Author's Note:

Hello! This is a Rock Lee story that I came up with some time back. I hope you like it! You may have seen it on quizilla because I have an account on there as well. Well...had. I don't really go there anymore.

Sorry about the terrible spacing, folks. I finally got around to coming back in and fixing it! Should be easier to read now!

I have decided to turn this fanfic into a full-blown story, so let me know what you think!

"Hmph. So Seiko beat you already, Lee? That's the fourth time this week, isn't it?"

Neji's condescending tone reached them from the sidelines of the sparring field, causing the two teammates to look up. They could practically hear the smirk in his tone. In fact, it caused one of the two of them to smirk as well – Neji's sister, Seiko.

Lee glanced over at her, smiling to himself. Seiko had inherited a lot from her older brother, Neji. When she was pleased with something or when she was teasing Lee, she had the exact same smirk as he did. Nearly a mirror image of him, anyone could tell the two were related. Seiko also had her brother's dark brown hair which stopped around the middle of her back. A few strands hung in her face, and she was forever vainly trying to get them to stay behind her ear.

Lee noticed that she always tucked it behind her ear when she was thinking hard about something. After all, she analyzed things the same way Neji did, looking at a problem from every angle.

But one thing that made her different from Neji, or at least in Lee's opinion, was her Byakugan. He could have sworn that they were a whiter than his, like the color of new-fallen snow.

He couldn't be sure, but he liked to believe so. It made her eyes all the more entrancing to him.

Lee pushed himself up off the grass, helping Seiko to her feet as well. He smiled slightly at Neji as Seiko smirked proudly, blowing a wayward hair out of her face. He loved it when she did that.

"Oh! Yes. Yes, it is,"Lee acknowledged, rubbing the back of his head. He didn't seem perturbed by this in the slightest, though usually it would drive him to train until he dropped. It didn't bother him so much when she beat him. He didn't let her win or anything, but he liked to see the confidence on her face.

"Actually, we fought twice today, so technically, it's the fifth time this week," Seiko pointed out, her hands on her hips. Lee laughed, stretching his arms to rid them of exhaustion.

"Ah! Yes. I suppose it is. But I will beat you one of these days, Seiko!" he insisted with a grin, striking his usual pose.

Seiko smacked him over the back of the head, shooting him a disdainful look. This was her usual reaction to him.

"You're such a dork, Lee."

He prodded the sore spot on his head where Seiko had hit him.

"Ow. You're getting stronger and stronger, Seiko," he laughed in a cheerful voice, contradicting the face he made when he winced.

"Practice makes perfect," Seiko quoted, smiling sweetly. Lee was careful to hide his face from Neji, blushing a bright shade of pink.

"Oh. Here comes Tenten," Seiko stated. Her Byakugan was still on from her fight with Lee. Lee was still getting used to the fact that she and Neji could see just about anything.

"Hey, guys!" Tenten called, appearing from between two trees, breathing hard from practicting, "Gai-sensei says that we're done for today."

"Hello, Tenten! How did your training go today?" Lee asked excitedly. He was always excited when it came to bettering yourself. With Seiko, though, he didn't worry too much about her improving. She is already perfect, after all.

"She didn't miss the mark once," Seiko spoke up, deactivating her Byakugan,"I watched her while I was fighting Lee. His guard was particularly weak today."

Neji chuckled softly, which would normally infuriate Lee, but he just grinned at Seiko who looked at him suspiciously.

"You're acting weird today, Lee," she mumbled suspiciously, wondering why he was looking at her like that, "And by weird, I mean weirder than usual."

"Oh? Am I?" he asked, distractedly, still looking at her.

Neji rolled his eyes and turned around, starting to walk away from them.

"Well, if practice is over..." he muttered, not bothering to finish his sentence, "Are you walking home with me, Seiko?"

Neji looked back questioningly. The question was casual enough, but everyone in Konoha knew how protective he was of his little sister. He always made sure she was okay – like a fussy mother hen. Of course, anyone who said so would always regret it if he heard it, but he was very overprotective.

"No," Seiko answered, smiling at her brother. It wasn't a smirk anymore. Outside of practice, her smile gradually softened. "I'll just hang out around here for a while. It's nice outside," she explained, giving her big brother a reassuring look.

Neji nodded reluctantly and left, and Tenten ran to catch up with him, chattering away happily as they walked. Her house was in the same direction, and she usually followed them home.

Seiko walked over to one of the trees, sitting down in the shade it made. She nestled down between the roots, making herself comfortable before pulling out her book. One thing Seiko loved to do was read.

Lee glanced at Seiko sitting under the tree, a peaceful smile on her face, before turning back to his training. Practice was never over at the same time for him. He always stayed much later than the rest of his team. Sometimes, though, Seiko would stay behind. She just sat there alot of times, but he couldn't be sure if she was watching him train or just enjoying being outside…

The only thing Lee knew for certain was that Seiko hated to spend more time than was necessary at the Hyuga estate. She struggled with the main branch of the family almost as much as Neji did.

Mind drifting, Lee began kicking the training stump repeatedly, his usual warm-up. The noise didn't bother Seiko. She had grown used to reading along with the background noise.

It had almost become like a custom for the two of them – Seiko and Lee – putting off the end of the day just a little bit longer together.

Seiko turned a page subconsciously, her eyes staring blankly at the paper. She drifted off into thought a lot of times while reading, often reading the same pages over again. In fact, at that moment, Seiko was scanning the words before her absently, not really taking in what they said.

And that's when she heard his voice.

Seiko swiveled her head in his direction, her eyes burning as she glared at the intruder mistrustfully.

Uchiha Sasuke.

"So...you aren't hiding behind your brother today?"

Sasuke leaned against the tree Seiko was sitting under, his arms crossed in front of him. He glanced around the field coolly, avoiding her eyes.

Turning back to her book, Seiko stared determinedly at the page before her. Her cheeks flushed out of anger.

He hadn't talked to her in months. What makes him think I want to have any kind of conversation with him now?

"I don't hide behind Neji,"she replied coldly, not once looking up from her book, "It's not my fault that you're afraid to talk to me while he's around."

"I'm not afraid of your brother," Sasuke muttered under his breath, glancing sideways at her, "And I'm definitely not afraid of you."

He moved in front of her, staring her down, and Seiko glanced past him at Lee, kicking away at his practice stump – the same one he used every day. She surprised herself by wishing he was there with her now.

Seiko got to her feet slowly, dropping her book, and returned Sasuke's black gaze fearlessly.

Catching movement out of the corner of his eye, Lee stopped training and wondered – disappointedly – if Seiko was going home already. He momentarily abandoned his training and turned around, focusing his line of sight on Seiko. His face immediately dropped with concern at the sight of Sasuke.

Lee knew that Seiko and Sasuke had once been friends. He wasn't sure how strong their bond had been, but he knew that it had been strong enough to hurt both of them when it was broken.

They had made friends in the Academy, but somewhere along the line, things had gotten a little rough between them. From what Lee had heard, the problem had been Sasuke's revenge.

Seiko disagreed strongly with Sasuke's take on his clan's death, and argued with him that he was wasting his life away. It meant something to her especially, because, being a member of the side branch of the Hyuga family, she had no choice as to what she would do with hers. It made her furious.

Either way, their friendship had ended in a painful way, and neither of them had spoken to one another since…

Until now.

Sasuke and Seiko were both tense, looking as if they were ready to spring at each other at a moment's notice. Seiko glared hostilely while Sasuke kept his face blank – a clean slate.

"You're not afraid?" Seiko laughed derisively, clenching her fists, "Then you'd think you would have shown your sorry face around here before now!"

Seiko was furious, remembering the things he had said to her, the things she had said to him, the way they had fallen apart. Most of all, she was furious about how glad she was to see him.

He had hurt her badly, but…he had meant a lot to her, and, if she was honest with herself, he probably still did.

His words had stung, but nothing stung more than his attitude, always so cool and indifferent, even now as he stood in front of her.

"You know, you always act like you're so tough, but you're not!" Seiko snapped, infuriated by his silence, "When you can't even show your face to your friend…you make me sick!"

Exasperated, Sasuke stepped forward violently, shoving Seiko's back into the tree with a resounding thud.

He knew she wouldn't listen to him if things kept going like this. He had to grab her attention – he was desperate for it.

Lee jumped when he saw Sasuke shove Seiko against the tree. Face full of outrage and alarm, he started to run towards the two of them.

Seiko's face registered shock for a moment, her pale, white eyes open wide, but soon her face softened, almost relieved he had acted out – done something.

But before the fiasco could develop any further…Seiko disappeared.

It was a clone.

Lee stopped in his tracks, nearly falling over himself as he skidded to a halt abruptly.

He should have known that Seiko wouldn't let her guard down so easily.

At least Sasuke didn't hurt her, he thought. The very idea of it infuriated him.

Now the Uchiha stared incredulously at the spot where Seiko had been standing only moments before. He pushed himself back, retreating a few steps so he could look around for her.

"A little violent today, are we?"

Sasuke's eyes shot up through the branches of the tree, only to see Seiko sitting on one of the branches, her book in her hand. She was frowning at him, a glint of hardness in her eyes.

They looked like ice when she was angry.

Slipping her book into her pocket, Seiko dropped out of the tree and sized Sasuke up with an appraising look. The two merely looked at each other for a few minutes, scrutinizing one another, as Lee watched with a frown on his face. His body was tense under his green jumpsuit, ready to intervene should something happen.

His mind travelled back to the Chuunin Exams, when the Uchiha had so easily dismissed him, treating him like a joke – like a loser. Seiko had still been friends with him, then. She had laughed at him, and, if he were honest with himself, she had probably been thinking the same.

But this was a different time and a different place. Seiko was different…

He was different; and he would not let Sasuke Uchiha lay a hand on her.

Disclaimer:

I do not own the Naruto characters, including Sasuke Uchiha, Neji Hyuuga, Rock Lee, and TenTen.