Enjoy. This one's exceptionally long!

Kiba had largely forgotten about Sasuke and Hinata after a few more minutes; it helped that there were obstacles littering the area to break his line of sight. So long as he didn't have to look at Hinata, he was satisfied to look at Kiko. She really was attractive, even though she wouldn't win any beauty contests. Kiko stuck close to Kiba while he visited the bar again, downing a small glass of wine.

"So, what's your family like?" Kiko asked Kiba, her hands folded behind her back. "I know they're into dogs, but are they good people? I only really know about you."

Kiba smirked. "Yeah, they're good people. Pushy, and stubborn, with short tempers, but they're the best I've ever known. My mom's been raising me and my sister for a long time. She brought us up strong, taught us how to bond with our hounds, made sure we wouldn't settle for second best. All the right things, you know?"

Kiko nodded slowly. "Your mother sounds strong. I'm glad you have her. And your sister, too." She then looked around the dance floor. "But they're not here tonight, are they?"

Kiba smirked, showing a sharp fang. "Nah, they're both, uh...single."

Kiko giggled openly, lacking the demure mannerisms of some. She didn't cover her mouth or slump her shoulders inward; she just laughed as she pleased. "That's the trouble with strong women, huh? I guess they can be intimidating to suitors." She looked down at her own hand, flopping her wrist back and forth. "Not like me; I don't think anybody's scared when they see me."

"But you're single?" Kiba teased, drinking down the last of his wine. "Is it your dad who scares them off?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm just...busy, I guess. Haven't had a chance to meet anybody serious. That's part of why I came out to the festival. Not for a boyfriend, exactly, but to meet people. Any people." She smiled up at Kiba, and although it seemed like she should have blushed, her cheeks remained pale. "Out of everybody, I'm glad I met you."

Kiba kept a nearly-straight face, seasoned with a smile on the edges of his mouth. He didn't want to overplay his hand, so he didn't echo the sentiment. He thought it, quietly: Glad I met you, too. Outwardly, he raised a hand in as cordial a way as he knew how, inviting her to take it. "Guess we oughta dance, huh?"

"Guess so," Kiko answered softly with a pleasant nod, letting Kiba take her little hand and lead her onto the nearest dance floor.

The dance continued to fill up, with Sasuke and Hinata sticking to their natural tendencies to stay out of the way of others. They added to the lining of the walls, wooden fences hastily set up and covered with decorative paper displaying—with equal size and number, repeating time and time again—the symbols of each of the five Hidden Villages. Unity was the theme of the entire event, and it was quite obvious by the décor.

Their place along the outskirts did little to protect them from attention and murmurs, however. Sasuke was much more recognizable at night, it seemed. Something about the shadows seemed to accentuate his features. Hinata, ever-distinct, was doing her best not to blush away from the curious attention. She tilted her eyes down and smiled sheepishly. "Those three over there...they're staring at us..."

Sasuke looked their way. A group of three nobodies; strangers from other villages, no doubt looking at Sasuke as a threat. He could feel in their eyes a judgemental fear. They were shinobi, he could tell, but they weren't looking for a fight. They were merely expressing a quiet protest against the existence of Sasuke Uchiha. He chose to leave them be, as he always did anymore, and hummed it away. "They're admiring you, I think," he said with a dismissive murmur.

Hinata smiled further. He was using the uncomfortable situation to compliment her. She knew the truth, as Sasuke knew she did, but she read between the lines and decided that he didn't want to discuss it. "I wish they wouldn't," she chirped sweetly. "I'm not here for them."

Sasuke stood slightly up from his lean on the papered fence and squared his shoulders, and, predictably, the three men who had been staring were suddenly disinterested. Perhaps they thought he was going to confront them. No, not that. Sasuke straightened his posture and rolled his neck to stretch it slightly. His hands fell into his pockets. "It's not a bad place to be for its own sake," he said of the dance. Despite the stares, there was a warm aura pervading the event.

Hinata slipped her arm around Sasuke's waist, slowly. She pulled herself against his hip with hers, and her head tucked against his shoulder. She was fond of that position, latching herself side-to-side with Sasuke. It was intimate without feeling too forward. "Thanks for coming with me; I know you don't really like things like this." She thought back to their first few kisses; passionate, unrestrained, almost thoughtless. After the initial 'panic' had worn off, the intensity had been dialed down. They still kissed one another goodnight at the end of the day, but it was cordial. Very nice, very affectionate, but...a part of her did yearn for the recklessness to return. She blushed at her own thought, wondering where it had come from so suddenly.

"The event, I don't mind. It's the people I'd prefer to avoid." Sasuke tilted his head, his ear picking up a commotion near the west side of the courtyard. Welcomes, praise, gratitude, and the like. All with a specific name attached. "Speaking of people I'd prefer to avoid...I think your father just showed up."

Hinata felt a tension in her shoulders. "O-oh?" Her first response was to turn on her Byakugan and quickly survey the dance. Sure enough, Hiashi was there. "It's alright...if he comes to us, let me speak with him. Nothing bad will happen."

Sasuke perked his brow. He wasn't assuming anything bad would happen. He got the feeling that Hinata was assuring herself, rather than him. "You're right, nothing bad will happen. He's family, right?"

Hinata nodded. Her breaths were quickened, despite surface-level ease. She watched her father through her magnified vision to figure out his intentions. So far, he had been greeting, shaking hands, and expecting reverence. Always with a stern, flat face. He very rarely smiled, even when making nice. It was one of the things that allowed him to stand as a pillar of Konoha; he never showed weakness. Softness was a sin. He barely showed affection to his own children, save for extremely rare occasions behind closed doors.

After a few more handshakes and bowed heads, Hiashi excused himself from the entry way to sift deeper into the dance. Somewhere along the way, Hanabi had surfaced from the ether to join him. Dutiful daughter, always. She stood at his side obediently and took on the same stone-faced visage that he had. Playtime had ended for the heiress; as if her leisure switch had been flipped from one to zero. Hinata frowned slightly when she noticed the difference. It always seemed as if Hanabi was being suffocated whenever she was too close to their father; and in a sense, it was true. The younger sister's natural personality was forced aside, smothered by expectation and tradition. Hinata thought it was a shame; she rather liked her real sister, opposed to the part she played for the clan's sake.

Sure enough, Hanabi and Hiashi, flanked by Ko and another bodyguard of the Hyuuga Clan, worked their way toward Hinata and Sasuke. An intended path, an informed one; they were making their grand appearance as members of a noble house. The atmosphere seemed to change around them as they walked. In some ways, they were given more reverence than the Hokage himself. Part of that, though, was the way Kakashi carried himself. He was much softer, much kinder; conversely, Hiashi stared and spoke with daggers, even toward the people he liked.

"He's coming this way," Sasuke said under his breath. His fingers fidgeted slightly in his pockets. He was nervous. It was more for Hinata's sake than his own; Hiashi had no leverage over Sasuke, but Hinata was still under Hiashi's roof, still tied to the Hyuuga name. His judgements mattered to her. With that in mind, Sasuke exhaled a smooth breath and softened his expression. Taking to heart the comments of Kiba and his date out front, Sasuke even tried to 'warm' his aura.

Hinata noticed Sasuke's behavior and she smiled all the more because of it. Her hand fell into his. "Relax, Sasuke. He's only coming to say hello. It would reflect poorly on the clan if he didn't greet me as his daughter." She was trembling, too, though. Her assurances weren't working on herself. Though it hurt her to do so, she released Sasuke's hand so as to free her own for the polite gestures she would need to show her parent.

Hiashi was upon them soon after, with Hanabi at his right side and his guards on the outer flanks. They were watching his back, rather than his front. A symbol of confidence that Hiashi could handle any threats in the front. The strong, tall, hard-faced nobleman looked at Hinata first, nodding his head with his sleeved arms folded in front of his chest. "Good evening, daughter." The stiffness of his voice told the truth—he was stunned to see the company she kept.

"Good evening, father," Hinata answered back with submissive quietude. "It is wonderful to see you."

Hiashi's empty white eyes turned, then, to Sasuke. After a second, they dropped down to the Uchiha's hands, noticing the gloves he wore. As Hiashi had suspected but couldn't believe, they were the same gloves that he had seen in Hinata's pack earlier in the day. A gift for a traitor. "Interesting company you have chosen to keep, Hinata..."

Hinata felt her blood chill by a few degrees. Hiashi was trying to provoke Sasuke into responding poorly. Would he succeed? Hinata decided to defend Sasuke so that he wouldn't have to speak for himself, so she answered openly. "Yes, he's very interesting. This is Sasuke Uchiha." She gestured her hand toward her partner. She stayed formal; curt.

Hiashi narrowed his eyes. "I know who he is..." He turned his attention back to his older daughter. "I only wonder why you are standing with him." Despite the elation in the air, their little pocket of the dance had turned stifling and unpleasant. Hiashi carried with him an aura of power; not just physical strength, but influence. His word was almost law in the village, and it was law within the Hyuuga Clan.

Hinata spoke again, answering on Sasuke's behalf. She could feel her partner's urge to respond, to say something snarky or belittling to Hiashi. She admired his restraint. "Father, I am with him because he is my date to the dance." Despite the airs, Hiashi was as frightened of Sasuke as anybody else in the village—it was that feeling of fear that caused him to break tradition and make such subtly insulting remarks. Hiashi intended to rattle Sasuke; to make him say or do something that would weaken the Uchiha Clan's already-dismal reputation. Hiashi was always one to consider inter-clan politics, even if a rival clan was only one person strong.

The head of the Hyuuga spoke firmly, trying to exude authority. "I do not recall giving him permission to bring my daughter to this function." He turned to Sasuke. Hiashi could tell that Hinata was covering for him, so then it came time to address the young man directly. "Sasuke Uchiha, what are your intentions with Hinata?"

Sasuke met Hiashi's gaze unflinchingly. Rare was it that Hiashi could look into a man's eyes without forcing subservience or unease. Sasuke's calm, cool stare was enough already to rattle the confident noble's resolve; Hiashi's forehead tightened by a degree. Sasuke could feel the slight victory; the first concession. "Lord Hiashi Hyuuga," Sasuke recited easily, with a nod of politeness. The title was spoken with respect; genuinely so. Were it not Hinata's well-being riding on the outcome of the conversation, it might have been with contempt. But no, Sasuke played it safe. "I intend to keep your daughter under my protection for the night, share a dance with her, and watch the closing fireworks alongside her. Afterward, I'll bring her home to you."

Hiashi's narrowed gaze did not shift. His scowl didn't deepen after the statement, which was a good enough sign as could be, given the situation. He continued his questioning. "Honorable intentions, perhaps. What is the reason for keeping this arrangement a secret from me?"

Hinata noticed that Sasuke wasn't directly addressed. Technically, that meant that the question was fair game. "F-father," she stammered slightly. "You were so busy, Father, with training Hanabi, that we did not wish to bother you with such...minor affairs." It felt unclean to refer to Sasuke as a minor affair, but she thought it was the right thing to say to Hiashi. To reassure Sasuke, and to subtly undermine Hiashi, Hinata's hand slipped shamelessly into Sasuke's and squeezed firmly.

"A minor affair..." Hiashi flexed his left hand. Though it had healed well, and no lingering damage remained, he had not forgotten the power of Hinata's lightning jutsu. Suddenly, it was clear where the dazzling technique had originated. He noted the brazen clutch of his daughter's hand with Sasuke's. She hadn't even hesitated; this was no mere act of rebellion. Hiashi was convinced that there was nothing minor about this affair. "You shame me with your dishonesty. How long has this been developing behind my back?"

Hinata hadn't forgotten about her battle with her father, just as he hadn't. However, she had no idea of just how close she had come to victory. Her only memories were of having her arm paralyzed and her body bruised. That, and she recalled Hiashi's allowance of her tournament entry. He had acknowledged her strength that night. Tonight, though, he had been confronted by the hidden source of her newfound powers. "We have been working together for a number of months...Sasuke and I first came together as we attended Naruto and Sakura's wedding. We've...grown close, since then."

"Close, indeed," Hiashi snipped with a venomous breath. "As a matter of honor, I will take no action in this place. Know this, however: I do not approve of this closeness. I also do not approve of the deception that surrounds it." He eyed Sasuke, now, directing the next condemnation to him. "Nor do I approve of a traitor's techniques finding their way into my daughter's hands."

Sasuke said nothing. He offered no apology, for Hiashi did not deserve one. Instead, the Uchiha stood firm and, out of respect for Hinata's tenuous position in front of her father, mercifully held onto silence. He did not clench a fist, nor even twitch a finger with irritation. He was serene, in all but his gaze. He could not hide the disdain when he locked eyes with Hiashi. His grip tightened imperceptibly around Hinata's hand. Such a tiny gesture, but it said more than any speech could have. It was a stance that said I'm not sorry; I'd do it again, and you can't stop me.

And perhaps Hiashi felt that disdain, coming to realize that he was poking a beast who might poke back in unpredictable ways. Without showing his retreat outwardly, Hiashi continued speaking unopposed. "Regardless, I apologize for my tone this evening. I often feel the need to be protective of the Hyuuga Clan and our good name. Be mindful of that, Sasuke Uchiha."

Ko, Hanabi, and Hinata all felt the same surprise in their cores. None of them showed a response, but they all shared the same thought: "Did Lord Hiashi just apologize to Sasuke...?"

"Apology accepted, Lord Hyuuga," Sasuke bowed with the same respect as before. Somehow, though, the context made his answer sound like mockery. "On behalf of the Uchiha Clan, I will see that your daughter is safe tonight." A clan of one, but a clan nonetheless. Kakashi, as Hokage, had ensured that the Uchiha Clan remained as a noble house of Konoha. Chiefly as a favor to Sasuke and his potential offspring, but also as a means of reminding the other villages that their most fearsome clan was not extinct. To Sasuke, it was a reward for saving the world, despite playing a role in endangering it. Sasuke was grateful for the consideration, now more than ever.

Hiashi had no clout in the presence of Sasuke. He could feel his powerlessness plainly. As a clan of one, Sasuke had nothing to fear from the Hyuuga; there were no political maneuvers, no arranged marriages or agreements to cancel, no ventures to propose or delay. Hiashi was no doubt frustrated by his lack of options, and the cold air of the night only grew more frigid as it sank in. Not one to be completely deterred, Hiashi had determined that he could still lord his influence over Hinata, and so he did. Likely to save face; to have the last word. "Hinata, my daughter, I expect you home immediately after the celebration is over."

Hinata nodded dutifully. "Yes, father. I will be." Almost over. Almost...

"At that time, we will discuss this situation, and its consequences, in more detail." Hiashi seemed to think the discussion was over, so he turned his back and began to walk away.

Hinata let him go, and so did Sasuke. As the four-person Hyuuga cell disappeared into the crowd, Hinata flattened her lips and clenched her fists with frustration. "There's nothing to discuss..." she bit under her breath. She only wished she had the fearlessness to say it to him as he departed. She could have done it, were she alone in the dojo with her father again. Ultimately, though, this was a family matter, and she was well trained not to air such grievances in the public eye. Old habits died hard, so she was unconsciously forced to follow that long-held protocol.

Sasuke's hand fell onto her shoulder, and he cracked a smile. He let out his own sigh of relief when the Hyuuga lord had gone away. "That went well," Sasuke exhaled. At first, it seemed like he was teasing her, but it was genuine. "You kept me from saying something stupid. Thanks."

Hinata smiled, glad to have the conversation with Hiashi behind her, and glad to have Sasuke beside her. She nodded, and her shoulder relaxed under his hand. "I want him to be ashamed of himself for judging you, but he has to learn it himself. You're doing really well with proving to everybody that you're not the monster they think you are." She stood on her toes to kiss Sasuke's cheek, a reward for him and for herself. "The night's almost over. I'm ready to dance."

Sasuke half-smiled at the kiss on his cheek. His hand took Hinata's, and his response was to clasp his fingers with hers and start leading her to the nearest dance square. "Then let's do it."

Ino had been subtly watching Sasuke and Hinata since they arrived, and Sai had been doing the same by proxy. He stayed where she was, whenever he could. Her attention warranted his, and he had to admit that the social observations were valuable to a point. He was about to say something when Ino abruptly patted him on the upper arm, near-frantic. "Hinata's dad is walking away from them. Nobody threw any punches!"

Sai hummed affirmatively. "Sasuke probably struggled with that."

Ino nodded. "Yeah...maybe, but with Hinata there, he knows better." Another moment passed with the observed couple whispering to one another, trading cheek kisses, clutching hands, and then..."Sasuke is taking her to the dance floor!"

Sai nodded, thumbing under his chin. "So it seems. Do you think he's ready?"

"Heck no, I don't think he's ready. He can't dance!" Ino practically shrieked, grabbing Sai by the shoulder and starting to carry him forward as she approached the dance floor herself. "We need to help him."

Sai winced slightly as he was pulled along. "How can we help him? Isn't it too late?"

Ino smirked deviously. "There's one thing we can do. If he's smart, he'll take the hint."

Hanabi and Hiashi found a table with their entourage, sitting down to get out of the way and rest their noble feet. With guards at their backs, the two sat in silence until Hanabi said the obvious: "That was unlike you, Father. Why did you apologize to Sasuke?"

Hiashi's visage cracked slightly. His sternness gave way to a slight twitch under his eye, a sign of naked annoyance. As he had feared, his weakness had been detected. If Hanabi had noticed it, then Sasuke and Hinata surely had as well. He hadn't done it intentionally, but in the face of that man—the last surviving Uchiha—even Hiashi could not maintain his composure. Rather than answer Hanabi's question, he held onto his power by taking control of the conversation. "More importantly, why didn't you tell me of their connection?" Hiashi gazed hard at Hanabi.

Hanabi knew that she couldn't outright lie to her father and get away with it. He knew that she knew; Hiashi may have been indifferent, but he wasn't oblivious. He accepted that the sisters maintained a close relationship and shared their secrets with one another. Hanabi shrugged, trying to play it off. "I didn't think it was a big deal, Father. I'm sorry." She bowed her head apologetically. It was still a lie, but a softer one than if she had denied knowing at all. "I know I'm not supposed to keep secrets." She braced herself, shoulders tight, as if expecting a reprimand.

Hiashi was too rattled by his experience with Sasuke to provide more than dazed contemplation. "It is certainly a 'big deal.' The impact of their relationship could be tremendous. The Hyuuga Clan is currently the strongest in Konoha...if it is combined with the Uchiha, then the Uchiha will likely become stronger than they have ever been."

Hanabi hadn't thought too much about that. Sure, she had fantasized about having a little nephew or niece, but the meaning of it was more significant than she realized. An Uchiha with a Hyuuga—it had never happened before, throughout the history of both clans. The Byakugan and the Sharingan...were they compatible? What might come to exist if they were to be combined at a genetic level? "It's just a dance, Father. You may be giving Sasuke too much credit." She inwardly smirked. She knew better than to doubt it, but maybe she wanted to hear her father's affirmation. "Do you really think Hinata would stick with a guy like Sasuke?

Hiashi could detect Hanabi's snark. "You see it just as I do. This is no simple dance for them. They are here to solidify a bond that already exists. Hinata has been scarce these past months. Initially, I had attributed her disappearances to her depression in the wake of losing her first crush...But if I had been paying more attention, I could have stopped this. I should have." He crushed part of his sleeve in his fist, crumpling his garment.

Truer words had never been spoken, as far as Hanabi had been concerned. "Maybe you're right, Father. Maybe you should have paid more attention."

A harsh glare from Hiashi triggered a silent frown and a dip of Hanabi's head to show that she was conceding. Her defiance was short-lived, as always. Rebellious, just as a teenager was meant to be, but not outright defiant. Not in the long-term. Not like Hinata. All over again, Hiashi found reason to regret neglecting his older daughter. No matter; all would be made right with time. Hiashi spoke again, smoothing over his doubts. "Hinata has made her decision, and there will be consequences—sooner, or later, they will come."

Hanabi nodded her head slowly. Her core bruises were forming in earnest now, and her chest throbbed with dull pain. Consequences indeed. She wondered what her father might say if he learned the truth about his 'favorite' daughter as well.

The music over the speakers that had kicked off the dance had been replaced after a while by a live band, a group of violins, harps, bells, and the like that had been positioned on a raised stage a few paces away from the open bar. The music took on a slower, more elegant tone to mark the passing of the hour. The flashing, frantic, celebratory lights overhead were being phased out, transitioned into softer, dimmer illumination. The bulbs mixed together with the starlight to create pockets of a shimmering bronze atmosphere, and Sasuke put himself in the center of one of the tiled dance floors with Hinata. He held her hand, and he breathed slowly. Then he breathed a little faster. He looked around, a fidget of the eyes; people had already noticed that he was on the dance floor, but he wasn't dancing.

Hinata was luminous with glee, ignoring the awkwardness as usual. She basked in the warm light overhead, turning her face up to bathe her face in the glow. She listened to the music, and her hips began to gently sway. Both of her hands were clutching Sasuke's, and she started the dance to save him from his hesitation. A simple bob from side to side was all it took to get her in the spirit of things, and she opened her eyes in Sasuke's direction to smile invitingly. "Just move with the music," she whispered, leading the way. "You can lead, or I can," she offered, leading for the moment and letting her date shift his feet in an attempt to sync up with her.

Sasuke chuckled under his breath, feeling the judgement of a thousand eyes on his back. Not because of his identity, or his past, but because he obviously had no idea how to match Hinata's movements with his own. "Keep leading," he affirmed. His movements were far from clumsy. A shinobi always moved with a sense of purpose, especially one as trained and experienced as Sasuke was. The problem was that his purposeful movements were the wrong ones—his feet were out of time with Hinata's, his body standing stiffer than it should.

Hinata was giggling. Her attention was on the moment; on sharing this dance with Sasuke, regardless of the mismatched steps he took. "You're doing fine," she assured. They were still at arm's length, joined only by their hands, but their elbows were starting to bend as they drew closer with natural intent. Hinata's cheeks darkened, and Sasuke's eyes slowly transitioned from black to red, glowing powerfully with the imprint of the Sharingan. Hinata's heart skipped a beat when she locked eyes with him again, unable to blink or look away. "Oh, Sasuke...your eyes are so intense..." She was whispering, nervous not because of the danger of the Sharingan, but because he was even more alluring when they were alight.

Sasuke seemed to gain confidence following the activation of his eyes. His breath calmed and his steps fell closer in line with Hinata's. Instead of joining both hands with hers, he stepped in all the closer and took an arm down around her waist, resting his sturdy palm and fingers against the small of her back. He gave a subtle, soft rub of her lower spine. He felt the smooth fabric of her dress, feeling how the threads were practically indistinguishable from one another. A silky ocean of tactile delight; it reminded Sasuke somewhat of Hinata's own skin. From time to time, so very briefly as to go unnoticed, Sasuke broke eye contact with Hinata—he looked away, at some other spot on the dance floor, with his glowing red stare.

Off to the side, the target of Sasuke's wayward attention: "I think it's working," Sai whispered to Ino as he shared a dance with her. The couple danced a few paces away from Sasuke and Hinata, deftly keeping themselves out of the Hyuuga girl's line of sight for as long as possible.

Sasuke had turned on his Sharingan quicker than Ino had expected; maybe he was quicker on the uptake than she thought he'd be. "Good, good, keep it up!" Ino whispered directly into his ear. "Get a little closer, give him his way in..."

Ino was keeping her promise to help Sasuke in any way she could—especially by teaching him how to dance. Her 'brilliant plan' had the one-two punch of teaching Sasuke how to dance by allowing him to copy Sai's movements, and also encouraged him to activate his Sharingan. Ino knew from experience just how alluring his legendary gaze could be; she could only imagine how Hinata felt while staring into them. A tiny little quiver of jealousy was squashed before it grew, as Ino committed herself to being Sasuke's secret weapon.

"You're getting the hang of it," Hinata said breathlessly as she found herself drawn in closer to Sasuke. Her chest touched his, causing a blush as her soft bosom was partially molded to his sternum. The dance was growing intimate, and Hinata noticed the familiar sensation of the melting world around her. Like so many times before, intentionally or not, her awareness had been limited to Sasuke alone. She could think of nothing else, feel no other touch, imagine no better circumstance. She brought her hand up to his shoulder for stability, leaning into the intimate posture. She turned her face slightly, swaying her body in time with the music and pressing her ear to the fine fabric of Sasuke's vest. Through it, she could feel—not just hear—his beating heart. He was nervous, too, but he fought through it to show her how special she was.

Once Hinata's head turned to his chest, Sasuke felt a sense of powerful relief. He peered at Ino and Sai, offered a nod of thanks, and then committed his attention entirely to Hinata. He had copied enough of the movements to improvise from there on. He heard Hinata's earlier whisper again in his mind. She had praised his Sharingan—his family legacy. He had conditioned himself to expect fear when he showed the Sharingan, yet Hinata drifted nearer when she saw them. It made sense; his eyes and their power had been used to rescue her from an attacker. Sasuke idly wondered if the reputation of his bloodline trait had changed any; he had been hearing rumors about his own deeds in the night. A vigilante with mismatched eyes, swooping in to save the helpless. He rather liked the idea; should the Sharingan be feared? He'd rather see it embraced...at least by those who deserved protection.

Those like Hinata. He felt the warmth of her body against his, the couple now pressed together from waist to chest, arms gradually squeezing tighter, slipping further around one another. Sasuke closed his lids and let the rhythm of the music guide him; guide them. He felt it, too. The world vanishing around him. The entire dance floor could have been empty, for all he cared. He focused on the soft perfume of Hinata; she was the flower he had been picturing for so long. He no longer had any doubts. The hallucinations, the violets in his dreams; his mind, or maybe his heart, had been telling him not to let her get away. To track her down, to make her his. Somehow, his instinct had guided him to the person he needed the most. Now that he had her, tightly in his arms, rocking back and forth, stepping in tune with one another, he had no intentions of ever letting her go.

"What a perfect day it's been," Hinata whispered to Sasuke's chest, keeping her eyes closed and her cheek gently nudged against his strong breast. "I can hardly believe we've come so far together..."

Sasuke nodded, tilting his head down to rest his chin in the sea of Hinata's silken hair. He agreed with a fleeting whisper. "It's like a dream, still." He breathed deep, taking his time, slowing his steps as the music changed signatures. "If I squeeze too hard, are you going to disappear?" His arm around her back—his new one, the one he had obtained for her sake as well as his own—embraced tighter, bringing their lower bodies closer now. Occasionally, they bumped knees and thighs, tiny flirtations of one body to the other. Intimacy had crept into their movements, resulting in more than just a dance to the music. It was courtship; one yearning soul brushing against another, crying out for unity.

"Squeeze all you like," Hinata whispered with a bashful breath, biting her lower lip as she felt his strong hand squeeze against her back, near the roundness of her hip. His touch was always intoxicating, but for some reason it sank deeper than usual that night. It could have been the music, could have been her eagerness to accept his confession, or it could have just been a physical yearning as the lights went down...however and why ever, Hinata softened in his grasp and accepted that she was his to enjoy. She was happy to be cherished, and she was beginning to understand that it extended beyond thought. She loved to be touched, and as she craved more, she wondered how it would feel to...

As Hinata's thoughts wandered, Sasuke maintained an affectionate squeeze and a somewhat sensual drag of fingertips along the swell of Hinata's waistline. She had tightened up with training, but her body type was still a curvaceous one. He had only rarely considered the pure physical attractiveness of his apparent soul-mate, but as the first song of their dance came to an end, he realized that he had no intentions of parting from her. "Another song?" He asked into her ear, his lip gently brushing the upper curve of her cartilage.

"...please, yes," she permitted with a small voice. "I could dance with you all night," she confessed as if she felt guilty. Her wandering thoughts returned to the present. "You're so warm, and strong, Sasuke. Lately, I've felt cold when we're apart."

Sasuke had trouble swallowing for a moment. He tucked his head down to kiss Hinata's forehead. He knew by now that he had been stared at; his eyes were still glowing with the Uchiha's famous red-and-black iris. Any who hadn't recognized him yet, surely recognized him now. He didn't care. Even if the world hated him, he was finally, absolutely, convinced: Hinata accepted him. Hinata wanted him.

Hinata loved him.

"Hey, did'ya hear that the older Hyuuga princess is dancing with Sasuke Uchiha?" a casual question echoed into Kiba's ears while he drank another glass of wine beside Kiko. Some random guest at the dance, a face and voice that Kiba didn't recognize. It only caught his attention because of the familiar names involved.

Kiba had been in a pretty good mood, really. Kiko was good company, and the two of them had shared a dance or two over the course of the night. The thought of Sasuke and Hinata dancing happily together was an irritating one, though. It was almost enough to drag him out of his pleasant daydreams. He must have been visibly irritated, because Kiko called him out: "Hey, Kiba, your face is turning sorta red. You alright?"

He tightened his lips and nodded. "Y-yeah, I guess so...maybe I just drank too much, huh?" He tried to shrug it off.

"I heard it, too...I know you're still thinking of her." Kiko said with a hand holding onto her upper arm, slender fingers clutching her own pale skin. "It's okay, I know I'm not your first pick."

Kiba's face slackened a little, looking puzzled. "Huh? Hey, what do you mean? I wasn't going to come at all until you invited me."

Kiko's slim lips turned to a forced smile on the corners. "I do sort of look like her, huh?" She said with a mild sadness. It was true, at least in a vague sense. She had long, dark hair; her face was pale and soft. Innocent, mostly. "Is that why you said yes?"

Kiba looked closely at Kiko, trying to figure out what she was getting at. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'm here with you, not her, okay?" He hid a snarl as he thought about Hinata and Sasuke again. That single comment from a stranger had ignited a whole stew of feelings.

Kiko eventually smiled again, shaking her head and wiping the side of her eyes. Maybe she had almost cried. "Sorry, sometimes I...well, I get to doubting myself. I don't do it on purpose." She sighed. "I just know enough to say you'd rather have come with her."

"Yeah, well, she's with somebody else now." Kiba forced himself to say it through clenched teeth.

"It's not too late, is it?" Kiko asked, her frown becoming a curious circle. "Maybe you can tell her how you feel?"

"It's not that easy," Kiba scoffed, waving his hand to dismiss it. "Besides, I already said I'm here with you, alright?"

"Who is she? A Hyuuga girl, right? Hinata? A Hyuuga named Hinata used to be your teammate..." Kiko was already over her brush with jealousy, and now she was going down the rabbit hole of nosiness. So much for acknowledging that Kiba didn't want to talk about it.

"Y-yeah, Hinata's my teammate, but it doesn't matter, alright?" Kiba folded his arms and tilted a quarter turn away from Kiko's prying. "There's nothing I can do about it."

"But what if you could...?" Kiko asked him, laying a hand on his shoulder. "Don't you owe it to yourself...? To her, too? You've known her so long. You can't just let it go like that."

"There's nothing left to let go, Kiko. It's just the way things are." Kiba was trying, but he couldn't convince himself. "She's with Sasuke, now." It tasted vile, but it was the truth whether he hated it or not.

"No, I get what you're saying...but I've been paying attention. The way you looked at her earlier, then the broken glass a little while ago...something's bothering you, right down to the heart. You don't want things to be the way they are."

Kiba's eyes narrowed. "You're paying too much attention."

She smiled guiltily, shrugging one shoulder. "Sorry, I can't help it. It's a talent—I'm a good judge of people; of their character. It's a skill I picked up from my dad." She sighed softly, relenting. "I've had a great time with you tonight, and...maybe if nothing changes, we can see each other again, but...you shouldn't give up on her quite yet."

Kiba had been debating with himself all night. Really, he was leaning toward giving up on his goal, but Kiko was right. He owed it to himself and to Hinata. He couldn't let Sasuke get away with his sins. Whether the leadership wanted to acknowledge it or not, Sasuke was a criminal. A rogue ninja. A murderer. A traitor. Any number of titles applied to him, none of them good. Kiba had told Hinata that he trusted her...that he had come to terms with her willingness to forgive and accept Sasuke.

For some reason, though, a conversation from another day crept back into his mind. The woman with the ice jutsu. She had actually said something true while she kicked him around: It is easily within Sasuke's power to change a person's very soul...You trust her because you love her...but she may not even be her anymore. You would never know. Not even she would know. He had seen Hinata earlier that day; she seemed like herself. Her eyes were the same, her mannerisms were identical, she spoke with the same inflections as always...but maybe he was too gullible. Maybe Sasuke was better at manipulation than Kiba thought was possible. The doubt grew stronger in his head.

"I decided something a while ago, actually," Kiba said to break his silence. "That I'd confront Sasuke in front of the village. The Hokage tries to ignore it, but most of us know that Sasuke doesn't belong."

Kiko frowned softly. "Isn't Sasuke a hero, though?"

"He's no hero...he's a traitor," Kiba snipped under his breath. "Everybody knows it, but nobody's brave enough to say it to his face."

"...And...that means you're about to be brave enough." Kiko affirmed, almost afraid of the fact. "You want to confront him?"

Kiba nodded. "Yeah...I need to. Tonight. Right now." He set his half-empty glass of red wine down on the table behind him, then straightened out the cuffs of his long sleeves. "Wait here...it might get rough, and I'd rather you didn't see it."

Kiko blinked at the progression of Kiba's mood. He had been so hesitant, but then so resolved. He really had been struggling with the notion all day long; probably longer. She nodded her head sheepishly. "O-okay, Kiba, but...please, please be careful. I still want you to meet my father."

With a deep breath, Kiba nodded. It wouldn't be so bad. Just call Sasuke out; make sure he knows he's being watched and that he's not welcome. It needn't be more than that. Only enough to get others to join in. Strength in numbers, and all. He nodded again to himself, then turned to explain to Kiko. "I'll be fine; he's not gonna do anything to me with Naruto around."

Kiko nodded, this time slowly. Uncertainly. "Yeah...I guess you're right...but please come back, okay? I don't wanna be alone."

A final, steel-willed nod, then Kiba was off.

Kiko watched him go, then she scooped up his abandoned wine glass to sip at it; no sense letting it go to waste. Kiba really was hot-blooded; the cool wine had been warmed up by the grasp of his hand. Kiko mulled the flavor on her tongue, then made a little face of pale displeasure. Her dull eyes shifted left, then right. When she was sure that nobody was looking, she flexed the fingers of her left hand into a specific shape, then breathed a soft breath onto the wine glass. A misty cold aura rose from the red liquid, now instantly chilled to her liking. She smirked to herself and took another sip.

This should be fun, she thought as she followed along just a few moments after Kiba left her, swirling the frigid glass of wine in her right hand.

Sasuke and Hinata were slowly becoming the center of attention—not because of who they were, but because of how they danced. It came easily to Sasuke once he was given a start by Ino's and Sai's helpful example. Hinata, with her years of practicing graceful movement, was already alluring to the common eye when she flowed with the music. The two melded together and pulled apart with rhythmic precision, eyes locked together, bodies magnetized, shifting polarities, coming together and moving away based on the pitch and pace of the soft music echoing over the crowd.

Hinata was smiling and giggling, eyes open and watching Sasuke with unfiltered happiness. Her blush was partially concealed by makeup, but it was visible as a soft pink haze over her cheeks. Her fingers clutched around Sasuke's, the only constant between them. She twirled, she felt herself guided, felt herself guiding in turn. They shared the lead, paced slow but smoldering with intensity as they whirled.

Neither of them noticed, by now, that their particular square had shifted a few paces away, giving them space to enjoy their first dance. The other guests seemed to know that they were witnessing the galvanization of a relationship. Two people coming together and admitting that they worked better with one another than they did alone. Guided perhaps by fate, perhaps by circumstances—perhaps luck, determination, an outside hand, or a need to forget the past. Whatever the reason, the outcome was the same.

None of them had ever seen Sasuke smile the way he did. None of them but Sakura and Naruto, the ones who naturally paid the most attention to the photos taken on their wedding night. It was just as it was then; they had nearly-identical expressions. Smiles that weren't too broad; not for show. The kind of natural smile that one might not even notice they were giving until their cheeks began to burn with a tinge of exhaustion.

Hinata's violet gown flowed easily with her dance, feet clicking almost-silently on the polished tiles of the dance floor. Sasuke, conversely, was entirely silent. Even in jubilation, without a care, his instinct carried through. Had he not been seen, his existence may not have been felt. Even the cold, murderous aura that followed him like a cloud had seemingly been lifted away, scattered by the warm night winds and the breath of Hinata's laughter.

With the Sharingan glowing in his sockets, Sasuke was drawing quite an audience. A crowd seven or eight layers deep had formed around the dance pad in a broad square, watching curiously. The music came to a slow, calming end, and with the last lingering note of a whispering violin, Sasuke draped his arm across Hinata's upper back and leaned her down, dipping her to match with the shrinking tone. Hinata relaxed completely, eyes locked to Sasuke's bloody-red Sharingan, finding nothing but comfort in his attention. She gave all the weight of her upper body to his arm behind her shoulders, melting against the hand which cradled her hip as well. She felt protected. No number of strange eyes could outweigh the protection of the only ones which counted.

The Byakugan locked with the Sharingan, unblinking, oblivious to anything around them. It had happened so many times, and this one was no different. The world had sunken into blackness like genjutsu, but not by any intent. Sasuke and Hinata savored one another, tucked away from the world, breathing slowly and heavily, not just from the exertion of their lively, expressive dancing, but due to the excitement in their hearts.

The pair would have been content to ignore the crowd all night, until it became impossible to do so. It was difficult to pick out who had started the chant, but a betting man would probably put it all on Ino. "Kiss...kiss...kiss..." the word was a whispered, playful encouragement. It grew louder as Hinata's and Sasuke's blushing grew deeper. It was a rare opportunity to witness such a union between two powerful clans—two powerful sets of kekkei genkai. Even those among the crowd who cared little for either the Uchiha or the Hyuuga could resist being swept into the low chant.

Hinata and Sasuke looked out from their pose; she was still dipped in his arms, he was still bent at the waist, legs dynamically propped out to support both of their balances. They assessed the crowd. Sure enough, Ino was there and joining in with a bright sparkle in her eyes—most of the faces were of strangers, an intentional consequence of choosing a distant segment of the large dance arena. For better or for worse, the onlookers were unfamiliar yet quite intrigued by their romance.

The moment came for the couple to lock eyes again. Sasuke whispered to her, lips barely moving, mere inches away from hers. "Should we...?" He asked, hesitant but tempted.

Hinata's arms were up around Sasuke's neck for support, one of her hands gently sliding down the strong shape of his shoulder, tracing the state-of-the-art fabric of his dark sleeve, feeling the shape of his musculature beneath. She took a slow, shy breath. If one had asked her an hour ago if she wanted to share a kiss in front of a crowd, she would have said no. Tonight, though, after forming such a strong connection via her dance with Sasuke, she gave no words. She did not nod. She brought her second hand up from the back of his neck to the back of his head, pale fingers clutching a small part of his hair and pulling him down to kiss her.

Sasuke didn't resist the pull; it added to the magnetism of her lips and forced him to touch his lips to hers, gently colliding with her mouth and her nose, exhaling peacefully and relaxing his shoulders. One of Hinata's legs lifted slightly off the floor, creating quite a provocative image as they kissed. Somewhere in the crowd, a photo was taken—somebody took their rare opportunity. Proof that Sasuke Uchiha wasn't just a heartless beast. An image that would be sold, eventually, to the highest bidder.

With the wish fulfilled, the celebratory crowd began to cheer, whistle, and applaud. In the grand scheme of the event, it was a small corner of the attendees. Barely five percent of those present across the region had noticed what was happening. The kiss ended with Sasuke and Hinata finding a new appreciation for the idea of being public lovers. No more hiding, no shying away from their feelings for the sake of appearances. Nothing left to hide. Sharingan blazing, Sasuke was being cheered for—and Hinata, without Naruto at her side, was being uniquely encouraged and admired. They were good for each other.

Breathing heavy, purple gown rising and falling with her stomach, Hinata smiled up at Sasuke, leaning up for a second, softer kiss, met with further cheering from the nameless audience. The music had not progressed to the next song, yet. Pages were being turned, instruments tuned. For a moment, in that little corner of the world, there was near-silence...and then, amidst the revelry of a crowd that was happy to see a good thing, came a voice of pure rage:

"Do you idiots have any idea what you're cheering for!?"

Then there was true silence. Even some of those who were further away had stopped their chatter to see what was happening. With a shove through the squared crowd, Kiba Inuzuka pushed into the center, several paces away from Hinata and Sasuke. "This traitor doesn't deserve it..." He growled, anger in his chest, clawed fingers gripping into his palms until they bled.

Sasuke stood up, bringing Hinata to her feet as well. The moment was still with them both. Sasuke moved to guide Hinata behind him for protection, but he was stopped by a hand on his wrist. Hinata's hand. She shook her head, then put her palm to his chest, gently urging him backward before stepping in front of him. This time, she aimed to protect him. "Kiba," she said with a soft, cautious voice. "How much have you had to drink...?"

Kiba looked down to his hand. He could still feel the shatter of glass against his skin. "I haven't had enough to forget about what's happening with you and this bastard." Kiba's attention was barely given to Hinata. He was bloodlusted toward Sasuke. The slow drip of blood out of his palms was proof enough of that. "Get out of the way and let me at him..."

Hinata shook her head, raising a hand up to show him a flat palm. "I won't."

The crowd which had been rooting for love was now suddenly torn. The moment had shattered, splintered from unity into division. The populace was reminded of their hatred for Sasuke; for the Uchiha in general. Whispers began again, some in favor of letting Kiba have a go at Sasuke, others wondering where the guards had gone. Why hadn't this confrontation already been broken up?

Sai, in fact, had begun to move in...but Ino's hand on his shoulder prevented him. "This needs to happen," she whispered, a seriousness on her face. "If it's not resolved now, it may never be." Ino watched with her jaw tight, her face hard to read. Sai looked on as well, figuring that she must have been right. His job was to protect others from threats; how could he even presume to protect Sasuke from a man like Kiba? The notion itself seemed like a bad joke. What did the rambunctious Kiba expect to gain?

Kiba snarled harder. "All of you!" he began to shout, addressing the faces in the crowd. He gestured to Sasuke. "Look this guy in the face and tell me you feel safe with him around!"

Murmurs began to circulate:

"He does have the Sharingan...it's supposed to drive people crazy, isn't it?"

"His people caused the war; I lost my uncle to the fighting..."

"He helped Naruto undo the dream! He's not a monster!"

"I'd feel better if he weren't in the village; why doesn't he just go somewhere else?"

"That man saved my life a few weeks ago...he protected me from a mugger!"

"Naruto can keep us safe from him, right?"

"The Hokage vouches for Sasuke; I trust the Hokage."

Kiba's brow furrowed. The reaction was decidedly more neutral than he had expected. His dream of massive support was rapidly dissipating. Still, he pushed forward. "Why should we have to keep worrying about you, Sasuke? You can't be trusted. You proved it years ago. You left us behind, went crazy, started killing people...tried to kill Naruto!" Kiba stepped closer, now barely two paces away from Hinata, who had Sasuke at her back.

Sasuke was living the nightmare he had been dreading. Though it wasn't a total rejection by the crowd, with many speaking out in soft support of his right to live within the village, he still heard the worries of the others. Legitimate worries. Even Sasuke himself couldn't be certain that he was safe for the village. He would never intentionally hurt the innocent, but his anger had a long history of getting away from him. Even now, with Kiba in front of him leading some kind of half-mob, Sasuke fought to keep his rage under control.

"Sasuke isn't like that anymore!" Hinata raised her voice to nearly match Kiba's, though her softer tones carried less of an impact. She put a hand behind herself, finding one of Sasuke's and taking hold of it for support. He squeezed her fingers with appreciation. He was both glad for her defense and curious to see how much she had truly changed. She was demonstrating quite a powerful will in standing up to her teammate. Sasuke hadn't seen her fight with him; he had never seen her ferocity when it was aimed at someone she once trusted. "Sasuke is reformed; he regrets the pain he caused. He only wants to be accepted...he wants to help us all."

Kiba stepped again. Now one pace away. His hard breathing cast warm air onto the hand that Hinata had extended forward as a blockade. He looked at her hand, then looked at Sasuke. Kiba's posture was slouched, shoulders sagging, arms hanging down by his waist and lower. He looked bestial. A long time of holding back his emotions for the sake of decency had resulted in quite an explosion now that he had gone all-in. "He's not gonna help us...he's gonna slit our throats when we turn our backs. He's using you, Hinata...you're too damn innocent...too nice...he knows it. All these good words will mean more coming from you, so he picked you first."

Hinata strengthened her brow, clenching her forehead. "He didn't pick me...I picked him." She looked over her shoulder, squeezing Sasuke's hand and giving him a smile. "Or maybe we picked each other. I made a choice. A real choice. I've thought it through to the end."

Kiba didn't like to hear it. The crowd of onlookers had yet to intervene; it seemed like the confrontation was being treated like a schoolyard brawl. It wouldn't have been altogether surprising if bets were being made. Sai and Ino continued to look on. The attention given to the little corner dancefloor began to grow. It was only a matter of time before the word would reach the Hokage's ears—or Naruto's. Either one would surely come to calm Kiba down and break up the fight, but...

Kiba was determined to act before someone else could. "This son of a bitch is no better than his mass-murdering brother, Itachi! Traitors of a feather..."

Hinata felt a twitch in Sasuke's hand. The first crack in his armor. The girl's hand clenched back, assuring him. She knew he was reliving a painful memory. She did not know exactly what the memory was...but she knew it was meaningful. She straightened her face and demanded: "Kiba...stop."

Kiba kept his attention on Sasuke. "I'm not gonna stop until he admits it. Not 'til he tells all these people that he's manipulating you. He's got you enslaved to his Sharingan, even though you keep denying it and I keep believing you." Kiba swallowed hard. His throat felt dry from the shouting and the alcohol both. The confrontation was going longer than he had planned, but he could feel his pincer closing around Sasuke. Sentiment in the crowd got closer to his favor after the mention of Itachi. It wasn't just Madara and Obito who stained the Uchiha name; Sasuke's entire bloodline was known to produce ruthless beasts. "Admit that you want to kill us all in our sleep."

Sasuke closed his eyes, then sighed. Hinata didn't move from her place in front of him. He didn't want her to. She was a needed layer between him and Kiba; one of the men would spring at the other before long, if not for their mutual wish to keep Hinata safe. From behind Hinata, Sasuke answered with a calm, chilling tone: "You're right...You are. I've done things that can never be forgiven. I left the village. I betrayed the trust of all of my friends, my teachers, my family...I've slaughtered men who were protecting their homeland. I've assassinated an interim Hokage. I aimed to murder all of the current Kages...and I came very close to killing Naruto." He opened his eyes again. His Sharingan had been joined by the Rinnegan in his left eye, circles of emanating power, a sight that even the strongest shinobi had reason to fear. "That's the sort of monster I am." He started to smirk, a bit of his natural attitude of superiority showing through. "But I'm not going to hurt you. Hinata's right...I'm past that. I only want to live a fulfilling life, in this village...with her."

Kiba clenched his fangs enough to crack a small chip off the left canine, just enough that he could taste a little fleck of enamel on his tongue. He had no chance of standing up to Sasuke. Not really. Even with the crowd on his side, what good would it have done? No, he didn't have the slightest hope of fighting Sasuke in the wild. It would have to wait until the tournament, where at least he could work around the imposed limitations on Sasuke's power.

No, for now, he could only think of one action. A single way to make things better for himself and Hinata. The Hyuuga girl turned her head for a moment to smile at Sasuke, taken prisoner by his words. A fulfilling life with her...as if that could happen with Kiba around. While her attention was off of him, while Sasuke was distracted by her gleaming smile...Kiba moved in. He put all his speed into the effort of closing the single-step gap between himself and Hinata. If he couldn't defeat Sasuke, he could at least take Hinata far away, far enough to break the control. If he could just get a hold of her, just get a few steps of a running start, the resulting commotion would call Naruto's attention and Sasuke would be stopped. Just one hand on Hinata's wrist while they were distracted would be enough!

Kiba's fingers got within a millimeter of touching Hinata's perfumed wrist. His claws were just a hair's breadth away from brushing against her skin. Just a little further, and he could save her...

Pain shot up the wrist of Kiba; all his motion stopped. He felt the force of a ten ton boulder crush down on his carpal bones, cracking them in tiny spider-web fractures and disabling his fingers completely. He felt his right hand go limp, the wrist joint fully numbed and paralyzed by pain and pressure. He barely had the time to see the fingerless glove that grasped him hard. Kiba's eyes followed the arm up to the shoulder, and he briefly saw Sasuke's look of pure rage. The Uchiha spoke to freeze the blood of all: "You'd dare touch her...?" The wolf felt like a mite. He had never seen a gaze of such fiery resolve, nor heard words with such a determination to punish. To kill. Kiba opened his mouth to scream in agony as his arm was jerked up by the broken wrist, dislocating his shoulder abruptly and turning Kiba's body so that the ribs of his right half were left vulnerable. Nobody saw what happened next; it was too swift. Too decisive. Kiba felt only the force of a comet slamming into his ribs, shattering all twelve of them in a diagonal set of double breaks across his right side. His body jolted left, opposite the impact. His shoulder cracked as well, held just a moment too long by Sasuke's grip before letting Kiba fly.

It was as if an entire quarter of Kiba's body had been instantly destroyed. He felt his weight lift from the ground, a consequence of the force of the attack. He felt wind in his ears, through his hair, forcing its way up his nostrils as he struggled to breathe. He did not feel the pain in his chest; not quite yet. His senses were slow to catch up to the speed and consequence of Sasuke's assault.

To Kiba, it felt like the moment of his death; all his regrets began to well up. He had expected to leave triumphantly; to take Sasuke down a peg. Instead, his own will had been shattered. As he sailed through the late night air, he thought he might collide with the people in the watching crowd, but his momentum sent him in an arc over the top of them. When he fell again, his healthy left shoulder slammed into the thick wooden fence that bordered the dance. The wood never stood a chance against his momentum, just as his shoulder never stood a chance against the wood. The fence busted through in a cataclysm of splinters and falling panels, while Kiba's opposite shoulder cracked and dislocated just like the right. His ears were ringing, his eyes were blurred and saw the dark. The only bright side he could fathom was that he hadn't felt a sword through his heart, a kunai across his throat. He felt dead already, but time passed long enough that he saw the light again.

Said light came through the rubble of the fence as it was dug off his limp, sagging body. Kiba coughed up a splash of blood, wincing as the numbness faded into excruciating pain. Despite his experience in battle, it was impossible for him to keep a straight face. He tried to use his arms to clutch his aching ribs, but his upper limbs were aching just as much—so much that they were totally immobilized. He was left in a heap, thrashing with his legs—at least his lower half was uninjured, as the result of some miracle. Or rather, some mercy. He tried to stand a floppy stand with his legs, but a hand on his chest kept him down.

The faces Kiba saw among those who dug him out belonged to Naruto, Sakura, and Ino. But not Hinata. She hadn't come to his aid. Sakura's was the hand that held him back from sitting up, along with a whispered warning that was probably really a shout, but his ears were flooded. Her voice was a thousand miles away. "Don't move, we're stabilizing the breaks." Sakura's and Ino's hands glowed a soft, soothing green as they quickly worked to alleviate the worst of the damage, to reduce the sharpest of the pain. "Follow my finger," Sakura echoed from the abyss. Kiba could barely see the digit as it waved in front of his sight. He gradually came to focus, belatedly moving to match her finger.

"Good, he's pulling through," Ino declared with a look of relief in her eyes. She had told Sai not to stop it—and now the results spoke for themselves. The destruction was minor—a piece of fence that could easily be replaced, a few broken bones and some internal bleeding. Barely worthy of a second check-up for healers as potent as Sakura and Tsunade, the latter of which having just arrived behind the others. The real consequences would be social; political. Sasuke had acted out—Kiba had provoked a bear, and the bear swiped back.

Kiba's groggy mind began to clear, at which point Sakura and Ino worked in tandem to gently lift him up to a sitting position. He sat in torn clothes, bleeding from the mouth, bruised across the ribs, unable to move his arms, and surrounded by splinters and the worried faces of friends and leadership. He looked up to see Kakashi's masked visage, and the shape of the Hokage's brow was clearly one of disapproval.

All those present deferred to Kakashi's clearing throat, words spoken with a stern reminder. A private discussion abruptly made public. "I thought I told you to handle it like an adult, Kiba," the Sixth spoke from behind his mask. "Sasuke is welcome here. Was that not the end of our discussion?"

Kiba's jaw dropped, still slowly trickling with blood. He tried by instinct to wipe the red away with his sleeve, but still could not move. He was surprised to feel a cold kerchief sliding down the side of his lip. The white cloth became stained with dark red as Kiba's face was cleaned. He saw who held it, and he felt a peculiar comfort upon recognizing Kiko's face. Even while Kakashi chewed him out, Kiko was at his side.

Kiba finally coughed his throat clear enough to speak a few raspy words. The healing jutsu was working to ease his pain, but he still felt the physical impact in his ribs. "It wasn't...the end...Lord Sixth..." he struggled, hopelessly out of breath. He looked down the way, trying to find Sasuke...but he didn't see him. Hinata, either. "Where did they go...?" He heaved out a violent, painful cough, his mouth covered reactively by Kiko's kerchief.

With Naruto in contemplative silence, Kakashi in no mood to humor Kiba after the disobedient act, and the other ladies seemingly busy with his healing, Kiko took it upon herself to quietly answer: "Well, you see..."

Hinata had been prepared for Kiba's attempt to grab her wrist. She was going to turn his arm away and give him a sharp slap across the face. She was only waiting for him to touch her, to cross that line for certain.

Sasuke wasn't so patient. A thirtieth of a second before Kiba touched Hinata's wrist, Sasuke snatched him by the wrist, jerked up his arm, and delivered the sort of blow one might direct at their worst enemy. It happened so quickly that Hinata didn't realize that Sasuke had snapped utterly until it was far too late. His defensive instinct was working without proper thought. The attack that shattered a dozen of Kiba's ribs in two dozen places was a hard kick; Sasuke was still conscious enough to focus his rage only on Kiba, not allowing the onlookers to catch the momentum of the attack. As such, the victim sailed overhead and into an empty segment of fencing, shattering it and causing it to cave around him.

It wasn't killing intent, but it could have been a lethal blow. Hinata was stunned. Both by the line Kiba was willing to cross—attacking her, trying to grab her, blatantly disregarding her wishes—and by the line she had only seen Sasuke cross once before. The pure burn of hate in the mismatched orbs of ocular power felt familiar, yet viscerally terrifying. It was one thing to see his vengeance deployed against a man like Shell, but there was a sickened response in Hinata's gut when it happened to Kiba. That kick was the realization of her worst fear. Sasuke's protection was welcome, but the consequences of it...

"Sasuke...w-what did you do...?" Hinata's eyes were already forming tears. She lost her ability to speak before she could finish: They're going to be afraid of you again. It had happened so fast. From bliss to misery, her throat closed up. Was this the destiny of her life? Could nothing ever settle? She turned to Sasuke and she put her palms flat on his chest, seeking to hold him back from following Kiba and attacking further. She found her restraint unnecessary. She looked up at Sasuke, and she saw a candid expression of shock and regret. He knew exactly what he had done, and exactly what it meant to do it.

Sasuke felt the stunned silence all around him. He took a wordless moment to peer around the square, absorbing the fear and hatred in every direction. Supporters and detractors alike were staring with no words. Some of them turned to flee, expecting a massacre to follow. Even Ino looked at him without a clue as to how to respond. Sasuke dwelled on Hinata's question. It was like an accusation. What did you do? What had he done? What had he destroyed? A line was crossed indeed. She had spoken with such support for so long that he had fooled himself into thinking that she was irrevocably on his side. He thought she would have been with him through thick and thin. He was a fool. His body trembled. His fingers quivered. His breaths quickened and he needed to escape the pressure.

Hinata cried quietly, looking up at Sasuke and waiting for an answer. She felt both hands on his chest being grasped softly by both of Sasuke's, held with delicacy. He was taking great care not to destroy anything else. He stared for what felt like a long time. He studied her face, memorizing the hurt and confusion. He whispered so that only Hinata could hear. She was the only one who was meant to know. "I'm sorry..."

And with a whoosh of air, a sharp slash of speed, Sasuke vanished utterly from sight. Hinata's eyes opened wide, and tears fell further down her cheeks. "Sasuke! Wait!" She stretched her hand out to the sky as if she could grasp the end of his shirt sleeve and pull him back to her side. She was answered by her own echo and the silence that followed the chaos. The music was gone. The chatter had been stifled. All that Sasuke left behind was a vanishing hint of his scent. Hinata lowered her hand gradually and sniffled, shuddering out a soft plea through frowning, painted lips. "Come back..."

The crack of broken wood was the open call for the usuals to report in. Naruto was first, his speed carrying him immediately to the site of the damage. He helped to clear the rubble away from Kiba. The boards were tall, and left a significant depth of burial debris behind. Ino was almost as quick to Kiba's side, with Sakura showing up soon after. Kakashi arrived with an assessing eye, following the presumed trajectory of Kiba's 'flight' and sighting the rattled crowd. He saw Hinata in the middle, and rather than waste space beside Kiba, he moved to the other victim of circumstance.

The Sixth Hokage came to Hinata's side and looked to the sky as she did. He sighed, puffing his mask out slightly. "Sasuke snapped, I take it."

Hinata's tear-stained cheeks were slack and unmoving. She didn't immediately notice she was being spoken to, and by the Hokage no less. She gulped, clearing her throat. "H-he was protecting me from Kiba..." She only then saw the carnage that resulted. She didn't hear a hint of Kiba's angry snarling, which told her all she needed to know about his condition—not good. "Sasuke hurt him badly, didn't he?"

Kakashi looked to the rubble, nodding, bobbing his silver hair. "Looks that way...but he'll be fine, Sakura and Ino can handle him. Before things get out of hand, I should tell you: Kiba has been gunning for Sasuke for months. He's had a chip on his shoulder since at least the night of Naruto's and Sakura's wedding. This isn't your fault."

Hinata furrowed her brow. "It was me...Sasuke was protecting me."

"Kiba deliberately provoked him. I understand. I had a feeling it would turn out this way." Kakashi's assessment turned back to Kiba. "Not that Sasuke didn't go a little overboard, but...You don't have to argue on his behalf. I'll take care of it all. Sai saw the whole thing; he can be my chief witness." He set his hand on Hinata's shoulder, a simple pat, a reassurance that the Hokage himself was going to solve the problem. "I'll write it off as a mutual spat with a clear winner."

Kakashi's support gave Hinata some comfort, but nothing could compare to Sasuke. Not anymore. Today, tonight; she had solidified her feelings. She had been moments away from telling him the truth. She didn't care who said it first; somebody needed to say it. It was about to be her after that dance and that kiss, and then...Kiba. She felt a snap of rage all her own, summoned up from the heart in her chest. She closed her eyes and steadied her breathing before answering Kakashi. "Thank you, Lord Sixth. He deserves someone like you on his side...If things are okay, here...I think I should..."

Kakashi nodded before she finished her scattered thought. "Go find him. I think it should be you, this time."

Another voice added to the pile, deepening the chaos. A booming male, quite accustomed to obedience and reverence. "She will not! I forbid it!"

Hinata's shoulders froze and her feet flattened. The consequences were piling up, and had emerged much more quickly than she was ready for. She turned stiltedly to regard her father, who cut a path through the crowd by the strength of his reputation alone. Even those of foreign villages and far away nations gave him a wide bubble to pass through. Hinata was the only one who seemed to stand firm in his path. He stopped just in front of her, shoulders squared with hers. She did not falter. Steely, she stated: "Father, no...I am going."

Hiashi put a foot down both literally and figuratively, sending a sharp click through the air at the base of his wooden sandal. "You will not. I said that I forbid it, and I will not repeat it again." Hiashi's brow was always craggy, but tonight it was deep as a canyon, angry and reddened. "These childish trysts end now."

Hinata locked eyes with her father, then trailed her gaze down to her little sister. Hanabi had been, and still was, latched onto Hiashi's side since he had arrived. Obedient to a fault. Unwilling to rebel as Hinata did. Hinata sought aid from her sibling, but it did not come. Alone, Hinata continued to argue: "Father...with respect to the Clan, our family, and you as my parent...I am going, and nothing you say or do can stop me. Sasuke is important to me."

Kakashi stayed out of the confrontation, silently locking stern eyes with Hiashi. For political reasons, he held his tongue, but to attentive eyes, it was clear whose side he was on. Hanabi, similarly, met the attention of Hinata for a few brief seconds, looking almost apologetic, but never finding her voice. She was to be seen as dutiful and disciplined, especially in public. She could not speak out of turn.

Hiashi took a moment to process Hinata's continued disobedience. He felt her slipping away. Every possible future seemed to lead to one inevitable conclusion. And so, in his stubborn determination to have the final word, he delivered the ultimatum that could only succeed in further alienating his eldest daughter. "Do as you will, but if you turn your back on me...if you follow after the traitor, if you aid and abet him, if you offer him a single comforting hand?" Hiashi took a deep breath. Even with his certainty, his practice and poise, he hesitated before the killing blow: "You will no longer be a part of this family. You will be disowned. You will become a girl with nothing to her name."

Hinata's heart sank. She had been dreading the moment, expecting it much sooner than now. In large part, it was why she had kept Sasuke a secret from most of her family. His ultimatum was not a surprise, but also not painless to hear. She relaxed her fingers, looking to Hanabi with sad, drooping eyes. The younger sister wanted so desperately to speak up. Hinata could read the frustration in those little brows as plain as if it had been spoken aloud. With a hesitant smile, Hinata closed her eyes and turned her back to father and sister alike. She talked away from them. "Disown me, then. You've always wanted to."

That one stung Hiashi. Kakashi recognized the damage it did to the older man's heart. The Hokage had been awaiting Hanabi to speak up, but not a word. Not a moment of defiance, not even under such a dire set of conditions. Hiashi had trained her well—chillingly well.

Biting down on his tongue with anger, Hiashi lashed out with a powerless hand, pointing a finger at the back of Hinata. "Let each witness here understand clearly...Hinata Hyuuga, you are no longer named Hyuuga. You are hereby exiled from our clan." Murmurs, gasps; the crowd seemed thrilled and appalled by the 'show' that continued to unfold. A preview for the drama to come with the tournament, they hoped.

Hinata shut her eyes to block the tears. Inevitable, she thought again. Ever since Sasuke saw her, and she him, it was inevitable. Whether it was because Sasuke presented a threat to Hiashi's authority, or because Hinata's skills and fortitude had improved to such a degree that she threatened to surpass Hanabi. One way or the other, or possibly by some unseen, unexpected third motive...Hinata knew that she would be cast out. It was always a breath away, the distance between a welcome mat and the front door. Still, her feet were heavy. She hesitated for the briefest moment—was Sasuke worth losing all ties with her family? No, it could never be all ties. Her father was influential, but he couldn't erase her history; he couldn't erase her Byakugan. She was a Hyuuga, no matter what the clan's head declared. She clenched her fists and kept her back turned to her father, unable and unwilling to look him in the eye as she walked away with those heavy feet. It took several steps before she gained enough courage and confidence to leap to a nearby rooftop, leaving her father, her sister, her entire family, and every possession she had ever had behind. There was no turning back, but she had made her decision months ago, at the gate of the village. Wherever Sasuke was, she wanted to be there, too.

Kiko finished a basic telling of the story. She had witnessed and retold the bits about Sasuke leaving, Hinata being cast out from her clan, and then her leaving to follow after Sasuke.

Kiba stared off at nothing. He processed the information in a daze. "She left everything behind just to go after him..." He mumbled, barely heard. He blinked, psychologically paralyzed by the thought. Ironically he soon realized that he could move his fingers again. The healing was taking effect. "She'd go that far for him..."

Sakura frowned. She actually knew the exact feeling, but the ending of her story was poor. She recalled waking up from unconsciousness on a bench when she tried to bring Sasuke back home. She didn't mention that. Surely, this time would be different. Not just because Sasuke had changed, but because Hinata was Hinata. Sakura noticed Kiba's fingers wriggling, and commented on it. Something to avoid the subject of Sasuke for everybody's sake. "You should be able to move now. The breaks were pretty deep, but nothing moved very far from where it should be. We were able to fuse the bones back together quickly, but from here, you'll need to heal naturally. Your left arm was minor, but your right arm and right hand were much worse. Your ribs, too...You should take it easy for a few weeks."

Kiba's jaw tightened. "Weeks...? But the tournament starts in a couple of days."

Kakashi spoke up again. "Not to seem unsympathetic, but I tried to tell you, Kiba. I know you were acting in what you felt were Hinata's best interests, but her situation isn't yours to control. You did something brash, and you took a hit because of it. If it costs you your shot in the tournament, then it's a fitting consequence. You shouldn't let your anger control you."

Ino helped to fit Kiba with a sling for his right arm, wrapping a make-shift cast around his wrist to immobilize his fingers and forearm. She gave a slight nod to back up Kakashi: "The Hokage's right, Kiba. I don't know what you were thinking to try taking on Sasuke like that."

Kiba huffed, turning his head. He looked to Kiko, who was the only one in the area who seemed to have his back. "I wasn't trying to take him on. I was only trying to get Hinata away from him."

Naruto finally spoke up. He resisted the urge to go after Sasuke; he had heard most of Kakashi's talk with Hinata, and he agreed: It should be her. He sighed, folding his arms under his ribs. "Y'know, I get it, Kiba. You wanna protect your team; especially her. She means a lot, and she only seems to care about Sasuke...I know how it feels." He looked at Sakura with a nostalgic smile. "I gotta tell ya, though, it looks like he hit you almost like he would've hit me. He meant it."

Kiko put her hand on Kiba's shoulder, frowning at his side. Her voice was soft and full of remorse. "I feel like this is my fault...I'm so sorry for putting you up to this."

Kiba almost brushed her hand off his shoulder, but she was on his left, and he couldn't move his right arm in its sling enough to reach her. He surrendered to her hand. On his freshly-healed shoulder, her gentle touch felt weirdly relieving. He thought for a second, deciding to fess up. "Nah, it's me...I let something somebody said a while ago get under my skin. I made a stupid choice, and I have to live with that." He looked to his broken wing, lifting it slightly, wincing with pain. "Don't count me out. I can probably still fight...but against him, I don't know. I've never been hit that hard before." He smirked with a realistic outlook. He had finally received a world-shattering reality check. The difference in power was incomprehensible. He had no chance to react, no opportunity to defend himself. He was a ragdoll. Presumably, this outcome is what Kakashi and Ino had each had in mind when they allowed the two young men to collide. A dog is only scrappy until it's hit enough times with a newspaper.

Kakashi turned then to regard the crowd, whose collective attention had shifted from Hinata and Sasuke to the wounded Kiba. They tried to get a glimpse of the grisly wounds. The Hokage cleared his throat and raised both hands, standing in the way and waving side to side in an effort to disperse the crowd. "Please, please, return to the celebration. The situation is handled, and everything is alright." He put a hand over his masked mouth, cupping his voice and calling out to the small orchestra on the raised platform on the opposite end of the block. "Keep the music going, if you don't mind!"

At the Hokage's cue, the musicians hesitantly began playing again. It took a few minutes, but with the assurances of the Hokage and the return of the music, the celebration eventually continued as it had been, minus Sasuke and Hinata. It was as if they had never been there at all. Though, as was to be expected, there were murmurs and comments about what had happened.

After a final check, Ino and Sakura nodded to one another. Sakura bowed her head to Kiba. "Sorry that you were hurt...just take it easy, please. You'll be fine if you do."

Kiba gave a half-smirk, looking more like a snarl of faux appreciation. "Yeah...thanks." He noticed that Tsunade hadn't said anything or performed any healing, just as she was leaving along with Sakura. An odd situation. Kiba had heard that Tsunade's age and excessive self-healing had caught up to her, but how bad was it really? He was left to wonder.

Naruto was the last to leave Kiba's side, blowing a relaxed whistle. "If you need to talk, I'll be around. I get it if you'd rather not. Try not to be alone tonight, okay? Nothing sucks more than being alone."

Kiba looked to Kiko again. She was still there, kneeling down on rugged, broken fencing, having found a dented place to settle right beside him. Kiba managed a smile in her direction. "I'm not alone, it's alright. Thanks for checking up on me, Naruto. Don't let me ruin the party."

Naruto chuckled raspily. "You might've livened it up." The music that played was noticeably more exuberant. A little chaos seemed to inject some energy into the environment. With a grin, Naruto offered a thumbs-up and then turned to follow Sakura back to the other side. "See ya."

Kiba sighed with exasperation once it was just him and Kiko left. "I'm sorry, Kiko...there was a point when I was over there where I think I should have given up and turned back, but I pushed too hard."

Kiko shrugged, dismissing his apology as quick as he gave it. "Don't worry about it. I knew that much about you when I asked you out. I kinda like a guy who doesn't back down."

"That's me, for better or worse." Kiba winced as he tried to stand. Kiko grasped him around the belt loops, helping to lift him up without touching his injured arms, standing quietly up alongside him. He got onto his feet, light-headed but stable, and shook his hair to knock out a few extra splinters. "I'm not much good for dancing like this, am I?"

With a playful grin, Kiko shook her head. "Not a chance, but we can stop by my stand and have some ice cream instead. I think it's time for a graceful exit, don't you?"

"Yeah, probably." Kiba raised his brow. "But what about your dad?"

"We can meet up with him later. He's a total night-owl, so we've got plenty of time to find him." She curled a finger, stepping back on her tip-toes, using the hole in the fence to exit the dance and invite Kiba along. "Walk it off, it'll be good for you."

Kiba rolled his eyes, feeling just a little bit teased. It wasn't altogether bad, but the feeling was eerily familiar when it came from her mouth. Never the less, he followed her, wincing with resurfaced pain each time his steps bounced through his body.

"Don't you think you were too hard on her, Lord Hiashi?" Ko asked his superior once the group of Hyuuga seated themselves at their private table once again. "She looked pretty distraught."

Hiashi was in no mood to be questioned. Nothing resembling fatherly love came through his tone: "She disobeyed me for the last time. I expect all of you to bar her from entering the compound. Without fail. Without exception." He picked up a cup of sake and drank it down in a single gulp. Rattled, he was. His outburst had been seen by many. Just as many saw his inability to rein in his daughter. Some would his decision to exile her as strength, others as weakness. No matter which; what's done is done.

Hanabi was debating internally. Her bruises hadn't healed from one betrayal and she was already battered by another. She felt like a failure as a sister. Hinata was practically begging for her to say something, to help, to support her in some way...but Hanabi did not. She had wanted to, had tried to, but her throat wouldn't open and her mouth was sealed shut by her conditioning. Now, too, she was fearful. She had just watched her sister disowned and stripped of the family name—would it be reversed? Could it be? Hanabi was far from brave enough to risk the same fate for speaking out in support of either Hinata or Sasuke just then. Maybe later, with some distance from the events of the night. But not now.

"Understood," spoke Ko, then each of the other bodyguards echoed him. "Hinata will no longer be allowed to access the compound." None of them were smiling; Hinata was a beloved member of the family, despite the frequent fallout of her constant battle for her father's love and favor. Surely one of the lesser family members could get away with sneaking a few of Hinata's most precious possessions out to her later that night. It was the least that could be done.

Hiashi stared ahead. If he had any doubts remaining, he had now dismissed them. His resolve was complete. There would be no more risk of second thoughts.

Kiba and Kiko sat in the dark of her ice cream booth, scrunched behind the counter with their heads out of sight. She had scooped them each a double-serving of vanilla ice cream, nicely frozen and shaped spherically atop a waffle cone.

They each licked in relative silence, processing what happened. Kiba had to use his left hand to hold the dessert, and even then there was pain in his face. It was his 'healthy' shoulder, but sure didn't feel like it. He growled softly to quell the need for wincing. "I hope I didn't ruin your night," he murmured to break the awkward silence.

Kiko puffed through her nose. "No, it's like I said, I shouldn't have put you up to it. I'm the one who's sorry..." She set a hand on his crossed legs, his right knee to be exact.

Kiba eyed her hand on his knee and blushed slightly. His ice cream began to drip down onto his clothes, melting in the warm summer night. Drip. Drip. Drip.

Kiko watched his eyes, saw the deer-in-the-headlights look he returned. He was unsure of what to say, how to act when she touched him. Kiba's cone continued to melt. "You're dripping," she remarked with a sudden sultriness, eyes half-lidded and teasing.

Drip. Drip. Drip. Kiba's throat felt dry. He moved absently to lick the edges of his cone, picking up most of the melting cream. "Y-yeah...you got a napkin or something?"

Kiko flipped out a kerchief, stained slightly with red. "It's got your blood on it already, but here," she coyly smirked. She gently dabbed the cloth against Kiba's chest, picking up little dots of vanilla melt.

Kiba's instinct fired off. Kiko's mannerisms had altered significantly since they ducked behind the counter. He looked to his cone, melting again. Drip. Drip Drip.

"Hey, don't just let it go to waste." She needled him, eyelashes looking dark and alluring. Her facial features hadn't changed at all, but the way she held her expression, the way her lids moved, or her mouth curved added up to a fresh sum. She was different.

Kiba's attention settled on Kiko's ice cream. While his own melted and dripped all about, hers did not. The frozen dessert held its exact shape from when it was scooped, minus the dents of a few drags of a little tongue. Kiba whispered cautiously: "Your ice cream isn't melting," as he was coming to a slow and uncomfortable realization. "It should be melting..."

Kiko didn't seem bothered that he noticed. In fact, it seemed as if she was giving him the clue on purpose. She wanted him to know. Her eyes locked to his, her pupils shrinking slightly as she focused in on his face. Her voice was a dusky whisper, her left shoulder touching the broken one on Kiba's right side. "It's not melting...why do you think that is, little wolf...?"

A void of darkness opened in Kiba's thoughts. The image of Kiko suddenly vanished, dispersed to the corners of his mind where he tried to piece her back together. No, it wasn't doable; she was shattered. She was still there beside him, but she was not she. Kiba narrowed his eyes. "It's you...the ice ninja."

Kiko nodded her head languidly, bringing a hand up to tuck some hair behind her right ear. "Miotosa." she confirmed. "I think you were unconscious when I told you my name."

"Kurenai said that name when she saved me from you." The gravity of it was taking its time to settle into Kiba's consciousness. It clicked all at once, and he looked like he wanted to stand up and get into a fighting position. He got about halfway through the equivalent of a sit-up, then hissed in agony and fell back against the panel of metal behind him, panting and trembling with pain. "G-gah...you bitch..."

"You can still call me Kiko...it is my name, after all." She didn't move to stand or distance herself from him. "Most of everything I told you was the truth."

Kiba was still recovering from the biting hurt that flowed through his ribs and shoulders. He had tried to move too fast; he wasn't used to being injured yet. He acted without thinking—always his problem—and wound up half-disabled by it. "Bullshit," Kiba growled, eyes burning with the want to strangle her for deceiving him. It became apparent that she sat on his right side for strategic reasons—he couldn't lash out with an arm that barely functioned. "What kind of game are you playing...why would you pose as a girl like Kiko...why would you do that to me?"

Miotosa frowned slightly. "But I am Kiko. Actually, it's Yukiko—it's the name my father gave me. A child of the snow." She sat back against the cold metal inside her booth. "I respect you, Kiba...really, I do. That's why I'm here."

Kiba wasn't hearing it. The blood was still rushing to his ears to reflect his rage. "If you respect me, you wouldn't have lied to me."

"I barely bent the truth, really. Only by concealing the fact we had met once before." She leaned her head back and exhaled into the air, a frosty mist escaping her lips. As she relaxed, her body grew colder. As if it took an effort to be warm, and she gave it up. "This is who I really am when I'm not on the job. It's...complicated."

"Complicated nothing, you're a spy." Kiba spat on the ground in front of him. Despite her being so near, he didn't quite feel the want to spit on her instead. "You beat me half to death."

"You came at me first. I defended myself. Maybe that's not really how it went. You came first, but I admit I provoked you on purpose. I don't blame you for it." She flexed her lips in thought. "Since that was a disaster, though, I figured the best way to get to you would be to show you who I really am. Miotosa? She's an act. A facade. I use her to protect me. She doesn't feel fear, regret, or hesitation, but I do. When I take off the mask, I'm Kiko. When I put it on, I'm nobody. I can do anything. Do you know what I mean? "

Kiba thought back to the cold night. He had been kicked around then, too, but nothing hurt half as badly as what Sasuke did to him. "I might understand what you're telling me, but I still don't like you. There's another reason you hide behind a mask, and it's because you know you're doing something wrong. Why do you do it?"

"Because it's my mission. I was born to play the role I'm playing now." She closed her eyes and shook her head, showing the slightest hint of the carefree Kiko as her straight hair bounced. "Like I said, it's complicated. I really don't have a choice."

"You do. You tried to get me to join you, but why don't you join us instead?" Kiba turned his body slightly, wincing but forcing his way through it. "The girl I thought I met tonight wouldn't hurt people. She wouldn't plot a coup. She serves ice cream and loves heroism."

"I do love heroism. I idolize people like you and Naruto...but I recognize the harm that's done when we rely too much on heroes." She tightened her jaw. "Sometimes, heroes fail. We can't get soft while we depend on them."

Kiba's eyes slowly relaxed, a conclusion forming. "Did somebody fail you?"

Kiko's forehead creased and she breathed deeply through her nose. "Forget it...back to what happened with you and Sasuke...he demolished you without a thought. More easily than I could've, if I gave it my very best."

"Yeah, well...nobody but Naruto has a chance at fighting him seriously." Kiba huffed. The throbbing in his cracked bones echoed the truth of it.

"What if I could give you a chance?" Kiko proposed with a tantalizing grin. "What if I could help you close the gap of power, and also get you into fighting condition before the tournament begins?"

Kiba's ears perked. She had him hooked just like that. It was like she knew exactly which words to say to him, and when. "How would you do something like that? And how did you know I would end up at the ice cream stand to meet you at all? You would have had to rent that booth weeks in advance, and even then, I might not have ever come. You couldn't possibly have predicted that."

"Not me; and not alone. There's only one person who can answer those questions..." She set her hand on Kiba's hand, gentle but frigid. Her breath came out as a fog, chilled in her lungs and freezing the humid air. "Kiba, are you ready to meet my father?"

Kiba said nothing. He didn't have to speak. The burning curiosity, his need to understand the impossible, told the answer through in his eyes.

Sasuke surrounded himself with darkness. He had traveled far from the people who made him feel guilt. He escaped the stress of change. He returned to his beginnings. He ached for a time of simplicity, and so he found himself in the half-excavated ruins of his family home. The furniture had caved in, the roof was gone, and even the rubble had been moved aside by his own hands, leaving little more than a cone-shaped crater that centered in his former bedroom. He sat in the dusty pile of old stone and plaster, ignoring the condition of his brand new clothes. What did it matter anymore? His only chance to return to the village had gone up in the flames of his own making.

His mind replayed the reactions. Shock and awe on faces familiar and not. Hinata's words had hurt him; he felt an accusation in her tone, but more than that, it was her disappointment. He had acted as the world would have expected him to act. He gave them the show they had come to see. They bore witness to the monster he had been trying to hide. He wanted them to forget who he was, how he had been. Rather, how he still is. He failed, and so he wallowed in it alone. Sasuke looked through eyes blurred with wetness to view his own hands. The symbol of the Uchiha Clan proudly dotted each palm, ignorant to the shame he felt. Prideful gloves that were a gift from the girl who mattered.

He closed his fists into the rubble on either side of him, picking up fine gray powder and letting it slip between his fingers and scatter into the gentle breeze. He was going to leave the village; he had no other choice. What could he do aside from vanish in the night, never to be seen again? All his careful progress had been undone by a single act.

His hands, dusty and ashamed, rose to cover his face on both sides, palms to cheeks, fingers rubbing the hair atop his scalp. Why hadn't he left already? Why stop in the haunting crate of his home? He didn't know. He was so very near to the border wall; he could have cleared it with a single bound from where he sat. Despite coming this far out, he still felt the inexplicable desire to remain in the village. He thought at first that the guilt, the sense of failure, would be plenty enough of a push to give him the courage to leave forever. He was too dangerous—even if he wanted to stay, and he realized that he did want to stay, he could not. He would hurt someone again. His anger could not be controlled, largely because a part of him didn't want to control it. He could not cage the hatred inside him.

He held his tongue when the name of his brother had been invoked, but when Hinata was nearly touched by those clawed fingers...that was the moment spurring him to act. To harm. To teach an unforgettable lesson. He could still feel the cracking of ribs against the sole of his shoe, hear the sound of snapping bone in his ears. It was satisfying to hear Kiba's howl of agony, even as a memory. And that was why he could not stay. He would do it again. And again. Each and every time Hinata was under threat, he would act. Whether it was friend or foe, he would hurt them. It was an immutable.

When Hinata arrived there a few minutes after him, he wasn't entirely shocked, but he was unprepared nonetheless. He had been crying without realizing it. His face was framed by symmetrical streams of salty tears, with budding new ones on the outer ends of his eyes. She wasn't upon him yet; he heard her tiny steps over the rubble, quiet and reverent. She treated these ruins like they were a memorial, rather than discarded memories. She watched her step, even though her breaths and pace were urgent. He liked that about her.

She came up to the lip of the mini-crater that Sasuke sat in the middle of. She was about three meters above him, looking down into his literal pit of misery. Her Byakugan was active, veins bulging thickly under her skin. She had been crying, too, along the way. The two of them were both in over their heads, and neither knew for sure what was to come next.

Hinata sighed with relief when she saw him directly in front of her. She had found him with her eyes, but she had also known where he would be. It was just where she wished he would be. Despite the chance that he had already gone to some far away land, she had yearned to find him there where, in a sense, it had all began. Began for him as a child, and for the two of them as a pair twenty-some years later.

Hinata forced a smile. "Hey...are you alright?" She asked with a choked whisper. She was trying to invoke a memory of the night they came together. The first words he had ever spoken to her. She had been crying under the moonlight, just as he was now, and such a simple question had set her life on a wild path of strength and self-discovery she hadn't dreamed of. She held her arm close to her chest, her fingers half-closed in front of her mouth. Nervous. Nervous, but not afraid. Never afraid. Not of her protector.

Sasuke chuckled out a somber breath, sucking in the air to follow a choking grunt of frustration that hadn't yet escaped, only finding a path when he tried to speak. He shuddered, clutching his knees up to his chest and sliding his arms around them. "Why did you come after me...?" He asked into the left leg of his pants, right on top of his knee.

Hinata sniffled to fight her newest tears. She had seen Sasuke vulnerable, but never like this. She sensed his despair at the forefront. His barriers had all fallen. At his core, he was not a demon. He was a sorrowful child who yearned to come home to a place that did not exist, filled with people who did not want him. Yet...there was at least one person who wanted him; needed him. Hinata couldn't speak. All those words she had planned to say, as well as her scheme to offer a helping hand, had evaporated in the presence of his naked emotion. Hinata stepped forward, clumsy in her subconscious desperation, nearly slipping down the slant of loosened rubble but finding her balance and sliding evenly down to stand at his level. She fixed herself in place behind him, quietly watching. She could practically see him as his younger self, a kid in mourning. When his shoulders quivered, she knew he had never truly shed the burdens of his past. She spoke at last to answer why she came. "You shouldn't be alone."

"I should be," he answered, raising a hand to wipe his eyes, eventually using his sleeve to dry his cheeks. "I can't be what you want me to be."

Hinata frowned. "I want you to be happy..."

Sasuke sighed, frustrated fingers clutching his hair and pulling idly. "That's exactly what I mean...I can't just be happy. It's not realistic."

"But you can be...I know you can." Hinata watched him and felt a bubble around him. Isolation, self-imposed and unwilling to listen. "I've seen you happy." She sniffled again. "You've been happy with me."

"I have been, a few times, but it can't last. I'm sorry if I convinced you to think it could, but it can't. I can't." Sasuke's voice lowered to a whisper. "It's over."

"W-what are you saying, Sasuke...?" Hinata clutched the purple silk of her dress, crumpling it in front of her heart. She could swear that her organ wasn't beating while she waited for his answer.

Sasuke's voice went cold. Dismissive. He used it to say something he thought he meant. "I'm saying that you should forget we ever met. Just go...get out of here; go be with your family."

Hinata was in disbelief for a moment. It wasn't about to be over just like that. She wouldn't permit that. Sasuke might soon come to regret the fact that he had given her a backbone all her own. She straightened her back, sniffed a long, last sniff to end her pathetic crying, and she quelled her trembling chest with one sharp exhale of preparation. "I refuse," she said. "I'm not going to leave."

The answer surprised Sasuke, but it shouldn't have. He blamed himself for her resolve. He thanked her in his own head; he didn't really want her to leave, but he felt it was necessary. "You don't get it, Hinata. I'm poison."

"Don't say that." She wasn't budging. She stood determined behind him, his huddled form looking fragile where he sat. "You're good for me."

"I'm not," Sasuke reiterated. He moved to stand, sighing slowly and turning. His dusty pants matched his scuffed self-esteem. "I hurt him. I've hurt others in the past, and I'll hurt them in the future."

"It's not your fault, Sasuke; you were protecting me, you got angry, you..." She pursed her lips. She finally saw his face, his eyes puffed slightly from crying. It was the final piece of the puzzle for her. He wasn't only agonizing over Kiba, not even the judgement of strangers. "Sasuke, tell me the truth...please."

He closed his eyes, running his hand down the front of his face, stretching the skin and trying to retract the puffiness under his eyes and around his cheeks. "The truth is that I'm going to leave. It was a mistake to come back, it was a mistake to stay, and it was a mistake to..."

Hinata's lips frowned when her protector trailed off. "A mistake to get involved with me?" she finished for him.

"Yeah..." Sasuke confirmed. He meant it, but not on its face. Thankfully, Hinata knew better than to trust his deflections.

"It can't be a mistake. It doesn't feel like a mistake." She moved forward a half-step, getting closer to Sasuke, fighting through the bubble of isolation that he had imposed around himself. A metaphor, but one that felt very real and physical.

"Stop it, Hinata," he murmured without backing away. He wanted her to keep coming, even if he couldn't admit it for fear of acknowledging his weakness. "Just...stop. Now."

"I won't stop," she defied him. Even as he raised his voice, asserted with sincerity, she did not back down, did not look away from him. "I can't stop, because...after all this time with you, I've figured something out about myself. I know it better than I know my own name." She filled her lungs with night air, emptying them and refusing to close her eyes. "The truth is, I...I muv ru."

Muffled at the last moment by a hand over her mouth, Sasuke had moved swiftly to prevent the cursed words from escaping her lips. "Don't...say...that..." Sasuke hissed, looking genuinely angry. "Don't you dare say those words."

Hinata gulped hard behind Sasuke's hand, but she still did not back away. She shook her head, refusing to follow his demand. She tried to say it again, unable to speak through the layer of glove and skin that held her lips still and stifled. A tearful mumble was all she managed.

Sasuke's mouth flattened and his throat growled with the sort of frustration he hadn't felt in years. She was too stubborn. Unable to take no for an answer...unable to abandon him. Able to see that he needed her more in that moment than he ever had. He swallowed, too, gradually taking his hand down from her mouth. "Promise me you'll never say it."

She made no such promise. She instead sought an answer: "But why...? It's true."

"If you say those words to me, you'll suffer for it." It wasn't a threat. Hinata perceived the pain in Sasuke's eyes, in the halting of his speech. "They've all suffered, and I couldn't stop it." He met Hinata's stare with pleading in his pupils. "My family loved me, and then they died...do you know why?"

Hinata's eyes widened slightly. Her hands fell limp at her sides. "W-why?" she stammered. She had long suspected something beneath the surface. Too many hints, too many slip-ups. From Sasuke himself, and from Naruto. The name Itachi had been the first crack in Sasuke's visage earlier that night. "Your brother, he was..." Hinata raised a hand, reaching out as if to cup Sasuke's cheek, but she couldn't quite reach him. She was close enough, but not 'close' enough. She felt a barrier, newly erected, between them. She wanted to break it, but only the truth could do it. "Itachi. Tell me about Itachi."

Sasuke turned his back on her. He stepped away and tilted his head back, eyes aiming to the stars. "Itachi is dead, Hinata. It doesn't matter anymore why he is, or what he did."

"You don't believe that," she countered. "I know you don't. I saw you tense when Kiba mentioned his name...why? It isn't because he was a murderer, is it?"

"He was, Hinata. He killed my family; our parents, our cousins, our clan as a whole. And he did it because he loved me." Silence hung to follow the truth. Swaying in the breeze.

"Loved you...?" Hinata's chest hurt. Pain was fresh in her heart. She didn't understand. How could she? A mass-slaying done for the sake of love. It seemed so alien, so far from reality. "How can that be true? I need to understand, Sasuke...I've always felt like you were hiding something, but please...if you're going to leave anyway, tell me everything."

Sasuke's fists relaxed, losing their tension. It was a moment long-coming. "The Uchiha...we're as bad as the village thinks we are. Destined to be outcasts, predisposed to give in to our anger, to look for revenge against anybody we can pick out." He looked around himself, at the ruins. The rubble. The last vestiges of a once-fearsome clan. "They felt disrespected. Separate from Konoha. They were following a dark path; one of revolution."

"Revolution?" Hinata started to feel a very real chill in her spine. No wonder he had never told her. "Against Konoha?"

"That's right. My parents. My loving mother, my disciplined father, and so many of the others...they were going to attempt a coup. Hundreds, probably thousands would have died. The village would have been weakened, vulnerable to attacks from their enemies." He said 'their' enemies; not 'our.' So quickly had Sasuke forsaken his ties to the Leaf. "Danzo knew, and so did the Third Hokage. Itachi answered to them...he was their agent inside the Uchiha. He was given an offer, the only one he would have accepted. And he accepted it because he loved me."

Hinata's blood felt like it had stopped pumping at all. The weight of the place she stood in had increased tremendously. She felt suddenly like she was surrounded by vengeful spirits. "He loved you, so he stopped the revolution before it started."

Sasuke nodded reluctantly. "In exchange for my life. Danzo guaranteed my safety in return for the extermination of the rest of my clan. It sounds like an impossible choice, but Itachi chose me. He weighed all those lives against mine, and he chose mine." Sasuke's shoulders slackened, sloped in defeat. "I carry that with me. The burden of his love. The memory of all the fallen. They fell the way they did because of me."

Hinata couldn't think of anything to say. She walked through the barrier that she thought had existed. She closed the gap between them without resistance, and she put her arms around Sasuke's waist, pulling herself against him and turning her head to rest on his chest. "I never knew," she whispered. "I can't imagine the feeling."

Sasuke stood limp, accepting her embrace without returning it. "I don't want you to be the next one to suffer because of me. Because of..." He grimaced on the word. "Love." Her embrace was melting his resolve as only she could do. Who was he kidding? He couldn't leave her behind. But he couldn't take her with him. His only option was to stay. "Hinata...why won't you let me go?"

She pulled her head back from his chest, leaving her hands on his lower back in a loose hold, hips pushed against him, warming herself against him, giving him the fullness of her body and soul as she moved her eyes up to meet his. He looked at her and identified the fear on his face. He trembled. She had never seen him afraid before; not the way he was now. Nervous, yes, but not terrified. He knew he couldn't live without her. She knew the same. "It's obvious, isn't it?" She gingerly asked, tilting her head to move hair out of her face. She wanted him to see her full smile as she spoke, even knowing the truth of his past, knowing the risks of what she said. Even after he had lashed out at her long-time friend and fellow villager.

Wind howled.

Breaths halted.

Eyes locked.

Faces were stained with tears.

Hearts were beating in unison.

Hinata spoke:

"It's because I love you. I don't care about the risks, or the consequences to come. I love you completely." She said it a second time, blushing through her makeup, some lines more pronounced than others as tears had carried part of the layer away. "I love you so much, Sasuke...I've loved you for weeks...months...I don't know how long it's been, but I deeply love you." Tears fell again, floodgates opened by her confession. Her hands rose from his back, gentle palms cupping Sasuke's cheeks, holding him in her calloused touch. Well-worn, well-trained, a fighter's hands despite their delicate appearance. "Please...please, I can't stand it anymore...please tell me that you feel the same way..."

Sasuke didn't hesitate. "I do...of course I do," his hands rose to her face, cupping her cheeks like she did his. "I love you, Hinata." He dipped down to touch his forehead to hers. "I love your smile, your voice, your kindness," he closed his eyes and kissed her lips with relief, giving in to all those impulses he had been holding back. "I love the way you cry," he kissed her again, which she shamelessly returned. The taste of salt was on both their tongues, tears mixing with their kisses. "I want to love you forever, I want to share everything with you."

Hinata's tears were those of sudden joy. Emotions had come and gone as whirlwinds. Sadness, fear, anger, regret, longing, disappointment, shock, hurt, but now joy. Joyful turbulence in all her senses. He loved her; he absolutely loved her. The ambiguity was over. The truth was out. Spoken on lips that kissed and suckled together, ignoring the chaos of the night, casting aside the last shackles of worry. Come what may, Sasuke Uchiha and Hinata Hyuuga were genuinely in love.

Between kisses, both pecks and passionate holds, Hinata felt goosebumps growing on her skin. Her tiny voice made promises that she intended to keep. "I'm yours to love," she hummed sweetly. "I was yours from the start. I've thought about you every night, every morning. I was scared to say so, I thought I'd lose you if I said it first."

Sasuke's hands slid down the sides of Hinata's well-dressed body, tracing her curves down to the hips, laying claim to her as she gave herself to him. "I'm not afraid anymore," he assured her with a soft voice, spoken into her ear. He kissed her lobe, then followed her jawline below, gentle and gradual. He found her lips at the end of the line, kissing them again with a firm forward press. "I won't run away."

Hinata's body arched with natural yearning, chest pressing to Sasuke's strong sternum, her arms grasping around his upper and lower back, toes flexing in her sandals. Her knees were weak, but she held herself up with her hands grasping his clothes. "Ngh," she groaned, feeling a rush of cravings and impulses. She might have torn at the seams of Sasuke's vest if not for her modesty, her hesitation to be quite so primal. "It feels good to be yours," she honestly told him, hanging off his supportive frame and kissing at his lips and chin while she savored the rush of the moment.

Though Sasuke's hands roamed, he was respectful, even a little reserved. He avoided touching her too intimately, though it was quite a struggle. The passion overtook him for a while, compelling him to kiss, to grasp, to gently push her standing body back, laying her against the sloped perimeter of the excavation, a steep angle that was much like lying upright. "We shouldn't get carried away," he uttered as much for his own benefit as hers. "Someone might come looking for us."

Hinata's response was an uncharacteristically sultry giggle, letting her weight drape across the dusty 'wall' at her back. Her dress was a little restrictive, so she couldn't wrap herself around him quite as much as her impulses would have liked. "M-maybe you're right," she relented, but she put no effort into parting from him. Why should she? "But maybe not..."

"Maybe not?" Sasuke asked ponderously, nuzzling her forehead. "I just shattered Kiba's rib cage...somebody is going to come."

Hinata winced. The blunt truth of it was still fresh. She had forgiven Sasuke just a moment after her initial reaction. She had been in shock more than anything. Still, it was a jarring thing to see, and to think about. "The Hokage sent me after you," she told, her guilt bleeding through. "He said he'd smooth things over for you; for us." She kissed and captured Sasuke's lower lip between hers, tugging playfully. "He knows Kiba started it."

"That doesn't mean something bad won't happen," Sasuke huffed, forehead pressed to his lover's. Everything felt different now. All at once, the hesitation vanished. So many times he had held himself back, tried to keep his distance for fear of slipping up and admitting the truth. The truth was out, now. For both of them. The seriousness of the situation was somehow secondary to the bliss of their connection. "I'm at least getting a lecture from Naruto the next time he sees me."

Hinata shrugged her shoulders, melted against the terrain at her back, slowly running her hands down Sasuke's chest. She wasn't ashamed of exploring a little of her newfound territory. "That's not the worst of it," she confessed with a blush. She bit her own lip. "My father...he expelled me from the clan for defying him again."

Sasuke's intimate pressure relaxed some, and he pulled his body back from hers. He tilted his head while looking at her. "Because you came after me?"

She nodded, sadness in her eyes that couldn't be stifled even by the confession of love she had long dreamed of. "Yes. I don't regret it, not a bit, but right now I don't have a home to go back to. I can find a place to sleep on my own, don't worry about that, but..."

Sasuke lifted a hand, placing his right pointer finger against her lips, shushing her with a charming smirk. "I'd rather you stayed with me," he offered. "as long as you lower your expectations. I haven't been living in luxury."

She spoke against his shushing finger, kissing the print of it. "I'm tired of luxury," she purred, "I want to be where you are."

"You're sure about that?" He raised a brow and started an amused smile. "What if I live in the sewers?"

Hinata was glad to hear him make a joke. She at last felt sure that his disappearance was an impulse, not a calculated act. The danger of losing him had passed. He was with her, his solid arms were braced against her; he wasn't leaving. He wasn't still trying to convince her that it was for the best that he vanished. She worried about him, about what lingered in his mind after the incident. She took a hand up to his, pulling his shushing finger down, craning up to kiss under his chin. "If you live in the sewer, I'll be sure to bring rubber boots."

"Do you need anything from home?" He asked.

"Lots of things, but I can't have them. Everything belongs to the clan, even if I bought it with my own money. I'm not part of the clan anymore—my name isn't even really Hinata Hyuuga now. I think I'm just...Hinata." She showed another tinge of sadness. That it was potent enough to outweigh her giddiness over Sasuke's admission of love was a powerful statement to the power of her father's act. Her exile was going to have a long-lasting, reverberating impact against her life. It wasn't the first time she was sent off—as a child, she was dumped onto a shinobi team and all but forgotten. But now, this time around, she was without the family name. Without its blessings, or its accompanying support. She was unsure of many things, but at least one thing was resolved. "I really have nothing but this dress and the things in the bag I brought out with me. As long as Hanabi doesn't show Father where I left it...he might actually take that, too."

"I'm sorry, Hinata; it's my fault that happened. If I had just controlled myself, we'd still be back there." He held onto her hand, thumb brushing the back of it. He kissed her knuckles with sincere apology. "I just have so much anger inside."

"This wasn't your fault...Father has been looking for a reason to cast me out for a long time. Probably since before you returned." She sighed. "He took his chance as soon as he saw it."

"Do you think that's true?" Sasuke moved to stand up from her, using her hand to invite her up from the dirty slope. She stood with him, following his lead, practically floating along with him.

"I know it's true," she frowned. "And what's done is done, I can't change his mind. I made my choice, and I've chosen you."

A pleased smile formed on Sasuke's face, his eyes moving up briefly to check the position of the moon. "You've made me happy tonight, Hinata. Let me return the favor; come on." He kept her hand in his, starting to climb the slope of the dug-out crater. She came along with him, still breathing at a quickened pace after their brief surrender to passion.

"Where are we going?" She asked with curious anticipation.

"It's almost midnight," he revealed, walking over rubble and through the vague shapes of old alleys. They came to the ledge of the Konoha Crater, opening up a view of the village rivaled only by the top of the Hokage monument. The festival grounds were visible in the distance, torches and colored lights defining the rim of the celebration.

"Almost midnight," Hinata said wistfully. She stood at Sasuke's side, then moved to sit down, legs hanging over the risen ridge at the lip of the crater, ankles crossed as they hung. Her hand grabbed Sasuke's like an eager child, pulling him down with excited encouragement. He fell gracefully beside her, sitting as she did, legs hanging over the side, high above the floor of the village.

Sure enough, moments later there was a single launch of a streaking orange light, trailed by a gray path of segmented smoke. High above them, over the arena that stood impressively at the center of the festival, there was a burst of explosive light and sound, colored with red, blue, green, brown, and yellow segments. A five-toned flower, each color an equal portion. A symbol of the five villages and the five Great Nations to which they belonged. The theme of unity was really being pushed by those who ran the show.

Hinata couldn't conceal the pleasure on her face. Though they were further away than intended, the fireworks were vibrantly beautiful. They launched from a point atop the arena, easily traced back to their origin by following the smoke trails. The show began slowly, one or two rockets firing at a time; gradually the pace increased, colors exploding in the sky to span the entire village. Various heights, sizes, brightness, and loudness combined to create a compelling spectacle.

Each explosion sent waves through Sasuke's and Hinata's bodies. They sat joined at the hip, Sauske's right hand holding Hinata's left atop their thighs where they touched, settled into the nook between them. Hinata leaned over, resting her head on his shoulder. She closed her eyes, letting the fireworks burst in her ears while she thought about the day. Things were going to be very different from that moment on. Things both seen and unseen had changed, for the better and the worse. There were a lot of questions unanswered, a lot of consequences yet to discover, and a lot of explanations to give...but if only one thing of all the world was certain to her, it was the most important thing:

Sasuke loved her. Hinata loved him. They were together. There was finally a label for what they were:

Lovers.

I hope you all liked that chapter. It is easily the largest (and probably the most important) one to date. It took me a lot longer to write it than I had originally planned; like I said at the end of the last one, I already had this one mostly figured out, and just had to put it to paper. Along the way, a lot of big and little things kept coming up to distract me, and the over-sized length of the chapter drove me nuts when trying to edit/correct things. If there are sloppy parts that I missed, I do apologize. I tried my best!

This is the one a lot of you have been waiting for. A lot of the build-up over the past couple dozen chapters has been leading to the events of this one. I consider this to be the "midpoint" of the story. Not to say that it's exactly the middle, or that the story is necessarily half-over, but this is the major pivot point I've been planning around since I conceptualized it.

Kudos to everybody in the reviews and PMs who saw the "twist" coming a mile away. Frankly, Kiko's secret was only ever a half-secret (she ran an ice cream stand for goodness' sake), but forgive Kiba for being dense. He's been through a lot.

As always, feel free to leave a review! If you have any questions, comments, or private concerns that you don't want to put in a review, my PM box is always open, and I will always reply within a day or two.