Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

If she told her 9 year old self that she wouldn't be married to Uchiha Sasuke, Yamanaka Ino would've been devastated. But to add salt to the wound, she would've broken down and started crying if she said that she would instead be in love with Uzumaki Naruto, the boy that everyone perceived to be a talentless loudmouth. But that was the reality. Ino wasn't upset that she loved Naruto; she was upset that Naruto would never love her back. All he would see her as was a friend, because, unfortunately, after 8 years, he was still pining after his childhood crush, Haruno Sakura.

Ino could've been happy for him, but alas, she couldn't be happy if he wasn't. You see, Sakura had made it perfectly clear that she saw him as nothing but a close friend, but for some reason, he couldn't get it through that thick skull of his. He was so busy drooling over Sakura, that he missed out on an opportunity of a lifetime. Hyuga Hinata, a literal goddess, in her opinion, held deep feelings for him, but after years of hoping he'd notice her, she gave up. Now she was happily dating Kiba, about to reach 2 and a half years with him.

Right now, Ino was in her apartment getting ready for a girls night out with her friends. Since Temari was visiting the village, they decided to catch up.

She put on a blue shirt with a white swirl in the middle (many people knew it as the symbol of Konoha ninja, but she knew that it was the Uzumaki clan crest, and she hoped that maybe Naruto would notice it and ask her about it). As she put it on, she remembered the moment that started turning her world upside down.

Ino was a bit peeved that she tied with her rival Sakura. If that idiot hadn't kept yelling at Sakura for her to win, she would never have broken out of her jutsu. How come her teammates didn't cheer her on? They just stood there and let her fight, while Naruto was a key factor in Sakura's performance. Maybe if she hadn't fought his teammate, he would've cheered for her.

Next up was Temari vs. Tenten, a fight whose result seemed to be predetermined. Tenten gave it her all, but in the end it wasn't enough to take down the other girl.

For the sixth match, it was her teammate, Shikamaru, against one of the Sound ninja. They had come across her team in the forest, and she could without a doubt say that they were very dangerous. But she wasn't scared; in fact she was completely calm. She had faith in her teammate, whose intelligence could only be rivaled by members of his clan. Even the Jounin, including their own sensei weren't as smart as him. Unsurprisingly, Shikamaru figured out a way to use her own attacks and her position on the battlefield against her, giving him the win.

Next was Naruto vs. Kiba. Kiba had a crush on her in the earlier days of the academy, so she always had a soft spot for him, but then again, it wasn't a difficult choice choosing between Kiba and Naruto.

What she didn't expect was for Naruto to hold out so long against Kiba's attacks. And nobody (except maybe Naruto and Kakashi) expected him to actually figure out a way to beat Kiba. How could he have won? What went on inside his head? The tricks he used were so simple, yet so effective. Naruto was a mystery that she couldn't help but want to solve.

She laughed to herself, as that moment was only the tip of the iceberg of the enigma, Naruto. She put on a small amount of makeup, as she didn't want to attract too many guys that she'd have to turn down (she knew was still pretty with just that little bit of makeup, but there was nothing she could do about it, even if she wanted to). She liked the attention she got from guys, but it meant nothing in the end because it didn't come from him.

They met inside the yakiniku restaurant that Choji loved. They were chatting about their daily lives and the latest ninja gossip, and Tenten asked Hinata the question they'd all (especially Ino) secretly been wondering since she got her boyfriend.

"Are you over Naruto, or is Kiba just a replacement?"

Hinata blushed. "No, I really am over him. I love Kiba with all my heart. Honestly, even if I tried to like Naruto again, I couldn't. I can only see him as a friend."

Ino let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Thankfully, nobody heard it. Nobody except Temari.

"Good for you," Sakura said. "I always hoped that you'd get over him. Now if only he'd get over me," she said dejectedly.

"I still don't get why you want that," Temari said. "Naruto's a catch."

Tenten, Hinata, and Ino all nodded at this information.

"You too, Ino?" Sakura questioned.

"Yeah, you too?" Temari teased.

"Well, yeah. I mean he's funny." She shrugged. Her cheeks burned, and she hoped she hadn't spilled too much about how she truly felt about the knucklehead. She took a sip from her sake in hopes that it would hide some of her blush.

"Funny? That's all you have to say about him?" Temari coyly.

"No, he has a lot of qualities," Ino said, and quickly took a drink, hoping to get the attention off of her.

Tenten narrowed her eyes at Ino, and they widened suddenly. "Oh my goodness. You like Naruto!" The other girls were rapt. Ino nervously shook her head at Temari After a couple seconds, she decided that there was no point in denying it. She knew she was taking a risk admitting it to these girls, who absolutely loved tea (not the kind you drink), but at this point, they had their suspicions confirmed.

"He's cute."

"Ooh this is so exciting!" Hinata said. After getting into a relationship with Kiba, she'd become more comfortable in her own skin, and she could now talk at a normal volume. "How close are you two?"

"Just friends. I know he won't see me as anything more than that, so I don't really try." Ino replied.

"Why won't he see you as more than that?" Sakura questioned.

All the girls turned to look at her with a deadpan look on their faces. Sakura groaned and rested her chin on her clasped hands. Of course, it was because Naruto was head over heels for her, something she personally didn't understand.

"Well maybe it's because nobody's swept him off his feet yet." Tenten offered. The girls nodded their heads in agreement.

"Yeah maybe, but how am I supposed to go about doing that? It's not like I can just start getting chummy with him. We just wave if we pass each other, and have a conversation here and there. He's only ever been to the flower shop three times, and all three times were to buy flowers for you," she said, looking at Sakura for the last part.

"I know he gardens," Sakura said. Noticing the questioning looks of her friends, she explained. "I know, I know, he doesn't seem like the type to have enough patience to water plants, but he has a pot that he takes care of." When she visited his apartment for a team dinner, he explained that if he finds a flower that catches his eye in one of the fields or training grounds, he'll unearth it's roots, take it home right away, and replant it.

"So how can I get him into the shop?" Ino said.

"Well, maybe you don't have to capitalize on his alleged interest in flowers. He likes ramen doesn't he?" Temari asked, looking for an answer from one of the other girls. "Why don't you give that a shot?"

"And what? Gain 5 pounds after one bowl? No thank you." Ino replied snarkily.

"Ino you don't have to diet like you do. As ninja, we burn so many calories that you probably need the extra calories from ramen. I guarantee you it won't hurt your figure," Hinata said.

"I've been to Ichiraku's. It's delicious," Sakura added. "Teuchi-san and his daughter are amazingly kind, as well."

The more she thought about it, the more it sounded like a good idea. If she could get her foot in through Ichiraku's she could maybe run into him there. If that didn't work she could at least seek him out and tell him about her opinion on Ichiraku's, assuming she liked it. "Okay, I'll try that." She decided.

The girls agreed that was the plan, and started talking about Sakura's budding relationship with Sasuke.

"I'm not going to get my hopes up. If he only has friendship on his mind, I can't let it get to me. If I pretend that's all I want as well, maybe I'll start to believe it." She said sadly. Ino rubbed her friend's back, as she knew that feeling all too well.

"Naruto's going to be devastated when you guys start dating, so you better get a move on, Ino."

Sakura's response was cut off as Tsunade and Shizune walked towards their table. They sat down, and Shizune immediately reached for the sake, much to everyone's surprise.

"What's going on?" she inquired.

"We're talking about how Ino is in love with Naruto." Temari responded quickly, and she purposefully said "in love with" to gauge the depth of Ino's feelings. Tsunade choked on her drink and stared at Ino, eyes slightly wider than normal.

"Is that true?" she asked.

"I wouldn't say 'in love with…'" Ino replied shyly.

Before Tsunade could respond, Hinata cut in. "And how Sakura and Sasuke are an item." That earned her a soft slap on the arm from Sakura, who now held Tsunade's attention.

"Wow, lots of gossip going around today," Shizune said. "How about you Temari? How are things with you and Shikamaru?" she said with a smirk. This comment piqued the interest of the rest of the girls, and they all turned expectantly to the Sand kunoichi. Her eyes widened at the sudden attention.

"You know about that?" she asked.

"Of course we do. We've all seen you two walking throughout the village making googly eyes at each other." Tenten said.

"What?!" Temari asked, worried that she wasn't being as subtle as she thought she was, until she realized just exactly what Tenten had said. "Wait, both of us?"

Tenten merely smirked in return.

"Shikamaru occasionally asks me how to woo a girl. I've tried to pry who it was out of him, but he wouldn't budge," Ino said. Choji realized that the times he asked me for help were only when you were in the village."

A blush crept up Temari's face as the corners of her mouth twitched upwards.

"I think you guys would be cute together," Hinata assured her.

They spent the rest of the night telling stories of missions, talking about how things were in the Sand and Leaf villages, and continued their wringing of the rumor mill.

They decided to leave around 12:30, and when Ino got home, she promptly fell asleep, dreaming about a hot bowl of ramen.