Remember, this is still in Neji's P.O.V..
The beginning and the end
Much closer than they seem
Death is but a dream, I know
Dolls are meant to grow away
All broken and bent from petty pay
My friend in this world
Is a bottle of nothing
Still I fly
Still I fall
"Mad Girl" by Emilie Autumn
With the message at hand, I walk from the Hokage's tower toward the gate. Like I had predicted yesterday, Yukiko is the first one there, sitting down with her backpack next to her. "Morning, Yukiko-chan," I greet her, but it looks like she doesn't hear me. Her breathing's deep, so I figure she's asleep. I had gotten to the gates early, but only five minutes early, so I decide to wake her up. With only a graze of her shoulder she bolts up, colliding with me. The top of her head to my jaw. She hits me so hard my teeth clack. We both yelp out in pain and I'm hoping I didn't bite my tongue off.
"Neji-kun! What . . . ? Ow." She leans forward, rubbing her head and groaning.
I clutch my jaw and feel around my mouth with my tongue. There's no taste of blood, and when I look at my hands, I don't see blood, but there would definitely be a bruise later.
"Are you OK?" She asks.
I look at her still rubbing the top of her head, but facing in my direction. Her bangs are in the way of her eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine," I reply. "When did you get here?" It was at least long enough for her to fall asleep so deeply on the ground.
She looks up at the sky, orange from the oncoming sunrise. She shakes her head to shift her bangs out of her eyes so she doesn't have to let go of her head. "I don't know what time I left the house, but I know it was still as dark as night."
My eyes widen. "So you've been here for at least two hours? Why?" I ask in shock. Even I was still asleep at that time! Here I thought I was the early bird. We all know that she likes being early; it was rare that she wasn't the first one at the meeting place, but two hours?
"I wanted to make sure I had enough time just in case I needed to go back and get whatever it is I forgot."
That's a somewhat reasonable answer. "Did you forget anything?"
"Yes, but I remembered half way over, so I already got it. I also double-checked my list when I got here, so I don't think I'm forgetting anything else. Unless it's not on my list."
"Do you always arrive two hours early whenever we meet anywhere?"
She giggles with hands lowered to her mouth. "My teammates and sensei used to ask me that every time we met somewhere. They would always ask how long I had been waiting." She smiles, remembering them. "But, no, not always. I usually try and arrive at the latest a half hour early. Not two hours."
"That's still too early in my opinion, but whatever."
"Do you want me to get you some ice? I'm sure there's a store opened somewhere nearby."
After she asks, I take my hand away from my jaw. "No, it'll be fine." Lee will be joking about this for sure though. I scowl at the thought. "Is your head OK?"
"Yeah. It's stopped pulsing," she chuckles, gingerly rubbing the spot on top of her head before lowering her hand away to grab a hair clip to move her bangs. Lucky her. My jaw still stings.
"Hey you two!" TenTen waves as she jogs toward us. Lee's right next to her waving also. "No surprise that you two are first here."
"Yukiko-chan was here first."
TenTen giggles. "That's also not a surprise."
"What happened to your jaw, Neji? That bruise looks fresh." Lee asks. Crap. I was hoping it wouldn't be so noticeable so soon. He jokes, placing a hand on Yukiko's shoulder, "Did you get Yukiko-chan mad at you or something?"
Yukiko turns her head with a blush, also trying to hide her smile behind her hand. "Or something," she mutters, which Lee hears all too well.
I exhale. "She can tell you on the way to Kusa," I state, already annoyed. Lee would definitely not let this go.
. . . . .
I was right. As soon as Yukiko told the story of how she head butted me out of fright after I tried to wake her up, Lee roars in laughter. "Wow, you only just reached Chuunin level and managed to already get a hit on Neji, a Jounin. You need to train more, Neji if she managed to hit you so hard." My eye twitches.
"It was an accident, and dumb luck. I wasn't even conscious. It's not as if we were in a real fight. I wouldn't stand a chance." Yukiko tries to fix the situation, but it doesn't get through to Lee.
TenTen, on the other hand, tries to divert the conversation, "Hey, where's your jacket?"
At first, Yukiko's confused because she is wearing a jacket, but not the Chuunin jacket. "My . . .? Oh, I left it," she says, as if it was common sense.
Lee's eyes widen. "What? I was eager to see you wear it, Yukiko-chan." Mission complete: Lee's attention is officially diverted. Thank you, TenTen. "You have at least tried it on, right?"
"Yes, but it felt weird, and I need to make a few adjustments to it. Besides, I don't need to wear it, do I? Neji-kun doesn't wear his jacket either."
"Point taken." Lee offers to race, saying that we could probably make it to Kusa before nightfall. We probably could, it's not a far journey, but it wouldn't be wise.
I shake my head. "Lady Tsunade says to prepare for any intercepting ninja. It's better to take it easy in case we do have to fight. We have plenty of time."
Lee deflates, and we continue our way at a steady pace, while I tell them more about the mission and the situation Kusa is in. After, I'm glad the traveling gets quieter. Lee and TenTen chat animatedly, and Yukiko is content listening while in front of them, and to the side with a couple steps behind me. When the sun starts to set, we decide to make camp, and since the weather's clear, we don't need the tent. We are already a little more than three quarters of the way to Kusa, so it's about time to start anticipating some enemies from the Hidden Rock ninja. Lee immediately volunteers for the first shift, and Yukiko volunteers for the last shift, saying she's already used to waking up early. Obviously. I offer to take the shift after Lee, but TenTen insists that she and Lee can handle the late night shift, so that leaves me with the third shift. I don't mind, but I've noticed that Lee and TenTen have been acting slightly different. I can't quite explain it, but Lee and TenTen have been together more lately.
With the shift schedule settled, we prepare for the night: Lee and Yukiko walk around to get firewood, catch a few fish from a nearby river, and study the terrain, while TenTen and I set up camp, watching all four bags, and setting up a small fire area for the fish.
"Hey, Neji-kun. Do you think Yukiko-chan's really alright with this mission?" Tenten asks. "It's just she doesn't talk about it, you know?" 'It' meaning the mission her teammates died in.
I remember her smiling when she mentioned her teammates this morning. It wasn't a sad smile, but she definitely still misses them dearly. "Yes, I know what you mean, but I'm sure she'll be OK. She'll talk to one of us when she feels she's ready." I remember what Lady Tsunade told me yesterday.
TenTen nods as she sets up her sleeping bag. "You know what I think? That Yukiko-chan will talk to you first." The tone of her voice suggests she's smiling coyly.
"I don't know about that. She likes Lee, so she'll probably feel more comfortable talking to him." Lee was the first person to make her laugh while she was our newest teammate, all from a stupid joke. He made her laugh to the point she started crying and couldn't breathe. Lee is less rigid than I am, and definitely gives off a more approachable and accepting energy.
"Maybe. I guess that is a tough call, but you and Yukiko-chan have been friends longer than she and Lee-kun have, so she could also talk to you. We all know you've also been trying to get answers on what exactly happened on that mission, so she knows that you care, and she knows that you want to know. Basically, you're already there to listen."
"Sure, but it just means that she knows that she can talk to either me or Lee. And you too, TenTen. Yukiko has a great amount of respect for you. You also seem to understand her on a certain level Lee and I can't." I say this because Yukiko and TenTen do happen to enjoy girl talks from time to time. "She knows she has support from all of us, so it's just up to her when she's ready. Anyway, we shouldn't force it, or worry about what happened for now. It doesn't matter who she talks to first." The fire pit is ready so I set up my own sleeping bag while waiting for the other two.
It doesn't take long, because they returned just as I set my bag on my sleeping bag.
"We have returned," Lee saluted, walking with an armful of wood. Yukiko follows close behind him with a large hook of four fish.
"The area will get pretty rocky, and the trees become less dense," Yukiko states as she's spearing the already gutted fish. "After a couple of hours tomorrow, we should reach the bamboo forest at its thickest." She hands each of us our fish skewered on a stick.
"Well that's good. That means we're definitely almost there." TenTen's obviously relieved. Delivering messages aren't what she would call an ideal mission. Especially when there's a chance that we may not face any enemies at all.
"I can hardly wait to get there," Lee cheers.
Even I have to admit that I'm glad we're almost half way over with the mission. Although I did say not to worry, I can't help it. Yukiko is a good friend, but I don't know of what kind of trauma she might of suffered through, so for all I know she could be a defective member. I have to keep a close watch over her.
