Episode 6: Poem of the Moon
He couldn't believe it. Soft arms were wrapped around him, and he lay there, in his own ecstasy. It was so pleasant, it was so soft, and it was all that he had ever dreamed of. She was next to him, her hair smelling of the lilacs that bloomed on a summer day.
They were together now, in Naruto's apartment, cuddling under the sheets in his bed. Night was turning into day, and nothing could break him out of his trance. He was so at peace, he was so happy. Her cat bell jingled softly.
Neji lifted his arm to see her gaze up at him, nuzzling herself farther down in his chest. He smiled silently and passed a hand over her hair, kissing the top of her head. She was his now, and he would fight to keep it that way.
"Neji?" he tilted his head and spoke softly. "Yes?" Akira stirred and lifted herself up to a sitting position. "Can we… can we sleep? I mean… we got none last night."
It was true. They had gotten no sleep last night. They were too busy cuddling with one another that they had forgotten sleep. It had been a happy night for him, a joyous night in fact. He did all he could to make her happy, taking her back home and kissing her multiple times. He was new to this whole 'boyfriend' thing, but he had an idea as to what to do.
Neji nodded and got up from the bed, stretching himself. "I suppose you want me to sleep on the couch?" he asked, already walking out. A little hand upon his arm stopped him. He paused. "Why don't you sleep with me Neji?"
He turned around to see Akira staring at him with pleading eyes. He sighed and closed the door, going back in the room. "Why do you want me to do that?" he asked.
"Because…. I feel safer that way." She replied, taking off her top. Neji blushed as he watched her get undressed, Akira having no problem getting nude in front of him. She gazed at him. "Aren't you going to get undressed?"
Neji paused, and then slowly unfastened his robe, not sure if he felt embarrassed or a little shy about the situation. Little fingers wrapped around his headband, untying it. "Let me help you with that."
His headband dropped to the floor, and Akira's happy expression faded. She stared at his mark. Neji covered it back up with his hand, turning away. "It's… the mark of the Hyuga clan…" he explained, putting is headband back on. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you… but it's a family secret."
Akira shook her head and forced his hands back down. Neji blinked as she reached up again and took off his headband. She held the headband away from him, and tossed it to the bed. "That's all I needed to hear." Leaning upon her toes, she reached up and kissed the mark, Neji's heart thumping in his chest.
"Akira…" she smiled at him, caressing his chin with her nails. "You're a bird Neji. Your wings are big and strong, just like an eagle's. You have the power to fly anywhere you want." He stared at her, his eyes softening.
I am no longer burdened. I am free. My wings have grown and flourished, gathering air under them. I am free.
After taking off his clothes and only leaving his boxers on, he slid himself under the sheets, waiting for her to come with him. Akira had only her tank top on, along with sweatpants. She didn't seem to notice when Neji stared at her curves, or when he choked as she flopped down next to him.
They embraced one another, their soft love enveloping them warmly. Neji dug his nose into her hair and inhaled, the scent of lilacs making his eyes drop. Akira smiled and then closed her eyes, setting her head down upon his chest. Neji pulled the covers over them, pressing her closer to him. His fingers ran along the sides of her neck, and rested upon her hand. Sleep overcame them.
"Sir, the spirit has been set free."
The man pounded his fist against the chair he was sitting upon, denting a hole in it. He growled the assistant flinching at the sound.
"What happened to it?" he demanded, shouting.
"We don't know sir! It's gone! There aren't any traces of it back in her body!" he rubbed his temples, and knew what had to be done. That pesky Naruto boy had been tampering with him for long enough. The jinchuriki had insisted that they give up the search for Akira altogether. He wasn't about to give up the search, he knew what he wanted.
"Send in more men, we can use her body still." The assistant lifted his head, the cavern walls of the hideout dripping with water. The sounds of bats echoed in his ears as the order was given out. He wasn't sure if he had heard correctly.
"We can use her body? What for?" the assistant asked. The man smiled. "You will see." His hands folded together as he chuckled evilly.
It was the softness of her hair upon his nose that woke him up. Neji opened his eyes, only to be greeted with a familiar sight. He smiled silently as he dug deeper into her hair, the scent of lilacs filling his nose and making him shiver. This was great.
"Akira?" he whispered, shaking her a little. Akira stirred, and then turned her head to face him, her brown eyes twinkling in the sunlight. Had a day passed already?
Neji sat up upon his elbow and yawned, Akira giggling slightly. He then got up and out of bed, stretching himself and going over to the calendar. It was Tuesday.
Two days… I've been with her for two days. Neji tilted his head, thinking to himself. Well not exactly, it's only been a day and a half. I admitted my feelings for her on Sunday night, so it's only been a day and a half.
He turned to the morning sun above him, and opened a window. Birds flew from their nests, flying into the sky above him and making him feel as light as they were.
"Neji, is it morning already?" Akira came from behind, wrapping her arms around him. Neji turned his head to look at her, swaying his hips lightly from side to side as he grasped her hands in his. She nuzzled his back, sending shivers up his spine. She felt amazing.
"It's morning alright. Do you want something to eat?" he asked, already thinking ahead of the situation. Akira giggled and shook her head, letting go of him. "You should go take a shower Neji! I think you need it."
Neji flushed as he smelled himself. He didn't exactly stink, but his body was certainly sweaty. She made him hot. He sighed and turned around, gathering his clothes and stepping into the bathroom. "Hang on a second."
Little hands came up to him and grabbed his clothes away. Neji pulled back, not sure of what she was doing.
"Relax; I'm not depriving you of your clothes or anything." Akira replied, laughing. "I'm just taking them for a wash." Neji smiled and nodded his head, beginning to close the door behind him. "Hang on a second."
In a mere few seconds, a pair of boxers was flying through the air and was caught. Akira stared at the blue boxers as Neji smiled from behind the door. "Could you do those too?" he asked, staring at her.
Akira blushed for a second, but then nodded. "Sure, I'll do them!" Neji closed the door as she walked away, getting in the shower and turning on the water. It washed over him and made him warm. It was going to be a good day, he could just feel it.
He began his shower, and as he did so, he heard the washer machine being turned on downstairs. Neji washed his hair, making it light and clean. Using Naruto's hygiene products, he cleaned himself fully, making him smell of man once again and not like a putrid beast.
Stepping out of the shower and grabbing the nearest towel and shaking his hair off. It flew all around him, beautifully hanging down to the middle of his back. He sighed and using a spare toothbrush, cleaned his teeth and checked his body. He was all clean and ready to go.
"Akira?" the little girl popped out her head from behind the bathroom door. "Hi! You done?" she asked, coming inside. Neji had wrapped the towel around his waist as to not embarrass himself. "Yes, I'm done. You're taking a shower?"
Akira nodded, already coming undressed in the same room. Neji made his way out and took out some eggs from the refrigerator. He was going to make her breakfast, it was the least he could do after she had accepted him.
The shower was turned back on, and he heard Akira humming to herself as she washed. Neji's ears were perked, and his heart was fluttering. Again, the feeling of relaxation came over him and made him calm. The humming soon turned to words as she began to sing silently, her voice carrying over to him only barely.
"Yesterday I called up everyone I knew on my cell phone
I was out in a strange park, poorly playing fuzz guitar.
Yellow moon, even now, on the count of three, open your eyes.
Shadow moon, You're still dreaming.
Open your eyes,
Open your eyes,
With our back facing each other...
Open your eyes, when will we meet?
Everyday, Everynight, I sing, As I think about you,
I want to send you all these scattered emotions.
Magical chord change, a sleepless town.
A special jazz guitar song, in a soft minor key."
Neji turned his head to the sound of her voice, the eggs being scrambled and cooked. Her voice… why does she not… why doesn't she sing more?
Akira stepped out of the bathroom, wearing a hoodie over jeans as she flipped her hair back and forth to dry it. She looked up at him, Neji smiling softly at her and chuckling to himself. "You certainly look clean."
"You think? I just took a shower." She replied, brushing out her hair. The ninja tilted his head as he scraped her eggs onto a dish and placed it on the table. Akira stared at him for a moment. "I didn't know you could cook."
"I'm a jonin. When we're away on missions, I have to learn to deal with what I have, including learning how to cook things from the outside. It isn't a hard skill to learn, though I'm not a gourmet chef."
Akira laughed when he said this, sitting down and already digging into her eggs. "Your clothes should be ready soon, so when they are, I'll bring them to you."
"Sounds good." Neji sat down with her, another plate of eggs in hand. He had added some things to the eggs, but was hoping Akira would notice his trying. She did.
"Cheese? And tomatoes?" she asked slyly. Neji blushed as he nodded. "I did my best. I hope you like it."
The girl gazed at him fondly, and her expression sweetened. "I do."
"Neji!" Neji gazed down at her, Akira's hands firmly bound around his neck. She laughed and held onto him, being sure not to let go. He leapt up again, taking her farther and farther into the sky, holding her in his arms tenderly.
"Is this high enough?" he asked, jumping up to the top of the Hokage face mountain. Akira gazed over the village, her eyes twinkling. "Oh Neji it's beautiful."
The ninja breathed and set her down beside him, their eyes locked. "Not as beautiful as you." Akira's bell jingled as he caressed her hair. "Neji…"
His eyes suddenly widened as his ears perked. "Listen…" he turned towards the sound he heard, and growled. "Byakugan!"
From a distance, a long string of chalkra was coming at him. What is that? He quickly stood in front of Akira, protecting her from whatever it was that was coming.
"Stay behind me!" he shouted, Akira bouncing behind him. A frightened look passed over her eyes as she peered behind him. "Who's there?"
Sure enough, Neji's prediction was right, as an arrow came towards them. Thinking quickly, Neji deflected the arrow using his rotation attack. Stopping in his tracks, he gazed at where the shot had come from.
"Looks like whoever wants you is back." Neji said, eyes narrowing. "I thought that when we got rid of the spirit, we were rid of them!"
Akira shook her head, understanding. "I know! What's the deal?" she asked, a growl escaping from her throat. Neji turned back to the horizon to see a flurry of arrows aimed at them. "We're under attack!"
Picking up Akira, he bounded off into the village, seeing his cousin on the way. "Hinata!" Hinata gazed up at him as he came back down, landing next to her. "Neji!"
"What's going on?" Neji asked. Hinata shook her head. "We don't know. Lady Hokage sent us all an urgent message late last night. I'm not quite sure what is going on exactly, but I'm quite positive that they're after Akira again."
Neji grit his teeth, eager to have his way with those people who wanted his Akira so badly. Akira was still upon his back, and he thought about what to do.
"We need to have a plan of attack first. What did Lady-" it came suddenly, and when it did, Neji was prepared.
Both Hinata and Neji twirled their feet around, knowing the arrows out of the way and protecting the helpless Akira, who, was shaken at the fact that they were after her once again. Neji growled and cast his Byakugan, hoping to catch the culprits in their tracks.
Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a familiar figure in the distance. "Naruto?" the yellow haired ninja landed beside him, as if appearing from the sky. "They're after Akira, I know. Just keep fighting them off; we've got them on the run!"
Neji smiled at Naruto, who in return, deflected a few arrows with his kunai. The village was under attack, and this was the time that Neji decided to go after the leader, the one who would be after Akira no matter what they did.
Looking upwards, Neji grasped Akira's hand and jumped, hurling himself into the sky and landing on top of a building to see better. He held Akira in his hands tightly, Akira dangling from his fingers. "Neji!"
The ninja responded by jumping to evade the attack that was coming at them, landing once again on another building and jumping away in time to avoid getting hit. Akira glanced at him and spoke loudly, over the sounds of flying arrows and ninjas defending their village.
"What's going on Neji?" she asked, clearly confused. "I thought they were gone, like you said, but then again… I don't see them anywhere!"
"Up here doll!" a gruff voiced caused Neji to falter a moment before avoiding a fire attack directed at him. He growled and looked above him, seeing the man who smirked back at him, eager for more.
"Oh come now, just hand her over, and we'll be over and done with!" Neji grit his teeth, not willing to lose Akira, not just yet.
"Gentle Fist!" with a thrust of his hand, he sent the man flying into the air, Neji jumping back down upon the ground and running as far away from the danger as possible. Akira held onto him tightly, not wanting to let him go.
"Neji! Over here!" a voice called out to him. TenTen and Lee were calling, and a few of the Anbu black ops were in his line of sight. The Anbu? Even they got involved in this?
Neji ran towards them, the Anbu lurching forwards and defending the village from the attack. Multiple cloaked men challenged them, the full situation coming to light in Neji's eyes. They would always want Akira, whether she had the spirit in her or not, merely because she had the capabilities to summon a spirit whenever she wanted. This was why they were always after her.
Lady Tsunade was next to TenTen and Lee, looking very agitated with the attack and even breaking a few bones herself in the middle of the onslaught. Neji vowed to protect Akira with his life, and he wouldn't give her to them even if it took his own life.
The attacks kept coming, the ninjas of the village defending Konoha as much as possible. Luckily for them that Akira was safe in Neji's arms, being protected by the skillful Jonin. There were instances that Akira and Neji gazed at each other, their love for one another growing and growing, like something out of a fairy tale.
It was only after the onslaught had stopped that they finally had a chance to rest. Neji swallowed and looked up at the bleak sky. The village was alright, but in his heart, he knew Naruto would confront him about Akira's feelings.
"Neji?" he turned to see Akira holding onto him, a sad smile upon her face. "Where's…" the sky was bleak, and the battle had stopped a while ago, and now, they were in Naruto's apartment, waiting for him to come home.
The spikey haired ninja appeared his face grim and his expression blank. For some reason, he knew what was going on, but first things came first. He had to inform them of what he had told Lady Tsunade.
"They're after her, and they won't stop until she's with them. The only thing we can do is protect her for as long as she's here. We have to find a way to stop their plan from advancing…" they were seated around Naruto's table, Akira by Neji's side and Naruto at the other end. The discussion about the battle was over, and now that they knew what was going on, it was time to deal with what was really important.
The rain was patting against the window as they sat in silence, listening to the steady beat of the drops. It was Naruto who spoke first.
"So… How have you been Akira?" he asked quietly, gazing at her. The girl swallowed and looked back at him, giving him a half smile. "I've been… worried about you Naruto."
Naruto smiled and shook his head, sipping at his tea. "I said I would come back for you… and I kept my promise." He gazed at Neji, the tension between them growing. "But it seems as if… you couldn't keep yours."
Akira stood up, protesting against his remark. "Naruto… I've been worried sick, and even when you and I… at the gate…" she silenced, red coming to her face. Neji gazed at her, waiting for an answer.
"I loved you Akira." Naruto remarked, standing up and taking her hand. "You know that, I loved you. And now… you've moved on… without me…" his voice was sad, almost melancholy.
Akira stared at him, not knowing what to say back to him. "Naruto… I've had such great feelings for you… I feel so lucky to have met you…" she grasped his hand and gazed into his eyes. "No matter what… I'll always… see you… as someone special…"
Naruto's eyes enraged, and he shook his head, his real feelings coming out. "This is bullshit!" he slammed down upon the table, causing his tea to spill. Neji stood up, ready to protect Akira if need be.
"Why did you pick him?" he screamed, his eyes burning. "Why him Akira? Why did you have to pick him? Haven't I done enough for you?" he screamed, glaring at her. Akira stepped back a little, gazing back at him through fearful eyes.
"We've known each other forever Akira… why…" he put his head down, his voice shaking. "Why did you pick him?"
Akira sighed and put a hand upon Naruto's shoulder, rubbing him quietly. "Because… there's someone else who finds you… to be the most wonderful person in the world Naruto."
He looked up at her, his body shaking and his tears in his eyes. Akira smiled at him, taking his head in her hands. "Naruto, we'll always have our memories, but you have to realize, that there is someone in this village, who thinks you are wonderful."
The rain continued to pitter and patter, and even as they spoke, the clouds were still above them, raining down with such gentle softness it made them want to cry.
"Naruto I'll always love you."
Her lips planted a kiss along his headband, and finally, landing on his cheek. "Always remember that."
They were alone now, walking in the rain, and holding hands, their minds still lingering on the conversation that had just ended but mere minutes ago.
"If that's what you want, then you can be happy."
Neji pursed his lips.
"Because… I'll always love you too. You can be happy, even if it isn't with me."
Akira gazed at Neji, wonder in her eyes, and fluttering in her heart.
"Neji… you picked an awesome girl to be with."
Neji's eyes softened, the memories flooding his mind and causing him to stop for a moment.
"She'll love you forever… until the end of time…. We'll always be friends…. Right? Akira?"
Little arms wrapped around him, taking him out of his trance and marking a smile upon his face. "Akira…" she gazed up at him, the rain pouring down on them both. "Neji."
They reached the Hyuuga household, where everything was silent and still. Neji led her to his room, Akira setting her stuff down upon the floor and looking around at everything. "I really appreciate you letting me stay here with you Neji…" she murmured, gazing at Neji.
The ninja stood there, gazing back at her. "You loved Naruto, didn't you?" he asked, coming closer to her. Akira sighed, and smiled back at him. "I loved him… but then again… I always knew it would never work out, no matter how hard we may have tried."
Neji's body found its way to her, embracing her and making her gasp aloud. "I'm glad… that I am the one… you chose to be with."
Akira buried her head in his chest, kissing it and nuzzling it with her head. They held each other for a second, before pushing away. Neji watched as she sat down on the floor, and took out her viola.
"Akira…" he whispered, coming closer to her, and sitting down with her. "I have lyrics… would you like to hear them?" he asked, whispering in her ear. Akira's hands dropped her viola as he began to sing in her ear. His voice was soft, and light, and full of something that made the flowers bloom and the birds sing in the daylight.
"A shining pure white t-shirt
A rainbow surfacing in the spray
Absentmindedly I gaze upon
The sky where many winds playNothingness was happiness for us alone.Sinking more deeply than anyone else
Even my heart drowned
And now in this place I gaze only at you;
If it is a dream that will never return, then I will break it
Unable to forget, I want to meet you one more time.Laying mirages side by side
Gathering your shadows,I continue to wait while the hands of time remain frozenOn nights when you cannot sleep and mornings when you sigh
There is your beloved song of the moon.Without notice even your body left me far behind
And now only I am left in this place
I believed we would remain together unchanging
like this time, once upon ago, I loved."
His voice rang in her ears, and as he rocked her back and forth, their love became known to each other. Their hearts were beating as one, and their bodies were warm against one another, the feeling of pure happiness and softness entering their hearts and making them come together.
Neji melted into her, their song was the song that would write out their history, their destiny, and their very existence. Akira was bought almost to tears, her heart racing in her chest and her eyes set upon the floor. Little whimpers came from her, making her shudder and shake in his grasp.
"No matter where I go," he whispered, kissing her. "I will always remain with you." All at once they kissed, passionately and furiously, the song ringing in their ears and making them sway together. The feeling of pure enlightenment overcame them, their bodies rushing to be one, not even waiting for the stripping of their boundaries.
They wanted each other; that was all they had ever dreamed of. The rain outside was still patting softly on the windows, but they were drowned out by the soft touches that sprouted moans from the lovers' lips. They knew where they were, they were here, in this place, in this paradise that would be theirs forever, no matter where they went.
The flowers blossomed, their drops of love covering them and making them pant, sweat covering their love soaked bodies, their very souls intertwined with the passion that drove them forward to something that only they knew.
This was their love. This was theirs and theirs alone.
"He'll always love you."