A/N Well hi there! First off, I just want to thank you all for your support! Your reviews and hits make me feel really happy, and I'm glad that people seem to be enjoying this fic! Happy happy joy joy :D. It's getting harder to think of beginnings for these things, even as I try to make it so each chapter is a day. Then I finish the chapter, and think, "Shiz. I've got tons more to add, but it's already 25 pages!" So some of them might start where the other left off for a while D:. Sorry if this confuses you xD.
The small after party was doing Neji's head in. It was far too loud and the smell of cigarette smoke was making him feel slightly ill, not to mention the fact that someone had tried to give him vodka three times now and the constant stink of it was making his head spin. He'd declined the alcohol and just out stared the man until he left, going on to push his poison to someone else. Neji sighed. It was late and he really wanted to go back to the bus and sleep but some fan who had a backstage pass was following him everywhere, even if she didn't have the courage to speak to him, and the others had no intention of leaving just yet. Neji spotted Shikamaru leaning against a far wall and chatting to one of the members of Rakuhi. He sighed and slowly made his way over, dodging stumbling people who seemed determined to knock into him.
"Hey."
Shikamaru raised a lazy hand in greeting, turning to the other man he was with and gesturing towards Neji.
"This is Hikaru. He's our main singer. Karu, this is Ryon. He plays bass for Rakuhi."
Neji did a mini bow.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Ryon."
Ryon smiled and waved his hand in an embarrassed manner.
"Ah, no, it's all mine! Your voice is simply amazing, I was in awe!"
Neji felt a small, small flush creep up his cheeks.
"Thank you."
Ryon smiled at him and resumed his conversation with Shikamaru. Neji lent back against the wall, wearily eying the girl who was stuttering a greeting to some member of another band. Shikamaru had warned them that drinking was not going to be tolerated on this mission (Unless it was vital, and even then one was to act drunk, not actually become it,) as only two of them were legally allowed to anyway, and it could very well jeopardize the whole mission's point if something slipped out. Everyone had agreed, even if none of them had any intention of drinking in the first place.
Neji squinted. Someone was dancing madly in the haze of whatever was hanging in air. Someone with shortish black hair, and very quick movements... Neji gasped in horror. It was Lee. Neji lunged forward, tapping Shikamaru three times on the shoulder, a sign they'd made up to warn each other of danger and started to trot towards Lee, Shikamaru following a few seconds later.
"Karu, what's happened?"
"Gai. The fumes. He must be as susceptible to them as actual alcohol."
Shikamaru paled slightly and swore under his breath, both of them putting on a burst of speed. Neji reached Lee first and forced a smile, acting like this was all a joke as he eyed the red patches on Lee's cheeks; just how much had he inhaled?!
"Come on, Gai. Let's get moving."
"Wha-at?! Why?! I'm having fu-u-un!"
Neji kept the smile in place as he grabbed Lee's arm, dragging him backwards with a force used to move trucks.
"Come on. Now."
Lee groaned in protest behind him and tugged his arm away with enough strength to uproot a tree. Neji took a step back and doubled his efforts, grabbing Lee's other arm in the process.
"I mean it. Now."
"Oh ho! I shee now! Do you wish to fight me?"
Neji could feel everyone's eyes on him as he glared at Lee.
"No. I have no intention of fighting you, Gai."
Shikamaru stepped forwards and placed a calming hand on Lee's shoulder.
"Hey, now. Let's not make a fuss."
Lee pouted and crossed his arms, cheeks still a solid red and aching for a fight. Shikamaru leaned in close and whispered something in his ear. Lee's face brightened.
"Alright! Let's go, youthful team-"
Shikamaru clapped a hand over Lee's mouth, Neji quickly catching the fist Lee raised in an attempt to punch Shikamaru in automatic self-defense. Neji winced. That was one strong upward swing. With considerable effort he fought Lee's arm back down, helping Shikamaru to practically drag him out of the small room and into the cold air outside. Neji suppressed a shudder, concentrating on getting Lee onto the bus before something terrible happened.
"Mmpfh!"
Shikamaru still had his hand over Lee's mouth as they bundled him inside the bus, Lee's struggles growing harder and harder to control. Finally, Shikamaru closed the door behind him and let go of Lee who stumbled over to collapse on a chair, falling asleep almost instantly. Neji and Shikamaru sighed in relief.
"I wish I'd known about that... He won't be able to go to the after parties now."
Neji felt a twang of pity for Lee. He didn't think Lee would actually say anything about not being able to go, but he'd get that sad, rejected look on his face that only Gai could get rid of. And seeing as Gai was a long way away...
"Are there going to be consequences for him?"
"No. He didn't let anything slip, and I don't think any of us realized even the fumes would make him drunk. I won't put it in the report."
Shikamaru stretched and sat down at the table.
"Well, at least we got out of that party. It was becoming really boring."
Neji nodded in agreement.
"Sasuke, Shino and Naruto will come back of their own accord, which is fine. I told Shino where we are so he won't worry..."
There was a long silence, broken only by Lee's snores.
Shikamaru sighed again and got up, walking into the bedroom and reappearing with a scroll and some ink.
"I'll write up the report for the first few days now and get Lee to take it to the nearest posting building."
Lee would probably jump at the chance to go for a run, and there was bound to be one near by. There always was if one was close to a Hidden Village, so finding it wouldn't be a problem. Lee would be there and back in a couple of hours. Neji's hand flew out on instinct, catching a roll of paper heading in his direction. He gave Shikamaru a questioning glance.
"Unless you have anything more productive to do than just stand there, why don't you try some lyric writing?"
Neji scowled at the piece of paper and went to sit opposite Shikamaru. He picked up a pen, letting it hover over the paper.
What was he supposed to write? He'd never really listened to music, and only knew a few carols from his brief time in the choir and the ones he'd sung on this mission. Even so, he knew something like tra la la la la I love music la la la la wouldn't quite cut it.
Expressing emotion was something he'd never excelled at. Especially in a way someone else would understand...
"... Why don't you actually write, instead of staring at me?"
Neji blinked, coming to with a tiny start. He'd zoned out, trying to think of something impressive, deep and thought provoking; not noticing that he was staring at Shikamaru's bowed head. Nothing had come to mind. Neji cleared his throat, not quite sure how to reply and looked back down at the blank sheet of paper.
"If you're having real trouble then just change someone else's line and go from there."
Neji leant his chin in the palm of his hand. A line he'd heard before... He glanced over to Peace, back to Shikamaru and finally rested his eyes on the ceiling. Maybe he could use an old proverb or something... He blinked, looked down and the paper and hesitantly started to write. After five minutes, he had a verse. He re-read it, crossed out something and then wrote it back in.
"Well?"
He glanced up at Shikamaru.
"I have four lines."
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, putting down his pen and leaning forwards slightly.
"Oh? Can I see?"
Neji nodded and handed the piece of paper over.
"Ignore the words I put a line through."
"Hmn... The best defense is offense so I will bite until I'm through, what will be will always be, I don't want you. Character building strategies, they march through my mind. It's a riddle of sorts and my puzzle of kind."
There was a long silence. Neji, for some reason unknown to even himself, was embarrassed. He leant forward and plucked the paper out of Shikamaru's hands, going to crumple it up.
"H-Hey! Don't do that, Neji!"
Shikamaru recaptured the paper and smoothed it out.
"It's good. I was just surprised, that's all. I didn't mean to make you feel self conscious. But..."
Neji raised an eyebrow, still feeling strangely flustered.
"Change the 'I will' to 'I'll', otherwise it's a little formal... And you need to add a little to the 'I don't want you', or the syllable count doesn't quite match up... How about 'I don't wanna be with you'?"
"Alright."
Neji took back the paper, corrected it and re-read it. Shikamaru was right. It flowed a lot better now. Now all he needed was a few more verses, a chorus, a tune and his part was done.
"How many do I have to write?"
"Well... Tsunade's aides provided us with six songs, and most albums have around fourteen... So you're looking at about eight."
Neji gave him an annoyed look.
"Can't you write one? I'm sure the fans would love to hear you whine instead of me for a change."
"Sure."
Neji blinked; and then narrowed his eyes.
"And the catch is?"
"Whatever I write, you sing."
Neji gave him a look that screamed, are you serious?
"So you could write something like: La la la la I love men tra la la happy happy joy; and I'd have to sing it."
Shikamaru snorted with laughter.
"Hyuuga humor at it's best? Technically, yeah. I could write that and you'd have to sing it, but I'm not that cruel."
Neji ignored the comment on his humor.
"Can I decide after I read the lyrics?"
"Where's the fun in that?"
"Where's the appeal in making me sing something stupid?"
"You have to ask?"
Neji glared at Shikamaru.
"... Fine, fine. How about I write something perfectly innocent, but you have to sing another song."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I think it would be a good idea if we covered a song at the end of each concert. You know, something different each time for the fans. We can even have them vote for one on our site. I get to choose one."
"... That's even more risky. You could make me sing anything!"
"Exactly. But, I'll write two perfectly innocent songs."
"Two and a cover, or one that could be terrible."
Shikamaru nodded, eyes gleaming.
"Tch. Are you sure writing two is not too troublesome for you?"
"Not if I choose a song."
"You're worrying me now."
Neji had never really talked to anyone else in this... Playful manner. It was strange and alien to him, but for some reason he was enjoying it. Shikamaru chuckled.
"It's just a simple matter of weighing up the pros and cons, Neji."
"Can I refuse the song?"
"Nope."
"Ugh."
Neji scrubbed tiredly at his head as Shikamaru smirked at him. He really didn't want to have to write all the songs, and Shikamaru's help would be greatly appreciated...
"Fine. You write two, and I'll sing a cover. But if it's too awful, you have to pick another one."
"Alright. Define 'too awful'."
"Well..."
Neji couldn't think of a terrible song. He'd never listened to music apart from traditional stuff, and had no idea what most modern music was like. He'd never been to a disco or anything like that and he never watched the television. But he had heard one truly terrifying song that Sakura was listening to as he trained against Sasuke.
"I will not sing anything that goes, and I quote, 'Hey hey you you I don't like your girlfriend. Hey hey you you think you need a new one.'"
Shikamaru was laughing so hard he nearly fell out his chair.
"How about something that goes, and I quote, 'Man. I feel like a woman?'"
Neji blanched.
"Not under any circumstance."
"'Do it like a lady?'"
"Don't even joke."
Shikamaru regained a little of his composure.
"Alright, alright. I won't make you sing any of those three. But knowing you, you'll turn down almost anything I pick, so how about I choose the song and if you turn it down, we put it on the website and the fans can vote yes or no?"
Neji nodded. He was sure he could somehow rig the voting. Just as he was about to start writing a second verse, the door opened and Sasuke stormed in, face like thunder. Shikamaru got on his feet, eyes wary.
"Sasu, are you alright?"
"I'm fine,"
He spat, and stormed into the bedroom. Neji raised an eyebrow at Shikamaru, who shrugged. A split second later, Naruto came crashing in.
"Hey, you seen Sasu?"
Neji pointed to the bedroom as Shikamaru spoke.
"What happened?"
"Ah, well..."
Naruto grinned and stuck his hand behind his head.
"I was dancing, it was so cool 'cos there were all these girls that wanted to dance with me and it was awesome and there were loads wanting to dance with Sasu too, but he turned them down and just stood there! Anyway, I thought he was looking sad and a bit stupid just standing there so I went over and tried to drag him to dance with one of the girls who was following him, but he said no."
Naruto paused for a breath.
"So I asked him why he wasn't dancing and he said he didn't feel like it and the girl looked sad and went off, but she's fine and was dancing with another guy. So I told Sasu he was being silly and mean and he just glared at me and by this time my girl had left too, and there were people all around us staring 'cos we weren't dancing with anyone and I felt stupid just standing there as we were standing in the middle of the dance..."
Neji bit his lip as Naruto paused again. He had a vague idea what had happened.
"So, I grabbed Sasu and tried to make him dance because I thought people would stop staring and he wasn't pleased and I didn't want him to start shouting or making a fuss because then everyone would think we were disrupting them and I didn't want to get kicked out so I pushed those small points on your neck that make you paralyzed for a few moments until the song was over and then I dragged him off the dance floor..."
There was silence in the bus. Then, Shikamaru burst into laughter.
"Y-You danced with Sasuke?!"
"Well, yeah! I wasn't going to drop him there and run!"
Neji was trying not to snicker.
"Did people stop staring?"
"Uh, well, not really... But I couldn't really see because Sasuke was practically radiating anger and I wanted a clear exit for when it wore off and he went to kill me..."
Neji fought the grin.
"And did he?"
Naruto turned to Neji, looking confused.
"No. That was the really weird thing! He just glared at me, went red and ran off!"
Naruto was right. That was odd.
"I think I upset him..."
Naruto turned from them and went to the bedroom door, knocking on it loudly.
"Sasuke! Open up!"
"Naruto, it doesn't lock."
Naruto blinked.
"Oh yeah."
He opened the door and strode in only to come flying out a second later, bruise already forming on his chin.
"OWWW! SASUKE!"
He leapt up and ran back in. Various scuffling noises followed with yelps of pain from Naruto. Neji rolled his eyes and turned to Shikamaru who sat down, head in hands.
"... Do you think we could order some tranquilizers for Naruto? There will be pictures of them dancing, and if Sasuke really was unable to move, Naruto would have had to hold him quite close..."
Neji snorted with laughter. At least he wasn't the only one who was going to be labeled gay by the newspapers.
"How troublesome..."
"It's not that bad, Shikamaru. At least it will take focus off you and I as a couple."
Shikamaru looked up.
"What, even after the duet plus the photos that will be in the article tomorrow? I'm sorry to break this to you, but we were doomed as soon as the first person asked if we were together."
Neji scowled. He really didn't want to think about that. He huffed and sat down just as Shino walked in.
"I thanked the hosts for inviting us, I apologized for Gai and I apologized that Naru and Sasu left so suddenly."
Shikamaru nodded at Shino.
"Good."
He walked over to Lee and cautiously reached out to shake him, arm coming up instinctively to block a swing from Lee. Shikamaru sighed.
"Can someone pass me some water please?"
Neji grabbed a cup that had been left on the side and filled it up, passing it over to Shikamaru who promptly dumped it on Lee. Neji took a step back, not wanting to get in Lee's way.
"Wake up."
Lee groaned, scrubbing at his eyes and the water on his face.
"Wh-a-t?... What happened?"
Neji almost felt sorry for him as Shikamaru sat down beside him.
"The fumes of the alcohol made you drunk, Lee."
Lee's face crumpled.
"I... I am so, so sorry, Shikamaru... I did not know that I would become intoxicated like that..."
Shikamaru reached out, patting Lee on the shoulder.
"It's alright. None of us knew that that would happen. I haven't put it in the report as you didn't cause any damage, but... I'm afraid that you won't be able to go to these parties, Lee."
If looks could kill, then Lee's would've made an average person burst into tears. Dejection, rejection and sorrow laced his features and even Shikamaru bit his lip, patting his shoulder again.
"Hey, now, Lee... I'm sorry. You can use the time to practice and become an even better drummer, you know?"
Lee nodded, wiping the sad look of his face and clenching his fist in determination.
"Yes! I will work hard in those precious hours! I will become a better drummer!"
Shikamaru nodded, obviously glad that Lee hadn't burst into tears and got up.
"Seeing as it's past midnight, we should get to bed. We should be appearing in the article for Novel Now tomorrow, plus there's bound to be something about us in the papers."
Lee, Neji and Shino nodded, and then looked towards the bedroom. The silence emitting from it was actually scarier than the crashing and banging that had been going on beforehand. Shikamaru sighed and knocked on the door, calling out before he actually entered.
"Hey, you two made up yet?"
"Yeah!"
Shikamaru cautiously opened the door. Sasuke and Naruto were sitting on their own beds, Naruto prodding a large orange pillow he'd bought and Sasuke reading a book, acting as if no-one else was there. Shikamaru walked in, still slightly on guard.
"... So... All has been resolved?"
"Yeah! It's fine!"
Shikamaru nodded. Neji was curious as to how it was resolved, but Sasuke was still gently oozing anger so he thought it best left. Neji grabbed his pajamas and went into the bathroom, changing quickly. He came back in a second later and blinked. Shikamaru had, for some reason, decided to swap sides. Neji wasn't quite sure what to make of this, so he ignored it and climbed in on the other half. Someone – probably Lee as he was nearest the switch – turned the light off, plunging the room into pitch black; except for Neji who's Byakugan allowed a 20 increased visibility rate even in darkness.
Ten minutes later, the was a rustling from Shikamaru and Neji felt an arm being slung over him and a warm weight settle on his chest. Neji grimaced as Shikamaru sighed on his neck. At least he wasn't being jabbed with a pony tail this time. Neji closed his eyes and forced his body into sleep.
It was the cold that woke Neji up. That, and the shout of laughter coming from the kitchen. With a sleepy grumble, he threw the covers off, wondering where Shikamaru had gone and prodded Lee awake; sending a bolt of killing intent and blood lust towards Sasuke, biting back a small smirk as he leapt bolt upright and glared around. It seemed like Naruto and Shikamaru we absent, and that distinguishable bark of laughter was definitely Naruto's. With a sense of dread settling in his stomach, Neji walked into the kitchen.
Naruto was collapsed over the chair, newspaper in one hand and shaking uncontrollably with laughter while Shikamaru clutched a magazine with one hand over his eyes, lips twitching spasmodically. At the sight of Neji, they both burst into more laughter.
To say Neji was slightly pissed off would be an understatement. It was suddenly clear that they were laughing at him.
"I fail to see what's so funny."
Naruto held out the newspaper slowly, Neji grabbing it from his twitching hand and focusing his eyes on the page in front of him.
"Oh..."
It was him. A lot of him. Practically a whole double spread, actually. He blinked. The main one was of him, eyes closed and hair flying behind him as he sang, one hand on his hip and other holding the microphone. There was one of him and Shikamaru holding hands during the duet, one of him shoving Shikamaru away and some more shots of just him, along with choice shots of Sasuke, Naruto, Shikamaru and Lee too.
"Read the headline."
Neji blinked, tearing his eyes from the picture in which his skirt had ridden up slightly was showing a shameful amount of thigh.
"... Transvestite Takes Stage By Storm."
There was a second of pure silence and absolute stillness before the paper in Neji's hand started to rip as he clenched it in fury. Sasuke stepped up and yanked it from his hands, inspecting it closely before turning it over and reading the article out.
"Fans of the popular music group Rakuhi were treated to a spectacular performance last night at the Center Stage in Tanzaku Gai when an unheard of band took the stage by storm, whipping the crowds into a frenzy before they even started. At first, it looked like your average band, four guys and a girl until said girl clearly announced that she was, in fact, a he. It seemed like some sort of comedy, but the timbre of the voice was definitely male. I'm sure I wasn't the only one who was wondering how the music would stand up to the dynamic entry! Fortunately, they were one of the best live bands I've ever seen preform and had definite charisma. The cross dresser for a main singer was certainly a surprise, made welcome by the sheer courage it must've taken and the quality of the music! I certainly hope we'll hear more from this mystery band, Attention Deficit Disorder... Then it goes on to list our website."
There was another short silence before Neji grabbed the paper back, once again inspecting the photo's.
"... How popular is this newspaper?"
Shikamaru grinned.
"The most. And we've got a good review to boot. This is going perfectly."
Actually, Neji thought, this is what he was dreading. These images... Anyone in Konoha would immediately recognize Naruto at least, then Lee, then Sasuke and then Shikamaru. After a bit of deliberation, they'd definitely realize that that was him. With a defeated sigh of one accepting something inevitable, Neji let the newspaper fall onto the paper. This was something he would never truly live down.
"What's the article in Novel Now like?"
Shikamaru picked it up, handing it over.
"It's brilliant as well. We've, apparently, got more talent than the Suna Rats and other such huge bands."
Well, at least they were good. It would be more humiliating if they were a terrible band and Neji had to dress like that.
"... And... The photo's?"
Shikamaru smirked.
"Take a look for yourself."
With a heavy heart, Neji opened the magazine, flipping to the pages on them. Large black letters filled most of the screen, showing the band name and one of the group shots. Neji slowly turned the page, almost flinching as the one of him looking like a prostitute assaulted his eyes. If you took out the factor that is was him, it was a good photo. But seeing as that was him, it was terrible.
"... Ugh..."
There were more photos of everyone else, one of Shikamaru smirking devilishly at the camera and one of Sasuke doing the same. Their interview was threaded in between the photos, certain phrases and words underlined. Neji's eyes caught the paragraph were he had had to pretend to be gay, and he quickly skimmed it before blanching.
"... They've... Put that bit about me right next to a photo of us, Shikamaru."
"I know. It makes it look like we're a couple or something."
Shikamaru was laughing gently, and for some reason Neji felt a burst of anger flow through him.
"It's not funny in the slightest! Everyone's going to recognize us and therefore assume we're together!"
Shikamaru rolled his eyes.
"Don't overreact, Neji. No-one with half a brain is going to think that."
Neji scowled, but didn't argue further. Another argument was pointless. It was obvious Shikamaru didn't care that people would think they were together, and it was no use trying to get that lazy-ass idiot to think otherwise. There was another pause in the conversation as Lee took the paper, flicking through it just as the mobile phone started to ring. Everyone blinked, turned to look at it and then each other before Shino got up, went over and answered it.
"Miyan Murashi, manager of Attention Deficit Disorder speaking, who's calling please?"
Neji glanced over at Shikamaru, raising an eyebrow. Shikamaru shrugged back.
"I see... Yes... I understand... I'll see what I can do. Is there I number I should call back on?... I see. Thank you. Goodbye."
Shino ended the conversation and turned to them.
"A group has canceled their slot at a music festival near the border in the direction we're heading. It's tomorrow and the manager is desperate to get some band in to fill their slot and seems keen for us to preform. It's a thirty minute one, not very large and indoors."
Shikamaru grinned.
"Tell him we'd love to."
Shino nodded, picked up the phone and called back.
" Miyan Murashi, manager of Attention Deficit Disorder speaking, is this Mutsuhito-san? We'd love to take you up in your offer... I see... I'd appreciate it if you did not hand out that personal information, Mutsuhito-san... I see... Yes... Thank you."
Shino hung up again.
"He's going to email us the details."
Shikamaru scratched the back of his head.
"We'd better practice and choose another song to cover. We're going to have to preform around... Six songs, including the cover."
He turned to Neji.
"Duet or solo? Or would you rather wait and find a song, deciding on it then?"
"The latter."
Shikamaru nodded, sending him to go with Shino and pick one. Neji went, sitting down at the computer and letting Shino call up lists of songs for him to listen to and choose from. After ten minutes of fruitless searching, Shikamaru came over.
"Pick something that shows off your talent in singing."
"There's nothing here I'm willing to sing."
Shikamaru sighed and leant over, looking at the list with him. Suddenly, Shikamaru snorted and pointed to one.
"Sing that one."
Neji peered at the screen.
"... Gimme More? Who's Britney Spears?"
He clicked on it, waiting for the music to start. Twenty five seconds in, Neji hit the stop button.
"Please tell me that was a joke."
Shikamaru snickered. Neji hit the back button, going back to the list. A few seconds later, Shikamaru pointed to another one.
"Try that one, Angel by Leona Lewis."
Grudgingly, Neji clicked on the link and dragged the small bar to the middle, starting the song in the middle just in time to hear the chorus. Neji blinked.
"... Did she just say, 'You're a ninja'?"
"... I heard that too. How can you confuse Angel with Ninja?"
Neji shrugged, hitting the back button on the browser.
"No idea. But I'm not singing it."
After another minute of searching, Neji clicked on one that looked promising.
"... Potential Breakup Song?"
"According to my story, I've just ended a relationship."
"That's a good point."
Neji played the song and stopped it about a minute in.
"What are you doing? That one was good, Neji."
"... I beg to differ."
"It would show off your voice, fit your story, we can play it and it was a semi-decent song. Plus, I need to use the computer to print out some of our own songs now. It's that or Britney Spears."
"What? You can't decide that!"
"I can. I'm the team leader. What I say goes, Neji."
Neji scowled, glaring at Shikamaru.
"There's no point glowering. Choose."
Neji huffed angrily and got up.
"Potential Breakup Song."
Shikamaru smirked.
"Good choice. I suggest you go and get changed and then write some more lyrics until practice."
Neji nodded, noticing that he was indeed still in his sleeping clothes. He went through to the bedroom, chose another one of the horrific outfits in his closet and quickly got changed, grabbing the scroll with his lyrics, a pen and finally returning to the main area.
Neji sighed, sat down and read through his lyrics again. After a moment's hesitation he started to write again. He managed to jot down another line which didn't really fit or make sense before Shikamaru stood up, a stack of paper in his hands.
"Right. We've got a set of six songs. We're going to do Hate Mail, I'll Lie, Neji's going to do Potential and that leaves us with three songs to learn for tomorrow. I know this is sudden and hard work, but there's not one amongst us who would not be able to do it. Let's get started as soon as possible with a quick run through of Hate Mail and I'll Lie."
Everyone nodded and reached for their various items. Neji hummed through the tunes under his breath, making sure he still knew all the lyrics and the melodies. After ten minutes of quick, individual practice, Shikamaru ordered them all to get ready. Neji took a deep breath, allowing the music to wash over him as the group played through the two songs almost perfectly. Slightly breathless, Shikamaru turned to Lee at the end of the second song and grinned.
"You've got a real flair for the drums, Lee. The beat you played was far better than the one that's written. Play your one instead of the written one, yeah?"
Lee beamed, nodding enthusiastically. Shino stood up and handed out the papers Shikamaru had given to him. Neji glanced down at his own scores.
"We're going to start with Throw Me The Key, Cling Film Girl and I Can't, I Can't. So, Throw to start. Don't forget to use headphones."
Neji sighed and made his way back into the bedroom, sitting down on his side of the bed and reading through the lyrics, concentrating on memorizing them first, and then working out the tune. As a jounin ninja and a natural genius to boot, it didn't take him more than five minutes to memorize the four sets of new lyrics, repeats, odd breathing and all. The tune was a little more challenging, but, ten minutes later he had them memorized as well. There was that now familiar knock at the door and it swung open, Shikamaru standing in the frame.
"Got them memorized?"
Neji nodded. Shikamaru walked in, sitting on Lee's bed, opposite Neji.
"We need to talk."
Neji raised an eyebrow, confused.
"About what?"
As far as he could tell, everything had been going exactly according to plan.
"About people thinking we're a couple."
Neji blinked, a small wave coursing through him of... Anger? No... Not anger. It was a mixture of embarrassment and... Nervousness? Where had that come from?
"Oh."
Shikamaru nodded.
"Yeah. Well, I did a little research into Inter-Band relationships. Turns out that in our genre, relationships between two guys are quite popular."
Neji blinked.
"Yeah. Don't think you have, but do you know that band Panic! At The Disco?"
Neji shook his head, now throughly confused. He hated being confused.
"What about them?"
"Well, the main singer and guitarist claim to be straight but play up to the crowds with each other. Fan service, remember?"
"... Mn."
What the hell was Shikamaru suggesting?
"So, I'm thinking that if our popularity starts to decline, because I'm no good at music I can't really say if our music's anything special, then we should start to act more obviously. The media like a sensation like that, plus the fans, apparently, go wild."
There was a long silence.
"You think that if we start to decline, we should pretend to be in a relationship?"
"Basically, yeah."
"..."
Neji didn't really have an answer to that. Shikamaru shrugged and got up.
"Just a warning."
"... Thank you for that."
"Tch."
Shikamaru turned and walked out. Neji sat there for a full minute, shocked. Shikamaru had just told him to expect a relationship between them. A fake one, but still! He sighed and covered his eyes, rubbing at his forehead. This mission was so, so annoying. He got up, grabbed his sheets of paper and walked into the main area, perfectly calm and collected. It seemed that Sasuke and Shikamaru were once again helping Naruto and Lee, who had both nearly got it. Shikamaru nodded and stood up.
"Alright. Let's go."
They got into their positions and started up, the music shoving the thoughts about any relationship with anyone to the back of his mind.
33333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333
In Konoha.
Sakura lunged for her small phone, quickly keying in Ino's number. It rang twice before Ino picked up.
"Sakura?"
"Ino, listen, I've got dates."
"... Date for wha-... OH! OH! When?! Oi, shut up, brats! Sorry, goddamn academy students are screaming."
Sakura laughed.
"Well they've got one tomorrow, but I've got shifts at the hospital. They've got another one two days after that, in River Country. If we leave the day before, we can take a train and get there on time."
"Brilliant! I'll definitely-- SHUT UP! Keep it open!"
"We need cameras. I've only got enough money to get there, I'm afraid."
"It's alright! We'll take mine!"
"Alright. See you later.
"Yep! Bye!"
Ino hung up and Sakura dropped the phone back on the table, smiling. Her first concert, and Sasuke-kun was playing. And Neji was in drag. She snorted.
God, she was looking forwards to that. All she had to do was beg a few days off from Tsunade.
33333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333
On The Bus.
Neji sank down on the sofa, throat aching. God... This was making his muscles ache more than training did. In fact, nothing short of a fight was this painful! He opened an eye as Shikamaru walked over, two cups of water in his hand. He gave one to Neji and smirked.
"Thought you needed it."
"... Thank you."
Shikamaru shrugged and sat down beside him. They'd decided to have a break for half an hour or so before a little more practice, supper and then bed. Neji could feel Shikamaru's eyes on him.
"... What is it?"
"Nothing, nothing."
"..."
Shikamaru didn't do anything without a reason. Every single move he made was calculated to give the best outcome, so what could he be gaining from just looking at Neji? Shikamaru huffed and looked away, one hand behind his head.
"Wanna play Shogi?"
Neji opened his other eye.
"... Now?"
"Why not?"
"... Alright."
Shikamaru grinned.
"Go get the board."
Neji snorted.
"You get it."
"Too troublesome."
"You want to play, you get it."
"... Please?"
There was a long silence. Then, Neji sighed and got up, getting the board and returning to a grinning Shikamaru.
"One off, Nara. You can at least set it up."
"Sure, whatever."
Neji crossed his arms and sat down again, Shikamaru smirking and setting up the board on the sofa between them. They were silent while they played, the noise of Sasuke and Naruto's guitar hero game and Lee's push-ups drowning out the need for actual conversation. The game was pleasant and slow, each thinking carefully but not going straight for the goal. It was much more fun to just meander along the board, sometimes not even taking pieces for moves and moves.
Despite this, Shikamaru was clearly winning. Neji upped his game, knocking through a line of Shikamaru's defenses and getting him in check. He smirked. He had won.
"Checkmate, Neji."
"... What!?"
Neji blinked, surprised. Shikamaru rolled his eyes and pointed out a formation Neji had never seen before.
"Right here. See?"
"... Damn it. Well done."
Neji hadn't even noticed it being set up. Damn that Nara. All the while he was looking as if he was just playing for the hell of it, he was setting up and killer move! Neji would not drop his guard around Shikamaru ever again during a game.
"Thanks."
Shikamaru got up and stretched, yawning as he did so. His top was a little small for him, fashionable but still too small. As Shikamaru lifted his arms above his head, it rode up slightly, revealing a thin strip of mesh along Shikamaru's stomach. It contrasted nicely with the paleness of his skin, Neji thought. Which was strange, because Shikamaru was quite tanned. Perhaps all that time in the sun had given him that golden loo--.
Neji froze.
What the hell was he thinking?! He closed his eyes, covered them with his hands and very carefully forgot what he had just been thinking about. It must be the dress. It had to be. There was something in the material that was making his brain think strange and inappropriate things. Perhaps dresses just spawned thoughts like that. Therefore, it wasn't Neji's fault. Neji did not think that. The dress had. Neji nodded. That was a satisfactory hypothesis.
"... Neji, you alright there?"
"Fine."
He got up, avoiding looking at Shikamaru because now he wasn't 100 sure how to react around him and it was the goddamn dresses fault anyway and he probably had something important to do like write lyrics or go smash his head off a wall until he really did forget what he had just thought.
"... Alright then. We're going to practice a little more, and then we're stopping for dinner."
"Fine."
Neji could feel Shikamaru's gaze on him. Neji crossed his arms and walked over to the microphone, picking it up and switching it on. The quicker they got started, the quicker the music would take over his mind and shove any more of those stupid Dress Thoughts out of his brain.
An hour later, Shino decided they were good enough for a concert. Naruto whooped, put down his guitar and ran to the bus driver, babbling about food. Sasuke sighed, rolled his eyes and followed while Lee decided to do some more push-ups.
Actually, Neji thought, that was probably a good idea. He hadn't actually trained in days and his muscles felt heavy and not as responsive as before. When they got to the inevitable fight, it would be pointless if they were so out of shape they couldn't take them out. He turned to Shikamaru.
"I think we should organize training sessions to keep us in shape."
"Sure. That's a good idea. I'll be sure to set aside a couple of hours. We can stop in woods or something and spar."
Neji nodded and turned away again, walking over to Lee.
"Lee."
Lee glanced up and beamed.
"What is it, my eternal rival?"
"Do you wish to spar?"
Lee jumped to his feet.
"In here?!"
Neji nodded.
"We don't move our feet. Hands only. That way we won't break anything."
"Of course! I would love to!"
Neji nodded. They took up their fighting positions.
"On my count. One, two, three!"
Lee leaned in, aiming for Neji's stomach. Neji blocked, other fist coming to the side of Lee's head, fast and furious. Their fists were blurs, hands smashing off hands and neither even getting close to the other's body. It was exhilarating after staying so still for these last few days. Neji shifted his center of gravity and ducked down, sweeping at Lee's legs. Lee managed to block, reaching around to aim for Neji's head. It was exactly what Neji had been expecting. He blocked with his elbow, using the momentum to send his index and third finger jabbing towards Lee's chest. He couldn't block. Neji slowed and tapped the skin covering Lee's heart.
"I win. If I had my chakra, you'd be dead."
Lee beamed and stepped back.
"You are a formidable foe, Neji! I am honored to train with you!"
Neji shook his head, used to comments like that.
"Thank you."
He got to his feet again, grabbing a towel and a clean set of clothes and going into the bathroom. He closed and locked the door behind him, thankful for the peace.
Shikamaru slouched over to Lee.
"You're getting faster."
Lee turned, beaming.
"Thank you, Shikamaru! That's a very kind thing of you to say!"
Shikamaru shrugged.
"It's true. Wouldn't say it if it wasn't."
Lee smiled.
"You don't ever say things you don't mean, do you, Shikamaru."
He smirked.
"Nope. Well, not to my friends. If I'm bluffing an enemy, then yeah."
Lee laughed.
"Of course, of course."
Shikamaru half shrugged and turned around again, walking off. He glanced back.
"You'll beat him one day."
Lee's smile grew even wider, a flush of pink coming to his cheeks.
"Thank you so much for those kind words Shikamaru! I hope I can prove that a genius of Hard Work can beat a Natural Genius!"
Shikamaru nodded and continued walking. He needed a change of clothes. These were too cold. He walked into the bedroom, glancing over at Neji's cupboard and biting back a small laugh. Damn, he was glad he wasn't in a dress.
Neji sighed and opened the door again, showered and changed. He'd kept his hair dry because washing it and straightening it again was too much of a hassle and it didn't really need it. He walked through to the bedroom, needing to put these clothes in the basket for washing. He opened the door and froze. Shikamaru was in the middle of changing and was just about to put a his top on. Thankfully, he was otherwise in a decent state.
"O-Oh. Sorry."
Neji turned to close the door, furiously fighting a blush. What the hell had happened to him!? Why was he blushing?!
"'S all right. I'm nearly done. No need to wait."
Neji stopped. Just walking out would look even more weird. They were both guys. It wasn't as if he'd walked in on Tenten getting changed or something. He winced. He'd done that once too. He was sure he still had the physical scars. The emotional ones would never, ever heal. It was a view he did not want, nor ever wanted again. Very slowly, he turned around and kept his eyes trained on the cupboard. He opened it and stopped. He didn't want to put his clothes back in the cupboard. What the hell was going wrong in his brain!? Which neurones weren't connecting properly. He closed it again and walked over to the basket, dumping his clothes in it. Shikamaru snorted.
"Did your hair eat your brain, Neji?"
His eyes narrowed.
"No."
"Because every genius forgets that dirty clothes go in the washing basket?"
Neji huffed and turned, walking out. He hadn't forgotten dirty clothes go in the basket! He'd just not been thinking at that second and he associated clothing with cupboards, plus – He jumped as Shikamaru grabbed his arm, spinning around and fighting the urge to punch. When the hell had Shikamaru snuck up on him!? When the hell had he let his guard down so much Shikamaru had been able to sneak up on him!? Shikamaru frowned.
"... Are you sure you're alright? You've been acting a little strange since the Shogi game."
Neji blinked. He seemed to be doing that a lot recently.
"I'm fine."
"You're flushed."
"I'm fine!"
Neji yanked his arm out of Shikamaru's grip and walked out, confused and angry. There was nothing wrong with him! He was fine. He sighed heavily and sat down. When would this mission end? The stupid skirt he was wearing was itchy and frilly and stupid. He looked stupid. He felt stupid. And his brain had died or merged with the dress and he was now stupid as well. The bus slowly ground to a halt and Shino got up, closing the laptop and beckoning to Naruto, who got Sasuke and Shikamaru. Lee was already at the door. With another groan, Neji got to his feet and followed, slipping on a coat. They'd stopped outside a small restaurant. Pretty and secluded. Away from the media. Neji was thankful for that. It meant there wouldn't be anyone filming him as he ate. They got off the bus and walked in. A smiling waiter met them, bowed and introduced himself.
"Good evening. I'm Kaido."
Shikamaru nodded.
"Thanks. Do you have a table for six people?"
"Allow me to go and check."
The man walked off. It was warm in here and the smell of food was making Neji's stomach growl. Kaido returned a second or two later.
"I'm afraid we only have one for four and one for two. I'd set them together, but they're on opposite sides of the room and there's not enough space to maneuver them tonight."
Shikamaru shrugged.
"That's fine. Two of us will just eat separately."
The man smiled at them.
"Then, if you would follow me."
He lead the way, Shikamaru and Neji behind him with the rest trailing along. The space inside was small, but cosy. The man was right. There wasn't enough room to move the tables. Kaido pointed to a small table for two.
"Is this alright for two of you?"
Shikamaru's eyes flickered over the room, probably assessing space and working out escape plans should something go wrong. After a second, he nodded.
"Sure. 'Karu and I will go there."
Neji turned.
"What?"
"I said we'll sit there. We're first, after all."
Neji bit back a complaint. This was surely just another test Fate had sent him.
"Fine."
The man glanced between them.
"Are you sure you are comfortable with this?"
Shikamaru nodded.
"Yeah. Thank you."
He pulled out a chair and sat down. Neji sighed and sat opposite, thanking the man who lead the rest off to another table across the room. Shikamaru leant forward and picked up a menu, scanning through it for a second or two before handing it over to Neji.
"Here."
"Thank you."
Neji took it, read it and chose quickly. He put it down between him, silence falling between them. Neji glanced at Shikamaru and then away again. When had their easy friendship suddenly got so... Awkward? What had happened? It was probably, Neji's brain helpfully added, when you started thinking about the colour of his skin. Neji sighed. He was tired and hungry. That was all.
"I hate to press, but are you sure you're alright?"
Neji's eyes flickered back to Shikamaru, slightly startled to see concern in eyes that were usually bored beyond belief.
"I'm fine. Honestly. A little tired."
There was a second of silence and Neji got the uncomfortable feeling that Shikamaru could see right through him before the Nara nodded and leant back. Neji fought a sigh of relief and looked away again. The waiter bounced over and they placed their orders, thanking the man. Another silence fell. Neji wanted to break the silence. There was silence, and there was Silence. This was Silence. He felt uncomfortable. Never before had he wanted to break a silence. Shikamaru must've sensed his unease because he leant forwards again and started to speak.
"So, I was thinking about making the cover of the songs duets, after this one."
Neji nodded, thankful for words.
"Yes."
"If we're going to play up to the fans a little, then we should duet. I can set my keyboard to automatic play and join you."
Neji nodded again.
"Got any ideas for one?"
"... It's nearing Christmas. We could do a Christmas themed one."
"Mmn, that's a good idea. Do you know any?"
Neji shook his head. He knew very, very little about music.
"Ah... Well... We'll research it."
"Alright."
The silence that fell this time was a lot more comfortable. Seconds later, the waiter bustled over with their food and they spent the next ten or so minutes just eating. It was good. Simple, but filling. Neji felt a little better already. The waiter came back and whisked away their plates, asking if they wanted dessert. Neji shook his head and Shikamaru declined. He glanced over and sighed when he saw Naruto order something. They'd be here a little longer. Neji glanced back to Shikamaru.
"Do you really think it's necessary to pretend to be in a relationship?"
Shikamaru shrugged.
"I'm not sure. We can 'Drop Hints' and such, but I don't think we'll need to actually say anything."
"Mn."
"If you're really uncomfortable with that, then I'll think of something else."
Neji glanced up from where he was inspecting the table cloth, shocked. Shikamaru had just offered to change his strategy in consideration of Neji's feelings?! That was almost unheard of, especially since Shikamaru knew this one was going to work the best.
"... I'm sure that's not necessary."
Shikamaru smiled and leaned back again, one hand behind his head.
"Good. I was kinda running out of ideas."
Neji snorted.
"I don't believe that. You probably had at least two hundred other ideas."
Shikamaru smirked and beckoned the waiter over for the bill.
"Actually, it was two hundred and fifteen."
Neji snorted again as Shikamaru paid their's and the other's bill, getting up and heading for the door. Neji followed, shivering slightly in the cool night's air. When had it got so dark? They reached the bus and climbed on. Shikamaru shrugged.
"We've got a concert tomorrow and it's late. We should sleep."
Neji nodded and fed Peace, making sure she was alright. It was sad, to see her caged. When they were off this mission, Neji would set her free. Shikamaru walked over, looking at the bird.
"And the caged bird sings of freedom."
Neji turned.
"... What do you mean?"
Shikamaru shrugged again, still looking at the bird.
"It's a poem."
Shikamaru glanced at Neji and started to recite.
"The free bird leaps
on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wings
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.
But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.
The caged bird sings
with fearful trill
of the things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill for the caged bird
sings of freedom
The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.
But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing
The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom."
There was a long silence, Neji staring at Shikamaru.
"... It's called I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou."
Neji swallowed. Nothing... No poem or song or anything had ever affected him as much as this had now.
"... How... Why do you know that poem?"
Shikamaru gave another of his enigmatic half shrugs and turned, walking away.
"Dunno. It reminds me of you, though."
Neji's whole body and brain had crashed as he stared at Shikamaru's retreating back. He knew a poem like that, and it reminded him of Neji!? He was... Shocked. After a few more seconds of just standing there, he glanced over at Peace, who was whistling softly to herself.
"... Do you sing of freedom?"
Neji turned. Had he expected the bird to answer? There must be something wrong with him. Maybe he was sick. He grabbed his pajamas and got changed, walking into the bedroom after everyone else. It was dark, but Neji could still see. He hesitated for a second before he slid into the bed beside Shikamaru.
What had he meant, it reminded him of Neji? He felt Shikamaru move and sighed softly as the now familiar warmth surrounded him. Had Shikamaru memorized it because it reminded him of Neji? Or was this just a coincidence?
Well, whatever it was, he wasn't asking now. Tomorrow, perhaps. He felt his eyes slowly close. He moved his hand so it was resting on Shikamaru's back rather than uncomfortably sticking out at an angle. He was warm. Neji sighed again, drifting off. He didn't think he'd be able to let his guard down this much with anyone else...
A/N. I'm a terrible person. KILL ME. FOR I AM AWFUL AT UPDATING. KILL ME NOW. I'M SO SORRY ;W;!!!
I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS AND FORGIVE ME ;w;!
R&R?
:D Thank you!