Of Flowers and Love
Summary: Ino's personal journal that describes all of her friends in her own way… through flowers. Pairings?
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Chapter Six
Sand Storm
Sunday November 4th
I am so angry! That darn sand girl came back! I swear she wouldn't stop bothering me! 'How's Shikamaru? I heard that you wanted to try to become a Jounnin'…blah blah blah! I can't believe that girl has the nerve to show up here! Not that I don't like her, but she's always on my case as if I'm the reason the rain falls on nice days. I don't even want to know why she singles me out… especially if it's because she's really gay…Then no way. Oh man, I'm being dumb again. I shouldn't talk about her like that. Who am I talking about? Temari of the Sand. She's really nice, but sometimes I feel like she's after something and I'm in her way…
Well, since she did come back today, I decided I'd make her flower for her. But where to start, I don't really know… Maybe a Tiger-flower… oh wait, that sounds kind of rude because it means cruelty, even though it's a nice flower… I better see if I can find a better one…
Ino looked up from her journal, Shikamaru sleeping soundly next to her in the middle of the open field. She had just sat down to think a bit and since Temari was always looking for Shikamaru, then she'd come by here.
"Ino!"
'Right on cue,' Ino thought a little bitter as she turned to see the other blonde.
"Hey Temari, what're you doing out here?" Ino asked, standing up, leaving her journal on the ground.
The sand born girl stood high and proud in her brand new Jounnin outfit that she took the liberty of shoving in Ino's face the first time they had met each other again.
"Just wandering. You know this place pretty well right?" Temari asked distantly as she saw Shikamaru in the distance, shifting as he continued to sleep.
"I guess so… Why?" Ino asked, looking around the field.
"Hmmm….. then maybe you could give me a tour!" Temari said slowly, her eyes set on Shikamaru now.
"A tour? Uh… I don't know… I was supposed to be leaving soon to get my mother some groceries."
"Oh!" Temari said, clapping her hands together once, "Then can I come with you?"
Ino sighed but knew it would be a good way to talk to the Sand Princess
"Sure…"
Hey, I'm back. I forgot you next to Shikamaru but he was still sleeping when I got back three hours later so I'll let you know what happened.
First Temari had to just go everywhere in the market, she was so excited about seeing everything and told me a little about how her brothers are doing, but nothing much about herself. So we finished shopping then went to get some ice cream when we ran into the loudmouth. He was ranting on and on about how he was so angry that this guy ate his food or something, but anyway, he was going on about this that more people showed up at ice cream place, TenTen, Sakura, Sasuke, even Hinata and Kiba, but Temari seemed a little distracted.
After an hour of talking with everyone I started to head back when I noticed I had lost Temari.
After about twenty minutes of searching for her I found her at the memorial…
Ino looked up from her journal, suddenly burying her head in her hands, starting to whimper a little. The silent boy laying next to her slowly opened an eye to see her shaking shoulders.
"Ino… what're you doing here?"
"I-I…"
He slowly sat up and sighed, patting her back.
"Stop crying, or I can't help you."
"T-Temari…" Ino whispered, dropping her journal on the ground and hugging Shikamaru, burying her face into his chest as she cried. Shikamaru sighed and picked up the journal, it open to her latest entry. He sighed as he started to read, Ino sniffling in silence.
"This is the memorial of the greatest ninja in the entire village," Ino announced, showing Temari the large stone in the center of the holy place. Temari seemed distant as Ino ranted on about how honorable it was to have one's name made here. Temari reached a small graveyard and stopped.
"Where is Chouji buried?" Temari asked, looking at the rows and rows of small grave planks.
"Uh…. This one over here…" Ino said, slowly walking toward a brightly decorated one, her blue eyes hidden as she looked at the ground. A grave marked in the ground was fresh with spring flowers and a small paper butterfly on the post. Temari looked at it for a long time and Ino noticed the distant look in her eyes.
"He was alone, I heard."
"Uh…. He fought bravely! No one could have ever expected him to…"Ino trailed off starting to pick a few flowers out of the ground that were dying.
"Did you ever want to do this?" Temari whispered.
"What?"
"You know what. Be a ninja. Yes we are the pride of our village but it people just got along then there would be no need for us…" her green eyes starting to sparkle with tears, her head low.
"But then more people would have to defend this place anyway, there are people out there who want to destroy our villages and as ninjas were are asked to only protect what we love. That's what he did, he died protecting the place he loved. He was a great fighter, no one saw more potenial in him then Shikamaru, that's why he picked him… Do you wish you had gone?"
"I would have rather died saving someone else's village then my own, I hate the place I can from, always living in fear, not knowing the love of parents, out in the desert with two little brothers who never listen to me. I lived a horrible life until I came here, met you and Shikamaru, but this guy… he wasn't anything like anyone I'd ever met, so brave in a completely hopeless situation and died for the love of a thing that can't love him back… land."
Ino stood in silence over the grave, a few blue and white butterflies fluttering as a gush of wind blew past, sending the dead flowers in her hands into the air.
"If we didn't die, someone else would have to."
"I want to die, but not for people who don't love me."
"What are you talking about? You have the world on a platter for you, guys swoon and girls envy, why die now?" Ino almost yelled, anger rising in her chest.
"Do you think I have a single friend? Chouji was the only one who ever talked to me like a human!"
"Chouji?" Ino asked, taking a step back.
"Yes… Before the fight with Shikamaru he came up to me and wished me luck, his own teammate about to fight me and he wished me luck. I was at first angry, thinking he meant that the lazy idiot would beat me, but it was more of him wishing me luck in my fight, that I understood something, luck that I would get it. Whatever it was I was supposed to get…."
Ino stared at the grave and suddenly started to cry.
"Ah! I-Ino! What's wrong?"
"H-He was a-a-always the best of us a-all, he was the o-only one who cared! God why'd he have to die!"
Temari knelt down and helped the weeping girl to her feet, taking a short path back to the hill, leaving her there, without anything short of a "Good-bye, I'll visit again."
Shikamaru sighed and realized that Ino had fallen asleep on his, leaving him still holding her journal. She had been doing this lately, writing down flowers. Well he did know of one flower that he would think Ino would like for the Sand ninja.
Dear Ino's Journal, againI can't think of anything else to do but this, so here it goes. Ino is unable to speak right now, but this flower she has been looking for, might be the Hybrid crium, the only flower I remember from Ino's shop. It means Delicate Weakness. Temari is weak, but not as in physical strength, but mental, with no life she deserved, living in constant hatred of the world, she is left alone as this tiny little flower. Guess that's all I can say. Ino's still sleeping.
Shikamaru
-Hey y'all, I was so busy with finals and computer problems that this chapter took forever to finish. Yes, I made Shikamaru write the end, but he's smart and would probably remember something random like that that Ino told him. So sorry for the late chapter, thank you for all of the reviews, Jya!
Invader Hog OUT!