Hope you like this chapter as much as you do the last one. Reviews are really appreciated! Thanks!

I own Kari and nothing else.


"So wh-where's Ki-Kiba-kun?" Hinata stammered.

Kari smiled and looked above her head. Strapped to the ceiling in a cocoon of duck tape was, the ever unfortunate, dog nin. Hinata nearly fainted but Kari led her to the couch. She smiled meekly.

"He was in the way while I was cooking. I had to do something or else you or Shino would go without dinner," Kari said.

Hinata looked at Kari shocked. She sighed and walked over to Kiba. The room seemed to freeze when Kari pulled out a kunai. She brought it down on the duck tape. Kiba fell to the ground with an ungraceful thud.

There wasn't a scratch on him and the cocoon stayed in perfect condition other than the Kiba sized hole. It still stayed in the shape she left it in.

"A ninja is to be graceful and poised even when failing from the ceiling like a klutz…" Kari said, mockingly.

"I'd like to see you do it…" Kiba grumbled.

"What was that?"

"Nothing…"

"That's what I thought," Kari said.

Shino watched them. It seemed like this was almost like a ritual for them. He felt like an outsider because he didn't know their jokes or the meaning of the scene unfolding in front of him.

Kari looked at him and smiled. Shino felt his insects buzzing under his skin.

"Let's go eat, Shino-kun."

Shino nodded and followed her. Why was he here? He hardly knew her and yet he promised her information a bug told him. She was afraid of bugs so she shouldn't like him. Why didn't she avoid him like the rest of the girls in Kohana?

"Shino… are you okay?" Kari asked. "You're kind of quiet…"

"Shino's always been like that," Kiba said.

"Well… Kiba I didn't know you're name was Shino…" Kari said.

"Huh?"

"I asked Shino… not Kiba…"

Kiba pouted. Hinata giggled a little and hugged his arm. Akamaru barked loudly. Then he licked her.

Shino watched as Kiba and Hinata wrestled Akamaru over a ruined pair of slippers. There was a high possibility that they were once Kari's. Kari laughed and pulled Shino into the kitchen.

She prepared an enormous amount of food. Were Chouji there he would die happy. She grinned and offered him a plate. She already had a plate in her hand and was scooping a generous amount of vegetable stir-fry onto her plate. Then she got two rice balls and sat down at the table.

"You're a vegetarian?" Shino asked.

"Can't stand eating meats. I had to learn how to cook it because Kiba comes over and eats every week," Kari said waving her chopsticks dismissively.

"He'd eat anything-"

"As long as it's smothered in a sauce of some sort," Kari finished with a laugh. "Human garbage disposal…"

There was a loud crash that caused Kari to jump. Both of them turned to the doorway. Moments later Hinata walked in giggling. Kiba looked embarrassed.

Kari raised an eyebrow. Then she smiled. "What'd you two break this time?"

"A lamp…" Kiba mumbled.

"The cloud one?"

Kiba nodded sheepishly. Then he walked out of the kitchen. He returned with another lamp in his hands. It looked exactly as the 'broken' one did.

"Where do you want this?"

"Same place…" Kari said bored. "Throw out the other one."

"Yo-you aren't ma-mad?" Hinata asked.

"No. Kiba breaks stuff all the time. I have to have a back up for everything."

Shino shook his head. Then he helped himself to the stir-fry. It smelled great. Kari seemed to be a well-seasoned cook. Hinata grabbed herself a plate and helped herself too. She was about to get a rice ball when Kiba walked back in.

He pulled her to the table and picked up her chopsticks. She blushed and opened her mouth to protest only to have him stick a spring roll in her mouth. She blushed harder and chewed. Kiba was proud of himself.

Hinata swallowed hard and looked away. "Aww… beautiful, don't hide your face…"

"Alright, Kiba, don't make her die of embarrassment or do I have to pull out some of your embarrassing pictures?" Kari threatened.

"I- you said you got rid of those!"

"Did I?" Kari asked.

"You're evil."

Shino had just taken his first bite of the stir-fry. It rivaled most of the stir-fry he had in Kohana. He nodded approvingly.

"So… how is it?" Kari asked.

"Decent."

"Did Shino just give you a complement?" Kiba asked astonished.

Kari smiled. Then she started to eat. Hinata looked at her confused.

Shino shook his head and started to eat again. Hinata and Kiba, occasionally Kari, who would only jump in to protect Hinata from Kiba, made the only conversation during the rest of the meal.


"Want to stick around for a movie?" Kari asked.

"Sure!" Kiba yelled.

Kari hit him over the head with a pillow. He scowled and looked at her darkly. She laughed and grabbed another pillow as he took one off the couch.

"Pillow fight!" Kiba yelled.

Kari tossed a pillow to Hinata who caught it. Together they teamed up on Kiba. He fell to the ground laughing as the two of them hit him. Kari screamed when he grabbed her ankle and pulled her to the ground.

Akamaru licked her and she laughed. Kiba then dove at Hinata. Kari jumped out from beneath Akamaru's massive paws and jumped onto Kiba's back. He couldn't quite reach her to get her off of him.

"Shino!" She yelled and tossed a pillow at him. He caught it and looked at it in surprise. "Help us get him!"

"Why would you want me to play?" Shino asked.

"Why not?"

Shino shook his head and tossed the pillow aside. It hit Kiba in the stomach. He doubled over and Hinata tackled him. The three of them landed on the couch laughing.

Kari got up and walked over to Shino. She sat down next to him on the loveseat. Her head cocked to the side and she asked. "Why didn't you join in?"

"Nn."

She sighed and leaned against him. Then she looked up at him. "You'll miss everything in life if you don't take the time to enjoy it…"

"Aren't we supposed to be watching a movie?"

"I got one!" Kiba yelled.


The movie Kiba picked was a horror film. It wasn't one of Kari's because it was about zombies and demons. Kiba must have brought it with him.

Hinata was shaking in fright. Kiba held her trembling frame close when the zombies attacked a school. Children were running and screaming. It was a gruesome end if they were caught. Their arms and limbs being ripped off of them or they had their souls eaten by the demons outside the school. It was a blood bath.

Kari got up and turned the film off. Hinata was on the verge of tears. She was shaking badly and Kiba didn't seem to notice.

"What'd you do that for?"

"Look at Hinata," Kari ordered.

Kiba did. Hinata looked away so he couldn't see her face. He paled.

"Hinata… I didn't know… why didn't you speak up sooner?" Kiba asked.

"I-I-It's ok-okay…"

"No! It's not! Hinata I didn't want to scare you."

Kari went into her bedroom and grabbed a pair of pajamas for Hinata. She tossed them to her and pulled her to her feet.

"Why don't you stay the night, Hinata?" Kari suggested in a motherly tone.

"I-I do-don't wa-want to be a bo-bother."

"Nonsense… Stay."

"O-okay."


Hinata waved as Kiba walked out of the house. Shino was about to leave but he pulled Kari aside. She looked at him confused.

"Thank you for dinner."

"No, I enjoyed this evening and I'd be honored if you came back," Kari said.

"I'd be more than happy to."

Kari smiled. Shino smirked. She couldn't see it but she could guess he was. He let her arm go then he turned to walk out the door.

He paused right as his foot was half way out the door. "You fall funny."

"Huh?"

"The dragonfly from the other day said you fall funny."

Then Shino left a laughing Kari to attend to Hinata.


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