AN: I hope you enjoyed chapter one. I actually wrote nearly 9 chapters of this at once so if some are longer than others, it is only because I thought it would be cruel (or not cruel enough) to cut it off earlier. I decided not to add any party details in here because I'm not very good at describing them. Use your own imagination; it's much more fun that way. This is now August 1st, the morning after the party and the day before Tsunade's birthday. Disclaimer still applies.

814 words in this chapter

Missing in Action

Chapter two- Message

Argh. My head hurts so much. Sakura thought as she woke the following morning to the sound of a radio, pumping out high-pitched pop music. I didn't turn that on, did I?

She rolled over to reach for the offending item with the full intent of throwing it against the wall with full effort, chakra building up in her arms.

She didn't get too far though, as her rolling action landed her in a heap on the floor. The wooden floor that felt ice-cold to the touch, something that would be oddly comforting in the current warm climate, had it not been for the fact that she had landed against it so brutally.

She reached up with a stiff hand, still glowing with chakra, to push herself up again, locking onto the hard surface.

Sakura did a quick double take. Wood? I don't have a wooden floor. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure I don't have a radio either. Where the hell am I?

She stood up as quickly as she could, head still pounding, and attempted to look around with weary eyes. Her vision blurred and her balance failing, she only managed to make out the purple couch she had obviously been lying on and about another two dozen more purple shapes dotted around the room. There's only one person I know with such an obsession for purple.

"Ino?" she called out, a careful tone to her voice in case she was wrong.

"Hey forehead-girl! You finally woke up?" Ino's voice came out cheerily from another room.

"A little too cheerily if you ask me" Inner Sakura scowled. A voice like that only ever meant one thing… scheming.

Yeah well I didn't ask you, did I? Sakura frowned at herself and staggered off to follow the voice.

"Well… it has to be said. She's up to something. If we are in a state like this, then she has to be worse. She drank waaaay more than we did"

That's a good point actually. She doesn't seem any different

"See. I told you I was right. Don't trust her, she's a clone!"

"Shut up!" Sakura yelled out loud, clamping her hands to the side of her face as she stepped into the small kitchen.

Ino looked up at her, mug in hand, and smiled "feeling rough forehead-girl?" she teased, passing over the mug.

Sakura took it from her with a glare of contempt, but didn't protest any more as the strong smell of coffee soothed her temper and her headache.

"You know Forehead… if you can't overcome a night of drinking like that, you'll never be a successful kunoichi like me"

"Whatever Ino-pig. You're not as hot as you think you are you know" Sakura spat back lamely

"Oh really? I guess I'll just take that coffee back and leave you to find out about Tsunade-sama's message all by yourself then. I hope you can find your own way home aswell, you sure need a shower" she snickered, holding her nose between her fingers for exaggeration.

"I've got a message from Tsunade? I thought she said I could have today off for training."

Ino shrugged and grabbed for the mug in Sakura's hand "Well good luck with that"

"Don't be such a pig Ino-pig!" Sakura protested, holding it tight to her chest to avoid it spilling in the tussle.

"Oooh! That's original!" Ino giggled

"Fine! I'm sorry for calling you un-hot". "No you are not. It's the truth!" I know. I'm sorry for calling her it to her face though. Now shut up and leave me alone. "But you are alone. I'm you remember"

"Hey forehead-girl. Are you talking to yourself in your head again? It's quite insane you know."

"I know." Sakura sighed, leaning up against the counter.

"You know Forehead… if you can't maintain your sanity, you'll never be…"

"Don't go there Ino-pig." Sakura glared daggers back at her.

"It doesn't matter anyway. You haven't got enough time to go back home now. We've got less than an hour till we've got to be in Tsunade-sama's office. You can use my shower but you'll have to face her in your party clothes."

"Oh Kami! Less than an hour?" Sakura put down the mug with a bang, panic setting in.

"That's what she said. Eleven, in her office, me and you"

"Why just us? We didn't do anything too bad last night, did we?"

"Don't be ridiculous. If it was that we were in trouble, she wouldn't give us a set time would she? She would have made me get you up and drag you over immediately"

"Wrong again Ino-pig. She would have yelled so loud you wouldn't need to get me up."

"Well you should still hurry up so we're not late. Even if she's not angry with us, turning up hung-over and late might send her over the edge"