A/N: Awesome! 8 reviews! Since I really started writing this as a challenge, I didn't expect to get much praise for it. The Kiba/Ino pairing doesn't seem all that popular, after all. I love them, though, because they're so... combustible, lol. I'm really glad other people are enjoying it, too. I was happily able to find the time to write another chapter.
Chapter 3:
Insecurity was not in Kiba's vocabulary. For that matter, neither was patience when his temper was riled enough. And boy, did he have a temper. Ino was trying everything in her power to keep herself and her two human shields as far away from the three men as possible. That unfortunately included having a line of dance partners for her and her friends.
So not only was he pissed that innocent little Hinata was happily doing the samba with some perverted little village boy, but he was forced to stand there and watch his woman rub her body up against a different man every five minutes. He'd never experienced such a serious case of jealous rage in his life.
Kiba was no fool, however. The sometimes furtive and sometimes challenging looks Ino continued to briefly throw his way told him plenty. She still wanted him just as much as he still wanted her. Though that should have probably mollified him somewhat, the knowledge instead only served to make him more pissed. She wanted to play this game? Okay. Let's show Ino how an Inuzuka plays.
Kiba turned to his equally bad-tempered companions with a barely contained snarl. "I need you guys to do me a favor…"
A good beat to salsa to was exactly what Ino needed to take her mind off of those piercing eyes that had been boring holes into her ever since she'd started dancing with her first partner. She was not going to let that canine get anywhere near her. This night was supposed to be about her forgetting that stupid jackass! And what right did he have to stare at her like that anyway?
Her current partner spun her around so that her back was flushed against his front and they continued to do the fast steps in perfect rhythm, his arms crossed over her as he held onto her hands.
"God, that's hot," the man suddenly breathed in her right ear. "Baby, you really know how to move those hips."
The compliment should have made her smile… or something. But for some reason it simply irritated her. She glanced up to see if Kiba was still staring and she was surprised when she couldn't spot him. She nearly missed a step as her eyes frantically tried to search for him. Did he leave? The thought made the tension leave her shoulders but it strangely didn't make her any happier.
She had no more time to ponder her strange feelings, however, when her partner smoothly gave her an opening to spin on the third step and she took it gracefully. She peeked over at her friends who remained within reach and saw that Hinata was happily dancing with the same partner and Sakura was somewhat mechanically dancing with her third partner of the night.
Hinata met her glance and grinned, surprising the blonde who mischievously grinned back. Did Naruto have some competition?
Little did Ino know that a certain blond was thinking the same thing as he walked onto the dance floor heading straight for the lavender-eyed woman.
"So you mean to tell me that that gorgeous blonde is the reason that I'm graced with the presence of Hyuuga royalty tonight?"
Hinata looked back up at her partner, Shinta, with a slight sparkle in her eye. She stepped into a double spin and allowed him to swing her out in time with the fast music before she quickly spun back in. "Yes! I didn't know it would be this much fun!"
"Well I am honored to be your dance partner, honey."
Hinata grinned and sashayed as she did the fast steps expertly and allowed herself to be pulled closer as they danced sideways for the next few steps. She was having so much fun conversing with Shinta as they danced, that she couldn't stop grinning. He was as much of an avid dancer as she was, surprisingly, and they moved together as though it was second nature.
"So how often do you come here?" Hinata asked as they came together again.
Shinta grinned at her charmingly. "The question, honey, is when are you coming here again? Because we have to do this again!"
The Hyuuga heiress's face lit up with excitement and she was getting ready to give an answer when a loud throat-clearing interrupted them. The two dancers paused and turned to see a tall blond glaring at them with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his blue jeans. "Yo, Hinata," he stated in a deep, somewhat neutral tone.
Hinata's entire face flushed with color, and Shinta, picking up quickly on what was happening, stared between the two with interest.
"Mind if I cut in," Naruto demanded, keeping his eyes fixed on Hinata's and purposefully making it a rhetorical question as he stepped forward without waiting for an answer.
Shinta smiled slyly and dutifully stepped back as the blond hottie took the Hyuuga heiress by her hand and pulled her away. "I'll see you next time, Hina-chan!" he shouted after them playfully.
Naruto ground his teeth together as the stupid pretty-boy shouted after them. Kiba owed him big time for this. He did not want to see up close how happy Hinata was about having that guy pressed against her and whispering perverted shit in her ear. Shit that made her face brighten happily. He really hadn't wanted to see that.
His end of the bargain done, Naruto waited until he had pulled Hinata far away from Ino before turning to face her. He didn't want to ask, he really didn't, but the words seemed to fly out of his mouth as soon as he looked at her flushed face. "Who was that guy?"
Hinata jumped slightly at the flat-sounding tone of her crush's voice. She couldn't find the words to speak through her fear. Why was Naruto so upset?
At her silence, Naruto moved his face in close to hers and stared straight into her wide eyes. "Hinata," he murmured gently, this time sounding slightly forlorn, "who was he? Are you… seeing him?"
Hinata found it hard to focus with his face so close. If she moved just an inch forward, she would feel his lips against hers… the thought made her mouth tingle with anticipation. But somewhere through her haze, she processed what he was saying and her eyes snapped back up to his in surprise. "What? N-no!" she cried out in horror.
Relief flooded Naruto's face and he closed his eyes for a moment, unconsciously placing both hands on her sides and pulling her even closer. "So who was he?" he asked quietly, eyes still closed.
Hinata smiled brilliantly, finally realizing what was going on. The man she had admired and fallen in love with from since childhood was jealous of another man dancing with her. It was her first sign that Uzumaki Naruto might think of her in the romantic sense. Both Ino and Sakura had been dancing with other men, but Naruto was only concerned with her.
"Naruto," she spoke softly, "Shinta is gay."
Naruto's eyes flew open at that and he grinned at her unabashedly. "Seriously?"
Hinata gave a slight nod and blushed even more.
Blue eyes were alight with glee as they stared back at her. Their proximity was so close now, however, that their noses brushed against each other at one point. And that was the catalyst that changed everything.
Like a magnet, Naruto's eyes were drawn down to her trembling lips and she sucked in a breath at the new and exhilarating look on his face. Her whole body now quivered with fear and anticipation. She knew he could feel it.
"Hinata…?" he breathed, slowly bringing his eyes back up to hers. His normally calm blue eyes were suddenly turbulent and darkened by a torrent of emotions.
"Y-y… yes, Naruto?" she managed to answer him. The edges of her vision were blurring and the only thing she could see was her Naruto's handsome face.
His eyes fell back to her lips and she nervously flicked her tongue out to moisten them. That was a huge mistake. Before she could react in any way, his mouth was desperately pressed against hers and both his hands had moved to her back, pulling her roughly up against his chest.
Sakura didn't know what happened. One minute she was dancing face to face with a new partner, trying to keep his hands from drifting to the bare skin above her hips, and the next the guy glanced over her shoulder and fell over on the ground in sudden fear before jumping to his feet and scurrying away. Confused, she turned to see what was behind her and came face to chest with Gaara of the Sand.
'Boy, when did he get this tall?' she wondered nervously. She glanced up and saw him looking down at her with tightly reigned anger in his cold jade eyes.
"Um… hi," she said uncertainly.
Without a word, Gaara grabbed her by the elbow and led her away.
"Hey! Gaara!" she shouted, planting her feet firmly and glaring at the back of his head.
Deciding that they were far enough, Gaara turned to her and glared. "What?"
Sakura's mouth fell open in shock but she quickly recovered and snapped it shut. Her emerald eyes were practically spitting fire through her rage of indignation. "Don't you what me! What the hell was that about?" she demanded.
Any other time, Gaara would find her anger alluring but this time, his temper was boiling and nothing pleasant was registering. "Do you dance with strange men like that all the time?" he demanded.
Sakura crossed her arms, her temperature quickly rising. "I really don't think that's any of your business, Kazekage-sama! I came here to have a good time, not to be manhandled!"
"Don't. Call. Me. That." Gaara forcibly bit out the words as he angrily drew closer to her.
Temper flared to maximum, Sakura's fist flew to the side and punched a large crater into the cement wall. Her sparkling eyes never left his. "Then don't insult me!" she bit back evenly.
As Gaara watched her retract her hand, a slow smirk stretched across his lips as he realized something. He was angry, and she was not afraid. In fact, she was going toe-to-toe with him. Something about this situation made him very satisfied.
"What are you smirking at?" she growled at him.
Reaching up and slowly tucking a few strands of pink hair behind her ear, Gaara pierced her with the intensity of his jade green eyes. "I could really get used to this."
Shock registered on her face and she flushed despite herself. How the hell did his mood switch from cold to hot so fast?
Gaara's eyes narrowed seriously at her. "I don't ever want to see you dancing with another man."
"You can't tell me what to-…" Her temper had instantly flared back up at his outrageous statement but Gaara silenced her by placing a thumb against her lips gently.
"If you do," he continued dangerously, "I can't be held responsible for squeezing the life out of the next little shit who thinks he can touch you like that."
Sakura's stomach was doing somersaults, her heart was beating at an alarming rate, and her breathing quickened as she stared into hard jade eyes. She knew she should still be outraged by this possessive and irrationally jealous streak of his, but the look in his eyes as he stared at her was filled with a never-before-seen passion that scorched her. Was it just her or was it suddenly extremely hot in this little corner of the club?
When Ino looked up and realized that her two friends were missing, she knew something was up. She looked around, searching suspiciously for those vertically slit eyes.
"Something wrong, baby?" her latest dance partner asked, taking the liberty to pull her closer. She allowed it, but only in an attempt to hide. Why she felt like hiding, Ino couldn't tell you at that point but she had a sneaking suspicion that that damned Inuzuka was up to something.
"No nothing, I think I'm getting a little tired," she replied absently. Her legs were actually starting to feel sore after dancing all night in heels. She had been dancing non-stop to fast Latin music for at least two hours. Kunoichi or not, that took stamina.
"Want me to take you home?" he asked with a sudden leer.
That did it. Ino immediately stopped dancing and pulled away from the somewhat handsome village boy. "You know, I think I'm going to get something to drink. Thanks for the dance," she called out hurriedly as she turned and headed in the opposite direction.
Ino let out a sigh as she finally decided to resign herself to the facts. This night was a total bust. She couldn't forget about Kiba and what they'd done. Especially not now that his presence was lurking around. It just irked her that all of a sudden, Kiba was the only man she could think about. She had seen plenty of hot guys tonight and not one of them had stirred a drop of interest in her.
Why Kiba? Why did she have such a strong attraction to him when before Sunday, she barely even acknowledged his existence? Sure he was attractive in that ruggedly handsome sort of way but there were plenty of attractive guys all over Konoha! What was it about Kiba?
Ino paused as she reached the edge of the dance floor. Her thoughts went back to Sunday night and she remembered the way he looked at her; the sound of his voice when he said her name…. God, he had a sexy voice! She shook her head vehemently and tried to re-banish those thoughts from her head. Kiba was bad news. They could never get along. Nothing could ever come out of them being together. She listed off all the cons she could possibly think of as she made her way to the bar.
Finding an empty stool, she slid in and signaled the bartender for a cherry blossom martini. All that dancing had made her lose most of the buzz she'd had from the champagne and appletini from earlier. She was hoping to remedy that now and walk home as buzzed as possible so she wouldn't have to think anymore. That was the new plan. Until…
"Now what kind of kunoichi doesn't notice someone sneaking up on her?"
The low whisper was spoken directly into her left ear. Feigning aloofness, Ino took a slow sip of her drink and calmly set it down.
"What do you want?" she asked flatly.
Kiba slid into the seat next to her and smirked, flashing a pair of sharp canines. "Doesn't look like you're having much fun, Yamanaka. Why's that?"
"Well there's this dog that's been chasing me around," Ino started sarcastically. Kiba's smirk turned downright devilish.
"Dogs are known to be quite territorial, Ino. Maybe he's just guarding what's his."
Ino's eyes immediately jumped to his in shock. "Let's get one thing straight, Inuzuka," she snapped. "I am not yours!"
Kiba's smirk never waivered. "Not yet you're not," he whispered, leaning in so she could hear him.
Ino could feel the vein in her right temple throbbing. Who the hell had an ego that large? "Conceited, arrogant, egotistical…" she continued mumbling under her breath as she pointedly turned back to her drink and attempted to ignore him.
"Ino, seriously." His voice was now low and serious, and so close to how she remembered it that she had to suppress a pleasant shiver. "Why are you running from me?"
She sucked in a breath and closed her eyes resolutely. Why did they have to do this?
"So you just want to forget about Sunday?" he pressed when she remained silent. "You want to forget what we did? What I said to you?"
"Yes!" Ino shouted at him exasperatedly, surprising him slightly but making him scowl. "We should just forget it ever happened, okay?"
A shadow had fallen across the dog master's face at her answer. He'd had enough. This was clearly a rejection no matter how much he thought she was attracted to him. He'd been right to begin with, anyway. Chasing after a girl was just not his style. He turned away moodily and decided it was time to go.
Ino, catching the look on his face, rolled her eyes. "Oh come on dog-boy, I can't believe you're getting this worked up over just sex. I'm sure you have plenty of females sniffing at your doghouse."
Kiba's eyes narrowed as he caught and held her gaze. "Just sex?" he repeated, irritation making it sound like a low growl. "Did you not hear a word I said to you on Sunday?"
Ino's brow furrowed in confusion. "What the hell are you talking about, Kiba? After you jumped me you barely even said two words to me!"
"Ignoring the fact that you were practically giving me a hand job before I jumped you, I said a whole lot more than two words to you when you pulled away, Ino."
"I was not…!" she couldn't finish her sentence as she realized that, yes, her little act of revenge could be constituted as a hand job. She felt her face heat up before she could control it. Huffing slightly, she tried to recall what he might have said that night as she was pulling away. Oddly enough, her mind came up blank and she looked back at him critically.
Kiba wasn't smirking at her discomfort. His face actually looked quite serious still.
"What did you say?" she asked curiously.
His feral-looking eyes widened momentarily in surprise but he quickly stood and shook his head. "No way. There's no way I'm repeating that shit, Ino, you're just gonna have to keep not knowing." He started walking away slowly, hands stuffed deep within the pockets of his jeans. "Besides, if you had really been interested, you would've said something to me yourself by now."
Ino was surprised that he was actually walking away from her. Whatever he had said to her on Sunday night must have been very significant. Her heart was beating rapidly at the possibility. Despite all the cons about their clashing personalities, was it possible that Kiba still wanted her that way? It was an extremely sobering thought… and Ino decided that she had to know… now.
Quickly standing up, she sped after him determinedly before he could leave her sight. He was walking slowly to the exit so she caught up to him in no time and grabbed him quickly by his elbow.
"Ino, what-!"
"Hold on," she commanded, raising her right hand in the one-handed seal of the ram as she focused her chakra and transported both of them to her apartment.
