A/N: Chapter two is here! Thank you to all who reviewed, followed, and favorited!
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Kiba woke up feeling less tired than he had been for the past month, though he was still somewhat tired. Oh, well. At least he'd gotten some sleep.
Ino was making him get up early so that they could start working with his mind as soon as possible, for as long as possible. Unfortunately, Kiba just wasn't a morning person. He looked at his clock and reluctantly got out of bed with a stretch and a yawn. Akamaru jumped off the bed and did the same.
The pair ran downstairs for breakfast, and Kiba tripped over his feet once or twice in a type of morning daze. They went into the kitchen so he could make some food for himself and Akamaru, who wagged his tail in anticipation.
When Kiba finished preparing their food, he set Akamaru's on the floor and his own on the table, where he took a seat. Tsume, his mother, and Hana, his sister, were already sitting there. The four of them ate in silence until someone spoke up.
"You're up early. For once," Tsume said.
"Yeah. Ino's making me get up early."
"Ino?" Hana asked, confused.
"I'm supposed to go to her house as soon as possible."
"Why? Is she your girlfriend? Are you two going on a date? Or are you going to do something more...physical?"
"What?! No, mom!"
"I was just asking."
"I'm not talking about this with you right now!"
He got up from the table and went back upstairs, Akamaru at his heels. Tsume's eyes followed him out of the room with one eyebrow raised.
"What's up with him?"
Hana shrugged, not quite sure how to answer her mother's question.
Kiba came back down the stairs, fully dressed. He walked out the front door with Akamaru in tow and slammed it behind him. His mother and sister were still sitting at the table,
They went into the village, walking at a leisurely pace. Konoha bustled with life, and the streets were filled with people. It was a sight that was pleasing to see after everything the village had been through.
They continued on their way until Kiba stopped in front of Yamanaka Flowers, the local flower shop that was owned by Ino's family. It had recently been rebuilt after its destruction during Pain's invasion, along with just about every other structure in the village.
"I'll be out in a minute," Kiba told Akamaru, giving him a pat on the head. "Stay here."
He whined.
"Do you wanna go in, too?"
He barked happily.
"Fine."
They went inside and looked around. Akamaru sniffed every bouquet curiously, while Kiba browsed through them carefully and thoughtfully. He paused to inhale deeply, his heightened sense of smell detecting each of the distinct aromas within the shop.
One in particular caught his attention, and he followed the scent until he found the bouquet it belonged to. It looked nice, and it smelled nice, so he bought it and left with his canine companion.
They arrived at Ino's house shortly after visiting the flower shop. Kiba knocked on her door expectantly.
"Hello? Oh, Kiba, it's you," she said, stepping outside.
"You wanted me to get here early, so I did," he replied simply.
"Well, come on inside, then."
The three went inside and situated themselves in the living room similarly to how they had the night before, with Ino and Kiba on the couch, Akamaru on the floor.
"I, uh, I got this for you," Kiba said awkwardly, holding out the bouquet that he'd been hiding behind his back.
"Thank you. They're lovely. I haven't worked at the flower shop since I got a job at the hospital. My mother started running it when my father..." she trailed off and looked down sadly.
Kiba felt like an idiot. He had PTSD because he couldn't handle what he saw during the war, and he'd run to Ino for help with his problems when her own problems were worse than his.
She'd helped many Shinobi, but she'd also seen many more die, including her father. She wasn't just a medic, either; she fought as well, and despite all of that, she was handling everything better than he was. Why was he having these problems?
Perhaps her work as a medic and a ninja helped her cope with death and prepared her for the event that someone close to her would die. Of course she was still in mourning after the death of her father, but she was dealing with it. However, Kiba had never been exposed to death on such a massive scale. He had to admit that Ino was tough.
"I'm so sorry for your loss, Ino."
"Thank you. I'm okay, though. I miss him, but I've mostly made peace with it."
"That's good," Kiba said.
"Yeah."
Ino got up and went into the kitchen. She grabbed a vase, filled it with water, and put the flowers in it. Her fingers were stiff, and she realized that she'd been holding the bouquet a little too tightly. She set the vase on the table, went back into the living room, and sat back down next to Kiba.
"I'm going to unblock your memories now," she said, tentatively placing two fingers to each of his temples.
"Okay," he replied, bracing himself.
Within seconds, he felt something click in his brain, and the memories came flooding back. Kiba clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to hold back tears.
"Hey, hey, you're okay. We have to work with the memories. It's the only way you'll get better," Ino said, trying to calm him.
He nodded, struggling to hold it together.
"Just relax. Calm down. Don't think about anything and look at me."
Kiba's face softened after a few moments, and he slowly opened his eyes to look at her. He was shaking a little. Ino crossed her legs and turned so that she was facing him on the couch. He did the same.
"Now take my hands and close your eyes. My psyche will join your own to work with your memories and thoughts, but to do that, you need to relax and let me in. If it ever becomes too much, let go of my hands. Letting go of my hands will break the the link and send my mind back to my own body."
"How does that work?" Kiba asked, dumbfounded.
"Holding our hands together forms the psychic bridge that allows our psyches to connect, but they can only connect if the hosting psyche allows the visiting one to join it. This technique is a variation of the Mind Body Switch Technique."
"I see," he said, digesting the information. "Let's do this."
He took Ino's hands and closed his eyes, relaxing as she had told him to. Ino closed her eyes as well and concentrated, sending her mind to his own. She waited for a moment before he let her in.
She looked about. She was surrounded by white, which told her that he was focused on thinking about nothing like she'd asked him to. She could now start the process of helping him, but it certainly wasn't going to be easy. There was definitely going to be some resistance, especially this first time.
"The Fourth Shinobi World War."
It was a simple statement, but Ino knew it would have a big impact on Kiba. She was right.
Ino watched as his memories played in the formerly white walls around her. They were horrifying and gruesome, but she already knew that.
Kiba's body shivered.
"How does all of this make you feel?"
It was such a therapist question, and Ino disliked asking it, but she did because she knew it would get her a truthful answer. After all, one can lie on the outside, but they can't lie on the inside.
Kiba appeared before her.
"It makes me feel horrible! Psychotic assholes were destroying everything and everyone in their way! My comrades were dying right in front of me, and I couldn't help them! I felt completely and utterly powerless. I still do, and I don't want to."
"This is good. This is progress. We can work with this."
Kiba nodded and disappeared. Ino sighed. She had her work cut out for her.
A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please leave a review, as it's very encouraging and inspires me to write more for you guys!