Don't Let Me Go, a naruto fanfic

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, because if I did, I'd be filthy rich, and then you wouldn't be able to sue me. XD Ain't I clever?

Ugh…that hurt…he thought as he rose from the rubble that had been hiding him from view. His body ached all over, his back especially because of that stupid ninja's kick from above. After managing to sit up slightly, he pushed the pieces of drywall and cement off of himself, wincing at every slight motion.

He sniffed at the air, trying to figure out the situation as of the moment. Foreign scents bombarded the air, probably from all those invading shinobi. But the few lingering scents from his fellow shinobi brought him hope. Some were marked heavily with the stench of blood, a sickening feeling churned in his stomach.

Tenten's scent was covered with blood, hers and the enemy's. Her weapon-summoning skills were the best, so he didn't have to worry about her. Neji's scent was just covered with the enemy's blood, since he activated his Byakugan before any harm could come to him. Lee's scent didn't change much. Ino must be quite far, her scent was fading; at least her scent wasn't marked by any blood. Shikamaru and Chouji were with her, and they weren't marked with blood either. Kakashi's team was never there to begin with, so he wasn't sure about their status, but he figured they were safe. Shino's smell was covered with bugs, nothing new there, but at least that meant he was also safe.

That left…Hinata. An image of her came up in his mind, that small blush that occasionally crossed her cheeks and those slender twiddling fingers he loved to see. The voice and laughter he loved to hear. He craved to feel her presence but he couldn't see her. Dead silence smothered the village of Konohagakure. Her smell was lost, replaced by one covered in the dreaded stench of red liquid.

She couldn't…he thought. God, please don't let her be… He couldn't even finish the thought. He stood up, ignoring the pain that pierced his body. He limped, his leg bent at a slight angle. Pushing over pieces of rubble that would cover a whole person, he strived to find her. The one girl he loved with his life.

Finally, luck decided to grace him and he found her. Her clothes were stained with blood, he crinkled his nose at the smell. Her beautiful eyes were closed until he bent down and scooped her head in his hand, the other circling around her waist. As she opened her white eyes, he noticed they were beginning to dull. He had been afraid of that.

"K-Kiba-kun?" she whispered hoarsely. He nodded, already choking up as the tears stung his brown eyes.

"Hinata…" he responded. "Oh God." He shut his eyes, squeezing the tears out. They slid down his cheek and splattered onto her hand, spreading out into the little cracks of the dried blood.

"Kiba-kun, don't cry…" she pleaded in her small, gentle voice. He blinked away the tears, swiping at his face with his sleeve. He nodded slowly. "Kiba-kun…I don't know what's going to happen to me…" Kiba felt a lump grow in his throat, and tried hard to swallow it. "I only want one promise…just one…" she said, her voice becoming raspy. "Promise me…"

"Yeah," he responded, finally choking out a word.

"Kiba, why don't you go home?" Naruto asked. They had gotten off lucky. Most of the injuries were minor, and required little medical attention. Naruto only had a broken arm, Lee had several sprains, and Tenten suffered scrapes and bruises. Chouji was suffering from the after effects of those pepper pills he had. Ino was almost trapped within the enemy's mind, but she came back out in time, and was unconscious in the next room. The others were just exhausted from using too much chakra.

They had gone around to check up on their friends, and stayed in Hinata's room the longest. She had been unconscious the entire time. Monitors and IVs created a web of artificial life around her. First Shikamaru and Sakura left, they had almost depleted all their chakra in battle. The others were slowly trickling out of the room. Kiba had been sitting by Hinata's side since she was admitted into the hospital. Everybody was waiting, really, but they had had left one by one. Kiba was the only one who refused to go. Shino and Naruto were the only ones left, but they were getting ready to leave as well.

"Kiba, you should go and rest. You were also injured in the fight," Shino said in his deadpanned voice. True, Kiba had suffered from a fractured leg and had sprained his back, but he ignored the pain.

"I promised her," he replied. That cryptic answer was the only thing he had said all day. The two remaining shinobi shrugged, knowing that they wouldn't get anything else from him anytime soon.

They don't understand…I can't leave her, even if I didn't make that promise…I wouldn't… he thought, squeezing her hand tighter. Her pale skin contrasted with his darker tan, her skin soft and smooth even through rigorous training while his were callused and rough. He clasped her hand between both of his and held them to his forehead, squeezing his eyes shut at the memory.

"Yeah," he responded, finally choking out a word.

"Don't let me go…" she said before she slipped into the welcoming darkness of her subconscious.