Chapter 13: A Secret Untold

Uzumaki Ino, a thirty-seven-year-old kunoichi, now stuck in the body of her younger and alternative self, woke up feeling like an absolute wreck. For starters, her hair was long again for the first time in years, which meant it stood in all directions in the morning. Second, she had a nasty headache and when she recognized her old teenage bedroom, her heart sank. That's right...she wasn't home anymore.

She reached out beside her, hoping that she was dreaming and that Naruto would be lying beside her, but her hand touched nothing but the cold wall. Suddenly the bed seemed empty. She sighed and kicked her legs over the edge of the bed and stomped out of her room. She could hear her mother downstairs and her father in the shower two rooms away.

Ino pulled her fingers through her hair, distaste evident as she clutched onto the long locks. She used to love long hair, but now it was just tedious. She missed her short bob. It was so much more comfortable. With another grumble, Ino turned around and stomped back into her bedroom. She grabbed an aspirin in the bathroom cupboard, swallowed it and then got into the shower. She might as well try and get into a new routine. It looks like she'll be here for awhile.

Ino ate her breakfast quickly in order to avoid her parents noticing something off. She then said goodbye and rushed outside where the cool air allowed her to freely think. Asuma was dead. She still couldn't quite grasp the fact. In her world, he's still alive. Then again, others here were probably alive who were dead where she came from. Like Sakura...

Sakura? Ino gasped and stopped. She quickly turned to her right, heading directly for the hospital. As soon as she burst through the doors, a certain pink-haired teenage kunoichi stepped down from the stairs with a clipboard tucked under her arms. Ino froze. Sakura was alive! Ino felt relief and happiness, but jealousy and anger at the same time. If Sakura was alive then...

"Sakura-chan!" a familiar voice exclaimed. Ino felt her heart shatter as the blonde teenager ran past her, brushing her shoulder along the way and almost tackle Sakura to the ground. Sakura was scolding him for running in the hospital now. Ino watched Naruto apologize while laughing his head off. Sakura's anger subsided and she smiled at him, having forgiven him already. Ino looked over her shoulder, hoping to see Sasuke appear beside her, but he never did.

"Oh," Sakura exclaimed, finally noticing Ino, "good morning, Ino!"

Ino snapped from her daze and looked into Sakura's green eyes. She blinked, then waved awkwardly. Naruto was giving her an odd look and it was making her uncomfortable. He was obviously still upset over the dispute she had with him a few days before.

"Morning," Ino mumbled, once again looking over her shoulder. Where was Sasuke?

"Are you looking for someone?" Sakura asked as she approached Ino. Naruto followed her, but did not seem impressed.

"Not really," Ino stated, "I was just wondering where Sasuke is."

Sakura froze, followed by Naruto. The two of them stared at her, their mouths agape. Sakura looked away, suddenly looking extremely down. Naruto reacted in a similar fashion. Ino frowned. Was it something she said?

"Oh," Sakura trailed off, "Didn't Hinata tell you the details?"

"Details?" Ino asked. Now she was really confused.

Sakura nodded. "He...killed Itachi...and it doesn't look like he's planning to come back."

Itachi? Kill? Not coming back? Ino frowned, trying to figure out what the girl was babbling about. Wanting to get revenge on Itachi she understood, since he killed the Uchiha clan, but not coming back? What nonsense was that?

"I don't understand," Ino whispered, "when did he leave?"

Sakura and Naruto glanced at each other, then back at her.

"Are you alright, Ino?" Sakura asked, "Don't you remember? It's been three years since he left Konoha!"

Now this was news. Yet another part of the world that had changed. Here, Sasuke has left Konoha and from what Ino can gather probably became a rogue. While back from her world, he had tried to leave, failed to kill Itachi and came back moping. Of course he ran after Orochimaru, but he grew impatient and after he failed to kill Itachi a second time, he returned to Konoha. Itachi died of illness soon after, leaving Sasuke to regret...well everything. He was never the same again. Until Karin came along...

Sakura was worried now. She looked at Ino. She didn't seem out of the ordinary, yet there was definitely something wrong. Ino snapped from her daze and narrowed her eyes. Sasuke was a rogue...with that in mind, Ino turned around and stomped out of the hospital, leaving Sakura and Naruto behind, both still thoroughly confused.

Ino was walking aimlessly through the streets of the old Konoha that seemed so severely different from what she was used to. Every now and then she would stop and stare at a familiar or completely new building or setting. Some things seemed the same, while others seemed different.

"Hey, Ino!" someone called her from behind her. Ino stopped and turned around, noticing that it was Naruto running towards her. She blinked, surprised that he was smiling and waving at her. Wasn't he angry at her? Ino frowned, then chuckled to herself. Of course he wasn't anymore. Naruto never held grudges after all. Naruto stopped before her and nervously rubbed the back of his head.

"Hey, Naruto," Ino tried to seem casual.

"Um, I'm sorry about the other day," Naruto mumbled. Ino shook her head.

"No, I should be sorry," Ino stated. She looked away from him. She couldn't look in his eyes, for if she did, she might just do something she would regret. An awkward silence followed.

"Do you want to...go get some Ramen?" Naruto finally asked.

Ino looked up, surprised, then smiled. "Why not?"

Sitting with Naruto at Ichiraku brought a wave of nostalgia over Ino. She couldn't keep herself from watching him slurp noodles up with a large grin plastered on his face. Yes, she was frustrated that she was stuck in her hormonal teenage body, but at the same time, she loved being close to a young Naruto like this again. To see his careless self. Of course, he is still careless, even as an older man, but he has matured. She missed his childish personality sometimes.

Naruto noticed Ino was staring at him. He blinked, touched his face, then blinked again. "Is there something on my face?"

Ino chuckled, "No."

Naruto quirked an eyebrow, shrugged, then returned to slurping up his noodles. Ino turned to her bowl and suddenly felt sick to the stomach. She pushed the bowl away and tried to clear the knot in her throat, but she could feel her stomach churning even more wildly. Naruto gave her an odd look. She merely smiled. She inhaled deeply, but the feeling in her stomach did not go away.

"Does it hurt?" Ino asked, hoping to distract herself.

"What?" Naruto asked with his mouth full of noodles.

"Knowing that Sasuke is out there, doing something that you normally wouldn't agree with?" Ino asked, her voice in a whisper. Naruto looked down at his hands.

"It hurts," Naruto confessed, "but, I won't give up on him, yet. Sasuke will come back. Even if I have to drag him by his ears."

Ino smiled weakly. "You're a good friend, Naruto." Naruto beamed at her, then returned to eating. Ino sighed and looked up at the ceiling. The nauseous feeling was still clinging to her. She felt big, bloated and ugly. It was strange.

"Are you on a secret mission or something?" Naruto suddenly asked out of the blue. Ino looked at him, surprised. Naruto laughed nervously. "It's just, you seem so...different. You're not usually this calm! And then there is that stuff you're keeping from me about the other day..."

"I'm sorry, Naruto," Ino whispered, "but, I really can't tell you. I'm doing this to protect you, not to go against you."

"Protect me from what? Akatsuki? I've faced them multiple times already!" Naruto exclaimed, slightly annoyed. Ino winced at his tone. Naruto noticed this. "I'm sorry, Ino. I didn't mean..."

Ino shook her head. "No, you have every right to yell at me. I'm keeping something from you. What kind of friend am I?"

"A good one."

Ino smiled. Naruto reached out and touched her hand. She froze as his fingers brushed past hers. She looked up into his eyes. Those pools of blue that never seemed to end. Ino found herself hopeful. How she wished to hold him. But just as she started hoping, Naruto pulled away and returned to eating.

Ino laughed as Naruto twirled down the streets on the way to her family home. It was good to see him in high spirits. However, every step Ino took forward, the nauseous feeling in her stomach worsened. Ino bit her lip and let her hand rest on her belly. She was unaware of her alter-self's history. She really hoped she wasn't sixteen, hormonal and pregnant. That would just be horrendous.

Naruto suddenly stopped twirling and turned to face her. "You alright?" Ino nodded. Naruto returned to twirling. Ino spotted her house and pointed to it. Naruto merely nodded and continued twirling in the right direction.

They came to a stop before the door. Mrs Yamanaka was inside arranging some flowers. Naruto waved at her. She waved back. Ino smiled and looked up into Naruto's blue eyes. Those very same eyes she looked into every day. The same eyes that watch her, fascinated and full of adoration. But now his eyes contained nothing but a smile. There was nothing like what she shared with her husband. Ino hoped she could change that. After all, how long was she going to be here? She might as well make it worth while.

With that in mind, Ino stepped closer to Naruto, took hold of his arm, leaned forward and planted a kiss on his cheek. She felt Naruto stiffen. When she pulled away he was bright red. Ino smiled at him, winked and then stepped inside.

Naruto could not believe what just hit him.

Mrs Yamanaka watched her daughter kiss the blonde boy's cheek and smiled to herself. Her daughter was growing up. How sweet. When Ino stepped inside, Mrs Yamanaka smirked loudly, causing Ino to glance at her curiously.

"Yes, Mama?" Ino asked.

Mrs Yamanaka merely shook her head. "Young love, dear. Young love."

Ino knew what her mother meant.

As soon as Ino was upstairs in the comfort (well, somewhat) of her room, she rushed to the bathroom where she knelt before the toilet and puked her guts out. Feeling disoriented, Ino stood up, but the bloating feeling was still not going away. A sudden impulse to push her finger down her throat overwhelmed her. She had to get rid off all the impurities within her. She bent over the toilet once more.

Once Ino washed out her mouth, something flashed through her mind. An image of herself, bending over a toilet. It definently wasn't from today. And it wasn't from her life as a thirty-seven-year-old life either. No, it was a memory of her alter-self. Now she knew what was wrong. She wasn't pregnant. Nor was she carrying some virus.

Her alter-self was bulimic.