Author's Note: Have any of you felt robbed because, after all these years, we were never given a Naruto Christmas Special? I was, so I decided to write one myself haha. Happy holidays, everyone!


Neji doesn't lose things. He knows where his Leaf headband is, or at least where it should be—strewn across his nightstand, somewhere between an alarm clock and an old photo of Team Guy. But when his hand darts out from under the bed covers and pats down the nightstand, he's only rewarded with a fistful of hair ties.

He immediately sits up in bed. Over Lee's dead body is he showing up to training without his headband.

"I'm sure it's here somewhere," he says aloud because, if he's learned anything from Naruto, you can speak anything into existence.

It's not under his bed. Or in his closet. Not his knapsack either. Okay, when is it appropriate to scream in frustration? By now, Lee and Tenten may have already arrived at the training grounds.

Neji refuses to fall behind for such an insolent reason. Once again, he gets on his hands and knees to peer under his bed. Then he rechecks every hanger in his closet, in hopes that the headband may be hanging off of one. Scrolls, kunai, and crumpled sandwich wrappers tumble out of his knapsack as he scours its contents.

His trash can, the only place left unchecked, glares at him from across the room.

"Absolutely not." He glares back.

The thought hits him so harshly, so furiously, that Neji almost doubles over. He has the Byakugan, the most powerful kekkei genkai in the village. Why hadn't that been his first instinct? Clearly this is due to sleep deprivation and not his own shortcomings.

A breath. He centers his chakra and completes the snake hand seal with his index finger lifted. "Byakugan!"

Neji... no longer deserves to be the genius of the Hyuuga clan. His Leaf headband, that traitor, is tucked behind the old photo of Team Guy on his nightstand. Somewhere in Neji's brain, a blood vessel bursts.

He suppresses a small urge to destroy the Hyuuga compound in frustration. It's a pity he's come to care so much for his cousin Hinata because, if not for that, this place would be instant dust and rubble. Instead, he simply ties on his headband, changes out of his sleepwear, and scoops all his junk back into his knapsack.

See? Neji's calm. Centered. He's fine.

He repeats this in his head, like a meditation, as he hurries over to the training grounds. The village is bustling with life, it seems. Unsupervised children play about, chasing each other with toy versions of shuriken and kunai. A street vendor advertises fresh, juicy melons, which reminds Neji he hasn't had breakfast. He passes by the hospital, sends a good thought for Shikamaru, who apparently injured himself on his last mission.

Twelve minutes later, Neji bursts through the treetops. As expected, Lee and Tenten have already arrived at the training grounds, but Guy-sensei has yet to show up. Lee's in the middle of doing 500 push-ups, and Tenten's sharpening some of her ninja tools. He walks over to her.

"Wow, Neji," she says, tossing him a smile that unfairly knocks the wind out of his lungs, "it's pretty unlike you to show up this late."

He crosses his arms. "Something urgent came up."

Tenten pauses to hold her kunai up to the sunlight. With a small nod to herself, she starts sharpening the next one in her pile.

"Well, glad you made it either way," she says.

As he waits for her to finish her task, Neji starts off with some light stretches. He does a few lunges, making sure to stretch his calf muscles. Then he flows into a simple tai chi routine to get into the proper mindset. Focus is key in every battle, every mission. Mistakes are made at the slightest waver, and they could result in permanent injury or death. Neither of those are options for Neji, not when there are people he wants to protect.

After Tenten stores her newly sharpened ninja tools inside a small scroll, she says, "Ready to spar, Neji?"

A few beats later, he completes his tai chi routine and turns to face her. "Of course."

It's his favorite part of training, after all.


It turns out Guy-sensei never came to training, which would have been alarming until he and Kakashi race past all of them in one of their infuriating competitions. This, in turn, ignites Lee's youth, who pushes past his human limits to do 1000 sit-ups while hanging off of a tree branch.

"That was a very productive day! I feel that we have all grown stronger!" Lee says, his eyes burning.

For once, Lee's right. Neji deactivates his Byakugan, rubs his temples. He's tightened up his chakra control over the past week, which has increased the endurance of his rotation. Pretty soon, if he keeps making progress like this, he'll have an ultimate defense that will be indispensable to the team.

"Neji, before you go, there was something I wanted to discuss with you," Lee says.

"Yes, go on." It better not be another request to give him a piggyback ride around the village.

Lee's expression is earnest, but that doesn't mean anything because it's Lee. "It is regarding Tenten."

Tenten's already left the training grounds because she's treating some of the girls to barbecue. Neji's not a fan of greasy food, but to her it's more about the camaraderie and solidarity between kunoichi.

"What about her?" Neji asks.

"I do not think it is wise to give her another kunai set for Christmas."

Neji thinks back to the 16-piece kunai set, already wrapped up, sitting in his closet. "Why not? Tenten specializes in ninja tools. She gets good use out of the kunai sets I've given her."

"There is a place for practicality, but you should show her the passion of your youth," Lee says.

Is there any part of Lee that's self-aware? Has he ever looked in the mirror and realized how ridiculous he looks in that green jumpsuit? Neji refuses to take any advice from him, of all people.

"I don't know what you're trying to say, Lee. This is a waste of my time."

"I am serious," Lee says with emphasis. "Please take your feelings for Tenten into account."

At that, Neji's heart begins to race. He must still be wound up from their intense training session. It's just an over-activation of his sympathetic nervous system, a purely physiological response. Nothing an hour of meditation tonight can't fix. And this has nothing to do with any romantic feelings he has for Tenten because those feelings simply do not exist.

Neji narrows his eyes. "You must be mistaken. My relationship with Tenten is a platonic one."

Lee shifts himself into a battle-ready stance. "It appears our words are getting us nowhere. Perhaps it would be better to speak with our fists?"

It's tempting. But he doesn't have time for this... this frivolity. Without wasting another breath on a futile argument, Neji leaves the training grounds, ignoring Lee's protestations and the way his heart keeps racing.


Neji takes the long way back to the Hyuuga compound, a detour leading him in front of the Yamanaka Flower Shop. This is a building he usually avoids, but between losing his headband this morning and Lee's absurd confrontation, Neji might as well extend his suffering.

Upon walking in, his eyes start watering and his nose itches with intense need to be scratched. What sort of hellscape is this?

"Can I help you?"

Truthfully, he came in expecting Ino, but he's reminded she's out eating barbecue with Tenten and the other girls. Instead, Sai's standing by the cash register, looking bored. Or maybe that's just his face.

"I didn't know you worked here," Neji says.

"Apparently, this is what good boyfriends do," Sai says. "I'm happy to be of service."

Is that what Ino told him? Just so she could get her shift covered? There isn't a single functioning human being in this village. (Least of all Neji. He has no excuse being here, having this conversation.)

Neji's going to regret this, but he asks, "What are you getting Ino for Christmas?"

Sai smiles. "A lingerie set."

No. With that smile, with it being Sai, Neji is done here. And he doesn't dare to let himself even think about giving Tenten a lingerie set, of all things. The mere idea of picking out a bra in the same way he picked out a kunai set... he shuts it down immediately.

"Never mind, it was a mistake talking to you," Neji says, swiftly turning around.

His eyes are watering now from all the damned pollen. He needs to get out of this place before it kills him. If he's going to die, it's not going to be with flower petals stuffed up his nose.

"Please come again," Sai says.

The air outside is fresh, void of any pollutants from the Yamanaka Flower Shop. Although the temperature is a bit chilly, it's rare for snow to fall on Konoha. They likely won't have a white Christmas, not that Neji cares either way.

He passes by the Ichiraku Ramen stall, hearing Naruto's raucous laughter and a crash of ceramic bowls from inside. If only Neji were as simple-minded, then he wouldn't be fixated on Tenten's Christmas gift.

Despite Lee's insinuation, there's nothing wrong with a kunai set! It's not like they're the standard tools issued by the academy. Neji hand-picked each individual kunai himself, ensuring they're ANBU-grade and of the highest quality. Any shinobi would be thrilled to add this set to their collection, right?

Right?

The look on Tenten's face each year as she receives the same gift—is it really joy? Or disappointment? Neji can't remember.

And she's given him different gifts every year. One time it was a hand-knitted scarf, which was a wonderful gesture as it likely took her time and energy to make. However, it ended up snagged by tree branches on a mission back from the Hidden Sand Village. Another year he received one of those travel mugs that keeps drinks hot for 12 hours, which he still carries in his knapsack. It's a small comfort to sip tea during missions that require camping on rough terrain.

There was also the time she gave him healing ointment from an undisclosed location in the Land of Lightning. He used the entire jar within three months and mourned the day it ran empty. The ointment sped up the rate of wound healing by 70%. Truly a gem.

Upon further contemplation, all of Tenten's gifts have been quite thoughtful and greatly appreciated. Is he really returning the favor by giving her another kunai set? Is that the message he wants to send? It's hard to believe, but Neji might be having some doubts. He's wavering.

Neji closes his eyes, breathes. The slightest waver leads to mistakes. And that will inevitably lead to failure. He is not a failure.

That settles it. Neji will find the perfect Christmas gift for Tenten, a gift that truly matches her brilliance. It's December 22, which means he has three days to pull this off. As a jonin of the Hidden Leaf Village, he'll do everything it takes to complete this mission.