The whole thing with Texas' evacuation, and how so many people ignored it… that just annoys me. I'm sorry, but you would think after Katrina, people would have learned that if the government says "Get out," you get the heck out- especially when they give loads of time. That said…

I fixed Chapter 6 extensively Wednesday, so uhm… people may have to go back and read it again? I changed the whole first half and made it better (I wasn't quite so sick), cleaned up the second half. Hopefully this will be the last time I will have to revamp a chapter so much to make readers go back. I'm also going to do different dividers.

I'M SORRY!! DX

But hopefully things are less… "convenient." I'm also thinking of a fic-title-change. Not sure what to change it to but, whatever. It may or may not happen. Another thing: This chapter ended up as 6 pages in size 10 font in word. Hurrah for doing more then about 2 pages worth of story. :D Ah yes. And as usual, I didn't proofread, nor do I have a beta. If there's some sort of horrendous error, like a character having more knowledge then they should that wasn't covered in the manga or the fic… yeah. Lemme know.

Big thanks to the following for reviewing: someone179, CelticReaper, CrabbyOldHobbit, King of the DamnD, grumpywinter, thinking-about-it, atlantis-rob, Jfitzgerald, Energeezer, Mrs-N-Uzumaki, TheFinalFighter, twilight guardian, Dante Elric or WDG

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any song lyrics. (BRAVE SAINT SATURN!! WEE 2 MORE DAYS!)

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Every breath has sacred weight,
Every life has some design.
Can we kill and also save,
Speak of life,
While digging graves?

Brave Saint Saturn, Starling, Anti-Meridian

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A page hidden away and marked up so badly you almost couldn't get a single bit of information out of it... a page that was burnt around the edges, carrying the image of a young woman with long red hair and a name Ino breathed out softly under her breath in shock, "Uzumaki Kushina."

Ino stared at the page she held in her hands for what seemed like hours, taking in all that she could about the Whirlpool refugee. The picture was old, faded, damaged, and yet it still held everything she needed. She could see Naruto's nose, his chin, his mischievous eyes- all in this one woman who she had never met. She placed the old and tattered piece of paper in her lap softly, leaning back as she meditated on what she'd found. After a moment, she went back to the records to see if there was anyone else with the last name, and found there were none.

This was it. It was all she had for any of the answers her brain could conjure.

She looked at the piece of paper once more, being careful of its delicate nature due to its aged and fiery damage. "Uzumaki Kushina, Ninja of Whirlpool." She nodded to herself and carefully pressed her finger to a mostly-undamaged spot on the page, and left a small chakra imprint so that she could re-locate the page easily. It would only last for a few days, but the young ninja hoped it would be just long enough so that she could talk to Tsunade-sama about the matter and possibly have a small investigation on as of why the page was so horribly mottled.

By no means were the markings and fire damage caused official means. It was definitely done by someone on the outside to mess with records.

But why? Why would someone specifically go out of their way to eradicate someone's file, even if they were a refugee?

Ino sighed heavily and wiped her forehead. That was enough. She could write up a report about it tonight, so with that thought in mind, she swiftly returned all the records she had removed back into their bindings and placement upon their shelves.

'Uzumaki Kushina… Just looking at her picture, I'm sure she was a rather interesting ninja.' she smirked to herself as she left the records office, 'Perhaps now I could ask my father about that little blue box with the kunai… and that letter. I'd really like to know who it was from…'

She made her way slowly home, stretching out her aching limbs from sitting too long, making what could have been a 10 minute run into a half an hour walk. She reflected on all she had learned through her investigation in the records office, while cleaning the Yondaime's home, and while tending the extensive garden outside the home.

After she had started working on the garden, she had come to the realization that there were a lot of medicinal herbs and such, which explained some of why Tsunade put her in charge there. Not only was she a med-nin, but she had extensive horticultural knowledge to fall back upon, and could easily replace a plant through special-order if it became necessary without having to go through a bunch of papers.

Ino yawned softly as she entered the flower shop, "I'm home."

Yuuna looked up from a vase she was arranging flowers in and smiled, "Welcome back. What've you been up to all day?"

The young girl waved a hand, "Researching something."

Yuuna quirked an eyebrow, "Was it because of something you saw while on your daily mission?"

Ino rolled her shoulders, "Kind of."

"I suppose you can't talk about though, can you."

"Nope."

"Of course." Yuuna looked towards the entrance to her home, "I believe your father came home just before you with dinner. You two can start ahead of me, I just need to finish that last bouquet before tomorrow and closing up for the evening."

Ino nodded, "Alright. Thank you."

"Of course."

She entered her home and made a quick run to her room where she changed out of her ninja uniform and put on a more relaxed outfit before heading to the dining room. There her father was just finishing setting up the dishes on the table. He looked up and smiled at her, "Hey kiddo."

Ino smiled, "Hello father. Do anything interesting today?"

Inoichi shrugged, "Delivering flowers to people really wasn't what I signed up for doing when I became a ninja."

Ino smiled as she sat down, "Of course not."

There was a pause, "How did your day go?"

She paused and thought about it a moment, "Alright. I found out something that was a little unexpected. I was glad to find it though, another piece of the puzzle."

Inoichi nodded as he started eating, already knowing that Yuuna would be a little while longer. The two Yamanaka ate in silence for a short while, as Ino tried to piece together just what it was she wanted to ask and say.

"Hey dad?"

"Hm?"

"In the storeroom the other day… I found a little blue box I'd never seen before."

Inoichi paused and put down his bowl, trying to think of just what box she was talking about, "Oh?"

Ino nodded slightly, "Yeah… it had this really strange kunai in it and after examining it the first time, I later found a note hidden away in it." Ino paused to gauge her father's reaction., "Would you know anything about it?"

Inoichi paused, scrunching his face up a little, "A strange kunai?"

"Yeah. It had 3 prongs and some sort of seal… We were careful about that, since we didn't want to damage it."

Her fathers eyes widened a little with realization, "That was in the storeroom?"

Ino nodded slowly, "Yeah. I found it the day you wanted those scrolls…"

He looked at her a moment before rubbing his face a little, "I see… You made sure to be careful of the seal on the hilt?"

Ino nodded again, "Yes."

He father thought for a moment, "You said 'we'? Who else was looking at it?"

Ino paused in panic. She didn't know why, but she wasn't sure if she should tell him, and yet… "N…Naruto."

Inoichi quirked an eyebrow, "You were looking at it with Naruto? Why him?" He would have thought she'd look at it with someone like Shikamaru or Sakura or something, not Naruto.

Ino scratched behind her ear nervously, unsure of why she felt that way, "Is it bad I was looking at it with him? It wasn't some sort of family heirloom or something, right?"

"Well, no, I'm just… Naruto? I wasn't aware you really spoke with him."

She relaxed, 'Oh. So that's what it is.' She smiled, "I just recently started trying to get to know him, he's… nice. He helped me out a bit when sensei…"

Inoichi nodded, "That I remember. Now, why with Naruto?"

Ino paused and thought about it. Why had she decided to share the secrets of the blue box with Naruto? Sure, it was a simple weapon with a very intricate seal, but was it simply because he was there at the time? "I'm… not really sure. I guess after I'd made him dinner my curiosity about the box's contents got the better of me and I decided we could both check it out."

Inoichi looked at her curiously, "But what if it had held a family secret?"

Ino blushed lightly, "Uh, well I'm sure I could have… done something to make him forget. Hit him with a frying pan or something?"

Her father stared at her a moment before chuckling, "Right, next time be sure to check a box's contents of secrets first before running out with it to look into with other people outside of the clan, got it?"

Ino blushed a little more deeply at her mistake, "Yes sir."

Inoichi nodded and smiled to himself, "So… the box held a 3 prong kunai with a seal and a note?"

She nodded, "Yeah."

"Do you have the box with you?"

She finished the last bite of her meal before answering, "It's upstairs in my room… should I go get it?"

Her father nodded, "I would appreciate it if you would."

Ino nodded and quickly made her way upstairs as her father resumed eating. She quickly went to her special safe and removed a few of her seals before grabbing the box and setting up the seals again. She walked back downstairs to find her mother had sat down at the table and started eating while she was away.

Yuuna looked away from Inoichi to her, quickly noticing the box and coming to a realization before going back to her meal calmly. Ino sat down once more and passed the box to her father, "This is it."

Her father had recognized it easily and looked it over, "This isn't in too bad of shape considering how old it is."

Ino blinked as he opened it and looked at the weapon inside, instantly going into what seemed a past memory, "We could tell it was old… just… not how old."

The older blond nodded, "I see, well, this is from just before you were born. Well, maybe half a year or so."

Ino's eyes widened a little. The box and everything in it were in quite good condition for their age then. She suddenly surprised herself with realizing how lucky it was that the folded note didn't break apart from being opened, all things considered.

He father carefully took out the weapon and examined it, "I still wonder at the craftsmanship of it, of course I would expect nothing but the best from someone like him. I'd almost forgotten he'd used this specific kind of kunai… you really can't find these anymore."

Ino tilted her head slightly, "Was it the person who wrote that note the one who used that kunai?"

Inoichi nodded absentmindedly, "Yes. It was his most preferred weapon combined with his most deadly technique."

Ino paused, "What do you mean?"

Her father looked to her, "The seal on this tag is very special, and deals with a very special technique that helped shape one of our greatest Hokage. He became a legend in battle, and someone to be feared to the point of other villages posting a 'flee-on-sight' warning."

Ino paused again, thinking back to the letter's sender and the things she had learned in school. 'Flee-on-sight? A legend in battle… during a war perhaps? A special kunai that helped in the use of an incredible technique… and a name that was partially blurred to illegibility due to water. Mi--o…'

One day looking back, she was sure she could imagine laughing at herself for how slow and stupid she was being.

Yuuna looked at Ino curiously, "Is it really that hard to piece together?"

The girl blushed, "Uhm… uh… the Fourth Hokage?"

Her parents clapped to tease her, "Bingo!"

Ino flushed more deeply, feeling embarrassed it took around five minutes of her thinking, just to guess something so obvious. Suddenly, a realization came to her, "Wait a second, that was a girt to you from the Fourth Hokage?"

Inoichi nodded, "Yes. It was after we had been on a rough mission and it was just after I'd learned Yuuna was pregnant, so I was rather stressed that mission."

Ino was shocked. So that was the Fourth Hokage's handwriting?

It was surprisingly sloppy.

Inoichi smirked, "So, you find anything at his house? I know you're the new caretaker keeping up the place."

Ino looked down, "Nothing really."

Her father looked at her for a moment, humming softly to himself, "No… I suppose not."

The subject was dropped.

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Ino looked outside her open window as she sat resting on her bed, her knees pulled halfway to her chest in a relaxed manner thinking over all she'd learned that day. A special journal sat closed with a pen on top of it, having already written down everything she felt was noteworthy so she wouldn't forget before she had decided to contemplate quietly.

Closing her eyes she thought back to the note and smiled softly, remembering what she could from it in slight melancholy.

Inoichi,

Congratulations! I know the news came rather abruptly just before leaving on our last mission and that it was hard, but I know it'll help give you an even stronger drive in the battlefield. I give you this gift as a show of friendship and as a comrade in battle. If you ever get in a bind, use it and I'll be there to help you, just as I was able to the other day. My final words of advice to you are this- Always protect those most precious to you. Fight with and beside them, fight for them, and protect them with all that you have. If you do, you'll have no regrets in life, and your path will not waver.

-Mi--o

She smiled and thought over her ninja career and all that she had accomplished with her teammates and fellow ninja. The good times, the hard times, and even the sad ones. She took a moment to reflect on Asuma-sensei's life and all that he had done, and came to feel he had upheld the words from the note the Yondaime had written to a T. Asuma-sensei had fought alongside his fellow ninja valiantly, and sure, he had perhaps taken a few wrong turns, but in the end…

He had led a life that was without regret.

No matter what had happened between him and his past comrades, all of his struggles within his life she would never know… To her, Asuma-sensei had lived his life to the fullest and felt that she could say he regretted nothing.

Her thoughts then turned to Naruto as she brought his jacket to herself and wrapped it around herself to keep out the autumn chill that drifted from her window on a soft breeze. She reflected on all that she knew of him from the past and from what she had learned of him in the present. 'Naruto is.. Someone I can call a precious friend, I think.' With that thought a solid decision was made, 'I'm going to talk to him more, and purposely seek him out… I'm going to be his friend, and not just Sakura's rival.' She nodded to herself assuredly and smiled.

'I wonder what he thinks of me? Am I someone he thinks of as a precious person?'

Ino suddenly realized with a small ache in her chest, 'I'd really like that…'

She would be sure to get to know him.

She had to.

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Takato: I managed to make flow for once during this chapter! YAY! …I hope Minato's letter wasn't too lame. Next chapter I'll focus on Naruto himself… and the strange happenings that are starting with him.

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