Beautiful Star
Tenshi no Hoshi
A/N: Yay! My first Naruto fic! Not to mention my first chapter story! I'll make sure it'll go through At first, I thought, 'Tenten is such a cool character, but how come she isn't a key character with a disclosed past?' So then, this is the basis of the whole story I added Neji because he seemed closest to her (with the exception of Lee.) Give me at least 10 reviews and you all recieve a cookie AND a new chapter xD Enjoy
"If you place a sword into its sheath, the reflecting light can be hindered, but no matter how hard you try to hide someone's heart, it will continue to shine."
The twinkling stars above could hardly be seen with the intense city lights nearby. They were preparing for the Hanabi Festival currently taking place as a rush of villagers from all over the country flocked to gaze upon the marvelous fireworks. Beams of light shot upward like shooting stars from the city and into the sky, bursting into a thousand glowing pieces.
Neji covered his ears. "Ugh, its so noisy. How can I expect myself to train with this racket?"
He looked up to the glittering night sky. "Then again, I can't train without Tenten here. Where the hell is she?"
The Jounin was one who could not keep his patience easily. He gritted his teeth in annoyance. It has been almost two hours since they both planned a training session. Where could she possibly be?
The sound of rustling leaves echoed in the distance. The ninja swiftly turned his back to the city and stood in his offensive stance. "Who's there? Show yourself!"
"EEK!" A screech rang through the empty forest. Suddenly, a young girl covered in leaves and smudged with dirt emerged from the darkness and landed with a thump on the ground. "Ah…ow ow ow that hurt…"
Neji scoffed at her dramatic entrance. "Keh, what took you?" He stepped in front of her and kneeled down to meet her face.
Tenten lifted her head and stuck her tongue out. "I got stuck in the traffic. The parade patrol didn't let me through until the whole thing was over! But honestly, that festival looks more interesting than training…," she complained as she rose to her feet.
She offered her hand to her long time companion. "C'mon, please?" She gave Neji the puppy dog look.
"Heh, no way. It's way too noisy. I don't want to go in there." He took her hand and lifted himself up. "Besides…" He paused and looked up the sky as the fireworks came to a halt.
Tenten gave him a worried look. "Wh-what is it?" She, too, turned her attention to the night sky.
Neji shook his head. "I…I can't see the stars tonight." He turned his head towards Tenten and let off a warm smile. A tiny, but warm smile formed at the corners of his lips. "At night, when I used to practice by my village, the stars would always accompany me, so I wouldn't ever feel so lonely.
Tenten felt her cheeks redden. She hadn't recalled the last time he had given her a genuine emotion of his. "W-well," she stammered, "We don't really have to go. We can just stay here and train I guess."
"You can't see the stars from here either." Neji started walking in the opposite direction of Konoha. "We don't have to train today. Let's go to the Hyuuga's hidden village. There's something I've been meaning to ask you."
Tenten felt a surge of apprehension come over her body. "B-but are you sure it'll be ok? I mean, they may not –"
"Hey, its gonna be alright. Everyone in the village actually attended the festival. I can't stand public events, so let's just stay there for now." Neji lept in the air and landed on a nearby tree branch.
"Let's go."
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Both ninja's arrived at their destination and sat under the stars, leaning upon a tree nearby the lake. The moon and stars were easily visible and reflected upon the water's surface, glittering as the waves swayed back and forth.
Neji started hesitating. "Um, Tenten…" He made sure no eye contact would be necessary. Losing his cool in front of someone like her would be the last thing he needed.
"Huh? You don't sound too well. You ok?" Tenten grew more worried by the hour. He'd been hiding something since they met up outside Konoha.
"Y-yeah. I'm fine," he answered in an effort to remain calm. "I…I wanted to ask you about your past. Your origin."
He held his legs to his chest and placed his head on top. "The more I think about it, I hardly know anything about you. The same goes for you. I bet you know almost nothing about me besides the fact that we've been training with each other for who knows how many years."
Tenten signed in relief. "Is that what you've been so worked up about this whole time?" She laughed out loud as it her voice was carried in the wind. "Eh, honestly, I'm not too sure about that either."
She rose to her feet and walked to the water's edge. The waves crashed along the shore, splashing her bare feet. "I honestly don't know who I am, or where I come from." She smiled to herself. "I guess some could say it's a good thing, because then its sorta like saying I'm free. Not belonging to any village, or staying loyal to a country, is like having pure freedom. On the other hand…"
"You feel alone, don't you? Knowing that there are no one out there like you, I mean," Neji added.
Tenten turned around and smiled up at Neji. "Yeah, I guess you can say that." She stared at her reflection in the sparkling lake waters. "But…I really have been trying hard. I want to find who I am and where I come from, so that I won't have to feel that way anymore."
She tried putting up a strong expression on her face, but she felt as if she was breaking down inside. "Neji…what do you see in me?"
Neji was taken aback at her question and jerked his head up. There was a moment of silence between the two ninjas until he also rose from his spot by the tree and came over to where Tenten was standing. "You know what I see?"
He took an old and used dagger in his hands and held it up to the moon's light. "They say that if you place a dagger in its sheath," he slid the dagger back into its place, "you cannot see its brilliance in the light. But… they say that no matter how hard you try to hide one's heart, it will continue to shine."
"Right now, I see a girl who is trying to hinder the starlight shining in her heart," Neji asserted. He took her shoulders and turned her to face him, although it almost killed him to do so. "Y-you don't have to hide yourself from me. I, too, promise to be more open with you."
Tenten couldn't take it anymore. She had already started to feel her locked away tears well up in her eyes once again. "Y-yeah. Thank you. I guess I really don't have to hold back anything right?" She wiped her misty eyes and sat down to let her legs tread in the water. Their time had come.
"Well, let's see…where should I begin?"
