-
"Hey, Sakura, what's the matter? Why do you look so down?" Ino asked her best friend, Sakura.
The pink-haired girl looked up from staring at the ground sadly.
"Is it true? Is what everyone is saying true?"
"Is what true, Sakura?" Ino said, honestly not understanding what was so bad.
"Do you like Sasuke, too?" Sakura asked, a hint of betrayal in her eyes.
Ino took in a sharp intake of breath. She had hoped she would never be asked that question. They sat on the bench in silence, the wind blowing through the tree branches, the leaves, and their hair.
"Y-yes, yes I do," Ino admitted, hoping that Sakura wouldn't be angry with her and still be her friend; she had kept her crush for a reason.
Sakura stood up and walked away from the bench.
"That means . . . we're rivals from now on," Sakura said, walking farther and farther away.
Ino stood up and watched her go. She wanted to shout "That doesn't mean we can't be friends, Sakura!" or "Idiot, you're just going to let our friendship break over some stupid boy!" or "I can't believe you value Sasuke more than me!" but none of it would come out. She merely watched her best friend's back until it faded into the distance.
"Sakura," Ino whispered, tears threatening to leak out of her eyes.
-
The blonde refused to cry, not for that back-stabber. Ino poked fun at Sakura very loudly when she hung out with her friends. It didn't matter if it was at school, on the street, at home, she'd say derogatory things about her as loud as she could manage. Sakura stuck her tongue out at Ino and stirred up fights with her. They argued and tried to see who could insult the other better, who could catch Sasuke's attention better, who looked prettier.
One day Ino actually landed herself in detention. She wasn't sure what she did to get detention. It caused her irritation, but she wasn't angry. She couldn't really be angry with Iruka-sensei. He was her sweet, kind teacher after all.
"So, tell me, Iruka-sensei, what'd I do? There has to be a reason I'm here," Ino said.
Iruka-sensei sat at his desk. He looked tired, stressed-out, and – worried?
"Ino-chan, what has . . . happened between you and Sakura? You two used to be great friends, but now . . . ."
Ino's face fell. Angry flames flared up in her eyes, her fists and teeth clenched, and Sasuke's and Sakura's faces entered her mind's eye. It was these moments, moments where she had to remember why Sakura ended their friendship, was when she hated Sasuke just as much as she was angry at Sakura. She'd never give up on getting Sasuke, though. She'd prove Sakura how wrong she was to leave her, no matter how much she grew to detest Sasuke, no matter how much she stepped out of her crush on him, no matter what.
"She's the one who ended it! All over Sasuke-baka! It's not my fault! She's the one who thinks rivals can't be friends! Who does she think she is, anyway?" Ino burst out, standing up and pacing.
She continued on her tirade until Iruka-sensei placed his hands on her shoulders.
"Ino-chan, I'm not saying you're not allowed to scream and shout about it, but wouldn't it be more productive if you talked to Sakura about this?"
"No way! I'm not going to crawl back to her like some cockroach! She gonna find out how much she needs me eventually and I'll be here when she does!"
Ino sat back down in her seat and crossed her arms. Iruka-sensei sighed and knelt down so that he and she were at eye-level.
"Ino-chan . . . . Would you like to go visit that new flower garden?"
Ino blinked slowly. She blinked twice more, then one more time after that. He was asking her to go to a flower garden with him? Well, she had wanted to go, but her parents had been too busy to take her, and she wasn't allowed to wander around Konoha by herself . . . .
"Sure!" she said, brightening up.
Iruka-sensei smiled at her warmly, stood up, took her hand in his and they left his office.
-
Years had past, Ino was now twelve, and she had discovered that spending time with Iruka-sensei in that beautiful garden, covered in roses, cherry blossoms, morning glories, and orchids, relieved some of the stress that she felt. Sometimes when they visited the garden (when he wasn't busy treating Naruto to ramen, playing go with Shikamaru, or helping Hinata with grocery shopping), they'd stay long enough for the sun to set and the moon to rise and she'd fall asleep in his comforting arms. She'd lapse into sweet, wonderful dreams involving the aesthetic smell of red roses and her Academy teacher.
She still picked fights with Sakura over Sasuke, but she didn't mean it when she said she still liked Sasuke. In truth, she hated his stuck-up manner, his degrading manner. But she knew Sakura wouldn't truly stand a chance without competition. She wanted to help her, and this was the best way she could in the relationship, or lack of, that they had. The man who really owned her heart, haunted her nicest dreams, she wanted to spend the rest of her life with was Iruka-sensei.
She kept the times they spent in the garden in her memory, close to her heart. There wasn't anything else she could do. She kept up an act that everyone had memorized, that everyone expected. She needed to keep it there, not just for Sakura, but so no one knew. Teacher-student relationships were looked down upon, even illegal. She couldn't tell anyone, couldn't let anyone know. If she truly was a ninja, she could keep this a secret forever. It was like a forbidden scroll, her crush. There was nothing else to do, but keep it hidden.
-
Sasuke betrayed them. Sasuke was gone. Ino was glad. Sakura was torn apart. Naruto was determined to bring him back. Iruka-sensei was there for everyone affected. He comforted Sakura, reminded Naruto not to push himself too hard, and he was there for Ino. She told him everything, and she was finally able to say "I don't like Sasuke anymore. Really. It's no big deal, Iruka-sensei. No need to worry about me. Just help Sakura-chan, alright?" She smiled brightly at him, finally as bright as she had wanted.
'Thank you Sasuke, for leaving. I can be open now, thanks to your bastardly ways.' Ino thought, trying not to laugh at how ironic her thought was.
There was still the issue that Iruka-sensei was too noble to date a minor, but she could wait. She could always wait.
-
Ino jumped up and down.
"Yahoo! I'm seventeen! Hurray!" she shouted, hurting Shikamaru's, Chouji's, and Sakura's ears; she and Sakura made amends after she admitted that she was over Sasuke.
"So? What's so great about that?" Shikamaru asked.
"I'm legally an adult by everyone's standards now!" Ino reminded. "Not just ninja standards!"
"Yeah!" Sakura continued. "That means we can buy the romance novels in the Mature section!"
"And go into bars?" Shikamaru asked.
"Only if I want to!" Ino said, jumping up and down some more. "I'll see you at the bookstore, Sakura. I have something I've got to do first."
"Okay!" Sakura replied, walking off toward the bookstore, Shikamaru and Chouji in toe.
Ino walked to Iruka-sensei's apartment. She knocked on his door and waited patiently. He opened the door and smiled warmly at her, like he always did.
"Good morning, Ino-chan. How are you today?"
"I'm good! Do you remember what today is?"
"Hm," he said, faking memory loss. "Is it Saturday?"
"Which Saturday?"
"The Saturday you're birthday's on?"
"Yep! May I come in?"
"Sure."
Ino stepped into the small apartment. It had been a while since she had been in the cozy living room. The flower vase was still on the coffee table holding some of the roses from the garden they loved going to.
"Iruka-sensei, I actually came here to tell you something," Ino admitted.
"And what is that?" Iruka-sensei asked, stepping out of the living room to make some tea. "Herbal, green, or grey?"
"Green's fine. And it's something that I've been wanting to tell you for a while, but I was just waiting for the right time, and now that I'm finally an adult, I can finally tell you," Ino explained as slowly as she could manage; she was too excited so she was having trouble not slurring words together.
"So, what is it? The suspense is killing me," Iruka-sensei said, almost teasingly, as he brought the teapot and the tea cups.
Ino grinned and, without hesitation because that's how she is, she said, "I'm in love with you!"
Iruka-sensei paused in his actions and stared at Ino, what she just said slowly sinking in.
"I have been for a long while, ever since I was twelve, but I knew you'd never date me until I was of age, so I've waited this long so I can get a truthful answer. Even if you don't like me back, though, can we still go to the garden? I love the time we spend there. The plants are so beautiful, especially in the spring," Ino babbled, acting as though it was an everyday occurrence that former students profess their love to their Academy teachers.
Iruka-sensei finally placed the tray on the coffee table and sat on the couch next to Ino, the information still sinking it. When it finally did, he glanced at Ino and saw that she wasn't the least bit nervous.
"Oh, did I mention that I'm of age now so, if you feel the same, we can do whatever we want without you getting arrested?"
"Yes, you did," Iruka-sensei said, still looking surprised. "Ino-chan, I do have feelings for you, but are you sure you want to - ?"
"Of course I'm sure! I'm seventeen and I've had this crush on you since I was twelve! You do the math! I love you! And now that you've said that you feel the same for me," Ino said, grabbing Iruka-sensei's hand and dragging him toward his bedroom.
"Hey! Ino-chan! You're taking this a little fast, aren't you? Ino-chan!"
-
Red Roses2: Hee hee! I'm torturing Iruka-kun. I really like this one, too. Review please, and give constructive criticism also. Flames shall be banished to the netherworld. Phone rings Hello? Oh, hey, Death God. Uh, you want to talk about the flames I keep sending you?