A/N – the end of part two is here… hope you enjoy it! Happy Birthday Neji-kun, darling, this is for you. (It's still July 3rd where I am) Extra looong chapter =)

Neji Gaiden – Part 2 Continued

– X –

Neji walked along the streets of Konoha, rather aimlessly, which was odd. He usually knew exactly where to go.

But that day, he didn't. First, he'd been overcome by an urge to visit Tenten (who was quite possibly the only person who would understand him now, and not look at him as if he'd been culpable of some blasphemous crime), but then he realized she was at the hospital. And Hinata would be at the hospital, which meant Hiashi and many other Main House members would be as well. And there was no way in hell Neji wanted to face them. He was probably going to hear it from Hiashi later – in fact, Neji was dreading that the man would activate the curse seal on him.

Lee and Gai were at the hospital too, and Neji didn't want to face them either. He didn't want to go to the Hyuuga compound. He had no one he considered family there, and he didn't want to face the Main House members, or his the Elders.

He didn't have any friends among the Konoha shinobi either, and finally Neji opted to go to Team Gai's training ground, and meditate, to calm himself down.

He stayed there for at least three hours – the sky was dark when he finally got up, and began trudging home. He'd start practicing for the finals tomorrow – but before he did that, there was something he needed.

Neji snuck back into the Hyuuga compound from one of the back gates, instead of the front gate. He wanted to avoid Hiashi, for obvious reasons, and he also wanted to do something else. Luckily, most of the Hyuuga members were occupied with their precious Hinata's injuries, and Neji was able to creep around without being unnoticed. He managed to break into the Main House Records, a place that was strictly forbidden for Branch House members, and even most Main House members. Neji doubted even Hinata had been allowed inside. He knew he'd face serious repercussions if he was caught, and that he was breaking a strict Hyuuga law, but Neji didn't care. He scanned the room quickly with his sharp eyes, until he sighted the scroll he was looking for.

'The Secrets of the Heavenly Whirl' it said, the words faded on the thick parchment. Neji gently pulled it out, replacing it with a fake he'd cloned, and quickly exited the room, locking it and wiping away all traces that he'd even entered. Scroll safely stowed away in his pocket, he made his way to the room.

"Neji."

Neji nearly jumped as he heard his uncle's voice, out of the blue.

He's going to activate it.

He turned around, hand unconsciously going to his forehead. Hiashi noticed this gesture, and narrowed his eyes slightly, scrutinizing him.

"Hiashi-sama?" Neji asked, his voice low.

"Congratulations on passing," Hiashi said, and Neji thought he detected a trace of pity in his uncle's voice.

It can't be. Why isn't he angry? I nearly killed his daughter, his heir to the clan.

"Th-thank you," Neji replied, their conversation as short and awkward as ever, before both turned around, going their respective ways.

Then it hit Neji – for Hiashi, Hinata had always been as worthless as Neji. Of course, he wouldn't have cared.

That night, Neji pored over the scroll, absorbing as much information as he could about the forbidden technique. The Kaiten, or the Heavenly Spin, it was called, and it was the Ultimate Defense. It was a technique only a few select Main House members could do, for it was far too complex for even an average Hyuuga. However, Neji's new goal was to master it, and prove to the Main House how thick the blood that ran in his veins really was.

– X –

Neji arrived at the training ground early that morning. He knew there was no training – with Lee and Tenten in the hospital, and Gai worrying himself over them, it would be impossible.

But Neji needed to train. The training ground was oddly quiet, without Lee's exuberant shouts and the sound of Tenten's weapons clinking against one another. He sat down under Tenten's dummies and targets, out of habit. Yet, he actually found meditating slightly more difficult, without the distraction and methodic thump of weapons above his head. He gave up on that, beginning the rudimentary steps to mastering the Kaiten.

It wasn't easy – circular motion, the release of chakra from all his chakra points – it was certainly an intricate technique to execute. But then again, Neji hadn't been known as a genius for nothing.

At noon, however, Neji stopped. He wasn't hungry – he just thought he should check up on his teammates.

When Neji entered the hospital, he saw a group of Hyuuga elders huddled outside one of the rooms. Ignoring their presence, he walked to the receptionist.

"Could you please tell me what room Tenten is in?" he asked politely.

"Last name?" the receptionist asked.

"She – doesn't have one," Neji said. Tenten was an orphan, so she'd never had a last name. "She's around my age, brown hair in two buns, pink shirt – she was one of the injured Leaf shinobi from the Chuunin exams…"

"Oh, yes," the receptionist said, understanding, "All the Chuunin exam casualties are in that ward over there," she told him, gesturing to the door outside which the Hyuuga elders had gathered.

Neji sighed heavily, almost wishing he'd never come. He'd been planning on avoiding the Hyuuga. It was futile though, and he squared his shoulders, walking ahead, ignoring their Byakugan gazes completely as he walked into the room.

It was a large room, with rows of flat beds. There was a crowd of Hyuuga clustered around one of them – obviously Hinata's. Neji was surprised the Hyuuga hadn't demanded a private room for her. Kiba was lying on another bed, not far from Hinata's, two women who were probably his mother and sister at his bedside. Lee wasn't there though – Neji knew he'd been taken straight to the intensive care unit with Gai. There were other shinobi there as well – injured from missions, probably. Neji finally spotted Tenten, sitting upright on a bed in the corner of the room.

Neji suddenly felt a wave of sympathy and understanding towards her. She was alone – like he was.

He made his way towards her bed, relieved to see that she was almost healed. There were still a few half-healed cuts on her arms, but other than that, she seemed fine, as she restlessly twisted the white sheets of her bed between her fingers.

"Tenten," he greeted, and her head whipped up, brown eyes widening slightly.

"Neji!" she exclaimed, "I – didn't expect to see you – what're you doing here?"

"I am visiting you," Neji replied, wondering if he shouldn't have.

Ridiculous, she's my teammate – and I had to make sure she was okay.

"Oh! Oh – I – thanks," she said, cracking a smile. She seemed to have brightened up, and Neji was glad. She must have been getting lonely.

"You're my first visitor," she informed him cheerfully.

"What about Gai?" Neji asked sharply.

"He – he didn't come," Tenten admitted, a bit sadly. "Lee didn't either."

Neji wondered if he should tell her about Lee's condition – she'd worry herself, but it wasn't something he could keep from her. He also felt slightly guilty – perhaps he should have visited her earlier? She'd obviously been expecting some of her teammates to visit, though obviously not him from her reaction. That bothered him slightly – why wouldn't he visit? And moreover, Neji was slightly irritated with Gai. Though he and Tenten were both used to Gai's blatant preference of Lee, Gai should have had the decency to at least visit his other student, even if Lee was in a worse condition.

"How are you feeling?" Neji asked after a while.

"I'm – I'll be fine. They healed most of my cuts and stuff yesterday. Tore a few ligaments, but the medics fixed that well. They'll probably discharge me soon," Tenten said.

"…that's good to know," Neji said, wondering if he should sit by her bedside.

Tenten seemed to notice this, and shifted slightly, an unspoken invitation.

"I guess I should congratulate you," she said, as Neji sat down at the foot of her bed.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You – you must've passed, right?" she said, gazing at him.

Neji smiled slightly – it was good to know that Tenten still maintained her faith in him.

"Yes, I did."

"What about Lee? He must've passed too, right?" Tenten asked eagerly, though Neji could detect a trace of bitterness in her tone.

"Tenten, you never could have won," he informed her.

She frowned slightly.

"Why – would you say that?" she asked, sounding slightly hurt.

I'm just trying to tell things how they are, Tenten. No point deluding yourself.

"You were against a wind user, Tenten. There was no way you could have won. Your jutsus were naturally at a steep disadvantage. Victory would have been impossible," Neji told her bluntly, and she bit her lip.

She's misunderstood me, Neji realized, not liking her rather expression.

"If it had been anyone else, Tenten, you could have won," he told her truthfully, "You're skilled. Far more skilled than the other Konoha kunoichi. But that battle wasn't won on skill. Weapons can never beat wind, and she was the worst match-up for you."

Tenten's expression lifted at this.

"So you – you're not – disappointed?" she asked tentatively.

"Why would I be?" Neji asked her, "It was bound to happen. You fought well. If I were in your place, I would have forfeit though. You didn't have to go through all that pain."

Tenten smiled slightly.

"Thanks – I guess…" she muttered.

"I am merely stating a fact," Neji told her.

"I didn't know you were the kind to talk about forfeiting, Neji. That doesn't seem like you…" Tenten added, and Neji gritted his teeth.

"There is no point in wasting your chakra when the outcome is obvious. Wind will always beat weapons. Water will always beat fire. Lightning will always beat earth. It's the nature of things, Tenten. You cannot change that, no one can. It's fated."

Tenten sighed – she was quite accustomed to Neji's fatalistic attitude.

"It's futile resisting," Neji went on, "You and Lee both were extremely talented, but you didn't have a chance from the start."

"Wait, what?" Tenten exclaimed, sitting up straighter. "What do you mean me and Lee? Lee didn't – he couldn't have –"

"He lost, Tenten. He was against that redhead from the Sand. The teammate of your opponent."

"Oh no," Tenten moaned, "Poor Lee, he must be devastated!"

Neji breathed heavily, gazing into her eyes. Tenten seemed to detect something was wrong.

"Neji?" she asked frantically, "What happened to Lee? What's wrong?"

"Tenten, Lee is in the intensive care unit. He's unconscious."

"What? How?" Tenten gasped.

"He opened five of his gates and used the Extreme Lotus, and he's shattered multiple bones and torn muscles."

There was silence for a few moments, as Tenten absorbed information, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"I – can't believe it," she whispered finally, "Lee…"

"It was fated," Neji said firmly, but Tenten shook her head.

"I don't know Neji, I can't say I agree with you on that. But that Sand kid – he must've been pretty tough to – to beat Lee's ultimate technique!"

"He didn't do much to tell you the truth," Neji replied, "Just relied on his sand to shield himself, and finally crush Lee. This was when his weights were off as well."

"Oh no," Tenten moaned, "I – I hope he's okay! Oh god, Lee… have you visited him yet? How is he?"

"I – came to visit you first," Neji said, and Tenten's cheeks colored slightly, though he paid no heed to this.

"Oh! Okay… thanks! And well, how was – your match?"

"I was against Hinata," he told her slowly, and Tenten bit her lip.

"Hinata, hm. Well – that probably – complicated things…" she said cautiously, eyes flickering over to the other side of the room, where Hinata lay, surrounded by Hyuugas.

"You have no idea," Neji sighed, shaking his head.

"Do you – want to talk about?"

"Actually I do. But not right now. Not here. When do you think they'll let you out?"

If Tenten was flattered at the attention he was paying her, she didn't show it.

"Two days, at the most, I think," she said. "Neji – is everything with you okay?"

"I'm fine," he said quickly, rising from her bedside. "I need to go train now."

"Okay! Thanks for visiting! And um – if you see Lee, tell him 'hi' from me… and tell him to get well soon and rest properly."

"Yeah," he muttered, glancing at her one last time before leaving. She had a rather thoughtful expression on her face. He didn't tell her to get well soon, or anything. It wasn't like him. But in all honesty, Tenten was grateful. That he'd visited her was more than enough.

What she didn't know, and what he wouldn't admit, was that he needed her right now. He was in a turmoil, about Hinata and his clan, and he was slightly tense about the upcoming exams. He needed her more than anything, and even Neji was beginning to realize this.

He stopped by Lee's room before leaving the hospital. Gai was outside, sitting on a bench, head buried in his hand.

"What's wrong with him?" Neji asked, and Gai looked up.

"Neji! What are you doing here?" Gai seemed genuinely surprised.

Neji wondered why – two of his teammates were in the hospital, shouldn't they have been expecting him to visit?

"Visiting Tenten," Neji said, before adding coldly, "She was asking about you. I'm the only visitor she's had so far."

Gai looked extremely guilty at this, bushy brows furrowing as he clenched his fists.

"Oh no – poor Tenten! I didn't mean to – it's just with Lee I –"

"Forgot?" Neji asked harshly, "It's not very surprising."

"Neji," Gai said sternly, though his eyes were sparkling, "I was preoccupied about Lee, it's nothing like that, Tenten is very important to me, so are you, but Lee-"

"Matters more, right? It's alright. Tenten's used to that."

Gai's voice cracked.

"Lee is still unconscious Neji! The medics don't know what to do! The extent of the damage the technique has taken on his body is devastating! They can't heal him, and he may be restricted to a bed for the rest of his life! And even if they manage by some miracle, he can never be a shinobi again!"

Neji paused, silent. He felt a chill settle over his bones – he'd never ever expected it to be that bad.

"It's my fault," Gai choked, shoulders shaking, "I taught him the technique! It was suicidal! I shouldn't have – but he was so – determined – and he had so much potential!"

"It was fated to happen," Neji said, mind still reeling with shock, "Don't blame yourself. You can't change that."

Neji left, a few minutes later, not quite knowing what to say.

He never was meant to be a ninja, he realized, no matter how hard he tried, fate came down on him in the end, defeated him, put him in his place.

– X –

Neji collapsed to the ground, breath heaving, as the blue chakra disappeared from around him. He felt slightly dizzy from all the spinning.

The Kaiten.

He thought he'd mastered it – at least, he'd been able to release his chakra, and form something resembling a dome, though not quite. He'd need lots of practice, but he'd get there soon.

How can I do it though? Neji wondered. How will I know when it's strong enough? I need something to practice against? I've done the basics, but now I need something actually attacking me to improve…

He set up traps after that – activating them with a tug of razor wire, sending shuriken and kunai spinning at him from the trees. He could only handle a handful though, and they were too slow. He deflected them easily, without using the jutsu. He didn't need to. After having Tenten on a team, deflecting poorly aimed, slow weapons was almost involuntary.

Tenten…

What Neji needed, was lots of weapons, aimed precisely and zooming at him with super speed. And as he remembered his teammate, twisting around gracefully in the air, shooting out barrage after barrage of gleaming metal, Neji realized what he had to do, and who he needed, to perfect his ultimate technique.

– X –

"Neji! You're here!" Tenten said the next morning, when Neji came to visit her. "I thought you might come. Gai-sensei dropped yesterday evening. He told me about Lee…" she trailed off mournfully. "It's terrible… I can't believe it – his dream was to become a great ninja, you know…"

"It's sad," Neji agreed, biting back the part about it being destined. For some reason, he got the impression Tenten would disapprove if he said that, though he wondered why he cared in the first place.

They were both silent for a while, until Tenten spoke.

"How's your training going?" Tenten asked.

"Well enough," Neji replied, "My first match is Naruto, so that shouldn't be an issue."

"Oh! Yeah, you probably could beat him," Tenten nodded, as Neji raised an eyebrow.

Could beat him?

"I've never seen him fight, but Gai told me a little about the match. He seems more talented than I thought, you know. Some of his moves seemed pretty creative…"

"Tenten, I do not consider – those kind of techniques – creative."

"Not that, ugh, that bit was gross. I couldn't believe it. But I mean with the clones and stuff. You're better though, much better, but you shouldn't take him too lightly. I'm sure you'll win in the end, as long as you're careful."

"He's the one who needs to be careful," Neji sneered.

"If you say so… they're letting me out today evening. Sooner than expected, actually!"

"When will you be able to start training again?" Neji asked.

"Almost immediately, as long as I don't stress myself. Why?"

Neji squared his shoulders, thinking of how to put it across to her. All the finalists were training for the finals. Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto and Kakashi had all practically disappeared from the village. He'd seen the Nara's team with their sensei, obviously trying to persuade him to train. Hinata's pest of a teammate was training with his family. Everyone was training with someone or another – usually their Jounin sensei, or a family member of Jounin level.

Neji, however, was not asking any Hyuuga for help. He couldn't really, considering he was trying to learn a forbidden technique. And even otherwise, he wasn't going to bend his ego enough to ask, so family was out of bounds. Gai was obviously too distraught over Lee, and Neji would prefer not to train one-on-one with the man anyway. Though Gai was talented, there was only a limited amount of his youthful company Neji could stand, and without Lee there to distract him, or Tenten there to provide Neji company, he'd probably explode by the end of one training session.

And besides, Tenten's talents were exactly what he needed right then. He knew it would be odd, asking his genin teammate, when everyone was going to their Jounin sensei or highly-ranked family member. People may even talk about it, since she was a girl, and since she'd failed her round (though in Neji's eyes, Tenten was not a failure). But Tenten was the only person who he tolerated enough, who knew him well enough, who would help him where he needed help. She was the only person for whom he could bend his ego enough to ask a favor, and at that time, the only person he wanted to be around. For some reason, it seems like most of Konoha was vindicating him after the episode with Hinata.

So Neji swallowed his pride, opened his mouth, and asked.

"Will you help me train for the upcoming exams?"

Tenten was shocked, as he'd expected. She gaped at him for a few seconds, before finally speaking, disbelievingly.

"M-me? You want me – to help you?"

"Yes," Neji said firmly.

"B-but – don't most people usually ask-"

"I don't care about them. I'm asking you. If you don't want to, you can say so."

"I do!" Tenten cried, "I'd love to! It's just – I'm still a genin and-"

"You're good enough for me," Neji affirmed.

"Are you – are you sure?"

"Yes," Neji repeated, his eyes boring into hers, "I am sure. Will you?"

Tenten beamed at him, her cheeks darkening.

"Of course! Of course I will!"

Neji heaved a sigh of relief.

"Good."

He didn't thank her, but Tenten didn't care. She was still trying to absorb the fact that Neji had asked her to help him train for the upcoming exams – that, and she was trying not to jump up and down with glee.

A part of her knew that he could just be using her, and that he had no one else. But still, it showed he did hold her in high enough regard to choose her over a Jounin. It showed that he trusted her abilities, and that maybe, possibly, he considered her a good enough friend.

"So, um – when do we start?"

"Do you think you will be able to by tomorrow?" he asked.

Tenten rolled her eyes – expect Neji to put her through grueling training the moment she got discharged after recovering.

"I suppose so," she muttered, and he sensed her slightly annoyed reaction.

"Meet me at our training field, seven o clock sharp."

Tenten sighed, but arranged her features into a smile when she felt his gaze on her.

"Sure!" she chirped, "I'll be there."

He left after that, and she slumped back down against her pillows. Training with Neji would probably be harsher than she expected.

– X –

"Hi, Neji," Tenten greeted as she walked into the training field the next morning.

Neji looked up from the scroll he was reading, surveying her carefully. Her injuries had healed, but she was limping slightly – it was barely anything. And she'd just been discharged the previous night.

He nodded at her, wondering what to say. It was a little awkward – he didn't know where to start.

"So – um – what are we doing today?" Tenten asked, pulling out a kunai, which she proceeded to spin around her index finger.

"Sit," Neji muttered, gesturing to the ground.

Tenten raised an eyebrow.

"I thought you wanted to train…" she said.

"Yes, but you're obviously in no condition to-"

"Of course I am!" Tenten interjected indignantly, "I'm perfectly fine!"

He smiled slightly at her stubbornness, but shook his head.

"You just got discharged, Tenten. Rest for a day. I don't want to be responsible for injuring you unnecessarily."

"Hey! Who says you'll be the one injuring me? Don't get so confident, Neji Hyuuga!"

Neji's smile widened, though barely. It wasn't even noticeable – it was more of his face just relaxing from its usual tight expression.

"Just sit, will you. I need to talk to you."

"Okay," Tenten said, scrunching her eyebrows as she sat down on the grass, maintaining the respectable two feet from him.

I like her, Neji thought, though he meant it in the platonic way, obviously.

"You know this is kinda queer – you wanting to talk and all," Tenten told him, but Neji didn't bother replying, spreading the scroll out on the grass between them.

"Tenten, what I'm about to tell you and show you is top secret, okay. You can't tell anyone about it. Not even Gai-sensei."

"Ok-ay," Tenten said, obviously bemused. "What's up?"

"Do you know what this is?" Neji asked, gesturing to the scroll. It was filled with complex diagrams, and lines and lines of print.

"A scroll for some advanced jutsu which you're hoping to master?" Tenten deadpanned, and he nodded. The girl was quite perceptive.

"It's called the Kaiten. Heavenly Spin. It's an advanced Hyuuga jutsu which only a few Main House members can attempt. It's forbidden for Branch House members to learn."

"…oh," Tenten said, eyes widening, "Um – wow. You're – uh –"

"Branch House, yes," Neji said bitterly, "The Hyuuga don't know I have this. But I'm going to master it, and show them all that I am more talented than them, despite being a mere, lowly Branch house member," he spat, his voice shaking slightly towards the end.

"Neji, Neji, calm down," Tenten said, looking slightly worried. "You – stole this, didn't you?"

"I borrowed it," Neji snarled, "I am a Hyuuga, it is my right. I should not be forbidden to learning a technique simply because of the fact-"

"I get it, alright," Tenten said quickly, "But since I'm not Hyuuga – I could get pretty screwed, right? Since you're showing me your clan's secret forbidden techniques!"

She sounded slightly hysterical. It annoyed Neji.

"I'll take full responsibility, but that won't happen. The Hyuuga won't care about you. Worse thing, Hiashi will acti- it's fine, Tenten," Neji muttered, mentally chastising himself for nearly revealing the curse seal.

"Neji," Tenten said uncertainly, "This clan stuff – about the Houses – there's more to it than you told me earlier, isn't there?"

"…"

"I – know that the houses are estranged, and that – the Main House has some privileges that you don't – but I don't understand – why do you hate them so much? And why couldn't you just – ask Hiashi for permission? I'm sure he's not that unreasonable…"

"He is," Neji snapped, "And it's really none of your business."

Tenten's face fell, and she looked away for a moment.

"Sorry," she said softly, "I was just – worried about you. You get so upset over this family stuff, I wish I could help."

"No, I'm sorry," Neji said, feeling guilty at her expression. She had been genuinely concerned. It was the first time he'd actually apologized to someone.

"I'll tell you what it is, Tenten, but you must not tell anyone."

"You don't have to," Tenten said, shaking her head, "I shouldn't have asked."

"I've been meaning to tell you actually," Neji told her. He trusted her after all, and he needed to vent his frustration out to someone.

"Well, if you want to, go ahead, I'm listening," Tenten offered, leaning forward slightly.

Neji heaved a sigh, before he began to recount his tale, voice heavy, eyes directed upwards.

"Like I told you before, the Hyuuga has always been divided into two families, the Main House and the Branch House. The Main House had certain – privileges that Branch House members were denied…"

Tenten nodded, waiting for him to continue.

"Branch House members were almost like protectors, servants of the Main House if they wished. It was up to each individual member. Some of them didn't do much, but others, the cruel, callous ones – they made the Branch House members their slaves."

"Why though? Why did they do this?"

"It was mainly to protect the secrets of the Byakugan. From outsiders. The Main House ran the family, and the Branch House served under their command."

"But – didn't the Branch House – do anything about it?" Tenten asked carefully.

Neji sighed, trying to keep his voice from shaking.

"They couldn't, Tenten. Whenever a child was born into the Main House – on their third birthday, they were marked. Cursed."

"What – do you mean?" Tenten asked, eyes widening.

Neji slowly raised his hand to his forehead protector, tugging it off with one pull. He'd never shown his mark to anyone – but he trusted Tenten, and it was the only explanation.

Tenten gasped as she saw the green cross stretched across his pale forehead.

"Neji – what is that?"

""I am cursed," Neji said, his voice shaking audibly now, full of disgust, "I am a Branch House member, so like all those in my family, the Main House branded me with this mark on – Hinata's third birthday. Our father's were twins, but hers was born before mine, and hence my father and I were thrown into the Branch House. Hinata's the heiress of the Main House, and on her third birthday, I was branded with this mark, and my destiny was decided for me, before I could do anything about it. I had no choice."

Neji was trembling now, his voice thicker and shakier than before. Tenten was silent, gazing at him almost pitifully, waiting for him to continue.

"Main House members can activate this curse mark, with just a simple hand seal. It causes pain, unimaginable pain to the bearer of the mark. Hiashi used it on my father a few times – I saw it with my own eyes. My father screaming out in agony – writhing on the floor – and Hiashi just watched, watched his own brother suffer because of him…"

Neji's shoulders shook violently, and Tenten reached out with a hand, but then seemed to think better of it, withdrawing her arm.

"Neji…" she murmured sadly.

"It's always been like that in the Hyuuga. We Branch House members have always been cursed and controlled. But that's not all. On Hinata's third birthday – she was kidnapped – by Cloud shinobi. Hiashi intercepted the kidnapper, and killed him. He turned out to be a Cloud country leader who had just signed a peace treaty with the Leaf. It became clear that he had been after the Hyuuga's secrets. His death angered the cloud, and they demanded Hiashi's body in retribution. The Leaf didn't want to instigate a war with them though, and so the Hyuuga clan was pressurized. But they didn't want to send Hiashi, their Main House member. They didn't want to give him up – he was too good for them. So instead they – they took – my – my - " Neji clenched his fist, squeezing his eyes shut. There was a sharp intake of breath, before Tenten spoke softly.

"Your father," she asked gently, sounding pained.

Neji nodded, banging his fist on the grass, taking a deep breath.

"They did. They took my father, since he was Branch House. They sacrificed his life, for no fault of his! He had to suffer for his brother's mistakes! I had to suffer. They sent my father, because he was born, just a few seconds after his brother. They killed him – all because Hinata was kidnapped – my father was murdered by the Main family."

"Oh Neji," Tenten whispered, reaching out to place a hand on his shaking shoulder, "Neji, I'm so sorry…"

"My mother had died in childbirth. I was alone after that. And Hiashi lived. Hinata lived. And I – I lost my father because of them, because they were superior, because they were unmarked. That's when they marked me, branded me on my forehead – that's why – that's why – I despise them so much! That's why – during the exams – Hinata – I couldn't stop myself – she's pathetic and weak – and I – I almost killed her – "

Neji's eyes were damp now, but he shut them, holding back the tears. He would not cry in front of Tenten. She removed her hand from his shoulder, still looking sympathetic, though slightly surprised as well.

"I'm sorry Neji," she repeated, shaking her head, "It's not fair to you. I'm so sorry."

"You're not – disgusted? About what I told you about the exams? I nearly killed her, and I don't even regret it."

Tenten shook her head.

"Neji, I didn't see the match, and I don't know if what you did was right. Maybe it wasn't. But – I'm an orphan too you know – my parents were killed before I can even recall them – and when I think of those unknown shinobi who caused them to die, I feel rage, hatred, more than anything I've felt before – and I understand, maybe just a little of what you're going through…"

Neji was stunned – he'd known Tenten was an orphan, but he didn't know she'd be so accepting of what he'd done. Most of the others had seemed furious with him, including Lee.

"I'm not disgusted with you, Neji. I couldn't be. You're not a bad person. Maybe you shouldn't have done what you did – but no one else can judge you, since they don't know what you've been through. Maybe you lost control. But – everyone makes mistakes, and I'm not going to think any worse of you. To me, Hinata seems like a nice girl – and I doubt she deserved what you made her go through – but like I said, I'm not one to judge you, Neji. It's alright."

He was slightly comforted by her words, and even more grateful she hadn't been there to witness the match. He doubted she'd be this understanding then; hearing it from him, and seeing it happen were two entirely different things. Still, she understood. She seemed to understand him, and Neji was relieved. He didn't know why, but if Tenten had distanced herself from him, or showed disappointed, he would have felt terrible.

"Thank you for telling me all of this," Tenten was saying, "I know it's not easy for you to confide in anyone and I appreciate it. I promise I won't tell a single soul about what you've told me, Neji. And – if you ever feel the need to – talk about it again, I'll always be there for you…"

"Thanks," Neji mumbled, not quite knowing what else to say. He felt slightly awkward.

"Hey, it's nothing," Tenten said, shooting him a weak smile. "So – is there anything else you want to talk about?"

Neji was silent for a moment – things had changed between him and Tenten, he realized. He'd just told her his darkest secret, and for some reason, he felt better, if only a tiny bit. He wondered why he trusted her so easily – was she actually a friend to him? Had they gotten that close over the months?

Neji didn't know what it was, but something changed between him and Tenten from that day. He found it easier to talk to her, about anything, and he admitted to himself, that Tenten wasn't just a mere teammate to him anymore. She wasn't just a tolerable person who didn't annoy him. She was someone he genuinely liked, and genuinely cared about – she was his first true friend.

That's when Neji understood what Lee had been talking about, why Lee had been so upset in the Forest of Death, why Tenten had seemed cold as well.

She doesn't know how much she actually means to me, Neji realized. I'll have to let her know somehow, that's she's not just a mere teammate – but I don't want to give her the wrong impression. I don't want to get too close either. I'm better off alone, anyway. I don't need her all the time.

He finally spoke, shaking away this revelation.

"No. Let's start – I need to explain the theory of the Kaiten to you."

"Okay!"

Tenten listened patiently, while Neji explained every detail of his technique and the Hyuuga jutsus. She'd already known almost everything about his Byakugan (except for one jealously guarded secret regarding his Blind Spot which he sure as hell wasn't going to tell her about) so he proceeded to explain the rest of the Hyuuga techniques and the secrets about chakra points. He realized he was giving away secrets, secrets which no outsider was supposed to know about – but he didn't care. At that moment, he trusted Tenten more than he would ever trust any of his clan members.

Tenten herself, was flattered that Neji had taken her into his confidence. She'd felt sympathetic towards his plight, and she had to hold herself back from hugging him when he'd been speaking about his father, on the verge of tears. Neji wouldn't have appreciated a hug, she knew, so she had restrained herself. But there was one thought that continued to plague her mind, as Neji continued to explain the jutsu – was he just using her, for his training? Was that the only reason he told her everything – because he needed to brief her about his jutsu if they were going to train together? Because he needed to vent out his frustration, and she was the only person who would be convenient to tell, who he knew would listen without judging him?

Tenten couldn't help but wonder, but she pushed these thoughts away. Neji needed her, and whether he liked her as a friend or not, whether he truly trusted her as a person or not, he needed her help, and she was going to put her heart and soul and chakra into helping him.

"That's about it," Neji concluded, "Did you understand?"

"Yeah," Tenten nodded, "but I don't get why exactly you need me here…"

Neji glared at her.

"Weren't you listening?" he snapped impatiently, "To perfect the shield and test it's strength, I need to be attacked constantly, from all possible directions. And the only possible method I can think of-"

"You want me to use Twin Rising Dragons on you!" Tenten exclaimed, as it dawned on her. "That's it, isn't it?"

Neji nodded.

"No!" she shrieked, and he scowled.

"Why not?"

"Are you crazy – that's too dangerous!"

"I trust your aim."

"Exactly! That's the problem! My aim is perfect! I won't miss you! And you want me to attack you from all angles with all my weapons – Neji even you won't be able to defend against that!"

"You think?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Don't try that tactic on me," Tenten fired him, "I'm not falling for it. I am not using Twin Rising Dragons on you, and that's final."

"Tenten, it would be the perfect way – for me to master the Kaiten in all its entirety! Don't you understand? When the chakra shield is fully formed, even your weapons will be deflected!" Neji retorted. "You said you'd help me train. So stick to your word!"

Tenten sighed, raking a hand through her brown bangs in frustration.

"Fine. Fine. But not immediately. I want to see you actually use the Kaiten first. However much of it you can do."

Neji smirked slightly.

"I'm glad you've agreed," he said.

"I don't want to, trust me," Tenten snapped. "When are we starting?"

"Tomorrow? It's getting late, and I'm not letting you fight or train today. So how about tomorrow, same time, same place?"

"I'll be there," Tenten affirmed, nodding at him.

"I'll see you then," Neji said, getting up as he tucked his scroll away. He waited for a moment, and Tenten scrambled up as well, interpreting this as an unspoken invitation for her to join him.

They took to the trees, exiting the training area. It was nearly 2 o clock – they'd missed lunch. When they'd reached the Konoha marketplace, Tenten spoke.

"D'you think we should check on Lee?" she asked. "I went last night before leaving – but the medics didn't let me in…"

Neji nodded, and they leapt over the rooftops, heading towards the hospital.

Lee was still unconscious, and Neji and Tenten stood in silence over his bed for a while, not saying a word. Tenten was shaking slightly. They left after a while, after speaking to Gai for a few moments.

The man had bags under his eyes, his usually cheerful face pale and haggard. He looked like he'd aged at least ten years.

"Sensei, have you been eating?" Tenten asked, and when he grunted in response, she crossed her arms.

"You have to take care of your health. You're a shinobi too."

"He hasn't been sleeping either, I think," Neji added, and Tenten huffed in exasperation.

"I can't," Gai said thickly, "Not when Lee – not when he – Lee needs me!"

"Gai-sensei," Tenten said, "I think you should get something to eat. I can stay with Lee for a while."

"No," Gai said adamantly, "I will not leave his side. What if he wakes, and I am not there?"

Neji scanned over Lee's body, and from the chakra patterns, deduced that Lee wasn't going to wake sometime soon. It gave him a bad feeling, but there was no way he was telling Gai the same.

"Alright," Tenten conceded, "But I'll bring you some lunch in a while."

Neji and Tenten left after that, heading their separate ways.

– X –

When Neji reached the Hyuuga compound, he learnt that Hinata had been discharged, though she was still sick. He hadn't seen her though – she was in her bedroom, with her teammates, or so he was told (by one of the younger Branch House members, a boy a few years older than him). He felt a tinge of remorse, but then cast it away, retreating to his room to meditate. He found it oddly lonely, for some reason, something he'd never minded before. He shrugged it off though, waiting almost eagerly for the training session tomorrow.

He was positive, that with Tenten helping him, he would master the Kaiten. And when he used it in the exam, it would be like a slap to Hiashi's face.

– X –

"Okay, so I'm not using my jutsu yet," Tenten told Neji, who stood in the center of the clearing, awaiting her attack. It was their first training session together. They'd started off with their usual routing – Neji meditating while Tenten sharpened her weapons and then practiced on her targets. After that, he'd told her to attack him.

"Just start," Neji said impatiently, bending until he was in position. Tenten eyed him warily, before releasing a flurry of shuriken.

He batted them away with his hand, spinning once on his heel. They were slower than usual – Tenten obviously wasn't putting in much effort.

"Tenten," Neji said, his voice hard as steel. "Be serious."

Tenten sighed, shaking her head.

"Fine. But you asked for it," she said, a note of warning in her voice, before she leaped up, fusillading him with weapon after weapon.

Neji smirked to himself – that was more like it.

There were kunai, shuriken, senbon – Tenten's light weapons - all whizzing towards him from different angles, at different speeds (though not her fastest speed). He gathered his chakra, digging his heel into the ground, before he began spinning around, releasing it at once. The chakra swirled around him, knocking away everything Tenten had aimed at him (there weren't too many, but not too few either). He'd impressed her, probably, because she increased the force of her attack, upping the number of weapons, and jumping from tree to tree so she could hit him from more varied angles.

I knew she was the perfect training partner, Neji thought triumphantly, as his chakra deflected weapon after weapon. He felt it begin to dissipate after a while, and though he urged more out of his body, he couldn't, and seconds later, a kunai whistled past his ear – too close. Tenten seemed to have noticed this, for she stopped her throwing – but not before one last shuriken zipped past his arm, slashing the beige sleeve and drawing blood. Neji bit his tongue.

"Neji!" Tenten cried furiously, as the remaining wisps of blue chakra floated away. "At least warn me when to stop! I had no idea my last few weapons penetrated! I could've injured you pretty badly!"

She landed down next to him, peering at his arm.

"It's nothing," Neji muttered, wrapping it up with his bandages, "Now I know my limit. I need to surpass it."

"And you wanted me to start off with Twin Rising Dragons," Tenten said, rolling her eyes.

"We'll get to that soon, I assure you," Neji said, but Tenten made an exasperated noise.

"Look Neji, I really don't feel comfortable with this method of training. I'm hurling lethal weapons at you, and though I will admit, your Kaiten is pretty cool – I didn't expect you to have made this much progress already by yourself, that too in two days – yes, I know you're a genius – but still! I can't tell when it stops – shielding you, and if for some reason, you mess up – don't look at me like that – or your chakra messes up – what then?"

"I won't mess up, Tenten," Neji said confidently, "Let's just try again. And you aiming from different angles helps."

They tried again. And again. And again.

After four tries, Neji was exhausted, and he slumped on the floor, after having used up most of his chakra. He could deflect Tenten's light weapons, for about thirty to forty seconds at a time, but no more.

"We're stopping now," Tenten insisted, and Neji nodded, gasping for breath.

"Will you be okay?" she asked, crouching down beside him. He nodded, still panting.

"You overdid it," Tenten scolded, but Neji shook his head.

"Hold on," he muttered, and stayed there, breathing heavily for a few minutes. He stood up after that, a bit unsteadily, Tenten watching him anxiously.

"I guess we're done for the day," she said, "Four's your limit."

"…"

"Come on, let's go," Tenten said, and they left the training ground, walking this time. Neji didn't have the chakra or strength for anything more.

"I'll see you tomorrow then?" Tenten asked, "I'm going to the hospital."

"I'll come with you," Neji said, and they left.

Lee was awake when they met him, but he was unusually dreary, his half-lidded eyes cracking open as he struggled to sit up when they entered.

"Careful," Tenten murmured, grabbing his shoulders. "Don't stress yourself."

"Tenten…" Lee croaked, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Lee," she said softly, and Neji thought he saw her eyes glistening. "How about you?"

"I'll be okay," Lee said, his voice void of its usual fervor, "You know me… I'll be back on my feet in no time…"

"Of course you will," Tenten said tenderly, patting him on his mussed up black locks. Neji looked away, opting to stay quiet.

"Neji," Lee said after a while, "My rival – I guess we won't be fighting each other soon – but wait till I recover – you saw my technique…"

"Yeah," Neji muttered, not having the heart to tell Lee, that he wouldn't recover, and they wouldn't be fighting.

They stayed for a few hours more – Tenten seemed to loathe the idea of leaving, and Neji found himself wanting to stay as well. Gai dropped by with lunch for the three of them (Lee was restricted to hospital food). The room was silent a lot – it was odd, with Lee not being his usual ebullient, garrulous self.

I'll defeat that Gaara if I ever get to fight him in the finals, Neji vowed to himself, that Temari girl as well.

When they left the sky was darkening. Lee had to take his rest – his medications were making him drowsy, and he was half-asleep when Neji and Tenten finally crept out of his room.

"We'll come back tomorrow," Tenten whispered to Gai, who patted her on the back, nodding mutely.

"I hate seeing him like this," Tenten said when she and Neji were out of the hospital.

"You shouldn't give him false hopes though," Neji said.

"What do you mean?" she demanded.

"He actually thinks he's going to recover. But he's not. You shouldn't agree with him when he says he will, it will unnecessarily hurt him more when he realized his fate," Neji said tonelessly.

"We can't tell him that! He'll – he'll be broken!" Tenten argued.

"He already is, Tenten."

"But – I don't believe that Neji! It's Lee. He can overcome anything, I know he can. It's just – wouldn't be right! It wouldn't be fair."

"Life isn't fair."

"I know but – I just have a feeling he'll recover," Tenten said.

"That's impossible," Neji scoffed.

"Stop being so pessimistic!" she exclaimed, eyes flashing. "He will!"

"I'm being realistic Tenten. There's no medic here who can heal him. You heard what Gai-sensei said. He's lucky to be alive – you didn't see that match, Tenten. He'll be lucky if he can walk properly," Neji said grimly, and Tenten bit her lip, looking utterly distraught.

"I just can't believe it," she whispered, "He's our teammate. Lee…"

"Well it's happening," Neji muttered, before saying, "It's getting late. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah…"

– X –

They fell into a kind of routine after that. They'd meet at 7 o clock, at the training grounds, and train till around noon. At noon they'd go visit Lee at the hospital, usually brining lunch on the way for themselves and Gai. They'd leave at around 3 or 4, and train again till 7 in the evening, after which they'd head back to the hospital, pay Lee one last visit, before heading to their respective homes for dinner.

Unfortunately, Lee's condition didn't improve. Lee himself was downcast and had a melancholic air about him – they met a panicked Sakura one day, who informed them that he had tried leaving the hospital on his crutches. Tenten had fired him for nearly half an hour after this incident, threatening that if he tried such a stunt again, she'd summon chains and tie him to his bed. Lee agreed, sheepishly promising her he wouldn't.

Neji didn't meet his Hyuuga relatives or Hinata – he was usually out of the compound, or barreled in his own room. He actually preferred it that way.

Two weeks had passed and his training was progressing well. Tenten was the ideal person for him to train against. He could now hold out against her weapons for two to three minutes at a time, and he could attempt the Kaiten five to six times a day, before exhausting himself. He could hold out against her light weapons – she'd yet to bring out her heavy ones – the giant shuriken and the scythes. Twin Rising Dragons was still far away – Tenten refused to attempt it until she was perfectly confident that Neji could block every single weapon she hurled at him. He and Tenten had also begun taijutsu sparring – it was beneficial to both of them. Tenten could hold out against Neji for about fifteen to twenty minutes, until she tired enough for him to land a strike on her. Neji never injected his strikes with chakra though; he didn't want to plug up her chakra points.

Since the last couple days, Neji and Tenten had also begun staying over at the hospital, in Lee's room. It was the only way to make Gai leave, and get some sleep. They rotated, the three of them, sleeping on the armchair across from Lee's bed and for once, Neji didn't mind going through this inconvenience for Lee. They didn't speak much – Lee was usually fast asleep by the time Tenten and Gai left after dinner, when Neji was staying over. Gai would relieve Neji at 6 o clock in the morning, so he could change and bathe and be in time for training.

That day, when Neji reached the training grounds, Tenten was already there, sharpening a kunai. She lunged at Neji when he entered, and he had to flip backwards to avoid the weapons that came whizzing at him.

"Impatient, are we?" he murmured, slightly amused.

"Bored," she shot back, twirling a shuriken around her fingertip.

He fell into his stance, before charging at her, and she blocked his strikes with a pole she summoned, jabbing at him when she got the chance.

Ten minutes passed like that – they attacked, defended, jumped, leaped, dodged, whirled around. Tenten leapt over Neji, aiming a roundhouse kick at his head, and he had to roll over to dodge it. He jumped back to his feet, sighting Tenten behind him perched on a tree branch, when suddenly, he felt a sharp stinging pain at the back of his head, near his neck.

"Neji!" Tenten shrieked, as he fell on his knees to the ground, clutching his head as a shuriken clattered at his feet. His head stung, and his hair was damp – when Neji pulled his hands away, he was shocked to see that there was blood, trickling down his fingertips.

"Neji, I'm so sorry," Tenten gasped, running towards him. "Here, I'll bandage it for you," she offered.

"I'm fine," Neji muttered, attempting to bandage it himself. He couldn't however, as he couldn't quite see the scope of the injury, and finally he had to relent, allowing Tenten to do the job. She was gentle, dabbing at the cut first, her fingers parting his long locks.

Neji hated the thought of anyone touching his hair, or any part of him for that matter, but Tenten was being gentle, and it was necessary. He hissed, as searing pain jolted down his neck.

"Stay still," Tenten muttered from behind him, carefully wrapping the bandaged around his neck so that it covered the wound. She stood up wiping her blood stained hands against her capris.

"How did that happen?" she finally asked, hands on her hips, "Didn't you see that coming?"

Neji ground his teeth – it was bound to come out sooner or later, and now he'd have no choice but to reveal his secret to Tenten. He trusted her, but he had always liked having the impression of being almost indomitable.

"It's my blind spot," he said after a while, ignoring Tenten's gasp. "Every Byakugan user has one, and looks like you discovered mine."

"I'm sorry," Tenten apologized, "But – I didn't know. You should've told us earlier though, Neji. That could have caused us trouble in missions."

"Don't you dare tell Gai," he said, scowling at her. He knew it was selfish – she was right, it could jeopardize the team, that relied heavily on Neji having almost 360 degree vision. But he didn't want his secret revealed to anyone else.

"Neji," Tenten began.

"No. Just don't."

"Fine. I'll have to cover for you during missions, then."

"…that won't be necessary. I move my head, so my range still encompasses everything," Neji pointed out defensively.

"All right… but you really should have told me about this before we started training. I could have injured you worse – that shuriken barely grazed your head, Neji."

"Well now you know. So be careful where you aim."

"Neji," Tenten began hesitatingly, "Don't you think you're – too dependant on your Byakugan? I know it's very powerful, but even it has its weakness, and that could cost you in battle-"

"You have no idea what you're talking about," Neji snapped, "It's not a weakness if it can't be overcome, and I can overcome it, by moving. You're making a big deal out of nothing!"

"…fine," Tenten relented, shaking her head. "Are you up to sparring more, or do you want to cut it short and surprise Lee with an early visit?"

Neji sighed – his head was throbbing. It probably wasn't a good idea to attempt the Kaiten, which would make him dizzy.

"Let's visit Lee."

– X –

A week later, and there were only seven days left for the final rounds. Neji could now hold his Kaiten for up to five minutes, and deflect most of Tenten's arsenal, even her oversized triple bladed shuriken and maces.

"I think it's time," Neji told her one practice, and Tenten bit her lip, twisting her fingers.

"I guess so," she muttered, though she seemed reluctant.

Neji stepped into position at the centre of the training ground, and Tenten crouched a few paces away from him, removing two scrolls from her pockets. She placed them on either side of her, her brown eyes meeting his.

"Ready?" she asked.

Neji nodded.

"Okay… here goes," he heard her say, and then suddenly there was a poof of smoke as two dragons comprised of smoke twisted through the air.

"Twin Rising Dragons!" Tenten cried, leaping up, the smoke dragons entwining around her spinning figure, her scrolls whipping around her.

And then before Neji could blink, he was attacked.

Weapon after weapon after weapon flew at him, from every possible angle, at lightning speed. Tenten had pelted him with enough to provide for an entire army, Neji thought wryly, as he began spinning for his life, whirling around as he emitted as much chakra as he could.

It was exhausting – the weapons continued to come at him in relentless waves, and Neji was growing slightly dizzy, his heels aching from the spinning. He was finding it harder and harder to squeeze out more chakra from himself, but he had to, as barrage of barrage was fired at him.

Kunai. Shuriken. Senbon. Fuuma Shuriken. Mace. Scythe. Knife.

Neji felt his head spin, black splotches appearing in his vision, obfuscating the blue chakra whirring around him. He couldn't see Tenten, but he could see the weapons coming at him, nearly penetrating his chakra shield.

Soon, his legs felt like lead, and Neji felt the last drains of chakra leave him – the stream of weapons had lessened, thankfully, and a few moments later the chakra shield wisped out of existence, and Neji had to bat away the last few kunai with his hands, as blackness took over his vision.

He heard Tenten calling his name, sounding rather excited.

"I think I've used up all my chakra," he murmured, feeling extremely disoriented.

His head was spinning, his ears pounding, his vision darkening. Neji felt his legs give away under him, as he lurched forwards.

He barely felt the landing – the last thing he saw was Tenten, running towards him wide-eyed, shouting something.

And then he fainted.

– X –

When Neji regained consciousness, the first thing he saw was Tenten peering worriedly over him, her hand on his head. She quickly retracted it as his eyes fluttered open.

"Neji?" she almost shrieked, "Are you alright?"

"…yeah," he managed, struggling to sit up. He still felt slightly dizzy, and exhausted.

"You should've given me a signal to stop! You're mad! You shouldn't use up so much chakra!" Tenten was saying hysterically, "I told you Twin Rising Dragons was not a good idea! God Neji, you're as bad as Lee…"

"Tenten," he said, stopping her mid-tirade, "It's fine. I'm getting there. We'll try again tomorrow."

"No!" she shouted furiously, "I'm putting my foot down! I won't-"

He grabbed her wrist, and for some reason this shut her up effectively.

"I have to master this, Tenten," he said, his voice surprisingly coherent, "You know that."

"… you're being foolish," she whispered, staring downwards, "but fine."

The next day he did better – he was standing on his feet when Tenten finished her onslaught, hurrying towards him looking worried.

The day after, he was even better. They sparred with taijutsu for a while after, and Neji managed to retain his chakra. He figured out a way to waste less of it, decreasing the radius of his Kaiten sphere – this was more effective, since it was smaller, he could hold it out for longer. It was slightly riskier, since it allowed the weapons to come to a closer proximity to him before he could deflect them, but it served the same purpose.

Three days before the exam, Neji could deflect anything and everything Tenten threw at him with relative ease, spinning gracefully in and out of his Kaiten. They'd cut it close, but he'd managed to master it, just days before the finals. And Neji knew he owed it to her.

Lee had been moved to a different ward, and they'd been forbidden from visiting him, something which angered Tenten.

"We're his teammates!" she had protested angrily, "They can't stop us from seeing him!"

But they had, and today Neji and Tenten were about to go their respective ways after training, since visiting Lee would be pointless. It was nearly three o clock – they'd skipped lunch, and it had been a rather grueling session. They'd agreed not to meet again in the evening.

"Well, bye Neji," Tenten called as they reached the market place.

"Where are you going?" he asked, even though he knew the answer.

"Lunch," she said, as if it were obvious. It was.

Neji struggled with himself for a moment, before finally speaking.

"Would you mind if I joined you?" he asked politely.

Tenten stared at him for a moment, before grinning.

"Sure!" she said cheerfully, "C'mon, where do you want to go?"

It was the first time they'd eaten lunch alone together – they went to a simple seafood bar (Tenten knew he liked herring) and Neji found he quite enjoyed her company. It wasn't awkward at all, though he didn't speak much, allowing her to do most of the talking. Neji actually liked listening to her talk – she spoke about things which interested him. Mainly jutsus and shinobi, and things like that. She often rambled about weapons, and Neji was amused to note the way her eyes sparkled when she started on that topic. She go on passionately for minutes, raving about them. Neji didn't express much enthusiasm about anything openly, so he found this quite amusing. She certainly wasn't as annoying as Lee and Gai when they expressed their enthusiasm. Tenten was tolerable – more than tolerable.

Tenten seemed to realize that they were friends, something which relieved Neji. He didn't want her harboring the misconception that he was using her for his training. She seemed cheerier when she bade him goodbye that day, and Neji felt an odd, warm feeling blossoming in his chest. It was pleasant, and Neji realized, he actually liked having Tenten around. He enjoyed her company, and though he didn't speak much, she could tell she enjoyed his as well. It was a mutually beneficial relationship, he supposed, and one he intended to maintain.

They had two more days to practice after that, and they went for lunch on both days. It became kind of a routine after that, something which Neji much preferred to eating holed up in his room in the Hyuuga compound, or worse, sitting straight-backed at a table full of Main House members.

The day of the exam itself, they met again at the training grounds. Neji didn't feel too nervous. In fact, he felt strangely confident, and excited. He couldn't wait to show off his Kaiten, and he knew he had Tenten to thank for that.

They didn't spar or fight too hard. It would be foolish wasting chakra. Yet, Neji needed some practice, just to be on the safe side. Tenten hurled a few barrages of shuriken and kunai at Neji, and he held his Kaiten for a little under a minute, deflecting all of them perfectly. They clattered to the ground around him, forming a kind of circle.

"Perfect, Neji," Tenten complimented from behind him, and Neji detected a note of pride in her voice. "Not even a scratch!"

He smirked, turning his head towards her.

"That was enough of a warm-up. Let's go."

They made their way to the stadium where the finals were going to be held, traveling at an easy pace through the treetops. When they finally reached, there was already a large crowd of spectators, waiting to get in. Neji saw the Sand trio among them, though he couldn't spot any of the other participants.

"Well, what're you waiting for?" Tenten asked, as she began to walk towards the crowd.

"Tenten wait," Neji said suddenly, impulsively placing his hands on her shoulders.

Tenten froze, obviously shocked, and Neji wondered for a moment why he'd even reached out to her like that. He'd just reacted, without thinking, but it didn't matter to him soon. There was something he needed to tell her, which he hadn't over the past weeks.

Tenten stared up at him, brown eyes slightly wide. Neji couldn't tell if she was flustered at his proximity – he was a respectable distance away from her, but his hands were on her shoulders, and he inclined his head downwards, locking her eyes with his own.

"Thank you," Neji said sincerely, "For all your help."

I couldn't have done this without you.

Tenten hadn't been expecting that. She looked taken aback, but soon she was smiling at him, and Neji felt that pleasant warm feeling in his chest again.

"I'm glad I could help you, Neji," she said warmly, eyes twinkling. "Good luck! I know you'll do well."

He released her, nodding, and they headed inside the stadium, taking their seats. Neji spotted Hiashi, a few seats away from them, and purposefully looked away. He knew Hiashi hadn't come for him – but as a clan head, he was expected to come for such large events. He'd brought that brat, Hanabi with him as well. Neji was glad though – from where he was sitting, Hiashi would have a perfect view of him when he performed his Kaiten.

– X –

"Looks like you have something to say," Neji told Naruto, who was glaring at him with hate-filled blue eyes across the arena.

Naruto raised his fist, shaking slightly.

"I told you before," Naruto growled, "You're definitely going down."

What Neji found the oddest, was unlike Hinata, this boy actually seemed to believe in himself. It was almost amusing.

"Now for the first fight!" the proctor shouted, "Begin!"

"That's what makes it worthwhile," Neji snickered in response to Naruto, "It will be fun to watch you fall apart when you discover reality."

"Stop that blabbering!" Naruto yelled, grinning darkly. "And let's fight!"

Neji activated his Byakugan as Naruto created a horde of clones.

I can't tell which is the real him, Neji realized, he's distributed the chakra pretty evenly.

"If you're going to come, then come," he told Naruto and his doppelgangers, who stood across the arena, crouched slightly in attacking position.

"Heh," one of them chuckled, "Stop acting tough."

They charged at him, like a stamped, and Neji had to duck, jump, leap, flip over and spin to avoid all of them, simultaneously kicking out with his legs and punching. There were poofs of smoke as he took out clone after clone, but this seemed to only encourage Naruto who continued to make more.

It wasn't too difficult for Neji – he remembered sparring with Tenten, as barrages and barrages of weapons were sent flying at him, aimed lethally, and he battered them away with his bare hands. They'd been sparring without chakra that day, and Neji found it useful now, since he didn't want to use the Kaiten so early on. To Neji, each clone was no more than a kunai, or a shuriken, aimed lethally by Tenten, and Neji got rid of all of them with relative ease.

Then there was finally just one left – the real Naruto – and Neji thrust his palms out, causing him to fly back several feet, and crash to the ground.

This is the idiot who wanted to – avenge Hinata. Pathetic, useless Hinata.

"Become hokage, eh?" Neji taunted superciliously, "It's impossible, with that!"

He then commenced to verbally disparage Naruto as well, his own insecurities soon pouring out.

"The only destiny that everyone shares," Neji concluded after a while, his voice growing bitter, "Is death."

I hope you heard that, Uncle Hiashi.

"SO WHAT?" Naruto hollered, obviously unaffected as he created yet another army of shadow clones. "I'M NOT GOOD AT GIVING UP!"

Naïve idiot. He's hopeless, and yet he goes on. He's like a louder version of Hinata.

"I can already see through your attack pattern," Neji scoffed, "I'm not stupid."

"I told you to stop deciding things!" Naruto screeched back, charging at him with his multitudinous clones.

Neji fought back like he had the first time – it was slightly tougher, but not impossible, even without the Kaiten. He noticed one of the clones was staying back, preferring not to attack whilst the others dissipated into smoke.

That's the real him, Neji realized, dashing towards the clone, chakra glowing at his fingertips.

He pressed. Naruto went limp.

"Fearing having your points pressed, your body is doing the least amount of attacking," Neji said grimly, "The more you attack, the clearer it becomes. You're the real one."

Blood pooled out between Naruto's lips, but to Neji's surprise, he looked up, grinning wildly.

"That's why I told you it was useless," Neji went on, feeling slightly disconcerted at Naruto's expression.

"Hehe," he sniggered, "That's why I told you to stop automatically deciding things!"

And with a poof of smoke, he was gone.

"WHAT?" Neji almost shouted, "NO WAY!"

He heard cheers from the crowd – he shouldn't have cared, but it bothered him slightly. His eyes flickered over the stands, and he saw Tenten, clasping her hands together; she didn't look worried though. She just wasn't cheering along with the rest of them. There was no need to be worried. Tenten knew his jutsu well – and he hadn't even begun to use the heavier ones in his arsenal.

His eyes found hers, and he nodded slightly. She was gazing at him intensely, and he could almost hear her voice in his head.

Neji… stop showing off… just use it already…

Neji grit his teeth, as Naruto charged at him again, screaming something about how he should prepare to die.

Don't worry about me, Tenten. I guess it's time for me to take this fight a little seriously.

Clones were flying towards him, like oversized orange kunai, and Neji smirked slightly, sliding the heel of his foot along the dust, his muscles tense.

And then he was spinning. It was like he was at the training fields again, with Tenten firing her weapons at him – Neji spun and spun and spun, blue chakra leaking out from his body, forming the protective sphere of the Kaiten.

Take that, Hiashi. Take that, Main House.

He heard Naruto yelling, as he failed to get past the barrier, Neji's chakra searing his skin.

Neji soon stopped, standing perfectly still in the shallow crater his attack had formed, as Naruto panted heavily, weakened visibly by Neji's jutsu.

"You thought… you had won?" Neji asked suavely, resisting the urge to look over at the stands to see Hiashi's face.

Naruto struggled up, as Neji fluidly slid into his next position, bending his legs and stretching his arms out.

"You are know within my range," he informed Naruto, who was staring at him dumbstruck.

He gathered chakra to his hands, focusing on his target.

"Eight trigrams, sixty-four palms!" Neji cried out, before leaping at Naruto.

For the next few moments, he was jabbing at Naruto forcefully, striking chakra point after chakra point.

"Two palms! Four palms!"

Are you watching, Hiashi? Are you watching as I, a mere Branch House member surpasses your acclaimed Main House?

"Eight palms! Sixteen palms! Thirty-two palms!"

Naruto grunted, and Neji struck out at him once more, doubling the speed of his strikes.

"Sixty-four palms!" he concluded, feeling rather satisfied as Naruto coughed on the ground at his feet.

"Ugh…" Naruto moaned.

"I have hit sixty-four points on your body, you can no longer stand," Neji deemed necessary to enlighten him of this fact. "Painful, isn't it? Stay on your knees before a power you cannot change and realize your worthlessness," he added spitefully.

Naruto continued to whimper on the ground, body wracked by violent tremors as he struggled to stand back up.

"I told you," Naruto managed shakily, cracking an eye open, "I'm not – good at – giving up!"

This guy… impossible…

"Why – if you're this strong," Naruto grunted, "Why, with those eyes that can see everything – did you mentally attack Hinata, who was trying so hard?"

Neji narrowed his eyes.

What the hell is he blathering about?

"That's none of your business," Neji said coolly.

"Insulting Hinata and automatically deciding she's a loser!" Naruto went on, his voice louder, "Main family… branch family… I don't know what the hell happened…"

Don't go there, Naruto, Neji thought, clenching his fists, don't you dare go there.

"But pieces of shit like you who call people losers… I WILL NEVER FORGIVE!" Naruto roared, and Neji had to hold himself back, trying to maintain his calm.

"Alright," he said finally, struggling to keep his voice calm, "If you're going to go that far, then I'll tell you…"

Are you listening, Hiashi?

Neji didn't know what prompted him to make that decision. He'd kept it all bottled inside him, only entrusting Tenten with the information. But now, he was boiling with anger, and the controlled façade he had maintained over the years burst, and Neji poured out his woes in front of the entire, eerily silent arena.

"I'll tell you," Neji hissed, his voice malicious, "The Hyuuga destiny of hatred."

Let them all hear it. Let them all know how cursed the Hyuuga really are. Let them all know what the Main House does behind closed doors. Let the Hyuuga clan be ripped of all its pretences and shown as what it really is!

He recounted his history, his voice hard as steel, dripping with acid. He didn't tear up or shake this time like he had when telling Tenten – that had been different. He spoke with a loud, carrying voice, looking up at Hiashi with eyes full of loathing as he spoke, his voice full of venom.

"You're destiny," Neji finished, turning his gaze back on Naruto, "Is to lose to me. There is no doubt."

"Well we won't know until it's over!" Naruto retorted angrily, "I don't know how much it hurt that your dad was killed a long time ago, but thinking that destiny is all decided because of that is a huge mistake!"

"You're hopeless," Neji said contemptuously, and Naruto rushed at him again.

Neji punched him, hard, and surveyed him as he lay in a crumpled heap on the ground, yet again.

"Examiner," Neji said slowly, turning his back to Naruto. "It's over... damn loser."

"D-don't – run – away," he heard a voice behind him.

He's insane.

"I won't run," Naruto coughed, "I don't go back on my word."

Neji turned to him, a cold expression plastered across his face.

"I've heard that before," Neji mocked.

"There's no way I'll lose," Naruto repeated, "To a coward who's always whining about destiny."

Neji frowned, anger rising within him again.

"An ignorant brat like you shouldn't be lecturing," he said tightly, slowly losing his calm, "People are born with a destiny they cannot oppose… YOU COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND WHAT IT'S LIKE TO BE BURDENED WITH A SYMBOL YOU COULD NEVER RID YOURSELF OF!"

Naruto looked at him strangely for a moment, before speaking, his voice a whisper.

"Yes… I can…" Naruto said, almost to himself.

Neji glowered at him.

"Pft! Stop acting cool. You're not the only one that's special!" Naruto ranted, "Hinata too! She's suffered as much as you have!"

You have no idea what you're talking about! Special?

"A member of the Main Family – but not acknowledged! Trying her best to change herself… thinking that as she was coughing blood fighting you! You're the same! The Branch Family is supposed to protect the Main Family, you said! But doing that to Hinata – in truth, you're trying your hardest to disobey destiny!"

Neji cursed under his breath, though he had to admit Naruto had a point. Attacking Hinata had been an act completely antithetical to what his destiny demanded of him.

"Your sixty-four points are closed," Neji said, changing the topic, "How will you fight me without chakra?"

Naruto retaliated by shouting again, and Neji's patience was dwindling rapidly. Naruto reminded him almost frustratingly of Lee.

"Can I ask you one thing?" Neji said finally after a few more minutes of verbal slashing, "Why do you fight so hard against your destiny?"

Naruto squeezed his eyes shut, forming a seal, and Neji was shocked to see the ground steaming around him.

What is happening?

"Because I was called a loser!" Naruto bellowed, and suddenly, there was chakra, orange chakra, pouring out of his body, hissing and steaming.

Neji gaped at him, eyes wide.

How is this possible? This chakra – how can he – access it!

The chakra swirled around Naruto, frothing and bubbling viciously, and Neji stared, searching desperately with his Byakugan, trying to figure out what was happening.

It's wrapping around him – what is that?

Naruto leapt at him again, the orange chakra fizzing around him, and Neji noticed his speed had increased greatly.

He whipped out a kunai, hurling it at Naruto, but there was a clash as Naruto's own kunai met his.

"Hey, you're confident in close combat, right?" Naruto taunted, "I don't know about this Hyuga destiny of hatred or whatever – but if it's too much for you then you don't have to do anymore!"

Naruto rushed at him, and Neji prepared himself, sliding into his stance.

"WHEN I BECOME HOKAGE – I'LL CHANGE THE HYUUGA!"

"Kaiten!" Neji yelled in response, and his blue chakra melded with Naruto's flaring orange chakra, the two chakra whirring against each other for a few moments, as Neji continued to spin.

This is insane… worse than Twin Rising Dragons… I can't keep up much longer… what is he?

And then suddenly, there was a resounding, ground-shattering explosion and Neji was sent flying backwards, crashing to the ground.

There was silence. Neji groaned, feeling pain sear up his body – he'd never felt anything like it. A few bones were broken, he could tell, and his head was throbbing. He had to win though. He struggled up, staggering towards a hole, finding Naruto's curled up at the bottom.

And then suddenly, there was a poof of smoke, as the clone disappeared, and something burst out from the ground, and a fist crashed into Neji's chin, sending him flying upwards, and then hurtling down.

How? This cannot be happening.

"Ugh," Neji groaned, as pain wracked his body, "To quickly use the kage bunshin in that situation… your main ninjutsu, huh? How careless of me…"

This cannot be happening. He cannot defeat me! He was a born loser!

"I failed my academy exam three times," Naruto admitted, his standing form coming into Neji's vision. "That's because unluckily for me, the final exam ninjutsu was always my weakest ninjutsu. Kage bunshin. That was my weakest ninjutsu."

If it was his weakest – how could he have…

"Destiny can't be changed, blah blah," Naruto went on, "Stop whining about stupid crap like that! Since you're not a loser like me."

His words buzzed in Neji's ears, their meaning washing over him – it was an epiphanic moment. The crowd was cheering loudly as Naruto was declared the winner, and a resounding applause filled the arena, but it was all lost to Neji. He only pondered Naruto's words again and again, his gaze shifting to a bird, gliding freely through the sky.

Hayate turned to him, at that moment.

"Even a captured bird, if it's clever enough, will try to open the cage with it's beak," he said, looking at Neji meaningfully. "Never giving up its desire to fly in the sky."

Neji continued to follow the bird's flight in the sky, as it winged over the arena. He felt himself being hoisted onto a stretcher, but he continued to watch the bird, as his vision blurred before him.

He didn't know how long it was, as he lay on the moving stretcher, which was then placed down. Thoughts inundated his head, thoughts about his fight with Naruto. His mind was in turmoil.

He was in the hospital room now, he realized. There was a hard knock on the door, and Neji turned his head slightly, expecting to meet the worried brown eyes of Tenten.

Instead, he was met with white eyes that mirrored his own, and sharp features set into a grim expression.

"What do you want?" Neji snapped, struggling into a sitting position.

Hiashi's hard expression softened, into something akin to sorrow – how was that even possible?

"I came," he said in a low, sorrowful tone, "To tell you the truth about that day."

Neji was silent, waiting for him to continue.

"That time," Hiashi said, his eyes flicking to the ground for a moment, "I fully intended to die."

"WHAT?" Neji raged, "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? THAT TIME MY FATHER WAS KILLED TO TAKE YOUR PLACE!"

Hiashi sighed heavily, before he began to recount his side of the tale.

– X –

Neji stared ahead, his heart pounding against his chest, head spinning from the news that Hiashi had just revealed from him.

Hiashi – his uncle – from the Main Family – who was kneeling on the floor, his head bowed.

"Believe me," Hiashi begged, and Neji gasped, his eyes filling with tears.

"Please…raise your head," Neji muttered, feeling exceedingly awkward, and rather overwhelmed.

His father had asked to die. The Hyuuga hadn't forced him. His father had volunteered for it, wanted it.

Tears streamed down Neji's face as he digested this news, news that shattered the disillusions he had harbored for years, disillusions which had dictated his attitude and outlook on life.

His father had escaped his fate, in the only possible way he could. Just to prove the fact that nothing was fated. Nothing was pre-decided. One could always change their destiny. Hizashi Hyuuga, his father, had chosen death.

Mixed feelings inundated Neji's mind – there was relief, overwhelming relief – as the bitterness ebbed away – only to partly be replaced by guilt.

The Hyuuga… Hinata… they'd never really wronged him. And he had been so cruel, so vengeful. Especially to Hianta, who had always tried to show kindness towards him.

Father… Neji thought, a rare, peaceful smile lifting his lips, I have but one goal now. I want to become stronger, so as to not lose to anyone.

His eyes turned to the open window, once again finding the brown birds as they dipped and danced across the blue sky.

Father the birds are flying freely today… they look so happy… perhaps one day even I shall find such happiness…

Neji's spirit lifted even more when a flustered looking Tenten burst into his room moments later, her expression troubled.

She paused at the door, however, looking at him a bit dubiously. His calm expression must have unnerved her – Tenten had fully prepared herself for a rather temperamental, angry or brooding Neji.

"Neji," she began, biting her lip, unsure of what to say.

Neji smiled at her – a genuine smile, and her eyes widened.

"It's alright, Tenten," he said softly, "It's alright."

She stood there, staring at him for a moment, before coming to sit on a wooden chair at his bedside. Neji leaned against the wall, meeting her questioning gaze.

"Hiashi just came here," he explained quickly, and Tenten gasped. "It was all just a misunderstanding," Neij continued, "My dad – he wanted to die. He gave himself up to thwart the Hyuuga concept of destiny. It's all alright now."

He was speaking to himself then, almost forgetting she was even in the room, until Tenten spoke up.

"I'm glad you – you realized that Neji," she said, "And I'm glad you sorted everything out with your clan."

"Not Hinata," Neji pointed out.

"Are you – going to apologize to her?" Tenten asked, but Neji shook his head.

"I'll – make it up to her in some way. What use is apologizing."

Tenten smiled at him, still looking slightly unsure of herself.

"That's great, Neji. That's really great. You fought well, by the way. I'm – um – I'm proud of you!"

She looked down as she said this, not meeting his eyes, though Neji found he appreciated her praise far more than Hiashi's when he had congratulated him after the second task.

"You helped a lot," Neji admitted, gazing at her, "And I shall always be grateful for it."

For some reason, Tenten continued to refuse to meet his eyes.

"It was nothing," she mumbled, laughing slightly. "I guess – I'll go now! And – watch the rest of the matches! Seeya, Neji!"

And then she scampered out of the room, leaving a slightly bemused Neji staring after her.

– X –

Tenten popped back in, nearly an hour later. Her face was flushed, and Neji straightened slightly, eager to here about the battles.

"I just saw the longest, but possibly most boring match ever," she informed him.

"Wasn't it supposed to be the Uchiha's match next?" Neji asked, feeling slightly impatient to know the outcome.

"Oh no," Tenten shook her head, "He's disappeared. No one knows where he is, and they're supposed to disqualify him and let that Gaara kid win by default. But they didn't want to because apparently everyone wanted to see him fight, so they've postponed his match."

"Favoritism for the Uchiha," Neji muttered, feeling slightly resentful.

Though he bore no grudge against the Hyuuga any longer, he didn't particularly favor the Uchiha.

"Yeah, well," Tenten laughed slightly, flicking back her bangs, "So they had the match between that puppet-guy from the Sand and Shino, but the puppet-guy forfeit-"

"Coward," Neji couldn't help but say.

"I agree. So then they had Shikamaru versus Temari," Tenten said excitedly, "And guess what? Temari lost - well kind of!"

"What?" Neji asked, genuinely surprised. Though Shikamaru had seemed talented, from the fight with Tenten, Temari had also seemed incredibly talented. Or maybe she had just been lucky that Tenten's forte was weapons.

"Yeah, it took ages, but Shikamaru finally devised some strategy with his shadows to trap Temari. And when he was finally about to win – he was using his Shadow Copy jutsu to make her forfeit – and then he chickened out and forfeited himself! So technically, she won – though he'd beaten her, that much was obvious!"

"You said Temari lost?"

"It was obvious, he had a huge advantage over her in the end. She didn't actually lose – but I wouldn't consider that a win either!" Tenten said, and it was obvious from her tone that she looked down upon Temari's victory.

Neji smirked slightly – she was obviously a bit bitter over her fight with Temari a month back.

"I don't know why he'd forfeit though, when he was about to win! That's idiotic!"

"Not really," Neji said thoughtfully, "They promote shinobi based on how well they display their talents, not if they win or lose. He must have realized this, and seeing that he'd displayed everything he had to, he forfeit. It made sense – if he'd used up his chakra, then why fight the next battle?"

"Well if you put it that way…" Tenten said, not sounding too convinced, "Anyways, Sasuke's match should be starting soon… if he comes back that is. I'll see you later!"

Neji never did see Tenten later. He was shocked however, when a few ANBU slipped into the room, escorting him to safety – an underground basement in the hospital. They didn't reveal much about what was going on, except for a mutter of "Sand betrayed us, we're under attack'.

Fear and panic rose up in Neji, along with frustration. Tenten was the first person he could think of – he hoped she was safe. And then Lee, who was in the hospital, though he'd probably been escorted to safety as well. And then Gai – he'd surely fight, and the Hyuuga. As much as he'd resented his clan previously, Neji didn't want any of them dying in the attack. He was frustrated that he couldn't fight – he was sure Tenten was helping out, as her duty as a kunoichi demanded, and Neji wished more than anything that he could be fighting alongside her.

He was also concerned. It was scary, because Neji had never been this concerned over anyone before – but he was concerned about Tenten's safety, and he didn't know exactly where she was, or precisely what she was doing and it infuriated him.

And Sand – Neji felt a wave of loathing towards the Sand. Temari was from the Sand. Temari, the redhead and the puppet-user – they'd all probably entered the exam for the sole purpose of betraying the Leaf and invading.

No wonder they were so powerful, Neji realized, no normal genin, no matter how skilled, could have been that powerful. They were probably trained assassins or something.

Neji waited for what seemed like agonizing hours until an ANBU finally entered the dingy room, which was filled with injured occupants (Neji had been so immersed in his thoughts that he'd barely realized) and informed them the Leaf was safe. They had prevailed, and the Sand had retreated.

Cheers filled the room, and the ANBU said something about Naruto Uzumaki. Neji was shocked – from what he heard, Naruto was responsible for much of their victory. He soon learnt that the Hyuuga had fought as well, defending the village. There had been casualties, though no Hyuuga casualties, something which relieved him.

Neji was still inexplicably anxious over Tenten's state – he'd asked around, but no one seemed to know about where she was or what had happened to her. Frustrated, amidst the chaos, Neji finally managed to escape his hospital bed. It wasn't too difficult, and he'd recovered partially. He was in no fighting state, but he could easily leap around the village.

He found her, after fifteen minutes of searching with his Byakugan. She was relatively unharmed, except for a few scratches, and was stowing away her scrolls.

"Neji!" she shouted, sighting him, and she leapt up, "What are you doing here?"

"I – wanted to know the state of the village," Neji admitted, glancing over her. She seemed more or less fine physically, though she seemed rather upset.

"You're supposed to be in bed!" she scolded exasperatedly.

"I'm fine," he told her firmly, and Tenten seemed to sense it was pointless arguing.

"I have bad news," she said after a moment, and Neji noticed her eyes were watering.

"What? What happened?" he asked quickly, and Tenten bit her lip. When she spoke, her voice was choked up.

"The Hokage, Neji… he's dead. He – died defending the village…"

Neji stared at her, his mind blank for a few moments.

"…"

"He was – killed by – Orochimaru – the Sannin…" Tenten continued, bowing her head. "They're holding a – a funeral tomorrow morning. For him and all the other casualties."

"That's terrible," Neji finally said, "Is there – anyone else that we-"

"No," Tenten said, "I met Gai a couple minutes back. He is fine and so is Lee. Naruto and Sasuke are the worst injured from the genin. They're in the hospital, but they'll live, it's nothing serious. Apparently Naruto fought off Gaara, who was a jinchuuriki too!"

"A – what?" Neji asked, not quite believing his ears.

"A junchuuriki," Tenten repeated, "Shocking, I know…"

"That explains why he was so insanely powerful," Neji murmured, "And his odd chakra…"

"Anyways, Neji – I think you should get back. Hiashi was asking me about you…"

Neji raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I don't know how he knows me, but he seemed to. He was worried. Hinata was in the hospital too, earlier."

"What? Why?" Neji asked, guilt welling up inside him.

"From – before," Tenten said vaguely, though they both knew it was because of him.

"I better head back to the compound then," Neji muttered with mixed feelings. Oddly enough, it was the first time he'd ever felt compelled to go back to the place.

"I'm going to go check up on Lee," Tenten nodded at him, "I'll see you tomorrow."

They parted ways, and Neji made his way to the compound, taking in the destruction around him. The arena seemed to be worst off, and a few buildings had shattered windows and dented walls. Most noticeable was the Hokage tower – a large jungle seemed to have sprouted on the roof. Overall, however, the village had retained its original appearance.

When Neji arrived at the Hyuuga compound, he was greeted by a relieved looking Hiashi.

"Are you well, Neji?" he asked, and Neji nodded numbly.

"Yes, Hiashi-sama," he answered politely, his voice and manner devoid of it's usual underlying insolence. He hesitated for a moment, before asking the question he'd been meaning to.

"How is Hinata-sama?"

Hiashi frowned slightly, before replying calmly.

"She is still recuperating from her injuries."

"When will – she recover fully?" Neji asked dutifully, feeling rather uncomfortable.

"A day or two," Hiashi said, and Neji sighed inwardly, slightly relieved. At least this way he wouldn't have to go visit her in her room.

Neji bore no grudge against Hinata, and was genuinely repentant for his earlier mistreatment of his cousin. However, he wasn't exactly comfortable with speaking to her, though he made up his mind that he would mend his relations with her in the future.

– X –

After the Hokage's funeral, which had been a grievous event through out Konoha, the village soon bounced back into normalcy.

Lee was still in the hospital, and Gai watched over him most of the time. It was heartbreaking for the duo, and sad for Neji and Tenten as well, who made frequent visits, often lunching and dining with poor Lee in his lonely hospital room.

Lee had tried to break out multiple times – they'd caught him hobbling along on his crutches once, and after Tenten shouted her lungs out at him, they helped him back to the hospital. Neji knew it hurt Tenten seeing Lee like this; somewhere within him, it pained him as well. Lee had always been so determined, and Neji had to admit he had been talented. Now Neji believed that Lee could have defied his fates and turned into a respected shinobi. It was unfortunate that he had to have his dreams crushed before his eyes.

Since Lee and Gai weren't available for training, Neji and Tenten continued the habit they had picked up before the finals, and trained together three or four times each week. This time, however, they trained on Tenten's jutsus as well as Neji's, and devoted more time to taijutsu sparring. A couple of times they'd eat lunch together too, after that, if they didn't go visit Lee. They'd dine at Ichiraku's or the Sushi bar, or the seafood restaurant.

They stayed over at the hospital on a couple nights, taking turns, to relieve Gai. Though Neji found himself growing gradually closer to his clan, namely Hiashi, he still spent most of his time with his teammates, namely Tenten – or alone.

He mainly met Hiashi only in the mornings and nights, but took the opportunity to speak to his uncle, even if their conversations were brief and limited. Hiashi had even offered to train him, something which flattered Neji. He'd considered the offer, but then politely declined. He didn't know if he was up to it yet, (he wasn't that comfortable with his uncle at the point) though he'd probably take it up later. Moreover, he dedicated most of his training time with Tenten, and he wasn't about to leave her after everything she'd done to help him. And though it surprised him, Neji actually enjoyed spending time with her – it was preferable to spending time with anyone else. Though Neji actively tried to mend ties with his clan, he still remained a rather solitary person, preferring only Tenten's company, second to his own solitude.

He would invariably come across Hinata as well. Though Neji didn't speak to her much, for they didn't have too much to talk about, he would nod at her politely, and greet her, sometimes asking her how she was doing. Hinata would reply just as politely, stammering slightly, addressing him rather awkwardly. Their exchanges barely lasted more than a few formalities, but it was an improvement, and Neji knew that Hinata could tell. Usually, he'd send her a death glare and scorn her rather cruelly. Hanabi, on the other hand, he never bothered with. She was much younger than him, anyhow. Neji barely ever saw her, and didn't even know if she'd been enrolled in the academy.

Neji found himself training alone quite a lot. Though Tenten helped him improve a lot, there was a limited amount of help she could offer him with his Byakugan. And Neji's current goal was to improve the scope and range of his vision, as well as find some kind of a remedy for his one weakness, his blind spot. Tenten had emphasized this as well, after she'd nearly injured him for the second time during on of their sparring sessions. Luckily, she'd had razor wires attached to her weapons, and could pull the kunai back before it hit Neji, after slipping through his blind area.

"You need to do something about it, Neji!" she had cried, "You rely so much on your Byakugan, this whole Blind Spot thing is really dangerous! If an enemy discovers it, you're done for!"

"No enemy will find out, Tenten," Neji had assured her, "You are the only person who knows about it."

"Still, it makes me uneasy," she had said, shaking her head. "Can't you fix it?"

"I can't," he had snapped, a bit too harshly, "But I'm trying, alright! Don't presume I don't already know about the dangers, Tenten, because I am well aware, and I am training alone for exactly that purpose!"

That day he was alone at the clearing, concentrating on his surroundings, Byakugan activated. Neji searched through the trees, perfectly still, trying to count the number of birds hidden in the foliage.

Seven birds, he counted, seven birds, 2 o clock, behind me…

Suddenly, there was a rustle in the bushes, and Neji turned around, sighting a familiar figure from the back of his head.

"Tenten?" he asked, wondering why she had come. The previous day she'd told him that she wouldn't be able to make it for training.

He quickly counted the birds that flew out of the bushes, startled by the disturbance.

One… two… three… four… five… six… seven… eight?

Tenten jumped out, panting slightly. When she spoke, her tone was excited, though Neji was rather distracted.

Damnit, I missed another bird! This blind spot…

"Hey Neji! Tsunade-sama has returned!" Tenten cried animatedly, "The real one! Want to go check her out?"

Slightly annoyed that she'd disturbed him for something so trivial – he thought she'd come to train with him – Neji dismissed her immediately. He was still hyperventilating inwardly about his blind spot, and had no time to go see some old kunoichi, even if she was one of the Sannin.

"Sorry, not interested," he told her bluntly, before resuming his training, feeling rather frustrated with himself. It didn't seem to matter how hard he trained – he just couldn't do anything about his blind spot.

Tenten disappeared moments later, and Neji caught the slightly disappointed look on her face, but paid it no heed.

It was only forty minutes later, when he stopped the entire process, realizing he'd done as much as he could for the day, that he remembered, feeling slightly guilty.

Tsunade-sama has always been Tenten's idol, Neji recalled, No wonder she was so excited…

He met her that evening at the hospital, and after they'd left a bawling Lee (it had been Sakura he was depressing over, not his condition, and hence Neji and Tenten both had no solace to offer him) he asked her about Tsunade.

"Oh, she's absolutely amazing," Tenten gushed, her brown eyes sparkling, "I met her – she's going to check on Lee, you know! I bet she'll be able to heal him, she's a renowned medical ninja, the best Konoha's ever had! You know, they're talking of making her the Fifth Hokage…"

As Tenten had said, Tsunade was inducted as Hokage a few days later. Most of Konoha had been at her ceremony, though Neji noted that Gai and Lee were both absent. He and Tenten left early from their sparring (on Tenten's insistence) so they could stand in the front. They ended up standing with Hiashi and Hanabi, and a few other Hyuuga members. Hiashi did seem to know Tenten, as they even conversed politely for a few moments, and Neji was surprised to see that Hiashi seemed to approve of her as well. Though Hiashi wasn't particularly warm, (he never was, even with his own family) he didn't treat Tenten with the usual indifference he did others, and Neij wondered why. He wondered if Hiashi would harbor the same attitude if he saw Lee and Gai, engaging in their ridiculous antics of youth. Tenten, however, had been rather excited with the whole affair, staring up with starry eyes as Tsunade made her acceptance speech. Neji had to admit it was heartening as well, seeing one of the Legendary Sannin step up to take the position that had been left empty after Sarutobi-sama's demise. Though he'd had his initial doubts (they'd never had a female Hokage before, but he'd chosen not to voice this opinion to Tenten) Tsunade seemed impressive enough. If she managed to heal Lee though – now that would be creditable.

Unfortunately, Neji and Tenten soon learned from a tearful Gai, that Tsunade didn't have high hopes for Lee either. She'd said that the success rate for his surgery was only 50%. If she didn't operate, he'd never have a chance to be a shinobi again. If she did operate, but didn't succeed – Lee would die. Neji had felt a wild, lurching feeling in his heart when he'd heard this news. Tenten had covered her mouth with her hands, sinking on to a nearby chair.

The next couple of days had been grim – both Neji and Tenten weren't able to put their hearts out while sparring, when they knew that Lee's fate and condition rested on such a delicate thread. They finally learnt that Lee would be taking the surgery.

Apparently, Tsunade had toiled assiduously, poring over her books, finding away to increase the success rate of the surgery – be a mere four percent. However, this was enough for Lee, and he agreed to the surgery. Neji, Tenten and Gai had waited for sleepless hours, pacing outside his room, until Tsunade finally stepped out, with bags under her amber eyes.

She nodded at them, smiling slightly.

"Success."

Tenten had gasped loudly, choking back a sob, and even Neji heaved a sigh of relief. Gai, on the other hand, collapsed to the floor, tears streaming down his face, breaking down completely. Gai and Tenten had begged to see Lee, but Tsunade had been firm, denying them this request. He was still in critical condition, and he wouldn't be allowed any visitors until the operation was completely finished.

They met him the next evening – it had been a rather emotional moment for Team Gai. Gai and Lee both broke down, and Neji thought that even Tenten was trying to hold back her tears as she hugged Lee fiercely. Neji felt an odd, uncomfortable feeling rise up within him when he witnessed this – he felt inexplicably annoyed with both Tenten and Lee, though he didn't know why. Neji didn't make any moves towards hugging Lee himself. Lee hadn't tried hugging Neji either. They both knew that the equation between them wasn't exactly perfect.

"I'm glad you are well," Neji had said sincerely, and Lee had smiled slightly at him in response, nodding.

Neji and Lee had never been that close. Neji was much closer to Tenten, and Lee to Gai, though Neji knew that Lee ever preferred Tenten over him. They both did. However, he wanted to amend their relationship, and intended to be nicer to Lee in the future, no matter how annoying he may find the boy. Neji supposed that only after being faced with the concept of losing Lee altogether, did he realize that he actually appreciated his teammate, even if just a little initially.

For one thing, he had realized that without Lee's presence on Team Gai, Gai would have probably dumped his insanity on himself and Tenten. At least with Lee's presence, and ebullience regarding the matter, the madness was restricted. The thought had led to a particularly insightful conversation with Tenten while they ate ramen one day. They'd both imagined having to live a life wearing spandex and acting youthful, and simultaneously gagged on their noodles, though Tenten had erupted into giggles a few seconds later.

When Lee was finally discharged from the hospital, Gai treated them all to dinner. It had been a rambunctious affair, with Lee and Gai making loud proclamations about the flames of youth, twice as boisterous as usual. But for once, Neji hadn't minded – he knew both of them had gone through hell over the past few weeks – and as he exchanged a smile with Tenten, who sat on his right, as usual, he knew that she didn't as well.

They started team practices after that – Lee wasn't allowed to do much though, except a few laps and taijutsu positions. It infuriated him to end having to just watch, though Tenten offered to teach him about weapons. After he nearly hit Neji's nose with a poorly aimed shuriken (which Tenten had to deflect with one of her own), earning himself a frigid glare from Neji and a long lecture from Tenten about how exactly to grip kunai, they had decided that maybe target practice wasn't such a good idea for Lee. He had power and speed, but no accuracy whatsoever, and it pained Tenten to see her precious weapons miss their targets.

Life seemed quite peaceful, and for once without any conflict, for Neji. Unfortunately, this didn't last very long. A few days later, as Neji was on his way to a morning spar with Tenten, he was waylaid by Shikamaru and Naruto. Shikamaru looked rather annoyed (which wasn't unusual for him) and Naruto looked extremely disturbed and tense.

"Neji!" Naruto screeched, "Neji! You gotta help us!"

"What is it?" Neji asked, crossing his arms. He'd grudgingly begun to respect Naruto, but he still found him rather irritating.

"Sasuke's gone!" Naruto almost yelled, before Shikamaru stopped him with a hand gesture, before speaking.

"Sasuke Uchiha has left the village," Shikamaru drawled, "And Tsunade-sama has put me in charge of gathering all the genin. We have a mission to retrieve him, and since I'm Chuunin, I'm your captain. Even Chouji and Kiba are coming. It's all so troublesome…"

Initially, Neji had been shocked, at two things. Firstly, that the Uchiha had left. Though Neji didn't care much about that brat and his doings, it was odd for a ninja to just randomly leave the village. Secondly, he hadn't known that Shikamaru had been promoted. He'd thought that the exams had been cancelled because of the invasion. For some reason, word of Shikamaru's promotion had never reached him. However, Neji knew the Nara probably wouldn't have a reason to lie.

"Why did he leave?" Neji asked.

"Orochimaru took him!" Naruto shouted before Shikamaru could speak, "We have to get him back! That bastard!"

Neji wasn't so sure if he wanted to go on the mission. He wasn't fond of the Uchiha, and he felt more comfortable with his teammates. He doubted Tenten would be with him on this mission – he'd be with a bunch of rookies a year below him, who he barely spoke to. Still, if the Hokage had ordered it, it was his duty to go. It would help him grow as a shinobi.

"When do we leave?" he asked finally, seeing that they expected a response.

"Like, right now!" Naruto yelled, "Come on!"

Neji followed him reluctantly. He would have liked to inform Tenten first, but he couldn't be late for a mission. And this was obviously some kind of an emergency. Tenten would find out, sooner or later.

When they reached the gate, Chouji and Kiba were there waiting for them, with Akamaru.

"Why are no Jounin or ANBU taking this mission?" Neji felt compelled to ask, but Shikamaru just shrugged.

"Don't ask me. I wish there were, than at least we wouldn't have to do this… this is gonna be such a drag," he groaned.

Neji sensed a familiar chakra, and whirled around.

"Lee!" he called, "What are you doing here?"

"I also happen to know what's going on," Lee replied, walking forwards steadily. He then sighed. "During times like this, I want to-"

"Lee," Neji interrupted, realizing where Lee was going. Lee looked at him determinedly, and Neji stared back, just as hard.

"There are other things you need to worry about," Neji said emphatically, shaking his head slightly. There was no way he was letting his teammate come on a mission when his physical situation wasn't yet entirely stable.

Lee's face fell, but he didn't contradict Neji, shrugging his shoulders, as Naruto, Chouji and Kiba argued over who was going to lead the mission, finally settling on Shikamaru. Though it irked Neji slightly, to have someone younger than him his superior and leader, Shikamaru was higher ranked, and hence he couldn't express his discontent. Neji decided he would just obey Shikamaru's orders. Though lazy, he seemed intelligent and reasonable enough, and relatively tolerable, especially when compared to Naruto.

Shikamaru explained the strategy, and Neji had to admit, he'd thought up a pretty ingenious plan, pretty quickly, using all of their individual strengths for the benefit of the group as a whole. Neji himself would be scouting at the rear due to his Byakugan.

They were about to leave, when they were stopped by a tearful Sakura, who came running to speak to Naruto.

She was crying, and Naruto promised her something, as Neji's thoughts wandered back to Tenten. Knowing her, she'd probably be annoyed that she was left out on a mission, but it was obvious that Shikamaru had orders only to take shinobi, not kunoichi. He'd told Sakura this as well.

Finally, they left, leaping out into the forest in formation, Neji scouting the rear with his Byakugan.

They made quite a distance without having to engage in combat, or sensing the enemy. Naruto nearly triggered a trap, but Shikamaru stopped him just in time with his shadow jutsu. It was then that Neji managed to sight the enemy, quietly informing the other four. He found a familiar form as well, bundles inside a barrel. It seemed to be Sasuke, but Neji wasn't too sure. Shikamaru quickly concocted a strategy, but before they could attack, there was a loud explosion.

Neji and Shikamaru were blasted away from the others, and they struggled up, quickly putting Shikamaru's plan into action, as Kiba released smoke bombs. Soon enough, the enemy were trapped by Shikamaru's shadow, the plan having worked almost flawlessly.

There were four of them – three males and one female, all from the Sound, the barrel containing Sasuke carefully tucked away somewhere.

Unfortunately, their plan toppled upside down, and the five Leaf genin found themselves trapped within a large clay wall. Kiba attempted to pierce the wall with his jutsu, but the moment he created a dent, the clay thickened, resealing it.

"Did you see that?" Kiba shouted, not believing his eyes.

"I did," Neji murmured, carefully scanning the wall with his Byakugan. His stomach plummeted when he realized what was happening. He felt an odd feeling, as if his chakra was being pulled out of him.

"This is no ordinary clay wall…" Neji said, "This is…this isn't looking good. Our chakra is being sucked dry!"

The shinobi sat there for a while, thinking and despairing. Kiba and Naruto both attempted more jutsu on the wall, but to no avail. It repaired itself almost instantly, sucking out more and more chakra with it.

Shikamaru then attempted to fool the leader through words, which Naruto and Kiba seemed to misunderstand, and began bickering. Chouji produced a packet of chips, and started gobbling them down ravenously.

This is futile, Neji thought, suddenly missing Tenten and Lee. It was obvious that the wall sucked up chakra, but a lot of Tenten's jutsus used only weapons, without any chakra. What they needed at that moment was some ridiculously large weapon… or Lee's continuous but powerful taijutsu, which didn't utilize chakra.

He was reminded of the time he and Lee had taken down a tree during their very first training test with Gai. Lee had pounded away at the tree with his kicks, and then Neji had aimed one precise, chakra-infused punch to the bark, cracking what had seemed like unbreakable wood.

That's it, Neji realized, that's the key to getting out of this mess!

"The walls around us are heavily shielded with enemy chakra," Neji said aloud, "Even if you damage them a little, they will repair themselves just as quickly. This means if we are to penetrate this wall, we must use a focused physical attack, concentrated at one point."

"The only one who has more destructed power than me is Chouji," Kiba replied, gesturing to the boy who was busy devouring chip after chip. "But what the hell is he up to?"

"Neji," Shikamaru called at that moment, "I'm sorry for the trouble but please examine the wall behind you and Chouji with your remaining chakra."

Neji nodded, as Naruto and Chouji began arguing again. He scanned the wall, and sure enough, there was an area that seemed relatively weak.

Just like that time with Lee and the tree…

"Hmph… I see," Neji nodded, "Over there…"

"Neji aim your kunai at that place," Shikamaru directed, "Chouji, are you ready?"

"Okay! Any time!" Chouji said with sudden enthusiasm, and he expanded to great proportions.

Neji focused his Byakugan, twirling the kunai around his finger once, as he'd seen his teammate do.

I need to hit this perfectly for our plan to work, with enough force. If only Tenten were here…

But Tenten wasn't there. And Neji remembered a tip she'd once dropped him, he'd remembered the countless times he'd seen her aiming at targets and hitting them perfectly, as if it were as natural as breathing for her.

I'm her teammate. Of course I can do this.

Neji hurled the kunai, concentrating harder than he ever had.

Swish. Thump.

It hit the mark, dead-on.

Neji smirked – it was a throw Tenten would have been proud of.

And seconds later, Chouji was barreling towards the spot, and there was a loud crash as the cave collapsed around them.

They were free.

These guys are good, Neji realized. He didn't mind being on a team with them as much as he thought he would, though he preferred Tenten and Lee any day.

One of the Sound shinobi was there though, waiting to fight them. He was a large, obese man with tufts of red hair.

The Leaf shinobi argued amongst themselves what the next plan would be, as the Sound shinobi enlarged and rolled towards them, in an attack similar to Chouji's. Neji, Shikamaru, Naruto and Kiba leapt away, as Chouji rolled towards the Sound shinobi in retaliation.

They bickered some more. Shikamaru chose Neji as co-leader, and told him to run after Sasuke with Kiba and Chouji.

"He's mine!" Chouji roared, one of his rare disagreements with Shikamaru. After yet another conversation, they finally decided that Chouji would stay to fight the fat ninja.

Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba and Naruto would take off after Sasuke and the others.

Choujji gave them soldier pills, and Neji was thankful as he popped one into his mouth, feeling the chakra flow back into his system, replenished.

The four of them took off after that, and made it quite far without stumbling into any more traps.

"We're getting close," Kiba observed as they leapt through the trees.

"How odd," Neji said, "There hasn't been a single trap so far… Shikamaru, what do you think?"

"We're just being underestimated," Shikamaru said gravely. "They're thinking that big guy would be the only one following them. No one would set traps against their comrades."

"Damn them for underestimating us!" Naruto shouted fervently, and Neji was reminded of Lee.

"That must be an accurate analysis," Neji replied to Shikamaru, "Certainly we are being totally underestimated. But… this also gives us a chance.'

"Yeah," Shikamaru agreed, "Let's get them when they're vulnerable…"

Moments later, they devised a new plan, and Shikamaru, transformed to look like the fat ninja took off ahead, with the intention of fooling the other three and getting his hands on Sasuke.

This wasn't very successful, and Shikamaru was soon cornered by the shinobi with six arms, tied to a tree with strands of some unrecognizable material that he emitted from his mouth.

"Shikamaru's caught," Neji alerted the others as he sighted this from his Byakugan, "Switch to plan B. We have to save him."

Naruto showed himself first, with a number of shadow clones, and Kiba soon followed. They were both trapped by the sticky strands however, and they struggled to get free.

Those have chakra running through them, Neji realized as he moved closer, Only I may have a chance of breaking them out!

Neji attacked the six-armed shinobi from the back, as he was occupied with Kiba, but missed, as the large man twitched to the side all of a sudden, like a frightened spider.

Damnit!

Seconds later, the sticky thread was all around Neji, wrapping him up tightly, tangled around his limbs.

"Ugh!" Neji cried, struggling to break free, but it was futile.

I'm stuck here, Neji realized, panicking slightly, this stickiness is made by mixing his chakra with his body fluids… disgusting… furthermore, it's still strong, the chakra flows inside this web forever even after having left his body… this jutsu surpasses reality…

Neji followed the chakra flow with his Byakugan for a few minutes, struggling uselessly against the threads. Then, inspiration struck him.

I can do this…

He gathered chakra to his palms and feet, sending it out in rapid flashes. Soon, he found he could move his limbs.

It didn't take much longer, but after a jutsu that was a variation of his Jyuuken attack, Neji broke free of the threads, leaping out just in time to grab a falling Naruto, and land safely on a nearby tree branch.

"Naruto thanks for buying me time," Neji said.

"How did you come out?" the enemy shinobi asked, looking stunned.

Neji smirked.

"Things made from chakra," he said haughtily, "Will be destroyed merely by putting chakra into them. In front of my Jyuuken, it is meaningless."

I've realised how to combat his jutsu. I'm the only one who can match up against him. It's futile for the others to stay here.

He turned to the other three – Shikamaru, Kiba and Naruto.

"Go," Neji said firmly, "I'll take care of him."

"It seems this guy's much stronger than the fatty we fought before… and quite so much so," Kiba said, hesitating.

"If we don't calculate it so one person is responsible for getting rid of their own enemy, it's going to be rough," Neji said, "That's what we decided, right?"

"Yeah," Shikamaru said slowly, "That's exactly right…"

"Also," Neji continued, turning to Naruto, "If you stop here you won't be able to catch up to Sasuke."

Neji didn't know why, but he was overcome by an urge to help Naruto. However annoying and loud the brat may be, he had helped Neji. He had got through to a barrier which Neji had erected years ago, and changed his outlook on life. Though Neji wouldn't admit it, in his heart, he felt indebted to the blonde shinobi. And this was a way in which he could honorably pay back that debt.

Naruto said nothing, staring at the ground, shaking slightly.

"Naruto," Neji said, "You have better eyes than me…"

Naruto stared at him in shock, and Neji smiled slightly.

"Sasuke is currently in the darkness," Neji went on, before turning his back to all three of them. "Hurry up and go. I'll catch up with you guys later."

"Okay," Naruto finally managed, his voice trembling.

"Alright guys," Shikamaru drawled, "Let's go…"

They left then, leaping into the woods, and Neji turned to face his opponent.

You're finished.

The six-armed man attacked him with sticky thread first - incessant strings of it poured down on Neji, and he was reminded of the time Tenten had taken to attacking him with chains. This wasn't much different.

He battered them away with his hands, reflexes sharp, spinning around on his heel to gain momentum.

His enemy stopped after a while.

"Guess the strongest of them is you, huh?" he said conversationally.

Neji glowered at him in response.

"Jeez, I just can't seem to hold my playfulness anymore," the enemy went on, "I'll play with you for three minutes… and then I'll kill you!"

I'd like to see you try.

The shinobi shot out more chakra webs and Neji found it rather inconvenient to rid himself of all of them. Neji found himself pinned against a tree with one of them.

"You are talented in the use of chakra," his enemy complimented, "And you have sharp eyes. From the openings in your hands you emit sharp, needle-like chakra, and cut through the webs with amazing precision…"

Damnit, how does he know that? Neji wondered, struggling against the webs.

"I've heard of this from Orochimaru-sama," the shinobi continued, "So this is the Jyuuken."

He sounded awed, and despite his predicament, Neji smirked slightly.

"However, once I disable your annoying hands, there won't be any risk of this web being cut," the enemy concluded.

We'll see about that…

The enemy boasted some more, but Neji ignored him, focusing his chakra. Suddenly, the enemy lunged at him, more threads whipping out of his mouth.

Then Neji released his chakra, landing triumphantly on the tree branch as the chakra threads snapped around him.

He quickly slid into his pose, arms stretched out, palms flat.

"I'll let you in on a little secret," Neji said smugly, as his enemy watched on in shock, "It's not just my hands. I can emit chakra from every chakra opening on my body…"

The enemy looked stunned.

"And by the way," Neji decided to inform him, "You're in range. EIGHT TRIGRAMS SIXTY FOUR PALMS!"

He struck at the enemy with ferocity, his palms jabbing with an alarming alacrity, finally hurling the enemy at a tree, sending him crashing through the wood, which soon splintered under his weight.

Neji watched him for a while, a wave of panic overcoming his initial triumph. His enemy was getting up. And he seemed completely unharmed.

Crack. Crack.

What is that? Neji narrowed his eyes, but there was no mistake.

Hard golden skin was peeling off of the shinobi's torso – he'd blocked the attack completely with it.

Neji was reminded of Lee's fight, when Gaara used a sand shield to render all of Lee's attacks useless. This was, in theory, something very similar.

Damnit!

"How monstrous," Neji murmured, "It seems like not only your mouth…"

His enemy leered at him.

"Yes. My golden-spider thread is a form of metal that instantly solidifies upon contact with air, blocking all chakra. Also, I can emit it not just from my mouth, but from every gland in my body…"

That's like how I emit chakra!

Neji and his foe then both came to the conclusion, that long-range combat would be utterly pointless.

They both stood, waiting for a few moments, thinking of another plan.

Then the enemy hurled a kunai into the ground, with a tag attached to it.

Seconds later, Neji was being pelted with shuriken from all sides.

It was almost too easy – Tenten's aim and speed had been much better – Neji smiled slightly, dragging his heel against the ground as he spun into his familiar Kaiten, deflecting the weapons.

When Neji emerged from his defense, he saw the enemy hiding behind the trees.

"I know where you're hiding," he called, "Show yourself."

Moments later, when the enemy emerged, he was hanging upside down, strange marks on covering his face

That chakra, it's different! And those marks – it's like what happened to the Uchiha!

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!" the enemy called, and Neji was taken aback, and rather disgusted, as a gargantuan, hairy spider appeared, hanging off the web, it's hideous, bulging eyes glinting.

And then there were more spiders – numerous ones, smaller than the first, but still ridiculously oversized. Spiders and string rained down on Neji, and it was worse than Twin Rising Dragons, far worse. At least Tenten aimed weapons at him, not revolting arachnids.

Neji spun and spun, the damned threads hampering his speed, batting away spider after spider with his Kaiten. The thread sucked away his chakra too, spinning around him and covering him, propelled by the spinning movement of the Kaiten. Neji was soon forced to switch to another attack, hitting the monsters with his bare palms.

"Eight Trigram, Sixty-four palms!" Neji grunted, feeling disgusted each time his chakra-infused palm connected with a hairy body.

After what seemed like minutes of incessant fighting, the spiders stopped coming. Neji was then attacked by a wave of arrows, which he batted away with his hands, feeling the chakra gradually drain away from him.

I can't keep this up much longer…

His enemy was hiding in the trees, safely out of his range. Neji had always been a close-range fighter, and it was perhaps one of his disadvantages. Team Gai had always relied on Tenten for long-range attacks, so Neji and Lee had never really developed in that area, leaving it to the weapons expert of the team. Neji regretted this now, wishing more than ever he had Tenten by his side. She could have easily nailed the enemy with her weapons while he was being mauled by spiders and arrows.

Suddenly, Neji felt a stabbing pain, shooting through his back. Blood pooled through his shirt.

Damnit! How didn't I see that! Neji wondered, a flare of panic rising within him.

The blind spot. That arrow had gotten past his blind spot.

The blind spot Tenten had discovered weeks ago, and warned him to protect.

Don't you think you're – too dependant on your Byakugan? I know it's very powerful, but even it has its weakness, and that could cost you in battle.

Tenten's words echoed in Neji's head – she'd been right, of course. He just hoped the enemy didn't discover his jealously guarded secret, and dismissed it as a coincidence.

Neji continued to deflect the weapons, ignoring the throbbing pain in his shoulder.

And then seconds later, two more arrows buried themselves into his back.

Neji hissed out in pain – he'd missed them completely.

He remembered another conversation he'd had with Tenten recently, her worried voice filling his mind.

You need to do something about it, Neji! You rely so much on your Byakugan, this whole Blind Spot thing is really dangerous! If an enemy discovers it, you're done for!

He had snapped at her then, telling her no enemy would ever discover his secrets. But now, as the agonizing pain ripped through his back, Neji realized she had been perfectly right. He could visualize her face right now, her brown eyes panicked, her tone furious.

You idiot, Neji! You should have listened to me! What's happening to you?

You were right, Tenten, Neji thought bitterly, his movements slowing because of the pain, fear welling up within him for one of the first times in his life.

He toppled to the ground a few minutes later, his face against the dirt.

His biggest weakness had been discovered.

Neji heaved himself up, as the enemy crowed from behind him.

"What are you struggling for? The game is already finished! You can never beat me!"

Neji's eyebrow twitched, and he was reminded of his match with Naruto.

Except this time, he was in Naruto's shoes.

If that kid could do it, I definitely can.

More arrows came flying at him, and Neji barely had enough to chakra but to manage one more palm thrust. Unable to dodge them all, he shifted his body slightly, ensuring that they didn't hit any vital organs. They buried themselves into his flesh however, and the stinging pain was almost unbearable.

Neji leaned against a tree, gasping for breath, continual pain shooting up his body. He could detect an arrow, powered by chakra, coming right at him. He tried dodging the first time, but it was pointless. The arrow turned right around, crashing through tree trunks, aimed at him again.

I'll have no choice but to take it, Neji realised, emitting more chakra from his body.

The pain was excruciating, and he ground his teeth together, his nails digging crescent-shaped indents in his palm – but it was the only way.

When the lethal arrow finally pierced him, it went straight through his chest, not far from his heart, creating a gaping hole.

Neji gasped, shocked.

And then the pain set in, and it was terrible, worse than anything he had ever felt.

Neji wondered how he was still standing, and he bit his lip to stop himself from shouting out.

Neji! Are you alright!

Neji! My rival, what have you done?

Tenten and Lee's frantic voices echoed in his head – Neji thought he was imagining things. His mind certainly was.

And then he spotted another arrow, aimed at him from the bushes.

Neji turned and twisted, as much as he could, to try and shift his blind spot, so that he wouldn't be caught off guard. He was still in indescribable pain, but this was his only hope to survive – or at least pull on for a few more moments.

Neji live on, his father's voice echoed in his head, from years ago. You've been gifted with the talent of the Hyuuga more than anyone else.

Neji continued to move, as the arrow sped at him – he could barely see it, it was obviously aimed at his blind spot. He was nearly exhausted of chakra, he was pierced by multiple arrows – he could barely do anything to defend himself. It was a hopeless situation.

Naruto, what would you do in a situation like this? Neji wondered. Naruto had always seemed gifted in turning hopeless situations to his advantage.

"I give up," Neji finally said, out loud, hoping the enemy would buy this trick. "There is no chance of me dodging it now anyways…

The enemy didn't believe him, and seconds later, the drill-tipped arrow pierced through his side, ripping apart the flesh.

He collapsed against the tree, grunting out in pain. The thread connecting the arrow had directed it, and Neji grasped this thread, in one last desperate effort.

"Gentle – fist!" he choked, emitting the last reserves of his chakra, directing them up the string, back to his enemy.

The string crackled menacingly, as Neji's chakra coursed through it, finally hitting the enemy dead on. He fell from the tree.

Neji coughed up blood, falling to his knees on the ground, dark strands of hair falling over his eyes, partially obscuring his vision. He'd lost his forehead protector a few minutes ago.

Memories flashed through his mind at the speed of light.

The fight with Naruto. Training with Tenten. His father. Missing the eighth bird in the forest. Fighting with Lee. Passing the second exam. Fighting Hinata. Naruto glaring at him, shaking his fist passionately. Tenten, smiling at him, telling him she was proud of him. Hiashi, bowing down on his knees. Gai, congratulating them heartily. Tenten, staring up at him in shock, brown eyes wide, as he thanked her for all her help.

I cannot lose, Neji realised, sudden inspiration bursting from within him as he struggled back up.

He remembered Tenten's cheerful face, and Lee, who was still recovering from the hospital.

They'd never get over it, if he didn't return. Tenten would never forgive him.

I have a reason I cannot lose, he thought, charging at his falling enemy with a sudden new strength.

Neji hit him, with his fingers, hitting all the chakra points in succession.

"How are you alive?" the enemy choked from the ground, "That should have killed you!"

"I know my weakness far better than you," Neji admitted, remembering the arguments he'd had with Tenten about it, the numerous times he had tried remedying it. "You're the strongest foe I've faced yet, but I have a reason I cannot lose. The strongest of all told me, 'because you're not a loser like me'. I was always known as a genius, so I cannot lose."

It was true. Neji had been called a genius innumerable times, even by his own teammate, namely Tenten. She had faith in him. They all had faith in his abilities – Shikamaru, Naruto, Kiba… they all believed in him.

"You told me I would not be able to win against you," Neji went on, "But it's not possible to pre-determine things like that. After all…" Neji smiled reminiscently, before concluding, his voice barely a whisper, "If you try hard enough, you can always change your destiny."

And then, Neji fell on the ground, his hair and limbs sprawled out beneath him. His eyelids slowly fluttered shut, as a stray feather drifted through the air, landing on his palm.

A feather of a free bird.

– X –

When Neji regained consciousness, nearly a week later, he found himself in a bed. A bed with white sheets, in a sterile room, sun rays pouring through a nearby window.

I'm – in a hospital, Neji realized, staring down at his bandaged chest.

Memories of his fight flooded through him, memories of being injured gravely. His injuries didn't hurt any longer. His chest was bare and bandaged, and though a few spots tingled slightly, he didn't feel any of that horrendous pain.

Neji looked around, surveying his surroundings for a moment. He was in Konoha. That meant he'd been bought back, and healed.

Neji didn't know whether to feel relieved or not – he was thankful to be back, grateful to have made it out alive, and seemingly unharmed. He flexed his muscles, stretching slightly.

Yes, he didn't seem to have suffered any permanent damage. He was certainly very lucky.

I wonder what happened to the rest of them – Shikamaru, Naruto, Kiba, Chouji – and Sasuke…

Neji was about to climb off his bed, when a young woman in a nurse's uniform burst in. It was Shizune, Tsunade's apprentice.

"Neji, you're awake," she cried, relief flooding her features, "That's good. I'll inform the others. You're uncle was here earlier, and your teammates. They left last night though, but they've been visiting every day…"

"Every day?" Neji asked, "How long have I been out? And what happened to the rest? Shikamaru and the others? And Sasuke?"

"You've been out nearly a week. You were gravely injured, and Tsuande had to operate on you herself," Shizune told him grimly, "Shikamaru, Naruto, Kiba, Chouji and Lee are all perfectly alright."

"LEE!" Neji yelled, "How did Lee become a part of this?"

"He snuck out," Shizune replied, shaking her head disapprovingly, while Neji muttered to himself.

"What an idiot…"

"I agree with you on that," Shizune said, "Unfortunately, they weren't able to retrieve Sasuke Uchiha. It's sad, but he's lost to the Leaf now."

"Oh," was all Neji could say, staring at the sheets. They'd failed a mission.

"I better go now, and inform your family and friends that you're awake," Shizune said, before leaving the room, "Make sure you stay in bed! I don't want you following your teammate's example, and wandering around when you're not supposed to!"

Neji nodded, mentally chastising Lee for his idiocy. That boy would never mature.

He was surprised he'd been unconscious for so long. Hiashi must have been worried if he'd come every day to check. And Tenten – Tenten… Neji couldn't even begin to think of what Tenten's reaction must have been.

He didn't have to for long.

A few minutes later, the door to his room banged open, to reveal Tenten.

Her brown eyes were wide, her buns disheveled, and she was shaking slightly.

She froze, staring at him from across the room. He gazed back, wondering if he should say something, before she spoke.

"N-Neji?" she asked, her voice almost a whisper.

"Hey, Tenten," he replied, his voice slightly scratchy.

And then suddenly she gave a loud sob, and launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

Neji heart leapt wildly at this – it was a funny, ticklish feeling – and he didn't move away instinctively or push her off as he normally would have with anyone. She held him tightly for a moment, her arms tight around him. Neji felt her shaking against him, and then felt something wet against his neck.

She's – crying, he realized, shocked. Tenten is crying – over me.

He felt his heart flutter again, and though he couldn't comprehend why, Neji thought he ought to comfort her in some way, let her know he was alright. But he had no clue what to do, so he settled for patting her awkwardly on the back, his hands resting lightly on her lower back for a second before she abruptly pulled away.

"S-sorry," Tenten mumbled, her face red, "I was just – so worried – you idiot!"

She coughed, wiping at her eyes furiously, sniffling.

Neji felt another funny feeling in his stomach – Tenten was crying – he'd never seen her actually cry, and though he felt slightly thrilled that she would have been so worried over him – Neji didn't like seeing her cry. He didn't like seeing her look so sad, so distraught. Though now, she was beginning to look relieved.

"Don't cry," he told her, his voice coming out gentler than he had intended it to.

He was overcome by an urge to raise his hand, and brush away the stray tear that trickled down her cheek, but Tenten beat him to it, rubbing her eyes with her fist.

She looked at him, biting her lips, brown eyes still moist.

"Are – you alright?" she asked finally, her voice cracking slightly.

"Yes," Neji said, almost wishing that she had her arms around him again. He dismissed this thought the moment it entered his mind though – he was being ridiculous. He didn't like physical contact! It was the medication that was probably making him think insane thoughts.

"I – I'm glad," Tenten muttered, staring down at her hands, "Sorry about earlier – I – was just worried – and you'd been unconscious for days – and the surgery – they said you may not make it…"

She was rambling, and Neji had to think for a moment before he understood what she'd been referring to. The impulsive hug.

"That's alright," he said immediately, hoping to make her feel less awkward, "Its fine, I understand. I didn't mind," he blurted out before he could stop himself.

Tenten looked at him, a little bashfully, which was odd.

"Oh, okay then," she said, before finally sighing loudly.

"So do you want to tell me what you did, Neji?" she asked, sounding more like her usual self, "I swear, you're becoming as bad as Lee. The both of you are going to drive me mad! You know, he sneaked out! And you! You left without even telling me!"

Neji watched, a tender smile forming on his face, as Tenten ranted angrily for a few moments, before quieting down.

"Finished?" Neji asked, smirking slightly. Tenten glared at him, but her glare soon softened, and she smiled.

"No. I probably never will be. I'm just really glad you're back, Neji."

Neji's heart gave another flutter at her words. Her tone was oddly gentle again, and he found himself liking it.

"Promise me you won't do that again?" Tenten asked beseechingly.

On impulse, Neji grabbed her hand, that had been resting on the bedsheet, squeezing it once with bandaged fingers, before quickly letting go, wondering at the same time what had propelled him to such an act.

"I promise," he murmured, wondering why Tenten's face had suddenly taken on a pink tinge.

He didn't know, but his usually pale face had turned a rosier color as well.

"Well then," Tenten said after a while, "Tell me what happened? The fight, and everything…"

And then Neji began to recount everything, in much detail, to the kunoichi seated on his bed. Sometime during his narration, their fingers brushed against one another, atop the white cloth.

Neither made a move to move them away. It wasn't necessary.

They just went on talking, like they had before, not realizing, that somewhere between them, something had changed.

– X –

End of Part 2

A/N – there you go. Neji gets a nice big hug from precious his Tenten as a birthday gift

I hope you all liked this. Tried to stay in character, but start off the feelings as well. This chapter took me ages. Think it's my longest yet!

Special thanks to taiga-tan1000, Senka Hitomi, ninjapirate, VampireKunoichi14, Midnight Insomniac, XTheCherryOnTopX, ayumwu and SuzuGamerGirl for reviewing! I read and appreciated all your views. This chapter is for you all as well! X3

I'll try to have another chapter up when I can, though it may take a while. It'll be a filler chapter, covering the time between the manga and shippuuden – meaning their Chuunin exam, Neji making Jounin and stuff.

In the meanwhile, please keep reviewing, that really motivates me!

Oh, and anyone who hasn't check out manga chapter 500. The First Hokage and his wife, from the back – they look EXACTLY like Neji and Tenten. He has long black hair, she has brown twin buns. OMG! Maybe it's Kishimoto giving us some hint, maybe I'm overreacting. But it's adorable! A canon couple that resembles nejiten! Hooray!