A/N: This series is a short tie in to my Shikamaru: Shippuuden story. If you haven't read it, please stop by. I'll be exploring the perspectives of a few characters in the Konoha 11 during the war. Kiba's up first.
Tails of the Inuzuka War: 01
Dark Days Ahead
The sterile white walls of Konoha Hospital had become his home in recent days, starting only hours after the walls had been broken inward during the attack; Hours after Lady Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage, had been killed on its premises.
Inuzuka Kiba had only left once since. He stared at the withered petals of a lifeless flower beside the sterilized hospital bed of the gentlest flower he knew. The former was an actual plant, and one he hadn't been prepared to actually maintain when he'd brought it two days ago. The latter was Hyuga Hinata.
This fits, he thought to himself. In some sick twisted way, this fits. I'm not a gardener. Let Ino take care of the damn plants. But I can't seem to take care of the real flowers either.
He kept his eyes on Hinata's pale face, her unmoving features. The thin, pink lips he wished would breathe his name, the dark, slightly discolored lids that hid her wonderful, pale eyes, the soft button nose, so much less sensitive than his own, but still in his opinion, so much better.
And then the anger followed.
Kiba had always been one driven by emotion, dedicated to feeling something. A shinobi lived a short, brutal life. If you didn't stop and smell the flowers, and pee on a few trees, what mark would you have left? What experience could you say you had?
But in all his time, he'd never felt anything like this. The rage built itself in his gut, burning a hole from the inside out, trying its hardest to become the fuel for an eternal fire in his soul.
He burned for revenge, literally and figuratively, but he was a soldier, first and foremost, and he had orders.
Akamaru whined from where he lay, curled up in the corner. The Ninken knew the thoughts its master had begun to take and shuffled over to nudge his hand with his wet nose. Kiba's anger began to seep away as he let the dog rest its head on his lap.
"Thanks, pal," he whispered, scratching behind his big, floppy, white ears. "I needed that distraction."
Akamaru looked up at him as if to say,' you think?'
Flicking the sarcastic pooch atop his head, Kiba stood and stretched, seconds before he heard a voice in the distance, coming closer. He had long since learned to tune out the general cacophony of everyday life and focus on sounds that seemed either very familiar or very unfamiliar, as these were the most welcome, and the most dangerous, respectively.
The door swung open to reveal a nurse ushering in two guests. The green coat and dark goggles gave away the first as Shino even before the smell of bugs settled into the room, but the second was awash in bright orange and the pungent odor of concern.
Kiba grimaced, even as the nurse did the same at seeing his bedraggled, sleep deprived state. Oh, benevolent Naruto here to save the day, he thought sarcastically. Something must have shown on his face because Naruto's already weak smile faltered and Shino's head turned toward him slightly, a disapproving frown on his lips.
Kiba turned away from the pair, lips twitching in annoyance. Shino he could stand but he wished Naruto would just leave. It already ticked him off that Hinata had all but proposed to Naruto herself while not giving him more than a second glance, Now he had to deal with Naruto's oblivious ass pretending that he knew her well enough to be concerned in the first place!
"Kiba," Shino said warningly, putting a firm hand on his partner's shoulder. "You should go home. Rest."
"I stick around when I care about someone," He shot back, glaring at Naruto. "I won't just pop in and out when its convenient."
"You know that's not what he's doing," Shino said, keeping Naruto out of the conversation purposely. "Why? Because I have seen your actions when Hinata is not involved. You are loyal to Naruto and your friends, as you should be. This is clouding your judgement."
Kiba bit his lip with his sharpened canine, wanting to disagree with Shino's words, but knowing he was right. Akamaru whined loudly, letting Kiba know exactly how far in the wrong he was.
"Come on, boy," Kiba finally spoke, waving for his dog to follow. "Lets get out of here."
He shoved past Naruto and hurried down the hallway, catching a pleased look from one of Hinata's nurses.
"She'll be fine," the girl said, reassuringly. "You're a good friend to her."
Kiba grinned weakly in response and hurried home. When he got there, his mother was waiting for him at the gate.
"Kiba!" Tsume called out, waving. "I was just about to come get you. The clan is having an important meeting and we need you to attend."
Kiba blinked away his surprise. "Right now?"
"Yes." Tsume looked grave. "A town on the Ame border was occupied by an enemy force this morning. I'm not sure if you remember, but part of that western forest is Inuzuka land. We're debating our course of action."
Kiba gulped, stepping through the gate and Akamaru followed, his head low. "Yes, mother," he said, ducking inside. To his surprise, a powerful smell hit him as he stepped inside and he was significantly less surprised when he rounded the corner into the living space to see most his family gathered there. Akamaru yelped happily as he recognized most of the other ninken and they all leapt up to greet the newcomer. The ninja in the room were far more serious.
"Sit, Kiba," said one of Kiba's eldest cousins, Atsuko. Her tone was stern, but her eyes were kind and he smiled at her. His sister waved to an open seat beside her and Kiba flopped down in it.
"We were just discussing the western forests," Hana whispered to him. "Apparently, Konoha cannot promise support if we act on our own and there is a powerful Kumo contingent with the Ame nin."
Kiba's blood began to boil as he remembered the ninja that had injured Hinata. They all wore Kumogakure headbands and used lightning jutsus.
"I say we kill 'em ourselves," Kiba muttered back. All of the heads in the room turned to him and his cheeks burned in shame. He should have remembered to account for their enhanced hearing.
"And what reasoning do you have for that stance, Kiba?" Tsume asked sharply, glaring as she returned to the room.
"They…It was Kumo nin who…who attacked us on our last mission. And injured Hinata.
"So this could be a reprisal?" Tsume said, glaring. "A war started by one of our own?"
Kiba shook his head. "No. Shikamaru said its 'cause of something else. Something classified. We stumbled on a detachment that was already moving. Probably getting ready to do exactly what they just did. It was their rear guard who attacked us, but I didn't think about why they wore Kumo patches at the time."
The eldest Inuzuka fell silent, pondering this development for a moment before she made up her mind. "Then it seems that we have no choice. I will inform Shikaku Nara and the Jonin council that the Inuzuka will defend our western lands. We will be able to move much sooner than the regular Konoha forces and it won't take long for them to push deep into our territory if a war is truly on the verge of commencing."
Several of the gathered clan members loudly voiced their approval and their canine partners consented, filling the air with a cacophony of barks and cheers. Hana, however, looked troubled and Kiba glanced at his sister.
"What's wrong?" he whispered, much more carefully this time.
She frowned deeply and stood, pulling him aside. "Don't you see this is wrong?" she implored, her eyes pleading. "Kiba, we're just one clan. Konoha is strong because we're all united. We'll die if we go defend those lands without support! You all only saw one detachment, what if there are more?"
Kiba looked around at his family. "Hana, I don't know what you see, but I see some very powerful shinobi here. Whether we have backup or not, we have to do it! If they get too far into the fire country unimpeded, we'll have a hell of a time trying to get them back out. Konoha will take weeks to fight. We don't have a choice. And if you have that little faith in us, maybe you should just move with the regular army."
He turned away, his pride stinging a bit at the insinuation that he couldn't take on the Ame detachment. He'd kill them all himself if he had the chance.
Hana punched him playfully on the shoulder and allowed herself a rueful grin that stretched all the way to the red fang tattoos on her cheeks.. "Kiba, you always were a hothead. I see nothing's changed with you."
He smiled just a little before returning to his seat. Tsume was going over details with the members of the clan lingering behind and she glanced back at her children.
"Kiba, Hana, I have special details for you. Hana will be raising support among the other clans, here in Konoha. The Aburame's must be notified, since their burial grounds are not far from there. Kiba, you and I will be leading the attack, but you will lead a small contingent a bit south and flank the group with the intent of gathering intelligence. Your senses are keener than most of ours and you are younger, and faster."
"Yes, mother," Kiba said bowing slightly. Hana seemed to have no problem with her assignment.
"Thank you!" the woman replied, bowing deeply. Kiba gave her a small smile. It was just what she wanted. Tsume was no fool.
"Alright! Dismissed! Gather every Inuzuka shinobi and prepare for war! We leave at dusk!"
Kiba felt his breath catch at those words. He had business to attend to.
…
"You have returned," Shino said without looking up from Hinata's closed eyes.
"Yeah," Kiba told his teammate gruffly. "The Inuzuka are moving out. Mother thinks that troop movement we ran into is going to pass through our western forest. We're going to intercept them."
Shino looked up sharply at this and, although he didn't speak, Kiba knew what he was thinking. Akamaru pushed past kiba to lick Shino's hand vigorously and the Aburame petted the great hound. Kiba smirked.
"Leave him alone, Akamaru, you act like a puppy sometimes," Kiba said to the pooch. "And yeah, Shino. Just us. She says Konoha will move too slowly, and I personally think she's right. There's not even a Hokage right now to move out. Everything has to go through the Jonin council and we saw how they were handling things."
Shino hung his head. "I am worried for you, Kiba," he muttered. "Why? Because you will seek revenge when you should focus on survival. This is wise tactically for your clan and for Konoha, but foolish for you, individually. Promise me you will not make rash choices."
Shino grimaced almost as soon as the words were out of his mouth and Kiba grinned, showing his fangs. He stood beside the bed and brushed a lock of dark hair from Hinata's pale face. The texture is all wrong, he realized. Her hair was normally soft and silky, with a healthy sheen to it. Now it was dull, stiff. Lifeless.
He drew his hand back quickly and the smile faded from his face, but he looked up at his lifelong friend anyway. "You know I can't do that. I don't think things through like you or Shikamaru, or hell, even Neji. But I can say I'll stay as safe as possible. If I die, who's going to watch out for the princess here?"
He made a face. "Or tell you that your bugs smell like wet sausage?"
Shino grinned behind his heavy coat and he fidgeted slightly. He always did when Kiba talked about his bugs.
"Good luck, my friend." He finally said, before stepping out of the ward, petting Akamaru one final time. "Keep him safe," he told the dog.
Kiba sat down again, thankful for the time he would have alone with Hinata, but still missing Shino's company. There was something reassuring about having the three of them together, even when one was recovering from a mortal wound.
It had happened before.
Kiba ran a finger along her soft jawline, admiring the texture of her flawless pale skin before he spoke.
"I dunno if you can hear me Hina-hime," he murmured. "But I have to go away for a while. I'm going to kill the people that did this to you, I promise."
He could have sworn he saw her eyelash flutter.
A silent plea.