Chapter 2: Flowers have Thorns
With her feet swinging back and forth, Naruto missed gardening. Considering who her chakra once resided in, it was probably no surprise that Hashirama's imprint had been passed down onto her in the form of loving watching and helping things grow. Admiring the flowers that apparently once traded secrets around between daiymos and rich families with influence, the blonde could not help feel a bout of loneliness.
After it was revealed that Kurama was holding several of her memories in safe keeping to be revealed at a steady pace to not break her mind, he allowed her to view what happened to her after the Fourth Shinobi War. If this was either a punishment or test, then it was the worse she ever had endured.
The village became a city full of technology, shinobi numbers went down, and there was peace.
A peace that allowed her allies and friends to settle down enough without fearing that their children would fight in the next war, falling in love and getting married, having children as they took on hobbies and pursued career paths other than fighting for their lives.
Except her.
Even the moody and lonely Sasuke had gotten married and had two children with Sakura, though there was a large age difference between the two.
While they were finding their places in the world and at home, Naruto had taken Kakashi's place in the Hokage office and became the Nandaime Hokage - reaching and living her dream. But there was always paperwork.
And with the technology advances, they were able to discover a lot more in health and education, like an anxiety disorder and how deep PTSD could go that with no surprise, a lot of her generation had. There was treatments for both, but being a busy Hokage left only a few options. Pills and meditation.
Even now her dream of Hokage was supposed to be - amazing. Sure, she saw all the paperwork Kakashi, Tsunade and Hurizen had to do, but she was supposed to go home to a family, too. To have those waving at her and talking about her battles and fights of bravery when the whole world was kicking down at her for something she couldn't control when she went out to get her meals or going home.
But there was still never anyone waiting for her at her apartment in her future.
Sure, Hinata and Shino had named one of their many son's after her, but having no one but plants at home repeating in her head as a mantra as she numbly went to school physically for once instead of clones, she stared blankly at the chalkboard all day and into her cute little bento box that she made last night as a distraction from the voices.
Even Sasuke was giving her weird looks from the corner of his eyes as she knew that a part of Kurama wanted to protect her from that piece of information. From the reality that her childhood dream and overall motivation in almost every battle for Konoha, would be absolutely lonely.
It made her look at the trio of Hokage's in her future in a new light. Hurizen had lost his wife to the Kyuubi while Kushina was giving birth, but he still had children and grandchildren to dot over. His unmarried and childless teammates were his advisers that chatted and complained his ears off, and all he had to do was take a break and go visit his favorite people when his regrets took over his thoughts. Tsunade had clung onto the new generations and the changes she wanted to enforce at the hospital and in some of the lessons at the Academy, ensuring she could get to know the strangers that filled the village she once left behind when her regular favorites weren't around before her temper kicked in. Kakashi was pretty much waiting to hand her the hat after all the political lessons and council meetings she sat in, barely even a kage for more than two years.
The village truly was her family and would always feel that way, but the villagers treated her as if she were too good for them to speak to her, to get to know her, or even to hand out pamphlets of their newly opening restaurants. There were waves and 'how are you, Hokage-sama?' but they shied away quickly.
Naruto's own two teammates were busy raising kids, being the director at the Hospital and the new Chief Police Officer in the newly reopened Task Force. Her generation once called the Konoha 11 were in their own divisions or had completely retired from being a shinobi that she never saw them anymore. Yeah, everyone answered to her, but unless they were the Head of their division - they didn't have to report to her directly anyways.
Wandering aimlessly as she was confused on if she wanted to cry or find someone that doesn't have a future wife so she'll have a real family to come home to someday, she ended up in the massive garden dedicated to the Ino-Shika-Cho trio clans. Allies from the beginning and to whatever end that may come, there were what felt like hundreds of different flowers that flourished naturally without anyone's help, angled to leave long shadows and ranged to what felt like almost unnatural sizes that left them large as butterflies and bees flew around.
And of all the flowers, Naruto only knew that red roses meant love. Girls would gush about that of all ages, especially Ino and Sakura, and it was what her apartment will always be apparently missing. No husband to love, no children to adore and raise, no family treatment to fill the hole that her heart and life was always missing.
To always be seen as untouchable and unapproachable.
Puckering her lips bitterly as her eyes began to sting, the blonde stood up from her bench slowly and picked several of the roses. Sniffing them slowly, she nodded slowly in approval on why other girls liked them and considered beginning her trek home.
Trying to not think of a messy, unloved and empty apartment, she sniffled a little bit before creating several clones. Their orders silent before they disappeared in more puffs of smoke, henging into different people before they left the clearing at top speeds.
Burying her face in the bouquet despite the thorns pricking at her skin, she finally began the slow way home.
If she was going to suffer her life alone then at least her apartment will remind her that in her last lifetime as the First Hokage from the once large Senju Clan, she wasn't alone.
Observing her stare blankly with an expression of feeling lost all day, Itachi chewed on his pocky curiously. Still following her around just to see what else there was, there were no more voices that night, and her staring at roses with a heartbroken expression left him wondering on why she wasn't pulling another massive amount of confusing pranks.
Now would've been the perfect time to speak to her, but he was unsure on if she even wanted to speak to anyone.
Being a normally loud and hard-to-ignore girl that couldn't ever sit still or be quiet for long, she was being the exact opposite for once.
Picking several of the roses - when no one is supposed to - she sniffled and summoned several clones before they henged and disappeared. Wandering her way absently to her home now, he could recognize a few of the clones when he looked down the streets heading to the market place. Carrying gardening pots and plastic bags full of different items, when they had arrived to her apartment and he peered in from the window, several of her clones were just finishing cleaning up her place.
Setting up the garden pots in key places with fertilizer and different seeds, Itachi wanted to know exactly what had been going through her head. Instead he continued to watch her come home, set up the roses at her rickety dining room table, and begin setting up her apartment to be overfilling with the plants. Unable to see the names on the small packets, he watched her relax as she expertly began mixing fertile looking dirt with the fertilizer, setting up an used egg tray to start some of the smaller seeds off before they'd be planted later he guessed, she'd take mini breaks just to sniff the roses once more.
Eyes widening as he slowly thought of a plan as the sun went down, he had left the usual crow on watch as he went down to the Yamanaka Flower Shop.
Opening the door to walk onto a cobblestone path that lead up to the counter, tables were set up with clear and low hanging lights to show off the very common flowers that the employees would clip off to show their customers how much care they put into their work, though the rarer and more expensive flowers were clearly in the back to avoid any tampering.
Behind the counter blowing at her bangs, the clan heiress Ino was leaning onto her elbow as she stared off into a magazine bored out of her mind. Glancing up uninterested as the door hit the bell, it took her a moment to process that he was there walking before her.
Jaw dropping as he blatantly ignored her astonished ogling of the Uchiha Heir coming into the flower shop himself, her face flustered before she hid her magazine.
"H-How may I help you, Uchiha-san?" Stuttering as he finally focused on her with a raising eyebrow, he gave a small smile as she tried to not swoon, finally recognizing her as one of Sasuke's many fangirls.
"Hello Yamanaka-san, I know you'll soon be closing the shop, but I was wondering if I could purchase one of your red roses."
Eyes widening in surprise, she nodded excitedly before glancing at a laminated sheet behind the counter. "Would you like anything to go with it? Like a note, ribbon, bow, and would you want it delivered?"
Taking a moment to think, he shook his head. "No, I wouldn't like it delivered, but a plain black bow would be perfect."
Sitting at the bench as she almost irritably munched on a leftover and oddly shaped riceball, Naruto knew what today was.
It was one of the biggest pranks she had pulled, updating her status to a true troublemaker with no saving around the village until she passed the genin test. Normally chased by genin teams as a sudden-mission, today would upgrade her to chunins and the Police Force.
It was also the last day of her current teacher, as she'd apparently request to be transferred from having handled her while Iruka Umino and Mizuki Tsuki would replace her, Iruka being chosen for his own previous past as a troublemaker himself.
It was essential that today goes exactly as it had like before, she missed her big brother.
Sitting at the exact bench like she had before, eating food as she acted frustrated and irritated at the world, sneaking looks around the playground as children were dropped off to wait for the doors to officially open, she froze mid-bite as she heard the sound of someone loudly sitting down beside her.
Snapping her head to the person to try and annoy them away, a usual feat that happened quite fast, she felt herself completely freeze up.
"You know you're alone, so why do you not run?" He had once asked her during Konoha's search for Sasuke.
"My numbers can go from one to a thousand!" She had shouted, only to give her own smirk to him. "Also, I can't afford to escape."
It was the beginning of her last conversation she had with Itachi Uchiha before the terrifying and mass murdering missing-nin went off to die against his little brother. Trapping her within his inescapable genjutsu the Tsukyomi to make his final decision on apparently giving her some of his power, she was still left confused on what it exactly was as she only remembered unwillingly devouring a crow whole.
Staring at him in shock as he sat up straight with his hands politely folded in his lap, she forcefully shook herself out of her trance on the young teen version sitting next to her just over a month before he murdered his clan.
Looking around slowly, she could just barely remember who normally dropped off who. But she did know that Itachi had not once drop his little brother off at school ever, only Mikoto had up until a few months ago. Following his eyes, she found Sasuke being surrounded by the girls of all grades wanting to know about him and his older brother when he tried to show off how Uchiha-like he was to Itachi.
It did not take long for Sasuke to break through the crowd a little disgruntled and hassled, trying not to pout as he whined for the older Uchiha. "Aniki! Why are you sitting all the way over there?"
Only raising an eyebrow before standing up, Naruto watched the biggest difference walk away.
'This never happened, why did it happen? Only I'm supposed to be acting different!' Shouting to herself as her face scrunched up, she caught sight of something not there before.
Eyes widening in confusion as she gingerly and slowly reached out to it, a red rose was innocently sitting where Itachi Uchiha once was. Knowing that roses would normally be the last thing anyone would give to a girl that adored orange and hated normal typical girl stuff, the innocent flower became much more ominous as she recalled picking several the day before to set up on her rickety table.
With a black satin bow sticking out stylishly from underneath the petals, a white folded card appeared to tangled within one of the bows loops. Carefully taking it out and laying the pristine rose on its side on her lap, she felt her heartbeat in her chest as she opened the index card.
Don't cry over roses.
Blinking at it shocked, it took her a moment before she picked up the flower once more. Searching for Itachi, who was affectionately beaming down at his little brother, she glanced down into the petals.
And saw a Sharingan Eye, forming the Mangekyou and casting the Tsukuyomi.
Within seconds the colorful world around her blurred into a faded orange universe, her floating aimlessly in her sitting position as crows around her cawed softly and almost lazily flew circles around her. Unlike last time she was trapped in the Tsukuyomi where they had come together to create an airy version of Itachi who politely interrogated her, he instead walked before her. Finally getting a good look at the young and not sickly future Mass Murderer who would also be unknowingly Konoha's number one savior from an early Fourth Shinobi War, a part of her was adult enough that she felt like the fangirls were barking over the wrong Uchiha when it came to having an obsessive crush.
Scowling in irritation at the world's best spy and her now missing riceball, she crossed her arms at the familiar situation before shouting. "How do you remember this!?"
Not even with a twitch of an eyebrow as he acknowledged that she must have been informed of the same future in which he massacres his family by the voices, "When I activated my Mangekyou Sharingan, I had been gifted a memory of sorts in which I was resurrected after having died against Sasuke." Answering her question, her brow furrowed from confusion.
"The Mangekyou..? That doesn't make any sense though, I've been dreaming of the future."
Searching his expression for an answer, it was only her years of being around the Uchiha's and emotionless Hyuuga's that she was able to pick up on a confused twitch in his brows.
"Do you know why?" He asked and she tilted her head.
"I only know that the Kyuubi has received.. memories of my future. He's been letting me see them, but at a pace where I won't become overloaded and be in shock or whatever. He doesn't even know how either, just that he's still getting them every once in a few hours. Sometimes out of order, sometimes right after another." Staring off to the side, she squinted. "Do you even remember being brought back by the Edo Tensei?"
"Yes."
Unsure if she was allowed to ask what being dead felt like, she quickly changed the topic. "The voices, did you hear them?"
"Yes, I have. I was following you when the voices said the Uchiha's must be helped." Not an inch of shame in admitting he was following her, she couldn't help the half smile at the almost creepy act. 'Maybe he just doesn't know how to be normal?'
"Do you think we're from the same future?"
Shrugging, she thought for a second. "Did you join the Akatsuki?"
Nod.
"Did Sasuke-teme run off to Orochimaru after receiving the pedophile mark?"
Raising an eyebrow as he nodded again, Naruto made a face.
"Did yoouuu, murder your clan after finding out they were going to throw a coup d'tact under orders of the shadow council?"
Almost disappointed she didn't catch him off guard at the secret topic, Itachi only made a show of looking her small form over.
"I'm glad you were Sasuke's friend. I chose correctly to trust you."
Jerking her head back in surprise, it took her a moment more to process the soft look in his eyes.
"I assume you know of Danzo's plot to protect the village in his own way by using stolen Sharingan eyes, then?" Feeling her eyes bulge, he took it as a silent no. "Then you must only know Sasuke defeated Danzo," watching her furiously bob her head, he continued to explain. "After the massacre, ROOT stole some of the eyes of my clans men and Danzo had implanted them throughout his body, hiding them underneath bandages. Though he was hoping to only use my cousin Shisui's eyes, he was able to steal one and the other.."
Holding an arm out, a crow had came swooping out from behind Naruto and onto Itachi's arm. Feeling deja vu as it turned to look at her, she pointed angrily at it and screeched. "That's the crow I ate!"
"I was sealing it into you." Petting its sleek feathers, the blonde only crossed her arms once more and pouted.
"So? That's Shisui's eye then?"
"Yes. It has the ability to cast a powerful genjutsu called the Kotoamatsukami.."
Jaw dropping as the details began to make sense, she covered her mouth in awe. "That's what you used to escape the Edo Tensei! Wha - why did you give it to me last time?"
"I had planned on using it on Sasuke when he went rogue to protect Konoha. After our battle to my death with my eyes transplanted into him, Tobi would've wanted to attempt to use Kotoamatsukami on someone, knowing I had Shisui's eye on reserve. It would've only summoned the crow from you, casting the genjutsu on Sasuke to protect Konoha."
A wave of emotions overcame the Uzumaki as she stared at the man turned teenager in front of her. 'He's more than the hero of a early 4th Shinobi War.. he really is a genius. More than two steps ahead than anyone else could ever try to be.' Almost feeling uncomfortable at witnessing the devotion he of all people truly had to Konoha, the feeling of awe and honored at being acknowledged made her smile sadly at him.
"I'm sorry, for ya know. Last time around, but thank you. I don't know why you trusted me so much, but thank you for everything you did too." Unsure on if she was apologizing for how things turned out on his end of becoming a Missing Nin, being resurrected, or his treatment from the village when he was protecting it, but by the soft look, he appreciated her thanks - especially after he hunted her.
Smiling almost bitterly to herself, it took her a moment to remember he died way before she must have. She wasn't sure if he was lucky or not to have missed out on their evolving village. He was apparently reported being a pacifist manipulated into doing terrible things, but would he have enjoyed the future he missed out on?
"So, do you know what happened after you were.. unsummoned or anything?"
"No," looking at her slightly expectantly, her smile did turn sad once more.
"Ya know, there's a lot of stuff that happened. Lot of it you won't believe, but I'll just tell you what happened to Sasuke after the Fourth War, okay?"
Watching him nod carefully as he seemed to mentally prepare himself for the worse, she snorted.
"He never did to get to destroy Konoha. After the war and all its complicated shit, he was actually seen as kinda a hero. A very dumbass and unwise hero, but he did save the world with me. Everyone in the village could've forgotten what crimes he did against Konoha, especially since he was being punished for them by being on probation of being a ninja and had given most of the Uchiha's family fund to help the village's rebuilding. When Kakashi-sensei became the Sixth Hokage - I know, right? He was even lazy at that," she couldn't help but throw in at his subtle expression of surprise to add some humor before continuing. "He ended up getting married to Sakura-chan. Your future niece will be named Sarada Uchiha and will wanna be a medic-nin. But Sakura-chan became the Director of the Hospital when Sasuke-teme wanted to tell everyone why you massacred the clan."
Sighing, she shook her head. "He wanted to do it, even though it'd destroy your families image that you tried to protect to help protect him, but he did it himself even when Kakashi-sensei said to wait it out. Lotta people didn't understand, and a lotta people did. It wasn't considered the worse thing in the world when he decided to travel the world as a civilian when he got off probation and village-arrest. I ended up becoming the Seventh Hokage though and when he came back for my orientation, turns out he was righting a lot of the wrongs he did when he joined Orochimaru and the Akatsuki, trying to find his place in the world that wasn't considered bad or criminal. Officially came back and stayed back a little after Sarada turned 13 and got busy, creating your nephew who will be named after you. Maybe it was watching him learn the difference between doing bad and good that he got the idea to fix what your clan did over the years, and to properly stop the Curse of Hatred."
"He fixed up the Uchiha Compound, destroyed the walls, sold it to the village. Used the money to reinstate Konoha's Police Force, no longer owned or operated solely by Uchiha's. Anyone who was formerly a ninja and wanted to be around the village for starting their own family, forced to retire early, or just wanted to help out could work there permanently, but it became a big tradition for genin teams to work D-ranks for them when civilian's wanted to join." Smiling fondly as she remembered assigning genin teams to it as Sasuke himself would pick up the team before he became too busy, her explaining his fate reminded her of the true changes that was happening around their home. "...it was a good thing that the Police Force was restarted again, because our village wasn't even a village anymore."
Unsure on how to word the next part, she focused on Itachi once again who was clearly intently listening and enjoying her words. "What do you mean?" He asked curiously before she scrunched her face up.
"A lot of technology was discovered and became so common, that the part of the village you and I live in right now is well, more for history's sake. It attracted a lot of tourism, history buffs, and yeah. Skyscrapers with up to 20 floors, reflective and shiny outsides were built behind the Hokage Mountain. Half of 'em are apartments and the other half are businesses. Without the Police Force for even normal civilians to aspire to join later on, not many people actually.. wanted to be shinobi anymore."
She wasn't sure what her expression was showing, but his confused one must've been showing how numb and out of place she suddenly felt.
"The Elemental Nations still exist, but there was World Peace! There were still missions of assassinations that got assigned to ANBU teams because of corrupted people got power through money, but D-ranks were always there and no one wanted to train to use chakra only to weed gardens or to babysit. C-ranks and B-ranks only continued because merchants and civilians wanted to travel safely with protection. But I - I can't remember the last time I assigned a jonin an A-rank that didn't have proper political reasoning that came out of Konoha's or our allies pocket. Everyone I know, they were happy with it or they felt the same as I do. We weren't raised to fight in another war, but we were raised to know how to kill, to infiltrate, to seduce and to enforce our version of peace against everyone who agreed differently or wanted to be too selfish. But we had it. We had peace."
Feeling her eyes sting once more, "And I feel so bad that I was unhappy for having it."
Feeling flustered at her sudden ranting and dark confession, the Uchiha was still standing there with a thoughtful expression. She didn't expect an answer from him, other than maybe another question about his little brother, future sister-in-law, or niece and nephew.
"Naruto-chan, there is either peace or there is freedom. What Madara Uchiha had wanted was peace and what you wanted was freedom."
Feeling her cheeks burn as she somehow felt mocked, the blonde was ready to shout that he didn't understand what she was saying before he held up his hand.
"With the peace he had been wanting, he was willing to force everyone into it. You and Sasuke-kun had freed the world from the repetitive action of killing for one to survive. By bringing all the nations together to dispose of their problems and any future wars starting between one another, you made it possible by giving everyone more choices. There are thousands that have committed evil as in their beginning, it was their only way to survive. Several had been corrupted by it or enjoyed it that when they could finally walk away from that path, they wouldn't."
Jaw dropped with her eyes widening, he gave her a small smile - a similar one to the last time he had caught her in his mangekyou. "From the sounds of it, there was such freedom, that you gave everyone the ability to be good properly and to thrive for it. Until they had finally outnumbered the bad and evil. When they had to deal with the bad, they used their numbers without needing to kill anymore. I will not believe that you were even slightly unhappy with world peace, Naruto-chan, but being Hokage is the worse position for someone who loves to get their hands dirty helping others."
Naruto felt exposed. "You should be a therapist," slipped out of her lips before she could stop herself.
His smile turned amused and being polite enough to acknowledge her embarrassment as revealing her feelings and him commenting on them, that he closed his eyes. "Perhaps, but until then I would like to fight with you on recreating that future. Except if you like, this time you can go on adventures that won't threaten the wellbeing of Konoha."
Tilting her head as she almost fondly gazed at him, she wondered on if he was trying to imagine that future of world peace and what could truly be his part in it as something other than a heartbreaking story.
'I guess in the new future, me and Itachi can be alone together, if he doesn't die again so soon.' She mused sadly.
"Do you remember how old you made it to?"
Caught off guard by his question, she took a moment to search through the new memories. "Actually.. I don't remember dying yet." Looking at her small hands as a panic began to set in her stomach, words she had discarded passed through her mind.
"Uzumaki's are known to have naturally large reserves, masters of Seals, and have long levity," Kakashi-sensei waved off, in his Hokage robes as they observed the last photo of Mito Senju, nee Uzumaki.
"My last memory.." feeling the orange world around her spin out of focus, she could remember seeing Temari Nara holding her 4th grandchild as it began to hit her. "I was 52 years old."
The silence was almost deafening to her as Itachi nodded slowly.
"I guess I should ask Kyuubi on if he knows how I die yet, to see if it has anything to do with us rememberin' our past lives," she said more to herself. Trying to shake off the feeling of old, she redirected her attention to him. "It'll take awhile to get all the plans together, but Kyuubi and I gotta plan to save the Uchiha's. Whoever is talkin' to us.. they want us to do something."
"Yes, however I'm uncertain of what those voices want exactly. Danzo hasn't changed, and I'm certain he will ensure the death of all the Uchiha's if given the chance."
"What did you do the first time, other then ya know, killing them yourself?" Ignoring his blank look, Naruto watched the Crow holding Shisui's eye disappeared into existence once again.
"Originally Obito Uchiha had approached me himself. He had revealed what the intentions of Akatsuki were and knowing I could delay their plan from the inside, protecting Konoha and Sasuke at once, massacring my parents was the initiation, the rest of the clan was only my assignment from what you have called, the shadow council."
Eyes widening as a grin grew, the almost guarded look from Itachi made Naruto apologize. "Sorry, me and the Kyuubi got a idea on what to do about the massacre, I just gotta ask if it'd still work out, ya know?"
"What do you mean?"
"There may a way for you to stay in the village and not become the murderer everyone knows you as," she replied cheerfully.
Observing him stand in silence, she faltered as he did not cheer with her - or show the slightest bit of relief.
"I believe we may be out of time. The Tsukuyomi is especially draining on someone your physical age, Naruto-chan."
Ino Yamanaka was officially a very confused blonde.
Having prepared herself to gossip on the lone and untouchable shinobi that had been rumored to be too busy from his duties despite his young age, she had proof that he had been in her families flower shop, buying a red rose. It left her swooning, daydreaming, a tad jealous, and ready to milk in all the attention from her classmates for every single detail.
She was prepared, until she saw the said normally elusive and overly busy shinobi drop his little brother off at the academy and stay. Not leaving his siblings side at the front gate like most guardians there to see their charges enter the grounds, but walked in and sat down at a bench.
Next to a girl.
To a girl that nobody really liked, who was mischievous and an all around troublemaker. Even several of the kids belonging to civilian families disliked her,
To leave the rose he had bought the night before beside her, to notice, to pick up, and to gaze at with suspicion and on guard, to freeze and then to relax.
Only for her eyes to meet with the subtle and very smooth Itachi Uchiha who was finally leaving school grounds after a single second before the bright blonde smiled down into the petals.
Ino was officially confused, because what did that mean? Clearly everyone knew you gave red roses to someone you love, there were three holidays in Konoha in which emphasize was always place on meaning of flowers and overall gifts to those you appreciated or were interested in. 'Does he somehow have a crush on her? Is he already courting her - does his family know or approve?'
And knowing that piece of information, that whether Naruto Uzumaki had only just caught the Uchiha's eye or have had it for awhile, Ino was conflicted on what to do.
The part of her that encouraged future kunoichi 'because the boys are so mindless to not know about how amazing it is to not just fight for your whole life' wanted to go up to her, and encourage her in general. That maybe it'd distract her or give her a reason to stop messing around in class, to care more for her image and secret lover of a famed Uchiha that will surprise and become the envy of everyone.
A part of her knew the subtly of politics as well. Wishing to become Sasuke Uchiha's future wife, Ino knew what would be expected of her in standards, reputations, and unfortunately knew that she was non-existent to the younger Uchiha. 'If I at least could be referred to as an encourage of their different social standards, be praised for keeping this secret until they were ready to come out, maybe it'll encourage Sasuke-kun to be interested in me? Especially since he looks up to his brother so much. Not as if there's that much of a difference between our clans!'
But the subtly of politics effected everyone, down to those in the Academy. Naruto Uzumaki was more than just a troublemaker at the academy, she was a pariah around the village. If Ino became friends with her, her own image would fall. 'Would it be worth that, even if he wasn't courting her?'
Deciding not to be involved unless there were more signs, the blonde stretched against her piece of wall that gave her the view of the whole front grounds. Having planned on meeting with a civilian she was taking under her wing named Sakura right there who was running late, the bell had rang. Watching children of all ages rush to the doors, the heiress allowed her eyes to search for pink or purple hair.
"Whose garden have you stolen that flower out of, Uzumaki?" The accusing and suddenly harsh words made Ino frown, her pupilless eyes narrowing from the side at her teacher. Hand out, waiting to be given the gift, a majority of the children had already been rushed inside. Stragglers that had another five minutes to enter were passing through, but no one seemed to care that once again, Naruto was in trouble.
"I didn't steal it!"
That was when Ino Yamanaka understood, up close and not irritated at the next interruption in class from the pariah.
Why Hinata Hyuuga, the overly shy and meek Hyuuga Princess was inspired by the village pariah of all people. Why bullies only targeted the Uzumaki with words when she wasn't around to fight back, why teachers broke clipboards and brushes when having to deal with her at all, and why several members of the civilian-born population in the academy who sometimes are bullied were now tip-toeing around her.
And why she had caught the attention of Itachi Uchiha at all.
In the face of those who disliked or insulted her, Naruto's eyes almost glowed with determination and defiance. She didn't play with politics, didn't manipulate - you hurt her, she hurts you in return.
Wearing her heart on her sleeve except when she felt weak, there wasn't anything left to hurt this orphan with. Accused instantly of stealing a flower, her image was somehow destroyed before she ever entered the academy, yet within a single day she had every student, parent and teacher knowing her name. There was no game for her to play to rise in, just test after test of her will on becoming a konoichi for the village she wanted to lead.
'The Third Hokage called that the Will of Fire in his speech last week,' she smiled to herself as she pushed off the wall. Having been riding the motivation off the speech given by the elderly Hokage, it was what inspired the Yamanaka heiress to take the civilian Haruno underneath her wing. There wouldn't be a big show of their friendship and her support for this orphan, but she will be the backbone to force the troublemaker to become more serious.
Coming up to the duo who were having a verbal battle, Ino plucked the flower out of Uzumaki's hands and took advantage of the now frozen girl. Making a show of adjusting the silky bow before she pushed back a spiky lock, the red rose bought by Itachi Uchiha was now tucked above the ear of Naruto Uzumaki. Accented by the black bow, the girls burnt orange shorts with black outline was matched with the black shirt and the odd signature of a red spiral that was all over Konoha shinobi.
"Uzumaki, you should've remembered how to tuck a flower in your hair from class! And at least choose matching shorts to go with it," rolling her pupil-less eyes, she nodded to their teacher before almost roughly pushing the Uzumaki through the doors to class.
Whether she had acted for the hopes of being known as Ino Uchiha someday or in defense of someone harboring such a powerful Will of Fire, even the normally oblivious Naruto somehow had quite bluntly understood that it was not an act of friendship as they quietly walked away from their sensei.
To the Uzumaki, it was the future Head of the Interrogation and Technical department noticing a change and wanting to be in on it in her own way.