The idea came to me in the shower one day with the radio blasting and me listening to Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift….

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DISCLAIMER: I don't own Naruto.

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Radio

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He couldn't sleep. Whenever his eyes tried to drift close, he could hear her screams, the sound of her cries of his name kept him awake and alert. Rock Lee and Gai had tried to get him to sleep by trying guided meditation. They even tried to beat him unconscious, but came to no avail. Mediation would have normally calmed his mind. But he couldn't sit still for too long. He could only breathe in as he collected his thoughts in silence, trying to find some kind of peace within the memories of the last few weeks:

"Team Gai, I hear by send you on a search and destroy mission." Tsunade tossed the info scroll to Gai.

Rock Lee, Neji, and Tenten stood at their attention, wearing their ANBU gear. They had just entered the ranks as a team. And by Gai's recommendation, the three shinobi have been put on the same cell, with Hyuga Neji as their leader, and Gai as their supervisor, because they were so young.

"You three must be very careful. Out of the rest of Rookie Nine, you three are of the highest caliber and work very efficiently. Hyuga Neji, I expect all of you to return swiftly and in one piece. Remember, you have Gai to guide you if you are feeling conflicted."

"Yes, Tsunade-sama. I will not hesitate to ask for help."

Once they were dismissed, Tenten was accompanied home by Neji, where he spent some time with her before heading home to pack. She had made tea and had taken a shower before joining him on the couch. They enjoyed each other's company. The two were the best of friends, who fell in love unintentionally. It was completely accidental when he found himself kissing her after a seduction mission they were both assigned to a few months ago. It came as a complete shock when Tenten found herself kissing him back. He had kissed her good bye an hour later and went home to pack himself and freshen up.

The team had assembled in front of the village gates. Tenten had provided the radios. New, high tech, and had a longer battery life of a month and three weeks. They reached their targeted location within two weeks and had been ambushed. It turned out that the gang of shinobi who ambushed them was the people the team was looking for. They fought them, only killing about a quarter of the group. Tenten was right behind Neji, covering his flank, and before he knew it, she was being carried away from the area, blood on her face.

Neji's mind snapped back to reality as he heard soft moaning from his radio. Holding his hand over the ear where the radio piece was, his eye brows went south as he tried to make out what was going on the other end. At first he was worried, since it was unpleasant moaning. But if it was even pleasant, that would have made him go insane and confused. The whole night was silence on the other end of the radio which caused him such anxiety to the point where Gai and Lee had to knock him out for one night to make him stop panicking and just to get him to sleep. The genius soon realized that it was indeed unpleasant, to his relief. A small smile formed on his face when he realized that she was alright.

"A-ah…mm…"

"Were you asleep?" Neji asked in to the microphone.

"Yeah, I was." The voice responded.

"Are you alright?" the Hyuga asked.

"For the most part," she coughed.

Neji sighed. Hearing her voice was what kept him together at this point.

"Did anything happen?" the Hyuga asked.

"Well, not yet. But for the most part they have been giving me bread and water. They also have my scroll right in front of my face; Taunting me. These bastards."

She gave a small laugh, but started to cough. Neji bit his lip and glanced over at Gai and Rock Lee. They could hear her too, but they were in a deep sleep at the moment, so it was just him. He was actually glad that they couldn't. Neji wouldn't be able to get a word in if the two green beasts were talking to her nonstop. Shifting in his seat, he could hear her soft breathing project through the ear piece. Whispering her name, he rubbed his hands together. Just hearing her voice gave him some comfort. That was something he needed since she was taken from the team; from his side. He'd kill the bastard slowly to emphasis how much anxiety he was going through. And sure as hell he will bring his head on a silver platter to the Hokage himself.

"Neji, I'm not sure what they want. But sure as hell I'm going to bust my kunai up their asses once I bust out of these chains and gain my chakra back!"

Neji chuckled. She wasn't one for showing weakness, that's for sure. She never did, and the brunette hated when someone showed any sign of weakness or giving up. He loved that about her. Sitting against the tree, the Hyuga looked into the flames of the camp fire. She spoke to him, sending words of encouragement and of faith that they will find her and that she will be alright. Her words gave him peace for he has known of her will power and strength since they were in the academy. She always stood up for Lee, sassed him about being an arrogant fool who couldn't know the difference between friendship and arrogance; even if it hit him in the face. The kunoichi was spunky and rocked to her-own beat, for sure. The Hyuga knew he had made a true friend when she had told him about himself in the middle of the street. Odd yes, but she was brutally honest with him. They found some type of mutual respect for each other. He had agreed to train with her if she would help him perfect his jutsu. The deal went as a success and he was stronger. She was the only one that could keep up with his Gentle Fist; likewise he was the only one she could trust to keep her mind down to Earth when she got a bit too enthusiastic. They balanced each other out. And he loved when she would try to pick a fight with him when they both knew she wouldn't win.

"Neji…you still there?" her voice whispered.

"I always will be."

A small sigh escaped her lips, which he figured to be her smiling. Before he could ask her about her surroundings, she shushed him. It was silent for a little bit before another voice was heard from the radio. The voice had noticed she was asleep, and spoke to the room (to Neji, it seemed as though someone else was in the room with the voice), saying that they will question her when she is awake. It was moments again before she whispered into the ear piece.

"I can honestly say, I hope they don't kill me."

"I will kill them first." Neji replied sharply.

His teammate chuckled behind the radio. She questioned his sleeping habits since he has had a tone of complete exhaustion though out their conversation. He denied any form of exhaustion that she was implicating. Stating he was perfectly fine, he added that he was just being alert and that he actually slept last night.

"That's because Lee and Gai-sensei had to knock you out."

The prodigy stiffened. Those two must have told her about his little panic attack and the action they posed to making him stable. That he wished they didn't do. Neji wished that they didn't tell her, it was a form of weakness. They knew that he has never cared so much about someone before, besides his own father. So this was worse than the time they had been assigned their first seduction mission as Chunnin. But that was not the case here. Tenten was important to him; he would move the sun just to shade her. As much as the brunette promised him that she was as strong as stone, he forced himself to remember that she was still human. They all were. The only strong emotion he has ever felt was anger. Now, it was worry.

When the sun had finally reached the sky, the ninja had woken up and continued their search for their beloved teammate. Gai had instructed Neji to search for chakra traces with his Byakugan, a mastered technique where he is now able to detect even just a sliver of chakra. Since the ambush, the Hyuga has recognized the enemy's chakra coating and flow. To his disappointment, he did not find any traces; those bastards must have covered their chakra signatures when they were escaping with Tenten. . Gai then instructed Rock Lee to physically search the area for any signs of struggle.

"I found some blood. By the looks of it, they have gone this way." Lee pointed to the mountains.

The trio followed the trail. It went a long ways, which means that-thankfully-Tenten had put up a struggle for her captors. Rock Lee had been chatting with the weapons master the whole time they have been searching. He did not stop talking, even if it was to himself. The taijutsu master was also trying to make sure that his best friend knew what they were doing, and to assure her that they were looking for her. Tenten appreciated it. Once again while he was in the middle of telling her about the part of the grassy field they were in, she shushed him. All three men stopped dead in their tracks and listened to the conversation on the other line.

"You had a team with you. And they're probably looking for you now."

"And if they are?"

"They'll never find you. There's genjutsu surrounding this place."

"What do you want? Money? Plans to Konoha?"

"I knew your father. You share the Great Dragon's face as well as his fighting style."

There was silence. The three men can hear Tenten's breath being sucked in.

"You have knowledge of the crystal blade."

"What of it?"

"Where is it, daughter of the Great Dragon?"

Tenten spat at the voice. She refused to tell him. A smacking sound reached the trio's ears. Neji clenched his fists against his sides and bared his teeth. Rock Lee put a hand on his shoulders, whispering that they couldn't do anything to save her at the moment; they had to find her first. The Hyuga slapped his hand away and took a step away from his teammate. They were wasting time just standing in the middle of this field, listening to their teammate being smacked around.

"AGH!"

Neji's finger nails glided across his cheek, lightly scratching his flesh. Rock Lee and Gai grabbed the Hyuga by his arms and forced him to walk back toward the ending of the forest. They had spent all day searching for clues; it was time to rest up so that they can start again early. After a few minutes, Tenten's grunting had stopped and the voice had returned, a bit unclear through the brunette's panting.

"I'll be back later to ask you again."

There was a moment of silence. Neji held back his tongue desperately, not knowing if Tenten was alone once more or not. Her panting had died down to soft breaths. She whispered his name, which caused the men to look at each other.

"Tenten, what do they want?" Gai asked into the radio.

And so the young woman explained.

Tenten's father was a weapons master and black smith who traveled around, teaching, learning, and inventing. His fighting style could only be described as a graceful dance, swift, and deadly with metal stars and blades, which is how he got the name "Great Dragon". A skilled ninja from Konoha, he had taken a leave to train by himself after becoming a Jonnin at a young age. Since his ninjutsu was average, he work hard to improve his taijutsu and find a way to make the ultimate weapon that can be fused with any form of chakra without draining it form the wielder. After traveling around the ninja lands, he had collected data and materials to create this weapon. He had settled down in Konoha with a young woman that he met on his journey. She was a ninja as well from Konoha, a healer. As time passed, they had a baby. Around the time the baby was born, the Great Dragon had successfully created a sword out of crystal that recycled chakra. It was the ultimate stamina boost and was proven useful during the third great ninja war. However, her father felt that using its ability was cheating a ninja of his true potential. The sword granted stamina, but depended on the chakra flow of the user. So he hid it from the ninja world. Her mother had told Tenten that a true ninja should depend on their own skills and work on their own strengths. With that, Tenten was granted as the guardian of the sword once her parents were both killed for a similar situation that she was currently in. She knew its exact location.

"And damn sure I'm not saying a word." She concluded.

"Tenten, your father was Fei-ten, correct?" Gai asked her.

"Yes. That was his birth name. Some called him Fei or just Ten. Like how you guys call me 'Ten', I think of my father."

Neji closed his eyes. He figured that she had gotten her punishment for the night from her captor. For this one night, while she was the one doing all of the talking, he would rest to the sound of her calm voice. Rock Lee had noticed his form slump against the tree bark, and motioned to their sensei to continue to speak to Tenten. And he did. She spoke about the chakra her father had possessed within him. And she answered all of Gai's questions. Not once did ask about the location of the crystal sword, that wasn't his business. Right now their main objective was to rescue her and kill the people who took her. As the conversation when on, Tenten admitted to her sensei that she was actually a bit scared. The green beast chuckled and commented that that statement was a bit out of character for her. However, he understood what she meant; she was afraid to die. A lot of people share that fear, and she has every right to fear for her life. Although she risks her life everyday as a kunoichi, however, she was put in a position that has haunted her from her father's passing.

"I could use some youthful spirit, Gai-sensei. I'm feeling a bit weak." She stated seriously.

"No, my flower; you do not need youth. You need, hope, encouragement and rest…which is why I am going to stay up with you until you fall asleep."

There was silence for a moment. But then Gai heard little hiccups from the radio. He concluded that she was crying.

"Thank you…Gai-sensei."

"Of course, Tenten."

Through the night, the radio was silent except for soft breathing coming from Tenten's side of the microphone. Everything was still for a good three hours. However, Neji began to wake slowly as he heard grunting and rustling in his ear piece.

"No..s-stop!"

All three men jumped. Rock Lee rubbed his eyes and Neji stood straight against the tree, on his guard. There was more grunting and a ripping noise.

"I said NO, SO FUCK OF-mmfh!"

Tenten's throat let out muffled screams as her captor's lips covered hers. Neji went wide eyed, understanding the situation as soon as he heard Tenten's cries dim to aggravated moans. Rock Lee and Gai gritted their teeth as they heard the screeching of their female teammate. The slapping of skin was heard and the kunoichi's cries turned into whimpers as she was hit again.

"Let's try this again."

"Go fuck yourself, pig."

A scream was released from Tenten's mouth as well as a loud sound of chains breaking her wrists. The rustling sounds continued in the men of Team Gai's ears as they listened to their teammate try to fight off her captor. They heard light slurping sounds as Tenten yelled to get off or shot curse words into their ears. The chains rattled and the grunts began to muffle. Wet noises and slow thumping were heard from the ear piece. The weapon mistress gave soft cries of pain as she was taken over; completely helpless. Neji's knees began to buckle as he clasped his hands over his ears. He wanted so badly to rip the speaker out from his ear, but he couldn't do it. He wanted to know everything that she was going through, but there was that weak spot he had that made his chest hurt as he heard her give small cries for help. Gai and Lee rushed to the Hyuga's side when his knees hit it ground, his body shaking violently. The prodigy never thought he would have to experience this before in his life. He never thought many things, but listening to his teammate-his special someone-be tormented helplessly was never a though on his mind for him to endure either. In fact, he though the day would never come when Tenten would be the one who needed to be saved.

"A-ah…! I…ngh…let go-mmf-!"

Firm hands grasped Neji's shoulders as his body vibrated. His arms had no feeling, as much as he tried to move them. His chest ached with every cry, every moan that Tenten mustered up on the other side of the radio. His ears heard nothing but her voice- not even his sensei and teammate who call his name. Dark brown hair pooled over his head, gravity suddenly feeling three times as heavy. The ground was turning and the dim light from the campfire went dark as he tried to maintain focus. Everything was twisting in front of him, the heaviness of his head cause tingling sensations all throughout his face as he tried to take a breath, but found himself unable to. Gai forced Neji to sit up against the tree slowly, not wanting to put him in any more shock then he already is. Putting a hand over Neji's chest, he felt the unstable pattern of his heart thumps. Glancing over at his second pupil, who had taken out his ear piece, Gai told him to hold Neji still. Rock Lee nodded and held his friend against the tree. The Green Beast looked into the Hyuga's eyes; completely unfocused, and watery. A terrible and shocking sight to see for the sensei.

"Lee, do not move him at all. He is in shock; all we can do is make sure he is still breathing and awake."

"Yes, Gai-sensei."

...

...

"Neji."

The Hyuga's eyes snapped open at the voice. His two cell members were staring at him obviously worried. Neji's hand went straight to the ear that the speaker was supposed to be, but it was removed. The ANBU looked around for it-the sudden movement causing his head to throb. Grabbing onto Lee's shoulder, the Hyuga hoisted himself to his feet and stood against the tree for support.

"You fainted just after she called for you. I had to take the radio away." Gai explained handing the device back to Neji.

Breathing deeply, Neji put the radio back on and thanked his sensei. He asked how long it was until it finally ended. Gai's bushy eyebrows went south.

"Too long."

Lifting his head, Neji closed his eyes as he adjusted the settings on the radio, turning to the right channel. There was soft breathing coming from the other side. He asked Gai and Lee what he had missed when he passed out. Rock Lee had admitted to removing the ear piece early on into the event, which Neji didn't judge him for it. Their sensei told them that Tenten held her own; she didn't break her silence about the sword, like a true kunoichi. She was a true ninja, Gai boasted. Then, the captor asked again for the location and she swore to kill him. After that, Tenten spent the rest of the night crying over the radio. Gai was trying to console her the best way he could. Luckily, he got her to stop crying, but stayed up talking to her about how a strong willed woman she was to not give in and how he was proud of her. Neji nodded.

"Tenten?" he spoke hoarsely into the mic.

"Neji…" her voice was weak and broken.

"We're coming right now."

The three ninja made it to the base of the mountain paths with in only two hours. Gai had reminded them that about the genjutsu surrounding the entrance of the cave they were keeping her in. Activating his Byakugan, Neji insisted on leading them through the mountain paths. Without hesitation, Gai and Rock Lee agreed and quickly dashed behind the Hyuga. Neji was able to pick up small traces of chakra, which guided him to a large boulder with in the base of the mountain. Then, the chakra particles scattered when he tried to look behind the solid rock. Sucking his teeth, the Hyuga quickly made a hand sign;

"You're not getting me that easily…Release!"

With Neji's instruction, Rock Lee bashed a whole into the hollow stone, exposing a whole. Nodding to his comrades, the Hyuga was the first to jump down, keeping his hand firmly on the wall behind him just in case he was to go into free fall. It was fifty-seven meters more, he concluded after a while, his kekkei genkai still activated. Suddenly, Neji felt a burning sensation against his palm. A masked ninja jumped from wall to wall, kunai in hand. The Hyuga was not having this nonsense right now. Gathering chakra, Neji palmed down the ninja, Gentle Fisting him in the stomach. Both men flew into free fall. Through throwing kicks and dodging punches, he was calculating the distance between him and the ground. Gai and Lee were about two meters up from him, ready to grab Neji if he were to dash full speed ahead into the stone floor of the bottom of the cave. Gai and Lee did not offer any support in their combat, the mission was search and destroy, which Neji was taking care of.

"YOU BASTARDS!" the Hyuga prodigy exclaimed as he shot a chakra wave at the masked ninja, causing him to fall at great speed down to the bottom of the cave; making a sound of boulders hitting the ground.

"Neji, you knocked out more than one of them. Let us pick up some speed-" His sensei began.

"Neji! Below you!" Lee shouted.

The ANBU grabbed the ninja that had jumped under him and twisted his body, hearing a cracking noise as the ninja's arm was twisted out of its socket and behind his back. With a knee on his back, Neji leaned forward to increase that speed he was falling at. Twenty-five meters, Twenty-four…twenty-three the ANBU estimated as he fell. The ground was in sight, even without Byakugan. The Hyuga teen leaned back, still balancing on the ninja he was holding and prepared for impact. They hit the ground, creating a dent in the stone. Looking below him, the ninja's head was shattered, blood spewing from his broken skull and his brain visible (and smushed). Neji gave himself a minute to collect his balance on his two feet before scanning the area. Within seconds, Gai and Lee lands softly behind him.

"There is only one corridor down here. And that's where they're keeping Tenten." Neji explained as they walked forward.

"So what's the plan?" Rock Lee asked.

"Lee, you and I will get Tenten out of the chains. Neji, I know you want to end this now, but we need to be sure he hasn't killed Tenten while we were entering the cave." Gai said.

"He wouldn't kill her. She's the only one who knows where the damn sword is." The Hyuga replied dryly.

"I understand, but it's a precaution. Once we get Tenten, You and Lee will search for the target and destroy him. I will protect her if any stray ninja come after us. Understood?"

"Yes, Sensei." Both teens replied.

Neji had located the room within the next few moments. He stopped Gai and Lee in their steps and scanned the area more in depth. No traps, no ninja in the area. However, the Hyuga's Byakugan has developed incredibly over the years that he could see the one they were looking for, seventy meters from Tenten's room. Dashing down the hall, Neji stood back as Rock Lee kicked the door down. Neji was about to walk into the room, but Gai stopped him and reminded him of the plan. The ANBU gave a pained face but backed away and did not face the door. Gai found Tenten in the corner of the room, chained to a metal pole. She looked up at him as he put a hand on her head.

"We're here now, my flower. Do not let your youth wither yet."

Tenten nodded. She told him her wrists were broken so she couldn't fight very well or use weapons. Rock Lee told her that they would take care of it as he got her scroll from the other side of the room.

"Can you stand?" Gai asked swinging her arm over his shoulders.

"I can try."

Tenten leaned on her sensei, but found that the strength in her legs has gone. Her body was still in shock from last night. Gai nodded and shifter her to a bridal hold. Rock Lee patted the Hyuga's shoulder, and they dashed off in the direction of the target. Tenten instructed her sensei of how to strap the scroll to his back before he carried her to the whole that her three teammates jumped through to get to her. Clinging onto Gai, Tenten braced herself as Gai gathered as much chakra at his feet. Like an arrow, Gai shot himself up, into the hole. He began to bounce off the walls to climb up.

"Gai-sensei, what about Neji and Lee?" the weapons mistress asked.

"They are taking care of the target, my flower." He responded.

The duo reached the opening within a matter of minutes thanks to Gai's speed. Slowly, he set Tenten down on the ground before hoisting himself out of the hole. Picking her up again, he dashed at full speed toward the spot they were resting the night before. Sending a message to the boys via radio that they made it out alive, Gai laid Tenten in the grass and rummaged through his bag. Her ANBU spandex pants were ripped and practically falling off and her book bag was still in the cave with her extra clothing. Tenten sweat dropped as Gai pulled out another green suit, identical to his.

"Here, I will tell Lee to fetch your bag but for now, change into this since your uniform is pretty much nothing but scrap fabric now."

Tenten didn't object since anything was better than being naked at the moment. However, she had an issue twisting herself around, and had to use her elbows to sit up. Gai turned his back as she slowly changed into the green spandex suit. It clung to her skin comfortably like her ANBU uniform, which was nice. Once she was done, Gai went back into his bag and took out some bandages and Chakra pills. He wrapped her wrists and ankles. When Tenten questioned it, he simply said to make sure she didn't break anything else. Gai had questioned her about the whereabouts on the sword. Tenten just shook her head; that was a secret between the third hokage, herself and her parents. Gai dismissed the thought and sat straight- deciding that it wasn't any of his business anyway. The pair waited for the two teens to arrive. They listened to the fight in silence viz radio. It was mostly crashing sounds, grunts, metal clanking against one another and shouts of different jutsus. A smile had reached Tenten's face when Neji preformed his perfected and now deadly move;

"Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four Palm!"

Turnning off the radio and removing it from her ear, Tenten looked up at the tree branches above her, popping the Chakra pills that Gai gave her into her mouth. Soon, Neji and Lee emerged from the cave hole and were dashing toward them, covered in blood. Lee was carrying her bag, but paused at the sight at Tenten in the green spandex. Neji had completely ignored the fact that she was wearing that suit and crouched down next to her. She looked into his face and gave him a small smile. The Hyuga gently embraced her and let out a shuddering breath.

"I heard you blacked out." She whispered into his ear.

"I was worried sick." He replied planting a kiss on her bruised cheek.

Tenten pressed herself against the Hyuga.

"Come you three. Let us make our way back home. Mission complete." Gai announced as he stood and adjusted Tenten's fan on his back.

"Yes, let's." Neji replied, picking up the brunette and placing her on his back.