Be nice please? This is the first time I've written for the Naruto fandom and well... hopefully this came out alright.
3 Years
By: Jaylonni Love
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Small hands wrung together, stopping the blood flow from one another, the knuckles of her hands a ghostly white. She was covered in blood; some belonging to herself but most of it being the blood of many others. Her signature buns were falling from their style, her face stricken with fear. Beside her were two of the most important men in her life, her long time teammate, Rock Lee, and their sensei, Miato Gai; both equally as disarrayed as she but neither hurting as much as the kunoichi was at the present point in time.
"T-TenTen-chan," the younger male of the two, Lee, said trying to gain the kunoichi's attention as he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "TenTen-chan if you keep doing that you will cut the blood circulation from your hands. Please. Stop."
The young woman, TenTen, paused her wringing, taking in what her teammate had said as she turned to look at him.
However she couldn't help it. Sitting in the hospital waiting room, waiting impatiently for any sort of news on his status was killing her. And if she didn't find something to occupy her time, she would lose her mind and that would warrant the hospital staff incarcerating her. And she didn't want that. She needed to be there when the doctors came out to tell them how he was. She needed to know that he would make it.
"I know that you are worried for Neji-kun, TenTen-chan," Lee continued giving her shoulder a light squeeze, "But you must be strong and trust in the doctors of this fine establishment. If we have faith in their abilities, they will bring Neji-kun back to us my precious flower."
He tried his best to give her a reassuring smile, but she could tell that even he had his doubts that their longtime friend and comrade would make it out of the situation alive just as she did. He had, after all, been impaled by several sharp hunks of wood in a last ditch effort to protect Hinata and Naruto from the oncoming attack.
Those had been the hardest moments she had ever had to live in her life. To see the man she had come to admire, consider a friend, and even love with all of her heart fall, hurt her to the core. Hurt her so much that if she had lost him, she would gladly follow him in death where they could be together forever.
"Lee is right, TenTen-chan," their sensei said pulling the bun haired kunoichi from her musings; but even he didn't sound completely convinced. "If we have faith, and trust that these fine men and women do their best, Neji-kun will definitely return to us. Just wait a while longer."
TenTen, who couldn't even begin to form coherent words at the moment, simply nodded, turning to look back at the doors that separated her from the one she loved more than anything in the world.
Neji… don't leave me, not yet, please, she thought to herself, her hand coming to rest on Lee's that had remained on her shoulder. I can't live without you…
…
At least another twelve hours had passed before anyone dared emerge from the operating room. TenTen, who had been sleeping semi-peacefully on one of the couches that the hospital waiting room had to offer, was gently shaken from her sleep by her former sensei. Sleepy brown eyes opened, trying to adjust to the bright lighting of the room before she croaked, "Gai-sensei…?"
"TenTen-chan, wake up, the doctors have come out," the bowl cut wearing man said, tears streaming down his face. "They have come to bring news about how Neji-kun is doing."
At the words the doctors have come out TenTen immediately jumped to her feet, instantly forgetting her earlier drowsiness. She wanted… no, she needed to know if Neji would make it.
Moving through the somewhat crowded waiting room, TenTen came to where the surgeons that had worked on her comrade were speaking with the Hyūga family that apparently gathered at the hospital while she was resting.
It's only right that they be here, she thought to herself as she politely pushed through the crowd of Hyūga Clan members, determined to get to the front so that she could hear what the doctor was saying to the head of the clan, Neji's uncle Hiashi.
"…expect he will make a full recovery in time," were the only words she heard once she reached her destination.
"Good, when can we go and see him," Hiashi asked.
TenTen listened intently. She also wanted to know when she would be permitted to visit her longtime friend and partner.
"Not now," the surgeon said shaking her blonde head. "We must keep him under intensive care to ensure that he is completely out of the danger zone so I would say that the earliest that anyone may come and visit will be in a week's time."
In a week's time? What was she supposed to do for an entire week?! If there was one thing TenTen wasn't, it was patient. She wanted to see him now. See for her own eyes that he was still alive. Still breathing. Still with her like she wanted him to be.
"I completely understand your reasoning," Hiashi said, "Thank you."
"Of course," the surgeon said giving a slight bow. "Now if you will excuse me, I have many more patients to tend to."
"Hn."
The blonde woman walked away, leaving the Hyūga Clan and Team Gai alone in the waiting room. Once she was out of sight, Hiashi turned to look down at TenTen who was now standing by Lee's side. "Young woman, you are Neji's teammate, correct?"
She had to blink before she nodded, "Yes that's right."
"Will you explain to me how this came to be?" Hiashi said gesturing for her to walk with him to the seating area.
"Um, yes," TenTen said as she turned to follow the Hyūga Clan leader away from everyone else.
"Do you think it is wise to allow TenTen-chan to retell the story of Neji-kun's injuries, Gai-sensei," Lee asked looking up at the elder man. "She took his fall harder than anyone else."
"It will do her good to get it off of her chest," Gai answered. "Come now Lee. Let's go home and rest."
"Right, Gai-sensei," Lee said nodding a bit, casting one last look back at his female teammate before he and the other left the hospital to retire to their homes for much needed rest.
…
"…and that's what happened," TenTen finished explaining. "Sakura did everything that she was able to do to keep him alive until we were able to get him to the hospital. However, no one believed that he would make it." She let a single tear escape her grasp and roll down her cheek before she wiped it away, giving the man a light smile. "But thankfully we were proven wrong."
"Hn," Hiashi hummed nodding his head, "It is a miracle that he is alive and I am glad that his life has been spared. If I lost him as well, I'm not sure how I would handle it. I have already lost my brother, losing my nephew as well would be far too hard to bear."
TenTen glanced up at the man from the corner of her eye after hearing what he had to say about Neji. All the assumptions she had made about him years ago from the stories Neji told her about his curse mark had been washed away when she saw how much the man truly cared for the Hyūga prodigy. She couldn't help the small smile that crossed her lips momentarily before it dropped again and she spoke once more, "Excuse me, Lord Hiashi?"
Hiashi, who had been staring at the doors of the operating room that led to his nephew, glanced back at the kunoichi, his brow risen, "Yes, what is it?"
"Pardon me for asking but, once you have visited with Neji when he is cleared for visitors," TenTen said quietly, fingers fiddling with one another, "Would it be alright if Gai-sensei, Lee, and I came to visit as well if only for a moment?"
The elder man gave a light smile, placing a hand on the young woman's smaller one that rested on the armrest of her chair, "Of course. I'm sure Neji would like to know that you and your team are doing well. And he would appreciate you coming to visit immensely I would assume."
Again the bun haired kunoichi smiled, bowing her head in thanks, "Thank you, Lord Hiashi."
"Hn."
…
She was losing her mind. It had already been a full six days since she got the news that Neji was expected to live.
Dammit, why won't the doctors clear him for visitors already? TenTen thought to herself as she paced the floor of her lone apartment. It's been six whole days already… he should be fine now… right…? I know they said a week but Neji is tough. He should be well enough by now to have visitors.
The brunette was brought from her musings when she heard a knock at her door. Turning on her heel, she quickly made her way to the door, hoping that it was either Gai-sensei or Lee coming to tell her that they could go and visit Neji in the hospital. To her utter disappointment however, it was neither of them. Instead in their place stood Kiba, Shino, Naruto, Ino, Shikamaru, Sakura, and Choji.
Tilting her head to the side, the kunoichi leaned against the door frame as she stared out at her friends, "Hi."
"Hi TenTen," Ino said giving a light smile. "We just wanted to drop by and make sure that you were doing alright."
"We heard about Neji," Kiba said giving a comforting smile. "We're glad that he's going to be fine."
"Have you been able to see him yet," Naruto inquired to which TenTen shook her head.
"The doctors said that he can't have visitors until sometime this week," TenTen answered, shifting her weight. "They want to make sure that he's completely out of danger before they allow anyone other than medical staff in to see him."
"Well Sakura's medical staff," Naruto said turning to look at the pink haired kunoichi that stood beside him. "She can go and see how he's doing right?"
"I can't, I tried," Sakura said shooting down the idea instantly. "Only top medical personnel with way more experience than I have can come in to see him right now."
"There goes that idea," Choji said sticking his hand in the bag of chips that he was holding before stuffing a handful in his mouth.
"Well," Ino said uncomfortably, "Enough about that subject, right? We came to make TenTen feel better not worse remember?" She then turned to the brunette that was standing in her doorway. "So how about you join us for some ramen or something to help get your mind off of things? You look like you could use a friend's company." She smiled, "We can even go get Hinata and ask her to join us. No one has seen her since we returned home and we're all kind of worried."
TenTen had to smile at Ino's notion before she nodded, "Let me get dressed then I'll meet you guys at the Hyūga compound in thirty minutes, alright?"
"Sounds like a plan to me," Kiba said before he turned to walk away, shooting a backwards wave over his shoulder. "Let's go guys."
Everyone nodded before waving to TenTen as they turned to head off to gather their other friend they hadn't seen since their return. TenTen smiled as she watched the group walk away until they were no longer in sight before she turned and walked back inside.
Maybe being around other people will help calm my nerves, TenTen mused as she returned to her room to get ready for the day.
Dressed in a white cheongsam shirt with a red rose stitching design sewn into it and a pair of reddish capris, the bun haired kunoichi left her apartment, locking the door behind her before she took off.
She arrived at the Hyūga compound just as Hinata had stepped out. Coming to join them, she was greeted with many hugs and hellos from the younger group members before they set off towards the ramen shop.
Idle chat filled the air as they walked, each talking about what they had been doing for the last few days since the end of the war, minus Hinata and TenTen. Everyone knew that they had been too worried about Neji to actually be motivated to do much of anything.
Entering Rāmen Ichiraku, the group took a booth big enough to seat them all. Happy conversations filled the air as they were served their usual meals, content with being in each other's company.
…
It was an hour later when everyone had finished eating that Lee had run into the ramen shop frantically looking for TenTen. When he spotted the bun haired young woman with their group of friends, he ran over grabbing at her hand, "Come quickly TenTen-chan! You must come quickly!"
TenTen, who had been pulled out of her seat by her teammate, tried hard to keep up with his pace as they ran out of the shop, completely confused by his actions, "Lee would you mind telling me what's going on? What's the rush? Did something happen?"
"Oh yes, my beautiful flower," Lee said joyfully. "The doctors have said that Neji-kun is now allowed to have visitors. Lord Hiashi has already gone to see him and Gai-sensei felt that it would not be right to leave you out when it came to be our turn to visit so he sent me to come and get you." He smiled at her over his shoulder as they continued to run towards the hospital that the prodigy was currently resting in, "Isn't that most wonderful news TenTen-chan?"
TenTen could feel the tears welling up in her eyes. Finally, finally after six long, agonizing days of waiting, TenTen could finally see the man she loved again. Even if he isn't awake yet, just seeing him for now would be good enough for me.
The pair continued to run through the streets of Konoha towards the hospital, determined to get there as soon as possible to see their friend.
…
Lee and TenTen skidded to a stop just outside the hospital room they had been told that Neji was being held in. When they arrived, they saw their sensei waiting in one of the chairs for them to come and for the Hyūga clan leader to leave the room. He smiled brightly at the sight of his other pupil before speaking, "Good Lee, you found her!"
"It was not hard, Gai-sensei," Lee said finally releasing his grasp on TenTen. "She was fortunately out with everyone at Rāmen Ichiraku so I was able to bring her here as soon as possible."
Gai simply nodded, giving a thumbs up to his carbon copy before he turned to look at the door that slowly opened. Hiashi, accompanied by a few other clan members stepped out before heading down the hall quietly to make their way home.
TenTen, being the first to react, moved towards the door and peeked in. She winced at the sight before. Neji was resting on the bed, still unconscious, hooked up to all sorts of monitors. The strong smell of anesthetic wafted through the room, burning the bun haired kunoichi's nose.
"Is he awake," Lee asked from behind her.
TenTen shook her head before she pushed the door opened further and stepped into the room.
Taking a seat beside his bed, the bun haired kunoichi looked down at the sleeping Hyūga prodigy. Silence enveloped the trio as they stared at their sleeping comrade, only barely registering the sound of someone else entering the room.
All three of their heads turned to see the head doctor that had conducted the procedure to save Neji's life standing there.
"Ah, good," the blonde said giving a gentle smile to the team that had assembled in the room as she closed the door behind her, "I was hoping that I would catch you three as well. I've come with a bit of… unsettling news."
TenTen's heart lurched at her words, brown eyes turning to look at the woman.
"What is it, doctor," Miato asked.
"Unfortunately, Neji has fallen into a coma," the doctor explained. "We have no idea of determining when he will wake. It could be a day from now, a week, a month, even a year."
Brown eyes turned back to the prodigy that lay in the hospital bed, a coma…?
"I'm very sorry," she said before she turned to leave the hospital room.
…
Year One
For the past year, TenTen had visited the coma induced man in the hospital once every week. Today was no different.
Stepping into the room, the nineteen year old smiled as she placed a new arrangement of flowers by his bedside, disposing of the one she had brought the week before. Once she finished her weekly routine of exchanging the flowers, she took her seat beside his bed. Brushing the growing hair from his face, she lightly traced the curse mark that had reappeared with her finger, a soft smile on her lips. It was just one more reminder that he was still with her, even if he had not woken yet.
It had already been over a year since the fourth great shinobi war ended. Everything had pretty much gone back to normal, well, everything except for him coming back to them that is.
"You've been sleeping for a year now," TenTen said softly, taking her hand from his forehead to grab the hand closest to her and squeeze it lightly. "We're all waiting for you to come back to us Neji. Gai-sensei, Lee, Naruto, Hinata, your uncle… me."
She felt a tear roll down her cheek, her free hand coming up to wipe it away before it made it's decent to her chin. Another smile crossed her features for a moment. "We miss you… I miss you."
She had leaned forward to kiss his brow, something she become accustomed to doing since she started her weekly visits until she heard the jiggle of the door knob. Leaning back, she released his hand and looked over at the barrier that separated his room from the rest of the hospital as it was opened from the outside and Lee stepped into her line of vision.
"Lee," TenTen said questioningly as she looked at the green spandex clad young man.
"TenTen-chan! Good I've found you," Lee said motioning for her to follow him. "Tsunade-sama has requested our presence for a briefing on a new mission. I'm sorry to cut your weekly visit short but the Hokage demands that we come immediately."
"Right," TenTen said as she stood, gathering her things, "I'll be right behind you. Just let me say goodbye for now."
Lee nodded before leaving the room, closing the door behind him. When TenTen heard the click of the door, she turned and looked back at the sleeping Hyūga. She pressed a gentle kiss to his brow, giving a sad smile, "Sorry today was cut short but duty calls. I'll come see you again next week."
...
Year Two
She thought that she saw him flinch, but wrote it off as being just her imagination as she arranged the flowers she had brought with her after dumping the old ones. Once she finished, she removed her light jacket she had been draped in, hanging it over the back of her usual seat before plopping down by his side. Instantly, her hand latched on to his, giving it a light squeeze.
"Today's my birthday Neji," she said softly. "This is the second time I've hoped that you would be awake to wish me a happy birthday. I guess I held my hopes too high once again because you're still asleep."
Using her free hand, she brushed away his long hair that had fallen in his face, noting that it was time to wash it again.
"Your hair's gotten longer," she mused, making a mental note to tell his nurses to be sure to wash his hair when she left after her visit. "Way longer than it was… that day."
She bit her lip, fighting back the tears that threatened to spill as the memories of watching him get impaled the way that he did and how he had laid there seemingly lifeless as Sakura rushed to his aid stirred in the back of her mind. She didn't want to relive the pain she had felt that day. She wouldn't be able to bare it.
"I'm sure when you wake up and see it, you'll be surprised," she continued after a moment of silence with a light chuckle.
Again she fell silent as she thought about what she could possibly tell him next. Then a thought struck her, "Oh yeah, Naruto and Hinata are finally dating. With much persuasion from everyone, those two finally decided to go out on a date. It's only been a couple of days but they seem happy."
She subconsciously licked her dry lips before she continued to speak.
"Also, Sasuke was finally allowed back into the village," she informed the sleeping Hyūga. "After two years of debate between the elders, they finally decided that he could rejoin us in our ranks as a Leaf Shinobi. However, he's not allowed to go out on missions alone. They still don't completely trust him after everything he put the village through a few years back. You know when he disappeared and allied himself with Orochimaru and everything."
She waved a hand, not really wanting to get on that subject. She still hadn't forgiven Sasuke for everything he had put the entire village through when they went to look for him and bring him home.
"And you know, despite everything he did, Sakura still cares for him," TenTen added as an afterthought. "They're also dating… have been dating for about seven months now - in secret might I add, how they kept it up though, no one knows - but only recently told everyone in the village."
She laughed at the memory. Everyone's jaw had dropped when they had announced their relationship over a friendly gathering of eating ramen and catching up with one another after everyone had returned from missions.
"Everyone's reactions were hilarious," TenTen said, still slightly giggling, holding her hand over her mouth. "I thought Ino was going to flip her shit. She had screamed so loud that we got kicked out of Ichiraku. It also took a lot of negotiating to get the owner to let up on his ban of Ino from the establishment with the promise that she would never yell like that again."
Shaking her head, the bun haired Kunoichi let her elbow rest on the edge of the bed, her cheek in the palm of her hand. She gazed at the sleeping prodigy lovingly, eyes half lidded with a smile tugging on the edges of her lips.
"I'll be glad when you wake up again," she admitted. "So that I can tell you all about the things we've been up to over the last few years and see your reaction to it all. I'm sure it would be priceless."
She glanced over at the clock that hung over the door, noting the time.
"I came later than I thought I did," she said as she sat up again. "I guess it's time for me to go. Visiting hours are almost over." She stood, picking up her coat before shrugging into it. "I'll come again next week… a bit earlier. I'm sure I'll have more stories to tell you by then."
After checking to make sure everything was in place, TenTen leaned over the edge of the bed, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead. "See you soon, Neji."
And with that, she left the room, closing the door behind her.
...
Year Three
Quietly closing the door behind her, the bun haired kunoichi walked into the room, once more removing the old flowers from the vase that sat by his bedside before replacing them with new, fresh flowers. Once she had finished arranging them, she went and sat by his side, sighing in exhaustion. It was early in the afternoon and she had just returned from a recent month long mission.
Leaning on the hospital bed on her elbows, the brunette smiled before greeting, "Hi Neji. I hope you've been alright since the last time I was here."
She was upset that she had missed a whole month's worth of visits with the Hyūga due to the recent mission she had taken on but that was the past and she just had to get over it and focus on the now.
"The doctors told me that you haven't shown any signs of waking up any time soon," she sighed, letting her cheek rest in the palm of her hand. "It's been over three whole years already Neji."
She glanced at him, willing the tears not to fall.
"I just want you to wake up," she whispered as she reached out to brush his bangs out of his face like she had done so many times before. "I want you to come and enjoy life with the rest of us… especially since Hinata and Naruto will be marrying soon."
She smiled, letting the palm of her hand rest on his cheek, "Do you know what she said just the other night when she and Naruto announced the engagement after we had finished up our mission?"
She paused a moment as she gently ran the pad of her thumb against his cheek, feeling the small puffs of oxygen that escaped his lips against the skin of her hand.
"She said that she wanted you to be present at her wedding, giving herself and Naruto your blessing," TenTen told him before she pulled her hand away to stifle a yawn, feeling herself drifting in and out of consciousness. "Sorry. I just got back from a mission and… I'm very… tired."
Her eyes slowly fluttered closed, her breath evening in no time as she fell into a peaceful slumber.
…
TenTen woke with a start several hours later when she felt movement beside her. Brown eyes snapped opened, trying to focus in the bright light of the room. She felt the movement once more before she looked down and saw that it was coming from the Hyūga that was slowly stirring into consciousness.
"Neji…?" she whispered as she watched him, hoping that her eyes weren't playing tricks on her.
She didn't know how many more false alarms she could take.
"Hn…" came a soft grunt from the prodigy as his head turned in her direction.
And after 3 years, when he finally opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was her, sitting there, watching him. The smile that split her face reached her eyes and without warning, she leaned forward, hugging him as best she could.
The Hyūga, who was still slightly in a daze, was surprised by his teammate's actions and even more so when he felt hot tears kiss his skin.
"You're awake," he heard her whisper in his ear, her voice cracking slightly. "You're finally awake."
"Hn…" was the only response he could give; his vocal cords did not want to work with him.
"I missed you so much," she said as she sat up to look at him, a small smile on her face as tears continued to fall down her cheeks. "Don't you ever do that to me again, understand."
And once more, she buried her face in the crook of his neck. It was moments later that she felt one of his arms sluggishly wrapped itself around her waist. Then he spoke, be it his voice was a bit hoarse from having no use for the past 3 years, the three simple words making her heart stop momentarily, "I'm sorry, TenTen."
"It's alright," she assured him quietly. "It's alright."
She couldn't wait to tell everyone that he had woken up again but for now, she was just happy being there with him and claiming the title of the first person he saw when he finally woke from his three year slumber.
I'm obviously not a fan of Neji's death so… this was the result. It doesn't seem right to me though. Like there was something else I could have done with it. But I've been told that it's perfectly fine the way that it is. So let me know how you like it. Please and thank you.
Now I'm off to continue writing my NejiTen one-shot collection. Ciao.
(If you noticed, I'm being sneaky and adding in little edits here and there on the sly.)