Surrogate

"Shino-sensei, c'mon!  Hurry!"  Amaya cried out and pulled on the man's sleeves to follow.  



"What's going on?!" Shino pulled back to still the girl as his elderly aunt came to help calm the preteen.  



"Hachi-sensei!  Eiji-san's fighting with her about you!  The police are there, but they won't stop it!"  she yelled out, pointing to the training forest.  



The kikaichū went into a frenzy under his skin.  "Stay here!"  he commanded and made haste to where Amaya directed, leaving the genin and his aunt behind.  

*  



Instantly, the kunoichi went limp and collapsed as Eiji knocked her down on her back.  His knee landed on her chest and the crack of bones echoed through the woods.  The officers of the stake-out had readiness riddled on their features, but Tatsuma's fist did not open with the signal.  The men held their position.  They needed him to say it...clearly and unmistakably.  



The raging man grabbed her by the throat and squeezed, "I'd kill Hōki and Dai all over again if I had to!  Can't get that Aburame with the poison, so I'll just have to get rid of you...I'll be damned if I let that fucking freak show take you from me!"  



Tatsuma's fist finally opened.  A swift kick sent the chūnin flying off of his paralyzed teammate.  Looking around confused, Eiji's eyes took in the sight of an MP first responder wrapping a neck brace around the kunoichi.  He quickly departed with her body as Tatsuma's black cloak advanced Eiji faster than he could blink.  



"Petenshi Eiji," Tatsuma announced in a merciless tone, "You are under arrest for the murders of Tsushima Hōki and Aihara Daikatana, conspiracy to murder Aburame Shino, and the attempted murder of Tamechia Hachi."  



Eiji scrambled from the ANBU-nin and turned to run, only to find the other two MP's flanking him from behind.  His fingers still infused with his ninjutsu, Eiji sprang and grappled one of the officers by the leg.  The jōnin buckled to his knees and the chūnin left him with a kunai sunk in between his armour and collarbone.  A swarm of kikaichū quickly tailed behind with the other MP.  Seeing the insects at his heels, Eiji summoned a fireball jutsu, incinerating the the cloud of beetles.  



A wall of water quickly extinguished the inferno and from it emerged the jōnin officer readying another jutsu.  Eiji dashed through the ice-coated trees as fast as he could.  Before the brown-eyed man could react, the sunlight darkened and a heavy weight landed between his shuriken-impaled shoulders.  Tatsuma plummeted himself and the fugitive to the ground and in one fell swoop, the flash of the Aburame's tanto plunged into the back of Eiji's neck.  The MP caught up to the pair with features aghast at the execution.  The chūnin's corpse twitched as Tatsuma held the back of his ash-blonde hair and jerked the blade free.  



The Aburame turned to his squad member.   "Quickly...take Kuro-san to the ER...call a forensics team and coroner."  he instructed calmly.  



The jōnin silently nodded, his face riddled with worry.  As Tatsuma's teammate rushed for the wounded, the Aburame simply stood motionless; staring at the body before him with no remorse.  Not long after, another set of running steps found him there in the same manner.  



"Stop!" Tatsuma ordered just Shino was about step on a blood spatter.  



The younger Aburame man backed his footing away from the red stained snow.   "He's dead..." Shino's tone was thoroughly livid.  



Tatsuma nodded, still studying the corpse.  "Yes.  Mind the crime scene, itoko-san."  



"Where is she?"  Shino asked, trying to quell his anger.  



"She should be in the emergency room by now." the older answered flatly.  



He wasn't there to stop it...he didn't protect her when she needed him...and now this.  Clenching his fist, Shino hesitated in his departure...he wanted answers...but he needed to see Hachi more.  With that priority in mind, he left his older cousin without a word.  



*  



He walked down the hall of the emergency room in a silent panic and tried to harness how his breathing seemed to amplify in his head.  The colony was growing anxious with his thoughts as it became clearer to all within him why they were in a state of such mysterious distress.  It seemed the surrogacy contract indeed gave the kikaichū a weak telepathic link to the kunoichi Shino was currently seeking.  He calmed his thoughts and keened his ears as he searched the ER.    



Pregnancy complications...male locked in a genjutsu...an MP had just been rolled out to the OR...he then heard Uchiha Sakura directing a team of residents a few rooms down.  Shino's blood started going cold.  



"Note the petechiae forming opposite of where facial injury was inflicted with a right-handed strike, what does that tell us?" the pink-haired medic questioned.  



The resident fumbled for an answer, "Um...trauma, or...asphyxia...likely strangulation..."  



"Good.  Use your chakra to inspect the airways and blood vessels.  Open up any obstructions you find."  



"Yes, sensei!"  



"Sensei, no signs of cranial trauma." another reported.  



"How are we on the paralysis jutsu?" Sakura questioned.  



"There's no trace of chakra strings...but the receptors are misfiring all over the place."  



"Just keep redirecting the pathways."  Sakura encouraged, "Don't rush it.  Take it one at a time and break as soon as you need to...we can't afford mistakes."  



Shino reached the doorway, his fear confirmed.  Hachi lay sprawled on the gurney;  Sakura had her hands unraveling the ninjutsu from her patient's head, a resident taking the same method to the right shoulder.  One other resident had chakra glowing against Hachi's neck brace.  A third resident ceasing her treatment.  



"Ribs are patched, sensei."  



Sakura nodded and leaned over her patient's face, "Hear that, Hachi?  You doing great.  We'll get you moving again in no time." she smiled at the drowsy eyes watching her.  



Shino walked in silently just before a nurse pushed past him.  "Move, please!" the red-headed man ordered.  



The unoccupied resident looked up to see the academy teacher watching the team, "Hey!  You can't be in here!  Who--" the young doctor was stopped when Sakura's hand cupped him by the shoulder.  



"I'll handle it.  Get the morphine ready.  I want her out as soon as we've restored critical nerve function."  The pink-haired medic ordered.  



Shino didn't remove his gaze from the patient as Sakura addressed him.  "Shino-san, is there something you need?"  



A long pause spaced the two peers and Sakura began to wonder if the Aburame was intruding for treatment of his own.  



"She's my friend..." he answered with little emotion, but Sakura knew he wasn't lacking in concern.  



A gentle hand came to the academy teacher's back and began to guide him away.  "Shino...I'm sorry...but you need to stay in the waiting room.  She's going to be fine."  



"...She's in good hands with you, Sakura-san." commented blankly...almost as if to reassure himself.  



Sakura nodded and ushered him out.  "I'll call you back as soon as we're done."  



*  



It had only been several minutes in the hushed atmosphere of the waiting room, but it may as well have been hours for the kikaichū host.  He stared at the tiled floor, head resting on his laced fingers, listening to the stresses of some of his symbionts while others tried to comfort him in their own way.  Shino felt a great difficulty in not blaming himself, despite having no fault to claim.  Footsteps quietly advanced him and two pairs of sandal-garbed feet stopped, facing his line of sight.  Shino straightened his posture and stood to bow, but the MP motioned him to stay seated.  



Tatsuma took his seat with the jōnin MP across from Shino.  "Itoko-san, we need to ask you some questions."  



"No objections here."  Shino replied coldly and requested his colony's silence.  



Tatsuma nodded as the MP beside him took over, "How long have you known Petenshi Eiji-san and Tamechia Hachi-san?"  



"I have known Hachi-san for two years, two months."  he carefully reinstated honorifics.  "Petenshi-san, one year and seven months."  



"How did you meet Tamechia-san?"  the jōnin MP probed.  



"Through the academy.  I teach the entrance courses, she teaches advanced kunoichi studies."  



The MP looked up from his notepad, "Those departments are greatly unaffiliated, are they not?"  



Shino took no offense to the inquiry, "They are.  Hachi-san is the newest faculty member; she found it difficult to grasp the new academy policies and because of that, she sought my guidance."  



"You, specifically?" the MP perked and eyebrow.  



"There are wide generation gaps among the academy faculty.  I am the closest colleague to her peer group."  



"And Petenshi-san?  How did you two meet?"  



"We were acquainted through Hachi-san because he visited her at the academy regularly."  



"How regularly?"  



"...Most every time Hachi-san and I held conference after school, he would stop by." Shino detailed.  



Tatsuma then took over their questioning, "In the time you have known them, how would you describe their relationship?"  



Shino paused, "...Strained...they worked well as a team, but quarreled often when off-duty."  



"What of?" the MP pried.  



"Typically, it's either Petenshi-san's disapproval of Hachi's career choices, or when she corrected his manners."  



"Anything else that you find significant?"  Tatsuma continued.  



"...She mentioned...that is was normal for him to sit outside of her apartment while she had guests...if he wasn't invited."  



The MP's brows furrowed, but Tatsuma gave no reaction.   "Did she ever report him for such behaviour?"  the older Aburame asked with stern indifference.  



Shino paused, but wouldn't lie, "No.  She said that he had acted that way with all of their original squad since they were genin and nothing more came of it."  



As the MP wrote the lengthy explanation, Shino took the opportunity to find some answers.   "You were the one who had the kikaichū tracking them, weren't you, Tatsuma?"  the younger Aburame verbally pointed.  



The MP quickly looked-up from his notes to object, but was stayed by Tatsuma's raised hand.  "Your questions will have to wait for a later time.  Was there ever any conflict between Petenshi Eiji and yourself?"  



Shino's jaw clenched in agitation.  "Petenshi-san never confronted me with any animosity until after the mission."  



"...But you cannot deny that there was no animosity."  



Shino considered his position carefully before answering.  He wasn't a suspect in Eiji's murder; the ANBU questioning him was more than likely the culprit there.  The younger Aburame had not done anything that could have him thrown under the bus, but Tatsuma was correct that he could not deny the scuffle weeks ago.  He had a far-fetched wonder if maybe Hachi would be put under the gun if he became dodgy with his words now...but he couldn't reason why that would happen.  



"Petenshi-san seemed specifically unwelcoming of my interaction with Hachi-san.  I was uncomfortable with his unannounced proximity to her home."  



"And what types of interactions did you have that upset him?"  The MP asked with a tone Shino was not at all fond of.  



"As colleagues," Shino stressed again, "we had grown to spend a great deal of time in intellectual discussion, and more as of late because a mutual student was failing her advanced training; we saw a need to combine our efforts and resolve the issue."  



"You really expect me to believe extra tutoring is what pissed him off?" the MP's remark held heavy incredulity.  



"Not the tutoring itself..." Tatsuma corrected his partner, "but the increase in interaction needed for the purpose of improving tutoring." he condensed his younger cousin's details matter-of-factly.  



Shino nodded.  "Subsequently, being assigned to their squad for an indefinite time frame seemed to strain relations even further; also when Hachi ordered Eiji to leave us behind so I could recoup my chakra."  



The MP merely nodded while his hand made the motion of a check-mark on the notepad.  With no hints of criticism or antagonizing questions following, Shino quickly connected the dots that this was likely not the first complaint they had received from an interim teammate of that particular squad.  The two officers didn't seem to be in a hurry to continue questioning and Tatsuma made no inquiry on why Eiji was ordered to leave...Shino assumed the lead detective already knew well.  Perhaps they were waiting to see if the sudden silence would unnerve him in some way.  Enough time had passed among the three of them for a proper assessment to be made before a familiar voice interrupted the men's attention.  



"Shino-san, we've had Hachi-san admitted upstairs now, so you can go see her."  Sakura smiled tiredly and turned to the MPs and bowed lightly, "I'm sorry though officers, we had to sedate her for now.  I'll review the medical reports with you while I write up the hardcopy.  So if all of you would, follow me please."  she motioned.  



*  



Visor covered eyes looked out of the window to watch the snow melt in the clean, white sunlight.  Shino had been standing the whole time he occupied the hospital room.  He couldn't move himself to observe the sedated kunoichi too long; even when Amaya came to visit, the sensei only peeled his eyes away from the window long enough to offer motivating logic to the crying genin.  Even in the ebony girl's fear, he found the opportunity to teach her...teach her that her sensei's devotion to protect her teammates was not foolish, but moreover, commendable.  Apathy for Eiji was truthfully Hachi's downfall and the Aburame man stressed the teen to always strive to better and protect her team, but also to never let complacency impair her vigilance.  



Amaya then looked down at her single white rose rather disappointed, "You think she'll like this, sensei?  I tried to find ones like the blue flowers in her house, but no one sells them...she likes the weird ones best..."  



"Coming from you, I'm sure she will value it more than any flower she's ever had." he spoke in his normal deadpan, but worded himself as comfortingly as he could.   The girl nodded in emboldened resolve and Shino didn't hesitate then to retreat to the solitude of the window.  



'She likes the weird ones best...' he noted absently, and ignored his colony's reapplication of those words to a more personal context.



Amaya herself, wasn't able to linger long before her whole squad came to her side.  The two genin boys and their captain expressed their brief condolences before taking their female teammate out to eat.  Several hours came and went and during one lengthy treatment, Sakura gave him the details of Hachi's injuries...when not feeling firm on his feet, he paced the halls occasionally to work the numbness out of his legs.   The colony threatened to block his nerves if he did not sit and rest.  Shino apologized for worrying his symbionts, but he knew their collective threat was an empty one...he couldn't work up the nerve to sit, though, despite the fact the greatest threat had been dealt with.  Hachi roused from her sedation for brief time and smiled at him, but Shino's presence was quickly replaced with more MPs and he was politely ousted into the hallway.  



He listened though...from what he gathered, they asked her a similar barrage of questions he was given before the investigation turned to the morning's altercation.   Shino's well-trained ears listened as the tale unfolded.  Hearing the kunoichi recollect the fight...and especially the argument igniting it...had his blood pumping hotly.  The puzzle was falling into place now: Shino's father mentioned that Tatsuma had been tangled up in a cold case, Amaya said the police were not helping to break up the fight, but Hachi clearly heard and saw them arrest Eiji...after he confessed to murdering their squad members.  The Aburame mentally scolded himself now.  



Had he not assumed the tracker beetles were dispatched because of Hachi, Shino would never have raised concern over the surrogacy seal and the elders would have never known she used it.  It was too late to correct his steps though...the trackers were assigned to a cold case, not to investigate the forbidden jutsu.  If not after Shino's coming forward, this recent violence certainly had the kunoichi under the Aburame clan's microscope.  Footsteps stopped just beside him, breaking the sensei out of his sabotage.  



"Sakura-chan...said she would look after the children...she said you may need to see some company."  Hinata's meek voice came with a familiar comfort, holding a small bouquet.  "Shino, I'm so sorry.  Will your friend be okay?"  



"She will be, but according to Sakura-san, the jutsu still has a strong hold.  It will take time." he spoke with more detachment than usual and Hinata picked up on it.    



Hinata frowned, "I-I thought the police killed her attacker...how is she still effected by the jutsu?"  



"Teammate." Shino corrected.  



"I don't understand..." Hinata's voice grew hushed.   Shino crossed his arms and stared at the floor.  



"Petenshi-san was not just an attacker...he was Hachi's teammate.  Mine also...for a time."  he paused at the hearing of Uzumaki matriarch's gasp.    



Darkened slits masked the bile he had to stomach back from that clarification.  "From what Sakura-san described, this kind of paralysis mimics your Gentle Fist style, though to a crude degree: Petenshi-san projected his chakra as a weapon, but since he could not detect the chakra network, his technique was not precise and only confused the signals of her nervous system.  So even though his chakra is no longer present, Hachi's neural pathways have to be redirected one by one because they are not firing correctly."  



"I hope she gets better soon.  I see her at the academy...do you two work together?"  Hinata hugged the flowers gently.



"We do." he answered with no elaboration.  



The two then fell into a silence others would find uncomfortable, but the two of Team 8 had this rapport cemented in understanding that often clashed with their extroverted Inuzuka man.  It had become almost psychic, the way he and Hinata could communicate with silence.  The Uzumaki lady smiled offering the bouquet she bore shyly, the trademark pink of her telling cheeks always managed to help Shino find lightheartedness in trying times and he quietly accepted the gift.    



The door to Hachi's room opened to empty of the three policemen and Hinata gave one last well-wish before she went back to her family.  Shino then entered just as the nurse finished injecting another round of sedatives.  Hachi stared rather numbly at the procedure, but soon had her tired eyes glancing to the door.  



"Check it oooout!"  Hachi grinned, holding her left arm up to make a peace sign as the nurse left.  



"Congratulations."  Shino replied with no vocal feeling.    



He could tell the kunoichi was hiding behind her humorous demeanor.  Looking down then at the flowers, he held out the vase to let Hachi read the card:  



'To Hachi-san and Shino-san,  



Our deepest condolences for your recent loss and hardships.  We wish you both great fortune  for your recovery and future.  



With warmest regards,  



Naruto, Hinata, Kurenai, Sakura, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Chouji, Rock Lee, Ten Ten, Sai, and Ino'     



Steel blue eyes inspected the bouquet before closing the note.  He stared at her eyes as they dropped the cheery façade...revealing something painful underneath.  



Her smile this time, was not so well practiced, "That's so nice of them...you sure have a lot of great friends."  



"A friend of mine is a friend of theirs, as Rock Lee has often encouraged.  Hinata wished you well, though she could not stay."  



"A friend of theirs, huh?" Hachi absorbed his words with great thought.  Shaking off the dark cloud threatening her mind, she turned to look at the white rose.  "Sorry to say, my student wins the flower contest."  she smirked.  



Shino huffed a breath of chuckle.  "I assumed as much.  She has be made aware."  



"Thank you."  Hachi yawned drowsily.  



Silence soon reigned in as Shino simply continued his presence and Hachi was overtaken agin by sedation.



*  



"Shino."  Sakura quietly called from the doorway.  



The academy sensei left his aimless vigil at the window to speak with the attending.  He wasn't sure exactly how long he had been standing and pacing there; he assumed it had been a great deal given the churning of his stomach and throbbing of his legs.  The kikaichū admonishing his stubborness the entire time, but the colony and the nurses held little sway in his self-punishing sequester.  Hachi was barely awake to protest so thus far, Sakura was the only one able to break him of his detachment.  The two walked into the hall before Sakura rustled through her jingling pocket.  



"I don't normally allow this, but..." the pink-haired medic retrieved a set of keys and handed it to the insect-user, "The police took all Tamechia-san's personal effects as evidence...since you're her friend, you're the closest person I can think of to collect some clean belongings for her.  You're okay with that...right?"  she grew hesitant.  



Shino looked down at the keys offered to him and returned his sight to the medic, "I believe that would be a task better appointed to her family." he replied bluntly.  



Sakura's jade eyes darted to the floor with a frown.  "Let's continue this in my office."  



Shino watched her motion him along as she walked, and though he found this whole situation out of sorts, he followed; not wanting to flare his peer's well reputed temper.  Through the quiet of the recovery ward, they made their paces downstairs, through the radiology department, and took a shortcut to an office area he had never seen in any of his days occupying the hospital.  Unlocking a door baring the famous kunoichi's name, Sakura invited Shino into her cluttered office.  Still restless, the tall man didn't bother taking a seat.  



Sakura slouched down into her computer chair, still holding the keys, "Shino, I'm asking you to gather her things and not her kin, because she has no family here."  



"No relatives can be messaged?" he prodded, only to hear under his skin what sounded like exasperation from his symbionts.  



Sakura shook her head.  "No one knows who her family is or where to locate them.  No ID prior to her academy enrollment.  No birth certificate.  And before you ask, no; this isn't like Sarada's situation."    



Shino expressed no surprise, though this was clearly news to him, "She's not a Konoha native...not even by lineage?"  



"She is a citizen, through the foster care system, but she was never adopted." the medic explained while tapping Hachi's file on the corner of her desk.  "Her pediatric record only goes back as far as—what they could guess—three years of age.  Her squad members had always prepped for her discharge before, but..." her confident voice failed to continue the sentence.  "The DNA tests never turned-up anything eith, before you ask."  



The academy threw in what he thought would be a option, "She has a surname—"  



"Fabricated.  The guards that found her that gates named her."  



Shino stood motionless, saying nothing as he took in the unexpected information.  



Sakura turned a critical side-glance to his silence.  "Shino, I wouldn't bother you with this if there was anyone else to turn to.  I'm not allowed to do it myself.  Hell, I shouldn't even be telling you any of this...so do me a favor and don't make my job any harder than it has to be, please."  her fingers massaged the space between her knitted eyebrows.  



"It's not a bother." He assured.  "She is my friend, as you said.  I didn't want to create conflict if she did have any relations."  



Sakura gave a tired smile and stood-up.  Passing the keys to the kikaichū master, she held her hands on her hips, nodding with approval.  "She's lucky to have a guy as caring as you."  the medic grinned mischievously.  



Shino physically lurched-away from the comment and the colony fell into jittery anticipation.  "Sakura-san, I think you misunderstand—"  



"Yeah, yeah.  You're 'friends.'  I get it." the jade-eyed woman waved off with obvious sarcasm.  "Remember, nothing we said leaves this office."  she ushered him out with a sly smile.  "And Shino..."  



He turned to see the grin still plastered on her features.  "...Go eat something before I put you on the feeding tube list.  Goodnight!" she waved and shut the office door.  



Shino found himself left very uncomfortably out in the hall.  An all new distress hit his stomach with the playful threat and he sighed in defeat; the kikaichū went about their chattering with no signs of giving it a rest.  Looking down at the keys he knew good and well some of their conversation would not stay in that office as promised.  Resigning to the fact that Ino would soon hear misinformation from her best friend, the Aburame man made his way out through the visitor entrance.  At first touch of feet to the snow, he launched off to the rooves and made his way to Hachi's apartment.  



* 



Shino looked down into the dresser drawers...he hadn't a clue about assembling female fashion.  Sighing for the simpler route, he extracted the pieces for a few jonin uniforms, and tried his best to match up some of the more comfortable underwear.  He figured, amidst the assortment of lingerie, that the sportier bras and boy-shorts would suffice; attractive as she was, he wasn't out to help Hachi win beauty pageants tonight.  Entering the bathroom was much more decipherable, to Shino's delight.    



The kunoichi didn't appear to have the clutter of beauty products he'd seen with other women; with ease, he procured the hygienics that Sakura listed off.  Checking the closet for anything he may have missed he sighed to find a bounty of lipsticks, wigs, and other makeup hiding behind the door.  Well, he couldn't fault her for it...in fact, the way she sequestered the cosmetics away had the chūnin guessing she only kept this stock for work.  



Through the tint of his eye wear he pondered the living room and stopped at a bookcase; wondering if the kunoichi would want reading material.  Scanning the collection, he noticed a rather worn out spine on one book and curiosity beckoned him to see the volume she frequented.  'Kunoichi Seduction Arts - Anthropological Digest Volume X: Contraceptive and STI Prevention Seals' it read.  Flipping briefly through the sidebar statistics and many visual aids, Shino soon had little wonder left why Hachi used sex as a last resort.  



Cringing a bit, he returned the book went back to searching...a foraging guide caught his specific interest: that was something he'd been meaning to brush up on.  He made a note to ask the kunoichi's lending of it before settling on a poetry compendium to pack for the hospital.  Making one last study of any needed upkeep, Shino found the borrachero tree was still safely encased in the self-humidifying terrarium.  He thought maybe the strange sea holly plant may need watering, but it seemed sturdy and content in the dry sand of its pot.  Idly, he watched a young spider hiding in its home of the spiny blue bracts.    



'Misumena Vatia...what is your name, little one?'  Shino greeted telepathically and fast had the arachnid's undivided attention.    



Nodding acknowledgement of the tiny carnivore's chosen moniker, the Aburame man held out his finger on a bract of the plant, 'That is a strong name.  This real estate does indeed look inviting, but I assure you there is little food to be had here.  You're welcome to come with me if you wish; I'll see to it that you have a more beneficial homestead.'  



Fiddling with its pedipalps, the spider eventually accepted the invitation and crawled underneath the insect-user's sleeve.  



*  



The Aburame man surmised there was no rush to return so he detoured to the clan's main house.  Finding a vacant terrarium already flourishing with an aster, Shino encouraged his traveling companion to take claim of the accommodations.  The dark-haired shinobi watched as the spider eagerly set about blending its colors to the purple blossom.  The host then respectfully asked his colony if any were ready to retire.  



One drone who had long lived past his expectancy volunteered.  Mentally, Shino and weary beetle briefly recounted their fond memories before workers helped usher the elder out of an open pore.  No longer strong enough to fly, Shino held out a finger to an aster leaf for the kikaichū.  



'I request that you do not toy with him...he has been a good friend.' The Aburame teacher addressed the new arrival and received a confirmation of promise.  'The garden will be open to your disposal after winter.'  Shino concluded with the delighted arachnid and left before the drone became repurposed.  



The colony busied-on and did not express sadness over the death as their host did, but they understood his sentiments.  A familiar barking in the distance caught the academy teacher's attention though, and before Kiba came in yelling throughout the halls, Shino cut through the courtyard and over the roof to meet his squad mates.  The familiar sight of the canine duo sniffing out the sensei's trail had the three crossing paths in no time.  Akamaru grunted in a playful tone a slowly approach to sniff the kikaichū host.  



Kiba smirked as he watched Shino greet the elderly dog with a chin-scratching.  "Couldn't find you at the hospital, but we tracked you quick enough.  C'mon, let's grab a bite."  



"I'm not hungry."  Shino denied.  



"Liar." Kiba snorted, "Sakura ratted you out.  Now quit your mopin' and c'mon.  You won't be worth a damn to that girl of yours if you starve yourself."  



Shino visibly clenched at the remark and lowered his head indignantly.  The Inuzuka man always had a talent for striking the teacher's nerves.  The colony vocalized a rather loud agreement with the ninken trainer and began to nag at their host.  Nudged along by Akamaru, Shino gave in to the majority and followed his team out of the compound into night-lighted village streets.



*  



Ichiraku gleaming with warm light as Akamaru gnawed on leftover stock bones.  The two men dug into their bountiful bowls...Shino considerably less attentive to his meal, much to Kiba's chagrin.  The insect-user finally released an answer to the Inuzuka's question when the ninken-trainer began tapping his chopsticks loudly on the bowl rim.  



Shino groaned quietly, "...Possibilities of moving beyond friendship remain...complicated."  



Kiba slurped his noodles and shook his head, "In case you haven't noticed, there's gonna be a lot of complicated things." he countered with great superciliousness.  "Having that jackass outta of the way could make it easier, don't you think?"  



"I'm well aware of the compromises needed for relationships." The dark-haired man turned defensive.  "Petenshi-san's death should not be taken with light and it does not lessen further obstacles, because that remains an entirely separate matter."  



Red tattooed cheeks twitched with some perturbed manner as the canine trainer continued, "Well, she's not out of your league if that's what's bugging you.  If anything, she smells like you're ahead of the game on her."  



"I've deduced as much.  Her sexual activity...lack thereof, is of no concern." he concluded flatly.  



Kiba blinked as if not expecting such an answer; the Inzuka heir suddenly flattened his brows in suspicion though. "...You still as hung-up on Ino?"  



Shino gave no telling reactions.  "I have no quarrel with a married woman...and why is that, you ask?  Because our cohesion reached an impasse with our lifestyle habits."  he continued despite his teammate's unamused look.  "She wanted more control.  I wanted to use less of my money on shopping.  After she met Sai, we agreed to cease any further encounters, casual or otherwise."  



Kiba had to indulge in a quick laugh when the explanation created more entertainment than he expected.  "Tch, sounds about right.  You should here her bark about you when she's drunk.  I still can't believe you never took your glasses off."  



"I assess it is better that she found someone pliant enough to indulge her desires.  For her personality fits well in the hierarchy of entomology, because she is very much a queen bee."  Shino betrayed himself when a tone slipped out.  



"...Seriously?  It's been ten years!  You're whining like she dumped out your ant farm.  For a guy saying he's not still bitter, you sure don't sound like it." Kiba smirked antagonistically and Akamaru whined at the tension.  



"Actually, I do not have an ant farm, because the marketed terrariums are far too small for a colony to thrive and consequently, the ants will fall into collective depression; so there was no instance where Ino could have tampered with one.  She did however, commandeer one of my shirts and still has not returned it." The academy teacher debunked with no lilt.  



Kiba just stared at his teammate for several silent seconds before shaking his head, "Unbelievable.  So, you think Tamechia's 'pliant enough' for your weird-as-fuck personality?"  



Slurping at his broth, Shino humored his feral friend, "Not pliant, but congruous.  Hachi doesn't stress for control over others, because she is content in her self-sufficiency.  She likens much to a female dragonfly." he observed.  



"How do you figure that?" Kiba seemed to have sincere curiosity in his eyes now.  



"Rather counterproductive to normal evolution, the female dragonfly often adapts to avoid mating; mainly to prolong her wellness, and why you ask?  Because her suitors and copulations tend to be hostile, if not fatal.  So, with sex being an inevitable bombardment, the female dragonfly tends to strive more for an easy-going life, if not solitude.   Hachi has every opportunity to indulge in proclivity, but she doesn't."  He analysed as Kiba finished up his bowl.  



"I find it in similar reasoning:  her area of work mingles with high risk, so she learns and adapts in tandem to prolong her life and better her chances of acquiring the mate she prefers, rather than be forced an inadequate hand.  She exhibits a positive physiological response to my interactions, and I find our interests to be compatible, so advancing does not seem to have a high failure statistic.  That is the theory, at any rate." Shino concluded, returning to drink his broth.  



Kiba blinked... "So, the short version is she's not a prude, just cautious." he sniffed.  



"You asked."  The insect-user replied with deadpan tone.  



"Then what's your deal?  If your so damn compatible, just go for it and get her."  



Shino gulped down the last bit of broth before explaining, "I am not at liberty to discuss the issue of why I cannot yet proceed.  When I am able though, I can't simply 'go for it' either; the reason is because if she has not been sexually active for a long time, any carnal engagement will require thorough preparation, lest—"



Kiba's face fell into his palm.  "For fuck's sake, Shino, shut up with the details!" He looked back at his academic teammate,  "I wasn't even talkin' about how you two're gonna make it fit!  Sure don't need to know how you plan on doing it, either."  



Shino quirked an incredulous eyebrow under his visor, "I see no difference than when you brag about your exploits."  



Kiba smirked as he wolfed down a skewer of colorful dango.  "Yeah, well my 'exploits' have already happened, and they don't sound like somethin' I need to grab a dictionary to figure out." he chuckled.  



"I don't see why they ever would, because you've never read a single dictionary." Shino countered unfazed as he left the dessert for his friend's consumption.



Kiba's face snapped to a frame of offense after hearing his own insult being returned twice over.  "Whatever.  Just don't let the trail go cold before you decide on something."