Different

Ch. 4

The first day that the group traveled went pretty smoothly. They didn't encounter any enemy ninja, or any real obstacles. In fact, the only time that they really had to stop was when it got dark and they had to set up camp.

"Okay," Kurenai said, "first, we need to build a fire. We'll need some wood, so Shino, you and Hinata go find some wood. Sakura, you know how to hunt, right?"

"What are you talking about? Of course I know how to hunt!" Sakura replied defensively.

"Good. You and Kiba can go find the food."

"Hm"

"What can I do?" Temari asked.

"You and I will set up the rest of the camp." Kurenai answered.

So they all set to work, acting on their given assignments.

(Hinata's POV) Being with Shino was always a bit awkward. He never said that much (not that Hinata cared that much about it). He was always hiding behind the collar of his coat, and his expression could never be read because he always wore sunglasses.

Anyway, Hinata decided not to think about these things. She let her mind wander, and she found herself thinking about Naruto, and how he was doing. She was walking behind Shino absent-mindedly, not thinking about what she was doing when she suddenly bumped into him. He had stopped abruptly and was standing in the middle of a circle of trees.

"I'm s-sorry f-for bumping into you, s-Shino." Hinata apologized.

"Hn" was his reply, although the part of his face that was visible didn't look very mad. In fact, it looked rather soft. It was almost as though he was glad that Hinata bumped into him.

Hinata backed away, a little surprised at his reaction. It was gone in a second, though, replaced by his expressionless figure.

' I-I wonder if I really imagined that or not.' Hinata thought to herself. It was indeed strange for Shino to show any emotion at all.

For a long time, Shino was acting normal again as they gathered the wood, so Hinata began to believe that she had just imagined the softness in his face. When their arms were full of wood, they began to head back.

Hinata let her mind wander to Naruto again, and again she didn't watch where she was going. Shino had decided to stop suddenly again, which caused Hinata to bump into him again. This also caused her to drop a lot of the wood she was carrying.

Again Hinata apologized: "I-I'm really s-sorry Shino, f-for bumping into y-you."

Hinata stooped down to pick up the wood she dropped. Shino stood there waiting, and then stooped down to help her. As they got neat the end of the wood on the ground, both of their hands landed on one piece, accidentally touching with Shino's hand on top.

"E-excuse me" Hinata stuttered, and started to pull her hand away, but Shino's was still on top. It squeezed hers a little, before leaving the wood. Hinata looked up at him, and thought she saw a little blush on his face.

"Sorry." Shino said.

Then, he stood up and turned away. Hinata finished gathering the wood, and they headed back to camp.

(Kiba's POV) Apparently, Sakura had decided to bring Shinseki along. Kiba thought that maybe she didn't trust him on his own, or maybe she didn't trust Kurenai with him. Any way, they advanced through the forest until:

"Stop." Sakura said.

"What is it?"

"I smell deer up ahead. If we arrive too suddenly, we'll scare them off."

"Hmph"

Suddenly, there was a black wolf standing in Sakura's place. Its eyes were yellow, with black spots. Shinseki appeared at its side, while Kiba just stood there with his mouth hanging open. Then, the wolf turned around and motioned for him to follow silently. All four of them (counting Akamaru) proceeded to where Sakura had heard the deer.

There was a group of about six of them standing in a clearing, grazing. The black wolf nodded its head twice, telling Kiba not to move. Then, it looked at Shinseki and the two wolves disappeared in a flash of movement.

It all happened so fast that Kiba barely had time to blink. In another flash of movement, the wolves attacked the group of deer. One by one, they went down. The ground was covered in blood. When all the deer were dead, the two wolves stopped moving. Shinseki was standing with his back hunched, panting. The black wolf was standing perfectly straight, like nothing had happened. The only sign that it had been doing anything at all was the blood that dripped out of its mouth.

Then, the black wolf changed into Sakura, and Kiba finally understood where she had gone. Akamaru whined and sniffed the air. Then to Kiba's astonishment, Shinseki also transformed into a human. His hair was pure white, short, except for two pieces in front of his pointed ears, and spiked. He also wore jeans and a sweatshirt, but his clothing was more colorful.

"C'mon," Sakura said, lifting a deer onto her shoulder. Shinseki also lifted one onto his shoulder.

"Oh, I can't wait to eat this! I'm so hungry." Shinseki said. His stomach growled in agreement.

Kiba lifted a deer onto his shoulder, and the three people (and Akamaru) headed back to the camp.