Author's note (8/13/13) :
I got the formatting updated.
Anyway, if you notice any glaring loop holes, please let me know. Same goes for typos or screwy grammar.
Actually, any feedback at all would be nice.
(Is there anyone still out there shipping this couple?)
Warnings: this chapter contains non-explicit mentions of rape (though there is no actual occurrence) and a short scene of mental torture
ooOoo
Well, could it be I'm a sucker for your honesty?
I'd do anything to be your saving grace I'd do anything to be your saving grace
- Evoka -
ooOoo
"The scent ends in here."
A single dark eye surveyed the aperture. "You're sure?"
"Yeah." His canine partner replied, weariness held in his gruff tone. "There's no trail coming back out either."
"They must have used a teleportation jutsu. Again."
Kakashi reached behind his head, rubbing the back of his neck in frustration, and sighed. Five weeks spent out in the field was bad enough. But this was the eighth separate trail to run cold. They were chasing phantoms it seemed. The man crouched, shifting his weight to the balls of his feet, and surveyed what there was of a scene. This time Pakkun's nose had led them to a small cave, its opening barely more than a crack, naturally disguised in a deeply wooded section of north-central Fire Country. The shinobi could make out what he believed to be three different sets of tracks, but in the confines of the cavern the prints had been severely muddled and were indistinct. There was little else to see. The only thing left behind was a plain fire ring with the remains of a modest-sized stump in the ashes.
Yamato had been on a solo escort mission to the Hidden Hot Springs Village. The mission itself had been straightforward, just paid protection for a spoiled noble as he traveled from one onsen to the next, and had been completed successfully. Word was sent to the hokage that the shinobi would make haste back to the village, a trip which should have taken the jounin little more than two days. When three days had come and gone without further notification, the Hokage was frustrated by Yamato's tardiness; after all, he was well aware that another mission was already waiting for him. After a week with no further communication, concern grew to alarm, and Kakashi was sent to investigate. What evidence he managed to find led him to believe that his friend had been abducted. His search, aided greatly by his hound summon, had taken him across much of the Land of Fire, winding back and forth through the dense forests in the north and east.
"How many?" One curious eye watched the canine companion. It was always good to take advantage of a second set of senses. Up to this point, Kakashi had been tracking two people. A possible third meant trouble. More than three would mean asking Lady Tsunade for a back-up squad, something he was not sure Yamato had time to wait for.
After a bit more sniffing, the dog frowned. "I can make out two clearly, Sasuke and Yamato. Just like before."
"But?"
"But, I can't tell if there is one more or two more. The scent's muddy." Pakkun snorted in disgust. "And faintly reptilian."
"Orochimaru?"
Pakkun inhaled deeply. "No. It's not him."
An expression of anxiety distorted the man's mask.
Tenzou, what have you gotten yourself into?
ooOoo
The world spun violently causing his sight to blur in and out of focus. At first, the man was afraid that their target had truly been a shinobi as what he was experiencing felt eerily similar to genjutsu. It took a moment or two before the rushing blood receded from his head and ears. Realization was left behind. Chouji's senses had merely been dulled, or perhaps sharpened beyond his ability to assimilate the information, by his own wrath. It was her crumpled face that had brought him back to his faculties.
"That's it." Ino spoke brokenly between sobs. "It's done."
The large shinobi instinctively reached for her, his intent to comfort the woman.
His woman.
But Ino abruptly stepped away, the petitioning of her hands creating an unbreachable wall between them. Uncertainty wound its way around his chest and squeezed.
"Don't touch me, Chouji." Her words were firm but gentle, the tone more even now that she was collecting her emotions, and all business. "Not yet. I've got a lot to process and we have a mess to clean up."
He nodded simply, looking at the unconscious body at her feet. A stain of blood shone wetly on the wall where the target had struck his head and was starting to drip. Chouji flexed his fingers, reliving that moment, wishing that he had been the one to inflict that wound. Discomfort trickled into his conscious mind, this time physical, and caused him to lift his hand up for examination. The appendage was swollen and bloody, but mostly intact, and covered in a loose coating of powder that had once been a part of the adjacent partition. The hole he created wasn't that bad all things considered. At least he had kept his chakra in check; the hollow, exposed area was only the size of a normal fist.
In his rush to defend Ino he had taken the closet door off its hinges, though. Surveying the scene, his ignorance weighed down upon the shinobi. The damage, every bit of it, was due to his inability to follow through with his mission properly. Guilt pressed on him, compounding the doubts that still lingered. Heavy knowledge poured into Chouji. He had made the kunoichi's job much harder than it had needed to be. "Ino."
"Not now. We'll talk later." Her bottom lip quivered, but she maintained her composure as she waved him off. "We have to finish this first. I can't- I won't... I'll fall apart. We have to finish this first."
"Okay, we'll finish this first." Melancholy made his reply subdued. He was ready to comply with any request Ino had at the moment, regardless of practicality, as long as it would help put him back in her favor.
"I can do it by myself if you want to leave." Her whisper fell to the floor so quickly, so hushed, that Chouji had to strain to make out the words. Ino's back was to him now, leaning over Michio's body as she healed the injury she had inflicted, but her shoulders were hunched, small and defeated. The sight tore at him, sending fresh waves of conviction through his heart.
Chouji was baffled. The man had been sure that she was angry with him. Why else would she rebuff him so thoroughly? And if she was angry with him, as she had every right to be, that was one thing. He would leave and get Tenten to help if his presence was causing her grief. But her demeanor, her phrasing, her tone, suggested something altogether different. Ino did not seem mad. Rather, she seemed worried. "Why would I want to leave?"
The woman stood and gaped at him for a couple of seconds before answering, her eyes shifty and something haunting in her voice. "I think we should save that conversation for later, too."
"Fair enough. What do you need me to do?" A smile, hollow and thin, graced his cheeks. He couldn't make it completely sincere when he was kicking himself. But when he saw relief course through her, the tension falling from shoulders and the slight upturn of lips, Chouji was happy he tried.
"Michio is healed up now. You need to strip him down to his underwear and put him in the bed." Back to the matter at hand, Ino tapped her chin. "After that, you can go get Tenten. She's good at patching up walls and doors."
"I suppose with her team she'd have to be."
"I don't even want to imagine it." Ino shuddered. "I'll take care of the blood and the little details. This room has to be consistent with the memories I planted. Oh, and get a move on. I didn't knock him out for long. We've only got thirty-seven more minutes before he wakes up."
ooOoo
Michio awoke alone, left with only a note dismissing his presence, and, after taking the time to make himself presentable, was escorted from the mansion by Tenten. The repairs and preparations to the room had been made with little time to spare, but their mark was none the wiser for that. Upon Michio's departure, the three shinobi made way to their usual meeting place, the parlor, and waited for their leader to return from the shop. Ino and Tenten sat together and distracted themselves with a fashion magazine.
Chouji closed his eyes and pondered the day's events, the thoughts, the questions in his mind piling up to the point of toppling over.
Was that how her missions typically went?
Ino had done nothing of an intimate nature with the mark. It was a far cry from what Chouji had expected. There was none of the skin on skin or the lustful moans or any of the lurid things that he had prepared himself for. His jealous heart had been imagining the very worst scenarios possible - of Ino being roughly pushed into submission, of her forcible participation in unnatural and deviant acts, of her enjoyment of relations with other men. But his girlfriend had taken Michio down with merely a kiss. Chouji was no expert when it came to seduction missions, but he was sure that they involved more than that.
Is that really all there is to it?
Of course, Ino had that jutsu, whatever it truly was. He had never seen her use it before, so Chouji had no idea how it worked. It was clearly effective though. Michio went down quickly and from what he could pull together from Ino's vague comments, she had managed to both gather some information and manipulate the man's memories. And, as far as he could tell, she had accomplished all that with but one tool - her lips.
Had she been misleading everyone all this time?
Could he dare to hope?
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.
.
"You can release your jutsu now." Chouji was startled back to reality at the arrival of Sai and his own clone. Their leader took a seat as Chouji allowed the shadow to puff out of existence. "Ino, what did you find out?"
Ino paled, but straightened her back and squared her shoulders. "Michio was definitely the man we were looking for. Sasuke was all over his memories. Apparently, he was the middleman, just like Shikamaru speculated."
Sai pulled out a scroll, along with a brush and ink, to compose a message. "Were you able to get any specifics?"
"Yes." Closing her eyes, the woman organized her thoughts, separating the target's memories out from her own. "Michio would scope out a town on Sasuke's orders. His directives were always the same. Find a sap to dupe or threaten. Get that person to agree to distribute Sasuke's goods. Infect as many people as possible."
"How?" Tenten's expression was hard with anger.
"It was the food. It was laced with something, but I don't know what."
Sai looked up from his scroll and continued his questioning. "Did you get any information on possible associates?"
"Yes. Kabuto." Ino swallowed, and then continued. "I didn't see anyone else, but Kabuto is involved. I'm pretty sure he's the one tainting the food."
"That is highly probable." Sai tilted his head, a thoughtful look crossing his features. "It would explain why Sasuke would be willing to team up with him, given their history."
"There's more." The kunoichi's body shook imperceptibly and her fists rolled into balls on her lap. She turned away from Sai to stare at Chouji directly, her face full of cold dread. "He- He left a message for me inside Michio's head."
"Can he even do that?" Tenten queried, her eyebrows knotted in confusion. "I've read the bingo book over and over. It never mentioned Kabuto having an ability like that."
"I recognized the jutsu he used. I think... he learned it recently." Ino was shaking. "He used chakra to change the chemical fluctuations in Michio's brain. Once Kabuto had control, he could use memory manipulation to implant whatever he wanted."
"How do you know how he did...?" Chouji came to stand directly in front of Ino and something in his demeanor caused Tenten to trail off. She'd never seen him so distraught.
"Never mind that for now." Chouji ground out, low and dangerous, unnerved by what he saw in Ino's form. The fact that someone was specifically targeting his girlfriend was doing a number on his self-control. He knelt down in front of Ino, trying to keep a careful hold on himself. "What was the message?"
"He was in Konoha recently. I'm not sure what his purpose was but," Ino hung her head, "but he was in disguise. Kino... Kino was Kabuto."
"You mean the villager we captured?" Chouji stood back up, shock startling him into rigidity, when Ino nodded. "He was your last mission. How could you not know?"
Ino wrung her hands. "I don't know. He didn't have a chakra signature."
"That guy was in your apartment, Ino!" Panic tried to take over, but Chouji redirected it. Anger was easier to deal with. And it was more convenient to put the on blame Ino, to yell at her, than to entertain ideas of what the enemy had wanted with her.
"Chouji, I don't think-" Tenten tried to mediate, but was interrupted.
"You think I don't know that! I was there, Chouji, remember? I was the one that had to get close to him! He was my mark!" Ino rose on shaky legs and turned away from her boyfriend, her face faintly green. "Sai, that's all I found."
"It is enough." Sai continued putting ink to paper. "You look terrible. Get some rest. That's an order."
"Thank you." Ino dismissed herself as quickly as her jelly-filled legs would carry her, slamming the door abruptly behind her. Chouji made no move to follow.
Sai, after summoning a carrier bird, calmly and neatly put away his writing implements. He then sealed the scroll intended for Naruto, attaching it to the avian's feet, and sent it on its way. With a wide, vicious smile Sai turned to the other male in the room. "Chouji?"
"Yes?" The man replied harshly, his head still wrapped up with Ino and Kabuto and the implications that hung in the air.
"Ino seemed quite upset. I'm sure that what she saw in that deviant's brain came as a shock to her."
The adrenaline started to wane and left him tired, but with it the urge to react filtered out of the large man as well. Chouji nodded to his remaining teammates, both of whom were patiently waiting for his reaction. His tongue had stopped functioning properly at the thought of Ino's probable mental anguish, but Chouji's ears were open again.
"It is my understanding that in these type of circumstances, it is a boyfriend's duty to give comfort and, if the situation calls for it, to grovel and beg for forgiveness."
Chouji turned from them to look intently at the door, and then found his feet. "Yes, Sai. You're right."
"Well, that was tense." After the door shut again, the weapon's mistress grinned at her leader as she pulled a senbon and kunai from her sleeves. "You should have let me threaten him."
"I merely did what I needed to for the sake of the mission. Personal conflicts get in the way of teamwork."
"You know what I think? Sakura has made you go soft." The kunoichi waved goodbye over her shoulder as she opened the door. "She hates seeing Ino in pain, too."
ooOoo
After several perimeter checks, each one circling out farther from the point of origin, Kakashi decided to call it quits for the day. Pakkun was exhausted. The hound had searched through miles of rough terrain, well beyond the range of a normal transportation jutsu, trying to pick up any scents worth following. But there were none to be found. The animal needed his rest and, as dark was quickly upon them, it would be unwise to continue without his trusted ally. Kakashi was indeed an expert tracker, but he had neither the eyes of a Hyuuga nor the nose of an Inuzuka. He would be at a disadvantage. Considering the skill of his prey, he could be walking into an ambush. Besides, the means by which their quarry had eluded them was still a mystery. There was no clear path for him to take.
Pakkun curled up near the entrance of the fissure, standing guard while Kakashi thoroughly checked for traps. Sasuke had been there and the jounin did not want to take any chances. Finding none, he set up his own, a first line of defense should anyone come trespassing in the night.
"Hey, you think we can have some real food tonight?"
Kakashi eyed the dog-nin curiously. "What did you have in mind?"
"Meat. There's a rabbit five yards away at our two o'clock." Pakkun wagged his tail in anticipation. "And you need something besides those soldier pills."
"Sure." Kakashi agreed, dismissing the animal with an easy wave. "I'll get the fire ready."
The shinobi went outside and gathered an armful of dry branches, just enough to feed a small fire. The half-burnt log still in the fire ring would make a good coal bed, so he didn't need much. Once back inside, he broke up some of the larger branches and made a pile. The coals left behind by Sasuke were now cold, but they would help make the fire start up quickly. All Kakashi would need was a very controlled fire jutsu. He started to rearrange the coals, placing what was still intact of the firewood in the middle so he could build around it, when he felt a faint but familiar chakra signature. Rubbing across the grain with his thumb, Kakashi found a small seed. He removed it, examining it carefully between his fingers, before funneling a small amount of energy into it. The reaction was instantaneous.
"Finally. That's the eighth seed I've left for you."
"Huh, a wood clone." Pakkun had entered the cave and dropped the rabbit at Kakashi's feet. "That'll be a big help. Too bad we didn't find the other ones. Would've saved my nose some work."
"I don't suppose you know where the real you is being held?" Kakashi inquired. "Or how they managed to give me the slip?"
"Well, Sasuke's been using a teleportation jutsu, though I'm sure you already know that. Kabuto met them here last night. They left with him using an earth tunneling jutsu. I believe they should be in Kabuto's western hideout by now."
"And where would that be? Any ideas?"
"Of course." The clone grinned. "Just outside Bordertown."
"Really?" Kakashi's tone was mild, but his visible eyebrow rose in surprise. "Pakkun, can you pay Naruto a visit? Let him know I'll be there sometime in the morning."
ooOoo
Delicate fingers fastened sharply over tight, drawn lips. She couldn't pretend to be okay, couldn't hold it together anymore. She had reached her limit. The woman hastened her pace.
I'm going to be sick. I'm going to be sick. I'm going to be sick.
That thought ran through Ino's mind over and over in an unceasing loop. She needed to get back to her quarters. Now. She flew down the opulent corridor and stumbled a bit, not caring as she knocked over a vase of fresh flowers. Frantic, Ino ignored the broken pieces and forced her feet back underneath her so she could continue on. Reaching the correct door, she flung it open, not taking the time to close it behind her, and made her way directly to the bathroom. Ino heaved herself over the toilet, retching violently.
Kabuto's message had not been nearly so cut and dry as she had made it out to be.
He had clearly designed it, carefully crafting each word and image, as a means of psychological warfare. Even his method of communication was planned with her in mind. It was meant to tear her down emotionally and undermine her confidence as a kunoichi. It was certainly not something that she wished to share in its whole with the others. So for the sake of the meeting and the mission, Ino relayed only what she felt was relevant and kept the rest locked up as best she could.
Her teammates did not need to know the repulsive details and she did not need their pity.
Ino had been sifting through Michio's memories of Sasuke, gleaning everything useful she could, when she happened across it. It was an image of Kino sitting in front of his rural farming village. He looked as though he was waiting for someone, shifting his eyes back and forth down the road leading towards him. Ino knew that Kino's village had been part of the attacks, so it didn't concern her too much. But as she continued her search for information, the image popped up again. It bothered her. It should have fallen outside of her search parameters, since she was only bringing up material she didn't already know. She instantly dismissed it.
It popped up again.
Ino then carefully went back over the memories she had pulled directly from Kino. Suddenly it dawned on her why it kept popping up. Michio wasn't in Kino's memories. At first she had assumed that he was. After all, she clearly remembered that both Sasuke and a merchant were there, though they were only present by voice. As she replayed the scene, she realized that the voice of the merchant did not match Michio's. This memory was not the same.
Something wasn't right.
So Ino accessed the new memory and received an immediate onslaught of images, starting from when she first encountered Kino. In vibrant detail, her mission was faithfully catalogued, every seductive smile and every brush of skin. Everything up to the point that she had kissed him was perfectly accurate, down to the state of her near nakedness and the heady look of power in her eyes. It was disconcerting. Michio shouldn't even have this memory to begin with. Something was seriously wrong.
Then the memory distorted.
It was no longer what the kunoichi had implanted into her young mark or even the reality that she knew was safely inside her own head.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The woman was roughly slammed into the cold prison wall. While still dazed, Kino stalked over to her and picked her up by her throat. He held her just high enough that she had to struggle to stay on the tips of her toes. When she relaxed at all, the pressure of his hand would start to cut off her airway.
"How does it feel to have your own jutsu used against you? I hope you don't mind, but I made a few modifications. Your chakra control was perfection, quite clever really, but the delivery method was crude, rudimentary. I would prefer not to have to kiss my marks." His eyes raked over her body. "Well, I suppose I could make an exception for some of them."
The dream Ino tried to bring her hands together, attempting her mind transfer jutsu, but Kino was too quick. His free arm pinned her hands over her head.
"Don't struggle, Doctor Yamanaka. I still have so much more to show you." He pulled a pair of senbon from his sleeve, his motion smooth and streamlined, and drove them through her hands. A scream tore through her mind and then the other Ino slumped. "Much better. Now where were we? Ah yes, I had something to show you."
The dark, haunted eyes that had caused her to feel such pity before turned golden in an instant. The form before her morphed gradually, like ice melting away on a warm afternoon, to reveal shaggy silver hair and a sturdier, muscled frame. The pleasant smile made her blood run cold. "Ka- Kabuto?"
"Now, Ino, I'm disappointed. I was hoping you would have already figured it out. After all, you were in my head." His eyes narrowed sharply as he clicked his forked tongue. "And I don't like people messing around in my head. Some would consider it a violation of sorts. So, Ino, what am I going to do with you?"
She thrashed about and tried to kick him, summoning all the chakra she could muster, but her leg swung too wide and missed completely. The hand around her throat tightened. After a brief struggle, her body went limp.
"Remember, I'm the one in charge here. This is all just a dream. A vision of what's to come and a warning for the real you." His head turned to where Ino was looking in at the memory. Slowly, deliberately, he tore the last of the fabric from the unresponsive body. Then, as Kabuto stared her down in malice, he viciously entered her dream self. "Tell Chouji I said hello."
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.
Ino vomited again, trying to purge the fake memory, but it refused to leave.
ooOoo
Dark eyes narrowed and a hand paused mid-stroke, blotting the canvas with an excess of ink. The tense post-objective meeting had been successful, but it left Sai somewhat unsettled. Art had always brought peace to his heart, even before the shinobi realized he could feel such a thing, so he began to work on a new piece as soon as he and Tenten had adjourned. The painting he was currently working on though, an elegant mixture of scarlets and pinks and greens, was ruined. Sai felt a faint trace of worry creep over him, barely there like a wisp of wind on a still night, and it had nothing to do with his current occupation. He had sensed the shudder of his ink summon and felt the minute amount of his chakra that it held released as it was destroyed.
This was the second night in a row.
Last night, he convinced himself that it was just a normal animal's attack that had interfered with the daily communiqué. It was a hazard that Sai was well aware of and it did happen from time to time. But twice?
That was interference.
ooOoo
Ino continued to heave even after her stomach had released the whole of its contents. Her body shook unnaturally, sapping away her strength as she kneeled over and tried not to make a mess of her garments. Her eyelids rested heavy over her eyes, leaking emotion along with the tears. She was suddenly so very tired.
Gentle hands collected her untied hair and pulled the strands back from her face.
Chouji.
He had followed her after all. Ino wasn't sure he would. It was clear that he had been angry with her. During the meeting his whole body had resonated with it. And she knew to expect it. She had deceived him. His anger, his disappointment in her, was rightly deserved. Yet even still, he was with her, holding back her hair and rubbing soothing circles on her back as her retching began anew.
The shuddering eventually subsided and Chouji lifted her into his arms, carrying her towards the sink. He carefully deposited her on the long countertop, positioning her close to the faucet, and grabbed a cloth. Warm water was poured over it and the excess was wrung out before he used it to clean her face. He smoothed a brush over her wild tangles, and then pulled it into a simple tail tied with a ribbon at the base of her neck. A glass of cool water was handed to her. She rinsed her mouth several times, spitting the acrid taste into the basin. After a few attempts, all Ino could taste was purity of the water. Grateful, she used what was left in the cup to gradually hydrate herself. When she was done, Chouji wordlessly gathered her up again.
The man sat down on their bed and held Ino close, his large arms wrapping protectively around her. Ino pulled her knees in close to her chest, and then buried her head in her arms, making herself as small as possible. Chouji's treatment of her was too tender. It hurt her heart and weighed on her conscience.
"Ino, I'm sorry." Chouji began, but she placed a finger over his lips.
"Before that, we need to have our talk." Ino untangled herself from his embrace and pulled up a chair to sit in. She was more comfortable facing him, even if it meant looking him in the eye, than she was on his lap. If he chose to retreat from her during the conversation, at a time when she would be most vulnerable, at least Ino wouldn't have to feel the physical manifestation of that rejection. "You have questions, I'm sure."
He took a deep breath, exhaling slowly, and leaned over, elbows on knees and fingers lightly, carefully, interlocked. "What was that jutsu? How does it work?"
This was the most benign thing that he could have asked her, allowing her to escape into work rather than personal issues. "I call it the Snapdragon's Kiss. First, I mold a microscopic amount of my chakra so that it mimics the host's chakra signature, then I inject it directly into a nerve cluster. I manually direct it to the temporal lobe in the brain's left hemisphere to the section that is reserved for sensory input. In this area, there is a small section devoted to interpreting pleasurable stimuli. Once my chakra reaches the correct fold, it overloads the receptors causing a temporary unconscious state. With their mental defenses down, I have freedom to go through their mind unhindered."
Chouji sat quietly while he processed what she had said. "So," he started, a quizzical expression on his face, "you're literally kissing them senseless?"
"It's more complicated than that." Ino quipped, but her glare had no heat to it.
"I understood that from your technical explanation." He tilted forward a bit more, his voice soft. "Do you normally use it for your special ops missions?"
"Yes, and I know what you're trying to get at, Chouji Akimichi." Ino held her ground and his stare. "We both know I've been lying to you. You just want to know the extent of it. Well, I haven't had sex with a single one of my marks. And I haven't slept with any of the guys in the village either. I didn't need to. One little kiss and they were out like a light."
"Then why would you-"
"Why would I what? Why would I lie? Why would I let everyone think I was the worst kind of whore?" Ino cut him off. "It's because I couldn't get my talent recognized. I knew that people looked at me and just saw a pretty face. I was never taken seriously. I thought if I went into special ops my face would be an asset. But the council rejected my application. They didn't think I had what it took. I was too nice. They wanted a kunoichi who had proven herself willing to get down and dirty. So I developed my jutsu and tested it. On a lot of guys. When the side effect was the downfall of my reputation, I was happy! I knew that the council would accept me. Why would I refute the lies that got me what I wanted?"
"This is what you wanted?" Chouji gently challenged. "To be so wrapped up in your charade that you never let anyone close?"
"Look, I wasn't interested in guys or love or any of that crap at all, not after what chasing after that bastard did to you. It was stupid, but that betrayal broke my heart. I refused to put myself in that position again, so I figured it didn't matter what people thought of me. The ones that mattered still stuck by me, even if they thought I was a slut." Ino faltered, lifting her hands in resignation. "I didn't care until I started to think about you."
Emotion got the better of him, so Chouji stayed silent. He simply wrapped a hand around the back of her head, touched her forehead with his, and closed his eyes.
"Chouji?" Hesitantly, she waited for him to open his eyes. "You're not mad at me? For lying to you?"
"No, not really. I'm a little angry you waited so long to tell me, but mostly I'm just relieved. Usually when people lie, it's a pretty story to cover up something ugly. Your lie was the opposite. So even if I wanted to be mad, I just can't. The truth made me too happy." His forehead wrinkled up in thought. "Is this why you thought I was mad at you? You know, earlier when you tried to make me leave?"
"Yes. Well, mostly anyway. I thought you'd hate me for deceiving you." Ino pulled away from him, folding her knees in front of her again. "But..."
"There's more?"
"The nature of my missions was the issue. It's just that if I'm being honest with myself, I think you need to know more about one mission in particular." Ino rested her cheek on her knees, fidgeting with the fabric under her fingers. "I don't want to tell you though. You're not going to like it. But if I don't, he might use it against you. And I just can't take that chance."
"You're talking about Kabuto." Chouji reclined on the bed and patted next to him on the mattress. "You're right. I'm not going to like it. But I'll listen the whole way through. And I won't hold it against you. Come here."
Ino took the place he motioned to and Chouji wove his fingers through hers, flinching as he did so. "I'll heal that after you hear me out."
"I'd appreciate that." His reply came easy, much more relaxed than she thought it would under the circumstances. It helped to put Ino at ease.
"Okay. So I went into that mission riled up already." Ino began and Chouji closed his eyes, concentrating on the sound of her voice. "Something about you had been different that day. I couldn't put my finger on it, so it bothered me. But Kakashi... He saw right through me. Just before we reached Kino's cell, he made a comment about it. Something about me being in denial about my feelings and I just lost it. I attacked Kakashi. Threw him against the wall, actually. It was quite impressive."
"Actually, that is really impressive."
"Seriously, huh?" The kunoichi smiled weakly. "Like I was saying, I was out of sorts. And Kino, well, he kind of looked like Sasuke. I don't think it was conscious at all, but I took my frustration out on him. I didn't use the jutsu right away. I toyed with him instead. It was like I drunk off the power of it. Before I knew it, I was hovering over him in nothing but my lab coat and panties and he was asking if it was okay to put it inside. The way he said it... It startled me into action. I put him to sleep and finished the rest as quickly as I could. The realization that I had went way too far made me sick.
"I know you said that you're more relieved than angry, but Chouji, you have to understand. I may not have physically been with anyone, but I'm still the one making the memories. When we talked about Kino before... When I let you believe that I had just had sex with him, it was because I needed to know that you could accept all of me. Because I have all those things rattling around in my brain.
"My body may not know any of those men, but my mind does. Does that make any sense?"
"Yes, it does." Lips pressed lightly against her cheek. "But you have to understand, Ino, that those are just fantasies. Nothing more, nothing less. They can only have a hold of you if you let them."
"I know. But sometimes it's hard to forgive yourself. And at other times, it's hard to get the images to leave." Saline trickled down her cheeks as Ino whispered her fears. "The message he implanted in Michio, the one for me... It was terrible. He took that memory, the one of Kino, and twisted it. He made it uglier and darker than it should have been."
"Ino, I need to know." Chouji tightened his grip on her hand, emotion overcoming the pain of his injury. His voice walked the line between demanding and pleading. "What was the message? What did he show you?"
"He tortured me. Well, not me. Not really. The image of me that he created." Wide blue eyes turned his direction. "Kino threw me against the wall and pinned my hands there with senbon while he held me up by my neck. He taunted me about using my own jutsu against me. Then Kino faded away, revealing Kabuto. He said he didn't like people playing around with his mind. That it was a kind of violation. Then he- he-"
"Shh, it's alright. That's enough, Ino. It wasn't real." Chouji cooed into her ear. He pulled her into his chest as she broke down. "I'm here."
"Thank you." Ino sobbed, clutching his kimono desperately, and buried herself into his warmth. They stayed like that for a while, Chouji comforting her as best he could, as Ino bled out the poison that had built up in her system. As her crying ceased and her breathing evened out, Ino relinquished her hold on his clothing and sat up. Her voice was as shy and sweet as he had ever heard it. "Can I heal your hand now?"
"Yeah." With his permission given, Ino placed his hand in her lap. "It hurts a lot, actually."
As her chakra started its work knitting flesh back together, Ino grinned widely. "Good. You deserved that for messing up my rendezvous with Michio." When she finished with his wounds, she bent down and placed a kiss on the end of his nose. "But you're forgiven."
"That's very generous of you." Despite his sarcastic tone, Chouji was grinning back. "You know, Ino, I hear that reality is so much better than fantasy."
"Chouji Akimichi, are you propositioning me?" Ino flicked her hair off of her shoulder dramatically.
Chouji pushed himself up onto his elbows so he could speak directly into her ear. His voice, deep and rough with yearning, sent delicious shivers down her spine. "Only if you're agreeable to the idea."
"Just let me lock the door."
ooOoo
Rough, calloused fingers intertwined over a taut belly and bright eyes studied the ceiling in contemplation. She found nothing there. After all, the hour was late, closer to dawn than dusk, and darkness hung over the room like ink spilled over parchment. The village outside was peaceful, with only the faint pitter-patter of the light summer rain over thatched rooftops to be heard.
Two days.
Her thoughts settled in her stomach like lead, worry making them hard to digest and expel. Something was wrong. Every cell in her body felt it, like being suddenly struck with chidori, and the more she tried to fight it the more it circulated. Despite exhaustion, sleep eluded the girl.
No word for two FREAKING days.
She rolled over, legs fighting futilely with tangled sheets, trying to get comfortable. After much rustling, shifting, and wrestling, the girl gave up with the realization that it was just her mental distress seeping into her bones.
"Sakura," a firm hand pushed her shoulder back into her bedroll. "Go to sleep. I'll send Gamakichi over there first thing in the morning."
"I know, but-" Her voice wavered despite her efforts to keep it steady.
"They're fine." The male voice was resolute.
"We haven't seen so much as an ink puddle for two days. What if that guy was more dangerous than we thought? He could've done things to Ino. She could be hurt. Or what if... what if they were compromised and the enemy found them?" The kunoichi whispered, small and hesitant. "What if we're compromised?"
"Don't go there. They'll be fine. Have some faith in your teammates." A warm hand reached for hers. "Besides, Kakashi should be here by tomorrow. He'll know what to do."
"I know. You're right. Besides, Chouji wouldn't let anything happen to her. And Sai, well, as much as I hate to admit it, is a genius. They'll be fine." She let his confidence saturate her heart, slowly replacing her concern with restrained assurance, and exhaled deeply. "You're right. Thanks, Naruto."
"Hey, no problem!" The blonde replied. Sakura squished his hand in response and closed her eyes. Silence stretched out between them and, accompanied by the darkness of night, the girl relaxed into the embrace of promised rest. Naruto squirmed anxiously, wiggling his fingers in an attempt to get her attention before she nodded off. "Umm, Sakura?"
"Yeah?"
"Let's not tell Sai about this." He lifted their joined hands for clarification. "I don't want to have to protect my penis from him."
Sakura covered her mouth with her free hand, but laughter escaped from between her fingers. Naruto started to stammer in embarrassment and she gave up entirely, letting the mirth roll through her like water. "Sai doesn't swing that way, so I think you'll be fine."
"That came out wrong!" The blonde elbowed her in frustration. "You know what I meant!"
"Yeah, yeah. Now get to bed." The girl settled down with ease, the tension having been excised from her body, and drowsily stretched her limbs. "Your secret's safe with me."
Naruto rolled over, his back facing her, as he also prepared for sleep. "You're cruel, Sakura."
"Yeah, I know."
And if anyone has hurt my friends, they'll taste my cruelty firsthand.
ooOoo
"Is it done?"
"She got my message. They should be suitably distracted."
"Good."
"So, tomorrow then?"
"Yes. Tomorrow."
