Well, this is a little later than we had anticipated. Unfortunately, things are moving a lot slower than we wanted it to, so expecting our updates to be further in-between than we like. However, we are working diligently to get them out quicker, but the next few months are going to be crazy busy for both of us. So we apologize in advanced for the delays.

Thank you for your patience!

Just Enough

Disclaimer: We're just borrowing the characters for a bit…

2 Years Ago
Konoha Village

Sakura opened her eyes to someone tapping on her window.

To get so close without waking her meant either excellent chakra control or familiarity. Since she had just gotten off a six hour shift and had just enough sleep to be cranky, even familiarity wasn't going to save them. The faint, familiar mutters as said someone apparently worked on the traps she had set for her window had her shoving the covers back.

The window popped open before she could clear her legs.

"I told you I could get through!"

Sakura marched over to where Naruto was half-hanging into her room, grabbed a fistful of blond hair and jerked Naruto to her eye level. "Tell me why I shouldn't cut off your balls and ram them down your throat?"

Naruto smiled up at her, although his eyes kept trying to dip below her throat. All she had one was an old practice shirt she had stolen. "We're leaving tonight."

"Leaving where?"

"The Chunin exams!" he hissed at her before turning and glaring out the window. "Bastard! Get up here! Do you want to get caught?"

Sakura lifted Naruto out of the way, ignoring his swearing and peered out her window. Sasuke was slouched against a tree, the dark colors of his normal attire blending in easily with the shadows. But Naruto was right. Someone would see him soon. His eyes met hers and she frowned. He looked… tired. Tired and angry.

"Heard of knocking?" She whispered as she moved out of the way so Sasuke could crawl through her window. The anti-chakra jutsu she laid down on her walls was tricky for him but he managed. She made a mental note to reapply it and add a few creative nets.

"No one's supposed to know we're here!" Naruto muttered as he shut the window and yanked on her blinds. "Thank kami you don't live on the other side of the complex, without the trees."

Sakura stared at Sasuke, but he wasn't meeting her eyes. Turning to demand answers from Naruto, she scowled when she realized his eyes were on her legs. Turning around, she marched into her closet to find some pants. Or skirt. Something.

"Talk."

"This is a really girly room, Sakura. Doesn't hurt to have to so much pink?"

She stuck her head around the corner and glared at him. There was nothing wrong with her room. Even if most of it she had brought with her when she had moved out of her parents. It wasn't like she had time to worry about it, or even to bring someone who might be interested in her room over. At least the bed she had bought herself was done in neutral colors!

Still…

"It's going to be red soon if you don't explain why you're interrupting my sleep."

Naruto cringed for a moment and then rallied. "We have to leave tonight!"

She flexed her fingers. "Why?"

Naruto pointed at Sasuke. "Stupid bastard's clan is trying to kick us out!"

"What?"

Naruto waved his arms frantically. "Keep it down, Sakura-chan! They might have already sent ANBU out to apprehend us or something."

She felt a twitch developing under her eye and so she turned to Sasuke for an explanation. He gave a half-shrug and looked out her window. Her hands curled into fists and she forced herself to take deep, calming breaths.

"Naruto. Start from the beginning."

Nodding, linked his fingers behind his head and bounced on his toes. "So, I went to go and talk to baa-chan, right? Wanted to ask her about something I guess, anyway, I had my chakra muted 'cause I like to see how long it takes people to notice me."

"Idiot," Sasuke muttered.

Naruto moved a hand to point at him. "Like you have room to talk!"

"Naruto!"

"Righty, anyways, I heard some people talking in baa-chan's office and decided I would see what it was about, 'cause I thought I heard my name." His cheeks puffed out. "And that's when I heard that really old ugly one in bastard's clan talking about us."

"Us?" She let the old and ugly comments go. They were well deserved. "As in our team?"

"Nuh-uh. As in you and me."

"What did you hear?"

"Just a couple of sentences. Then Baa-chan started yelling good and loud and I left, 'cause someone was going to come down there to see what the ruckus was about."

Sakura pinched her nose and Naruto rushed to continue. Hunching over, he mimicked the old scratchy voice of Uchiha Uruchi.

"Your little apprentice is worth too much to the village; she should show off her skills at the next exam that we're having here. And that… Naruto is too dangerous to send to Wind country. You remember what happened last time!"

Sakura ignored Naruto's hamming it up and tucked her brows together, thinking. "Even if we didn't take the exams together…" she slashed her hand through the air to shut Naruto up before he could talk. "Even if we don't, there any rules that say we can't reform as a team later. So what are they trying to pull?"

"The council will put pressure on Tsunade-sama to split us up if we do not take the exams together." Sasuke said quietly.

"What? Why?"

Naruto set his jaw. "'Cause they can. The chunin exams are the only shot we're going to get to prove how damn well impossible we are to beat together. That it's in the village's best interest to keep us together. They know it to, bastards."

"Why does your stupid clan care?" Sakura demanded, rounding on Sasuke. "What does it matter who you're paired up with?"

Sasuke shrugged again and turned away.

"This doesn't have anything to do with your brother does it?" Sakura hissed suddenly. "Dammit, I've told you Sasuke, you're not fucking Itachi!"

"Anyway," Naruto hurriedly interrupted. "We're leaving tonight."

"Damn straight we are!" Sakura agreed, spinning to head back into her closet to finish packing her bag. Strong fingers wrapped around her wrist and she was jerked around to meet Sasuke's red eyes.

"Do you know what happens if we do this?"

She shoved her finger onto his chest. "Do you know what will happen if we don't? Don't tell me you're going back on your word, Sasuke. You promised me you'd give us a chance."

His eyes narrowed down at her. "Sakura…"

"Don't 'Sakura' me! You said you'd fight for us. Well, family makes sacrifices for each other, Sasuke. If we get slapped with some D class missions when we get back we'll still be Chunin and we'll still be together!"

"Yeah, bastard, it's like I told you. We stick together." He grinned, sharp and wild. "Don't make me drag your ass out of Konoha! Sakura-chan can always heal your legs later."

Sasuke stared down at her and she stared back, her face stubborn. "You're either in or out Sasuke. Screw the clan and repercussions and come with us. Don't you want this?"

His eyes spun for a moment longer before they faded to black. "Alright."

Naruto whooped and Sakura shot him a withering glance. "Are you trying to get us caught?"

Sasuke pushed her to the closet. "Hurry up. Our packs are hiding in your tree."

Nodding, she flung herself into her closet. Adrenaline and excitement bubbled in her chest and the satisfaction in knowing that they were going to foil the Uchiha Clan's precious plans for Sasuke left her feeling giddy. Swinging her pack over her shoulder she prayed the boys had rations and quickly changed into her favorite outfit.

"I'll send a message to Tsunade-shishou once we clear the gates. She'll understand."

"Let's go!"

X

Present Day
Fire Country

Sakura was an old hand at missions. You didn't stay in this business for five years and not managed to have a fair number of them under your belt. She'd even been on a mission with Itachi. But she couldn't think of anything that could have prepared her for the last few days. Even training with Kakashi – a brilliant shinobi and one of the best she had ever worked with – hadn't given her something to compare this mission with. Even that one ANBU mission hadn't really scratched the surface of what he was capable of outside Konoha walls.

Itachi was a well-oiled, efficient machine. Not for one moment had he lost track of his focus. He was completely aware of his own abilities, her abilities but also the forest and exactly where they were at all times.

They were traveling in standard formation, with Itachi breaking the trail and watching for traps. They were both very aware of the growing conflict between Sound/Cloud and Konoha and already come across the evidence of one battle. The damage had appeared to be half a day old and it had been impossible to tell who had won. Once they had investigated what was left, Itachi had gone through a series of complicated seals before motioning her to follow. Sakura hadn't asked what he had done and he hadn't volunteered any information. Although she had a niggling suspicion that had something to do with the 'ANBU channels' that Tsunade-shishou had been referring to.

That had been two days ago and they hadn't seen any other physical signs of shinobi – friendly or enemy – but Itachi had paused their travel twice to listen to the forest, sharingan eyes slowly taking in the forest. Whatever he had felt hadn't been enough to stop them, so Sakura figured they were friendly patrol units or simply too far away to feel them. Since they didn't have time to deal with either, she had kept her mouth shut and followed when he motioned them forward again. They were running on a tight schedule, and assuming a squad did stop them for questioning – well, the idea that someone would question Itachi was amusing.

Even with obvious pressure to discover what information they could as quickly as they could and return to Konoha in a two week window, Itachi was carefully regulating their pace. While she was winded at the end of the day, she wasn't exhausted. Unlike the two-day dash that had occurred when Shisui had been poisoned, they took the time for breathers – water and protein bars being important for the speed they were using.

And because the trip was giving her plenty of time to notice and think – always… was this just another facet of that? – she found herself analyzing everything he did. Paying attention to every reaction he had and how he treated her. To her carefully hidden delight, unlike the last mission where she was operating as only a mednin, this time he was taking her training as a kunoichi very seriously.

As the second in their formation, it was her job to react to his body language and watch for a tail behind them. She was the only failsafe between his back and danger. His sharingan could pick up the most minute of change in front of them, but it was her control and skills that would keep their backs guarded. Then that first night when they divided up the duties between them, he had gone about his own without bother to linger over hers. He clearly expected her to carry her own weight and to finish what she started. The only argument – if it could have been called that – was over who had what watch. The fact that he took her seriously was refreshing, heady and she was struggling to keep it from going to her head.

Sakura adored her team. She treasured the missions spent with them and she fully enjoyed being surrounded by her boys. They fought for each other and together. However, as much as she grew into her own skills, Kakashi has set a precedent early with team seven that she had never managed to fully break away from. Even after they all received individual training, this was one pattern the boys would not relinquish. Unless they were too injured to move, Naruto and Sasuke insisted on taking as much of the weight of basic duties as they could managed without insulting her. They liked to use the probability that her skills as a mednin would be needed to let her rest longer. They occasionally 'forgot' to wake her for watch.

It wasn't that she didn't appreciate their concern and that there were times when she was glad for the unnecessary extra sleep; those times that she had to use a great deal of chakra to put them together she really was glad they were willing to finagle the load between them. But for the first time since Team 7 had been reformed she was being treated as kunoichi first and mednin second by a man who was close to her.

Moving swiftly from branch to branch, she estimated they were half a day's run from the border. Itachi had wanted to stay one more night in Fire country before crossing over Taki into Earth. If they could trust the map Jiraiya had given them, his source was only a two day run inside the border and there was no need to sleep an extra night in enemy territory. Not when they could rest in their own.

Rock had been quiet the past few years, but that didn't mean that Leaf-nin were welcome inside their country. The cloaks they had brought were plain and nothing besides their headbands would trace them back to Konoha. The plan was to get in and out as quickly as possible, but Sakura knew that Itachi's rat mask was tucked into his pack and she had brought the hair covering she took on sabotage missions.

They for several more hours, until they were nearly at the border; an hour before dark Itachi veered a little off course. She knew there logically that there were ANBU posts scattered along the border and she figured they were heading to one of them. His sudden drop out of the thinning trees forced her to cheek her speed before she followed.

Itachi motioned for her to follow with a quick twist of his wrist. A few minutes later they were coming across one of several large outcropping of rocks. He paused and then his hands were flying through a series of seals that blurred together. Sakura blinked in surprise when there was almost an audible shifting of chakra and a small cave opening became visible. He motioned for her to head inside.

Because they had not cleared the perimeter, Sakura gave him the hand signal for fire, silently asking permission. Itachi was did not move for a long moment before he nodded and disappeared into the woods. This part of the trip had become routine. By the time he was back from setting traps, she had a smokeless fire cheerfully crackling and was pondering which tasteless protein bars they would eat tonight. Looking up from her pack, she watched as he laid down what appeared to be a very nasty genjutsu a hundred yards from the cave entrance. Finally satisfied, he walked over; some of the tension easing out of his shoulders as he quietly told her the coordinates for the rest of his traps.

"Is there a water source nearby?" Sakura asked, fingers hovering inside her pack.

"Yes."

Pulling her hand free, she tossed him a teapot. "Good."

Itachi lifted a brow, the teapot dangling from his fingertip. "Tea?"

They had mostly been sticking with canteens, but she was tired of water and wanted to test a few things out anyway.

"Trust me." She said with a smile.

He lifted a brow, but slipped out of the cave without protest. By the time he returned she had unrolled their sleeping mats, set out their rations and was twisting a packet of herbs between her fingers thoughtfully.

"Tea?" He asked again, setting the teapot of the fire for her.

"Tsunade and I have been experimenting with the affects of herbs on the chakra system. Most poisons directly attack out chakra pathways and antidotes don't merely stop the disturbance, but they actually heal them. Soldier pills are merely large doses of certain herbs into those same pathways. Unfortunately, most herbal combinations are too strong and once they finish boosting your system and our bodies have to compensate."

"So you're experimenting with a softer herbal boost." He sounded mildly interested so she continued.

"Yes. Mostly with honey."

"Honey?"

"Honey," she said with a smile. "You can ask Tsunade for the report if you want. Honey. And herbs, really." Twisting around into her pack she pulled out the small plastic container of honey she had brought with her. When she had turned back around, Itachi was watching her with a slight smile on his face and an expression in his eyes that left her feeling off balance.

"What?"

The edges of his lips curled further and his eyes lowered to the packet. "So is the honey to cover the taste of the herbs?"

"If it doesn't taste good, Itachi, no one drinks it." She tossed him a packet. "If they don't drink it, then how do I know if all the time and effort spent studying honey was worth it? Besides, honey isn't just sweetener. It's got trace elements of potassium, calcium, phosphorus, and other vitamins and minerals. We weren't sure what kind would have the best effect with the tea, so we've been experimenting with clover and with buckwheat and… why are you looking at me like that?"

He'd sat down while she was talking and propped up one leg, resting his forearm on it. There was a small smile on his face, and his eyes were warm with more than the reflected warmth of the fire. "Like what? Like I've just received an impromptu lecture on the components of honey?"

She threw the honey at his head.

He caught it nonchalantly and laughed. "And which particular brand of honey is this, Sakura?"

She stuck her nose up in the air and turned to grab her own mug, "Alfalfa, if you must know. It's mild in flavor and light gold in color. Buckwheat, on the other hand, is dark and has a more robust—you're laughing at me, aren't you."

Itachi, who had indeed been chuckling quietly, gave Sakura a lazy grin. "Yes, as a matter of fact. I am."

Something warm shimmied down Sakura's spine and she busied herself with the tea so as to not let him see her face. Sniffing haughtily, she finally turned and reached for the kettle just as it started to steam. "No need to sound like your brother."

"Oh?"

Sudden laughter burbled up in her throat and it took effort to keep from letting her sudden hilarity spill out. Instead, she concentrated on pouring the waver over her herbs.

"Mmmhmm. I expected better, he's the pretty one, you know."

She sneaked a peak up through her lashes. His left brow had lifted and he was staring at her with something like muted surprised and then his lashes narrowed. Apparently he wasn't used to being teased. Something she would have to fix. But the faintly disgruntled expression on his face set her off as she lost her grip on her laughter. Covering her mouth with her hand, she did her best to muffle the worst of it.

When she had swallowed enough of her hysterics to be coherent, she dared another glance at him. There was something lazy about his posture that was not reflected in the heat of his eyes. Pulling on an innocent expression, she handed him the teapot. "Tea?"

"Are you done?"

She kept her face straight with a great deal of work. She wasn't certain she would have had the guts to tease him like this, out in the open, if he hadn't appeared so relaxed. But there was something about poking moody Uchiha that she had never been able to fully resist. She blamed Naruto.

Blinking wide eyes, she tilted her head. "Done?"

"Hmmm," he agreed, settling his chin onto his open palm as his tea seeped, eyes catching the sparks of the fire. "You should count yourself lucky we're on a mission, Sakura."

Her insides warmed at his tone. Sitting with the fire dancing across his skin, his posture relaxed, he looked… comfortable. Sticking her nose into the air in an exaggerated fashion Sakura picked her tea and removed the strainer and took a careful sip. It was still hot but with the cool air it was welcome. Setting back against the rock wall, she allowed herself to relax.

"This is good."

She smirked. "I know. I told you, these things have to taste good. Although the first batch so bitter we could use it for interrogation."

"Is there any particular side effects you want me to pay attention to?"

"We've done some light testing with an ANBU squad but our study is mostly inconclusive right now. Better stamina, fast chakra recovery… the real test is going to be when individuals who have been taking the tea find it necessary to use soldier pills. We really are hoping that the teas will help reduce the shock to the chakra system and help with recovery time."

"Understood."

Sakura picked up a protein bar and made a face. "At the very least, the tea will offer something flavorful to counteract how unpalatable these are."

"Our food choices should improve while in Earth." Itachi said as he opened up his own protein bar. "The weather will be unpredictable, and while Inns bring a measure of risk, we will operate under less suspicion by blending in than simply avoiding the larger cities."

Sakura broke off a piece of the bar and chewed slowly. "I haven't spent much time in Earth country."

Itachi nodded. "Rock's hostility toward other village is not exaggerated. We will have to be careful, but our main concern will be the landscape and the weather. The winds can cause particular issues; so we will have to keep our eyes open. As you are aware, the mountains make communication difficult so that will be in our favor if we are spotted. Thankfully, the village we are looking for is near the base of the mountains so we will not have to attempt any of the passes."

"Cover story?"

Something indefinable shifted in Itachi's features. "I'll perform a sustainable henge to take away our distinguishable features while we're out of range. We're just two people, a man and a woman, scouting out the area. We're looking for a place to stay, interested in the employment opportunities… I think the cover will take care of itself, don't you?"

She felt a prickling feeling run down her spine and turned her head to hide her fluster at his insinuation and threw a second protein bar at his head.

He caught it, his amusement almost palatable, but not a muscle in his face twitched.

"That's not a cover story," Sakura said. "I'd expect better from an ANBU captain."

Itachi's hand flickered and there was a small poof of smoke, a scroll appearing in the palm of his hand. The corner of his mouth turned up, and he threw the scroll at her.

Sakura caught it easily, arched an inquiring brow, and unfurled it to reveal background information on a small village in Earth and a cover persona.

"Memorize it, then burn it," Itachi said, unwrapping the protein bar.

Sakura narrowed her eyes at him but didn't object as she unfolded the scroll. Part of her was curious if that had been some sort of test. She wouldn't put it past him. He trusted her skills as a medic but as a captain it would be ingrained in him to test her abilities in small, simple maneuvers so he would know the edge of her limitations. Either way, it wasn't something she could call him on directly. Scanning the document until she was comfortable with the material she tossed it into the fire and watched the paper quickly burn to ash.

Dragging one leg to her chest, she rested her chin on her knee and watched as Itachi studied the map he had pulled out of his pack while she had memorized their cover. His eyes lifted to hers after a moment, a brow lifting slightly in a silent question.

"So, if we find this man Jiraiya knew, how will we recognize him?" She tapped her fingers on the floor of the cave. "If we do find him, what do you think the knowledge of the blood jutsu will unlock, now that we don't have the ring?"

Itachi was silent as he rolled the map up and tucked it back into his pack. "Jiraiya's directions appear to be very concise in accordance to this map. The likelihood that the man is there is questionable, but at this point it is a risk we must take. As for the jutsu, even if we come away with only rudimentary understanding of the components, if we see the original we should be able to see where it has been altered, if at all."

"True… but even if we can find the original pattern in the work we still don't know enough about the other jutsu used to draw conclusions on how they are used."

He tilted his head in agreement. "The direction we choose to move with our investigation will depend on the amount of information we can from our possible conversation."

Sakura sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "So we won't know until we know. That's very helpful."

"That's the purpose of this mission. If we can crack the jutsu on the Akatsuki ring and reverse engineer it…" Itachi's eyes flared hot for a moment.

Sakura nodded, her own eyes narrowing, "Then we'd have the key to taking down their organization. Once we're able to figure out where each of them are…"

"We'd pick them off one by one," Itachi finished.

Nodding once again, Sakura returned her attention back to the information that had been in the scroll. The mission was well worth the time and well worth the risk. Now all she had to do was focus on preparing for tomorrow.

X

Ino was frustrated and she didn't like it. At all. She was smart, she was beautiful and she took great pleasure in using both to keep her finger on the pulse of the rumor mill in Konoha. If she didn't know about it, it was because it simply wasn't worth mentioning. And she knew a great deal. It was one of the reasons that Ibiki had finally agreed to train her himself – and it was this knack for understanding people, for finding out what people knew that she enjoyed most.

The fact that there was more to this… interaction between the Uchiha Clan heir and her best friend than she had known irritated her.

She narrowed her eyes. Well, she would just have to fix this. Sakura had skipped out of Konoha on a mission – the absence of Uchiha was highly suspicious – but that didn't mean there weren't other avenues of information. Lips curling up at the edges, she marched down a familiar street. Oh yes, she may have been out of the loop this time but there were people who weren't and when she got her hands on them…

All but skipping at the thought, she spotted her destination and slid between a family with screaming toddlers and stepped into the territory of one Uzumaki Naruto. It took only a second to find him and the smile hovering at the edge of her lips bloomed into a brilliant smile.

And he wasn't alone.

"Naruto! Shikamaru! I've been looking for you!"

Naruto had been having a good day.

He'd spent the afternoon kicking that bastard teme of his around a training ground and had managed to steal and hide all of the hag's sake. He knew eventually it would get turned back on him but he felt it was completely justified. This entire situation with bastard's brother and his Sakura-chan was her fault, after all.

Just thinking about that made him cranky so he shoved it out of his mind. He was having a good day. And now he was finishing it with a warm, scrumptious meal of ramen with a good friend. Shika was hunched over a bowel of miso ramen as if it would give him all the life answers.

Naruto approved.

Swirling the ramen along his chopsticks, he opened his mouth to share this thought.

And was interrupted.

"Naruto! Shikamaru! I've been looking for you!"

And froze.

Shikamaru immediately hunched his shoulders, slumping down further in his seat. He mumbled something that Naruto didn't quite catch, because Ino was marching towards them with that expression on her face. The one that promised t-r-o-u-b-l-e, and not the fun kind. Although, the way her lower lip stuck out and the spark in her eyes was actually quite interesting.

Stupid. He couldn't afford to be distracted, not when death with blonde hair and heels was bearing down on them.

"Ino! What are you doing here?" Attack, attack, attack. Don't let her get a word in. "Sit down! Do want some ramen?" With seeming artlessness, Naruto shoved a spoon up in her face, a few drops splattering onto her face and chest. "Oops."

"Na-ru-to," Ino gritted, one hand moving to clear off her face and pat down her chest, oblivious to the way Naruto's eyes followed the movement. Naruto tensed, subtly, anticipating a hit—but when Ino smiled again, he felt his heart sink. No immediate retribution? She was after something big.

When she lifted her eyes back to them, there was a gleam there that almost – almost!—made him regret his earlier bowl of ramen.

"Naruto."

Do not show fear. Do now show weakness. Do not get distracted by her breasts.

"Yes?"

She smiled, sliding into the free seat at their table, blocking both him and Shikamaru – the coward who was slouched down so far he was probably looking up her skirt – into the table with no immediate routes of escape. Oh, they could over power her, but the minute, the minute Sakura found out about it she would reduce what was left of their lives into painful, bloody smears.

"I was wondering if you could help me out."

"Oh?" He tried not to leer. He really did. It was giving her more power than she deserved, but he would have bet a month's pay she had worn that shirt on purpose.

"Hmmm," Ino agreed, fingers sliding over to pat Shikamaru on head. "Yup. If you can help me with one small problem, I promise to get out of your and Shika's hair with little trouble."

Uh oh. That was bribery. Cutting an uneasy glance at Shikamaru, who was refusing to meet his gaze, he smiled hesitantly. "Okay?"

She smiled. It was pleasant and provided him with a glimpse of tongue before it darted out to wet her lips. The big attacks. He was in so much trouble. "Tell me everything you know about Sakura's relationship with Uchiha Itachi."

Oh. Hell. Naruto immediately glanced at Shikamaru—the lazy bum had slid so far into himself, he was almost under the table.

Shikamaru glared back at him, a look he didn't understand until Ino reached over and grabbed Shikamaru by the ear, just above their matching earring. Oops. "And don't think I don't see you there, Nara Shikamaru! Sinking down to like that—after all these years—you know something. And you're going to tell me."

"Um… er, Ino… what makes you think we know more than you?" Naruto tried wide-eyed, frantic innocence.

"Because Inuzuka Hana was waiting for Sakura outside her house today – Itachi's ex-teammate; because you're her teammate and make a point to scare all those lovely and delicious men I set her up with away… and you can't tell me that Sasuke isn't aware."

"Sasuke doesn't want to know." Naruto said immediately and then winced. And decided to attempt to redirect. "She could just have had a question!"

"What she had was a question about Sakura. In a relationship. With Itachi." Twisting Shikamaru's ear, Ino stared down at him. "What. Do. You. Know?"

Shikamaru hunched as best he could. Naruto almost felt pity. Almost. Looking around, his eyes widened when he saw who had just walked through the door. There were some lines they just wouldn't let friends cross.

Leaning forward so he was just out of Ino's peripheral vision, he frantically made hand gestures. Kiba blinked at him in confusion and then his eyes landed on Ino, where her hand was and his eyes widened and he spun around.

Naruto sighed in relief and turned his attention back to Ino.

Who was watching him with narrowed, glittering eyes.

Oops.

"Na-ru-to. What. Was that?"

Shit.

Don't let her get to you. Attack, attack, attack! Naruto stood up, shoving his stool back and shouted right in her face, "I don't see how it's any of your business!"

Ino wrinkled her nose. "Eww, ramen breath."

For an instant, Naruto deflated. But only for an instant. "If it disgusts you so much, go away."

Ino's eyes narrowed and she lunged to her feet, hands clenching into fists on top of the table and she shoved her face up into Naruto's. "I am not going to go away! This is Sakura, my best friend! I am not going to sit back and let some clan heir mess around with her feelings and emotions while her supposed teammates sit on their collective asses fiddling their thumbs!"

Naruto's eyes flared and he snarled at her. "Sakura is my precious person!"

Ino bared her teeth. "Oh? What have you done to protect her, huh? What the hell do you think the Uchiha Clan is going to do when it finds out that their precious heir is messing around with some non-clan member? Did you ever think about that?"

Naruto wheeled back and then came right back in. "Of course we have! Sasuke –"

"Sasuke! Ha!" Ino leaned back and tossed her hair, glaring. "Sasuke is still Uchiha, Naruto."

Naruto growled, low in his chest. "We're family, Ino."

"Family," Ino said flatly, "protects each other. Again, I ask, what the hell have you done?"

"Ino," Shikamaru's voice cut through the growing rage between them like ice. "That's enough."

Pressing her lips together, she shifted her hot gaze to Shikamaru. "She's my best friend."

Shikamaru groaned, "You two…" he muttered something too low for Naruto to catch, bringing one hand up to cover half his face. He spread his fingers and peered out from one slightly distorted eye before closing his eyes and sighing. "So annoying."

Forgetting their animosity for a moment, Ino and Naruto shared a look of mutual exasperation at Shikamaru's expense.

Something about that look caused Shikamaru to groan again, sink further down into his seat, and shift his hand to his forehead, muttering something about 'hyperactive blonde babies,' which couldn't possibly be right.

Confused, Naruto sank back down onto his seat. Ino, who'd long ago given up trying to figure out what Shikamaru muttered about, took that opportunity to pounce. "I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what you know. I'm not saying you and Sasuke haven't jumped in to do your manly 'grr, stay away from Sakura-chan' thing that you two always seem to do with everyone even remotely interesting, but this is more complicated than that, Naruto. Uchiha Itachi's not just some idiot guy out to get lucky, he's a clan heir. And… I'm starting to be scared that the idiot forehead girl isn't being as careful as she should be. Tell me what you know, Naruto. I only want to help her."

Naruto stared at her, eyes narrowing for a moment before he nodded once. "Fine. But if you use this information to hurt her, you're going to deal with me."

Ino sat down, eyes flashing but as she opened her mouth, Naruto held up one finger, silencing her. "And you have to buy me a bowl of ramen to replace this one since its cold and you have to get one for yourself." He leaned forward and smiled, showing off his teeth.

"You wouldn't want to take up a chair that a real customer could use, would you, Ino?"

Ino's face twisted. "Ramen."

"That's my deal." Naruto said, sounding entirely too cheerful. Reaching down, he slurped up cold noodles. Ino looked vaguely ill.

"I thought you wanted a new bowl."

"I do, but I'm not about to let this one go to waste!"

She growled something under her breath and pulled out some coin. Slapping it down in front of Shikamaru, she pointed to the front. "I want pork. Get him whatever."

Shikamaru lowered his chin to the table and stared at her. She narrowed her eyes. "If you think I'm giving you a chance to get away…"

Sighing heavily, he roused himself from the table and slouched his way to the counter.

"Now," she said, turning back to Naruto. "Tell me everything you know."

Shikamaru sighed.

Naruto looked up at Ino with wide eyes. Really, that was asking for it. "Well, we're gonna be here for a while, Ino, 'cause I know a lot! The sky, for example? It's blue! And it's got clouds in it, and the rain comes from the clouds—"

"Shut up, you idiot!" Ino screamed, hitting him hard on the shoulder. "I swear, I don't know how Sakura's put up with you all these years."

Naruto affected a wound expression, "You asked. Besides," he put both his hands behind his head in an expression of confidence he knew irritated her, "Sakura-chan doesn't put up with me. She loooooves me."

"Further proof that she's gone insane," Ino muttered.

Naruto's smile was cheeky. "Must be why she's still friends with you."

Shikamaru interrupted them by slamming down two bowls of ramen and slouching back into his chair. Curling one arm, he dropped his head onto the table and refused to look up, even when Naruto poked him.

"He doesn't talk when he gets like that."

"It's like… a super shinobi weapon."

Ino snorted. "I call it 'lazy'; Chouji calls it something else."

"Nah, Kakashi's lazy. Shikamaru just… conserves energy."

"And what does Sakura do when around Itachi?"

Naruto choked on his noodles.

Ino's eyes narrowed. "Naruto."

The rising tone at the end of the word told him that he'd just about exhausted her patience. "I haven't really seen her around Itachi much. He keeps taking her away."

And just the thought of it was enough to make him clench his jaw and fist his hands.

"What do you mean, he keeps taking her away?"

And then, Naruto had a thought. There was absolutely no reason why he couldn't turn Ino's overprotective curiosity against Itachi. And the best part was that there was no way Sakura-chan could trace it back to him, because everyone knew how Ino was. He turned up his disgruntled whine a notch. "He just swept in out of nowhere and threw me in a genjutsu and took her!"

Ino froze and then her eyes went hard and flat. "I beg your pardon?"

Neither of them particularly noticed when Shikamaru slouched as low as he could physically, because he had been doing it all evening. Naruto, sensing that Ino was suddenly on his side, nodded frantically.

"We couldn't find her!"

Naruto watched, fascinated, as Ino slowly tilted her attention to Shikamaru. Blinking, the frustration and anger faded. What on earth?

"Shikamaru."

Naruto was certain, beyond certain that that was the tone Ino took with interrogations.

Shikamaru sighed and let his forehead thunk on the table.

"Yes?"

"How many in places in Konoha are there that Uchiha Sasuke couldn't locate his teammate?"

"Five."

She leaned forward, her long blond hair falling onto the table she was so close to his head. "How many of those locations do you – someone who plays shogi with Itachi every other fucking week – have immediate access to?"

"Two."

Naruto's eyes went wide and then vibrant in anger. Ino ignored his hissing and poked Shika in the head. "You helped Uchiha Itachi seduce my best friend?"

"Traitor!" Naruto howled.

Shikamaru sighed heavily and resigned himself to the lecture that was going to leave his ears ringing for weeks. This was why he stayed out of relationships.

Damn Uchiha.

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