Flashback:

I put the paper on the counter, making it so it was hard to miss, and walked out the door.

"Ok, buddy, you ready for this?"

Akamaru barked: "Finally."

And the two of us sprinted off to Hinata's mansion.

"I wish I could love her the way that I love Neko."

Chapter 36: Breaking Up: Best for Both Worlds

Neko's POV

I ran to Naruto's house, feeling upset and happy at the same time.

"I wonder what I'm going to do and say…? I mean, how am I even going to look him in the eye without remembering last night?"

Talon looked up at me with no particular emotion, and meowed something about being prepared to kick Naruto's ass if he laid a hand on me.

"Oh, Talon," I smiled. "Only you would."

Talon just rolled her eyes and flicked her tail without saying anything else.

Once I reached Naruto's door, that's when things got serious. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes briefly.

"Will he still be mad?"

Before I could stop and think over what I was going to say to Naruto, he opened the door and leaned against the doorframe.

"So I heard Shik came home."

I felt lightheaded at the sight of him; he looked tired. More than tired… exhausted. Like he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. There was even some dried blood on his chin still.

"Yeah…" I breathed, trying not to remember the anger in his blue eyes.

Naruto's eyes suddenly widened as he stared at me.

"Look, Neko… I'm sorry I hit you last night. I was feeling… guilty. When you brought up spinning the bottle… and asking me who I kissed… it made me almost explode. The one that I did kiss last night was Hinata."

He looked earnest, so I knew that he was serious.

"How did Kiba take that?" I asked, feeling a little more than confused.

Kiba and Hinata were going out, right? So... if Kiba reacted the way he did when Naruto hit me... it was hard to imagine what had happened then.

Naruto looked like he was thinking back.

"I dunno. He told Hinata something about… it being ok and that it was just a game."

"So... he was ok with it? Wonder how that's even possible... I thought he hated Naruto..."

I haven't been so confused in what seemed like days.

I couldn't help but smile as I tried to cut to the chase.

"Oh… well, I forgive you, Naruto, but… I-I think we should-"

"Go our separate ways?" Naruto completed my sentence without even moving a muscle or showing any emotion at all.

I widened my eyes. "How did he know...?"

"Y-yeah."

He smiled very caringly at me.

"Yeah, I actually couldn't agree more. I mean, it's not like I don't like you anymore or anything, but since the party… I realized that I've always had feelings for another girl. I'm sorry about hurting you, too. I wasn't thinking about it... That's why I need the other girl. She was the one I was thinking about. I'm sorry."

I nodded. I got where he was coming from. "Yeah…"

He smiled at me again, looking almost relieved that I had understood.

"It's alright. Well… I'll see you later?"

I smiled back at him.

"Yeah, sure."

Talon meowed at him, pawing at his hair from her perch on my shoulder, as if nothing had happened the previous night.

I giggled a little bit.

"She always wants to play with your hair!"

Naruto smiled widely at me, his blue eyes showing that he knew something, but, as usual, the secret was known only to himself.

"As always."

I began to back away from his door, and he closed it, a small smile on his face.

"Well, Talon, that was easier than I expected it to be, huh?" I asked the black cat that was sitting on my shoulder.

Talon didn't even answer; she just flicked her tail as if she knew something that I didn't.

We were making our way back to Shikamaru's house when we saw Kiba walking the streets.

As he passed the two of us, he looked away and I could see the faint blush on his face.

"Stupid dog."

No matter how annoyed I tried to sound whenever I thought that, it always sounded so endearing.

I turned to his retreating back.

"Got something to be embarrassed about, dog boy?"

He didn't even turn to look back at me, with Akamaru on his head, as he muttered: "Shut up, pussy cat."

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Akamaru had given Talon a knowing look, and I asked: "What was that all about?"

Talon just sighed and didn't say anything in particular.

I turned again to face Kiba's retreating back, and, smirking, I turned back around and headed back to Shikamaru's house.

My work was over with.

"Dumb dog..."

Kiba's POV

As I made my way to Hinata's mansion, after passing a certain girl, I growled at Akamaru: "She's so much better when she's not annoying, boy."

Akamaru just shrugged at me.

"You two argue like an old married couple."

The thought of us being married made me go on defense as I growled, feeling another blush stain my cheeks.

"Shut up."

I reached Hinata's mansion faster than I expected and rang the doorbell.

Neji answered, looking happy for once in his life.

"Hinata, it's Kiba," and he left, a small smile on his face.

"How uncharacteristic..." I thought.

Hinata came to the door with a smile on her face.

"Kiba. It's been a while, but I have something to talk to you about."

I smiled politely at her.

"Same here, but first… why is Neji so… happy?"

She giggled. "He's got a date with Tenten tonight… but, do you mind if we go to the park and talk about this?"

I nodded. "Sure."

The two of us walked to the park, Akamaru now walking in between us.

We sat down on a bench next to the fountain, and I started: "How about you go first?"

Hinata took a deep breath. "I think we should… see new people."

I couldn't help but admit that I was surprised; I thought I was going to have to be the one to say it. You know, break the news.

"Oh really?" I murmured, trying to seem a little... you know, upset about it. Of course, I had been happy with Hinata. Maybe if things had been a little different... we could have been together longer.

Though, I knew I wouldn't have been as happy with her as I would have been with Neko.

Hinata blushed and nodded. "I think… I may have feelings for someone else, if that's ok."

I just nodded in response.

"Yeah, I know what you mean, because I was going to ask if we could break up, too."

Hinata took another deep breath and nodded, looking away almost nervously.

"So… we can still be friends?"

I smiled widely. "Of course!"

She laughed for a moment. "Ok… I was just wondering."

I had to know, so I asked:

"Just out of curiosity… who's the guy you like?"

Hinata blushed even more fiercely than normal. "Um… n-no one! You'll find out later, bye!"

She jumped off of the bench and ran back toward her mansion, and I could even see her ears turning red as her hair flew back.

I couldn't help but raise my eyebrow as I murmured aloud to Akamaru: "Do you know what that was all about, boy?"

Akamaru didn't answer me, and I got up, heading the other way.

"Well… we're going back home, buddy."

The whole way there... I couldn't stop thinking about her.

Neko, that is.

"She's still with Naruto... why can't she see... that I'd never do that to her? Maybe in the past... but not now. No."

Neko's POV

I reached Shikamaru's house slowly, and when I entered, I could see him sitting on the steps, his eyes closed and leaning back in a lazy way.

"Back so soon?"

"Yeah," I smiled as Talon jumped off of my shoulder and onto Shikamaru's head, like normal.

"Talon… sometimes you irritate me," Shikamaru sighed, but Talon dug her claws into his hair in response, making him shut up.

I laughed, but almost as soon as I did, I felt exhausted.

"Move, Shika; I'm gonna go take a quick nap."

"But… you just woke up…" Temari was talking to me from the top of the stairs.

"Too bad, Temari; I need my sleep!"

I ran to my room and shut the door, not caring if Talon was behind me, as I fell onto my bed.

"So… Kiba was… here? In my room? I wonder what he did, where he slept…"

My cheeks heated up at my own thoughts about where he could have slept as I shifted into a comfortable position.

"I hate these feelings that are coming back when I think about him. I want him, but… it's just so confusing. I can't have him; he'd never want me, and he's still with Hinata..."

Biting my own lip, I flicked my hair out of my face and closed my eyes.

"Would he ever want me? Even back in the pond that day... did he even want me then?"

With that thought, I fell into a light sleep, only to be woken up what seemed like an hour later.

"There's someone at the door for you," Shikamaru was smirking down at me.

"Who could it be?! I swear, if it's some sort of bluff..."

Kiba's POV

I walked through the doors to my own home, and as soon as I got inside, a shoe hit the side of my head, knocking me to the side.

"Who the hell...?"

I couldn't help but growl, but it was just Hana as she glared at me.

"What do you think you're doing?! Leaving a note and not bothering to-"

"Hinata and I broke up, Hana." I muttered, trying to avoid any stupid conversations with my sister. They can get pretty complicated, but even more so when it comes to relationships.

"…What?" Hana looked perplexed, like she didn't hear me, but I knew she did.

I only nodded.

"Yeah. It was mutual, don't worry about it. She's falling for some other guy, and if she thinks it's best to not be together anymore, that's fine by me; I have my own dream girl to chase."

The reluctance I said it with... I didn't want to say it that way anymore.

I wanted to tell everyone with confidence that I had a dream girl.

Hana rubbed my head like I was an actual dog.

"Go and get her little brother… go and get her."

I knit my eyebrows together in confusion.

"I can't. She's still with…" I bore my teeth at the thought of this bastard. "Naruto."

"Huh," Hana was now lying on the couch, looking confused again. "What's up with the way you're saying his name?"

I felt a sudden need to punch something as I growled, thinking about last night; "He hit her, Hana."

Hana's eyes widened as she flew off the couch, facing me. "Are you serious?!"

I shook my head, trying to clear all of the images in my head and supress the bloodthirsty beast that was threatening to explode out of me.

"No… I wanted to beat the shit out of him. That's all I fucking want to do… but she wouldn't let me."

The memory of how distraught Neko had been when I was about to kick Naruto's fucking ass... how she told me to let him go...

I balled up my fists.

"But what… what she doesn't see… is that I fucking love her, and I'd never fucking hit her. But she's still all over him, and he's abusing her; making her cry, putting her in pain… I don't even know why the hell she's still with him..."

I took a deep breath, and through my vision, I could see that Hana's eyes were wide open.

"You're in pretty deep, aren't you, Kiba?"

I stared at her for a moment, soaking that in, but I looked away after a moment.

"I guess I am… but…"

"So, Kiba… I heard you're in love."

The two of us both turned to see that Tsume was standing there with Kuromaru, her arms crossed over her chest.

She was smirking, one of those smirks thta makes you wonder what she knew, and Hana snorted.

"Mom… this kid..." she gestured to me. "...is just mad, that's all."

She turned to look at me.

"Why might that be?"

I growled in frustration:

My mom didn't understand the first thing about love, so I absolutely dreaded talking to her about it.

I mean, why the hell did she scare my dad away then, huh?

"How much of that talk did you hear?" I asked, letting out a deep breath.

Tsume shrugged. "Most of it, I guess. That rant right there was probably one of the most dedicated things I've ever heard from you."

I stopped growling and just stared at my mom, with her confused eyes.

I wanted to tell her about Neko.

How she was the most beautiful girl I'd ever met.

Everything about her... how the two of them would get along perfectly...

We all know why I can't though.

"Mom… it's all true." I tried distracting myself from thoughts of Neko.

Tsume got a few tears in her eyes as I said this, and she murmured, wiping them: "Go get her."

I stared even more blankly at her.

"What? Go GET her?! The hell is she talking about?"

Tsume whiped her eyes once more.

"You heard me, Kiba. Go get her! If you're willing to love her and do as many things for her as you've told us about, then she can't turn you down no matter what. She has to love you the way you love her. There's no other way…"

Even Hana was tearing up as my mother kept talking.

"I agree, Kiba. It's not so much of a bad thing to go and talk to her. Show her how much you care about her, and she'll care about you in the same way."

I sighed, agreeing with them.

"Fine. But if this doesn't work, and she rejects me as hard as I think she will… I'll never ever come out of my room. I'm not joking with that one. I wouldn't be able to show my face again if I think that she doesn't love me the way that I love her."

I sprinted out of the door, feeling almost invincible, as I ran to Shikamaru's house.

Adrenaline wouldn't let me stop to think, so I rang the doorbell, literally almost punching it, and Shikamaru answered.

As soon as he saw me, he smirked.

"Back again so soon, Inuzuka?"

I only shrugged.

"Is Neko here?!"

My voice sounded almost eager, and I wanted to punch myself.

Shikamaru's eyebrows creased.

"She's asleep. Why, what do you need her for?"

But Temari pushed him out of the way, not allowing me to answer.

"Just let the poor boy in, Shika."

Once I was inside the house, Shikamaru was rubbing his head.

"Troublesome woman… I'll go get her."

I sat with my back against the door now, and Temari smirked at me.

"So… you're finally realizing your feelings."

I just shrugged for the second time. "So?"

Temari smirked even more broadly now.

"You fuck up… it's over. The first time can sometimes be forgiven, like in her case, but the second time… it's over."

Suddenly feeling a bit discouraged, I growled: "I'm not gonna let anything happen to her."

I knew that if I let something happen to Neko at this point in time, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself.

Temari's eyes widened. "Really? What if enemy nin came and took her away?"

I bore my teeth at the thought of something like that happening to her.

"She wouldn't be able to be taken away, because I would have killed them before they got the chance."

I watched as Temari's eyebrows rose.

"But what if one enemy went behind your back and took her when you were fighting the others?"

Even thought this was completely hypothetical, I felt ashamed; I'd never let myself be blinded like that.

Especially when it came to Neko's safety.

"Then, I'd chase him down and kill him."

That's when Temari's gaze turned almost sinister.

"What if… by the time you caught up to him… he had already killed her?"

I felt my heartbeat stop for one… two… three… four… beats at the thought of anything like that happening to Neko, and he muttered, looking into Temari's eyes, nearly unable to get the words out:

"I'd kill myself for letting her die."

Temari looked almost confused, much like my sister.

"Why would you do that?"

I tightened my fists.

"If I can't even protect her, and I let her die… then why the hell would I deserve to live?! I don't deserve a life if I can't stop people from hurting her. I'd give my life to make sure that no one ever hurt her again… and I'm sure as hell gonna be the last person to ever treat her anything like the way Naruto did last night. I love her. It's not gonna change."

Having finally gotten that off of my chest, I watched as Temari walked around, pacing.

"So… you really do… love her?"

I nodded without a moment's hesitation.

"More than anything."

She looked at me for a second, then snorted. "Prove it."

My eyes widened. "How the hell can I do that?!"

Temari shrugged. "Figure it out. I'll wait."

Growling, I thought about it for a moment.

"Romantic... sweet... let me think for a second... Oh, I've got it!"

I then pulled out a kunai from my pouch and held it to my neck.

"If I ever hurt her. In any fucking way. I'll do it."

Temari smirked at me.

"Psh. You won't do it. That doesn't prove…"

But I sliced my skin without a second thought, from my the bottom of my jaw to my collarbone. Not deep enough to hurt me, but not whimpy enough that there wasn't any blood.

"For the record... I already have our future together planned." I whispered, feeling blood well from the wound, making me almost sick to my stomach now.

"Damn..."

Temari's mouth was agape.

"But… but you didn't… hurt her…"

I growled. "The moment I lost her, I hurt her."

She backed away, almost tripping over her own two feet.

"L-let me… get you some… bandages…"

As she ran to the bathroom, I put my kunai away, and watched as Shikamaru and Neko came down the stairs.

The first sight of Neko's still-tired eyes had me hooked.

"No matter what time of day it is... she never ceases to look pretty."

When Shikamaru saw me, his eyebrow rose, and Neko made a frown-like face.

"Kiba… what'd you do?!" She asked, sounding worried.

I smiled, feeling almost on cloud 9.

"I proved a point. Let's hang out; I've got nothing to do today, pussy cat."

Neko was now kneeling next to me.

"How'd that happen?!"

As soon as she asked that, Temari rushed back to my side and tried to bandage my wound, but I pushed her away.

"It's nothing to hide, Temari."

She gasped, eyes wide in shock, and she ran back to the bathroom, wiping her eyes.

"What a drag… Temari, what's wrong?!"

Shikamaru rushed after her, and Neko grabbed my shoulders.

"What's wrong, Kiba?!"

I smiled at her, trying not to show her how much I care about her just yet.

"Let's go. I want to hang out with you today."

Neko only looked at me for a moment, and the second our eyes met, I noticed her cheeks turn a lighter color as she murmured: "Uh… lead the way…"

Standing up, I took her hand and opened the door.

"Where do you wanna go?"

She smiled and looked away from me.

"How about… the park… yet again?!"

I laughed. "Sure. Let's go."

The two of us set off for the park, but I could still hear Temari crying even when we closed the door and were several paces away from the house.

Aww… Temari was crying because she thinks that's too sweet to handle :P I just got THE most EXCELLENT idea… for another OC story. Almost done with the first chap, so look for it, I guess… xD Rate/Review!

10/27/12: Sorry I'm late with this one, guys! Anyway, it's hebi-teme's birthday today! (Orochimaru-sama) xD Troll snake. ;D Anyway, yeah. This chapter was ok, I guess. Rate/Review!

SORRY IF I GOT THE CUTTING PART WRONG; I RESEARCHED IT FOR HOURS! D: