A/N: Finally, I've finished my first story. It actually feels kinda nice. I always have different ideas for stories in my head, and now I'm actually getting on of them down on paper! Well, sort of. Anyway, I'm not gonna waste time with a long author's note here. I'm just going to say that, if you haven't read the previous chapters, or if you want to read the disclaimer (why you would, I don't know), than go back to chapter 1 and start from there. Otherwise, you'll know who the '?' in 'Naruto x ?' from the summary is before you're supposed to. Seriously, it's like cheating on a board game, and where's the fun in that? And now, without further ado, the story begins/ends.
Time To Think Ch. 4: Talking
They didn't have a special place or anything. There was nowhere that had any sort of important memories for them. If anything, that place would have been Naruto's apartment. That was where pretty much all of their firsts happened, from waking up together for the first time to their first real kiss. It was also where they had first tried having sex, opting for the greater privacy it provided rather than the crowded Inuzuka residence. Unfortunately, they were already at Naruto's apartment, and they both needed time to think of what they wanted to say to each other. So, they just started walking aimlessly, both in very uncharacteristic silence.
As they wandered through the village, Naruto tried to make small talk, asking Kiba about his mission. Apparently, the bandits that they were supposed to find and capture were hardly even worth calling bandits. Team 8 didn't even have to track them down. The so-called robbers attacked them full force on their way to the village in the Land of Waves, not even noticing the leaf headbands all four of them were wearing.
"And seriously, these guys were weak. I mean even Konohamaru could have taken them on." Both of them laughed at that for a few minutes, before dying down into another awkward silence. Eventually, they managed to wander near the training grounds, and caught Naruto caught sight of the memorial stone.
Naruto's face softened and he approached the stone, Kiba following suit. Naruto stared at the names listed there. The names of shinobi who had died for the safety and ideals of the village.
Kiba watched as Naruto slowly crouched down next to the stone and pointed to one corner of the stone. "Here." Kiba didn't get what his blond was trying to say, so he looked at where he was pointing. An understanding expression appeared on his face as soon as he read one of the surnames on the stone: 'Umino.' Iruka's parents.
"This whole section here is for the names of those lost in the Kyuubi attack," Naruto continued, his eyes never leaving the list. "All of these people died, because of the thing inside of me."
Both boys were silent for a minute, and then Kiba walked away from the stone and sat down on the rim of the platform that it was placed upon, motioning for Naruto to join him. The blond complied, and both began staring off into space, waiting for the other to begin the inevitable discussion that they were both dreading. Kiba spoke first. "I ran into Sakura when I got back. She was pissed."
Naruto gave a slight nod. "Sorry about that. I've been spending a lot of time with her since you left." He had enough pride to not mention that he had been crying during most of that time.
"S'alright. When did ya tell her?"
Naruto knew what he meant. "When we were rescuing Gaara. She's been with me since we became genin. She deserved to know more than anyone else." He finally turned his head to face the man he had come to love. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell all you guys sooner. I…I was just afraid I'd wind up all alone again. Besides, I didn't know if I could tell you. It's forbidden-"
"To talk about the fact that the fox was sealed inside of you," Kiba finished for him. "I know. Kurenai-sensei told me."
Naruto's eyes widened. Kiba had talked to Kurenai about this? It sort of made sense, though. Kiba's teacher knew more details about the fox's attack than even Naruto did, and of course Kiba would need to talk to someone about what had happened between the lovers before he and his team had left. Another thought crossed Naruto's mind; if Kiba had told Kurenai about the Kyuubi, then did he…
Kiba seemed to know what Naruto was thinking, because the next thing he said was, "Yeah, Hinata and Shino know too. Sorry 'bout that. All three of them had been on me 'bout how depressed I was. They wouldn't drop it, and I just kinda blurted it out." Kiba scratched the back of his head nervously. "Although, it got a big reaction out of Shino. Seriously, I've never seen his jaw drop before. You woulda loved it." Kiba chucked a little, until he saw that Naruto wasn't as amused. "…Sorry."
"It's alright." Clearly, it wasn't, but Naruto wasn't really mad at Kiba for this. He should've known that Kiba wouldn't be able to keep quiet, especially as his teammates and teacher are probably some of the most insightful shinobi in the village. They would have been able to tell that something was wrong, and like Kiba said, they wouldn't back off until they knew what was bothering the dog-nin that they all cared for. They were also the least likely to spread Naruto's secret around the village. Besides, Kiba was right; Naruto would've given an arm to see Shino's face.
Naruto forced his train of thought to get back on track and asked, "What did she say? Kurenai, I mean."
"Pretty much everything that you told me. How the Fourth gave his life to seal the fox in you, and why the Akatsuki was after you. She gave it in more detail, though." Naruto gave a slight grunt. It wasn't as if there was any more to it. "She told me something else, though." Or maybe there was. But what else was there to add? Naruto had been sure to tell Kiba everything about the demon already. He looked at Kiba with confusion in his eyes, silently asking for him to continue.
Kiba looked back and answered the unasked question. "She told me why you were always alone when we were younger. How everyone treated you like a monster, even though you hadn't done anything."
Oh, that. Naruto hadn't mentioned that part of his life to Kiba before, even during his confession before Kiba had left. It wasn't as if he ever meant to keep that from him. It was just that he had all but forgotten about it. Back then, before he graduated, Naruto was sad and angry, and wanted desperately to be acknowledged by his peers and neighbors. Over time, though, even though he hadn't told them about the kitsune, he had finally made friends and had been accepted by the majority of the village. Now, Naruto had finally felt as if he belonged here, and had put all of his childhood depression behind him, and just didn't think about it anymore.
Now, though, as he saw the guilt and pity that was written all over Kiba's face, he began to think that maybe he should have told him. Maybe Kiba would have understood him better. Maybe Kiba understood now. Maybe…
Not wanting to wait to find out, he asked his boyfriend straight to his face, "So, what did you think?"
Kiba looked away again before he responded. "To be honest, I didn't know what to think. Don't get me wrong; I know that you're not the fox. You're kind and compassionate, and even when you're on a mission, ya always try to capture the enemy instead of kill them. That's not something the kitsune would do. Hell, it'd just level 'em, and everything else in ten kilometers.
"Still, I'm not gonna lie to you and say that it's all okay. I know it's not your fault, Naruto, but I'm scared of that thing. I'm afraid that I'm gonna wake up one day, an' it'll take you over an' kill me. I'm afraid that you'll lose control, an' wipe out the whole village. I know that none of that's your fault, Naruto, but I can't change how I feel about it."
After Kiba finished, Naruto chocked back his tears, only giving a quiet "I see." He didn't know how he should feel. A part of him wanted to yell at and pummel Kiba for breaking his heart like this. Another part understood what Kiba was going through. All of Kiba's fears were his as well, and they had plagued him ever since that bastard Mizuki told him the truth so many years ago. Not wanting to break down in front of his apparently ex-boyfriend, Naruto got up and began to leave the training grounds. He took about five steps before he heard Kiba shout, "I talked to Hinata, too."
Naruto turned around in surprise. What else could Kiba have to say? Mentioning Hinata brought it's own share of surprise as well. After they had started publicly dating, their relationships with the Hyuuga heiress had become somewhat strained. She wasn't angry with them, per say (she was far too kind to be angry with anyone for long), but she couldn't help but feel a bit betrayed for the fact that her love interest was dating her teammate. She and Kiba still functioned well as a team, mind you, but they seemed to have lost the sibling-like affection that they had once shared.
Kiba, still sitting on the rim of the platform, continued. "She pulled me aside the day after I talked with Kurenai-sensei. I told her what I just told you. Then, she reminded me of somethin' I forgot a while ago."
Kiba stood up now, and looked at Naruto with a solemn smile. The blond just looked back at him, perplexed. Where exactly was Kiba going with this?
Kiba continued on with his speech. "When we first graduated the academy, and were put in teams, Hinata was even less confident than she was when you met her again at the chunnin exams. After all the intimidation that her father and that bastard Neji put her through, she was a nervous wreck. She still thought that she could never be strong enough to impress anyone.
"Now, I liked her. She was cute, sweet, an' caring. The first day of training, she even brought us all rice balls to eat. When we started training, though, Kurenai-sensei had us spar right off the bat. I wanted to impress them all, so I wasn't gonna hold back, an' I got right into my man-beast transformation and down-on-all-fours technique. Next thing I knew, Hinata was screaming an' fainted. After that, she was too scared to even get close to me. I felt like crap for it. She was this sweet, innocent little girl, an' she was fuckin'afraid of me."
Kiba paused for a second, his fists clenched and his mouth in an angry snarl. Naruto recognized that look. He had been staring at it in the mirror ever since his brunette left. It was a look of self-loathing, of wanting to punish himself for what he did to the person he cared for.
Kiba relaxed his face and hands, and once again a smile returned to his face, this one a little brighter than the last. He then continued with his story. "Then, one day, she started talkin' to me. She asked me about training Akamaru, an' how I could speak with him, an' what it was like having an older sister. She was fidgeting the whole time, but she kept talkin' with me every day, an' as time passed she opened up a bit more. She told me about how messed up her home was, an' how she always looked up to ya. Course, I thought she was nuts for thinkin' that you were so cool, but you know how I felt about ya back then. Anyway, eventually, it got to the point where she wasn't afraid of me at all, an' when I first figured out how to transform into that two-headed wolf, Shino was more scared than she was.
"After she reminded of this, she told me why she had started talkin' to me in the first place. She said that the reason was that she didn't know me at all, an' she didn't want to keep away from me just 'cause she was afraid. It wasn't fair to either one of us, because she could miss out on meeting someone worth knowing, someone that could make her smile, just because she was afraid of 'em. She told me that she thought that my fear now was the same as hers was back then."
After Kiba finished the story, he reset his stance, and looked at Naruto with strength shinning in his eyes. Naruto stared back, his own eyes wide in fascination, and his body filling with hope. Kiba began to approach Naruto, talking as he did so. "But this ain't the same as back then. Back then, Hinata didn't know me at all. She just hoped that I was a good person, so she didn't let her fear get in the way of findin' out. But I already know you. I know that you're kind, caring an' innocent, yet you're strong, an' brave enough to stare down even Orochimaru. I know that you can be an idiot an' cocky an' an ass sometimes, an' even that drives me crazy 'bout you. I know that you're probably the best thing that's ever happened to me, an' I'll be damned before I'll let my stinkin' fear get in the way of that!"
Naruto was choking on his own tears again by the time Kiba reached him, but now for a different reason. He knew what Kiba was about to say. He could tell from everything that he had just heard, and how Kiba's voice sounded. He could see it in his face, the emotion pulsing in the dog-nin's thin, beast-like eyes. Still he needed to hear the words. He needed to confirm how Kiba felt.
The brunette grasped his blonde's arms to make sure he was paying attention, and said, "Naruto, I love you, an' fox or no fox, I wanna be with you the rest of my life."
Almost immediately after Naruto heard this, he broke down and pulled his body into Kiba's. He wrapped his arms tightly around the brunette's torso, and buried his face in his shoulder, sobbing into his leather jacket. Kiba was surprised by the sudden movement, but quickly returned the embrace, just as if not tighter than Naruto's.
"Man, you really are a crybaby, aren't ya," he said, now with much more levity in his voice.
Naruto pulled away to look at his brunette again. "Shut up! It's okay to cry when you're happy." He sounded angry, but he had a blush of embarrassment tinting his cheeks.
Kiba smiled, and then looked a little apologetic. "Sorry that I just left ya like that. I didn't mean to hurt you, I just needed a little time to think, is all."
Naruto shook his head. "It's okay. I'm just glad you're back, and that you're not leaving."
They both smiled, and pulled each other into a kiss. Maybe it was because of the moment, and all of the intense emotion it had stirred, or simply because he hadn't made out with anyone for a whole week, and felt a little needy. Whatever the reason, Naruto felt as if this was the most passionate kiss that the two of them had ever shared together. He felt this thought, and all his thoughts for that matter, slip away as Kiba's tongue entered his mouth. Naruto got back on task to what was important.
Kissing Kiba.
Kissing his Kiba.
Kissing the man that was, and always would be, his.
THE END
A/N: And they lived happily ever after. Yeah, I know, it's sappy, but to be honest I can only really give happy endings. My psyche won't allow for me to write a sad one. After all, the realm of reality is filled with depressing stories, so shouldn't the realm of fiction be where we can escape from that?
Anyways, this story is done, and now that you've read the whole thing (I hope), please review. I'm actually kind of worried about this chapter, and its quality compared to the previous ones. So let me know how I did, everything from how I laid out and progressed the story, to if I kept the characters in character. I still want to know if I should change the keywords or not, too (for explanation, see the closing notes in the last chapter).
As for me, I'm gonna lay back and enjoy a nice feeling of accomplishment. I am going to write again, and it probably will be another KibaNaru. I've got two different ideas, actually, and I'm trying to decide which one to use. So, then, see ya later!