Chapter 8: For A Moment
Kiba really hated how much his luck sucked. He finally had his chance with Sakura and just as she was about to tell him she loves him, his teammate and teacher had to chose that damn time to come and visit him! If they only arrived a few seconds later then maybe right now he and Sakura would be a couple. They could be walking down the street, holding hands, giving each other pet names, and deciding where they wanted to go on their next date.
Instead he was stuck in the middle of the forest helping Shino get ready for the Chunin exams. He knew that he sounded like a spoiled brat but so would anyone else if they were in his shoes. It wasn't fair!
"Kiba," Shino's voice pulled his thoughts away from Sakura and his bad luck back to him and their training. "You need to calm your mind down. If you are concentrating on something else then I can't guarantee that my next attack will not kill you," Shino walked up to his teammate and friend. "Perhaps you should sit out until you clear your mind?" He suggested. Shino knew what was on Kiba's mind, it was Sakura. He wasn't sure what had happened in the hospital but he knew that Kiba couldn't stop thinking about it.
Kiba let a sigh escape him. "Yeah, maybe you're right." He gathered up his kunai and called for Akamaru. "Sorry if I'm messing up your training for the exam." He did feel bad about this. Shino was taking the time that he could use for training but instead was helping him.
Shino just shrugged. "There is no need to apologize. Now then, go home and rest." He shooed him off before he released his bugs and went back to training.
Kiba listened to what he said and decided that he should go home. He went straight up to his room and laid down on his bed. Maybe some rest would be good for him. He could clear his thoughts and figure out what he could do about Sakura. He was sure that she was going to tell him that she loved him. But did that mean she was over Sasuke? He doubted it; she probably still loved the jerk. So what does that mean for him? Does she love him more then Sasuke? Or is he just a replacement?
"Argh! This is so frustrating!" He shouted out ripping his pillow to shreds. Why couldn't things just be simple? Why do they have to be so damn complicated?
"Pup? What are you doing up here?" He heard his mother enter the room and huffed. He kicked his destroyed pillow off his bed and crossed his arms. "Nothin'." He knew she would ask him what was wrong. All mothers did. But with his, he couldn't lie about what he really was upset about. Being an Inuzuka, it gave us the ability to see when others are lying.
"What's the matter with you?" His mother, Tsume, walked up to his bed and stood in front of him. "You're upset and confused over something. Now what is it?" She crossed her own arms and looked down at him.
"None of your business." He told her ready for her to start shouting. His mother had a temper that rivaled with that of Sakura's, only his mother didn't look cute when she was angry like Sakura. He didn't know why, but he always found her to look really cute when she was screaming at the top of her lungs, punching whoever pissed her off.
Tsume snorted at her son and flicked his forehead. "It becomes my business when my son is having girl problems."
That caught Kiba off guard. He knew that the people of his clan could see when a person was lying and what they were feeling but he didn't think that his mother would be able to see what the cause of his problems were. "How did you know?"
She snorted again. "It's so obvious that I didn't even have to read your body language. The way you're always staring off into space and a smile suddenly appearing on your face, your mood swings where you go from anger to complete bliss," She watched her son turn his head away from her. "There's also the way your body is now. It is acting the same way your father's did when he knew that he the person he wanted to mate with." She added.
Kiba felt like his face was on fire. He was blushing so bad that his triangles disappeared from his face. "Mom!" How could his mother talk about something like that so easily with him?
"There is nothing wrong with that. It's not uncommon for an Inuzuka to find their mate at a young age. Though you should probably wait a few years before you marry her." She said ignoring how red her son was turning. "So, who is this girl?"
"Mother," Kiba let out a warning growl his mother. He didn't want to discuss this with his mother, not right now. He was still confused on the whole situation himself and he didn't need his mother making him even more confused.
"Just tell me pup. I may be able to help." She said crossing her arms. She didn't know who had Kiba all confused but she was planning on talking to this girl to make her understand what she was doing to her son.
Kiba looked down at his lap and knew that there was no getting around it. He would have to tell his mother eventually. "Sakura Haruno." He moved his gaze to the floor and had a slight blush on his cheeks. Even saying her name made him blush. Probably because her name fit so perfectly with her name, with her pink hair and green eyes that match a filed full of cherry blossoms. A field so filled with beauty that Kiba could always picture it when he closed his eyes. He could see himself and Sakura, lying together in an open meadow, talking about past moments and how much they loved each other.
"That Haruno girl?" His mother seemed a little taken back. "Isn't she to weak for your liking?" She didn't know what her son saw in the girl but she knew it wasn't strength. The girl lacked power and her fighting ability wasn't good either. She doubted that she would be able to hold her own in a decent fight. "Why would you like a girl like that? She can't fight and from what I hear, her two teammates have had to rescue her whenever they face a problem on their missions."
Kiba growled at his mother, jumping off his bed and stood in front of his mother now. "Don't you dare say that! You don't know anything about Sakura or how much stronger she has gotten. She was able to break free of that stupid mind control jutsu that the Yamanaka clan uses. Her chakra control is so good that not even Sasuke or Naruto can match it. And so what if she isn't as strong as the other girls, I don't care. I'll protect her so she doesn't have to worry about fighting and getting hurt! I'm going to protect her for the rest of my life!" By the time he was finished he was panting. He told his mother everything about Sakura. It didn't matter if she couldn't fight. He would get strong and protect her forever. He wouldn't let anyone hurt her, ever.
Tsume looked at her son in shock. She has never seen him act like this, how territorial he was acting of this girl. He truly loved her. He wanted her safe and he would keep her safe. "Kiba, calm down." She placed her hands on his shoulders to not only calm him down but to she him that she was no threat to him or Sakura. When she saw that he was no longer panting or looked lie he would attack she spoke. "Well now I know why you would always play with Sakura when you were little. You've loved her since then haven't you?" She asked him. Akamaru was at his feet trying to comfort his master.
Kiba nodded his head. "Yes." He was finally letting it all come out. His feeling for Sakura, his confusion, everything. "Mom, I love her. I've always been I love with her…I just don't know what I'm supposed to do about it." He let out a defeated sigh and looked down at his feet. He really wasn't sure what it was that he was supposed to do about Sakura.
Tsume looked at her son and made him look at her. "First, stop acting like you already lost the battle. Now come on, you need to eat something. It'll help you think straight." She lead her son to the kitchen and made him lunch. From there Kiba explained to her everything that had happened since he first met Sakura to what had happened just yesterday in the hospital.
"…so you see. She was about to say that she loved me but Shino and Kurenai-sensei walked in and Sakura left. Now I'm all confused about what the hell I'm supposed to do! Does this mean Sakura loves me? Does she still love Sasuke? I am just a replacement? I need to know!" Kiba panted again finishing his story. He had never told anyone his full feelings for Sakura, only Akamaru knew so it felt weird talking to hi smother about it. But if she could help him, then he didn't care how weird it felt. He wanted help!
Tsume looked at her son and tried not to laugh. It wasn't that she found his situation funny, she wanted to laugh because of how much he loved this girl and how that love was confusing him. "First off, you are not a replacement, and if you are then Sakura is not worth your time. Second, try and give her some time, I bet she is just as confused as you are. So if you go see her too soon then it may just ruin your chances with her." She told him.
"Than what am I supposed to do after that? I mean I can't avoid Sakura forever, I'll run into her sooner or later and I don't want to sound like an idiot or do something that would make her hate me." Kiba looked to his mother for advised. He needed her help on how he should approach Sakura.
"Just talk to her like you would with Hinata or any of your other girl friends." Kiba turned his head to look at his older sister Hana.
"Back from the vet's already." Tsume greeted her daughter home.
"Yep. Everything was good with all the animals." She said before looking down at her brother. "Now if you want to talk to Sakura, just relax. If you're nervous then so will she and that will make her want to leave. As for doing something that would make her hate you, just watch your mouth and what comes out of it." She added ruffling her brothers' hair.
"Knock it off." He pushed her hand away, refusing to meet her gaze. "How much did you hear anyways?" He needed to know how much his sister had heard and if he needed to worry.
"I walked in right when you were telling mother about when you found Sakura's ribbon and saw how cute she was and you fell instantly in love with her." She let out a small laugh and moved to the fridge.
"So basically all of it." He glared at his sister. "Well how come you didn't say anything?" He huffed out. He felt like a child but he didn't care about that right now.
"Because I wanted to hear the rest. I think it's sweet that you found your mate so early. I'm happy for you." She said pulling out a water and sat down next to her brother.
"She's not my mate." He said looking out his kitchen window.
'Well maybe not now. But if all goes well for me then I definitely wouldn't mind Sakura being my mate. Hey, I don't care if I'm young. I'll marry her now if I get a chance.' He thought imaging what it would be like to mark Sakura as his mate and marrying her. The look on Sasuke's face when he saw that she was in love with him instead of his stupid-self. He let a smirk come onto his face as the thought. That would be so perfect.
"Kiba!"
His mother's shouts brought him out of his daydream. "Wha..?" He looked around and saw his mother and sister giving him strange looks. "What?" He asked them.
"You were thinking about Sakura again?" His sister asked him. Her water forgotten, her attention was now solely on her brother.
He had been caught and blushed. "So what if I was? Is it wrong to think about the girl I love?" He asked defensively. He didn't want his mother and sister saying anything bad about Sakura. Even if it was his family he wouldn't stand for it.
"It wouldn't be if it didn't affect you so much." Tsume looked over her son. "When you think about Sakura, your mind is so focused on her that you fail to notice everything else around you. That's why you didn't Hana when she came home, because you could only focus on talking about Sakura." She explained to him. "You need to fix that. If this keeps up, you'll end up dying. And if you die who will protect Sakura?"
Kiba shout up at that. He hadn't realized any of that. Sure he was used to focusing only on Sakura but he didn't think it would cause him any harm. "So what am I supposed to do?"
Tsume looked to her son and walked off. "Wait here." She called to him. Before disappearing into the hall. She returned not a minute later with a book in her hand. She tossed Kiba the book.
Kiba looked at the book and almost fell over when he saw what the title was.
The Inuzuka guide of Mating. The body, mind, and soul.
The perfect way of getting a mate and controlling your thoughts and feelings.
"Mom!" Kiba called to mother wanting an explanation for this book. "What the hell is this?"
"This book is what will help you control your thoughts from taking over. It'll help you understand things better." She told him.
"But…" He tried to protest but one look from his mother said that it wouldn't be wise to argue. "Fine." He placed the book under his arm and headed back up to his room. The book in his mind was nothing but a stupid waste of time. But if it gave him some helpful hints then maybe he would use them.
After he left Hana looked to her mother with a confused look. "How long have you had that book?" She had her. She didn't know that book even exist until today.
"I bought it after the first day he bought Sakura over to play. I saw the way he would look at her and the scent he was giving off." She said sitting back down. "At the time I thought it was just puppy love, so I got the book for whenever he found his real mate but I guess I was wrong. It was never puppy love to begin with. Kiba has loved that girl all his life." Tsume added thinking about her son and Sakura.
"So now what? Do you really think that book will help him?" Hana asked. There were a few doubts in her mind about all of this.
Tsume just snorted at her daughter's question. "I doubt it. It'll be a miracle if he even read it." She told Hana. Kiba probably would only read about the stuff he thought he needed to know. Tsume knew that she had to do something.
Suddenly an idea came to her. She smiled, getting up and walking to the front door.
"Where are you going?" Hana asked her mother. She didn't like the look that was on her face. It spoke volumes of what she was planning.
"Just going out for a walk." Tsume told her daughter. She walked out the door but left it open for her companion, Kuromaru.
"You shouldn't be so worried." Kuromaru moved out the door. "She is just going to talk to the girl, nothing else." He told Hana before closing the door with his tail.
Hana sighed before heading into the living room. One of two things could happen. Her mother would scare Sakura so badly that she would agree to be Kiba's mate out of fear, or she would help the girl figure out what she was feeling.
Thanks to her nose, Tsume was able to find Sakura faster then she had thought. The girl was actually heading straight towards her. She looked down to her companion then back to Sakura. She knew what her mission was.
"Sakura!" She called out to the pink haired girl that had claimed her son's heart. She began to make her way towards Sakura.
Hearing someone shout her name, Sakura turned around and was surprised to see Kiba's mom, Tsume, walking up to her. "Hello, Inuzuka-sama." Sakura greeted her with a bow to show her respect for the woman.
Tsume looked at her and smiled. 'Well at least this girl knows how to respect those who are stronger then her. And it seems that she has gotten a little stronger then I thought.'Tsume thought to herself. She smiled down to Kuromaru who was returning the same smile. So far they both liked Sakura.
"Please, Sakura, call me Tsume. You and Kiba have been friends for so long that you should actually start calling me mother." She was only half joking. She knew that if Kiba had his way, he would no doubt make Sakura his bride and then she would have to call her mother.
"Oh…Thank you, Tsume." Sakura wasn't sure what she was thanking her for but it felt better to call her Tsume then mother. That would be too weird. She and Kiba weren't even dating, let alone married, so she had no right, or wants either, to call this woman mother. "Um…is there something I can help you with?" Sakura realized that it was a little weird to suddenly run into Tsume like this.
"Actually, I was hoping you and I could have a little chat. It's been a long time since we've last seen each other." Tsume didn't give Sakura a chance to respond. She was already dragging the girl to the nearest tea shop.
The two women got a table and ordered some tea and sweets for themselves. Kuromaru stayed under the table, surprising he was laid up against Sakura's feet. That action had surprised her and she wondered if this was normal? Or was this just so she couldn't run away?
"You need to relax, child." Tsume told Sakura from her seat across from her. "Kuromaru just likes the way you smell so it is only natural for him to want be near you. Most dogs at the compound do that when they smell a scent they like." She explained to Sakura. She didn't need her all nervous and worried. What she needed was this girl to be open and honest with her. "Sakura, have you been to hospital recently?" She asked her when she caught a whiff of her scent again. It was faint but there were traces of the hospital on her.
Sakura nodded. "I went to visit my friend Rock Lee and Naruto." Sakura answered her. Kiba's mother was known for being very strong and if she was anything like Kiba, than she would be able to tell if she was lying about something or not.
"Oh? How are those two?" Tsume asked pretending to be interested. In order to make Sakura feel comfortable with her, she needed to show that she was no threat to her.
"I'm not really sure. When I went to visit, Lee was sleeping and Naruto wasn't in his room. He probably snuck out to train or get ramen." She rolled her eyes as she imaged her teammate running from nurses trying who tried to stop him from getting his precious ramen.
"Well it is normal for him to want to train. The Chunin exams are tomorrow after all." Tsume said wondering what the nine-tails holder was doing. According to Kiba, he has become a lot stronger from how he use to be.
"I guess so." Sakura agreed with what Tsume said. Naruto loved training and was probably getting himself ready for the second part of the Chunin exam.
"So tell me Sakura, how have you been lately. You and Kiba haven't played together in a while." It was time to get down to business. Sakura was comfortable with her now so it time to get her to talk.
Sakura looked at Tsume and tried to smile. "Yeah, well I guess we kind of grew apart from each other." She didn't want to say it was because Kiba avoid her, that would be rude and she wasn't even sure why he avoided her anyways.
"I see. Well that's too bad, you and Kiba always had so much fun together. It was quite ate the house when you two stopped playing together." Tsume looked at Sakura and was able to read her like a book. Sakura was thinking about Kiba instead of paying attention to her. The girl did seem to have some feelings for her son but she could see that there were feelings for the Uchiha as well.
'She's just as confused as Kiba is. I need to get these two together and see how they act. From there I'll be able to see if it's really love that she feels or not.' Tsume thought looking around. She needed to come up an excuse to get Sakura to come back to the compound with her. She almost laughed when she saw a waiter coming towards them, a tray full of cakes in his hands.
Casually she stuck foot out and tripped the waiter so that he would fall and make all the cakes fall on top of Sakura. Quickly she moved next to Sakura, acting like a concerned person, and yelled at the waiter.
"What is the matter with you?" She yelled at the scared and clueless waiter.
"Ma'am I am so sorry." He said picking up the tray and looked sadly down at the shocked cake covered Sakura.
"It's ok, really." Even though it wasn't. Sakura felt so embarrassed that she wanted to do nothing more then run away and hide from the world. However she also wanted to yell and scream at the waiter for doing this to her.
"No, it's not. Come on, Sakura." Tsume grabbed Sakura by the hand and pulled her out of the tea shop. She jumped onto the rooftops, still holding onto Sakura and headed in the direction of the Inuzuka compound.
"That was playing dirty, Tsume." Kuromaru running beside his mistress. He knew that whole event was caused by her and he wanted to know why. "What are you thinking?"
"I need to get these two together if I'm to help Kiba understand what's happening to him. Not only him though, I have to help Sakura understand her feelings for my son. I want to see if she truly loves him as Kiba does for her." She explained to her companion. That was part of the reason, but there was more for her. She did want to help both of them, she wanted her son to be happy. And if he was at his happiest with Sakura then by damn she would get these to together.
"Um…Tsume? Where are you taking me?" Sakura asked as she jumped from rooftop to rooftop. This whole event had confused her and she wasn't sure what was happening.
"I'm taking you back to my house. From there you can shower and get cleaned up." Tsume said trying not to show her smile. So far her plan was working.
"What?" Sakura felt her face suddenly turn the color of her hair. "You don't have to do that. Really, I can just go home and shower." She tried to pull her arm free but the Inuzuka had a strong grip on her. She was stuck. Something must have hated her; she didn't want to see Kiba right now. She was still confused about what had taken place when she went to visit him at the hospital. She knew that she held feelings for him, but she still had feelings for Sasuke. So by almost confessing her love to him, she almost ruined everything. It wouldn't be fair to her or Kiba if she said she loved him when her whole heart wasn't in it.
'I had hoped that I could avoid him until after the exams were over, but it doesn't look I can if I'm going to his house. I'll just have to suck it up and face him and explain to him that what had happened at the hospital was a mistake and to just forget about it, for now.'
With her thoughts all cleared up and ready, Sakura allowed Tsume to bring her to the Inuzuka compound. She let the memories from her childhood come flowing back to her. She could remember the first time Kiba had brought her over to play. She was so nervous that she fell over her own feet so many times. She missed those days.
They walked into the house and were greeted by Hana.
"Mother? That was quick. Did you…Sakura? What happened?" Hana ran over to the girl and looked her over. "How did you get all this cake on you?" Hana quickly ran into the kitchen and returned with a towel in her hands. She gave the towel to Sakura for her to wipe off some of the cake.
"I met up with Tsume in town. We stopped to have some tea when a waiter tripped and made cake fall on me." Sakura explained to Hana what had occurred in town.
"Sakura, why don't you go upstairs and shower. You can borrow Kiba's clothes too while we wash yours." Tsume said guiding Sakura upstairs towards Kiba's room. They entered and fond it empty of Kiba and Akamaru. By the smell of things, Kiba had left not long after Tsume left the compound.
"Are you sure this is ok?" Sakura asked looking around Kiba's room. She hasn't been in here since she was a kid. They room looked so different then what she remembered. The walls looked the same but there were pictures and posters that were new to her. The bed was a lot bigger then before and so was the desk and dresser.
"Don't worry so much, Sakura. Kiba won't mind at all." Tsume told her. She was digging through Kiba's closet looking for something that Sakura could change into after her shower. "Here we go." She pulled out a white t-shirt, a brown jacket with a white line running up the middle, and light brown pants to go with it. "You can change into these once you finish with your shower." She handed Sakura the clothes and left the room.
Sakura confused by all of this just listened to what Tsume said and took the shower. It felt good clean off the cakes from her body. She washed off the cakes from her arms and shoulders, and began to work the chunks out of her hair. She grabbed the shampoo bottle and squirted it into her hands before bringing it onto her head. She caught a whiff of the shampoo and smiled. It smelt really nice.
Happy when she heard the shower turn on, Tsume made her way back downstairs and into the kitchen. From there she meant with Hana and Kuromaru.
"Something you want to say to me?" She asked them both, crossing her arms.
"Not really. Just tell me, what are the chances that you meant up with Sakura and bringing her home covered in cake?" Hana placed her two hands on her hips and stared at her mother. "You planned this, didn't you mom."
Tsume just shrugged and sat down on one of the stools in the kitchen. "I didn't expect all this to happen. But I needed to get Sakura to come here so that I could see if her feelings for Kiba were as strong as his feelings for her." She told her daughter. "By the way, where is the brat anyways?" She didn't pick up his scent anywhere in the house.
"He went to go on a short run with Akamaru not to long after you left. He said that he wanted to clear his head." Hana answered her mother, taking the stool directly opposite from hers. "You do know that once he comes home this whole house will be filled with his hormones and noise?" She asked her mom.
Tsume nodded her head saying she understood. Yes, but I think it will be good for him. He and Sakura may be able to come to an understanding about their feelings for one another."
"If you say so." Hana still had her doubts this whole thing.
A few minutes passed before the two Inuzuka females were joined by Sakura. She was clothed in Kiba's clothes and was blushing. The jacket was big for her small frame and her hands seemed to have disappeared inside the sleeves. The pants were big too but the jacket was able to hide how much it was falling off her hips.
"Um…thank you for all you've done for me." She thanked them both and joined them at the table.
"It's no trouble at all." Hana told Sakura. She looked over the girl that brother had fallen for and had to admit that she looked wearing Inuzuka clothing. She didn't smell bad either, in fact hers and Kiba's scents mixed together smelled rather nice to her. "You're clothes are being washed now, they should be done soon. If you want you can eat dinner here and then head home." Hana offered.
"Oh no. I couldn't do that." Sakura tried to decline, she didn't want to be rude and over stay her welcome.
"Yes, you can." Tsume said from her seat. "I insist that you stay over. In fact, why don't you spend the night? I heard it might rain tonight so you may want to stay over instead of walking home getting soaked." That was a pure lie and everyone but Sakura knew.
"No really. I can stay for dinner but I couldn't possibly sleep over. My parents would be worried and I don't want to cause any problems. Besides Ino said that she would stop by tomorrow and we would both head over to where they're holding the second part of the Chunin exams." Sakura explained to them. It was true that she had to meet Ino but that wasn't her only reason for not wanting to spend the night. It would be too weird for her. To spend the night over Kiba's house, she only did that once and it was during a really bad thunder storm. That night, she had stayed with Kiba in his room and the two shared his bed. She was too scared to sleep by herself so Kiba had offered to share his bed with her to make her feel better.
"Are you sure? Because…" Tsume stopped when she picked up Kiba's scent. He was at the door and was coming in.
"I'm home." Kiba announced entering his home. He was tired and depressed. He had hoped that if he went on a run with Akamaru then his head would clear up but it didn't. In fact that entire time running just made him think more about Sakura because he kept picking up his scent. It surprised him how strong her scent was becoming when he was getting closer to his house. That and the smell of cakes was even stronger then her scent. Did she stop by to drop off something?
"Yo mom, Hana, what's for dinner?" He walked into the kitchen and almost fell back when he saw Sakura sitting there, next to his mother and sister, wearing his clothes.
Sakura looked at the shocked Kiba and smiled. "Welcome home." She greeted him.
Kiba could feel his cheeks start to burn. Sakura was in his home, wearing his clothes, and fitting in so perfectly. She just fit there, sitting at the table with his family. It was like she was meant to be there. He caught a whiff of her scent mixed in with his and he almost lost it. Their two scents combined smelt so good to him. Right now he wanted nothing more then to take her in his arms and never let her go, to keep her with him forever.
"Kiba, go and wash up. We have a guest and she is staying over for dinner." Hana told her brother. She and her mother were trying hard to contain their laughter. The way Kiba looked right now was very funny to them. He was between hopeless confused and complete happiness.
"Huh?" Kiba looked at his sister then his mother. Did he hear them right.
'Sakura's staying for dinner? She having dinner, with me, at my house? Could this mean…she is here to finish what she wanted to say at the hospital? Yes! Finally, we can be together. This has to be the perfect moment.' Kiba let a smile come onto his face. He felt nothing but bliss at this moment. "Ok, mom. I'll go wash up now." With that said, he raced up the stairs towards his room. He would wash up and spend the rest of his evening with Sakura. Life was great.