Chapter 1

They stopped, standing in the gateway staring across at each other; his cold ashen eyes met her dark leaden orbs with streaks of fire. Her long hair played out behind her in the wind, her once rosy cheeks now formed a pallid complexion and in place of the brightly coloured kimonos he remembered her wearing, she now wore an oversized haori with pants and a shirt all in various shades of black and grey.

She looked straight through him to the two people stood behind him, one of them wearing a ridiculous green spandex suit, staring wide eyed at those stood behind her. There was also a girl with hair in two neat buns on top of her head she was looking sideways at the white eyed boy in a confused manner, her hand was tightened on the handles of two kunai.

The ignorant blonde dressed in orange behind her broke the silence:

"Yosh! Uzumaki naruto is here!"

The spandex clad gasped; "Tsunade-sama Jiraiya-sama…"

Tsunade nodded, "Gai-kohai, It seems Jiraiya-san persuaded me to become your hokage, this is Shizune-san my assistant and Nikoo-san, my apprentice" she finished, pointing at the monochromatically dressed stranger "I have reason to believe she has connections to you, Hyuuga-san"

she turned to face the boy stood directly opposite her. Hyuuga Neji blinked remembering where he was, it had been a long time since he had seen Nikoo.

---Flashback---

A small boy about 5 years old stood in the clearing counting birds. His father told him it was the best way to train his byakugan, even though he still could not activate it, he sighed with frustration and fell to kneeling staring at the floor, he felt tears welling in his eyes as he stared at the grass.

"It doesn't grow just by looking at it you know"

Neji spun around to locate the source of the voice, there, at the edge of the clearing stood a small girl about Hinata-samas age she wore a yellow kimono with pink flowers on it and had a basket slung over her arm.

"what?" questioned Neji as she walked towards him.

"The grass, you were staring at it so hard like you were willing it to grow" she chuckled at this notion.

"Hn…"

The girl looked closely at him, "have you being crying? Why are you sad"

He turned away from her but she wouldn't let him, she placed her hands on the patch of grass he had been staring at and he watched as green tendrils began to emerge from between her fingers growing to a few cm in height before forming delicate pink flowers. He gasped, smiling despite himself.

"you have to say the magic words to make them grow" she said smiling at him.

He laughed, she smiled back at him her dark curls bouncing as she turned her head, she stood up and held out her hand to him, he took it and she pulled him out of the clearing and towards the edge of the forest.

"where are we going?" inquired Neji, looking around him, he didn't recognise this part of the forest and was unsure if he knew the way back.

"I have something to show you, it's not far from here" as she said the last words they reached the edge of the forest where it stopped abruptly to allow for a particularly large drop where part of the lanscape had fallen away. She sat at the edge of the small cliff and looked out to the distance. Neji stared also, there was forest as far as the eye could see. Then far to the east the shapes of great mountains towering above everything else, The village of Konoha could be seen below them and although he knew that the village was a noisy place he could not hear a thing up here except for the wind breathing through the trees.

He sighed and sat down next to her "amazing, do you come here often?" he said smiling at her.

"all the time, do you like it?"

"Hai, I'm kind of hungry though so I think I should be leaving" The small boy said apologetically as his stomach growled. She laughed at him then pulled round the basket she had had on her arm.

"What do you think this is?" Her eyes sparkled at him, "egg rice or plain?"

They ate and talked and watched the scenery until the sun had begun to set, Neji stood suddenly gasping "I must go, I cannot anger my clan"

She laughed, "not until you tell me your name"

He looked at her for a moment before replying then said, simply "Neji, Hyuuga Neji"

"Nice to meet you Neji-san I'm Nikoo Uekiya"

He turned and left the clearing turning back to see her, once more immersed in the landscape and then left.

---End Flashback---

"I have reason to believe she has connections to you Hyuuga-san" said Tsunade

"Hai, Tsunade-sama" he sighed inwardly, a lot had happened since then. He looked across into Nikoo's eyes one last time, she had changed, a lot. He strode away from them, he knew where he was going, he'd gone there often since she left.

"Neji-kun.. where are you going?" Tenten was staring at him strangely

"Training" was his solitary reply, he left then, not wishing to converse with his team mate.

Tenten stared after her team mate, why had he left so suddenly? And who was this girl, she'd never seen the Hyuuga hesitate before and he failed to conceal his emotions when he saw her in the gateway, a look of shock and then pain had flashed in his eyes before he snapped back into his cold, dispassionate self.

"Onegai, Tsunade-sama will you see a pupil of mine, his youth is damaged" Gai-sensei was stood next to the two sannin.

""Hai, hai Baa-chan what about Sasuke-teme and Kakashi-sensei" Naruto jumped in

Tsunade, Shizune and Nikoo left being pulled by the persistent ninja.

Tenten withdrew and headed for home, it had been a long day.

I hope you liked it?! (authors nails now reduced to bloody stumps from over biting) Please review, I don't care if you thought it was rubbish or whatever, Im greatful for any comments you have. Also it is my first fanfic so I am totally excited to know what you guys think! Okay got to stop typing now or I'll get repetitive strain injury.