Note: After re-reading my two chapters I realized I left out a vital part of the story: AKAMARU! So pardon the pathetic backtracking to go get Kiba's puppy =] Other than that, enjoy chapter 3!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. What a shame :(


Body and Soul
Chapter Three: Embarrassment

Hinata began to fidget nervously when Kiba was silent for more than a few minutes. She glanced up at him from under her thick, black bangs. Her heart sped up a little in her chest. The way the light from the fire was hitting his face made him look striking but the expression on his face was scary, almost terrifying. He was staring at the flames, his eyes narrowed and his mouth was twisted into a scowl. Hinata couldn't remember the last time she had seen him so angry. He looked angrier now, than when he found out that Naruto was stuck in his head.

She hesitated for a moment before asking him, "K-kiba-kun? Are you okay? W-was it something I s-said?"

Without blinking, he replied, "I don't think you want to tell Naruto."

Hinata's violet eyes went wide with surprise, "W-why not?"

"I don't want to see you get hurt."

A gust of wind whipped through their camp, sending Hinata's hair flying all around her and extinguishing a bit of the fire. She stared at Kiba for a few seconds, before regaining her composure. She turned back towards the tiny fire, wrapped her arms around her knees, and tried to control the tremors rolling up and down her spin. She felt numb.

Kiba didn't want her to get hurt, which meant that he knew how Naruto felt about her. He could, after all, hear every one of Naruto's thoughts and, apparently, none of them were about her. She assumed Kiba got so quiet because he didn't want to say anything to upset her. He was her friend, and teammate, and didn't want to see her feelings get hurt.

Hinata was shaken from her thoughts when she felt Kiba's hand on her shoulder. She was cold and could feel his warm, rough hands through the fabric of her jacket. She glanced up, blinking back some tears as she stared into the eyes she loved so much.

"I'm sorry, Hinata-chan," Kiba sighed. He thought about wrapping his arms around her and giving her a hug, but he wasn't too sure. He settled for leaving his hand on her shoulder, "I wish you'd just give up on him, Hinata-chan. He doesn't see how great you really are. All he ever thinks about is-"

He quickly cut himself off because he could feel himself starting to get angry. He was going to say something he'd regret later.

"S-sakura?" She whispered quietly, her head dipping down because she couldn't look into those eyes anymore. She was still shivering.

Kiba bit his lip and nodded grimly. When he hear her sob, that was enough. He pulled her against his chest. Hinata's crying quieted after a moment and Kiba gently lifted her away from his tearstained chest. Her eyes, cheeks and nose were puffy and red from crying. Kiba thought she still looked beautiful. She would always be beautiful to him, no matter what she looked like.

Hinata glanced up and smiled slightly when she saw that Kiba was flashing her a warm smile. She felt a little better after crying. Her chest still hurt, but it had felt good to let everything out. She just hoped she hadn't made him feel uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry about that, Kiba-kun," She whispered, rubbing her eyes, "Thank you for trying to make me feel better."

"Well, I wasn't about to just sit there and watch you cry, Hinata," He said pointedly.

Hinata was about to say something back, but her whole body was shaken with a sudden gust of cold air. The fire had pretty much gone out while she was crying. She suddenly missed the feeling of being snuggled up against Kiba's chest.

Kiba couldn't help but notice her shivering. He motioned towards the tent behind them with his thumb, "Wanna head inside?"

Hinata nodded silently and scrambled into the tent. It wasn't much warmer inside, but at least they were out of the wind. She crawled over to where their bags were propped up in the corner. When she reached them, her eyebrows shot up and her jaw fell open.

She had forgotten her sleeping bag.

Oh no! How could I forget...

Kiba saw her expression and gave her a questioning look. Hinata smiled awkwardly, "I-I guess I'm sleeping on the floor..."

Kiba's mind clicked when he realized what she was talking about, "You can take my sleeping bag. I don't mind being on the floor."

Before she could protest, he crawled over beside her. He ignored the way his stomach flipped upside down when he accidently brushed up against her arm. He was happy when he noticed that she didn't flinch or scoot away like she normally did. Kiba pulled out and unrolled his sleeping bag. He unzipped it all the way and waited for her to climb inside.

Hinata looked down at the unzipped bag and then back up at him, "K-kiba-kun... I can't take your sleeping bag. You need it too. How are you going to sleep on the cold, hard ground?"

Kiba didn't like the idea any more than she did, but he would rather that Hinata be comfortable instead of him. He waved her off, "I'll be fine. Besides you're probably drained. Go ahead and take it."

Kiba then slipped off his leather jacket and folded it up to use as a pillow. He knew he would probably be chilly without it, but he had slept in the cold before.

Hinata bit her lip as she watched the jacket slide off his broad shoulders. He was only wearing a mesh shirt now, and Hinata could see every defined muscle in his chest, abs, and arms. She had never noticed just how built he had become over the years. She blushed to roots of her hair and quickly turned away in case Kiba noticed her staring. When he didn't say anything, she snuck one more quick peek.

Kiba laid down on his temporary pillow. He tried to ignore how cold the ground was. He knew he could sleep soundly knowing that Hinata was comfortable. He just had to ignore his own uncomfortable bed and focus on that.

Out of the corner of his eye, Kiba watched her crawl into the sleeping bag. She still looked somewhat hesitant as she pulled the covers up to her shoulders. He still smiled triumphantly and closed his eyes.


Hinata laid awake for what felt like hours. She couldn't sleep. She felt guilty. It was her fault that she didn't remember a sleeping bag, and yet here she was, hogging Kiba's. It also didn't help that she could still hear him tossing and turning a few feet away from her. She knew he was still awake.

Suddenly an idea came to her that made her nearly gasp at how bold her mind had suddenly become. Maybe it was the sleep depravation that was making her think this way, but Hinata had come to the realization that this sleeping bag was more than big enough for two people. They could share. The idea made her cheeks turn red.

When he let out another uncomfortable grunt, she blurted out, "Y-you can sleep in here, K-kiba-kun!"

Kiba rolled over, and stared at her for a second. He could only make out her soft eyes and pink cheeks in the dark. He blinked before trying to clarify what she had just said, "Huh? I told you to sleep in there. I'm fine, Hinata-chan."

Hinata thought about correcting herself, but she hated seeing him so uncomfortable. She whispered, "I-I meant we could s-share... if you w-want."

I can't believe I'm saying this!

I can't believe she just said that! Kiba thought, and then quickly checked to make sure his thoughts hadn't woken up Naruto. He could still hear a faint snoring in the back of his head, and he let out a sigh of relief.

Now Kiba's cheeks matched Hinata's. He slowly sat up and crawled over to the sleeping bag. He noticed her watching his every move, with wide, childlike eyes. Maybe this wasn't a good idea...

However, Hinata still scooted over, making room for him inside the sleeping bag. Kiba sucked in a deep breath and crawled inside. He tried to make as little contact with her body as possible. Once he was completely in, he squirmed a little bit to try and get as far away from her as possible, yet still be comfy. He had to admit, this was way better than sleeping on the ground.

"Better?" Hinata asked quietly, trying not to move around too much. She knew that even slightest contact with him, would probably send her into a panic attack.

"Mhm," He nodded softly, and squeezed his eyes shut. The sleeping bag was much warmer than the cold, hard ground and Kiba quickly drifted off to sleep.

Satisfied with her good deed, Hinata smiled to herself. She closed her eyes, trying to ignore the pounding in her chest so she could fall asleep too.


Oh my god... OH MY GOD... WAKE UP! What... WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?

Kiba was woken up by a very loud, panicked voice in his head. His eyes shot open but all he could see was the empty green wall of the tent.

Wait a minute... where's...

HINATA! HINATA! WHAT DID YOU DO WITH HER KIBA? WHY ARE YOU GUYS SLEEPING LIKE THIS?

It was then that Kiba noticed the warmth against his chest. He glanced down and saw that Hinata was flush against his body. Her arms were wrapped around his waist, pulling her up against his chest. His chin was resting on top of her head.

He was immediately overwhelmed, so overwhelmed, that he didn't even notice Naruto was still freaking out. Her body was warm and soft. Her face looked gentle, her lips twitching occasionally in her sleep. His nose was filled with the enticing scent of her lavender shampoo. This was everything he had dreamed about, and he wasn't prepared for ant of it at all. His heart was beating like a madman. He thought about trying to squirm out of her grasp but he knew he wouldn't be able to bring himself to do it.

KIBA? Naruto shouted, trying to get the dog-nin's attention so he could explain why Hinata was in bed with him.

Calm down. Nothing happened. She forgot her sleeping bag so she shared mine. She must've snuggled up to me while we were sleeping.

Oh. Naruto sounded relieved. He would have felt really awkward if he had to deal with a one-night-stand, in addition to being stuck in someone else's body.Wait a minute... you like this don't you?

Kiba didn't miss the devilish tone in Naruto's voice. He glared at nobody in particular, wishing he could deck Naruto right now.

Hey!

Whoops! Sorry forgot you could hear me. I still wanna deck you though.

That means I'm right then.

Shut up. Mind your-

Yeah, yeah mind my own business.

Thanks.

Kiba turned his attention back to the sleeping girl in his arms. He slowly brought one hand up and ran it through her soft hair. The smell that wafted off those strands was heavenly. Kiba could have stayed like this for days, "Hinata..."

Hinata's eyes fluttered open when Kiba whispered her name. He hadn't been thinking. He'd been lost in the moment. He became gripped with fear when he felt her eyelashes flutter against his neck. Her body instantly stiffened against his and she let out an ear-piercing scream.

Hinata scrambled out of the sleeping bag so fast, that she nearly ripped it in two. She launched herself to the far corner of the tent, shaking and sweating. Her face was completely flushed.

"K-k-k-k..." She stuttered, staring at him with wide eyes.

Kiba sat up, sighed, and ran his fingers through his disheveled hair. He hadn't expected her to act like that. He said, in the softest voice he could muster, "Sorry, Hinata-chan. You said that I could share the sleeping bag with you remember? I should've just stayed on the ground..."

Hinata stopped shaking when she remembered what had happened the night before. Her face was still red, "D-did we-"

"No," Kiba replied quickly, his face turning the same color as hers.

That's what you SAY... Naruto piped in.

SHUT IT. She's freaked out.

Clearly.

Naruto. I don't need this right now. I'm trying to comfort her, so PLEASE be quiet?

Fine.

Thanks.

"I'm really sorry, Hinata-chan. I..." He didn't know what else to say. He had scared her. He should have pushed her to the other side of the sleeping bag or something, instead of cuddling with her. Bad idea.

Hinata sucked in a deep breath, her cheeks slowly returning to their normal, rosy glow, "I-it's okay, Kiba-kun. It was an accident. I s-shouldn't have reacted s-so strongly."

"No, you had every right to freak out," Kiba shook his head grimly and then rose to his feet. He tried to change the subject, "Anyway we should get going. I think we should head back to the village."

Hinata looked at him quizzically, "Why?"

Kiba scratched the back of his neck, "Well, for one, I think we need to get another sleeping bag."

Hinata blushed and silently agreed.

"And two, I think Akamaru should come along with us. It will be much easier to track this thing with him here." Kiba explained.

Hinata nodded, her eyes focused on the ground. Kiba sucked in a deep breath and prepared himself for the uncomfortable journey back to the village.


"Hey boy!" Kiba called when he opened the front door. Hinata stood awkwardly in the doorway behind him. They had hardly spoken two words to each other on the way back.

Hinata knew she shouldn't have felt so awkward; after all, she was the one who had invited Kiba to share the sleeping bag with her. She couldn't help but be embarrassed, though. She had never been that close to someone. They were practically cuddling. Which was big for her.

Hinata lifted her head at the sound of paws scraping against the floor. Akamaru came bounding down the steps, knocking Kiba over when he reached them. The dog-nin burst out laughing and scratched his dog behind the ears. Akamaru affectionately licked his face.

"All right, all right..." Kiba chuckled and stood back up. He glanced back at Hinata, who was watching him with wide eyes. When their eyes met, she quickly looked down at her feet. Kiba let out a sigh and knelt down beside Akamaru. He patted the dog on the head, "Okay Akamaru, you remember what Naruto smells like right?"

The big, white dogged barked and wagged his tail.

"Good," Kiba grinned, knowing that Akamaru had meant 'yes'. He figured, at this point, that it would be simpler to track Naruto's scent instead of the demon. He suspected that the demon was either carrying Naruto's body, waiting to take over it, or it had already possessed Naruto's body.

Shit. Naruto whispered inside Kiba's head. That thing better not be in my body. We won't be able to fight it...

We won't really have a choice. We're going to have to restrain it somehow, whether it's in your body or not.

Damn it...

Kiba hadn't told Hinata about his suspicions. He didn't want her to worry anymore then she already was, and it was apparent that she had a lot on her mind, since she wasn't really speaking to him at the moment. He figured it would be best to just leave her to her thoughts. She'd start talking to him when she felt comfortable.

"Okay," Kiba said, standing straight up. He turned to Hinata, trying his best not to look her directly in the eye, "Let's head over to your place and grab an extra sleeping bag. Then we can head out and start tracking this thing down."

Hinata, who was still staring at her shoes, nodded silently. Kiba made his way out the door and she followed, but because her head was still down, she bumped into him. She yelped and felt gravity taking hold of her.

Before she could even stumbled backwards, Kiba had spun around and gently grabbed her arms. Her breath hitched and her cheeks burned at the sight of those cerulean eyes. She was frozen in his arms, staring intently at his face. Hinata couldn't help but notice how soft and warm his eyes looked, despite their cool color. Like fire and ice swirled together.

She had to remember though that it wasn't Naruto looking at her with those azure eyes. It was Kiba who was looking at her with such devotion that it made her blush to the roots of her raven-hair.

"K-kiba-kun..." She whispered softly, wishing she could hide her face somehow.

Kiba quickly pulled her upright and steadied her, making sure she had her balance before he let go. He flashed her a quick smile and scratched the back of his head, "You okay? Sorry, I know how you are about your personal space, but I didn't want you to fall."

"T-thank you," She stuttered, her fingers intertwining. She peeked up at him from under her bangs and caught him smiling at her. A shy smile tugged at the edge of her lips. Why was Kiba always so kind to her? She had been treating him so awkwardly all morning and yet, he was still one of the best friends anyone could ask for. Maybe it was the whole dog-nin thing; maybe it made him extra loyal.

"I-I'm sorry for not talking t-to you, K-kiba-kun..." She squeaked just as he had turned his back to her. He glanced over his shoulder and then turned completely around. Hinata was still standing there, staring down so her thick bangs covered her red face, "I-I wasn't m-mad, I s-swear. I w-was just embarrassed. I've n-never been that close t-to someone. Y-you surprised m-me and I d-didn't know how to r-react. M-maybe I s-should've just slept on the ground..."

She looked up when Kiba laughed. He walked over and ruffled her hair affectionately, causing her to blush again.

"Stop it, Hinata. You know I'd never let you sleep on the ground. Sorry for surprising you." He said sincerely.

Yuck. You two need to just kiss and get it over with already or something. Naruto complained. These two were just starting to be sickeningly sweet.

Hah! And have her never talk to me again? Yeah right.

So you want to kiss her then?

...Shut up.

Mm-hm. Thought so.

Naruto, I swear...

Your secret's safe with me!

Yeah cause' who are you gonna tell? Me?

Oh... right... good point.

They arrived at Hinata's house and Kiba waited outside while Hinata ran in to retrieve her sleeping bag. While rummaging around through her closet, Hinata couldn't help but think of Kiba's face when he had caught her. Those eyes were burning with such intensity, that it was hard to just forget that it had happened. Why had Kiba been looking at her like that? And why did it make her shiver from head to toe? Hinata shook away her chills, grabbed her sleeping bag from the top shelf and ran back out to meet Kiba.

"G-got it," She smiled when she met him outside.

"Let's get going then," Kiba nodded towards the city gates. Akamaru led the way, eager to get to run in the woods.

Kiba glanced down at his companion, "Once Akamaru picks up Naruto's scent, we can just jump on his back. It'll be faster if we follow it that way. Once we get close enough you can track it."

Hinata nodded, knowing that with Akamaru's sense of smell and her enhanced vision they'd track down the demon in no time. Hopefully, it hadn't regained all of it's strength just yet.

Hinata started to fidget. She wanted to ask Kiba a question that had been in the back of her head ever since they started this mission, but she had been too afraid to ask it. Finally she decided to just blurt it out, "Kiba-kun, do you think the demon took over Naruto-kun's body?"

Kiba sucked in a deep breath. His mind went completely still and silent. He looked down at her, "I don't know. I'm sure it has his body. It might still be too weak to do the transfer. Maybe that smoke-screen technique, and whatever it used to do this," Kiba paused and pointed to his eyes, "made it really weak."

"What if it is in his body?" She whispered, her eyes going wide, staring at the road in front of them.

Kiba turned away from her, trying to keep his voice even, "Then we'll have to fight it. Somehow."

He heard Naruto and Hinata gulp simultaneously.

Hinata couldn't imagine fighting Naruto, even though it wasn't really Naruto. It would be an ultra-powerful demon using his body. Still, the idea of hurting her dear friend and first love would be nearly impossible.

Kiba didn't really like it either. He wasn't sure how they would be able to capture the demon without damaging Naruto's body.

At least I might finally be able to take out some of my anger towards you. He said, trying to lighten the mood.

Har. Har. Naruto replied sarcastically. Kiba could tell that, despite his lively sense of humor, he was still very worried. Their thoughts were drifting towards the inevitable fight and the image of Kiba and Hinata pounding Naruto into the ground made them both shutter. Kiba shook his head when he imagined Naruto throwing Hinata as hard as he could. The image of her body smacking against the ground and Naruto standing triumphantly over her made him quake in his shoes.

No, he wasn't looking forward to this at all.

Hinata, who was watching Kiba out of the corner of her eye, saw his hand curl into a fist and his teeth snap together. She could hear him mumbling under his breath. She gulped again. She could tell that both Kiba and Naruto were having the same thoughts as she was. She tried to shake the battle scenes from her mind, but she couldn't help but worry. That's just what she did.

With a heavy sigh, she followed Kiba through the gates and into the woods.

((End of Chapter))


End of chapter 3! Sorry this one was short and mostly just fluff. I was stuck with what to write next and figured I'd just do something to bring Kiba and Hinata a little closer :] and to give Naruto a little more insight into Kiba's big secret crush too. Please R&R!