Reborn as Sakura and Hinata: Lost in the Wind (Part 2)

Worse Than a Hangover

Raising my arms high above my head in a luxurious stretch, I was actually thankful for the small pulse of pain that bloomed at the base of my skull. It was a miracle that this was the worst of my 'hangover' because for all intents and purposes I should have been lying on the bathroom tiles at the moment instead of calmly brushing through my hair and enjoying the soft morning light. Cheers to my insanely high alcohol tolerance I suppose. But despite my self-indulgent pride in my current state, I couldn't fully enjoy it.

I had fully expected to have more than a little fun even after the party ended, but after Kiba and I had returned home, collected our son and bid the little lovebird couple off, he simply got Alonso and himself ready for bed and did just that. It was a bit of a buzzkill to be honest. It made me wonder just what the hell had made him so cagey. I had the sense something undesirable happened last night, but my memories were... a bit fuzzy, and I recalled most of us being in very high spirits by the time Noriko kicked us out. Oh... right... I guess he seemed pretty upset.

With a sigh, I set down my hairbrush and took a breath. Well, I suppose it was time to get some answers. Leaving the bathroom, I was unsurprised that the bedroom was empty, it was when I woke up, but maybe I did find it a bit odd that Kiba took Alonso with him as opposed to letting him continue to sleep with me.

Breakfast was probably most of the way done judging by the smell, and I descended the stairs to find Kiba in front of the stove with Alonso strapped to his chest. I couldn't help but smile; I honestly wasn't sure if Kiba would ever learn how to wrap up a baby, but I guess I was wrong. It was certainly an adorable sight made all the better by how Alonso was still asleep. But the sweetness ended there because the look on Kiba's face was anything but relaxing. It was as if he was cooking completely on autopilot, staring past the stove into something I had no hope of seeing.

I gave a light hum to announce my presence, leaning on the island a bit away, "Are you alright, amor? Did the seal give you a hangover?"

He paused, as if he'd just become aware of things, and shot me a glance before continuing to cook with more purpose, "No... it wore off on its own. I feel fine... shockingly." Trying not to cringe at his tone, I had to come to the conclusion that either he was lying to me and felt awful or that, worse, he was angry with me. So, clearly, I, and probably Sakura, made some misstep last night. I mean, our little rant wasn't well received at first, but mostly everyone was jovial by the end of the night! Mostly... I had to just outright ask, but before I could Kiba asked me one of his own, "What do you think of this world?"

I blinked, what an abstract question, although I was pretty sure I knew what he meant by it, "I... I mean... It's my home." I brushed my hand over the edge of the counter, "I... didn't like it at first. It was scary, confusing, wasn't home. Nothing about it made sense to me, but after a while things did. I couldn't imagine living any other way now, or anywhere else."

How was I supposed to react when I was first Isekai-ed here? I hated the show- well, hate is maybe a bit too strong, but I didn't like a lot of aspects of it, particularly how nonsensical a lot of things were. So, to suddenly have to live here and pretend to be someone, something, I wasn't was terrifying. Funny how everything turned out.

He was silent for a moment, "What about me?"

"You?" I had to keep myself from huffing out a laugh, "Oh, you're only the thing I love most in the entire world. Only the, like, main reason I kept myself alive while I was with Orochimaru, the only thing I felt I could look forward to." He paused, hand tensing on the handle of the pan, and I softened my tone, "You gave me the life I always wanted, and the best gift anyone could have ever given me."