Title: Practice Makes Perfect.
Author: hinatahyuugachan
Rating: PG (K+)
Pairing: KibaHina
Challenge: Dog Days of Summer

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Living might mean taking chances
But they're worth taking
Lovin' might be a mistake
But it's worth making
Don't let some hell bent heart
Leave you bitter

--"I Hope You Dance" – Lee Ann Womack

The day was cool, with only a few clouds to block the sun's rays, providing ample shade for the ninja and his dog to run through the forest in relative comfort. Despite the beauty of the day, the young man seemed preoccupied, going on autopilot and disregarding the environment. The pair continued their random descent through the forest until Akamaru sat down abruptly and started wagging his tail. Brought out of his thoughts, Kiba stopped as well and sniffed the air to find the cause of Akamaru's joy. By his second sniff he had identified his long-time teammate, and by the fourth had concluded that she had also been in the forest for a time but was not yet tired. His fifth and sixth sniffs had brought to him the pleasant odor of her shampoo, as well as subtle whiffs of Shino and Naruto. So she had been following that idiot again. Jealousy rose within him, and he almost snarled at the thought of Hinata and him. Yet instantly, he was angry with himself for feeling that way about his two friends, and especially about his teammate – he should've controlled himself and stopped it firmly before it was too late.

He had always known that it was coming. The fact that he had fallen in love with his long-time teammate didn't bear thinking about, when the outcome was obvious. She only had eyes for a certain blonde that was rather color-blind…

He straightened from his crouch and figured that she had stopped by Shino's house on their day off, and had been shadowing Naruto for at least an hour before coming here.

"Kiba-kun! Hi! I was just, um, wondering where you were! I went to the market earlier to buy a bunch of stuff and dropped off a bento at Shino-kun's house. I w-was just wondering…since I-I um, made enough for four and so, here's yours. It has onigiri, and rice balls, and some v-vegetables, but there's also dumplings and dango and some pie and I wasn't quite s-sure if they tasted okay, because Shino-kun said they tasted fine, b-but he could be polite, and I gave you different t-types … do you think it t-tastes okay?"

He wondered what she was so nervous about – she had made them lunches before (which were extremely good, by the way), but this time her fear and worry was almost palpable, even without his enhanced senses. Kiba shrugged internally, and took the offered bento without a word. As always, it smelled delicious and was arranged in way that was aesthetic yet didn't mix up the different portions. He savored the smell, inhaling spices and a hint of cinnamon on the still-warm apple pie. "Mmmm, smells good to me," Kiba said, and proceeded to eating the dumplings, tasting beef and sausage and small pieces of onion and garlic. "Yup, tastes good. Are they all like this? You might want to put a little bit less salt… the sausage is pretty strong already. But other than that, it tastes pretty good. The pie is the best though…the cinnamon adds a taste of … well, good stuff. Haha."

After Kiba finished assessing the food, Hinata breathed a sigh of relief as he resumed eating. Taking out a smaller bento, (he glimpsed the last one buried beneath it, yet wrapped in protective foil to 

avoid scraping) she opened the lid to reveal dumplings and a large portion of steak. "U-um, I was planning on giving the last one to N-Naruto-kun… but I wasn't sure how to ask him, so could you h-help me?"

Fighting down the surge of anger and jealousy once again, Kiba could only trust himself to nod. He would help those two, because she deserved it, after all…

"Oh good, so this one's for Aka–eeep!" Her sentence was cut off as Akamaru reared and placed his paws on her, almost knocking her over. To her credit, she leaned back until she was settled and quickly put the bag containing the last bento softly on the ground to keep it safe. Once that was done in a couple of seconds, she did a twist to the side that freed her from Akamaru, leaving the almost seven foot dog (when rearing) leaning on empty air. Unfortunately, her maneuver placed her directly in front of Kiba, and he was too preoccupied with eating to move out the way. However, her 'eeep!' had warned him enough to place the food on the ground and quickly jump up to look around for what had caused her cry. His standing up made him collide with the already unbalanced Hyuuga, which resulted in her lying on top of him, both of them staring upwards with a vaguely confused expression before Hinata realized she was on top of Kiba. She began to twist around to ask if he was okay (causing the ninja below to start to sweat as the result of her fall had led her to be right on top of him, and her moving around on top of him was really not helping), and ended up placing her two hands on the ground near his shoulders after she had turned all the way around. She peered at him worriedly, her pale eyes searching his as her forehead touched his to check if he was still okay. (Kiba had, by now, stiffened from the proximity of their faces, and was blushing furiously, almost resembling a certain person nearby…)

"Kiba-kun?"

As Akamaru landed on the ground with the grace of a cat, while the two ninjas collided with each other, he started to eagerly pant and wag his tail, imploring Hinata to please-please-please give him the bento and nudged her in his efforts to be oh-so-subtle about his hunger. However, his nudge had unforeseen consequences….

The overgrown dog's nudge was more of a push to the two ninjas, resulting in an awkward (but enjoyable) kiss between the two. Two pairs of eyes widened, yet gradually fluttered to close as they enjoyed the unfamiliar sensation. When they finally broke apart, with Hinata jumping backwards and Kiba leaping to a crouch, both were breathless and flushed.

"Well," drawled Kiba, despite the fact that his heartbeat was jumping erratically, "since we were on the topic of seduction and introduction, let's work on that kiss of yours… After all, practice makes perfect," and almost laughed as he saw Hinata redden even more (if that was possible), yet was undeniably pleased when she hesitated, then looked up at him and half-closing her eyes in an expression that made his heartbeat even more uneven, and drew closer for their first lesson, the lunchbox by their sides ignored in favor of a more…favorable pursuit.


Author's Notes: Thank you so much to all of those who read it :D I wish I could... bake cookies and give em to you guys 3 Feedback will be very appreciated : Do you guys think I should continue these series of Hinataxsomeone drabbles? Or should I make them separate? Is this one too long? Does it make sense? Are there any errors that should be remedied? What'd you guys think of the story? (Sorry for so many questions .) (Ack. I'm in a quandary- should the title be Practice Makes Perfect, or Favorable pursuits? feh, I'm in a muddle...)

(Also, for those of you who have started school! (Like me) Or will start soon! Good luck! Don't be overwhelmed by the amount that the teachers tell you that you have to do! It's manageable... usually ;) Best of all, have fun! Reunite with friends! Try not to stress too much!) (RAWRR. is anyone else in IB?)



Thank you! to SilentSinger948, Rose Bringer, and Fowl68! : So glad that you guys liked it!! Hope I don't disappoint...

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