Deathless
Rock Lee stared out absentmindedly at the gate to Konoha. How he wished he had accepted to go train with the rest of his team. Instead he had opened his mouth and wound up being the gatekeeper and having to greet everyone that came through. Another thing that irritated him was that he had picked the day that travel in and out of Konoha was the slowest. In the five hours he had been there, only one person came through, and they were leaving. Then a girl came in. She had brown hair that fell about and inch below her shoulders and the greenest eyes he had ever seen. She wore a forest green sundress with swirling dark brown designs all over it, and she was barefoot.
"Hello!" Lee called. "Could you come here for a moment?" He hated the fact that he had to say that, but by the order of the Hokage, he had to write down who came in and who went out. The girl stopped and looked around her. Then she turned to him and pointed to herself, her expression questioning.
"Yes! You!" he called again, waving her over. She disappeared and a split-second later she was leaning over the desk, her piercing green eyes bearing into him. She stared at him, and he noticed that she wasn't a ninja. He also could not tell where she was from since she wore no headband. Her voice pulled him for his thoughts.
"Me?" she asked. He nodded. Her eyes widened and she stepped back.
"You can see me?" she whispered. Lee frowned.
"Of course I can. Why would I not be able to see you?" he asked. The girl's face took on a distant and forlorn expression.
"I'm dead." Then she vanished, and this time she didn't reappear.
For the next few weeks, Lee found that he was constantly looking for the ghost girl. Sure, he felt the need to protect everyone, but this was different. This girl, dead was not, was scared of something. She didn't need to be protected; she needed to be saved. And he was the only one who could do that. It was he that she needed to save her from the prison he called life. There was something keeping her here on Earth, and that something didn't seem like it wanted to let her die. Until he could find her, she was trapped.
"Gai-sensei?" Lee asked. His mentor looked over at him and smiled. Lee assumed he was listening.
"What would you do if you needed to save someone? Only, you did not know where to find that person?" he asked. Gai frowned and thought for a moment. Then he looked up and smiled again.
"Well, Lee, I suppose I would find that person first. Then I would find what I needed to save them from," he answered. Lee smiled weakly and nodded. How was he going to find the girl? She was dead!
But he needn't have worried. Three days later he spotted her walking around the streets. Since she had been so worried about him seeing her, he figured that he should go up to her instead of yelling and scaring her, not to mention making a total fool of himself by shouting at the air in the process. He had almost reached her when he noticed that she was following someone. It was an old man, and if she were a real, living person, no light would have passed through them because she stayed so close to him. Lee continued to follow them.
The man stopped in the park and sat down. The girl remained standing. She looked around and suddenly she whipped around and her gaze became firmly locked on him. She scowled. Lee walked closer. Her displeasure grew and she appeared directly in front of him.
"What do you want?" she hissed. The spirit was terrifying to say the least and Lee struggled to keep a calm face.
"I want to help you," he hesitantly replied. A portion of the anger left her eyes as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"And just how do you plan to do that?" she asked, still fuming. Lee's large eyes widened in pleasure.
"So you do need help!" he exclaimed, and every single person in the park turned and stared at him. He smiled sheepishly and walked over to a more private spot, subtly beckoning the ghost girl with him. She stared him, astonished at his confidence, but she followed. Lee had chosen a grassy area surrounded by bushes and trees. He sat down and she knelt next to him.
"What do you need help with?" he asked. She looked down at the ground.
"Nothing you can help me with," she answered. Lee reached out to touch her, only remembering that she wasn't real when his hand went through her shoulder. She looked up and gasped.
"What did you do?" she asked breathlessly.
"I…I just tried to…touch you," Lee stuttered. Her eyes widened and she crept closer to him.
"How come I can feel you? I've never felt anyone," she whispered and she placed her hand on his face. To Lee, her hand was freezing. He shivered.
"I do not know," he said. She suddenly whipped around to look out the bushes. She turned back to him for a moment.
"Come here tomorrow, I must leave now," she said as she hurried towards the old man.
"Wait! What is your name?" he called, catching her before she left the clearing. She paused.
" Midoriiro. But call me Green," she answered as she ran off. Lee stared after her, his cheek still cold.
"Green," he tested. The name felt so natural. And that night when he fell asleep, he dreamt of lush, bright green forests where the tree's branches spiraled brown designs across the sky.
The next morning Lee was up before everyone, he even beat Gai. As soon as he was dressed and had eaten, he was out the door. He then walked to the park and looked around. Green wasn't there yet. So he just wandered to the clearing where they had talked the day before. About an hour she came.
"Hello?" she called. Lee, who had been lying down with his eyes closed, quickly sat up.
"Green?" he asked. At that moment Green came into the clearing. Her dead eyes brightened a small bit as they came to rest on him. She silently walked over and sat next to him.
"You never told me your name," she said.
"Lee," he answered. Green smiled. Lee smiled too when he realized that this was the first he had ever seen her smile.
"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" he asked. The dim light left Green's eyes.
"I don't know. How come you can see me? Hear me? Can you feel me too?" she asked as she placed her hand over his. It went through, but Lee still felt it. He shivered again.
"Yes. You are cold, very, very cold," he answered. Green stared at him for a while. The corners of her mouth twitched, but she did not smile.
"Do you know how good it feels to be seen? It feels so good," she whispered, answering her own question. In that moment, Lee felt her loneliness for her.
"How come you follow that man around?" he asked. She paused, frowning.
"He is my…host. Without a host I will fall back into death," she said. When she finally looked at him again, her eyes were filled with fear.
"He is sick. I have to choose a new host soon. Oh Lee, I'm so scared," she murmured as she crept closer to him. How Lee wished he could comfort her.
"Choose me," he said. Her eyes widened.
"What?" she exclaimed.
"Choose me. Pick me for your new host. I can see you, hear you, and feel you. Why should you not choose me?" he repeated. Green's eyes grew distant and he knew that she was thinking.
"Alright. When he leaves I will switch," she said, her fear coating her voice and clouding her eyes. Lee watched her and noticed how much of her expressions were her eyes. They were beautiful, and he watched them constantly for her mood changes. He marveled at the fact that he didn't even know her, but he still knew exactly what she was feeling.
Suddenly Green's pretty eyes widened drastically in fear. She clutched at his legs and for once, she could actually wrap her fingers around his ankles. Her grip was colder than ever, and something seemed to be pulling her away. In panic Lee tried to grab her arms and hold her where she was, but his hands still could not touch her. Finally, her eyes went back to their normal size and her hands slipped through him again.
"What just happened?" Lee asked worriedly. Green curled into a ball next to him.
"He left. I'm yours now," she whispered.
It didn't take long for Lee to get used to Green trailing behind him everywhere he went. After he showed Green where he lived, he suddenly remembered training. Neji and Gai-sensei were not going to be happy with him. Tenten probably wasn't going to be happy either.
When they reached the training grounds, Gai was watching Neji and Tenten practice. Lee sheepishly approached them. Neji scowled at him, foolishly taking his eyes off of Tenten. She immediately grabbed the chance to attack him and kicked his face. Neji, caught off guard, was sent flying across the clearing. Neji sat up and wiped a trail of blood from his lip. Tenten smirked.
"I got you, Neji," she said. Then she turned and looked at Lee.
"Where have you been?" she asked, her eyes slightly narrowing. Lee felt Green stiffen beside him.
"I accidentally turned my alarm off in my sleep, Tenten-san. Sorry," he said, knowing that they wouldn't believe him. But no one questioned him, not even Neji.
"Lee, will you train with Neji? I would like to work with Tenten on her weapons." Gai-sensei walked over to them with Neji, subtly breaking the uncomfortable silence between the teammates. Tenten looked stricken.
"But Gai-sensei, you said I was doing exceptionally!" she said breathlessly. Gai gave one of his trademark smiles.
"There is always room for improvement," he declared. Tenten sighed and walked off with Gai. Neji silently approached Lee and both settled into fighting positions. Green hovered nervously by Lee. The boys watched each other for a minute or so, and then the fight began.
Neji dealt the first blow, which unknown to him, went right through Green. She gasped in surprise as his hand shot through her. Lee threw an angry fist back at him, careful to avoid Green. Though the two were battling, it wasn't much of a fight, training practice or not. Neji was winning; he had successfully made Lee loose his balance twice. Neji smirked as he delivered a blow to Lee's chest, knocking him to the ground.
"I win," he said, placing his foot on top of Lee. Green had been watching fearfully the whole time. Neji had a bloody nose and lip, but Lee had a bloody nose, lip, and cheek. He also had a bruise on his other cheek. She looked worriedly at him, gently brushing her untouchable hands against his wounds. Then, suddenly her tender acts were turned into a fiery rage as she glared at Neji. He couldn't see her, so the smirk on his face remained, only making her anger grow.
Green lunged. In a flurry of green and brown she was standing at Neji's side, posture and face calm. But her eyes betrayed her. They were filled to the brim and overflowing with boundless fury. She clamped her hands around his head. As the iciness of her skin sunk into his own, Neji's smirk began to disappear. He turned to see who was there. To Lee, there was a furious ghost girl, but to Neji, there was nothing but air. Green's hands began to sink into Neji, her freezing body temperature spreading. Lee could see him shivering.
A wicked smile spread across Green's face as Neji's eyes began to widen. Lee remained on the ground, watching his teammate be tortured in paralyzed and mute horror. Green momentarily glanced in his direction, and her smile faded quickly. Her eyes became ashamed as she brought her hands back to her sides. Neji fell to the ground holding his head, eyes wider than ever. Then training was over.
That night when Lee was certain that Neji was alright, he and Green headed home. Neji had not been happy about Lee following him around and asking if he was okay. When Lee had asked if he could do anything for him, Neji glared at him and told him to go home. So he did, always keeping a careful eye on his ghostly companion. Green had not said a thing since they left the training grounds, nor had she looked him. Her eyes were still ashamed and her lips pulled down into an anxious frown.
When they arrived at Lee's apartment, Green slowly trailed behind Lee around the apartment. Then she found a corner, curled into a ball, and hid in it. Lee looked at her for a few minutes, but then decided that she probably wasn't going to talk to him about what had happened. Actually, he guessed that she wasn't going to talk to him for a while period. So he went to take a shower and wash the blood from his face.
Green watched the bathroom door close. She walked over to it, gently placing her hands on the wood and pressing he cheek against its sturdiness. She was scared. She had never let her anger to that to her before. Then the door opened. Lee gasped. Green's hands stayed where they were, laying on an invisible surface. Her arms lowered back to their rightful positions and she turned her head to look at Lee. His large eyes were staring at her and his mouth was still hanging open. A quick smiled flashed in Green's eyes as she placed an icy finger on his chin.
"Close your mouth, Lee," she whispered. If anything, Lee's jaw dropped a little bit more.
Lee climbed into his bed, clad in a white T-shirt and green boxers. Green had giggled when she saw them. Presently, she was stretched out on the shelf over Lee's bed and staring contently down at him. Then she frowned, her eyes become ashamed all over again.
"I am sorry, Lee. So sorry. I didn't mean to hurt him, I really didn't. It was an accident. Can you forgive me?" she pleaded, her eyes now full of fear and sorrow. Lee pulled his sheets up over his legs and looked up at her.
"What happened back there?" he asked.
"I don't know. When he hurt you, I got so mad. I wanted to hurt him back, and I lost control. I probably would have killed him, but you stopped me. I've been so scared. What if I hurt someone else?" she blurted. Lee found himself blushing. This girl, who had known him for all of two days, cared enough about him that she would kill someone who had hurt him; even if it was only a few scratches.
"You will not. You are too nice. And yes, I can forgive you." Lee smiled reassuringly at her. Green let out a breath and smiled too. Lee turned out the light to go to sleep and was very surprised when he looked back up at Green. With the lights out, he couldn't see much of her except her outline, but her bright green eyes gave off a neon glow. After staring for a minute or so, he fell asleep under her protective gaze.
Lee woke up in the morning to a numb hand. Green had fallen asleep and her hand had fallen down onto his, going in the top in coming out the other side.
"Green, wake up," Lee said, pulling his hand away from hers. The ghost opened two very sleepy eyes.
"Five more minutes, Lee, please?" she said, closing her eyes again. Lee sighed.
"Fine. Five more minutes, but that is all." Green groaned.
At breakfast, Green quietly watched Lee eat his cereal. Lee carefully studied her over the edge of his bowl. Her eyes were distant and thoughtful and her features were relaxed and calm. Then Green broke the silence.
"Lee?" she asked. He stopped eating and looked at her.
"Hmm?" he said. Green smiled.
"How come that man at your training looked just like you? Is he your father?" she asked. Lee laughed.
"That was my sensei. He is not my father, but he is my role model," he said. Green let out a small laugh.
"You copied him? Oh, Lee." She had exploded into a fit of giggles now. Lee frowned.
"What is so funny?" Green disappeared from her spot at the table and Lee felt her cold breath on the back of his neck and ear. For some reason, he didn't dare turn around.
"You should be yourself, not someone else. Even if they're your role model, Lee, you should never be anyone other than yourself. Otherwise, your whole life will turn into one big lie," she whispered. Lee sat silently as Green left her position behind him to return to her seat.
Training had been postponed that day; Gai-sensei had caught a cold. Lee and Green went to see him and when Lee tended to his teacher, Green sat in a corner and watched them unhappily. Whenever Lee looked over at her he immediately looked away, her expression reminding him of their conversation that morning. When he wasn't talking to Gai, the words she said to him echoed through his head. Be yourself…one big lie….
As Lee sat down at the ramen shop, Green started to circle him, walking through the table when necessary. She occasionally stopped and studied a particular part of him, nodding or frowning when she came to some sort of a conclusion about something or other. Then she spoke.
"I think you should forget about me for a while," she said. Lee was shocked, but he didn't say anything. Green began to get annoyed.
"Hurry up and finish eating, I want to have an actual conversation with you," she complained. So, Lee hurried. When he was finished, they went to their clearing, or at least that's what Green had taken to calling it.
"What were you talking about?" Lee asked when they were settled.
"I think you should forget about me for a while. You're too careful around me, and I want to know what you're hiding from me. You'll still be my host and you'll still be able to see me, but I'll just be another stranger on the street," she said. Lee scowled and crossed his arms.
"No," he said firmly. Green smiled mischievously and crawled closer to him on her hands and knees.
"Yes," she said.
"No." She crept closer.
"Yes."
"No." Closer.
"Yes."
"No." Closer, they were now only two feet apart.
"Yes."
"No." Now there was only a foot between them.
"Yes."
"No." Three inches separated their faces.
"Yes," Green murmured, her face leaning even closer to Lee's. Lee could feel he cheeks burning under his blush as all of his forcefulness slipped from his grasp. He was completely at the ghost girl's mercy, and he knew it. She smiled lazily.
"Bye, bye for now, Lee," she whispered as she placed her freezing lips on his forehead, stealing all of his memories of her. Lee went home that night and did all of the things he normally did, and the whole time he had no idea there was a green-eyed ghost following him.
Green kept Lee's memories for about a week. She followed him to training, the ramen shop, and the home of a Sakura Haruno. She was boiling in fury the whole time, especially when Sakura insulted him and told him to stop following her. When Lee went to the park to sulk, he went into their clearing. The confused look on his face when he entered made Green laugh. While he sulked, she wondered how Sakura had so easily captured Lee's affection. At the end of the week, Green approached Lee again.
"Lee!" she called. He looked over at her, clearly confused.
"Do I know you?" he asked. Green smiled.
"Of course you do, silly!" she giggled as she kissed his forehead again. Lee's large eyes became distant for a moment. Then he looked at her again.
"Green?" he asked. She giggled some more.
When they got back to Lee's apartment, Green waited patiently on his bed for him to get out of the shower. It was tempting to go in and scare him, but she only stretched out more on the bed. When Lee finally got out, he was quite surprised to find her where she was. Green sleepily turned towards him and smiled.
"Nice boxers," she said, her eyes only half open. Lee blushed. Then she sat up and opened her eyes all the way.
"Did you miss me?" she asked as she scooted over, leaving room for Lee to sit down too. He hesitantly sat.
"Well, I didn't really remember you," he said. Green smiled, her eyes laughing.
"I know that. But didn't it feel strange without me?" she asked. Lee sat deep in thought.
"Yeah, I guess. It kind of felt unusual, like something was missing," he said. Green's smile widened. Then she frowned.
"You should stay away from that Sakura girl. I don't like her," she said. Lee was thoroughly shocked.
"You really did follow me everywhere!" he exclaimed. Green smirked.
"Didn't I tell you I would?" she asked, faking innocence.
"Why don't you like Sakura-san?" Lee asked. Green stood up angrily.
"She insulted you! She threw you off her porch! Why should I like her?!" she screamed. Lee closed his eyes and held his arms over his head as if to block an attack. Green's anger faded as she looked at him. She sighed and sat back down on the bed.
"I'm sorry, Lee. If you like her, I guess I'll have to like her too," she said. Lee opened his eyes and lowered his arms.
"But what did she do? What did she do to make you like her so much?" Green asked, her voice tired and soft.
"I do not know," Lee confessed. Green attempted to put her hand over his although it fell right through.
"She does not deserve you, Lee. You're too good for her," she whispered. Lee stared at their hands and then at her, completely and totally speechless. When she saw his awed expression, she smiled, her eyes softening.
"You should stop wasting your time on her. She is too blind to see how sweet you are. Let her chase after her precious Sasuke-kun," she said. Lee was so shocked by now that he didn't realize Green was almost insulting Sakura.
She thinks I'm sweet? he wondered. He was eventually broken from his thoughts when Green said that he should probably go to sleep.
The next day, Lee took Green to the market after training. She was ecstatic. He pretended to be interested in the booths so that he could follow her around and see what she was pointing at. When she hit the jewelry booths though, he stayed as far from her as he could. He knew that the vendors would think he had a girlfriend and try to make him buy something. Instead he watched the way her eyes lit up as she scanned the pieces on the table. After about an hour, Green ran over to a crude table at the end of the market. There was a little girl sitting at the table. What had caught Green's eye though, was the basket full of kittens on it.
"Oh, Lee! Look at them! Aren't they cute?" she exclaimed. Lee walked over to the table and the little girl looked up at him hopefully.
"Would you like to buy one?" she asked. Lee studied the kittens. They were cute. And they did look friendly. One of the kittens wasn't playing like its brothers and sisters. It had big blue eyes and gray fur; and it was looking straight at Green. When she saw that, Green immediately walked over to the kitten.
"Lee! Look! It can see me!" she said. Lee gently plucked the kitten from the basket. Green stood behind him and reached over his shoulder to try to pet it, but her hand went through its head. The kitten began to purr.
"Do you like him? They're free," the little girl said. Green looked at Lee, her expression as hopeful as the girl's. Lee hesitated, but he nodded at the girl. She smiled and gave him a purple collar.
As they walked home, Lee looked over at Green skeptically. She only smiled him and cooed at the kitten. The kitten mewed and licked Lee's hand in response.
"Have you ever had cats before?" he asked. Green looked up at him.
"Yes. They're so sweet," she said as she returned her attention to the little bundle of fur in her host's arms. Lee sighed and figured that cats couldn't be that bad.
As it turned out, they weren't. The kitten, which they called Eric, a name from Green's American encounters, was much calmer than his siblings. He was content to sleep on the bed and be petted. Long after Lee and Eric had fallen asleep, Green was still awake. She studied Lee; she loved the way he needed to protect everyone, especially her. After about an hour of thinking, she came to a frightening conclusion. In an attempt to forget, she fell asleep to. She just crawled over the cat and slept next to Lee on top of the blankets.
In the morning, Lee was stunned to find Green lying next to him, slightly smiling and sound asleep. He stared at her, not wanting to move for fear that he would wake her. He shifted a small bit as slowly as he could and found that he could not move his feet. He sat up a bit and saw the kitten asleep on them. When he turned his attention to the spirit next to him, her bright eyes were wide open.
"Morning," she whispered, closing her eyes again.
"Morning," Lee dumbly repeated. Green opened her eyes and looked at him.
"What's wrong, Lee?" she asked. Lee attempted to keep his blush down.
"Nothing. Just you are sleeping on my bed. With me," he said, the blush ignoring his pleas and sliding across his face. Green only looked at him. Then she vanished, reappearing on the shelf above his bed, once again sound asleep. Eric moved from his feet and Lee rolled over onto his back, wondering why she had decided to sleep next to him.
That day at training, Lee was having a hard time focusing on what he was supposed to be doing. Green had gotten over her anger at Neji for the most part, and now sat under a tree everyday and watched the team practice. Today though she had positioned herself somewhere in the tree where Lee couldn't see her. This distracted him even more. When they stopped for a break, Green came down from the tree and sat next to Lee. She sat silently, and she didn't move either. Tenten also came to sit with him.
"Are you okay, Lee? You've been acting strange lately," she said. Lee cocked his head.
"I have?" he asked.
"Yeah. You don't go off with Gai-sensei as much and you don't seem to enjoy training as much as you used to. You act like you want to get away to something," she explained. Lee looked at the ground. Should he tell her? No, if he told Tenten that he saw Green, she would think he was crazy.
"There are a lot of things on my mind right now I suppose. I am sorry, Tenten-san," he lied. Green placed her cold hand over his, slightly startling him.
"You are brave, Lee. But I've noticed it too," she said gently. Lee ignored her. Instead he told Tenten that they should go back to training.
After training that day, Lee and Green went straight back to the apartment. Eric was eagerly waiting for them and immediately wound himself into Lee's legs and meowed for attention. Lee reluctantly picked him up. Eric closed his eyes and began to purr. Green sat down on the bed and patted the spot beside her. Lee sat down.
"What's wrong? You've been distant, even from me," she said worriedly. Lee absentmindedly rubbed Eric's ears. Then he looked up at her and smiled.
"It is nothing. You have nothing to worry about," he said confidently. Green frowned and he knew that she didn't believe him.
A few days later, Lee received a mission. He was going to have to relay a message to the Land of Sound. It was a simple mission really. After they left Eric with Gai, Lee and Green set out. After a week of walking, they were about three-fourths of the way there. Another three days and they could see the country on the horizon.
A band of nine Sound ninja were waiting for them. When there was only one mile separating them from delivering their message, the ninja attacked. Lee fended off the first three with ease, but the next two succeeded in knocking him down a few times before he defeated them too. The next ninja to attack bruised him a bit and the one after came at him with the grace of a wild cat. This time, Lee was the one easily defeated. The next three were prepared to show no mercy, and they didn't. Within about two minutes, Lee was lying on the ground with the air knocked from his lungs and various cuts and bruises scattered around his body. Green rushed over and knelt by his side, gently placing her freezing hands over his wounds in an attempt to numb the pain. The three remaining ninja stood over him and laughed. Green gasped and looked up into the face of the eldest ninja. She stood and placed her hand on his cheek.
"Brother?" she asked softly. The man stopped laughing. He looked around for the source of the sound. Lee watched him in confusion.
"Can you hear her too?" he asked feebly. The ninja's head snapped down to him.
"You can hear my sister, Midoriiro?" he asked, kneeling down to look at him better. Green knelt too.
"Tell him," she said. Lee looked at her, and then turned back to her brother.
"Yes. I can see her too," he whispered, unable to make his voice any louder. Green's sibling grabbed Lee shirt.
"Really? What does she look like?" he asked skeptically.
"She has brown hair and a green and brown dress. And the greenest eyes I have ever seen," Lee said. The ninja next him stared in wonder.
"Can she hear us?" he asked. Lee nodded. A tear slid down the ninja's cheek.
"I'm sorry," he said.
"There is nothing to be sorry for, Brother," Green said comfortingly. The ninja nodded slowly.
"Where is my body? It's close isn't it?" she asked. The ninja nodded again.
"Will you take me there? Lee, too?" she asked, her voice soothing and steady. The ninja nodded an third and picked Lee up. Lee winced.
"Careful with him, Brother," Green murmured. The man cradled Lee more gently and led them off into the forest.
When they arrived, the three ninja walked over to small clearing in the trees. In the middle of the clearing there was a one room house. The older ninja brought Lee inside. Green silently followed. In the middle of the room, her body was lying peacefully on the bed. Lee coughed in the mustiness of the room. Green walked over to the bed and looked own at herself. She wearing the same green and brown dress, and her brown hair was perfectly placed on the pillow. She looked no different then when she died, maybe only a bit cleaner. When Green looked back at the men, she saw that Lee had passed out.
"Take us to the hospital and tell him I'll be back soon," she said as she touched her finger to the matching finger of her body and disappeared.
Beep…beep…beep…beep…beep.
Lee opened his eyes. He turned his head towards the sound. Green was lying in a bed on the other side of the room. She was hooked up to a heart monitor and a respirator. He noticed the bandages that covered his body, but he ignored them as he got up to sit next to her bed. He took her hand into his. It was much warmer than it used to be, but it was still chilly.
"Hey. How are you doing?" he asked. Green didn't move and her eyes didn't open. Lee sighed and squeezed her hand a little.
For the next three days Lee seldom left Green's bedside. Each day her heartbeat and brain activity grew. Her body temperature also gradually went up until it hit the normal 98.6 degrees. When he lifted his head from her lap the fourth morning, he found her eyes open and staring right at him.
"Green?" he asked breathlessly. Her eyes crinkled.
"Hmm?" she murmured, her voice softer as it was muffled by the plastic respirator mask. Lee stood and quickly ran to find a nurse or doctor. He found one in a matter of seconds. The man hurried over to Green's bed. She followed him with her eyes. He stared at her and then proceeded to check her charts and various other things that Lee did not know. Then after a while, the man turned and smiled at Lee.
"Your girlfriend seems to be in good health, especially for someone who's been dead for five years," he said cheerfully. Lee blushed and shook his head.
"She's not my girlfr- wait, what?! She's been dead for five years?!" he exclaimed. The nurse looked at him for minute, and then nodded. Lee turned to Green. She was still looking at the nurse, but after a minute she looked back over at him. Her eyes moved quickly, but she never moved her head.
"Can you take the respirator off?" Lee asked. The nurse studies Green's charts some more, then took the mask from her face. She hesitantly sucked in some air. Then she smiled, or rather her eyes did. Her face remained still.
"It's been a long time since I've had to breathe," she whispered. Lee laughed a bit at their inside joke.
After checking other parts of Green's health, the nurse smiled and left. Lee smiled too.
"What took you so long?" he asked. Green smiled a bit.
"My body was so dead. It took a while get it up and running again," she said slowly turning her head towards him.
"Sorry for not telling you…well, that I had been gone that long," she whispered, closing her eyes. Lee sat up straighter and squeezed her hand. She smiled softly.
"Don't worry. I'm not leaving you again any time soon," she said. Lee relaxed a bit but still kept his grip on her hand. Green opened her eyes half of the way.
"Do you mind if I take a nap though?" she asked wearily. Lee hesitated; he didn't want to let her go again.
"Okay," he said. Green sighed happily and fell asleep a few minutes later.
Three days later Lee and Green left the Land of Sound. Green had received physical training before they left but Lee still had to steady her once and a while. Due to Green's instability, their journey back to Konoha was lengthened to two weeks. When they finally arrived, Green grasped Lee's hand nervously. He looked over at her.
"What is the matter? You have been here before," he said. Green smiled sheepishly.
"Yes, but now everyone can see me," she whispered, now clinging tightly to his arm. Lee patted her arm reassuringly. Green looked up at him hopefully.
"Do you suppose your Hokage would see me? Like, do you suppose she would meet with me?" she asked. Lee cocked his head in confusion.
"Why?" he asked.
"Because I don't want to be a Sound nin anymore. I want to be a Leaf ninja," she said. Lee's eyes widened.
"You're a ninja? Wait- why?" he repeated.
"So that I can stay here with you, silly!" she exclaimed as she threw her arms around his waist and hugged him. He blushed bright red.
After checking into the village, Lee took Green over to the Hokage's mansion. At the front desk they were greeted warmly by Shizune, who set up a meeting for them in a few minutes. When they finally got up to Tsunade's office, she was rather annoyed from her last visitor.
"How may I help you?" she asked, not looking directly at them. Green pulled her forehead protector from her bag and placed it on Tsunade's desk.
"I would like to give up my status as a Sound nin and gain a status as a Leaf nin. I have no allegiances in the Land of Sound and I mean you no harm," she said calmly. Tsunade was silent for a moment. Then she turned to Lee.
"Could you leave us alone for a few minutes, Lee?" she asked. Lee looked over at Green, who only looked back at him. Then he stood up and left.
"Now, would you tell me why it is that you want to do this?" Tsunade asked. Green looked at her lap.
"Lee. I'm doing it for him," she said. Tsunade smiled slightly.
"Why?" she asked.
"Because I love him," Green replied.
Lee stood outside the door, nervously wondering what was going on inside the room. Then the door opened, very slowly. Green peeked out. Then she shrieked happily and rushed out to hug him. When she finally let go she twirled around in front of him, her pink and yellow dress flying out around her. Then he noticed the Leaf nin forehead protected tied around her waist, much in the same fashion that he wore his. But he also noticed that she still wore her Sound protector on her forehead. She smiled widely at him.
"Introduce me to your team," she said as she pulled him out the door and towards the training grounds. When they arrived Gai was training with Neji and Tenten was patiently watching. After a few minutes of watching, Lee led Green into the clearing. The training ninja froze in place and stared at them. Green smiled as she walked up to Gai.
"Hello. I'm Green. Lee has told me so much about you all," she said as she extended her hand. Gai looked surprised for a moment, then flashed a trademark smile and grabbed Green's hand.
"Very nice to meet you. How do you know Lee?" he asked. Green's smile widened.
"I have my ways," she said, turning to glance at Lee. Neji wasn't pleased with her interruption of practice.
"You're from the Sound. What do you want?" he asked irritatedly. Green looked insulted.
"I was from the Sound, Neji. Now I belong here," she corrected pointing to the band still tied firmly around her waist. Neji frowned. So did Green. He fell into a fighting stance after seeing the "wanna test me?" look in her eyes. Green smirked and turned to Tenten, watching Neji closely out of the corner of her eye.
"Hello, Tenten. It's wonderful to finally meet you in person." Lee smiled a bit at her comment. Tenten smiled, but didn't say anything. She was watching Neji too. Green turned around and walked gracefully back over to Lee, her dress swishing around her legs.
Neji lunged. Green only kept walking, pretending she hadn't noticed. But the blaze that was burning in her eyes told Lee differently. Her face was perfectly calm as Neji came closer. When he only three feet away and approaching quickly, Green leaned over backwards and caught his wrists in her hands. From there she proceeded to flip him up over her head. In a matter of seconds Neji was lying on the ground in front of Green with the air knocked from his lungs and the rest of the team was standing slack-jawed. Green stood defiantly as she stared down at Neji, who stared back up, shocked silent. Green turned to Lee, smiling and taking his hand in hers.
"Come introduce me to your other friends," she suggested sweetly. Lee let himself be pulled away.
After Lee had introduced her to all of his other friends, even though who didn't consider him their friend, they went to "their" clearing. Green still insisted on calling it that. It was getting dark, but they stayed anyway. An hour after it got dark, Green began to get cold. She shivered, but denied her coldness. Lee knew that she would never admit that she was cold, so he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him. She gasped and looked up at him. He was looking out into the stars, his face bright red even in the dark. She stared at him for a few moments, then gladly snuggled closer into him.
At around 1 AM, the two finally headed back to Lee's apartment. Green protested to going home with him, saying that she needed to find her own apartment. Lee heart sunk at her words, but he was determined not to let her know. Eventually he convinced her that it was too late to go anywhere to find another place to stay. So they went back to his place and she slept on the couch after refusing to sleep on the bed and let him sleep on the couch.
In the morning, Lee was the first to wake up. His first instinct was to look at the shelf above his bed, but then he remembered that Green wasn't dead anymore and was sleeping on his couch. He sat up and looked across the room at her sleeping form beneath the blankets. Lee hugged his knees to his chest as he watched her sides rise and fall with steady breaths. She opened her eyes and yawned, stretching her arms out from under the covers.
"Good morning," she said sleepily.
"Good morning," he replied. She sat up and looked across the room at him. Then she stood and walked over to him. The looked at each other for a few seconds, then Green found silent permission in Lee's eyes and climbed on the bed with him. She crawled over next to him.
"Who is going to keep Eric when we get him back from Gai?" she asked. Lee frowned.
"Both of us," he replied. Green looked shocked.
"But I'm not going to live here! It would be cruel to move him around like that," she said.
"Why can you not just live here?" he asked. Green looked away from him.
"I can't. It's not that I don't want to live here with you, I just can't," she whispered, silently willing her heart to stop tearing itself apart. Lee grabbed her hand.
"Why not?" he asked. Green looked back at him, her bright green eyes beginning to fill with tears. She squeezed his hand.
"I'm so sorry, Lee. I just can't," she said, and her heart almost pulled in two.
"Have I done something?" Lee asked worriedly, trying to recall anything that may have upset her. Green smiled at bit.
"Yeah, you did do something. Something so terribly wrong that felt so right at the time." She murmured the last part under her breath. Lee panicked.
"What did I do?" he exclaimed. Green stroked his arm.
"Nothing," she soothed. Lee gradually calmed down.
"But, still, why can you not stay here?" he asked quietly. Green leaned on his shoulder and sighed.
"I would love to stay here. But I just can't," she said as she stood up. Before Lee could say anything she had packed all of her things back into her bag. He walked over to her. She was crying now. He reached out to grab her arm. She shied away from his touch. Then she threw her arms around him.
"I'm sorry, Lee. Learn some contractions while I'm gone." Then she ran out the door. Despite the fact that he was one of the fastest ninja in the village, Lee couldn't find the speed or strength to even walk over to close the door. Instead he fell down to the floor and stared at the last spot that she had been.
It was three weeks before he saw her again. It was only a glimpse, but it renewed his hope that she was still somewhere in Konoha. And she was. Six days after that, Lee went to "their" clearing. There, he was surprised to find her staring out at the celestial bodies above. It was night, and stars covered the sky. She was wearing a dark green sundress, similar to the color he wore, with her Leaf headband still tied firmly around her waist. He watched her for few minutes, not sure whether he should go up to her or not. He did anyway.
"Green?" he asked. She jumped.
"Lee?" she asked as he sat next to her. He smiled, then frowned.
"You lied. You said you weren't going to leave me," he said. Green smiled at his contraction use, but she couldn't bring herself to look at him. Her heart had only just started to try to fix itself up, and the pain of its brokenness was still there.
"I'm sorry," she said. Lee reached for her hand. She somehow sensed the movement and looked down at their hands, gently pulling her hand out of his reach. Then she finally looked at him. Lee's eyes widened. Green's eyes were full of sorrow and misery.
"What happened?" he asked.
"Lee, there's something I've been meaning to tell you. The reason I let you be my host, the reason I almost killed Neji, the reason I left. I love you," she whispered. Lee sat there dumbstruck with his jaw hanging open.
"Wh-wha-what?!" he exclaimed. Green stood to leave, tears spilling down her cheeks. She began to run from him, but he caught her wrist and pulled her back. She looked warily up at him. He smiled softly and wiped her tears with his thumb, still not letting go of her. She sniffed. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and she fell against him with no hesitation.
"I...," he started. "I love you too. That's why I made such a big deal about you leaving. I just didn't realize until-" Lee was cut off when Green place a finger over his lips. She moved in closer to him, mere inches separating them.
"You talk too much," she murmured, most of the sadness leaving her eyes. Then she closed her eyes and gently kissed him. Lee let a small gasp out, but then kissed her back. He reached out and put his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She in turn bound her arms around his neck.
The next morning, the first thing Lee saw was Green. She was snuggled up against his chest and tightly wound in his arms. He smiled softly, remembering their confessions last night. Green began to stir. He loosened his grip. She rolled over so that she was now facing him. She smiled and gently put her arms up around his neck. Then she placed a soft kiss on his lips. He returned it. She giggled. A few seconds later, Eric pounced on the unsuspecting pair. Green smiled and kissed him too. Then she looked over at Lee and laughed.
"Jealous?" she asked playfully. Lee smirked.
"And if I am?" he asked. Green hugged him.
"Well, I suppose I'll jus have to kiss you more than the cat, won't I?" she said. Lee pulled her closer.
"I suppose you will," he said. And that's exactly what she did.