Chapter 48- The Interview
Sakura lead Ino to a room that had 'GUEST ROOM' written on its white door. As soon as she opened it, they saw Kakashi sitting comfortably on a soft chair, drinking coffee. He had a black suitcase placed on the floor, next to his feet. He wore thin-framed rectangular glasses and sported a casual look- a white shirt and jeans. And what's more, he was no longer wearing his mask!
"Gorgeous, isn't he?" Sakura said, hitting Ino's arm.
"Uh, yeah," Ino replied, partially blushing.
"Ah, good morning, Ino!" Kakashi greeted with a friendly smile, "It's nice to see the two of you ladies are still in shape! The men of Konoha must be running after you these days, aren't they?"
"Nah, if Sasuke saw them chasing after me, he'd kill them all!" Sakura joked, "Ino and Shikamaru are doing quite well together!"
"Sa-Sakura-chan!!" Ino stammered, "Stop it!"
"Oh, I see, you and Shikamaru are together." Kakashi said, "I can see an interesting article coming up! Sakura, darling, now if you don't mind…"
"I'm right ahead of you, sensei!" Sakura said, saluting to her teacher, "Just tell me if you need anything- juice, water, just call me, okay?"
And immediately, she left the room.
Ino stood in front of Kakashi, her legs shaking, her mind uneasy. She felt panicky as she watched Kakashi looking at her. Slowly, he gazed at every part of her body- her oh-so-smooth legs, her perfectly-curvy waist, her ladylike shoulders, her angelic face, her golden-toned hair and her huge boobies.
"Wow." Kakashi said, "I wish Iruka had all those! Shikamaru must be a very lucky man, huh?"
"Stop it!" Ino yelled, "Let's just get on with the interview, okay? Make it quick, so Shikamaru and I could go home together."
"Yes, ma'am." Kakashi replied. "Have a seat, please. It pains me to see a lady standing while I'm sitting."
Ino said nothing. She quickly took a seat on a wooden chair and crossed her legs. She knew that Kakashi might peep if she sat with her legs wide open. Kakashi opened his suitcase and brought out a pen and a pad of paper. Then, he fixed his glassed and sighed.
"Okay," he said, "Let's begin. First question, how did you end up as a stripper in the Pink Paradise bar?"
"Well, uh… Let's see… I first tried out so many jobs before that happened." Ino explained, "You see, our flower shop closed, and well, the teaching job didn't really go so well either. I wasn't that patient with the students…
"Helping out at the Inuzuka Pet store was scary. I'm not that good with animals, you see, though I'm a big fan of cute puppies and kitties…
"Being a waitress at Ichiraku wasn't my thing, either. I got fired immediately on my first day.
"After I lost hope, I decided I should become a stripper and there, that's how it came to be…"
Kakashi quickly wrote down everything then proceeded with the next question, "How did you and Shikamaru meet?"
"Oh, Shikamaru was a lifesaver!" Ino said, "That day, my life was like a living hell! The night before, I was robbed… Then, on that day, I lost my job at the bar, I don't give a damn why. So there, as I was crying on the steps, people were passing, ignoring me, and then he came and approached me.
"He was all like, 'Hey miss, you alright?'
"And I was like, 'Shikamaru! Is that you!? Do you still remember who I am!?'
"And then, he answered, 'Who are you!?'
"Then, finally he realized I was his old friend. He pitied me and decided to let me live with him and find me a new job. And that's how I ended up with Shikamaru!"
"Okay, next question," Kakashi said, "Before meeting Shikamaru, did any of your friends know about you becoming a stripper? If yes, how did they react?"
There was a simple answer to that question. Ino laughed and answered, "Oh, that's an easy one! They all freaked out! Sakura, Sasuke, Naruto, everyone I knew! Their jaws all dropped to the ground when they saw me. It was shameful, but now all I can do is laugh at the past and smile for a better future. I've decided to move on and look for a better life! Besides, I never liked stripping in front of everybody, anyway. It was just that I had no other option, so that's the job I ended up with back then."
Kakashi wrote down everything she said and went on with the next question, "Being with Shikamaru, are you two in a relationship?"
Of all the questions, this was the hardest for Ino to answer. If she said yes, Shikamaru might kill her for not keeping it all a secret. If she said no, he also might kill her for denying that the two of them are together. She was so confused that it took a while for her to think. Kakashi was waiting, tapping his black pen against the pad of paper that he placed on his lap. Ino bit her lip as she thought and she thought. Kakashi just looked at her and waited for an answer. Finally, she had one…
"What do you think? If you think that Shikamaru and I actually look good together, then that's fine! I'm admitting I have feelings for the guy, but if he doesn't want to admit anything, it's okay."
"Last question," Kakashi said, "Being a model, what do you hope to achieve in the near future?"
"Gee, I don't know…" Ino replied, "I never actually thought about it! Maybe, i should be in a movie someday!" Then she laughed, "Nah, for now, all I want is to be happy with my job and earn a decent sum of money. The movies, the big ads on billboards, all of those could come when I'm really professional. I've just started, so I'm not ready for all of that yet. Maybe next year."
Finally, Kakashi put back the cap on his pen and read over the whole interview. After that, he kept everything in his suitcase. Ino stood up nervously and asked, "Was that a good interview?"
"What are you so worried about?" Kakashi giggled. He gently patted Ino on the head and said, "Yeah. You did a good job. The interview might be included in the January issue of Paradise™, so watch out for it. You'll still be modeling for the magazine, wouldn't you?"
"Yeah." Ino replied.
"Okay! I'll be seeing you then." Kakashi said. Then, he gave Ino a pat on the back, "It was nice interviewing you! I'll be seeing you around, okay?"
"Okay, uh, bye, sir!"
"Bye-bye, butterfly!"
Then, Kakashi happily skipped out of the room.
