Wow, I am so sorry, guys. I know I usually put Author's Notes at the end of chapters, but I feel the need to explain a couple of things.

Firstly, I know it has been a while, but I neglected to mention something; and that is that I have actually temporarily moved to China for a teaching internship, so stuff has been super busy and I haven't had much time to finish this chapter which I had started before I left in August. So, sorry for the delay.

Secondly, some of you may have noticed that I changed the rating of this story from T to M. I don't know how much smutty stuff matters to some of you, but that's a thing now. I hadn't decided when I started the story, hence the original T rating. So, consider this your warning.

Hope you enjoy the new chapter :) I'll try and update more regularly from now on!

"Freedom!"

The voice echoed over the construction, causing more than a few faces to turn in the direction of the hospital entrance. Their eyes were met with a grinning Inuzuka stumbling out of the hospital, his ever-present hound bounding excitedly alongside him, followed swiftly by a hooded ninja hovering nervously behind him.
"Would you please be more careful, Kiba?" Kankuro gritted out exasperatedly as he walked closely behind the unsteady dog-nin, his hands held out in preparation for what he expected was an inevitable fall.

"Oh, come on, Kankuro," Kiba replied impatiently, "I've been stuck in that hospital for weeks; I just want to walk around outside for once."
"I know that, I've had to deal with your complaining for weeks," The puppeteer sneered cheekily, receiving a withering glance from the dog-nin, "but you still have to be careful; despite your improvement, you still haven't fully recovered."
As Kankuro stated this, Kiba almost immediately stumbled, falling forward towards the ground before the back of his shirt was caught by strong hands. He glanced back at the smirking Kankuro with wide eyes as the sand-nin spoke,
"I rest my case."

After being pulled upright again, the dog-nin stepped quickly away from his close proximity to the sand-nin, brushing off invisible dirt from his trousers in his attempt to hide the blush that slowly seeped onto his face.

"It's not like I'm going to be exerting myself or anything," he retorted moodily, "Both Lady Tsunade and my mother made that abundantly clear with their threats." Both young men shuddered at the memory of the lecture from the previous day.
"That's exactly my point," Kankuro said as they silently agreed to begin slowly walking towards the food tent, "you're too stubborn to stick to the restrictions, and if you get caught, or hurt, it'll be my ass in the meat grinder."
"And we certainly wouldn't want that, would we?" Kiba replied, turning his head to the sand-nin shooting him a cheeky smile and a wink.

The action made Kankuro's eyes widen in surprise, and distracted him enough that he stumbled over his own feet. He felt a firm grip on his upper arm keeping him upright, and glanced to his side, seeing Kiba's smirking face mere inches from his own, gazing up at him.
"Now who needs to be more careful?"

The sand-nin stood frozen staring into the mischievous eyes for a moment before they moved away from him slowly. He watched, eyes still widened and mouth hanging open slightly as the dog-nin started limping forward. Kiba went a few feet before turning and seeing Kankuro unmoved. He grinned lightly to himself, feeling a light tightness in his chest that was becoming a common occurrence for him in the presence of the puppet master; a common occurrence that he had subconsciously decided to ignore until he understood it.

"Well, come on then!" he stated loudly, "Are you going to stand there catching flies all day, or are you going to do your job and make sure I'm 'being careful'?"

Kankuro immediately shut his mouth and shook his head lightly to clear it, a small smile playing on his lips as he sauntered after the excitable dog-nin.

Sitting nearby on a large rock, a bowl of ramen rapidly disappearing into his mouth, Naruto watched his two friends interact as they made their way to the food tent, sniggering around his food.
"They're so deep in denial, it's just sad," he said, his mouth still full, causing spittle and remnants of noodles to spray out of his mouth landing on the stoic man leaning against the stone below him, "but they'll come around soon, I can see it; but maybe they do need a helping hand again."
A look of disgust crossed Sasuke's face as he rubbed his hand over the nape of his neck and his hair to remove the debris, "Don't talk with food in your mouth, moron," he grunted crabbily, "and stay out of it; you just said they'll come around eventually."

"What if they don't-"
"It's also none of your damn business," the Uchiha interrupted, "if it's meant to be, then I'm sure they can figure it out themselves."

Those words made Naruto sit forward, a smile on his face. He grinned widely as he leaned down and ruffled the Uchiha's hair, and spoke quietly, "You mean like certain someone's we know? Aw, Sasuke, you big romantic, you!"
The dark-haired man growled, instantly grabbing the blonde's arm and flipping him off the rock before walking away grumbling obscenities.
Naruto sat up from his new position on the floor, rubbing his head before noticing Sasuke walking away towards the outer wall of the village.
"What the hell was that for, bastard?! You made me spill my ramen!" the blonde shouted after him, "Hey, come back! Where are you going?!"
The Uchiha ignored him, continuing on his path, seeing the main gate in sight. He passed through it, turning to head towards the forest, the hyperactive blonde still stumbling along behind him shouting and complaining. When he had reached a certain point in the forest, quite deep in the foliage, but not too far from the gate, he ground to a halt, causing Naruto to crash into his back.

"What the hell, bastard?! What's wrong with you, huh?!" the blonde cried out, deciding to continue his previous rant, "and why the hell did you flip me off the rock? You made me spill my ramen, you bas-"
He was cut off by hands grabbing his upper arms and a pair of insistent lips crashing into his own, demanding their attention. His wide eyes immediately began to droop before finally closing tightly, as he fell into the kiss, lifting his hands to weave his fingers through black locks. He felt the warmth of Sasuke's tongue teasing his lips, so he opened his mouth slightly, granting access to the unrelenting muscle which instantly began tangling slowly with his own. Moaning lightly, the blonde tilted his head back and slightly to the side, deepening the already passionate kiss and moved his hands so his arms were completely wrapped behind Sasuke's neck.
Sasuke's grip loosened on Naruto's arms and he lowered his hands to tightly clutch the blonde's slim hips, pulling his body closer to his own, holding the younger tightly against him. They both swallowed each other's groans as the proof of their lust ground together roughly, causing their kiss to intensify exponentially.
Without breaking their connection, the Uchiha lightly pushed the blonde using his body, guiding him until the shorter man's back hit a nearby tree. Naruto felt Sasuke's leg find its way between his own, and he instantly began grinding his arousal against the taller man's thigh, his loud moans being swallowed by the other.

Sasuke slowly pulled his mouth from the blonde's, nipping at his lower lip slightly before moving his head to the side causing the shorter to open his mouth to protest. Naruto's objection was lost in groans when he felt the Uchiha's lips attach themselves to his neck, lightly scraping his teeth over the flesh as he sucked it into his mouth, a quiet moan escaping him at the taste of the blonde's skin. Tilting his head to the side to allow the older more access, Naruto's groans increased in volume and intensity, he felt Sasuke moving further down his neck. He moved his hands to once again grip the Uchiha's black locks, futilely attempting to push the taller man further onto him. When he realised Sasuke's mouth was as close as it could get, he changed tactics, lifting a leg up to wrap around the Uchiha's hip and subsequently pulling his clothed groin towards the blonde's own, keeping the captured man's arousal firmly attached to his own as he gyrated his own against it.
Groaning loudly into his partner's neck, Sasuke released Naruto's slim hips, only to move his hands to the back of the blonde's thighs and lifted him up easily, the shorter man immediately wrapping his other leg around the Uchiha's waist to join its counterpart. The dark haired man used his hips to push the other more firmly against the tree, finally lifting his lips from yet another bruising mark on the blonde's neck only to move them to pause next to Naruto's flushed ear.
"You ever call me romantic in public again, and I'll fuck you into the ground right then and there, moron," he ground out, voice deep with lust; but as the blonde managed to peek at the dark eyes, he saw the endless love hidden beneath the burning desire, and a smile twitched at his lips.

"I don't think I'd complain, bastard," he replied, his own voice hoarse from his moans, as his smile transformed into a lustful smirk, "Now, let's see if your bite is as irresistible as your bark, Uchiha."

Kiba let forth a gigantic belch, rubbing his stomach with a dopey smile plastered on his face.

"Ah!" he exclaimed happily, "I don't think I could eat another bite!"
"Well, I would hope not," Kankuro replied uncertainly, a perfect mixture of awe and disgust etched onto his features as he glanced at the tall pile sitting on the table beside the Inuzuka, "You did eat five bowls already."
"Well, I have been eating hospital food for weeks," the dog-nin defended hotly, "I don't know what they do to the food that goes into that place, but whatever it is, it's not good."

The sand-nin hummed lightly in agreement, smiling softly as his gaze fell on the light in Kiba's sharp eyes as they darted around taking in their surroundings; he was happy to see the younger man smiling so much. After he'd been staring for a minute, the dog-nin's eyes fell on his own and he quickly averted his gaze, taking a deep breath and stretching – attempting to settle the fluttering in his stomach.
He could feel Kiba's eyes burning into the side of his head but he kept his eyes fixed on the middle distance avoiding the dog-nin's piercing gaze.
"So," he stated loudly, breaking the ever-growing tension, "want to go for a walk? I can show you all the renovations."
Kiba gave him a sceptical look, "I thought you didn't want me 'exerting' myself," he taunted insolently, causing Kankuro to roll his eyes in mock exasperation.
"We don't want you over-exerting yourself, mutt," the sand-nin sneered back cheekily, "I'm sure a leisurely walk won't over-work your fragile little legs," he continued derisively, receiving yet another withering glance from the offended Inuzuka.

"Oh, don't give me that look," Kankuro chided lightly, standing from the bench to walk around to the dog-nin's side of the table and holding out his hand to help him up, "You walked right into that one, and you know it."
Kiba grumbled obscenities as he begrudgingly took the sand-nin's hand, heaving himself up with the taller man's help. He started to limp away, but stopped when his arm didn't follow. A quick glance back revealed the hand of the unmoving limb still wrapped tightly around Kankuro's. Releasing the hand with haste, his face flushing hotly, he shot a glance to the sand-nin's face, finding the other's expression to be an odd combination of amusement and surprise. As he turned back to restart his limping walk outside, he missed the slight blush apparent on the taller man's cheeks accompanied by an affectionate smile as the sand-nin casually followed the other ninja outside.

After two hours of walking, talking and laughing, the Inuzuka's energy levels were beginning to plummet. The sand-nin could see that the speed of their already slow walk had gradually decreased over the last half hour and the dog-nin's limp had become more pronounced. Knowing how stubborn the younger man could be, he said nothing, choosing to just casually steer their walk back towards one of the makeshift barracks where, he'd been told, the Inuzuka had a bed waiting for him.

Kankuro turned his head to look at the other brunet, watching his smiling face turn this way and that, trying to take in all his surroundings while occasionally checking to see where Akamaru was. The sand-nin smiled affectionately at the dog-nin, quickly replacing it with the most casual expression he could think of when Kiba's head turned towards him. He wasn't expecting what happened when their eyes met for that brief second. It felt like the world around him had frozen in time; a painting that captured this one inconsequential moment that, for some reason, still meant so much. The contact ended as quickly as it had begun, both shinobi rotating their heads to face opposite directions as they tried to avoid the other seeing the shock and redness that had overcome their faces.

Glancing around, the sand-nin ground to a slow halt, holding out his hand to lightly grasp the back of Kiba's t-shirt. The dog-nin staggered lightly, looking back at Kankuro in confusion, only hints of redness remaining on his cheeks. He turned his body and took a step back towards the unmoving man, tilting his head up slightly in an attempt to catch the taller man's averted eyes. The dog-nin's sharp eyes could see the tightness in the corner of Kankuro's eyes, telling a story of stress and confusion that the Inuzuka couldn't help but try to place.

"Kankuro?" he ventured softly, pausing to wait for the sand-nin's eyes to meet his before continuing in a quiet voice, "What's wrong?"
A sigh came forth, and for a moment Kiba was sure the sand-nin would brush it off as nothing. As it turned out, there was something he'd forgotten about Kankuro after all the years they'd been apart; he had never been one to keep his thoughts to himself. Though the puppet master had matured, there were aspects of a personality that were so deeply ingrained into one's being that there was no getting rid of it with the aging process. Kankuro had always spoken his mind, even when it wasn't needed, and this time was going to be no different.

"I don't exactly know for sure," he started carefully, his voice lowered to a barely audible mumble, "I've been feeling things since I got to Konoha that I'm not entirely sure how to process."
Kiba's eyebrows came together in confusion, "What do you mean? Are you sick?"
Kankuro chuckled slightly, pressing his finger into the creases on the dog-nin's brow, "Not exactly, if it's what I think it is," he responded cryptically, his eyes crinkling in amusement "some people might call it a sickness, but I disagree with that terminology."
The sand-nin was holding back his laughter as he spoke, watching the Inuzuka's expression morph into a combination of worry and confusion as he tried to decipher Kankuro's riddles.
"And do you want to know the best part?" the puppeteer continued around the chuckles he couldn't hold back, "It's all because of you."
Kiba's face whipped up to look at the taller man's, shock registering on his features, "What?!" he exclaimed, his voice cracking slightly from his surprise, "What did I do to you?!"

Kankuro couldn't hold it in anymore, bending over at the waist slightly, holding his stomach as his laughter bounced and echoed off both the old rubble and new buildings that surrounded them. As his laughter filtered down to light chuckles, he stood up straight, catching his breath as he glanced at poor Kiba's simultaneously befuddled and horrified expression.
With another light chuckle, he held his index finger under the dog-nin's chin, tilting the younger man's head up to look at him.
He leaned down towards the other, stopping only an inch or two before the dog-nin's face as he spoke softly, so only Kiba could hear, "You can be so dense sometimes, pup."
The words, spoken with such affection, coupled with the amused sparkle in Kankuro's intense eyes told the Inuzuka that he wasn't actually calling him stupid. As he processed the words and quickly went over the previous conversation, his heart skipped a beat. Kankuro could see from the expression on Kiba's face that the dog-nin finally understood what he meant. The Inuzuka's shocked eyes rose to meet ones filled with laughter and adoration as everything finally fell into place, and Kankuro took that as an invitation.
His face drew closer to Kiba's, slowly closing the last couple of inches, giving the Inuzuka plenty of time to back out, but he didn't. Moving a hand forward to lightly grasp the front of Kankuro's shirt, Kiba closed his eyes in anticipation, waiting for the moment he hadn't thought would ever come that was now only hairsbreadth away.

A loud bark startled them out of their moment, Kiba's forehead colliding with Kankuro's eye when he jumped in surprise.
"Ow!" the cried out simultaneously.
"Damn it, Akamaru!" Kiba growled loudly at his best friend as he held a hand to his head, "What the hell is wrong with you?!"
Akamaru gave out a small whining bark before he was interrupted by someone else.

"Kiba!" the powerful voice of his mother suddenly answered all his questions about Akamaru's interruption, and he scratched the dog's ear in apology before turning to face the clan leader who had just emerged from round the corner of the barracks.
"Hey, mum," he mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck as he shot an uncharacteristically shy glance to the man standing beside him. Kankuro shot him a wink before nodding his head in the Inuzuka woman's direction. Kiba smiled brightly, revelling in the fact that nothing had been ruined by the interruption.
"I heard you were getting out today, but you already gone by the time I got there," she said calmly, her eyes moving suspiciously over to the sand-nin next to her son.
"Yeah, sorry, mum," he apologised casually, laughing lightly, "Kankuro invited me to go with him to get lunch, and I was desperate to have anything other than hospital food."
"Well, I guess that's fair enough," she replied, her narrowed eyes moving back to gaze affectionately at her son, "now, you look exhausted, so let's get you to bed."
"Mum," Kiba whined childishly, ignoring Kankuro's sniggers, "It's only like, five in the evening, it's too early to go to bed."
"Kiba, you're still recovering from serious injuries," she replied sternly, "I will not have you exerting yourself any more than you already have today, and you look absolutely worn out, now come on!"

Kiba couldn't really deny that he was exhausted as he watched his mother walk towards the barracks, but he also didn't want to leave Kankuro yet; not after what had nearly happened. But as he looked towards the sand-nin, he got caught in the puppet master's gaze as he smiled at him affectionately, giving him another small wink before murmuring words for his ears only.

"I'll see you tomorrow, mutt."