A/N: The fourth, and second-to-last installment of Maroon! Hopefully I'll be able to finish the last one before I go on my trip.

XIII. Heels

They were never supposed to get close to each other, but fate works in very strange ways. For them to be at the party, in the same area, at the exact same time was chance enough, but then Ino broke a heel and it was Jiraiya who volunteered to walk her home to change, since all of her friends were otherwise occupied. And then Ino complained about walking barefoot and it was Jiraiya who got tired of listening to it and carried her home.

And then Ino decided he wasn't so bad after all, and it was Jiraiya who ended up staying the night. No one seemed to notice that they never returned to the party.

XIV. Surprisingly

No one really expected them to work out. No one really expected them to get together in the first place, but when they did, everyone figured it wouldn't last long. After all, didn't their personalities clash in all the wrong ways? Wouldn't she get jealous, wouldn't he get annoyed? Wouldn't things end quickly between them?

Surprisingly, everyone else was wrong, and, surprisingly, it worked out pretty well between them.

XV. Dodge

Smash!

That was the sound of some book hitting the wall. Had he not been quicker, it would have hit Jiraiya in the face.

Crash!

And there was another one, but this time, it went straight through the window. Thank whatever gods there were that he was great at dodging and that her aim was only so-so compared to a certain friend of hers.

"All I said was that shirt looked like it wouldn't fit, I didn't mean anything by it!"

XVI. Dangerous Territory

Saying that he was right when she was sure that she was was extremely dangerous territory, but sometimes he couldn't help it. She was wrong, and that was that.

"No, a sapphire isn't your birthstone," he argued, "it's a ruby."

"I think I'd remember my own birthstone!"

"Clearly, you don't!"

Her eyes darkened; oh dear, he was far into the dangerous territory. But he needed to stick to his guns, he was right!

"Why don't you go look it up?"

"What?"

"You heard me. Go look it up."

"Fine, I think I will!"

And that was how Ino ended up with both a ruby and a sapphire necklace for her birthday.

A/N: I think they would have a cute love-hate relationship. Stay tuned for the last chapter!