Summary

Hinata had been Kiba's many firsts. As well as Kiba to Hinata's firsts. It seemed only right.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Naruto, although I made the fanfiction, it rightfully belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

Firsts

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Chapter 1-First Impressions

The first time Kiba had ever been frightened of a girl had been nearly three years ago, the first time he'd laid eyes on Hinata of the Hyuga Clan.

...

Kiba, like all others in his class at the Academy, had been awaiting this day with eagerness, though none more than he as the Inuzuka practically skipped into the large classroom with it's tiered desks and quickly took a seat. Not long after many other ninja-in-training alike filled in with a rush of speed, filling seats left and right until there was no room left. Moments passed uneventfully. Waiting, waiting, and more waiting as boredom set it.

Apparently, Akamaru possessed his master's capacity for patience as well, though he made it much better known as the pup began to growl and yip from the confines of his jacket, squirming in outrage. Kiba didn't necessarily blame him, as a Inuzuka member, many animal-like traits were often shared, and dogs were beings of action, not beings of 'waiting-until-you'd-rather-die'.

Frustrated and impatient, Kiba grumbled unhappily, patting Akamaru's head to momentarily silence him as finally, finally Iruka-sensei appeared to announce the teams of three that would be paired to a sensei and move onward on their journeys' as ninja. The excitement of it all was nearly suffocating, and he was not the only one to feel this way, the many other ninja-in-training that surrounded him formed a sea of excitement and ambition. It was almost intoxicating, the way it filled him with a untouchable euphoria at the prospect of becoming a world renowned ninja.

Moments passed and ninja after ninja were claimed by their sensei, and with each moment Kiba wasn't called he grew more and more restless and impatient. Kiba was not known for patience, and though he knew it would do him no good to fume, he could not will himself to calm down. Who would his sensei be? Famous ninja like Kakashi the Copy Ninja or the powerhouse brash ninja Azuma were already taken much to his despair, for he had hoped they would be the ones to aid him the future-ninja-of-badassery by tutoring him.

Who would be his teammates? Perhaps he would get someone strong and mysterious, like Sasuke Uchiha, and form a powerful rivalry to fuel his own progress. Or perhaps he would end up with someone useful, and yet weak enough to allow his frothing ego to thrive such as Sakura Haruno? What if he were paired with Naruto Uzumaki?

The thought was almost to terrible to comprehend. From the moment Naruto declared his dream to become Hokage he had despised the failure ninja student as he laughed to his face; perhaps for none other reason than for simply hoping beyond hope that he could even dare match the wisdom and strength of a famous Hokage. The bratty blond was annoying and loud, not to mention a complete nuisance. He feared he'd lose it entirely if he were paired with him.

The minutes seemed to take hours as he waited. And finally, finally, he was called. And much to his dismay he not only had a female sensei, but two students of whom he had not even met. Akamaru picked up on his master's disappointment, and burrowed further into his jacket, clearly entering a state of pouting.

Kurenai was his sensei's name, a strong looking yet beautiful young woman with untamable black hair and alluring red eyes that matched her equally red lips. She seemed nice enough, if not a little strict. It was nothing new to Kiba, he had lived his entire life surrounded by the strong and hard headed woman of his own clan, not to mention his own brutal family as well.

His male teammate ended up being Shino Aburame...He had seen the kid several times around the Academy, but he never really stuck out enough to make a good impression on him. Other than the knowledge that the Aburame clan held a strong affinity for insects and preferred many insect like ninjutsu, Kiba knew nothing of him, though he seemed nice enough. If a little reserved in a strangely off-put way.

And the girl...Hinata Hyuga...scared him. Actually scared him. After all, you'd have to be the biggest idiot in the world to not know the clan of Hyuga. The oldest, noblest clan in all of Konoha, and perhaps of all ninja time. They were world renowned for their powerful roots and even stronger optical jutsu, the famous Byakugan-said to be passed down for the Sage of the Six Paths himself.

Kiba had heard all the legends of course. Legends that spoke volumes of the Clan's specified jutsu which allowed them near 360 degree vision as well as x-ray vision that not only allowed them to see through an opponent's equipment and clothes, but the paths of chakra as well. He heard they were insanely powerful beings, even capable of pinpointing the chakra outlets in a method called tekkenjutsu that could actually stop an enemy's chakra entirely as well using their own extremely difficult and powerful style of taijutsu that took advantage of their ability to expel chakra from any point in the body to actually damage the innards and organs of their opponent.

All in an single instant. No warning whatsoever.

In other words, the Hyugas were legends all on their own, and perhaps even in a league none other clan could possibly hope to match. And for a taijutsu specialist, Kiba had never been more terrified.

His first impression of Hinata was that of a timid, shy, stuttering, and overall seemingly weak ninja. But he was not a fool, he could literally smell the intense level of chakra that flowed all around her, waiting at her beck and call. Furthermore, her lifeless, pupiless, near alien lavender tinted silver eyes marked her unmistakably as a Hyuga Clan member. That knowledge alone was enough to make him tremble, though he did his best to hide it.

He wondered if the others sensed her as well, and if so how they were not all on edge because of it. Hell, the mention of the Hyuga name ought to have them all beyond alert. It was only a matter of time before one of her not-so-gentle-gentle-fists struck one of them, though Kiba sincerely hoped it wouldn't be him. He swallowed, hating his sister with all his being in this very moment for telling him all these awful horror stories of the Hyugas and their powers.

At the time, he merely laughed it off, played it cool, because him meeting a Hyuga was never gonna happen. Not in a million years if he had anything to say about it. Nope, this Inuzuka was just fine with all his organs intact and not in any immediate danger of exploding by touch alone. And he would keep it that way, by avoiding all Hyugas as if they'd contracted the plague.

Now he could only curse and swear to the God's above, praying for them to smite Hana for all her sadistic, story telling torturous ways. He could almost hear her laughter and groaned, 'Become a ninja,' his mom had said, 'It'll be fun!' she'd said.

He'd been ready to quit for good the moment he entered at five, clinging to his mom's arm for dear life as he smelled them for the first time. The distinct scent of Hyuga. Sure enough, not feet from him, was a tall, commandeering man with milky eyes, and Kiba was ashamed to say he'd frozen in terror. His little boy mind flying through every nightmare-causing story his sister had been all too happy to contaminate his mind with. He was fairly certain a few feet was far too close to be to them.

He'd been about three seconds from throwing himself at the ground in anguish, screeching and pleading for them to 'not make his bladder explode-literally' and shame himself eternally when he'd spotted her. A tiny, fragile looking mess of a girl cowering behind the milky-eyed man's legs as if they'd shield her from abomination if they had to, practically a mirror image of himself at the moment.

He remembered his boyish eyes blinking, almost shocked to see a Hyuga looking so very...normal. He'd entirely forgotten about his fear for that moment, and though her presence unnerved him and the knowledge that they'd be enrolling together was anything but comforting, he'd decided to go on with becoming a ninja anyway. If a plague ridden Hyuga could do it, so could he.

Of course, it would be years later when he'd laugh off this encounter, though his paranoid state of mind caused him to still completely avoid her at all costs up until this moment. This moment were the god's damned him, and his once shadow of a fear which had stemmed from a five year old's horror, now grew exponentially once again.

He had never considered the possibility of having her for a teammate, considering how very many others were included.

However he blinked at the memory, what was she even doing here at the academy? He knew all Hyugas trained in private, mastering their own styles with a brutal training regimen most ninja could not handle. Perhaps she was abandoned? Perhaps she deserted?

He might never know, but for now he contented himself with looking as aloof as possible. As if he really didn't give a damn either way of his sensei, nor his teammates, nor his suffocating fear. As if the small girl in front of him was not making him regret getting up this morning. As if it didn't bother him that those eyes poured into him, and was all too capable of pinpointing his every flaw and weakness.

Regardless introductions were made, all of which Kiba noted but didn't indicate so. When at last his turn came, he only smirked, baring his canine like teeth, daring them to fear him as he jutted a thumb out to indicate himself.

"I am Kiba of the Inuzuka Clan." He declared proudly, boasting of his confidence and status. Now he indicated to the pup hidden beneath the folds of his thick grey coat, the pup was irritable to say the least, and let out a feral growl. Kiba shrugged, Akamaru was right to suspect any strangers he came upon, and who was he to stop him, especially with a Hyuga around. He was clearly the perfect example of man's best friend.

"And this, is my partner, Akamaru."

Shino merely nodded, his tinted sunglasses glinting suspiciously and Kiba got a strange sensation to shudder under his gaze. It was as though he was inspecting him like some sort of specimen, watching him like an insect he intended to capture and study. An uncomfortable feeling to say the least.

It was Hinata who actually spoke, though she did so with her chin to her chest, fingers fumbling in a nervous habit, as if he had scorned her, as if he had ridiculed her. He had done no such thing, but still felt a sense of guilt overcome him. And then those unsettling eyes peeked at him from her indigo lashes.

"Y-your d-d-dog...He is s-s-so c-cute."

Cute.

Akamaru had never ever been described as 'cute'. He was a nin-dog. A force to be reckoned with. A feral beast when provoked. Sure, he may be rather fun-sized now, but any and all nin-dogs, Inuzuka dogs especially, would soon become a monstrous behemoth to which he would partake in epic battle with one day.

In short, He was definitely not 'cute'.

And yet that was what she had described him as anyway, even if Akamaru had done nothing but growl and hiss from the folds of his coat at her. An intimidating sight even when partially concealed and pint sized. Kiba knew the face he gave her was a mix of outright shock and general disdain at such a stinging insult, to which she huddled even farther into the confines of her equally as thick jacket, as if to hide from his reaction.

To an Inuzuka, a man's dog is like a part of him, and whatever someone thought of his dog, went for him as well. He was definitely not cute either.

She was intimidated by him, though that didn't surprise him. It seemed like she was intimidated by everything. Which did not go unnoticed by Kiba when she jumped when Kurenai clapped her hands together, drawing each of her new students her attention.

Kiba's eyes narrowed as he took in her clearly forced smile, a sign that she was not enjoying this insufferable awkwardness anymore than they were. Regardless, she seemed determine to hide it as she continued.

"Isn't that nice? Well, I'm Kurenai and I will be your sensei from now on. Now, why don't you all tell me what you hope to achieve as a ninja?"

More awkward silence, until Shino finally spoke up about wanting to become some sort of legendary bug wielder or something. Kiba could care less about that right now, it was his time to shine after all.

"What do I want as a ninja? Well, I guess I can only ask to become the strongest ever." He replied simply, not even blinking twice at the previous unselfish reasons. He was only interested in his own benefit, and everyone else could either help, or get the hell out of his way. Akamaru barked his agreement.

He wasn't exactly sure when that statement change, but he was pretty certain it all began with Hinata's last sentence.

She was stumbling, stammering, tripping over her words. Her head bent down low, eyes focused on her feet though they shifted unsettlingly, her fingers tapping together in a nervous manner. Her very being exuded awkwardness and insecurity. She was something to be pitied, something to be looked down upon, someone who had no backbone, no resolve, nor hope.

A broken girl. In need of a protector.

"W-well...I-I only r-really w-want t-to make my f-father and m-my clan p-proud as h-heir."

In that instant he felt guilty as hell for ever looking down upon her, for pitying her, for believing her pathetic. She was noble, with a goal to be proud of, even if she was much less than that. Even he could understand a burden of living up to a clan's high standards, though he himself was not crown prince of the Inuzuka's. It was almost a personal expectation, to make his clan as strong as it could with all his heart and soul.

But he knew Hinata's story would be different somehow. She was heir, after all. And heir's, above all else, had to be the epitome of the clan's power. Her burden was far more intense than his own, even as he too, struggled along just attempting to live up to his clan's proud name. He was a fool for thinking less of her, and suddenly, those watery silvery, bloodline trait eyes weren't as scary as he originally thought.

Somewhere in those murky depths, he knew he'd find a fire so strong it would blow her clan away, it simply had to be ignited.

His fists clenched, and he knew without a doubt he would be her unnamed protector and devote himself to aiding her ignite said flame.

...

Hinata, for her part, was equally as terrified of him as he were of her. Though she would never be able to see it by simply looking at him.

Her heart was racing at a unhealthy pace, and she knew if she couldn't calm down she'd most likely faint. But looking at her new teammates, she couldn't help but feel a hint of fear. Shino wasn't so bad, now that she examined him closer, but his concealed eyes unnerved her so. And the very mention of the infamous insects nesting within his body gave her an awful queasy feeling in her stomach.

Kiba was worse. Even if the small dog helped comfort her, Kiba in himself was a sight almost akin to monstrous. She stole glances at him at times, and couldn't help but hone in on his canine like teeth, slitted eyes, and deceptively normal hands that she knew would elongate into claws in a moments notice.

She forced her to take in small breaths, ignoring how very shallow they were. She had seen them both before, of course, around the Academy. She hadn't liked what she saw then either. Kiba was a roughhousing, brutal beast; and Shino was the unnerving, intellectual insect collector.

And who was she? The abandoned princess of her proud clan? The reject child? The one that was always unwanted?

No one noticed her then, and she was fine with that. But now...now everyone was noticing her, and she was caving under their stares. She knew what was expected of her, be polite, be friendly, and above all, be useful, but suddenly she felt her newfound resolve slipping once again. She was failing them once again, failing her comrades, failing their expectations, failing her clan and they hadn't even began their first training session together.

Why did it have to be them? Why them, who looked so very terrifying without even trying? Sasuke Uchiha would've been far preferable, at least she knew his aloof nature would allow her to go unnoticed. Shikamaru would be better, who would be having to much of a drag to bother with her. Even Choji would've been the best, at least he was friendly and wouldn't disturb her quietness with his food devouring nature.

Wait, was that her imagination, or had Kiba's slitted eyes soften just the slightest bit?

Hinata was tempted to use her Byakugan, if only to see through his tough guy facade to see what was the source of that softness. She needed it to be real. She had dealt with nothing but stern faces and grimaces all her life from her strict clan's upbringing, she didn't need more of it.

But those eyes...Was their a cuddly puppy underneath the vicious hound's exterior? Hinata didn't know, but she knew she'd find out for herself one day. They were teammates after all.

So there they were. The dog lover, the bug hoarder, and the forgotten princess. Misfits, rejects, outcasts. The thought was a cold comfort to Hinata, for at least if she were in a team, it would be a team of people just like her. A team of the unwanted.

...