Whirlwind

Chapter Eleven

-Operation Day Seven: Kiba and Ino-

Ino sat up from her bed and attempted to rub the sleepiness from her eyes. What a long night it had been. She stretched her arms up into the air, cracking her back. The blonde looked over to the bed beside hers, where Hinata was still fast asleep. She pushed the covers back and swung her legs over the edge, getting up and allowing for another stretch. As quietly as possible, Ino made her way to the bathroom. Once inside, she closed the door and turned on the shower. Pulling her clothes off and stepping into the hot water was just what she needed to become fully awake. "I wonder if Gaara and Sakura made up last night, they looked like they were going to murder each other."

Ino grabbed a hold of her hair wash and started working it through her golden locks. The more she thought about last night the weirder it got. Ino didn't understand how Sakura could stand being around Gaara if he made her so angry. Then again, Gaara was a man, a very emotionally challenged man, who said the wrong things. She still found it hard to believe that Sakura had actually hit him in the face with food. "Only Sakura would be so brave as to throw spaghetti in the Kazekage's face." she shook her head in wonder.

She started washing the suds from her hair and letting the water clean her body, rinsing away all the sand and sweat. She didn't know how people here lived, it was so hot. All the time! Ino turned the nozzle of the shower to off and stepped out, wrapping a towel tightly around her body. "I'll make sure I stop by the hospital to see if Sakura is okay." She nodded and dried herself off. She left the bathroom and found her bag, pulling out some fresh clothes and dressing quickly before Hinata had to wake up to a nude roommate.

After she was finished dressing, Ino took a brush and ran it through her luxurious hair. Finally pulling it into her hair tie, with just the right amount of bangs covering her eye, she went to the door and slipped on her ninja shoes. The blonde made her way to the hotel lobby and waved to the receptionist as she left.

"Alright hospital, hospital." She said to herself, looking around the large area and seeing the top of the large building in the distance. "Hospital!" she confirmed and headed off in that direction. Once she reached the hospital, she pushed in the glass doors and looked around the lobby that was only occupied by a few people. She walked over to the front desk to ask if Sakura was here, but it was vacant.

Ino peeked down the hallway and saw an older woman with dark brown hair issuing orders to a few of the younger nurses. Assuming this woman would have some information, Ino confronted her. "Excuse me! Miss?" she called approaching the woman who focused her brown gaze on the blonde.

"My name is Yoko, young lady. I am the head of the hospital." She informed her. Ino blinked, confusion written all over her face.

"I thought Sakura was the head of the hospital while she was here…"

"When Sakura-sama is not here I am in charge, now what do you want?" Yoko glared hatefully, obviously having issues with showing Sakura superiority.

"Actually, I was looking for Sakura, but it seems like she isn't here. Have you seen her today at all?" Ino asked innocently enough.

The glare Yoko had focused on the Konoha ninja intensified. "No, I don't know. She hasn't come in at all. Why don't you ask Kazekage-sama? He probably knows, since that stupid foreign whore is probably fucking him."

Ino raised her hand and there was a loud smack as her palm connected with the other woman's face. "How dare you!" Ino yelled, throwing Yoko a glare of her own. "How. Dare. You. Sakura is not doing that with Gaara-sama! How rude of you to think that about her! Even your own Kazekage! Get a grip lady, it's obvious. Stop playing cougar and go after someone your own age." With that said, Ino turned away from the stunned nurse and stormed out of the hospital.

"Good grief! Gross! An old lady has a thing for Gaara! Ew." She shook her head and scanned the area around her. At least she did get one good piece of information from that psycho nurse. Gaara probably did know where Sakura was, they were always together nowadays. Ino pushed some chakra to her feet and jumped up, landing on the roof of a nearby building. She looked around and then spotted the Kazekage tower. "Just find Gaara and I'll find Sakura." She nodded and started a run to jump to the next rooftop.

Once she arrived at the tower she walked in and went straight to the front desk. A young woman sat there working vigorously. "Excuse me," Ino said as she stopped at the desk.

"Yes? How can I help you?" the woman asked.

"Is the Kazekage in yet?"

The receptionist shook her head and sighed, "I haven't seen him all morning, but that doesn't necessarily mean he isn't in his office. If you would like, you can go check and see if he's in there. It's the third floor."

"Yes, thank you." Ino nodded, the woman gestured for Ino to take the stairs. With that, the blond waved. She started up the stairs, taking two at a time to increase her speed. Once she reached the third floor she slowed her pace, and walked down the hall, trying to find Gaara's office. There was a set of double doors at the end of the hall with the mark of the Kazekage engraved upon them. It was a safe guess. She stopped in front of the large doors and knocked loudly, but no answer came. She knocked again, and received the same response. Cautiously, she grabbed the doorknob and went in to find it empty. "What in the world?" she asked herself, groaning in annoyance. This was getting weird. Well, if they weren't at the hospital and they weren't at the Kazekage tower, they must still be at home. With new determination Ino hurried back down the stairs and rushed out the doors, just to slam into a hard body. She fell back and stumbled, quickly regaining her balance. "I'm so sorry," she began to say as she looked up to see the person she ran into.

Kiba waved at her with a big grin. "Hey Ino! What's the hurry? You okay? You should definitely watch where you're going, you know?" he bombarded her with his incessant talking.

"Hello Kiba," she finally smiled back.

"What's up? You seem in a hurry." He said.

"Not really," she sighed looking around once more to try and find the Kazekage's house. "I've just been looking for Sakura all morning, and I can't find her anywhere. So I was going to Gaara's house to see if she was still there. Which she must be, because she's not anywhere else." The blonde explained, already feeling the heat of the day taking its toll on her. "But I don't know where the Kazekage's mansion is."

"I know where it is." Kiba blurted out and grinned. "I'll take you there if you want."

"Oh would you?" Ino smiled, happy she had run into him now.

"Sure thing," he nodded and started walking down one of the streets. Ino followed him, looking around at the odd buildings in Suna.

"This place is so weird, don't you think?" she commented.

Kiba shrugged, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I kinda like it. Something about this desert weather is really awesome, and Akamaru loves all the open space to run."

Ino rolled her eyes, but laughed nonetheless. "It's too dry here for my skin, I would just die."

Someone landed swiftly in front of them, making the two come to a halt. Temari straightened up and looked at the pair for a while, "Have either of you seen my brother? I can't find him anywhere. His chakra is completely gone." Her strong expression turned to that of a worried sister. Both Kiba and Ino shook their heads.

"I haven't seen him, he's not at the Kazekage tower," Ino spoke up, though something seemed wrong about this whole situation. She really needed to find Sakura.

"I haven't either," Kiba sighed. "If I see him, I'll make sure to tell him you're lookin' for him though." He tried to give Temari a smile, but she was already gone. "Well that was weird," he said simply, looking at Ino. They continued walking down the street until they reached the largest house in the village. "Here you go, the Kazekage mansion."

Ino looked up and walked up to the large decorative doors. She raised her fist to the door and pounded away. "Sakura! Sakura get your big forehead out here!" the blonde smiled brightly, knowing the insult would set her friend on fire. They waited in silence, until finally the door began to crack open. Sakura stared out at the two, her eyes dull, "Gaara?" was all she muttered out, taking a turn to look at each of the beings at her door.

Ino's brow furrowed, confused by the other woman's demeanor. "No Sakura, its Ino, your best friend."

The door slammed shut then, the sound of a lock sliding in place following shortly after. Ino blinked and looked over at Kiba. "What on earth?" she asked, turning her gaze back to the door.

Kiba gave a small yawn and put his hands behind his head, "Well she seemed…lively."

"I wonder what's wrong. Sakura looked…I haven't seen her look like that since…since Sasuke left." Realization dawned upon the blonde then. "Oh my God! Gaara left!" she concluded, turning back to face the brunette.

Kiba huffed and shook his head, beginning to walk off with Ino trailing close behind. "There are two things wrong with that theory, hot stuff." He smirked at the blush that washed over Ino's cheeks. "One," he initiated, holding a finger up. "Why would Gaara leave his house? Wouldn't he make Sakura leave if they had gotten in a fight?"

Ino contemplated the thought. But something was still off about it. Kiba held up a second finger, "Two. Gaara and Sakura never let their fights last this long. Obviously. Sakura's probably just pms-ing right now."

Ino hit Kiba over the head as hard as she could, getting a loud yell from the dog boy. "What was that for?" he whined.

"She is not pms-ing Kiba! I know my best friend, and there is something seriously wrong with her. Temari is out looking for her brother, don't you think it's weird that the Kazekage is missing?" she yelled, stopping the middle of the street and setting her hands on her hips.

Kiba came to a halt as well, and stared down at her, trying his best to behave, and not say anything stupid. "I don't know Ino, but why would Gaara leave?"

"I don't know!" she puffed, her brows furrowing into a scowl. "I just want to take my mind off of this."

"Well…I found this greenhouse…we could go and look at the flowers." Kiba suggested. Ino's face lightened up at the mention of her favorite things.

"Wow Kiba, that's actually…a really sweet idea." She gave him a heart-filled smile, and latched onto his arm. "Lead the way."

Kiba led Ino around Suna, taking in all the odd beauty of the place. They were near the edge of the village when Ino spotted the greenhouses. "Oh look! There they are!" she squealed excitedly, dragging Kiba forward with all her strength.

Ino pushed the doors open and gasped when she saw the contents of the large shed. "It's…beautiful." She managed out, mouth agape. They were surrounded by the most colorful plants she had even seen. The flowers had odd shapes, most likely to accommodate to the desert life. But there were flowers she had in her store here as well. "Oh wow!" the florist ran forward, eyeing a large and blooming bush of pink and white. "These are desert roses, I've never seen so many before! These are almost impossible to grow in Konoha." She explained, looking back at Kiba, who was making his way over towards her.

"Is that so?" he wondered aloud, leaning over her to try and get a better look at the flowers. "They're really pretty."

"They're exquisite." She breathed, gently touching the petals of one.

Kiba looked from the flowers to the girl in front of him. "You know which one is my favorite?" the brunette asked, knowing this would spark the mind ninja's curiosity. Ino straightened up, turning around in a fluid movement.

"Which on-" her question was interrupted by Kiba's lips pressing softly against her. The shock on her face soon fell as her eyes closed. She leaned into his kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck, trying to pull him closer as his arms wrapped around her waist.

Once they broke for air, Ino stared up into Kiba's dark eyes. "Hey genius," she smirked, running her fingers through his hair. "I'm not a flower."

He simply laughed and leaned closer, so their lips were barely touching. "I guess I assumed you were, since your beauty was far superior.

"You're such a kiss up," the blonde giggled, giving him a peck on the lips. She could feel how red her face was, and was almost positive Kiba could feel the radiating heat.

"But you like it," he taunted, pressing his lips against hers once more.

"Yup." She mumbled, keeping her lips against his.