Disclaimer: I own nothing.
This story is based around my stories "Caring" and "Facing Her Fears". It combines events from both of those stories but this time from Neji's point of view. It is not necessary to read those to understand this story, but it might be less confusing if you know that Tenten's parents died during a boating accident on a trip they took long ago and Tenten has a phobia of being underwater.
Neji knew what was going to happen a split second before it happened. As if it were happening in slow motion, he saw the clones make the hand signs, saw the bubbles of water form, and watched the bubbles expand to encase him and both of his teammates. Those few moments had given him time to take in as much air as possible, giving him more time to survive within the bubble. Before the water had even fully closed around his body, he had already directed his chakra towards slowing his heart rate and conserving as much oxygen as possible.
Now he knew that he could survive for a good many minutes inside the water bubble. Hopefully, Gai-sensei would be able to defeat Kisame and release the Jutsu long before then. Looking to his left, Neji saw that Lee had also managed to control his chakra, using it to extend his own oxygen supply. That was quite an accomplishment for the other boy, as he often had problems using his chakra efficiently. But this time he had accomplished it, so Neji knew he would be fine.
Then he looked to his right, to check on his only female teammate. What he saw there unleashed a string of curse words in his mind that startled him in their intensity. Tenten's chakra was weak and out-of-sync. Obviously, she was having problems drawing her chakra in and using it to calm her body. He could see her struggling to pull herself together but it just seemed impossible. He knew that she was exhausted from their nearly non-stop run to catch up with Team Kakashi.
He felt a wave of guilt as he realized that Gai-sensei and Lee and even he himself had been pushing Tenten far past her endurance. But she had continued on with few complaints. She put up with so much from her training-obsessed male teammates and she shouldn't have had to. He should have been watching out for her, like a best friend was supposed to.
He could still remember the day after his father had been killed, he went to class like usual and a strange little girl with two buns had decided he was sad and needed a hug. That had been the beginning of their long friendship. Since that day, they had always been together. When her parents had died on that fateful vacation, Neji had been right there for her when she woke up. They were alone together, orphans together, only relying on each other.
When they graduated Academy, they were even placed on the same Genin team together. But as time went by, Neji became more and more embittered with the Hyuuga clan. All he could focus on was becoming stronger and breaking out of his cage. Tenten stayed right beside him, training at all hours of the day and night, pushing herself further and further so that she could keep up with him. And he never thanked her, never tried to help her, never tried to be her friend after that.
Now all of the guilt was catching up with him. He remembered every time she would ask for a break and he would push her to keep going until they both collapsed in whatever field they were training in. He remembered all the training they did as a team, which often involved using Tenten's weapons to hone the boys' skills, but there was very little anyone did to help Tenten. She learned by helping the others, creating new techniques that would help Lee and Neji push their own abilities.
Neji turned back to where Gai was fighting Kisame, but it didn't look like the students would be getting any help from their sensei. Lee looked like he would still be fine for a while, but even as Neji watched, Tenten's body gave up its battle and she began to cough and spasm as her lungs tried to pull in the oxygen they needed. Neji nearly began to panic but he tamped down the emotions and activated his Byakugan. Quickly finding the weak spot, he broke the jutsu. Lee's clone was the closest to him so he quickly took that one down. Fortunately, Lee had also noticed Tenten's plight and quickly got rid of the final clone.
As the last bubble broke, Neji stepped forward and caught Tenten before she could sink into the artificial lake. He quickly lowered them both to the surface of the water, cradling her limp form in his arms. She coughed over and over, expelling all the water from her lungs and Neji rubbed soothing circles on her back. Lee crouched down beside them, keeping half an eye on their sensei's battle. But it seemed like now the tides were turning and they were sure that Gai-sensei would win.
Finally, the battle was over and the artificial lake disappeared. Fortunately, with Gai-sensei injured they were forced to set a slower pace, something Neji would have insisted on for Tenten anyway. When night came, they set up a camping space, collecting wood for a fire and laying out their bedding for the night. Lee went to help their sensei take care of his injuries. While that happened, Neji turned to take care of Tenten.
She was sitting by the fire, dressed in dry clothes and wrapped in a warm blanket. But the expression on her face caused a fresh wave of guilt to assault Neji. She looked so sad and lost and terrified. It was the same look she had carried for weeks after her parents' death and Neji had sworn then that she would never look like that again.
He sat down next to her with his own blanket and noticed she was shivering in the cool night air. He pulled her into his lap, wrapping his own blanket tightly around both of them. It had been far too long since he had offered her comfort like this. Neji had never been one for words but he knew that Tenten could read all of his actions. She pulled herself into a tighter ball in his lap, cuddling into his body heat and showing him that she understood his guilt and she forgave him.
Soon enough, she was asleep, still wrapped up in his arms. Neji decided to take the first watch and so Lee lay down next to them, Gai-sensei already asleep on the other side of the fire. As Neji sat there, he vowed to himself that he would keep a closer eye on Tenten. He was just getting his best friend back, he wouldn't lose her again.