“Naruto…”
Hinata froze at that voice. Turning slowly, she pushed aside a bush and saw…
…saw Sakura, her arms around Naruto’s body, their lips together, melting…
Hinata gasped and spun away. Running without knowing where she was going, she blindly dashed tears from her silvery eyes. Naruto and…and…Sakura!
She slammed into someone and was thrown backwards. Gasping, still crying, she rolled over and sobbed into the dirt, uncaring. Her dreams were shattering around her. Her love loved someone else…
Arms lifted her. A deep voice called her name, sounding worried. She felt the arms go around her, felt herself being pressed into a warm, caring chest. Clutching the other, she sobbed brokenly into his chest.
....
Shino held the sobbing Hinata, glancing around to see if anyone was nearby. The forest was silent.
He sighed. Obviously Hinata had just seen the same sight that Shino had. Sakura, finally giving in to Naruto.
Poor Hinata. He hugged her tightly, stroking her black hair. Poor, poor Hinata. She tried so hard…
When Hinata finally started to calm down, he maneuvered her so that they could sit down, back against a tree. He didn’t let her go, content to have her snuggled into his chest, his hands gently stroking her hair.
“S..Shino?” she whispered. He chuckled softly and lifted her chin so he could wipe away a tear.
“Yes, it’s me, Hinata.”
“Oh, Shino…I..I s..saw…” Her face clouded up again, and she looked about ready to burst into tears again.
“I know. I saw it too.” Shino brushed his fingers against her cheek. “I’m sorry, Hinata.”
Hinata sagged. “It was h..hopeless f..from the start. I’m s..such an..an i..idiot!” she whispered.
Shino felt his heart squeeze. “You’re not an idiot, Hinata.”
Hinata sighed. “Y..yes I am. I should h..have known I w..wasn’t g..g..good enough for…”
“Don’t.” Shino said harshly. Surprised, she looked at him.
“Don’t say that.” Shino grabbed her chin in his fingers and then impulsively leaned forward to kiss her.
She froze. Shino kissed her and then released her chin, trembling. “Hinata…I’m…”
“Shino..” she whispered.
Then she ran.
....
Shino leaned back against the tree, helplessly cursing under his breath. Damn it. What the hell had he been thinking?
Nothing, he realized bitterly. I wasn’t thinking, that was the problem.
He tipped his head back and stared into the treetop, feeling his heart twisting inside of him.
How long had he been in love with the Hyuuga girl? He didn’t know for sure. He only knew that he was. All this time, standing right behind her, helping her, supporting her. Loving her. Silently, of course.
He’d watched her blossom from a shy, rather useless girl into a stunningly strong young woman. He’d trained with her, pushing her to her limits, helping her up when she fell, only to push again. He’d watched her fight her father’s influence, watched her fight Neji’s contempt. And he’d stood back and let her fight alone, knowing that she had to. No matter how much it hurt Shino to see her in pain, she had to fight her own battles.
And now this, he thought. Damn that Naruto.
He sighed. It wasn’t Naruto’s fault. Naruto had never made a secret of his feelings for that insipid little cherry girl. What he saw in Sakura Shino honestly couldn’t figure out. She was kind of a bitch. Always bossing him around, yelling at him. But Naruto was crazy about her. And finally, Sakura had given in to him.
He heard a rustling noise and sighed, this time in vexation. “Kiba, I know you’re up there. Come down.”
Kiba dropped from the tree, giving Shino a grin. “Hey, Shino. What’re you doing?”
“Nothing.” Shino tipped his head and looked at Kiba. “You look better.”
“I feel better.” Shino grinned wider and set Akamaru down, and then flopped onto the ground next to Shino. “They finally let me out of the hospital. I was going kind of crazy in there.”
Shino grunted but didn’t answer. He was really happy to see his friend whole and happy again.
They sat in companionable silence, each lost in his own thoughts. Finally, Kiba sighed and reached out to scratch Akamaru. “We’ve got a mission tomorrow. B rank. Kurenai-sensei’s not coming, though. We’re on our own.”
Shino blinked. “How did you find out?”
“Well, I’m in charge.” Kiba grinned ferally. “Lady Hokage called me up to tell me an hour ago. Told me to find you guys and get the hell out of the Leaf village first thing in the morning.”
“What are we doing?” Shino asked. Kiba being in charge didn’t bother him; he knew his friend very well, and thought privately that Kiba was probably a better choice than himself.
“Search and destroy.” Kiba scratched Akamaru’s belly. “A small band of stupid bandits has been attacking travelers on the road lately. We’re to find them and make sure they stop being a problem.”
“Hm.” Shino yawned. “Shouldn’t be too much of a problem.”
“Nope.” Kiba hesitated. “Uhm. Have you seen Hinata?”
Shino blinked and turned to stare suspiciously at his friend. “Yes. Why?”
“Well…” Kiba hesitated. “It’s just that…uh….I saw Naruto and Sakura, and…”
Shino sighed. “She knows.”
“Oh.” Kiba licked his lip nervously. “How’d she take it?”
“Badly.” Shino shook his head. “Very badly.”
“Oh.” Kiba sighed. “Poor Hinata.”
Shino sighed. “We need to find her and tell her about the mission. I’ll go check the village; you go check at her house.”
Kiba nodded and jumped up. Scooping up Akamaru, he smiled. “Okay!”
....
Hinata’s father was at home, making Kiba feel a little…well, intimidated. He was always so damn…cold. “Hyuuga-san, is Hinata home? I need to talk to her about a mission.”
The man stared at him for a moment. Then he cleared his throat. “She came in a few moments ago.”
“Thank you, sir.” Kiba bowed and turned to go to her room, but the Hyuuga stopped him. “…She seemed…upset.” He said slowly. Kiba stared at him in surprise. Was he…worried about his daughter?
Be the first time, Kiba thought, suddenly angry. “I think she just had a bad day, sir.” He said carefully. “I’m sure she’s fine.”
The Hyuuga nodded and let Kiba go. Kiba went to Hinata’s door and knocked. “Hinata?” he called out softly.
After a moment, Hinata’s door slid open and Hinata stood, framed by the light of the window. She looked terrible; Kiba could see that she’d been crying. “Hi Kiba.” She whispered.
“Hey Hinata.” He was conscious of the Hyuuga, still standing in the hallway. “Let me in, huh? We’ve got a mission tomorrow.”
She stepped away and let him enter, leaving the door open behind him. He’d been in her room before, but he found himself glad about the open door. No one could think they were doing anything weird…
Damn that man, he thought angrily.
“A mission?” Hinata said quietly. She sat down on her bed, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. After a moment’s hesitation, Kiba sat down next to her. “Yeah.” He quickly filled her in on the details.
She looked a little better. “O..okay. I’ll be ready.”
“Ok. And…Hinata…” he sighed and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. Fuck her dad, he thought savagely. “I’m sorry, sweetheart.”
Hinata sighed and hugged him back. “It..it’s ok, Kiba. Thank you.”
....
They met at the village gate at the crack of dawn. Hinata looked like she’d had trouble sleeping; her eyes were weary and there were black circles under her eyes. Shino was characteristically silent; Kiba yawned and rubbed his eyes. “Ready?” he asked.
“Let’s go.”
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Story notes: I'm pretty sick right now, it's fricken midnight, and I'm hopped up on cold medicine, so I hope this doesn't suck. My first attempt at a story that doesn't have Kakashi or Iruka in it (*GASP*) Please review!
Chapter notes: I don't own Naruto.