The trip to the Land of Iron started out on an extremely positive note for Ino. First, the target of her affections agreed to join her team as the temporary stand in (quite excitedly she liked to add). Then he came to her house and gave her a kit of shinobi tools. With both of her parents present, she jubilantly opened her gift.

The box itself was black and embossed with the Senju crest on the top, tied rather elegantly in an amethyst bow. That detail alone got a girlish squeal out both of the Yamanaka females. Inoichi flinched violently, as he was wholly unprepared for such a sound at such an hour, spilling his piping hot coffee all over his outfit. Naruto gave his fellow blonde an apologetic grimace as the older man hissed in pain at the contact of scalding liquid.

Within the box lay a set of ten serrated kunai, twenty-eight serrated shuriken, forty neatly lined senbon, and a single lilac. Her breath hitched at how beautiful they were, each kunai possessing a hilt that looked like a rose. The girl looked to her crush with stars in her eyes. He grinned and lifted the top portion from its resting place. Ino gasped to find even more; four smoke bombs laced with hallucinogens, twenty pellets of his own design that he simply called 'haze' pellets, and a gas mask that went over her nose and mouth to protect her from any airborne toxins. Like her outfit, it was purple and instead of bearing the insignia of Konoha, it bore the crest of the Yamanaka clan.

Inochi gave a low whistle of appreciation, while holding his teary-eyed wife. Ino herself was robbed of words, convinced that no words could convey the gratitude her very soul was shouting loudly. She pounced on the poor blonde, knocking him over as he held her tightly.

When the duo met up with the rest of Team Ten, it was instantly obvious that something happened to Ino. She didn't complain about Asuma lighting his premium cigarette, nor did she complain about Choji enjoying his favorite brand of chips. Both males of the team swapped concerned looks, having a silent conversation the entire time.

'This is it. Today's the day, Choji; we can only be thankful that Shikamaru isn't here, but we must remain strong.' Asuma's look seemed to convey.

Choji nodded a single time. 'I know, Asuma-sensei. Don't worry though, my clan has a strong constitution, so I'll taste any food she cooks first. If it tastes weird, I'll spit it out and we'll make a run for it.'

Naruto walked up with Ino pressing rather closely to him. "Hey Choji. Asuma-sensei. What'cha whispering about?"

Both men swapped looks before staring dumbly at the male of the two blondes. Asuma took the cigarette from his mouth and examined it closely. Likewise, Choji examined his chips to make sure they weren't spiked with anything. The heir to the Sarutobi clan and the heir of the Akimichi clan were highly confused; they could have sworn that conversation had taken place within their minds. They were actually whispering the whole time?

Muttering something about embarrassing senseis and teammates, Ino claimed Naruto's hand and dragged him past the village gates. Asuma and Choji shared one more look before beginning their journey.

Sakura Haruno was not having a good day.

Looking back on it as the sun set, she wasn't at all surprised when she felt tears creeping down her cheeks. The pain in her chest was beyond anything she'd ever felt, a dull ache that was still somehow sharp and stabbing. Sakura was accustomed to rejection at the hands of her crush, or at the very least, that was what she would continue to tell herself. Wanting something else to feel the pain constricting her heart, she grabbed the photograph of her graduating class and cocked her arm back with the intention of smashing it against the wall.

But her eyes landing on the unsmiling form of Sasuke Uchiha. She froze as she stared into the photograph, his dark eyes immortalized in the prettiest frame she could create. Everyone else in the picture had their faces scratched out, the only exceptions being herself and Sasuke. Sakura couldn't even begin to count how many times she would stare at the image and allow her imagination to run rampant, fueling her already obsessive love. Her heart clenched painfully as a fresh wave of tears flowed. With a scream of coalescing rage and pain, she threw it, reveling in the loud shattering of glass.

"Good morning Sasuke-kun!" Sakura greeted in earnest as she handed him a bento box. "I made this for you."

The Last of the Uchiha clan glared at her with a look of deepest loathing and went to practice his fire release jutsu until Kakashi-sensei showed up. With a sigh, she moved closer to her crush to cheer him on as he released string after string of fireballs. As per usual, he ignored her and continued training.

"Great job, Sasuke-kun." she smiled brightly at him, beaming with pride. Her Sasuke-kun was truly one of the most powerful shinobi of their generation.

The boy of her dreams looked her in the depths of her viridescent eyes. "What did you do this entire time? You shouldn't just wait for Kakashi to come before you get any training done."

Sakura was taken aback. Had what he said been any different, perhaps more positive, it would have been a scene straight out of her sweetest dreams. She shrank back before a nice plan popped into her mind.

"How about you train with me?" she asked with a smile. "Then we could get stronger together! Perhaps we could finally go on a date afterwards."

"Why would I lower myself to your level?" he asked with a sneer. "At least Ino got stronger. I might even take her from that blonde idiot."

That hurt more than Sakura was willing to admit. "What does that damn pig have that I don't?"

"Strength. Clan jutsu that would have made up for her worthlessness. She isn't a stalker." he paused and shuddered as though looking through less than savory memories. "Not as much as you, anyway. Besides, she's started taking being a shinobi serious; that alone would make someone want to save her, instead of dead-weight."

That hurt worse than the previous statement. "I-I can get stronger, Sasuke-kun. I-I just n-need some help."

The boy scoffed. "I'm surprised the idiot saved you from Zabuza. Maybe if you didn't make it back, we would've gotten a teammate that wouldn't hold me back."

At that moment, Sakura felt as though she were the one who Zabuza stabbed. Her entire world came crashing down around her as her heart constricted painfully, seeming like it was going to burst from his cold words. Without another word, she turned around and sprinted towards her house, intent on trying to outrun the pain lacerating her insides. She heard him say one last thing.

"Pathetic."

Sakura Haruno was not having a good day; it was safe to say that she was indeed having the worst day of her life. With a broken heart and aching head, she curled up under her blankets and cried herself to sleep. There was one thought she held onto like a lifeline, however. A single memory from their time in the Land of Wave.

"The past is in the past. We're teammates." he'd told her with that kind smile that seemingly unique to him, and him alone. "If you need help training or anything just know I'm here to help."

Naruto's arms were crossed in front of his face as he slid backwards, his feet planted in the snow. Ino appeared in front of him, her arms and legs coated in dark brown earth release chakra. With her appendages harder than diamond, she was able to resist Naruto's punches. He was holding back by a lot, but it was alright. She threw a wicked punch that was slapped away, then attacked with an elbow to his chest. Naruto caught the attack, and went to headbutt her. Faster than he could react, pain shot through his forehead. When he looked, he saw that her entire face was the same color as her arms and legs.

Ino spun low, going for a leg sweep. Naruto backflipped away from the other blonde and had to block a punch that would have more than likely hurt more than he would've liked to admit. She grabbed his arm and shifted her weight in the way he'd taught her the week prior to them arriving in the Land of Iron.

Naruto was more than a little surprised when he found himself suddenly weightless. The air in his lungs seemed to flee at once when his back met the snow covered ground with a force he wouldn't have thought possible from the other blonde. In a flash, she was over him with one hand on his throat and the other aiming one of her specially made kunai at his heart. He was proud of her progress; every break they'd taken on three week trip to the snowy country was usually spent training. Sometimes the training was more aggressive, while others were spent working on chakra control. Having mastered the Earth Spear and Mud Spore, Naruto thought to teach her two more jutsu and work on her taijutsu.

Ino was breathing heavily, but that was only due to her exertions in the freezing cold. She was currently straddling her blonde's abdomen with her serrated kunai aimed to kill. But she completely at the mercy of the other genin.

The Yamanaka clan heiress couldn't tear her gaze from the blue eyes of the Senju heir. His eyes, whirlpools of liquid cerulean were so hypnotic that they seemed to drag her very consciousness to their azure depths. Ino was drowning, drowning in a pair of eyes that seemed to be an amalgam of several shades of blue and as she continued to fight against the sapphire waves that were dragging her further and further down, she didn't notice face moving closer to Naruto's.

Naruto's breathing had picked up as the other blonde's face moved closer, lips coming dangerously close to his own. He had no problem with it; the past three weeks had been most insightful. He knew her. She knew him.

Fears. Motivations. Aspirations. Inspirations. Likes. Dislikes. Favorite color. Favorite books. Least favorite activity.

They knew the other's answer. Just yesterday rather brazenly claimed Naruto as her own, uncaring of the slack jawed stares of her sensei and teammate.

"Naruto-kun?"

He hummed, letting her know that he was listening despite his attention being on the delicate operation of adding a powered hallucinogenic compound to his smoke bombs. He was on the last one and once he corked the bomb, he looked up, giving the other blonde his full attention.

"What's up, Ino-chan?"

Trying to ignore the fact that her stomach exploded into frenzied butterflies and that her heart began to flutter at the honorific, she looked at him, her dazzling blue eyes holding his in a death grip. Asuma and Choji looked up from the bag of chips and cigarette respectively, curious as to what was about to happen. It was no secret that Ino and Naruto were close and had gotten closer over the course of the mission. Not that Asuma minded, glad that his pupil found a reason grow stronger. The blonde male even helped Choji develop his techniques and grow more confident.

"You're mine now," she said simply. "Got it?"

Naruto tilted his head to the left as he shook his smoke bombs to properly mix the contents. Asuma's jaw instantly went slack, his cigarette falling from his lips. Likewise, Choji dropped his chips. The oldest of the males cursed silently as he had to now fish the last of his cigarettes from his pocket.

"Yours how?" he asked innocently, before dawning lit his eyes.

"My k-koibito." she muttered, then a little louder and with more aggression, she said. "Your my b-boyfriend, damn it."

"Hm," Naruto pondered this for a moment, before shrugging. "Okay, Ino-chan."

For the briefest of moments, as Ino proceeded to happily snuggle into the side of the other blonde, Asuma wondered if it was truly that easy. Could he just walk up to Kurenai Yūhi, stare her dead in her ruby eyes, and just say 'Hey Kurenai, you're my girlfriend now. Alright?' Granted, regardless of how shy his student was around her fellow blonde, she was quite the bold one. He, on the other hand, was more...conservative. As Naruto pressed his lips to the crown of Ino's head, prompting the girl to snuggle even closer, Asuma came to a single decision.

'Fuck it.' he nodded, the flames of determination alight in his eyes. 'I'm going for it.'

They were close, so close. There was no Team Ten. There was no snow, no kunai. Just blue and blonde. And in a move as brave as it was borderline instinctive, their lips brushed against each other with a featherlight touch. At that moment, Ino was at peace with the very world. Her heart was jackhammering against her ribs so hard, she could swear she was going to end up bruised. Naruto deepened the kiss when he felt Ino's hand run through his hair.

Asuma cleared his throat and Ino activated her Earth Release: Earth Spear as a reflex, looking up in surprise. Naruto grabbed the wrist of the hand that held his throat and, taking advantage of her temporary shock, flipped them so that he was on top.

"I win, Ino-chan." he kissed her cheek before rising, helping the other blonde up as he did. "Is it time for us to head out, Asuma-sensei?"

Asuma nodded with a knowing grin. "I wasn't interrupting anything, was I?"

Ino was tempted to take her sensei's life at that moment. 'Damn it, sensei!' Bastard knew that he was interrupting something. The blonde girl huffed and took her blonde's hand, stomping her way back to the camp.

The next few hours were spent in a frustrated and contemplative silence. Ino was silently fuming, resisting the ever present urge to spin and drown her sensei in one of the newest earth release jutsu he koibito helped her learn. With a sigh, she glanced at the other blonde who kept his gaze trained forward, his eyes hard. Ino squeezed his hand. When he looked at her, his eyes softened instantly. Her eyes were curious, questioning. Naruto turned his gaze forward again.

"We're not alone." he said.

He turned and caught a blade that was aimed at Ino's shoulder blade, his blue eyes murderous. Visible blue chakra surrounded the blade sharpening it enough to draw blood from the boy's hand. Steam rose from his body as he snapped the sword in half and viciously uppercut the samurai, the man rising ten feet in the air before landing in an unceremonious heap.

Ino threw some of her shuriken at the three samurai that were rushing her, as Choji and Asuma were already dealing with some of their own. The Sarutobi heir clashed blades with the three samurai on him with a seasoned ease.

"Careful," he warned his genin. "Samurai are trained to kill shinobi."

Choji began panicking as he curled up into his Human Boulder technique in an attempt to flatten the enemies targeting him.

"Ino-chan!"

The other blonde ran through hand seals at an alarming speed. "Earth Release: Mud Spore"

A river of mud was conjured, powerful enough to wash away the seemingly endless amounts of samurai that were continually coming behind trees and from the distance. Not bothering with the hand seal, she went directly to flowing the earth release chakra around the entire of her body the moment the chakra sabers collided with her chest and stomach. Since the jutsu made her flesh harder than diamond, the blade bounced harmlessly off of her. Acting on pure instinct, she broke the arms and legs of whatever poor bastard entered her range as Naruto was put samurai down that were starting to swarm Asuma and Choji.

"Boil Release: Skilled Mist." When he exhaled, a dense white fog filled the surrounding area, though thankfully, he possessed a degree of control over it. The fog itself began melting the armor of the samurai as well as their chakra enhanced sabers.

Team Ten was standing back to back, each shinobi ready to go down fighting. At least, that was the resolve until a single man with a neatly trimmed moustache and beard made himself known. Unlike the other swordsmen, he didn't wear a helmet or face mask. His very presence, much like Naruto's at the moment, oozed power; power gained from mastery over one's mind as well as one's blade. All other samurai ceased their movements when he arrived.

"Mifune-sama."

"Why are you attacking our guests?" the man asked, the power in his voice belying the age so apparent in his face. "Especially one so honored?"

'Honored?' was the single thought running through the minds of Team Ten, until all eyes went to a beyond pissed off Naruto, his normally blue eyes now a sinister crimson.

"The blonde boy struck first." the warrior closest to Asuma said. "And besides, Mifune-sama, look at those who are members of our order."

In the snow lay samurai, some burned, some crushed, and others broken. A majority was missing their armor and weaponry. Mifune and Naruto shared a look, one that told of the internal war they were having.

"It has been a long time, Naruto-dono." the elder samurai bowed. "I do hope you'll forgive my samurai for attacking you and your party."