Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

A/N 2/2/14: It's February…holy crap how'd that happen? 2014 is flying by already, and I'm starting to feel old T_T. But anyway, I looked over at your guesses and I was amused by a lot of the guesses as to what Neji's secret is. But I will say this right now: One reviewer came very close to being right. I won't say who though, because there's no fun in that. Anyway here are the results for last week's poll!

Option A: 1

Option B: 0

Option C: 13

Well then I think you know which option won. Well this'll be fun to write as it usually is.

SASUSAKU: I got a few requests for this pairing. I used to really like this pairing until earlier on last year. I mean I don't hate them as couple, but they aren't my favorite. But I've decided that I'll add them in there just because I think they could both use each other. But the pairing won't appear till later. Happy now? Well enough talking, back to le story! Enjoy!

Warning: None

Chapter 7: Catharsis


Tenten contemplated whether or not she should pick up the phone and dial Neji's number. He had been avoiding her all night and it was pissing her off. The conversation between Sasuke and Naruto was still buzzing around in her mind. And the more she thought about it, the more curious she became. Whatever Neji was hiding, the answers would be found inside of his house. No wonder he had gotten so riled up when she asked him to meet up at his house.

But did she really want to break into Neji's house? It seemed a little too extreme, even for her. And she was Tenten, who went to any length to get what she wanted.

But it was different when it came to Neji. She didn't like to cross the line when it came to him, and she only did if she had to.

Well she'd get her answers tomorrow, or not. Either way, she had no intention of giving up. She still cared about him and she was still willing to do anything she could for him. It sucked because she spent two years of her life trying to convince herself that she didn't care about him anymore. And at the first sign that he was in trouble, she went out of her way. Even though he had made it perfectly clear that he didn't want her involved with him.

Her phone buzzed and she looked at the screen eagerly, hoping that it was Neji. To her disappointment, it was Ino. Apparently she had something juicy to say but Tenten honestly couldn't care less. If it was gossip about who was making out with whom behind the dumpster again, she really didn't want to hear about it.

Sakura and Ino were her friends, but she didn't feel as attached to them as she did Temari and Hinata. That was probably because they weren't shameless gossips.

Her phone buzzed again and she made a face. Ino never really learned to take a hint. But when she looked at the screen, it was a text from Temari. While it wasn't Neji, she was glad it was someone who wouldn't want to talk about absolute nonsense.

'Did u find out anything?'

Tenten paused for a second. Just how much could she tell Temari? Just out of respect for her former friend, she'd have to leave it at, 'I found out a few things.'

Temari was a speedy texter, 'Well, duz he hav a drinking problem?'

'I don't know. He hasn't given me any sign…' she texted back.

'Well then, keep your eyes on him…'

Tenten didn't feel the need to text back, so she lay back on the bed. She had a feeling something was going to happen the next day, even if she couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was. Oh well, she'd see what tomorrow would bring…


Neji had been in huge trouble when he had gotten home. He wasn't about to explain to them that the reason he was so late was because his project partner had been the one to pick up his phone. If they ever found that out…well he didn't really want to think about that. Nothing good ever came out of getting involved with the likes of them.

His project partner. She was all he had thought about the entire time that they had administered his punishment for not being there on time. He was all right taking it, even if it meant that he would hardly be able to walk afterwards.

The beatings were brutal to say the least. He had gotten fairly used to them by now. He just learned to think of other things while it happened. It was an extremely cliché thing to do. It wasn't that he couldn't protect himself. He could take them on easily, but if he even tried, the consequences would be worse. Even then, sometimes he felt like fighting back.

But he had to remember why he was taking all of this. If he didn't take it, then everyone else would. Even Naruto and Sasuke didn't know about this, and he intended to keep it that way.

Tenten was already on his case and the bruises that covered his body probably wouldn't help his case. Still he had taken enough beatings to know how to cover them up. He knew how to cover up the bruises on his face and make it seem as if nothing had happened. He wore long sleeves anyway, so no one would see the extent of his torture. As long as no one touched him in anyway, there wouldn't be a problem.

Showers were the worst part of the whole ordeal. His body stung and ached as the water cascaded down. It was relaxing in a way, but mostly painful. The minute he dried his hair and got into his pajamas he sunk into his bed and curled up into a ball.

He was scared. He wasn't going to lie. No matter how tough of a front he put on, the fact of the matter was that he was a scared little boy still. He knew it, and he had even admitted it to himself. And most nights he felt alone. Loneliness was an ugly feeling. He had felt it his entire life. He had his mother for most of his life, but she was always working. His father had died when he was only 4 years old and after that his mother found herself unable to really look at him. He reminded her too much of her husband. That's probably why she barely gave him love. Well that's what Neji had always assumed anyway.

So when she disappeared, it confirmed that she couldn't handle being around her son anymore. And Neji, despite of his efforts to keep a straight face, couldn't hide his feelings from his pillow. He was an unwanted child.

The only person who had ever really wanted him around was Tenten and his uncle's family. But tensions between his mother and his uncle rose heavily at the time of his father's death, so he almost never saw them. If he was even caught talking to them, his mom would lock him in his room for hours on end. So when Tenten came into his life in kindergarten, she was like his guardian angel. She went out of her way to be nice to him and stuck by him since then. He always valued and cherished her and their friendship. But of course the feelings of friendship began to run deeper when he turned 13.

Yes, he had always had feelings for her, but it took him at least 2 years to even admit that to himself. He wasn't sure that she'd felt the same about him. When they'd entered high school together, he was no longer the lanky, long haired freak everyone had come to known. Puberty had done wonders for him and as a result he got too much attention from the girls. But he always had eyes for just one girl. And he made sure that everyone but her, knew that.

But just as he was plucking up the courage to finally tell her how he felt, his mother disappeared and he immediately became a target of the people he was being forced to associate with. And that's why he had alienated most of his friends, family, and most of all Tenten. He didn't think he could live with himself if something happened to her especially.

And now she was very close to finding out his secret. No, he couldn't let that happen. He had been living with her hurt and hatred for two years, but he would take that over the look on her face when she saw exactly what he was hiding. That'd be pain that he couldn't bear to put her through.

The tears spilled onto his pillow and he didn't care much. This had become routine for him. Because tomorrow when he woke up, it would be as if none of this happened.


Tenten knew that this would happen, as sad as she was to admit it. Of course Neji wouldn't show up. She was stupid for even thinking that he would. He had a huge wall built around him, and no matter how hard she would try and tear it down, he would stay resilient. She'd always hated that about him.

Even his own cousin couldn't read him. They weren't particularly close, but there was a level of love and respect between them. Of course, they were family. Even then, she felt like she had to enlist both her and Temari's help.

Earlier that day…

Tenten had just picked up Temari and Hinata. They always left the house an hour before school started because it gave them time to just hang out. That was another reason why Tenten was closer to them than the other two girls.

School was a 15 minute drive from Hinata's house, but they always kept the conversation going even if there wasn't much to talk about.

"Okay Tenten, spill it. What did you find out last night?" Temari asked as they hit a stop light. Hinata looked between the two girls, confused. Oh right, she was completely out of the loop.

Tenten closed her eyes and took a deep breath before answering the question, "Neji's definitely hiding something, but I think it's much more serious than a drinking problem."

Hinata inched closer as the conversation shifted to her cousin. Did they just say drinking problem?

Temari looked confused, "Oh?"

"I can't exactly tell you what it is. But if you ask him certain questions, it gets him all riled up. If you go near his phone especially," Tenten finished.

Hinata sighed, "So you've caught on have you?"

The two girls turned to the girl in the backseat. Did she know something about this and she had been keeping it from them?

"Hinata, did you know about Neji's secret?" Tenten asked.

Hinata shook her head, "I wish I knew exactly what it was. I've tried for years to figure it out. He'd closed himself off so much that it was impossible to even get a simple 'hi' out of him. Naruto finally decided to talk to him and when he did, he just told me that Neji was going through a lot of things. I decided to buy it but I knew that he was lying to me."

"So, you've known that Neji's been hiding something, and you're only telling us now?" Temari demanded.

Hinata shook her head, "I wasn't too sure at first, but you two just confirmed it."

Tenten drew in a breath, "Well, you are correct Hinata, Naruto does know something. I heard him and Sasuke talking. Neji seems to trust them with everything."

Hinata bit her lip and Temari shook her head. But that's when an idea popped into her head. "I don't think we can crack this separately. I think we'll need to work together to figure out what's going on."

"Temari why would you…" Tenten began.

"…help you guys out? Because believe it or not, Neji is still my friend. And so are you two. And if it takes getting into his business to help him out, then that's what I'll do," she finished.

"Temari, but how are you going to…?" Hinata asked.

"I'm dating Shikamaru. He has information on a lot of people. He may be lazy, but he always has accurate information," Temari explained.

The girls smiled, but Tenten spoke up, "All right, I have a feeling that Neji isn't going to show for the meeting I asked for. So after school today, we start our investigation, all right?"

The girls nodded their heads as Tenten pulled into the school parking lot…


Present time…

Well it looked as if they'd have to start their investigation after school then. Tenten wasn't exactly Nancy Drew or Sherlock Holmes, but she was very perceptive. With the right clues, she was able to piece things together relatively quickly. But Neji had done such an excellent job of concealing things and covering up his tracks that Tenten needed to dig much deeper than usual. Maybe she should have enlisted Sakura and Ino as well, but because of their gossipy nature, Tenten quickly shoved that idea out of her head.

She sighed and walked away from the tree and was about to head back inside of the school when she heard a buzz of conversation coming from the side of the building. She was about to shake it off when she realized that it was Neji's voice that was talking. It looked like a change of plans; she'd have to start her investigation then and there.

"All right, what the hell happened last night Neji?" Sasuke asked.

"Tenten picked up Hidan's call. I'm not sure what she heard or what Hidan inadvertently told her, but I think she knows something," Neji's voice sounded more pained than angry.

"You could have asked," Naruto suggested.

"I did. She simply refused to answer. She knows something, I just feel it," Neji growled.

"Neji…" Sasuke muttered grabbing his wrist only to have Neji hiss in pain. Sasuke immediately withdrew his hand and gaped at Neji.

"Are you okay, man?" Naruto questioned, looking down at Neji's wrist.

"I—yeah I'm perfectly fine," Neji mumbled. Even from far away, Tenten could tell that he was lying. He always mumbled when he lied.

"You're lying," Sasuke thankfully caught on. "Pull up your sleeves Hyuuga!"

"Why?" Neji asked.

"Just do it, or I'll do it for you," Sasuke demanded.

Tenten heard it go quiet for a while. She assumed that Neji was slowly lifting up his sleeves, because the next thing she heard was Naruto shout, "What the hell!? Where did these come from?"

Tenten couldn't peer over and see for fear that she would get caught. She was scared but at the same time curious.

"I—well these are from…" Neji began.

"They did it to you didn't they? This was the punishment that you received for screwing up," it wasn't a question from the way that Sasuke had said it.

"Why does it matter?" Neji growled defensively. "I knew that this would happen. It all came with the territory"

"Why the hell are you letting them do this to you? Why the hell aren't you putting up a fight?" Naruto demanded frantically.

"What's the point of fighting back, huh? If it'll save even more people from getting roped into this, I'd let them drag my body through hell and back," Neji answered.

"That's not why you're doing this," Sasuke said in a low tone.

Neji's next words were dripping with venom, "You don't know anything Sasuke."

"I think I do actually. You aren't doing this for your family, are you? Even I know that the Hyuuga can protect themselves, they are a powerful family. You're doing this for someone else…"

"Someone else?" Naruto asked, confusion coating his voice.

"It's for my family," Neji affirmed.

"You know Hyuuga you aren't doing yourself any favors by telling yourself that. We know that you know that you're family doesn't need you protecting them. It's for Tenten, that's why you're so hell bent on keeping her in the dark," Sasuke cut in.

Tenten's pounding heart suddenly stopped. For her? He was doing something for her?

"Uchiha I'm warning you…" Neji growled.

"Neji, I'm your friend. You tried to get me and Naruto and to an extent yourself to believe that the only reason you pushed Tenten out of your life wasn't because you didn't want her involved in all of this. It's because she's the person you're trying to protect. Even those people are aware that she's the one person you care about above all else," Sasuke said calmly.

Naruto didn't say anything, Tenten assumed that he wasn't surprised to hear it. She, on the other hand, was. But until she heard the confirmation from his mouth, she wouldn't believe it.

"Uchiha, what the hell do you want me to do?" Neji's voice was frantic.

"I want you to admit it. Set yourself free. Stop lying to yourself," Sasuke whispered.

The next thing that Neji would say would make Tenten's heart explode. "Fine, you want to hear it then? Yes, it's all for Tenten! I don't just care for her! She was the one person who understood me and was able to break down my walls. You wanted to hear this too, then hear it! I love her! I love her more than anything else on this planet. And you have no idea how much it hurts to be away from her, but I can't put her life in danger! I'd go to the bottom of Hell if it meant saving her! Are you happy now? I certainly hope you are because you'd be the only ones I can make happy! If there's one thing I know, it's that I can't be with the woman that I love or even make her happy because of this secret!"

Sasuke and Naruto seemed dumfounded by Neji's outburst. It was not like him to explode like that, even when he was at his most frustrated. But it was a start; Neji was starting to open up, even if it was in the form of a violent outburst.

Tenten felt her entire body turn to jelly. Did he really just say that he loved her? She had to keep a hand over her mouth to keep herself from vomiting.

And she felt that way because two crucial questions swirled around her mind: Was she willing to stick around to find out what his secret was if he was hiding it from her to save her life? And would she be able to stick around after finding out?

But there was a third question that overshadowed the other two very quickly…

Do I love him too…?


Please Review

Polling time! :D (Please just pick one) TWO POLLS THIS TIME (YAY!)

A) Neji comes to Tenten's house to finally get the project done, but Tenten confronts him and tries to get him to confess his true feelings and fails…

B) Tenten's in a daze from Neji's confession and has a hard time paying attention. But then she stumbles upon something which is discovered to be Neji's and it becomes a huge clue.

C) Temari gets Shikamaru to look into Neji's past and he finds out a few shocking things. But he isn't able to crack what Neji's secret exactly is.

D) All of the above

THIS STORY IS GOING UP TO AN M RATING IN 1-2 CHAPTERS! But here's another question for you.

Would you like to see at least one night of passion between NejiTen? (I'm 50-50 on it, but it will be implied heavily that they did something if you decide on B)

A) Yes

B) No

Okay even I have to admit that that confession was very TV drama like. But even someone as calm and collected as Neji Hyuuga needs to have his moments. Okay as for our creepy friend Kankuro, yes he will be returning very, very shortly. And I want to reiterate that I do not in any way hate Kankuro. I just made him creepy for a good plot. Okay well that's it for this week folks! Next update is February 9th! Remember I update every Sunday! Loved it? Hated it? Let me know! Plz R&R! Thanks! Till next time!

CherryXButterfly(Angel)