Title: Perspective
Author: Hitachiin Hikaru
Fandom: Naruto
Rating: "K+", just in case
Genre: Drama/Romance
Disclaimer: I don't own any part of Naruto, including characters, cities, towns, scenarios, titles, or anything else about it that you can think of. I just want to express my creative intent with this fic.
Summary: Tenten decides to view the Chuunin exam tape to see Neji's fight that she missed. Lee tries to stop her, to prevent his friend from seeing the colder, crueler side of the Hyuuga she was never exposed to. NejiTen One Shot R&R Please
A/N: After watching the English version of this fight on Toonami, this fanfiction came to mind the very next day. I had to delve deep into my SHONEN JUMP collection to find the correct one to get the dialogue from Volume Three, and it was even harder to find Volume Four. And then I got sidetracked by the Gaara/Lee fight and had to read through all of that and then I had to show it to my brother who was über excited about their fight and then that forced me to reread the Hinata/Neji fight to get back the mode and then I got distracted again by going to the library and borrowing Memoirs of a Geisha and… and it was one big sticky mess. Yet I got the entire vignette written in one day. GO SHELBEY! Bows to her own tiny attention span. But it took me even LONGER to type it up. Man, I have the attention span of Cheese, from Foster's…
"Move Lee! I'm trying to get in!" Konoha's resident weapons mistress shouted exasperatedly, trying to evade the bowl-cut wearing taijutsu virtuoso. She had been attempting to get into the cartridge room that held the security tapes from the Chuunin exams, but her teammate Rock Lee kept trying to distract her from her task. "I want to see Neji's fight!" The Hyuuga was gone taking the Jounin exams, so she had a couple day break from helping him train.
He told her nervously, his eyebrows almost meeting in the middle as he knitted his brow, "Ah, Tenten that does not seem like such a noteworthy idea! Here," he grabbed another tape from the pile. "Why not watch my youthful clash with Sabaku no Gaara?" She sighed and tugged the tape from his hand, much to his relief. She cocked an eyebrow at him and crossed her arms in slight annoyance at his delaying tactics.
"I will… after I watch Neji's. Who was his opponent anyway?" He made no reply and she searched through the film, trying to find the correct one. She sifted to the bottom and spotted the tape labeled, 'Chuunin Exam: Fights Five through Eight.' Grinning she pulled it up and left, thanking the Jounin on watch for letting her in. She had gotten a pass from both Gai-sensei and Anko for permission, so she could watch the fight in the comfort of her own home. She walked away cheerfully, Lee following along behind her, sulking. By the time she had reached her apartment complex his mood had irritated her to no end. "Lee! Perk up! Tell me what the issue is. Why don't you want me to see this so badly?"
"That is to say… Tenten," he started, scratching the back of his head as he followed her inside the building, up the steps and into her apartment. "It's not very interesting! Our strong, youthful teammate Neji wastes no time in defeating his opponent!"
"That's very fascinating, Lee, but I'd like to see for myself," she replied, shaking her hand around and walking into the living room. Pulling the tape from its plastic case, she popped it into the VCR and pressed play. The green-clad boy bit his lip, as the film started. They were met by the first few seconds before Shikamaru's match. Much to Lee's dismay, who had his hopes up that she would sit through all of the matches, she pressed fast-forward, through that, as well as her own fight against Temari, Naruto's against Kiba, to the start of Neji's. Hinata was on the ground floor talking with an injured, beaten Kiba, and the next bout obviously hadn't started yet.
Suddenly Lee popped in front of the television set, blocking her view and forcing her to press the pause button. "Well… wouldn't some popcorn go nicely with this?"
She face faulted and felt her eyebrow twitch. "Why don't you go make some then?" she said angrily. She then noted he was doing everything in his power to prevent her from viewing the tape. She blinked in confusion. But… why…? "Is there… something you're not telling me?" Tenten demanded, her hands balled into fists.
"You see…" he started uncomfortably, trying to find the right words. "His bitter hatred towards the Main Branch filtered through during this match, and he wasn't his usual self." She blinked in confusion as he took a seat on the floor next to her couch and she pressed play. Sitting on the cushion she turned her gaze towards the screen. The next two contestants were called, but she didn't quite catch the first name as Neji stepped forward, but much to her shock Hinata stepped up too. She knew what Lee meant by Neji's bitter hatred for the main house, but could he really take it out on Hinata, who wasn't truly at fault?
She heard the proctor signal the start of the match, but prior to any fighting commencing Neji spoke. "Before we begin, there's something I have to point out to Hinata-sama." The blue haired Hyuuga looked slightly surprised as the brown haired one continued. "You're not cut out to be a shinobi. Withdraw from the match!" He said it so coldly, even Tenten winced. Hinata looked shocked, but despite that he continued in the same icy, hateful tone. "You're all sweetness and light. A peacemaker, not a troublemaker. You're easily led, not a leader." The weapons mistress didn't miss the pained look on the younger Byakugan wielder's face. How long was he going to continue with this verbal abuse? "And you have no self-confidence. You've got a world-class inferiority complex, so I know you'd have been more comfortable and content staying at the genin level." She could hardly watch anymore. This… wasn't like Neji at all. How could he be so cruel! "But applicants for the higher-level Chuunin selection exam must compete as a trio, and you couldn't bear to let your teammates down. The truth is, your participation has been reluctant from the very start, hasn't it?"
Finally, the kunoichi tried to stand up for herself. "N-No… you're wrong. I-I really… wanted to change that about myself. So of my own volition, I…"
But before she could finish her quiet statement, Neji's callous voice interrupted her, "Hinata-sama, you're the sheltered little baby of the Main Branch aren't you?"
She looked confused. "What?"
"A leopard doesn't change its spots." Her eyes widened in surprised. "A failure always fails. And a weak personality won't become strong. It's precisely because of the unchanging nature of humankind that differences are born. It's why we've coined terms like 'elite' and 'failure'. It doesn't matter who you are. We're all judged on the basis of our looks, our intelligence, our talent, or our personalities; just as we judge others in turn." Lee shot Tenten a peripheral look as she glared at the television screen, fury shaking her body to the very core. And poor Hinata looked terrified, never able to make a move to defend herself. "Yes, it's a form of discrimination, and the factors that it's based on don't change. We have no choice; we must live within the boundaries set for us by the judgment of others. It's as unchangeable as the fact that I'm of the Cadet Branch of the family and you're a member of the Main Branch.
"I've seen through many things with this Byakugan, and so I know, the courage you're displaying is just a bluff! In the truest, deepest part of your heart, you're desperate to run away from here right now." Tenten fast forward the tape, trying to skip all of the malicious words Neji had angrily thrown out. Hinata suddenly looked up at someone with tears in her eyes, and she played the video, curious. A loud, obnoxious voice filled her speakers.
"—decide these things about other people, you fool!" She knew it had to be Naruto, standing up for what he believed was right. "Show him Hinata-chan! Kick this idiot's ass!" The fight started soon after, but the bun wearing girl couldn't concentrate on it. Neji had been so unforgiving, vicious, and bitter… on such extremes that she had never seen from him. Sure he normally stood apart from everyone in an aloof manner, and was pragmatic, and his stupid "all-seeing" Byakugan couldn't even see her feeling for him, but this… this was unbelievable! As the fight progressed, and Hinata got knocked down time and again just to get back up, wanting to stay true to her shinobi path. Blood was everywhere, yet it still didn't seem to do a thing to that bastard Hyuuga's frozen heart. His hatred, it seemed, was sewn too deep. His belief in destiny too entwined with his birth as a Cadet member. Neji… had been suffering too long.
"You were burdened from birth with the destiny of the Hyuuga clan's Main Branch; you've hated and punished yourself for your weakness and frailty. But you can't fight your nature, or change your fate!" His eyes, still surrounded by the veins of the Byakugan, showed neither mercy nor apology for being so heartless to young Hinata. "You need not suffer any more. Be at peace!"
Her expression grew determined and she told him, sorrow seeping into her shaky voice, "But… you're wrong Neji-nisan. I can see it now, that even more than me, it's you who is torn and suffering. Caught between the destinies of the Main Branch and the Cadet Branch of our clan." Such a frighteningly furious expression covered Neji's face, something that she did not normally see on his handsome, stoic features. It sent a shiver of apprehension down her spine, reaching coldly out through her veins. She pressed the stop button on the VCR so hard that the player fell from its stand to the floor, and she stood there, shaking angrily.
"Why'd he… do such cruel things to someone weaker than himself? Lee, tell me why!" A tear dripped down her nose to the carpet below. She now knew what Naruto was talking about when he fought with the Hyuuga during the finals of the Chuunin exams…!
He replied uncertainly, "That was before… Naruto-kun got to him. Tenten, you must understand that Neji was not himself in that match. Something he tried to pull against was his destiny, pull against the fact that he was a Cadet Member and Hinata was Main."
"But he could have killed her! His own cousin!" She pounded a fist into the wall, leaving a shallow indent in the material. The taijutsu virtuoso winced at her sign of fury, and suddenly heard a loud ruckus outside. Apparently Tenten had too, and she ran to the window to get a look. "Bastard," she growled, not even bothering to go to the door and just jumped out the window to go meet the newly arrived Hyuuga Neji.
"Tenten! Leave it alone! It was in the past and cannot be changed! He is different now!" She knew this was true, she knew she was being completely and utterly rash and stupid. But she couldn't leave it alone. She couldn't stand seeing the man she loved being so cold and heartless. She had to make sure he didn't revert back to the way he had once been. It might kill her inside. Watching him suffer at the hands of the supposed destiny and fate he believed he could never escape. She didn't want him to be like that again. She wouldn't let him!
She began pushing through the crowds of people, civilian or otherwise, there to greet Neji or not, to get to him. At the front, Sakura and Hinata were congratulating him, so he had obviously become a Jounin, but his mind didn't seem to on their praise. His beautiful pearl eyes were scanning the people around him for something. "Neji!" she called to him, trying to prevent her anger and worry from seeping into her voice. The Hyuuga's eyes met her, and she thought she saw the faint flicker of a smile tug at the corners of his mouth. "Did you do it? Did you pass?"
He nodded and replied, "With flying colors. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be." She grinned a false grin and grabbed his wrist, pulling him away from the crowd.
"Let's go spar then. I want to see how much better you've gotten!" Sakura elbowed Hinata and giggled, but Tenten ignored them. Better to let them think what they want. He seemed slightly taken aback, but made no move to resist. She practically dragged him to their old training ground and walked a good ten feet from him. The anger reflected in her eyes now, and it confused the Hyuuga. "Let's go!" She leapt into the air, already throwing weapons at the newly made Jounin. He dodged them, though not quite as easily as he would have liked. The brunette was much more aggressive than normal, and he wasn't sure why she was venting her anger on him. He ducked his head barely low enough to dodge a fuuma shuriken flying from behind him. An enormous barrage of shuriken and kunai flew his way and he began to rotate.
"Hakkeshou Kaiten!" The outpouring of chakra around him knocked all the weapons away, but there was string attached to the rings of the projectiles. He stopped to avoid tangling himself up, and remembered, Like with that Oto-nin! He had told her about the fight after he had been released from the hospital, and apparently she had listened well. Abruptly she came at him with a sword, lashing out violently. He stepped back to evade it and tripping over the strings around his feet. Dodge this way, duck that, step from the white string that threatened to make him look like a fool. Tenten was pushing him, but that wasn't surprising. She was an amazing kunoichi. He lashed his hand out and barely skimmed her stomach, but it was enough to get a sufficient amount of chakra in.
She stumbled backwards and kicked up, revealing a kunai she had attached to the sole of her sandal with her chakra. It cut a thin slit in his cheek and flew into a tree, the force of impact cracking a branch off. Without missing a beat he hit her six more times with his jyuuken, blocking off those specific tenketsu. She coughed violently but simply pulled another scroll out, revealing hundreds of senbon. She grabbed a set of them and flung them in his direction. He fit body to perfectly avoid them, and she moved behind them, throwing them at his back. He dodged most of them, but two lodged themselves in his skin. He groaned and then dropped down into a stance all too familiar to Tenten, calling, "Jyuukenhou: Hakke Rokujuu Yonshou!" Even though she knew what was coming, she couldn't avoid it. He struck her twice, four times, eight; she coughed up blood but he didn't stop there, he moved to sixteen, thirty-two, and finally sixty-four points of damage. Tenten collapsed to her knees, still spitting up the crimson liquid.
Neji faltered for a moment at the sight of his friend, and she used that time to swing upwards with her blade. He avoided the sword and she kicked out, trying to get his legs. He back flipped out of the way, pulling the senbon from the back of his Hyuuga robes, and hurled them at the owner. She blocked the needles with her sword, sending them scurrying into the ground and leapt forward to meet him. But she stumbled to her knees, clutching her stomach in pain. "Tenten!" he cried, reaching out to her. She swiped at him with her sword, making him pull his hands back watching her in shock. "Stop it. I refuse to continue this fight while you're in that condition."
She stood up shakily, giving him a strange impression of déjà vu but didn't know from where. "Here I come," she warned, pulling out her shuriken. It was pathetic how simple it was to dodge her attacks. He didn't want to fight her in the condition she was in. He refused, yet she still continued to swing at him. The weapons mistress fell to her knees again, the grass becoming splattered with vermillion. She tried to get up again, her entire body shaking, and she managed to say, "I… have to make sure!"
He knelt by her weakened, shuddering frame, and grasped her shoulders. "Tenten, we're stopping this fight now. Let's get you to a medic."
She cried, pushing his hands away, "I wish you could've given Hinata half the chance you're giving me!" His eyes widened in shock when he realized what she was talking about. He stood up and moved away from the injured kunoichi, letting his loosened hair hand down like a veil, blocking his face from her view.
"I… am very regretful for that." He told her, sounding as if he was telling the truth. He seemed so lost then, as if he was at her fingertips but forever out of her reach. The Byakugan wielder ran a hand through his coconut locks, a sign of exasperation she rarely ever saw from him. "I was angry and foolish, completely foolish. I still have no idea what I was thinking back then."
Tenten smiled at Neji, reaching up and taking his hand gently. "That's all I wanted to hear." The Hyuuga glanced down at her, perplexed, trying to decipher the enigmatic sentence. "I was so afraid… that you might go back to the Hyuuga Neji you used to be, unkind and bitter. Hatred running deep through your heart, accenting the scars you've endured…" She pulled herself to her feet and reached up behind his face slowly. She untied his headband, carefully sliding the onyx colored cloth from his forehead. The pale green mark was so painfully, blatantly obvious next to his alabaster skin, and she lightly rested her fingertips on the curse. A sign of subservience that was never deserved. "Suffering when you should not have, secretly crying inside, and never letting go of your pride enough to ask for someone's help."
"Tenten," he asked in confusion, letting her words sink in for a moment. "Where're… you going with all of this?"
The brunette chuckled, and handed him back the plated headwear. "I don't know… I'm just rambling I suppose. Maybe, what I'm really trying to say is… that I'm glad you're the way you are now. Because even though the old Hyuuga Neji was a more effective shinobi, the new one is a more effective friend." A gentle smile graced his lips, something he hadn't felt there since he had beaten Kidoumaru. When he saw the light shining above him, and the birds flying freely above him. "You may have been a caged bird Neji, but now you're as free as anything in the sky."
He hugged her and whispered, "Thanks Tenten, that means a lot to me." She smiled melting into his embrace, glad to have been some help to him, her teammate, her sparring partner, her best friend. The man she loved, even if he didn't realize it yet. Even if it took a Hakke or two, a few senbon and kunai, and a nice talk, it had definitely been worth every minute of it. Hyuuga Neji was indeed Hyuuga Neji: calm, determined, kind, and strong. Someone worth taking a few hits for, and giving a few hits in return. Love's a battlefield, is it not?