20

Every ninja who had ever left an academy had a file with their name on it. A file, a folder, an entire book, a clay tablet if the paper ever ran out. Whatever the material it was on, every ninja had a file.

And that file was a heavily encrypted, truncated, and redacted transcription of their entire lives.

Where they were born. To who. Who they knew. What they knew. How they knew. What they were allowed to know and who was allowed to know what that file looked like when it was unencrypted, untruncated, and unredacted.

Every ninja had a file, and Genin Haruno's had just made its way to the Hokage's desk. Years ahead of schedule in Inoichi's estimation, after her team had been forced to bear the brunt of one of the most egregious intelligence failures Konoha command had seen in nearly half a decade.

A failure that had led to a drug smuggler and gangster, one so rich that he made the daimyo of Fire look like a pauper, an enemy of Konoha by default, getting comfortable enough to try his hand at being a king.

An awful king as even a cursory glance at Wave's economic situation could tell you, as well as the mad flight of its peasantry to other countries, but a king all the same.

And this had happened in a country that Fire shared a border with.

And they'd had no idea until Kakashi's request for reinforcements and a change in the contract had arrived.

How had that happened? How? It boggled the mind. A determined team of Chunin could be in Wave and back in two hours. An hour if they were willing to be exhausted on arrival…and no one had taken that time to keep tabs on Wave after their daimyo had fled for his life and their government had collapsed? Really?

Something about the whole deal smelled rotten.

Not all enemy action was as apparent as that mess with the forbidden scroll had been. Or it could have been plain incompetence. That was a possibility. And Inoichi was sure that Ibiki would enjoy taking some time out of his busy schedule to find out which it was.

Inoichi would have. Honestly, he would have instead done anything else right now as he watched Sarutobi Hiruzen, his Kage, reach the end of Sakura's file…and close it, brow furrowed, the affable grandfather persona nowhere to be seen as he reached for his pipe without comment.

Shit.

Inoichi covered his wince. And Kakashi, standing at attention at his side, showed nothing at all… He'd been here before Inoichi. For how long, the blond couldn't say. And he wouldn't even try to guess.

It wasn't his business.

Sarutobi, after what felt like an eternity, an eternity that was in reality a minute at most, finally lit his pipe with a snap of the fingers and a soundless sigh. "You would think, at my age, that I'd stop wishing for reasons to avoid doing paperwork." Putting the pipe stem in between his teeth, he took a puff. "It never ends well."

Shit.

"Genin Haruno has proven herself to be competent. Shockingly so. Maybe even impossibly so. And nothing I have seen or heard so far has explained how this came to be. Not with anything that could satisfy my curiosity…" Smoke wafted around his face, and dark eyes were made darker under his hat's shadow. "As to how a fresh genin had the ability to upend everything our village knows of the medical arts."

Without Tsunade, Sarutobi didn't say… With Tsunade, he also didn't say.

It didn't need to be said. Tsunade leaving the village had been a tremendous loss.

No one had seen the last Senju in over a decade. What Tsunade could or could not do, what she'd learned in her time away, wasn't something anyone knew the answer to but her; but Inoichi was sure that they'd all be very surprised to find out that one of the things she'd learned in her time away was how to fix being bisected by one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist.

Outside of rare bloodlines and unproven rumors and hearsay, anything like that being possible was just unheard of.

He still had problems believing Sakura had done that even now, even with Kakashi having spent time putting together the report and Gai having verified its accuracy. He'd read that particular paragraph several times, running it through several ciphers just in case it was a code before it finally clicked that it wasn't. That what he was holding was real and meant what it said.

And what it meant… after he'd been done with being absolutely furious over the series of fuckups that had to have happened to have made any of this possible at all.

His daughter's best friend (and lover, he wasn't blind) would be compared to people like Namikaze Minato and Uchiha Itachi one day. If she lived long enough, that is… Her life wasn't going to be an easy one.

Talent attracted enemies like blood did wolves. And that was why they were all gathered here today. To discuss it. And whether there was something more sinister involved in Sakura's growth.

Enemy action wasn't always obvious. The number of prodigies that had been lured away from their village with a small taste of power and promises of status was more than zero… And Inoichi dearly hoped that wasn't the case.

Inoichi would rather that his daughter didn't resent him for the rest of her life when he was forced to do something about it. And that he didn't lose one of the very few ninja of the current generation (who wasn't his daughter) that he thought could, with some experience and guidance, take over from Ibiki when the time came to pass the torch.

He'd really rather not have to do anything at all.

"She is on a team with the last Uchiha and the last Uzumaki. She is respected by most of her peers, with her closest friends including the heirs to the Yamanaka and the Hyuuga. And while I'd have enjoyed simply appreciating the veritable gift that has fallen into our laps, we can only do the opposite regarding someone in her position, whether she lucked into it or not." Sarutobi sighed, looking his age for a brief moment as smoke left the corners of his mouth in streams. "Whether her abilities or what she has done to herself came by her honestly or not. We have no choice, no matter how often she's passed up the chance to do the village harm." He nodded to Inochi then. "You were the one to do her assessment, were you not?"

Inoichi returned the nod, the wince on his face coming out in full force as his worst fears were realized. "I was, Lord Hokage."

And that had just become the longest five minutes of his life.

"Then I'll trust you to know what to do. What motivates her, her aspirations, and how to make her talk. Gently." Sarutobi leaned back in his seat, clasping his hands over his chest...and pointedly not bringing up his near-familial relation to the girl that his daughter had decided to kidnap from the playground one day and never let go. "And to reconsider her current path in life if it is what we fear."

Or he'd let Ibiki have her outright, and the entire affair was out of anyone's hands but his.

Inoichi's wince became a full grimace before he forced it back down, the thought of his apprentice doing his work for once not filling him with the pride of a teacher. "It shall be done, Lord Hokage."

"And Kakashi, as her teacher, shall assist you in any way he can. Within the scope of his duties and his month of rest and recovery." Sarutobi turned a gimlet eye on the man. "Isn't that right?"

Kakashi, the rest of his body stiff as stone, nodded. "Yes. That's right."

...Whatever had been said when Inoichi hadn't been there was still none of his business, and he would have to keep that in mind.

"I'm sure that Kakashi's observations will greatly help you." The small, coldly satisfied smile on Sarutobi's face said different things. "And that his depth of knowledge in the workings of Genin Haruno's mind, gathered over the last month, will be the same."

Inoichi, shoulders falling slightly as he recognized he would be working with Kakashi, the terminally late on a time-sensitive mission (even if Kakashi was never late when it mattered, the legend was strong), forced himself to nod yet again. "Thank you, Lord Hokage."

"Anything for the village and my ninja." Sarutobi waved a hand and leaned over his desk, pen in hand. "Dismissed." 

And, with that, so it was… And with Inoichi carrying a great deal more stress than he'd started the day with, and with yet more at his side, this time without its distinctive orange book in tow and looking disgruntled about it as it quietly ambled along.

That was unheard of. And, now, Inoichi thought he might know some of what had happened in that room, out of sight.

Sarutobi hadn't just forced Kakashi to help him with his investigation.

He'd confiscated Kakashi's book.

Inoichi couldn't help but snort before looking away from Kakashi, who had stuffed both hands into his pockets.

It was good to know he could still laugh after his day so far. They could still salvage it if that were the case.

That had been close.

"... Observation one, Inoichi," Kakashi drawled after a tense, bored silence that ended at the lobby. "I thought Sakura was asexual until your daughter tackled her at the front gate."

Inoichi's neck made a loud crack as it tried to turn faster than his body, leaving him holding it in pain while Kakashi stood where he was, smug.

"That's how I reacted too."

==========

There was no place like home: the good, the bad, and everything in between. There was nothing like home.

It was where everything that mattered to you was.

And, once Ino had realized what she'd done in tackling me to the ground to kiss me and where she'd done it, she found that she agreed with me. There was no place like home, somewhat and sort of, the strangled squeak of a scream that didn't come and the panic on her face before she'd picked me up and used the shunshin to vacate the area said what needed to be said.

That we'd ended up at my house, where she'd collapsed at the front door, having forgotten that I was nearly three times heavier than she was at the best of times, was just unfortunate. And sort of funny. And, I suppose, touching when it was within the already established meaning of 'home'.

It was nice. Heartwarming, even, that she'd chosen to come here instead of her place. It was a balm on my spirit that only needed to be considered on its face to make an already great day even better.

For just a little longer.

"My back . My gods damned back, Sakura," Ino hissed, face red, hair matted to her forehead, air whistling cutely between the tiny, almost unnoticeable gap in her front teeth as she hugged Yanyan to her chest and I poked and prodded at the damage Ino had done to herself as I straddled her… She hadn't lifted with her knees, was my professional opinion. And she'd twisted too.

Because she could, I suppose.

"What the hell are you made of? Scrap metal? Iron blocks?" She twitched in offense when I laughed. And she twitched again when I pressed down on her back with my palm, forcing several bones into proper alignment. " Motherfucker !"

A little longer.

"Language, Ino. Language. My parents might not be home, but the neighbors are," I chided her in good humor as I popped another vertebra back into place, making her swear again, this time with feeling. "We don't want anyone thinking that the Yamanaka heiress is a foul-mouthed delinquent, do we?"

"This hurts. " She snarled. "Blow it out your ass, Haruno . "

As belligerent as she was, I was sure it did; as always with Ino, it was better that she was mad than if she was crying. Or whining. Or whatever it was that she didn't want to show at the time.

It was familiar ground between us. Stable…and as mentally unhealthy as any other coping mechanism a ninja could have. Maybe less so, as long as you could back it up; We got through life how we could. I didn't mind how Ino did it. Not much.

Rarely.

Ino was cute when she was mad…and we were friends. Friends that had sex, and often, and had yet to voice their feelings for each other, but friends. And when you were friends, all sorts of distasteful things suddenly became acceptable. Or, at least, tolerable.

That we were in love and both in denial about it until now (I was such a fool) made all the difference.

"Oh? We're using family names? So scary. So serious ." Fingers traced gently along her spine, looking for further abnormalities as she shivered and tensed and squeezed Yanyan for comfort; his bright button eyes peering over her left shoulder in seeming distress, I leaned forward careful not to lose my balance and mess up my work as I whispered into her ear. "Am I in trouble, Yamanaka?" 

Ino shuddered, unable to answer without cursing my lineage as I found the problem with the side of my hand... Then she moaned when all was right in her world with one last press of a thumb at the small of her back and a rattling click that had her grip on Yanyan change from steel to velvet… Good. That was good. 

Yanyan had been on the way to going out like Ino's pillow had nearly a month ago. And I was just going to assume that she hadn't found it under her bed until I was informed otherwise.

Knowledge of the crime was halfway to having committed it, after all. I'd seen nothing. I knew nothing.

"Come on. Tell me. I need to know. And you need to say it." I distracted her, catching the end of her ear between my lips and making her breath hitch and hips wiggle instinctively between my thighs. "Am I in trouble?"

Ino - didn't answer. Not how I wanted her to answer as she collapsed , filling me with alarm instantly; she fell in on herself, crumbling as her facade fell away, with Yanyan returning to his role as a stress ball. "When were you going to tell me you almost died?"

I stopped breathing, any excitement I'd had going cold as I went statue still. I didn't even blink as I processed the question, the hurt, the fear , and the sickening feeling of what I could only call grief in Ino's chakra and voice.

Fuck.

This wasn't the trouble I'd been looking for. Not this soon. And not like this...if ever; It had been an absurd hope that the witnesses would have kept their mouths shut until the danger was past. But I'd hoped.

…

Fuck.

Fine. Fine. If this was how it was, this was how it was. I couldn't change this. I couldn't run away, no matter how much I wanted to; I knew many things, but the few time travel jutsu that existed wasn't one of them.

Damn it.

I breathed again. I blinked.

I did what I must.

"Only when I had to. If I had to. I didn't want to worry you," I reluctantly admitted to her, every word nearly physically painful as Ino's very being screamed in unsurprised frustration and everything else . "But, if there were any time I told you…it would have been when I said I was in love with you."

And, in at least one way, I stopped acting like a fool.

Ino damn near snapped her neck in unthinking surprise, her attempt to look at me ending in Yanyan's faux and deliciously soft fur as her chakra became - confused. Turbulent: Surprise/love/ecstasy/joy/fear/regret/worry/self-loathing… It was complicated and getting worse as I began to feel a strain. 

The one-sided nature of this use of Ninshu was blatantly unnatural and not shy in showing it. It wasn't - painful - but it was as good a name for what I felt as any.

Unpleasant.

…I didn't often do this for a reason. For reasons. That I had to feel and understand and sympathize with the person I was using it on, in a removed sense, was just one of them. That I'd never forget what I experienced was another.

But, sometimes, it had to be done.

"S-Sakura. We- you-" Ino choked, voice muffled as I played with her hair, bright blonde strands falling between my fingers as I bared her neck, feelings gaining a gradual tint of sorrow . "You can't say that." She shook her head. "You didn't say that."

"I love you. I love you. I love you." I didn't budge as she tried to stand, to buck me off her back. "Like you said. I nearly died." I stroked her neck, feeling her pulse race. "Some things need to be said when you have the chance."

As terrified as I was of dying, of leaving things unfinished, of leaving behind my family and friends and my dreams of a simple life with good food, a warm house, and a family of my own…I should have handled this earlier.

If not for my sake, then for those who needed to hear it. 

Jiraiya and what he'd left unsaid as he vanished into the watery depths of Rain was quite the lesson. After Wave, it was something I'd had no choice but to take to heart.

Whether I wanted to or not.

"It's a part of the job. Ninja die every day. Every minute. Better ninja than me," I said, the words coming out bitter but as lighthearted as I could make them while I scratched Ino's scalp, the blonde stilling other than the nervous trembling as she realized she wasn't getting away until I was done. "I'd rather that, if that's what happens, I'd die without regrets."

As few regrets as possible, at the last. 

That was the best anyone could hope for in this world. Some things should be said before it was too late. And as much as I'd fought with myself, argued, and struggled to rationalize doing so, some things should never be.

That price wasn't just mine to pay.

"I love you. And I'm sorry I hurt you. That's why I didn't want you to know. Like this or at all." My hair fell loose all at once, pin and ribbon and jade hanging from curled, gently hooked lengths before dropping them on my nightstand, my jaw tightening as Ino's chakra curled up on itself, and I slid off her to lay at her side on my bed…and I sighed. "I'm tired."

That had been…this was difficult for me, in all sorts of ways.

I didn't speak my mind, what I meant beyond the surface, often. Or talk about my feelings, letting my actions and painstakingly gained reputation amongst my peers do it for me...Two weeks wasn't enough time to recover from what had happened to me. From what I'd gone through that had me dealing with this matter at all, and my new-old outlook on life suffered for it.

And the day had been going so well.

I'd had cake.

I'd returned home .

I'd been planning to tell Ino that I loved her.

Why? How had she even heard about me getting cut in… Oh…wait. I know. 

Damn it, Tenten.

Ino peeked over Yanyan's head and between his ears, bloodshot red and wet eyes taking me in without a sound. She hadn't taken this well either; This level of raw feeling had me blinking away tears not entirely my own, forcing me to stop looking at her before I broke down too… No one took this sort of thing well.

Ino reached out, still not saying anything…and I couldn't even begin to describe the relief I felt… so I wouldn't.

I reached out instead, her hand clasping mine so I could pull her close. Her arm fell over my waist, her head tucked against my shoulder, and Yanyan sandwiched between us.

I'd always been better at doing…and at being quiet.

Ino sniffled. And, if I felt a wet spot against my shoulder, so what? I wouldn't say anything. Of course not.

I sighed, a lock of my hair wiping a tear away.

And I know she'd do the same for me.

Ino shuffled, pushing her head into me as she made a sigh of her own."... Love you too."

…

It was all worth it.