A/N's: Ugh, it's been way too long since I've updated. Sorry for the wait guys, college and organic chemistry doesn't leave me with much time for writing.
And sorry these past couple of chapters have been relatively short, it's all buildup for the next upcoming chapters, which are planning to have more content (and be longer in length). As a reminder, this is a story that focuses on both romance and clan reconciliation. I plan to take a lot of creative liberties with my depiction and headcanons of certain clan aspects. In all honesty, I was originally planning to scrap this chapter, but I just really wanted to write a certain character LOL! As always, thank you so much for sticking around! And don't forget to read/review/follow/fav :)
Chapter 7: Shopping Days and Dreams
"What about this one?" Kiba said, holding up a black, form-fitting tank top to see how it would suit his taller companion.
Shino eyed at the deliberately placed rips on the shirt's sides. "You already know what my answer to that is, Kiba," he replied, digging through the sweater rack once more . "Don't ask unnecessary questions."
"C'mon Shino, we've been at this for hours! Choose something!"
"It's only been 45 minutes. I prefer to take my time clothes shopping. That's because I'm rather selective of what I wear. You were the one that insisted on shopping today, in the first place."
"Yeah, but I didn't think you were gonna be this picky," the Inuzuka grumbled. "Why don't you try wearing something besides a sweater, huh? It's summer for crying old loud!"
"I'm not wearing a tank top-"
"-Don't do this for you! Do this for Mitsumi! Don't you think you'd impress her more if you went out of your comfort zone?" He gestured towards the un-modest tank top in his hands. "C'mon, it's pretty nice! It'll really show off your machismo, plus it's not like you're gonna find anything over there; you're beating a dead horse over there, pal."
The Aburame glanced over at the sad, growing pile of clothes he discarded. It wasn't as if he didn't care to look nice, he would just feel better if he was in something comfortable.
His eyes made their way to the Inuzuka, hard at work digging through the clothing rack. Shino had to admit that he felt a bit guilty being so selective. Kiba did, afterall, offer up his free Saturday from work to help him, even though he was technically doing this because of his father.
"I won't wear a sweater," Shino finally said, stepping away from the clothes. "The shortest I'm willing to go is elbows. No tank tops."
"Better than nothing!" Kiba said before going back to work. Gasping excitedly, he pulled out a gray, long sleeve v-neck with holes at the shoulders.
"I know I said no tank tops, but please. At least a shirt that's fully intact."
"C'mon, Tamaki says it's the newest clothing trend! Holes and rips make you look more rugged, plus the material's pretty soft!"
"No thank you, Kiba," Shino replied, making his way towards a different section.
The Inuzuka eyed at the shirt and shrugged his shoulders before placing it in his own basket. "Suit yourself, but don't come crying to me when you see how manly I look in this." He grinned, thinking about how Tamaki would be all over him when she saw how rugged he'd be in said article.
"Maybe we should try another store?" Kiba suggested. "Since obviously you don't like any of the ones here... "
Before the other man could reply, a soft voice called out to the both of them.
"Kiba-kun? Shino-kun? Is that you?"
The two men turned to see their long-time friend and old teammate carrying around a shopping basket. The Hyuuga heiress had grown more mature and assertive over her years of being a full-time mother, but her gentle nature never faltered with time. Both the Inuzuka and Aburame had to admit that they missed seeing her.
"Hinata!" Kiba called out. "It's good to see you!"
Walking towards the two, Hinata replied. "It's been awhile, hasn't it? It's been so long since I've seen the two of you in a setting outside of your workplaces."
"That it has," Shino admitted. "In any case, what brings you in today, Hinata?"
"Oh, I needed to buy some groceries at the supermarket, and thought I'd stop by here to buy the kids some new clothes. Boruto rips up his shirts pretty frequently with all of the training he does, and Hima's been struggling to fit into her old dresses…"
Abandoning his prior 'mission,' Kiba turned his full attention to the purple-haired woman. "Man, kids sure do grow up fast, huh? Are the little tykes with you today?"
Hinata shook her head, eyes filled with pride over her children. "Boruto headed off for the day to train, and I asked Hanabi to watch Hima for the time being. So what brings the two of you in, then?"
"Well actually- Shino!" Kiba yelled pointedly. "I see you eyeing the sweaters! Don't think you can scurry off just because Hinata's here."
"I wasn't going to 'scurry off,'" Shino huffed. "I thought I saw something."
"Uh-huh, sure you did."
The Hyuuga chuckled quietly at her former teammates' banter. Though all three of them had changed quite a bit, some things always stayed the same. She admitted that she missed when all three of them would go on missions with Kurenai-sensei, roughing it out as young Shinobi ready to take on the world.
"It's nice to see the two of you haven't changed too much," Hinata commented quietly.
Kiba jerked a thumb towards the other man. "Yeah well that's just the problem with this guy!" He directed his glare to the Aburame. "Here we are, trying to find you a nice new outfit for your date and you go off to get something you probably already have!"
"A date?" Hinata asked with wide eyes. "With whom, Shino-kun?"
"A woman I met a few days ago," Shino explained after clearing his throat, choosing to ignore the Inuzuka's previous words. "She recently moved from Iwagakure to start up a honey business, and she asked if I would be able to show her around the village tomorrow. Technically, it's not a date." He subtly returned Kiba's glare.
The Inuzuka waved off the technicality. "Feh, tomato tomato! This is the first time someone's asked you out without any meddling or intervention on my end! I expect you to dress nice, Shino!"
"That's wonderful, Shino-kun," Hinata clasped her hands together. "I'm so happy for you."
"Well I'm starting to have second thoughts on helping you," Kiba pouted. "I can't help a man that doesn't wanna be helped."
"Kiba, I refuse to pay for an article of clothing with deliberately placed holes in the shoulders, or rips in the sides. Why? Because it's a waste of money," Shino retorted, falling back into his old speaking habits.
"Maybe I can help you find something, Shino-kun?" Hinata interjected.
Shino turned towards the woman, gently turning down the woman's offer. "No, that's alright Hinata. Thank you, but I wouldn't want to keep you."
Despite his rejection, the Hyuuga began to dig through the clothing rack after gently placing down her shopping basket. "I really don't mind helping you Shino-kun. I would like you to look nice for your date too." She skillfully looked through the clothes, occasionally stopping to pull something out.
"You and Kiba-kun dress so differently and have such different personalities, it makes sense why your fashion choices conflict," she said simply. One particular shirt caught the woman's attention. It was hidden away between the pantaloons, but rarely anything escaped her watchful eye.
"I don't mind helping you," Hinata reiterated, examining the shirt. "... In all honesty, I could use some time away from the house. How about this one?"
Shino and Kiba looked over the shirt Hinata held up.
It was a plain, navy blue piece, with the sleeves ending just a bit past the elbow. It wasn't as heavy as a sweater, and it wasn't as light as a tank top either. The shirt's material made it contour the body, making it more form-fitting, but it was still relatively long and modest to Shino's enjoyment.
The Aburame and Inuzuka looked at each other and nodded, impressed with the woman's choice. The former gratefully took the shirt and held it up against his body, seeing how it would fit. He let out a noise of approval.
Kiba grinned. "I think we have our winner."
"I'm impressed, Hinata," Shino concluded, carefully placing the item in his basket. "Kiba and I were looking for quite awhile and couldn't seem to find anything... Thank you, I really appreciate it."
"Of course, Shino-kun. Anytime," Hinata said, picking up her own basket from the floor. Before Shino could make his way to the register, Kiba interjected.
"Hold it! We still need to find you some pants to go with that shirt. And maybe a watch or something."
Shino groaned internally. When Kiba said they would shop for a new 'outfit,' he really meant a new outfit. He didn't think he could last another 10 minutes of shopping with the Inuzuka, who might try to convince him to wear something ridiculous, like pantaloons with rips on them.
Hinata giggled before making her way towards the pants section, gesturing for the other two to follow. "I think I might have an idea of something that would look nice, Shino-kun. Let's get you a full outfit for tomorrow."
The Aburame raised a brow, surprised that the woman wanted to spend her time helping him. She had her family and home to look after, which consumed a great deal of time by itself.
"Are you sure, Hinata? I can look after this. Really" Kiba said gently.
"Hima was excited to spend the whole day with her aunt and grandpa," Hinata replied, addressing their concerns. "So really, I'm not in any particular rush to be home soon."
"I've missed the both of you," she quietly admitted, browsing through the men's pants section. "I think helping you find what you need is a good way for the three of us to catch up."
Hinata smiled at them, determination shining in her pale eyes. It brought the two of them back to their genin days, and Shino and Kiba found that they couldn't do anything but accept.
"Ooh! What about him?"
Tamaki discretely pointed at a random man that entered the department store.
The two women had chosen an outfit for Mitsumi's day with Shino within 30 minutes of their arrival and were currently lounging about, digging through whatever clothing racks were around them. They had gone to other stores before this one, but one blouse in particular sold it for Tamaki.
"You have to get this one!" Tamaki had exclaimed. "It was practically made for you!"
The honey vendor was just happy it wasn't too revealing.
10-something minutes later, the cat Kunoichi began an impromptu game of twenty questions with the other woman, trying to gauge her interests. The topics ranged from anywhere to clothes, perfume, chocolate, hair, and even men.
Said man on the radar was currently looking down at his wristwatch as he perused the men's shoes on display.
Mitsumi squinted her eyes, trying to peer over the dress rack to have a better look. She stepped towards the open middle eye aisle before being pulled back to their hidden spot behind the dresses.
"Don't make it look so obvious!" Tamaki warned in a pointed whisper.
"I can't see!" the honey vendor whined, unable to make out the man's face from behind the clothes rack. She stood on her tiptoes uncomfortably before attempting to jump to see over the tall clothing rack.
"He's moving the other way! Go, go, go!"
Mitsumi quickly made her way towards the open aisle, pretending to browse the sunglasses. She glanced over her shoulder to get a better look at the man. Tamaki stood next to her, eyeing the small handbags.
"He's pretty cute," Mitsumi whispered, a hand cupped around her mouth. "He looks a bit bored though, don't you think? Something in his eyes."
"A lot of women would just call his eyes 'brooding.' You don't like that in a man?" Tamaki was surprised. Their mysterious stranger was certainly easy on the eyes. Tall, wavy black hair. Mysterious air about him, well-dressed. The cat Kunoichi was vaguely reminded of an old childhood crush on an Uchiha of the same vibe.
"No, he's very handsome!" Mitsumi rushed out defensively. "I'm just not a fan of the dark and brooding types, I think."
"Yeah, your type is 'awkward school teacher,'" Tamaki said with a giggle. After digging around through the small purses, she pulled out something. "Hey, look at this!" she gasped. "It has honey bees on it! That's like your thing, right?"
The honey vendor examined the small black clutch with wide eyes. It was relatively simple, held up by a single gold chain. The front had a metallic emblem of a bee encircled by a hexagon.
"Oh, it's beautiful!" Mitsumi smiled, holding up the small bag. She leaned forward. "You don't want it, Tamaki?"
The other woman grinned. "No, I'm not really a bee gal myself. If it had been cats, though, that's a different story. Plus, I think it would go great with the outfit we got for you! You're gonna look absolutely perfect," she said with a glimmer in her eyes. "Shino would be crazy not to ask you out again!"
The honey vendor held the clutch close to her, eyes looking away fondly. "I hope so."
"Just to be clear," Tamaki began, a bit more serious. "You…" How would she phrase this? "... You like bugs, right? Like a lot?"
"Oh, I love all types of insects! In fact, I'm in the process of thinking up names for my store, and I want to do something insect-related! Isn't that fun?" Mitsumi answered excitedly. "But... what's with the sudden topic change? Is everything alright, Tamaki?"
The cat Kunoichi waved off her friend's concern. "No, no! It's just that… Shino has that whole insect schtick with him, I wanna make sure you're not put off by that!"
The other woman looked up thoughtfully before shaking her head. A blush gradually crept onto her face. "No, I like that he's open about his interests."
"But you know with Shino, bugs are a substantial part of his life…" Tamaki trailed off. "I just want to make sure you understand that." She thought back worriedly to her conversation with Kiba after the night all four of them went out.
Apparently, Shino hadn't told Mitsumi that he was an Aburame yet. And not just any Aburame, the next head of the clan. With the way things went on his last blind date, Tamaki didn't think the man (who was surprisingly sensitive) could handle another rejection. She would rather meddle now before any feelings were seriously hurt beyond repair.
"I think Shino-san is… he has a good heart. From what I've seen, he's kind, wise, and accepting. And in all honesty, that's more attractive to me than handsome and brooding," Mitsumi commented fondly, eyes faraway. She focused back at the other woman. "I don't mind the insects. Really."
Tamaki's shoulder relaxed. "Yeah… Yeah, ok. I just wanted to make sure," she said, a smile on her face. A wave of reassurance rushed through her, and her demeanor returned to normal.
"In any case!" The cat woman continued. "Let's go get this ringed up, yeah? I wanna make sure we have enough time to go get lunch and do some more browsing!"
Shino was absolutely exhausted.
He returned home after a full day of shopping around 7 and wanted nothing more than to close his eyes and rest. Kiba and Hinata made absolutely certain that every detail of his new outfit, even socks, were perfectly coordinated.
"I want your date to go well, Shino-kun. Details like this are necessary," was Hinata's answer.
"I don't want my old lady yelling at me if your date tanks," was Kiba's. "But I want this one to go well, too old buddy. I've got a good feeling this time."
Carefully hanging up his newly bought clothes, the man slipped into bed after dressing.
Despite his tired state, he was surprisingly… excited over his meeting with Mitsumi tomorrow.
The Aburame used to feel excitement like this before on the earlier blind dates Kiba would set up for him. Instances of rejection and loss of communication after the first date, however, had long since crushed any hopes he had regarding romantic endeavors.
His early years of being viewed as the 'creepy' quiet kid in class made the man doubtful that he would make friends. He eventually overcame that barrier overtime and met people he could say without a shadow of a doubt were his comrades and friends. Dating, however, was a whole different ball game.
Despite being 33 years old, the man never made it past the first date. Inwardly, he came to the conclusion that would simply live as a content bachelor for the rest of his days, nevermind what the clan thought.
Even though he mentally came to terms with a single life of solitude, the Aburame couldn't help but feel the pangs of jealousy in his chest when he saw his friends happily married off with their significant others. Deep down, Shino envied how Kiba could so easily hold Tamaki in a loving embrace, envied how Hinata's long pining after Naruto finally paid off with their marriage and little family.
He envied how easy it was for others to be wanted. Envied how easy it was for others to desire love and receive it. To be looked at like there was no one else in the whole universe another person would want to be with.
With a heavyhearted sigh, the man eventually drifted off.
His eyes opened, but they weren't his own.
Shino gasped at the scene of brutality before him.
Bodies lay across the wide fields of grass, the once rich green now heavily painted with shades of dark red. Many of the corpses were decorated with oozing holes, chakre-hungry kikai moving in and out of every available orifice.
Strewn among the grass mixed in with the blood of the corpses were scores and scores of dead bees.
The Aburame clan heir's stomach clenched painfully at the sight of terror. He felt the kikai underneath his skin jitter about, making his nerves stand on every edge. Looking down at his hands, he noted with disgust how they were drenched with fresh blood.
"Mark my words, Shinta Aburame," a cold voice cried out to him. Who were they speaking to?
Before Shino knew it, a young woman appeared in front of him, porcelain skin dyed with a mixture of the blood of her enemies, and her own. Her russet-brown hair was freshly chopped off, stray strands falling messily on her shoulders.
She was hunched over, body close to giving out from exhaustion.
"My clan will prevail through this," she hissed at him painfully. "The Kamizuru will not fall here!"
Shino fought the urge to help the pitiful woman as she barked out meaningless threats, the bodies of her fallen comrades strewn around her. Before he could even register them, words poured out of his own mouth.
"Leave," he said in a low tone. "Take the remainder of your clan and flee. You've been defeated, and if you and the rest of your clan wish to stay alive, you'd be wise to give up."
The Aburame clan heir shivered at the coldness of his tone, feeling his kikai move about underneath his skin, ready to do his bidding. He stilled as sharp steel-gray eyes, filled with bitter tears, focused on him; there was a deep, seething hatred hidden underneath. Where had he seen those before?
"This isn't the end," the woman spat out. "I will never forget. As long as my will exists within the insects of my body, I will have my revenge for my clan! Even if it takes generation upon generation upon generation!"
In a poof of air, the woman's final words resounded loudly in his ears.
"I will never forget!"
When the man blinked, the scene before him shifted. Harsh sunlight flooded his eyes before he was able to capture the beautiful view before him.
He was lying down in a field of soft, flowing grass. Clear blue streams waved around the glen he rested, and a soothing breeze caused the leaves of the tree he was underneath to dance in the wind. His head rested upon a soft silk, and his hands were gently entangled with the bunches of wildflowers around him.
His breath caught as he looked up, the face of the most beautiful woman he had ever seen before blessing his eyes. Bright marigolds adorned the top of the woman's head like a crown, complimenting her long, russet-brown hair, which gently draped down to tickle at his face. Happy pollinators flew about the dazzling flower crown, giving the woman an ethereal grace.
He realized now that his head was laying down upon her lap.
Soft eyes, the color of steel gray were decorated with streaks of yellow and orange paint. They peered down at him as if nothing else in the whole world mattered but this brief moment in time. Shino reached a hand up and stroked the woman's cheek, adorned with freckles.
The woman laughed at the action and leaned into his touch.
"I love you, Shino Aburame."
The man could almost weep at those words which he so desperately coveted. As the woman leaned down for a kiss, harsh words broke the warm and soothing atmosphere around them.
"I will never forget!"
ALSO! When I write, a lot of inspiration I get comes from music to get the mood I want in my writing. During the peaceful dream (not the gory one lol), I listened primarily to "Ravel: Miroirs III. Une Barque sur L'Ocean!" (the opening piano notes just really be vibing with my heart). Check it out, and lmk if y'all want me to put in more of my music suggestions. :)
Thank y'all sm much for reading again! It really means a lot! See y'all next time :)