Hi! I was trying to update this story as soon as possible cause my vacation would soon be over and I'll be a little bit occupied with my thesis. But don't worry you guys, I'll definitely finish this story.

P.S. Another cop story plot occurred to me this morning and I was wondering…if you guys would still like me to write a cop story involving these two characters as soon as I finished this story. Or would you rather read one-shots?

As always, don't forget to R&R!!! Thanks a bunch!

~Ino Ishii

Yamanaka Ino slept the same way she did everything else in life – thoroughly.

At first, she'd balked at his idea of resting while they waited for Karin to return his call, but once Naruto had coaxed her into lying down on the sofa, she'd fallen asleep within minutes. He even managed to doze off in the adjacent chair.

Since they'd gotten virtually no sleep the night before, it was a necessity. He wanted the two of them to be alert as possible for the meeting with Karin.

And for anything else they might face today.

A lot of things had gone wrong at Perfect Match, and that was an understatement.

It could have been much worse.

When Kabuto came after Ino, she' fought him off, subdued him – all without blowing her cover.

And that pissed Naruto off.

Ino can take care of herself. Shikamaru had told him before. And it was true. She could.

That didn't mean, however, that she couldn't be hurt. It sure as heck didn't mean she was invincible.

Rather than identify herself to Kabuto as a police officer, read the scum his rights and/or take him down the hard way, she'd risked everything.

Part of him, the cop part, greatly admired her devotion to her duty. But the rest of him just wanted to grab her by the shoulders, give her a hard shake and yell at her for taking chances like that with her life.

Not that yelling would do any good, but at least then she'd know…

Know what?

Naruto stopped and brooded over that for a moment. And he decided it wouldn't be a good idea to finish that thought.

He stood, brushed a loose strand of hair from her face and forced his attention away from her mouth – which somehow managed to look both innocent and sensual at the same time. He went into the bathroom so he could call headquarters.

He reached Detective Hyuuga Hinata who in turn transferred his call to Chouji, who' apparently been doing the trace on the vehicle that's followed them.

Not exactly a duty in Chouji's job description. Well, not unless the case had strayed over into Special Investigations.

"Please tell me you volunteered for this extra work, Detective Akimichi." Naruto commented.

"Well, what can I say? I'm a glutton for cyber searches," he said sarcastically, but the sarcastic tone quickly faded. "All the other officers are busy working on the wedding details so I figured I'd pitch in and do my part."

In this case, his part was over and above. "Thanks," Naruto told the officer on the other line.

"Let's just say you owe me and leave it at that." Chouji responded. He didn't give Naruto a chance to ask him to elaborate.

"Okay, here goes. There are hundreds of black BMW's registered to owners who live in the area. Guess that's not a surprise. So I did some cross-referencing with your suspects and got lucky. One of them has a late model black BMW."

"Yakushi Kabuto?" Naruto guessed.

"You got it. I guess that's not a surprise either?"

"Not really. He came after Ino while we were visiting Sasori."

There was a short pause. "Define came after Ino," commanded Chouji.

Naruto hoped this sounded better aloud, but he wasn't counting on it. "Kabuto claimed he thought she was the sniper so he tried to apprehend her."

Another pause, a long one, and Naruto didn't need to see the man's expression to know that Chouji was not happy with his latest development. "She wasn't hurt?"

"No." But the images of her pulverizing Kabuto didn't do much to ease that tight fist around his heart. If she hadn't ducked, if she'd been just an inch or two out of position to deliver those snap kicks, if the man had been a fraction faster, then…

There was it again.

Those running commentaries in his head that he really didn't want to finish. But these wouldn't back off.

The truth was, even if all those other things had happened, she would have no doubt found a way to kick Kabuto's butt. Ino wouldn't have given up.

That last part didn't exactly make him feel better, either.

"She handled Kabuto on her own?" Chouji asked.

"Yeah." Naruto braced himself for Chouji's lecture that would no doubt contain a lot of profanity and a thorough dressing down for not protecting his best friend and "sister".

But a lecture didn't come.

"She wouldn't have appreciated the help anyway," Chouji grumbled.

"That was my guess, too"

Now there was some profanity, but it wasn't aimed at Naruto. "It doesn't make it any easier to watch."

Naruto settled for a "No."

The conversation might have lacked quantity, but at the end of the next pause, Naruto felt as if he'd reached some sort of truce with one of Ino's best buddies. It was a truce he hadn't even realized he wanted until it happened.

"So the next step is to speak to Hisagi Karin?" Chouji asked, getting them back into a comfort zone they both understood.

"I'm waiting for her to return my call now." He checked his watch. That wait was now on its third hour. "I got her cell number from Tomoyama and left her a message."

"Tomoyama, huh? That's an interesting source for that particular bit of info."

Yes, Naruto though so, as well. "Sometimes, I wonder if all four of them aren't in on it. Like some conspiracy to cover up something that got botched either at Perfect Match or Tomoyama's office. They just keep coiling and winding around each other like a nest of vipers."

If he thought for one minute it would stop the sniper, Naruto would haul all of them in and lock them up for as long as possible. Without physical evidence to connect them to the crimes, however, that lock up wouldn't last long. They'd lawyer up and be out before the ink dried on the paperwork.

There was a tap at the door, and he opened it to find Ino was standing there. "Hello, Chouji," she said, leaning closer to the phone. "Thin walls," she added when Naruto just looked at her.

"Thanks for the BMW info," he told Chouji. "I'll let you know how it goes with Karin."

"If it goes." Ino corrected when he hung up.

"It'll go." But Naruto was beginning to doubt it himself. If she didn't call soon, they'd have to look for her.

Karin was the one player in all of this that they hadn't had a real chance to question. Naruto had absolutely no proof, but the feeling in his gut told him that she had information that could help them get a handle on this case.

Or else she was the killer.

But either way, he needed to talk to her. With the wedding only a day away, that talk had to come soon.

Naruto watched as Ino peeled off her jacket, and in the process he felt his body rev up for all sorts of carnal possibilities.

A glimpse of her lacy bra egged those possibilities on even more. But they came to a quick crash and bur when she reached for the first aid kit.

"Another scratch?" he asked. Naruto tried to keep emotion out of his voice, but the battle was lost before he opened his mouth.

Ino shook her head. "Same one."

She quickly tossed the old bandage in the trash. It wasn't so fast that Naruto didn't see the fresh blood.

"That fight with Kabuto," he mumbled.

Hell.

"It's no big deal." She wiped her wound with antiseptic, hissed out a breath at the inevitable sting and put on a fresh bandage. "I just didn't want to get any blood on the wedding dress when I try it on to make sure it fits."

He was glad Chouji and Shikamaru weren't around. Heck, he didn't even want to hear it, so he focused on the second part of her oh-so casual comment that wasn't anywhere in the realm of being casual.

"What wedding dress?" he inquired.

She turned and went into the bedroom. "It was in that box that Shikamaru gave you."

And now it was on the bed. The corner of the large rectangular box was lifted slightly, and Naruto caught a glimpse of ivory silk.

"Look the other way," she instructed. "I'm about to strip down to my underwear."

His body revved up again. "Modest?" Hard to believe, especially since they had a go at each other in the bathroom a night before.

"No. Considering you've already seen me naked, modesty would be pointless. I just don't want you looking for any bruises that Kabuto might have left on me."

Another immediate halt on the revving. With lots of effort, he could ignore the blood comment but not that one. "Damn it, Ino, did he hurt you?"

"No, but he likely bruised me when he slammed me against the wall." She discarded her top on the bed and unzipped her skirt. "Don't worry, I'm positive his bumps and bruises outnumber mine, and I seriously doubt he'll be able to sit for a while."

That didn't help one bit. "This isn't a contest. Or a joking matter."

Huffing, she sat down on the edge of the bed and pulled the dress from the box. But her attention wasn't on the heap of the silk, lace and seed pearls. Her eyes lifted to connect with his.

"Don't you think I know that? Care to guess what was going through my mind while I was ramming my knee into Kabuto's reproductive organs? I was thinking, no, worrying, about you. I was afraid if you came in with guns blazing and fists flying, you'd get hurt.

"Guns blazing and fists flying?" Naruto was on the verge of telling her that those things would have never happened. Never. But it was too uncomfortably close to a lie.

The truth was he'd considered blazing guns, flying fists and any other extreme force when he saw Kabuto swing that punch at Ino.

"Great," she mumbled. "Shika didn't pick this out. This is my mom's dress."

It took Naruto a moment to pound down the anger he was still feeling over those possible bruises, but from the groan that Ino made, it was obvious they had another problem to deal with first.

"It's a message," she went on.

"I don't make the connection." Naruto shook his head, sure he'd missed something.

"It's my mother's way of saying 'I-know-you-wont-do-anything-that'll-result-in-bullet-holes-or-bloodstains-on-this-wedding-dress-since-it's-practically-a-family-heirloom'. Her way of showing me that she's worried about me." Ino gave a heavy sigh.

"Well, that makes two of us."

Except he knew it wasn't limited to such a small number. There was Shikamaru, Chouji and probably the whole Yamanaka clan. Naruto would have loved to say that their concern wasn't warranted. But it was.

In less than twenty-four hours, the undercover assignment would take them in the direction of the church – and the sniper, as well.

He was still in knots about that when he felt her fingertip skim over his stomach. His bare stomach.

"Your button's undone," she said, remedying that for him. Well, she remedied it after another brush of her fingertip.

"Are you trying to distract me from those possible bruises?" he arched his eyebrow.

"Yes, I am." She smiled, undid the button again and planted a kiss on his stomach. "Is it working?"

He fought to hang on to the anger a little longer, but it slipped away. "Like a charm," he said. And because the distraction felt so damn good, he slid his finger over the lacy edge of her bra.

White lace against her cream-colored skin. Talk about erotic.

Well, of course it was highly possible because it was Ino's bra. Ino's breast.

"What can I say, I'm easy," Naruto said as he stared directly on Ino's aqua eyes.

"You're a lot of things, Sergeant Uzumaki Naruto, but easy isn't one of them. In fact, I'd say you're the hardest thing in my life right now. And no, there are no raunchy hidden meanings in that." Ino smiled at the blonde male opposite her.

Naruto smiled and pushed the thoughts of bruises and snipers aside when she grabbed a handful of his shirt and hauled him onto the bed with her.

He landed on top of her, but like the previous night, she quickly did something about that.

Ino shifted, rolling them both over the soft mattress, and when she'd finished the rolling, she was on top, straddling him.

"Control issues?" he asked.

But her mouth was already swooping down on his. Fast.

A hungry kiss that left no doubt that she wasn't after conversation. It was next to impossible to argue with that, even though he should be arguing.

Instead, he was just thankful he'd picked up some condoms when he'd filled up the car with gas at the nearby convenience store.

Naruto reached up, opened the front closure on her bra and had the satisfaction of her breasts spilling out into his hands. She was firm. And supple.

Perfect.

He cupped one, then the other and ran his thumbs over her nipples.

It was obvious she enjoyed it from the way her mouth opened, and the soft sound of pleasure she made.

Ino didn't take the time to savor that pleasure, however. She pulled off her skirt, dragging it up and over her head and flinging it aside.

No pause. No hesitation.

She later went after his belt and zipper. And Naruto surprised her, and himself, by catching on to her wrist to stop her.

"Control issues?" he repeated. "Claustrophobia? Is that why you like to be on top?"

She gave him an 'all right, here goes' huff.

"The missionary stuff is just a little scary for me, okay? It's that whole being passive part."

"Passive?" Naruto asked in disbelief for he knew that sex with Ino was anything but passive.

Another flustered huff. And a hesitation.

"It's just that, it doesn't feel right. Or fair. It's almost no work being on the bottom, and yet I still get all the…benefits."

Interesting. She carried her belief in the bedroom that she had to work twice as hard and twice as long to get what she wanted.

As her cue that the conversation was over, she leaned down and went after his neck with a kiss. And she didn't stop there.

Ino slid her hand over the front of his pants, a move that had Naruto going from seriously aroused to rock-hard.

"But if it's something you want – "

Naruto ended that with a kiss of his own. "The only thing I want is you, Ino."

That slowed her down. She lifted her head, and her gaze met his.

In the depth of those aqua orbs, there was concern that he was sure was mirrored in his. Concern they might have actually discussed.

If his cellphone hadn't rung.

Cursing, she rolled off him so he could snatch the ringing annoyance that was still clipped to his belt.

"Hello," he barked. And this had better be important. Critical, even.

"Is this Namikaze Naruto?" the woman on the other line asked.

Even with the untimely interruption and his reaction to it, it only took him a split second to realize it was Hisagi Karin.

He said the woman's name aloud so that Ino would know, as well. She moved closer to him so she could hear the conversation.

But there wasn't much to hear.

"I'll meet you at the coffee shop at the intersection of Watanabe street and Okajima," she instructed. "You know the place?"

"I'll find it." Naruto simply said.

"Good. I'll see you in an hour. And Naruto? My advice is to watch your back. Someone's been following me. I think it might be this sniper."

And with that, Karin hung up.

"I guess it wont do any any good to remind you this could be a trap?" Ino asked.

Naruto shook his head, his attention not on her but on driving through the massive parking lot that serviced businesses.

"What would you do if Sasori, Tomoyama, or even, heaven forbid, Kabuto called and asked you to meet them?"

It was a cheap – and incredibly effective – way to win an argument.

She'd go of course. With backup. Which Naruto had, since there was no way she'd let him do this alone. That's why Ino had worn jeans and a t-shirt and stuffed her hair beneath a baseball cap.

It was as close to disguise as she could get on such a short notice.

The plan they'd put together on the drive over was for her to do the surveillance from the car and alert him via the communicator if anyone suspicious approached the place.

"What about Karin's 'someone's been following me. I think it might be this sniper' comment?" Ino reminded him. "Think it's true?"

"Could be."

And that was all the more reason to stay alert. She didn't want the sniper or anyone else sneaking up on them.

Naruto drove slowly past Java Kouhii's, the coffee shop that Karin instructed him to meet with her. It wasn't exactly quaint and cozy with the massive floor-to-ceiling windows that fronted the place.

Even though there were only about a half dozen customers, with those windows and jammed parking lot, it'd be next to impossible to make sure someone didn't pull out a rifle and start firing right through the glass.

"I'll sit in a booth near the back," Naruto commented, obviously addressing her concern before Ino could even voice it out. Something he did often. It was almost as if they could read each other's minds.

Almost.

The big exception to that was all the personal stuff going on between them. Other than his 'the-only-thing-i-want-is-you-Ino' comment on the bed, they hadn't talked a lot about, well, their feelings.

She took the blame for that though.

She'd done the majority for the stonewalling, but she wouldn't be able to keep it up.

Eventually they'd be alone. Eventually, the phone wouldn't ring, and they'd get around to having that mind-blowing sex that she'd been fantasizing about.

In addition to a thoroughly enjoyable experience, which it would certainly be, it'd create a bond between them that even her surly attitude and devotion to the badge might not be able to break.

Still, that wouldn't stop her.

Whatever was brewing between them wouldn't be put off by her doubts. Or her fears.

Frustrated at her inability to keep her mind on the mission, Ino checked the time.

Since they'd left not long after Karin's call, they still had a good fifteen minutes to spare. Well, unless the woman was the always-arrive-early type like Ino was.

If so, then Karin might come walking up at any moment.

She glanced in the vanity mirror to make sure too-visible hair hadn't escaped the cap, and while Naruto was tucking and hiding, something occurred to her.

"How about this? I'll take one of the booths on the right facing the window. That way, I can make sure no one comes in unannounced. You take Karin to a booth on the other side of the shop.

"And what if she recognizes you?" Naruto asked.

"That's what outstretched newspapers are for. I'll buy one on my way in. Look," Ino added when she saw the hesitancy in his eyes. "This might be the only chance we get to talk to her. She might know something that can help us to stop the sniper."

Naruto glanced at the coffee shop. At her. And then at those windows. He shook his head. "Don't make me regret this."

Too bad she couldn't promise him that.

Ino wished him good luck and got out before he could change his mind. Keeping a vigilant watch and trying to stay inconspicuous, she hurried across the parking lot and into the shop. As planned, she bought a paper and ducked into one of the booths.

And waited.

Naruto came in several minutes later, and he took the only booth that was available on the far side of the room.

He was visible, but barely.

Ino had to scrunch herself in the corner to keep him and the windows in sight.

"Equipment check," she whispered into her communicator.

"I hear you," Naruto responded.

So the equipment cooperated. Hopefully, everything else would. She hated stakeouts in public places because there are just too many factors she couldn't control.

The door finally swung open, and Karin walked in.

Obviously, this was not one of her better appearance days. Dressed all in dark colors, she had her hair pulled back and was wearing a pair of large-lens sunglasses.

"Namikaze Naruto." Karin greeted.

Ino had a nervous moment when the waiter blocker her line of sight, but thankfully Naruto and Karin ordered quickly, and the man moved.

"I guess you know about the other couple who were shot last night?" Ino heard Naruto ask the woman right away.

Karin nodded and pulled off her sunglasses. Ino carefully examined her expression now that she could see the woman's eyes. Her attention wasn't on Naruto but the windows. Yes. She was definitely watching her back.

"Both survived," Naruto continued. "A lot better outcome than the first couple, that's for sure. What were their names? Something like Soske and Sakura?"

"Sasuke," Karin corrected. "We dated, briefly."

Naruto didn't respond to that right away. He waited until after they had their coffee, and he took a long sip.

And it was a good strategy.

Karin was obviously uncomfortable with the silence and began to fidget with her sunglasses,

"The police questioned me about the deaths," Naruto finally said. "I guess they did the same to you?"

"I've been, uh, unavailable." Karin glanced out the window again. Ino did the same.

A longer pause this time for Naruto. "You said something on the phone about being followed?"

"I think it might be the sniper." But then she immediately shook her head. "Or else it's Hiruko Sasori. That's one of the reasons I agreed to see you. I noticed you've been visiting him a lot –"

"How did you know that?"

A spark of surprise. Followed by more fidgeting. Another glance out the window. A glance that turned into a full stare.

Ino followed the woman's gaze to see what had captured her attention and saw the black BMW cruise by.

Fuck. Of all times.

"The BMW's back," Ino whispered into the communicator. She moved out to the edge of the seat in case she had to use her weapon.

"You were saying something about Sasori?" Naruto prompted Karin.

She nodded and moistened her lips. "I wondered if he'd said anything to you about me?"

The car turned, circled and came back toward the coffee shop.

If it was Kabuto, he was either stupid or desperate. But the real question was, what had made him want to follow Karin?

Or had he actually followed Naruto and her?

Of course, there was also the stomach churning possibility that it wasn't Kabuto at all.

Maybe Kabuto wasn't the only person with access to a black BMW. It could be Sasori. And maybe Karin had been right, and it was the sniper following her.

If so, this visit could turn deadly in a hurry.

"He mentioned you a couple of times," Naruto told her. Practically a lie, but it seemed to get Karin's concentration back on him. It also helped her temporary attention deficit when the car darted out of sight again.

"Sasori and I started dating after his fiancée broke off their engagement." She moistened her lips again and ran her index finger over her eyebrow. "He was devastated, said he needed me. He even told me that he was in love with me."

"And then what happened?" Naruto asked.

She shrugged "I don't know. I really don't. He changed, said it wasn't right for him to see me since I was a client. Sometimes, I wonder if he's the sniper," Karin said softly. "I mean, all three of those grooms were me I once dated."

"Push that button," Ino whispered to Naruto knowing that he would have probably jumped on it anyway.

But the pushing wasn't even necessary. Karin continued on her own. "I think Sasori needs help."

"Yeah. I've heard he's in therapy with Dr. Tomoyama." Naruto answered.

Karin made a sound. A soft burst of sarcasm that didn't contain any humor. "Now, there's a pair. The sick trying to heal the sick." Her gaze flew to the window again. "I believe Sasori's mentally unstable."

The BMW was back, slowly weaving its way through the parking lot like some demon on the prowl. Those tinted windows only made it seem more menacing.

"What makes you say that?" Naruto asked, drawing Karin's attention back to him.

"He threatened to kill me. Just two weeks ago. I went to the icebreaker, and he ordered me out. He said he was going to hire a security guard and if I came back, he'd have the guard take care of me. Isn't that unstable enough for you?" Karin snatched up her purse but left her sunglasses lying on the table. "Excuse me, I need to go to the ladies' room."

Unfortunately, the ladies' room was close to the booth where Ino was sitting. While she tried to keep an eye on the car and Karin, she lifted the newspaper high enough so the woman couldn't see her face.

And it worked. Well, maybe because Karin was in a serious hurry.

"Where's the BMW?" she heard Naruto whisper through the communicator.

"Still circling the place. Should I call a cruiser to pull him over?"

"No. there's no law against driving around a parking lot. Plus, I don't want him to think we have any connection to the police."

Both good points, but it didn't make it any easier to sit there and watch him. "You think Karin's opinion of Sasori is just an act?"

"Could be. She's wired, and it's not from the coffee. She's either scared of Sasori or of her own shadow."

"Or maybe she's just jittery about sitting in a booth with the man she thinks will be her next victim?"

"That, too," Naruto said calmly. Too calmly for Ino's liking. After all, they were talking about a potential plan to murder him.

"We'll tail her when she leaves and see what she's up to."

The moment Naruto said this words, he fired another glance at Ino. She understood it without further explanation. "Keep an eye on the BMW, and I'll check on Karin."

"Be careful," he warned.

Ino kept her head low and her hand on her concealed weapon when she went down the short hallway and eased open the swinging door. The bathroom was small.

Just one stall. A sink. And an open window.

The room was empty.

And their murder suspect was nowhere to be found.