Author's note: This chapter was badly written and I apologize for it. I've been running out of inspiration to write and I kind of rushed through it. I'm sorry. As usual, feel free to tell me your beefs. Thanks!

Disclaimer: If I claimed I owned Naruto, my lawyers would quit.

Ino was running as fast as her legs could carry her. Her white blonde hair was disheveled and whipped wildly around her face as she darted towards the main gates of Konohagakure. Several merchants who had come to the marketplace early, stopped in their work to stare at the young woman who was running through the village, wearing only her nightgown.

'Dammit, I overslept!' Ino was sweating lightly despite the cool, morning air.

'I have to make it!' Focusing her chakra into the soles of her bare feet, the young woman leaped high into the air and jumped from rooftop to rooftop. Her thin nightgown was billowing in the wind, flying past her thigh as she jumped, but she didn't care. She just had to get there.

'Shika, wait for me.' She pleaded silently.

Her nightdress caught on a loose branch as she hopped from a rooftop to a tree, it tore, revealing more of her slender body. But Ino still didn't care, for she could see the heavy wooden gates that led to the forest that surrounded the forest.

'Almost there.' She smiled to herself.

The young woman launched her body further into the sky and crossed a great distance, before landing firmly on her feet, knees bent to absorb the force of the impact. Chouji felt her presence and turned to face her, a look of surprise and shock on his face as Ino looked the worse for wear. Her hair hung wildly on her shoulders and there was a smidgen of dirt across her fair cheek.

"Ino, what happened to you? Why are you still in your nightgown?" He asked, concerned filled his warm eyes.

"I'm here! I'm here, Chouji. I made it." A smile of satisfaction spread across her sullied yet still beautiful face. She looked around, eyes frantically searching for the man she had come to send off, but she only found the strange looks of the villagers. She was almost half-naked, and the curve of her firm breasts could be seen under her badly torn nightgown. Some men had taken to staring at her chest, hoping to get a better glimpse of her womanly features.

Chouji was aware of those blatant gazes and immediately took off his jacket and put it on Ino's thin shoulders, shielding her body from prying eyes. She pulled it around herself gratefully.

"Thanks Chouji, I was getting cold."

"I can't believe I got here before that lazy bum." She was still smiling, still searching for him.

Then she saw him. A shadowy figure slouching by the gates, wearing a green flak jacket, jet-black hair tied up in a spiky ponytail.

"What?"

"Do you think I'll ever find someone who will love me as much as I will love him?"

"How should I know?"

"You're the super genius!"

"It doesn't mean I know everything. But why do you ask?"

"I don't know… It's just that I wish I had someone to love. Some to care for, to fuss over… Someone whom I can call as my own, always and forever."

"I see… I'm sure you'll find that person some day, Ino."

"Really? You're not just saying that to get me to shut up?"

"Hah! Like you'll shut up that easily!"

"Shikamaru!"

It was dawn. The sun was just slowly beginning its upward journey towards the blue yonder. It was coyly showing its golden face behind the hills that lay beyond Konoha's borders, and the sky was a beautiful mix of red, orange and yellow hues. The creatures of the night began retreating back into the dark corners of the forest outside the gates, as the beasts of the day awakened and began their activity. Yet, the village was quiet and still, all of its residents still undisturbed from their peaceful slumber. All except six people who were making their way to the village gates, careful not to make any noise that may provoke the sleep of others.

Shikamaru, Neji, Shino and Sakura were about to leave for their mission in the Earth country while Tsunade and Chouji had come to send them off. Looking at the small, sad band of beings, one couldn't help but feel a little sad for they seemed so lonely, so forlorn. And they were. They were going off on a mission they might not return from and that sense of knowing that each step may be leading you closer to your death is not something you could share with someone who wasn't in the same situation. It was the loneliest feeling in the world – knowing that you are staring death right in the face and knowing that you chose to do so. The four young ninja could only take small comfort in the fact that at least they would share each other's fate and that if they were to die, their sacrifices would serve a greater purpose.

And their loved ones not being there made their leaving seem even more poignant.

Shikamaru and Shino's parents were on a mission, and were unable to send their sons off, while Sakura's mother was ill and the pink-haired kunoichi had forbidden her from leaving her bed. Neji's parents, on the other hand, were both dead and his uncle would have come in their stead, but Hiashi had urgent matters of the clan to attend to. Though the younger man once harbored a great resentment against his uncle, the two had grown close in recent years and Hiashi had come to see Neji as his own son. Hinata offered herself as a stand in, not only because she wanted to send her beloved cousin off but to wish her former teammate, Shino, the best of luck as well. But Neji wouldn't allow it for she was still recuperating from her injuries sustained in a previous mission and insisted that she stayed home. Even when she had shed tears of distress and voiced fervent protests, he made her promise to stay and even got Hanabi to watch over her. Their other friends were all occupied one way or the other and probably had no news of their impending mission. Lee, Tenten, Kiba and Naruto were acting as liaisons in the Hidden Sand – this year's host for the Chuunin exam, while many of their jounin senseis such as Gai, Kakashi and Asuma were in other countries on missions.

Thus, Tsunade took it upon herself to see that they had at least some measure of comfort, knowing that there would be someone to see them leave and to send them off with sincere wishes of good luck. But she silently doubted that her presence would offer them any solace and she bit on her painted lips to hold back the dam of tears that were threatening to burst from her eyes. And painful as it was, sometimes it was necessary to sacrifice the lives of a few to protect the lives of many. It was decision that only a hokage would have to undertake. Tsunade knew that it was a great responsibility that kages had to face, including her grandfather, but she hadn't thought that one day she would have to carry this burden as well. She still didn't know whether she was making the right decision, but it was too late to back out now.

As the team slowly walked towards the gate, Tsunade was giving her apprentice Sakura some last minute medical advice, while Shino and Neji were making pitiful attempts to have a conversation about the weather to ease their nervousness. It was strange to see the two young men so unnerved, as they were always cool, calm and collected. Shikamaru was craning his neck, scanning the still darkened streets with his sharp eyes. Chouji knew whom his best friend was waiting for. Normally, the stout man would have jumped at any opportunity to tease his friend mercilessly, taunting him about a certain blond haired, curvy female. He would playfully ask Shikamaru whom he was waiting for, and the deer herder would blush and snap that he wasn't waiting for anybody. Then, Chouji would point at something behind Shikamaru and yell "Ino!", prompting the brunette to spin around on his heels, eyes wide, searching intently at the spot where his best friend had pointed. When he discovered that he had been tricked, he would blush a deeper shade of red and muttered "mendokusai" under his breath as he always did. He was obviously caught red-handed and Chouji would delight in his companion's embarrassment, laughing his head off with chips in his mouth. This time, he couldn't bring himself to laugh.

"She'll come, Shikamaru." Chouji put a big hand on the shadow master's shoulder, reassuring his friend with a touch that he knew meant so much to him. It was their way of telling each other that "Things will be alright, I've got your back." Shikamaru had to smile at his friend. After all this years, it was still Chouji who understood him best, it was Chouji who always stood by his side. They had been inseparable since the day they met and they could tell what was in the other's mind without having to speak. But even now, his best friend couldn't possibly understand the torment he was going through nor would he be able around to watch his back this time.

"Who?" Shikamaru asked innocently, feigning a look of confusion on his face. Then both men shared a moment of childish laughter, and for a moment, all their worries and seemed to melt away. But as quickly as the laughter came, it disappeared, and both were again reminded of why they were here.

"Shikamaru, its time to go." Neji called for his team leader.

"Its time already?" The wiry young man declared disbelievingly. "But she isn't here yet." He mumbled. No one heard it, except the wind that was now blowing softly in his face. It was caressing his cheek sweetly, bringing with it the smell of the trees and dango that made Konoha famous, as though the wind was giving him a parting gift - memories of his home to bring with him on the mission. Shikamaru stood there unmoving, a small smile on his lips as he let the cool breeze embrace his body. Somehow, it reminded him more of Ino. Her fingers were always cool, and he liked it when she pressed them to his forehead to check if he had a fever after a day of training in the rain.

"We have to leave if we are to get there in three days." Neji spoke up again. He understood the other man's reluctance - a feeling he had experienced before when he had loved the woman Shikamaru was now waiting for. But they had a mission to complete.

"Let's go." Shikamaru replied. His back was still to his teammates. He took one last look at the village and reached out to put his palm on Chouji's chest, the sturdy man did the same in return. Without a word, he turned to join the rest as they began their lonely walk towards the Earth Country.

Then, Shikamaru turned to look behind his back one more time. Still holding onto hope that a new order would come and he wouldn't have to leave, still holding on to seeing her smiling face. The young man found neither.

Chouji watched the four leave until they disappeared into the shadows that shrouded the forest and he could see them no longer. He reached up to touch his chest where Shikamaru had put his hand, and was surprised when his fingertips brushed against paper instead of cloth. He slowly drew out a white envelope from the pocket in which it was tucked and on it was written simply "For Ino".

The man wasn't the one she was looking for.

Ino thought that Chouji had given her a handkerchief to wipe her tears but he had given her an envelope instead. Tears were blurring her vision, and she couldn't read what was written on it. Swiping at her eyes with the back of her hand, Ino had recognized Shikamaru's lopsided handwriting before she had come to read what he had written. With shaking fingers, she tore open the edge of the envelope and out came a delicate gold necklace, with a shining blue gem for a locket. Blue that was exactly the color of her eyes. She reached into the envelope with two fingers and brought out a small piece of paper that was folded neatly. Her hands were shaking even more now and with great effort, she managed to unfold it without tearing the ghost white sheet. Tears welled in her cerulean eyes, spilling onto her porcelain skin as she read it. She sobbed dreadfully, clutching the necklace to her heart as the paper slipped from her grasp and she sank to the ground on her knees. Everyone was staring now, but not because they were gawking at a strange sight, but because the young woman's weeping seemed to touch the very core of their beings. They couldn't help but feel sympathy for her and wondered what could it be that made her cry like this.

Chouji knelt to hold her in his huge arms as she sobbed and his eyes fell on the piece of paper lying sadly on the damp ground. On it were written six words, six small words that conveyed a whole of wave of emotions and held so much meaning that it hurts your heart just reading it.

"I am yours. Always and forever."

Endnote: Hope you didn't cringe while reading it. I've thought up of two endings, I always do when I write – one's a good ending, one's a not so good ending. Please tell me which you prefer and I'll write that one. Thanks:)