Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. Me no own. You no sue.
A/N: More NejiTen fluff. Couldn't stay away. So hard... And why is 'fluff' not a genre? I had a hard time trying to classify this into a genre. Anyway, enjoy. Crap title, I know, but I couldn't think of anything else.
Of Pride and Hair
Pride comes before the fall.
It was a statement to which Neji has been subjected through the years of his short-lived childhood. His father had taught him that. While generally as a Hyuuga he was taught to uphold the Hyuuga pride as well as name, his father taught him otherwise.
He remembered at one particular point in time when his father had reiterated the saying to him. It wasn't the first time, but it was the first time Neji had actually listened. He remembered the fight that had erupted between a cousin and himself, something none too important to remember in great detail (he thought it might be over a squirrel or a possum or something that has made its home in the largest tree in the garden situated right in the centre of the Hyuuga compound; his cousin wanted to kill the squirrel or whatever it was, and he was fighting for its right to live as written in the Universal Declaration of Animal Rights…or at least, he thought he was fighting for the animal's life…or was he already a sadistic little murderer back then? Surely not at the tender and innocent age of four!)
Back to the point, and the point was, the fight turned into a brawl (as much as little children of four can brawl, taking into account that they were of the genius clan of the Hyuuga of course). Neji remembered his father coming into the scene then, and coming up with a compromise; that they would move the squirrel – or whatever animal it was – outside, and find it a home which was not in the Hyuuga compound. Neji remembered his father reasoning that outside the Hyuuga compound, the animal could live without disturbing people, and it could, well, live.
Of course, in all reasonable logic, both Neji and his cousin should have accepted this compromise, but, being the proud little Hyuuga brats that they were, they continued beating the hell out of each other with their little Hyuuga Gentle Fists.
He remembered the night of that incident, post-fight, after he was cleaned up and bandaged sufficiently. He was sulking in the corner of the room he and his father shared, and his father had asked him, why was he still sulking? Because in the end, wasn't the animal set free and could now live a happy life?
Neji had not answered. His little Hyuuga pride did not take a beating well. That was when his father said those longingly familiar words; pride comes before the fall. Neji had countered his father with the old ancestral 'rules' of the Hyuuga; uphold the Hyuuga name and pride. Which was where the explanation came in.
There is pride, his father told him, and there is dignity. Upholding the Hyuuga name takes dignity, not pride. Little Neji had asked him, what's the difference? Dignity, his father had answered, is the state in which others respect you and hold you in high esteem, whereas pride is where you hold yourself in high esteem.
So what's all this thing about the Hyuuga pride? his son had asked. Not everyone knows the difference between pride and dignity, his father had said. If they laugh at you, then let them laugh, for you know that they are ignorant and you are not.
Little Neji smirked.
And so, from that day onward, Neji has held himself in dignity (no, not pride). But…
Pride comes before the fall.
And thus this was the thought that ran through his mind at this very moment. This thought, and that whole load of flashback. He stood here now, in the middle of his girlfriend's living room, gawking, his jaw on the floor upon the sight he beheld:
Tenten's hair was gorgeous.
It was the first time he had ever seen her with her hair down, and dammit! Her long brown locks were thick and soft (just like his), cascading softly down her back (just like his), swaying with every tiny movement of her body (just like his).
But here's the catch; her hair shone.
Oh sure, Neji's hair shone too, but even he always knew it needed the just right kind of light to make it glow like…that.
"What's wrong, Neji? You looked like someone just messed with your hair."
Neji bristled. Oh, she doesn't know.
But what's all this got to do with Neji's lesson in life about pride and dignity and whatnot?
"Hn." Hyuuga Neji was sulking. And that answers a lot of questions. Here he was, thinking that no one, not even Hinata-sama, has better hair than him. It's not fair!
"Neji…!" his girlfriend pouted. She stepped up to him, mere inches away from his face. Wide, amber eyes probed tenderly. "What's wrong?"
He turned his head away, purposefully doing it in a way that made his hair toss slightly (while looking all the way unintentionally, or so he hoped).
Tenten, however, noticed this, and huffed. Tossing her hair back, she said, "Fine. Don't tell me then!"
Neji, in turn, watched her out of the corner of his eye, or, to be more accurate, he watched her hair; the way it…flew in the air, assembling with much grace as gravity pulls it down once again, and most of all, the way it shone. Oh, jealousy is an ugly creature indeed. Way to go to trample on a man's pride! Err, dignity.
Tenten, however, noticed this still. That evil glint in her eye…
"Neji," she said.
"What."
"You're not…jealous are you?"
His left eyebrow twitched, just slightly.
"You're not…you can't possibly jealous of my hair?!" she gasped in pretend surprise. Oh, she was a cunning and observant little vixen indeed.
His left eyebrow twitched a bit more.
She continued her assault. "I mean, you spend so much time on that gorgeous hair of yours! You spend 15 minutes each day just brushing it! And you always count how many times you brush it on each side! Plus all that money you spend on that conditioner which you said gave your hair an extra shine!"
His left eyebrow began to twitch continuously.
"Neji! You really shouldn't be jealous! Your hair is gorgeous…"
He mentally breathed a little sigh of relief.
"…too bad mine's better."
He snapped. "NEVER!"
She smirked. "And I don't even brush it like you do, neither do I use expensive conditioners…actually, now that I think about it…" she put a finger to her chin in mock thought, "…I don't use any conditioners at all."
Her eyes met his, and her smirk was clearly reflected in them.
He fumed. Oh, it was war. He opened his mouth, ready to prove her wrong when-
"Neji, Neji, Neji… Didn't you know? Pride comes before the fall."
His red face turned white. Oh, why, why, why did he not listen to his father when it came to the subject of hair? …Stupid pride.
"Tsk, tsk. You really shouldn't take that much pride in your hair. There'll always be others who have better hair than you." She flipped her hair. "Namely, me."
Limit break.
He prepared to launch, but then…
"Aww, Neji, you know your hair is fine…" She was suddenly so close. How'd she do that so fast? Oh, wait. Stupid kunoichi powers, Neji grumbled mentally. "Aww, come on, Neji, stop sulking."
She placed her hands at the back of his neck, pulling his face to hers, their noses touching. "I hate it when you sulk…" she breathed. His heart rate shot up. "When you frown like that…your lips look so kissable…" His breath hitched. "…But your eyebrows go all wonky, sort of like Lee's when he's excited."
Way to ruin a moment! Neji mentally shrieked (and no, Hyuuga Neji so does not shriek). What happened to girls being romantic? Then again…it was Tenten he was talking about. She was extremely down-to-earth, blunt, and overall, a non-romantic.
"Hn." And his lips were on hers. Of course, since she wasn't a romantic at all, he'd have to be romantic for the both of them.
One furious make-out session later…
Turns out he wasn't much of a romantic either. It was really more horny (passionate! Neji mentally screamed! It was passionate!) than romantic. But hey, he wasn't complaining. He licked his lips.
"Hey, Neji?"
"Mm?" He snuggled (Hyuuga Neji snuggling! Imagine that!) into the crook of her neck.
"You know I love your hair…"
He grunted, sensing something else coming.
"Your hair is unbelievably soft…"
He could feel her smiling.
"…And mine is unbelievably shiny…"
He looked up. A wicked grin was playing on her lips.
"…I wonder what kind of hair our babies will have."
A/N: Argh, I hope I explained the idea of Neji's pride in his hair OK. I got a little carried away in the beginning with the squirrel story. Hehe. I don't know whether or not this idea's been done before; I've seen none, but I thought it'd be obvious to do a NejiTen with the idea of hair. I mean, come on, look at Neji's hair! -insanely jealous here- Last line just came to me one day, and I just had to write it. Hope you likie. Review! Extra brownie points for constructive criticism. :) Something about the way I wrote this itches me, I don't know what...