My most sincere apologies for the delayed update everyone! I had actually started this chapter a longggg time ago, but the bustle of holidays and exams kept me from finishing and editing and now finally posting! For sure, the next chapter will not take another 2 months to be uploaded! I want to thank all the kind reviewers who left such nice comments for me:) I tried to reply to everyone but I know I might have missed some, sorry! Someone mentioned that I use a lack of contractions in my writing and that I'm way too formal and that it's difficult for the readers. I'm sorry to say that it's my style and I won't be changing it. I do apologize, though, because I don't mean to frustrate you guys with my writing. Also, this is quite a comfortable length for me so for those of you who find my chapters short, I will try to compensate by updating more frequently. Thank you again for reviewing and I look forward to reading more reviews :D (Dammit, I'm just so greedy :P) Anyhow, I hope that you guys will enjoy this chapter and keep reading! Ah, one more thing… For all you impatient people, I suggest you remove my story from your alert list now because this story is going to be veryyyyy slow :D

Whoohoo! I have an official beta now :D Special thanx :)

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Subliminal msg: Leave a review. Thanx :D


A gust of wind suddenly whirled around them and the leaves swept up into a flock of rustling colours. Naruto had not seemed to have noticed for he continued to stand there, smiling down at Ino, but Ino had stopped smiling back, unbeknownst to him. Instead, Ino had become mesmerized by nature's beauty and was looking around her in awe at the shower of leaves. Her eyes were wide with wonder and they sparkled slightly under the lazy afternoon sun. When Naruto had finally stopped smiling and opened his eyes again, he found himself in the presence of an angel. What? Wait, that's just wrong! Ino is not an angel! I must look away…She's going to catch me staring at her! Baka, baka, baka! Why am I even here again? Naruto struggled with himself but he could not resist staring. From where he was standing, the light reflected like glittering stars in the pearls of her eyes and the leaves around her made her seem like an earth goddess. Her hair stood out against the shades of red as a delicate gold and her bare shoulders looked porcelain against the deep brown of the trunk she leaned against. However, the moment ended abruptly as the last of the leaves settled back onto the grass.

Ino snapped out of her trance and looked up at Naruto. To her surprise, he was staring right back at her. Was he staring at me all this time? Ino wondered and felt slightly shy all of a sudden. Her cheeks tinted pink and she lowered her gaze. Do I look funny or something? Ino felt very self-conscious and she shifted uncomfortably in her spot. She thought that she had regained strength in her legs again and she was glad. Almost as if testing her recovery, she made a clumsy attempt to stand up. Unfortunately for her, the blood had just returned and she was in the pins-and-needles phase. The sensation was unexpected and her knees bucked. Instinctively, her arms flung out and her hands latched onto Naruto's jacket.

Naruto wanted to die when Ino suddenly looked up at him. He thought that for sure, she would think that he was weird and never want to be around him again. He was still scolding himself when suddenly he lost his balance and fell forward as Ino pulled on his jacket. Reacting quickly, he reached out and grabbed hold of her arms to prevent the both of them from falling over completely. They held onto each other longer than falling people normally would have. Ino had used Naruto's support to straighten herself and now, they stood staring intensely at each other. Neither spoke nor moved. It was not a romantic moment; actually, it was awkward and both were immensely embarrassed. The only reason that neither of them moved was because neither of them wanted to be the first to have to say anything. Naruto was embarrassed for having been caught staring and did not know if he should apologize. On the other hand, Ino was embarrassed for her clumsy fall and did not know if she should thank Naruto for catching her, or apologize to him for nearly making him fall. Either way, both of them were determined to wait until the other acted first.

However, to the third person that may have been looking, the pair looked like actors from a romantic play in a sweet embrace, ready to kiss at any point… And that was exactly how Shizune interpreted their situation. The Fifth had requested Naruto's audience earlier that day, but it had taken TonTon until now to sniff him out. She was about to crouch in her spot to prevent herself from being noticed, but TonTon had already dashed into the field and aroused both of Naruto and Ino's attention.

The rustle of leaves startled the pair so much that instead of pulling away from each other; they collapsed into one another's arms, both wide-eyed at the burrow of leaves headed in their direction. Then, unexpectedly, TonTon leaped up from the leaves and caused the pair to separate in surprise. Ino fell back against the tree and Naruto jumped, letting out a yelp.

"TonTon!" Naruto and Ino exclaimed in unison. Just as quickly as they realized that it was TonTon before them, they blushed furiously knowing that Shizune must also be around. Naruto started to stammer when he spotted Shizune slowly approaching them with an embarrassed and almost apologetic look on her face. He shuffled his feet in the leaves and scratched the back of his head nervously. On the other hand, Ino racked her brain trying to figure out whether or not Shizune had seen them in their awkward moment. She focused her attention on her feet, trying to feign interest in the pattern of veins on the leaves covering her shoes.

"Uh-Uh…Shizune-chan, wh-what are you doing out here? Have you come to train as well? B-Because I-I mean, we are training here, too. R-R-Right, Ino? We're training, right?" Naruto forced a smile, but it looked amiss on his face and he looked like he was in pain, instead. He stammered some more but no one could understand what he was trying to say, as his words were completely incoherent. Finally, Ino jabbed her elbow into his side and hissed at him to shut up. Naruto whimpered as he rubbed his side, but he did stop stammering. When he had finally managed to subdue the pain in his side, he pulled himself together and cleared his throat.

"So Shizune-chan, are you looking for me?"

"Tsunade-sama wishes to see you," Shizune replied, timidly. She found herself unable to look Naruto in the eye and stared at his nose, instead. She still felt embarrassed and contemplated whether or not to apologize for intruding on them at such an inconvenient time. TonTon had returned to Shizune's side and now looked up between the two in confusion. TonTon scratched his ear with his hind leg and squealed. Why are humans so complicated sometimes, TonTon nonchalantly thought to himself.

"Really? Does she have news about Sasuke? Does she know where he is? What does she want to see me about?" Completely forgetting about the awkward moment and the embarrassment, Naruto became very excited at the possibility of news about Sasuke. His mind was racing through thoughts of Sasuke when Shizune promptly popped his bubble.

"Actually, I think she has a new mission for you," Shizune said, softly. She knew how much Naruto cared about Sasuke and was disappointed to inform him that there was still no news on his location.

"There is still no news about Sasuke, but you will come with me to see Tsunade-sama and complete the mission, right?" Shizune lifted her gaze to meet Naruto's eyes and saw dejection in them. However, Naruto quickly recovered and resumed his cheerful nature.

"Of course I will come with you, Shizune-chan! Maybe this mission will lead me to clues about Sasuke, you know!" Naruto pumped his fist in the air and stepped forward, ready to follow Shizune back to the village. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks and turned back briskly.

"Hey, Ino, do you wanna come? You can have ramen with Lee-kun and I later!"

Ino did not know how to respond. In a matter of only minutes, the air had stirred from awkwardness to embarrassment to sadness and now, she was uncertain of what to be feeling. Before she could make up her mind, her stomach decided for her. In an audible grumble, it answered in the affirmative. All three burst into a hearty laugh and headed back towards the village.