Chapter 5

Flashback - 10 Years ago

After they confirmed by meeting each other's eyes that they had not misheard, Chouji and Shikamaru turned back to stare at their former teammate.

"Sorry, could you repeat that?" Asked Chouji.

A radiant, free of make up Ino, sat across from them, laughing at their expressions. She laid against her husband's side and with her feet on the couch. She was wearing presumably Gaara's tshirt as it hanged loose on her shoulders, along with pajama pants. Gaara's arm wrapped around Ino and rested comfortably by her side while rubbing her stomach. Ino was swollen enough to almost hold twins, but the couple shared excitedly that it would be a big healthy baby boy. You wouldn't be able to tell the extra weight bothered Ino though. She was the epitome of comfort, lightness and ease.

"I was telling Gaara how much I missed my boys and wondering if you were getting enough food and sleep. You'll be staying overnight, right?"

Chouji was still wondering if they were in an alternative universe, Shikamaru nodded and clarified. "Ah well, I can only stay until tomorrow, I need to head back to Suna in the morning. Temari hasn't been feeling well lately"

"I am sure you will have nothing to worry about once you get there" The couple exchanged a secretive glance. Shikamaru was going to ask her what she meant, when she suddenly jerked forward.

"Oh!" Ino said while holding her stomach.

Her two teammates tensed, while Gaara's face was covered by the Suna newspaper Shikamaru brought him. Ino twisted towards her two teammates. "I forgot I also put appetizers in the oven."

Chouji released his breath, while Shikamaru tried to get up, "No, Ino, I'll get it, just tell me where it is"

Ino slapped his arm. "Don't be silly, you are our guests. Ah, Gaara, love, could you please show Shikamaru and Chouji their room, so that they can take their jackets and stuff there? Do you guys want anything in particular to drink?" She asked while pausing by the kitchen door.

Gaara put the newspaper down, and both him and Chouji stood up next to Shikamaru.

"Water,"

"...Yes, eh water is fine" they said awkwardly.

She smiled again. "I'm just so happy to have my three favorite boys, well, soon to be four, in one room. Feel free to take a nap until dinner's ready" she added excitedly before heading to the kitchen.

It wasn't long after they were on their way to their rooms, that Chouji insisted in asking for Gaara's secret. "What did you do to her?" Chouji asked amazed. "she is actually... nice"

The redhead didn't respond with anything but a smile, which surprised them more. Gaara walked forward to show them to their room but used his hand to stretch and rub his other arm.

"It's good to hear that everything with the pregnancy is going smoothly" Chouji added as a sidenote.

"Ah yes, Sakura reminds us how lucky we are. Ino may be a little bit overdue but she doesn't believe it will need to be induced."

He showed them the guest room, and they both stopped by the door. "I'm impressed"said Chouji, while Shikamaru observed. "You seem to be handling this very well considering it's your first one, I would have expected anyone else to be freaking out right now"

Gaara nodded and sobered up, then looked over towards the kitchen area before he glanced at the two men pointedly. He led them further inside the guest room. Then once he knew they were out of sight his shoulders dropped and he responded "Have you seen the size of my wife's stomach? Of course, I'm freaking out." He said out of character.

"I usually don't sleep well, but these last few months it's been worse. I can't remember what I've done this morning...The only thing that keeps me going, is that Ino seems to be sleeping better than ever, and that it has taken this long for that baby to be born." He pulled back and at their confused expression he tried to clarify. "I was premature, and my mother's body couldn't handle the birth…"

His eyes were looking in the direction of the kitchen. "Sakura said Ino is strong and that the baby is developing healthy. I don't know." Straightening up, Gaara looked at both of them seriously. "Anyway… I appreciate it if you don't share this with her."

The other two men's eyebrows rose, as they got an unexpected response from Gaara; never mind the honesty, it was probably a longer response than all their conversations combined, together or individually, since they met him.

"She is sleeping better than ever?" Shikamaru asked curiously. Gaara nodded. "She used to be more of a light sleeper, but now days, she sleeps so soundly, she even snores." He adds with another tired smile before rolling his shoulders. "Feel some of the weight has been lifted off my shoulders- Thanks guys. I should go check on Ino"

How troublesome. Once Gaara leaves, Shikamaru and Chouji start settling their bags in the space. Chouji paused and looked up to Shikamaru. "Ino snores?"

Shikamaru shook his head. "Both are sleep deprived and trying extra hard to reassure the other." Chouji took in Shikamaru's observation. "Ah, that explains why they are acting so weird."

Then as an afterthought the larger man added "if Ino is this nice when she is tired, we should probably come over once the baby is born"

Ino was a mess. When she tried to get out of bed the next morning, she found she could not move. Her ankle still in Gaara's cast was sore; her muscles frozen and her feet blistered. Her shoulders were stiff from holding on to Naruto, and the back of her neck was sunburned. The waist wrap had been so tight around her skin that there was a twelve-inch band of fiery prickly heat underneath her breasts.

Only by the most agonizing efforts she crawled out of bed and staggered a few feet across the room to call the staff. The message sent with the inn staff for her husband, demanding that he bring Heero to her, was ignored. When a different staff brought her a tray of food at lunch he did not give Ino any information at all.

As the day progressed and no one came to check in on her, it added to her depression. She was crippled, her clothes raggedy, couldn't get a hold of anyone, and even forgot to bring money to cover the inn's bill. She had been naively thinking she would be with Gaara and that he would have taken care of the details.

Memories of her friends' words ran through her mind. They all probably suspected, or known of Gaara's woman. Yet they had not warned her, not given her even a hint. She cursed them all in her mind for their cruelty.

When she managed to drag herself out of bed, she filled the bathtub with warm water and asked the staff to pick up her laundry. She heard a choked giggle and avoided the look the female maid gave her when she picked up Ino's waist wrap and guessed the reason for the slit on the back seam.

Ino flushed with frustration as she sank lower into the tub. If she never ate again, she was going to get her figure back. Matsuri's sneering and the amused staff were the last straw.

At last, dried and dressed in clean pressed clothing, she felt slightly human again. With arms so sore she could barely raise them above her head, she unbraided her hair and began to brush it. The task was exhausting and tears stood in her eyes when the brush encountered the tangles and snarls. It had not been taken down since Sakura braided it four days ago.

Her hair was so long but she couldn't bare to cut it. In the happier days of her marriage, Gaara had loved to spread it over her body hiding everything but the tips of her breasts and her long white limbs.

If Gaara could see her now, what would he say? Matsuri's hair was a rich mahogany color and at shoulders length. Maybe that is the style Gaara preferred now? Flinging down the hairbrush annoyed, she covered her eyes with her hand. Had she really been such a terrible failure of a wife to him?

Stifling a sob, she wiped the tears from her cheeks with the heel of her hand. There was no point of playing the blame game right now. Her main concern was Heero. Under no circumstances could she allow Gaara to leave with her son in the care of Matsuri.

Gritting her teeth, she rose and prepared herself mentally to meet him again.

It was mid-afternoon, when she finally left the room. In order to go down the stairs, she had to hold on to the bannister with both hands. She stepped down with her better leg while putting pressure on her hands to hold her weight and relieve the leg with the cast. At last, she drew a deep breath, removed her hand from the newel post, and managed to walk almost normally across the lobby to the desk.

"What room is assigned to Sabaku no Heero?

The clerk was the same one who had she sent her first message. "I… that is, we have no one registered by that name."

She tapped one finger imperiously on the scarred cypress desk. "Of course he's not registered. He is staying with his father, Sabaku no Gaara. However, you cannot have so many small boys staying in this inn that you would have trouble remembering the room."

"We have no one registered by that name, either"

A dark premonition rose in her brain. "What?" Her clear voice sank to a hoarse whisper.

"They are no longer staying here. They paid their bill and left."

"Where have they gone?" The man met her eyes then, his face expressionless. If he knew the right of her story, he gave no sign. "I believe they left for their mission…."

Ino swayed where she stood. "How long ago?"

"I'm not sure" Ino struck the desk with her fist. "Damn it! When?"

"An hour ago"

She turned away from the desk, her mind in turmoil. Straightening her back and assuming her haughtiest expression, she turned back to the clerk. "I am sure you are already aware that my brother-in-law is the Kazekage, are you not?" "Yes, Ma'am"

"Then I demand that you secure transportation for me to meet with the senior council, now!" The clerk stumbled over his own feet as he spun away and raced for the door.

When Ino arrived to the Kazekage's headquarters, she went straight to the floor of the council.

"Excuse me, ma'am. You, you can't go in there! Our senior council is a very busy man." The secretary all but fell over his desk, but Ino ignored him and trusted open the door. "Ma'am!" As she swept into the interior office, Baki, her husband's former team leader rose from behind the desk. The secretary hovered behind her, his hands outstretched, fingers twitching futilely. He shrugged hopelessly as Baki's gray eyebrows rose almost to his hairline, then snapped together in a frown.

"He'll see me," Ino advised the man briskly. "Sir, I am Sabaku no Ino, but you already knew that." She stated as the man made no response other than a slight tightening of his mouth.

"I tried to stop her, sir" the secretary bleated. "But she barged, uh-hurried right past me." The senior councils' frown deepened. Doubling his hands into fist, he pressed them into the desk and leaned forward. "Young woman," he began sternly, "I'm a busy man. Perhaps you'd better make an appointment with my secretary…"

Ino halted directly in front of Baki's desk remaining firmly in place. He didn't seem to care who she was. The heat rising in her checks, she sought to control her temper. It was not this man's fault how her life was being destroyed by her husband. From his point of view, she had all but broken into his office and refused to leave when his secretary had asked her to. Still…

He cleared his throat noisily. "Well, what can I do Sabaku-san? Please state your problem. As I hinted at earlier, you are on borrowed time"

"My son- the Kazekage's nephew is being kidnapped." She blurted.

He leaned back in his chair. "Kidnapped?"

He was not reacting as she had foreseen "Yes, kidnapped. As in, taken away from me. In a mission for Rock Country." She cleared her throat. "You have to help me. The team captain has to be notified before they leave"

He folded his arms across his chest, a most unusual position for a man sitting down.

"Have you been to the proper authorities? Like the Kazekage? Your brother-in-law?"

"Well, no but-"

"Why do you think he is being kidnapped?"

The question was delivered in a tone that snapped her control.

"Damn you, what kind of a man are you? I tell you my son's been kidnapped and you sit there, with arms folded, questioning me"

"I am a cautious man, Sabaku-san" His eyes narrowed. His jaw tightened. He stood up. "I think I've heard enough."

"No!" she met him at the corner of the desk. Toe to toe, she challenged him. "You have the power to halt this mission"

"This mission is not starting until 2 days from now. Any authorities"-his voice was heavy with sarcasm- "you would wish to summon would be able to stop the mission before they leave." He strode to the door and held it open.

She stubbornly held her ground. "My son is being taken away from me."

"By his father."

"How did you know that?!"

"The Kazekage's brother has already made all the arrangements. He warned me that you were not happy about the situation"

"Gaara already warned you!"

"He told me that you were in ill health, not quite right in your mind," he added with breathtaking insensitivity. He stared at her. "I can see what he meant."

The condescending tone made her curse infuriated. "My son is being taken away from his home and mother. He is only ten years old. His father is the one who has lost his mind. If you do not act, the Kazekage's tactician will be-"

"Gaara has my confidence," he interrupted, coming back to take her arm above the elbow.

"How much has he paid you?" she snarled, jerking her arm out of his grasp. "Your mind was already made up."

He sighed. "My mind was not made up. I told Gaara that I had grave reservations about the entire proceeding. And so I did-until I met you."

Ino held back on some choice words.

"Sabaku-san, be reasonable, you come in here in an embarrassing manner. You used a disrespectful tone and language. As you spoke I watched and listened closely. I am forced to agree with your husband that the boy would in every respect benefit from this trip while you have a chance to recover your health and mind."

Ino shook her head, her face contorted. Her voice sank to a desperate growl. "I am not crazy"

His manner switched to unctuous sympathy. "You are very distraught"

"I'll report you to Shikamaru. He will notify the Hokage of your actions and this will definitely strain current relationships between Konoha and Suna-"

"-Leave" his patience ran out. He handled her across the office with his firm body.

"At least give me the name of the team captain of the mission"

"It will do you no good, but if it will get you out of here, very well, you are more than welcomed to make a fool of yourself. Try reaching out to team captain Sabaku no Gaara who is leading by recommendation of no one other than Suna's tactician Nara Shikamaru himself. Goodbye!" He slammed the door in her face.

Ino stood there shocked. Gaara must have planned this move for months. Arrangements of which she had no knowledge must have passed back and forth between Konoha and Suna.

Stunned, she turned away. Like a wraith, her face white as paper, she drifted down the street toward the inn, her mind turning round and round on one inescapable fact. They had known all along. Gaara, Tsunade, Kankurou, Temari and... Shikamaru.

No one cared about Ino's feelings, Ino's grief. Somehow she made her way back to the inn. As if she had walked in her sleep, she awakened in her room to stare around her in some surprise. Without bothering to slip out of her clothes, she climbed up on the bed and stretched out. Hoping to force her mind to remain witless.

How much more was she supposed to take in? How much without feeling like dying? Her husband leaving was devastating. She was still trying to come to terms with it. Now on top of it all, her only family left, sided with her husband. Shikamaru had actually participated in the preparations of Gaara and Heero leaving. Even Temari's role hurt. Yes, she was Gaara's sister, but she thought they had gotten closer through Ino's pregnancy and become friends. It wasn't surprising she would side with Gaara, but as a mother she should know what they were putting Ino through.

She had no tears left. Not only her body, but her mind and her soul must be useless. Everyone who she had believed loved her, also believed she was unfit to raise her own son.

She was interrupted in her depression by a knock at the door, then Gaara's voice calling her name.

Had her mind snapped? She listened again, fearful to hear and not hear it again.

"Ino…" and again the light knocking.

She tried to call out, but her throat was too dry.

Swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, she stood and limped to the door. "Yes."

"Ino, are you alright?"

She chuckled faintly. "No."

There was silence. "No?"

"I'm dying…"

A long pause, then his voice came again through the thick oak. "Open this door."

Her betraying fingers obeyed him rather than her. She pushed the bolt back and the door open. He stood there, looking tall and handsome, his face carefully closed to all emotion. If the dead whiteness and deep lines of her face shocked him, he gave no sign. Still after a minute, his voice registered some concern. "Are you alright?"

This time she did not bothered to answer him. Instead she concentrated on clinging to the door to keep from crumpling to the floor. An instant after her haunted eyes found him, they fell to stare at a spot on the floor between the toes of his boots.

"You've been feeling sorry for yourself" he stated not surprised.

"Sakura already told me that" she muttered dully.

If he had eyebrows, they would have rose, "She's right"

The silence grew between them. He shifted from one foot to the other. At length, he shrugged. "I've paid your bill at the inn until tomorrow. I also came to check on your leg."

Her stiff lips moved in an absolutely still face. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why would you care?"

Gaara sighed. "Ino, you are still my wife, is the least I can do"

"The least you could have done was to have let me die, if this is how you were going to treat me"

"Puppet" his voice was only a whisper.

"Don't say that" Her eyes flew fiercely to his face. "And don't look like that, stop sending me mixed messages, you don't get to be the aggressor and the victim at the same time."

Instantly, he stepped back, the expression gone. "Why would I ...when you already do it so well. Self-centered as always. Go home Ino Yamanaka and grow up. I'll see you in a year."

Before he could turn away, she shut the door quietly in his face and leaned against it. She had a small hope he would change his mind and knock again but instead she heard the scuffle of his boots and then the thud of his heels as he strode away.

She stared at the firm sand cast still attached to her leg. Why did he felt the need to do her favors? When he was so unwilling to give her another chance? A fierce spirit of rebellion, born of fiery hot temper burned in her again. He was not going to manipulate her any further. She would stop Heero from leaving one way or another.