...Amaranthyz Presents...

Escaping Fear

Chapter 2: Interrogation and Barbeque

Character(s) [By appearance]: Yamanaka Ino, Morino Ibiki, Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, Akimichi Chouji

Pairing(s): -

Characters from Naruto - rightfully belongs to Masashi Kishimoto

I strongly disclaim all rights on the characters but the entire story was originally and rightfully created by me


Dear diary,

Today's the day I meet him again. I wonder what kind of face I should put on? A smile? A smirk? A frown? I mean, I know I should be all serious but he was a fellow shinobi. And yet, he was the jerk that left the village to pursue revenge. Another stupid ass-head.

Although I can't forget how much I've been obsessed with him, I still have this urge to slice his throat. He made the entire village look down on him and now he's returning with a total poker face! I want to forget how I thought he looked cool with them but right now, it's just annoying and it pisses me off, you know?!

Anyways, my savings will be saved. Thanks to Naruto that is... It's a good thing. The only good thing.

---

Ino met up with her instructor, Morino Ibiki who taught her everything about interrogation in front of Ino's assigned interrogation room. The Jounin smiled and shook his student's hand.

"You're okay to do this right?" Ibiki asked her.

Ino giggled, trying to hold her nervous shaking, "I'm fine. I can do this, sensei. No problem at all."

"Good. This is your fourth interrogation so I trust you. You've done well for a newbie."

"I'm not a newbie!"

Ibiki chuckled, "Sure you're not. Just get in there and watch your tail."

Ino smiled once before resting her hand on the doorknob. She took in a deep breath, the same thing she does before every interrogation, and opened the door. Ino stepped in slowly and shut the door behind her. She found her grip on the files she had been holding a little too hard and eased up. She finally looked up and the raven-haired man was sitting not more than three meters away from her.

"You're a little shaky aren't you?" he voiced out, shattering the nervous feeling.

"The weather outside is cold," Ino said, throwing the file onto the table in front of them both and eyed Sasuke's obsidian pupils, "And so were you, Uchiha Sasuke."

Sasuke smirked, "I thought you were going to go all fan-girl on me. Looks like you've changed huh, Yamanaka?"

"The jerk that left Konoha three years ago broke many hearts. But let's leave out three years of the past behind now shall we?"

Ino was still standing as she opened the files, "You came back yesterday around midnight admitting defeat with ease. You even brought your team with you," she looked up at him with solemn eyes, "Why is that?"

"I can't let those guys free. Jugo needs my strength, Suigetsu's deadly and Karin, well, you can banish her anytime."

"What about you, Uchiha? Are you still deadly? Can we trust you to walk the streets of Konoha without the heart to massacre the villagers?"

"That's up to you all."

Ino gritted her teeth. Seriously, for the first time, this guy was getting on her nerves and she was actually hating him, "And it's up to you whether you want to stay alive or not."

"I'm a criminal who has return to his homeland. People who still has faith in me might trust me. But I'm an international criminal. I praise you for being brave enough to actually meet me face-to-face, Yamanaka."

"I know I've been obsessed with you once, Uchiha. But right now," Ino narrowed her eyes into a menacing glare, "You're just a sick psycopath to me!"

The blonde grabbed the files and was about to turn the knob when Sasuke sighed.

"Whether I'm alive or not, my life doesn't have a meaning anymore," he paused for a moment, "I've killed the person I've been lied to. I hated him but I loved him. I thought I made the right decisions and assumptions but they are all illusions of my own hatred."

Ino froze to listen to his voice. He was not playing around. Ino heard of his successful wish for Itachi dead but it seemed that something went wrong. He sounded, sad.

"Well, are we getting out or what? I want to go sightseeing my old home," his old harsh voice was back.

"I am, but you're not."

If that jerk wanted pity, then he should not have pulled that sick joke. He just had to go back being self-absorbed and sadistic! Ino kept gritting her teeth. She hated it when a person pulls a prank on her and she actually believed it. She actually believed him. He sounded so sad. Ino shook her head. It was all made up just so he could get pity from her. Yamanaka Ino was not one to be lied to easily.

Sasuke chuckled to himself. He surely got Ino mad this time. It was also a surprise that she left her overly addicted attitude so fast. To think Sasuke had lost his fan-girls was a good thought though. Sasuke laughed again. His voice echoed in the dark, empty room he had been shoved into. The light above him was blinking and the sealed window only shone tiny strands of light due to that stupid tree blocking it.

The raven-haired scoffed. He should be thinking of other things then getting light into the room. He should be thinking on how to get the village's trust back. Sasuke admitted it; he wanted to end his criminal record. He had enough. Getting the entire world coming at his tail and exhausting all of his Chakra in meaningless battles was not his game plan and he was tired of running away.

He was tired, of being lied and accused of. Sasuke chuckled once again only this time, his voice was failing him. His whole body shook. His breath was cutting itself into small portions, letting out one at a time in an unstable manner. Sasuke then touched his cheeks to find them wet. He had been lied to from the day he was born. He lost his caring, loving brother because of lies. He lost his friend because of lies.

Sasuke choked out a sob, "I don't want…to be lied to…anymore."

Ino sat down on the restaurant's comfy seat and exhaled a tired breath. The smell of barbeque came up her nose. Chouji was munching on every cooked meat one at a time with extreme precaution and profession. He was definitely paranoid when it came to eating barbeque. He said there were 'ways' and 'rules' on how to cook them properly and the etiquette in eating them. Even if Chouji had gotten stronger and less food-obsessed, he was still stuffing up his head every minute.

Naruto was also enjoying the meal. For a person who was treating Chouji, Akimichi Chouji, he seemed happy. The blonde guy swallowed a big cooked meat before grinning at Ino.

"Everything's alright, right? He's gonna be alive, right? Right, Ino?"

Ino sighed, "I don't know and I don't care! That jerk hasn't changed at all."

Naruto frowned, "He's…hard to handle but he still has a heart. He's not all bad, Ino. You know that yourself."

"I know but he's still annoying," Ino looked out the window, seeing a small blue bird soaring through the sky, "The interrogation will go on for two more days. I'll work something out."

Naruto yelped out and jumped over to Ino's seat and hugged his sister, "I love you, sis!"

Ino pushed Naruto away, "Get away from me you idiot! Go stuff your stomach silently like Chouji!"

"You know, I take that as an insult," Chouji glared at his friend.

Ino and Naruto laughed. Chouji scoffed and continued eating. Naruto brushed his golden hair with his fingers before jumping back to his seat beside Chouji as he and the other guy wrestled for a big piece. Ino couldn't help herself to giggled watching the boys fighting over the food. She enjoyed every moment she has with her friends. It was one way to cool her steam after a stressful day.

Was it that stressful?

Ino rested her head on the table. Her eyes were wavering anywhere they could as she calmed herself down. She saw other people walking around the restaurant, getting into their seats. Some were already cooking the raw meats while others are munching and swallowing them just like the two boys in front of her. Ino hesitated for a moment before sharply sitting up straight. Chouji and Naruto stopped eating and stared at her.

"I…Ino, are you alright?" Chouji asked.

At the sight of the two boy's eyes off of the barbeque, Ino quickly grabbed the chopsticks and grabbed all of the cooked meat off the grill and swallowed them all. Naruto and Chouji's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

"Ino! That's a crime! Spit them out!! Spit them out, now!! OUT!!!" Naruto yelled while Chouji slumped down the seat and fainted. Naruto lifted his heavy friend up and fanned him with a menu slip that was on their table, "Hang in there, Chouji!! Don't die now!!"

Chouji grabbed Naruto's arm, "I'm not dead, you idiot!!"

Ino couldn't help it but laugh. Surely, these guys are stupid enough to make her smile widely again.


This chapter will begin everything, Sasuke's troubled heart, Ino's confusion, Naruto's kindness and more... I don't have much to write here though... I'm on a temporary HIATUS since I'm trying to catch up with the Air Gear manga.. But I'll work on the story slowly... Oh, and Wings will be deleted since I'll re-start it with my friend's help... She's a total Air Gear expert so her help is needed..

-Amaranthyz