A/N: I lied again apparently, there's still one more chapter to go after this. But it is prewritten to the ending now, and this is the second-to-last chapter.
On a brighter note though, I drew some manga pages of a few different scenes from The Inu and the Okami, so if you're interested in seeing this brought to life a little, they're on my DeviantArt under my username VampireBasket! :)
Disclaimer. I don't own Naruto or any of the characters, only my plot and OCs!
The Healer and the Peacekeeper
With a tired sigh, Luna glanced at the time. The evening was rolling in quickly, and she had wanted to visit Hana and ask about the latest litter of puppies before the day was over. She knew they were due any day now, and she wanted to help out if she could.
Luna doubted Hana would still be at the surgery this late, because despite the workaholic Kiba's sister normally was, the veterinarian had actually been finishing on time these past few weeks. She supposed it was due to the heat of the summer providing a lack of work, but Hana said it was always quiet like this, around the month of August.
Figuring the main house would be her best bet, Luna approached the path that led up to the front door, but her footsteps slowed at the sound of two raised voices. Both of which she knew very well.
Oh no, not again… The she-wolf grimaced, picking up the pace and crossing the last of the distance to the Inuzuka Alpha's house.
She didn't need her wolf hearing to locate the source of the yelling, but she was mildly surprised to find Hana seemingly involved in the argument as well. Sliding open the shoji door to the little kitchen, the hybrid shrank away instinctively as three sets of furious eyes pinned to her momentarily, before returning to each other.
Tsume was the picture of ferocity, feet planted squarely in line with her shoulders and standing at her full height, her claws flexing tensely by her sides. Kiba was no different, his posture challenging and quivering slightly with anger as a string of profanities flew from his bared fangs. Hana snarled as she tried to defuse the situation, body-checking her mother with her back as she faced her brother with urgent eyes.
But Hana was more healer than peace-keeper, her methods proving somewhat futile and maybe even making things worse. The hybrid wasn't sure how long the fight had been going on, but apparently long enough to reach impressive levels of anger, even for the Inuzuka's.
Luna was rattled from her state of shock in the doorway when Tsume's jaw snapped as she barked at her beta, ordering Hana to step aside, but the vet wouldn't budge.
"Just calm down, Ma. He knows his mistake and it won't happen again. Just let it go!"
"It wasn't my mistake!" Kiba growled, rounding on his sister. "I told you, I sent Akita to let you know I wasn't gonna make it!"
"Stop trying to shunt the blame, Kiba!" Tsume roared, finally successful in removing Hana from in front of her and taking a threatening step forward. It was actually more unnerving hearing Tsume call her son by his name rather than 'pup', or 'whelp', for once.
"I'm not! And when I find her later I'll prove it to you, god damn it!" He copied her step forward, his head now a few inches higher than hers at such a close distance.
It was a dangerous move, enough to jolt Luna into action while his mother fired back another aggressive response. She managed to squeeze herself against Kiba's chest enough to push him back slightly, angling her body so she stood sideways between them. Pointing her ears outwards, she curled her tail around the outside of her thigh in the least threatening way she could, her palms held flat out in front of her as though pushing back an invisible force.
With her head dipped but chin pointing upwards, she cut in before any more resentful words could be released.
"Enough of this. No one is getting anywhere here. And all your yelling is disturbing the rest of the pack, not to mention they can sense all the tension." Having grown bolder and more used to having to break up such fights in her year with the Inuzuka's, none of them were particularly surprised by her interference and, if anything, Hana looked downright relieved.
Tsume let out a defiant growl, directed over the top of Luna's head and towards her son, who was now reluctantly holding back whatever retort had been on his tongue in favour of gritting his teeth. Luna's presence succeeded in dispelling whatever verbal argument they had been involved in this time, but the rage still rolled off both parties in tsunami sized waves, crashing against her and Hana like they were collateral damage.
These arguments were occurring more and more, and becoming increasingly aggressive. It was obvious to all involved that the time was drawing nearer to where Tsume's role as leader would be challenged, and yet Kiba still appeared to be hesitating.
After several long moments of panting and unbroken eye-contact, Kiba tore away first with a snarl, slamming open the shoji door with as much force as he could muster on his furious exit.
Tsume stormed out next, spinning deliberately on her heel and marching down the hall in the opposite direction to him.
The room fell into an uncomfortable silence, until Hana sighed deeply, the noise seeming louder than it was. "Thank you."
Luna turned to her, expression reluctant. "Do I even wanna know what that one was about?"
"Kiba was supposed to give me a hand with Ashimaru in getting her settled in the kennels ready for her to give birth. He said he sent Akita to let me know he was held up at Kurenai-sensei's place, but she never gave me any message."
The she-wolf blew out a puff of air. "I don't think he'd say he did, if he didn't…" She mumbled after a moment, but Hana scoffed.
"Don't make excuses for him. Held up or not, Ashimaru is due any second now, she should take priority."
Resisting a wince at the older female's tone, Luna nodded. "How is she?"
"Uncomfortable. I think she just wants them out." Her onyx eyes softened as she empathised with the ninken. "I don't know if you know this, but Ashimaru is Akamaru's mother, so she's getting on a bit now. I suspect this will be her last litter, which is why I want her to have the absolute best care she can get."
Luna's brow lowered. "Then I'm sure whatever held him up must have been important not to come to Akamaru's mother." Then, she lifted a hand quickly before Hana could reply. "I'm not defending him, I'm just thinking out loud."
The Inuzuka pursed her lips, debating with herself briefly before admitting, "It's my fault they argued so badly tonight. I was pissed off at him too, so I didn't really do much to calm Ma down when she found out."
"To be fair I don't think that would have helped anyway. No offence, but you're a terrible peacekeeper." Luna snickered lightly, and Hana rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, well you're a terrible healer. I wouldn't trust you with a butter knife let alone a scalpel after what happened last time…"
Scarlet eyes lit up as she laughed more genuinely, remembering the one and only time she'd assisted Hana in the operating theatre. The procedure had been a simple one, nothing life-threatening, and Hana had been exceptionally pushed for helpers, resorting to their resident hybrid for help. Luna had somehow managed to almost slice off her own finger after clumsily dropping and then trying to catch one of the sharp veterinary apparatus, and was thereby banned from ever helping in there again.
Hana was laughing too, remembering the same incident, and both were relieved to find some of the tension seep out of their shoulders as their expressions sobered.
"Let me know if you need anything none-equipment related with Ashimaru. I'd be happy to help with the puppies, at least."
"I bet you would." Hana chuckled, but agreed despite the teasing. "You off to calm down my brother now?"
Luna bared her teeth in a grin. "Yep. You off to calm your mother down?"
"Yep." The black-eyed woman grinned back, giving her a short wave as she made for the door. "See you later, Luna."
"Good luck!"
"Ditto!"
She could track much better in her lupine form, which is what made it so easy to sneak up on him when she finally found him. Honestly, she should have predicted this is where he would be, on the hill that overlooked a small part of the village at the back of the compound. He sat with one knee up and an arm slung lazily across the top of it, his hand ruffling Akamaru's large white head absently as he twisted a torn blade of grass with his other.
Approaching from downwind, she lowered herself almost onto her belly as she stalked closer to his unassuming form, pouncing at the last second just as Akamaru had spotted her and was about to alert his partner.
Kiba grunted in surprise as her paws landed on his back, rolling him forward and down the other side of the hill, transforming back into her hybrid form as they landed in a heap at the bottom. Akamaru made a snuffling noise that sounded like he was laughing, tail wagging in amusement as he peered down from his position above them.
She had landed with her face just millimetres from Kiba's, relishing the startled look on his face as she licked the tip of his nose, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Hi." She grinned, ears flickering from forward to back as she listened to Akamaru retreating back to the house, figuring he was relieved of his duty of 'comforter' for the time being.
Finally, Kiba seemed to return to the present and mirrored her grin. "Hi."
He pushed her backwards until they were sitting side by side, but facing opposite directions, the sides of their legs touching.
After a moment, she glanced at him. "You alright?"
He rolled his eyes with a snort, having been waiting for her to broach the subject. "I'll get over it."
Luna nodded and opened her mouth, then snapped it shut again. She repeated the motion a few more times until Kiba called her out on it.
"Just say it already."
His words might've sounded harsh had it not been for the amused glance he threw her, eyebrows raised expectantly. But the hybrid frowned, choosing her words carefully.
"It can't go on like this… You and your mother, I mean."
The dog trainer released a breath as he leaned back on his hands, tilting his head back to stare at the moonless sky. He knew she was right, it was getting ridiculous. Both he and his mother flew of the handle these days at even the tiniest thing, and it wasn't only Luna and his sister who were taking the brunt of it either. There was a great unease sweeping through the pack, and though unspoken, everyone was on edge around them.
"…You think I should challenge her."
His words weren't phrased as a question, but the intonation of his voice said otherwise, and Luna was quick to reply.
"What? No! I mean, sure when you're ready, but…"
"You don't think I'm ready?"
Luna huffed, crossing her arms. "Will you stop jumping to conclusions? That's not what I mean. That decision has nothing to do with me, I just know that things can't continue the way they have been. You two can barely be in the same room as each other for more than five minutes before you're chewing each other's ears off!"
"Sorry." He mumbled, only just audibly. He sighed again, pushing forward to lean over crossed legs as he spoke again, more seriously. "I've been thinking about that a lot recently, though. I know things are tense at the moment, but I'm just biding my time. I need to be absolutely sure that when I do step up and challenge her, I'll be successful."
The hybrid watched his face contort in a moment of self-doubt, an expression that was foreign on the Inu nin's face.
"There's a whole lot of aspects to consider, and I'm trying to tie them all down and make sure I have the support of the pack as well. You know as well as anyone they need to be united with the outcome or it'll all be for nothing."
She nodded, holding her tongue as he spoke.
"And I've decided, that when I do challenge her, I want you to stand with me."
Her nodding continued just a few seconds too long, then she promptly froze, eyes incredulous as they shot to meet Kiba's. His gaze was steady, but she could sense the anticipation behind his silence as he waited for her to process the request.
In all honesty, she hadn't even known he'd been considering the actual challenge so in-depth, never mind who would be standing with him. All packs had a hierarchy, but most were the result of natural succession. She supposed the choice was the difference between actual animals and humans.
Forcing oxygen back into her lungs, the she-wolf stuttered, "Y-you want me to be your Beta?"
Kiba scoffed, a small laugh escaping him as he flicked her on the ear. "No, you dummy. I want you to lead with me."
This time her jaw almost hit the floor in her shock. "W-what?! But… I'm not an Alpha!" She half-shrieked, rambling as the panic settled in. "I was the middle child of a family of five, my rank was never meant to be more than Delta, at best! I can't lead a pack, I can't even make the ninken pups fall into line when they get too giddy!"
"No one can control the ninken pups when they get too giddy." Kiba pointed out lightly, but she didn't appear to hear him.
"And I can't stand against Hana, she'll flatten me! I'd be absolutely no use at all in a challenge and I–"
The leaf ninja cut her off mid-sentence with a startlingly gentle kiss on her lips, his eyes sliding open lazily as he pulled back, a soft smile lingering on his features. "Don't answer me right now. Just, think it over, kay?"
He tilted his head as he waited, once again, for her to reply. And how could she refuse when he was gazing at her like that?
She breathed out defeatedly through her nose, crimson irises still hazy with hesitance. "Fine. I will think about it."
His grin widened and he leaned in again, pressing against her mouth more deeply this time and then moving to nuzzle her neck.
"I have some exchange students from Suna to train with tomorrow morning and for the next few days, so I'll be busier than usual until next week." He mumbled against her skin, lips skimming her collarbone as he switched from the right of her neck to the left. She nudged her cheek against his in response, leaning into him as she toyed with the knot of his hitae-ate at the back of his head.
"I'm sure I'll be able to manage without you until then." She smiled against his shoulder, rolling her eyes at the look of exaggerated hurt when he pulled back.
"So nice to know I'll be missed…"
Luna licked his nose in a similar fashion to earlier, and he scrunched it a few times as she snickered. "Stay with me tonight, then?"
His eyes softened at the request. "As you wish, Princess."
And he narrowly avoided the whack to his temple for the nickname.
Over the next week, Luna spent her time in the veterinarian practice with Hana and Ashimaru, along with five brand new little ninken. There were three female and two males, all a mixture of white and dark grey fur with black tipped droopy ears.
The pups needed hand-rearing mostly, since the birth had been a difficult one for the older dog, so Hana, Luna and some other more-than-willing volunteers had been taking it in turns to feed and play with them. Their markings made it easy to tell them apart, and the youngsters were already beginning to show their first traces of personality, despite not even having opened their eyes yet.
The she-wolf cooed as she nuzzled her favourite pup against her cheek, rubbing a gentle finger over his tiny head and chuckling as he wriggled on her palm.
"They're so little! I just want to put them all in my pocket and carry them around forever!" She squealed, sounding more and more in love with every word.
"I know, me too. I love my job." Hana sighed contentedly, teasing one of the females with a bottle of milk. The pup shuffled forward on her belly as she pulled the nozzle away again, chuckling when she snorted and wiggled towards it again. This time, she relented, rewarding her for her efforts.
"Will they be trained as Inuzuka partners, too?"
Hana shook her head. "Actually these ones are to be trained in special forces. Police, trackers, that kind of thing. Their father is one of the best dogs on the police force."
"Aw, you're gonna be a little hero!" Luna grinned, touching her nose to the oblivious pup in her hands.
The puppy yawned a big puppy yawn, and Luna finally returned him to the warmth of his mother's side, who was lying nearby watching them proudly. Luna spared a second to rub the large dog on her head, then turned back to Hana.
"Hey, Hana?" She hesitated as the veterinarian glanced up. "If… I told you something, would you keep it to yourself?"
The Inuzuka tilted her head, reading between the lines. "You mean, not tell Kiba?"
Luna winced. "Er, right."
Hana smirked and gestured for her to go ahead, interest piqued. It wasn't often the she-wolf opened up to anyone about personal problems or her own internal debates, so whatever it was must really have her stumped.
"The other day, er…" Biting her lip, the hybrid had to remind herself that she wasn't exactly breaking any rules here, since Kiba never actually told her when he was going to make his move. "Kiba asked me something… If, when he decides to challenge your mother, if I'd… erm, stand with him."
The vet blinked owlishly, as though waiting for her to continue, so Luna supplied, "As an alpha. Like, together."
"…Is that so surprising?"
"Wha… I just…" The she-wolf faltered, thrown off by the older woman's casual response.
Hana chuckled at her vacant expression. "I mean, it's obvious he's pretty smitten with you. And you had to know he was going to step up one day and finally take his place as the next in line."
"Well, yeah, but I never thought he'd want…" She trailed off again, still lost for words.
"Did you give him an answer?"
Luna shook her head. "Not yet."
"And, you don't want to stand with him?"
Looking appalled, the head shake becoming more vigorous. "No, I do, that's not… I just…" She sighed, slapping her hands over her face with a frustrated groan. "I was never meant to be an alpha. It's not something I've ever even thought about!"
The Inuzuka laughed lightly, carefully tucking the now fully fed puppy back in with his brother and sisters. "Luna, you've been dating my brother for almost a year now. Did you never once consider his position?"
"When you say it like that it makes me sound pretty dumb…" She grumbled, her hands sliding down slightly to just cover her cheeks. She also deliberately shied away from the term Hana used to describe their relationship. The human label just sounded so foreign, and Luna still wasn't sure she had decided on what exactly they were. It was something around the line of partners, but that word didn't seem to fit them, either. And calling him her mate just seemed far too forward, not to mention they hadn't even begun to venture down that discussion yet.
The inner turmoil must have showed on the Hangetsu's face, because Hana suddenly smiled perceptively. "Are you worried you aren't up for the job, or that he'll think you aren't?"
Luna knotted her hands together in her lap, staring at the ground as she responded miserably. "Something like that. I'm worried that I'll let him down. Or let the pack down, or that they won't want me… I mean, look at what happened to my own clan! How could they trust me, and how could I ever stand beside him and have a whole pack look up to me the way they do him?"
"I think you're underestimating yourself." Hana said kindly, and then, "And the pack will accept whoever their heir chooses because they'll trust his judgement. You can worry about building up individual trust after the initial challenge. On the other hand, if you're worried about taking me on then I can't help you there. "
The she-wolf peeked up with a chuckle at the older woman's smirk, but her vermillion eyes remained unconvinced, so Hana tried again.
"Look, if you want my absolute honest opinion, I don't think you'd be suited to rule a clan. You're hesitant, and have barely any self-confidence despite your obvious strength and pride. And you do have a tendency to overthink things…"
Luna's hard stare returned to the floor, disappointment flooding through her.
"However," Hana continued, smirking at the way her ears perked forward slightly. "I also don't think my brother would either. He's far too hot-headed. He's rash and reckless and follows his heart before his head can have its say."
If the frown on Luna's features wasn't enough to convey her confusion at Hana's sudden spiel of negativity, the noise of surprise that croaked in her throat did. Only, it proved more amusing than concerning to the older female, her expression tinted with humour as she spoke again quickly.
"But together… You balance each other out."
The hybrid's ears stood upright, their tips trained directly on the Inuzuka, hanging on her every word.
"He brings out a confidence in you that was pretty much non-existent when you first got here. You didn't trust a soul, never let your guard down, barely even smiled. And now look at you, coming to me for advice and everything." Hana gave her a playful wink, and Luna blushed at the praise. "And need I bother with the details of the other way around? Let's just say that you keep him grounded. I imagine he and my mother probably would have killed each other by now, without you here. He pays more attention to you that you seem to realise."
As the veterinarian paused for a laugh, the Hangetsu was stunned. She had never even noticed half of the things Hana had been saying, everything had just happened so naturally. Perhaps that meant she was right, and that they were a good fit.
"So, if you're asking me if I think you are worthy, I would say yes, you are. Together." Hana concluded with a reassuring smile.
A wave of newfound respect for Kiba's sister swept over the she-wolf. The sincerity in Hana's voice had never once wavered, and Luna was silenced by her overwhelming appreciation for the woman's honesty, and her assurance. It refuelled the feeling of hope in Luna's stomach that had been gradually igniting over the course of the past year in the Leaf village, something she had once feared had been lost forever.
As the hybrid left the surgery later that afternoon, she was unable to smother the big stupid grin that spread over her face. Luna felt infinitely better about the situation, but she was not so naïve to just rush into this blindly. She still had a lot to think about, and this decision not one to be taken lightly.
But at least now she felt brave enough to consider the concept. And that was a start.
A/N: I just keep splitting the chapters because they were getting too long, but this is really the very last part of the story now. So only one more chapter to go after this! I swear :P
Don't forget to check out my DeviantArt manga pages for this fic with my username VampireBasket :)
See you then!