Chapter 3 - Make Me Blind
"Trust me! I never meant to run without you, I swear!" A loud, enigmatic voice resonated from behind her. She whirled around and saw a blonde beauty looking at her, with pleading eyes. Her face was innocent, but her hand held a bloody kunai.
"I didn't want to do this!" The girl continued, taking a step forward. Sakura instantly got on guard.
"Please! There's got to be another way!"
"Sakura?"
The room was darker than Ino remembered. For a second she wondered how long she'd slept. Her head was still aching, and she was slightly nauseous. She wiggled around some, her narrowed eyes directing her gaze towards the sleeping form of Sakura, who she was still cuddled up with.
"You think I'll believe the bitch who murdered my best friend?" Sakura kept speaking in her sleep. It took Ino a while to realize it wasn't real speaking, but she had already replied.
"I didn't murder anyone!" She said defensively. Sakura's eyes shot open and her arm grappled onto Ino's neck, squeezing tight. Ino instantly choked, the lack of blood to her brain causing her to go incredibly dizzy. She knew she'd fall unconscious before she died, but the fact was that she didn't want to die.
"Sa... ku... I... breathe!" She stated calmly, despite the burning in her lungs and the very little air that could make its way through her throat. Sakura's eyes grew wider and she immediately let go.
"Oh my god Ino I'm so sorry!" Ino winced and brought her hands up to her throat to rub at the marks left by Sakura's iron grasp. She'd been lucky that the girl hadn't been fully awake, because otherwise it would've been the death of her.
"It's fine, forehead. I've seen worse." She choked in discomfort, coughing after her sentence. But when Sakura attempted to hug her she shrieked and sat back, farther away. Out of reach. "Don't touch me!"
Hurt made its way onto Sakura's face. She hadn't planned this. She never wanted to hurt Ino. She wanted all the opposite, in fact. Was the Ino of her dream getting back to her for not trusting her? "I-I'm sorry..." She repeated sadly, throwing the sheets off of her and getting off the bed. She somehow knew that offering Ino to heal her wouldn't work right now. So she resolved herself to getting out of the room and leaving the blonde alone. She was about to tell Ino she'd be back in the morning when the blonde's normal voice rang out in the nearly empty, darkened room.
"What the hell was that about?"
Without thinking, Sakura just recalled her dream. "You killed Naruto."
Ino coughed some more, in disbelief. "I what?!"
"In my dream…" Sakura offered the correction. But she was unable to look at Ino. She'd almost killed her because of a dream. She'd nearly put an end to the life of the girl who'd just told her she was the last bit of her lifeline.
Smooth.
"But… why'd you…?" Ino's voice held concern, but still sounded a tad angry. Sakura lowered her head into her palms and sighed.
"I'm sorry…" Was all she could muster before sobs overtook her body. Her back was turned to Ino and she tried to hide the fact that she was crying, but the blonde saw right through it.
"Sakura…" She reached out, hoping to be able to grasp her friend's arm, but Sakura shook it away.
"I need… some time alone, Ino." She didn't know why, but she waited just a second before leaving, taking the chance to look at Ino from the corner of her eye. She saw confusion on the girl's face, but no trace of anger or fear remained. That gave her the courage to turn around and face the other girl before she left. "I'll come and check on you in the morning."
She started to walk towards the door when she heard Ino calling her name. Not quite trusting herself to really leave if she turned back, she didn't look back nor stop. Instead walking right through the door. Ino stared at it for a moment and then whimpered. She didn't really understand what had just happened, but she suddenly felt a pang of hurt at being abandoned like that by her friend. After being attacked. By her. Things sure were simpler when she did not care about anything anymore.
Her stomach growling shook her out of her daze. She was hungry, yet the simple thought of getting up sent waves of pain to her brain. She pondered just calling for a nurse and asking for food. After all, she was a patient, she deserved at least some service, even if it wasn't from Sakura.
She was just about to press on the button on the side of her bed when the door of her room opened slowly, in time revealing the silhouette of the Fifth Hokage. She stayed in the doorway a moment, eyeing Ino suspiciously before speaking up. "Sakura isn't here." She stated rather than asked, barely paying attention to the blonde in the room.
"Um Tsunade-sama?" Ino figured she'd ask anyone. She was hungry. The woman eyed her curiously but listened to the incoming request. "Can I… have something to eat?"
--
'Not thinking. Stop thinking about her. Stop thinking about what you just did. Run, just run. Forget it. I did not just attempt to kill my best friend in my sleep. I never made up with Ino. She isn't real. This is just a dream... Argh STOP THINKING!!'
'You know, for someone not thinking, your mind is racing pretty hard...'
'I'm not thinking... Just jumping, running. Putting my feet in front of another. I love Ino. I'm running. Training. Under adrenaline, my body feels light as a feather and my mind is blank!
Sakura side kicked at a tree to propell herself into the trail that led up the mountains. She had no idea where she was headed, not like she cared. She just wanted to get there as quickly as possible. She just wanted to forget what had happened for a moment to be able to relax and put her ideas back in place in a quiet, peaceful state of mind. Not the confused and broken ramble she currently was in.
'Slow down you're gonna get us hurt!'
'Not thinking... not thinking... I'm not...'
Her pace was psychedelic. Never in her life had she ran that fast. It felt incredible. The wind on her skin, the pale starlight coming from the sky, the grass wooshing under her shoes. This was what she'd wanted since she'd left Ino's room. Her breathing came in guttural and slow motion compared to how fast the landscape was running beside her. Her head was spinning with the boost of energy.
She never saw the spiky blond who was walking slowly, thinking deeply. Doing the total opposite of what she was attempting. She didn't even feel his body until she found herself lying on top of him, after knocking the wind out of his lungs.
"Oof, Sakura-chan..." He looked up at his friend as he took a few ragged breaths, his pensive face slowly shifting into his usual trademark goofy grin. But even that grin seemed fake under the moonlight.
Sakura stared right back at him. How had she not ran into him before that? And then it all came back to her. "Ino..."
Naruto's ears perked and he looked around as if there was an enemy hiding nearby. Sakura realized what she'd just said and picked herself up off him. "I mean, hi, Naruto-kun!" She said with a sheepish smile, offering her hand to the boy, who took it and lifted himself up next to her. His expression was slightly concerned, but his face was normal - he didn't even look hurt at all. Sakura threw herself in his arms. "I'm so glad you're back!"
The boy chuckled and hugged back, smiling. "Well of course, Sakura-chan. I promised I'd bring Sasuke back." He pulled back and grinned once more, striking a 'good guy' pose. "I never go back on my promises!" He then stood there, waiting for Sakura's delayed reaction to these news. After each second that passed, his features fell some more, until he couldn't take it anymore. Sakura wasn't even staring at him. "He's back!" He stated half-heartedly. He sure had expected a more cheery reaction, even if Sakura had started telling him to drop it in the past two years.
"I know." Sakura said softly, feeling almost guilty that she'd found out before Naruto could tell her.
"Ah, so Tsunade told you?" He answered sheepishly, reaching behind his neck to scratch an imaginary itch. Sakura shook her head and looked up at the sky a bit.
"No I kind off… stumbled into him during my morning run."
"Oh…" Naruto looked like he was sorry. But he soon got a little more cheery and threw his arm around Sakura's shoulders. They both started walking towards the top of the cliff. "So, what's up?" He asked almost knowingly. Of course her saying Ino's name first thing when seeing him would be a dead giveaway. Sakura sighed and internally smiled at how the boy had always been able to read through her.
"Bah, the usual, really. Lots of people get hurt with stupid things. People come and go…" She trailed off, knowing Naruto would ask about the most recent events if she didn't give any specifications. If he wanted to know, that is.
"I heard you sorta made up with Ino. I thought you 'hated that bitch'?" He asked, cocking his head to the side while looking into her eyes. Sakura couldn't help but smile at his expression.
"I hate her lifestyle. Who wouldn't?" She asked, raising her eyebrows. Naruto answered her silent question with an approving grunt. "That never meant that I hated her. She still is my best friend from so long ago, after all."
Naruto gave her a knowing smile. "You know what? Sasuke said the same thing to me." He said, nearly beaming. Sakura giggled at his attitude and ruffled up his hair. "Yeah but you're not falling in love with him."
Silence fell. They both stopped walking. Naruto eyed Sakura curiously, his mouth slightly agape, and a tiny sparkle lit in the corner of his eye. If the situation hadn't been so awkward, Sakura would've nagged at him wiping some imaginary drool off his face.
'I didn't really just say that out loud.' Sakura gasped and covered her mouth, her eyes wide and her expression some sort of mix between fear and giddiness. Naruto was staring at her. And staring some more.
Then all of a sudden, out of absolutely nowhere, came a loud burst of laughing. With the look that had been on Naruto's face a second ago, Sakura had a hard time believing it was him laughing that way. Really, he had been in too many fights with Sasuke and his head was affected. 'Scratch that, Naruto has always been slightly bonkers.'
"Now that explains… haha hahaaaa… soooo many things!" He bent in two and tried to control his laughter, the strength of it making a few tears sparkle at the corner of his eyes. Sakura took a step back and looked at him as if he was crazy.
"So many things like what?" She finally asked when the boy's fits of giggle seemed to have calmed down. He looked up at her and grinned seductively.
"Mainly why you've been resisting my charms up until now."
"Baka!" Sakura hit him upside the head as he stuck his tongue out at her. That was enough to send him into another fit of laughter. Sakura laughed along with him this time, lightening up a tad. "I can't believe I just blurted that out…"
She was serious again, and Naruto's laughter subsided almost immediately. He put his hand on her shoulder and smiled brightly. "I'm happy you told me, though." He said sincerely. Sakura nodded and walked into his arms, pressing her face against his chest.
"I just told myself." She whispered. Naruto giggled at that.
"So what about that 'I never want to be in love again' thing you were going for?" He asked her while wrapping his arms around her thin frame. Sakura cuddled into the warmth.
"Well I just tried to kill her in my sleep, so I doubt I even have to worry about that." She answered in a slightly hysterical tone. And before Naruto could make something out of the words she added, in hopes she'd make him forget about what she'd just said: "And stop quoting me, will ya?"
Naruto however ignored the last part of what Sakura said, and stared at her in disbelief.
"You did what?" He pulled back slightly to get a clear view of Sakura's face to see if, for any reason, she'd be making fun of him. The girl was fidgeting with his shirt nervously, looking at him sadly.
"I woke up from a nightmare and was holding her in my arms. And in the dream she'd… killed you. And I just lunged at her and nearly choked her to death…"
"Don't tell me that you ran out on her too?" He asked knowingly. But Sakura didn't want to know why he knew that was bad. She blushed a little.
"That's pretty much what I was doing when I ran into you…" She admitted, and he rolled his eyes at how cute Sakura was when she was like this.
"And you call me a baka…" He let out for himself, in mock-annoyance. He pushed himself away from Sakura and looked at her with a smirk on his face. "Sakura-chan, I'll help you fix that."
Sakura's eyes lit up at that offer. Forget how or why he wanted to do this. With Naruto, anything was possible. "I might need to make myself look like you though." He said sheepishly. Sakura hit him upside the head again for good old time's sake.
"I'm sure you have other, less embarrassing ideas in mind." She said with authority. He just rubbed the back of his head and grinned at her.
"Of course. Leave it to Uzumaki Naruto to fix this up!" He nearly shouted, pumping his fist in the air. Some old lady's voice came from somewhere under them shouting about wanting to sleep, and he laughed guiltily at that. "So, where can I find her?"
Sakura sighed and rolled her eyes at his antics. He had matured, he had grown oh so handsome, but in the end he was still the good old Naruto. "She's in the hospital, room 121. Tell the girl at the office that you have clearance from Haruno, she should let you through… Or use the henge no jutsu and look like me if you really need to. But not to talk to Ino!"
Naruto smiled and he gave Sakura's shoulder a squeeze. "Of course, I'm not that stupid." He emphasized on the 'that' the way Sakura had pointed on the 'really' in her sentence, preparing himself from another hit. But Sakura merely laughed at his silliness. "Oh yeah, Tsunade wants to see you. As soon as possible. 'Tell her to wake me up if she has to.' She said."
Sakura sighed. What did she need to see Tsunade for now that she'd spoken with Naruto, and seen he was fine? She could care less about what Sasuke was up to. All she wanted to do was to go slump into her bed and sleep until this whole mess was fixed. "I will…" She finally agreed reluctantly. Naruto gave her shoulder another quick squeeze and kissed her cheek.
"Well then, good night Sakura-chan. I'll see you tomorrow, right?"
"Ha! Of course. I'll treat you to ramen at lunch." She knew that had hit a sensible spot and grinned despite her tiredness.
"Alright, I'll be there!"
--
Tsunade was sitting at her office like she'd always do at night, sipping on her bottle of sake as she watched over Konoha dreamily. The paper work was scrambled all over her desk, and the only light in the room came from a small candle next to a pile of old books.
The door was open, but Sakura still stopped in the doorway to knock at the wall. Tsunade didn't even jump in surprise, she merely lifted a hand and motioned for Sakura to come in.
"Hey, Tsunade-sama." She said, taking the chair on the side opposite to Tsunade around her desk. The Fifth Hokage turned back from the bay window and looked at her with a smile. That usually was bad news.
"Sakura." She began, before a yawn interrupted her. This had been a long, tiring day. Sakura looked at her questioningly, hoping this would be over quick. The yawn ended up being contagious however, and that delayed both parties into starting the conversation. "You certainly know that Naruto brought Sasuke back by now."
The pink haired girl nodded. Would everyone keep reminding her of that?
"I was in a meeting with the council all morning trying to decide what we'll do with him. He won't be unconscious forever and something's gotta be done. A missing nin cannot be allowed back in a village just like that."
Sakura rolled her eyes. "I happen to know that."
Tsunade took another sip of sake. "I just wanted to make sure. It was agreed upon the council that, since he came back of his own will, we would give him a chance at making amends."
Sakura frowned. That easily? Or had it even been easy? Judging by the worn out look on Tsunade's face, she assumed it was not. Why had she tried so hard to get permissions for Sasuke?
"Someone will have to keep a watch on him thought." She should've seen that coming. Tsunade wanted her to watch over Sasuke? Shizune must've been mad at the Hokage when heard the news.
"I designed Ino to do it, since she currently can't go on any missions." What?!
"I know she's currently in an hospital bed with a concussion. I told her around a meal, which you had forgotten to provide her, by the way." Sakura blinked and slapped her forehead. How could she leave Ino without food? She felt really stupid. 'Wait… she said Ino would keep an eye on Sasuke?!'
"So, I trust you can keep an eye on these two once in a while too, right?" Sakura heard the question loud and clear. She was not going to let Sasuke win Ino… 'To think a few years ago it would've been the opposite. Times change…'
"Of course, Tsunade-sama. Everything will be fine." Tsunade smiled at her, happy that this was over with and that Sakura hadn't overly reacted to the announcement.
"Well alright, you're dismissed. Go sleep, you got work in the morning."
--
Ino had fallen in some sort of shallow slumber. She could feel the room, but she couldn't see it. Her head was too heavy to be awake. Her eyelids were knotted shut. She wanted to sleep, dream even, if that was still possible for her. Yet she still had a consciousness of what was around her.
She still jumped when the door to her room was slowly inched open. Her eyes opened just a tad, enough to see who was in her room. Of all the people…
"N-Naruto?" Her voice was groggy, and she cleared her throat almost instantly as she eyed the man who looked like he was really sorry.
"I didn't want to wake you up…" He said sincerely. Then realized how silly that was. "I mean, I wanted to see you but…"
Ino raised an eyebrow. Why, why in the world would Naruto want to talk to her? Then it hit her like a kunai in the chest – literally. Because her heart started aching at the thought of Sakura sending him. She was still curious about what he had to say, although she somewhat dreaded it at the same time. "It's okay, I wasn't really sleeping. I'm kind of restless…" She admitted, sitting up slightly in her bed.
Naruto made a 'Can I sit?' motion towards the edge of the bed, seeing the lack of chair in the room. Ino nodded at him and he took a seat unceremoniously. "I think you know why I'm here." He said, crossing his arms and leaning back a bit to get a better view of the sunny blonde in front of her. The expression on his face was protective, and Ino smiled faintly at that.
"Yeah, I have a good idea. It's got something to do with Sakura." Ino replied without a second thought.
"Not really." Naruto admitted. Now that piqued Ino's curiosity some more. If he wasn't coming for Sakura then what? "Sasuke, he agreed to come back to Konoha."
Ino rolled her eyes, big news. "Yeah I know that, so?"
Naruto cringed, he hadn't expected Ino to know as well. Or actually, he should've known, since he'd seen both girls together in the morning. And Tsunade had told him about how Ino would be guarding the Uchiha when he got out of the hospital. Well, that wasn't affecting his plan too much.
"He said that he wanted to marry Sakura and revive his clan. I didn't say anything because I didn't want to anger him. Plus he was in a pretty bad state, I didn't want him to snap or something. But I really don't want that to happen."
Ino's eye twitched. She felt some sort of anger bubbling up in her chest. "How can that prick seriously think Sakura waited for him that long?!" She burst out, immediately regretting it since it caused an intense pounding in her head. Naruto shrugged and put on his childish pout face. "I don't know, but if I can't have Sakura, I don't want him to have her… He's my friend, sure. But I won't let him steal the love of my life!"
Ino shook her head at that. That was Naruto at his best, there was no doubt. "So what do I have to do with this anyway?" She asked, mimicking the stance Naruto was in, complete with the childish pout. Naruto smirked internally – his plan was working.
"I just… Since you're all friendly with Sakura again, and in charge of him, could you keep an eye on her? She's kind of unstable these days, and although I wouldn't take advantage of that to get to her, I'm sure Sasuke will. It would look a little less suspicious that out of all people you'd protect her, and that way I wouldn't make Sasuke angry."
Ino blinked. Uzumaki Naruto was asking her to watch over Sakura because she had troubles with her feelings? Like, what the hell was that supposed to mean? "Naruto?" She asked, waving her hand in front of his eyes. The man blinked. "Do you realize who you're talking to?"
Naruto took on a stern expression and stared at Ino. "Yes, you're Sakura's best friend."
Ino chuckled and pointed to the marks around her neck. "I somehow doubt that." Naruto rolled his eyes at her.
"Like I said, she's rather unstable these days. I kind of regret leaving for two months, while she needed me so much. She had a hard time letting me go." He paused. This part wasn't a lie, but he needed to keep a veil on the truth until Sakura herself decided to talk about it. "She needs to be able to allow people close to her again. You seem to have done a good job at it until now."
"Right, until I somehow crawled into her dream and killed you there." Ino's voice drooped with hurt and had a hint of sarcasm.
"I know! She's having difficulty allowing people close to her. You broke into her barrier so easily that she's worried. Or a part of her is. Just give her some time to adjust, and forgive her, please?"
Ino could not resist the puppy dog eyes Naruto gave her with his request. He was cute, and he was trying to do his best for his friend. So she agreed. "Yeah, I'll do it. I wasn't angry with her to begin with. I just couldn't tell her before she ran off."
Naruto grinned at her and scratched his whiskers in triumph – but Ino was oblivious to the significance of that motion. "That's the problem with women. They always run away when you want to tell them something!" He said, winking at Ino as he got up and pushed himself away from the bed. If Ino could've moved without the striking pain in her head, she'd gotten up after him and hit him upside the head.
"By the way." He added before walking out of the room, a mischievous glint in his eyes as he looked back at Ino. "Don't you dare fall in love with her too. I have enough rivals as is."
Ino laughed at that idea. Sure, she was playful and enjoyed her friend's presence next to hers, but falling in love with her? Like that was ever going to happen. "Don't worry Naruto!" She said, a faint smile on her face. The boy saluted and headed out with a reassured look. Ino's smile faltered.
"I can't fall in love with her, I already am…" She muttered to herself.
AN: What's up folks? Tche :P I didn't think I'd complete this chapter this quick, but somehow it came just sooo naturally haha. Isn't Naruto a sweetheart? I so want to hug him and marry him right now lol. Poor Sasuke, he's getting the bad role in this again? Well you'll see, I'm not spoiling the rest of the plot! .cough.Ihavenoideawherethisisgoing.cough.
Thanks again for all the reviews. This is crazy, I don't think any of my stories have gotten so much attention before. But then again, I have a few to my portfolio now so maybe people know me more. I dunno, but I'm happy this particular fic is really appreciated. I am not dropping Blossoming of a leaf though, just putting it on hold until I run out of ideas or complete this one.
Now, in two weeks from now, my girlfriend is going to be here. Dun dun dun. That doesn't mean I'm gonna stop writing entirely. I merely will be extremely slower coming up with updates. shifty eyes Although heh, maybe she'll inspire me some things :P
Keep on reading cuz you guys rock, and I'll keep on writing!
