Disclaimer - None of the Naruto characters portrayed within this work of fiction belong to me. So don't sue me for any money you think I'm making because let me tell you, I'm not making anything.

A/N - Hello to everyone. I'm glad so many of you enjoyed the last chapter of this little story, so I decided to add another. Hope you like it.

Waiting on Fate
Chapter Two
Reintroductions and Graduations

Shino always seemed to find the strangest things when he was in the forest outside Konoha's protective gates. For example, one time he found a spider web that was larger than he was, and filled hundreds and hundreds of little baby spiders. And then there was the time that he found a rare firefly that blinked red instead of yellow. His father had said that that particular species was hardly ever seen, and that it was a sign of good luck that he had found it. But his favorite was when he and his mother had been gathering some special tree bark used for medicine and he found a hollow log that was full of small, white cocoons. The butterflies were just starting to emerge from their encasings, and he and his mother had watched as each and every one of the fragile creatures entered into the new world and stretched their glistening wings for the first time before flying off.

So when he came across the Inuzuka siblings one evening while helping his father gather millipedes, Shino wasn't all that surprised. The nine year old boy silently watched from his spot high in the tree branches as a thirteen year old Hana tried to show Kiba how to channel his chakra into his hands. It did not seem like the lesson was going all that well, however. He could sense the massive amounts of chakra that Kiba was having trouble keeping control of once he managed to get it channeled into his hands. A few of his kikai bugs stirred restlessly as well, further proof that the waves of errant chakra were thick in the air.

"Try again, Kiba," Hana said, using her own hands to position his fingers in the proper places, "When you get to that sign, stop. We'll go from there once I check what you've done so far."

"Okay," Kiba said, the determination in his voice obvious. Shino watched as his classmate's hands began to pulsate with a faint blue light.

"Good," Hana said gently. "Now go through the seals again, slowly this time." Kiba complied and began to go through the hand seals they had been taught in Academy. But whatever jutsu he was in the middle of was obviously incomplete, as the young boy seemed to lose control of the chakra after the sixth or seventh seal, allowing the blue light to slowly die out.

"Ahhh, drats!" Kiba groused.

"It's okay. Looks like you need to work on your chakra molding a little more so you can sustain what you pull out. Otherwise you're gonna tire out quickly." Hana said, a contemplative look on her face. "But hey! At the rate you're going, you'll have the Four-Legs Technique down in no time."

"Really?" Kiba asked, grinning up at his sister.

"Sure thing." Hana said approvingly, ruffling his hair affectionately. "Iruka-sensei's went over the other six seals, right?"

"Yeah. I got'em figured out." Kiba said proudly.

"Alright. Show me." she ordered. Kiba plopped down in front of her, legs crossed, and quickly demonstrated the signs they had practiced in class. Hana stopped him once or twice, rearranging his fingers to make the seals more tight and compact. Shino watched carefully as the two sibling continued on working together. It wasn't unheard of for family members to teach the younger members of their clan special jutsus that had been developed over the years. His own father had already shown him two or three of the simpler ones he could control. And it seemed like Hana had taken it on herself to help Kiba with his chakra manipulation with the Inuzuka family techniques.

Underneath his skin, his kikai were beginning to get agitated. They could feel the waves of chakra that Kiba and Hana had released, and were itching to drink it up. Shino idly wondered what the Inuzuka sibling's chakra would taste like.

That was one of the side effects of his bugs. They lived off of chakra, and they weren't too particular when it came to who they were feeding from. As such, when the bugs drank in someone else's chakra, then burrowed back into his body, Shino would often get an aftertaste of sorts. He had noticed some months ago that his father's chakra left a sharp aftertaste, where as his mother's was so sweet it was almost sickening to his stomach. There were a few others he had managed to characterize as well. Iruka-sensei's chakra was mildly mellow, and that red eyed Jounin lady's was an equal mix of sweet and spicy.

The Aburame boy debated for a few more minutes, but finally made up his mind and sent two of his kikai towards the oblivious siblings. The two bugs settled unnoticed onto Hana's shoulder and Kiba's head. Shino sent them a silent command to suck just a little of the errant chakra around them, and then return to him. The beetles did as commanded, and were quickly back in Shino's palm. The little bug that had landed on Kiba crawled back under his coat first, burrowing quickly under his skin to rejoin his hive mates.

Shino waited for the familiar jolt as the chakra pulled off Kiba assimilated into his body. A few seconds later, the poor boy was almost thrown from the tree top from the sour taste that his bugs had picked up. Shino righted himself silently, wondering if he'd been spotted or sensed. Luckily, neither Kiba nor Hana seemed to notice anything different. Shino looked down at the other bug clinging to his sleeve, wondering if it was worth the risk of finding out what Hana's chakra tasted like since people in the same family tended to have similar chakra signatures. He braced for the shock of sour to his system, but was surprised when he tasted a mix of dense flavors. It was almost as if the bug had sucked chakra from a host of people instead of just one. It was mild one minute, then spicy and dense, then sour, then sweet and light. He wondered if maybe there had been a mistake and the bug had picked up chakra somewhere else, but hadn't digested it. That would explain the myriad of tastes he was sensing.

Shino was on the verge of sending another bug towards Hana, just because he wanted to verify what he had found, when his bugs alerted him that his father was currently on his way and looking for him. Shino frowned slightly, reluctant to leave his post, but realizing that he still had work to finish. He glanced down at the siblings one more time, taking note that they had forgone the hand seal work and were now in the middle of simple hand to hand combat, an area that Kiba excelled at.

At that moment, Kiba had knocked the heck out of Hana, and the girl was in the process of getting to her feet so she could defend herself. Shino expected her to be angry with Kiba for getting a hit in. But if anything, she looked happy, even going so far as to point out a few weaknesses in his posture, which he readily corrected before coming at her again…this time with Akamaru on his heels. They exchanged blows for a few seconds before Hana manipulated Kiba into a headlock that he couldn't break. Akamaru tried to help his partner, but Hana just used her foot to lightly step on the puppy's tail, stopping him from going anywhere.

Between the dog's whining and Kiba's growling, Shino didn't know whether to laugh or be concerned for the girl. His question was quickly answered when Hana let Kiba go, and the boy tackled her headfirst, effectively starting a wrestling match that didn't look like it was going to end anytime soon. Even Hana's three grey dogs decided to jump in, all three of them quickly piling up on top of Kiba, who was on top of Hana. Akamaru, never one to be left out, hopped on top of the topmost Haimaru triplett and let out a yip of superiority. The siblings broke down into laughter once again, and Shino finally took leave of his spot.

It wouldn't do for his father to catch him watching his classmate roughhousing with his sister while he was supposed to be doing work.

The moves and techniques Shino had seen Hana practicing with Kiba in the forest that day had factored highly into Kiba's ability to graduate from the Academy…especially since he had the tendency to take off with the blonde Uzumaki boy when Iruka-sensei or one of the other teachers had their backs turned.

The informal graduation ceremony that was held for the Academy students who had been accepted as genins was just getting started when Shino spotted Tsume-san speaking with his mother and father, but no Kiba in sight. That in itself was not much of a surprise, especially since Kiba had made it well known that he was more than happy to be out of the Academy. Shino could relate to the louder boy's feelings though. He too was glad to finally be placed as a genin. The newest shinobi of the Aburame clan glanced around the room one more time, realizing that the only people other than himself remaining in the room were the parents of the new rookie nine. He adjusted his sunglasses and slipped through the classroom door, heading for the noise he could hear plainly over the usual sounds of the evening katydids and cicadas. He soon found himself looking around the corner of the building at the other nine rookies sprawled out in various places on the playground equipment used by the younger students.

"They don't bite you know," came an amused voice behind him. Shino whirled around, kikai instinctively beginning to swarm from his body, the command to attack on his lips when he realized exactly who had managed to sneak up on him. Leaning casually up against the wall, three grey dogs milling around her feet, was Hana Inuzuka. The girl was smiling at him, and Shino had to tamp down the redness that was beginning to gather in his cheeks in embarrassment. After a few long seconds of battle, the fight was won, and he was sure that he'd kept himself from turning into a reasonable facsimile of a cherry.

"Hana-san," he said, giving a slight bow. "I did not realize you were back there."

"Obviously not," she said, nodding to the bugs that were swarming around him agitatedly. "You weren't actually going to attack me, were you?" Shino felt his face start turning red again, but couldn't help it. That's exactly what he had intended to do to her.

"It is not wise to surprise a member of my clan like that," he said calmly, turning his attention back to the eight Genins lounging on the playground equipment. "The bugs are not easy to control when they are startled."

"I'll remember that next time," she shrugged. "So why are you standing here when your classmates are over there?"

"No reason." he answered. "Why are you here?"

"Because I don't want to be over there. Especially not in a few seconds." she grinned, patting him absently on the shoulder. Now Shino was curious. What was she planning?

"Why?" he asked.

"Because I left a little surprise for my brother and his buddies," the teenage girl said, waggling her eyebrows and gesturing towards the tree where Akamaru and Kiba were sprawled underneath. "Watch."

Shino, completely unsure of what she was talking about, but reluctant to leave her side, glanced at the tree, waiting for something to happen. About ten seconds later, there was a small explosion along one of the walls of the Academy. The sound and smoke quickly grabbed the other eight rookie's attention, which was exactly what Hana wanted apparently, because she cackled and palmed a kunai. With a flick of her wrist, the blade was sailing through the air, cutting through two pieces of practically invisible string usually used to set traps. Shino watched in morbid fascination as the sagging lines dropped, allowing two different buckets of smoke bombs to fall from their precarious perches deep within the trees surrounding the area. The playground quickly filled up with smoke, and Shino could hear the other eight rookies coughing and hacking as they tried to find their way out of the surprise attack. Before they could get very far, there was a succession of splats. A split second later, Kiba's voice could be heard above the hacking and choking.

'NEE-CHAN!'

Behind him, Hana cackled evilly.

"I think it's time for me to go." she chuckled. Shino was about to agree when he felt her shove him sideways, out of the way of a kunai that had obviously been aimed for one of them. Shino blanched, and even Hana suddenly looked a bit worried in the split second they realized that there was an explosive tag on the handle. Shino just remembered thinking there was no way he could summon enough of his bugs to shield him from the explosion at so close a range. He heard the brunette on his side curse, then felt someone grab his wrist none too gently. Before he could blink, and before the bugs surrounding him could retaliate in any way, Shino was looking down as the fog of smoke began to dissipate. It took him a few seconds to realize that Hana had transported both of them to the roof, and safely out of harm's way.

'HANA! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!'

That would be Kiba, Shino realized.

"If he's got to ask that, how the hell did he make genin?" Hana mumbled, peeking over the roof and down into the chaotic mess she had caused. Shino glanced over as well, and could see that all his classmates, except for Sasuke, were in some state of distress. Sakura and Ino were bent over, coughing their heads off. Kiba, who was covered in green paint, had Akamaru on his head and was scanning the area for any sign of Hana. Hinata was fanning the smoke away from her face, and Shikamaru was beating Chouji on the back, trying to get the boy some fresh air.

"I think we better move out, Shino-chan," Hana said quickly. "Kiba might be a bit slow at times, but when Akamaru picks up a scent, he's going to find us."

"I did not do anything," Shino deadpanned, not liking how he was suddenly implicated in her little prank. All he had been doing was taking a walk!

"I know that. And you know that. But they don't," she said quietly, jerking her thumb towards the ground. "And I doubt Kiba's gonna be in any mood to ask questions. That paint is itchy as hell while it's drying."

"You are evil," Shino pointed out. Hana snickered.

'HANA! YOU BITCH! GET OUT HERE!'

"I know," she agreed. "Now come on. Let's get back to the reception before they find us. I made him mad, but Kiba wouldn't dare start anything in front of all the adults."

"It has never stopped him before," Shino retorted.

"Well, if it was just our okaa-san, it wouldn't matter. She's used to us fighting," Hana said, glancing warily down at the other genins. "But we're supposed to be on our best behavior in public."

"And pranking them is good behavior?"

"Why do you think I set up away from all the adults and sensei's?" she asked mysteriously. Well, Shino couldn't argue with that logic. Pushing some chakra into their legs, both of them jumped across the roof and down onto the ground near the entrance of the Academy. "Well, that was fun. Wasn't it, Shino-chan?"

The Aburame boy just looked at her like she was crazy, not saying anything. Hana didn't seem to notice that he didn't respond, and quickly straightened out her clothing and retied her long hair back in its customary high pony tail. Shino suddenly had a fleeting thought that she looked pretty with her hair pulled back, but even better when it was hanging loose. He shook his head and dispelled those thoughts. What was he thinking? This girl was nuts! And childishly immature to boot! She was a chunin for god's sake, and she was pulling a prank on genins?

So much for his opinion on her not being that bad of a person.

"Umm, you're not going to rat me out, are you Shino-chan?" Hana asked nervously, his silence obviously making her a bit uncomfortable. "It was all in good fun, really. None of them got hurt, I promise. Kiba's just gonna be itchy...but he needed a bath anyway."

Shino watched her squirm uncomfortably as he continued to look at her through his dark glasses. She almost looked apologetic, but not quite. He could still see that she had no intention of apologizing for what she had done. And even the Aburame had to admit that the prank was well thought out. It was common for the older Academy students to lounge around the playground when they weren't busy. Hana apparently realized that as well, and had managed to take assessment of the situation and set her prank accordingly. He had to admit, she was good. Although he doubted Kiba would have the same sentiments at that moment.

'DAMN YOU, HANA! WHEN I FIND YOU I'M GONNA...'

Yeah. Kiba definitely wasn't having any good thoughts about his sister right now.

He suddenly wished he had a sibling he could have fun with, like she did with Kiba. Shino had realized months ago that despite their tendency to be loud and at times annoying, Kiba and Hana were indeed very close to each other. He envied their relationship, and how they were so affectionate with each other. Shino had seen when Hana would put her arms around Kiba and show him how to form the hand seals of one of the family jutsus, or how Kiba would purposely act whiny and attach himself to her when there was something he wanted her to do for him. The ease and means with which they communicated amongst each other was odd to him.

The Aburame clan were not a heartless or cruel clan. They had feelings and emotions, and more often than not, expressed those sides of their personality with their family members. But even then, they weren't the touchy-feely sort who believed in casual physical contact. The Inuzuka's on the other hand, seemed to be complete opposites. More than once Kiba had clapped him on the back during their training, sending his kikai into an agitated hiss. And he had seen Hana give hugs out to her teammates on the rare times the three of them had been together. It was almost like touching someone was an inborn trait in all the dog clan members. Shino was pretty sure if anyone in his family was like that towards him, he'd probably go nuts from them touching him all the time.

"Shino-chan?" Hana asked carefully, biting her bottom lip in nervousness. She looked so worried.

"No," he answered finally, adjusting his sunglasses. "I won't say anything." Hana beamed in delight and leaned down to give him a peck on the cheek before turning to walk away.

"I don't care what the others say. You're the best, Shino-chan," she called back, heading towards the reception room.

Shino just stood rooted to the same spot until she disappeared around the corner.

What had she…

A girl just…

Hana Inuzuka just kissed him!

He raised a hand and wiped it across his face, noticing the heat that had pooled in his cheeks, and the excited buzz of his companions as they reacted to his embarrassment. Shino knew he was blushing this time, and quickly pushed his hands into his pockets and done his best to hide his cherry-red face behind the high collar of his jacket before anyone took too much notice. He headed back to the reception room, following the path Hana had taken less than thirty seconds before.

'Maybe the physical contact isn't so bad after all….' he thought ruefully, a small grin on his face. He suddenly didn't think getting used to being around someone like Hana would be all that bad.

When the genin teams had been announced not long after that, and Shino realized that he was paired up with Kiba, his outward reaction was as bland and accepting as ever. But on the inside, he was silently pleased. Of course, that was until Kurenai-sensei realized that Kiba was the least punctual of the three genins. After a week of the boy being late for training, the jounin had told Shino to stop by the Inuzuka compound on the way to training to make sure Kiba got where he needed to be on time.

This morning was no different. Shino looked up at the tall gate that led into the main portion of the Inuzuka compound, wondering if going in without a guide was a good idea. True, he'd been into the place on numerous occasions since Kurenai-sensei had given him the task of making sure Kiba got to training on time everyday. But never before had he seen a pair of monstrous white dogs lying on each side of the door where Kiba lived. The bug wielder could tell that the large dogs had already sensed his and Hinata's presence, and were feigning sleep in an attempt to lull them into a false sense of security.

"Are w-we going t-to go in, S-Shino-kun?" Hinata asked timidly from his right side. The thirteen year old Aburame looked warily at the white dogs, thinking Hinata had pick a bad morning to accompany him to retrieve their punctually-challenged teammate.

"I…."

"Shino-chan? Hinata-chan?" a feminine voice called out. Shino glanced up from the guard dogs, locking eyes with none other than the seventeen year old sister of Kiba. Hana smiled and opened the door wider, motioning for them to come through the gate. She was dressed in her customary black shorts and cut-off tank top, her long hair pulled back into a high ponytail that fell almost to her waist. "Come on in. Don't mind these two lugs. They won't hurt you." The brown headed girl deposited two large bowls of dog food off to the side, and the white canines yipped happily, heading over to their breakfast. Shino waited until the two dogs were occupied before heading towards the main house. Akamaru he was used to. Even Hana's three dogs and her mother's cycloptic canine were used to him coming around. But he was wary of the new additions to the Inuzuka clan, and was not willing to take any chances on being attacked. "Good morning, chibis. Here to get Kiba, huh?"

"Y-yes, Hana-san." Hinata said quietly, eyes downcast shyly. "Kurenai-sensei told us y-yesterday to make s-s-sure Kiba-kun made it to tr-training on t-time this morning."

"The louse hasn't gotten up yet. If you'll wait, I'll go get him for you." Hana offered.

"It would be appreciated, Hana-san." he answered, giving the elder girl a slight bow.

"Not a problem," she said easily. The brown headed Inuzuka gave them a toothy grin, then showed them to the kitchen. "There's still some sweetbread and tea on the counter if you two want something to eat before training. Or if you want to grab some for a snack later on, help yourself. Give me a minute and Kiba'll be down." Shino didn't miss the spark in her eyes as she headed for the stairs, taking them two at a time. He groaned internally, knowing exactly what was about to happen.

"I suggest you plug your ears, Hinata-chan," Shino said calmly, causing his teammate to look up at him in confusion.

"W-why, Shino-kun?" she asked quietly. Since this was the first time she had accompanied him to drag Kiba to practice, Shino wondered exactly how the quiet girl would react to Hana's unorthodox version of a wake-up call.

"The Inuzuka siblings have a rather……"

Crash

Bang

'NEE-CHAN! WHADDA YA' THINK YOU'RE DOIN'!'

'Let's go, runt!'

Growl

Bark

Thump

"…odd way of rousing their family members up in the morning time."

'ITAI! LEGGO MY HAIR, BAKA! LEGGO!'

'If you'd get up already, I wouldn't have to do this!'

"W-what is she d-doing to K-Kiba-kun?" Hinata asked, wide eyed as she peeked around the corner to peer up the steps leading to the second floor of the compound. Shino had no doubt that the girl was thinking about what would happen if someone were to make that kind of noise in her own family's home. She would undoubtedly be reprimanded fiercely for such uncouth behavior. Of course, since Shino's clan also valued the quiet, albeit for a different reason altogether, he found it quite amusing to see a sleepy Kiba get roughed up by his sister on a regular basis.

'THAT'S COOOOOOLLLLLDDDDD!'

It really added a certain kind of charm to the otherwise dull routine of his mornings.

'I warned you, brat! Let's go!'

'Leave me alone!'

A loud whistle pierced the air, and Shino pulled Hinata out before she was knocked over by three grey blurs bounding up the stairs.

'WHAT! NO FAIR!'

"W-w-what was that?" Hinata asked, hand on her chest to still her beating heart.

'NO BITING, HANA! GET'EM OFFA ME!'

"The Haimaru tTriplets," Shino said, setting the petite girl back on her feet as another round of breaking objects was heard upstairs, along with a litany of curses from Kiba that had Hinata blushing scarlet. "Kaimaru, Nezumaru, and Gureimaru. They are to Hana-san what Akamaru is to Kiba."

"Oh. I-I understand, " Hinata said, giving him a hesitant smile. Shino just nodded, taking note that it had grown eerily quiet up the stairs. He strained his ears, and could very slightly hear the sound of footsteps as they descended the steps, along with a tell-tale thump after each step. Shino adjusted his glasses and watched as a grinning Hana walked into the kitchen…dragging their teammate behind her. Hinata gasped when the other girl swung their half-asleep teammate around, depositing him at their collective feet.

"….damned pain in my ass, nee-chan!" Kiba muttered, still glaring up at his sibling. Akamaru barked in agreement. Hana just grinned and mussed his already disarrayed hair before reaching over to toss him a box of food.

"So you've told me before. Now, there's your breakfast, brat. Eat it on the way to meet your sensei," Hana said as Kiba picked himself up off the ground. "And your lunch is in there too." Shino watched covertly as she grabbed the standard issue green vest and slipped it on her shoulders, fastening it into place before grabbing a pack that was by the door and calling the triplets back to her.

"Wher'a' gon' sucha 'urry?" Kiba asked, crumbs spraying all over the place.

"Chew, swallow, and try again." Hana said, rolling her eyes. Shino cleared his throat at Kiba's manners, and Hinata just blushed. They needed to get going, or all of them were going to be late. Kurenai-sensei wouldn't be happy then.

"I asked where you were going in such a hurry." Kiba repeated after swallowing the mouthful of food he'd bitten off. Shino wondered idly if Kiba had slept in his clothes from the day before, because the dog-loving boy just grabbed his usual fur-lined grey jacket and slipped it on over what he was already wearing.

"Mission," she answered briskly, ushering them out the door and locking it after the last dog exited. "Oh, and okaa-san said for you to get home early tonight because tou-san wants to talk to us about something before he takes off for another mission in Thunder Country with his ANBU squadron. He just dropped by to give okaa-san a progress report on everyone up north."

'Tou-san? Their father is here?' Shino wondered, glancing over at the two white dogs who were still munching happily on their kibble. 'That's odd. I thought their parents were…separated.' Of course, he used the word separated lightly. It was a well known fact that Tsume Inuzuka was the eldest child of the previous clan heads, and as such the natural born leader of the family despite her gender.

Not long after being teamed up with Kiba, Shino had began to wonder why the boy's father was never seen. At first, he had thought that Kiba's father had died in combat. And that theory stuck for a while considering the Inuzuka clan, like the Aburame, was made up primarily of shinobi. But then one day, when Team 8 had been leaving the training field, someone had muttered something about Kiba being the son of a…

Well, to be truthful, Shino never heard the rest because he was busy pulling a snarling Kiba off the older Genin while Hinata forcibly withheld Akamaru from biting the arrogant boy. After Kurenai and the other Genin's team leader had intervened and gotten things calmed down, Shino realized that maybe his assumption about Kiba's father was off. So, he done the next best thing and asked his own father why Kiba had reacted so violently to the insult thrown at his father, considering it seemed like the man in question was not even alive in the first place.

Shibi Aburame had not seemed to happy to hear the question, and even more reluctant to answer it. But had explained that Kiba's father was an outsider who had been initiated into the family when he married Tsume Inuzuka, even going so far as to drop his own family name and take on the clan's name. But the man wound up being far from loyal to his wife, and not long after Kiba was born, Tsume's youngest sister found out she was pregnant. Rumor had it that Kiba's father Masato was the one who had impregnated Kegawa Inuzuka. And when the young boy was born, bearing golden hair and dark green eyes identical to Masato's, the truth had come out. Both Kegawa and Masato had admitted to the affair, and the Inuzuka clan was thrown into an uproar, the likes of which had never been seen before. Tsume had been given the task of deciding what to do about it, since Masato's blatant betrayal had nullified their marriage in the eyes of the dog clan. Most of the elder members were clamoring for Masato's death and Kegawa's exile from the family. And Tsume, filled with righteous rage and hurt at being betrayed by her sister and husband, had ordered exactly that. But, fortunately enough for the guilty parties, something happened before the orders could be carried out all the way.

That something…..was Hana.

Shino had expressed his surprise. Wondering how Hana, at four years old, could overrule the leader of her own clan. Shibi had shaken his head and related the rest of the story somberly to his only child.

The entire clan, minus the children, had gathered in the main room of the compound, with a scorned Tsume presiding over them all. Masato and Kegawa had been brought forward, their young son cradled in his mother's arms. The charges were brought against them, and they had said nothing. Their only request had been, that whatever their punishment may be, that their son Satoshi be left out of it. Tsume had grudgingly agreed with the request, realizing that the baby was not at fault for his parent's actions.

At this point, Shibi Aburame had stopped the story and turned his gaze outside the window of their house, a scowl on his usually passive face. Shino wondered what was wrong, and was about to ask why he had stopped when his mother picked up the narrative.

She explained that Masato's death had been ordered, and Kegawa's exile from the clan and Konoha. Kegawa had been led away, but Masato had been left alone in the center of the floor. Tsume had left her spot at the head table, knuckles cracking and killing intent radiating throughout the compound. As head of the clan, she was the one who was supposed to execute Masato. The guilty man had said nothing, just stared at the angry woman until she stood before him. No words had been spoken between them. He had accepted his fate. But Tsume, who had been known to break a an enemy nin's neck with one punch, was feeling anything but merciful. Fueled by rage, hurt, and vindictiveness, she lashed out at him.

But then the miracle happened, his mother said gently.

Hana had gotten away from her sitter and hidden herself well enough in the throng of clan members that no one even knew she was there. And when she saw her mother fighting with her father, she come flying into the center of the room as fast as her little legs could carry her. Hana had latched onto her father, who was covered in blood, and started yelling at her mother for hurting him. Tsume seemed to come back to herself when she realized that Hana was in the way. She tried pulling the clinging, crying girl off of Masato, but Hana refused to budge, even going so far as to bite whoever tried to move her. Masato even tried to reason with his daughter, saying that everything would be okay, and that he loved her and Kiba.

But Hana was having none of it. She continued to cry, yelling at her mother and causing all kind of racket. At her father's feet, the Haimaru pups had started snarling and biting, refusing to cooperate with any of the Inuzuka members who tried to intervene. Finally, when it seemed like she had cried herself out, Tsume managed to wrangle her away from Masato. But Hana had cried so much she had made herself sick. She latched onto Tsume, begging her mother not hurt her father.

Hana had said, in broken words and a voice hoarse from bawling, that whatever her father had done, he could apologize and everything would be fine. She had choked out that she didn't want her father to be hurt because who was going to teach her how to climb trees and help train her dogs? And how was she ever going to learn how to track and hunt like he did if he wasn't there? And who was going to tell her all the great stories about ANBU missions? And who was going to watch her and Kiba when Tsume was gone on a mission for weeks? The list went on and on, with Hana babbling tiredly.

But something had snapped in Tsume by then, Shino's mother explained . Some thought for the longest time that she finally realized what she was doing, and couldn't believe she had let things go that far. Others thought that Hana's plaintive begging had triggered her mother's merciful side. And still others speculated that the gods had indeed stepped in and put a stop to what would have been Masato's death. But whatever happened, whatever stopped her, it saved him. Instead of dying and being exiled, Kegawa and Masato were sent to the northernmost territories of Fire Country where a branch of the Inuzuka family was in need of someone to lead their clan and act as a liaison to the main clan section in Konoha.

Shino thought it odd that Tsume would seemingly reward the man that betrayed her by sending him on such an important job, and told his mother so. His father, however, was the one to respond. The elder Aburame explained that being sent to the mountainous regions up north was no reward. He also said that along with Masato, Kegawa and their son, Tsume sent six of the clan elders to make sure things were going as they should be. Ever since then, Masato showed up in the village once every four months or so to give a progress report to Tsume about what was going on. He also showed up when it was time for Kiba's or Hana's birthdays, or special times like when they graduated from the Academy or made Chunin. But other than that, he stayed away.

Shino had asked his father why Tsume had changed her mind after seeing Hana cry, but his father had only said that Tsume was not a cruel woman at heart, and never had been. And he believed that Hana's tears had made her realize that if Masato was killed, not only would Hana and Kiba lose their father, but so would Satoshi. Shibi said that he didn't think Tsume could carry the fact that if she killed Masato out of a skewed sense of vengeance, that Hana would remember it, and hold it against her for life.

That had made sense to Shino, as had the explanation. But there was still one thing left bugging him after it was all over with, and his father had left to take care of clan business. So, he tracked down his mother, who had been working in her garden, and asked how they knew what had happened during Masato's trial if only Inuzuka members had been allowed in the compound. Hotaru Aburame had sighed and set her gloves aside, beckoning Shino to sit on a nearby bench while she kneeled down to his level. She also informed him that both Shibi and herself had been in the compound the day of the trial, so had seen first hand exactly what had transpired, and how it all played out in the end. The brunette woman had sighed and explained that Tsume and his father had been on the same team as Genins, and were often still paired for missions. She told him how his father had reacted to finding out the truth of how Masato had hurt Tsume, and how the usually calm man had been on the verge of ordering his destruction bugs to swarm Masato and suck every bit of chakra out of him. But Shibi hadn't retaliated on the other man, figuring if Tsume could forgive such a transgression, then he had no business doing anything to the man.

Shino had walked away from the discussion with his parents with much more insight on exactly why Kiba had reacted the way he had to the slight against the paternal side of his parentage. Had he been in the same situation, Shino wasn't sure exactly what he would do, but he did know that he would have reacted in a similar fashion. It was a complicated situation, yes. But it was not a reason for someone to tease Kiba about it. Shino didn't think it was anyone else's business how Tsume handled the Inuzuka clan. Besides, it seemed like the siblings did get to see their father every now and then, despite their parent's strained relationship. It worked for them all apparently, so who was anyone else to judge?

"….don't know. That's why we have to be there." Hana grunted.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll remember," Kiba yawned, showing just how enthused he was with the prospect of dealing with his father. His drawling words brought Shino back to the land of the living, and the bug wielder quickly pulled his attention back to the task at hand.

"Of course you will," Hana muttered, readjusting her pack and then grinning back at the Shino and Hinata. "Better get going, chibis. Don't wanna be late."

"Hana-san is c-correct. We need t-to go," Hinata murmured.

"Yeah, yeah, let's go," Kiba grumbled, tucking his box of food into his coat.

"Well then, until next time, Hinata-chan, Shino-chan," Hana said warmly, waving to them as she took off in the opposite direction, towards the Hokage's tower. Kiba just huffed.

"Don't know who she's calling chan," he muttered petulantly. "I'm not a little kid no more! I'm thirteen!" On top of his head, Akamaru sounded in agreement with a short bark. Hinata, now away from the other girl, actually giggled at the dark scowl on Kiba's face while she tried to cheer him up. Shino however, neglected to point out the obvious fact that Hana was almost five years older than all of them. And as such, would probably continue to refer to them as chibis for some time longer. Stickler for proper manners though the Aburame clan was, the teenage bug wielder didn't so much mind when Hana attached the chan suffix to his name, or either of his teammates' names.

What he didn't like was the perpetual whining that it caused from Kiba. Shino silently pondered the possibility of sending some of his chakra eating bugs into the other boy's body with instructions to clip his overused vocal cords. It was quite a tempting idea at the moment. As they crested over the hill, catching sight of Kurenai-sensei when she dropped down from a tree, he realized that he couldn't do something like that to Kiba. Annoying though the boy was at times, he was still a member of Team 8.

'Besides,' he reasoned as they reached their sensei, 'what is the point of volunteering to make sure Kiba gets to training on time in the mornings if I can't hear him yelp like a puppy when Hana-san roughs him over a little bit?'

A/N - Okay, well, here's the latest in this little story. This one's a bit longer than the first chapter, but what the heck! More to read, right? Anyhow, I'll quit rambling and let you good people go for now.

Until next time,

A.A.

Oh, and remember to review. I'd like to know what you are thinking.