Ok here is my attempt at handling multiple relationships throughout a somewhat jumpy time line. A few of the relationships will seem odd, but I feel up to the challenge of making them work out in a good way and hopefully I will succeed. Or maybe ill fail and you'll all hate me horribly for defacing your favorite character ^^; Oh well…
Disclaimer: This is going to be the only one, no I don't own Naruto…
*~*
Gentle Memento
Chapter 1
A Time to Think
*~*
The sky seemed to have been crying softly for quite awhile seemingly aware of the terrible disaster that had befallen the once proud village of Konoha for months now.
A solitary figure stood atop a small hill facing the surrounding forest in an apparent state of calmness. Aburame Shino stood on the outskirts of the village watching the gentle mist roll through the dense forest with hidden amusement. He could already hear the melodious chirping of the crickets get a bit more frantic as the phantom mist flowed easily through the trees. It was moments like this that he could get lost, moments where he could relax as if he had not a care in the world.
Lifting his head toward the sky, he gave his glasses a gentle nudge up his nose as he let the rainfall gently upon his face.
Loneliness…
This trait could be found amongst nearly all nine of the selected Genin for the Chuunin exam. Of course he had been the only one to realize it, but then again he was probably the only one looking for such distress amongst his friends and comrades. He even found such a bothersome thing to plague him from time to time. But Shino had long ago learned how to settle his emotions before they over came him.
A sad smile braced his features, hidden by the large brim of his coat. Yes, he had definitely learned long ago never to let his emotions get the best of him. The blessing of the Aburame house had made sure he understood that such things could get him killed by the very beings that found their home in his body.
The destruction bugs...
Ah yes, the powerful insects of the Aburame clan. Those, which feed off their host's own chakara. In turn they offer their unwavering service to the person infested. And from the very beginning they become honed into everything their vessel thinks, and feels. If their owner is happy, they are blessed with a feeling of contentment. But with anger...with rage, they become severely agitated and soon try to find and remove the source of their discomfort.
This would be a very useful thing in battle, if it were not for the fact that they ALL try to flood out at the same time!
Needless to say, the skin and muscles of the outlets throughout the body can only take so much strain before rupturing thusly ripping the body apart. Strict meditation is enforced from the time the destruction bugs are received in order to keep such a thing from happening. In the end, those of the Aburame clan become soft-spoken loners from day one. A prestigious house, but not as powerful as those of the noble Hyuga or the tragic Uchiha. Daily routines follow a strict meditation session followed by strenuous jitsu training. Social interaction is to be held at a minimum because of the unnecessary emotions that can stem from too many outside thoughts. As well as the unspoken fact that many of the villagers, and shinobi alike find them unnerving, freaks of society.
His brows furrowed at the discomforting thought. Yes indeed they were freaks in the eyes of others. People who let bugs live inside of them must be horrible monstrosities right? He snorted at the grim reminder of the idiotic people of the world.
'So insects are not among the most huggable of creatures in the world. But to call upon them in battle is no worse or different than the summoning-no-jutsu done by countless others. Maybe if we had puppies living inside of us people would think differently...'
Taking a deep breath, he unconsciously lifted a hand to raise his glasses. Done in an attempt to hide his problems and discomfort (lest it shows on his face). 'Here I come for comfort and yet I drive myself into a painful corner.' He finally lowered his head. He could feel the destruction bugs teeming with what could only be deemed as restlessness as his train of thoughts ended on a sour note.
"Shino?" came an all to familiar and gentle voice.
Raising a hand to realign his shades again, he answered in his normal calm, dark voice, "Hello Hinata."
He must have been too deep in thought to even notice her arrival. Sighing mentally at yet another reminder of why emotions were bad he turned his head slightly to see her out of the corner of his eye.
He noticed she wore her normal hooded peach sweater as well as her blue high waters. A genuine smile crossed his features at her subtle way of hiding her feminine-ness. Of course he noticed it like he noticed nearly everything else people tried to hide.
She has always been the shy, and timid one. The one with a sever lack in self-confidence. He imagined the only thing that made her stand out of place was her now nearly obvious crush on the rambunctious blonde shinobi, Naruto. Perhaps she sees in him a way to help her get over her spirit crushing child-hood by trying to understand how he has so much confidence in himself when he was deemed a failure as well.
"What brings you out here today?" he turned so that he could look her directly in the eyes.
She smiled her normal small, sweet smile before speaking, "I was just on my way to go check on Naruto."
He gave a simple nod in response to her answer. 'Of course it would be to see him, the only other reason she leaves her home is to come train with Kiba, Kurenai-sensei, and me.'
"I heard his wounds are nearly completely healed." he shifted while in thought. 'Considering the extent of damage he took at the hand of Orochimaru's personal sound-nin he should have been dead. That Naruto has quite the will to live, the reasons why must be of such great importance to him. To be able to rise from being the underdog time and time again...'
Hinata nodded in complete happiness, "Yes, he's doing much better. He's even surprised the doctors at how fast he's recovering!" Her face darkened as she remembered how he was when the rest of the boys were brought in. "By all accounts he should have died Shino...they all should have." She quickly wiped her eyes at the horrific thought of such a loss. Even Shino had been worried over the state of his friends...well the closest people he could call friends. Chouji, Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Naruto all returned from their suicide mission. They had failed to retake Sasuke, and for awhile Shino believed that their failure had hurt them more then their physical injuries...especially for Naruto.
He remembered clearly the horrible lost look on Naruto's face as he told Sakura before he collapsed that he was sorry he failed. He watched as Sakura's very being was falling apart. There was such a haunted look in her normally cheerful eyes, as if all the light in her soul had suddenly escaped to hide itself in a dark corner so as not to have to feel the pain of such an incredible loss.
Carefully Shino observed Hinata's face. She was lost in the memory of what had happened only two months ago as well. He hated to see her like this, hated to see her so sad.
He remembered vividly his first visit to her at home; it had been enough to send him into a very deep meditation later that night. She had to put up with enough at her own home; at the very least she deserves some peace of mind out of it.
Shino believed there was nothing special between them; no such "chemistry" that would lead to anything more then what Shino was perfectly comfortable with. She had found a kindred spirit in Naruto, and he could only hope Naruto would see the same thing in time and not hurt her.
He more or less fashioned himself as some sort of a brother figure to Hinata. A silent and reliable pillar of warmth she could come to rest her heavy soul upon without fear of needing to give something in return or worry about its well being.
It had become an enjoyable new type of friendship for Shino. He honestly cherished the knowledge that Hinata trusted him enough to bear the burden of her heart and soul to him in hopes of finding solace within any words he might have.
Reaching out he took her smaller hand within his and gave it a gentle squeeze. He knew she would blush, it was an intimate type of touch but he could tell already her spirits were beginning to lift from his reassurance. "There is no more need to worry Hinata, they are safe and recuperating at the Hospital guarded closely by Kakashi, Asuma, Gai, and Kurenai-sensei on and off. Right now we only need to have high spirits, in case they might need to draw from our own to replenish theirs."
"Thank you Shino." Her smile was the only response he needed but she spoke her thanks anyways. The darkness was gone from her face and the soft light returned to her misted gray eyes. She slowly withdrew her hand as she began to push her index fingers together. Her nervous habit, meaning she was debating on whether or not to say something.
Lowering his hand back into his pocket, he watched the concentration in Hinata's eyes for just a few moments before deciding to ask about what was now on her mind.
"You seem to be lost in thought again Hinata, anything you care to talk about?" the rain slowly began to come to stop around them as she slowly raised her eyes to meet his.
"I was just wondering," her cheeks became a gentle shade of pink, which could mean anything he had learned, "why are you out here Shino?"
His smile went unnoticed under his large coat, "Just thinking Hinata, that's all."
He looked around as the rain slowly died down to a gentle mist. "You should hurry on, I am sure Naruto is waiting for his Ramen." Glancing back at Hinata he noticed her fingers still fidgeting. Her eyes were downcast and a sudden sad look crossed her features. So she did have more to say.
The thought entered his mind as a fact but he voiced it in a question, "Hinata, if you have anything else on your mind that you wish to share…"
"I…I'm glad that you did not go with them Shino."
Confusion quickly passed through his mind as he reached up to rearrange his glasses.
"Kiba told me that they looked for you…to go with them. But you were out with your father that day." She trembled slightly, "I…I probably would have gone crazy if both you and Kiba were brought back to the village in such shape…" Her voice cracked as the dam that held her emotions was flooded over.
"Hinata please do not get so upset over this matter." He spoke as calmly as he could, "Listen, if I had been there I would have gone with them..."
"I know Shino…" she cut him off while wiping her damp, smoke colored eyes with the back of her hand, "it was a mission given directly from Hokage-sama." A small smile played across her saddened features as she rose to find Shino's eyes. "I'm just glad that you were there for me that day…that's all."
He gave her slow nod as his response. Finding that no words could describe how glad he was to have truly helped Hinata through such a rough time. Kiba had been unconscious a long time, and Kurenai-sensei was ordered on missions at a blinding pace just like all the other Jounin.
So only he was left to make sure Hinata would be all right. Hell, he knew she would not receive any type of support at her own home.
"Thank you again," another smile braced her features as it actually managed to reach her eyes, "for everything Shino."
A quick readjustment of his shades was the only answer she received before she went on her way to the hospital.
Turning back to the gentle mist that flowed so effortlessly through the immense forest he let out a small sigh of contentment. Truly it was days like these that were overly kind to him, days that made him think of the future for once instead of just the present.
It was such comforting feeling…
Disclaimer: This is going to be the only one, no I don't own Naruto…
*~*
Gentle Memento
Chapter 1
A Time to Think
*~*
The sky seemed to have been crying softly for quite awhile seemingly aware of the terrible disaster that had befallen the once proud village of Konoha for months now.
A solitary figure stood atop a small hill facing the surrounding forest in an apparent state of calmness. Aburame Shino stood on the outskirts of the village watching the gentle mist roll through the dense forest with hidden amusement. He could already hear the melodious chirping of the crickets get a bit more frantic as the phantom mist flowed easily through the trees. It was moments like this that he could get lost, moments where he could relax as if he had not a care in the world.
Lifting his head toward the sky, he gave his glasses a gentle nudge up his nose as he let the rainfall gently upon his face.
Loneliness…
This trait could be found amongst nearly all nine of the selected Genin for the Chuunin exam. Of course he had been the only one to realize it, but then again he was probably the only one looking for such distress amongst his friends and comrades. He even found such a bothersome thing to plague him from time to time. But Shino had long ago learned how to settle his emotions before they over came him.
A sad smile braced his features, hidden by the large brim of his coat. Yes, he had definitely learned long ago never to let his emotions get the best of him. The blessing of the Aburame house had made sure he understood that such things could get him killed by the very beings that found their home in his body.
The destruction bugs...
Ah yes, the powerful insects of the Aburame clan. Those, which feed off their host's own chakara. In turn they offer their unwavering service to the person infested. And from the very beginning they become honed into everything their vessel thinks, and feels. If their owner is happy, they are blessed with a feeling of contentment. But with anger...with rage, they become severely agitated and soon try to find and remove the source of their discomfort.
This would be a very useful thing in battle, if it were not for the fact that they ALL try to flood out at the same time!
Needless to say, the skin and muscles of the outlets throughout the body can only take so much strain before rupturing thusly ripping the body apart. Strict meditation is enforced from the time the destruction bugs are received in order to keep such a thing from happening. In the end, those of the Aburame clan become soft-spoken loners from day one. A prestigious house, but not as powerful as those of the noble Hyuga or the tragic Uchiha. Daily routines follow a strict meditation session followed by strenuous jitsu training. Social interaction is to be held at a minimum because of the unnecessary emotions that can stem from too many outside thoughts. As well as the unspoken fact that many of the villagers, and shinobi alike find them unnerving, freaks of society.
His brows furrowed at the discomforting thought. Yes indeed they were freaks in the eyes of others. People who let bugs live inside of them must be horrible monstrosities right? He snorted at the grim reminder of the idiotic people of the world.
'So insects are not among the most huggable of creatures in the world. But to call upon them in battle is no worse or different than the summoning-no-jutsu done by countless others. Maybe if we had puppies living inside of us people would think differently...'
Taking a deep breath, he unconsciously lifted a hand to raise his glasses. Done in an attempt to hide his problems and discomfort (lest it shows on his face). 'Here I come for comfort and yet I drive myself into a painful corner.' He finally lowered his head. He could feel the destruction bugs teeming with what could only be deemed as restlessness as his train of thoughts ended on a sour note.
"Shino?" came an all to familiar and gentle voice.
Raising a hand to realign his shades again, he answered in his normal calm, dark voice, "Hello Hinata."
He must have been too deep in thought to even notice her arrival. Sighing mentally at yet another reminder of why emotions were bad he turned his head slightly to see her out of the corner of his eye.
He noticed she wore her normal hooded peach sweater as well as her blue high waters. A genuine smile crossed his features at her subtle way of hiding her feminine-ness. Of course he noticed it like he noticed nearly everything else people tried to hide.
She has always been the shy, and timid one. The one with a sever lack in self-confidence. He imagined the only thing that made her stand out of place was her now nearly obvious crush on the rambunctious blonde shinobi, Naruto. Perhaps she sees in him a way to help her get over her spirit crushing child-hood by trying to understand how he has so much confidence in himself when he was deemed a failure as well.
"What brings you out here today?" he turned so that he could look her directly in the eyes.
She smiled her normal small, sweet smile before speaking, "I was just on my way to go check on Naruto."
He gave a simple nod in response to her answer. 'Of course it would be to see him, the only other reason she leaves her home is to come train with Kiba, Kurenai-sensei, and me.'
"I heard his wounds are nearly completely healed." he shifted while in thought. 'Considering the extent of damage he took at the hand of Orochimaru's personal sound-nin he should have been dead. That Naruto has quite the will to live, the reasons why must be of such great importance to him. To be able to rise from being the underdog time and time again...'
Hinata nodded in complete happiness, "Yes, he's doing much better. He's even surprised the doctors at how fast he's recovering!" Her face darkened as she remembered how he was when the rest of the boys were brought in. "By all accounts he should have died Shino...they all should have." She quickly wiped her eyes at the horrific thought of such a loss. Even Shino had been worried over the state of his friends...well the closest people he could call friends. Chouji, Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Naruto all returned from their suicide mission. They had failed to retake Sasuke, and for awhile Shino believed that their failure had hurt them more then their physical injuries...especially for Naruto.
He remembered clearly the horrible lost look on Naruto's face as he told Sakura before he collapsed that he was sorry he failed. He watched as Sakura's very being was falling apart. There was such a haunted look in her normally cheerful eyes, as if all the light in her soul had suddenly escaped to hide itself in a dark corner so as not to have to feel the pain of such an incredible loss.
Carefully Shino observed Hinata's face. She was lost in the memory of what had happened only two months ago as well. He hated to see her like this, hated to see her so sad.
He remembered vividly his first visit to her at home; it had been enough to send him into a very deep meditation later that night. She had to put up with enough at her own home; at the very least she deserves some peace of mind out of it.
Shino believed there was nothing special between them; no such "chemistry" that would lead to anything more then what Shino was perfectly comfortable with. She had found a kindred spirit in Naruto, and he could only hope Naruto would see the same thing in time and not hurt her.
He more or less fashioned himself as some sort of a brother figure to Hinata. A silent and reliable pillar of warmth she could come to rest her heavy soul upon without fear of needing to give something in return or worry about its well being.
It had become an enjoyable new type of friendship for Shino. He honestly cherished the knowledge that Hinata trusted him enough to bear the burden of her heart and soul to him in hopes of finding solace within any words he might have.
Reaching out he took her smaller hand within his and gave it a gentle squeeze. He knew she would blush, it was an intimate type of touch but he could tell already her spirits were beginning to lift from his reassurance. "There is no more need to worry Hinata, they are safe and recuperating at the Hospital guarded closely by Kakashi, Asuma, Gai, and Kurenai-sensei on and off. Right now we only need to have high spirits, in case they might need to draw from our own to replenish theirs."
"Thank you Shino." Her smile was the only response he needed but she spoke her thanks anyways. The darkness was gone from her face and the soft light returned to her misted gray eyes. She slowly withdrew her hand as she began to push her index fingers together. Her nervous habit, meaning she was debating on whether or not to say something.
Lowering his hand back into his pocket, he watched the concentration in Hinata's eyes for just a few moments before deciding to ask about what was now on her mind.
"You seem to be lost in thought again Hinata, anything you care to talk about?" the rain slowly began to come to stop around them as she slowly raised her eyes to meet his.
"I was just wondering," her cheeks became a gentle shade of pink, which could mean anything he had learned, "why are you out here Shino?"
His smile went unnoticed under his large coat, "Just thinking Hinata, that's all."
He looked around as the rain slowly died down to a gentle mist. "You should hurry on, I am sure Naruto is waiting for his Ramen." Glancing back at Hinata he noticed her fingers still fidgeting. Her eyes were downcast and a sudden sad look crossed her features. So she did have more to say.
The thought entered his mind as a fact but he voiced it in a question, "Hinata, if you have anything else on your mind that you wish to share…"
"I…I'm glad that you did not go with them Shino."
Confusion quickly passed through his mind as he reached up to rearrange his glasses.
"Kiba told me that they looked for you…to go with them. But you were out with your father that day." She trembled slightly, "I…I probably would have gone crazy if both you and Kiba were brought back to the village in such shape…" Her voice cracked as the dam that held her emotions was flooded over.
"Hinata please do not get so upset over this matter." He spoke as calmly as he could, "Listen, if I had been there I would have gone with them..."
"I know Shino…" she cut him off while wiping her damp, smoke colored eyes with the back of her hand, "it was a mission given directly from Hokage-sama." A small smile played across her saddened features as she rose to find Shino's eyes. "I'm just glad that you were there for me that day…that's all."
He gave her slow nod as his response. Finding that no words could describe how glad he was to have truly helped Hinata through such a rough time. Kiba had been unconscious a long time, and Kurenai-sensei was ordered on missions at a blinding pace just like all the other Jounin.
So only he was left to make sure Hinata would be all right. Hell, he knew she would not receive any type of support at her own home.
"Thank you again," another smile braced her features as it actually managed to reach her eyes, "for everything Shino."
A quick readjustment of his shades was the only answer she received before she went on her way to the hospital.
Turning back to the gentle mist that flowed so effortlessly through the immense forest he let out a small sigh of contentment. Truly it was days like these that were overly kind to him, days that made him think of the future for once instead of just the present.
It was such comforting feeling…