Yamanaka Ino

Character biography

Ino is a bossy, outspoken girl who has a major crush on Sasuke. Ino was also a big rival to Sakura at one time because both had eyes on Sasuke. Originally though, Ino and Sakura were good friends. As young academy students, Ino was one of the more popular students, and one day, she took Sakura under her wing and introduced her to some of the other students. The two remained friends until they both discovered that they were after the same guy. From that day on, they vowed to be rivals for whoever could win Sasuke over first.

After fighting each other at the Chuunin Exam, both resolved their differences to an extent, yet Ino still remains crazy for Sasuke. Currently she is one-third of the Ino-Shika-Chou team under the leadership of Sarutobi Asuma. Ino is quite outspoken as she's made fun of Chouji's weight and teased Shikamaru for not having a girlfriend. But, underneath the immaturity, Ino has shown herself to be rather compassionate when she's chosen to be.

In battle, Ino mostly relies on basic fundamental ninja techniques, and she is generally at a lower level than most other genins. Her only real technique is the ninjutsu of her clan, the Shintenshin no jutsu. When Ino uses this technique she shoots her mind into the mind of her opponent and takes over their body. She is free to use the body to her liking, but the technique leaves her own body lifeless and vulnerable. Also, Ino runs the risk of missing the technique, which would still leave her body vulnerable for a period of time. Because of this, the Shintenshin no jutsu is often a double-edged sword.