Bab 17: Chapter 17
Ino paused, she was unsure of how her father would feel about her taking on a case that was clearly dangerous. She was timid because she hadn't told her mother the name either. She could always lie, but with his connections within the Asylum, it would probably get back around to him anyways. Figuring she had nothing to lose from it, she spit it out. "It's uh…" damn it, she paused. She could see the worry rise up on his face. "It's Naruto Namikaze."
… The room fell completely silent. So silent you could probably hear someone blink in the other room. Inoichi was just staring at Ino, his face set in a completely stoic expression. Ino met his eye contact with a bashful look that refused to back down. Kiori was shocked as well and was looking back and forth between the two, worry rising up in the pit of her stomach.
Inoichi slowly began shaking his head as he sat back in his seat. "hm-m." he said shaking his head more vigorously.
"Tou-san I know what yo-.."
"Nope."
"Tou-sa-.."
"No."
"Look I-.."
"No, Ino. Find another patient." He said trying to keep calm.
She chuckled. "Tou-san, there are no other patie-.."
"No!" he yelled out. Kiori was trying to calm the two down but was being ignored by both.
Not one to be out done, Ino got over her shock. "What the hell do you mean no!? I can d-.."
"No way in hell!" he said over Ino's attempts at explaining.
"I can handle this!" she yelled out standing to her feet and leaning on the table in anger.
Inoichi got to his feet as well. "You don't know what the hell you're doing!"
"Yes I do! I'm a licensed doctor!" she yelled.
"No Ino! You're not doing it!" he yelled out.
"Yes. I. Am!" she yelled back.
"I said no!" This one stopped them in their tracks, the entire room retreated into silence again. They had never seen him so angry before. Inoichi plopped back down into his chair and rubbed his eyes, trying to calm down. "Ino… he's not… he is not a regular patient… Ok, he is far from being someone you can handle."
"Tou-san, I'm better than you thi-.."
"Ino!" he yelled hitting the table making her fold back into her chair "Listen. To. Me." he said slowly so that she could understand. "You don't know what he is… He is out of your league completely…" he finished letting the statement hang in the air for her to understand.
Ino's arms were folded over her chest as she stared at the table waiting for him to finish. When he didn't say anything further, she looked up to him with an annoyed expression. "Can I talk now?" she asked rhetorically. Inoichi didn't say anything so she took it as a yes. "Tou-san, I am a grown woman… I am going to do this… because I know I can help him." She said slowly, nodding her head at him.
"Ino..." he said solemnly. "You're right… you are a grown woman, and I have no authority over you… but… As your father… I am… begging you." He said on the verge of tears, shocking both his wife and daughter. "Please… don't do this."
Ino's heart was breaking bit by bit with each word he spoke. She couldn't describe it, but she just felt as though she just… had to do this. It was a compelling feeling in her heart that told her if she didn't she'd regret it for the rest of her life. So, even though it would break his heart right now, when she finally cured the Namikaze, he would see that she did the right thing. "Tou-san… I know you won't understand right now… but… I have to do this."
Inoichi sighed and rubbed the tears from his eyes. He looked back into her fiery eyes and could tell just from the look she was giving that she had absolutely no intentions of changing her mind. That being said, he had no words for her. He shook his head and apologized on his way out the room. Kiori called out to him but he continued on his way, leaving the two at the table with the uneaten desert.
Ino's own eyes were watering, knowing she was hurting her father. Kiori moved her seat next to Ino's. Sitting down, she wrapped an arm around her and rubbed her shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about him. Your father just worries for you." Ino sniffled and wiped her eyes. "He just needs some time. Ok?" Ino nodded into her shoulder. It would take time, but he would be alright. She just had to give him time.
Sitting at the metal table with the light hanging over the top, Ino straightened the documents out in front of her. She was trying hard to get her breath under control. Her hands refused to stop shaking. She had on her lab coat over a purple blouse and a black skirt. Her hair set up in a loose bun on top of her head and her usual bang tucked behind her ear. She was waiting for her patient, truly considering turning back now.
No, she had to do this. She just had to. Blowing out the breath caught in her throat she lowly whispered words of encouragement to herself as she tried to go over her game plan for this session. First thing she had to do was understand where he is mentally. What his daily thought process looked like. She had to do so without letting him get the upper hand on her which was something Ibiki warned her about, saying with him it was definitely a possibility.
Her heartbeat was noticeably faster than it should be, and she continued to straighten the documents on her desk as a way to pass the time. Every time she heard footsteps coming down the hall, she steadied herself only to be let down when they continued pass the room. This time however, there was an added sound of chains jingling as well, for some reason, she knew it was him.
Slowly, the door opened up and one of the guards stepped in first, nodding his head to the blonde. She nodded back, gulping down the lump in her throat. Finally, her patient entered the room surprising her completely by his new appearance. Mainly because she was expecting a blond. Instead, he walked in with his red shaggy hair bouncing around on his head. A muzzle secured around his mouth, a straitjacket tightly wrapped around his frame, and shackles hugging his ankles.
His own blue eyes were locked onto her paler shades with a look she couldn't quite describe. With the mask on, it was hard to tell. The guard that sat him down took the chain from his belt line and hooked it into the back rings on Naruto's straight jacket, then hooked the ends to the hooks on the floor behind his chair, making sure it was secure. When that was done, he turned to Ino asking her if she needed anything else before they began. When she said no, he unlocked the muzzle around Naruto's face and removed it before exiting the room informing Ino they would be right outside.
Now, they were all alone, and she could see his full expression. She could see it, but still couldn't pinpoint what it was. It was like a mixture between excitement and hope? He had a small grin on his face and his intense stare hadn't left her since he walked in.
Coughing into her hand, she straightened up. "Hello Naruto… I am D-.."
"Doctor Ino Yamanakaaa…" he said drawling out her last name eerily.
"So, you remember me." She stated.
His smile only grew. "You have a name tag." He said nodding down to her chest where her ID badge dangled.
Ino looked down at it with a bashful reply of "o-Oh. Of course…" she said whispering the last part lowly. Coughing into her hand again, she grabbed one of the documents from the table. "Ok… what we're gonna do…" she whispered lowly, avoiding his eye contact by reading the papers she had read a thousand times over before this point. "We'll uh…"
"You're shaking…" he teased looking at the paper in her hand as it quivered and quacked in fear. Ino quickly gulped down the new lump that piled into her throat, whispering a 'sorry' that he could barely hear.
Naruto watched the woman fumble over herself and her words with excitement. This was definitely his chance. He could see it now, all he had to do was play his cards right. Better than he did with Dr. Yager. Just by watching her, he could tell she was completely underqualified. Ino tucked her hands under the table to keep them from his view.
Coughing yet again, she finally found some courage. "Um.. I will be handling your sessions from now on… and I want to do my best to help you." She said. Naruto gave her a look as if he were judging the sincerity in her statement. "a-I uh… I understand a few doctors before me have tried before."
"Oh yes, they have." He said nodding his head. "So, what makes you so different besides your pretty face?" he asked flashing his cheeky grin.
Ino grinned back and brushed off the compliment. "Well, I don't intend on quitting."
Naruto chuckled. "Persistence is your angle." He stated nodding his own head as if approving. "Well, I'd probably guess they didn't plan on quitting either."
Ino brought a shaking hand up to secure her bang behind her ear and immediately put it back down. Naruto's eyes followed the appendage the whole way. "No, I doubt they did." She replied.
His smile receded a bit, "Do I scare you.. Dr. Yamanaka?" he asked her with a glint in his eyes. Ino was examining every inch of his face. Trying to convince herself that he didn't before she could try and convince him. Was it fear she felt? Or just anxiety?
"No." she said flatly trying to hold her composure. The way her eyes twitched in an effort to keep the eye contact told him otherwise.
Naruto's smile grew again in a psychotically innocent way. "Good." He quipped. "I don't want you to be afraid of me. I get enough of that around here." Step one of his plan, emotional manipulation.
Ino was interested in that. This was her window to pry. "People are afraid of you?" she asked as if she didn't already know. In other words, she bit hard.
Naruto's smile fell into an expression that rested somewhere between reminiscent and sad then layered it with an obviously fake attempt at a half smile. "They've always been afraid of me…" he said zoning off.
"Is there a reason they should be?" Ino asked.
Naruto looked at her curiously. "Well… I'm a bad person. People are usually afraid of the bad guy."
Ino had no words. That was as true a statement as it could be. People are afraid of the bad guys. From his rap sheet, he was the worst of the worst, but she had to play the part to gain his trust. "I don't think you're a bad guy."
Naruto just stared at her, no smile no emotion what so ever. Then, he chuckled. "Yeah, I doubt that." He said.
"I'm serious. You may have done some bad things in the past, but that doesn't make you a bad person."
"Well then. What makes one a 'bad person'?" he asked her putting dramatic influence on 'bad person'.
Ino tucked her bang back before it fell loose again, this time her hand was steady which Naruto noticed. "Well." She began. "A bad person is someone who…" she stopped to think about it. She had to say something that she knows he hasn't done. She didn't know him personally so she just had to guess. "Someone who does bad things… and doesn't feel bad about doing those bad things."
Naruto just stared at her, clearly not agreeing. He then leaned forward until the chain caught him. "Dr. Yamanaka… you're a shinobi right?" he asked her suddenly. So this is what her father's notes meant by his tendency to jump around topics. She nodded her head. "If I were to guess your rank… I'd sayyy ANBU?"
She was a bit flattered by that, but shook her head. "No, I only made it to Jonin." She said.
He nodded his head. "Well, even so. As a Jonin, I assume you've spent time in the field." He stated his question. She nodded in response. "And in this time in the field… I am willing to bet you have taken more than a few lives." He said.
She paused now seeing where he was going with this. "y-Yes I have."
"So… do you?" he asked her suddenly. She gave him a look that said she didn't understand the question. "Do you feel bad about taking those lives?"
She scratched her eyebrow in thought. "I uh… No." she said. "No I don't."
He gave her a confused look. "Then that would… make you a bad person as well?" he asked her.
Ino sighed, thinking about her answer. "Well no. Not necessarily." She replied.
"But… you did something bad, and you don't feel bad about it." He said looking at her as if she were an unfinished puzzle.
"Well, those people I killed they were… well, they were bad people." She said in haste.
"Bad how?"
She again smoothed her pesky bang back before it fell again. "They would have killed my friends if they had the chance." She said.
"But, they were shinobi as well right?" he asked, she nodded her head. "Soldiers… following orders are considered bad people as well then? Then boy do I got news for you." He said flashing her that cheeky grin.
"What would you consider a bad person?" she asked him suddenly.
He stopped to think about it. "Hmm… what do I consider a bad person?" He leaned back and stared up at the light as if it had the answer written on it. "Well, that's a bit of a tough one. You see, I personally believe that there are certain levels to the uh, the.. 'bad guy' spectrum." He said, again accenting those two words. "There is bad.. there is corrupt.. and then there is evil…" he said letting that ring for a moment. "These 'bad' individuals will inflict pain upon others and will know that what they are doing is wrong. Right? They will know it is wrong but will continue to do so for various reasons, usually to protect something they care about or need to survive. Those are your uh, your robbers, your everyday murders, shinobi and what not." He said nodding her way to make sure she understood.
"So, you believe shinobi are bad people?" she asked him.
"Oh, the worst of the bad. They are someone's 'evil', which I will get to in a moment." He said. "But then, there are people who will… see an opportunity. They will see an opportunity to better themselves and will take it regardless if it would hurt others around them. They will know it will hurt someone, but will do it anyways, not out of spite for that person, just for the improvement of themselves and only themselves. People like uh Orochimaru for example." He said nodding again.
Ino raised an eyebrow at that. So, it was revenge on his mind? She couldn't know yet, she had to be sure.
"Orochimaru… is a man who is rotten to the core. He wishes to better himself so he undergoes these horrendous crimes in order to do so. This man has murdered countless men, women, and children, all for the sake of gaining more power. That in itself is corruption in its truest meaning." He explained.
"But, you wouldn't call that evil?" she asked him.
Naruto chuckled. "Oh no. Evil is something that is completely different. You see, evil individuals… well, they don't know they're evil." He explained. "They believe whole heartedly that they are righteous in their actions. So, in theory. An evil individual to you… would probably believe you're evil… That's what I meant when I said a shinobi is somebodies evil." He said leaning back in his chair, finished with his rant.
Ino really wanted to refute the redhead's theory, but damn, it was fairly accurate. It made more sense than just marking every individual that has ever wronged you an evil person. It brought a new perspective to her mind about the people she considered bad people. "So.. which one are you?" she asked him.
Naruto grinned. "Well, that's what you're here to find out, right?" he asked.
"Not gonna make it easy for me?" she asked him with a grin of her own.
He tilted his head from left to her with a thoughtful look. "I could, but… Where's the fun in that?"
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