A Kitsune Story

Chapter 16

"Miyo-san! It's so good to see you," Ino lunged for an embrace.

Naruto/Miyo blinked at the level of familiarity but smiled brightly. "You as well, Ino-san," she said, releasing Sasuke's arm to return the hug.

"You look wonderful," Ino continued to gush and kept her hands on Naruto/Miyo even as she let up a bit. "But should you be here? You look so close."

"Ah," Naruto/Miyo blushed and self-consciously touched her belly, which was admittedly very forward and large on her otherwise trim frame, "Not so close. I still have another two or three weeks, I think."

"Oh, what a large, strong child you are giving Sasuke-san," Ino smiled, glancing back at him.

"This child is an Uchiha; it could be nothing else."

"Of course," Ino giggled and put her arm around to Naruto/Miyo's back to walk with her. "This kimono, is it new? It's so becoming on you."

"Sasuke just gave it to me," Naruto/Miyo told her happily. "I told him I needed a tomesode for occasions such as this and he asked my favorite color, but I had no idea this is what I would receive."

"Your favorite color is orange, Miyo-san?" Ino questioned with a sparkling laugh, brushing the bold orange obi.

"Yes, of course," Naruto/Miyo grinned.

"I thought it must be pink, from that yukata you wear so often."

"But that yukata is pink and yellow," Nuaro/Miyo pointed out, "So there is a little orange where the colors bleed into each other."

Ino laughed, "Oh I see."

"You're very cheerful, Ino-san," Naruto/Miyo observed.

"You expected me to be pining?" Ino grinned, "No, no. It's never that I wanted to be Shikamaru-san's bride, only that I thought I would since our parents put us together so often. And, of course, you stole the one I'd really hoped to catch," Ino flashed a smile over their shoulders to Sasuke, who was following and undoubtedly could hear her. He, however, did not react.

"No, I'm happy for Shikamaru-san, truly," Ino continued, looking forward again. "This princess from the village of Suna is a worthy match for him. Politics aside, you should see them together. I do not think this arrangement is unwanted by either of them. And I," Ino paused dramatically and flicked her brow, "I have my eye on another."

"Oh?" Naruto/Miyo smiled, "Who is worthy of you?"

"Ah, that's another matter. He's only a guard, so I doubt my family will approve. I have no brothers or even sisters, so it all falls on me. Still, he's the one I want. There," she nodded toward the edge of the field, "With the red bands holding black and gray armor."

Naruto/Miyo laughed when she beheld the stiffly poised man. He reminded her of Sasuke, so it seems Ino's childhood crush had only shifted to the more available version.

***

Shouts and a great crash with splintering wood interrupted the revelry. Music stopped and eyes turned toward the entrance of the Nara estate.

An uninvited guest, a stranger to the village stood in a halo of broken wood. Pegs of metal adorned his skin in a pattern like the spikes of a dragon and he had wild hair the color of Chinese lantern husks. Contrary to his rough appearance, he was dressed in a fine black kimono with a pattern of red clouds.

Guards had been literally flung aside, cracking the thick timber posts.

Alarm bubbled from the crowd and the other guards, including the one that had Ino's eye, surged forward. The peculiar stranger paid them no heed.