A/N: It's been long enough for this update. Let's get to work, shall we?
Enjoy as you will.
~Siva'a-tasi
~III~
Chapter 60: The Ends Never Justify the Means
~III~
Previously on No More
Never lifting his eyes from the grey stone at his feet, Naruto turned to his right just enough to line up the right side of his body with the newcomer hiding in the bushes of his training yard. There was a soft rustling of leaves and branches followed by the shuffle of sandaled feet. Then the smell hit him and the young Daimyo had to force down his gag reflex at the potency.
Death. Rot. Disease.
Naruto lifted his gaze to meet the mottled purple and sickly green complexion of his former Konoha classmate and fought again to keep down the food he didn't remember tasting from the earlier pre-wedding party that day.
The hair, what little remained of it, hung plastered in oily slabs to the right side of his head, that is what hadn't already fallen out by the fistful. What skin was visible given the short sleeved, open-front shirt held closed by a purple rope belt, was covered in fist-sized bruises of deep purples and green splotches, his dark veins visible as blackish rivers across his pale and non-muscled chest ran up the right side of his neck and cheek. While never the most masculine of Genins, Sasuke's skin hung loosely off too-thin limbs most of it sagging near the elbows and knees. They were pale flaps almost see-through and sikly. None of that, however, compared to the foul stench that wafted from his emaciated form like some poisonous miasma nearly forcing the Uzu Prince to gag as his body attempted to purge the intruder's mere presence from his senses.
"Well, that explains why Itachi has been destroying your bases in an attempt to find you." Disdain and disgust clearly warred for dominance on the Uzumaki's face.
The hunched figure's response of, "Kukuku," got a raised eyebrow in return but his visitor appeared to take no notice. "Itachi-kun has been annoyingly persistent in his outrage."
The figure stepped forward as ruby red eyes swirled to life. "But that's not what we're here to discuss, are we, Naruto-kun."
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Now…
Orochimaru was never known for his patience or tolerance. Even the short bout of forced restraint until he claimed young Sasuke's body, far too premature in the boy's development for his liking as it was, stretched his limits near to the breaking point.
Even then, he'd delayed as long as he absolutely could trying to push as many body modifications into the just barely-teen shinobi as possible.
Tsk, there wasn't nearly as much time as he needed. As a result, his new body didn't have a fifth of his original chakra reserves or utility. There simply wasn't enough time to develop his new host. It always came to needing more time.
The Sannin shivered as he fought off the ghostly fingertips of the Shinigami brushing along his spine.
Spending decades at the top of the food chain made you accustomed to getting what you wanted when you wanted it. Oft times, it came with no repercussions and, if there were any, you usually had the power to sweep them aside if not outright ignore them. Itachi did not seem to agree with that precept and was making an absolute nuisance of himself while the Snake Sannin languished in rotting weakness, which eventually brought the Snake fiend here to the tropical island housing the women of Nadeshiko.
To once again take what he wanted without anyone to stop or punish him, or so he thought.
Only his worthless teammates would have ever bothered. Most knew to either give him a wide berth or to just surrender whatever he demanded based solely on his reputation. The snake never asked nor made requests.
That lay beneath one such as him.
That is also what made the current encounter all the more vexing: the boy seemed wholly unperturbed when he should be terrified with only one guard nearby. The Snake's now dark orbs flickered briefly to the masked female separating him from his latest prize and sneered before snapping back to the seemingly inattentive Prince.
Perplexing.
The training field growing damp with the cooling evening air was barely thirty meters across and ringed by thick bushes and small trees so there was no way his current target could not see or hear him. Still, the Uzu boy refused to acknowledge his voice or glance in Orochimaru's direction, an act that would make this standoff infinitely easier to end with his brand new Sharingan. Instead, he was forced to match glares with one of Naruto's smaller personal guards and that one hid their face behind a bone-like mask sporting red-tinged crystal lenses making eye contact impossible to confirm. Whatever else the mask did it certainly blocked the Sharingan Genjutsu he'd been trying to apply with little obvious affect since stepping out of the tree line.
Despite the clear failure, Orochimaru allowed himself a brief pause to preen at his recent acquisition before returning his focus to the task at hand: obtaining a cure to his current ailment through the stealing of the perfect body.
Furthermore, he was running out of time to do it.
From his spot at the edge of the training yard, Orochimaru was doing his dead-level best to hide his growing sense of frustration. He was so close now, so very close to achieving his goals but every day wasted brought him closer and closer to losing it all.
The Snake could literally feel his strength waning a bit more each day but, before he could go too far down that rabbit hole, a voice heavy with sadness cut off his train of thought.
"No," the blond responded with a heavy sagging of his shoulders, "I guess we aren't," unaware that his depressed sounding comment broke the Sannin's internal reflection.
The pause ran so long, the Snake Sage nearly forgot the original question. When it dawned, his annoyance resurfaced then doubled at how much time he'd wasted in thought.
A hissing snarl withered through clenched teeth trying not to breathe in too deeply his own rotting stench. Even his patented oatmeal cleanses could barely hold back the growing reek at his very soul being rotted out from repeatedly body switching every six months. There was a reason he normally waited three years before trying again – it wasn't that he couldn't but that the destruction of his soul for taking a new body early was far too extreme and it took time to repair the damage.
As a result, his new host paid for it in the form of rotting, cancerous flesh like some pestilent disease.
Glancing briefly to the circular garden stone at his feet with a stylized sun pattern near its outer edge, Orochimaru stepped away from the edge of the clearing and closer to his prize. He was so close now…
"Why don't we discuss this like civilized people, Naruto-kun?" The urge to chuckle menacingly was bubbling near the back of his throat.
The only response he saw was the white-haired female stepping between him and the Uzu Daimyo, her oversized blade held easily across her body by one hand. Despite himself, the Sannin jealously envied her the strength needed for such a casual demonstration given that he once possessed such skill and power.
The wasting away of his soul had robbed him of perhaps forty-percent of what he'd built up in Sasuke's body over the last year before the possession. He was so weak now…
"Last chance, Naruto-kun, before we'll need to proceed to the next step in… negotiations." Orochimaru could not prevent the nervous twitch in his left eye knowing the rest of his guards would return in a little over thirty minutes and he needed to be far away before then.
He would need time to recover once he'd completed the ritual, hopefully for the last time.
Then he saw the blond head pivot in his direction revealing a bone-white mask bearing more red crystals for eyes and the snarl that escaped his lips would not be silenced.
"Difficult path it is then," the snake hissed as dark blue spittle flecked across his lower lip.
Drawing the Grass Cutter from the fresh scabbard at his hip-and lamenting the loss of most of his chakra consuming techniques-Orochimaru closed the distance between him and the silent guard at what remained of his former speed.
If not for his frantically spinning blood-red eyes, he'd never have seen the blue monstrosity blurring into his right side. As slow as he was, it still made no difference as his blade rose to block the other blade wider than his new body. The flat of it slammed into his guard sending the weakened Sannin into the ground with the heavy thud of flesh to earth.
He felt no spike of chakra before the attack. He heard no heavy rustling of air and felt no extreme wave of Killing Intent. There was plenty of something else, however.
Pain.
There was more of it now than he was used to, followed by a blinding light behind his eyes and a dull ringing in his ears. He hadn't felt this mistreated since his early Genin days.
Orochimaru tasted grainy soil mixed with fresh blood as pain exploded through his arm and sides. To be honest, it was a cocktail he could very much do without and the fact that a lesser would treat him thusly rose the bile up into the back of his throat like a bitter wine.
~III~
"The haft of the arrow had been feathered with one of the eagles' own plumes. We often give our enemies the means of our own destruction."
― Aesop
~III~
Interrogation Chamber 12, Konohagakure
Ibiki glanced to his right taking in the somber face of his former co-worker noting the deep bags under the man's eyes. Those were the eyes of a man that hadn't slept well in many months.
"I'm fine," the taller man grunted out.
Ibiki only snorted out loud. Inoichi's eyes never turned away from the one-way glass overlooking the interrogation room and he knew why. Hell, they both knew why he wasn't fine and being pulled out of retirement to sit in on this session was making things "less fine" as the minutes wore on.
The entire village was simmering atop a hot plate of shortened fuses, everyone from civilian to shinobi alike.
The blond clan leader had enough on his own plate trying to piece together a wedding that people throughout the village were expecting ANBU to crash right before the wedding vows were given. Most joked that the bride would have to arrange conjugal visits with the Shinigami to consummate her marriage. Inoichi did not need this extra crap on his plate since everyone knew there were still Yamanaka head smashers active on the T payroll that could handle the work.
Nope, this was just Kakashi being an even bigger ass and Ibiki was definitely not a fan.
The scarred bear turned back to the wild mane of snow-white hair belonging to the hunched over figure chained to a rather uncomfortable metal chair, the subject of today's visit, and hoped that the old snake in the grass could find a way to get loose and neuter Kakashi, who was taking his damnable time getting here to start the actual interrogation.
Perhaps he'd even be a smidge late in coming to the bastard's aid just this once.
It was paperwork Ibiki would be happy to fill out for a change.
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Kakashi eventually made a point to saunter into the high-security interrogation room with a wide smile plastered to his face beneath his trademark mask. He was only two hours late so it shouldn't be such a big deal. It's not like his guest had somewhere special to be.
Two hours late? He was practically on time for once!
His squinted eye opened enough to catch the heated snarl on old man Terumi's face, the elderly gentleman's eyes squinted and still adjusting to the extremely bright lights of the sterile chamber. Until recently, Terumi was buried in the darkest pits of the cell block for a little over a year and a couple months, the old man now completely forgotten by most of Konoha after the Chūnin Exam fiasco.
Real shame that he couldn't murder the fake Uzumaki and solve all his problems, but oh well. This option would have to do for now.
Hell, it might even work.
Taking a lingering glance at the shackled prisoner, Kakashi had to fight down the urge to snort and chuckle at what would more than likely be the old codger's last mission.
Unfortunately, he was getting really distracted now and needed to focus.
Closing the still open door, Kakashi slipped easily into the opposite seat with a cheery, "Greetings!"
His smile immediately fell when his new chat partner refused to return it.
The man's foul aroma - given Kakashi's very keen sense of smell - didn't make the situation any more appealing. With a heavy sigh, he flipped open the manila folder he'd brought along, Gekido's once clean-shaven face and silky white hair shining up from the man's once pristine image on paper.
Matted, stringy, greasy strands now sat across from him attached to both his head and chin. Oh, how far the mighty had fallen...
"Terumi, Gekido. Age - Unknown. Last Known Affiliation: Iwagakure, no ransom to date offered or given. No family of note willing to substitute."
He paused to check the elderly man for some sort of reaction and found none. The man's eyes were glazed and unfocused but there was hatred boiling just beneath that vacant expression.
"It says here that we've been unable to learn from you any of the secrets your original clan developed due to the intricate seals placed on your body."
This time the old man chuckled dryly knowing better thieves than Konoha have tried to steal those same secrets.
"You know," Kakashi continued unperturbed, "things will go easier on you if you cooperate with us."
Gekido turned his head to the side of his chair and spat on the floor. The old man learned the hard way not to spit on his interrogators many months before and refused to give them additional reason to cause him unneeded pain.
"That's a nasty little habit you have there." Kakashi scribbled something next to the photo image then closed the folder.
"Despite my better judgment, there are some people that would like to give you an opportunity to make amends for your failure during the Chūnin Exams last year."
This time when Kakashi leaned forward to rest his interlocked hands in front of his mouth, Gekido Terumi's eyes were sharp and focused. The old man's attention was riveted to his every word, and Kakashi found it hard not to genuinely smile at what he saw.
They'd have to get this guy a bath or three before anything serious could be accomplished, however.
~III~
Inside the observation room, two very concerned Konoha citizens frowned as they saw their Hokage reach under the table and flip off the overhead microphones. Both men were painfully aware of the one-eyed Kage's motivations behind this impromptu chit chat.
Both were also drawn to the now very attentive focus of the Uzumaki traitor, a man who over the course of his solitary incarceration had proven himself unrepentant and readily hostile believing freedom to be forever beyond his grasp. It was a belief that only hardened once it became clear the "Old Fencesitter" wasn't coming to his rescue three months into his confinement.
"I think it's time that I join you in retirement, Inoichi-san."
The flower peddler didn't bother glancing to his left. Having known him for so long, he could almost see the disgusted frown on the face of his longtime friend and co-worker.
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~III~
Uzumaki Embassy: Nadeshiko
The cracking sound of flesh striking flesh was like the snap of a whip in the still evening air. Spittle and blood exploded from the mouth of its current donor along with spraying sweat dripping from the black and blue bruised face of Orochimaru, the Snake Sannin. True, the face resembled the former traitor and abandoner of the Leaf, one Sasuke Uchiha, but that mattered little at the moment.
For his part, Orochimaru now had a photographic imprint of the world spinning out from under him as his "new" body pirouetted mid-air like a child's toy before thudding heavily to the earth. Being manhandled was a new sensation for the former Otogakure leader, one he definitely did not like but could not control. No matter how much he pushed his slowly dying body, he couldn't seem to react fast enough to catalogue the abuse his body was taking from the Uzumaki's brutish blue body guard.
He found himself hating Kisame all the more for some reason.
The Snake took quick stock of his current condition, including a quick glance to the slender boot pinning Kusunagi to the ground, a boot belonging to the redheaded female of the boy's guard troupe. He had to admit, event silently, that things were growing very crowded. More so than Orochimaru was comfortable with.
Two females, two males, and now nine shadow clones - each standing atop one of the stone tablets ringing the small training yard – now stared at him with the same dead-eyed scrutiny.
He'd been so preoccupied with trying to get around the lumbering brute that Orochimaru failed to notice when the Uzu brat created them nor when they positioned themselves atop the nine flat stones. Their purpose, however, was made painfully clear when each clone energized the stones which then immediately pressurized the air around him, making him feel sluggish. His arms and legs felt like they weighed a ton.
Things were truly getting out of hand and he still couldn't swap out with one of the earth clones he nearly poisoned himself with three chakra pills to make right before this meeting. Perhaps it had something to do with the chakra each clone was slowly channeling into the tablet at their feet?
He would have to worry about that once he escaped…
'Right arm is numb, maybe a weakened or cracked bone. Grip is weak and hand is still tingling. At least six ribs were throbbing, a few most likely cracked or broken…'
Rolling to his left side, he placed the palm of his free hand down to lever himself to a kneeling possession while trying to ignore the thundering headache blooming in the back of his skull. He'd just gotten the flat of his right foot underneath him to stand when a heavy rush of pressure snapped his semi-concussed vision wide open.
"You don't think you're opponent will just give you time to recover, do you?!"
It was the larger blue male again but that didn't matter as he needed to move and move now!
Then a heavy fist came down between his shoulder blades right before a large puff of smoke obscured the ground and the air rushed from his struggling lungs.
"Did you end the bastard?" It was a softer voice, one of the females most likely.
"No. Whatever he Substituted with snapped cleanly." The large male inhaled deeply through his nose. "He's not far though, not with that kami-awful stench."
With a wave of her sword, the female cleared the chakra smoke from his substitution away revealing a shattered branch as Orochimaru watched from the safety of the tree line, his breathing rough and labored. Apparently and from the looks of it, that Substitution nearly broke his pitiful reserves.
Taifu, as she was known when in uniform, broke her gaze with her larger sibling to lock eyes with her beloved Walker.
There was a brief nod. After which a clone faded into existence then popped in a tiny puff of smoke.
Immediately following that, the remaining nine copies guarding their stone marker cycled through an even dozen hand seals ending on Ram. After two more seconds, of which Orochimaru was hoping to go unnoticed, the spectacle of a new jutsu left the Sannin watching in frustrated curiosity unable to tear his eyes away and flee, which was going to be his next course of action.
His curiosity would cost him even as he watched the stones pulse with light blue chakra, chakra that brightened the ground in the training area gathering in the form of a dome of shimmering energy.
Both masked figures were looking up from the shattered wood fragments by now and over to his potential kidnapping target. Just beyond the irritating woman, he watched as his target's arm rose to point out his hiding spot up in the branch of the nearest tree, much to his surprise.
'Another sensor? Surprising.'
It didn't matter. Even with his arm slowly mending from his limited use of Kabuto's technique, he couldn't win as the situation stood. It was time to withdraw and reevaluate. Not that he could flee too far given his rate of decomposition. There was no choice but to succeed. This meant that he needed to regroup in his temporary lair and try to catch the boy in a more private moment. 'I shouldn't have tried to play with my fo-URRKK!'
A boot, one not belonging to the two guards staring in his direction, struck his back hard enough to compress his diaphragm. The resultant impact sent the Snake Sage hurtling from the safety of his hidden branch and back into the clearing. By the time he stopped bouncing, Orochimaru found himself the focal point of a fleshy triangle made by the large blue male, the small pale female, and the smaller purple female – the assassin if he remembered correctly and the one contributing to the new footprint on his back.
Things just turned from worse to horrible but movement at the far edge of the clearing caught his eye following a massive surge of chakra.
What he saw piqued his curiosity as much as it set alarms off in the back of the weakened Sannin's head.
'Oh, dear.' He could see a small bundle wrapped in a cloak being carried in the arms of the second large male guardian rising from the earth.
'It would appear they've found my insurance policy.' The Snake coughed a bloody mass from his lungs then sighed as if his picnic was about to be ruined by storm clouds. 'More's the pity.'
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~III~
Konohagakure Chamber of Councils
Regular business seemed to go a lot smoother in the semi-monthly Council meeting. Kakashi couldn't help but think that Hiruzen's tenure might have gone smoother if he'd assassinated a clan head or two...
At least his death contributed something positive to Konoha's administration.
"Thank you for that exciting update on the current state of our international trade, Councilwoman Shizume." Kakashi smiled just enough to make his eye squint (patented eyesmile #5) and offered mild applause, which the Council at large parroted in fits and spurts.
It was almost like they were unsure whether or not applause… was a good thing?
Given the severe recession the village was squeaking through, he really couldn't blame them. Any village alliance earned through that fake bastard was like sand slipping through his fingers. Even Suna grew a pair and called off all trade agreements and alliances.
It was so bad, the greedy civilians of the Council were finally digging into their own savings to maintain their ridiculous lifestyles rather than tightening their sloppy belts.
He pointedly ignored their sweaty faces and nervous smiles. Sweeping his uncovered eye over the throng of skittish civilians, he hoped the particularly sweaty one didn't keel over from a stress-induced heart attack. That would only bring more paperwork and he hated paperwork.
"What's next on the agenda, Midori-chan?" He glanced over his shoulder to the petite woman very nearly brushing her hip against his arm in unspoken promise.
"Oh," she groused. "The Council needs to either approve or reject Yamanaka-san's sponsorship request for foreign travel Visas."
Kakashi's lips fluttered beneath his mask as his head whipped over to meet Inoichi's stern gaze. "So soon? I thought we had another three or four months for this?"
An already unhappy Yamanaka frown grew more severe. "We've delayed this request three times now, Godaime."
Kakashi frowned at both the missing suffix as well as the acidic tone and assumed correctly that the man was tired of his childish petulance. Perhaps he was due his annoyance but Kakashi simply did not care, his slouched body language clearly indicating his level of concern.
"Oh, alright. All in favor of allowing these hooligans into the village to attend the wedding ceremony?"
Kakashi pointedly kept his hands folded, one atop the other, on the tabletop at his spot. That didn't stop most of the shinobi and four of the Civilian members of the Council from raising their hands to approve the motion much to Kakashi's disappointment.
'He must have called in a lot of favors for this one.' Some of those holding their hands in the air kept eyes averted. Others glared back defiantly.
With a heavy sigh, Kakashi wrapped his gavel on the table once biting out an annoyed, "Motion is approved, eleven to nine."
He turned to the Jounin Commander catching the surprisingly wide-awake man's attention. "Make sure we recall as many as possible to contain the threat."
The Nara sucked on his teeth but said nothing in rebuttal. He was too busy dodging the heated glares of his former teammates to utter his trademark comment.
Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle even if all he knew was Shikaku's troubles were all because of Hiruzen. That old man ruined more than one strong bond with his questionable decisions and, in this case, it benefitted the office; so long as they were arguing amongst themselves, the Ino-Shika-Cho couldn't cause him more headaches.
"Okay, Midori-chan, what's next?"
This time his eye-smile was sincere as they lingered on the curvy hip resting on his right shoulder.
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~III~
~III~
Uzumaki Embassy: Nadeshiko
Safe in the understanding that his Guardians had the Snake contained, Naruto broke free from the spectacle to focus entirely on the cloak-wrapped bundle Ishi gingerly laid at his feet.
A quick glance to the pained face of his gentlest protector told him what he already suspected: Orochimaru most likely kidnapped his missing Koi-chan and tortured or experimented on her – or both - to gather the information he needed to sneak into the compound, sick bastard that he was.
The larger male's arm moved to pull back the cloth from a bloody and battered face and he, despite knowing what to expect, sucked in a heavy, heavy breath. The face was swollen and unrecognizable, however, the once immaculately braided hair slipped out to hang freely and he immediately recognized the clamshell hair tie he'd gifted her earlier in the year as a reward for diligence and skill.
Suddenly the open-aired training ground felt small. As his eyes locked onto the strained muscles of her face frozen in unspeakable pain, Naruto found he couldn't pull enough filtered air through his seal-covered mask to gather a lungful of air. Each giggle over the past year echoed in his ears. Each smile made his heart pulse in agony.
There was another sharp pain in his chest as his eyes prickled at the loss. Despite his attempts not to get attached to the kind servant, this death stung both in its manner of cruelty and the fact that it was visited upon such a gentle soul.
He spent five seconds reflecting on the fact that Koi-chan never hurt a living creature, not even the small butterflies flitting about the garden grounds as she helped in the morning harvest. Then that nose and eye-watering feeling of sorrow and loss blossomed into soul-shattering rage.
"Make sure after this she is buried with honor among the Umihebi." His voice cracked even as he tried to reign in his emotions. It was still loud enough for the others to hear and three emotionless masks swiveled to focus on the prostrate figure corralled between them.
All of the Hatchlings living in the compound knew of the missing Dōji caretaker.
All of them, especially the guard assigned to protect her, dreaded that this might be her outcome.
Ishi, eyes saddened nonetheless by the child's death, covered the girl once again and bowed low to press his forehead to the ground. He would try to hide the rest of her condition when he found her. If at all possible, he would spare his Walker that unnecessary pain.
Too bad Orochimaru was never known for his compassion.
Taking up the corpse, the heartbroken Guardian melded into the earth, his part of this elaborate trap completed. The four younger Hatchlings from his Sect lingering beneath the soil would be enough to keep the bastard Sannin from fleeing in his typical fashion as they relentlessly hunted down and killed every clone they could find.
For his part, Naruto rose and turned back to the cornered creature he refused to acknowledge as human.
A minor pulse of his chakra and another clone manifested before immediately dispelling. This time when the clones completed the next sequence of hand seals, the dome transitioned from a translucent blue mist and a solid dome of rich blue chakra.
Naruto's icy voice drew all eyes to him as he focused on the hijacked body of his former fellow Konoha Genin.
"For your crimes against the Umihebi and the Uzumaki, I sentence you to death."
Orochimaru, staring back through Sasuke Uchiha's stolen eyes, flinched.
"Don't worry, we'll be sure to return Sasuke's remains to his brother."
Then the pain began anew.
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~III~
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Yamanaka Florals, Konoha
"I don't get what the big deal is. It's my day and I want to have it with my family gathered around me." Ino set the matched pots on the counter a tad harder than she wanted forcing her to thoroughly check the pot base for damages. Hot on her trail were both parents trying to win an argument with their incredibly willful daughter.
"Ino-chan," her mother cooed. "We can always arrange for the family to be wherever the wedding will be. It doesn't have to be here!"
"Of course it does, mooooom!" They couldn't see her eyes rolling as she carried two more healthy pots from the nursery to the storefront but both adults could literally feel it happening as her head tilted briefly to the ceiling.
"It's my day, not his. He doesn't get his way with this one." She turned briefly to push the swinging door open with her hip.
"You do realize," Inoichi countered, "That Uzu no Kuni and Hi no Kuni are at odds with one another, right?"
Ino scoffed with a brief puff of air temporarily fluttering her bang away from her right eye. "That will blow over before then, daddy. You worry too much!"
The snarling growl from her father's throat made Ino do a brief double-take but that was all. She seemed otherwise unphased.
"I know I raised a smarter young lady than this," Inoichi bit out between clenched teeth. "Too bad she'll be looking for a new husband shortly after Konoha kills this one!"
Neither Yamanaka was used to this side of Inoichi, the angry husband/father resulting in one rolling her eyes while the other hissed at him to be quiet and "stop helping."
"Ichi-kun!"
His wife's sharp huff of air forced his jaw to clench as Ino brushed him off with ease.
"Stop over exaggerating, daddy." Ino promptly busied herself with rearranging both potted presentations making sure the sunflower arrangements were ready for pickup.
"You know very well that your father is speaking true, Ino."
She did know but refused to budge. Her response came in the form of an apathetic shrug of the shoulders. "He can handle Konoha, mom. I've seen him get by with worse."
Pale blue eyes swung around to lock gazes as she flipped her usual bang behind her right ear. "If he's not willing to do this, then he's not worth our love."
Ino's chin tilted skyward in defiance. She remembered her father's description of the Council meeting and the insanity he described when the Hokage announced Konoha's break from the Uzumaki. Upon hearing about the ancient treaty, she spent a week straight in the library and archives searching for information on the clan and its history.
She knew Kakashi was making a huge mistake but no one else seemed to care beyond her father and Chouji's dad. Apparently the two were completely broken off from the Nara Clan over this so that meant serious trouble considering how long the three clans have been joined at the hip.
Apparently, the Akimichi wore the spiral on their cheeks to honor a long-standing relationship with the Uzumaki much older than the hidden village system. Who knew?
It still hadn't changed her mind over forcing the marriage into the heart of Konoha despite what anyone thought. Not her questionable friends from the academy. Not her team. Not her father who was fisting his long hair hard enough to tear it from his scalp.
"The only reason he survived before was because he had the Hokage on his side!" Inoichi's temper was beginning to flair as he tried to figure out what happened to his level-headed daughter that replaced her with this stubborn, thickheaded girl.
Before Sumiko could reign in the rising fit of pique roiling from her daughter, Ino fired right back.
"You make it sound like Konoha is out to murder him on his wedding day!"
Ino's eyes were stormy and dark. Her back was up and she was tired of people telling her that Konoha was a bad place for this and now her parents were on the "Escape from Konoha" bandwagon. She'd spent her entire life here and knew that Naruto was making a dent in the populace's opinion of him. She'd seen the results after the Chuunin Exam Festival invasion! Why couldn't people stop telling conspiracy fantasies and just support her on her special day!
It was as she was glaring malevolently at her parents that she realized their eerie silence at her statement hadn't been broken with a counter argument and her heart sunk just a little as the uncomfortable silence continued to grow.
"This is happening whether you help me or I have to plan it all by myself," she huffed.
Having said her fill, she turned to storm from the store rather than trying to push the issue. She had to get away, to find someplace where she could think and hopefully clear her mind.
Though her heavy steps evened out to a steady stride, Ino's mind began to pick at her conscience.
Was she in the wrong? Would Konoha try something at such a high-profile event? What about the village's "good guy" image? Would they sacrifice it for petty retribution?
One of the Daimyo's own family was coming to attend, some fifteenth cousin or some such. It was that big of a deal apparently!
Without thought or consideration, Ino streaked off and ran until her eyes prickled and stung finally allowing the tears she'd been holding back for the last year to fall where only the leaves of the forest could see her.
Why did this have to be so hard?
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~III~
Back in the flower shop, Ino's mom "tsked" loudly at her husband before turning around to storm off. She'd need to find a way to calm down her daughter long enough to have a rational conversation. Surely, she could help her see reason, but, for now, she knew that her husband knew better than to pick at Ino that way. He knew how much it would cause her to only dig in harder if only to spite him.
Seriously, it was almost like he was trying to keep her angry about it all.
.
.
~III~
Still standing in the middle of the flower shop, no one saw the eldest Inoichi calmly unclench his hands from his long hair, his fingers gently combing through the fresh tangles to ease the kinks he'd made.
It also meant that they could not see the grim smile growing up from the corner of his mouth.
.
.
~III~
Author's Comments: Not much to say. Thanks again to both the old and new fans to this story. I'll try to be quicker with the next few chapters but Pieces of A Dream keeps calling me...
~Siva'a