A/N: Hey guys!
I have been going for a lot of camps, doing lots of planning and stuff, so I've not been free for quite a while. I'm glad to hear that the previous chapter wasn't a failure, and that you guys actually enjoyed it!

Chapter 26, Rivals

Hinata paced along the quiet roads of dawn, wearing a lavender-tinted sundress and matching shoes to go with it. Today, she was a happy girl. Naruto had forgiven her, and now they were back to the way they used to be. She learnt her lesson- she was going to trust Naruto a lot more now. Wheel carts of cabbages were dragged along the streets, and Hinata calmly found her way around the light traffic. The teen was alone, taking her morning strolls as usual. Sometimes she'd go to the park, but at other times, she'd just walk along the streets like a normal Konoha citizen, nothing less, nothing more.
"Hey Hinata!" Someone called. She flipped herself around and beamed.

"Kiba-kun, it's been quite some time since I last saw you. One week right?" She asked.

"Yeah! I've missed you dude!" Kiba yelled back, scratching the back of his head embarrassingly.
Hinata giggled, but before she could reply the brunette, a pair of strong tanned arms shot out from behind her and embraced her tightly around the waist.
"Eeep!" She squirmed, blushing like a tomato.

He clung onto her tightly and purred into her ears, "Hina-chan... Morning..."
She shivered for a while, but then relaxed in his arms and laughed. She'd recognize that voice anywhere. The sound of that deep, sexy voice. That was Naruto alright, always sneaking up on her. He rested his chin on her shoulder and stared at her with beautiful azure eyes.

"M-morning, Naruto-k-kun!" She made an attempt to sound courageous, but failed cutely. Seeing this made Naruto smirk at her.
"You're too cute, love..." He whispered, pressing his wet lips to her neck.
She shuddered at his wet touch.

They probably didn't notice it, but Kiba was dying at that point of time.

"Eeep..." She mumbled.

'What the hell...?'

He didn't understand. Had they already made up? What was going on with all this lovey dovey business? Did they still love each other? And more importantly, did Hinata still love Naruto and not him? That was most likely the case. Her stutter, her blush, her shivering, and her positive response to him touching her.

Obviously she did...

His heart clenched painfully, so tight it felt as if it could burst at any minute.
Why was she doing this to him? Did she enjoy him suffering?

"S-so... You guys... have patched up, huh?" Kiba stuttered, asking the couple daringly.
Naruto's head shot up, showing off how tall he actually was compared to Hinata. He moved his hands from her waist to her hands and squeezed them tightly but gently, smiling.
"Yeah! We're back together!" Naruto grinned.

His heart stopped.
The pain that lingered within him stayed, spreading and spreading.
Was Naruto better than him? Was he not good enough for her?
Kiba forced an awkward smile, turning away so that no one would see the angry tears that were almost about to leak.

"W-wow, that's g-great, guys..." He tried to hide his sadness, but obviously, Naruto saw right through it. He had known that Kiba had a thing for Hinata ever since he started going out with her. Seems like he finally reached his breaking point.

"Hinata-chan, Ino was looking for you just now. She told me to tell you to meet her at her shop." Naruto said with a smile.
Hinata looked up to him, blushing,"Really? O-Oh... I'll go now, I guess."

The blonde nodded and kissed her on the forehead, "I'll meet you later, lovely," and with that, he released his lover, letting her run off around a bend. His smile faded away, as he turned to look at the disappointed brunette before him with serious eyes.

"Kiba, I just want to let you know that-" He was cut off.
"Just because you two are back together, doesn't mean I'm going to give up, Naruto." Kiba muttered determinedly, clenching his fists and staring at Naruto wide-eyed.

"I'm going to fight for her... I'm not going to go down without a fight." Kiba smirked, "I won't lose to you, baka-brain..."
He said it in a joking, teasing tone, but he knew that Kiba really wasn't going to give up. Kiba wasn't mad at him, but he was going to fight for Hinata, even if they were friends. Love was known as the strongest thing ever, wasn't it? Love conquered all?

Naruto grit his teeth, "Well, I'm not giving her up either, dog-mutt..."

"Well then, you bet I'm not gonna lose! All fair in love and war!" Kiba shouted, turning around to walk away.
Naruto smirked back. Yeah, they were still friends. Just rivals too. He placed his arms behind his back, and walked in the opposite direction down to the flower shop, both men with a similar thought in their mind.
'I'm not going to lose her to you...'

Ino's shop

"Well if you ask me, I think that you and Naruto make an excellent pair" Ino grinned cheekily, grabbing Hinata's cheeks and squeezing them.
Hinata blushed in embarrassment and pulled away, "I h-hope so... He's such a great person."
At that moment, the sound of a crashing vase echoed throughout the shop, causing Hinata and Ino to peer past the potted plant.
It was Shikamaru. He was trying to get his hands on the daisy on the top shelf, and in the process, knocking down one of her most expensive pots.

"Err... I can... I cannot explain. Yup." Shikamaru said coolly while stepping out of the pile of shattered porcelain.
Ino practically had fire blasting out of her ears, "Get out Shikamaru! That cost my mom lots!"

She flipped back to Hinata, "Well sorry you had to see that honey, you know how Shika gets on my nerves sometimes. Well anyway, I'm really glad for you. Don't let some slut steal that man away from you! Not after all those years of waiting! I have a good feeling about you two!"

The Hyuuga heiress smiled and blushed softly, twiddling her two index fingers together. Ino always managed to cheer her up, give her advice and all sorts of things.
"Thank you, Ino-chan." She took a gentle bow, and headed for the door.

It seemed like the beginning of a new, wonderful relationship, yet, there were still many things that they would have to overcome.
"Together..." Hinata smiled.

A/N: I'm so sorry that this chapter was so short!