I am really enjoying this version of Ino, she is fun to write and a nice contrast to Rai... I think this is the first Pairing I have written that I enjoy.

Love it and you all.

P.S. What do you think about this Ino? Is it a good pairing and does her growth work? I hope so. I think it adds more layers to my story and makes it more interesting.

Ino's hands shook as she entered the Hall, with her annoying teammates at her side. They had easily skipped past the Genjutsu that had been put up, she was a sensor and Shikamaru was a genius so it was pretty easy to skip past that. They didn't even stop at that stairway, they just moved up with Choji following them. It had been so unremarkable that it set her on edge, making her wonder if she was truly prepared to do this test.

She knew it was out of character for her to be this nervous, she was cocky and loud by nature and she took pride in that... but taking a look at herself so critically had made the neglect to her training so clear to her. Sparing with Rai had made it even clearer, she had neglected her training considerably and it had taken some of her skills. It had to have if someone so new and born of someone as unskilled Naruto could challenge her. She would need to work harder to make it in this exam and she knew that with all she was.

Hence her nerves.

To the shock of her teammates, she didn't engage with any one of the many people in the room they were in, settling for mediating and taking in the taste and feel of everyone's chakra.

She would be prepared.

Running through a dozen or so chakras, Ino gained a sense of the various skills and powers of those around her. Most had chakra near her level or a tad higher but many were weaker then she was. It was oddly comforting, and so she opened her mouth to tell her teammates what she had found...Then it happened, the moment she opened her mind to sense the chakra of the room. 'What is that?' She froze, sensing almost immediately a vast chakra, stronger then anyone's she had ever sensed. Broader, angrier and more hateful then she realized was possible. 'Why can't I move, move away from it... it's drawing me in, I'm dying... I...'

"Ino, you okay, your all pale?" Shikmaru's voice barely broke through her panic. He was looking at her, hiding her from the others with his thin frame.

She barely managed to squeak out. "There is a monster here, no genin has chakra like that...I am surprised a human has it." She whispered low and slow. " I could taste it, so much rage and hate and bloodlust. Their chakra is infused with killer intent and there is just so much of it... I...I could barely withstand it. They almost broke me just from their chakra."

Shikamaru's eyes darkened. "Where are they?"

"I can't tell, not without going back and I won't..."

Her teammate nodded. " We'll be careful then."

"We have to be..." She tried to calm herself down, realizing how screwed they genuinely might be. 'What did I get myself into?'

''

'So a young sensor has discovered me.' Orochimaru wanted to chuckle, seeing the girl's sheer panic. It was a delicious sight, one that warmed his bitter soul. 'Or perhaps she sensed young Gaara's power... yes, that would make more sense. Unlike that brat I am suppressing my power.'

Quietly, he allowed his eyes to roam around the room, taking in the various people who had gathered in their pathetic attempts to stave off war. It took everything not to cackle at their pathetic Killer intent, their spiked chakra. He could kill many of them with just a burst of chakra, but that would merely reveal him early, shattering his plans. No, discretion was the name of the game. He would be patient, play time could and would have to wait... for a while at least.

No, when they were in the Forest of Death and he was left alone with Sasuke, that was when he could play. Not too much, less he slaughter his new body, but just enough to satisfy his urges and impulses...

Just enough.

'''

Rai frowned as the Green light around his palms fluctuated, sweat dripping down his face as he struggled to maintain the power of the Mystic palm. It was not an easy jutsu to manage, even the Clone jutsu was easier for Naruto then this was for him. It took more effort, focus and attention then he realized he had. His mind ached, splitting down the middle of his skull through the sheer force of focus. It was exhausting work and yet he did not let up, not even when he wanted to scream with pain. He held fast, knowing that while he would not master this technique any time soon, every minute was proof of progress and potential.

"Good Rai, very good. You have the maintenance down pack, you just need to work on the consistency of your chakra and it's density." Preceptor Manji walked by him, kneeling to look down at him and the frying fish beneath his palms. "Yes, very good. As you improve your chakra control you will notice an easier time with this technique, I imagine with your recent mastery of the Water Walking technique you have already seen an invisible progression."

Nodding slowly, Rai barely choked out. " Thank you." This was a mistake as the jutsu shattered, and he collapsed forward, panting and heaving hard, his hands shaking. Even his chakra coils ached, everything did. How a jutsu could be this painful was beyond him. It shouldn't be possible for anything to be that painful. With some hesitation, he looked down at his fish and sighed. "At least I can eat the damn thing... it's fried six ways to Sunday."

His Preceptor laughed hard and loud, just as two others finished their jutsu, a smile on their faces. It was clear, from their flopping fishes, that they had mastered the technique in it's base form. He cursed them, internally, as a wave of jealousy overtook him. He held it back though, knowing some people just had better control and more experience. From their looks he knew them to be clan ninja, and so they had the advantage of extra training and that, unfair as it was to him, gave them a serious edge.

"You are doing fine, child. This is normal, trust me it took me far longer to even hold the jutsu as long as you are. The soreness will pass, your coils are not used to holding your chakra or the flow for so long. It's like when your read too much or in the dark, it's just strain. That will pass over the next few days, I promise. Just take it easy and meditate when you get home, that slows your coils down and helps with the strain."

" Thank you..." He smiled at the man before him, happy for the hint. "Anything else you can help me with, I know it's my first day and all but I'd like to see what I could improve on."

"Start with the water separation jutsu I showed you, the one where you separated coffee and water? If you master that it should help with control the density of your chakra, which is where you are struggling. In a week or so, if your still struggling, I'll show you the Sand sticking jutsu which really helps with density. You'll learn it anyway one day but it is a great remedial technique for control."

Smiling back at the man, Rai bowed a little. " I appreciate that. When's my next assesment, I know Kabuto was going to do it weekly but he's in exams so..."

"I'll check you out after the lesson if you want, to see where your control is. We can move on from there, adjusting your training as needed."

"Thank you again."

"Not a problem, now I have to check on the others. Go study the other students, see what they are doing right and try to mimic them. Use your sensory powers, that should help."

With eyes wide, Rai nodded. "I never thought to do that, great idea really."

'''

Ino barely withheld her panic when Team Seven popped into the room, Naruto cocky as ever all but declared he would kick everyone's ass. 'Please don't tell me that Rai expects me to protect Naruto, he all but asked for his ass to get kicked.' Sighing, she turned her attention back to the room, trying to figure out the source of the intense chakra she had sensed. 'I am too afraid to reach out again, and even if I did, I couldn't detect the specific person in a room this crowded. Note to self, work on that.'

With great effort, she turned her attention back to Team Seven, smiling at Sakura and Naruto and Sasuke. "Hey, you guys... Sasuke, you look beat up, what happened?"

And he did, he had a bruise on his cheek and his clothes looked ruffled.

Naruto actually laughed. " He got his butt kicked by this guy with fuzzy eyebrows, Rock Lee."

"Oh him, I saw him last year. My dad says he's seriously skilled." She offered the boy a hug, shocking him and Sakura, who actually gaped at her.

"Ino pig, why are you hugging him?"

"I'm dating his brother and I realized Naruto isn't that bad. He just needs some direction... how are you doing Sakura?" She realized, in that moment, how much she missed the girl before her and how much she resented Sakura abandoning her for Sasuke all those years ago. Yeah she may have gone with it, but it was Sakura's idea and damn it hurt. "Still chasing the Lost Cause?"

"The Lost... " Sakura was befuddled, before a moment of clarity came across her face. "Sasuke isn't a Lost Cause!"

"He might as well be when it comes to romance, but enough of that, have you been training? This isn't a game Sakura, this is a replacement for war, you need to be serious and I am not sure you are. Hell I barely am. If your not, you might die... and I don't want that."

Sakura blinked at her. 'You've changed."

"I grew up... I realized I was hurting myself acting like I was before and I changed that behavior. I realized Naruto deserved better, I deserved better and I needed to be serious to live. So I did."

"All from dating Rai?"

"No, from realizing what it would take to make him... but enough about that, I can sense someone approaching fast." She turned, her senses still sensitive from the Monstrous chakra she had sensed earlier, so she didn't even have to focus when Ibiki appeared looking as fierce as ever.

She had one thought as she saw the man... and it was simple as it was fierce.

'Game Time.'

She would prove her worth, her value, her purpose that with or without Rai she would matter, thrive and prove that she was amazing all on her own. No man was needed to define her... Not Sasuke or even her Rai. She wasn't defined by Sakura or her betrayal, or her beauty or even her clan name. She had a new goal, one born of her new changes. She wanted to prove that she really had earned her title as Kunoichi of the Year, that she was worthy of the praise and power of her clan and that title.

It would not be easy, but she would do it.

And if she impressed her father, mother and boyfriend then that was a bonus.

Even if she had to fight that monstrous chakra she could almost feel even with her senses muffled by her focus on the physical world.

'''

"Eleven seconds, that is four seconds faster then before. You are really improving."

Rai smiled, huffing a little as he released his grip on the murky water. Coffee and water mixed together once more, with his chakra gone. " That was harder then before, I wonder what I can do with rested coils?"

"A touch faster maybe but it is under stress that you see you value, especially in the medical field. You are improving fast, fast enough that it will be easy to allow you to watch the Preliminaries if they happen."

"Huh?"

Manji laughed. "If there are too many people that survive and thrive past the second exam, which should be in a few hours and last a few days, they will have a Preliminary exam. If that happens I will allow you to watch it. You have more then earned it kid. Your one of the hardest working medics I have met. I am glad you joined up. Now go home, meditate and read your books and scrolls. I will be testing your knowledge tomorrow with some quizzes both verbal and written."

Rai gulped. " Lovely."

"I remember, trust me I remember. It does help though, with retention and proof of knowledge. Now go, I have papers to get through."

Chapter end, tell me what you think in the reviews.

This was so much fun.

Love, your Ninja Overlord,

Mika.