s-so I gave her some ointment. Because y-you've heard of her condition.." Hinata mumbles and for once in a long while Neji is a tad annoyed by her small talk.
"Hinata-sama—I won't be there for the second meeting." He says with a hushed tone deciding that Yamanaka Ino was not at all important. Neji grasps her arm a little tightly and leans a bit closer. "Just what are you planning to do?" The question leaves his lips with a hint of deja vu. Her white lavender eyes begin to water and her form begins to shrink under his touch. "Don't do anything foolish on your own accord—Take—Your—Crown. At all costs." Neji watches as her form stops shrinking and finally Hinata looks up to him.
"Neji-nii-san," She begins, "Just believe in me." His eyes flash around him, making sure no one seemed too intrigued on their conversation before leaning back to her.
"Hinata-sama. But you have the power to take the Hyuuga in your hands. You'll let that slip away?" His throat burns as these words leave his mouth. His heart is pounding as if it's ready to burst from his ribcage and he is confused on how the hell he's supposed to sit back and watch as Hinata will denounce her right as the first born child to take the throne to the Hyuuga clan. "You can change it, it's right there in your hands! Don't let it go—" Neji is completely frustrated and spent before jerking away from her and walking towards the Hokage Tower with a calm that only happens before a storm.
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"Ino Yamanaka?"
"Yes, problem?"
"—yes,"
"I've specifically assigned her. Departure is at oh four hundred."
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"Notify me as soon as you leave, or if anything else comes up Nara-san."
Shikamaru curtly nods to her and softly shuts the door. His footsteps echo in the painfully silent room, and the chair squeaks as he takes his place next to the bed. He slouches awkwardly against the metal back rest, the glass vase of flowers in his arms almost on the brink of tipping all the way over.
"Well, Ino, you know, told me to bring these to you." He comments, stretching forward to place the arranged flowers on the small nightstand. Scratching the back of his head he looks around for a moment—and Shikamaru is in awe that she hasn't suffocated from the scent of all the flowers and different arrangements that were littered against the stark white hospital bedroom. It'd scare him shitless if he'd awaken to all these plants in his room rather than comfort him. His luck is so great that these plants would morph into some kind of man-eating monster and eat him in one piece.
"Least Ino has a knack for something, right?" He mumbles, lighting up a cigar. "I don't know what I'd give you. Something lame, because you can't even see what I'm giving you." Shikamaru adds an inaudible 'troublesome' to his statement. Resting his forehead in the palm of his hands he stares hard at the girl and is speechless. And it's awkward and uncomfortable and Shikamaru hates it. He runs his tongue over his teeth then stares up at the ceiling. And it feels as if the building could, actually would, collapse on him at any given moment. And sometimes he would catch himself praying that it would.
"She'll always know who you are." He whispers, a frown gracing his lips. "You'll never be Yoru, Ritsuko, Mori, Kyo." Shikamaru can feel the corners of his lips twitch just slightly. "Ino will always know."
"Nara-san, if you can excuse yourself. She needs to be tended to—smoking?! In here!" She grunts unhappily, and runs to his backside and nudges and shoves him out the door. Shaming him all the damn way. Shikamaru is indifferent because he was about to take his leave anyways.
He looks to his left shoulder and pinches the strand of pink off of it and flicks it behind him as he leaves.
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"Just where in the fuck is Yamanaka?"
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And it conflicts her thoughts often, because perhaps she will never break free.