Fearless

Chapter 2

Slowly Ino inhaled a deep breath, hoping to calm her nerves. She wasn't afraid of who she would be facing, she was frightened that she would fail. Failure was not an option, not now. Carefully she tied the leather cord around the ends of her long platinum strands, keeping them together and allowing a few loose ones to frame her high cheekbones as she climbed the stone staircase. A familiar voice flittered to her ears as she neared her interrogation room, a sigh escaping her lips as she heard the argument.

" But, we're his teammates Lady Tsunade. Shouldn't we try talking to him first? I mean, I'm sure either Sasuke or myself could get through to him," Sakura's voice was loud in the quiet hall as Ino reached the final step, watching the scene before her. Lady Tsunade breathed a tired sigh, rubbing the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger.

" I understand you have history with Naruto, Sakura. Truly, I do. I'm sure it pains you and your teammate that he is suffering. However neither of you understand just how delicate this process is," Tsunade was grasping for patience to not strangle her former student. She understood how painful it was to watch a teammate and fellow comrade suffer, and not be able to help.

" Then allow one of us to speak with Naruto before the Yamanaka," Sasuke spoke up, onyx colored eyes hard and cold.

" My answer is still no," with that Tsunade turned her back to them, her honey colored eyes landing on the form of the young woman at the end of the hall.

" Ah, Ino, I'm glad you made it," Tsunade greeted the younger blonde, watching Sasuke and Sakura step beside her.

" I told you I would," Ino spoke quietly, her ice colored eyes dancing between the former traitor and her former rival. Tsunade nodded, glancing over her shoulder towards the metal door that sealed the boy she saw as a grandson.

" When would you like to begin?" she spoke, watching as Ino shrugged her shoulders.

" Actually, I thought maybe you should allow Forehead and the Uchiha to try to talk to him first. They were both put on his genin squad, growing up together," Ino watched as the Fifth Hokage furrowed her brow in confusion.

" Are you sure Ino? I mean," Tsunade was interrupted, forcing her to glance over her shoulder to see who had decided to speak.

" Yamanaka has a point, Lady Hokage. It's always a wise decision to send in a teammate before the interrogator. Usually the teammate can draw the shinobi back," Ibiki stated, his shoulder leaning against the stone wall beside the door as he inhaled the smoke from the cigarette that dangled from his lips.

" Thank you Sensei," Ino spoke, the corner of her lips curving in a ghost of a smile. Ibiki only nodded, watching as Tsunade crossed her arms under her bust in thought.

" Alright, I'll allow the Uchiha to speak with him first. Let's hope he will be able to get through to him," Ibiki nodded, shrugging away from the wall and striding towards the young Uchiha. He paused before Ino, leaning closer so only she would hear.

" You better know what the hell you're doing brat," Ino only smirked, shrugging her shoulders lightly as she turned to Lady Tsunade.

" You might want to send for Wolf just in case," Tsunade nodded slightly, signaling to the Anbu that had been shadowing her. Ino stepped back, her cold gaze fixed on the two way mirror as she leaned her weight against the wall opposite of it. Tsunade and Sakura stood in front of her, both watching the scene that was about to unfold.

Ibiki stood beside his former student, his eyes trained on the mirror as well. He and Ino would know what to pick up from watching, the other two women wouldn't.

" Why did you suggest sending one of them in first?" Ibiki spoke, his voice low as he felt more than saw Ino shrug her slender shoulders.

" Sakura and Uchiha don't realize just how delicate this situation is. I plan on showing them and this is the only way for them to comprehend that lesson," Ino explained, watching Ibiki nod his head from the corner of her eye. Ino was tired, having been up all night rather than sleeping as she should have. Nightmarish images of the war still plagued her mind, seeing her father's fallen corpse still haunted her. She shook her head, focusing her attention on the present rather than the past.

Sasuke stood on one side of the metal table, Naruto on the other, both watching the other's movements with careful precision.

" Do you recognize me Naruto? Or is that monster you house eating away at your mind," Ino's fist clenched at her side. He was only goading him into a fight. Ibiki dropped the butt of his cigarette, replacing it with a tooth pick to chew on as he felt the anger roll off his former student in waves. The Uchiha brat was going to get a lashing, that much he could see. Ibiki dropped his hand unto the young woman's shoulders, watching as she relaxed fractionally before focusing on what the Uchiha was doing once more.

" Come on Naruto. Snap out of it, I know you're acting, only pretending to gain attention," Sasuke snapped, glaring at the man he once called his best friend.

Ino shrugged away from the wall, she and Ibiki were the only ones to see the small movement, the slight twitch before the feral shinobi launched himself across the table. Ibiki spat out his tooth pick, breathing a sigh as he shook his head.

" Want to let the kid get a few good hits in?" he questioned his former student who only smirked before being pushed out of the way by her former rival.

" Don't just stand there, help him," Saura screeched, watching as Ibiki pulled the door open before allowing Ino to enter. With a sigh, Ino pulled the leather cord from the ends of her strands, infusing it with her chakra to make a whip. The cord wrapped around Naruto's raised fist before Ino jerked it back sharply, pulling the struggling shinobi with her. She wound the cord around her fist, pulling herself and Naruto closer until only a foot of space separated them.

" Naruto, calm down. It's okay, you're safe now," Ino spoke, her husky voice low. Sakura, Sasuke, and Tsunade watched in awe as the wild shinobi slowly relaxed, the ruby tint to his sapphire colored eyes fading.

Ino slowly counted down from ten, watching as Naruto leaned forwards until his forehead rested against her slender shoulder. She raised her hand, her fingers lightly playing with the long hair that grew at the nape of his neck as she waited for the others to leave the room. She watched Ibiki nod from the corner of her eye before she pulled away from Naruto, watching his curious gaze. Carefully she unwrapped the cord from around his wrist, wrapping it around her throat four times to lay as a necklace before she took a step back.

" I know the Uchiha angered you, however I need to try something on you before I can let you go," Ino spoke, watching as Naruto cocked his head to the side, waiting. Ino inhaled a breath, her fingers easily flying through the familiar hand signs of her clan's jutsu before she entered his mind.

Ino had expected resistance, every mind fights the intrusion, however this was something entirely different. A frown danced her lips as she turned in a full circle to take in her surroundings. She had entered an animal's mind before, had to help Kiba with Akamaru, and that was what she was seeing at that moment, the mind of a wild animal. Silently, she released the jutsu, feeling the rush of air reenter her body as she breathed deeply. She stood from her slumped position, meeting Naruto's dazed eyes with her own cold ones. She offered him a forced smile before nodding to the guards to escort him from the interrogation room. Ino ran her slender fingers through her fine platinum strands, thinking over how to explain what she had seen to her Hokage. Sakura pulled the door open, glaring at her childhood rival as she waited for her to speak. Ino chose to ignore the rosette, brushing past her until she stood before her former sensei and Lady Hokage.

" Something traumatic most have happened to him recently," Ino stated quietly, watching Sakura narrow her jade colored eyes towards her as Tsunade looked confused.

" What do you mean Yamanaka?" Sasuke was the one to speak, his onyx colored eyes narrowed towards the blonde woman who merely shrugged her shoulders.

" I've been in many minds, I understand how most of them work, what secrets they keep, what makes them tick. Animals, dogs, wolves, foxes, think in a similar fashion. They rely solely on their instincts to guide them. When they feel threatened, they will attack. When they are hungry, they will hunt. Naruto's mind is similar to that of a foxes. I believe this to be a defense mechanism of the Kyuubi to help Naruto cope," Ino explained, her ice blue eyes meeting those of her Hokage's.

" That makes sense. Sarutobi had recorded something like this earlier, when Naruto was about seven. It only happens around the tenth of October, his birthday and the festival of the death of the Kyuubi," Tsunade paused, thinking over something that could have triggered this.

" He was attacked by a mob of civilians," Shikamaru's lazy drawl reached their ears, drawing their attention towards him.

" I was the one to break it up. However I didn't get there fast enough and he had taken a beating. He had told me before, he wouldn't hit a civilian, even in self defense. It just pissed them off further that way," Ino nodded, glancing towards her Hokage before speaking.

" Maybe if you allowed him to live with someone, like Sakura or Sasuke, he would come out of it," Tsunade shook her head, allowing her honey colored eyes to rest on the young woman standing in front of her.

" Absolutely not. If Naruto is to stay with anyone, Yamanaka, that someone shall be you. Do you have enough room in your apartment for him?" Ino's eyes widened fractionally, confused by what she heard.

" Lady Tsunade, surely one of his former teammates would be a wiser choice than me," Tsunade only shook her head, turning towards Shikamaru.

" Be ready to escort Naruto to her apartment. I suggest you prepare a room for him," Ino breathed a sigh of defeat, knowing she wouldn't win against her Hokage.