WHOO! You're all lucky. This is a quick update! No, I didn't just speed right through it. I actually think I did pretty well! But of course, I need your opinions!

Disclaimer: I STILL DO NOT OWN NARUTO!!

Enjoy :D

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Depression.

Everyone goes through a period of sadness such as this at least once, some more often than others. A lot of times it is caused by an event such as death, or loneliness, or maybe even helplessness. What's really unexpected is the way some people cope with depression: cutting, starving, or any other form of punishing their bodies. But sometimes, depression can lead to..

Insanity.

This on the other hand is much different and a whole lot more difficult to get over. This illness makes imaginary things seem real. Hallucinations. Most victims of this disease never recover, forever trapped in a world of unreality in reality. Depending on the causes, people react differently, whether they were born with it, abused by their parents as children, or even.. rape.

Different occurrences impact a person in different ways. You know why? Because nobody is exactly the same: everyone is different.

Extreme heat had caused Neji to awaken. His face was sweating along with every other place on his body. Shifting his legs, he felt his clothing rub against his legs, making them damp. He opened his eyes, remembering he had never changed last night before going to bed. But why? Then it came to him:

Tenten escorting Lee home, the look of fear still evident in his eyes and the way he cried during a nightmare. That nightmare.

When he had tried to move his legs, they had felt restricted, as if something was covering them or even possibly binding them but he knew that was out of the question.

Neji also noticed he couldn't move his arms.

'What's going on?' He wondered sleepily.

Finally glancing next to him, he noticed the rise and fall of another's chest. It was Lee of course. And at that moment, Neji realized why he was so hot. Somehow during the night, Lee had intertwined himself with Neji. His right arm, the one he happened to be lying on, was placed against Neji's chest and his other arm slung around his waist. Neji blushed at this. It felt weird, well, more like unusual, but more importantly, it felt nice. The leg Lee was lying on was kept straight and the other lied on top of Neji's, causing the restriction of movement.

The tickling from Lee's breath on his neck sent chills down his spine. He groaned. Why did he have to wake up? First thing in the morning and he's already hard. Neji brought his hand to Lee's face, lightly caressing it as he slept.

Lee moved into the touch, enjoying it at first. Then he recognized the feeling, it was similar to the way Gaara had rubbed him. His eyes instantly snapped open and he jumped off the bed. Neji too had jumped, only because Lee had startled him.

"What's the matter Lee?" Neji asked.

Lee blinked, glancing around the small room. "I.. I felt someone touching my face and I thought it was Gaara again."

"Nope, no one else is here." Neji told him, yawning. He shivered, feeling very cold all of a sudden. Although he had felt extremely warm, it was better than being cold. "Come back to bed."

Lee looked at him strangely, questioningly. 'Then who had..?'

Neji ushered him. "Come on."

Without any hesitation, Lee bounced right back onto the bed, earning a grumble or two from the stoic ninja. It was way too early for this kind of excitement. Neji wasn't exactly a morning person.

Neji sat up, avoiding, yes he's actually avoiding, his teammate's eyes. "Do.. do you remember what happened last night?"

Cocking his head, Lee gazed at the ceiling above. "Mm.. I do not know what you mean. You left Naruto and I at Ichiraku and then he left soon after, saying he had to meet with someone. Then when I had finished, I walked home. That is all I remember."

"You don't remember panicking last night? Tenten had brought you back.." Neji informed, trying to jog Lee's memory.

Lee laughed nervously. "That.. uh, happens regularly. I try to forget about it."

Neji apologized, finally peering into Lee's coal black eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" Inquired Lee. It didn't make sense to him. Neji wasn't the cause of his break down, Gaara was. So why..?

"I shouldn't have left you alone like that. I know you're not supposed to leave a rape victim alone but, I had felt like I didn't belong there at the time. I'm sorry." Neji clenched his fist, gripping his shorts along with some skin, pinching himself.

Oh, that's why. Lee sighed. "It is okay. I do not hold it against you. Please, do not worry about it."

"Don't worry about it? DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT?!" Neji grabbed Lee's shoulders, pushing him back onto the pillows. "Lee! How can I not worry?! Do you have any idea what I'd go through if something had happened to you?!"

"What?" Lee was wide-eyed, surprised and confused by Neji's outburst.

Neji released Lee, climbing off him. "Nothing. It didn't mean anything."

"Wait!" Lee pleaded, snatching Neji's shirt before he could get out of bed. "If it did not mean anything, then why did you say it? Please tell me."

Shaking his head, Neji pulled out of Lee's grip. Now was not the time to tell Lee how he really felt about him. Sure he had been waiting almost a year but he wasn't ready. More importantly, he knew that Lee wasn't ready. Having already been confessed to and having been raped for rejecting, Neji wasn't going to put Lee through that again. Not that he would rape him. He would just wait until Lee had recovered, or at least be close to a full recovery.

"I'm going to get the door." Neji said, walking out of the room. He just couldn't handle hurting Lee. Neji could be cruel at times but he had a limit.

The few employees from the store they had shopped at yesterday were there bright and early, ready to begin painting the 'lovely' apartment. When they had walked in, each one of their faces cringed at the sight. They had never, NEVER in their life seen walls so gross and the tile.. They were starting to regret telling Lee that they would clean up the house for him. Oh well, as long as they were getting paid for it..

"Okay," one of the men told Neji. "we will start with the kitchen and the hallway. If we have enough time, we might be able to paint the entire place."

The second man scoffed. "We'll probably finish this place in one day. We didn't know it was so tiny!"

"All right you guys, shut up. Leave them alone. It's not our business where they want to live. Let's just get this over with." The third man, who seemed to have authority over the others, ordered.

Neji walked back into the bedroom, where Lee still lied on the bed. He watched as Lee sat up again, eyebrow raised.

"I didn't hear the door. Who was it?" Lee asked him.

"They're painting." stated Neji. "Get ready, we have training today."

Lee's expression was blank. When the word 'training' was finally processed in his mind, he jumped over to the closet, pulling out one of his jumpsuits and a pair of orange legwarmers. He smiled happily. It had been awhile since he had trained and to be honest, he missed it. A lot.

He pulled off the green shirt that was supposed to be long and the hospital pants Tsunade had given him. Throwing those to the floor, he glanced at the pants.

'Those were actually comfortable to sleep in.' He thought.

Neji walked out of the room for the second time, giving his teammate privacy.. again. Of course he would've wanted nothing more than to stay and watch but he had more self control than that, more class if you will.

Lee walked out of his room about two seconds after Neji left. Wow, he dressed fast. Perhaps he was extremely excited? Neji had a feeling that some of it was just for show, that he was wearing a mask to cover his mental agony, wanting people to think he was okay. Lee never did like people feeling sorry for him.

"I need to-" Neji began before being interrupted.

"What about you Neji? Do you not need to change?" Lee asked, knowing Neji didn't have a change of clothes.

"I was going to say that I'm going to stop by my place after training so that I can get clothes." Neji rolled his eyes. He would've known that if he had just listened.

"Oh, okay." Lee grinned; it looked almost forced. "Let us train!"

He would've asked why Neji wasn't going to change now but then he realized, what was the point of putting on clean clothing if they were just going to get dirty?
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"LEE!" Gai-sensei shouted as his two students walked into the clearing.

"GAI-SENSEI!" Lee shouted right back, rivers of tears streaming down his face.

The two of them ran towards each other, making the scene especially dramatic. They ran slowly with their arms outstretched, ready to embrace one another. As soon as they were arm length's away, they were instantly kneeling on the ground hugging. And they seemed to be kneeling on a cliff, a sunset behind them and waves crashing against the ledge, threatening to rise and fall on them.

Tenten and Neji sweat dropped. It wouldn't have been as bad if Lee and Gai hadn't ran slow-mo.

"OH LEE!"

"OH SENSEI!"

Neji narrowed his eyes. Sure he knew they acted like this all the time but he began to realize just how close Gai was to Lee. It upset him. He wasn't necessarily angry, but he felt some sort of resentment..

Tenten smirked. "Jealous, are we?" She teased.

"Hn." Neji walked past the two hugging weirdoes and past Tenten. Jealous? Him? No way. Neji Hyuuga was never jealous of anyone. He was superior. If anything, people should be jealous of him!

Giggling, Tenten shook her head. The way he acted was laughable. Neji was a love-struck shinobi, even she could see that.

Gai finally pulled out of the embrace, then helped Lee up. "Lee, I want you to know that I'm here for you and if you ever need me, don't hesitate to ask."

Lee nodded. It was a little embarrassing having his sensei know what had happened to him but it also felt good. Gai had had his back since he met him and he knew that his sensei would continue to have his back. It was indeed a good feeling.

"All right! Tenten!" Gai called. "Train with me. I move much faster than Lee. Let's see if you can hit me!"

Tenten quickly took out a shuriken and hurled it at Gai's face. Her movements had been so rapid, so precise, Gai hadn't the time to completely dodge the weapon. She managed to nick his cheek, causing little bleeding.

"Haha!" Tenten stuck out her tongue. "What was that Gaaiii? Didn't quite hear you!" She started to laugh.

Gai charged. "Let's see if you can do it again!"

"GUH-AH!" Lee had been sent flying backwards, crashing against a tree. He slid down it, slumping when he sat at the base. He clutched his head, feeling it throb. "Ow.. What was that for?"

Neji stood in the Hyuuga stance. "We're supposed to start our training now."

Lee shakily got to his feet. When he was standing, he glared at Neji. "You could have told me. You did not have to hit me!"

This time, Lee charged. Raising his fist, he aimed to punch his opponent in the gut. Neji swiftly spun to the left, bringing his arm down and striking the Taijutsu Specialist's tenketsu.

'Damn it!' Lee thought, quickly rolling away to prevent Neji from doing any more damage.

Lee instantly brought his legs around him, and spun, attempting to kick Neji.

"Leaf Whirlwind!" Lee shouted. He smiled when he successfully tripped Neji. Before celebrating though, he made sure that it wasn't a clone.

Neji hit the ground hard, landing with an audible 'thud'. There was no poof of smoke or any logs or anything of the sort. On the ground was Neji. Lee joyously jumped in the air, then ran over to Neji, punching him square in the face.

Lee watched as Neji dodged his punch, causing him instead to punch the ground. He growled. Neji brought his leg up and kicked Lee in the stomach, off him. Lee was getting good and Neji knew that. He was even breaking a sweat!

Flipping, Lee regained his balance, waiting for Neji's next attack. Neji didn't show any movement so Lee dashed towards him. Neji blinked and before he knew it, he was the one against a tree.

He rubbed his chin. "Didn't see that one coming.." He said, panting.

Lee stood straight, returning into his own stance. "Take that, Neji!"

This time, it was Neji's turn to run towards Lee. Lee, of course, moved out of the way but not fast enough. Neji had turned around and pushed two of his fingers into the back of Lee's shoulder. Lee grunted and in a flash, his bandages had been undone.

Neji's eyes widened as Lee again dashed towards him. He then noticed that his feet were no longer touching the ground and there was a sharp pain in his chin. But he neither sensed nor felt Lee's wrappings around his body. He wondered why as he opened one of his eyes.

"LEE!" Gai screamed, punching Lee in the mouth sending him flying into the very same tree Neji had shoved him into.

"Uhhh.." Lee moaned. What was it with him getting shoved into trees anyway? He looked up, his sensei hovering over him, glaring.

"YOU KNOW YOU CAN NEVER USE THAT JUTSU ON A COMRADE!" Gai struck the tree behind Lee, causing it to fall over and crash upon the ground.

Lee cowered, bringing an arm up in a feeble attempt to shield himself from the wrath of his sensei. "I am so sorry! I just wanted to beat my rival!"

Gai rested his hand on his face. He could never be mad at his lovable, adorable student for long. He understood Lee. Just like Lee, Gai too had a rival. Kakashi Hatake. Ooh! How it burned him up when he acted so cool!

"Okay Lee," He said. "I'll let you go this time. Don't let it happen again."

Lee saluted. "YES SIR!"

Neji picked himself off the ground. He glared at Lee, angry that Lee would even try to use that jutsu on him. But he was more upset with Gai. Interrupting their battle like that. Sure Lee had broken a rule, but hey, it sure made their battle a heck of a lot more interesting!

"HEY!"

All four heads turned in the direction of the calling. They heard rustling, then a tall blonde boy ran out into the clearing, pointing behind him. It was Naruto.

"Hey you guys!" Naruto called again. "Tsunade requests that we meet in her office right away! It's urgent!"

'Perhaps she's to inform us about the plan?' Gai-sensei thought.

Naruto tugged on Lee's arm. "Come on Lee! Now!" He ushered, pulling him in the direction of the Hokage Tower.

"Ah! All right, Naruto! I am coming!"

Naruto let go of Lee and the two of them raced to the tower. Neji, Tenten, and Gai followed them, knowing they had to be a part of the plan too.
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"Ah, thanks for coming." Tsunade said, folding her hands on her desk. She waited for the five of them to come in and get comfortable before she began explaining the plan.

She eyed them. "I'm sure you all know why I have summoned you here, yes?"

All of them nodded. Well, except for Neji. He just shot her a look that said 'DUH'. Amazing how one look can say it all.

Tsunade continued. "Okay, it's not the best plan, but it should work. In case you haven't noticed, Gaara has left Konoha. He must've thought that I have found out about what he's done. But I have a feeling he'll be back, but I don't know when. So, I've decided to send him a letter."

Lee blinked. "A letter?"

She nodded. "In that letter, I will state how you, Lee, had acted strangely when he was in the village and that when he left, you got upset. I'm basically inviting him back to Konoha to catch him the act."

Neji scoffed, shaking his head. "What a dumb plan."

Tsunade's eye twitched. "Shut up! If this doesn't work, then I'll think of another plan. We want to start off simple."

"Well, you are the Hokage. I trust in you and your plan." Tenten smiled.

Gai too smiled, showing that he agreed with Tenten.

Naruto cocked his head. "What's Bushy- I mean, Lee supposed to do? You said to catch Gaara in the act.. Does that mean we let him get attacked?"

Lee's eyes widened. Could he really go through that again?

She sighed. "Yes Naruto that's exactly what I meant. I w-"

Neji cut her off, outraged. "WHAT?! You can't do that! I won't allow it- huh?"

Lee held his arm out in front of Neji, causing him to cease talking. Neji stared at the back of Lee's head, confused.

"Lee?" He asked.

Lowering his head, Lee sighed. "It is.. all right. I understand."

"As I was saying," Tsunade stopped to glare at Neji. "Lee, you will have to stay by yourself. Gaara cannot know that anyone is looking after you. As for Naruto and Neji, you two are to keep a close eye on Lee. When you do find Gaara with Lee, you are to confront him. If he refuses to keep away from Lee, attack."

"And what are we to do?" Gai asked her, referring to Tenten and himself.

"Well, I'm sending Naruto because as far as I know, he's good friends with Gaara, and he's also defeated him in battle. But if he needs assistance, you are to help."

They all nodded, knowing and understanding their parts in the plan.

"Dismissed." Tsunade waved them off.
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Gai had announced that training was done for the day, ordering them to prepare for the upcoming battle that would take place sometime in the next few days. Gai and Tenten left them, as did Naruto. He told Lee he'd see him later and that he wouldn't let him down.

That left a frowning Neji and a happy Lee.

Neji felt depression begin to cover him, much like a blanket. He did not want to leave Lee alone again. He had made that mistake once and it was something he did not want ever happening again. If anything, Neji wanted to never leave Lee's side, as a way of making it up to him.

Although Lee was happy, because of what Naruto had said, he felt nervous and again, scared. Knowing that he was to be attacked and actually letting it happen, made him edgy. He could already feel the hands roaming all over his body, violating him. He didn't know what Gaara would do this time but just thinking of the possibilities made him shiver to no end. He felt as though he could snap any second, he tried to hold on to his sanity the best he could.

And to make their moods worse, it began to rain, representing the way both of them felt at that very moment.

Neji's frown deepened. "Come on Lee," he sighed. "Let's see if they've finished painting."

Lee nodded and followed Neji down the sidewalk toward the direction of his home, listening as the rain went 'pitter-pat'.

They walked in silence, both thinking about the things that could go wrong once they faced Gaara. Neji hoped that he and Naruto would make it to Lee before anything serious began to happen. As for Lee, he wondered if he'd be able to hold Gaara off long enough for the others to arrive.

"Lee..?" Neji called, his voice barely above a whisper. It was a miracle Lee even heard him.

"What is it Neji?" Lee asked, raising his head.

"I want to stay with you tonight.. Is that all right?" He stopped walking and turned to face Lee as he asked for permission to spend another night with him.

Lee appeared shocked for a moment but them smiled. It was small at first, then it grew until it was almost a grin. "I do not mind."

Neji turned back around and continued walking, a small smile imprinted on his usual emotionless face.
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"Ah, just in time." said the man with the authority. "We just finished. You can sleep here tonight if you want to, if you don't mind the smell that is. And also make sure you don't touch the walls."

Lee bowed, showing the men his appreciation. He stood up straight again. "Thank you. You did a great job." Lee commented, looking around.

The man nodded. "Well see you tomorrow then, to start on the tile."

With that, the three men walked out, leaving the two boys alone. It was silent until Lee's stomach growled, rather loudly. Neji raised an eyebrow at him, making Lee laugh nervously.

"It appears that I am hungry." Lee acknowledged, stating the obvious.

"I noticed." Neji looked around. "You.. don't have any food here, do you?"

Lee ran to one of his boxes, pulling out some ingredients and some cookware. "Haha. Of course I do!" He ran into the kitchen, preparing for the meal he was about to make.

Studying the ingredients, Neji realized what he was about to make and backed away from the kitchen. No.. Lee was making that horrid dish he hated so much.. Curry.

Lee noticed this and laughed. "Come on Neji! I swear, I will not make it so spicy!"

"Hn. No thanks." Neji waved his hand.

Shrugging, Lee began making curry. Loving it so much, he knew how to make that dish great tasting. Though he could never match the way Tenten made it taste. Hers was truly the best he'd ever tasted.

Neji watched Lee move around the kitchen. The scene displayed before him was erotic. Something about Lee knowing his way around a kitchen excited him. All he wanted to do was wrap his arms around Lee's waist, seducing him on top of the kitchen table.

He absently shook his head. These types of thoughts were beginning to take over his mind. Lately, this was all he ever thought about anymore. He wasn't sure how much longer he could control himself.

After almost twenty minutes, Lee had successfully made Curry. He placed on the table two plates that he had also gotten out of the box, along with two spoons.

"Neji, it is not spicy, I swear." Lee promised, trying to get Neji to eat with him.

Well, he did go through all the trouble to prepare the food.' Neji thought.

"All right. You'd better not be lying." Neji warned.

Lee grinned. "I am not!" He pushed the plate toward Neji.

Neji put a spoonful near his mouth, hesitating to eat it. He eyed Lee and when Lee nodded for him to continue, he put it in his mouth. And it was.. not all that spicy. In fact, there was only a hint of spice but it sure did pack a whole lot of flavor that made Neji's entire body feel warm.

"Well..?" He heard Lee ask, anticipating his answer.

"It's acceptable." Neji told him, hiding the fact that he loved Lee's cooking.

Lee joined him in the warm feeling, taking a bite of his own spoonful of curry. He nodded, enjoying the taste. In his opinion it was missing something.. something very important..

He got up and grabbed the special missing ingredient off the counter, the secret behind the heat of any curry dish. Hot sauce. Lee returned to the table with this prized possession and all but drowned his plate in it. He then took another spoonful into his mouth. He smiled, satisfied with the new flavor the hot sauce produced.

Neji looked almost fearful of the bottle of hot sauce that now stood in the center of the table. He decided to ignore that blasted thing.

"Lee, what do you think of the plan that Lady Tsunade thought of?" He questioned.

Lee blinked. "Well, I agree. We need to start off simple. That way, we can find out if Gaara is suspicious and if a more complex plan is necessary."

"But what do you think of it?" He asked a little more sternly this time.

"Well," Lee sighed. "I think it is a fine plan. I think it will work."

Neji narrowed his eyes. "But are you okay with what is expected of you?"

Lee dropped his spoon on his now empty plate. "Neji, I do not know. I think I can handle it. And besides, I trust that both you and Naruto will find me before anything can happen." He picked up the plate and carried to the sink.

Neji came up behind Lee with his empty plate, placing it in the sink next to Lee's. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I didn't mean to upset you."

He noticed that Lee's body began trembling. Peering at his face, he saw a single tear roll down his teammate's face. He quickly wiped it away.

"Lee, don't." Neji said, almost making it sound like a plea.

Lee shut his eyes. "Okay fine! I am scared, all right!" He opened his eyes and looked at Neji. "Is that what you want to hear?!"

Then Neji did something unexpected: He hugged Lee. The usual stoic, cruel ninja had actually done something humane. Lee hugged back, taking advantage of the fact that someone wanted to console him. He shed silent tears, occasionally rubbing his face into Neji's shoulder.

Neji held Lee around the waist with one arm and the hand of his other arm ran through Lee's black hair. Something he had always wanted to do, just not under a circumstance such as this.

"Go on Lee." Neji told him. "Go rest and I'll do the dishes."

Lee nodded and headed to the bedroom. "Thank you," he whispered.
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The dishes were done and Lee lied in his bed, awake, waiting for Neji to join him. He couldn't explain it but spending all this time with Neji made him think differently of him. Something about the way Neji treated him was unlike the way he usually treated others. In fact, his eyes widened as he thought this, Neji hadn't been insulting him as much as he used to. Lee narrowed his eyes. But since when? And more importantly, why?

Neji walked in, closing the door behind him. "Lee?" He murmured.

"You do not have to whisper, I am awake," he said, rolling over so that Neji would have a place to lie down.

Neji stripped down to his boxers, sliding under the green bed sheets. He had decided that since he wouldn't be living with Lee for a few days, he'd just go back to living at the Hyuuga compound and change clothes then. "Lee, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

Lee shook his head. "It is okay. I understand why you reacted the way you did."

Neji opened his mouth to say something, anything, but no sound came out. He was at a loss of words; he didnt know what to say. He shut his mouth. And again, he felt despair sit heavily on his torso, almost making him feel as though he couldn't breathe.

He watched as Lee drifted to sleep, his eyes finally giving up trying to remain open. Neji sighed and whispered, "If only you knew.." He then joined Lee in a deep slumber.

And for the first time since he had been taken, Lee's insanity didn't take over his dreams.
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Thanks for reading! I hope you liked this one!
Remember, I really appreciate the reviews that are given to me! The more I receive, the faster I post! As I said earlier, you got lucky this time!

R&R, PLEASE!!