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A/N: Well. This chapter has been a few months in the making. It was difficult. But I believe that it's decently satisfying. Please read and enjoy. It's an emotional rollercoaster again...but then again, this story always has been. Don't forget to review, please.
4: For the Restless
Dark irises contracted, shutting out light and allowing eyes to see in the glare of sudden sun glinting from a nearby tiled rooftop. The target was simply sitting there, as if he were waiting to be killed. Static crackled over the radio, and a disembodied voice spoke in his earpiece. "Have you acquired the target?"
A low growl escaped before he replied, pressing the switch at his neck, "Yes. Twenty meters north west of me. Permission to engage?" Formality. He hated it. It was the bane—well, one of the banes—of his existence. There were several such irritations for him at the moment. A warm, wet nose nudged at his palm. For a second, he released the button on the collar radio. "What is it, Akamaru?" The dog growled, and made a soft whine. Kiba's eyes narrowed. "Where are they?" Another whine, and an elongated, deeper growl. "Shit." He keyed the radio again. "Kakashi, we're going to have to change formation. Akamaru sniffed out four ninjas of decently high rank."
A soft oath came through the radio before the other man replied, "Understood. Fall back to my position."
Kiba looked once more at the man who was seated on a park bench, letting out a low growl of his own. "Affirmative. Breaking formation. Intercept in three minutes." During the moments it took to wind his way over rooftops and through alleyways, he thought back. How long had it been since he'd had that talk with Shino? By his count, it had been nearly six months. And that entire time, Kiba had been paired with various people…none of which he had been able to remain with for more than a few weeks.
It simply was not the same as when he had been working with Hinata. She was like an extension of him, moving at exactly the right moment, their actions in precise synchronization. It had taken nearly ten years for that relationship to develop, and every time his new partners requested transfer, he could only think that if they had given it more time…But that wasn't really true. Deep down, in the very center of his mind, Kiba understood that he did not want to partner with Hatake Kakashi, or Shiranui Genma, or anyone else.
He would rather work alone.
Solo missions at his rank were suicides. But better suicide missions than the sight of someone else in her place. It was a constant agonizing reminder of the fact that Hinata was not with him. Pain, a constant and abiding companion these days, shot through him. It was not physical. No, it was the phantom pain of having the one thing he really wanted taken from him. Nothing his parents had taught him could have prepared him for this. He had known for a long time the stories of what often happened when a member of his family had a spouse or lover die. Some waste away if they do not find someone to fill the gap, while others go slowly mad. The Inuzuka were much like their canine counterparts in many ways.
When he came to the darkened alley where Kakashi was stationed, he shoved the thoughts away. Akamaru whined nearby, and he made a dismissive gesture, wishing at times that his friend were not so very perceptive. "It's nothing," he murmured, not convincing himself, and knowing he had done nothing to fool the dog, either.
Hinata sat propped on a bank of cushions in the deep window seat that was situated nearest the main gardens. This was where she could be found much of the time, now. Neji had gone off on a mission with Lee, and was slated to return today. She thought that he would be overjoyed to hear that the baby was kicking at all of her internal organs, and that she had not felt any pains lately. With each new development, her husband seemed to become more open.
Neji had been smiling and speaking in tones that were warm, even when they weren't alone. Her grandmother had remarked on this once, saying that if he was not careful, he might even be agreeable. That was, she thought, an understatement. The man was exhibiting behavior that did not fit his character. He was happy, and Neji was never happy. As she looked out over the snow-covered garden, Hinata frowned. She had never really responded well to the way things change so quickly. As of late, this seemed to happen more often than not.
Too many things were different from the way they had been. Hinata had not seen Kiba for more than six months, and when she thought of him, she had a very strange feeling. It was much the same as when she saw Neji smiling at her. This alien sensation was something like the way her stomach warmed when she had a cup of hot cocoa, while wrapped in a comfortable blanket.
Whatever it was, she could most likely blame it on the pregnancy. Just like the strange cravings she had been having. Last week, in the middle of the night, she'd woken up absolutely determined to have green tea ice cream sprinkled with bacon bits. And that is not even considering how horrified she'd been to honestly enjoy eating a pickled tofu sandwich slathered with grape jelly.
Tsunade had told her that these cravings were normal, that they would most likely disgust her on an intellectual level. But, the elder woman had also confided that to ignore them was not a good idea. The reason one craved such things as tofu and jelly sandwiches was that the baby needed something that was in those strange combinations of food. Shaking her head, Hinata returned to reading her book. What in the world a child could possibly need from green tea ice cream and bacon bits, she had no idea.
Her eyes soon began straying toward the window once again, and she began to feel restless after no more than half an hour. With a huff, she put the book down. "Auntie Chie," she said, "I'm going out."
The elderly woman gave a choked sound before saying in her papery voice, "But your husband will be coming home today. If you are not at home—"
"Then you will tell him that I have gone to visit with friends, and perhaps to buy him a box of fresh manju." Her voice was edged with a hint of steel, and she fixed the old woman with a glare that promised retribution if any contradiction was offered. When Chie made no resistance, she smiled sweetly and said with a nod of her head, "Thank you, Auntie."
Hatake Kakashi was one heavy man, Kiba decided. He'd done his level best to bind up his partner's wounds, but wasn't sure it had done much good. The unconscious form slung across his shoulders was beginning to weigh heavily on the dog-nin's back. They had barely escaped with their lives. Kakashi had lost so much blood that he'd passed out when they were a day out from their home village, and had stayed that way. Akamaru stubbornly refused to go on ahead and warn the hospital, since he was worried about Kiba. The brown-haired man had sustained numerous injuries, himself, and was slowly weakening. At dawn, they re-crossed the border into Fire Country, with the dog keeping his eyes and nose open since his human counterpart was less than able to do so himself.
Kiba's vision began to blur slightly by the time the towers of Konoha appeared in the distance, rising up from the snow-sprinkled canopy of green like islands in a sea of leaves. He reached into his belt pouch and retrieved one of his last energy pills. The things always tasted like chalk, mixed with rotted fruit. But he didn't complain. As long as he could stumble through the gates, someone would get them to the hospital.
Putting on a burst of speed, he double-timed the rest of the distance to the nearest gate. This gate opened into the merchant district, where restaurants and shops sold anything from meat buns to broadcloth. A cramp in his side caused him to seize up, nearly doubling over in pain. Kiba squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the throbbing in his side, to no avail. Akamaru appeared at his right, the dog's bulk a welcome aid to keep him standing. When he opened his eyes again as the pain began to subside, he found himself in the middle of the street, in front of the little café where Chouji always used to buy them dango when he lost a bet.
He had not realized that he'd walked so far into the village, and thought it was strange that no one had yet notice his arrival. Suddenly, the sound of porcelain shattering caught his attention, and his head turned. There, standing in front of the blue noren of the café, was Hinata. Clad in a pale pink kimono, a warm woolen coat draped over her shoulders, she seemed to glow in the mid-morning light. A white teacup lay broken at her feet, and the liquid had splashed her tabi, staining the fabric a pale brown. Her eyes grew wide before she moved faster than he thought possible. "Help!" She called loudly, "Someone help! Medic to the southeast gate!"
Kiba reeled, surprised as he soon felt her hands on his face, holding his head gently as she looked into his eyes. "Are you hurt? What happened? Is he alive?" Her questions were spoken in a desperate tone, quiet and urgent, and Kiba was unable to answer. She looked frantic. Small fingers disentangled his hands from where they clutched at the fabric of Kakashi's uniform. Together, he and Hinata let the man down slowly onto the frosty dirt of the road. A man approached, obviously an off-duty medic, and began assessing Kakashi's wounds.
Another cramp attacked Kiba's left side, and he grunted, bending slightly. Hinata gripped his right arm and looped it over her shoulders, heedless of dirt, blood and grime. "You pushed yourself too hard." It was a simple statement of fact that Kiba could not deny.
Gritting his teeth, Kiba said, "Had to. Wouldn't have made it back…"
The woman's pearly eyes then turned to his canine companion as she started walking him toward the hospital. "You should have gone for help, Akamaru." The dog gave a low growl, then a bark, tail lowering slightly. "Don't give me that. You know better." Kiba stared at her, unable to fathom how she understood what Akamaru had said. When she looked at him again, Hinata had an expression in her eyes that he had not seen for a very long time. But his eyes were drawn away from hers and down very soon.
The rumors he'd heard were true. Hinata was pregnant. She looked almost ready to explode, but from the smell of her, she still had at least a month and a half to go before birth could be possible. Smell…the smell of the child was something familiar to him. Kiba took in a deep breath, his mind attempting to sort out the myriad of scents on the street, to sift out only the ones that belonged to Hinata. There was that clean, lightly flowery smell that he'd always known was a special soap she formulated herself, along with a little sweat and something that reminded him of the way a person smelled when they were afraid. But beneath that, he scented a pulse of chakra, it smelled like Hinata's, but different, as well. Partially sharp, like ozone, yet earthy and warm, it confused Kiba to no end. "When…" he began, trying to sort out all of the thoughts in his head, without really knowing what he asked.
Hinata was looking straight ahead now, her face unreadable. She said quietly, "It was that night…but I don't know if it was you, or if…it doesn't matter."
Suddenly, it all made sense. Remembering the talk he'd had with Shino, and the state Neji had been in when he came to Kiba's house to attack him…he understood. Even more than that, there was Hinata's smell. That alone was proof enough. A low growl rose in the back of his throat. "Hinata," he said around that growl, "I want you to drop me off at the hospital, and go home. You must rest."
Her brow furrowed, angry indignation edging her voice, "You have no right to order me around, Kiba."
One of his eyebrows rose as he replied in a nearly sneering tone, "I have every right. You carry my child, and you will take care of yourself." Hinata gasped in disbelief, but they both knew that he was right. Kiba's nose was rarely wrong. He heard his voice take on a steely edge, reminding him much of his mother. "When you have reached your home, you will send for a medic. Shizune is probably the best for the job. Have her perform whatever tests are necessary to confirm the paternity of the child, if you must. Inform Neji. By law, I am well within my rights to do anything and everything necessary to protect the life you have growing inside you."
Now Hinata's face became a thunderhead. "Now look—"
"Hinata," came a low, familiar voice from the northwest. Both Kiba and Hinata looked to the left, to find Neji, travel-worn and spattered with blood, staring placidly at them. Kiba knew better. The surface of a pond, no matter how glassy, was wont to conceal hidden currents. One dark, slender eyebrow rose, regarding the wounded man for a moment. "Kiba."
He felt Hinata shift against him as she said, "I'll be home in a while. Kiba's hurt, and needs to get to the hospital."
Neji gave a small shake of his head before moving swiftly over to them. He looped Kiba's arm over his own shoulders and gently pulled him from Hinata's grasp. "No," he murmured, "you must go home. Rest." For a long moment, she stood rooted to the spot, and Kiba watched her glance back and forth between him and her husband. Finally, she nodded. After a short farewell to them both, she turned and began walking slowly back in the direction of her home. Neji was silent for at least the first five minutes. During that time, Kiba could feel a static electricity tingle running up and down his spine. The other man was holding onto his chakra. Did he really expect some kind of attack? Kiba was very sorry to disappoint, but he was pretty sure he couldn't muster enough chakra to scratch his nose at the moment.
"Is it true?" the taller man asked finally, his voice tight, and obviously expecting the worst.
Kiba turned his head, tilting it upward. There was a tense set to Neji's jaw, and the frown he wore was not encouraging. Even if the answer were to provoke an attack, he knew better than to attempt lying to this man. "Yes." For an instant, almost white eyes squeezed shut, before opening once again, unreadable in their opaque vastness. "What will you do?"
Another long silence followed, but Kiba felt much more at ease for some reason. He had some claim over her, now.
"By our clan law," Neji said suddenly, enunciating his words slowly, carefully, "Hinata has the right to choose which of us she prefers. It is her privilege as the heir to the leadership of the clan." In that same tone, he said, "I wish I could kill you."
"I know," Kiba replied, because he really did.
"She's my wife, Kiba."
"And now," the dark-eyed man said softly, "She's mine, too." By the laws of his clan, Hinata was his wife. There were a few women in the early days of the village's history that had married several men. Clans did this to vary gene pools, or to adopt traits that were thought of as more favorable and refine their fighters. The practice had fallen out of favor since his grandmother's time, but it was not unheard of even now.
Neji stopped, chakra crackling around him in tight, regulated patterns. "I will not share her with you."
"That is not for you to decide, Neji. If Hinata cannot choose between us, then I'll just ask the Hokage. She's got final say, even in these matters. You're aware of that, surely." No matter how angry Neji was, there was no way for him to get around the fact that the other man was completely correct.
Hyuuga Neji was a very patient man. But there were some things for which he had very little tolerance. One such was being lied to. "Shizune-san," he murmured, trying to stave off a headache, "you must be mistaken. Please try again." The woman huffed slightly, looking extremely affronted, but sat down once again. Her hands came to rest on Hinata's abdomen, and she concentrated her chakra. A cool green glow surrounded the two women in the half-dark of the room. She took several moments, probing at the growing bulge in Hinata's kimono.
Finally, she stood. "I am telling you, she is having two babies, Neji."
Nodding, he pressed once again. "And the other issue?"
"It is just as I told you before. The two have different chakras. You could probably look for yourself." Shizune was becoming exasperated, it seemed. He supposed that it would not harm anything if he were to activate his Byakugan and look at the children. Once the chakra flowed through his retinal nerves, and he had taken the split second that was needed to focus, Neji trained his gaze on his wife's abdomen.
There they were. Two tiny, perfect little beings, suspended inside her. Looking closer, he examined the chakra and pathways of the children. One seemed to have a wild, uncontrolled edge to its energy. It felt very much like being in Kiba's presence. Then there was the other child. Slightly smaller than the other, this one had a serene glow surrounding its entire body, flowing evenly from all tenketsu. He knew the feel of this chakra, and it was strange, as if he were looking into a mirror.
"It is mine," he breathed, blinking for a moment to wet his eyes. "But how—"
Shizune coughed, interrupting him. "It is not my place to be here when such topics are discussed. I am decently certain that you understand the process of conception and the notion of timing, Neji. Now, if I am quite dismissed?" He nodded for a moment, distracted by the sight of his child floating there, within Hintata's womb. The door shut behind the woman, and Neji knelt before his wife, who had been silent the entire time.
His hand reached out, almost unbidden, and caressed the soft cloth draped over her stomach. When had his fingers begun to shake? He lessened the effect of his Byakugan, and saw the features of his child. It was a little boy, with a strong nose, and though still only mostly formed, seemed to have a determined jaw. "He…he looks like me." But then his eyes strayed to the other child. This baby was a girl; her closed eyes possessing a feral sort of slant. Apart from this, the child looked very much like Hinata. "She—"
"Please," he heard her say, "don't say. I know you must hate her, Neji." Suddenly surprised, he allowed his Byakugan to slip away. When Neji looked up to meet her eyes, he was shocked to see tears streaming down her face.
"Hinata—" He reached out to her, but she shied away.
"Don't touch me!" Hinata cried, standing so quickly that Neji was forced to stagger back from the chair in which she had been seated. Her face was red and blotchy as she continued her half-controlled sobbing. "D-Don't come near me!"
Neji felt a stabbing pain in his chest, his heart beginning to beat faster. Hinata was frightened. He could feel it. It was strange that she could not feel; could not understand what he felt at the moment. Then, if she could not understand from whatever connection existed between them, perhaps he should explain. "I could never hate any child that is part of you."
Her eyes grew wide, round with shock, and this only seemed to make her cry harder. "I hate…" she began, her eyes squeezing shut, one hand groping behind her at the wall until she found it to lean on. "I hate this." Hinata slid down the wall, sitting on the floor in a heap. Her eyes opened, glaring up at him accusingly. "I hate it."
"What?" He asked, "What do you hate?"
Hinata wiped at her face with her palm, and held her hand up. "This," she said through clenched teeth as her entire body began to shake. "I hate this. Why can't I stop it? I haven't cried in…not since…" Her breathing suddenly became ragged, increasing in speed until she let out a howling wail that pierced his ears. "No! I can't do this again! No…no…" Her head shook from one side to another, as if she were trying desperately to clear it. Neji could do nothing but look on as some sort of battle raged within her. What did she mean? He reached out again, his fingers touching her cheek. Hinata flinched, but made no move away from him.
"Hinata," Neji began, his voice quiet, but firm, "I will never hate any child you have. While she is not mine," he paused slightly, steeling himself, and then began again. "While she is not mine, I give you my word that no harm will come to her."
Her voice was small when she replied, "I…you can't promise me that. She will be what she will be."
Wiping away her tears, Neji smiled gently. "I know," he said patiently, "but she is yours. And you will make her beautiful, in body and soul. No child that comes from you could be anything else." Hinata's trembling worsened until she finally collapsed into his arms, her tears soaking his shirt. Gripping handfuls of the dark fabric, she cried shaking violently. The door slid open, and one of their great-aunts stepped in, looking inquisitively at him, with a tinge of worry creasing her brow. Neji gave her a small shake of his head and jerked his chin at the doorway, indicating that this was private, and he would appreciate it if she would leave.
The older woman backed out, inclining her head respectfully. She would not speak of this to anyone. He returned his focus to Hinata. He knew what she meant when she said she had not cried in years. It had been long since Naruto's death, and all of her fear, her sadness, it had stayed locked away. Perhaps this newest fissure in her mask would break it for good, or so he hoped. He missed the Hinata that used to be. Inside her, he could feel the emotions warring with one another, and the frantic scramble for control as she tried to rein them in.
"Let it go," he whispered into her hair. "Let all of the pain go, Hinata." Shaking in a nearly uncontrollable manner, Hinata raised her head. Her eyes were rimmed in red, and swollen. "We love you," Neji murmured as he placed a hand on her belly, "We all love you. Let us take care of you, and heal you." He hoped desperately that she could be healed of her most painful wounds. The injuries she'd sustained over the years must have festered in her heart, spreading to infect every part of her. It would be up to him, and their child, to bring back the woman he'd fallen in love with all those years ago.
"What about…" her voice trailed off for a long moment. Hinata seemed unable to speak as she looked up at him, some strange kind of fear in her eyes. Finally looking away, she asked quietly, "What about Kiba?" Neji's heart felt as if it had turned to lead in his chest at the way her voice trembled. There was something deep inside her that felt different when she thought of Kiba, and for a moment he cursed the connection they shared. He did not want to feel that.
Kiba.
Yes…what about Kiba? Neji would have liked nothing better than to say that Kiba would have to simply deal with the fact that Hinata was his wife. He would have loved to say that Kiba could take a flying leap off of the tallest mountain. But Neji knew very well that he could not. So it was with a heavy heart that he replied, "We will follow the law. I will not harm him, if that is your wish." How he wished he could kill him…to beat him until the blood flowed, and breath stopped. But as much as he hated Kiba, he could not bear the sadness in Hinata's eyes in that instant before he said those words. All he wanted was to see her smile again, like she used to. If Kiba could make that happen, then so be it.
A/N: Did you like? I guess there's one more chapter in me on this one. Please review, and let me know how you like it.