A/N: Another early chapter. Jeez, guys, keep up all this feedback and I might have to just make the update time Saturday instead of Sunday lol. I appreciate you all! Enjoy this chapter, and don't forget to review!

4. Kindness

"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted."

- Aesop.

Ino shifted restlessly from one foot to the other, arms crossed and hands fidgeting as she waited. She sighed, running her fingers through her long blond hair and tried not to think about how much she'd rather be at home in bed with her lover instead of in the company of grumpy men in the interrogation room. She could not see the sky (the interrogation rooms being underground as they were), but she knew dawn was likely little more than an hour away.

The room Ino and the three Shinobi men stood in was shrouded almost completely in darkness. Everything around them was stone. The floors were stone, the walls were stone… hell, the chair which stood alone in the middle of the room was completely carved from stone. It was the chair they used specifically for the interrogation subjects, surrounded by a large intricate seal spiraling outward in a circle of inky black, lines twisting in shapes and patterns Ino could never fully begin to comprehend.

One of the three, a man from her clan with blond hair grown to shoulder length, half of it pulled back with a dark blue ribbon to match his eyes, held an ink pot and brush in his hands as he worked to redraw parts of the seal that had begun to fade and wear away with time and use. He was in an especially bad mood that morning. His wife had given birth to twins very recently and he hadn't been getting much sleep. Ino had had to wake him from his rare hour or two of rest to be in the interrogation room with her, as he was one of the only shinobi in the clan whose abilities were powerful enough to pull her out of the subject's head if something went wrong. She only hoped he wasn't too exhausted to do just that if the worst came about.

Her cousin stood, capping the ink pot, and rubbed an ink stained hand over his eyes tiredly in the attempt to make them focus. "It's all ready now, Ino-sama," he muttered.

"Thank you, Itsuki," Ino said as softly as she could in the echoing room. She sympathized with her clanmate and didn't want to make the mission harder on him than it already was. Hopefully everything went fine and they could be out of there before the village began to fully wake.

"Don't mention it," Itsuki grumbled, shuffling over to the nearest wall and leaning against it with a sigh, eyes falling shut.

Ino watched him for a moment, biting her lip worriedly, then turned towards the other side of the room. Leaning against the wall across from her was a fifteen year old Aburame boy by the name of Shinya. Like every Aburame Ino had ever met, he wore dark glasses to hide his observant eyes, and a large, thick coat to hide the rest of him. The poor boy looked so much like the rest of his family that even though he'd been with the Interrogation unit for almost three years, he still had to introduce himself to Ino nearly every time they saw each other. This was exactly the reason that he, too, was in a foul mood that morning. She could tell by the clipped responses and somewhat heavy weight to his aura.

And finally, sitting against the wall not two feet away from Shinya, was none other than Ino's old teammate and best friend, Shikamaru Nara. And for once in his eighteen year lifespan, the young man seemed to be fighting the urge to sleep. He, like the rest of them, had been dragged out of bed to help the Interrogations Unit with a highly classified case, and had been given express instructions to keep silent about it until Tsunade said otherwise.

Ino didn't know whose mind she was supposed to be going into, but was told the situation had the potential to be incredibly dangerous. Itsuki was there to help her out of the subject's mind if she became trapped. Shikamaru was to keep him still so he couldn't go after them once she released him. Shinya had been chosen to help out because of the way his beetles were able to sense and control chakra and was to help suppress it if the need arose. Finally, Ibiki and a handful of ANBU were going to be close by to lend a hand if all else failed.

"Ino, stop thinking, will ya?" Shikamaru groaned as he stifled a yawn, dark eyes weary and stressed beneath his mask of annoyance. "You're making my brain hurt just watching you."

Any other time, Ino would have argued, or snapped a witty retort, but the heaviness of the room and the exhaustion which radiated in waves from everyone stayed her tongue. Instead, she rolled her eyes and looked away, muttering a barely audible apology. Shikamaru's eyes narrowed in the way that they did when he was calculating someone's actions, reading her like he would a Shogi board, but he said no more.

They felt them approaching before they heard or saw them. She could feel the cold ice of Ibiki's chakra steadily approaching, the mixed variety that was the ANBU - was one of them hyuuga? Ino couldn't be sure, and she didn't have time to find out before she felt him.

He was the subject they were supposed to gather information from, she knew, because she could feel the binds and seals suppressing his chakra. But it was the feel of that chakra that sent shivers down her spine. It consumed her senses, burning like the swirling flames of a wildfire, crackling like lightning, raging like the winds of a thunderstorm. The sheer weight of his power was unlike anything she had ever felt before. He felt stronger than Madara, stronger than the Juubi… Ino's hands began to shake, heart pounding in her ears.

"Shi… Shika…" She stuttered, voice betraying her fear. "He… th-that's… he's…"

"Ino, calm down," Shikamaru said quietly, though his hands were shaking as well and there was a slight quiver to his voice. "It's okay, I feel it too. They've got it under control, or they wouldn't be bringing him down here." He caught her gaze and held it, caring and firm, tiredness long gone. "It's okay, Ino. We won't let anything happen to you. You'll be okay."

Ino stared back for a long moment, then slowly nodded, clasping her hands together to stop their shaking as she turned towards the door. "Thank you… Shikamaru."

"Hn… wasn't too troublesome."

The opening of the door echoed throughout the room. Shikamaru stood and walked towards the chair to stand beside Ino, his arms crossed and his shoulders tense. Shinya remained where he was, though his aura had taken on a feel of sharp focus, while Itsuki stood up straighter so he wasn't leaning on the wall, forcing his blue eyes wide open. Barrier seals set up around the room flared to life in a flash of blue light as Ibiki stepped up to the threshold, but with several complicated hand signs and a few muttered words, the light faded away and the heavily armed group entered one by one.

Ino gasped when she saw his face. "Shi... Shika..." she began again. "He... that's... he's...!"

"Itachi Uchiha…" Shikamaru finished for her, not bothering to try and calm his friend that time around. He's supposed to be dead!

Then Itachi lifted his head, obsidian eyes falling on the group that was to get inside his head, who stood open-mouthed in front of him. The only sound was Itsuki's clay inkpot shattering across the floor.

"Holy shit."

Ibiki cleared his throat - the harsh sound alone causing everyone else except Itachi to stand up a little straighter - and spoke, deep voice resounding loudly off the stone walls and floor. "Interrogations Team number Twenty-Seven. I assume you've already been briefed on this mission?"

"We didn't think it was…" Ino started, then trailed off as she faced Ibiki's cold stare.

"They never told us who we'd be interrogating," Shikamaru said firmly, stance becoming rigid. "This man is hailed as a hero. We can't just-"

"It's Hokage-sama's orders," Ibiki cut him off, eyes narrowed. "We don't know for sure that he is the late Itachi. For the safety of the village, we have to be certain before we let him go. That's where you come in."

An ANBU agent wearing a mask depicting a Kestrel retracted his hand from his captive's shoulder, hissing, "Sure feels like Itachi to me. His aura's so strong, standing next to him is giving me a headache." Some of the other ANBU began to nod in agreement, but froze when Ibiki sent them all a warning glare, opting to look away and pretend their comrade hadn't said anything.

Shikamaru looked as if he wanted to say more, but he held his tongue. Nara Clan Head aside, Ibiki was still his superior for this assignment, and there were consequences for insubordination that he wouldn't put it past the man to follow through with.

Ino sucked in a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment as she collected herself, then opened them again, eyes narrowed in concentration. When she spoke, her voice was strong and did not waiver. "What memories will I be looking for, Morino-san?"

"There are key known points you have to view and confirm, the first being the meeting with the council and Danzo that decided the fate of the Uchiha clan, then Shisui Uchiha's supposed suiside. From there, you will find the massacre, and confirm that it was, in fact, Obito Uchiha who aided in the slaughter," Ibiki began, ignoring the way she tensed nervously at the thought of viewing such a horrifying event. "Other memories to look for include Itachi's fight with Kakashi, his encounter with Naruto and Jiraiya, his fight with Sasuke, and his fight with Kabuto. Do you have any questions?"

Ino was silent for a moment, closing her eyes and calming herself, before lifting her head stubbornly and looking Ibiki straight in the eye. "Yes, sir."

"Well, spit it out, then."

"...Will torture be necessary, sir?"

Ibiki's lips curled into a cold smirk. "That depends on how well you do your job. Now, are you ready to begin?"

"Yes, sir."

Ino was amazed at how easy it was to get the captive to the chair. He did not hesitate stepping into the seal circle. He did not need to be forced to sit. He did not fight when Shikamaru's shadows wound around him to bind him to the chair, or when Shinya's insects settled along his chakra points to further suppress them. It was only when she stepped forward and placed her fingers on either side of his temple that she felt him tense.

In my experience, she thought, imposters don't submit to interrogation so willingly. Maybe… She adjusted her touch so that it was a bit gentler, and whispered softly, "I'm sorry, but this will hurt." Just in case, she told herself.

If the young man was concerned, his face did not show it. Features smooth like porcelain and impenetrable as stone, he stared back at her with steady, unreadable eyes. Their empty depths sent shivers down her spine, but still, she persisted.

Ino knew firsthand how painful someone entering your mind could be. To learn, you must first experience. Like anything else, the skills must be demonstrated, and then tested by yourself in order to stick. She remembered the first time her father had tapped into her mind. Chakra had shot from his fingertips like barbs through her skull and into her brain, burying themselves deeply and spreading out to cover it in its entirety. The feeling of hot knives digging into the parts which stored feeling, sight, and memory was something she would never forget. It was different from possession - with that, you simply smother their consciousness with your own. With this technique used for information gathering, it's a direct assault on their mind itself, and Ino couldn't help but sympathize.

If she was surprised at the Itachi lookalike's behavior before, she was thoroughly impressed when she entered his mind. He did not flinch. He did not scream. He did not cry, or struggle, or curse like others did. He simply closed his eyes, clenched his teeth, and allowed her in without so much as a single barrier around his thoughts to bypass. So in return for how much easier he had made the job for her, she sent the needles into his brain as quickly as possible, then followed them with a cooling wave of healing chakra to soothe the resulting pain.

You are being kind, his mind said to her, making her pause before entering his memories. His voice was a clear, low tenor, calm and cool as the surface of water.

Yes, she sent back.

Interrogation shinobi shouldn't be. Your job is to extract the information you need and leave. Kindness in this setting is unrewarding and only gets in the way.

This interrogation shinobi is kind, and trust me, a little kindness won't hinder my ability to gather information any more than if I was being cruel. She paused, then said, besides, it wouldn't do to hurt you, only to find out you really are Itachi Uchiha. When we're done here, I'd sooner have you remember me for mercy, not pain.

Spoken like a true Kunoichi, he responded in a tone which held a hint of respect.

And a Kunoichi is what I am, she said, making sure the respect in her own voice was clear. Now, shall we get started? The sooner we finish, the sooner it won't hurt, and the sooner we can clear up this mess and go home.

… Very well.

She sent a hum of acknowledgement at his verbal consent. Without another word, the Ino in the room outside his head drew in a deep breath before pushing her way into his memories, allowing her sight to go black.

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