Nightmares. They were becoming much more frequent lately. He had nightmares almost every night, and almost every night his own screams would wake him. He tried staying awake so that he wouldn't have to be faced with the dreams, but the memories would still replay vividly in his mind whenever he closed his eyes. Reliving the trauma was always the worst part. He was exhausted, due to his painful memories and his lack of sleep.
Sometimes Kiba's midnight cries woke Hana, and she would get up to check on him.
"I'm fine," he'd tell her, despite the tears rolling down his cheeks. She'd simply nod and go back to bed, but they both knew he was lying.
His family and friends were all worried about him, but he hated worrying others, because he felt like he was letting them down. However, what scared him was the fact that he was worried, because he felt like he was letting himself down.
He knew he had a problem, but it was his problem, and he would sort it out on his own like he always did. He understood that helping teammates during a battle was essential, but he didn't like going to people for help when he had a personal issue. It just made him feel like a burden.
Akamaru laid down beside him and rested his head on Kiba's lap. He whined sadly, wondering what was wrong with his best friend.
"Don't worry about me. I'll be okay," he said, trying to reassure both of them. He wasn't very convincing.
Kiba noticed a sudden and intense pitter-patter sound and looked out the window. It was raining heavily, but it didn't matter. He'd already made up his mind.
Whenever something was bothering him, he would train. It usually helped him sort things out or get over them. Besides, he wasn't going back to sleep any time soon. He couldn't.
"I'm going to go train. Are you coming?"
Akamaru barked in response.
"Good."
The two set out for the training field, walking briskly through the village until they reached their destination. Kiba started training as soon as they arrived.
His hand trembled slightly as he stared at the kunai in his hand, but he steeled himself and threw it. It hit the wooden post that was its target with a satisfying thunk, and he sighed with relief. The last time he had trained was before the Fourth Shinobi World War.
The war ended in favor of the Allied Shinobi Forces three months ago. Since then, the villages have been regrouping, recovering, and rebuilding. Images of the war flashed through his mind, and he shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts.
He threw another kunai, watching as it nearly missed the mark. He was determined to make the last one bury itself into the post. However, the memories flooded his mind once again, and they were stronger this time.
Kiba growled frustratedly, and tried to push them out of his head. He extended his left arm out in front of him, his right arm pulling back for a forceful throw. Before he could let go, a loud clap of thunder startled him. He jumped, and his throw was redirected downward, all the force going with it.
Kiba had slashed his arm open, leaving a deep gash in his left forearm. Blood quickly started to flow from it, and his eyes widened with panic and alarm; his horror was evident. The images, the thoughts, and the memories came rushing back all at once, and this time he couldn't stop them.
He was surrounded by death and destruction. Countless of his fellow shinobi perished around him, even some of his friends and their family members. There were bodies everywhere, blood spilling from their wounds. There was absolutely nothing he could do to help them.
Kiba sank to his knees. He dropped the kunai and clenched his arm, putting pressure on the wound so he could staunch the flow of blood. His eyes blurred, and tears fell from them. He shook violently, and his heart was pounding so hard his chest hurt. This made it hard to breathe, and he became dizzy. He wanted to get up and run away, but he was paralyzed by fear.
Akamaru ran over to him, barking and whining. He wanted to help him, but he wasn't sure he could. Not knowing what else to do, he stayed by his side until he calmed down and relaxed a little.
"I'm going to need help, aren't I?" he asked, still short of breath.
Again, he hated the idea of going to someone for help when he had an issue, but this wasn't just an issue. It was a serious problem. Help was going to be necessary if he wanted to get better, and he could only think of one person who could help him.
"Ino. Take me to Ino," he said, hopping up onto Akamaru's back. Akamaru nodded and took off, running through the village until he found Ino's home.
When they stopped in front of her house, Kiba dismounted Akamaru and knocked on the door. It was late, and she was probably asleep by now. If she wasn't, she'd most likely be annoyed that he was here at this hour. Even so, he needed her.
Ino opened the door and rubbed at her eyes tiredly.
"Kiba? What are you...?" she said, trailing off when she noticed just how terrible he looked. His eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion, red and puffy from crying. He was sweating and shivering, panting slightly. Blood dripped from his left arm, which he gripped tightly. He seemed more afraid than anything else.
"Never mind that, you look awful! Come inside."
The three of them went into her living room. Ino and Kiba sat on the couch, while Akamaru sat on the floor nearby. Ino picked up Kiba's arm and examined it before starting to heal it.
"What happened?"
"I hurt myself while I was training."
Ino raised an eyebrow.
"Why were you training? Not only is it the middle of the night, it's pouring rain! Besides, a mishap like this doesn't happen to most people, especially not you."
"Alright, alright. I couldn't sleep, and something was bugging me, so I went out to train. I was tired, I was frustrated, and I couldn't focus. I was about to throw a kunai when some thunder made me jump."
"Is that how you cut your arm?"
Kiba nodded.
"After that, I basically had a panic attack."
He was pale from the fright and blood loss. She had never seen him like this. His demeanor was usually playful and confident. Something was definitely very wrong with him, and she was concerned to say the least.
"You had a panic attack? What caused it?"
"I must've triggered it when I cut myself. I saw the blood and freaked out. I kept thinking about the war. I keep thinking about the war, because it's not just the attack. Lately, I've been having nightmares about it, and I haven't been sleeping very much. I...I feel like I'm going insane..."
Kiba's hands trembled, and Ino grasped them with her own.
"You're not insane. In fact, I think I know what's wrong with you." She bit her lip before continuing, "I think you have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."
He looked distraught.
"It'll be okay, I promise. I'm going to help you."
After all, he helped me once, she thought. He caught her when she'd fallen during a battle in the war. This situation was different, and it required a different kind of help, but she was going to help him regardless.
"Thank you," Kiba said as a tear slid down his cheek. Ino lifted a hand to his face and wiped it away.
"Don't worry about a thing. You'll get through this. It might take a while, but you will. Trust me."
"Okay. I believe you."
He took a deep breath, trying to regain his composure after being so emotional in front of her. It wasn't his fault, given his condition, but he still didn't like it.
"Your arm is all healed now," Ino said. Kiba looked it over, and only a faint scar remained. She was good.
"So, what do we do now?"
"For now, Lady Tsunade is only assigning missions to Jonin level ninjas, and I'm going to put in for a few personal days off from the hospital. That starts us off with a good three days to work together and assess the intensity of your PTSD."
"Sounds like a plan."
"You're very worn out, though. I want you to get some sleep tonight, so I'm going to block your memories. It'll keep the nightmares away, and you'll be able to get some rest. I'll unblock them in the morning so that we can work on your treatment."
Ino put two fingers to each of his temples. She closed her eyes in concentration, and Kiba felt something click in his brain within moments.
"Now go get some sleep."
"Will do. Thanks again, for everything."
"You're welcome. Now go."
Kiba smirked at her before going home with Akamaru. That night, for the first time in a month, he slept.
A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I worked pretty hard on it. I promise there will be more chapters, but they might take a while. Please leave a review, as it's very encouraging and inspires me to write more for you guys!
