“You should have seen it,” Iruka chimed in, trying to maintain his gruff exterior while pulling a clinging child from his leg. “A Ryosh-level duel.”
Aimee raised an eyebrow, watching at least ten kids, all under ten, swarm the grumpy boy.
Despite his best efforts to push them off, they hugged onto him, shouting, “Kaka! Tell us again!”
Iruka looked visibly embarrassed, torn between the wide-eyed children and Aimee’s growing curiosity.
Taiga rolled his eyes dramatically. “We've heard the story at least ten times in the last day.”
“A day?” Aimee asked, blinking. She’d been out that long?
Kiba groaned as he pulled himself to his feet, wincing from his injuries. “Yes. You were so pale, we weren’t sure you’d...” His voice trailed off, and then Momoka jumped in.
“You lost so much blood!” Momoka exclaimed. “By the time I got myself closed up, you’d somehow healed most of your wounds, but your heart was barely beating. I didn’t know what to do!”
Aimee nodded. It made sense. Her abilities could heal a lot, but blood loss was harder to recover from. She had to take it from others.
Kiba glanced between Taiga and Momoka, then back at her. “Why don’t you two help Iruka get dinner ready for the younglings? I’ll catchAimee up.” He looked back at Aimee, concern knitting his brow. “If you’re well enough to walk.”
“Yeah.” Aimee struggled to her feet. Her legs wobbled beneath her, but before she could fall, Kiba was there, his arm steadying her.
Behind them, the sounds of Taiga, Momoka, and Iruka wrangling the children began to fade. The whispers of wind through the trees slowly drowned out the laughs and squeals as Kiba led her away from the group. Each step felt heavier, quieter, until the chaos of camp was just a distant hum.
He guided her to a large, smooth rock, setting her down carefully before crouching next to her, his eyes locked on her face, observing every tiny movement.
Aimee winced, heart pounding. She waited for the inevitable, for the words that would tell her she was no longer part of them, that after what she’d done, what she’d shown him, there was no place for her here anymore.
But instead, his voice broke, thick with emotion. “You saved us,” he whispered, dropping his head into her lap, shaking. “I almost killed you...almost killed everyone. I saw it all but couldn’t stop myself.”
Her mouth opened, but the words didn’t come. She hadn’t expected this. “It was the Veilroot.”
Kiba shook his head, his fingers gripping her hips tightly, his whole body shaking against hers. “It doesn’t matter. It’s my job to protect you. I failed.”
“Kiba...” She ran her fingers through his hair. “You did protect us. Even after everything. That Crow, whoever he was, would’ve killed everyone and taken Taiga.”
“If I can’t handle a single rogue ninja.” He looked up at her, his voice trailing off. “It’s time for me to retire. Even with whatever those shadows were.”
“Yes, yes,” she cooed, wiping the tears from his eye with her thumb. “Big, strong Ryosh.”
He snorted, and as he glanced down, he seemed to realize for the first time that he was kneeling between her legs, his hands resting on her hips, their faces only inches apart.
Hesitating, his fingers tightened against her waist as he whispered her name. “Aimee?”
“Yeah?” Her heart hammered wildly against her ribs, each beat louder than the last.
His hand moved to her face, stroking her cheek with a tenderness that belied the pain he'd been carrying. “I don’t see how you could possibly forgive me...but I swear I will never hurt you like that again.”
“There’s nothing to forgive, Kiba.” She sighed, leaning into him until their noses brushed.
His shoulders sagged in response, as though the weight of the world had just been lifted. His fingers gently tilted her chin up, and for a moment, everything else faded until there was only the two of them. He lowered his mask and raised his lips to hers, the kiss soft, hesitant, but filled with the promise of something more.
In that instant, all thoughts of the blood, the fear, the things unsaid melted away. He never asked her about it, and she never brought it up again. It didn’t matter. This…this was enough.
Chapter twenty-six
“Wefinallygettoenjoy a hot spring.” Momoka sighed, sinking into the steaming water beside Aimee. “I wonder if the boys are enjoying it as much as we are.”
The two girls lounged in the women-only section of the traditional onsen. Steam rose from the water, curling into the air, blending with the sweet, earthy scent of damp bamboo and moss-covered stones. The soft trickle of water over polished rocks filled the silence between them while the faint call of distant birds carried on the breeze.
