My very first serious fanfic submitted to It's a KibaShika romance, set in high school with some gaakiba hints (but not subtle ones). They're not shinobi though. It's just a bunch of kids in high school, but they just HAPPEN to be Naruto characters. Just so you know, I try to use more descriptions, rather than dialogue so if you don't like it, you don't gotta read it. So yeah, that's all I have to say, except for this little annoying disclaimer thingie-

I NO OWN, YOU NO SUE Well, here it goes! Smile spreads across face the size of a watermelon

Chapter 1

The late bell for first period rang, and the students all scurried off to class. The shuffle of feet echoed through the empty hallway, and dust that had settled was now drifting through the air, becoming visible in the light rays that beamed through the skylights. There was now complete silence in the desolate, lonely high school hallway of Konoha high.

This silence could only be broken by muffled noises coming from beyond the classrooms. The source of these sounds was the desperate attempt of Kiba Inuzuka trying to not be terribly late for class. He sprinted down the smooth pathway toward his English classroom, his hood jostling as he took each step. Akamaru could barely keep his grip on Kiba's soft shoulder.

The boy raced toward his destination, which was now in sight. The door came closer and closer, and grew larger and larger, until Kiba could at last wrap his hand around the metal handle. He turned it, and practically threw himself into the classroom. All eyes were on him, as he stood halfway through the door momentarily. The silver-haired teacher, Hatake Kakashi, glanced over from his lesson at the panting boy now standing in his doorway.

"So good of you to join us Kiba," Kakashi now said. Kiba stared blankly at him for a second before responding, "Oh, uh," he muttered. "Sorry about that," he apologized as he put his right hand behind his head, embarrassed. With a slight hesitation, he sat down in the only seat available, which was between Sasuke and Shikamaru. Sasuke had his head in his hand and was staring absentmindedly out the clear, glass window. Shikamaru appeared equally unenthuzed by Kakashi's monotonous lecture.

Kiba set down his bookbag next to his student-sized desk and pulled out his black, spiral notebook labeled "English", and opened it to a clean page. He noticed Shikamaru had nothing on his desk, and wondered why for a moment. Kakashi had been lecturing for a few minutes now, but Kiba only just noticed.

Kakashi suddenly asked a question concerning the novel they were reading, The Secret hidden in the leaves, "Shikamaru, what would you say is the main plot in this work of literature?" Shikamaru looked up, "Well, I would have to say it must be the eclectic bunch of clues that the author distributes throughout various sections of the novel that the protagonists must discover. They are then forced to find the truth to the secret that everyone in Konoha has been pondering in their minds for some time." Kakashi looked almost shocked at the response given by the usual I-Don't-Give-A-Crap Shikamaru. "Well done Shikamaru."

"Whatever…" Shika said. Kiba glanced up from notetaking to look over at Shikamaru and admired him for a moment. "I never realized how smart he is," he thought to himself.

Kiba was staring off into nothing now as someone was reading aloud from the novel. His mind wasn't thinking about anything, and he could barely concentrate on the soporific class. He just simply stared, and his world began to slowly drift away from him. Everything around him started to blur together and his eyelids grew heavy.

Ring! Kiba jolted back to reality and his world came into focus again. The class was getting up and exiting the room. Kiba was stunned for a moment, but realized what was going on, so he packed up his things and walked toward the door. Shikamaru was leaving directly behind Temari and Ino, who were talking and giggling as they clutched their books tightly.

Kiba watched Shikamaru put his hands behind his head and give a big sigh as he walked out the door. Kiba watched him intently, but Akamaru gave a small bark, and snapped him out of it.

"Huh?" Kiba said. "No, I don't like him," he sounded annoyed with Akamaru. Kiba left the room thinking about the class. He couldn't seem to be able to push the onyx-haired boy from his mind. He wondered why he was even thinking about Shika, when he walked out into the bustling hallway, and was greeted by his friend Gaara. Gaara was wearing a brown tee shirt with the Japanese symbol for love printed on it.

"Hey," Gaara said in a dull tone.

"What's up Gaara?" Kiba responded. Gaara gave him an incredulous look.

"What do you think? My last class was so boring, so I think I'm gonna head out for a few periods. Wanna come?"

Kiba pondered the idea for a moment, and decided to go along. He figured that missing a few periods of school couldn't hurt. They both snuck off to the bathroom after Kiba bent over at the water fountain for a quick drink. They walked together to the blue door labeled "boys", and hid inside the bathroom to wait for the sound of the bell.

Once they heard a ring echo through the halls, Gaara and Kiba peered out of the door, and shot glances down either end of the hall. It was just as it was after the first bell- lonely and silent. So they snuck out quietly and headed for the front doors. Kiba look slightly nervous, as they were about to leave the school without permission. Gaara appeared cool and smooth, as if he had done this before, which he had many times.

There was a park right near their school. It was a balmy day, and a light breeze was rustling the leaves on the deciduous trees. A small dirt path cut through the woods leading to the park. It led to a wide field with park benches scattered sporadically throughout.

They walked side by side through the dense trees leading to the field, making no noise, whatsoever. Kiba was looking up at the trees as he walked along. Akamaru was tired, so he decided to curl up and sleep in Kiba's hood.

They treaded nearer and nearer to the field, and as they approached it, it opened up to them, showing them its small playground for children, and vast, grassy areas. The two stepped out onto it, and continued along their route, but not along the path, which stretched no further than the edge of the forest.

Their destination was the bus stop at the other end of the field, which yielded a small blue bench. They made their way to it, avoiding stray trees that littered the area. Once they arrived at their destination, they checked the time on Gaara's watch, which looked oddly unfamiliar to Kiba.

"Hey, that's a nice watch," Kiba said.

"Thanks. I stole it from my older brother," Gaara replied. It was 9:14. They would have to wait for 15 minutes before the next bus came to pick them up. Gaara cursed under his breath for not getting there sooner. He sighed and slumped down onto the bench. Kiba didn't seem to care about having to wait.

"It's only 15 minutes, but remember Gaara, I want to get back by fifth period gym class. We're playing floor hockey, and I don't want miss that."

Gaara appeared not to care.

"Whatever," he simply replied as he pulled out his iPod. Kiba had an inquisitive look on his face.

"So where are we going, anyway?" he asked, but received no reply from the crimson haired teen.

"How about we go to Friendly's and get something to eat?" He stared intently at Gaara, who still gave no response.

"OK, so Friendly's it is." An awkward silence hung in the air. The only thing audible was the small beat of punk music coming from Gaara's iPod. Kiba began to pet the sleeping pup in his hood. He looked up at Gaara who had his eyes closed, and was leaning his head against the back of the bench.

"Hey, Gaara?" Kiba asked with an introverted tone in his voice. Gaara opened his eyes to look over at Kiba, who appeared somewhat timid.

"What happened between us?" Kiba said shyly. Gaara was silent for a few moments while he ran the thought through his mind.

"There was just no connection," he said. The words seemed to just dance off his tongue, and reverberate in Kiba's head.

"But I am glad," he continued, "that we decided to still be friends at least." This seemed to lighten the dreary expression on Kiba's face.

"Oh, me too Gaara!" he exclaimed as he embraced the other teen. Gaara would have normally shoved him off, but for just that moment, he decided to return the warmth offered by a hug.