My Guardian Wolf

by Kexita

Kiba could never understand Hinata's strange attraction for Naruto, nor could he understand his own strange attraction for Hinata. Watch as Kiba tries to come to grips with his feelings, and cell 8 goes through missions, chuunin exams, and overall life.

4. Chapter 3, part II

My Guardian wolf; Chpt III part II

To my reviewers:

KatsurinaHiragami: That's okay. My computer is afraid of me too!

HinataS2Kiba: Thank you! Thank you! In Japanese, Arigatou! Arigatou!

Riaeth: Thank you very much for your kind words. :D

Achillea: I completely agree. Team #8 is my favorite team, and we just don't see enough stories about them! That's why I got fed up with it and eventually wrote this. :3

DbKit: No, no! You're not being a snobbish know it all! I'm very pleased that you took the time to give me the advice and gave me such a long review. Again, I took your words to heart. Next battle scene, I will definitely try that technique. Thank you so much for your support.

Elusiveprodigy: I think ill go and do that. KibaHina rules! (well duh. Otherwise I wouldn't be writing this story.)

Disclaimer: Read disclaimers 1, 2, and 3! Must I type one every time? (Cries)

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"Oh my gosh! Look at the parade!"

"Is that Inuzuka Kiba carrying Hyuuga Hinata?"

Kiba scowled. He had been hearing comments like this ever since cell #8 had returned to the village and started trekking back to the office. If people were going to gossip, he wished they would at the very least kept it to themselves. Though he had to admit; they must have been quite a strange sight to behold. Kurenai was leading them all forward, with a cool and expressionless face. Eight battered and bruised bandits trailed behind her. Every last one of them was glaring daggers at the villagers, though they had horrible aim. No one was taking the hint, nor did their gawking cease. Shino was at the end of the line of bandits. He scuffled along with his hands jammed deep in his pockets. He seemed to be deep in thought. This gave him that aura which made his fangirls squeal. And bringing up the rear was a very flustered, very grumpy looking Inuzuka Kiba. In his arms lay Hyuuga Hinata, famous for being the shyest girl in Konohagakure. They just needed some music, a couple a flags, a few sparklers, and they were practically a parade all on their own! Hinata appeared to be sleeping, though she was only pretending. It was her way of ignoring the gossip around her. Her injured leg was visible, yet no one seemed to notice it. The first and only thing they took in was that it was Kiba carrying Hinata.

"Omigosh! Why is our Kiba carrying that Hyuuga girl?" a random girl with mousy brown hair wailed.

"I don't know! I don't know! But they look so cozy, it's not fair! I want to be carried away by Kiba sama too!" another girl sobbed, staring at Hinata with jealously. Kiba bit his bottom lip, painfully hard in an attempt to keep his emotions in check. He bowed his head down so his face couldn't be revealed. Akamaru whined in protest and squirmed backwards a little bit. The last thing Kiba wanted his little fan club to see was the fact that he couldn't keep his emotions under control. Any comfort he had previously felt was now threatening to be over-powered by his deep annoyance. "Well, at least I'm not Hyuuga Neji or Uchiha Sasuke. They have a way bigger fan base than me." Kiba thought to himself, still biting his lower lip. "I wonder how they deal with it…maybe I should go over there and-

"Why does Shino sama look so unhappy?" a short, young lady whispered to her friend next to her.

"He's obviously rather upset, though I can't tell why! We should report to our club leader and point this out! We can send out an investigation team to see if they can find out the source of his problem!" the black haired girl whispered back, watching Shino with concern. Kiba scowled again and rolled his eyes. Fan bases are incredibly annoying. But these things are to be expected. For males, becoming a ninja of any rank automatically makes you quite desirable among the non ninja ladies; no matter what your personality. There were very few exceptions to this sacred law of the fangirls, and Kiba was starting to wish he was one of them.

"…I think I'm going to disappear for awhile after this." Shino muttered to Kiba, who had slowed his pace to walk beside his friend.

"Right behind ya buddy." Kiba replied, shooting a dirty glance at one of the gawking females. They merely opened their eyes in shock, and squealed at the attention. Akamaru, sensing his master's discomfort, growled at the squealing girls; though they did not hear him. The walk back to the office takes only ten minutes, though it was starting to feel like hours. Maybe time was slowing down again, like it did in Ichiraku ramen. Yes, this must be the only logical explanation. Hinata's face was becoming red and flustered, which did not suite a sleeping face. At this rate, she was going to blow her cover.

"Oh my! Look how bright her face is! Maybe she's sick…?" yet another Kiba fangirl hypothesized.

"Yes! That must be it! She's sick, and Kiba sama is being a good, noble friend and helping her out!"

"Oh yes. A very, veeeeery good friend."

"Kami sama, make it STOP!" Kiba mentally screamed to himself, quite ready to break out into a frantic run back into the office. Before he could do this, Kurenai stopped and turned around to face her team. If she had taken in any of the gossip, she showed no signs of it.

"We're here!" she said cheerfully, smiling deviously at the group of bandits behind her. "Need I remind you that you gentlemen will be in the presence of the Sandaime himself? Mind your manners now!" she taunted with a hearty wink. This added greatly to the discomfort of the bandits. One of them looked like he was considering running away. Before he got the chance, Kurenai had grabbed the wrists of the bandit in front and gave a sharp jerk. The chain reaction made them all stumble ungracefully into the office. Snickering, Kiba followed Shino through the large door and into the office.

"We're back Hokage sama!" Kurenai called out to Sarutobi, giving the front bandit another sharp jerk to force the lot of em' forward. Kiba and Shino soon scuttled into sight, and took their places next to Kurenai sensei. Hinata opened her eyes, knowing she didn't need to pretend she was sleeping anymore. Anbu immediately jumped out of nowhere and swiftly approached the group of bandits. Wordlessly, the anbu rounded them up and took them off to an unknown location. Once they had left, Sandaime turned to face cell #8 and gave them a gentle smile.

"I'm assuming the mission was a success, Kurenai san?" Sarutobi questioned, reaching into his desk drawer and pulling out some sheets of paper. Kiba inwardly groaned. This was the most boring part of any mission: The part where Kurenai gives a long, detailed report of the mission they had just completed. Normally, they don't take too long with D rank missions, but today they had a C rank mission and there was much to discuss.

"Yes. The reports we're affirmative. There were indeed bandits hiding out in the forest, eight of them to be exact." Kurenai began in her business like tone. Kiba smirked at her opening statement. Hadn't Sandaime just seen all eight of them? So wasn't it obvious the reports we're true, and obvious that there were indeed eight bandits? Maybe Kurenai just likes to make a big production out of things. "Locating them and taking them down was a simple matter, seeing as how our three little genins have been maturing so…."

Kiba's eyes glazed over somewhere along the third word of her next sentence. He was already bored and tuning everything out. One could assume Shino was too, but who could know with those dark glasses he always wore. Vaguely, Kiba heard parts of comments like, "…drunken, easy to take down…" or, "…one serious injury was sustained…" But his brain was not registering any of it. He allowed his eyes to wander out the window, and noticed how early in the day it still was. They had started bright and early that morning, and ended the mission fairly quickly; much quicker than Kiba had expected. It must have only been 2:00 or so. "That gives us time for a D-rank mission…" Kiba realized, biting his lower lip again. "I don't want a D-rank mission; I want to go home for once."

"…Isn't that right Kiba? Shino?" Kurenai chirped, giving them both a proud look. Kiba snapped back into reality and gave his teacher a blank expression. He had absolutely no idea what Kurenai had been talking about. Quickly recovering, he smiled and nodded his head.

"Yes, absolutely." Kiba said with a fake grin, trying to look convincing. Shino frowned, and raised his eyebrows at Kiba. Kurenai's smile immediately vanished and was replaced with a disapproving look.

"Kiba, I was testing you to see if you we're listening. The proper response to that question was no." she said stiffly, turning around to face the Sandaime again. Kiba blinked, and shook his head in confusion. It's not like it was his fault he wasn't listening.

"So, all in all, it was a complete success with just one injury." Kurenai concluded, gesturing at Hinata. Sandaime gave the group of young genin an approving smile.

"I'm pleased to hear that. It sounds like you're all maturing, especially you Hinata. You all have much to be proud of. I hope to hear other good reports like these in the future." Sandaime praised, nodding his head. "You are all dismissed for the day. But first, I think we should attend to Hinata's leg." Sarutobi gave a small gesture, and a medic ninja was immediately on the scene. Sandaime nodded at Hinata, and the medic ninja turned around to do his work.

"If you could please, sit her in a chair over there?" the young ninja requested politely. Somewhat reluctantly, Kiba slowly approached a chair and gently sat Hinata down. She smiled sweetly in gratitude. The medic ninja crouched down, and began to remove the wrapping from her wounded leg. Once he tossed the dirty wrappings aside, he peered intently over the gash. Upon the removal of the bandages, the injury began to gush warm, fresh blood again. Hinata winced at the site of it.

"It is deep, but it's not too bad. This will only take a second. Please hold still for me." The medical ninja said in a friendly tone, sensing Hinata's discomfort. Without another word, light blue chakra formed around the man's hand. He placed his glowing hand over the wound, and Hinata winced again. It stung, though not nearly as badly as before. The blood flow slowed, then eventually stopped as the skin began to stitch itself together. There was a small burning sensation, but it was gradually easing away. When the medic ninja removed his hand, Hinata's wound was perfectly healed. The only proof that an injury ever existed was a pale, skinny scar across her calf. Hinata frowned as she remembered the words of the bandit. She had her first physical scar from combat…she quickly shook her head to clear the thought. It was nothing more than a scar, just a little scar. It would more than likely fade overtime anyway.

"There. You should be okay now young lady. It will be a little tender for a few days though, be sure to ice it when you get home. And don't put too much pressure on it. Perhaps an escort home?" he suggested, turning around to take his leave. With a small bow to Hinata, then to Sandaime, the medical ninja strolled away to resume whatever it was he had been doing before he was summoned. Hinata tentatively tried to stand. She immediately flinched, and shifted her weight to her left leg. She stumbled a bit, almost losing her balance. Kiba and Shino were on either side of her in an instance, ready to catch her incase of such an accident. Hinata flushed in embarrassment, and shook her head to indicate she was fine. She went to take a shaky step forward, and stumbled again. Perhaps her leg was just a little more than, "a bit tender."

"Don't push yourself anymore Hinata. You shouldn't be walking on it yet." Shino said smoothly, putting an arm around her shoulder so she could support herself better. Hinata flushed again, embarrassed for requiring more assistance. Kiba was about to narrow his eyes, but caught himself and didn't allow it.

"Shino's right Hinata." Kiba said, strolling over to her other side and following suit. "You can always count on me and Shino to help you." Hinata merely gave a meek smile and nodded. She wasn't used to requiring so much assistance. Kurenai looked at the pair of boys and gave them a strange look. It took a moment before realization sunk in. She felt the urge to grin a little bit, but decided that wouldn't be the best idea in the world.

"Boys…It's wonderful you're a team, and you want to help your team mate, but I think she only needs one of you…" Kurenai said slowly, sensing what was going on. Maybe her comment wasn't wise; she didn't want to start a feud between the two boys.

"A...ano ne…no, it's okay, I was just s-surprised. I r-really can walk by myself…" Hinata mumbled, gently shaking away from the boys. She took a few shaky steps forward to prove her point. True, she could walk, but it looked like she was in a bit of pain. Try as she might, Hinata couldn't hide her limp. She was about to take an 8th step, when she began to topple over again. Kiba was immediately by her side and grabbed her by the arm. Not gently, but not roughly either, he yanked her up and supported her again. Hinata gave a small squeak, but made no further protests. Kurenai shook her head.

"Hinata, please, just allow Kiba to walk you home." Kurenai started, watching Hinata begin to fidget with her hoodie string. "I know you don't think you need assistance, but I'd feel more comfortable if you would accept it. It would assure you get home safely. Do you want us all to worry about you?" Kurenai asked, noting that Shino was looking miffed for the second time that day. Hinata shook her head. Kurenai didn't want to get caught up in any of this. "You are free to go, have a nice day, get some rest, okay bye." She said in a hurry, scuttling out of the office as fast as she could without running. Kiba stood there for a moment, watching Hinata fidget with her one hand. That poor hoodie string was looking ratty. She probably messed with it a lot. Kiba slowly averted his gaze to Shino, who had seemed to regain his composure.

"I'm off. Goodbye Kiba, see you tomorrow Hinata." Shino said calmly, yet somehow with an edge of stiffness. Briskly, he took long strides and exited the office. Kiba frowned a little bit. Since they had a lot of time on their hands, he was hoping he'd be able to get some training time in with his friend. But Shino left before anything was said. The only thing left to do was take Hinata home, and try to kill the rest of the day. Maybe he could take Akamaru to the river for awhile.

"A…ano…? Kiba? I'm ready to go when you are…" Hinata mumbled, giving him an anxious stare. Kiba nodded, and helped her walk through the door and back into the village. Upon his exit, he was immediately greeted by five young girls around his age. They had formed a semi-circle around the door, so he couldn't leave unless he physically pushed them aside. Kiba growled in frustration. He was in no mood to deal with a gaggle of girls. They cutely tilted their heads to the side in unison to impose a question.

"Kiba kun? Is everything okay?" the first one began with a touch of worry in her eyes. Kiba merely raised his eyebrows at the question. Why wouldn't everything be okay? He wasn't the one with an injury!

"We…couldn't help but see you….carrying Hyuuga. What's up? Is she doing well?" the second one asked, her voice dripping with poisonous honey. Kiba's eyes narrowed. So that's what they wanted. They could act as casual as they want, and talked as sweetly as they want, but they could never hide their true intentions from Kiba's watchful eyes.

"Hinata's leg is hurt. She can't walk. I'm doing what any team mate would do for their friend." Kiba said stiffly. Trying to drop a hint, he brought Hinata a little closer to him and gave her a little squeeze. She didn't squeak or jump at the awkward half hug. Hinata sensed what he was trying to do. The girl's eyes narrowed for just a moment, but they quickly replaced their expressions.

"Ohhhh, she's hurt? How dreadfully awful!" the shortest one in group drawled, eyeing Hinata with a slightly jealous expression.

"Well as long as everything's okay, right? I made you lunch Kiba kun!" The tallest blonde chirped, smiling at him sweetly and holding up a bento box. "How about you let one of us take dear little Hyuuga home? Then you and I can go eat lunch together! There's a perfect spot by the river, what do you say?" she asked sweetly, tapping the side of the bento box. "It's deliiiicious, it's got fried ramen and onigiri!" she coaxed, giving Kiba her cutest, most seductive grin. If she was trying to use her feminine charms on him, it definitely wasn't working. Kiba merely placed a hand on her shoulder and shoved her aside. He wasn't gentle about it either.

"Thanks, I think I've got it under control. I've already eaten." Kiba lied, pushing past them without looking back. "Why don't you ask someone else to share that lunch with you? My friends always come first." He said in a tone that held a hint of coldness. The blonde's mouth gaped open in shock at his reaction. Her mother had told her the fastest way to a man's heart was through his stomach. And a little bit of innocent flirting doesn't hurt either. So why did he shun, no, downright refuse her generous offer? Was she not completely adorable or something? Was it all for that infuriating Hyuuga girl! Kiba was walking away briskly with Hinata hobbling beside him, so she didn't have a chance to ask.

"Let it go Himeko, it's not worth it. He's made up his mind." The short one from earlier told her blonde friend. Himeko nodded, though her glare didn't evaporate. She felt so…so…thrown aside! And it was entirely that Hyuuga girl's fault too. So what if she was hurt? If it was her that was hurt, Himeko would have suffered to not burden Kiba sama. Angrily, she stomped away with her friends trailing behind her

"K-Kiba kun! O-onegai! Please slow down!" Hinata panted, struggling to keep up with Kiba's fast pace. "Yo-you're going too fast for me…" she said breathlessly, clinging tightly to him so she didn't pitch over. Kiba abruptly stopped. How could he have carelessly stormed off like that? Hinata was injured; he had to take it slow!

"…Sorry Hinata." Kiba mumbled, guilty for making her stride too fast. He waited patiently for her to catch her breathe before continuing the journey back to her house. Kiba hadn't meant to go so quickly, but he wanted to get Hinata away from that creepy group of fangirls. He wasn't stupid. He could clearly sense their malice and jealously. And have you ever heard what they say about hell, fury, and a scorned woman? Kiba didn't want his friend to get hurt over something so insignificant. While it's true none of those weaklings could hurt Hinata physically, there was no way she'd be able to stand up to their ridicule. She was just too insecure. Kiba wondered if it would be a good idea to keep an eye on them for awhile. After all, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. After a few moments passed, Hinata looked up to Kiba and smiled. She was ready to go. For awhile, they walked in silence. Kiba was still fuming over the encounter with his fan club. Could they not take a hint? He had to get Hinata home. What was there to be jealous of anyway? It's not like he was carrying her away to be married or something. Kiba just didn't want his tiny friend to collapse on her way home. Beside, why should he eat lunch with one of those snobbish looking girls anyway? Girls like that are all the same. Pretty faces with no real thoughts of their own; other than to date a hot guy.

"Kiba kun…?" Hinata asked softly, watching her friend with large pale eyes. "F-forgive me for bothering you but…you seem upset. D-did those g-girls say something to make you angry…?" she questioned cautiously. Kiba merely smirked at this. Hinata was a girl; she couldn't understand the problem with female fan bases. But she could understand his irritation, and it did make her concerned. For this, Kiba was grateful.

"Well, just a little bit." He lied, trying to seem like he wasn't irritated anymore. "I was trying to get you home safely, and they were hindering that." Kiba explained, though that just barely scratched the surface of his fury. Hinata blinked, then nodded as if she understood.

"I u-understand Kiba-kun…but it's a bit sad…" Hinata said softly.

"What is?" Kiba asked.

"Those girls….e-especially the blonde one…t-they were talking to y-you because…well…I think they like you K-Kiba kun." She stammered, embarrassed with pointing this out. Kiba smirked again. That much was obvious to him.

"Heh. Well maybe. But it was still annoying. Friends come first. Besides, I don't care about girls like that. I think they're shallow and crude." Kiba admitted, biting the inside of his cheek. Did that seem rude to say? Akamaru barked as if to confirm this fact. Hinata blinked again, and gave Kiba an interesting look. It was a look mixed with curiosity, embarrassment, and perhaps, perhaps, just a touch of sadness.

"Kiba k-kun….d-do you….do you have….s-someone important t-to you?" she asked, stumbling over the sentence. It was an awkward thing to ask. Kiba tensed up at the question. He almost stopped abruptly in his tracks. He could feel his heart pounding nervously in his chest. Wait, nervously? Why was he nervous? It was such a simple question. Did he have anyone important to him? A warm blush swept upon his face. Well, did he? Kiba opened his mouth, unsure of what he was going to say. A lump had formed in this throat, and his response died before it could reach his lips. It didn't much matter though, as Hinata had stopped walking and jerked Kiba back into reality.

"N-Naruto kun..." she whispered, her eyes opening wide. She began to fidget with her free hand. It's true, Naruto was sitting on a bench just a few feet away from them. He seemed to be in mild pain, groaning and clutching at his stomach. Hinata gave Kiba an anxious look. With an expressionless face, he slowly nodded and removed his arm from her shoulder. Still in pain, she slowly stumbled over to the bench.

"Dammit, he was right when he said no mercy…" Naruto was mumbling to himself. Hinata stopped before him, blushing madly. She was shy, but her concern for Naruto easily over-powered this shyness.

"N-N-Naruto k-kun…" Hinata stammered, doing her classic forefinger fidget. "W-what's wrong…? You don't look so good…" Naruto looked up to see who was talking to him.

"Oh, hi Hinata." Naruto said with only half the enthusiasm he usually held in his voice. "A few days ago, I kinda had a ramen eating spree with Sasuke-teme. I'm still feeling it. I think I might have food poisoning or something…" Naruto groaned with his hand still clutched to his stomach. Hinata was about to say, "Oh, I knew about that. I was cleaning the dishes that day." But blushed even deeper and decided against it. She didn't want him to know she had been quietly watching him through the window. "Even worse, that bastard of a sensei isn't showing us any mercy. You think he'd be a little kinder to someone who inhaled so much ramen." Naruto complained, he expression scrunched and annoyed. Hinata gave a small giggle. She distinctly remembered Kakashi-sensei had warned them they would receive no mercy if they felt sick after the contest. Before she could say anything to this however, Naruto had stood up and began to walk away. "I'm going to go home now and rest a bit. Nice talking to you Hinata." He called to her, stumbling away looking like he was going to be sick. Hinata stood on the spot and watched him leave. As Naruto walked by Kiba, Kiba could feel himself glaring at Naruto. However, he didn't want Hinata to see this. So he quickly wiped the expression off his face and quickly strolled forward to assist his shy friend. Pain was still attacking her leg, and she had sat down shortly after Naruto had taken his leave. Kiba reached out a hand to help her to her feet. Smiling sweetly, she accepted and allowed herself to be pulled up. Her face was still pink with her encounter from Naruto. "I…I talked to him! And he talked back…" Hinata thought to herself with glee. Kiba could sense her affection and felt himself grow a bit cold. It was a like a monster was cackling in glee, and stabbing his sharp little spear at Kiba. What did she see in him anyway…? Naruto was anything but a good match for her was Kiba's opinion. He was loud, rambunctious, and most of all annoying. Always jumping around exclaiming about how he was going to be some great Hokage someday. No matter how he looked at it, Kiba could just not understand Hinata's strange attraction for Naruto. Whatever the reason was, the encounter had clearly put Hinata's heads in the clouds. She completely forgot about the question she had asked him. They continued back to Hinata's home in silence.

"Do you want me to help you inside?" Kiba asked with an expressionless face. Hinata merely shook her head.

"Ill be okay now I think. Thank you so much for helping me today Kiba-kun. Will you thank Shino kun for me too, if you see him today?" she asked, with a small courteous bow. Kiba nodded. Hinata smiled in response, and softly shut the door behind her. Wasting no time, Kiba turned around and swiftly began his walk home.

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Shift a little more to the right. No, that didn't help. Maybe if he rolled onto his other side. No, that didn't help either. Grunting in irritation, he tried to fluff his pillows in a vain attempt to make them softer. Akamaru whined, annoyed with all the movement from his master. Kiba ignored Akamaru for the time being, and let his head flop back into the pillow. The fluffing really didn't help. He still felt restless. The urge to roll over and switch sleeping positions ever 15 seconds was strong.

"Okay, enough! I give up!" Kiba cried, sitting up and turning on his lamp to illuminate his room. The clock read 2:21 in the morning. Akamaru gave Kiba a look of protest, and grabbed one of his pillows with his teeth. Grunting a bit, he jumped off the bed, taking the pillow with him. He dragged it to the center of the room, and flopped down on it.

"Sorry Akamaru. I just can't get to sleep. Dammit, I'm going to be so tired tomorrow…" he grunted, lying back down to stare at the ceiling. It's not his fault he couldn't sleep. He still felt irritated and disappointed. Every time he shut his eyes, the events of the day played through his head. Hinata getting injured, carrying her around, dealing with some fangirls, and the raw jealousy that attacked his chest when Hinata approached Naruto.

"Kiba k-kun….d-do you….do you have….s-someone important t-to you?" Hinata asked, stumbling over the sentence. The question kept relentlessly pounding through Kiba's brain, refusing to grant him sleep. Did he? Thinking about life a little bit, he noticed that not many male ninja's his age did. Sure, a lot of them seemed to be infatuated with fellow team mates, but they all seemed to be in un-requited love. Hinata liked Naruto, Naruto liked Sakura, Sakura liked Sasuke, Ino liked Sasuke, and TenTen liked Neji, though she would never admit it…so what about him? Did he hold anyone dear to him?

"Akamaru, you're lucky you're a dog." Kiba mumbled, rubbing at his sleepy eyes. Akamaru gave Kiba a look that obviously meant, "Of course I'm lucky." Kiba sighed, and rolled over again. Matters like these weren't easy to comprehend for him. Physically, he was a powerful ninja. For a genin anyway. But ask him about matters of the heart, and he becomes as weak as a white belt. He had never been good at controlling, or identifying his own feelings. Maybe it just wasn't worth it. Sighing again, he once more gave the clock a desperate look. 2:24 am. Growling in irritation, Kiba buried his head under his pillow and tried to shut his brain down. It wasn't working.

"You can't run from your emotions stupid." A voice mocked in Kiba's head. "You're just upset because you can't explain your jealously and irritation. Well, let me spell it out perfectly clear for you. You-"

"Shut up!" Kiba yelled in fury. "I just. Want to SLEEP. I don't want to think right now! I-"Kiba cut himself off and froze. It was 2:30 in the morning. And he was yelling. What if he woke someone up? He listened intently for a moment, but couldn't identify any noises. Sighing, Kiba relaxed and buried his face in his pillow again.

"I wonder….if I do have a special someone…" was the last though that drifted across his mind before falling into a restless sleep. Akamaru grunted unhappily. Kiba had forgotten to turn off the lamp….

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A/N: Well, 90 of all stories at have a boring chapter. Here's mine. It was entirely too short. I didn't know what to do! It was either have one chapter entirely too long, or break it off into two smaller chapters. The first idea didn't appeal to me. And now the second one isn't either. Lovely. Grar, it was so boring. I didn't even want to proof read it. And now I suppose it's time to move into chuunin exams…. (Sighs) it feels too early, but their relationship doesn't develop a lot until the chuunin exams. And I really, reeeeally want to start getting deeper into their relationship. So, forward we go. I should probably start warning about spoilers for the people watching the toonami anime.

The insomnia scene was easy to write for Kiba. I'm a major insomniac, and I can never sleep easily. I feel kinda like I'm putting myself into Kiba's personality a little bit. Is that weird? I cant' identify my own emotions, nor can I control them. I always bite my lip or cheek when I'm trying to hide them. Mhmm. Okay, enough babble already. I'm going to start writing chapter 4 now. Thanks again to all my lovely reviewers. You guys are the life blood for this story!