A/N: So, at last, a fresh chapter of "Catching". I'm sure all of you out there are thrilled, if not a little peeved, that I've updated after, what?, three months? And I apologize. I'm hoping to have the story finished within the two-year anniversary mark (yikes!), but again, I make no promises. Please enjoy. =)


Chapter XXVII: Fateful Choices

"Kiba! What a pleasant surprise," Master Kurenai said when she opened the door to him. He'd stood outside that damn door for fifteen minutes, debating whether he should knock and the ease with which she'd greeted him put him off balance. "Please, come in. I hardly recognized you! You've gotten so tall!"

"Yeah…" Everyone who'd seen him this last week had said the exact same thing, and he was tired of explaining his sudden growth. Would she ask? "I know."

She turned aside. "Make yourself at home." Nothing further.

"Thank you, Master," Kiba said and stepped past her round belly to the foyer of her open apartment. The place was sparkling clean, even as she was eight months pregnant, and the warm colors and small, feminine touches drew his eye, making him feel, heh, like he was encroaching on her den. Nerves broke cold sweat out along his forehead. "I hope I'm not…interrupting or something."

She'd moved to the kitchen area and he saw her putting a tea kettle and cups on a tray. He shuffled over to the edge of the kitchen floor to stop her. "I don't want to be an inconvenience."

"Of course not," she told him, turning her crimson eyes on him. "When have you ever inconvenienced me?"

He couldn't answer her, so he followed her back into the living area like a puppy trailing after her ankles. She gestured to her overstuffed couch. His bones ached, his chest felt hollow, and he settled onto the cushions with a stiff slowness that belayed his youth. Too goddamned tired. The sigh escaped by accident as the cushions contoured to his tired body. Exhaustion put heavy weights on his eyelids. He closed his eyes, opened them slowly.

"Kiba? Is there…something wrong?" Master's dark hair curled over her shoulders when she leaned forward to hand him a cup of tea. Her intuition had always been on par with his instincts. "I get the feeling this visit is…out of the ordinary."

He accepted the tea, but put it on the table so he could rest his hands in the front pocket of his hoodie, fingers running over the tiny box with Ino's precious earrings. Nerves had clenched in his stomach, hard, and he didn't like the feeling of disgust rising in his throat. Disgust at himself for what he'd done. The memory was a canker in his mind. He looked over to Master, swallowing, and he took a deep breath through his nose. Her smooth scent, with the scent of the infant in her stomach, came into his head at full-force. She was serene; it was serenity he sought.

"Master, I came to you because I made an important decision. I needed someone neutral and honest and trustworthy to help," he said. Her eyes kept on him, and he fooled with the earring box. "Not even Akamaru knows I'm here right now."

Her dark brows crunched together. She leaned back in the armchair. "What's this about?"

"Ino'n'me."

A pause. "Isn't this something your mom or sister would be better able to help you with? I'm not sure that I'm the best-"

"Please, Master. Yer the only one who'll listen objectively."

After his interruption, she went silent and contemplative. He thought for a moment she would turn him away, but her face softened and she reached over her stomach for her tea that she'd inadvertently left on the table.

"All right, I'm listening."

Kiba swallowed back rising fear. On his way over, he'd promised himself he'd be blatantly honest and withhold nothing. But where to begin? There was so much, and what would Master think of it all? Unable to help it, he glanced to the side to locate the nearest exit. He feared the answer to his question, feared what he'd formed inside his mind about solving his problem. Master, across from him, waited patiently for him to say something.

"I'm…I'm not sure if you've heard anything, but Ino and I've started…seeing each other," he started, finally. "And this relationship is sorta…complex. I was dating this one girl, Yukari, but it ended up she was trying to…catch me."

"Catch you? As in…catching-a-shinobi catch?" Her eyes had widened in shock.

"You've heard of that?"

"Yes. I thought the practice was…" she struggled for a word, "in disuse."

He shrugged. "Ino essentially saved me from being caught, but there was this Roach guy who worked for Yukari's mother and they tried to blackmail me into marrying Yukari." His heart pounded painfully against his ribs, an ache that was like a sharp needle breaking into his chest. "I…um…got a little too involved with Yukari at one point, and that's what I'm here to discuss."

"You're pale, Kiba. Are you all right?" Master used the arms of her chair to pull herself upright, and she stepped around the table to sit beside him on the couch. "This involvement with Yukari…was it…intimate?"

The burst of fresh anguish put pressure against his eyes; they stung. He nodded, fought the stinging, and he struggled to even his breathing and voice when he said, "I fell in love with Ino, Master. I would do anything to protect her. But what happened with Yukari…that might…that might happen again. Whatever's inside me," he touched his hand to his chest, "it'll break Ino if I let it. I have to protect Ino…and I can't tell her why."

Her hand rested on his shoulder to comfort him. There was naked understanding in her eyes. "Kiba. What's this decision you've made?"

A knot in his throat made it difficult to swallow. "I've…gotta break up with Ino." He had thought about it every goddamn waking hour, and even those hours when sleep was a vague idea. "Master, I have to stay away from her. But how? How do I get her to…understand without revealing everything?"

Her lip curled in a small smile. "Ino is very stubborn. Is she…does she love you?"

"The whole reason I'm not caught already is because Ino loved me enough to protect me," he answered. The livid blood seeping out of her open wounds was her proof. "She'll fight me for answers."

"Yes, I can see her fighting you if you approach her aggressively. She'll want to understand why, but it's why that you can't tell her. You do have a dilemma here." Master lifted her hand to her mouth and her eyes shifted as she thought for a moment. She made a sound at the back of her throat that indicated she'd come to some conclusion.

Kiba leaned forward. "What is it, Master?"

She looked at him, really looked. He knew she was searching for answers. "Kiba…are you sure this is the correct course of action?"

"Please. Tell me what you know."

Hesitantly, Master Kurenai continued. "You'll have to use her love against her. Tell her she loved you enough to make sacrifices, and you love her enough to do the same. You love her enough to keep away from her because you might hurt her. If she loves you," and here, Master frowned, "she'll respect your decision."

That just might work. "I know you don't like this, but thank you anyway."

"May I speak frankly?" she asked, drawing her hand down from his shoulder to a rest on his forearm. "I have a point for you to consider."

He acquiesced with a nod and she continued. "Can't you trust Ino to make her own decision regarding the intimacy you shared with Yukari? Won't she love you enough to forgive you for it?"

"That's the problem," he answered. A weak smirk found its way to the corner of his mouth. "Her love is blind. I'm not the type to walk all over a girl 'cause she doesn't see the same flaws I do."

"You're being too hard on yourself. You're not going to continually cheat on Ino because of one instance."

"I deserve punishment."

Her grip on his arm tightened. "Certainly not a lifetime of misery?"

"An eternity wouldn't be enough," he murmured, looking at her slender fingers and wrist on his forearm. The fingers and wrist that had helped him so many times he couldn't even count them all. He put his hand on hers, squeezed gently. "I should be going."

"Better sooner than later?" she asked as he shifted to his feet. She seemed so able to predict him. "You always were entirely too impatient and reckless for your own good."

He didn't look at her, too chicken shit to see what emotion her eyes held. "Yeah. That's me." He'd reached the door and rested a hand on the handle, staring at the polished and shiny brass. "Goodbye, Master, and thanks."

Outside he went, shutting the door behind him quietly. The sun was too hot and stark as he ambled into the sparsely populated avenue to make his way to wherever Akamaru was. His plan was a simple one, and if he showed one molecule of weakness, it would fail. He had to steel himself against everything, had to fortify his defenses for attacks from both Akamaru and Ino. Only complete calm and finality would repel them and cement his will. He paced his breathing and tried to loosen his tense muscles, but he knew too well he was teetering on the edge of committing the emotional equivalent of seppuku.

The feeling was like looking over a cliff. Jumping off was his single salvation, but he didn't want to do it.

His family's compound was quiet in the heat and Kiba found Akamaru inside the house, relaxing in the air conditioning. Mom was sitting at the kitchen table with a few scrolls opened; Kuromaru was at her feet.

"Where've you been?" she asked when he came to the kitchen. The question was friendly. "First time in awhile you've out and about."

"I'm taking Akamaru for a walk. I'll be back in a little bit," he said as he waved at Akamaru to come.

Her eyes flicked to him. "Yer up to somethin', aren't you?"

He froze. Her smirk told him she was teasing, but the tease touched too close to home and set his heart to racing. The smirk dropped into a frown, and she half-rose from her seat. "Son? What's the matter?"

She could not know what he decided because she'd stop him from following through. The same held true for all the dogs and for Hana. He averted his gaze, turning from Mom. Akamaru had gotten up and stood by Kiba's side expectantly.

"We're going," Kiba said to Mom over his shoulder. "I'm fine."

He and Akamaru left. Kiba expected Mom to come after him, yank him around, and demand answers, but they exited the house and walked down the yard to the sidewalk without her stopping them. It was a relief that he didn't have to face his mother and lie to her. They walked along in silence for a bit, Akamaru keeping at his hip at an easy trot.

You wanna tell me what we're doing out here? Akamaru whined. You're kinda acting funny.

Kiba licked dry lips. "We're visiting Ino, but I'm not sure if she's at home. We'll hit the shop first."

Akamaru accepted his answer and before long, they rounded the corner to the Yamanaka Flower Shoppe. Visiting the shop was going to be touchy, since Kiba knew Inoichi had the capacity to view what was inside Kiba's head. He would have to trust that Inoichi would respect his headspace and leave him alone, even if Inoichi detected Kiba's roiling emotions. At least, that was what Kiba hoped, especially since Inoichi was the fastest way of finding out where Ino was.

The familiar bells jangled with their entry, and as Kiba congratulated himself for not pausing too long, Inoichi looked up from a few papers he had spread on the check-out counter. He smiled, warmly, but Kiba didn't have the strength to return the gesture. Kiba was about to ruin his daughter's life, or at the very least, make her miserable beyond compare.

"You're looking well, Kiba," Inoichi said. "If you're searching for Ino, she's at the greenhouse down the street a few blocks."

Kiba nodded. "Thanks."

"I won't hold you then," Inoichi said, returning his gaze to the paperwork and allowing Kiba to leave the shop without answering uncomfortable questions.

Along the way to the greenhouse, Kiba discovered he'd become hyperaware of his surroundings. The sense of immediate danger pumped adrenaline into his bloodstream, so each buzzing insect, each breeze that swept hot air over them, the stir of scents around him, all burned information into his brain. Sweat broke out when his nose and glands picked up Ino's scent. A drop ran into his eye and stung, and when Akamaru turned to face him, Kiba realized he'd stopped in his tracks.

Akamaru's ears popped. You coming? And are you sure you're feeling okay? Your scent's all…weird.

"I'm fine. Keep going."

Are you sure? I mean you're-

"I said I'm fine." Kiba walked past Akamaru, determined to avoid delay. "C'mon."

The greenhouse was a larger building than what Kiba thought a small flower shop like the Yamanakas owned would be. It was about two stories, completely glass and on the inside, he saw brilliant smears of color, like looking at a painting of a flower garden, pinks, purples, blues, whites, yellows, reds…and every other color in between. The door to the place was around a corner, and when he entered, the temperature increased about ten or fifteen degrees. Vents hummed loudly overhead, but the movement of air was minimal, giving a claustrophobic feel inside, and Kiba's senses soon became overwhelmed with the sweet and fresh smells of the flowers.

Ino's scent came through the flower-smell loud and clear, a beacon for him to follow, so he wound through the tables covered with multicolor flats of flowers, back, back, where he found her hunched over some tiny, tender shoots sprouting from pans of dark soil. He didn't think it was possible for his whole entity to stop, but everything did and watched with held breath.

Grow lights buzzed over the tables, and he noticed that Ino's hair, which had once been a streaming river of pale blonde down her back, was…abbreviated a few inches above her shoulders. Realization came with memory- -fire from the explosion could have ruined her hair and so it must've been necessary for her to cut it short. He hadn't seen her for so long, and his heart was flip-flopping all over inside his chest, and he had a sudden, unexplained need to cry.

Oh, God. He couldn't do this. He couldn't do this. Shuffling backwards a few steps, Kiba swallowed hard around the knot in his throat. All sirens sounded a retreat.

But Ino must've felt his eyes on her because she straightened and looked over her shoulder, and he was caught in their blue. She saw him standing there, her eyes widened, and then she smiled such a smile that about crumbled him. Barely, he withstood the beautiful relief of that smile, but took another hit when she rushed around corners of tables and flung herself into his arms. She squeezed; his insides lurched, gabbled in fear, but underneath all that was a settled contentment that everything felt right with her in his arms. She lifted her face and automatically, he leaned to kiss her. Their kiss said it all: I missed you and I love you.

Then he realized he was kissing her goodbye, so he pulled back, unable to continue the embrace. "Your hair…" he said before he could stop himself. He ran his fingers through the pale locks, testing the feel.

She nuzzled her face into his chest. "It was the fire. And you…you're sexier than ever." Then, inhaling deeply, she added, "And you smell good."

The blatant honesty her statement held roused a chuckle from him and he stroked her back. After a few moments of them standing there holding each other, Kiba admitted he was stalling. Mainly, he didn't know how to start and he was too scared to just step off into the void. Each time he peered over the edge of that cliff he had to jump over, he felt sick and dizzy that he couldn't see the bottom. He needed a running jump, but what words would get him started?

Ino lifted her head and pulled back slightly, confused. "What's wrong?"

Damn. She'd sensed it inside him and there was no turning from it. He looked at her for a long, long time, memorizing her smooth features and blue eyes, the tilt of her head and the curve of her jaw, shoring up her image in his brain so he could take it out and run his mind over it in the darkness that would soon come. His love for her was a universe inside him that she inhabited; there was no end or beginning to that love, but it had a horrible weight, something that pressed up hard against him, unrelenting, unforgiving, unavoidable. He couldn't wait any longer; the time was now whether he was ready or not.

The heavy universe of his love shoved him toward the cliff edge. He said, "Ino…I…have something I want to tell you, but you have to promise me you'll listen and not argue with me."

Her fine brows came together. "What're you talking about?"

"Promise you'll listen, first. On the Hero Stone."

She looked hesitant, but she nodded. "I promise on the Hero Stone that I'll listen and try not to argue."

He couldn't laugh; it would undo his efforts, so he took a big breath to sustain him. "Ino, I love you, only you. And when you love someone, you want to protect them as best as possible. You above anyone know this." His words to her were soft, gentle. The words were affecting her. He could tell she was trying to get angry, to strengthen herself for what she must have known was coming, but nothing he told her deserved anger. He moved his hands from her back to frame her pretty face to prevent her eyes from wandering and to keep her facing his truth. "You did what you had to when you protected me from Yukari. Now I have to do the same thing. I have to protect you, no matter the cost."

Those blue eyes were glassy because she must've felt the very real fear of unavoidable catastrophe. "What're…" she swallowed thickly, "what are you trying to protect me from?"

He blinked slowly and sighed. "Something happened to me. Something…awful. I found a…a darkness inside me, an…a creature that I can't really control." A tear trickled over her cheek that he brushed away. Stubbornly he continued his attempt to explain. "That creature…the darkness or whatever…it could hurt you. Maybe even kill you. And knowing that, I can't allow it to touch you. I can't."

More tears flowed over her cheeks and she gasped for air, a sound like she was drowning. "What're…why? I don't…?" Her color had become ruddy, blotchy.

Kiba…what the hell're you doing? Akamaru interrupted.

"I know this hurts you," he continued to Ino over Akamaru's question, "but I'd rather you hurt than dead. Don't come near me anymore, Ino." He rested his forehead against hers for a moment, culling up more courage. "And I'm giving you Akamaru."

Akamaru woofed in spasms. WHAT? Are you NUTS?

"N-no," Ino said, whimpered, as she tried shaking free from his grip, "You-you can't."

"Akamaru will be loyal to you. He'll be more protection against me, and whatever else is out there," Kiba continued over Akamaru's outrage and her weak protests. "You'll learn to understand him. I'll send over his stuff a little later. Take good care of him."

No, NO. I refuse! Akamaru snarled. You're wrong about this and you should tell Ino the truth!

Before Kiba could fend him off, sharp teeth sank into the flesh of Kiba's arm, paired with a flood of agony. He'd kept a tenuous hold on his temper and patience, trying to avoid violence, but Akamaru's attack broke that grip and freed the primitive animal simmering under the surface. It was a relief from the rising agony of self-destruction. Chakra hummed inside him and Kiba felt that chilled presence take over his mind with terrifying ease. Emotions withered and died, replaced with a numb void. Coolly, Kiba shoved his arm further into his companion's maw, forcing the jaw to stretch open to cause the companion pain enough to release Kiba's arm.

A patch of Akamaru's fur faded from white to red and the red spot spread over the glossy coat, seeping like blood. His body hugged the floor, weight forward on his front paws, lips peeled back in a mean snarl. A deep growl rumbled in Kiba's body- -a warning off- -but the companion disregarded the warning and pounced. The companion's aggressive dominance was not acceptable. Kiba strafed at the last possible moment. The companion's weight carried him forward, and he crashed into tables, lamps, and floor, leaving a mass of destruction. Before the companion could recover, Kiba leapt forward to exact punishment, but the mate's arms locked around his waist, and he stilled immediately.

"Stop it!" she said. The salty smell of tears crept underneath the cold, unfeeling animal. "I don't want you fighting."

His hesitance allowed time for the companion to regain his feet. Kiba watched, angered with the companion's noncompliance, ready and willing to use pain to punish- -and if pain wouldn't work, then death. The companion turned, snarling, but as Kiba stared him down, Akamaru's aggressive energy faded, along with the red in his coat, until he submitted to Kiba with a whimper. It was finished.

Finished. Go. The thought came in a short burst. Leave now.

As Akamaru huddled near the wall, his tail between his legs, Kiba unhooked Ino's arms from around his waist and without facing her, he walked to the front of the greenhouse to leave. Everything was at a distance, beyond arm's reach, but not for long. The cold anger had frayed at the edges. He needed to get away before his damn emotions caught up with him and overwhelmed him.

Keep breathing. Keep moving.

He'd murdered his burgeoning connection with Ino, had destroyed himself in the process, and his heart hadn't yet accepted the fact. It was like he couldn't believe what he'd done. Shock, he supposed.

Shock did not stop Akamaru's whines and Ino's grief-stricken sobbing from following him. He knew that those sounds, begging him to turn and take back what he'd done, would haunt him.


A/N: I erred on the side of completion, rather than quality. Expect lite revisions and edits as I agonize over the chapter. =)