Stellar

20. Chunin-hopefuls

Shino had insisted they left early, which Kiba was really appreciating right now.

He knew if they had been any later, the crowds would be bustling and the halls would be full. Right now, that was the last thing he wanted to deal with.

He let Hinata grip his hand tightly as they entered, and walked through the top two floors. On the second floor they ran into minimal trouble, a small scuffle with Kotetsu and Izumo.

They tried to walk right past them, but the two disguised chunin attempted to call them out and stop them. Kiba merely sighed and continued on. Hinata ducked her head, blushing and smiling politely.

The doors squealed loudly as they entered, drawing everyone's attention to them. The chunin-hopefuls stared at them, grinning maliciously.

Maybe they were trying to intimidate the young children. Probably. But it was useless, as Kiba just rolled his eyes and walked away to stand idly in a corner. Hinata was all smiles, and Shino was just as intimidating. One Kumor shinobi shrieked when he saw a glittering black beetle crawl over Shino's face.

"Hey, Hinata?"

The girl perked up, looking to the unusually quiet boy. He played with his fingers, flexing them tensely.

"I'm sorry I'm acting weird."

"O-Oh! It's alright, Kiba. You don't need to apologize."

"But I do." Kiba furrowed his brow, still not looking up to meet Hinata's somewhat concerned gaze. "We're about to be in a really important set of exams, and I can't be...distracted." A frown made its way onto his face.

"Don't be an idiot." Shino muttered. "You will do perfectly fine."

"Right." Hinata nodded, eyes lighting up in determination. "We'll get through this together!"

Kiba managed a small, half-smile. "Thanks, guys."

"Kiba!" A cheery voice called. "Man, I haven't talk to you in ages!"

The boy flinched. Hinata sucked in a sharp breath, narrowing her eyes and standing a bit between them almost protectively.

Ino grinned at them. "Hey, Kiba."

Kiba looked up, offering a tired smile. He was pleasantly surprised to see Hinata standing a bit between them, and grew even more surprised when she turned her head to gaze at him in a silent question.

"Hey, Ino." Kiba murmured. Hinata's tense shoulders relaxed, just a smidge, and she shifted ever so slightly to the left to give Kiba a clearer view of the Yamanaka. The boy had no time to muse over her protective actions, because Ino had caught on to something.

"Are you alright?" The Yamanaka clan prided themselves on being able to read people like an open book, and her bright blue eyes swept over Kiba's tense posture. They narrowed, but she didn't speak.

Kiba nodded. "Just peachy." He mumbled. It was utter bullshit and they all knew it, but Ino thankfully didn't call him out on it. She merely stared, a mixture of concerned and curious, though she didn't comment. Kiba found himself a bit grateful.

"WOW! This place is huge, dattebayo!" The door opened loudly, followed by a clamoring of voices.

Shikamaru sighed from behind Ino. "How troublesome. Naruto's always been like this, hasn't he?" He glanced at the unusually quiet Inuzuka before stalking towards Team 7. Choji followed closely behind, and after a moment of hesitation, Ino did too.