Chapter 29: The Deep End

With thirty-seven-year-old Ino...

Naruto wasn't crying. Nor did he show any sign of morbid depression. Instead, he seemed to be in deep thought, but his eyes were puffy and swollen, which was evidence of fallen tears. Ino had found him like this on a bench outside Konoha's hospital.

She mentally kicked herself for jumping to conclusions. Shikamaru never said anything about Naruto being in tears or inconsolable. No, as always, her friend had seen a man in pain, a man who was hiding it and thought perhaps she should be there for him. Maybe get him to open up. Or maybe Shikamaru just thought Naruto would like to see her. Ino nearly collapsed beside the bench, her legs were sore since she had pushed herself to run faster than she normally would.

"Hey," Naruto greeted her, but his voice did not carry the same energy as usual.

Ino looked up at him. "Hey."

The two stared at each other in utter silence.

"Guess we both lost a teacher now, huh?" Naruto broke the silence. Ino frowned, not following, until she remembered that Asuma had passed away in this dimension. She swallowed thickly and nodded.

Naruto smiled weakly. "Shikamaru found me moping. He then dragged me here." Naruto pointed at the hospital as he said this. Ino frowned, trying to figure out just why exactly Shikamaru had bothered to bring a upset Naruto to a hospital. He was not physically injured, and no medic could heal a broken heart.

And then it clicked and Ino gasped. "Kurenai?" she asked. Naruto nodded.

"Yeah!" he exclaimed excitedly. "She was huge...er...I mean, like, pregnant huge."

Ino chuckled softly. In the past few days, Ino had found herself really thinking about the dimension she was in. There were many similarities she had found, events that had occurred in both dimensions. But there was also many differences. People were dead here that were supposed to be alive. And people were alive here that were supposed to be dead. And then there was Sasuke...he had been gone for nearly three years. Naruto had told her the story – Orochimaru was dead, but Sasuke had made no move to return.

It was these thoughts that made Ino really analyse the differences. Back in her dimension, Sasuke had left Konoha for a year at most. The young man had become impatient with Orochimaru and when the news of Itachi's heart attack had reached him, Sasuke saw no more point in remaining with the Sannin. The outcome of his return had meant he never committed any heinous crimes and therefore was not severely punished. He was able to to reunite with Karin, who he had met in his first month with Orochimaru. Here, however, it was a completely different story and Ino concluded that it meant any future events would not be exactly the same as in her dimension either. And she feared that if she stayed longer, it could mean she might be put in danger. If she died in this body, younger Ino would not have a body to return to.

So, Ino had promised herself that she would find a way to reverse the jutsu as soon as possible. She knew that it was possible that she was dying slowly right now – that had been the outcome of the previous time she had used the jutsu. And with the way events were turning out, she knew a war was coming. Perhaps not one the same as the one of her youth, but a war nonetheless. And this world needed its Ino, not her.

"Ino?" Naruto's voice snapped Ino out of her reverie. She hadn't even noticed that she was spacing out.

"Sorry," Ino apologised, "I was just thinking about how the two dimensions really are different, but still so similar. But enough about that, how are you?"

Ino stood up and sat down on the bench next to Naruto, the floor was getting uncomfortable. Naruto sighed and closed his eyes.

"I'm okay, I guess," Naruto muttered. "Shikamaru knocked some sense into me and Iruka-sensei consoled me last night. But it...it's hard."

Ino smiled sadly and reached out to grasp Naruto's hand. He allowed her to lace their fingers together.

"I know it's hard," Ino whispered. "I might not have lost my teacher, but I've lost my team mate. And my best friend."

Naruto looked at her, alarmed. She had never told him that Asuma was still alive in her dimension. In fact, she hadn't gathered the courage to tell Shikamaru and Chouji either. It just didn't feel right, telling them she still had dinner and laughs with their teacher, but they no longer couldn't.

"Asuma isn't dead?" Naruto asked.

"Not in my dimension, no," Ino replied.

"Oh," was all Naruto could muster to say.

"Chouji, however, wasn't so lucky," Ino whispered with a choke. She felt Naruto's hand squeeze hers. "Sakura wasn't lucky either."

Naruto's grip on her fingers went slack and Ino berated herself for brining up the subject of dead companions. Now she had made him even more depressed.

"Did she die alone?" Naruto finally asked. Ino turned to face him, hoping to see if he was upset or not. He merely looked tired as he stared on ahead.

"No," Ino decided to assure him. "No, she was not alone. Kakashi was with her."

"Good. As long as she didn't die alone. Sakura doesn't deserve that."

Ino smiled weakly. She debated telling him the full truth, to reveal that although Kakashi had been with her, she had died in an explosion and her body was never recovered, obviously blown to bits. Her grave was empty, merely a stone slab for those who needed the peace of mind. But one glance at Naruto and his current state of mind and she decided against it. No, he didn't need to know. At least not yet.

"Oh!" Naruto suddenly perked up. He turned to face Ino. "Shikamaru asked me to help decode Jiraiya's message. Apparently he left three sources of evidence for us. And since I knew him so well they think I could help."

"That's great," Ino cheered.

"But, er, I have to go now," Naruto stated, "and I don't know long it's going to take. I was supposed to help you with finding a way to contact the other side. We were going to go to Suna, right?"

"Don't worry about it."

"But I want to help!" Naruto protested. Ino chuckled and reached out to stroke his cheek. It was a habit of hers, touching his cheeks. She liked the texture of his whiskers beneath her fingertips. This was, however, the first time she has touched this Naruto's face like this. She had missed it.

"Don't worry, I'll figure something out," Ino repeated. Naruto pouted, but his face soon melted into an expression of content. Ino was still gently stroking his cheek and it was sending shivers down his spine, but in a good way. He had never been touched like this before, and he liked it. He had not been aware that his whiskers were so sensitive.

Ino stopped stroking Naruto's cheek when a thought occurred to her. She was hoping to be able to meet with Gaara, to see if he had the same abilities as the Gaara she knew. But she very well knew that Tsunade was not going to let her go alone, and Ino did not really want to go with anyone else. But perhaps she didn't have to travel all the way to test the theory of Gaara's abilities...

"Naruto, I think I have an idea."

"Yeah?" Naruto asked, intrigued.

"Do you think you could convince Ku-" Ino suddenly trailed off. Naruto looked at her, puzzled. Ino pursed her lips. Did Naruto know Kurama's name yet? It was possible, since the dimensions' events weren't always adding up, but she probably shouldn't risk it. It was not her place to tell Naruto the kyuubi's name. "Do you think you could convince the kyuubi to do me a favour?"

Naruto just blinked, surprised. "Er...you know?"

"What? About you being the Jinchuuriki? Yes, of course."

"Oh. I didn't know all of you knew."

"I don't think everyone in our group quite knows yet," Ino replied. "They might have their suspicions. And you have to remember, I'm married to you in a different dimension. Of course I would know."

"Right, of course," Naruto muttered. Then he frowned. "What do you mean by favour?"

Ino smiled. "Precognition and a sensitive mind is not the only psychic abilities Gaara has. He can also use telepathy, but not on a very large scale. And when I say large scale, I mean he can't use it on humans."

"Telepathy?" Naruto asked, surprised. "Wait...what's that?"

Ino rolled her eyes. Of course he didn't know, or never bothered to remember the word. "He can read minds or communicate with others through the mind."

"Really?" Naruto asked. "That's so cool!"

Ino laughed at his sudden excitement. "Yeah, I suppose it is. Anyway, it just occurred to me that Gaara can communicate with the bijuu."

"All Jinchuuriki can," Naruto pointed out, obviously not fully understanding what she meant.

"Yes, you can communicate internally with the bijuu sealed within you, but Gaara can communicate with all of them, even over long distances."

Naruto's eyes widened. "And they can...talk back?"

Ino nodded.

"So..." Naruto began, "You want the kyuubi to send Gaara a mind message or something? And if he responds, then he can obviously communicate with the other dimension?"

"Something like that, yes," Ino responded.

"Well, I can try to ask him. He's a grump pot though and might tell you to mind your own business."

Ino laughed. "I am well aware that he is a 'grump pot'. You ask him first and if he refuses to cooperate, I'll use Mind Transfer to talk to him myself. Although only if you consent."

"You can talk to him inside of me?" Naruto asked, surprised. Ino fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"Only if I take over your body."

"I suppose that should be okay," Naruto said. "Just don't look where you're not supposed to."

Ino smirked. "I wouldn't dream of it."

Sixteen-year-old Ino...

"Happy birthday, Minato!" the crowd cheered as the little boy blew out the six candles on his cake. Only one remained burning and Kaguya laughed as she told him he obviously had a girlfriend hidden somewhere. He did not understand and quickly blew the last candle out. He didn't want a girlfriend, girls were scary!

Minato cheered happily as his friends and their parents clapped. Ino then proceeded to slice the cake, calling out to everyone to line up for a slice. Minato was served first, since he was the birthday boy. Then all the guests were served, leaving the rest of the family to last.

After everyone had had their share of cake, the children all gathered in the living room to open presents. Ino sat on the couch behind Minato, who was sitting on the floor and excitedly ripping apart wrapping paper. Naruto joined her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, his affectionate gaze focused on the little boy sitting by his feet. Ino could do nothing but smile.

The first present he opened was from Kaguya – a collection of scrolls and books on becoming a ninja. Ino raised an eyebrow...she wasn't sure if that was really an appropriate gift for a boy who had just turned six.

Minato seemed to be confused too, since he was staring at the items with a frown on his face.

"Remember how you asked me to train you last year?" Kaguya asked, noticing the confused look on her little brother's face. Minato nodded. "Well, I will show you some tricks...and you'll need to know the rules. So I got you the books. Don't worry, I'll help you read them."

Minato's eyes lit up. "Really, sis? You'll show me how to throw a kunai...and shuriken? And how to use mommy's Mind Transfer?"

Kaguya nodded. "Yeah...although we might wait before trying Mind Transfer. You can't even mold chakra yet. And I'm only going to show you basics. You're too young for dangerous stuff."

Minato pouted, but he still seemed very excited. Ino smiled. She had not been aware Minato was so keen on becoming a ninja. Perhaps this would be good for him and Kaguya both. Ino had no doubt that Kaguya would teach Minato properly so that one day he would become a fine ninja.

The next present was from Naruto. He had insisted on buying a present himself when Ino suggested they buy something for him together. Ino had agreed, and she hoped Naruto didn't buy something idiotic or dangerous.

It was a toy kunai set. "For your training," Naruto stated when Minato looked at him. Minato's eyes lit up.

Ino turned to Naruto, surprised. "Toy kunai?"

"Can't have him throwing real ones yet," Naruto replied. "Kaguya approached me about her gift idea – she wanted to know if it was okay. I gave her my permission, but on the condition that they use toy weapons for the time being."

"You're smarter than I thought you were," Ino whispered as she rested her head on his shoulder. Naruto laughed and squeezed her shoulder. "Thank you for looking out for them. I was worried about him training with real weapons...he's so young."

"He is, but he is very excited to become a ninja like you."

"Me?" Ino asked, surprised. "Not you?"

Naruto laughed. "Have you not noticed how our kids look up to you?"

"But," Ino trailed off. "You're the Hokage. You're the hero. You're more powerful than I am. Why am I the role model?"

"I think I scare them. There's stories about me out there Ino," Naruto stated, "stories that they hear from others and I think sometimes they see me as this big shadow that looms over them."

"But you're amazing," Ino whispered.

"And so are you," he retorted. "It's alright. I don't expect them to worship me. Their love is enough."

The two remained silent as Minato continued to open his presents. From Ino he had received a set of planes he had to assemble himself. He also received stuffed toys, some books and even money. Once all the presents were unwrapped, Ino reminded Minato to say thank you to everyone. He stood up and bowed, saying thank you to everyone in the room. After that the children went outside to play.

While the adults all sat in the living room, talking amongst themselves, Ino was in the kitchen preparing tea. Hinata joined her. Ino noticed that Hinata seemed to be down.

"Are you well?" Ino asked.

"Yes," Hinata replied. "I just have trouble sleeping, that is all."

"Do you want to talk?"

Hinata smiled weakly. "It's nothing, really. I've just been thinking about what you said."

Ino raised an eyebrow. Hinata laughed softly.

"You suggested that Masahiro take the new seat on the council for the Hyuuga family," Hinata said. "You...you want me to be able to move to Suna. If Masahiro proves himself, the clan might accept him as their leader."

"Oh yeah," Ino muttered, remembering the unexpected turn of events when Naruto had discovered the council was doing things behind his back. "I'm sorry, does it bother you that I said that?"

Hinata shook her head she poured some tea into cups. "Not at all, in fact, I am grateful." Ino noticed that Hinata's eyes were glossy.

"Are you crying, Hinata?" Ino asked, flabbergasted. Hinata looked up alarmed and quickly put down the teapot to wipe her face.

"I'm sorry," she hiccuped, "it's just...you're the only person who seems to notice how much the distance gets to me. I hate being apart from Gaara. But because I am the head of the Hyuuga family, nobody cares about the sacrifices I make, or my happiness."

Ino felt her heart bleed for her friend. She wished she could just wipe all these problems away, give Hinata her happy ending. But she knew that was not in her power. However, she was going to stand by Hinata's side.

"I've been laying awake at nights, thinking about the possibility of Masahiro taking over," Hinata explained, her voice cracking since the tears were now rolling down her cheeks. "I would love for it to happen, but the Hyuuga elders will never allow me to live in Suna. They don't want another country to have the Byakugan, even though they accepted Gaara into the family when we got married. They trust him, but not his village."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Hinata. I let my mouth run away with me. I never should have said it – I'm just making things complicated for you."

Hinata shook her head and smiled. "Don't you see, Ino? You made me think and I have found a solution."

"Really?" Ino asked, surprised. Hinata nodded, a sudden look of determination on her face.

"I'm going to let them give me the cursed seal. So when I die, the Byakugan will be sealed."

Ino's eyes widened. Hinata remained still, her determination not wavering. The Hinata that stood before Ino now was nothing like the young sixteen-year-old girl she knew in her dimension. This Hinata was strong and was willing to brand herself with the seal that was used for the branch family just so that she could be with the love of her life.

"A-are you sure?" Ino asked hesitantly. Hinata nodded.

"The seal is no longer used as often as in the past, there are actually several branch family members that do not have the seal. I won't allow it to be used like in the past, but this is the only way I can assure the elders that my Byakugan won't fall into the wrong hands."

Ino pursed her lips. Hinata was determined and she knew nothing was going to change the Hyuuga's mind.

"Why is the tea taking so long?" Naruto's voice suddenly interrupted as he stepped into the kitchen. Ino and Hinata tore their gazes away from each other and looked at him.

"Sorry," Hinata apologised. "We got distracted."

The party had been a huge success, but all good things had to come to an end. Minato was sad to say goodbye to his friends, but he was also excited to play with his new toys. And he couldn't wait to start training with Kaguya!

"Thank you, Ino," Karin thanked the blonde as the Uchiha family prepared to leave. "The food was fantastic."

"My pleasure," Ino hummed. She was glad the party had gone so well. Little Mikoto gurgled in Karin's arms, causing the two women to giggle.

Ino said the final goodbyes to several more people, then with a sigh she closed the door. She'll have too clean up now. Fun.

"Tired?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah," Ino replied. "Kids are crazy business."

"You're telling me," Naruto laughed. "You get used to it, though."

Ino turned to the living room and collapsed on the couch. She just needed a small break, then she would start cleaning up the mess. Naruto joined her, his arm once again wrapping around her shoulders. Ino snuggled closer to him, enjoying the warmth and comfort he gave her.

"Thanks for letting throw him a party," Ino whispered.

"You had a very convincing argument."

"This is going to sound weird, but somehow I wish your Ino could have been here," Ino mumbled. She felt Naruto stiffen.

"It would have been nice, yes," Naruto agreed.

"I'm sorry...that was probably not the best thing to say. She missed her son's birthday. I feel like I've stolen something precious."

Naruto chuckled and planted a kiss on Ino's forehead, catching her off-guard. "He'll have more birthdays. And don't apologise, you are important too."

Ino blushed. The two remained cuddling in silence as the guilt started to gnaw at Ino. Here she was, happily sitting in the arms of a married man. And although he was married a different version of her, she knew it was wrong. And she had to stop herself from falling for him. But that was just the thing, the heart was not easily controlled and she had already fallen in too deep.

Letting go was not going to be easy.