Arianna shakes her head as she punches the numbers into the calculator, once, twice, three times…
It still wasn't enough.
"Oi, Ari… how are we making out this month?" Kiba Inuzuka drops into the single other chair at their small table.
He had just returned from yet another tedious D-rank mission. In the time of peace following the war, the rebuilding had happened, followed quickly by a lack of jobs for shinobi of all ranks. And those jobs that were available were all tedious, time-consuming tasks such as escorts and chores within the village or others. It seemed there was never enough to live on, even with two salaries. Most shinobi of Konohagakure had long since take up a second primary trade and only used their ninja training to help earn just a little extra to keep them comfortable. But in the case of the young Inuzukas, Kiba and sister Arianna, there just wasn't enough to get them through. Despite the stretching, scrimping, and minimizing on… everything…
… two young shinobi just couldn't make ends meet.
Arianna releases a low sigh before covering her eyes with her hand, tiredly rubbing, as if she could brush the fatigue away and keep going. Kiba can already tell that her news isn't good, and even though he doesn't really want to hear it, he remains in his seat.
"… It's the same."
Kiba slinks back in his chair; his head falls back to lift his troubled gaze to the ceiling, shaggy brown hair stretching toward the floor. He kicks the chair back to balance on two legs as he mulls over her news. Arianna had long since ceased berating him for the risky move, but this time she can't seem to help herself.
"Will you sit down properly already and be serious for a minute?" Her words come out in a harsh bark, and she immediately feels guilty. Kiba shoots her a dirty look but thunks the legs back down onto the wooden floor harder than necessary. The tension over their finances is so high that they always seem to be at each other's throats, fangs bared and ready for a fight.
"I don't know what else to tell you, Arianna." He only ever uses her full name when he was pissed off at her. "There just aren't enough jobs for shinobi."
"Then we're both going to have to get second jobs," she pushes herself up from her chair. "And one of us might need a third. I really don't see another option."
Kiba goes very still and quiet. The silence between them is tense and stretches over the span of several agonizing minutes. His dark eyes rest on the knot in the wooden floorboard. Arianna stands facing away from him, but her eyes are shut. This is the one thing that she'd been desperately trying to avoid, and with good reason.
"Ari… we barely see each other as it is." Kiba rubs his eyes then gets up suddenly. "Isn't there anything else we can cut back on?"
"There's nothing, Kiba."
"I mean, I could eat less!" He isn't even listening to her. "Akamaru probably could, too. And I mean, do we really need running wat-"
Arianna spins around and shoves at his shoulders. "Kiba, there's NOTHING!"
He instantly goes quiet at the sight of tears in her usually bright blue eyes. She always did look different from the rest of the Inuzuka clan. Her strawberry-blonde hair makes her stand out from the rest, although she does retain that trademark feral quality to her features. Looks aside, the bright red fangs on her cheeks mark her as one of the clan, one of his own.
And Kiba does not like to see one of his own cry.
"Ngh…" An odd noise escapes Kiba's lips as he bites down on his lower lip, and he soon finds himself standing with Arianna swept up in his arms in a tight hug. Her soft scent of strawberries and the warmth of sunshine tickle his nose, and his arms tighten as she fists the back of his shirt. It isn't long before he can smell tears, and soon he can't tell hers apart from his own. "Ari… we'll make it work. We always have…. We can start applying to places together tomorrow. Hey, maybe we'll get lucky and land jobs together! Wouldn't that be great?!"
Arianna snorts softly against his shoulder. She can almost feel his grin radiating sunshine-y crap against her ear. "Yeah, right, I'll end up blamed for everything you do wrong."
"And I'll get credit for everything you do right!" His barking laughter is soft but joyous, and the girl can't help but sigh and smile a little.
"Just like always, eh, Kiba?"
"Always," he pulls back slightly to grin down at her before growing serious again. "And if anyone has to get a third job, it will be me."
"… We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." The two are quiet for a moment longer before Arianna speaks again.
"Oi, Kiba?"
"Yeah?"
"… You really need a bath."
"What, you don't like my manly stink?!" He smirks and lifts his arm. Too late she realizes what he means to do, and Arianna can only squeal as he grips the hair at the back of her head and rubs his sweaty armpit against her face.
"KIBA!" The disgruntled screech is slightly muffled but still manages to hurt his sensitive ears. She struggles against him in a desperate attempt to gain purchase against him before shoving away, gagging and coughing as she frantically rubs her nose. "Oh my GOD, you stink! Worse than a dog!"
Kiba releases his barking laughter again, sounding eerily like their mother. He easily dodges the shoe thrown in the direction of his head and scampers off down the hallway to the bathroom they share.
"Go take a fucking shower, mongrel!"
"At least I'm not a bitch like you!"
He barely gets the door shut before her other shoe smacks against it.