Neji Gaiden

by Levi Ackerman

Inspired by recent omake - if Neji wants a gaiden, Neji will get a gaiden! This story chronicles Neji's life with his team starting from their graduation from the Academy. Follows canon with extra details. Nejiten.

2. Chapter 2

A/N – Next chapter is here! Sorry for the delay, I was rather busy.

Oh and I noticed a little mistake I made in the first chapter – Neji's Byakugan vision was far too great – he actually only had a 50 m range, or less when he started out! Oh well, for the sake of the story I guess it's okay… sorry if that bothered anyone (though no one seems to have picked it up, and if they did they were nice enough not to comment)

Disclaimer – Naruto belongs to Kishimoto-san, not I.

Neji Gaiden – Part 2

– X –

"Neji."

Neji stopped in his tracks, turning around and inclining his head downwards as Hyuuga custom dictated.

"Hiashi-sama," he replied, wondering why the man had spoken to him. He was on his way to training – their last training session before the Chuunin exams.

"I heard that your team is entering the Chuunin exams?"

Why is he asking if he already knows? Neji thought to himself, but nodded in response.

"Yes."

"I see," Hiashi said, pursing his lips. "Even Hinata's team is entering."

Neji's fists involuntarily clenched, his expression hardening, and he hoped Hiashi hadn't noticed. Fortunately, Hiashi seemed preoccupied, and did not.

"For the sake of the clan, I expect nothing but satisfactory performance on your part," Hiashi said sternly, before turning around and sweeping out. "Make the Hyuuga proud, Neji."

Neji wanted to retort angrily to this. Why the hell should he do anything for the clan? The damned clan had done nothing but incarcerated him, ostracized him, caused him unbearable agony when they tore his father away from him. If he fought, it was for himself, and maybe even for his team. Neji would rather perform well for Tenten, Lee and Gai, than his clan.

And Hinata – Neji couldn't believe she was entering. It enraged him, but he consoled himself that she would probably be knocked out in the first few rounds, for sure.

When Neji stalked into training grounds that morning, Lee and Tenten were already there, doing their respective warm-ups. He soon joined them, feeling too irked to meditate at the time. The training session was relatively easy – Gai didn't want to wear them out the day before the exams, so they just warmed up and did some basic exercises and easy sparring. Neji teamed up with Tenten, preferring her over Gai and Lee. It was the first time they'd ever split into duos for taijutsu sparring, and though Neji preferred doing things individually, she would be far more tolerable than the other two green beasts.

They fought for about twenty minutes, mainly just going through the moves and positions, Neji's palms whipping out as he spun around, and Tenten lashing out with her fists and kicking, in a style similar to (but more graceful) than Lee's. She added a few lazily thrown shuriken to the scuffle, not being able to control the urge, but Neji batted them away easily with his hands. When they finished, they were panting slightly, but feeling warmed up more than anything.

"That's enough for the day," Gai said, "I think it's time you three strategize now. I do not know what the exam will entail, and even if I did I could not reveal it to you, for that would be considered unyouthful cheating. However, I think its best you three have some sort of plan for whatever may come your way. The only thing I can tell you is that teamwork will be essential for at least the preliminary tests."

"Oh! I have an idea!" Lee said excitedly, jumping up suddenly and beckoning Neji and Tenten towards him. They approached, feeling rather wary. Lee had an expression on his face that gave them the impression what he was thinking of couldn't possibly be in their interest.

"I think," Lee said, lowering his voice to a conspirational whisper, despite the fact that they were alone in the clearing.

"I think we should act weak, and fool our opponents. Then they will think we're easy to defeat, and once they make that mistake, we will dazzle them with our youthfulness!"

"No," Neji said immediately, not liking the idea of appearing weak in front of anyone.

"Well, maybe we don't have to act weak," Tenten said, "But Lee does have a point. If we hide our true talents, then they won't know what to expect from us. We won't act weak, but we shouldn't immediately display our strengths either – at least, not until it's required."

Lee beamed at this, looking hopefully at Neji, who finally nodded his consent.

"Hn."

– X –

"Well, we're all here now," Tenten said, on the morning of the exam day. It was obvious that she was nervous – or perhaps it was excitement. Lee, was standing very still, obviously trying hard to suppress his bubbling excitement.

"Let's go in," Neji said, walking towards the Academy doors, Tenten and Lee following behind him.

They walked together through the passageway, climbing up a few flights of stairs until they reached two closed doors, where a crowd of shinobi had gathered. Two leaf ninja, looking a few years older than them, were standing outside of the doors, sneering at the crowd.

"Here it is," Lee said, marching towards the crowd, "Room 301."

"Wait," Neji hissed, sensing something was off. "I – this is –"

"Something's wrong," Tenten said, cottoning on, "But I can't quite tell what…"

"I think it's genjutsu," Neji told her, "But I'll need to activate my Byakugan to see through it."

"I didn't notice," Lee admitted, his shoulders drooping.

"That's okay Lee," Tenten consoled him, as Neji activated his dojutsu as imperceptibly as possible.

"This is the second floor," he said after a moment, "Room 201. They've cast genjutsu, but no one seems to able to see through it."

"Well then let's go and reveal their falsity!" Lee exclaimed, but Tenten grabbed his arm, pulling him back.

"Low profile Lee, low profile," she chided, reminding him.

"Oh yeah," Lee said sheepishly, switching back to their decided strategy. He pushed his way through the crowd, Neji and Tenten following him, before walking up to the two ninja stationed outside the door.

There was something weirdly familiar about them, but neither of them could tell what.

"We have come for the Chuunin Exam," Lee said confidently, reaching for the door handle.

Seconds later he was flying backwards, before crashing to the ground at Neji and Tenten's feet.

"Hah! You plan to take the Chuunin exam with that?" one of the ninja scoffed condescendingly.

"You should quit now," his partner added, smirking.

Neji clenched his fists, angered at their treatment of Lee. He wasn't exactly fond of the boy, but these ninja had no right to treat his teammate like that. Tenten seemed angry as well, but she leaned down, placing her hands on Lee's shoulders.

"Are you alright?" she asked in concern, and Lee whimpered in response.

Neji bit back a smirk at this – Lee was perfectly fine, but was obviously maintaining his feeble appearance a bit too well.

Tenten approached the shinobi next, speaking in tones far too dulcet, masking her annoyance extremely well.

"Please let us through," she fairly begged, and Neji almost smiled at her tone.

It was sickly sweet, and from what he knew of her, Tenten was obviously boiling underneath, itching to hurl a barrage of weapons at the shinobi to set them straight. But that would compromise on their strategy.

The shinobi struck at her, and Tenten flew back to join Lee on the floor.

Neji felt another flare of rage within him – how dare they strike Tenten! He struggled to appear calm, stopping his Byakugan from involuntarily activating. He gritted his teeth, relaxing slightly when he noticed that Tenten was also unharmed, but only pretending.

Gai had trained them much more rigorously than that – such strikes wouldn't hurt her or Lee, Neji knew that. But still, it frustrated him that they had to act so innocuous.

The two shinobi were now ranting something about the difficulty and danger of the Chuunin Exam, which Neji blocked out completely, still simmering with rage. His attention was caught, however, when three new shinobi entered the area. One of them had a particularly strong chakra signature which perked Neji's attention.

"I agree," a new voice spoke, with a tone that was as arrogant and flat as Neji's. Neji whirled around, seeing a kid with spiky ebony hair and dark eyes. There were two more kids next to him, a girl with pink hair, and a blonde boy with wearing an orange jumpsuit. Neji ignored them, however, narrowing his eyes as he focused on the dark-haired boy.

It's the Uchiha, he realized, a sense of ingrained aversion and rivalry towards the boy arising within him.

When the Uchiha were in their prime, they had always rivaled the Hyuuga in terms of skill, grandeur and power in Konoha. The Hyuuga had been second to the Uchiha, but considering there was only one sole survivor after the horrific massacre, the Hyuuga now prided themselves on being the most prestigious clan in Konoha. And though Neji bore no great love for his clan, he automatically considered himself superior towards the Uchiha boy. He couldn't deny that the Uchiha boy seemed to have an aura of power and grace, like Neji himself did. Neji was interested to see him fight, and moreso to fight him. He was a worthy rival, and pitting the Byakugan against the revered Sharingan should preempt an interesting match.

"You will let me pass through," the boy was speaking, his voice commanding, "And remove the surroundings cast by this genjutsu."

There were confused murmurs at this, as the bemused shinobi wondered what he was talking about. Neji nearly snorted at their idiocy – how could they even consider entering the exam if they couldn't penetrate such simple genjutsu. Lee and Tenten were still sprawled on the floor, overdoing the whole 'weak' act.

The shinobi at the doors, however, seemed impressed.

"So you noticed?" one of them asked, raising an eyebrow. The Uchiha just shot him a smug look, before turning to speak to his pink-haired teammate.

"Not bad," the shinobi continued, "But all you did was manage to see through it!"

And then suddenly, he charged at the Uchiha, he speed far to great for him to be a mere genin. The Uchiha, however, with quick reflexes slid into fighting stance, his leg whipping at the attacking shinobi.

Suddenly, there was a blur of green, as Lee leapt off the ground and intervened between the two shinobi with his inhuman speed, catching the Uchiha's foot, and that of the other shinobi with his bandaged hands.

Damnit, Neji thought, and he heard Tenten give a groan below him as she stood up, shaking her head.

"Idiot," she muttered, and Neji couldn't help but agree.

Lee had given himself away – only someone with great speed and great strength would be able to come in between and successfully stop such attacks.

Neji saw the pink-haired girl and the Uchiha both narrow their eyes, as Lee stepped back, taking his place next to his team.

Neji and Tenten both turned on him.

"What happened to the plan?" Neji asked, his voice hard.

"Yeah, you're the one who said we shouldn't draw attention to ourselves!" Tenten hissed.

"Well…" Lee muttered, his cheeks coloring, and his dark eyes shifted towards the pink-haired girl, a rather dazed expression taking his face.

Neji and Tenten exchanged an exasperated look, before turning to the girl Lee was staring at. She stared back, green eyes wide, obviously slightly astonished.

"Oh no…" Tenten muttered, shaking her head, and Neji sighed. They really needed Lee to focus, and having him pine after some useless kunoichi would be an unwanted distraction that would definitely affect their teamwork.

Lee strode towards the girl, still blushing.

"My name is Rock Lee," he introduced, before striking a pose, his teeth sparkling. The girl looked rather taken aback.

"You're Sakura, right? Let's go out together! I promise, I will protect you till I die!"

Neji and Tenten both heaved a sigh at this, looking at each other in resignation.

"Why is he such a moron?" Neji asked her rhetorically.

"He'll never learn," Tenten bemoaned, shrugging.

Sakura, however, shrieked in surprise. Even the Uchiha regarded Lee rather darkly, an almost unnoticeable spasm crossing his face.

"No way!" Sakura yelled, "You're lame!"

"Ouch," Tenten whispered, "That was harsh."

"Hopefully it will bring him to his senses," Neji muttered.

"You think?" Tenten asked, as they regarded Lee, whose had had dropped, a lugubrious expression on his face.

"Hey you!" Neji called suddenly, looking in the Uchiha's direction.

The boy turned around, an elegant eyebrow raised.

"What's your name?" Neji asked.

"When you want to learn someone's name you should give yours first," he replied coolly.

Neji's eyebrow twitched – how dare that rookie, that Uchiha – speak to him in such a derisive tone?

"You're a rookie aren't you? How old are you?" he shot, his posture, voice and expression identically arrogant to the Uchiha's.

"I don't have to answer you," the Uchiha shot back.

"Hn," Neji grunted, turning around, and the Uchiha did the same. Tenten was watching them, looking rather amused, though Neji noted a slight blush on her face. He wondered why, for a moment, but then decided he didn't really care.

"Naruto! Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried suddenly, grabbing the hands of her two teammates. Sasuke seemed rather annoyed, but didn't protest. Naruto, who had been sulking with Lee, brightened slightly. "Let's go!" she said, dragging them along the hallway.

"Don't pull me," they heard Sasuke grumble as the trio disappeared.

Neji and Tenten walked off as well, but paused, turning to Lee, who was staring after the team which Neji realized was the one under Kakashi's command.

"Come on Lee, what are you doing?" Tenten asked impatiently, and Neji looked at him expectantly. Lee had an oddly determined look in his eyes.

"You guys go ahead," Lee said, his voice uncharacteristically grim. "There's something I'd like to test."

Neji shook his head, and Tenten rolled her eyes, but they decided not to bother.

"Make sure you're back on time," Neji said sharply, and they turned and left.

"He's gone after that pink-haired girl, I know it," Tenten said, once they were out of earshot.

"It's likely," Neji agreed. "He's a shinobi, he shouldn't be so easily distracted by such frivolous things though…"

"Yeah," Tenten said, her voice suddenly taking a slightly dreamy tone, "But the one with dark eyes was kind of cute…"

"What?" Neji snapped, turning to glare at her.

"What?" Tenten asked defensively, "I'm not going to pine after him, I'm just stating a fact!"

Neji glared at her harder for a moment, feeling rather annoyed – he couldn't quite understand why though, before he continued, striding though the hallway, Tenten quickly walking to catch up with him.

I bet I could beat him in a fight, Neji thought, overcome by a sudden urge to fight the Uchiha. My Byakugan is far more powerful than his dojutsu, which has stemmed out from mine, as it is.

They were silent for the rest of the way, until they reached a large pair of doors that was their destination. Gai was standing outside, looking rather expectant.

"Where's Lee?" he asked when they reached him.

"He – wandered off," Tenten said vaguely, and Gai furrowed his bushy brows together.

"He should be meeting us here in half and hour," Neji supplied.

"Are you going to go look for him?" Tenten asked hopefully.

Gai nodded, looking rather disapproving of Lee's actions.

"In case I don't meet you two again, good luck," he said. "Burn with the fires of youth, and defeat all your opponents honorably. You are both skilled, and I know you have potential. And remember, teamwork is the most important."

Neji and Tenten both nodded, and Gai placed a hand on both their shoulders, kneeling down slightly. Neji had to fight his reflex to move away slightly, flinching from the contact. Gai didn't seem to notice.

"Neji. Tenten. You have both grown from since you first graduated, and I am already proud of you, whatever the outcome of this exam may be. Remember, give it your best, and become stronger than you were yesterday."

"Stronger than yesterday," Tenten murmured, smiling slightly as she repeated their motto.

"Stronger than yesterday," Neji affirmed.

Gai shot them a dazzling grin, before disappearing with a puff of smoke.

They were silent for a moment, before Tenten spoke.

"I guess we'll just wait for Lee, before entering," she said, and they walked to the side, leaning against the walls, as they surveyed the teams who had started to enter.

Quite a few teams had come for the exam, and they were slowly trickling into the hall, as Neji and Tenten surveyed them with sharp eyes.

"They look pretty tough," Tenten admitted, "And much older than us."

"Hn," Neji nodded, as a trio of three shinobi with odd forehead protectors passed by. There were little musical notes carved onto the gleaming metal – it was an unfamiliar sign.

"What village is that?" he wondered aloud, glancing at the shinobi.

"None that I've heard of or that we've studied about," Tenten said, shrugging. "I don't recognize the symbol. Hey look, there are shinobi from the Sand!" she whispered.

Another trio passed by – a boy wearing black, a blonde girl carrying what looked like a giant fan, and a pale redhead carrying a gourd strapped to his back.

Neji narrowed his eyes – the last one of the trio, who seemed about their age, had a rather distinctive chakra. He seemed dangerous, though Neji couldn't quite tell why. He was another person to keep an eye on, along with Sasuke Uchiha.

They waited for a few more minutes, surveying the teams that entered, exchanging a few hushed comments.

"I think that's the new Ino-Shika-Cho trio," Neji said, his sharp eyes catching the clan emblems on the clothing of the next group of shinobi as they entered. The fat boy was certainly an Akimichi, and the other boy had the Nara clan symbol on his jacket. The girl sported the signature high ponytail of the Yamanaka clan.

"Oh, they're a year below us, right?" Tenten asked.

"Hn. What's keeping that idiot?"

"I don't know – hey Neji!"

Neji turned to Tenten, who spoke, rather hesitatingly.

"Um – isn't that – your cousin?" she asked, biting her lip.

Neji's face hardened, as he sighted Hinata heading in their direction, along with a boy with sunglasses and another boy with a white puppy.

He pointedly looked away when she neared, and Hinata and her team passed by without a word.

Tenten was observing him rather warily, but chose not to say anything. She knew Neji's family was a touchy topic with him – but it was always better to warn him, lest Hinata walk up to him and try speaking to him in public.

"Lee – should be here soon," she spoke, attempting to break the icy atmosphere that had settled around Neji upon sighting his cousin.

"Neji! Tenten!" a familiar voice shouted at that moment, and Lee raced towards them, panting slightly.

"Lee!" Tenten scolded, rounding on him. "Where the hell have you been?"

"You're late," Neji snarled, "Let's go in."

"Sorry," Lee mumbled, staring into the distance, before Tenten yanked him inside.

They were greeted by an alarming number of shinobi, but sticking to their original strategy of melting in, they settled into the crowd, Tenten and Neji standing on Lee's either side, keeping an eye on him so that he wouldn't scamper off again.

Neji's eyes flickered over the teams, resisting the temptation to turn on his Byakugan so he could survey their chakra flow and ascertain their abilities. The sheer number didn't intimidate him – he was pretty sure he would be able to defeat most of them in combat.

A few minutes later there was a loud commotion – Neji noticed Kakashi's team had entered. The blonde loudmouth was hollering something asinine, until the pink-haired girl clamped her hands around his mouth, looking rather murderous. The Uchiha looked exasperated, and Neji noticed most of the leaf rookies were gathered together. The entire crowd was staring at them, however, and Sakura was sputtering out some sort of an apology.

A grey-haired man intervened, speaking to the rookies, and Neji soon tuned out entirely, waiting impatiently for the exam to commence.

– X –

A written test, Neji thought, eyes flicking around the large classroom. He saw Tenten, poised with a pencil in hand, staring determinedly at the piece of paper in front of her, a few seats away from him.

Lee, on the other hand, was clutching his shiny black locks, looking rather frustrated.

I'm pretty sure Tenten will manage well enough, but it's Lee I'm worried about. As long as he gets at least one thing correct, we're safe.

Neji listened carefully as Ibiki gave the instructions. Neji found it odd how much he was accentuating the part about cheating; they would lose points if they cheated, and there were a maximum number of times they could get caught before disqualification. To Neji, it almost seemed like they were – encouraging them to cheat.

"Begin," Ibiki boomed, and there was a rustle of papers as the genin started on their tests.

Neji narrowed his eyes as he surveyed the questions. He may manage one or two of them. Tenten would almost definitely get the one about weapon projectiles and aiming angles. But the one about the code was nearly impossible to decipher. So were the complex ones about chakra networks; Neji doubted even Gai would be able to answer that one. It was medic-nin level.

His white eyes roved over the room, to the Chuunin who were seated around the desks, clipboards in hand, making a few marks at intervals. They were catching those who cheated, Neji realized.

Then it hit him, like a bolt of electric chakra, what they had to do. They had to cheat. The purpose of the exam wasn't to test intelligence – it was to test information-gathering skills! That's why the difficulty level of the questions was so impossibly high!

Neji turned his head slightly, looking in Tenten's direction. Her eyes met his, and she nodded slightly. She had understood. Neji inclined his head in Lee's direction, and Tenten nodded again, tilting her pencil towards herself. She'd take care of it.

Satisfied, Neji returned to his own paper, pausing slightly. There was a steady tapping of a pencil on paper. It was coming from the man two seats ahead of him.

"Byakugan," Neji whispered, peering at the man's back. He could see through him. All the answers to the test were written neatly on the paper, positioned in a place that Neji could view them clearly. It was perfect, and Neji picked up his own pencil, and began jotting down the answers.

After a few minutes, he was finished; well before time. He turned to see Tenten scribbling away at her paper. He watched her carefully. She'd pause every few moments, holding her pencil straight, and tilting it slightly. Neji watched closer, and realized that she'd attached razor wires from the back of her pencil to the shiny panels of the ceiling. By shifting her pencil, she could adjust the panels so that they reflected the answers off of another shinobi's paper. Neji shifted his gaze to Lee, whose glance kept darting upwards, towards the panels which Tenten had positioned so he could see them. He'd nod every few moments, and Tenten would start writing again, before shifting the panel.

Neji watched her for a few more moments, before turning back to his own paper, feeling rather content with his team's performance, and secretly grateful to Tenten. He didn't know how Lee would have managed otherwise.

Quite a few teams were being disqualified on the basis of cheating. Surprisingly, Neji noticed that Hinata's team was still in the test. So was that Uchiha's. It bothered him; but he was sure they'd fail sooner or later. Hinata certainly would, worthless and weak as she was.

"Now we will begin the tenth question!" Ibiki barked when their time had elapsed. Neji noticed a lot of the shinobi in the room tense up. Tenten didn't seem nervous though; she'd finished all her other answers about ten minutes ago. Lee looked rather excited.

"Now before we get to it," Ibiki growled, "I'd like to go over the added rules for the last question."

Added rules, Neji wondered, what is he going on about?

"First for this tenth question, you must decide whether you want to take it or not!"

There was a series of gasps at this, and one of the shinobi, the blonde kunoichi from the Sand, spoke up, her voice shrill.

"Choose? What happens if we choose not to?" she asked frantically, voicing the question that the rest of the shinobi in the room were too intimidated by Ibiki to ask.

"You fail," Ibiki said, and a resounding silence filled the room at his menacing words. "Along with your two teammates. If you choose not to answer the tenth questions, your points will be reduced to zero."

There was an outbreak of shouts at this, and Ibiki ploughed on, ignoring them.

"And now, the other rule…" he murmured, and the classroom fell quiet once again. "If you choose to take it, and answer incorrectly… then you will lose the right to ever take the Chuunin Selection Exam again!"

The class exploded at this, the shinobi both indignant and panicked.

Tenten was biting her lip, obviously very worried, and Lee's eyes were squeezed shut.

This is ridiculous, Neji thought, struggling to stay calm, there has to be a catch!

He'd heard of Ibiki before, from the Hyuuga. He was a Special Jounin, and one of the best interrogators Konoha had. Neji knew this, because Ibiki had been the man interrogating the Cloud ninja after the entire affair with his father years ago.

He's probably trying to intimidate us into giving up, Neji thought to himself. I don't think what he's saying actually holds, because there are people who have taken the exam multiple times. And the Leaf cannot stop shinobi from other villages re-entering. That would inflict political tensions between the villages, and the main purpose of the exam, apart from selecting Chuunin, is for the villages to come together peacefully and assert their power. He's probably just trying to torture us mentally – after all, that is his forte.

"Now those who don't want to take the question, raise your hand!" Ibiki shouted, and there was a pause, after which a number of hands raised tremulously in the air. There were groans, glares, curses and scowls, as groups of ninja slouched out of the room, their shoulders hunched.

Neji was fairly certain that he'd surmised Ibiki's true intentions. He was taking the question, that was for sure. He turned in Tenten's direction yet again, his white eyes meeting her frantic brown ones. She seemed distraught, and was obviously looking to him to help her make a decision; for the sake of their team.

Neji nodded ever so slightly, at her.

Don't give up. Take the question.

Tenten raised her eyebrows, looking at him incredulously.

Are you sure?

Neji stared at her hard.

Trust me.

Tenten sighed heavily, running a hand through her brown bangs, but then nodded at him.

Okay.

She was tentative, he could tell, as she relayed the message onto Lee, who looked ever more frantic. But they weren't going to give up. Neither Tenten nor Lee raised their hands, and after yet another outburst from that loudmouthed blonde, Ibiki decided to continue.

"Good decisions," he told them suddenly drop his grin demeanor, "To those still remaining. I congratulate you on passing the first test!"

Neji smirked, glancing over at Tenten, who looked both relieved and thrilled, though slightly confused.

I told you.

She smiled at him, and despite the fact that all the other Leaf rookies had passed as well, Neji couldn't help but feel rather content.

– X –

The second task, Neji soon learnt, was going to take place in ANBU Practice Arena 44.

Lee and Tenten both stiffened beside him when they learnt of this.

The practice arena was one which even most Jounin avoided (though Neji suspected Gai must have gone there at least once a year for his crazy training regimes; as long as he didn't take them in, it was all fine). It was more commonly known as the 'Forest of Death'.

"Not a very – inviting venue," Tenten mumbled, sounding exceedingly nervous.

The examiner, Anko, was handing out forms.

"If I don't have you sign these, if you die it will be my responsibility," she explained cheerfully.

Neji snatched three forms before Tenten and Lee could say anything, handing one to each of his teammates.

Lee took it, and so did Tenten, though with evident trepidation.

"She – she really means that doesn't she? That – there will be deaths," she said.

"Don't worry, I'm sure there are ANBU guarding it," Neji told her. "Whatever they may say, Konoha won't want casualties. It will affect the political scenario with the other villages, if their genin die in our exam. And I don't think anyone here even has the capacity to kill."

"That – does make me feel better," Tenten admitted gratefully. "But still… there's all sorts of monstrous beasts in there!"

"Like man-eating snakes," Lee piped up, "And huge, blood-sucking squirrels!"

Neji shot him a withering glare at the last part, shaking his head.

"Stop talking nonsense, and sign the form," he said shortly, as Anko proceeded to explain the rules of the test.

They entered the tent later, where they were handed a Heaven scroll. Neji took it, pocketing it almost immediately.

"Um – Neji, hold on a sec," Tenten said, reaching into the belt wear her weapon scrolls were secured.

"Transform," she muttered, and with a poof, one of them transformed so it looked exactly like the Heaven scroll. She held it towards Neji.

"Switch?" she asked, gesturing at the bulge in his pocket, where the top part of the scroll was peeping out.

Neji hesitated for a moment, but then realized she was right. Any enemy would probably be able to see that he had the scroll. This way, they could at least fool them. And Tenten wasn't like Lee. She'd be careful with it.

He pulled out the scroll, handing it to her, and Tenten slipped it onto her belt, where it was camouflaged with all her other scrolls. Neji slipped Tenten's scroll into his pocket, making sure that the color was visible. This way, it was more likely that enemies who had the scroll they wanted would target them.

"Smart idea," he told her, as Lee watched, looking bewildered.

"So who has the actual scroll?" he asked, "Neji or Tenten?"

"Never mind that," Neji said impatiently, before Tenten could explain. "Let's go."

They chose gate 41, after Lee's insistence, since their training field was also number 41.

"It's for good luck," Lee said, beaming at them, and Neji scoffed at him while Tenten rolled her eyes. They stood at the gate, and Neji could feel the adrenaline racing through his body.

"Gai-sensei, I'll do my best!" Lee promised aloud, pumping his fist.

"We need a strategy," Neji said quickly, his voice low. "And since we're going to be here for days, I think we need to find food first, when all the others are fighting. Avoid conflict during daytime, since that's when the others are going to be on the hunt. We can use our superior speed to escape any possible battle, and scavenge food and water for the following few days so we don't waste time later. And then at night, when the others are resting and have their guards down, we can attack."

"You're right," Tenten nodded.

"What a youthful plan," Lee said excitedly.

"Make sure you stick to it," Neji told him. "We'll stay together for the first part, and try to gain as much ground as possible, while the others are busy fighting. We can split up later, at night, if necessary."

"Sounds good to me…"

"Okay!"

A few minutes later, Anko's voice could be heard, signaling the start of the exams.

"C'mon!" Neji said, but Lee held him back.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Lee cried, sticking his hand out, "We forgot our Team Cheer!"

Neji gave him a stern look.

"Lee, not right now!" Tenten begged, "This is serious!"

"It will take five seconds!" Lee persisted resiliently, "And it will help boost our morale!"

"Lee, just leave it!" Tenten hissed, but Lee stood rooted at the spot.

Neji glared at him. Lee stared determinedly back, his hand outstretched.

Tenten stared at them both for a moment, before sighing and placing her hand on Lee's.

"Neji," she muttered, turning to him. Neji glowered at her. She wasn't supposed to fall for Lee's puerile tricks!

"We're wasting time, and you know how Lee is! Just do it!" Tenten snapped at him, obviously as annoyed with the situation as he was.

Neji relented, laying his hand on Tenten's, as Lee cheered loudly.

"For YOUTH!"

Seconds later, they were off, leaping from branch to branch with their superior speed.

Things were relatively calm, and they were able to gather all their supplies without being sighted or attacked even once, mainly thanks to Neji's Byakugan and their speed. He could spot enemies in the vicinity before they were spotted themselves, and with their fast speed they were able to escape before they ran into any trouble.

They gathered that evening, as the sky darkened, underneath a large tree.

"The sun should be down in an hour," Neji said, tossing a kunai between his fingers, unconsciously mimicking his female teammate, "Most teams are resting. Let's attack during this period as planned. First let's split up and spend thirty minutes scouting the area – just scouting. But whether you find another team or not, we return here in thirty minutes. Got that?" he finished, hurling the kunai into the ground to mark their meeting spot.

"Okay," Tenten said, nodding.

"Roger!" Lee shouted, holding his palm out again.

"Alright," Neji said, smirking slightly, "Go!"

They leapt up, speeding off in different directions. Neji had been scouting for less than ten minutes when he came across the first team – three figures, cowering in the grass, obviously hiding.

"Come out from there," Neji demanded, and he saw the three hunched figures flinch.

Cowards, he thought disdainfully, surveying them as they emerged, trembling.

It was the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Neji was surprised to see the heirs of three such prestigious clans (though not as much as the Hyuuga, obviously) cringing like fearful civilians, rather than ninja. They obviously wouldn't be able to live up to the legend of their fathers.

"Oh… you guys," he muttered.

The three genin suddenly brightened up, plastering starry-eyed and saccharine sweet expressions on their faces. Neji narrowed his eyes.

"Oh my!" the blonde girl squealed, clasping her hands together as she stared at Neji adoringly. Neji had to resist the urge to palm-strike her simpering face.

"I never thought I'd meet last years number one rookie, Neji Hyuuga!"

Her tone was flirtatious, and reminded him of his fan-girls. He detested it. Though he could tell she was obviously pretending – her voice was strained, and far too high-pitched to be genuine.

"Can I get your autograph!" the boy next to her, the Nara boy, asked, looking rather constipated as he attempted to look admiringly at Neji.

Neji snorted.

The girl then reached up, loosening her blonde hair, as she batted her eyelashes at him.

"I've always wanted to – get to know you better," she said suggestively, her long hair waving behind her.

Neji was unaffected – or rather, disgusted. She was really acting like a fangirl now, even though he knew it was just pretence.

"Get lost," he said, sneering, before he turned around and ambled off.

He saw the girl shaking her fist at him from the back of his head, looking rather murderous. Her companions just looked exasperated.

"Hey," he called, his back still turned to the trio. "Does the fact that you are shaking your fist at me mean you want to fight me?"

The trio looked shocked.

"No!" the girl said, attempting to laugh it off, "Of course not!"

Neji quickly scanned his eyes over their weapon pouches. He finally saw the scroll, inside the Nara's pocket. It was the Heaven scroll though. They wouldn't need that.

Neji considered defeating the team, just to eliminate them but then decided against it. Why waste chakra on such pathetic cockroaches? They'd probably be eliminated sooner or later anyways.

"Then leave," he said viciously, "Taking a scroll off cowards like you will only make me the laughing stock of the village."

"Yes!" they chimed together, leaping into the bushes.

Neji shook his head. They were rather ludicrous, the three of them. Nothing in comparison to the old Ino-Shika-Cho he'd heard stories about. Even Hiashi seemed to harbor respect for them. But there was no way Neji had any respect for their children, at least from what he'd seen. Unless they were feigning uselessness, as had been Team Gai's original strategy. That would be a different case altogether.

Neji scouted around a bit longer, but couldn't find any other teams, so he headed back towards their meeting spot, yanking out the kunai buried in the ground.

Tenten arrived a few seconds later, leaping down in front of him from the trees.

"Hey," she greeted, and he nodded at her, tossing her the kunai.

Tenten caught it deftly, raising an eyebrow, before she proceeded to twirl it around her finger by habit.

Neji smiled slightly.

"So it is you," he replied.

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused, as she continued to play with the weapon between her fingers.

Neji nodded towards it.

"I had to check to make sure you weren't an imposter. And only the real you would play around with a weapon like that, Tenten."

"Y-yeah," she agreed, flushing slightly. "Did you find anyone?"

"That pathetic rookie team," Neji replied, "Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka. But they have the same scroll as we do. You?"

"Oh," Tenten said, sounding disappointed. "I – ran into your cousin's team, actually. They found me first though – Hinata's Byakugan – but they have the same scroll as we do too. Hinata told me."

"She might have been lying," Neji said, though he highly doubted his naïve cousin was capable. Still, he would always suspect the Main House. "She might have said that because she knew you were my teammate, and she wouldn't want to fight me."

"No, she showed it to me," Tenten said firmly, "And she saw mine herself, obviously. Though even if she had a different scroll, I doubt she'd have let her team attack us for the same reason…"

Neji muttered something along the lines of 'pathetic', but Tenten changed the subject quickly.

"Let's hope Lee has better luck!" she said, hurling the kunai back into the indentation in the ground.

They waited for a few more minutes, Neji scanning the area with his Byakugan.

"Lee sure is late," Tenten spoke up after a while.

"…"

"Strange, he's usually accurate when it comes to time," she went on, looking and sounding rather worried, "Could he have run into the enemy?"

"That's unlikely," he told her, but Tenten bit her lip, eyes wide as she considered the possibility.

"Let's go find Lee," he suggested, hoping to appease her.

Tenten nodded, eyes still clouded with worry.

"Yeah…" she agreed, and they leapt up, taking to the trees again.

"I have a feeling – he's done something incredibly stupid," Neji told Tenten as they leapt through the forest. "Meaning, he's gone looking for trouble, butted his nose in somewhere he wasn't required."

"I hope it's that," Tenten said, "I hope he's not in trouble."

"It's Lee, Tenten," Neji said, lips quirking up slightly, "He'd probably scare away the enemy ninja with his youthfulness."

Tenten laughed softly, surprised that Neji had actually cracked a joke about something.

"Yeah, you're probably right. Either that or he's doing one of his training lessons in the middle of the forest, the idiot…" she giggled.

Neji, though not usually one for dry humor, decided he preferred a smiling, laughing Tenten to a tense, worried one.

"Yeah, he's probably doing his two-hundredth push-up right now," Neji muttered, "In punishment for not being able to find any teams…"

Tenten laughed again, and they headed through the forest together, before Neji suddenly stopped, landing firmly on a tree trunk. Tenten landed beside him, looking at him questioningly.

"There's a bunch of ninja – at least nine or ten of them – a few meters away in a clearing. I can't tell what's going on, but I don't want us to be seen. Come on…"

They made their way quietly through the trees, stopping on a high tree branch above the clearing. They were pretty well hidden from sight, but they could see what was happening below pretty well. Neji crossed his arms, as Tenten crouched down next to him, gripping the hard bark.

"It's those rookies again," Tenten whispered, "A couple of them have passed out though. And those Sound ninja again… and Lee! Neji, it's Lee!"

Tenten gasped, staring at Lee's limp form. "What have they done to him?"

"Tenten, he's alright. He's just fainted from exhaustion," Neji said quickly, scanning Lee with his Byakugan.

"What an idiot," Tenten whispered, relief evident in her voice. "What the hell happened here?"

"Some minor Sound nins bullying these second rate ninja and declaring victory," Neji answered carelessly, feeling slightly irked by Tenten's concern for Lee. He didn't know why, but to him it seemed like she was slightly overdoing it. After all, Lee was at fault. He'd probably done something stupid and jeopardized their entire team.

The clearing below was littered with fallen tree trunks and kunai. The Sound ninja, however, seemed to have detected Neji and Tenten's presence, and looked up.

"They just keep coming like cockroaches," one of them jeered.

Neji narrowed his eyes, his jaw tight.

"Lee…" Tenten murmured, as the fainted boy on the ground shifted slightly.

"You made a mistake," Neji said icily, "That knocked out freak is from our team and…"

Neji reactivated his Byakugan, clenching his fists.

"You're going to pay for that!" he snarled threateningly.

He turned to Tenten, who nodded at him, her brown eyes flashing in determination.

"No one messes with our teammate," she added.

"If you are going to go any further," Neji informed the Sound ninja, a tone of warning in his voice, "We're going all out."

Damnit Lee! He cursed inwardly. Now Tenten and I will have no choice but to reveal our techniques to them! You moron!

Suddenly, Neji felt a flare of chakra from below. He peered down, white eyes wide, as he saw dark, bubbling chakra swirl around a figure that lay collapsed not far from Lee. It was Sasuke Uchiha he realized.

"Huh?" Neji said aloud.

"What's going on?" Tenten asked.

Sasuke stood up, black and purple chakra encircling his figure, as oddly shaped black patterns crept up his skin.

What the hell is this? I've never seen anything like it! Neji thought. The chakra seemed dark – malevolent almost. He hadn't heard anything about the Uchiha having such chakra.

Sasuke was now staring at his pink-haired teammate, Sakura, who sported minor injuries, exchanging a few words with her before he turned his gaze on the Sound ninja. He radiated killing intent, and even Neji could feel it from his distance.

The Sound nin, however, seemed not to notice, and he yelled up at Neji and Tenten.

"Hehe! If you don't like it so much, then stop acting cool and come down here!" he demanded.

"No," Neji informed him smugly. "It seems that won't be necessary."

Though Neji still considered him an insolent brat, that Uchiha had good timing. Now he and Tenten wouldn't have to give their abilities away, or waste unnecessary chakra.

They watched in silence, as a new fight began below. Sasuke was blowing out fireballs at the Sound nin, who retaliated by creating some kind of a sound wave. The blazing chakra had disappeared, though Sasuke's skin was now fully covered with the black patterns. He soon pounced on the Sound ninja, pulling at his arm. There was a resounding crack, when he snapped it, breaking the bone.

Tenten gasped, and even Neji was taken aback. He hadn't expect Sasuke to break the ninja's bones. That had been unnecessary, and rather cruel.

"Why – why did he do that?" Tenten asked, shaking her head. "He shouldn't have."

"It's not against the rules," Neji told her, though he agreed. There was a shinobi sense of decency which they usually followed. And this wasn't a war – it was an exam. Though killing was obviously out of the question, needless injuring was bad as well.

Still find him cute, Tenten? Neji wondered. This chakra is abnormal! Could the Uchiha clan really be – this strong?

The fiasco ended a few minutes later, after Sakura hugged Sasuke and effectively ended his destructive spree, and the overwhelmed Sound nin took off. The Yamanaka girl walked towards Lee's limp form, hoisting his arm around her shoulder and supporting him as she stood up, struggling under his weight.

Lee was still unconscious.

"How long does he plan to remain that way?" Neji questioned sarcastically, shaking his head. "He's wasting our time."

Tenten made an exasperated sound, and suddenly leapt off of the tree onto the ground.

"I'll take it from here," she informed Ino, before grabbing Lee by the shoulders and shaking him furiously.

"SNAP OUT OF IT!" she screeched, none too gently. "LEE!"

Neji smirked to himself. After a year of experiencing Lee's melodrama, Tenten sure knew how to deal with him suitably.

Lee did 'snap out of it' and he peered at Tenten through half-lidded eyes, his voice scratchy.

"Nnh… Tenten, why are you doing here?" he croaked.

"We came to save you," she replied, as if it were obvious.

"Hey! But – where are those Sound nins?" Lee asked, still discombobulated as he shook his head from side to side, attempting to search for them.

"That Sasuke kid drove them off," Tenten said dismissively, before rounding on him. "Why did you break the plan and act alone? Plus, you're all beaten up!" she scolded.

"Sakura was in trouble," Lee defended, "And as a man…"

Tenten rolled her eyes, and up in the tree, Neji slapped a hand to his forehead. They should have known, with Lee…

"You are such an idiot!" Tenten reprimanded him, shaking her head, and Neji agreed with her.

Lee looked guilty, as he wrapped his hands around his knees.

"Haha," he laughed feebly, "I can't argue with you there…"

"HEY!" the loudmouthed blonde in orange suddenly shouted, pointing at Lee, "BUSHY-BROW!"

Neji watched the drama unfold, as Sakura and Sasuke joined the group as well, and Lee promised something to Sakura, a lovestruck look on his face.

Tenten looked rather grumpy and annoyed, and the situation was grating on Neji's nerves as well. Lee was wasting too much time, associating with these usual rookies!

Tenten looked up, almost desperately at Neji, urging him to do something. He obliged, finally leaping down from his branch and landing amidst the group, shooting Lee his deadliest glare.

"Let's go," Neji said, with forced calm, "Now."

He shot Lee his deadliest glare, and Lee seemed to realize that both his teammates were rather annoyed with him. He hastily bade his good-bye to the rookies, before speeding off after Neji and Tenten who had already taken to the trees.

"Neji! Tenten – I – I'm sorry," he finally offered, hanging his head, when they stopped under the tree that had served as their previous meeting spot.

Tenten said nothing, eyeing Neji cautiously. His teeth were gritted, and his fists clenched; when he spoke, his voice was dangerously soft.

"Why the hell did you do it, Lee?" he finally asked.

"Sakura-san was in danger," Lee began, and Neji's eyes flashed dangerously.

"Sakura was in danger. Sakura was in danger?" he spat out her name like it was a curse word. "Some useless, incompetent kunoichi-"

"Sakura's not-" Lee interjected angrily, but Neji continued relentlessly, his voice shaking with barely contained fury.

"Some useless kunoichi was in danger – she's not even on our team – and you jeopardize your life, our team's chance in this Chuunin exam for her? What is she to us – nothing! What if you got hurt, what if you got injured so badly that Tenten and I had no chance but to forfeit? Why should we have to give up because of you and that idiotic pink-haired girl who calls herself a ninja? What if – you died?"

"I'm sorry," Lee repeated, staring at the ground. "Neji, I-"

You disobeyed the plan, you gave away your techniques, you put us all in danger of being disqualified, you wasted our precious time – and that too, on someone as worthless and pathetic as her? If it were Tenten, I'd understand."

"Hey!" Tenten protested, "I don't need rescu-"

"She's our teammate," Neji continued, "And she'd never even get herself into that kind of a situation. Yet even if she did, it would be our duty to help her. But Sakura? Sakura?"

"I care about her, alright!" Lee burst out.

"If you actually want to fulfill your impossible dream and become a splendid ninja without ninjutsu and genjutsu, you definitely shouldn't waste your time on futile, frivolous things like love. You'll fail if you do."

Tenten flinched slightly at this – of course, from Neji, it should have been expected. He had a one-track mind. Things like love probably would never have a place in his life.

"Even if – even if I didn't like her like that, I'd still have saved her!" Lee cried, sounding close to tears, "Just because she's a friend. I would always help out a friend!"

"She's not even your teammate," Neji sneered, "She has Sasuke and Naruto. She never wanted your help, she made that clear enough!"

Lee looked wounded.

"Neji, I think you should stop-" Tenten said, but Lee interrupted her.

"Being a teammate with someone isn't everything! You and Tenten are my teammates, but I also consider you my friends! If anything happened to you, I'd save you because you're my friends and I care about you! Not because of the team, though that does play a part in it!"

"Well, this is an exam," Neji said coldly, "And other than Tenten and I, everyone else is an enemy, not a friend. They are competition, competition that you should eradicate, not help! Things like friendship don't matter, not when you want to advance and become a stronger shinobi!"

It came out wrong – Neji hadn't quite meant it that way. He saw Tenten narrow her eyes, wincing slightly at his words. But really, Neji didn't have many people he could call friends, and so he didn't understand why Lee was so passionate about the whole concept.

Lee glared at him, his fists clenched as well.

"Are you saying, that if they shuffled teams or something – and that if Tenten wasn't on your team anymore – and she was in danger – you still wouldn't rescue her?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Neji snapped.

"Yeah, and don't bring me into this," Tenten added, "You and Sakura have a totally different relationship from Neji and I!"

"No, tell me, Neji," Lee insisted resiliently, "If Tenten was in danger, would you risk your life, your promotion to Chuunin to save her? I'd ask about myself, but I already know the answer to that."

He sounded almost hurt towards the end, and Neji was slightly shocked.

"You're – digressing," Neji told him.

"Answer the question," Lee shot back.

Neji could feel Tenten's eyes boring into his back, waiting for an answer. He wondered himself, what he would do. The immediate answer was yes, he would save her. Tenten was his teammate, and someone he had grown to trust. But if saving her meant jeopardizing a mission or a promotion…

"Would you save her, Neji?" Lee pressed.

Neji didn't answer, grinding his teeth.

"You probably wouldn't – you're too selfish to care. You're too arrogant, all you care about is yourself! Even though Tenten would probably risk her life for you, and I would too, you'd never do the same for either of us-"

"I WOULD!" Neji roared, finally losing his patience. "I – would, alright! You're my teammates. Of course I would!"

Lee looked disappointed at this, and for some inexplicable reason even Tenten's face seemed to fall.

"That's what I'd expect from you," Lee muttered, shaking his head. "Teammates."

"But that's what we are! We're on the same team! We have been for a year, and we always will be!" Neji shouted, his palms now glowing with chakra, the veins around his eyes pulsing.

"You'll never get it," Lee said softly, "You're the one who'll fail as a shinobi."

"How dare you of all people-"

"Neji, just don't go there," Tenten snapped suddenly, her voice colder than usual. "Lee, now drop it, seriously. We've wasted enough time. Let's go."

She took to the trees without a word to either of them, though Neji recoiled slightly at the tone in which she said his name. If there was one thing Tenten never was, it was cold. She always spoke to him in a warm, friendly manner. Though he'd never really noticed or cared before, it struck him now.

"We need to find a team with the Earth scroll," he said, leaping forward to join her.

"If you say so," Tenten replied curtly, not meeting his eyes. Her tone was as cold as before.

Lee pulled up beside them as well, staring resolutely ahead.

"Tenten, when do you think we should rest?" he asked, directing his question specifically towards her.

"Lee, are you tired?" she asked, and Neji noted the concern in her voice.

He wondered why the hell Tenten wasn't being short with Lee. It was all Lee's fault, after all.

"I – guess I overdid it earlier," Lee admitted, sounding apologetic, "Sorry."

"It's – alright," Tenten told him gently, "Just don't do that again. I – don't think we're going to get much done tonight like this. Let's just rest."

"Thank you, Tenten," Lee said.

Neji was too preoccupied, and frustrated to argue. And she did have a point – thanks to Lee, their team dynamic was really messed up, and it was better they didn't fight anyone. They settled down on a large tree branch, after Neji scanned it with his Byakugan. It was thick enough for all three of them.

"I'll take first watch," Tenten offered, sitting with her back against the trunk, pulling her knees up to her chest.

"Thanks," Lee said gratefully, "Good night."

He settled himself on a branch next to hers, curling up into a small ball.

Neji sighed to himself, feeling rather unsure what to do. Normally, he'd never feel awkward with just Tenten. But right now, he got the feeling that she was upset with him, and he had no idea why. It infuriated him, but there was no way in hell he was asking her about it. It was below his dignity to do such things.

"You can go to sleep," Tenten said flatly, her voice interrupting his thoughts, "I said I'd take the first watch."

To hell with it, Neji decided finally. He'd never argued with Tenten before. Though they weren't exactly arguing right now, her attitude was unsettling. Usually, he would have blamed her for this; she was a female after all, and hence most likely to be over-sensitive. But it was Tenten, and even Neji knew she wasn't like that.

"I'm not tired," he finally said, sitting next to her on the tree branch, carefully maintaining a foot between them.

"Okay," was all she said, turning her head upwards as she stared at the stars, barely visible beneath the thick canopy of leaves.

"Tenten," Neji spoke finally, his white eyes boring into her.

"Yes?" she asked, turning to look at him.

"You seem upset with me. What is the matter?" he asked bluntly.

Tenten raised an eyebrow, hugging her knees.

"I'm surprised you realized."

"Tenten, don't play games with me," Neji said sharply, "Just – tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing," Tenten said, "It's really nothing."

"Tell me, Tenten," he pressed, gazing into her eyes.

Tenten bit her lip, fidgeting with her fingers.

"You wouldn't understand," she said finally.

"Why would that be?" Neji asked, glaring at her.

"Leave it Neji, it's nothing to do with you," Tenten lied, and Neji narrowed his eyes.

"Don't lie to me, Tenten."

"Just forget about it, Neji. It's fine. Thanks for your concern, but I'd rather not talk about it. And no, I'm not upset with you."

She meant it this time. Tenten knew Neji – he wasn't the type to admit his feelings if he even felt any in his cold heart. But that he'd been concerned enough to ask her meant he actually cared about their relationship more than he liked to show. And for Tenten, that was enough.

"Tenten," he murmured, his white eyes silver under the moonlight that seeped through the canopy. His face was calm, opener than she'd ever seen it, and Tenten nearly felt compelled to tell him. But she didn't, smiling slightly.

"Don't worry Neji. I'm alright. Get some rest," she said, her voice gentler than before.

Neji noticed the change in tone, and though he still wanted to know what was bothering her earlier, her anger at him seemed to have abated, which was good enough.

"Wake me in three hours," he instructed her.

"Alright. Good night, Neji."

"…good night, Tenten."

– X –

It was dawn when all three members of Team Gai were fully awake. Lee had been the last to wake up – Tenten had to shake the snoozing boy for a full minute before he finally cracked his eyes open.

He bounded up, eyes wide.

"We still have to get a scroll!" he cried, "How much more time is there?"

"About two days," Tenten told him, pulling out fruits from her bag. She tossed one at Neij and Lee. "Catch!"

They quickly ate the fruit, turning to Neji, who had been silent. Neji usually was silent, but was even more quieter that day. He usually took a role similar to team leader on the squad – or at least he had during this stage of the exams. But after his previous altercation with Lee, he was feeling slightly unsure of himself. Were Tenten and Lee disappointed with him? Or angry? Tenten didn't seem to be, not after he spoke to her.

"So Neji, what's the plan for today?" Tenten asked, assuaging his doubts.

"We need a scroll," Neji said, hesitating slightly, "We're a good way inside the forest. I think we should go a bit further in. Then we'll be more likely to meet other teams."

"A sensible plan," Lee declared, and Neji felt slightly relieved. Lee never had been the type to hold a grudge, and though Neji tried to convince himself that Lee's opinion didn't matter, he didn't want tension with his teammate; that would just hinder their teamwork.

"We should go at once," Tenten said, and after they polished down the last morsels of their breakfast, the trio was off, darting through trees with a speed that would have made Gai proud.

They'd had a few unfortunate encounters with wild animals; a large snake, which Tenten immediately lacerated with a barrage of giant shuriken; a bunch of blood-sucking leeches which Neji had to bat away with his palms, feeling rather disgusted – Tenten had frozen, petrified with revulsion; and finally, a snarling giant tiger. They'd decided not to take their chances fighting this one – Lee had distracted it, and escaped with his super speed, and met Neji and Tenten a few minutes later.

"There's a reason why they call this place the forest of death!" Lee panted, after having outrun the tiger.

"Lee! You shouldn't have done that!" Tenten cried, still worried.

"But you and Neji wouldn't have been able to escape it, and only I was fast enough!" Lee protested, "And I would always save my frie – teammates!"

Neji's lips tightened at Lee's deliberate slip-up, but he didn't comment on it.

"Thank you, Lee," he said.

"Not a problem, my eternal rival!" Lee said, beaming at him. "Stop worrying Tenten, I'm alright!"

"You scared me, idiot!" she shrieked, mollified slightly when Lee suddenly wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tight.

Really, it was more of a mauling, but Tenten patted him on the back.

"I'm sorry, Tenten!" Lee said earnestly.

"Please be more careful, Lee," she told him, and Neji felt a sudden unpleasant lurching feeling in his stomach.

Neji didn't know why, but the sight of Tenten and Lee hugging unnerved him. It was probably because physical affection, in any form, unnerved him. He preferred avoiding it altogether, and Neji decided that was the reason why his teammates hugging him bothered him as well.

"I sense enemies," he said suddenly.

Tenten and Lee pulled away at once, not looking even the slightest bit embarrassed.

"C'mon," Neji muttered, and they were on the move again.

Thirty minutes later, they were deeper into the woods. They also stumbled across a team of three from the Cloud.

Neji had stiffened when they'd recognized the symbols on the forehead protectors. Tenten had looked at him curiously, but wisely kept her mouth shut. Neji was usually a pretty private about his personal affairs, but judging by his stony expression, Tenten suspected that he harbored some sort of a grudge against the Cloud as well. He seemed to dislike his cousin Hinata, and his uncle as well, but Tenten never understood why. He'd told her some of his background – some clan-related stuff about the Branch House and the Main House, and their rigid rules and customs. Not too many details, but from his tone, Tenten had guessed that there was some estrangement between the houses; however, after sensing Neji's antagonism towards his clan, she suspected it was worse, that there was another reason for Neji's hatred of the Main House and his cousin Hinata. He'd never told her, and she'd known better than to ask. She and Neji weren't close enough for her to pry into his private affairs; she'd actually been surprised that he'd revealed even that much, even though he'd told her in a completely matter-of-fact way.

"Do they have the Earth scroll?" she asked Neji, who nodded, an almost sadistic smirk crossing his face.

He walked up to the three Cloud shinobi. They were all male, looking perhaps a year older than Team Gai. They seemed sturdy, well-built, and sneered as Neji approached them. The burliest one, who seemed like their leader walked out.

"Are you sure you kids want to challenge us?" he asked patronizingly.

"You have the scroll we want," Neji replied coolly, "So yes, we do."

The shinobi raised an eyebrow, looking slightly confused.

"How do you know that?" he asked.

"I have my ways," Neji said suavely.

"Oh, stop showing off," Tenten muttered, as she and Lee landed on either side of him. "Come on, let's get this over with…"

The shinobi peered at her for a moment, before grinning widely.

"You sure you want to endanger that poor little girly, there?

"I think she can handle herself just fine," Neji said, as Tenten scowled at him. This was the kind of chauvinistic freak she detested.

"I'll skewer him," she swore under her breath. "Just let me at him, the pig-"

Neji smirked, turning to her. "You can take him, Tenten," he offered, and she grinned.

"Great!"

Neji then turned to Lee.

"You take the tall one with blonde hair, I'll take the other."

"Yes!" Lee shouted, and the three of them fell into position, Neji's Byakugan activated as he spread his legs slightly, palms held out. Lee stood up straight, the back of one bandaged palm facing the trio, and Tenten crouched down in front of them both, scrolls in hand.

"What's all this?" the Cloud ninja asked mockingly, "Are you three trying to dance or something?"

He turned to his teammates, nodding.

"Let's crush 'em," he barked, and the three charged forwards, whipping out their kunai, and hurling them at the three.

Dodging them was easy for Team Gai, with their speed. Not to mention, after having trained with Tenten and her lethal aim, Neji and Lee found dodging the Cloud nin's kunai, which were relatively poorly aimed, quite simple.

The ninja seemed slightly surprised as the trio charged forwards, and they quickly formed hand seals.

Neji, Lee and Tenten were soon fusilladed by a flurry of water bombs and fire bullets, which they also managed to dodge by leaping up.

"Move!" Tenten shouted, unfurling her scroll, and Neji and Lee darted aside.

Tenten unleashed a barrage of weapons at the shinobi below, who shouted out, unable to dodge them all. Her aim was as precise as ever, and her speed even deadlier. Neji and Lee descended on their respective shinobi, and fought them hand-to-hand for a few minutes, as Tenten bought out her nunchaks, spinning them over her head.

Neji charged at his enemy, and a few palm thrusts later, the shinobi was on the ground, gasping for breath and choking out blood.

Lee and Tenten soon stopped their attacks as well. Tenten's target was lying on the ground, struggling between the chains that bound him, and Lee's was struggling for breath as he attempted to stand up, taking support of the tree he'd crashed against.

"Scroll?" Neji asked, and Lee flourished it proudly, tossing it to Neji, who pocketed it.

He nodded at Tenten and Lee, before the three of them sprung upwards without another word, headed in the direction of their final destination, the tower.

They covered a few more miles, until they were intercepted by a group of Rock ninja.

"Tenten, we need a diversion," Neji called, and Tenten nodded. They weren't going to risk fighting, not when they already had their scrolls, and were so close to their destination.

She pulled out a handful of smoke bombs, before looking meaningfully at Neji.

He understood; though his Byakugan would help him see, Lee and Tenten would require assistance. Neji formed two thick chakra threads in his hands, whipping them in Lee and Tenten's directions, so they curled around their wrists.

The moment the chakra touched her skin, Tenten immediately let loose her smoke bombs. There was a boom, and then a thick layer of smoke filled the area, obfuscating Team Gai from the shinobi's sight. Only Neji could see through the smoke, and he leapt upwards, shouting out to Lee and Tenten. They followed him, guided by the blazing chakra. Though they could not see, the muscle movements of leaping through branches were already ingrained in them, and they trusted Neji's guidance. Soon, the trio was out of the smoke, and away from the enemy.

The tower was in sight. But unfortunately, so were two more groups of shinobi, who had obviously been waiting at the spot so that they could pounce on incoming teams.

"Almost there!" Lee panted, as Neji's chakra threads dissipated. They made one last dash for the tower, pumping chakra to their legs to increase their speed.

The shinobi charged after them, and for once, Neji found himself thanking Gai for the intense physical training he'd put them through. Though Lee could have escaped the shinobi easily, he was obviously slowing down so that Neji and Tenten could keep up with him. But even Neji and Tenten, though not as inhumanly fast as Lee, were extremely fast, and managed to outrun the shinobi. After all, three hundred meters isn't much of a distance, when you've been doing one hundred laps around the village on a daily basis – for months.

They finally crossed the threshold, making it inside. Neji and Tenten both had to stop then, panting for breath. Lee, on the other hand, though sweaty, seemed warmed up.

They'd completed the second test – in just about two days, which was a day less that the stipulated time.

"What now?" Tenten asked, rummaging at her belt for the scroll.

"We open the scrolls," Neji said, pulling out his own.

"On the count of three!" Lee said excitedly, wedging himself between Neji and Tenten so he could look at the scrolls. Neji stepped away as subtly as he could.

"One! Two! THREE!" Lee shouted enthusiastically, and Neji and Tenten unfurled their scrolls.

There was a sudden poof, and with a cloud of smoke, a familiar figure appeared.

God no, Neji thought, taking in the beaming form of Maito Gai.

"MY YOUTHFUL STUDENTS!" Gai boomed, tears streaming down his eyes, "YOU HAVE PASSED THE SECOND TEST – ONE DAY EARLY AT THAT!"

Before Neji could react, Gai had pulled him, Tenten and Lee towards him in a crushing embrace. Thankfully, he released them soon after. Lee looked thrilled, tears gushing down his own cheeks, and Tenten was flushing. Neji shot Gai a glare for this infringement of his personal space, but Gai didn't seem to mind, and was gasconading on proudly.

"YOU THREE WERE BRILLIANT, YOUR TEAMWORK WAS IMPECCABLE! I AM PROUD, SO PROUD! I KNEW YOUR SPEED WOULD HELP YOU, YOU WERE THE FIRST KONOHA TEAM TO FINISH – OBVIOUSLY, SINCE YOU HAVE TRAINED MORE AND HARDER! I CANNOT WAIT TO TELL KAKASHI! HIS BRATS ARE STILL FAR BEHIND!"

Neji felt rather proud at that part – so they'd beaten the Uchiha, as well as his cousin. Of course, that was bound to happen. They were faster, much more skilled. It was fated, really.

"Well," Gai said cheerfully, "Since you three finished so early, you have one day to rest and relax! The third part of the exam will begin tomorrow afternoon! I'll meet you three at the training grounds at noon!"

"Well, that's good," Tenten said, "I'm exhausted, and I really need a bath! It's great we passed, guys… I guess I'll see you tomorrow…"

She turned to leave, and Neji made to follow. He wanted to show his face to Hiashi solely for the purpose of delivering the news that his team had finished the second task, whereas Hinata's had not, and probably would not even come close. He also needed a bath, and some sleep.

"Oh no!" Gai shouted, his eyes glinting, "You can do all that later – first, and more importantly, in celebration of the fact that you have done so well so far – I'm treating you three to lunch, right now!"

Neji heard Tenten sigh beside him, and even he felt rather exasperated. They were tired and dirty – and a team lunch was really not what Neji wanted at that time. And how could they just walk into a restaurant, looking as grimy and tattered as they did then? But Gai insisted, and soon, Neji found himself sitting on a slick booth, next to Tenten, munching on his noodles, as Lee exuberantly narrated the previous events to Gai across the table.

Neji and Tenten stayed more or less silent through the meal. Lee was talking too much for them to get in a word either way, and they were tired and hungry, not possessing the endless energy that Lee seemed to.

"I am proud, I really am!" Gai boomed, placing down his cup of sake. The moment he had, Lee leaned over, his bandaged hands inching closer to the cup.

"LEE!" Neji and Tenten yelled simultaneously, Tenten reaching over and grabbing the boy's wrist.

"Yes?" he asked innocently, eyes wide.

"Don't even think about it," Tenten warned.

"Why do you order sake when he's around?" Neji asked, scowling at Gai. "Haven't you learned from the first time?"

He was reminded of that unhappy incident a few months ago when Lee had accidentally drunk Gai's sake. The boy then proceeded to go on a destructive rampage. Tenten and Neji had been shocked, as Gai attempted to pin him down, but Lee was like a mini-tornado of youth and flailing limbs.

"He's a natural disaster!" Tenten had shouted, watching Gai and Lee tumble over a table, Lee's errant leg smashing it to smithereens. "Neji, do something!"

"...this is embarrassing. Let's just leave," Neji had muttered, watching Lee smash a lamp.

"I agree – but we can't just leave them here!"

"NEJI!" Gai had called desperately, "HELP!"

Neji looked at Tenten, as yet another table came crashing down. Lee was now bouncing off the walls – literally.

"I can't," she'd said, shaking her head, "My weapons and wires would hurt him, and you know I'm not as strong as you are. You have to Neji! He'll bring this entire place down!"

Neji had made a face, but finally joined, darting after Lee as he smashed a window, sparkling shards of glass flying everywhere. After much strenuous effort, he and Gai finally managed to control the shrieking, recalcitrant disaster that to Neji's misfortune, was a teammate.

Neji and Tenten both winced, remembering the mortifying occasion. Gai snatched his sake away from Lee's grasping fingers.

"No, Lee. Control," he said sternly, drowning down the contents in one sip.

Lee shot him a woebegone look, but shrugged, and chugged down Tenten's drink instead.

"Hey!" Tenten protested, but Lee paid her no heed. Neji tightened his fingers around his drink, though he knew Lee probably wouldn't dare pulling the same stunt on him.

"Lee! That was mine!" Tenten exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, Tenten, but I was really very thirsty," Lee told her, eyes wide.

"Ugh – it's fine, just don't do it again! Idiot…. Gai-sensei, could you order me another, please?"

"Of course, dear flower!"

"You're too soft on him," Neji told her harshly, "Even in the Forest of Death. You're always babying him around."

"I'm not! And if I am sometimes – well, how does that bother you?" Tenten snapped.

"It doesn't – it would just hamper his growth. He only has the maturity of a toddler, as is, Tenten."

"Well you're too harsh on him," Tenten retorted, "And I know he means well. He always has, Neji, he's just – immature."

"Hn."

Neji retreated to his own thoughts after that. Tenten's sometimes 'soft' behavior with Lee did bother him. He couldn't tell why, but it just did. She was never like that with him. Tenten was always nice to him, and even Neji could tell she admired him more than she did Lee. But some how, she seemed more – comfortable with Lee. And considering the fact that Neji found himself most comfortable with Tenten, this bothered him. He'd have to remedy that, sooner or later.

The rest of the lunch finished rather uneventfully (which was actually something to be thankful for, with Lee around, Neji thought), and Neji headed home. He and Tenten both left the restaurant before Lee and Gai did, walking together part of the way, without much conversation.

"Bye, Neji," she told him, when they reached the end of the marketplace, where they would part ways.

"Goodbye, Tenten," he replied pleasantly, and she shot him a smile, before turning around and leaping up, taking to the rooftops.

Neji did the same a few moments later, heading in the opposite direction. He reached the Hyuuga compound about three minutes later, and was happy to find that Hinata had not yet come back, which meant she was still struggling in the Forest of Death.

Unlike avoiding Hiashi as he normally did, Neji purposely exited his room when he sensed Hiashi coming, so he could bump into him.

"Neji? I take the second part of your exam is over?" Hiashi inquired.

Neji nodded, feeling rather smug.

"I didn't expect you to be back so soon. I believe there is still one more day until the second part concludes."

"Yes, Hiashi-sama," Neji said respectfully, fighting to keep the smirk off his face, "Has Hinata's team returned yet?"

Hiashi's face hardened.

"No. Not yet."

"Oh – I thought they may have," Neji lied, before bowing slightly, "The final stage of the exams starts tomorrow. I shall be resting now."

Neji turned to leave, but Hiashi stopped him.

"Neji."

"…yes, Hiashi-sama?" Neji asked dully. He didn't enjoy conversing with his uncle, not more than necessary.

"You have done well. Fitting for a Hyuuga," Hiashi said.

Neji was silent, not quite knowing how to say. Was Hiashi complimenting him? It seemed to hard to digest. He stared at Hiashi, who opened his mouth, as if to say more, but then decided against it.

"Thank you uncle," Neji finally said, before retreating back to his room.

If I do so well, uncle, he thought bitterly, why must Hinata always take preference over me? Why must I be ostracized and cursed like this?

Neji pulled off his forehead protector, allowing his dark locks to frame his face. He reached up, running his fingers over the green mark, engraved permanently onto his forehead, the muscles in his jaw tightening.

Why was my father cursed, in the same way I was? Why did he have to die – for cowards like you?

– X –

Team Gai arrived to the venue of the third part of the exams, just as the teams who passed began trickling in. Other than the team from the Sand, most of them seemed pretty weary and careworn – they'd probably just recently finished the exam, Neji realized. He spotted the Nara's team, as well as his cousin's, and he felt a sudden wave of disgust. How had such pathetic weaklings as them managed to pass? Hinata's team probably had stumbled upon some good luck; there was no other explicable way that a team comprising of her, that dog-lover and the Aburame pest would ever pass. Kakashi's team trudged through a few moments later, the last team to enter. They looked exhausted, and Neji smirked slightly. Tenten, Lee and himself would have an edge, for they were better rested. That would come in handy, especially if he got to fight someone like Sasuke Uchiha. Neji quite wanted to fight him – he was sure his Byakugan would prevail over that rookie newbie and his accursed Sharingan.

Behind him, Lee was in his own world, looking scarily determined about something, and Tenten was scanning the other teams that had passed.

Then, the Hokage began to speak. Neji listened, with growing excitement – finally, they would have some single combat! That's what he'd been looking forward to – individual fighting, where he only had to depend on himself, and his abilities, without worrying about Tenten or Lee. Of course, he wanted them to do well; it would be good for the team if the three of them passed together, and despite his desire to outstrip Lee, Neji wanted even him to pass. After all, despite what a ranking may say, Neji knew he would always be superior to someone who couldn't even do ninjutsu. It was just fated to be that way.

The Hokage said something about friendship, which Neji ignored almost completely, and something about political alliances, which he already knew about. He was getting rather impatient to fight, though he hid this well under his calm, steely exterior.

Then, he passed on to Hayate, the proctor for the final round. Hayate said something about preliminary rounds before the actual final.

"Great, so we have one more 'test' before the finals?" Tenten grumbled, though Lee looked rather pumped up. Neji didn't mind that much; he considered it a mild inconvenience for him, but better for the rest of them. At least this way, frail creatures like Hinata and that Sakura girl Lee was infatuated with, would be knocked out before the actual Third Test. It made sense.

The rest of the genin didn't seem to have such an optimistic outlook. The Nara boy looked particularly irritated, and groaned out his discontent. Even Sakura seemed worried, and Hinata's dog-loving friend seemed downright shocked when Hayate announced the prelims would begin immediately.

Of course, Neji thought, smirking, they are all still weary from the previous test.

One of the shinobi, a grey-haired man named Kabuto, opted to quit, which seemed to annoy the loudmouth, who began ranting something on Neji's left. Neji would his voice excruciatingly annoying; his screeching was almost as bad as Gai's booming, and that was saying a lot.

After a final melodramatic moment between Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura, which Neji also proceeded to ignore, though Lee began whimpering like an injured puppy when Sasuke grabbed Sakura's hand, the prelims finally started.

The first match was between Sasuke and another Leaf ninja, and Neji, Lee and Tenten joined the other teams on the balcony. Neji watched the matched intently, trying to gauge Sasuke's abilities.

Initially, Neji wasn't impressed at all. Sasuke wasn't using his Sharingan, that much was obvious, though Neji couldn't tell why. Personally, he always relied on his dojutsu in battle. Perhaps it hadn't matured? Neji sneered inwardly at the thought. That Uchiha really was pathetic. He was getting beaten to the ground by a second-rate shinobi of no proper clan. No Hyuuga (except perhaps Hinata) would suffer such humiliation.

"What's with him?" Tenten asked, "He isn't that good. He must be overrated."

"That he is," Neji agreed immediately, though Lee furrowed his brows, looking confused.

"I've fought him – he's not as bad as this… I think he's hiding something…" Lee murmured.

"Whaddya mean you fought him? When?" Tenten asked, losing interest in the fight and turning on Lee.

Lee stuttered out an explanation, and Neji continued to watch the match. The two ninja were now wrestling on the floor, and with his Byakugan activated, Neji realized the other ninja was sucking out Sasuke's chakra.

An interesting ability, Neji thought.

Sasuke was struggling on the floor, as the ninja clutched his head. He finally managed to break free, but Neji could tell he was greatly weakened. Suddenly, the annoying loudmouth, his blonde teammate shouted out something, and Sasuke was back on his feet. He pushed off the ground with his hand, his leg shooting upwards in a rather familiar position.

Tenten and Lee both gasped beside him.

"Lee, that's your-" Tenten began, and Lee gave a pained cry.

"That's my – leaf shadow dance – and lion – combo…" Lee trailed off, awed, as Sasuke executed his moves on the leaf ninja.

So that's the power of the Sharingan, Neji realized, he can just copy any move he wants to, and reproduce it almost perfectly!

Unlike Lee, however, after Sasuke completed his emulated technique, he was flat on the floor, drained of energy; Lee would usually be dancing an ebullient victory dance at this time.

So he does have his limits, Neji thought, Even though he can copy Lee's moves, he can't just get the same amount of stamina as him.

Lee looked absolutely stunned, as he stared at Sasuke, frowning slightly. Neji could tell even Gai was astonished, though he didn't show it. Tenten was looking from Sasuke to Neji himself, a curious expression on her face.

"What?" he asked her, and she shrugged.

"Just wondering… if you were to fight him, who would win… last year's Number One Rookie against this year's!"

"I would, obviously," Neji snarled at her, annoyed at her lack of trust.

Tenten smiled at him, almost indulgently, and it angered him.

"Of course," she said, before turning back to the next battle, as Neji seethed beside her.

"At least I use my own techniques, not ones copied off of others," he hissed, and Lee nodded vehemently to this.

"Absolutely right, I agree with Neji," he muttered, obviously piqued that Sasuke had copied his technique, and without relatively any effort. "I put in weeks completing that move!"

"Well – hey, the next match is starting!" Tenten said quickly, changing the subject.

Neither Neji nor Lee were too interested, and they fumed and sulked respectively, as Shino Aburame attacked his opponent, a Sound ninja, with a mass of buzzing bugs.

"Ew," Tenten muttered, averting her eyes after a few moments of battle. Neji was slightly impressed by Hinata's teammate (he was probably the reason Hinata managed to pass) though he really didn't like his techniques. They were far too – gross – for a refined Hyuuga at least.

He scanned Shino's body with his Byakugan to check the extent of his technique, feeling slightly shocked at what he saw.

"What is it, Neji?" Lee asked.

"What a guy," Neji said, shaking his head, "I can understand summoning bugs… but bugs are living through his body!"

Hinata's really got trashy teammates, Neji thought, A bug-lover and a mutt.

The next match was between a puppet-user and another Leaf shinobi. The puppet user was from the Sand, and he won in the end. The one following was between two Leaf rookies – two females – Sakura, and the Yamanaka girl, Ino.

They didn't fight immediately, yelling at each other, in what Neji considered a ridiculously emotional and unnecessary display.

"This is going to be pathetic," he scoffed contemptuously, and Tenten glared at him.

"Just because they're girls doesn't mean they can't fight," she snapped.

"Look at them, Tenten. Are you telling me to take that seriously?" he shot back.

Sakura and Ino were now throwing punches at each other, creating a rudimentary clone or two and adding a few shuriken to the midst. Neji subconsciously compared them to Tenten – she was much faster, and her weapons were far better aimed and faster. She also had more complex jutsu in her arsenal than this; it was basic, elementary academy stuff.

"Sakura's movements are beautiful!" Lee was raving, "But here opponent is skilled as well!"

Neji snorted, and Tenten glared at him again.

"It's not because they're girls, Tenten," he placated her, not losing his derisive tone, "But even you know that you're far better than that."

This seemed to appease her, and she smiled, coloring slightly, before turning back to the battle. The match dragged on for nearly ten more minutes, and Neji was getting bored. Neither girl was doing anything extraordinary, and it was getting redundant. Finally, the blonde Yamanaka snapped, and cut off her long hair. Personally, Neji wondered why she would do such a thing – he certainly never would. She then proceeded to trap Sakura, and use her mind-transfer jutsu.

"So that's the Yamanaka clan's famous technique," Tenten observed, "Pretty useful, I suppose…"

"Only if the opponent is stationary," Neji said, "Which is why she trapped her with the hair, I assume. Not a bad move, but I hope they end this fast."

"Sakura… no!" Lee cried.

It finally ended in a double knock-out, a rather disappointing conclusion to what Neji considered a long and uneventful match. Lee was gushing about how 'youthfully wonderful' Sakura had been. Neji, on the other hand, was more occupied with the words that flashed across the screen.

'Temari vs Tenten' it said.

Temari was the blonde girl from the sand – the one carrying a giant fan. Which probably meant she used wind jutsus…

Neji's stomach plummeted. It was over before it had even started.

No. Not her. Anyone but her, for Tenten, Neji thought, panicking slightly.

He looked over at his teammate. Tenten had a determined glint in her brown eyes. She met his eyes, looking at him expectantly.

Neji pressed his lips together, wondering what to say. He probably should wish her luck – but why give her false hopes when she was fated to lose? It would just crush her more in the end.

He nodded at her, before turning away, not before seeing the disappointment in her eyes, mingled with slight hurt.

Neji had faith in Tenten's abilities. It's not like he didn't. But she used weapons, and if this Temari used wind, as her fan suggested, she was Tenten's worst possible match-up. Tenten wasn't at a disadvantage because Temari was older or more skilled. She was disadvantaged because their jutsus were so horribly matched, that Temari's had an obvious edge. Tenten's weapons would probably never reach her, not with that monstrous fan, Neji realized with a sinking feeling.

But Neji couldn't tell her this. He couldn't tell her to just give up, when she was fated to lose this match. It seemed unfair after she had worked so hard, and was obviously the most skilled of the Konoha kunoichi. But it was destined, and hence Neji couldn't bring himself to wish her luck. That would be futile, and he didn't want to disillusion her.

Lee and Gai, on the other hand, were cheering enthusiastically.

"FIGHT WITH THE FULL POWER OF YOUTH!" Gai boomed.

"COME ON TENTEN!" Lee shouted, "SEND THAT GIRL BACK TO HER VILLAGE!"

Idiots, Neji thought, giving her false hope like that! It'll only make it worse for her when she fails to live up to their expectations!

They looked at Neji expectantly, who bit his lip, before commenting.

"The second member of the Sand team… this should be interesting," he said flatly, though he knew it wouldn't. It was obvious what would happen.

His suspicions were soon correct, and Neji watched the battle feeling worse and worse, as Tenten's weapons were deflected by the enormous fan of the cocky Sand kunoichi. Tenten had seemed shocked at first – she'd never missed. Neji remembered their practices, where he'd sit meditating under her targets, and she'd fire weapon after weapon above her head, all of them hitting the mark perfectly.

She had 100% accuracy. It had been like that for months. Tenten never missed, and yet here, all of her weapons were missing. It must have been terrible for her, and Neji wondered why he was feeling so uncomfortable as well. There was an odd sinking feeling in his stomach, as he watched Tenten bring out her final weapons – her twin scrolls.

"She's using it – now?" Gai wondered.

Don't Tenten, Neji thought, there is no point. Don't waste Twin Rising Dragons unnecessarily.

He watched every movement as she leapt into the sky, spinning around gracefully, flipping over, directing her weapons with her hands, and then strings. It was a brilliant performance, and it angered Neji that all her talent had to go waste just because she'd been paired up with someone like Temari. Neji was sure she could have beaten a few of the others, like the man Sasuke Uchiha had been pitted against, for example.

It shouldn't have bothered him, since it was an individual event, but it did; probably because she was on his team, and Neji wanted her to progress. Tenten's progress would reflect not only on Gai's tutelage, but even him and Lee, for they were teammates.

But still, when he heard her cries as Temari's cyclone cut her skin, his stomach clenched unpleasantly, and he clenched his fists.

You should have forfeited, and saved yourself the pain, he thought. But the Tenten he knew would never forfeit. She was like Lee, that way. Optimistic to the point of foolishness.

And when she came crashing downwards, and Temari speared her limp figure on her metal fan, Neji shook his head sadly.

"It was fated," he muttered.

Tenten would take this hard on herself, he knew. She'd be embarrassed, disappointed, ashamed even; not for long, but at least initially.

There's nothing to be ashamed of, Tenten, he thought, it was going to happen.

Neji averted his eyes from Tenten's battered form, and he was so deep in his own musings that he didn't realize Temari suddenly swing her fan, sending Tenten's unconscious form flying towards the scattered weapons that lay below, their jagged points pointed upwards.

It was only when Lee gave a cry, and leapt off the balcony, did Neji notice. His head snapped up, and his heart nearly stopped as he saw Tenten's falling form. It was too late – he wasn't fast enough to save her, there was no way he could. But then, there was a blur of green, and Lee caught her in his arms.

And Neji heaved a sigh of relief, feeling extremely grateful to Lee for saving their teammate. A part of him also felt annoyed at himself.

I should have saved her, he thought, I should have got to her before Lee did.

Below, Lee was now yelling at Temari, who had vituperated Tenten. Neji hadn't caught her exact words, but Lee seemed pretty mad. Suddenly, he placed Tenten, who he'd been holding in his arms on the floor, and dashed at Temari, his stance familiar. He was about to attempt his Leaf Spinning Wind attack.

"Stop Lee!" Neji yelled. Tenten was safe, and if Lee injured Temari, he could risk disqualification. There was no need for yet another member of Team Gai to fail, not when Lee possibly stood a better chance than Tenten had when she was paired with Temari.

Lee paid him no heed though – Temari must have said something really vicious about Tenten to make him lose his temper like that – and continued to attack her. She intercepted with her fan though, and Lee would have attacked again, if Gai had chosen that moment to leap down and stop him.

Neji heaved a sigh of relief, that odd sinking feeling still in his chest, as he looked at Tenten's battered form. Lee was still furious; he was shaking noticeably.

That Sand kunoichi… Neji thought furiously, aversion towards the brash girl welling up within him. The Sand shinobi haven't lost a match yet. They've been left unscathed…

The Nara's match was next, but Neji didn't pay much attention, watching the medics hoist Tenten's form onto a stretcher. He raked over her form with his Byakugan, trying to infer the extent of the damage.

"She'll be alright," a voice at his shoulder said.

Neji turned around. Lee was standing next to him again, fists clenched.

"She's got a few cuts and fractures, but they'll heal her pretty quickly. It's nothing lasting," Lee mumbled, and Neji nodded mutely, at a loss for words.

He and Lee stared ahead at the match below, but Neji knew neither of them were really paying attention. The match was pretty boring initially, but it soon picked up pace as Shikamaru Nara executed a pretty intelligent move with his Shadow Copy Jutsu, catching their attention. Soon, he clinched himself a victory against the female Sound nin.

Not bad… Neji thought, impressed. It was a simple jutsu, but he utilized his surroundings well. This year's rookies aren't so bad after all, he thought, eyes flicking from the Nara to Sasuke. It should be interesting fighting them.

Lee seemed rather pumped up.

"I'm going to be next," he whispered, as the letters flickered on the screen. "I can feel it!"

Unfortunately for Lee, it was Naruto who was up against Kiba.

Lee made a ludicrous face, shoulders slumping. Neji could kind of understand his impatience. After Tenten's loss, even he was itching to fight someone, preferably from the Sound.

Naruto turned out to be the loudmouthed blonde kid, and Kiba was Hinata's teammate. In Neji's opinion, neither of them really deserved to progress. If only Tenten had been against Kiba instead… or better, against Hinata…

In the meanwhile, Naruto was being pummeled by Kiba, and his puppy. Neji watched him carefully, slightly surprised by his chakra – it almost seemed like he had two chakras – but that was impossible…

"OHHH!" Lee suddenly shouted, and there were yells of "Go Naruto!" from some of the genin. It was a sudden change from seconds ago when they'd all been disparaging him.

Kiba released a smoke bomb, and when it cleared, the puppy was biting Kiba, his teeth clamped around his arm. Kiba seemed shocked, but then with a puff of smoke, the puppy turned into Naruto, and another Naruto reappeared holding the real puppy.

He combined a transformation jutsu with a shadow clone, Neji realized, that's pretty smart, and he has good timing.

Suddenly, the Naruto biting Kiba jumped off, making a face.

"You stink of dog!" he hollered, and even Neji was amused by his antics.

He bites someone and then gets pissed… what a funny guy…

The battle raged on, and Kiba and his dog transformed, attacking Naruto with a rather shocking form of taijutsu, in which they spun along like a giant cyclone, with a yell of 'Piercing Fang'. Neji had to admit, it was an impressive technique; Hinata hadn't placed as badly as he thought she had. Naruto however, retaliated impressively. Neji cracked a smile at the kid's determination – he just didn't give up.

He was shocked though, when Naruto gained an upper hand with – well, in Neji's opinion it was a disgraceful method – flatulence. He followed this up with a clone barrage, similar to what Sasuke had copied off of Lee earlier, winning himself the match.

The arena was filled with cheers, and Neji, though slightly disgusted, had to admit the kid had good tactics, and some creative tricks up his sleeve.

"OHHHH!" Lee shouted again, and Neji couldn't quite tell if he was happy or frustrated.

"Why're they all copying MY techniques!" he moaned finally, and Neji shook his head, crossing his arms.

"The Lion's Combo was mine, and that Sasuke copied it and now Naruto! Gai-sensei, this is injustice!"

"Lee," Gai scolded, "You should be honored that two of Kakashi's students chose to emulate you so that they could gain victory. Remember, mimicry is the best form of flattery!"

"Oh Gai sensei – when you put it like that, I think you are correct!"

"Of course I am, Lee!"

"Oh, Gai sensei!"

Neji turned away, feeling slightly sick. This was about the moment when he and Tenten would look at each other in exasperation. Tenten wasn't there, though.

His eyes fell on Hinata instead. She was speaking to Naruto, blushing and fumbling as she offered him some medical cream.

You seem to be enjoying yourself, Hinata-sama, Neji thought sarcastically. I'd save that cream if I were you though… you'll be needing it.

There were only six people left, Neji realized. Himself, Lee, Hinata, the fat Akimichi kid, the redhead from the Sand and another Sound ninja. Neji hoped he wouldn't be against Lee; though they considered each other rivals, Neji wouldn't want Lee to be knocked out of the exam like Tenten had been. And in all honesty, he didn't want to fight Lee so soon in the preliminaries. Neji knew it wouldn't be easy, and he had to conserve his energy for the next round. He hoped he'd get Gaara – he seemed like a worthy opponent.

His eyes were set on the scoreboard, waiting for his fated match-up. He froze, as the letters stopped spinning, two names written across the board.

'Hinata Hyuuga vs Neji Hyuuga'

Initially he was furious – Hinata was an unworthy opponent! She was pathetic, she was frail, she was useless! But then he realized, with a growing thrill, that she was also from the Main House.

Memories flooded through Neji at that moment, when his white eyes locked onto her trembling form. Memories of his father writhing in pain, clutching at his forehead… memories of crying bitter tears over his father's dead body… he had suffered, suffered so much because of the Main House, because of her.

Neji touched his forehead, a cruel smile shaping his lips. He was supposed to protect Hinata. He was never supposed to fight her. That was his destiny.

Looks like now, he just wouldn't have a choice. And in all honesty, Neji was glad. There was no way he'd ever waste his time or chakra protecting her.

Time for revenge…

Neji was jolted out of his thoughts by a hand on his shoulder. It was Gai, and he was surveying him with a grim expression.

"What?" Neji asked insolently, crossing his arms.

"Neji," Gai said calmly, "I know there is a rift in your clan between the Main House and the Branch House-"

"How the hell do you know?" Neji demanded furiously.

"Your clan's affairs aren't as secret as you think they are, Neji. And Lee overheard you telling Tenten, and he felt best to inform me."

Neji gritted his teeth – that had been none of their business! And he'd barely told Tenten anything! Only about how the House system functioned, and that there was an estrangement.

"Lee didn't hear much, and I suppose you didn't reveal much, but Neji, your body language whenever Hinata or Hiashi are mentioned or presence makes it more than obvious you bear a grudge. I know of your clan's history with the Cloud, so I can understand where you are coming from-"

"Stay out of my business," Neji said coldly. "You understand nothing.'

"Neji," Gai said sternly, "Remember the shinobi rules? A shinobi's emotions should never come in the way of a mission. This is like that, Neji. Don't let your grudge against Hinata and the Main House come in the way of your fight."

"I couldn't care less for Hinata and the damned-"

"NEJI. I am serious. Promise me, you will not let your family affairs dictate this fight!"

Neji sighed, anger bubbling with him. Realizing he had no way out of this, he nodded.

"Fine. Now let me go."

"Promise me, Neji."

"… I promise, Gai-sensei. I will not let my – personal feelings get in the way of this fight," Neji said, though his voice was empty.

Gai let go of him, shaking his head, and Neji stormed past him towards the stairs.

Lee cautiously wished him good luck, but Neji ignored him, walking down the stairs, eyes fixed on his quivering cousin.

Pathetic.

"N-Neji-nii-san," Hinata addressed him softly, the fear evident in her eyes.

She has a reason to be afraid.

"Hinata-sama," Neji said with mock courtesy, "I never thought I'd be facing you here."

Hinata nodded, still shaking. Neji hadn't been very kind to her in the past, and they both knew that he bore no love for her or the Main House.

"I'd like to say something before we fight," Neji told her, his voice echoing in the silent arena. Hinata looked at him, nodding politely, the awkwardness thick in the air.

"You don't make a good shinobi," Neji said loudly, "Forfeit now."

Hinata gasped at this, and Neji ploughed on relentlessly.

"You are too kind. You wish for harmony and avoid conflict. You agree with others, never resisting."

Everything he said was true, and not even derogatory. But the tone of his voice made them sound like insults, and Hinata bit her lip, staring at the ground, as Neji continued, his tone getting harsher and harsher.

"You have no self confidence. I always feel your sense of inferiority," Neji continued, biting back the part about how he thought she was pathetic. As a Hyuuga, he was too well-bred to go that far and say such things in public. Though his words were cutting Hinata deeply, as he exposed her every fear.

He didn't care.

She should know. She should know when to give up. She's a disgrace to ninja.

"That's why I think you should stay a genin. But the Chuunin exam can only be taken in teams of three. You couldn't turn down your teammate's requests, and that's why you entered, and that is reality. Am I right?" he asked, raising a brow.

"N-no," Hinata stammered, "I – I just wanted – to do it myself – I wanted to change myself…"

Change yourself… if I could change myself, I'd never have this cursed mark on my forehead… my father would have changed that himself… how dare she just-

"Hinata-sama," Neji spat, his voice dripping with venom, "As I thought you are a spoiled brat of the Main House."

"H-huh?" Hinata squealed, obviously distressed. "N-no-"

"People cannot change themselves!" Neji said forcefully, "Losers are losers. Their personality and strength will not change!"

The same way a Branch House member will always be caged and sacrificed. If I cannot change that, there is no way in hell you can change anything about yourself!

"Because people cannot change," Neji continued acerbically, "Expressions like elite and loser are created…"

Expressions like Main House and Branch House…

Hinata's lip quivered, her white eyes wide.

"Looks, brains, ability, size, personality," Neji ploughed on, "All people judge and are judged based on these values. Based on these unchangeable factors, people discriminate and are discriminated against…"

Cursed seal, pain, sacrifice, death…

"And they suffer within their own means. Just like the fact that – I am from the Branch House and you are from the Main House cannot be changed!" Neji finished viciously, face contorted.

Neji didn't know what had overcome him – perhaps it was bitterness, or frustration, or just cold hatred, but he continued his monologue, weighed down by the grudges and his dark past, attempting to tear apart Hinata verbally.

It was working – the girl was shaking and stuttering, tears welling up in her white eyes, eyes almost identical to Neji's own.

He lost track of time, as he ranted on, until he was suddenly interrupted by Naruto.

"YOU CAN!" Naruto roared, and Neji's eyes flitted upwards.

"STOP DECIDING THINGS ABOUT PEOPLE! IDIOT! HINATA, KICK THAT BASTARD'S ASS!"

Neji scowled, eyes narrowing as Hinata suddenly stood up a little straighter, a determined look in her previously scared eyes.

God he's annoying – but her eyes have changed… she's actually going to be foolish enough to challenge me…

"So you won't forfeit," Neji muttered, "Then I'm not responsible for what happens to you…"

I did my duty as a good Branch House member, he thought sarcastically, I tried protecting you. But now, Hinata, you're going down.

"I – I no longer want to run away!" Hinata declared, the tremulous edge having disappeared from her voice. "Brother Neji – we fight!"

She slid into the traditional Hyuuga fighting stance, and Neji mimicked her actions.

The nerve of her! That – that – Neji was overcome by a way of inexplicable rage. Hinata had never personally wronged him – but his father – her father – the House – the seal – it was all to overwhelming. It's why Neji wanted her to forfeit in the first place.

He'd suppressed his emotions too long. There was no way he'd be able to hold back now, not when he was fighting her, Hinata, the reason for his father's death, the root cause of all of his suffering, even if she'd never meant to wrong him…

It was a flurry of palms after that – Neji lost control. There were bursts of chakra, palm thrusts, fingers pushing against chakra points, blocking chakra flow – Neji put his heart into the fight, forgetting that he was fighting an innocent girl, just a genin.

He was unleashing his fury against the Hyuuga clan, his fury at being incarcerated and caged, and Hinata was the victim of his wrath.

Hinata fought back at first, with renewed determination. But Neji had always been a genius, and she was no match for him. Soon, he'd blocked all her chakra points, disabling her chakra usage.

So this is the extent of the Main House's strength? Pathetic! They're murderers.

Hinata didn't stop there though. She continued, and Neji had reached his limit. He struck at her, hitting every part of her he could get with a forceful vengeance.

They killed my father. It's her fault. She killed my father.

Hinata gasped, coughing out blood.

She killed my father. She's worthless.

Neji struck her again, and again, and again, just one thought rushing through his mind.

The Main House killed my FATHER!

He rolled up her sleeve, showing her the extent of the damage. She gasped, shocked. One more shove, and she flew backwards, crashing to the floor.

"This is the difference between talent that you cannot change," Neji rambled on, mindlessly, drowning in his own ocean of bitterness.

Then they were fighting again, flying at each other with a flurry of palms and fists, Neji fueled by his rage, Hinata by Naruto's words of encouragement.

He lost track of how many times he knocked her down, and how many times she struggled back up, renewed hope in her eyes.

She's being stupid – she's being really stupid. I could easily kill her. She should forfeit now.

"Forfeit," Neji commanded her, but Hinata didn't listen, pushing herself up and staggered towards him.

"It's not over," Hinata mumbled.

"Acting tough is useless!" Neji snarled, "You can barely stand, I can see that! From the time of your birth the responsibility of the Hyuuga Main House has been forced upon you…"

And you didn't deserve it. I did. You didn't even want it. I did! Neither of us want to be in the position we are in right now… but we are, as that's our destiny. We can't change it.

Neji felt uncharacteristically sorry for her, for a moment. She hadn't asked for this either. He'd seen her suffer – Hiashi was harsh with her, and though she probably deserved it, Neji had seen her cry many times, though he'd never approached her.

"You have always hated yourself for your own weakness," Neji said, almost regretfully, though there was a note of finality in his voice. "And that is your destiny."

"There is no need to suffer anymore," he told her, "Let it go."

For your sake, as well as mine.

And then Hinata spoke, an odd look in her eyes.

"That's not true, Neji-nii-san," she began timidly, slowly gaining confidence. "I can see it. It's not me at all…"

Is she daring to contradict me, the little-

"The person lost and suffering within the destiny of the Main and Branch Houses is you."

Neji felt like a kunai had stabbed through his heart at her words, and he suddenly went rigid, Hinata's words echoing in his head, as he was inundated by more and more past memories of his family's tragedy.

I'm lost… I'm suffering… trapped… cursed… my father… they killed my father… Hinata was kidnapped…

He remembered seeing Hinata on her third birthday, as he clutched his father's hand. He remembered staring at the cold, dead eyes of his father, after the issue with the Cloud ninja.

It's Hinata's fault they killed her. The Hyuuga killed my father. She killed my father. HINATA KILLED MY FATHER! THAT IS WHY I AM LOST AND SUFFERING!

All coherent thought and logic had left Neji's mind. He stared at Hinata for a moment, the veins around his eyes throbbing, and then he charged at her, killer intent emanating from every step he took closer to her.

IT'S YOUR FAULT MY FATHER IS DEAD! THIS IS FOR MY FATHER!

Hayate was yelling at him, but the words slipped past Neji's ears, and he continued on. He was just inches from Hinata, who was staring at him, petrified. He'd make her pay.

And then suddenly, there were strong hands and arms around him, holding him back. Gai's arm was clamped around his neck, Kakashi and Kurenai holding his arms.

"Neji," Gai said warningly, his voice hard, "Give it a rest."

"Why do even the other Jounins jump in?" Neji demanded bitterly, struggling against them, his eyes flashing. It just wasn't fair.

"More special treatment for the Main Family?" he asked acidly.

"Neji you gave me a promise not to lose your head over this Main family stuff," Gai said, and his voice was disappointed.

Neji's stomach clenched again, and he grit his teeth, bowing his head down.

"Aaargh!"

Neji's head snapped up, as Hinata suddenly crumpled, falling to her knees, blood splurting out from her mouth.

Sakura and Naruto leapt down as well, running to Hinata's side.

She's weak. She'll always be weak, Neji thought condescendingly, meeting her eyes.

His eyes were hard, but to his shock, when she looked at him, hers weren't full of hatred, despite what he'd done. It almost seemed like she pitied him, and it infuriated Neji. He looked away, feeling even more disgusted than before.

Did I – go to far? Neji wondered, feeling the stirrings of guilt, as he stared at Hinata's defeated form.

Naruto chose that moment to give him a dirty look, and Neji lost his temper, yet again.

"Hey you!" he snapped, and Naruto looked at him, glowering.

"I'd like to tell you two things. Firstly, if you're a shinobi, cut out the pathetic cheering of others!" he barked.

Naruto cheering Hinata reminded him of Lee cheering Tenten. And that got on his nerves, though Neji couldn't tell why.

"And one more thing," he added, gesturing to Hinata, "In the end, a loser is always a loser. They cannot change that."

Naruto scowled at him.

"You wanna test me?" he growled.

Neji snorted, shaking his head, and suddenly, Naruto was charging at him.

Before Neji could react, however, there was a blur of green, and Lee had appeared in front of Naruto, arms outstretched, blocking him from Neji. When he spoke, his voice was oddly harsh, and his expression hard as well, not the usual warm, happy expression he had when he spoke to, or about his teammates.

"Naruto, I understand your feelings so much that it hurts. But the fighting should occur only in matches."

He turned to look up at Neji, dark eyes boring into his, and Neji didn't like the angry look in Lee's eyes. It was almost like Lee was angry – or disappointed – in him.

"Whether a loser can defeat an elite through the power of hard work," Lee said firmly, "That's something to look forward to in the main test. Though his opponent maybe me."

Lee glared at Neji with a startling intensity, and Neji frowned, scowling back. Lee had never spoken to him in such a tone, with such – disgust – lacing his voice. It had become personal, he realized. Lee was referring to his own rivalry with Neji.

He's a born failure, like Hinata, so of course he would empathize with her.

Hinata began hacking up blood again, and her sensei, Kurenai now turned to Neji, shooting him a deadly glare with her crimson eyes.

"If you have time to glare at me, then take care of her," Neji told her contemptuously, forgetting his Hyuuga manners. It seemed like everyone was siding Hinata, and it just wasn't fair.

It had always been like that. Hinata had always come first for everyone. Now even Gai and Lee – he didn't hold their opinion that highly, but they were his teacher and his teammate – even they had taken her side.

It just wasn't fair, and Neji couldn't stand it anymore. He turned to leave, but then Naruto shook a fist at him – a fist covered in Hinata's blood.

"I promise you," he bellowed, "YOU ARE GOING DOWN!"

Neji felt more eyes on him – hateful, blaming eyes.

He made an angry sound, and walked off as calmly as he could, ascending the stairs.

I wish Tenten was here, Neji thought, for the first time missing his female comrade. She'd always stuck loyally by his side. But then again, maybe it's better she didn't see that match…

Tenten had always defended kunoichi with a vehement passion – perhaps her opinion of him would have fallen, after seeing the way he treated Hinata? Neji didn't know, but was overcome by an urge to just leave, maybe go visit Tenten in the hospital – or why bother? He'd rather just go, sit alone somewhere and meditate. He didn't have a choice though, and he stayed on the balcony, ready to watch the last two matches.

Gai and Lee joined him a few moments later, but Neji looked away, refusing to meet their eyes. He'd had enough angry eyes directed towards him – even though it wasn't his fault. Neji didn't know why they couldn't understand that. Hinata had been fated to lose, just like he'd been fated to suffer. She'd been fated to experience the pain she did, and besides, it was nothing compared to the trauma he had to go through as a child, the trauma he carried with him even now.

Lee began to blather something asinine, and started dancing around as his match was announced next. He was against Gaara, the third Sand shinobi. Neji had mixed feelings about the match – though Lee's behavior earlier had angered him, he'd wanted Lee to win because they were teammates – and after Tenten's loss, it was the least they could do.

But as the match progressed, Neji realized it was almost as bad as watching Tenten's. Gaara was a genius. He stood in one place, using his sand as an ultimate defense, while Lee zipped around, working hard yet unable to land a blow on him. Gaara was unscathed. It was as unfair a match-up as Temari had been for Tenten.

Yet, like Tenten, Lee persevered despite the odds. It almost hurt, watching him. Neji was shocked when he cast off his weights; he and Tenten had known Lee wore weights, but they'd never known how heavy they were. His new speed was almost fearful.

Still, Gaara remained unharmed.

Like Tenten, Lee was forced to rely on his ultimate move – the Lotus. That failed as well, and Neji shook his head. Lee was fated to lose as well.

He then began something else, after permission from Gai.

"Neji this technique had been for defeating you," Lee had called, looking up at the stands, and Neji's white eyes had widened, "But I'll show it to you now!"

Defeating me? What technique is this?

Lee had opened his Celestial Gates, and Neji had been astonished to see his chakra pathways flare up, as his face turned red, and flames of chakra flooded from his system and licked his body, sizzling the air.

Even with his Byakugan, Neji couldn't spot Lee as he flashed from one place to another, finally managing to land a blow on Gaara, finally getting past the indomitable sand shield.

This is Lee, Neji wondered, awestruck, Since when did he get so – this is impossible!

"Fifth gate! Limit gate!" Lee screeched, "OPEN!"

More chakra poured out of his body, and it was too much for Neji to take in with his Byakugan. He'd never known Lee was that capable. Gai had obviously trained him extra, when he and Tenten weren't around.

"EXTREME LOTUS!" Lee screamed, and he executed his technique, too fast for Neji's eyes to follow his actions.

Gaara crashed to the ground at super-speed, and Neji's heart nearly stopped.

There was no way – despite all his talent, and all his training – there was no way he would have been able to defend himself against such speed, and such raw power.

The realization made him numb.

Lee struggled up from the ground, and just as it seemed like his victory was certain, a stream of sand jutted out, wrapping itself around Lee's damaged leg, crushing.

"AAAAARGH!" Lee cried out in agony, and there was a series of gasps and yells.

Neji leaned forward, grabbing the railing tightly, his knuckles whitening.

How? How could this happen?

And it was like Tenten's match all over again, except this time, and Gai had to step in, stopping the match, stopping Lee, who was attempting to fight even when he was on the verge of fainting… and then Lee's unconscious and shattered body was eased onto a stretcher. The genin rushed down, but Neji remained rooted to the spot, feeling almost paralyzed.

Lee had been brilliant. He had been a genius of hard work. But in the end, he had lost, because it had been fated.

Lee, you never realized it till the end… Neji thought, the heavens will not allow a pawn that can only seek victory at the cost of himself to advance…

They had failed, Neji realized, and he had passed.

But Tenten was in the hospital, and Lee was lying his bones broken and his muscles ripped – and he had nearly killed Hinata, and everyone was blaming him – Neji didn't quite know what to think at that moment.

So he fixed his usual arrogant mask onto his face, as he stood alone on the balcony, watching the second match, but not really paying attention.

Tenten... Lee…

Finally, the exams were over, and the Hokage called them down, congratulating them. He also informed them that they would have a month to prepare for the final round.

Neji didn't feel a sense of pride though, or accomplishment. After all he'd defeated someone far weaker than him, far below his caliber.

Hopefully, the finals would be better, he thought, as he stalked off, eyes directed straight ahead.

– X –

A/N – no that's not the end of part 2. There's still another installment to part 2 with the final round and the Sasuke Retrieval Arc. Sorry, it turned out much longer than I expected. I'm trying to keep it as similar to the manga, I'm even lifting out bits of dialogue from there to make it seem more canon. There will be romance though, I promise. There was some very subtle NeijTen in this one, it will get stronger as the story progresses. Right now I'm trying to focus mainly on their developing friendship. Next chapter should be up soon. I'm starting on it right now, just wanted to post this, since it's all turning out quite verbose =P

And yeah, I made Team Gai finish the 2nd task a bit early. I just think they're capable and should have.

Hope you enjoyed it! Special thanks to ayumwu, nadja, cornflowwer, tentenhyuga, ninjapirate and Senka Hitomi for reviewing!

To the rest of you please review! Even if it's just a word or two, I'd really appreciate it (though I love lengthy reviews, of course!)

xxx