Disclaimer: I am not Masashi Kishimoto. I do not own Naruto.

Neji's point of view:

When the sun was peeking over the horizon a messenger found me in the kitchen. "When you have finished your breakfast, the council wishes to see you." I nodded, swallowing the last of my food and headed for the council chamber.

All of the council was already assembled and seated on the floor around a wide, but short table. I bowed a few inches then seated myself in the space that they had consciously left for me. I waited for them to speak, knowing that they would soon inform me of their wishes. I was not kept waiting long. "The Hyuuga power is strong in you, though you are a member of the branch family." The eldest of the councilors began. I kept my features schooled into a polite but meaningless expression as I waited for him to continue. "It would be to the advantage of the Hyuuga clan if you were to pass on such a gift to the next generation in the future."

Ah. That's what they want. Of course they would want me to make a contribution to the next generation. I am stronger than the main branch Hyuugas of comparable age. "I will take your wishes into consideration." I calmly replied, though both the council and I knew that their "wishes" were nothing short of a command. I will have to find a way to placate them.

"You would do well to take a girlfriend." The elder commanded.

"If that is all for this meeting I will excuse myself to commence thinking about a girlfriend." My tone was as polite as it always was, but I was subtly shifting the balance of power by excusing myself instead of waiting for them to dismiss me. Though it wasn't much, I preferred to remain as independent of them as was possible, even if that was very little at all considering the seal on my forehead. The lead elder frowned, but didn't challenge my dismissal.

I caught sight of a familiar form weaving its way through the crowded market. I put out my hand to gently touch the kunoichi on the shoulder, not feeling like trying to make myself heard over the chaos. Puzzled, she just looked at me, and I motioned her to follow me to a quieter part of town. When we could finally hear ourselves and each other she raised an eyebrow, demanding an explanation.

"Tenten." I paused, a little unsure of how best to broach the topic at hand.

She waited a moment, then impatiently interrupted my thoughts. "What is it Neji?"

"The council has been putting pressure on me."

She sighed. "What do they want this time?"

"They wish me to think about settling down, about dating at the very least." I closely studied her reaction. Her eyes had widened, and her breathing and heart rate had increased. Is she afraid? "Since you are one of the few females I am comfortable around outside of my family I thought that the best way to placate them would be for you to pretend to be my girlfriend until I find someone worth pursuing or a way to get around the council's demand."

Her face turned red in fury and I barely had a time to inhale to say something before her fist crashed into my stomach, driving me into the wall behind me and driving the air I had just taken in out of my lungs. I looked at her in utter confusion. Wasn't my argument logical enough? And why was she mad at me? Maybe she just entered into a relationship with someone else and is mad at the thought of cheating on him? But I would have thought I would have heard if she was going out with someone. I ran into Ino earlier today. I'm sure she would have been loudly proclaiming the gossip if this was the case. Which means I am still no closer to figuring out why she punched me.

All further thoughts were derailed as she slammed her knee into a very sensitive area. While I was doubled over, she nailed my sleeves and pant legs to the wall with kunai from her pouch. For good measure she tied my hair to another kunai that she stuck in the wall. When I could finally do something other than gasp in pain, she was gone, and a slight crowd had formed, and was expanding by the second. I guess it was not every day that people saw a Hyuuga nailed to the wall. What did I do to make her this mad at me? I had never seen her this mad, except for the week when Lee tried to introduce the western custom of mistletoe, putting it everywhere he thought Tenten might possibly go and hounding her steps. I could understand why she was mad at Lee, but what had I done? Desperately I thought through my train of logic, but still couldn't think of a flaw in it. What had made her so mad, and how was I going to get unstuck from the wall and escape the crowd?

Tenten's point of view:

My heart had sped up when he started speaking. The council wanted him to date and he was talking to me. I had idiotically thought that he returned my interest and was asking me out. My heart was about to burst with happiness and then he ruthlessly slaughtered all hopes. His words still haunted me, echoing and reechoing in my mind endlessly. "To placate the council…pretend to be my girlfriend until I find someone worth pursuing…pretend to be my girlfriend until I find someone worth pursuing…pretend to be my girlfriend until I find someone worth pursuing." To him, I wasn't worth pursuing. I wanted to slam my head into a wall just to shut up that bastard's voice in my mind. Punching him, slamming my knee into his crotch and pinning him to the wall with kunai was cathartic, but not enough to override my rage and despair. Practically everyone knew that I was in love with that arrogant ice cube except the self-proclaimed prodigy himself. How could I ever face him again after he had torn my heart to shreds?

I was so absorbed in getting as far away from the bastard as fast as possible that I didn't notice or care about the people that I was bumping into and shoving past until one of them called my name. In a very shrill voice. Ino. Seeing the look on my face, she began guiding me to her house. Seated on her bed she demanded. "Who did this to you? I'll make them pay?" I just shook harder with sobs. "It was Neji, wasn't it?" Ino asked, well aware that he was the only one who could have had this effect on me. I just curled up in a ball on her bed, wanting to just disappear. Neji only wanted to use me to placate the council. He never really cared about me.

Ino gently held me while I poured out my soul to her. When I was done, her face was grim and determined. I would have been scared if I hadn't known that Neji was the one who was going to be on the receiving end of her wrath. "We need to get Sakura. It's going to take all of us to give that ice cube what he deserves. Don't worry Tenten, we'll make him pay."