Hey guys! I bet ya all thought I was dead or stopped writing writing forever huh? Especially with that long leave of absence. But no! I'm not dead, just a busy college student with over 15 credits a semester and 17 next semester but since I'm on Winter break I had the time and motivation to continue this lovely story~ And I really do have to thank those of you that have stayed with me to this point. I know it's been a while and I take these long breaks but your reviews and kind words always bring a smile to my face and give me the courage to continue writing. So thank you, all of you~

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Wolf's Rain, or any of the characters in this Chapter, but I do own the storyline. If I did own Wolf's Rain then maybe we would have seen a bit more action between Kiba and Darcia if ya'll know what I mean~ ;P

Chapter 4

Kiba bolted; running but not really seeing what was around him and he went on like that for a while. Long enough that his mind had become quiet and his memories were back where they belonged, buried. As he slowed his pace to a lope he looked around, recognizing the area as one of the training grounds for the village. He lifted his nose to the air, expecting to smell faint and fresh traces of blood, sweat, metal, newly upturned earth and other signs of training. What he didn't expect to smell was a familiar scent, Sakura's scent.

Kiba paused, standing there as he looked from the direction her scent was leading to, and the ground beneath his paws. He was torn, not certain of how his presence would be perceived by her but knowing that as her partner he should look out for her, check on her and her wellbeing.

The decision may have only taken a moment but it felt like eternity as Kiba fought with himself. Finally deciding to go after the pink haired kunoichi, following her scent with silent and cautious steps.

He followed her scent to a demolished training ground, far beyond anyone's repair and in the middle of the chaos in the clearing dust and debris was his partner.

Sakura stood there panting, her jade eyes tired, showing her lack of energy but there was still a fire lit deep within them. Her pale pink hair was stirred by the breeze, most of it soaked in sweat and sticking to the back of her neck, the bare skin on her arms, the sides of her face and her forehead.

As Kiba watched her he shifted to his human form, not wanting to illicit a fight but not certain of how she would react to seeing a lone white wolf amongst the rubble. He stood there as a gentle breeze passed by, ruffling his dark brown hair and for a moment his lips curled in a small smile. Any wolf would have known he was there by now with that breeze and Sakura being downwind of him. Seeing the differences between them left the alpha male amused, for reasons he did not know.

Sakura was off in her own world, her mind boiling with frayed thoughts and ragged emotions. She had spent the last hour or so in a mindless rage, taking out her aggression on the ground and tree around her. Knowing that the Hokage would be more than a little annoyed at the destruction she had wrought that now rendered the training ground useless to most others, but Tsunade wouldn't bring up such a thing at a time like this when Sakura was already volatile and ready to explode on the next viable candidate for her rage.

It took longer than it should have, longer than she would have liked to admit, for an elite jounin of her status to notice that she had a visitor, someone on the training grounds watching her. She turned as she sensed the intruder, ready to fight even in her exhaustion. Her annoyance only grew as her eyes widened, recognizing the male as the alpha of the wolves, her new "partner". She sneered at the word simply being thought in conjunction with that male, throwing him a look of pure loathing.

Without so much as a word of greeting she disappeared, leaving Kiba there alone amongst the destruction. Sakura bounded across the rooftops of the village, wanting to put as much distance between her and Kiba as possible, barely resisting growling or spitting at his name. This time however she knew the moment he started following her, hastening her speed to try and lose him, if not make things more difficult for the alpha.

As much as she hated to admit it, the male was doing extremely well at keeping up with her pace. She even noticed that he stayed less that ten yards behind her at all times as he followed her, not losing that distance for more than a moment and begrudgingly, Sakura was impressed.

As she arrived at her apartment she glanced over her shoulder. Sakura frowned as she found with much irritation that Kiba was standing on the roof of the apartment building across from hers. He was watching her with those impossible to read slate blue eyes of him. His face impassive and emotionless as he stood there with the utmost air of casualty, not even out of breath from their trek and a hand in one of his jean pockets.

Just the sight of him infuriated her and she wasted no more time, opening her door, entering her apartment and slamming the door loudly behind her. She stomped into her living room, tearing off her sweaty gloves and tossing them to the floor. Her insides still boiled but as she breathed and the scent of her and Kakashi's home enveloped her senses she felt more at ease. Calming herself little by little.

Her peace didn't last long though.

Sakura froze as she heard the long morose howl of a wolf from where she stood in her living room, a shiver crawling up her spine at the sound of it. Slowly she crept to the window by her front door and peered through the curtains. Inhaling sharply as she saw a white wolf standing on the roof of the apartment across from hers, the place where Kiba had been just moments before. She licked her lips and swallowed, noticing that her mouth had gone dry. Jade eyes widened at the sight of her new partner's true form, but just as quickly as it appeared it was gone. He had disappeared across the roof tops and she lost sight of him.

Sakura placed a hand over her rapidly beating heart as she took a breath. She had seen Darcia in his wolf form mainly and it had ceased to cause her feelings of amazement or unease. But now, she was partnered with a beast. Not a human or hybrid. It was slowly sinking in for her that Kiba wasn't like them. He was a beast that appeared as a man. She didn't know why but it frightened her a more than a little, unease settling deep in the pit of her stomach.

Author's Note: Now I know this chapter is shorter than the last one I left you guys with after my last break but in my defense, this spot was the perfect break off point. If I hadn't ended it there then I would have kept going on and on and you guys probably wouldn't have seen this chapter for several more months. Soooo... Hopefully it's worth it right? Let me know what you guys think! XD