The Good Wife

The Land Of Iron

The Land of Iron

It was just past dawn, and Ino and Naruto were preparing for their departure to The Land of Iron. Kaguya and Minato were already at their grandparents' house, snuggled in their beds there. Naruto and Ino had had the evening to themselves, and spent it in the living room over a glass of wine. They didn't do much, just talk about their respectful lives. Naruto now had a much bigger insight on Ino's life.
"Is that for the gala?" Naruto asked as Ino neatly folded her new kimono to put in her bag. She nodded. "It's lovely. Although it will be even lovelier when you wear it."
Ino blushed and playfully swatted him. Naruto grinned.
"Are you nervous?" Naruto asked.
"A little," Ino admitted, "I've never been to a Kage Summit. What's it like?"
"Boring," was Naruto's curt reply, "it's just a bunch of old men talking about old news."
Ino chuckled. "Has any of the other Kage changed recently?"
"Well, judging by your age, your dimension's Raikage and Tsuchikage must be A and Onoki respectively," Naruto stated, "they've both retired since then. Well, I say retired..."
Ino got what he meant. Either one of them has died since then, or both of them have. She wasn't going to push it further.
"And the Mizukage?" Ino asked.
Naruto's grin widened. "Oh, she's still around. Getting old, though. But don't tell her I said that."
"I won't," Ino promised, "is she the only female Kage?"
"Nope," Naruto piped up, "the Raikage is female. Quite the temper too, I tend to stay away from her if I can. Although her temper does not rival A's...he was a madman."
Ino chuckled. "Alright, now I feel a bit more prepared. Three male Kage, and two female. I can deal with that."
When they finished packing, they made sure to grab some breakfast, then proceeded to the gate where they were to meet Gaara and Hinata. The two were nowhere in sight, but Sasuke was already there, casually leaning against the gate. He was carrying light, and was currently only wearing a sleeveless vest and cargo pants, revealing his ANBU tattoo. Ino had never seen it before.
"You're early," Naruto pointed out.
"I'm always early, dobe," Sasuke stated. He glanced at Ino and nodded. She nodded in return. "Sai was here first, though."
"Really? Where is he?" Naruto asked, surprised. Sasuke snorted and pointed upwards. Naruto and Ino looked up, not sure what to expect, but indeed, there Sai was. He was perched on the top of the gate, sketchbook in hand. His back was pointed to the village, so he was probably drawing the forest.
"Typical," Naruto laughed. Sasuke nodded in agreement. A whoosh sound suddenly swept by as Temari landed on her feet beside them.
"Morning," she sang.
"Ah," Naruto hummed, "I was wondering if Gaara was going to ask you."
"He always asks me," Temari said pointedly.
"Well, yes," Naruto began, but trailed off. He obviously gave up on his argument. Instead, he switched to another question. "Who's the second?"
"Kankuro, of course," Temari said in a tone as if she was expecting it to be obvious, "we're meeting him half-way."
"And who's acting Kazekage, then?" Sasuke piped in.
"Who do you think?" Temari asked, her hands on her hips.
"Oh," Sasuke and Naruto said in unison, followed by Sasuke continuing, "lovely. I'm sure the council will love having her shouting orders at everyone."
Temari snorted. "Well, Beniko knows how to handle them. And she's the only person outside of the family Gaara trusts the most."
Ino was trying to follow the conversation, but she was very confused. Sasuke must have noticed her confusion.
"Sorry, Ino," he laughed, "you have no idea who we are talking about, do you?"
"No," Ino replied, "who's Beniko? I certainly have never met her in my dimension."
Sasuke frowned, but answered anyway. "She's my sister-in-law."
Ino's eyes widened. "You mean she..." she trailed off. She wasn't sure on how to end that sentence. She knew Itachi was probably a sensitive topic, especially since Naruto had told her the brothers' history the night before. It wasn't as dark as it was from her dimension, but it was still heavy and heart wrenching.
"Married Itachi?" Sasuke asked, "Yes. Maybe you'll be able to meet her sometime. She comes to visit from time to time."
And that was the end of the story. Sasuke did not say anything more. Instead, he turned his attention to Gaara and Hinata who had just arrived. Sasuke discussed security measures with Gaara, something he probably already covered with Naruto before. Sai had also joined the conversation, finally jumping down from his spot above.
"You've never met Beniko?" Naruto asked Ino.
Ino shook her head. "Am I supposed to have met her?"
"I guess not everything can be the same in the dimensions," Naruto stated, "but I just find it weird that you haven't met her. You do know Gaara, right?"
"Of course," Ino replied, "he's not much different, maybe just a bit scarier, but other than that the same. He's even Kazekage."
"Hmm," Naruto hummed, "weird."
"What does Gaara have to do with this?" Ino asked.
"Oh," Naruto chuckled, "the two of them are kind of inseparable. There are the select few who believed Gaara was going to end up with her, not Hinata."
Ino raised an eyebrow. "Okay?"
"And as you can see, Naruto," Gaara interrupted, "I chose Hinata. Honestly, Beniko and I? Together? Like Beniko says: 'blegh'."
Everyone laughed at that, like it was some sort of inside joke. Ino didn't get it.
True to his word, Kankuro did meet the company half-way to The Land of Iron. He was slightly taller than Ino remembered, and his lack of face paint was a bit of a slap in the face. But other than that, he reminded her a lot of the one she knew back home.
However, it was still weird when he gave his brother a tight hug. Gaara just never seemed like a hug person...but he returned the hug full heartedly. Kankuro also greeted Hinata warmly, with a kiss on each cheek.
He shook hands with the others, but only gave Ino a curt hello. She said hello back. The company continued with their journey, now entering the colder climates. Everyone now had a cloak wrapped around them.
They stopped to rest several hours after meeting with Kankuro. They had been travelling for at least two days, and had only had short breaks in-between. The constant travelling was taking a toll on poor pregnant Hinata. She was the first to sit down when Sai announced they stop.
Gaara sat down next to her, worry evident on his face. He handed her some water, which she took gratefully. It appeared as if Gaara wanted to say something, but he kept his mouth shut. Sai was scanning the perimeter, checking if everything was alright. Sasuke had made himself comfortable in a tree. Temari and Kankuro were laughing about something and Naruto had started to gather wood for a fire. Ino decided to help him.
When the fire was going, everyone sat down around it and enjoyed the time of silence. Sasuke was the only one who didn't move from his spot in the tree. Hinata pulled together a few things to eat.
As Hinata handed Kankuro a cup of soup, Gaara decided to make conversation. "How are affairs in Suna?"
Kankuro thanked Hinata for the soup, then locked eyes with his brother. "Fine. Well, everything was fine when I was still running things. Beniko knows how to contact you if there is an emergency."
Sasuke snorted from where he was perched in the tree, but did not say anything. Kankuro glared at him.
"Good," Gaara replied, putting an end to the clear dislike Sasuke and Kankuro shared. Kankuro sighed and turned his attention back to his brother.
"She's also asked me to relay the message," Kankuro began, "that's she's planning a trip to Konoha after you return."
"That's fine," Gaara nodded.
"It will be nice to see her again," Hinata piped in, a smile on her face. Silence fell over the group again. They continued eating in silence, Sai constantly keeping a lookout for any movement in the distance.
After two hours they decided to continue their journey.
The Land of Iron, was, very much like its namesake, barren and slightly boring. Ino had never imagined iron to be able to look beautiful, and The Land of Iron was not beautiful in winter either.
"It looks better in summer," Naruto explained. Ino took his word for it. They didn't travel far until they reached a large fortress, which Ino knew had to be the meeting place. They were not the only ones arriving.
A middle-aged woman was coming from the opposite direction, her auburn hair was greying at an alarming rate, but her figure was still slim and healthy, dressed in a blue dress with high-heeled sandals. Despite her age, she was very attractive. Tucked under her arm was the famous Kage hat, coloured blue and with the Kanji for 'water' on it.
"Mei," Gaara greeted her first.
"Young Kazekage," Mei returned the greeting, "still handsome, as always."
Gaara did not budge at her obvious flirtatious attitude. Mei's attention turned to Naruto. "Young Hokage, good to see you again."
"Likewise," Naruto grinned. Mei also had two guards, both young men Ino obviously didn't recognise. Mei didn't greet any of the others, for they were interrupted by the arrival of another. It was a company of four, and all of them landed graciously on their feet in the snow. In the middle stood a rather skinny man with a long black beard and matching black hair and beady eyes. He didn't seem much older than Naruto or Gaara, but Ino couldn't be sure. He was dressed in a brown flak jacket, with matching brown cargo pants, sweater and sandals. On his head was the brown hat for the Tsuchikage. His two guards were also young, one a woman and the other a man. The woman who stood just to his right, was clearly not a guard judging by her state of dress. Ino assumed she was the Tsuchikage's wife.
"Naruto," the Tsuchikage greeted them, "I did receive your letter, just have not had the time to respond."
"Ah, good," Naruto replied, "I did send it a bit on short notice, didn't I?"
"Indeed," the Tsuchikage agreed. His gaze turned to Ino. "Lovely to see you, Lady Ino."
"You too," Ino smiled.
"Still not married, Mei?" the Tsuchikage turned his attention to the Mizukage. She narrowed her eyes at him dangerously, which made him laugh. "I'm only pulling your leg."
"Yes," Mei grunted, "you do have a habit of pointing out my love life to me, or lack thereof. Where's Ame?"
"No idea," the Tsuchikage replied, "she'll show up eventually. We all know what she's like...easily distracted."
"No, I am not!" a high-pitched voice echoed loudly. Another group had arrived, led by the Raikage herself. Out of all the Kage, she was the one that stood out the most. She was dark-skinned, short and plump, with blonde hair in a bun on top of her head. Her extreme voice did not suit her figure. At all.
"Ame," the Tsuchikage grinned, "how lovely for you to join us. Didn't get distracted along the way again, did you? Excellent."
Ame stomped over to the Tsuchikage, her weight causing the snow under her feet to jump up around her. Ino grasped Naruto's hand. He had warned about the Raikage's temper. As Ame continued to bite the Tsuchikage's head off, her voice sounding like a swarm of angry bees, the other Kage headed inside to the warmth, where the current General of the Samurai was waiting for them.
Thirty-seven-year-old Ino...
Ino groaned and rubbed her temples. Her head was aching violently to the point where it felt like her brain was going to burst out of her skull. She had somehow managed to pull of a minor transfer using Five Dimensions to Heaven in order to communicate with the other side, but she hadn't ended up in Ino's head.
Although the technique had been a success, it left her feeling drained and as if her head was going to split open. And it didn't even last five minutes! Clearly it was much taxing and dangerous to use than she thought. At least she knew Naruto on the other side was aware of what was going on. He had remembered. The thought bought a smile to her face.
After her first run in with the technique's...unique side effects, she had nearly died. It was not something she could easily forget. It had been a tough time in their lives, and Naruto had locked the memories of it all far away. He didn't want to remember his wife's near death experience. He never spoke of it, and he never thought of it. Luckily, it had resurfaced when they needed it. If Naruto knew on the other side, and both sides were trying to find a solution, it could go so much faster. Who knew, perhaps Ino would be back home soon?
However, as that thought settled her gaze lifted to Naruto who was sitting opposite her. He was watching her curiously, obviously worried. She had asked him to stay with her while she attempted the technique.
"Well?" he asked.
"It worked," Ino breathed, "but I probably won't do it again."
"Okay," Naruto whispered. He seemed relieved. "Uh, what did Ino say?"
Ino's lips tugged into a smile. "Oh, it wasn't Ino."
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Then who was it?"
"Gaara."