First of all, an explanation for my tardiness

My computer was hit by a virus, of the fairly nasty variety. How, is...a bit embarrassing. Suffice it to say, that if those "get rich quick" spam-mails only work on idiots, then I am now one of their sordid number. I, personally, blame myself, for being stupid.

My back-ups for this story were erased;I'd had a good four chapters planned in advance. Now, i'm trying to rewrite what i can remember, on my newly-souped up computer. So, please bear with me. If I caused you any trouble, please send me a scathing review, filled with your hatred.

And now; cliffhanger over, let the dramatics resume!

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Chakra was the primal force; a power that superseded all others. It could give life, and take it, elevating those who could use it into the realms of gods, and demons. Of course, this meant that those with higher chakra levels, would obviously be at a great advantage over those who did not.

The empathic Ninja of the Yamanaka clan, had long-ago decided not to involve themselves in the tug-of-war that traditional chakra warfare entailed. They went to another realm entirely; the astral plane, where minds and souls alike were laid bare, for anyone to see. Skilled practitioners literally held their enemies' minds in the palm of their hands, doing far more damage than any puny firestorm, or heavy punch.

But, inevitably, astral warfare had its caveats as well. The size, and effectiveness of an astral avatar, depended almost completely on chakra. Ino, though skilled, with the techniques of her clan, often found herself lacking the proper power required to sustain long battles.

Naruto solved that problem, in a flash of blue fire.

His arm, resting lightly on her shoulder, seemed to be funneling a hurricane, from which power, raw, and effuse, circulated with terrifying speed, and strength. Almost without thinking, she leaptout of her body, into the astral plane, carrying with her, enough chakra to level the entire forest in which they stood.

Shetowered.

Her astral form, corresponding directly to Naruto's chakra, wasgigantic. It took all the willpower she had, simply to keep it from running loose, and destroying everything, cities, and mountains alike, in its fury.

Below her, chakra flowed like water; the patterns and rhythms of the earth, full of life, anf power. Speckling its crust, like a malignant tumor, was Sasuke, with his poisonous malice and spite. She flew towards him, forced open the entry to his mind, and dove in.

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It was dark. So dark.

Sasuke's head was a pit. Lifeless, and silent. His dreams were dreams of darkness, his thoughts were filled with death, and shadow-stuff. In any other situation, Ino might have been afraid.

But she wasn't. Not with Naruto's chakra blazing through her like a thousand bonfires. She feared no one now, nothing.

With a furious flare, she brought light. Shimmering gusts of blue fire, shattered the shadows, and brought luminescence to the dark place.

"Sasuke!" She cried, into the remaining shadows. "Show yourself."

And the darkness answered.

"Fool. You're here. In my mind. You can't tell me to do anything here."

A nightmarish creature flew at her, all jumbled limbs, and bleeding teeth. With an almost contemptuous flicker, Naruto's chakra, of its own accord, reared, and burnt it to ash.

She could feel his presence, warm, and reassuring, within the chakra he was feeding to her. The warmth of his chakra around her astral body was like a pair of lean, comforting arms, holding her.

"borrowed power." Sasuke spat, in the darkness. "Borrowed strength. Naruto the crutch, for Ino, the cripple."

Hatred, like a fist, hammered against Naruto's chakra shroud. Safe within, Ino came to a realization.

"Its not borrowed." She said. "Its given. Freely. Because we believe in each other. I can always lean on Naruto. But you…you don't have anyone…do you?"

"I don't need anyone!" Sasuke screeched. "No one!"

Ino grinned, suddenly. "And that's it. That's why you'll never beat me, never beat us. You Don't understand it. You can't! Love, like a windstorm. Love, sweeping everything else away, like so much dust."

"Shut up!" Sasuke shouted. "shut up, shut up, shut up!"

Another dream-beast fell from above, a caricature of Naruto, screaming, and reaching for her, with long, deadly claws---

Her shroud burnt it to ash.

"Come on." Ino murmured to the shroud. "Let's kick his ass, then go home. I'm tired of this."

The shroud bobbed in agreement.

In the darkness, there was a dark patch, spreading like blood. Sasuke's core. His heart. His All-Thing, his soul. It was a mess of dead flesh, and rotting bone.

"You should be dead." Ino said, wonderingly. "Really, you should. Your heart---its screaming. It wants to go home."

"GET OUT!"

Ino ignored Sasuke's scream. Focusing her chakra shroud into a single, deadly point, she pointed it, spear-like, towards the rotting construct.

"STOP! STOP! STOP!"

Fear flooded her, and anger, and rage; all Sasuke's emotions and thoughts, brandished against her, t block her advance. So much hate--too much--the chakra shroud began to buckle.

But the distance to the heart closed. First meters, then mere centimeters. All the while, Sasuke's sharp, cutting rage, struck her shroud with countless, damaging blows.

Not even a hairsbreadth away, she stopped, unable to move forward any more. A single step, was all it would take, yet with the pressure of the encroaching shadow, all about her, even a step was too much to bear.

And all of a sudden, even though she knew it to be impossible, Naruto was there. He was standing by her, with his hand clasped fast around hers. The last step seemed to happen on its own, a graceful leap, while surrounded by Naruto's warm chakra, and the scent of fading cinnamon.

The heart burst.

Sasuke screamed, but he was so far away, it seemed. His dark mind was cracking, opening way to a new kind of light. The world beyond was taking back a soul that should have died.

Ino left, with the ruin of his soul, shattering about her.

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The island was calm, and cool. A battle of epic proportions had been fought on its pristine grounds, yet the sky was still clear, the air still brisk. Birds chirped, cicadas buzzed, and the trees resumed their quiet rustling, uncaring, and unaware of any conflict.

Cradled in Naruto's arms, Ino came to.

"You're back." He said calmly. "For a moment, I thought I'd lost you."

"Yeah…" she murmured, equally calm.

The forest was silent for a few more moments, as they awkwardly contemplated the motionless trees.

"You're a hero now." Naruto finally said.

"What?"

"Ino, slayer of the Uchiha demon. You need a medal. Maybe even three."

Ino thought about this. "I do, don't I?"

"Uh-huh."

"I really do!"

"Yes!"

They looked at each other. They burst out laughing. In Ino's case, her chuckles were very close to being sobs.

"Its finally over," Naruto said, holding her close. "thirteen years, we've had this blood feud. And you ended it." He kissed her, softly. "I have even more to thank you for."

Ino felt, with growing horror, the stain of blood, against her.

"You're---"

"I'm fine." He assured her. "Just scratched, I swear."

She felt her blood-soaked shirt, and saw the sheer amount of Naruto's blood, staining the ground. "That's--that's over 2 liters. You're dying! We need to get help--an ambulance, a heli, anything!"

'Shh…" Naruto whispered. "The chakra flare, remember? Any chakra-sensing ninja for miles could sense it. The ANBU clean-up crews will be here soon. We'll be fine. Or you'll be, at any rate."

"And so will you." Ino said, vehemently. "So will you. Promise me that."

"No." Naruto said. "I don't make promises I'm not sure I can keep." He winced. "I'm funny that way."

"Naruto---"

But of course, he couldn't hear. He'd slipped out of consciousness.

Soon, the Konoha airborne rescue corps would come. Naruto was right, their chakra had been sensed, probably as far as Rain Country. Tsunade was quick to act, when she sensed trouble.

But would they come fast enough?

The trees rustled. The wind blew. To some, it might have been beautiful.

To Ino, it was nothing. The world swirled and swirled, and then it went black.