A/N: I can't guarantee this is typo free. I didn't bother betaing it, and I am really, really tired. Thanks for reading, folks! It's much appreciated! :)

Disclaimer: I'm not creative enough to have created Naruto.


"Neji, I'm leaving Team Gai."

He stared at me for a long moment, eyes as piercing as always, before he spoke.

"What?"

I was so nervous, and I was trying very hard not to let it show.

"You heard me. I'm disbanding Team Gai…Well, not disbanding it, per se, as you and Lee and Gai-sensei will still be there, but for all intents and purposes I'm breaking up Team Gai as we know it…And I won't be training with you anymore."

He stared at me for another long moment, and this time when he opened his mouth, the most beautiful words came out.

"You can't leave Team Gai, or our training sessions. I will not allow it."

"Oh, please, Neji, I can do whatever I want whenever I want. And right now I want to leave the team and the training sessions. Don't you think you can tell me what I can and can't do, Neji Hyuuga!"

He shook his head and when he looked at me, there was something warm in his eyes. And when he spoke, his voice held the same warmth I saw in his eyes.

"No, you don't understand. You can't quit because—"

"Tenten!"

My eyes flew open and I shot up in bed to be assaulted with the visual of green spandex and white eyes.

It was just a dream…

"Why is it so bright in here? And better yet, what are you doing in my apartment? Neji, I thought training was canceled!"

Neji opened his mouth to reply but Lee cut him to the chase with his usual gusto.

"We have been assigned a mission, Tenten! We will travel to the city of Iwa, and once there we must go undercover to recover a stolen heirloom! Is this not a joyous occasion? Team Gai has not had a mission together in weeks!"

It is too early for this. Way too early. It is also very bad for my plans. How can I keep my promise to quit if we've been assigned a mission? Hopefully it isn't that important…

"Is there something wrong, Tenten? You do not seem as eager as usual to be assigned such a fantastic mission! In fact, one might even be so bold as to say you seem reluctant!"

Lee knows how to make telling the truth hard. Because the real truth is, I can't do this mission. If I ever want to go through with my plan, I need to do it now.

"Tenten, are you alright?"

Oh Lee, you are so thoughtful sometimes! Neji hasn't said a word, which is typical. I haven't been able to look either of them in the eye and nobody notices until Lee is done rejoicing over our good fortune to be handed this mission.

"I'm quitting Team Gai. I was planning on telling you both today."

If I had crickets near my apartment, I bet I could hear them chirping right now, it was so silent.

After a moment, though, the sobs started. From Lee, of course. I looked up at Neji, but he was staring at my face in disbelief, so I ducked my face down and started fixing my hair into my customary buns.

"TENTEN HOW COULD YOU SAY SUCH AN AWFUL THING? ARE WE NOT HAPPY? HAVE WE BEEN NEGLECTING YOU? YOU ARE STILL YOUNG AND FULL OF YOUTH! WE NEED YOU TO KEEP OUR TEAM TOGETHER!"

Lee's cries went on and on, and it was getting a whole lot easier to block them out. I finally convinced myself I was doing the right thing and looked Neji straight in the eyes.

And I saw nothing. It wasn't anything like my dream, where his eyes filled with that special warmth that seemed reserved only for me… They were empty. And that made me scared. I mean, at the very least I expected him to be furious, and start demanding reasons as to why I would abandon everything I'd lived up to until this point.

But he wasn't saying anything. Lee's sobs were echoing around the room, but at this point nothing was louder than Neji's silence. His disapproval of my decision was evident, to me at least, and still he said nothing.

"NEJI, YOU MUST CONVINCE OUR DEAREST FLOWER TO STAY WITH US! WHAT WILL WE DO WITHOUT HER? SHE IS SO—"

"Lee, that's enough."

Ooh, Neji sounds pissed.

"A man named Jin has lost a valuable scroll that has been passed down for many years in his family, and the man who he believes is behind it only sells to wealthy married couples, preferably newlyweds. Team Gai is the only jonin squad with all members available, mainly you. Sakura and Ino are off on a short trip and Hinata is currently attending to Hyuuga matters and cannot be detained. You are the only option at this point, and we can't say no. The Hokage has informed me that this is not the kind of mission we can turn down, Tenten."

He stared at her, hard.

"Do what you will after the mission is over, but for now your village needs you. Is this not the reason you became a kunoichi in the first place?"

He sure has a lot of nerve, talking to me like that! Of course he's right, and now I definitely have to go on the mission, but I wish he wasn't so pompous about it! He could at least try to act as if my leaving didn't just offend his delicate code of honor.

"I know why I became a ninja, Neji, and I certainly don't need you to remind me why. Just because I'm leaving the team and our training sessions—"

"What?"

Oops, I guess I forgot to mention that part.

"Well, what I mean to say is, since, you know, I'm leaving the team, our training together doesn't make any sense! Yeah, right now we're on the same team, so it's beneficial and just common sense for us to train together, but this had to happen sometime. I hate to break this to you, Neji, but we can't train together forever. Besides, it certainly won't hurt you to train with Lee now!"

"Explain yourself in more detail, Tenten."

Ooh, damn, he is so pissed!

"Uh, what I mean to say is that, uh… Basically, we train together because we are on the same team, and Lee, back in our genin days, wasn't enough of a challenge for you and so you had nothing to gain by training with him. I, on the other hand, have always been a supreme wielder of weapons, and as such you viewed me as a worthy opponent. However, now that we will no longer be teammates, our training together serves no purpose. Training together has helped improve our teamwork, but without the team it's just work. That is why I have decided to stop training with you."

He isn't looking at me anymore. Even Lee is silent. Why is ending our training feeling like I'm breaking up with him? He technically broke up with me if you wanted to view our training sessions as a quasi-relationship. Sure, he's never stood me up or anything, but he keeps backing out on our meetings, which could be construed as dates. And who wants a boyfriend who doesn't want to spend time with her?

I do. It's awful, but it's true. With Neji…I mean, when he backs out of training, I'm depressed. Well, not depressed. Majorly bummed, perhaps. But when he shows up for training the next day, it's as if it doesn't matter. Training with Neji makes me happy. Right now, it's probably the highlight of my week, since it's been happening less and less lately.

Yeah, we spend time together outside of our training grounds, but it's usually either with Lee and/or Gai or after training when we're both starving or completely exhausted and just need to lie down for a bit. It isn't a lot, and it isn't often. Most of the time we just train and part ways, since it usually lasts for most of the day.

No! I have to stop thinking like this! If my brain keeps up like this, I'm never going to leave.

Okay, now I sound like a battered wife. Which I kind of am, if you consider how often my emotions get abused being on this team. Have you noticed how all the other rookies have at least has a boyfriend by now?

Not me, because in order to fit in on my team I've been forced to repress any feelings I might have besides anger and frustration at enemies and channel it into intense training with my psycho teammate.

That is not true, Neji is not crazy. Lee and Gai-sensei are crazy, but not Neji. He's too smart to be crazy…

"Tenten? Are you listening to me?"

I guess I kind of zoned out there for a bit. Oops.

"Uh, yeah, sure, sorry! What were you saying?"

I focused my gaze and for the first time realized that he wasn't in his typical white garb, but a tight fitting black number that I could only assume was for the sake of the mission. That and Lee had mysteriously disappeared. Was I really that out of it?

Maybe doing one last mission wouldn't be so bad after all!

"I asked if that was the only reason. You're holding back, Tenten, I can tell."

He tapped his temple and smirked at me. Stupid, pompous Neji. The only plus about him being able to read me is that that road goes both ways—he can read me, Byakugan or not, and I can read him.

And Neji is tense! I don't know why, but he is totally dreading my answer! This is excellent; I can totally feel myself getting the upper hand! Now it's time to formulate a witty comeback.

"There's that and that I seem to find training more important than you do, if all the times you've canceled recently are any indication."

Shit! Shit! I just told him the truth! What was I thinking?

This is so embarrassing, I hope Neji isn't freaked out he's—

Wait, what? He's relaxed? Why would me admitting that make him comfortable? I mean, what could he possibly have suspected? That I was leaving his dark training grounds for greener ones?

"I was worried for a moment there, Tenten, that your reasoning was something significant that I wouldn't be able to counter. But if it's as simple as that, I will stop canceling our training sessions."

A smug smile spread out on his face as he considered what he just said.

"Uh, sorry Neji, but it doesn't work like that. You don't get to screw around with me and then just magically try to fix things after I've had to tell you what the problem was. Do you respect me at all? I thought after all these years we were at least friends, no matter how distant you still tend to be sometimes, but really? You must know me better than that, Neji! My decision is final—I'm not training with you anymore. I'll do this last mission with you, and then that's it, I'm done. I can't do this anymore, I need a life. You can go ahead and work until you're in ANBU, but I'm not letting you leave me in the dust without a purpose or direction."

I shook my head in frustration. He is so irritating, especially when he's in that outfit!

"I want a life outside of being a ninja, Neji, and being on Team Gai and training with you all the time won't get it for me. I've already made other plans for when we usually train, so it isn't like I'll be around for you to ambush. I'm sorry, Neji, but this is the way it has to be."

Neji was the epitome of cool and collected as he stood and left my apartment, throwing out a, "Meet us by the gate in an hour. We're supposed to be a wealthy couple who has just been married, and you need clothes and a different hairstyle to play the part." as he sauntered out.

I screwed that one up royally, that's for sure. At least now I can move on to finding the perfect man for me.

And at least I managed to hold back that I'm entering the dating scene. How appalling would that be if Neji found out? Thankfully this mission will be a good excuse to start acting differently. Less like a hardened killer and more like a delicate damsel who barely knows what a kunai is, let alone knows how to kill a man 100 different ways with one.

This dating thing is going to be harder than I thought.