Hello friends,
Its currently dead week here at college and although I'm buried under a mountain of work I have been dedicating my time little by little to bring you the second chapter piece by piece.
Update: dead week is over and I made it out alive. I'm sorry that it's taking so long to get the second chapter up.
Update: I barely have time to sleep I'm so so so sorry. Just remember that I have NOT abandoned this.
Update: It's almost midterms now.
Akirahiguchi - Thank you for your support! I was worried about the personalities because I for me that it the most important aspect of a fanfiction. I'm glad that you are eager to read this and I will try to get it updated faster in the future.
The guest who uses :) – I'm glad that you are interested in my story and I hope that I don't disappoint you! Thank you for the encouraging emotes.
CiCi – I agree that there are not enough NejiIno fics and that was one of my motives for writing this pair. It's so random, but the dynamic is great! I love your enthusiasm.
Rougish – I am so glad to see that you are still around. Thank you very much for the compliment. I will update the next chapters as soon as I can with my busy schedule.
Guest 2 & 3 – Thank you for your kind words and inspiration!
FFNRocks – Thank you for the lovely review. The plotline is what I find most complicated about writing this particular piece. I want it to be something fresh, intriguing and believable to the readers so I have actually re-written chapter two several different times, so your encouragement helps tremendously!
DapperCrapper- Your enthusiasm made my day! Thank you for the compliment about character dynamic. I feel that it is the time consuming part about writing these two together since they hardly interact.
Lastly thank you to everyone who followed and favorited The Cat and The Canary.
I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.
The Cat and The Canary
Setback - a reversal or check in progress.
Chapter Two: Flurry of Emotion
The first day had been counter-productive. In fact, they had spent more time hiding and running from the villagers than coming up with an effective plan or having a believable date. From the looks of it the Yamanaka was reaching her boiling point.
It had all started that afternoon when Neji had made good on his word about picking up his blonde-haired sidekick. Naturally she was over the eager to flaunt their fake relationship in front of her childhood rival: Haruno Sakura. After minutes of useless protesting the disgruntled Hyuga finally caved and asked why she was so intent and the diva had responded with a sly smile. "No one spreads gossip faster than Sakura-chan."
It was an absurdly logical reason, however Neji felt that there was more going on behind the Yamanaka's simple claim. As a matter of fact, he went as far as to point out that of the village it was she who spread the fastest gossip. Obviously becoming a violent woman's boyfriend comes with the added bonus of undeserved pain. Said pain was administered into his ribcage quite unexpectedly by her deft elbow. Unfortunately, this attack wasn't enough so she added a verbal assault accompanied with a glare. "Baka." She had called him. He was unsure whether anyone else had been brave enough to call him such a name.
If he had to admire anything about the rambunctious blonde it was her courage. She never seemed to back down and because of her unrelenting nature Neji had decided to drop the topic because like all woman she was impossible to understand. The Yamanaka was already proving to be troublesome and she wasn't even his real girlfriend. Perhaps she was the one who inspired Shikamaru to coin his favorite phrase.
And so the hunt had begun to search out the rosette medical nin and with this irritable task came many interruptions. Each place Sakura seemed to go held someone that they either had to encounter or avoid.
Their first encounter was not entirely unexpected.
Since the Yamanaka wanted to follow through with her foolish gossip plan, he decided that he wasn't going to lift a finger to help. Or more specifically activate his byakugan to be used in such a frivolous task. Because of this he allowed the bold flower girl to lead him through the cheerful village.
She made sure to never stray a step or two away from the Hyuga genius despite her eagerness to find Sakura and because of this Neji noticed that they were electing many stares from the villagers. Some looked baffled while others showed open traces of interest. A few girls in particular looked less than pleased and they seemed to hold a slight sense of familiarity, but Neji couldn't seem to place why.
Before Neji had a proper chance to reflect on the bitter women he heard the unmistakable voice of one of Konoha's elite.
"Yo."
The blonde beside him bristled and pointed an accusatory finger at the copycat ninja. "Are you reading another pervy book Kakashi-Sensei?!"
A low laugh escaped the silver ninja and his lone eye gleamed with what Neji presumed were impure thoughts. "It's going to take a lot better acting than that to pull off your undercover mission."
Neji balked in surprise as the Yamanaka sputtered and voiced his inner thoughts.
"H-how do you know that Kakashi-Sensei?!"
Kakashi's eye turned into the shape of a lopsided crescent moon which Neji vaguely interpreted as an expression of mischievous joy. "Tsunade has been wanting to place you two together on an undercover recon mission for a while, but she feared your conflicting personalities would cause an international fiasco."
Neji sighed quietly in relief. So, the copycat ninja wasn't onto their hoax relationship plan to bust up the unforgivable engagement. If Kakashi had misinterpreted their intentions as much needed practice for missions, then Neji and his blonde cohort had no chance at all to convince Hiashi. The task seemed far more daunting than before due to the silver ninja pointing out their incompatibility.
Judging by the looks on the faces of the two young adults they had a long way to go to meet the missions' standards and so he decided to sacrifice one of his treasured pieces of literature to provide guidance.
Kakashi threw the smut book into the arms of a repulsed Yamanaka Ino. "You two try a page out of this."
Before Ino had the chance to throw the vulgar book back, Kakashi had vanished in a swirl of leaves with the lame excuse of "Hearing an elderly women in need of assistance."
Neji quickly looked around to gauge if anyone was watching their odd encounter in hopes that no one would see an edition of Make Out Violence in the hands of his fake girlfriend. The book would damage his reputation severely.
The blond seethed and her fingernails dug crescent shaped indentations into the binding and cover of the book. "Pervert."
Neji simply narrowed his eyes at her lack of action. "Get rid of it."
When the Yamanaka realized, there was nowhere to dump the book nearby without raising suspicion she turned on Neji and ripped open his traditional clan robes to stash the book from plain sight. He wasn't sure whether he should feel relieved or mortified by her barbaric approach. On one hand the foul book was hidden, but on the other hand she had defiled his person AND hid a dirty book under his robe. Yamanaka Ino is unbelievable.
The Yamanaka walked up the road, waving him forward. "Come on. We have to find Sakura. I'll use my sensory tracking this time."
His eyes narrowed dangerously with irritation, but he followed accompanied by the subtle pulse of a growing headache. With each step Neji couldn't help but take further notice of the book settled against his chest as if it were growing heavier from the guilt and indignation he felt at carrying the blasphemous publication.
She led him through the village market which was alive with the bustle of townsfolk. It was uncommon that he found himself in this part of Konohagakure, unless his cousins asked him along and even then he was so preoccupied with watching over them that he never really noticed the market itself. After all it was his duty to guard the main branch.
The market air was thriving with a steady hum of conversation and the street was lined with unique stalls draped in every color and pattern imaginable. Villagers eagerly milled about engaged in happy exchanges and holding bags that burst with ripe produce. Children raced against the mid-afternoon sun, threading through the crowd, and trailing kites in the shapes of brightly hued animals: dragons, butterflies, frogs, and many more. Neji couldn't help but forget his previous anger for the moment.
Why was it only now that he relishing in the atmosphere of the village market as if it was his first trip?
He was so enthralled by the vivacious atmosphere within the narrow streets that he hadn't realized he was standing still, observing this bright world until he felt the impact of a small body colliding into him. Startled from his reprieve Neji looked down to see a small girl no older than the age of four. Her mousy brown hair was in two short pigtails below her ears with bright red ties and her cheeks were dusted with light freckles. In her small hands, she clutched a bright yellow string and her wide green eyes were rimmed with large tears.
Neji felt his heart soften at the sight and held out a hand to the fallen child. "Are you hurt?"
The little girl shook her head profusely after she was back on her own two feet. She looked down at the flaxen string clasped in her hands. "My kite got broken and the boys left me behind." She hiccupped. "Why are boys so mean mister?"
"Not all boys have manners." Neji responded as he reached forward to lift the small girl up in his arms. "I will help you find your friends, don't worry."
Neji was somewhat relieved to spend time away from the boisterous Yamanaka even if it was only for a short while and even more so he had a strong urge to help this child that reminded him so much of his younger cousins.
Fortunately, Neji recalled the children with the animal kites that had run past him not long ago and turned to face the direction he had come. He activated his Byakugan to make the task easier and spotted the children huddled around the shape of a disfigured kite several hundred yards into the market.
"Wow mister!" The little girl exclaimed. "Are you a ninja?" she asked touching the swollen veins around his eyes. She continued in one big breath. "What is your name? I'm Yumi."
Neji loosened his lips into a faint smile. "My name is Neji. It's nice to meet you Yumi."
The little girl threw her arms around his neck and squeezed weakly. "Neji will you be my big brother?" She asked with a large smile that was missing two front teeth.
The question caught him by surprise, but the sincerity in the little girl's eyes was too much to bear so he simply nodded and set her down a few feet from the boys clustered around an object.
"Hey Yumi!" One of the boys yelled. "We went to find your kite, but it's a little broken." He frowned and held up a misshapen kite in the shape of a pink and yellow cat.
Yumi puffed out her cheeks and tried to hold back her crocodile tears as she fumbled with the marigold string. "It's okay!" She stammered.
The boys seemed to take notice of Neji standing close by. The one who appeared the oldest stepped forward and scratched his wild brown hair. "Hey mister thanks for bringing Yumi to us. We thought she was right behind us." He turned to face the little girl with determined gray eyes. "You can share my kite Yumi and we can take turns until you get a new one!"
A new voice entered the mix. "I might be able to fix your kite if you let me see it."
Her voice was so soft and tender that Neji nearly mistook the Yamanaka for another woman. The brazen blond sat down with the circle of boys and picked up the broken kite.
"Can you really fix it?" One of the boys asked in disbelief.
Neji watched as Ino picked up the cat shaped kite and turned it around looking for damage. She clapped her hands together with a smile. "There is a broken post and a tear. Nothing I can't fix." Ino smiled at the little boys in a way that made his gut clench. In that moment, she had the same smile his mother would give to him when he was a young boy. "Of course, I won't be able to fix Yumi's kite without your help."
How long had Ino been watching them?
The boys around her cheered. "We can do it! Don't worry Yumi, we will have your kite fixed in no time."
Ino instructed the boys to hold the fabric taught and the two pieces of the busted post together as she opened her medical pouch. As Neji watched her tape the post together he felt a tug on his sleeve. "Brother Neji, is this nice lady a ninja too?"
He looked down at Yumi. "Yes… she is."
"Awh. I want to grow up already so that I can be a ninja like you and the nice lady." Her face was frozen in a pout.
Neji though about Hiashi's ultimatum and back to his own adolescent youth. He relished the days he had spent with his father and sometimes he still fervently wished that he could reverse time and live those moments again. He found her innocence endearing in the way that he too used to ardently desire that he could group up faster and be a great ninja like his own father.
Yumi broke his line of thought. "Brother Neji, do you think she's pretty? I think she's really pretty."
Neji glanced at Yumi's large and hopeful smile before casting his gaze on Ino once more. Did he think she was pretty? He pondered the strange though as he watched her interact with the children. He knew that many of the men in the village were enamored with the young woman and rumor had it that there were eyes outside of the country fixated on her as well. Eyes in high places.
He watched as the sliver needle glinted against the kite fabric. He watched her genuine smile and fair flaxen hair gleam in the afternoon sun. Did he find her pretty?
"All fixed." Ino climbed to her feet and dusted herself off. "Here Yumi I added a little design so that the stitching wouldn't be so obvious." The Yamanaka knelt before the small girl and showed her the white flower stitching that was settled on the cat's face like a beauty mark.
He watched as Yumi burst into tears and hugged his blond companion. "Thank you so much nice lady."
The Yamanaka laughed shaking her head as she placed the fabricated cat into the young girl's arms. "Call me Ino."
Yumi beamed. "Okay Ino-chan!"
The boys held up their own kites chanting "Thank you Ino-chan!"
His blond companion returned to his side and crossed her arms as she smiled at the children jumping around each-other. "That was unexpectedly nice of you Hyuga."
Neji glanced at her from the corner of his eye. In his own regard, it was he who was surprised by her unexpectedly nice side. Perhaps working with her wouldn't be a complete catastrophe. He idly wondered if after shattering Hiashi's ultimatum the two of them might possibly be friends.
He felt the Yamanaka grab his hand and the sensation of her skin on his sent a jolt through his hand, reviving him to the present time.
When Neji had started to retract his hand from the Yamanaka's she only clenched her fingers and held on tighter. His eyes followed their laced fingers up to her pouting face. "You are so mean Hyuga Neji… not wanting to hold your girlfriends hand!"
"I knew you thought she was pretty brother Neji!" Yumi squealed.
"Awh man! I want Ino-chan to by my girlfriend." One of the boys whined.
The Yamanaka laughed at the children's antics before turning her bemused gaze on the Hyuga genius. "We still have to find Sakura."
With this one sentence Neji felt his alleviated mood drop. "Hn." The Yamanaka pulled him away from the waving children towards the eastern side of the village. He glowered at their entwined hands as they walked further from the children's ecstatic farewells.
Neji decided he would allow her to touch his hand even though it bothered him. After all it was for a just cause and once he and Hinata were liberated from the engagement he wouldn't have to hold hands with Yamanaka Ino ever again.
The blond grinned deviously. "I knew you couldn't be that heartless." Accepting his silent approval.
"Hn." Neji turned his head away from her devious smile. She was getting on his nerves. Why had he been so deluded into thinking that the hard part would be overcoming Hiashi's ultimatum? He thinly tolerated the blond's presence. Furthermore, a small slice of doubt was creeping up the Hyuga's spine at the thought of his Uncle becoming increasingly positive towards the traitorous engagement because Neji had thought of bringing such a non-refined woman into the picture.
"Hey Hyuga, at least we managed to convin-"
Woosh
A thin wooden stick splintered the air between them as it lodged into a colorful stall that housed a large variety of rice. The unexpected assault had caused the unlikely pair to spring apart from each other in slight horror.
"Well, well, well… what kind of trouble did you two get into to have to hold hands?" Mitarashi Anko sauntered up to the uneasy pair twirling a fresh dango stick in her left hand and a mocking grin on her lips.
"Why does no one believe us!?" The Yamanaka howled, throwing her hands up in the air in frustrated disbelief. "And why can't you make a normal appearance!"
The unstable jonin let out a harsh barking laugh and slapped her knee. "Y-You." She wheezed for breath. "Can't be trying to tell me that you managed to finally seduce this up-tight pretty-boy?" Anko continued to cackle like a deranged hyena. "Not after the way he shot you down in the fore-"
The blond at his side surged forward to cover Anko's mouth. "I told you not to talk about that!" she shrieked flushing crimson.
Neji simply narrowed his eyes at the unnecessary remarks and insults. He detested that refinement was commonly confused with being considered as 'uptight' by those who needed a shorter leash. It was distasteful that by merely being in the presence of one such Yamanaka Ino that he was constantly coerced into vulgar situations. Already he had been nearly de-robed in public, was insulted serval times and worst of all he was forced to hide Kakashi's foul book on his person.
He looked up to the mid-afternoon sky, choosing to ignore the squabbling of two violently unpredictable women. As his eyes traced the outline of a drifting opaque cloud he was struck by the notion that perhaps this activity was developed by Shikamaru in order to distance himself from the exuberant blond.
The dark haired jonin suddenly filled his vision and she threw an arm around his shoulders that was far more distasteful than Ino's. Anko angled her body and he felt her barely contained fishnet chest brush against his clothes and tried desperately to angle himself away. Why did these two women seem so intent on touching him inappropriately?
Anko turned on him and delivered a smack to his chest with her free hand. "Good for you Hyuga. You finally found a woman that makes your dick stand up." He was completely mortified by the snake mistress's suggestion and even the Yamanaka looked appalled.
To make matters worse Anko seemed to have noticed something strange and was rubbing her palm over his clothed chest. Neji momentarily froze in horror when he felt the deranged instructor's hand collide with the filthy book the Yamanaka had hidden.
"What do you have in here?" Anko demanded curiously moving to pry open his robes for the second time that day. Unable to even bear the thought of clan shaming and disgrace that would occur if the jonin spotted the book Neji gentle fisted the wild woman away from him.
The Yamanaka's eyes looked ready to burst from her head and her mouth nearly hit the ground as she watched her sensei fly backwards and crash into a stall. The bright orange cloth that served as a roof settled down over Anko and took on the spiked shape of her slightly tamed hair, subtly reminding Neji of Naruto's past shenanigans and mistakes.
"Run." Ino whispered.
Suddenly everything exploded to life and Anko burst up slashing the bright cotton to ribbons with a kunai knife. "What are you hiding you goddamn rigid bastard!"
Neji didn't require any further incentive as he took off after the fleeing Yamanaka. He would rather marry Hinata then get caught red handed with a copy of Make Out Violence.
When he had decided to pick up Ino for the day this was the last possible outcome he could have ever predicted and after this moment he was never letting the idiotic blond choose the plans for the day ever again.
All around him villagers dived out of the way avoid being run down or buried under the wreckage of an unfortunate merchant's stall. He vaguely wondered if it would be him or the deranged jonin that would have to pay for the damages.
They ran.
And ran.
And ran until they were far, far away from the village market.
The Yamanaka stood with her hands on her knees panting to catch her breath. "Oh man I have to see her tomorrow and she's going to kill me for what you did, but it was awesome."
Neji simply glared at the unruly blond. It was her fault that he had to attack Mitarashi Anko and he could only hope that he wouldn't get a summons from Tsunade regarding the offense. There was no way that he could explain to the Godaime Hokage that he had attacked Anko in order to hide a dirty smut book. He would never be able to face her again.
Across from him the blond straightened up and narrowed her own eyes, taking Neji's glare as a challenge. "Don't give me that look. You're the one that hit her."
He felt his calm façade slipping away after every taxing event that he had endured in her presence today. Neji pulled the book from his robe and thrust it into the Yamanaka's hands. "It's your fault we got into all of today's mess."
Just as he was about to unleash the entirety of his repressed rage towards the hellish girl he noticed a very distinct silhouette approaching: a woman with a thin athletic body and a lack of curves topped with two round buns.
Neji felt the panic starting to claw up his spine as a reminder of his prior rejection towards his teammate's romantic feelings. "You really expect me to think that ALL of today is my fault? You're pretty stupid for a genius." The Yamanaka raised her provoked voice, placing a hand on her curvaceous hip and flicked her bangs momentarily away from her piercing right eye.
Before she could say anything else he grabbed the Yamanaka's arm and pulled her forcefully into the shadows of an ally between a soap store and a gentleman's bar. "What the fuck do mphh-"
Neji clamped his hand over her mouth and held her body restrained between his own and the cracked brick wall. He could hear his heart jackhammering in his ears and he was sure that beneath him Ino could feel it as well as he anxiously waited for the weapons mistress to pass.
It wasn't that he didn't like Tenten. She was an amazing teammate and woman, but he just didn't harbor romantic feelings for her. Or for anyone else for that matter. Despite that he couldn't help feeling the rush of guilt at the thought of her discovering his hoax relationship with a woman that he had been hardly acquainted with. Neji knew that he would have to tell her soon before she found out on her own, but he dreaded the broken expression that he was destined to find on her face.
Luckily Tenten passed the disgruntled pair without noticing and Neji was happy for once that she wasn't a sensor type even if it would have been an asset during their team missions.
He sighed in relief and dropped his head exhausted on the supple shoulder of his blond companion. A sharp pain in his hand brought him back to his senses
She had bitten him.
Repulsed Neji jumped back releasing the golden hellhound. He could still feel the sting in his palm and resumed his glare towards the cause of most of his current troubles.
Time and time again she managed to surprise him. If she truly were a capable ninja she would have tried to in capitate him in a more dignified manner. But instead she chose to bite him like a lowly dog. This woman would absolutely be abhorred by the Hyuga patriarch.
"What the hell was that about, you baka!?" She furiously slammed her palms onto her hips demanding an explanation.
Neji counted backwards from three in order to calm himself before answering this provoking woman. "Tenten almost saw us."
He assumed that this response would soothe the angry Yamanaka and for a moment it seemed to as her face turned thoughtful. "Ne, hey Neji why didn't you ask Tenten to help you change Hiashi's mind?"
He looked away awkwardly. He didn't imagine himself having this conversation about Tenten with anyone. Not even Lee or Guy knew about Tenten's confession. "Asking her to help would have given her the wrong impression."
Ino placed her hand on her chin thoughtfully. "She loves you Hyuga. It would have been much more convincing if she had my job."
The Hyuga genius nearly groaned at the blond's meddling. "Tenten wouldn't have settled for fake Yamanaka."
Her piercing eyes widened in surprise before crashing down to give him a glistening cerulean glare. "Is that what you really think of me Hyuga Neji? You think that fake is all I'm good for and it's all that I will ever settle for?"
Neji was baffled. This wasn't the outcome he had anticipated from the strong-willed blond. He wasn't sure how to handle an emotional woman that wasn't one of his cousins. Hanabi would simply train until everything was pulverized and Hinata would cry until she felt better. But, Ino was a wild card.
He parted his lips to try and dissolve the situation.
"You've said enough Hyuga." She snarled, gripping the book with fearsome strength. "I thought you of all people would be different, but you're just the same stuck up asshole from before. I still hate you." A sleek blond ponytail arched through the air as she stormed off.
Panic and shame settled into his chest and sank swiftly to the pit of his stomach. He needed her. "Ino wait. That's not what I meant."
"Leave me alone! I'm done with you, asshole."
He watched her go helplessly. As much as he wanted to chase her down and apologize he knew that she was the type of girl that needed space and time to cool off first. He could only hope that she would change her mind. He would tell her everything if he had to just to get her back.
Ironically, Neji felt as though he was actually in a relationship with the brazen blond and they had just had their first fight as a real couple.
The unpalatable scent of cigarette smoke reached his nose.
"Troublesome."
Neji turned to see the lazy jonin scratching the back of his neck and exhaling the reeking smoke. "Now I'll have to deal with her while Temari is over." Shikamaru popped his neck. "I'll tell you how to apologize to her if you keep her outta my hair for the next few days."
The Hyuga followed the lazy ninja back to the Nara residence and took a seat across from the lazy genius at his shogi table. He was thankful to have his partner's childhood friend give him the advice he needed. Although it came as a suspicious surprise due to the rumors about the close nit protectiveness of the legendary Ino-Shika-Cho formation.
Shikamaru looked up from the board and exhaled more smoke painting the picture of a tired dragon inside the Hyuga's mind. "Troublesome." The Nara stubbed out his cigarette and opened his mouth to start the lecture.
TBC
Wow that took me forever. I felt as though I was writing 2 sentences a day, but I'm glad that I was able to get the second chapter out. :)
Even though Yumi is an OC character without much time in this chapter I can't help, but love her character and I hope that you fellow readers liked her as well. She represents the innocence that we all used to have.
Thank you for the support and please let me know what you think!
Much love,
~Aphrodiete