A/N: Wow, the first chapter had more readers than I expected. Thank you so much for reading!

I've been working on character design for Luna, which will be on my DeviantArt (VampireBasket) and the cover picture for this story, so you can see how she looks.

Anyway, I hope you like this chapter!

Disclaimer. I do not own Naruto or any of its characters, they belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

The Fang and the Moon

Walking around the village like this, so casually and calmly, Kiba could have sworn the she-wolf-hybrid was actually enjoying herself. Her scarlet eyes were bright and alert, flicking around in all directions as she took in her new surroundings eagerly. They were a pale hue, he noticed, not as harsh as an Uchiha's Sharingan or as attention-grabbing as his Sensei, Kurenai's, but soft and almost shallow… in a nice way.

He hadn't seen it earlier, but just below her hairline in the corner of her forehead, was a small crescent moon tattoo. Or was it a birth mark? From the strange, silver shimmer the shape had when the light touched it, he doubted it was either. Maybe he'd question her on it later. Other than that she really was very ordinarily human-looking. Her silvery locks framed her face quite simply, with one odd strand twisting slightly longer than the rest and reaching just below her collarbone. It was as though her hair-dresser had been called away from his job at the last minute, leaving one long and uneven piece, and he had to bite back a smile at the realisation.

As for her build, she wasn't thin, but she wasn't quite chubby. Her chest was decidedly flat, and while her sides and rear did curve rather smoothly, it was clear that her legs were her best asset. She was quite short too, round 5''2 if he had to guess. Kiba himself stood straight at 5''8, easily standing at least a head over her, although that didn't seem to put her off from back-talking him whenever she could. Like now.

'Can I help you?' She huffed, slapping her hands to the hips he had just been slyly assessing. Apparently not that slyly.

'What?' He asked plainly, playing dumb.

'It's just a henge jutsu, alright? You don't need to be so obvious about it!' She muttered, somewhat sensitively.

He blinked slowly. Kiba hadn't even noticed that she'd hidden her ears and tail until she pointed it out. Reaching a hand up to rub the back of his neck, he tilted his head and grinned. 'A-ah, right. Yeah well, I've just never seen anything like you before.'

She raised an eyebrow at his choice of words. 'I'm not an alien, you know.'

'You don't have to be so on-the-offensive, Princess. I'm just curious, is all.'

'Well if you're curious, just ask. I got enough staring from your pack, earlier.' Kiba had to grin at her familiar language. It wasn't often he could converse with his friends and comrades in terms such as 'pack'.

'First of all, they're not technically my pack yet. But they will be one day. Second, you'd be staring too if the roles were reversed – they weren't being rude. You're different… Exotic!' She rolled her eyes at his attempt to butter her up – flattery would not work so easily on her. 'And third, I didn't ask, because I didn't think you'd answer.'

'Only one way to find out, pup.' She muttered, still a little sulkily.

He sighed in exasperation. 'And you've got to stop calling me that, Princess.'

'Likewise!' She snapped, stopping altogether and turning her shoulders to meet his. Whether it was intentional or not, the gesture was predominantly challenging to the Inuzuka heir, and it took a lot of effort not to square off his own frame and stare her down.

His eyes scanned the street they were in, searching for a quick distraction and finding the ideal place. 'You still hungry?'

She faltered briefly at the subject change, but managed to compose herself quickly enough to nod suspiciously.

'Come on, then.'

He chuckled at her blank expression as he left her no choice but to follow him blindly, which, he was mildly surprised she did.

He pushed up the banners that hung over the entrance to the Ichiraku Ramen stall, letting out a small breath of relief that a certain hot-headed blonde wasn't already occupying one of the seats.

The Ramen owner threw him a smile in recognition, eyes glinting at his female companion. Kiba was thankful he chose not to give them some lame suggestive joke about their 'relationship'.

'No Akamaru today, Kiba?'

'No, sir. He's been roped in as an unwilling volunteer at the clinic, for Hana's anatomy talk she's giving for the veterinary students.' He chuckled at the memory of his white canine's pleading eyes as his sister had dragged him away that morning, just after he'd shown Luna to her room. 'Oh, this is Luna. She's new to the village.'

'Pleased to meet you, ma'am.' The older male offered her a smile, which she returned politely. 'So, what'll it be?'

Luna opened her mouth to ask for a menu, but the Inu nin cut in and answered instead.

'Two bowls of Miso Ramen, both with extra Barbecue pork, thanks!'

The man nodded and busied himself with the order immediately.

Kiba turned his attention back to the hybrid girl, slightly surprised to find her glaring at him. 'What's wrong now?'

'You… j-just ordered for me!' She spluttered angrily.

'I was being nice! Trust me, Princess, this place does the best ramen in the village. You'll like it I promise.' Honestly, he could have pulled out her chair and placed a handkerchief on her seat, and he'd still get the same reaction. There's just no pleasing some people!

Luna harrumphed, but Kiba spoke up again before she could find something else to chew his ear off for. 'So what's with the moon symbol?' He prodded his own forehead where the mark would have been.

The anger fell from her face and was instantly replaced by mistrust. She cast a small glance to the stall owner, who had started humming cheerily, oblivious to their conversation.

Sighing, she finally answered, surprising herself with her honesty. 'I wasn't born with it, but it is something that all of our clan has branded on them, usually on the day they're born. It's a symbol of our ancestors.'

'But what's it for?' He pressed, genuinely interested.

'What makes you think it's for something? What are yours for?' She frowned, poking him in the cheek where one of the dark red triangles sat.

'Mine are just tattoos. All of the main household of my clan has them.' He swatted her hand away as he replied, rubbing the spot she'd poked as though it burned him.

'Really? So you didn't always have them?' She couldn't really picture the Inu nin without the upside-down triangular markings.

'Nope. It's kind of like a christening ritual, when you turn one. They're just a symbol that I'm in the main branch.'

'Oh….' Then she winced. 'Ouch, you got tattooed when you were one? Didn't that seriously hurt?'

He chuckled at her discomfort, crossing his arms and leaning forward to lean on the ramen bar. 'I was too young to remember… Besides, didn't you say you get branded on the day you're born?'

'Yeah, but it doesn't hurt. Our mother does it with her chakra.'

'Alright, so what're they for?'

'...Fine. In a way mine's a family symbol too, but everyone in my clan has one. Their main purpose is a way of communication. It's hard to explain but they're all connected with each other, like an internal chakra network.'

'Huh. So you can contact each other? Like the Yamanaka clan?'

'Who?' Her eyebrows pulled together in confusion, so he changed his question.

'Nevermind. So you could contact them now, if you wanted?'

Her eyes fell at this, and she let out a regretful breath. 'Unfortunately not. Only my father can initiate the connection. I thought they'd have tried to reach me by now…' Her voice fell so low for the latter statement that he only just caught it, but something else now made him curious.

'Why only your father?'

'Because only the clan alpha can do it. I guess it's a wolf hierarchy thing.' She gave a small, humourless laugh, lifting her eyes to meet his.

'Wait, your father's the clan leader?' He stared, incredulous.

'Yes… What about it?' Luna's eyebrows tugged downwards, unsure of why this was so interesting. Maybe he felt threatened, being the next in line as the Inuzuka alpha?

Kiba's strange expression suddenly broke into a ridiculous grin, accompanied by the sound of mocking laughter. 'Oh man, then that means, you really are a Princess!'

Her fists clenched beneath the table, and just as she was considering wringing his stupid neck, the Ramen chef interrupted.

'Here we go! Two bowls of Miso Ramen with extra Barbecue Pork! Enjoy!' He smiled happily, looking very proud of himself and remaining completely ignorant to the hybrid girl's fury.

A single sniff of the freshly-cooked meal had her anger fizzling away in a heartbeat, and the pair lapsed into a mildly comfortable silence as they emptied their bowls greedily.

*** Later ***

The journey back to the compound took at least twice the time it should have, since Kiba had instructed Luna to lead the way back, insisting that she needed to learn the layout of the village if she was going to stay here for a while. However, to his amusement, her sense of direction was appalling, and she'd gotten them hopelessly lost at least three times.

Needless to say, they argued for practically the entire journey too.

'See, wasn't that hard now, was it?' Kiba taunted when they finally reached his family estate.

'Oh, shut up. It's easy for you with your sense of smell!'

'What, and wolves can't smell like dogs can?' He smirked again, but she shook her head angrily.

'Of course they can, idiot. But I'm not a wolf, am I?' He was about to remind her that actually, technically, she kind of was, but she predicted his comment and cut him off. 'My hearing is heightened when I'm in my wolf form, and I can see in the dark in both forms, but right now other than that, I may as well just be a regular, boring old human. Even without the henge, my senses are only enhanced when I transform.'

'Huh. Well, I guess I'll let you off then, Prin–oof!' Something large, white and furry suddenly hurtled into his side, making Luna chuckle smugly at the annoying nickname being stopped in its tracks.

'Akamaru! Down, boy!' The over-sized mutt ignored his master in favour of playfully licking his face, pinning him down. 'Alright, alright! I'm sorry I left you with Hana! Next time I promise I'll come save you sooner.'

Seeming satisfied with his apology, Akamaru backed up and Kiba scrabbled to his feet, dusting himself off. The dog turned his giant head to the she-wolf, who grinned and rubbed his fur in greeting.

'Hey, Akamaru. You have great timing.' She praised, and the canine woofed happily.

'Kiba! Luna!'

All three heads turned towards the current Inuzuka alpha, who was striding towards them purposefully. She had a serious glint in her eyes that Luna wondered if ever wasn't present. This human just screamed authority.

'I visited the Hokage this morning. She has accepted your admittance to the village, and allowed you to remain in our care. Also, we have sent word to the Land of the Moon, for news on your family, Luna.'

'You have?' She blinked in surprise. That was actually quite nice of them. 'T-thank you.'

Tsume's mouth curled into a brief smile, before she turned to her son in distaste. 'And you! Have I taught you nothing, you mindless pup?'

Luna stifled a laugh at the nickname, only now understanding why Kiba hated it so much.

'What have I done now?' Kiba grumbled, a look of defiance crossing his features as though preparing for a fight.

'You left the compound gates open again, that's what! Hana spent a good hour trying to track down three of the puppies that had managed to wander off. You made her late for her student lecture!' Although the anger was clearly not directed at her, Luna would have felt her ears pulling back against her head had the henge not still been in place. She almost felt sorry for the Inu heir, since this is the woman he'd have to challenge one day to claim his place as leader.

'Well, I had a lot on my mind this morning… And besides, how do you know it was me who did it?'

Tsume still managed to growl while she sighed roughly, not even bothering to point out that he'd just admitted it anyway. 'You need to get your responsibilities in order, pup. I hope you've at least been showing Luna around today and not just slacking off!'

Tsume was already marching back in the direction of the main building before Kiba could get in one more retort.

'Wow, she'd make my dad look soft.' The hybrid girl chuckled at Kiba's red face as he took several deep breaths to calm down. Her father, Lucifer, had the biggest wolf form their clan had ever known. Even in his human state, with his deep, commanding brown eyes and charcoal hair, he towered over all the other members of the pack with ease. He could be truly terrifying when he wanted to be, strict and ruthless in his training methods, but he was a fair leader when push came to shove.

'Damn. She gets right on my last nerve sometimes.' Kiba grunted after a minute. 'Come on, Akamaru. I need to let off some steam.'

His companion whined in an unknown doggy language that Luna could not understand, but she suddenly realised that she had no idea what to do with herself next.

Just as she was about to head off in search of Hana, the only other Inuzuka she felt vaguely comfortable around, Kiba called to her over his shoulder.

'You coming, or what?'

'O-oh… Right!' She stuttered, caught off guard by the unexpected invitation.

Luna honestly never would have guessed the Inuzuka estate was as large as this. Sure, she'd heard of the dog training ninja clan that resided in Konaha, one of her family's 'rival clans', as her father had put it. But the size of their territory stretched out almost as much as her own did back in the Land of the Moon, and this was just a section of one village!

The she-wolf tried to take notes of the trail he was leading her on, but they were moving too quickly for her to really note any detail. She did, however, spot a small section she particularly liked the look of. It consisted of a solitary hill that was slightly set back from the rest of the compound, which had the potential to have a nice view behind it. Making a mental note to revisit that, she hurried after Kiba.

They finally came to a halt in a large open field, which housed three wooden stumps lined up along the far end. She was pretty sure they were no longer on Inuzuka land, but Kiba seemed completely at home as he strode into the centre.

'Do you fight?'

'…What?' She blanked, confused by the weird question.

'I mean, do you have ninja training?'

Do I fight? Oh, spar! 'You mean, you want to scrap with me?'

He chuckled once again at her choice of wording. 'Yeah, Akamaru and I could use the practice against someone we don't know the abilities of.'

'So basically, you want to guinea-pig me?' She scowled, but moved to stand opposite him anyway. She may not have been trained as adeptly as him in ninjutsu, but after all those relentless years of scrapping with her brothers and sisters, she'd be dammed if she was backing out on this.

Scrapping was an age-old custom to her family. She had two brothers and two sisters, half older and half younger. Okamiko, her older sister, was by far the strongest. She always won during their spars, but Luna had come close a few times. It was never malicious, but it was frequent. Her father had said it was tradition for the head family's pups to scrap as often as possible, because it helped to not only strengthen themselves physically, but also allowed them to learn each other's movements and made it more effective for them to work as a pack. They were the next generation, after all.

She was just getting herself riled up when a twang in her arm brought a painful reminder that she wasn't really in any condition to be scrapping right now.

Kiba saw her wince and was beside her in an instant. 'Ah shit, I forgot about your arm. Sorry, Princess, guess you'll have to sit this one out.'

'I'm fine! I'll just take it easy!' She protested, disappointment flooding through her.

'Yeah, 'cause I need one more reason for Ma to snap at me.' He muttered. 'No way, you're on the side-lines, I'm afraid.'

'But how are you going to train on your own?'

'I'm not on my own, I have Akamaru… Oh wait a moment!' His nose lifted into the air suddenly, sniffing twice before a grin split his face. 'I know exactly who I can train with.'

Luna wasn't sure if she liked the animated, feral look in his onyx eyes right now, but before she could question him, a new voice entered the field.

'Kiba. Akamaru. Who's your friend?'

Red eyes widened as she spun to assess the newcomer. He was almost completely covered by a long, khaki green coat, a charcoal under shirt that was fastened up to his nose, and a dark pair of glasses that hid his eyes well. She could just barely see brown spiked hair poking out from under his hood, but other than that, he was a mystery.

'Shino! This is Luna Hangestu. She's staying with my family for a while. Fancy a spar?' He grinned a toothy grin, ignoring the way Luna had tensed at the seemingly easy introduction.

'Nice to meet you. I am Shino Aburame.' His voice was startlingly calm, she noticed. 'The Hangetsu clan is quite the legend, so I've heard.'

'Wait, you know of them?' Kiba barked before she could respond, his voice as loud and obnoxious as ever.

'Yes, I am aware of their customs. Why, you ask? Because I have studied other animal taming clans, from a book, in the library. Unlike you, Kiba.'

Normally, Luna would have growled and snapped at the stranger for referring to her family as 'animal tamers', but something about him had her more on edge than usual. He said 'other', does that mean his family has animal companions too? She'd never heard of the Aburame clan before.

'Whatever, Shino.' The Inu nin waved him off, moving to crouch in an attack position. 'You wanna go or not?'

'Very well.'

Akamaru yipped excitedly, crouching beside his master obediently. Shino strolled painfully slowly across the field to stand opposite Kiba, his hands never leaving his pockets. Who is this guy? Luna wondered, eyebrows furrowing as she settled herself, somewhat uncomfortably, in the long grass that grew beneath the trees lining the field.

The Inuzuka was the first to move, but she'd expected no less. He definitely struck her as the type to strike first, think later.

With Akamaru matching his pace, she watched in amusement as Kiba ran on all fours in a circle around his opponent, much like his canine partner. The motion kicked up a dust trail that spun around the Aburame in a loop, but he still wasn't moving. It was almost cool. Almost.

'So, you're staying with the Inuzukas, hm?' Shino's voice suddenly sounded from beside her, and Luna must have jumped at least three foot in the air in surprise.

'W-what…' Her head whipped back to the field, where an exact clone of Shino was still standing. This guy was definitely weird. And borderline creepy. 'Erm, yeah I am.'

'Hangetsu isn't a very well-known name in Fire Country. I wonder, just how it is you managed to find yourself all the way out here.' Wait, was he suspicious of her?

'I… Er…'

'Dammit, Shino! Get out here and fight like a man!' A quick glance to the dog nin told them that Kiba had apparently figured out that the Shino over there was a fake, and his irritated tone had the mysterious ninja beside her sighing quietly. Everything he did was quiet, apparently.

'Excuse me, Luna.'

She followed the Aburame with her eyes as he crossed the field. Kiba, who was pacing impatiently and looking very unimpressed, slammed his palms together in a hand sign she didn't recognise.

'Man Beast Clone!' There was a puff of smoke that enveloped both him and Akamaru, which, when it cleared, revealed two feral looking Kibas crouched on all fours in their place.

This time, Shino lifted his arms out in front of him, mumbling something she couldn't quite make out. Her scarlet irises widened as, from beneath the long sleeves of his jacket, a thick, black swarm of unidentified insects flew towards the Inuzuka.

Kiba seemed unfazed, making another quick hand sign and shouting out 'Fang Over Fang!'

They leap skywards, twisting together like a pair of tornados and zig-zagging around the streams of insects. He landed on the opposite side of Shino, annoyed at having missed his main target. Shino continued the flow of bugs, directing them expertly around the field and keeping Kiba's attacks at bay.

Luna vaguely wondered what they'd do if they actually seriously injured one another. Neither ninja seemed to be holding back. She had only pondered the notion for a second, before the dog nin combined and transformed with Akamaru again, this time into a house-sized, two-headed dog.

'Inuzuka Style: Double-headed wolf, Fang Over Fang!' He snarled, the great beast darting and twisting into another furious tornado that barrelled straight through the insect swam. She barely even had time to be offended by the jutsu title when it made contact with the opposing ninja, causing her to gasp.

The Aburame male was sent hurtling to the other side of the grassland, only just managing to land on his feet, clutching his shoulder.

'Wanna call it?' The Inu nin shouted, now back in his normal human form with Akamaru by his side.

Shino only nodded once, and the trio headed towards where she was sitting, a frown playing on her features.

'Are you trying to offend me, Inuzuka?' She demanded as they came into earshot.

He chuckled at her expression, flopping down onto the grass beside her. 'You're just never going to quit complaining, are you?'

She scoffed. 'That creature didn't even begin to resemble a wolf.'

The insect wielder now joined them on the ground, and she shifted uncomfortably upon feeling his gaze upon her, despite not being able to see it.

'I can understand your discomfort, since you yourself are a wolf. And the wolf is nothing if it's not proud.' He stated bluntly. Kiba blanched, unsure of how the hybrid would react to this level of openness, but she surprised them both.

'Thank you. At least someone can understand my point of view here.'

'Wha–Oh, come on! You're only agreeing with him because it gives you an excuse to gang up on me!' The Inu heir groaned, protesting further when Akamaru laughed along with Luna.

'Well, I should be heading home now,' Shino stood when the laughing died down and made to leave the field. 'See you around Kiba, Akamaru, Luna.'

They all threw him their own 'goodbye' and watched him disappear. The she-wolf had to thank the stars that they hadn't got around to finishing their conversation. She didn't think the Aburame seemed like the type to blab, but she didn't want to risk the whole village learning of her presence just yet. Maybe she could pry some more information on the strange ninja out of Kiba.

'So… Shino seems like an interesting guy…' She started, unsure of how to word that statement without insulting his comrade.

'Yeah, but you get used to him. It took me and Hinata almost four years to understand him, and even now I don't think you can ever really get inside his head.' He laughed, but the fondness for his friend was evident in his tone.

'Hinata?' Luna questioned, shooting him a sideways glance.

'Hyuga. With the Byakugan? Well, she's our fourth teammate. Then there's Kurenai-Sensei. We're really only supposed to operate in four man teams, but with Akamaru here they made an exception.' The Inu leaned back against the white canine, crossing his arms behind his head and closing his eyes. The evening was drawing in, but the sun was still warm on their skin as it began to sink in the sky. 'We were just twelve when we first started out. Seems like a lifetime ago…'

Luna couldn't hold back the small smile that slipped onto her face as he reminisced. He told her about their very first mission together, and how Hinata had been absolutely terrified both of Shino's bugs and Akamaru at the start. He spoke of the Chunin exams, and fell into a small rant about his round against Naruto Uzumaki, and the she-wolf was surprised to find herself relaxing in his company. It was a strange feeling, sitting here in the middle of nowhere, while she listened to him babble about anything and everything. It was almost like she had known him for years. Like they were friends.

By the time the night had arrived, Luna's lupine instincts had begun to kick in. She released her henge as the trio re-entered the main building in the Inuzuka compound, exposing her ears and tail that now flickered and twitched attentively. Despite already being awake for the entire day, she'd never felt more alert. Perhaps it had something to do with the full moon tonight, or maybe it was the excitement of all the new sights, sounds and smells.

'Try not to break out this time, or we might actually start to think you're up to something!' Kiba joked when they reached her doorway, before disappearing down the corridor to his own room.

She rolled her eyes after he'd gone, not caring that he'd missed the reaction. Don't lock me in a cage this time and I won't, she thought.

Closing the shoji door behind her, she crossed the room and slid her window completely open, breathing in the cool air. Her room was situated at the rear of the building, so really all her view consisted of was the back end of the Inuzuka estate courtyard, and the leaf village walls. With her incredible nocturnal night vision, the full moon shone in the vast sky so vividly it almost made her eyes hurt, but she loved it. It was a truly beautiful sight to behold, wherever you viewed it from.

But the moonlight also brought about a sadness and a longing that she'd been too distracted to focus on until now. She missed her family. Where were they? Why hadn't they tried to contact her yet? And why can't I remember a damn thing about how we were separated?!

Luna let out a long, irritated sigh. She thought back to the last moment her mind could come up with. Her and her sister, Okamiko, prowling the perimeter on the Western side of their territory. They'd heard the pack begin a twilight howl, and had lifted their muzzles to the sky to join in. After that, nothing. Every time she tried to remember, she came up blank, and it frustrated her to no end.

There was a human village about four miles West of their forest, but they rarely had any trouble or even any contact with them. The Land of the Moon was a crescent shaped Island, surrounded by wide empty oceans on every edge, so trouble from outsiders was almost unheard of too.

She shook her head to clear those thoughts before she got side-tracked. All she knew for sure was that she'd 'blacked-out' at the start of the Twilight howl, and regained her present mental state at a port city in the Land of Fire. That was at least two boat journeys away, which meant she'd been travelling for almost two weeks and had absolutely no recollection of it.

Yes, it was uncommon for wolves in their adult lives to blackout during transformation periods, but not impossible. What she couldn't get her head around was that the blackout had last so long! Even as a whelp she hadn't lost that much time to her wolf body, in all her younger years put together!

She tried to concentrate harder on the memories, but there was a dull ache beginning to form in her bandaged arm that was proving difficult to ignore. Finally, Luna resigned herself to sleep. She forced her body to relax and vaguely considered the possibility that she may start experiencing jet-lag-like symptoms, with the unnatural change in her sleeping patterns.

But that was tomorrow's problem. Right now, her arm hurt too much for her to care, so she let the worries slip away as sleep eventually began to consume her.

A/N: So I hope you all like where this is going so far, and let me know if you have any suggestions or ideas you want to see included in this fic! Feedback is always welcome, good and bad.

Also, the bit about the Inuzuka markings, I did some research and there's a fan theory that Kakashi is somehow vaguely related to the Inuzuka clan, since he has dog summons, covers his cheeks, and his father was nicknamed 'The White Fang'. I doubt it's true, but I love the idea!

See you next time!