Chapter Four.
Since they had entered the Land of Water some days ago, a gentle mist seemed to have persisted and swirled around them. It was cold and damp but the four kept themselves in good spirits. At night, they would huddle into Akamaru's fur and during the day take the time to talk about everything that had happened to them since the end of the war. Shino and Kiba had become the leaders of their respective Clans and formed an amazing alliance with the Hyuuga Clan that could be deemed similar to that of Ino-Shika-Cho. The three Clans were well known internationally and at any major event throughout almost all the lands, there were always asked to attend as guests of honour. Though Neji and Hanabi were not as close to Kiba or Shino as Hinata was, they maintained a good relationship with them both and worked well together. It had hurt them that Hinata was not the heir to the Hyuuga Clan or the prospective wife to their Hokage… but a part of them was happy too.
After 15 days and then sailing for another 5, they soon reached the main dock towards Kirigakure. At the dock, there was young man with tufts of light blue hair and wearing dark-rimmed glasses waving to them. Hinata waved back and as they walked down the ramp which led off of the ship, they approached him. He had hard, sharp looking teeth that made his smile look a little unusual but his face looked kind and his mannerisms friendly. She smiled back whilst her three male companions remained solemn (even Akamaru kept a respective stance and refused to wag his tail).
"Hyuuga-Sama?" The young man asked, shocked to see the pretty lady bow to him quickly and respectively. Her friends looked extremely peeved at her over-politeness and when they saw the young man gawp and bow back just as enthusiastically in return, the three shared a look as Kiba groaned at them.
"Greetings! I am Hinata-Chan. May I ask, Are you Chōjūrō-Sama?"
He raised himself slightly so he could see the girl but as she had not raised her head he quickly lowered his back down.
"Yes, Hinata-Chan. Welcome to Kirigakure. Are these gentlemen your friends?"
Hinata raised her head slightly and seeing her head was raised higher than Chōjūrō's head, lowered hers. Kiba groaned again loudly and Hinata giggled.
The two bluenettes raised their heads in unison and smiling, straightened up.
"Chōjūrō-Sama, they are more than just my friends. These three are the closest to me. They wanted to make sure I arrived safely here." Her words stirred something in her comrades and before he realised what he was saying Shino spoke.
"We are going to be staying with Hinata-Sama for the 1st month of her stay here. Is this acceptable for you and you Mizukage?"
Hinata gasped slightly Shino's actions. They had not once said they were going to do this and Hinata simply was stunned. Chōjūrō placed both hands behind his head, smiling.
"Of course. I can easily make arrangements for you all. You can all stay in the same building next to that of the Mizukage's tower."
"The dog will be staying with us too." Kiba added quickly.
Chōjūrō looked slightly confused at this additional piece of information … the dog is treated like royalty … I remember a time when if you brought a dog home your mum would think about cooking it rather than letting it stay with you.
"That will not a problem. I will arrange you all rooms." He added as care-free as possible. He tried hard not to look too much at any of them too much but found it extremely hard. The man who spoke to him first wore thick, dark sunglasses and his jacket covered most of his lower face. The 2nd guy who was patting the dog on the head had strange markings on his face and noticed when he grinned at the large, white dog that he had fangs. Hardest of all was not to look at the stunning girl in front of him. Her eyes were a milky lilac colour and she smiled so sweetly it reminded him of his Mizukage's smile. She wore the same beige cloak her companions wore but a white and almost-purple coloured outfit. He tried hard not to blush and clearing his throat, moved his arms back to his sides and indicated with his right arm the pathway to the main gate of Kirigakure.
"Please come this way and ask me anything you want. I will show you were you can put your things and then I'll direct you later to the Mizukage's Office."
He escorted them towards the main village and as they approached they could see through the thick mist several cylindrical buildings with mountain tops in the background. In the middle of the buildings lay one extremely wide and large tower. If they hadn't had been shown the way by Chōjūrō, they would not have even seen it through the mist. As they walked through the town, many people stopped and stared as the five went to high apartment building next to the largest one. Chōjūrō led them inside and proceeded to have a few words with the owners there. It seemed there had been a small disagreement but as soon as Chōjūrō grimaced slightly, the owners quickly handed over 4 keys to which he handed out to the group.
"Hinata-Chan, er…" After handing Hinata her key he realised he did not know the names of the others with them.
"I am Shino Aburame, Chōjūrō-Sama. This is Inuzuka-Sama, head of the Inuzuka clan and this is our team mate Akamaru-Sama." Akamaru woofed and bowed courteously to the friendly Shino and licked his hand.
"By the way, Chōjūrō-Sama," Kiba said to him. "We only need three rooms. Akamaru and I are together." Chōjūrō seemed to rub his head embarrassedly and his cheeks flushed. They sleep tog… no. Stop, brain. It's not my business.
"I am sorry I presumed wrong and ordered a room for Akamaru-Sama." Hinata then realised what the minor argument with the owner had been about and smiled kindly at their host. After handing out to them their keys and placing the unneeded key back in the building owner's hand, he showed them all to their rooms at the north end of the Tower. The steps were easy to climb and though the building was tall they reached their rooms quickly.
"Just make yourselves comfortable here and if you need anything, just ask me. I stay in the suite at the left hand-side on the top floor. I will leave you all to unpack and have some time to rest. Please meet me downstairs in 3 hours time and we'll meet the Mizukage." He bowed to them all before proceeding to the stair case to go upstairs to his room.
The four looked at each other and Hinata took her queue to talk, as they were now alone.
"Shino-Kun… Kiba-kun… Akamaru-Kun…" she started to twiddle her fingers as she smirked, avoiding eye contact in case she laughed. "… When did you three begin babysitting me?" The men felt embarrassed by her question and looked away from her as Akamaru simply padded over to her and licked her hand. She giggled. "I do understand. You guys really care about me. Thank you. You do know if there were any problems, I would contact you three right away … I can't and don't expect you to put me before your families or duties." She stroked the dog's fluffy fur and her friends took a moment longer to compose themselves - she may not have meant to but they felt slightly insulted by what she said.
"Hinata…" Kiba looked annoyed and Hinata's face showed worry at his annoyance. Shino took his queue to stop Kiba and carry on what his friend wanted to say.
"Hinata, if it takes 20 days for us to get here, how can we respond to any messages you give us if there is an emergency? Surely you realise that YOU are family to us… how can we cope knowing you are in danger?" Shino spoke flatly and Kiba, looking relieved at not having to try and control his anger, nodded in agreement at Shino's words.
"The way the Kages were transported during the War to the Battlefield. I know that this is only allowed to be done in the case of a true emergency but Naruto (Kiba exclaimed a load 'HA!' at the sound of Naruto's name but Hinata carried on) I'm sure would let us use that jitsu."
Kiba went up to the woman and put an arm around her. "Hinata, Hinata, Hinata…." He sounded disappointed as he spoke. "He's an arse. Simply, an arse. He puts you and your family in an extremely difficult, intolerable position to begin with and keeps breaking your heart. For a guy who is meant to care about his friends… he is bloody clueless. He does not deserve your kindness or faith. Yeah, I get why he picked you. BUT he shouldn't have."
"Hinata, we know you can do this but how can we leave you? When we asked Kurenai if we were being over-protective, she said understandably so and to go. Our families agree with this too. We are staying with you."
Hinata's bottom lip quivered slightly and a tear fell from her eye. No one had ever supported her the way these three did. Shino looked worried and approached her. She put one arm around Kiba's waist and the other to pull Shino towards them. One day, they may never be together or be able to express themselves in each way. Many misunderstand the way they are together but truly … there were the very best of friends and family to each other and nothing could break them apart.