I don't own Naruto.

Theme 48.

Childhood

Yamanaka Ino was a very happy little girl. Her family owns a flower shop, and she just loves to spend time there, all the customers tale stories about love and they look for the perfect flower that says exactly what they want or cant say to the person they intended to give said flower too. Inside the walls of the Yamanaka flower shop, little Ino had her first taste of a little vice, for which she would become famous for later on.

Gossip.

The little platinum blond girl was a very social and outgoing child. Always the first to defend those in need, and scream and rant to those who deserved the wrath of hell for bulling said those in need.

But this day, little Ino was far from being her usual happy self. No, in fact she was bordering on bringing the rant and wrath of hell that made little Nara Shikamaru sigh and start to say the words that made his father and his future-self famous for, (and annoying, according to one Yamanaka Ino)

Yamanaka Ino was pissed… never in her short life had someone said no to her, and now this little, dirty, smelly boy was saying her no! who the hell did he think he was?

"what do you mean no?" she glared at the boy in front of her.

"are you deaf? I said NO, I'm not going to leave and give the swing to you, I got here first!" said the little blond boy. His dark blue eyes narrowing.

"but I want to use it too!" she stomp her little foot in the ground.

"then you'll just have to wait, cause I'm not leaving anytime soon" he said with a smirk.

Ino "hmmp" and walk away from the boy. She knew she was being mean to the blond, but she really wanted to play on the swing, her daddy was with her, and she really wanted for him to push her, so she could feel the wind in her face and in her hair, every time she play there, she felt that it would be the same as traveling like the ninja in the village did, when they flew across the rooftops of the houses and buildings… she wanted so badly to be a ninja just like her daddy, her mommy didn't want her to be a ninja, but that was because she was a civilian and didn't get the excitement and trill that being a ninja was, she wanted to travel the world and see different places and people, she wanted to be the best, and she couldn't wait for the academy to start.

She waited for a while for the little boy to leave the swing, as she was approaching him, she saw that there were a bunch of kids hitting the boy, and she, as a future leaf ninja, couldn't stand to see a fellow villager getting hit. Even if said boy had been mean to her before, and thus, she went to his rescue.

"I told you he was pathetic, are you going to cry now baby?" one of the older boys said.

"yeah, are you going to call your mommy and tell her what the bad boys did to you?… oh wait… you don't have a mommy, Ha Ha!" the second boy laughed.

A hateful glare was directed towards the older boys, but before he could do anything. a rock nock him in the head. The older boy fell to the floor with a loud thud.

the two remaining aggressors turned around , only to see a little blond girl with short hair, her arm stretched and a grin in her face. As she quickly grabbed another rock from the ground she yelled. "get away from him you idiot, why don't you go beat someone your own size!"

"And what's a little girl like you going to do about it?"

Ino smirked and grabbed a rock in each hand, and because she wanted to be a ninja just like her daddy she had being practicing how to throw a shuriken and some kunai with some she had found laying on her parents bedroom, and so, her aim was a little better than the kids her age. With that to her advantage she threw both rocks, and hit them both, one on the shoulder and the other one on the nose.

"That's what I'm going to do about it!". she said as she cleaned her hands from the dirt of the rocks. "Hey kid, are you all right?"

"I didn't need your help!" yelled the angry boy.

"Yes you did, and I, as a future kunoichi of the leaf, its my duty to help the needed" she said with a proud smirk

The boy just looked at her strangely "Whatz a kuno… kona… kunaichi?" his little scarred face scrunched up in confusion, his little nose wrinkled and his eyes narrowed. What was that girl talking about? He'd never heard that word before, not that he knew that many either, but at least he knew that the one's who protected the village were called ninja not kunaeichi… or whatever hard and complicated word she was using.

"I said KUNOICHI you idiot!, and it means female ninja, dumbass!"

"Hey don't call me that!"

"Whatever idiot"

"Grrr"

A quick survey of the park, told her that the boy had left the swing. And now was her opportunity. And with a sly smirk she jumped on it.

The blond boy, now deprived of his only fun. Looked down at the floor. Why was it always him that lost everything. All he had was the small apartment in a run-down building, who had seen better days. But because it was him living in it. Nobody cared. Just like this little spoiled kid had stole his swing without a second thought.

With a dejected sigh he approached the little girl. He was just going to apologize for being mean to her and not thank her properly just like old man Hokage had taught him he had to do when someone helped him.

"Hm… I'm Naruto and I wanted to say thanks for helping me back there" he gave a little bow to the shock girl and turned around to begin his walk home.

There was nowhere else to go to really. This was the nearest park to his home and the only one he felt like someone. Here, there were no whispers about him, only a few glares here and there. But the kids were nice, well most anyways. And it's not like he had friends, but al least they let him play for bit.

He really couldn't wait for the academy to start. There he at least would get a new start, and maybe make some friends… if possible.

Not five steps later he heard the girl yell at him to wait. So he stopped and turned around.

"I'm Ino, and you're welcome!" she said with a smile. "and I'm sorry too. I know I was mean to you before, but I really wanted to play on the swing"

"It's ok" he mumbled, a little pink tainting his whiskered cheeks.

"Ino let's go!" yelled a blond man as he got up from a bench near by.

"I'm coming Daddy! I hope I see you again sometime Naruto! It was nice to meet you!" wave the girl as she run to her parent. Once there the man pulled her up in his arms and on his shoulder and began walking back to the road.

"yeah, I hope so too" whispered the boy. A forlorn look in eyes.

And they did saw each other, but as Naruto went to say hi to his one time friend he was that she no longer remembered him and so as he turned back, a single tear made it's way from his eye to his shirt.

And that was the last time Naruto really cried.