26. To Be an Imbecile

The morning summer breeze blew her blonde, shoulder length hair back. The breeze cooled down her flushed, hot face. Ino tucked her hair behind both ears and enjoyed the coolness.

She didn't care for the stares and the double takes as she rushed down the sidewalk, walking as fast as her pregnant body could handle. Ino was on a mission, a mission to meet Tsunade at her office before ten o'clock.

Sakura woke her up at nine-fifteen, wondering if Ino still had her interrogation today. Ino bounced out of bed, pulled on some clothes and ran out of her apartment, on the run for her superior's office.

Ino never thought of what she would tell Tsunade; she just needed to be at her office on time. Ino ran up the spiral staircase and when Ino stood in front of the red, double doors of the Hokage's office, the thoughts rushed into her head. Her hands shook ferociously, sweating to the point where she wiped them numerous times on her leggings.

She leaned her forehead against the doors. Did she really want to do this? Was she ready for the truth to make its appearance? Beyond the doors, she could hear Tsunade ruffle papers, looking for something to do while Ino stood outside her doors. Tsunade knew Ino was there, but she didn't call Ino in. Could she sense Ino's apprehension?

Tsunade cracked the door open. "Ino," she said in a calm tone as if not to frighten Ino, "it's 9:59 and whether you're outside my doors or not, if you're not in here in less than a minute, I'm going to escort you to your interrogation."

Ino stepped inside the warm office and closed the doors quietly behind her just when the clock clicked ten o'clock. Tsunade smiled at her and leaned back on her desk, crossing her arms. "Shall we start?" Tsunade asked.

Ino nodded and sat down in a chair in front of Tsunade. She opened her mouth to speak when Tsunade raised her hand, cutting Ino off.

"I may not be a specialist like you and your father, but I have been taught your jutsu," she said. "I'm able to tap your memory. I trust you not to give me false information."

Ino grimaced. She hated people tapping into her memory, but Ino closed her eyes anyway, sighing, "Okay." Tsunade pressed her two fingertips against her forehead, sending herself into Ino's mind.

"Okay, Ino, show me."

Ino reviewed her arrival and first month in Kumogakure, introducing her to the employees of the Blue Pub. She showed Tsunade the silly things Minako did, in hopes of lightening the mood between her and the Hokage, and then—so the Hokage wouldn't deem her a slacker—she displayed images of Ino spending sleepless nights on the rood, searching and hoping for the murderer of the woman would show his face. It was then Ino became nervous as she remembered one night when Minako pointed out a mysterious, handsome man.

"Ino," Minako whispered in her ear, nudging Ino in the side with her elbow. "Do you see him, that guy over there?"

"There are several guys here."

Ino followed Minako's point the corner of the pub. "That guy in the back. He's wearing that jacket thing. Uh, whitish hair and purple eyes." When Ino found him, a man that stood out from the ocean of brown hair and brown eyes, he stared back at her with a confidence that made Ino's heart fly to unhealthy heights. She averted her eyes to the counter, hoping he didn't see her.

"I see him."

"He's a good looking man," Minako noted, still staring at him with a playful smirk. Ino covered Minako's loud mouth with a hand.

"It's not polite to stare."

"He kind of reminds me of my last ex-boyfriend. He was really—oh my, he's coming over here! Ino, what do we do?"

Ino punched Minako in the shoulder and growled under her breath, "Shut up and act normal, numb nuts!"

"Gotcha!" Minako saluted and continued to wipe the counter with a wet rag, acting "normal" until she looked up, gasped and flew to the other end of the counter to work the register. As she conversed the customers, she spoke louder than usual, this annoyed Ino more than usual.

"Good evening." His voice was deep and vibrated through Ino's body viciously. The stranger wore a dark cloak with the front unzipped to the middle of his midsection, showing the muscular valleys and dips of his abdomen and chest. For his face, his features looked approachable and soft with intense lavender eyes and a confident smirk riding his thin lips. He smoothly raked his fingers through his silver hair. Ino ogled at the charming man, but didn't notice until he winked. She looked down and noticed she repetitively scrubbed the same spot on the counter.

"Ino," Tsunade gasped. "You do realize who that is, right?"

"I know now."

"Uh," Ino stuttered, gathering her words that she subconsciously lost, "hello, sir, is there anything I can get you?"

"Your name, perhaps?"

Ino pressed her lips together, forcing down a smile, while her insides burst into an eruption of anxiety. Her fingers twiddled with the hem of her long-sleeved shirt. "It's, eh, I-Ino."

He leaned against the counter, still holding a charming smile on his face. "Ino, mm? That's a unique name. When your shift is over, meet me outside, yeah?"

"Uh, sure."

He smiled. "Good."

As she promised, when her shift was over, Ino clocked out and met the mysterious man outside the pub. He leaned against the neighboring skyscraper with an expressionless look on his face.

"Didn't your parents ever tell you not to run off with strangers! What kind of imbecile runs off with strangers!"

Throughout the night, they spoke and laughed as they walked around Kumogakure, enjoying the sites the village had to offer—and in Ino's opinion, it's wasn't much. Ino gazed at the Adonis like features, mesmerized by his charming face and even more so, his body. As much as she fought against such smutty thoughts, she yearned to see what this man looked like in bed. He captivated her with endearing jokes and compliments. A finger trailed up and down her arms, leaving fire in its wake.

"We should go somewhere more private," he suggested as he leaned closer to Ino, setting a hand against the wall beside her head. "I know somewhere not too far from here. Stay the night with me."

"I don't know," Ino said, stepping away from the man, who frowned but his smirk quickly came back. "My boss will be pissed if I disappeared for the whole night, not to mention my roommate."

He snorted, laughing at her. "Is he your father or what?"

"Well, no."

"Then there's nothing to worry about! Come with me. You'll have a good time."

"No, I have to go."

His grin, a pleasant one, turned possessed, demented and insanity plagued his eyes. The man snatched her hair and pulled her head back, exposing her neck. He leaned in close, trailing his nose along her jugular. Then he whispered, "Sorry, Blondie."

Everything went black.

"Please don't tell me…," Tsunade murmured. "Is that how…?"

Her vision was blurry when she first opened her eyes, but she could see a dark figure hover over her and a dim light glowing behind it. However, the image vanished when Ino closed her eyes again as a stinging, as if she was being ripped open, sensation flared throughout her body especially around her shoulders and stomach. She hissed, fighting back pain stricken tears.

"You're finally awake," he growled, sending panicked shivers across Ino's bleeding skin. "It's about time." Ino opened her eyes once again and glanced down at her bloody naked body, seeing the blood pooling on her stomach, seeping from a gasp the width of her stomach.

"Please stop," she whimpered.

He grinned and showed her the knife with her blood dripping down the blade and his fingers. Ino closed her eyes when drops fell onto her face, her neck, her breasts. "I'm only starting."

"Stop."

Tears spilled down her cheeks and stained her shirt's collar with wetness when Ino opened her eyes. Tsunade drew her arm back and leaned against her desk once more, and Ino could feel her stare, her scrutiny. She didn't want to meet those eyes that held sympathy. Before meeting her superior's gaze, Ino wiped the tears with the back of her hand and looked up, meeting sullen eyes. Ino bowed her head again, letting tears seep from her eyes again.

"You could've said something before this happened," Tsunade whispered. "I can't believe you went through that. Ino, I'm so sorry." Ino shook her head and wiped tears away one more time as she looked up, opening her mouth to object, but Tsunade wrapped her arms around Ino's shoulders, allowing Ino to cry on her shoulder and share her emotions with Tsunade.

However, Ino gentled pulled away from Tsunade's embrace. "It's my fault for everything," she said, keep her eyes on the corner of the desk. "I took that mission. I left with Hidan. After what happened, I disappeared and locked myself in a hotel room for two weeks. I didn't want to come home. I wanted to start new, but then Shikamaru showed up."

"Sorry to ruin your plans," Tsunade said sarcastically, back to her hard-ass self. "You truly are in the best hands when in Konoha. Who else would support you in Kumogakure?"

"Shikamaru gave me the same lecture."

"It's true. You're lucky to be alive, Ino."

"No, I really am not." Ino looked up with hard eyes, meeting Tsunade's confused gaze. "He wants me dead. The day before I left, Hidan showed up to kill me. He said his client wasn't too happy that I was alive. His client, or whatever, wants me dead."

"His client? He's working for somebody? The Akatsuki must be desperate for some cash."

"He's looking for me, Lady Tsunade. He's the ultimate reason why I returned to Konohagakure."

Ino felt lighter, a burden has lifted from her shoulders, her chest, and now she could only feel the weight in her stomach. She could inhale a deep breath and enjoy the fresh air, not the air that had a dark secret lingering in the air. Talking to Tsunade went easier than Ino expected, surprised by the amount of support Tsunade gave her. She assured Ino that her secret, everything she revealed—that included the cover about Shikamaru being the father, would be safe with her.

Speaking of Shikamaru, she needed to tell an important person that her child belonged to him. It wasn't going to be pretty, but it needed to be done. As for Shikamaru, Ino would pray that her father refrained from beating his sorry ass. Her pineapple haired teammate did ask for it, and she did warn him about her father going on a violent rampaged once he found out. So, at the end of the day, whatever happens happens and it's all Shikamaru's fault, literally and figuratively if you catch Ino's drift.

When Ino marched into the flower shop with that refreshed smile on her face and a bounce in each step, her mother rejoiced even though she was about as clueless as a goldfish. She dropped the hose and walked into the den with Ino, arms linked and smiles on both of their faces.

She can do it.

Her father looked up from the television with fatigued eyes, but as his eyes zeroed in on his daughter, he stood up quickly, making a B-line for his bedroom. Ino stepped in Inochi's path and stared him down, causing her father to slow down and stop before he reached her.

"You need to listen to me," she ordered, keeping her penetrating stare locked on her father's wandering eyes. "Dad, I'm ready to tell you who the father is, and if you don't want to listen or support me, you'll never know."

"Ino, I just want to beat the fucker's ass."

"Inoichi, language, dear."

"Sorry, hun."

"Dad, please look at me. I can't tell you if you're look elsewhere." Truthfully, the fact her own father couldn't look at her straight in the eyes hurt her. He acted almost embarrassed to have her as a daughter. Did she really screw up that bad?

Inoichi sighed and looked at Ino with a stoic expression, waiting for her to say something. "You need to control yourself because I need him there, more than anything. That means no severe maiming such as curb stomping, bone breaking, and organ pulling, understand?"

He grunted.

"The father is Shikamaru."

Her mother gasped and clapped her hands together in delight. "Called it!"

Her father remained emotionless, staring at Ino with dull, impassive eyes. It startled Ino when he walked passed her and out the door…in his fuzzy bunny slippers she bought him for his fortieth birthday.

The ridiculous amount of trees and greenery astonished Temari every time she visited Konoha, a wonderland of skyscraping trees with a canopy so thick she couldn't see the vibrant sun shining in the unblemished sky. Suna, a paradise of humid air and mountainous sand dunes, obviously differed from this village that Temari loved so much—sometimes more than her moist, thick aired village.

Through the diminishing trees, Temari could spot the scarlet colored gates of Konoha's main entrance. She walked faster, faster towards the intimidatingly large gates that peeped beyond the trunks of trees. Temari was almost there, close to Shikamaru's arm, and almost in her version of paradise. Her feet didn't feel sore and blistered as she flew through nature's maze until she stood gazing at the village gates, out of breath and regressing back into her overly fatigued state.

She wanted to collapse to her knees and pass out there, but she heard an all too familiar voice.

"Hi."

Shikamaru casually sauntered over to Temari with a cool smirk on his lips, the lips that Temari yearned to lean forward and capture them with her, but they were in public—it had to wait due to their policy about no public displays of affection. Temari's breath hitched in her throat when Shikamaru stopped in front of her. In the course of six months, she noticed he towered over her, to the point where she had to crank her neck back to look at his face…or maybe she was shrinking.

"You've gotten taller," she commented.

Shikamaru said nothing, just smiled at her, and Temari leaned forward and hugged her lover around his waist, nuzzling her nose into his neck. She snuck a light kiss on the crook of his neck. Oh, how she missed him.

She stepped away from him. Shikamaru stared at her with intense desire, a look that lured her in every time she saw the look in his eye. She could never describe the feeling that he gave her, but it always made her squirm in delight, in wonderful anticipation.

"Do you think we should get started?" she asked, following Shikamaru as he turned around and began walking into the semi crowded streets.

He shrugged and slouched with a lazy look on his face. "If you want," he mumbled. "You just got here, though. How about we find you something to eat? After that, I'll walk you to your inn, and then we'll start working tomorrow, after you've had some rest? Sound good?"

Temari nodded. "Sure, I'm really tired anyway."

Shikamaru leaned back in their booth and watched Temari ravenously scarf her food down—poor girl hasn't eaten a full meal in three days…. Having her sit before him was surreal. It's been a long six month, feeling an eternity since he last seen her, and her presence was abnormal—it didn't belong in this scene.

She hasn't change except for her hairstyle, tying her hair back into two ponytails instead of four, which he never liked, so this change was good. At a young age of twenty, she looked older with dark circles around her light, sea-green eyes. Hopefully, in the next few days of rest, her youth would return.

"Are you sure you don't want any of this? It's delicious," Temari asked, pointing to her food with the end of her chopstick, mouth filled with food.

Shikamaru smiled and shook his head. "It's all yours." He was full from the feast Choji, Asuma, and himself had last night, in celebration of Choji scoring a girlfriend, who he wouldn't let anyone meet until he was sure about her…whatever that meant. Ino unfortunately couldn't come because the thought of eating meat made her want to vomit, and she needed to speak with the Hokage.

Last night, he told Asuma and Choji that Ino was pregnant, pushing six months. Asuma pretended to smash his face into the hot plate, mumbling something about having enough of babies since his little girl was born two weeks before, and he suffered sleepless night and an infinite number of dirty diapers.

Choji stopped eating.

Amongst the shock, Shikamaru proceeded to announce that he was the father. Asuma grabbed him by the neck and almost smashed his face into the hot plate, yelling incoherent threats. He should have known better and used protection, yadda, yadda, yadda.

Choji lost his appetite.

"Shikamaru, are you all right? You seem out of it."

Shikamaru smiled. Speaking of Ino, ever since her and Temari met on his birthday, they loathed each other, wanting to spill each other's guts on the floor since that day. Ino called her a home wrecker and "accidentally"—later, she confessed she did it on purpose—split her drink in Temari's lap. Temari, incapable of taking shit from anyone, punched Ino in the face, but knowing Ino also didn't take shit, Ino came back and uppercut his lover in the chin, then sent her to the floor with a sharp right hook to the side of Temari's face. Before they could really start, everyone at the dinner table had to break them up. Then, Ino and Temari were tied to their seats, on opposite ends of the table. Hm, if Shikamaru brought Ino around Temari, would Temari punch a pregnant woman?

Ugh, that reminded him that he hasn't seen or spoke to Ino…. He'll have to do that once he was done accompanying Temari….

"I'm fine," he said hastily. "It's been a troublesome day, that's all. I mean—not because you're here, just that everything else has been stressful, I guess." Damn, he never stumbled on his words. "I'm glad you're here," he covered his stumble. "I've, uh, missed you."

Temari giggled, something she rarely did and shook her head at his futile attempt of being affectionate. "I missed you, too. It's been a long six months it seems."

"Definitely. So," Shikamaru paused to glance outside, seeing the sun begin to set below the mountains, "are you ready to go?"

"Yeah."

By the time they found Temari's inn, the sun completely disappeared behind the horizon. The inn was small, but one of the top rated inns in Konoha, which was why the Hokage bunked her here every six months. It was a shame that Temari slept at Shikamaru's house more often than she did at the inn, but Tsunade didn't need to know about that.

"This is it," Shikamaru sighed. Temari turned around and stepped towards him until they stood chest to chest, until she looked straight up and he had to look down. "Goodnight."

"Stay the night?" she purred.

As much as he wanted to stay the night in her warm embrace, flourish with kisses, Shikamaru shook his head. He needed to see Ino. "Sorry, I need to run some errands for Tsunade."

The sandy blonde woman pouted, but it was replaced with a delicate, sultry smile. "Then, I'll see you tomorrow." She raised to her tiptoes and pecked Shikamaru's lips, which he reluctantly kissed back—he needed to see Ino.

Temari increased the pressure against his lips, her fingertips trailing up his arms and clutching his shoulder, bringing him closer to her. Shikamaru stepped back and placed a hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "Tomorrow, meet me at the jonin's lounge around noon, and we'll start from there. I'll see you."

With a last wave, Shikamaru left, wandering the streets of Konoha before he saw Ino. He zoned on his feet, watching them step, step, step, step. What was he thinking? How he just felt when he kissed Temari wasn't right, as if he committed all seven sins in that second. It wasn't fair to Temari, thinking of Ino while kissing Temari, who longed for his attention and body and vice versa.

Human nature could not explain the sixth sense one has, the sense of knowing someone watched Shikamaru as he walked away from the inn and sauntered down Main Street, towards Ino's apartment building; the feeling of someone scrutinizing him and his every move. Shikamaru glanced over his shoulder, but there was no one behind him…or at least, he didn't see anyone. He, however, felt a disturbance in the air, a tension that centered on harming Shikamaru, and he couldn't pinpoint where exactly such tension originated. Well, that is until he turned around for the second time to see a flash of a man dressed in gray clad stampeding towards him.

"YOU MESSED WITH THE WRONG DADDY, NARA!"

Oh, fuck.

I enjoyed writing this chapter.
Now, thanks for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and alerting. You all make me some happy that I could give everyone hugs.
Have a majestic day!

P.S
I have a sudden obsession with Sasuke, more specifically Sasuke/Sakura, due to the amazing fanfiction called
Instant Message by Keelah. Does anyone know any great fics about those two?