Two days after that traumatic night, Ino was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling as she thought.
'We're a team...' she thought, hugging a little stuffed dog she had nearby.
Toru's words at that moment had been like a bucket of cold water dumped over her. So much so that even now, she was still thinking and reflecting on them.
"Ahg! Idiot!" she shouted, throwing the stuffed animal onto the bed. Then, she started punching the poor plush dog with her fists. "Why did you have to act so mature at that moment?!"
With a furious expression on her face, Ino continued punching the stuffed animal for several seconds.
'I don't understand anything anymore...'
Every time she remembered that moment with Toru, that brief moment when he showed that, just like her, he had also suffered that night, a strange feeling invaded her.
"Damn Toru..."
She threw herself onto the bed again, staring at the ceiling, but then she frowned.
'Wait... Since when did I start calling him by his name so casually?'
Her face turned pink. Once again, she grabbed the stuffed animal and used it as a punching bag.
Just thinking about that idiot's face made her nervous. It made no sense!
"I can't just leave things like this..."
She got out of bed.
"I'll go to his house and make sure he never sees the light of day again."
Even though Ino said that as she walked toward the door, she wouldn't be able to look Toru in the eyes after what had happened that day. And that was something Ino couldn't blame him for, since all Toru had done was tell her the truth.
Besides, when she saw Hinata in Yamato's arms, completely battered after her fight against Kouta, all she could do was stare with a frightened expression on her face.
She was useless, pathetic, and miserable, a coward who hid and cried instead of doing something like Hinata or Toru, who fought until they couldn't fight anymore just to survive.
Hinata had taken the worst of it because she had been alone the entire time. That made Ino wonder:
'Me... Why did I become a kunoichi?'
With her hand on the doorknob, Ino looked down with a confused expression.
Her achievements, her goals... She hadn't decided any of them. Had becoming a kunoichi simply been a whim? She wasn't sure.
Without realizing it, Ino had already left her house, but when she stepped onto the street, she remembered the moment Toru took her hand, the monotone way he did things, and how he spoke to others. He felt different from the Toru she had known at the Academy.
'It was like he was a different person...'
She kept walking. She knew where she was going, but she had so many things on her mind that she eventually stopped paying attention.
'Why is he so different?' she thought with a sigh. 'Maybe I've been wrong about him all this time...'
"Ino?"
A voice pulled Ino out of her thoughts.
"Hanabi?"
Hanabi let out a small laugh before answering.
"It's Hanabi."
"You scared me..."
"Sorry. You looked really distracted."
"Don't worry about it. So... why are you alone? Shouldn't you be with someone?"
"I'm old enough to go around by myself. Besides, I just came from the hospital. I went to visit onee-san."
At the mention of Hinata, Ino became nervous.
"Hinata... Is she okay?"
"Yeah. She'll be able to go home in two days. Luckily, my sister doesn't have any broken bones, so there shouldn't be any problems. Besides... she's really strong."
Hanabi's expression changed, but she quickly returned to her usual self.
"I see. I'm glad Hinata is okay."
"Yeah... Where are you going? You were so distracted."
"Me...? I was just taking a walk, that's all!"
Trying to hide the fact that they were currently standing in front of Toru's house, Ino looked away, but Hanabi noticed.
"Are you going to visit nii-san?" Hanabi asked, looking at the house.
"Me? Why would I visit that guy?" She looked away, her face slightly red.
"What a coincidence. I was going to visit him too," Hanabi said, taking Ino by the hand. "Let's go together. It'll be better that way."
With a smile on her face, Hanabi looked at Ino.
Ino simply stared at Hanabi's cute face and sighed in defeat.
'I guess this is better,' Ino thought, but before she could respond, Hanabi dragged her toward Toru's house.
—Inside Toru's House—
Drops of water slid down his body. For several seconds, Toru stared at the ceiling of the shower with a neutral expression on his face.
'I still see him in my nightmares...'
Lowering his gaze, Toru remembered the fight against Yasu.
"I still need to finish the artifact, or the work will start piling up."
Trying to forget the past, Toru remembered that he had been working on a tool that would help him in his work as a ninja.
After that, he grabbed the towel next to the shower door and wrapped it around his waist. Then he stopped in front of the mirror to check the cut he had received during his fight against Yasu.
'The antidote Yamato-sensei gave me was very effective. It neutralized the poison within a few hours.'
He left the bathroom and slowly walked through his room, being careful not to step on the scrolls and books scattered all over the floor.
'I should go out and buy more wire...' he thought, staring into space.
A cold gust of wind sent a shiver down his body.
"It's cold," Toru said, realizing he was still naked.
Just as he was about to get dressed, someone knocked on the door. Without caring too much about his appearance, Toru headed toward the entrance of the house. He took a few seconds to adjust the towel so it wouldn't fall. Once he was done, he opened the door.
"Nii-san, we came to—"
"Eh...?"
Ino and Hanabi stared at Toru's torso for several seconds.
"Hm... What?" Toru asked.
"I just came to see if you were okay, but nii-san... you got stronger," Hanabi said, nodding in approval.
However, Ino had remained silent, her eyes fixed directly on Toru's abdomen.
"Ino...?" Toru said.
That made Ino feel a shiver run through her entire body.
"Ah, yeah. I... I'm leaving now!"
Looking everywhere, her face red with embarrassment, Ino tried to run away after seeing Toru's eyes, but Hanabi stopped her from doing so.
"If you came here to talk, come in and stay by the entrance. I'm going to get changed," Toru added, heading toward his room.
Meanwhile, Ino and Hanabi entered without saying a word.
'What do I do?!'
Ino was scared and nervous. She didn't know what to say or how to act.
On the other hand, Hanabi simply stood there, observing the inside of Toru's house. Several seconds passed like that until Toru's voice could be heard.
"You can come in now."
As they went deeper into the house, they could see that the entire place was a complete mess. Different kinds of scrolls and books were scattered everywhere. There were also metal pieces and various tools lying around.
"Should I prepare something?" Toru asked.
Emerging from between some stacked books, Toru made Ino lower her gaze to the floor.
"No need, nii-san."
"I see. Then why did you come? I didn't invite you."
"I came to make sure you were okay. Also, to tell you that onee-san will be leaving the hospital in two days. And I don't know why Ino came."
Ino cleared her throat.
"Well, I came for the same reason. Since we're both on the same team, I wanted to make sure you were okay."
Crossing her arms and looking away to hide her blushing face, Ino spoke.
"Really? That's good. Thanks."
Ino felt her face burn after hearing those words. Hanabi remained silent as she looked at Ino. Something had changed since the last time, and it was obvious.
"Alright. Now that I've made sure nii-san isn't dead, I'm leaving. Ino should stay a little longer."
As if she knew what Ino was going through, Hanabi left without a trace.
'Hey! Don't leave me alone with him!' Ino screamed inside her mind.
After that, everything became silent until Toru decided to speak.
"You can leave if that's what you want. I don't mind."
Resigned and stubborn for some reason, what a combination, Ino stood up.
"Seriously, this place is a mess."
Ino scratched her head and changed the subject as she began picking up the books scattered across the floor.
"Just because you're a guy doesn't mean you can keep everything this messy."
'Is this girl really Ino?' Toru thought.
"The next time I come here and find everything lying around, I'll smash your head into the floor," Ino said.
"But I didn't ask you to do this."
"I don't care. Besides, if you don't do it, nobody—"
Ino's eyes widened. She realized what she was doing.
"Uh... I think I should go now," she said.
After that, Ino left Toru's house.
Toru tilted his head in confusion.
"I don't understand..."