Summary- A short perspective piece. Lee's thought's during the grudge match that was Neji and Hinata's preliminary round.

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A Short Piece of Perspective

When his teammate/eternal rival/friends hops over the railing after his match is announced Lee can admit to himself he's worried. For the sweet little girl with wide eyes who didn't deserve what was coming to her. For his teammate who Lee could tell, even though he said nothing, had something much more fragile on the line. He worries that Hinata won't walk away from this, that Neji will do something he regrets because underneath it all, the anger, the story Lee didn't know and Neji wouldn't tell, he still loves his baby cousin.

He see's it in the way he warns her to stop before she gets hurt. The way he pleads with her, disguised as a threat and laced with the most hurtful of insult but make no mistakes it is pleading, to forfeit , spare herself the pain because the match was over before it began and that was a fact. Still trying unconsciously, even after all those years, to keep her from harm.

After training with the elder Hyuga for two years he knows what Neji is capable of, how easy it would be for him to hurt Hinata, really hurt her, and therefore how much he was holding back. That, Lee thinks, wincing as Neji pull back Hinata's sleeve revealing a trail of swollen chakra points down her pale arm, should speak to his character more than any of his blows. Seconds later, watching her body hit the floor feet away from where Neji stood sneering, he's not so sure.

It's disappointing really because while Lee will readily admit Neji is an arrogant, condescending jerk he is also, at heart, a good person and is so much better than all of the ugly things he's doing. Then Hinata says what she does and he goes from worried to down right scared in the time it takes her to finish. As Lee fears, having had his secret hurts pulled into the light and every comforting lie he'd ever told himself shattered Neji reacts… badly. The hairs on the back of Lee's neck stand on end as a wave of killing intent envelops the arena.

Later after the medic have rushed Hinata out on a stretcher Lee takes a look at Neji, all shaking shoulders and barely suppressed rage. He's not quite sure who he pities more.

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