Just Like You - Chapter 10

On the final day of the Sealing Jutsu's activation, just when Ino was beginning to think no acts of vengence would come for Gaara, Zetsu warned of nearby shinobi. They were a large group indeed, and all from Konoha; Might Guy's complete cell which consisted of Hyuuga Neji, Tenten, and Rock Lee, along with Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto, Hatake Kakashi, and Elder Chiyo of Sunagakure. Zetsu informed that Naruto's team was at least half a day behind and would not be able to support Guy's cell when a confrontation happened. Both Ino and Itachi made it clear that these people were not to be taken lightly, even if they weren't notorious. Hatafuri assigned Itachi and Kisame to the task. Their holograms fadded away, but Ino could still feel the thiry percent of their individual Chakra pooling together with everyone else's as it was fed to the Sealing Jutsu's shrine.

By now, Gaara was completely lost. It was the final day - the Shukaku was almost completely extracted. By nightfall, the task would be complete and Zetsu would have a treat. Only a few more hours and she could sleep. Three days without food, drink, or sleep had done her still-healiong body poorly. Her mind was unable to wander, because then her Chakra would not be controlled and therefore unable to be donated. Also because she was unable to block off her thoughts while linked with the others in this way, and she didn't want them to know what she had been thinking. Or wanted to think, at least.

About three and a half hours passed by before Itachi and Kisame's holograms returned at their respective positions and informaed the rest that the deed was done. Sasori's subordinates had been sacrificed, but not in vain - the Might Guy cell would never return to Konoha. Zetsu was allowed to find his teats, as long as he remembered to contribute his Chakra. He did.


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The day passed slowly, as the other two before it had. The Sealing Jutsu was complete, and with one final show of light, all of Gaara's energy force was sucked out of him. The Shrine collected it and fully opened one of its nine eyes. Four were now fully open, with pupils to match. The Akatsuki now had four of the great Tailed Beasts.

You may now dissasemble, Hatafuri told them all. There was a group sigh of relief as everyone left their posts. The Shrine sunk into the ground at Hatafuri's command.

Excited to finally be free, Ino ran over to Deidara and Sasori, the latter whom was still concealed within Hiruko. Deidara, however, was leaning up against his clay bird in exhaustion. "I hate this time of the year, un." He told her as she approached. Her blonde lover gave a great yawn, stretching as he did so. "How was it, Ai?"

Ino was surprised at the new nickname, but tried not to show it. "Extremely boring," she complained. "I couldn't even let my mind wander because I'd forget to add my Chakra."

"Un," Deidara agreed, stretching a final time before standing to meet her gaze. "You'll get used to it. Only five more Jinchuuriki to go, un."

A guilty frown usurped Ino's features as she looked over at the dead Gaara. She sighed heavily before admitting, "I don't care about the other four, I just don't want to see Naruto go." She began to remember the missions she had completed with him, the admiration she felt for his virtues and morales. Naruto had been a good friend - she knew she could count on him if she had ever needed anything. They weren't the best of friends, but still, Naruto always proclaimed his loyalty to her.

Her thoughts were broken by Zetsu's. Don't get too comfortable, he warned, the rest will be here soon.

Deidara, Sasori, Ino, Hatafuri called through her thoughts, take them out. Bring back the Kyuubi. That is your mission.

The three of them agreed, but Ino groaned aloud. Guilt was already eating at her. Naruto was going to die at her hands.

"Think you're strong enough for this, Ai?" Deidara cruelly teased as his bird collected Gaara's body in its mouth.

Wincing, Ino nodded. "Don't doubt me just because I feel bad," she warned. "You're gonna loose when we spar."

Deidara smiled at the thought, but before anything could be said, the wall sealing them inside was hit with something exerting a lot of force, and came crashing down.

As the rocks fell, their opponents became known. Ai, Deidara asked Ino, which is the Kyuubi?

Ocean blue eyes, spiky blonde hair, orange jumpsuit. He'll -She was cut off when Naruto ran forward, screaming, "You bastards killed Gaara! I'll kill you, I swear it!"

A smirk crept onto Deidara's face as he said to them, "I'll take the Kyuubi, un."

"He's supposed to be Itachi's," Sasori told him. "Don't overestimate your strength again."

"I don't mind, Danna!" Deidara answered as he jumped onto his clay bird. "You and Ino can handle the Pinkie and old lady, right, un?" He flew off before anything else could be said.

"You scum!" Naruto shouted, "Come back here!" He jumped off after him.

"Naruto, wait!" Kakashi ordered as he followed after the hyperactive blonde.

Neither had been able to identify Ino - she was standing back a little, hiding in the shadows. She was biding her time, waiting for the perfect oppertunity to intercede.

"Well, Grandmother," -Sasori said this with spite--"are you ready to die?" Hiruko shifted a little, preparing for combat.

"Ah," Chiyo said with a sigh, "it has been too long since I've last seen my adorable grandchild." She, too, offered this title with scorn. "Perhaps I can beat you now as I have before." She, too, tensed for battle.

"Chiyo-baasama!" Sakura called in that annoying voice of hers, "You don't have any puppets, right?"

Ino scoffed at her ignorance and decided this was the time to appear. "When going on an important mission as this," she told Sakura, "it's important to have at least a general idea of your partner's defences and strengths, so you may help them as much as possible." She stepped into the light, paused for a moment, then jumped in front of Sasori. "Let the relatives fight. You will do well not to interfere." She adopted Itachi's stature and remained perfectly calm. From the look on Sakura's face, she could tell that her abscence of stance was annoying the cherry blossom. "What's wrong, big forehad? You seem more annoyed than surprised." Ino let the mockery slip into her voice, purposely making it appear that she could not control her emotions.

"We thought you were dead with your teammates," Sakura explained softly. Then, "Seems like you haven't changed at all, Ino-pig."

"We'll see about that," Ino taunted. Why was everyone doubting her growth? Even her own lover, Deidara, acted as though she wouldn't have grown at all in such amount of time. Why?

Even so, it didn't matter; today was the day she would finally prove her real strength, once and for all. No longer would she be the weakest link. No longer would she be taunted for her reluctance to fight. She threw herself into the battle.

In a surge of emotion, Sakura charged forward, screaming as she pulled her fist back. Of course, Ino knew what was powering that hand, and knew to avoid its direct attack. And, of course, she had predicted the cherry blossom would do this, and so she was ready. Sakura had been her sempai for five years; she knew the cherry blossom better than Sasuke did.

Because of her training with Itachi, Ino was able to calmly dodge Sakura's blows smoothly and without taking any damage. Frustrated, Sakura continued to try and hit Ino, but failed each time. Through the Akatsuki, Ino had learned to be more graceful, more lithe in her movements. If she had been a good fighter in Konoha, she was an undefeatable fighter now. So her training had changed her.

Dodging Sakura's attacks, Ino tested both her opponent and herself by taking the offensive. Just like the chuunin exams that were so long ago, neither could land a hit on the other. "After all this time," Ino shouted in frustration, "after all of my hard work, I will not settle with being your equal!" She angrilly threw her fist forward, aiming at Sakura's face.

Much to her surprise, the hit landed perfectly. Sakura fell back, her nose gushing blood. Holding her nose, her rival stood again and began to heal it. Ino let her. "Good hit, Ino-pig." Sakura admitted with a nod. "But that doesn't mean you win."

"Leave Sasori to the old hag," Ino ignored her compliment. Coming from Sakura, it wasn't worth anything. "Concern youself with me."

Having heald her nose, Sakura somehow managed to conjure up a Kage Bunshin from behind Ino. The clone held her arms back whilst Sakura took the oppertunity and returned the hit to Ino's nose. Falling back a little as stars blurred her vision, Ino lost her train of thought. "This won't take long," she heard her opponent snicker in victory.

Pushing through the blur, Ino forced herself to stand. The Kage Bunshin behind her held her tight, not letting her go. Looking back to it with just her eyes, Ino gently kicked its leg. It dissapeared in a puff of smoke.

Turning her attention back to Sakura, Ino ran forward, fist behind her as she added as much Chakra to it as possible. If this one hit landed, it would either kill or fatally wound the sweet little cherry blossom.

Sakura ran forward as well, bending her fist back.

The two charged at each other and met in the middle, Sakura grabbing Ino's offensive hand, and Ino doing the same to her enemy. They were at a stalemate, just as they had been years ago; both were staring one another down, angrilly pulling at their enemies' hands. "Not again!" Ino shouted, breaking free of Sakura's grasp and landing a hit to her jaw. Her enemy stumbled back a little, grunting with pain. "I refuse to be your equal. Two months of training with Akatsuki will not amount to nothing!" Anger bubbling within her, Ino charged forwards and used the move Itachi had taught her once, the one he had used on Sasuke as a genin. Hitting Sakura perfectly, Ino smiled as her enemy fell back in a spiral through the air, loudly landing against a boulder. Itachi sent over a mental image of him watching over her, arms folded, nodding in approval. Ino smiled.

The idiot refused to give up, though; she forced herself onto her feet and began the seal for another Kage Bunshin. Grunting at the repetition, Ino watched as three Sakuras came at her, each preparing to attack.

Hmm, which is the real one? Ino asked herself, carefully studying the three as they came toward her. That one! Grabbing the Sakura on the left, Ino used her body to destroy the other two doppelgangers. The two fakes dissapeared in a puff of smoke. Hmm, she thought again, now how to end this...

Sakura refused to be held down, broke away from Ino and jumped a few yards away. She took out all the kunai she had and threw them all at Ino. Just like Itachi taught her, she dodged each one as she completed a fire jutsu. Murmuring it softly as she completed it, Ino put her fingers together and to her mouth, then blew out as much as she could. She hadn't even practiced the fire element with her Uchiha sensei - this was based solely on what she had seen of him. She more than half-expected it to fail.

Much to her surprise, however, she was sucessful. Fire blew from her mouth and at Sakura in a huge ball. Wow, Ino thought, I'm amazing!

Sadly enough, the hit completely missed Sakura. Quickly balling her hand into a fist and spinning around, Ino surprised herself by landing a hit on Sakura's cheek. The pink-haired kunoichi fell back and, before her oppertunity could be lost, Ino kicked in her ribs, enjoying the sounds of their cracking. Sakura cried out a little and coughed up some blood.

Out of complete chance, a kunai fell from the sky and pierced Sakura's ribcage. She cried out again, and went completely still. Looking over at Sasori, Ino noticed that he had - perhaps - planned that. Tired of fighting yet, Sasori? She asked him through the link.

I'm a puppet, he reminded her. We don't get tired.

Only annoyed, she persisted.

Yes. She couldn't tell if that was directed at her or not. Sasori sent over a sigh. Come help me finish her off.

Ino was glad to oblige. Wordlessly, she left Sakura's body behind and jumped beside Sasori. His skilled fingers flawlessly handled his puppet-weapon, the Chakra strands at the tips almost invisible, but tougher than steel. He was in his prime element at that moment, and loving it. What do I do? She asked him through her thoughts, not wanting Chiyo to hear.

Distract her, but do not make the final execution. I want that pleasure for myself.

Understood. She jumped off and made to land behind the Elder, had not the woman's reactions and wits been so quick. Chiyo had been using two puppets against Sasori's one - two Ino recognized from Sasori's shared memories to be relics of his parents he had made the day they died, the day he became a puppeteer.

Must be a tough battle for him, Ino thought a second before the redheaded-father-puppet caught her in its grip. Must concentrate, she told herself, Sasori's counting on me, if only a little...Closing her eyes in concentration, Ino carefully tapped into Sasori's memories of how this puppet was designed. This puppet's weakest point is the elbow on its right arm, she learned. Sasori could never figure out why, but whenever something small - a nail's thickness - was inserted into the left end of the elbow, the whole arm fell apart from that point down. Ino opened her eyes again, studying the puppet's right elbow. Now, while Sasori's distracing Chiyo, if I can somehow get my nail in that corner, I'll be free...She moved slowly and carefully, taking a few extra seconds to wait for Chiyo to react to her movement.

Eventually, she made it to the puppet's weak spot. More careful than careful, Ino slipped her fingernail inside, with an assertive but gentle force.

The male puppet's elbow flung open quicker than Ino thought possible for an inanimate object. Chiyo repositioned the elbow so that whatever was inside would hit Ino dead-on. That was when she knew the old lady had made some changes to Sasori's puppets. Something shot out of the puppet's elbow and at her. She had only seconds to move before the weapon struck.

With an agility she didn't know she had, Ino grabbed the string of kunai with posioned tips in one hand, kicked out of the male puppet's grasp with more strength than she knew of, and gracefully arched in the air until she beautifully landed in front of Sasori, the sring of kunai held in a protective shield in front of her face.

That was too perfect to be my own reflexes, Ino thought, I'm not not that quick or strong or graceful. Perplexed, she looked back at Sasori, only to see Chakra strings from his left hand connected to her as they were on his right to his other puppet. "Sasori!" Ino exclaimed, astonished. "You - "

"Shut up," he commanded. "You are now temporarily a puppet. As long as my Chakra strings have a hold on you, your body is mine to manipulate. I will guarantee that, under my protection, not a scratch will mar your beautiful features. Will you comply?" He had repeated this all in his thoughts to Deidara.

"Hai!" Ino shouted, and also in her thoughts. "You have my complete faith."

Hmph, Deidara answered, his town disdainful, she better not have a scratch on her, Danna. You promised.

I have a long memory, was all Sasori gave as a reply. Deidara disconnected himself from them before Ino had a chance to say anything to him. Keep your thoughts and eyes on Chiyo, Sasori warned, As long as I am controlling you, you are an extension of myself. I will see through your eyes and interprut your every thought. This is not the same as the link Hatafuri-san uses to tie us together; although it is broken when my Chakra leaves your body, it is stronger than his when we are combined.

Understood, Ino answered faithfully, moving her full attention to Chiyo. Her entire body tensed without her command; Sasori was getting ready to attack. "Haruno Sakura is dead," she taunted.

A little late, Sasori told her.

Improvising. "She died at my hands. We used to be best friends before we started training to be nin." This seemed to surprise both Chiyo and Sasori - it always surprised people. They always found it hard to believe that Ino and Sakura had actually relied on one another as children. "But no more. For a reason I shall not explain,"-she felt embarrased liking Uchiha Sasuke when Deidara was obviously so much better--"we terminated our friendship and became rivals. I have finally proven myself the better of the two, as I have always been. Now, Sasori will prove himself the better, as he has always been." A little bit of glorification never hurt, she thought to him. And look - it's unnerving Chiyo. Looks like she already knew who was truly better.

Sasori's swelling pride swarmed into her thoughts.

"I'll admit that I am old and, unlike my grandchild, my body shows evidence of that. Time makes me weak, frail, and a little senile. But I have seen far more battles than my dear Sasori; I know how to handle situations and how to turn things to my favor," Chiyo replied.

"Then show me, dear grandmother," Sasori answered as he tensed, and his puppets did the same, "Show me how to kill the past."

Sasori willed Ino into action - she threw all nine stringed kunai at Chiyo. Because of Sasori's control, her aim was nearly perfect. If Chiyo hadn't moved her male puppet to take the blows for her, she would have died that instant.

Ino felt a deep...hesitation within Sasori. He didn't want to destroy his parents whether they were simply replicas or not. Sasori, she called softly, do not hesitate. They're only puppets - you can fix them after you kill Chiyo.

Sasori hesitated a second longer before sending both Ino and the third Kazekage to meet his parents. Prepare yourself, Sasori warned. The third emitted a black cloud from his mouth, the type that sounded like a thousand angry rattlesnakes. "Do you remember the third Kazekage's special power, Grandmother Chiyo?"

Chiyo didn't answer with words - she simply scowled in protest. Something told Ino that Sasori had the upper hand, still. There was no way he could possibly loose.

The black cloud that Ino guessed to be sand attacked Chiyo and her puppets at such a fast rate that she thought that was the end of it. That sand has to weigh a lot more than it looks like it does, she reasoned.

Sasori channeled his knowledge to her her then. The substance was the Third Kazekage's trump card whilst he was still alive. It was called Iron Sand and had the ability to take on any form and density the Third wished - all that was needed was some Chakra and a storage place. Technically, the Third could get Iron Sand from anywhere in Suna; it was made with sand, Chakra, and a secret jutsu that no one else - but Sasori, now - knew. The Iron Sand had the ability to disable anything mechanical - all the user had to do was make sure the Sand got into the machine. The Sand did the rest: expanding, collecting at the joints, and perminately stopping the oppressor. It was unstoppable.

But when the Iron Sand cleared, both Akatsuki members were astonished to find Chiyo's puppets in a defensive mode against the Third's attack. Chiyo growled, and both puppets fell to the ground on their sides, perminately useless.

This was why Sasori hesitated, Ino thought. Immediately, she understood his feelings, and felt a little guilty that she had urged him to not hold back. Gomenasai, she mumured.

"Shut up," he whispered, sending her over to attack the defenseless Chiyo. The Elder no longer had any puppets to protect herself with, and so she took the blows dealt.

Dangerously near death, Chiyo fell to her knees. A ghostly smile usurped her wrinkled face as she whispered her last words: "You have learned something today, my dear grandchild. This is how you kill your past."

As Chiyo's life faded away from her old body and she crashed to the ground, Sasori's anguish nearly stopped Ino's heart. In that split second before he revoked his Chakra strings, she understood what Chiyo meant and why it upset him so. By getting Sasori to permantely destroy the last puppets she had - the relics he had made of his parents - and killing her along with them, Chiyo had tricked him into eliminating every last figure of his past he had. Chiyo had done her grandson one final favor - the one favor that would also haunt him for the rest of his immortal life.

"A double-edged sword," Ino murmured, turning to face Sasori.

But he wasn't behind her anymore. By now, he had already packed away the Third Kazekage, the remains of Hiruko, and the useless relics of his past. By the time she got over to him, he had already begun the process of making Chiyo into a puppet. "Sasori..." she began.

"Shut up," he commanded for the third time that day. "I'm keeping them."

"We both know you won't be able to actually use them in your arsenal. Chiyo was right when she did this."

Sasori stopped and looked over at Ino as if she'd just suggested something even Hidan wouldn't do. He looked down to the dead Chiyo and continued on with his work. "I'll change that Sakura girl next. Go ahead - Deidara needs you."

Ino hesitated for a moment, studying the emotionelss wood of Sasori's face. Before leaving, she hugged his unsensitive frame tightly and whispered, "Even thought blood is thicker, water is quicker. Translation: You blood family may desert you or leave you behind in this world, but there are always more people out there who love you just as strongly, and it's easier to create a family of friends and water than that of rivals and blood." Even though he couldn't possibly feel it, she ruffled his hair affectionately and kissed his cheek before walking away. Why had she done it? Simple: It was what he had always wanted - outright love and support.


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She managed to locate Deidara before anything too damaging happened. He had allowed Naruto and Kakashi to trail him, but never gave them an opening. Ino had met the three perfectly: Kakashi had used some sort of Sharingan genjutsu to crash Deidara's bird. Naruto ran after him, seeking hand-to-hand combat. But Deidara, being a ninjutsu type, kept his distance. Ino knew she had to intercede - she knew Deidara's clay levels were minimal to begin with.

With some odd stroke of luck, Ino was able to catch Deidara while he was loosing Naruto, stealthily hiding in a large bush. Move over, it's me. She thought as she silently climbed in beside him.

You're alive! He greated her happily, gently kissing her lips. Looks like you and Sasori work well together.

Only in desperate situations, she joked with a playful grin. And I thought you weren't mine anymore.

A kiss isn't actually a kiss without some tongue, Deidara told her with a smile. Everyone knows that.

Chucking through her thoughts, Ino forced herself to focus. Now, she began as she looked out from her hiding place, how do we do this? You have no clay, I'm exhausted, and Sasori...Well, he'll get here eventually. All three of us are distance-types, but Naruto's style is mainly taijutsu. It's a stalemate all over.

And he's got Hatake Kakashi with that damned Sharingan eye, Deidara added with scorn. We'll need Sasori-danna's mind for this, or fighting style. Puppeteers work well with both.

I know, she agreed. The hardest parts will be incompacitating Naruto enough to bring him back to Hatafuri-san and killing Kakashi-sensei. He's known as 'the Copy Ninja' for a reason.

Un. Kakashi...I don't know what happened to him. He destroyed my bird with some sort of Sharingan genjutsu, then dissapeared. I think maybe he incompacitated himself.

That'd be nice. Wait - what was that over there? She silently pointed to the area where she had heard something. They saw two nin not very far away, both with blonde hair, similar hair styles, and Akatsuki cloaks.

"Sasori," Ino whispered aloud with relief.

"Oy!" The voice of Naruto shouted from somewhere nearby, "I see you! Don't go running like a chicken, you're an Akatsuki for Kami's sake!"

You two can come out now, Sasori told them.

Danna! Where are you? Deidara asked. Sasori sent over a mental image of his surroundings, and the two blondes jumped off to meet him.

Anyone got a plan yet? Ino asked the two men.

Yes, Sasori answered. I'm going to lure the Jinchuuriki to a position near mine with these Deidara and Ino puppets I created. After that I have nothing.

He's a taijutsu type, Ino informed him, and he has a soft heart. Simply seeing me on you guys' side will completely throw him off track. I can try and trap him in my old Shintensen no Jutsu, but then I'm stuck in his body and someone will have to carry mine. I could try other genjutsu, but I don't know how affective they'll be - I'm sort of weak right now. What we need to think through first is how to control him, get him to come with us.

I've got an idea, Deidara offered. Sasori-danna, take your puppets back. I'll fight him.

Demo -- Ino began, but was stopped.

Just follow my lead, Deidara interrupted her, or just do what you think is right at the moment. I have faith in you.

Touched, Ino nodded vigorously. Hai. You lead.

Naruto ran into the clearing they were staring down at and looked around. "Oy! I know you're here..."

That's my queue. Deidara told them as he jumped from his perch, revealing himself to Naruto. "You caught me, un." He said in an I-give-up tone as he held both hands up. "I have no more clay - there is no point in continuing this battle. You win, un."

Perplexed, Naruto stared at Deidara in curiosity for less than a second before he shouted, "What did you do with Gaara?!"

"The Kazekage, un?" Deidara asked, as though he wasn't quite sure he knew who Naruto was talking about. "Red hair? Kanji for 'love' on the left side of his forehead, un?"

"Who else?!" Naruto roared, his eyes red with the Kyuubi's power.

Deidara adopted a smug look on his face as his large clay bird emerged from the covers of a bush. "This Kazekage, un?" He asked as the bird opened its large mouth. "Oh, he's long dead." The bird split Gaara's dead body onto the ground.

"Gaara!" Naruto shouted as he ran to his friend's body and knelt down beside it. "No," he groaned softly, "no, you're not dead. You can't be dead." The air around him picked up speed and whirled around him. His red Chakra was visible a second later, spinning around him as it adopted the shape of the Kyuubi within. In malice, he spun around to face Deidara. "You...you killed him! You damn bastards killed him for your own gain!" Deidara's smugness didn't fade as Naruto approached. "And now I'm gonna kill you!" He suddenly ran up to Deidara, at twice his normal running speed, and hit Deidara square in the stomach, causing him to fall back against a nearby tree and cough up blood. Again, Naruto approached, the Kyuubi form bubbling around him.

That was when Ino could stand it no longer. She jumped down in front of Deidara, arms spread wide, and shouted, "Naruto, please, don't!"

At the sight of Ino, Naruto calmed instantly. The air around him came to an abrupt halt, his Chakra-fox gone, even his eyes became less red. "I-ino?" Naruto asked, confusion spread across his face. "You're not dead? We all thought you died with your other partners that day..."

That was how Hatafuri-san wanted it to seem, Deidara explained.

Ino acted as though her blonde lover hadn't communicated with her at all. "No, Naruto, I survived. My entire life changed. Deidara and Sasori,"-here Sasori jumped out of the trees and landed beside her, helping Deidara to his feet--"they helped me find my will to live again. They protected me, cared for me...Loved me."

"You mean you joined them?!" Naruto roared, his anger summoning the Kyuubi's image again. "You helped them kill Gaara!"

"Then kill me!" She shouted over him, causing him to fall perfectly silent again. Ino's evergreen eyes met Naruto's Kyuubi-colored ones. "Kami knows all the evil I've done since that fateful day these two took me in. But spare them. Kill me."

This was bringing Naruto to his senses again. "Why?" He whispered, his voice now barely audible.

"Because I love him! This blonde, Deidara,"-she took his hand in hers--"I love him with all my heart! I couldn't stand to see anything happen to him. And Sasori? He's like my best friend. How could I let either of them die at the hands of an older friend of mine?"

"W-what happened to Guy-sensei's cell?"

"Dead."

Naruto dropped his gaze to the ground. "Grandma Chiyo? Sakura?"

"I-I killed Sakura myself," her voice shook - she was afraid of being on the recieving end of Naruto's powerful rage. "And I helped Sasori get rid of his grandmother."

Naruto covered his now ocean-blue eyes and craned his head up as far as it could go, wincing. A pained expression controlled his normally-friendly face, and Ino realized that he was on the verge of tears. "Sasuke will come after you for Sakura," he managed.

"He will be killed by Itachi. Tenten's gone, Rock Lee, Neji, Guy-sensei, Shikamaru...Sasuke's next if he comes to avenge Sakura. A new dawn is coming, Naruto, and trust me, you don't want to be in Konoha when that sun peeks up over the horizon. Come with us now, without any unnessecary pain. I can personally guarantee that you'll be comfortable."

Naruto was silently weeping by now. "Does it hurt? Having the Biju taken out, I mean."

"No," Ino answered, as her traitorous voice cracked. A guilty tear ran down her cheek. "it doesn't hurt at all. You won't even now what's going on."

"It's going to kill me."

"Painlessly," she lied, hating every fiber in her being for it. "Just come with us now and make everything easier on everyone."

"What happened to Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto avoided her last sentence.

"Dead," Sasori answered, "or dying, at least. Disguised one of my kunai on a pricker bush. All of my weapons are dipped in poison, and I saw it cut him. Deeply, too."

Naruto gave a deep sigh, dropping his gaze to the ground again. "Nothing to live for anymore," he grunted, looking up at her. "Except for you. You got lucky."

Letting the tears fall freely, Ino bear-hugged her old friend, burying her face in his chest. "I'm sorry it has to be you. I'm sorry - "

"Well, don't be." Naruto interrupted, causing her to look up to him in surprise. "There's always another angle of the horizon to admire, and always a better sunrise there. Even if I have to die to see every one, I won't mind."

Sighing, Ino gave him one final bear-squeeze before letting him go. "Sasori, could you keep an eye on him while I look at Deidara?" Sasori nodded and silently obliged.

Ino pulled Deidara off to the side, furious. "You used me," she hissed. "You knew I'd do that the whole time."

What he did next she hadn't expected, and never would have. Deidara gently brushed her hair away from her face and whispered, "You really do love me, un." as he hugged her close. He even repeated it, as if he never thought it possible.

They backed off for a second, and Deidara took the oppertunity to kiss her as passionately as he could. "Of course I do," Ino whispered when they broke for air and she had gone to work on his abdomen. "If I didn't, I'd probably have tried to escape by now. I'm here because of you."

A few minutes later, his stomach was perfectly normal again and they were ready to go. Deidara moved molded his brid into one that could fit all of them, and they set off to the newest Akatsuki base.


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Once they got there, Sasori voulentered to bring Naruto to Hatafuri. Ino and Deidara thanked him, then went off in search of a room to call their own.

Once inside their new room - which had beds for the both of them, Ino noticed - Deidara closed and locked their door. Sitting on the bed to the right, she asked aloud, "Why did we have to change bases?"

"Gaara's 'murder' brought a lot of attention to the old place, even if Hatafuri-san was a god. We usually move every time we get a new Jinchuuriki, un."

"So then we might move after...?" She couldn't bring herself to utter Naruto's name.

"We might not have to, since he came peacefully and all of his 'followers' were executed."

"Tsunade will come after us with everything she's got. And it's my fault." Ino buried her face in her hands in shame and fell down sideways onto the bed.

"We've survived worse, Ai, un." He sat down beside her and gently stroked her hair. The mouth on his hand kissed and licked her scalp, as usual.

"Dei," Ino whined in a tired tone, "I wanna sleep! Come sleep with me." Wordlessly, Deidara followed her orders and cuddled in close. "You're not mine, my ass." She murmured tiredly, hardly able to understand her own vocabulary.

Deidara must not have been able to understand her, because he didn't answer. The last thing she rememberd of that night was Deidara's warmth and strawberry-clay breath.