Ino reflected on how small her child still was, and how Ino at that age considered herself an adult. There was no reason why Inokoto wouldn't be feeling the same. Feelings aren't facts no matter how much you believe so yourself. As a teen, things seem permanent, things can seem hopeless and what's a small matter can be blown out of proportions. Her daughter hadn't been handed small matters. She hadn't been allowed to be a child. Not like she was supposed to be. She hadn't had a normal upbringing. So much of that Ino blamed herself for.
She hadn't seen her child. She had neglected her child.
She hadn't been a good mother, just like Itachi hadn't been a good father.
Ino had been so blind to Inokoto's pain. Whatever she was feeling and experiencing she had been forced to go through alone because Ino hadn't been there for her. Her own mother hadn't seen the depts of her pain. She had been too busy with herself and men. Like her own happiness was much more important than her daughter. She had said it so often, but hadn't acted like it. How can she say that her daughters were the most important in her life when she had been so self-involved?
It had been a day since Inokoto had woken up. The investigation had continued, and she had been questioned herself. Ino had been refused to be present. Something that was illegal as Inokoto was still a child, unless the accusations called for it.
Inokoto had claimed the whole thing to be an accident. If she was lying to herself or just them, Ino wasn't certain. She had denied wanting to end her life. She had denied doing anything wrong. The story she presented was one where she went for a swim, her leg had gotten tangled in the stem of some lilies when diving. It seemed plausible, but she hadn't been tangled when she was found. For that her explanation was that she must have gotten lose but been disoriented and didn't make it to the surface in time.
"So why were your clothes so neatly folded?"
The same pig and cock had come to question Inokoto.
"For this I will refer to my father, he taught me well, he's pretty anal like that."
The smile Inokoto gave them told them she had this all figured out. If it had been intentional, she had plan would it fail and she would get away with it. She had them all wrapped around her finger. She had been meticulous planning this. It hadn't been an impulse. She had known very well what she was doing and how to get away with it. She was a genius after all, and they would have to dig deep. Way deep if they wanted to get her. Too bad for her they were highly skilled and competitive. They would not allow themselves to be bested by a child when their boss wanted so badly to prove his theory.
They hadn't been heard from since then. They had moved on to the next name on their list, Shikadai. Another genius, but they were hoping he could be intimidated.
The hours in the hospital bed had been long for Inokoto. Her mother had been there the whole time, even if her story checked out, Ino didn't believe her daughter. It was kind of awkward when your mother is convinced you tried to commit suicide.
Naturally this caused them not to talk that much. Ino mainly sat there with an emotionally devastated look on her face. Like the slightest sound could scare and break Inokoto into hysteria. Inokoto hadn't seen her father again, he had the decency to respect her wishes. Inokoto could only assume they were shielding Aikoino from what was happening. She couldn't blame her mother. Her little sister should be shielded from a failure like herself. She couldn't even kill herself right.
As was expected Anko had showed up with her form. Asked the same questions she did during any other evaluation. Like every other time Inokoto would be deemed mentally unfit to be in active duty. Like every other time Inokoto expected the evaluation to be ignored and filed. Inokoto already knew how underfunded and how little power Anko's tiny department had. Had it been done right she could have made a big different in some many lives. All she was allowed to do was to create reports and files that would never be taken into consideration.
That was why Inokoto had been certain she would be able to get away with her lies. No one wanted to question them. It was better for both parts that she went on with her life as if nothing had happened. The one thing she hadn't planned for was Naruto's vendetta towards her. She hadn't expected him to have her under investigation for treason. Something like that had never been done in the town's history.
"You know what brat?"
Anko looked at the child in front of her. Knew how fragile she was. Knew how she shouldn't continue in service. Inokoto hadn't done this to have a laugh, get flowers and sympathy. That kid wanted out while she could. She wanted out before it was too late. She wasn't stupid. She already knew the path her life was heading. She could thank her role models for that. Kakashi and Itachi wasn't the best example of happiness. She was so much like them; she had already been feeling the pressure for years. The pressure her close ones had been fighting off for years.
"Fuck the rules."
She wouldn't have someone else die on her watch because her hands were tied. She had already put so many files in the permanent archive. All in common they had her stamp "not fit for duty." Inokoto was not fit for duty. She was just a teenage girl who had never been allowed to be just that. She was forced the be the best, even at times when she should have been home with friends and family. They gave her a new mission, a new rule, a new expectation. She had been a ticking time bomb since she had almost been taken out on a mission. Then she had killed someone. Now she was about to rise in the ranks. After that all promotions would be internal. After her first promotion she would be in the mercy of their village, so far they had done nothing to spare her.
Anko couldn't help but to understand and pity the child. They had all had their darkest moments, she was walking straight into a miserable life with open eyes. They were at peace time they kept repeating. The veterans were on edge by that. Sure, Ino's generation had no idea that "in peace time" was the most hostile times. It was worse than open war for everyone but the foot soldiers. Those who had lived through the first war knew that. It was a different war now. One about asserting power and superiority. Inokoto was just a jewel in their crown.
She was well known beyond their boarders. Everyone knew that Itachi Uchiha had a child that very much matched his talents. They all knew that. So Konoha paraded her like a price, in a way that wasn't obvious. Their village bred talented and powerful shinobi, deadly. They always had and always would. Breeding programs they called "genetically superior matchmaking" made sure of that. They were nasty enough to call it matchmaking. Implying they matched hearts and not genes. It was all a class division. The genetically superior would be matched with the other genetically superior. Ino wouldn't have been matched with Itachi. Which is ironic considering their offspring.
Had Itachi and Ino entered the genetically superior matchmaking they would have been given different partners from the authorities. The genetically superior matchmaking program was hardly ever used by the clans. They married internally or between other clans to increase power alliances. That was part of why the no romance rule in the Yamanaka-Akimichi-Nara trio was so strange. Normally in a partnership like that all the children would have been doomed to marry with someone from the other two clans. They didn't. They could plea "true love" and be granted exemption. It hadn't happened yet though. That specific rule had Yamanaka written all over it. Something that was clear when looking at Ino. The one who ran.
Anko didn't consider herself a romantic, but she saw the beauty in it. Their village had never cared much for love, it was all about strength and producing the strongest possible offspring.
This was the village Anko was ready to lay down her life for. This was the village she would sacrifice whatever they asked for. They were all trained to do that. Do what the village asked and never question it. They gave up so much of themselves for the greater good of the village. They made sacrifices since before they graduated the academy. They asked nothing in return and considering what they gave, they got nothing in return. They would receive money for the mission and respect of the villagers. Villagers would still be scared of them, for the deeds shinobi did for their benefit and protection.
This was the life and village they were living and dying from.
So tired of having people die on her, people she knew could be help Anko decided to go beyond her mandate. It was easier to get forgiveness than to get permission. Especially from Naruto who seemed to be controlling them with an iron fist. She had to give it to him, he was doing a much better job than any of them had expected. Their income and prosperity were beyond what they had imagined. Their diplomacy and trade deals were better than they ever had been. Naruto was a charismatic character with a smooth tongue.
Anko shook her head losing track of her thoughts. She knew she would possibly get consequences for this. She didn't have the power to do this, with good reason. It would cost them too much, but she had to take measure so that she wouldn't lose another that could be saved.
"I'm pulling you out of duty. Two months of mandatory therapy after you're done here."
Anko bounced a clipboard off the mattress on Inokoto's bed. She did not have the power and clearance to do this.
"I want you to spend one hour a week helping Hinata."
She would never say this out loud, but she wanted to show Inokoto a loving family. One that was connected and wholesome. She didn't think of Ino as a bad mother, she had given her children what she could. That had never been a stable family. Anko knew Hinata would agree to the matter. She had since Naruto became Hokage involved herself with children and mental health. Naruto had created the governmental position shortly after taking office, sometimes a little bit of nepotism goes a long way Anko thought to herself.
Inokoto could be helped. Anko didn't believe in any God or faith, but there had to be a reason Inokoto had been saved. She was assured to die, only luck had brough Shikadai to that exact pond at the right time. Inokoto was assured to have died. There was no reason for her plan to have failed. She had been saved, so Anko would be damned if it was only to suffer.