Tai: Ookay so first things first; SORRY SORRY SORRY!
It has taken me far too long to continue this story, and I really shouldn't have started on a sequel to To Be Alone (called Tied to You) before updating this, but I did, and then I realised I had another Kiba/Neji story I hadn't finished and yea….But yay for you! You get an update! Also that's probably enough shameless plugging for my other story...
I realise there are people who probably started reading this way back when and don't want to read it anymore, so feel free to just ignore the updates/emails you'll get about new chapters. However, I will be finishing this story! Yup, celebrate, oh and give me reviews, I luff reviews ^_^
Anyway, my writing skills I believe have improved, and while the first two chapters probably barely scraped 2000words combined, that's about what I'm managing per chapter for stories now. Also since I was feeling rather guilty about not updating in so long, you get an extra long chapter.
Anyway, enough out of me; onto the chapter!
The ebony haired male had managed to get some sleep through the night, but was up at the crack of dawn regardless and headed straight for the Hokage's tower. The blonde ninja was always at work early, and the Hyuuga didn't want to risk running into anyone Sakura may have told just yet. While it had been the middle of the night and the pink haired woman was unlikely to have had the chance to share her 'information', the lilac eyed male didn't want to take the chance.
Reaching the familiar circular building, he activated his Byakugan to check for any signs of life. A sigh of relief escaped the pale male as he headed straight for the top floor, glad to see the woman was indeed in her office. Tapping on the door swiftly, the slender male waited for a response.
"Enter."
Stepping into the spacious office, Neji chose his words carefully. "Hokage-sama, I was wondering if I could request a solo mission."
The blonde smiled at the request. "Neji, I was about to send for you. I just received a request for help outside of the village that would suit your skills." Holding the scroll out to the male, she watched him carefully. "It may take a few days."
Glancing over the request, the black haired male nodded. "I'll leave right away."
The brunet rolled over for the umpteenth time that evening, or was that chirping from outside indicating it was morning now? The male growled and pulled a pillow over his head to block out the noise; he was exhausted but sleep wouldn't claim him. Somehow, while he'd been following his partner out through the village, his bed had been replaced with one that looked identical but was completely uncomfortable. He'd spent the night tossing and turning in an attempt to find a snug spot between the blankets, to no avail.
The fact that he was going to be quizzed the next morning by his friends about a non-existent relationship with a certain Hyuuga prodigy probably didn't help any.
Growling, the tanned teen glanced over at his partner, who was happily sleeping, curled up on the floor alongside his bed. Glaring at the canine, he threw a pillow at the dog, waking him. "Why did you have to do that Akamaru?"
Akamaru looked at him sleepily, not bothering to answer before his massive head dropped back down atop his paws, intent on getting a few more minutes sleep. They'd been through the same conversation several times on the walk home, and the dog was bored of it. His master knew why he'd done it; he was the heir to the clan and would soon be the alpha male of their pack-like family.
Kiba sighed as he watched the canine, the words from only a few hours ago resurfacing in his mind. '"Alpha's don't pine for the affection of others; others pine for an alpha's affection", huh Akamaru? Sometimes you can't help it; Neji wouldn't pine after anyone.' Finally giving up on sleep, Kiba decided he may as well have a shower and sort out his mind for the coming interrogation.
Yawning as he walked to the bathroom, he silently cursed. 'Damn you Neji; I'll need help dealing with all their question and you're escaping on a mission.' Yawning again, he stopped at the bathroom door. 'And coffee. I'll need lots and lots of coffee.'
Although he was certain he was the only one awake, the tanned male tapped gently on the bathroom door, force of habit causing him to check if the room was occupied before stepping inside and locking the door. Turning the shower on, he glanced in the mirror to check how tired he actually looked and grinned briefly, glad his tanned skin hid the dark rings that had formed under his eyes to all but the closest inspections. The dark red fangs on his cheeks probably helped just as much, their bright colour drawing more attention than his eyes ever would.
With steam already starting to fill the room, he pulled off his pants and stepped into the spray of hot water, enjoying the refreshing feel as it soaked his short hair and trickled down his back. He stood still and enjoyed the warmth, letting it wash away all the horrible thoughts he'd been having. 'I suppose it won't be too bad; maybe Akamaru's right and I can use this fake relationship to get him to fall for me.'
Shaking the thought from his head, the Inuzuka had a quick wash, ensuring the small scratches on his arms where thistles had caught his skin were clean and most of the dried blood gone. He could tell the warm water was slowly bringing out the slight bruises on his shoulders from where a massive canine had decided to place his paws moments before he landed on top of Neji. 'That probably didn't help my inability to sleep any.'
Shutting off the water he grabbed a towel and used it to dry himself quickly before wrapping around his lower half. Checking he hadn't managed to splash water all over the bathroom, Kiba gathered his pyjama pants and returned to his room. His partner was still slumbering on the floor where Kiba had left him, and the golden eyed male sighed. "At least one of us can sleep."
Going through his draws he grabbed a set of clothes and pulled them on quickly, swiftly tying his forehead protector into place before checking his appearance. Satisfied that he looked the same as he always did, Kiba cast another glance at his best friend. "Come on Akamaru, we may as well have breakfast and get some training in before Sakura tracks me down."
Akamaru yawned at the suggestion but stood none the less and stretched, lazily following his master through the winding hallways toward the kitchen. The rest of the house was still silent, and Kiba intended to let it stay that way, quickly making something to eat for both himself and the canine. It had become a bit of a routine; the Inuzuka would wake up after managing a few hours' sleep at most and wake his partner for breakfast and training.
After the first two mornings of getting up early, Akamaru had opted to slink off to bed a few hours earlier than his master to ensure he wasn't too tired. In fact, his midnight walks were an attempt to tire the brunet out so the male would need to rest; those were the nights when Kiba managed sleep. Luckily for the canine, the tanned male had realised this himself and would occasionally go out alone at night, not long before Akamaru intended to drag him out.
Kiba's tossing and turning last night hadn't surprised the dog; he probably would've slept some if Akamaru hadn't purposely forced the pair together physically. The white furred canine was feeling somewhat guilty, but something needed to change. The Inuzuka's insomnia had started, from what Akamaru could tell, about the time he realised he was developing feelings for Neji.
It didn't take a Hyuuga genius to join a couple of dots; his master was having trouble sleeping and had recently discovered feelings for the Hyuuga. It followed then, in the canine's mind at least, that the root cause of the male's insomnia was difficulty dealing with how to react about his new emotions.
"Akamaru come on!" Kiba called back to the dog; already well ahead of his partner. "I still want to get some training in this morning."
"Coming Kiba. Just waking up properly first." The canine barked back, earning a sigh from his master.
"Fair enough; I'll meet you there then." Pausing briefly to glance back at his dog who was mid-stretch, the Inuzuka grinned and took off into the trees, pondering what sort of training would be the best option. He kept running as he thought, stopping when he came to a clearing.
A rather familiar clearing, Kiba realised, glancing around the area. He was at the edge of the very same lake where he'd encountered Neji the night before. A faint blush crept to his cheeks at the memory of the pale, slender, half naked teen lifting himself from the water…
The brunet frowned at the memory, wondering if he was remembering correctly. Most of the lakes did become very deep, but they sloped into the depth rather than dropping straight into it, which his recollection was indicating it did. Turning back to the trees to wait for Akamaru, he pondered the layout of the area and tried to get his bearings.
"Kiba? Why are we back here?" Akamaru barked curiously, looking up at the teen. "This is probably the first place Sakura will lead Ino and whoever else to in an attempt to find you and Neji."
"I don't know, I didn't realise I was headed this way until I already here." Kiba responded, kneeling down next to the water. "Akamaru, do you remember what Neji did to get out of the lake?"
"Not particularly, why do you ask?" his ears lifted slightly at a faint noise, but the canine kept his attention on his master, already knowing the male had probably heard the same.
Turning back in the direction of the sound, Kiba listened quietly for any other indications that someone was approaching. "Just curious if I was remembering it right." Rolling up one sleeve, he dropped to his knees and plunged it into the cold water until his entire forearm was submerged. Kiba and Akamaru both turned their attention toward the trees; the sounds of conversation were making their way through the thick undergrowth, and the teen sighed.
"Guess I won't get a chance to check just how deep the water is right now." He muttered, returning to his feet. "That sounds like Sakura…"
"And Ino…and Shikamaru?" the white canine sniffed the air curiously to confirm his suspicions; it definitely sounded like the Nara's footsteps following the two chattering girls, and the scents caught in the wind agreed, though it wasn't just the trio. "Heads up Kiba; it seems like Sakura brought reinforcements."
"What reinforcements?" the Inuzuka questioned, sniffing the air himself. "Oh no…"
"I have to admit I didn't see this coming." Akamaru barked, fully turned toward the surrounding trees.
"Come on; I still want to get some training in." Kiba stated quickly, taking off into the trees and back the way he'd come. Akamaru stayed hot on his heels, intent on keeping up with his partner.
It only took a few bounds for him to catch up, the Inuzuka pair soon running side by side around the outskirts of the village. "How do you think she managed to get them all awake this early?"
"She probably went around everyone's houses first thing this morning and told them she'd discovered a scandal." Kiba sighed, stopping briefly to decide where to head. "Hinata's with them, so Neji must've already left. Otherwise she'd probably be talking to him about this."
"She's probably still watching; regardless of where we stop they're going to follow and ask questions." Akamaru stated, looking up at his partner. "We won't get much training done."
"Not unless we just go for a run and treat avoiding them as training." The golden eyed male grinned, looking at his best friend. "How about it?"
The canine's tail started beating in anticipation. "Sounds like a plan; are we staying together?"
The wolfish grin crept onto the Inuzuka's lips, a menacing sight made terrifying by the red markings on each cheek. "Of course; not much of a training session if we split up." Taking off once more, both Inuzuka's sniffed the air to ensure the group following them hadn't moved to try and surround them. Taking everyone on a run around the village would be fun, for the tanned teen at least.
"There's no way those two are together! I mean they're both gay, so it's not a complete impossibility, but surely someone would've noticed some sort of change between the two of them." The blonde woman argued, walking alongside her childhood friend through the village. The pink haired woman had knocked on her door not long past sunrise, excitedly informing her of something she'd seen in the middle of the night.
Sakura looked at her for a moment before stopping. "Oh so you think I'm making it up?"
"It was the middle of the night Sakura; you probably dreamt it." Ino agreed, glancing back at her two teammates for some sort of agreement. She avoided glaring at the pair as they quickly involved a blonde male in their conversation, all three men unwilling to be dragged into the conversation.
"Well the only people not currently with us are Kiba and Neji's teams, which happens to include Neji's cousin." The green eyed woman countered, continuing toward their next destination; Lee's house. "If there's something between them they might've noticed something."
The blonde sighed at the comment. "I still think you're wrong."
Lee's door finally within sight, Naruto, Shikamaru and Choji slipped past the two women, half to retrieve the energetic black haired male, half to try and convince the male to lock his door and let them all hide. They all knew the former was the more likely outcome and the blonde rapped on the door, unsurprised when it was answered quickly.
"Naruto! And Shikamaru and Choji! Are the three of you out capturing the full vigour of the day with some early training?" the green clad male asked, his usual enthusiasm and energy present even at the early hour.
"Not quite." Shikamaru sighed, turning to stand sideways. "Sakura saw Kiba and Neji together last night, she's convinced there's something going on between them."
"We're getting everyone together so we can go and question them." Naruto finished, earning a thoughtful look from the male.
"Neji and Kiba…they're two very different personalities, but they do say opposites attract!" Lee grinned, looking towards the girls. "Or with Kiba's energy he and Neji could've been honing their already amazing skills as ninja!"
"What I saw and heard last night definitely didn't seem like training." Sakura stated, looking at the group. "We still have Tenten and Shino to collect before we head over to the Hyuuga compound to see Hinata and Neji."
Nodding, the new addition quickly gathered what he needed and joined the group outside, walking behind the pinkette and blonde as they headed for Tenten's house. "Lee you don't know anything that would disagree with what Sakura saw, do you?" Choji asked quietly, not wanting to draw the attention of the two women.
Lee shook his head. "On the contrary, what I know would seem to agree with it."
"Pity; I was looking forward to the possibility of going back to bed." Shikamaru sighed, though the other black haired male's statement did pique his interest. "What do you know that agrees with it?"
"The last couple of months Neji has looked somewhat more tired, but not to the point that it affects his skills as a ninja." The black eyed male stated, earning a couple of raised eyebrows from the other males. "Tenten and I both noticed, and from what we could determine he was going out at night to hone his skills."
"Or have some private time with Kiba if we believe Sakura." Naruto muttered, earning nods from the remaining three males. The girls had already reached Tenten's door and it was quickly obvious she was eager to join the pair with the interrogation of her teammate and his possible boyfriend. All four males sighed, shaking their heads.
"It might explain Kiba's recent fatigue." A heavily clothed male stated, looking at the four as they all jumped, turning to the male. None of the group had heard the insect wielding shinobi join them, but they weren't all that surprised that he had.
"Has he been going out at night as well?" Choji asked, receiving a nod from the largely silent male. The girls would be deeply disappointed if Neji and Kiba weren't actually a couple, but it was quickly becoming obvious the idea had some supporting evidence.
"So where are we headed next?" Tenten asked the duo, glancing back at the males who were still chattering quietly amongst themselves. "It looks like the only ones not here are Neji, Kiba and Hinata."
The statement made both females frowned and they followed her gaze back to the males, surprised to see that she was right. "When did Shino join them?"
"Probably while the three of us were talking." Sakura reasoned, looking at the group of males. "Looks like it's time to head to the Hyuuga compound and get some answers from Neji."
Ino nodded in agreement, while the brunette thought carefully. "I wouldn't be surprised if Neji isn't home." She informed the pair, surprising both girls. "I mean he's rather private about things, so he'll probably do everything he can to avoid having to answer questions about what you saw."
"She's right Sakura. After all it was Neji and Kiba. I doubt you got there, saw them and got away without either of them picking up you were there." The blonde agreed, the girls not bothering to wait for the quintet to catch up with them as they headed for the Hyuuga compound.
"You're probably right on that one, but I'm pretty sure Kiba wouldn't have stayed on top of Neji if either of them had picked up I was approaching." The pinkette agreed. "I probably would've gotten out of there without them noticing if I hadn't been so loud when I left."
Reaching what should be their final destination, they were stopped from entering the compound by a pair of branch family Hyuugas, the pair clearly taking their job of clan security very seriously. "Hinata-sama is having breakfast, and Neji left on a mission half an hour ago." The taller of the two Hyuugas informed the trio, causing the women to share a glance.
"Could you please let Hinata know we'd like to talk to her? We're more than happy to wait." Tenten smiled, more than used to dealing with the early morning guards. One of the males nodded and headed off into the maze of buildings, while the brunette led the group off to the side of the gate.
"They're always like that in the mornings." She informed the girls. "I asked Neji about it but he wouldn't explain why they had guards around the compound until an hour after sunrise. In fact, all he told me was that speaking to them politely gets a better result than anything else."
"Fair enough; the last thing you'd want after being up all night is to deal with someone yelling at you just before you go to bed." Ino sighed, dropping to sit in the shade of the trees. "So we know for certain that they heard you, Sakura, or Neji saw you at least. That or it's a major coincidence that he's gone on a mission alone."
The pink haired teen thought for a moment, glancing back at the males. "I guess that means we need to track down Kiba and ask him, but I'm not sure where to start. If Neji's gone on a mission there's no guarantee Kiba will be home, but it's unlikely he's on a mission too."
"We could start looking back where you saw them last night." Tenten suggested, glancing towards the gate. "Once Hinata's with us we could head in that direction anyway, and have her check if anyone's there. She and Shino might have an idea where Kiba is anyway, he is their teammate."
Standing as soon as she spotted the Hyuuga heiress appear at edge of one of the buildings within the compound, the brunette walked over to the Hyuugas and thanked them for their help. Hinata seemed concerned by the size of the group and quickly hurried over to them, all nine bunching together as they headed somewhere slightly more private.
"Has something happened?" Hinata asked softly, looking at the rest of the group.
Picking up on her concerned tone, Sakura decided to answer before one of the boys said something stupid and panicked her. "It's nothing bad; in fact it might be really good. Last night I was going for a walk because I couldn't sleep and I saw Neji and Kiba together."
"Together how?" Shikamaru questioned, looking at the teen. Although he'd been one of the first to join the two women on their 'mission', they hadn't really explained anything to him.
"They were both shirtless, and Kiba was on top of Neji." Ino supplied, earning a blush from both Tenten and Hinata who hadn't heard the information yet. "Sakura said she also hear a bit of a grunt and a moan from them."
The comment caused blushes to sneak onto both Shikamaru and Naruto's cheeks, their eyes widening slightly. Choji and Lee managed to hide their reactions a little more subtly, but only barely, while Shino was left being the only member of the group that didn't appear to react to the news at all.
"So I thought it might be a good idea to ask them what was going on rather than just assuming they were together, because it's only fair." Sakura finished, looking at the group. "The Hyuugas at the gate told us Neji's gone on a mission, so we need to find Kiba, and I thought our best starting point might be where I saw them last night."
"They'll probably avoid that spot like the plague now, but it's as good a starting place as any." Shikamaru agreed, "Once we're close enough, Hinata can use her Byakugan to see if he's there or not, rather than us needing to go all the way there."
"I can think of a couple of places he might've gone..." Hinata mumbled, Shino nodding in agreement.
With their initial plan sorted they headed out, Sakura leading the way with all three of the other girls sticking close to her, so they could discuss the little they did know. It didn't take long for the teammates of the two males concerned to start discussing things that had seemed somewhat off recently.
"So Kiba's been a little tired at training too?" Tenten confirmed, earning a nod from the blue haired teen. "How long for?"
"I think maybe a month…" the Hyuuga replied cautiously. "It could've been longer and it took us that long to notice a change, maybe?"
The brunette nodded, thinking back to when she'd first noticed the change in Neji. "I only noticed with Neji when he started getting rings under his eyes." Tenten admitted, earning raised eyebrows from Sakura and Ino. "What? Neji's a very private person."
"I'm just a little surprised that's the only reason you noticed; you, him and Lee are always training hard all day if you don't have a mission." Sakura stated, leading the group into one of the many groves of trees that surrounded the village. "Didn't he fall asleep or yawn or do something to indicate he was sleepy?"
"Neji meditates doesn't he?" Ino questioned, thinking of the very few times her team had trained with them. Tenten nodded, and the blonde smiled. "He can probably sleep sitting upright, so while you thought he was meditating he might've been catching up on sleep."
The pink haired girl continued on forward for several moments before stopping in a small clearing. "I'm worried; if he and Kiba have been sneaking out at night to be together, and now he's gone on a solo mission, he might get seriously hurt." She mumbled, looking forward. "We should be close enough for you to use your Byakugan, Hinata."
Activating the bloodline trait, the girl looked ahead of them to see if the Inuzuka was nearby. "He's there; Akamaru's with him….it looks like they know we're coming."
"I'm not surprised; come on boys we need to hurry up! Hinata says he's there." Sakura yelled at the males, who were slowly picking their way through the dense undergrowth.
"I think we're a bit late; they're running away…" Hinata mumbled, jumping up into the nearest tree.
Shikamaru sighed at the news, joining the Hyuuga in the tree. "I'm not surprised; I didn't expect him to make this easy for us. Which way?"
"At the moment, that way." Hinata stated, pointing left of where they had been headed. "We might want to hurry if we're going to have any hope of catching him."
"I guess it can't be helped. Tenten, Naruto you two come with me and Hinata; we'll try and catch up to him. Lee, Choji, Shino, Ino and Sakura see if you can get in front of him." Shikamaru instructed, looking back at the group. "Shino should be able to locate Kiba for you if needed; if we don't catch Kiba meet up outside Ichiraku Ramen." Without another word he took off in the direction the Hyuuga had indicated.
Although the group spent a moment wondering when they'd put the Nara in charge, they realised he was probably the most strategic mind in the group and following his instructions was the best chance they had at catching the Inuzuka. Hinata took off after the black haired male, ensuring she kept track of her brunet teammate and his canine.
It didn't take long for her to catch up with Shikamaru, the male glad that both Naruto and Tenten had followed the woman. They spread into a line, the Hyuuga watching the Inuzuka's movements carefully. "He's stopped; looks like he's trying to decide which way to go."
"Well then let's go!" Naruto grinned, bolting ahead of the other three.
Tenten sighed and looked after the blonde. "It's probably the best chance we have at catching him." Receiving a nod from the male she took off after the blonde ninja while Shikamaru stayed back with Hinata to receive her updates on what the Inuzuka was doing.
"Kiba's started moving again; Naruto and Tenten are about fifteen metres behind him." The Hyuuga informed him, causing the Nara to sigh.
"He's faster than both of them." The black haired male called back to the blue haired girl, neither increasing their speed. "Is he still going in the same direction?"
The pale eyed girl hesitated before answering. "Yes; it looks like he's picked up on the others coming up on his far left."
"We'll have to corner him to have any chance of stopping him." Shikamaru muttered, stopping suddenly. "I'll catch up shortly Hinata; I need to think."
Hinata left the Nara to his thoughts, checking quickly on the rest of the group. Tenten and Naruto had drifted off to Kiba's right but were still well behind him. Lee and Ino had split off away from the rest of their group, heading further off to the left. Choji, Sakura and Shino had stayed in a line, drifting less drastically to the left as they chased the Inuzuka.
Shikamaru had finally started moving again to catch up to the Hyuuga, a determined look set in his eyes. "What's the current situation?" She relayed the layout of the group to the Nara, and he nodded. "Lee and Ino should be able to get around in front of him if we can buy them enough time. So long as Tenten and Naruto stay to his right, and Sakura and the others stay to his left we have a shot at boxing him in."
"What's your plan once we've actually boxed him in?" the blue haired girl questioned, watching her teammate's movements. He was clearly aware of the two groups behind and either side of him, the dog ninja and his partner probably trying to formulate a way of getting free of the incoming trap.
"I'm guessing Ino's intending to use her mind body switch to take control of him long enough for us to completely surround him." Shikamaru stated, his dark eyes focused ahead of them. "While he's distracted avoiding that I'll use my shadow binding; if he fails to avoid Ino he's caught, if he avoids her I'll still catch him."
"That assumes we can surround him, doesn't it?" Hinata questioned, her gaze flickering through the members of the group. Tenten had begun speeding up and Lee was already nearing the edge of her field of vision, having left Ino behind to speed on ahead. Kiba and Akamaru were drifting slightly to the right, clearly favouring their chances of outrunning Naruto and Tenten. "He's going off to the right."
Shino had clearly picked up on the change as well as he, Sakura and Choji began curving towards them. "We'd better speed up and do likewise then."
Tai: All right, so I think this story has just become three times longer with the addition of this chapter. I still love reviews and, since it's been a while coming, I'm happy to take suggestions for a secondary pairing to throw into this story, or anything else you'd like to see.