I present the next chapter! Enjoy.

T&I was how Ino expected it to be.

Dull, sterile, void of anything remotely exciting. Though that could be because Ino was just a genin, and wasn't allowed near any of the fun stuff during her internship. Still, organizing papers was just something lame Shikamaru would do, so Ino would rather being doing anything else.

Ino raised her hands above her head and arched her back, her muscles stiff from the lack of motion and grateful for the relief. She glanced at the clock and groaned at the time she saw, she had been sitting still for four hours.

That's four hours of her life she could have been doing something else, something fun.

Why was she even here?

Ino's eye was drawn to a pink marker a few desks away.

Right, Sakura.

She promised her she would find more info about the Chunin Exams, which was harder than she anticipated. Her normal channels brought her nothing, hence her request to her Dad about interning, but her current job had no leads.

Reorganizing the declassified items was starting to eat at her psyche, being at it for a few days would do that to a person. At this point she would rather be back with Team Ten, then she would not be alone while being bored, and could still look for more information.

Ino heard the odd rumor or two about there being eccentric people at T&I, where were they when she needed them?

Deciding that it was the time to take a break, Ino stood and made her way to her Father's office, taking the time to train along the way. Her Dad had just introduced her to another sensing exercise, and navigating around the seals in the building would be a good challenge for her. Being snuck up on by Sakura again was unacceptable.

Ino walked down the hall, hands clasped in a seal, and pushed her senses out into the environment. Despite being a natural sensor her range wasn't as large as she would of liked, so she could only see into a few of the nearby rooms that weren't protected by seals. It took Ino extra effort to see any farther.

There was one room ahead that had a bunch of signatures congregated together that caught her attention. Stopping outside the door she saw it was to a break room, and with her curiosity getting the better of her, she opened the door to see a group of chunin huddled together.

The sound of cheering reverberated around the room, and Ino had to slip her way between various bodies to see what had captured everyone's attention. In the middle of the circle were four chunin, three of them taking turns to pull out a stick from the fourth.

The lone woman cheered while the two men cried out in disbelief.

"What are they doing?" Ino asked the woman next to her. The woman briefly glanced at her before looking back at the other chunin.

"Pulling lots, loser has to be a plant for the Chunin Exams."

Ino suppressed the flinch at the news, but inwardly she was doing a little dance. This was the kind of break she was waiting for!

"Oh, whose running the first stage?"

"Where have you been? It's Ibiki. Strange decision, but at least he's only doing the written exam. Though Anko running the second stage in the Forest of Death isn't much better."

Before Ino could ask another question the woman observed her closer.

"Hey, aren't you Yamanaka's kid? Get out of here and stop fishing for information, Genin."

Knowing that she was dismissed, Ino pouted but left anyways. Once the door was shut she let out a little giggle.

Finally, she had a lead.

.

"I swear if you mess this up for my family Naruto, I will put you in a genjutsu every time you eat Ramen so you will only see it as worms." Sakura hissed.

She was currently being escorted by her teammates and the way Naruto was floating around her cooing at her formal wear was beginning to get on her nerves. If he did anything, no if any of them did anything to tarnish the Haruno name they would be buried six feet under.

Naruto paled at her threat.

Sakura felt the ghost of a hand pat her head.

"Don't worry Sakura-chan, as your Sensei I won't let it come to that."

Sakura felt better after her Sensei's reassurance, but she knew her boys and couldn't help but be concerned.

Who knows what could happen if she wasn't around to clean up their messes? She knew they had her back and meant well, but what if an incident occurred? The team would be approaching another person related to the story and Sakura wasn't sure what to expect. She had some tools at her disposal but she wouldn't be able to move as she wanted considering her role on this mission.

Sakura took a deep breath and swung her fan to cool her emotions. Inner still wasn't back yet so she only had herself to make her stay focused.

The group approached the large building in front of them. It was of a traditional style, the curved green tiles bright against the gray sky, a pop of color in the fading light. Lanterns hung off of the overhang were already lit for the evening, and the outside of the building was crowded by merchant families. Some she recognized and some she didn't.

"Haruno-chan!"

Sakura turned towards the voice and bowed at the familiar man.

"Furukawa-san, it has been some time since we last met."

The bearded man gave a hearty laugh before sweeping her into a hug. Sakura held up a hand when her team moved closer and hugged the older man back.

"Don't get all stiff on me Haruno-chan, I remember when you were this tall." Furukawa held his hand next to his hip, palm parallel with the ground. Sakura giggled but hugged him again.

"I missed you Kawa." She really did.

It had been years since she last saw Kawa, her uncle in all but blood. It was natural, he was the only merchant who went and played with her when she traveled with her parents, since Ren was already busy taking missions by then.

"And I too, little one. Where are your parents? I don't see them." Kawa took off his glasses and cleaned them on his black robe, before placing them back onto his face. His blue eyes scanned through the crowd.

"Not here, it's just me today."

"Already running the family business on your own, miss genius? Wasn't your dream to be a shinobi?"

"I am a shinobi, but clan business doesn't just disappear." She paused for a moment. "Did you doubt me?"

"Not at all." Kawa said, spotting her team next to her. "Is this your... escort?"

Sakura looked at her boys, and understood the reason why Kawa asked that question. The three of them had changed clothes, wearing a matching black jacket and pant set instead of their usual gear. The only visible sign they were shinobi at all was the glinting of metal where they wore their hitai-ate on their waists. Everything else, including weapons, were concealed. Even Sensei moved his hitai-ate off of his eye, wearing an eye patch instead.

"Yes, my team. My parents hired them so we could still train together while on this trip." Sakura said, bending the truth. The best lies had a bit of truth in them after all.

"That was sweet of them... anyways shall we head in?"

"Yes!"

When the group arrived at the door they were stopped by a stout man.

"Clan name." He spoke in a gruff voice, one hand lightly resting on a sword at his side, while the other held a list of names of those in the merchant association.

"Furukawa and Haruno." Kawa said taking the lead, allowing Sakura to settle into her role of merchants daughter and observe.

The man eyed the group taking in their appearance, taking his sweet time in vetting the hopeful attendees. Sakura made sure to flash her family crest on the fan she swung, casting small gusts of wind on her face, her posture straight as ever.

As expected, the group was allowed in where an auction employee waited with a pleasant expression. The blonde woman gave Furukawa and Sakura a rectangular wooden token, with a number and name of the auction house stamped on it. Sakura smiled.

They were in.

She found a seat and sat down crossing her legs, waiting for the auction to start. Feeling eyes on the back of her head she turned around, noticing Sasuke was quietly staring at her, frowning.

"What is it?" She asked, bringing her fan up to cover her mouth. Prying eyes were not welcome tonight.

He didn't say anything for a moment before shaking his head.

"It's nothing."

Sakura's gaze drifted over to Naruto, who was also watching Sasuke. His expression thoughtful, but when he made eye contact with her he shrugged his shoulders before his serious demeanor dissolved into his usual grin. Sakura looked between her two teammates a few times, but when neither of them said anything, she turned back to the front. She would get the truth out of them later, she had no doubt.

The auction started shortly with little fanfare, as various items went up for bid. Alcohol was usually auctioned in the latter half, so Sakura knew she would be sitting there for a while.

"What are you here for Haruno-chan?" Kawa leaned over slightly.

"Alcohol. We have a buyer interested in a specific rice wine from the Land of Honey."

"Oh? I didn't know your family was going into that business."

"We aren't, we just take care of our friends, as you know."

Kawa gave a small smile.

"I do indeed."

An hour had past and Sakura raised her hand behind her, making eye contact with her Sensei. Silently he approached and leaned down. She spoke quietly into his ear, once again blocking her mouth with her fan.

"Have you seen our target?"

"No, but I can feel her here somewhere. She might be in one of the private rooms on the second floor."

Sakura nodded. "I see, can one of you please get me a drink? I am parched and we need a cover for this conversation."

"Of course." Sensei said wryly, though giving her a small shock as he left back to his previous position.

Sakura suppressed her flinch, but eyed him.

Sensei ignored her, but Naruto left immediately, so at least her words weren't completely discarded.

She sighed.

It was going to be a long night.

.

The drink Sakura was nursing was almost gone by the time the first bottle was auctioned. Perking her head up she listened closely to the auctioneer's words, but was disappointed that the alcohol being auctioned was of the wrong variety.

"It seems that they have started. The wine you're looking for won't be until later, since wine from Honey is expensive."

Sakura hummed at Kawa's words and glanced back at her Sensei. Though he told her there was no limit on the amount she could spend, she was still wary. With her luck Sensei would leave her family to cover the cost, like he did with the team at dinners, and that's not something she would ever want to force upon her parents.

But this was a mission, and it had to be completed. If her fears really were reality, then she would deal with it later.

Bottle after bottle was sold, and Sakura could feel her body start to cramp from sitting for so long. She cycled her chakra to help ease the soreness, but kept her previous posture. She would never be the one to lower her family's reputation.

"Next is our only bottle from the Land of Honey, said to be the favorite of their Daimyo for it's sweet flavor. Bidding will begin at forty thousand ryo."

Sakura raised her wooden plaque.

"We have forty thousand... and fifty thousand! Can I get sixty thousand?"

Sakura glanced at the second floor to where the private booths were held, and where the fifty thousand bid came from, but raised her plaque again. As soon as she brought her arm down another bid was placed from the second floor, it was from the same room as the previous bid.

Sakura and the room went back and forth for a few bids before Sakura raised her plaque and shouted.

"One hundred thousand!"

The room upstairs was quiet for a moment, before a woman stepped out with black short hair. She raised two fingers and bent them twice, and the surrounding attendees gasped.

Kawa whistled.

"She doubled it on you Haruno-chan."

Not one to be outdone, Sakura rose four fingers.

The crowd burst into noise but Sakura stayed silent, watching the woman shake her head before walking back into the room. No one else placed any bids.

"Sold to the Haruno clan!"

Sakura rose from her seat, hiding her smile behind her fan as she walked down the center walkway to retrieve the bottle. The boys shifting closer with each step.

Eight hundred thousand ryo, more than what the bottle was worth, but Sakura wasn't risking them loosing it to only have Sensei make them steal it afterwards. No, spending a little extra money was the correct choice.

When she arrived at the center platform an auction assistant held out the bottle, which Sakura accepted gracefully. She gave a small bow before returning to her seat. Sakura looked up at the second floor one last time, but when she turned her head away the building shook.

Sakura clutched the bottle to her chest steadying herself, before handing it to Naruto who had appeared at her side a moment before. Sakura was curious at the cause of the mini earthquake, but before she could delve into the possibilities, her back erupted into flames.

Or at least, that's what Sakura thought it felt like as she collapsed to her knees. Her stomach dropped as the familiar but unwanted feeling returned, hotter than anything she had felt previously.

They fixed the bug, the Burning was back.

The solar flare hit so hard that Sakura felt her muscles spasm, but she was able to cast a genjutsu quickly enough to not pass out.

"Miss, are you all right?"

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto grabbed her arm and helped her stand up, her hand reflexively going to the back of her neck to heal the damage.

She stumbled twice, and Naruto had to support her weight as her motor control slowly returned.

Sakura blearily looked up to see a gray haired boy, not much older than her, hovering close by with a worried expression.

"I'm a doctor, let me help." He reached out a hand to her arm.

"No its fine, I'll b–" Sakura was cut off when the flare of his chakra in her network broke her out of the genjutsu.

She collapsed onto Naruto who started yelling. The last thing Sakura saw before darkness was a small smile.

That bast–.

.

The sun had already set when Ino exited T&I, and she was mentally exhausted. Only a few days on the job and she was ready to quit. If she couldn't find Anko or Ibiki soon she might not be able to stop herself from leaving.

But... how would she explain it to Sakura? She pulled out her own chip on a silver chain and sighed. She couldn't find enough information on the chunin exams or find the time to tell her teammates the truth. Ino could already see the look on Sakura's face when she learned of her failure, and that would not help Ino with her friendship goals.

Ino lowered her head in defeat, seems she would just have to deal with it, but for now it was time to get home.

She slapped her cheeks a couple of times before beginning the long walk. The roads were nearly deserted, only a few people here and there making their way home. It was odd, but then again she's not normally out this late on a week night, so it could be normal.

"Hello... beautiful."

Ino stopped in her tracks at the voice and turned around with a flirty smile, all of her exhaustion forgotten. Ino knew she looked good and appreciated anyone else who knew it too.

The large smile she had on dropped into a more polite one after her initial perusal. It's been a long time since she seen a smile that... fake. Her guard was instantly up.

"Hi, can I help you with something?" Her blue eyes wandered his body. He was cute, kinda looked like Sasuke-kun, but there was something about him that seemed off to her.

His eyes were cold.

"You are Yamanaka Ino?"

"...Yes."

"My team is in need of your talents, would you like to go on a mission with us? It would be good training." His flat tone making Ino think he was reciting from a script.

If she hadn't met up with Sakura earlier she might of been more open to the idea, but now it was a definite no. Ino could use the experience, but she's a shinobi, it was part of the job to be paranoid, and this was raising all her red flags.

"Sorry, I won't be able to go on any missions until after the Chunin Exams, I need to spend time training with my team."

The boy tilted his head stiffly, before asking again with a forced smile.

"Are you sure? Your team doesn't do much, you are too good for them."

Ino relaxed her stance and shifted backwards naturally, staying alert. Was this guy spying on her?

Creepy.

But, how did Asuma-sensei not notice him watching? Was this an incident?

"I'm sure, maybe another time."

He took a step forward.

"Yamanaka Ino, you will come on this mission."

Sakura's respite has ended and is back in the thick of things, while Ino is dealing with her own issues. Both girls are having a very bad day.

I am somewhat satisfied with this chapter, there were parts of it I liked and some that were just ok. I struggled with feeling the flow for this chapter, but its finished and I can move on. I just have to remember a done chapter is a good chapter.

Anyways, I hope you all liked it, and I will see you at the next one on October 8th! I'm hoping I can get through this rough spot with writing so I can go back to my weekly releases like I initially did on AO3, but I'm just not there yet. Bi-weekly is still better than nothing at least.

Thanks for reading!