Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Warnings: hints of HinaLee, or in other words a crack one shot sitting on my computer
Author's Comments: Um, yeah… My first Naruto piece. Kind of a lame, pointless one. Well, anyways, this was spanned from my love of Rock Lee and the chuunin exam episodes.
Sometimes, Hinata watches Rock Lee train. She stands behind a tree, hands delicately pressed to the bark, watching and watching but never saying a word.
He never notices her. As a decent shinobi, he should have, but Lee can be oblivious to the outside world when he trains. He discerns nothing else. Not even raw knuckles and headaches and sweat.
He runs around the training field for hours, kicks and punches wooden posts until his knuckles bleed, until crimson smears mix into the grain. He'll start to shake eventually, his body giving out despite his tremendous will, his muscles tearing even as he ignores the pain. But he continues, until his legs collapse beneath him and his arms quiver too much to push him off the ground.
She stands behind the tree as always, tempted to stop him but knowing he never will. She wonders why. She wonders why he tries so hard when he'll just be outdone by his teammates, when he has so very little talent, when the world seems to work against him—pitting him against odds he can never beat.
Naruto's words make her feel stronger. But Lee doesn't have to say anything- his actions are enough. He makes her believe in herself, makes her think that if she just pushes herself a bit more, just a little bit more—she could be like him. She would smile through pain, never doubt herself, never give in, and never be afraid. She wants to be strong. She wants to be like him.