Beasts of Souls Chapter 10: 10: The Weakness, a naruto fanfic

Author's Note: One more step to the fight that I've always been waiting for. More about other characters, too.

Disclaimer: Unya? Unyanyanya unya! Unyanyanyanya!... nyah… (-.-)… -sigh- alright, alright. FINE! I don't own Naruto! (T.T) Unyaaaaa… -wailing-

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Chapter 10

The Weakness

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Everyone makes mistakes at times

It's not something embarrassing

Don't waste these scars

Keep on going laughing, and it'll all be good

Raiko: ALIVE

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"My blooming flower!!!"

Tears streamed down Gai's face as he sat beside Tenten's bed. Lee was also crying beside him. They were a duo, as always.

"I'm so worried about you!!" Gai sobbed like he had lost one of his hands. Or perhaps worse. "My flower! I wonder if you'll ever open your eyes again!!"

"Don't say things like that, Gai-Sensei!" Lee's eyes suddenly flared with fire. "You must not say such horrible things!"

"Lee! You're right, my boy!! Thank you, LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!!!"

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!!!"

"LEE!!!!!"

"Neji-san, shouldn't we drag them out?" Sakura looked at Neji exasperatedly. Neji only closed his eyes and said, "If you can."

The pink haired medic groaned. Just a moment later, the sound of Sakura trying to get rid of the two green wild beasts was heard—the sound of stomping, punching, crashing, whacking, etc. filled the room. Ah, and infuriated cursing too, of course. Tenten looked at Neji and said, "There is not much different, don't you think?"

"At least they're outside." Neji slowly walked towards her bed. She was covered with bandages. Both of her arms were burned, but there was nothing else to worry about. She was exhausted, that's all, and nothing more. That fact made him felt relieved. He still didn't want to admit that he was scared, so scared when he saw her on the floor. "Are you alright?"

"Perfectly fine!" Her grin hadn't change which was no doubt a good sign. "My burn won't leave a scar! That's what Sakura promised me!"

Neji threw a questioning look on why it was such a big deal. Tenten cringed her forehead.

"Oh, Neji! A woman mustn't have a scar on her! It'll reduce her beauty!"

"I never know that you're thinking on that matter, to tell the truth," said Neji with a slight surprised tone. Tenten grinned sheepishly.

"Well… that's what Sakura said to me."

"Ah! I thought so."

Clank! The sound of talons hitting the windowsill made Neji turn towards the window. An eagle stood awkwardly by the ledge, a piece of paper tied on its ankle. Neji swiftly took the paper and read the handwriting on it. Tenten cast a questioning look.

"From the Nara," answered Neji. With a quick look, he read the letter. "They agree to back us up for the upcoming battle."

Tenten didn't say anything, even as the second and third owl arrived shortly afterwards. Neji took both of their letters and said, "The Akimichi and Sarutobi Asuma of Aite also agree. All three of them are asking about the update of the plan."

"I see…" Tenten lowered her eyes. "The time of assault, you mean. When will we attack?"

Neji looked at her with that unusual stare and with his low voice he said, "When you are strong enough."

"I don't want to be a burden. We'll start when you say so."

"When will you be strong enough to fight?"

"I…"

"In a couple of days. I guess in a week, she'll be alright."

Sakura stepped into the room, Sasuke behind her.

"Or even sooner than a week," said Sakura, sitting on the side of Tenten's bed. She gently lifted the older woman's hands. "Her healing ability is astounding. She'll be alright in a very short amount of time."

"How long will it be until she is fully recovered?"

"Three… or four," said Sakura slowly. Neji turned around and wrote something on the back of all the letters with a pen lying on the desk near the window. He said briskly, "Five days then."

"Five?" Tenten looked at Neji. "Neji, that's a long time! I'm alright! If you wait that long, Orochimaru will prepare himself! Neji, he'll realize that you're still alive! He'll realize that the assault on Asura was a failure and he will know that you are preparing for an attack and…"

"When I say 'five days', I mean it."

His voice provided no space for argument. Tenten looked away as Neji sent the eagle and owls back to his allies. Breaking the silence, Sasuke said, "I'll inform the others."

"Gather all of them downstairs, Uchiha," said Neji as he passed everyone towards the door. "I need to talk about the assault plan."

He suddenly stopped by the door. He didn't turn back, but his stern voice said, "And Tenten… You didn't disappoint me. You never had, you never did, and you never will."

After that he went away, once again never leaving more words than he needed to.

"I will contact the Nara for any further plans," Neji slowly rose from the seat. "They have the best tacticians that I have ever known."

"When we will gather at the meeting point?" asked Kakashi, lifting his book again. "Three days after today?"

Neji nodded.

"Until then, I hope every one of you make the proper preparations."

Neji turned around.

"This assault is our turning point. We have to give it our best… or be crushed under Orochimaru's power forever. We cannot afford to lose this war."

Click.

That sound made Tenten turn her attention from the window to the door. Sakura silently walked towards her bed, a smile on her face.

"Neji's done talking this soon?" Tenten looked at the clock with a bewildered expression. "That's a record! A world shocking event! Too fast to be true!!"

Sakura laughed as she sat at the side of Tenten's bed.

"Somehow I agree, Tenten-san," said Sakura, smiling. Tenten furrowed her eyebrow then poked Sakura's forehead teasingly.

"Not 'Tenten-san'," scolded the brunette gently. "Just call me by my name, okay? We're not strangers anymore."

"Hai, Tenten." Sakura couldn't resist the smile on her face. She really liked the weapon mistress. Even though they had known each other for only a while, Tenten's bright and carefree spirit made her feel like they had known each other for years. "Give me your hand. Let me check your burn."

Tenten gladly complied. Sakura cut off the bandages with her chakra then looked at the burning flesh. She silently gasped. She has never seen such amazing healing ability before. Her burn had already healed itself. A supposed three day healing process happened in just half a day. Tenten looked at Sakura and jokingly said, "You look surprised. Do my roasted arms look that appealing to you? You can have a bite if you want."

"Don't make me!" Sakura laughed, hiding her revelation. She wrapped Tenten's hands with new bandages for hygiene. "No… Nothing. I'm just… surprised. Your wounds healed a lot faster than I thought they would."

There was a question in that sentence. Tenten gave one of her cheeky smiles and said, "I guess the Tenkai's blood is as amazing as its name, eh?"

"Ah… probably," said Sakura with a nod. But she knew it wasn't her blood. There was something else. With that understanding, she reminded herself that she actually knew nothing about the weapon girl. "I'm glad it's you."

Ambiguity. Both of them understood it very well. Tenten took a deep breath and said, "Neji… Where is he now?"

"I don't know," Sakura said, focused on the bandaging. "He left right after the short speech. It looks like there's something on his mind."

"Sou ka…" Tenten's eyes suddenly darkened. Sakura didn't have the nerve to ask her now. Not when she barely know her. "Then… where are the others?"

"I guess they went their own ways," Sakura gently placed Tenten's bandaged arms on the bed. "Neji-san asked us to do… 'Proper preparations' for the upcoming battle."

Tenten's eyes wavered a bit. Sakura looked at her expression and finally said, "Anything wrong?"

"Nothing," the older woman said briskly. "Nothing at all…"

Her voice didn't state the same though, but she didn't say anything else. And Sakura couldn't muster enough courage to ask. Because in a very short time—almost a flicker—she thought she had felt something dark and dangerous emerging from the woman before her. Indeed, she knew nothing about her. Not even the slightest bit.

"Second… FLARE!!"

Sasuke raised his katana, panting heavily. Now he would hit him for sure.

"ANGRY JUDGEMENT!"

BLAST!!!

He was nowhere to be seen…

"So, I guess you can't rely on that thing too much."

A hand grabbed Sasuke's shoulder lightly from behind. Kakashi whispered in his ear, "Your blade can't cut me."

"SHUT UP!"

CHING!!! The Sharingan were red and spinning… but that wasn't the reason why they had widened in shock. The Hi no Tachi was held by Kakashi's hand leisurely. The latter put a finger on Sasuke's forehead.

"Wind."

BLAST! Sasuke was thrown to the nearby tree, smacking it hard. He grimaced, trying to recover his body and pride. Kakashi stood a few meters away from him, hands in his pocket.

"I've told you so, Sasuke-kun," he said in ease. "Your blade can't cut me."

Sasuke frowned at him. Anger flared in his body, infuriatingly. Why… Why can't I cut him?! Why?! What's wrong with this sword!?!?!

"Done, Sasuke?" Kakashi took out his book. "Too bad."

"Don't underestimate me!"

---------A few minutes before-------------

Ching! Naruto's dagger was easily stopped by Sasuke. The latter pointed at the former and said, "Explode. Fire."

BOOM!!

"HOOOTTT!!!" Naruto covered his face in pain. "Damn it, Sasuke-teme! It hurts!!! It hurts! Don't use bombs here!!"

"It's magic, dobe," said Sasuke exasperatedly. Naruto stomped his feet on the ground and shouted, "MAGIC!! Not fair! Not fair, Teme!"

"It's a spar, an imitation of the real fight. You can't expect an enemy to be fair on you. It's only about winning or losing."

"Such cold words coming from you," the deep sound was heard. Naruto turned around and found Kakashi walking towards them. As usual, he had the orange (porn?) book in his hand. "Sometimes… the war is not that simple."

Sasuke glanced towards the man. Kakashi shrugged.

"Well… I must say that I've seen the world longer than you," said the man lazily. "And I must say… with your current condition, Sasuke, you can't win the war."

A vein popped on Sasuke's head. How dare he!

"What did you say?" He stepped forward. Kakashi put his book down and said again, "You can't win this war. Not in your current condition."

"You…"

"You can train with me if you want," Kakashi looked away inattentively. "I'm free anyway. You can see the proof of my words if you want to, Sasuke-kun."

That's enough. Sasuke made a stance of tanka-o-kiru(1) and hissed, "Naruto, go away. I want to fight this man."

Naruto cringed his eyebrows and shouted, "NAAAA!!! TEME! How dare you…"

"You better find other mates," Kakashi's eyes hadn't left Sasuke. "He's occupied now. I guess Shino will be more than happy to accompany you. Shino's cooking some ramen by the kitchen now…"

"RAMEN!!!"

And he just left. Sasuke sneered and said, "Lame. But works for a pea brain like him. How did you know he likes ramen?"

"Well… Ino's mouth never stopped talking," said Kakashi absent-mindedly. "Now, attack me. I'll prove you that you're still not good enough for this war."

---------------Present--------------------

The dust cleared away… and there they were. Sasuke's eyes showed utter disbelief. Kakashi stopped his stab with two fingers.

"That's weak."

"Jyuuken!"

Swish! Hinata almost got Kiba. The latter jumped backward a few times and stopped.

"It's nice, Hinata," he said with a grin. "In just a few moments, we will proceed to the next step! I will defend, not just stand and wait. We will…"

"Inuzuka."

The cold voice made him jump from his place. He looked back and quickly recognized the Hyuuga Prodigy behind him.

"Whoa… Don't call me with that scary voice, okay?" Kiba grinned awkwardly. Even without his wings, Neji's stare still intimidated people around him. "Wassup?"

"Follow me," Neji suddenly turned around. Kiba winced and shouted, "But I'm training with Hinata! She…"

"Ask someone else," The Hyuuga continued his steps. "The only one who can train you is me."

"Hah! What's with that attitude?!" Kiba winced even more. He sweatdropped. "I'm not your lover! Yuck!"

"A Beast must be trained by another Beast," Neji glared at Kiba from his shoulder. Kiba quickly shut his mouth. "And that beast is me. Follow me. I'll show you how to control your power."

"Arf…"

Akamaru barked. Kiba understood what his dog said and finally took a step towards Neji. He looked back at Hinata and said, "You… Urm… perhaps Shino can train with you. I guess I have no other choice but to follow this man. Urm… I…"

"Let's go."

Neji briskly left, accompanied by Kiba—eventually leaving Hinata and Akamaru behind.

Shino never seemed to like his job. As Hanabi's guardian, he had to muster enough patience to hold himself as the girl busied herself with her things. Hanabi was not a considerate person; that was one important fact. She was impatient too and rarely stayed in one place without jumping to another. Shino's job was to be silent, watching her as she ran about the house—whether it was only for sight-seeing or playing with tools that she shouldn't. The latter earned her a silent, soft scolding from Shino, but was usually countered with a ten minutes babbling by Hanabi. And this time, it would not happen again.

"This one looks cool!" said Hanabi as she took out a kusarigama from its shelf. "Heh! That woman actually made this? You tell me!"

"Hanabi-sama, it's not appropriate to touch things that belong to other people," Shino stepped forward and snatched the weapon away from the little fingers of Hanabi. "And please do not insult the owner of this house. We're only guests here, Hanabi-sama."

Hanabi stuck her tongue out at Shino and ran to the second floor. Unfortunately for her, Sakura was going downstairs so… bam! They bumped into each other. Sakura almost lost her balance while Hanabi fell off the stairs painfully.

"Watch your step, brat!" scolded Sakura almost immediately. "It's dangerous!"

"I'm the one who was supposed to say it!!" countered Hanabi, rubbing her aching back. "YOU watch your step!"

"Heeeeyyy!! Wait a second here!" Sakura put her hands on her hip. "Who's the one at fault, eh?! You're the one who ran into me! You impudent girl!"

"I fell off the stairs and you're standing there! It's clear that everything is your fault!! Apologize to me this instance, pink-haired fool!"

"WHY YOU LITTLE…"

"Hanabi-sama," Shino suddenly appeared beside Hanabi. He put a hand on the girl's shoulder and continued softly, "Don't you remember that we're just guests here? We are not supposed to yell in somebody else's house."

"Shino!" Hanabi pointed at Sakura, clearly ignoring Shino's earlier statement. "Kill her!! Cut her head off!!! Use your bugs! NOW!!!"

"I'm sorry, Hanabi-sama," Shino's hand was raised behind her head. "But it's your nap time."

Smack! Hanabi fell unconscious to Shino's waiting arms. Sakura raised her eyebrows and said, "Hey… you actually make your mistress faint!! Is that okay?"

"If she's asleep, it's fine," Shino lifted the girl bridal style. "Please excuse her improper manners."

"It's okay," Sakura smiled. "Well… It's obvious. I see that she's kind of spoiled, unlike Hinata. But I'm amazed, Shino-san. You can actually endure it! You actually can stand being near her all the time!"

Shino didn't answer. He just walked up the stairs carefully while a memory unfolded in his mind…

"Is that… a butterfly?"

He nodded. The butterfly on his fingers flapped it wings gently. Hinata smiled and said, "It must be nice being able to call butterflies to you."

"Not if people call you a bug."

Hinata's eyes softened. She looked at him and said, "Then, they are yet to see the colors of your wings."

It was their first moment together, at the town garden…

As a princess, she always lived behind the wall of the castle. He thought that if he trained and became a guardian, perhaps he could be nearer to her.

And a guardian is what he is right now.

"Hanabi, this is your guardian."

The girl had a hard look on her face. She looked away and said, "Weird!"

"Hanabi!" Hinata scolded her gently. "It's impolite! I'm sorry, Shino-kun… I'm sorry."

Shino didn't answer. Hinata bowed down at him and said, "Please take care of my sister. She may be annoying and such… but she is still family. I love her nevertheless. I hope you will consider her as your family, too. That way… I hope we can be one family together."

Shino bowed down as a reply. A family… with her… It would be an honor he had never felt before.

If guarding this annoying girl is part of being the family of the princess… then it was the path that he would follow. He would do anything, as long as he could see the smile of the butterfly again.

"CYCLONE!"

BOOM! Kiba was thrown away. He landed harshly on the ground. His whole body ached and blood dripped from his mouth. He coughed the crimson out, as it littered the ground. Neji attacked him mercilessly, not giving him a single chance to counter.

"Is that all you have, Inuzuka?" The Hyuuga Prodigy stepped forward. "I can't believe they chose you to be a Royal Guardian."

Kiba gritted his teeth. The taste of blood filled his mouth but he answered the insult.

"It's supposed to be training!" he shouted back. "You're going to kill me! You've attacked me ruthlessly the whole time! What is the meaning of this?!"

Neji's glare froze his whole system. Its killing intention was overwhelming as if stabbing his body with that single look.

"What is the meaning of this?"

His Byakugan revealed itself and his chakra grew in rapid speed. The ground he stepped on started to crack by the intense power.

"You ask me what the meaning of this training is?" He stepped forward. Kiba inhaled sharply. Neji's chakra barely touched him but his body trembled by its aura. "I'm going to kill you? Yes, I am. If you just stand there, I can kill you. I've told you this training is to help you to control your Beast… and use them whenever you want… Like this."

Blast! The wings of The Eagle sprouted from Neji's back. Kiba suddenly felt something inside him awakened by the sight… something that burned his heart…

"Release your beast."

Kiba gritted his teeth when his body started to burn in power. The Beast went wild inside him, demanding freedom. Fearful of what would happen next if he let go, Kiba shouted, "No way in hell I'll release that…"

Grrrrrrrrr…

"ARGH!" Kiba suddenly crouched. His body trembled with power and pain. "Aaaaarrghhhh!!"

His claws extended despite his refusal. His fangs grew although he rejected it. The power inside him was uncontrollable. And soon enough, he knew, he would lose his conscience. Neji only stood in his place, watching him as he struggled to keep the Beast inside. But the Beast refused. It wanted to fight… It wanted to kill… It wanted to taste the blood of the man before him…

"Damn! DAAAAMMMNN… AARRGHHH!"

Grrrrrroooooooaaaarrr!!!!

"Urrrrggghhh!!! Kakashi-Sensei is so cruel!" Naruto walked with his hands behind his head. He was annoyed, being tricked so easily by Kakashi. Well, think about it! Shino would never cook Ramen, would he? When Naruto found him, he was collecting bugs by the flower bed!! NO RAMEN!!! "How dare him to trick me like that! Ramen!! Rameeeennn… it's been years since I last ate ramen!!"

This was an exaggeration, of course… although there was also some possibility of miscount. Naruto walked on the grassland lazily, his cerulean eyes grazing the sea of green and finally the lake. The lake was beautiful that day, shimmering as it reflected the light of the sun above.

"Huh?"

The princess was by the lake, running with a little white dog by her heels. The sunlight was reflected by her translucent eyes and her laughter sounded like the most beautiful song he has ever heard. Naruto eventually froze. The sight was… stunningly beautiful.

"Ah! N-n-na… Naruto-kun…" the princess said as she finally felt his existence. Her face blushed almost immediately. "W-w-why… are you here at this kind of time?"

"Well… I… I…" Naruto rubbed his head awkwardly. He walked towards Hinata, grinning. "I went to see if Shino was cooking ramen like Kakashi-Sensei said but it turns out that it was a trick but I didn't believe Kakashi-Sensei could trick me that easily so I took a little stroll and found you here and… and you found me here and we found each other…"

"A… S-Sou dane…"

Hinata didn't know whether she should grin or feel pity. The image of Shino cooking some ramen definitely didn't fit her mind at all. Naruto grinned and said, "So why are YOU here, Hinata? Where's Kiba?"

"Ah… that is…" Hinata looked away. She flashed a shy smile. "W-well… I… I was training with Kiba b-b-but… but suddenly Nii-san came and asked Kiba to train with him so… Etou… so since I have no one to train with, I… I decided to wait for Kiba…"

Naruto looked at her as Hinata bent down and gave Akamaru a pat. She said gently, "And you're here to wait with me, aren't you, Akamaru?'

"Warf," barked the dog happily. Naruto looked at the dog too and he finally broke into his grin again.

"NAAAAAA!!!" His sudden shout made Hinata jump from her place. He was bright, very bright, with the sunshine shining on his now tall figure… and his blonde hair shimmered with light… Hinata almost lost her breath when her pure translucent eyes met the bright cerulean eyes of the loud boy. "What if we train together? Kakashi-sensei did the same to Sasuke-teme, you know! Let's train together! How 'bout it, Hinata? How 'bout it?"

It was the most wonderful offer she had ever heard.

"Well… all of you surely gave your best today, didn't you?"

Sakura looked at the faces of everyone around the dinner table. There was the grubby faced Naruto, the pissed off Sasuke, the weary but beaming Hinata, the sleepy Kakashi, and the… well… because he keeps wearing glasses, no apparent change was visible from Shino. Neji, Lee, Gai, and Kiba were nowhere to be seen—apparently still undergoing their training somewhere else. And Hanabi? She was on the top floor, muttering curses towards Shino.

"Where's Kiba?" Tenten's voice was heard from the stairs. Sakura gasped and quickly said, "Tenten!! What are you doing?! You're not allowed to walk yet!"

"I'm fine, Sakura," Tenten grinned when Sakura reached for her. "It's alright. Hinata, where's Kiba? Wasn't he with you?"

"He was," Hinata nodded shyly. "Demo… in the middle of my training with Kiba, Neji-nii-san asked him to train together… I… I haven't see him ever since."

Tenten's eyes flickered with something that Hinata couldn't understand. Just as fast as it came, it disappeared.

"Sou ka?" She smiled. "Training with Neji is not an easy thing. He'll be pretty exhausted when he gets back later. Better make sure he has a nice hot bath ready, okay, Sakura? I'm sorry I have to ask you since I'm unable to use my hands at the moment."

"No problem," Sakura let Tenten sit down on the nearest chair. "What about Neji? Must I prepare some hot water for him too?"

"Nah, he doesn't need it," Tenten said idly. "Just tell him I'm waiting for him at my room. And don't worry about Gai-Sensei and Lee. They'll train for three days non-stop with their 'springtime of youth' spirit or whatever. And Shino? I guess it's better if you train with Naruto tomorrow. How 'bout it?"

Shino only nodded. Hinata lowered her eyes. Then… she would be alone again.

"And… Hinata?"

Tenten's voice made her lift her head again. The brunette was smiling broadly.

"You will train with Sakura."

"AAAAARRRGGGHHHH!!!!"

Thud! Kiba fell on the kitchen floor out of exhaustion. His body was battered and bruised with blood dripping from a few places. Sakura looked at him with a pitiful expression as she helped him to sit. Hinata watched beside her with a concerned look. It was two o'clock in the morning and she was very worried about her guardian's condition.

"K-Kiba-kun…" Hinata reached out for him. "Are you alright, Kiba-kun?"

"AAAAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!! That damn guy beat the hell out of me and you're asking whether I'm alright or not?!" Somehow, the exhaustion affected his temper. "DAMMIT! My whole body aches!!! Aaaaaargggghhhhh!!!"

Sakura and Hinata helped him stand and they slowly walked together towards the bathroom. All three of them didn't realize that a pair of yellow eyes was looking at them from the darkness, silently observing the Dog.

"You shouldn't have left her alone!"

Tenten shouted towards Neji. The latter was standing in front of her bed with his wings extended on his back, no apparent emotion visible on his face as he silently gazed at the brown orbs of the woman.

"She's trying to help everyone!" Her voice turned higher. "She wants to be stronger! She wants to be able to protect herself and her comrade! Why can't you understand that?!"

Neji slowly closed her eyes. Tenten sighed exasperatedly.

"You still hate her, don't you?"

The white eyes showed a distant look as they gazed out the window.

"No, I don't."

Tenten smiled weakly.

"Oh really? Then why don't you let her train? It's for her own good, Neji."

The Hyuuga Prodigy turned around and walked slowly to the balcony. His wings extended as he readied himself to fly.

"It's best to keep her away from the fight. That way… she won't bruise her body or her heart. Why can't you understand that?"

And he flew off into the night; never leaving more said than he should.

"You are weak, too weak for war…"

SHIT! The sound of a katana slicing the air filled the night. Sasuke's eyes were unsteady and flared with anger. He swished his Katana infuriatingly. How could that man beat him so easily? What's wrong with his sword?

"I told you so, Sasuke-kun," He said idly. "Your blade can't cut me."

"Shit… SHIT !"

SWISH! The katana was swung with full power… but Sasuke just couldn't hear the sound of fire inside it, waiting to be awakened once again.

Your problem is, my boy… That you never listen…

Shikamaru looked at the map spread out in front of him. The light of the candle made the map come alive with its dancing light. Sarutobi Asuma of Aite was right beside him, smoking as usual. He was listening intently to everything the young Nara had said.

"So," said Asuma, breaking the silence. "What do you think, Shikamaru?"

Shikamaru took a deep breath.

"The topography of The White Sky Country sure is ideal for defense," he started with a sigh. "It's a hilly and mountainous country, protected by the earth. The center castle, Hyuuga Castle, was built on a cliff on one side of Mount Hokubu. The castle formed a tower-like formation at the peek of the mountain, facing the flat plains surrounded by hills and mountains. At the peek, a high post guard was built to observe anything. That way, it could deflect any assault from any direction. The main problem was the towers of the castle. It provided a good view thus allowing archers to see each target clearly. Definitely not suitable for frontal attack… Rear? Well, the same fate would face the attacker since Hyuuga Castle is still the highest point. Back? Forget it. There's the high post guard and the high ground advantage closes off any chance of attack."

Asuma nodded and said, "So?"

Shikamaru cringed his forehead, trying to think as hard as he could. Asuma took a deep breath and said, "I wonder how Orochimaru could conquer that castle…"

"It's easy for him," Shikamaru closed his weary eyes. "He has those monsters with him and his only power was his massive number. That is the only way to take Hyuuga Castle— with a never-ending wave of attackers until the towers fall. Unfortunately, we have neither the monsters nor a large number of attackers. To tell you the truth, this assault is truly impossible without a miracle… and we still haven't counted the presence of monsters lurking inside the castle."

"Neji must have a nice surprise for us." Asuma put out his cigarette. "I know him. He is not a man that will uselessly sacrifice people around him like a lunatic and… WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING THERE?!"

Shikamaru quickly turned around, facing the slide paper door. Since it was a made of paper, he could see the silhouette of an angel outside their room. Hey, an angel? The fact that it had wings didn't mean that it was an angel, wasn't it?

"Don't scream or they'll find me here." The door slid open and Neji stepped inside. His wings turned to dust almost instantly as he walked towards Shikamaru and Asuma. Shikamaru gave an audible sigh and said, "Geez… you know you shouldn't be here and yet here you are anyway. And it sucks that I was actually waiting for you to come."

Neji sat between the two men. His colorless eyes looked at the map emotionlessly. Shikamaru yawned and said, "It's impossible. Unless you do an infiltration that carries a high risk and disturb the army from the inside, you can't win. Those towers are annoying. We can't afford to make an open battle—and there is no chance of doing a close one. It's hard, Neji. Very hard."

"Then all we have to do is destroy the towers in one attack," said Neji monotonously. Shikamaru looked away with a boring look.

"The power of the Beast, yeah," he yawned. "Come on. Give me a break. You can't attack ALL towers that surrounded the city in one attack, even with magic! Did you forget about the presence of the monsters and the general of Idion? Please…"

"We won't use the Beast, since Kiba still can't control his," Neji threw a disturbed look at Shikamaru. "But I want you to know that it is possible. I have now gained control over the best weapon of the Tenkai. The Tenkai Spear endowed with the Lightning Attribute."

Shikamaru looked at him like he was kidding. Asuma's eyes turned serious and he said with a low tone, "The legendary spear?"

Neji only looked at him as an answer. Asuma raised his eyebrow and said, "I thought it was only a legend!"

"That's what you said to me when you saw my wings." Neji reverted his eyes back to the map. Shikamaru grinned and said, "It must be belong to that woman of yours."

Neji looked at Shikamaru with a warning look and said, "Tenten. Yes. She's the last Tenkai and she managed to make it yesterday… and don't call her 'that woman of yours' again. I do not own her in any way."

"Well… It's troublesome to quarrel about it." Shikamaru shrugged away. "But I guess it sounds good for you two."

Neji had to restrain himself from slashing his neck into two with all the will power he could muster. He had to remind himself that there was no better tactician than Shikamaru, that there was no benefit of killing him except that maybe he may feel better and it would shut the darn guy's mouth and perhaps he would be alright to carry out the mission without him. Wasn't he such a pain in the ass? Perhaps even Ino would appreciate his effort on killing him and… wait a second. What was that again? Because he called Tenten his woman? Hm… maybe there was truly no benefit of killing him.

"It's nice to be young, eh?" Asuma laughed when he looked at Neji's face. "Ma, Neji-san! Don't be so grumpy about it! Now… let us move on to our main topic. Now… is there any chance for us to attack Hane with the Spear in our hand, Shikamaru?"

Shikamaru smirked and said, "Do I have to say it, Asuma-Sensei? It's obvious."

"Shut yer mouth up. NOW."

You ask me to talk to you. Now you ask me to be silent? My, my… Humans sure are weird…

"Since ya know that already, now shut the hell up, will ya? I wanna sleep."

You will find me in your sleep, baby. Don't forget that.

"Dammit! Just shut up! And don't call me 'Baby'! I'm not yer lover! Yuck."

You'll love me later on. You'll love my strength… my power… everything…

"JUST SHUT UP!!!"

…

"GEEZ!"

"Faster!"

Swish! Hinata gritted her teeth when Sakura once again avoided her attack. She deftly pinned Hinata afterward, making her fall on the grass in a swift motion. Hinata gasped a little when her face hit the ground but she didn't say anything.

"You're still too soft," said Sakura, releasing the girl below her. "Attack me like you want to kill me. That's the only way you can learn martial arts. Without any killing intent, you're not going to learn anything."

Hinata lowered her eyes, "De… demo…"

"That is indeed true."

Tenten stepped closer with a smile on her face. Sakura let out a sigh and said, "You're stubborn, aren't you? I've told you to stay in your room!"

"Hehehe… Gomen! I just can't stay in one place all day like that! It's boring!" Tenten grinned apologetically. She then sat at a nearby tree stump and looked at Hinata. "And I just want to supervise Hinata's training. The Jyuuken Style of the Hyuuga is very distinctive and I know that you can't learn it the right way without anyone to supervise you, since it's not an ordinary martial art. I've been Neji's sparring partner for years. Although I, of course, can't do it, I know the form pretty well."

"Sparring partner?"

"Well, who did you think Neji's opponent in training was, huh," said Tenten, raising her eyebrow. "Come on. Enough talking and fight already!"

Sakura placed her hands on her hip and said, "A sparring partner of the Eagle. You're definitely not an ordinary blacksmith, are you?"

Tenten smirked.

"Can you qualify me as ordinary when I can make the Legendary Spear?"

Sakura laughed and said, "Definitely not."

BLAST!!

An earth-tailed Kiba spun in the air and landed harshly on the ground. He growled as the dust covered him, blocking his sight. Suddenly a hand came reaching from the dust, grabbing his forehead firmly.

"Reside! Seal!"

"GRAAAAAAAAHHH!!!"

BOOOOOOMM!!

The dust was cleared by the blast, revealing what had actually happened. Neji stood right in front of the panting Kiba. He released his grip and said, "No progress at all."

"Shut up!" Kiba grimaced as he tried to sit. His body trembled from lack of power and his wound opened itself again. "It hurts, dammit! I keep on releasing that thing and my body has reached its limit! Gimme a break! Geez!"

Neji shot a glare at Kiba, who was too tired to notice. The former narrowed his eyes and said, "I can't believe Hinata-sama's guardian is such a spoiled man. In my time, my teacher didn't even give me a chance to talk back like you… If you keep on progressing at such a slow pace, you'll never be able to control it."

Kiba gritted his teeth. He knew Neji was right, as always, but he also couldn't ignore the pain and burning that enveloped him every time the Beast took over his body and mind. He tried his hardest to keep his consciousness but it always failed. He always ended up becoming a bloodthirsty monster and rampaging for carnage. He knew that one day when that happened, he might do something he would regret for his whole life.

"You're not fit to be Hinata-sama's guardian at all."

Dammit.

Kiba felt the burning again. He recognized it too well.

"You're no more than a peasant, disguising yourself for your comfort under Hinata-sama's wings."

Shut up!

He growled. His fangs extended again.

"You can't protect her at all. You're far too incompetent to…"

SMACK!

Neji blocked the sudden fist in ease.

"You're still too weak to even protect yourself…" He dodged an earth pike. "That way… How can you protect Hinata-sama?"

"SHUT UP!"

BLAST! Neji's hand stopped a boulder. He crushed it leisurely and said, "Wind."

BOOM! Kiba landed on the ground. He crouched, a tail started to form behind him.

Yes, boy… Don't you wanna feel his fear? Don't you wanna feel his blood? Yes, my boy… KILL HIM. KILL HIM. KILL HIM!

"GRRRROOOOOOAAARRR!!"

The earth shook as Kiba's eyes turned ruthless. Neji's eyes narrowed.

"Control it."

You hate him, don't you? Let me taste his blood. We're no weak souls. We're STRONG! WE'RE THE REAL BEAST! SHOW HIM MY POWER!!

"GRAAAAA!!"

BOOOOMM!! Neji jumped just in time. His wings sprouted from his back, flapping as he flew to the sky.

BRING HIM DOWN! KILL HIM! KILL HIIIIMMM!!! He's a Beast! I WANT THE BEAST! BRING HIM TO ME! LET'S TASTE HIM!

Kiba's attack turned violent. His growls and barks filled the air with the brutality of a monster. Neji closed his eyes.

He failed again, my partner.

I know.

"INCANTATION!"

BOOOOOMMM!!

They start again.

I see. How is it?

I think he failed… too quickly. He lost consciousness.

Too bad… I had high expectations of him.

The dog always wants to play some games. He will have a hard time controlling the menace inside him.

Let's see how this will turn out, shall we? Please keep an eye on him.

Your wish is my command.

"Stop… LOOKING AROUND!!"

CHING! The katana was caught between his fingers. Kakashi gripped the blade tightly and said, "Whether I look at you or not, there will be no difference. I can still feel your presence."

He pointed a finger at Sasuke.

"Water."

SPLASH! Sasuke hit the ground hard. Soaked and humiliated once again, he tried to stand up when Kakashi stepped towards him.

"The art of fighting is not only what you see but also what you feel." His piercing glare clashed with Sasuke's infuriated look. "An arrogant person like you will never understand that."

"Yo, Shino!" Naruto yawned. "Don't waste anymore time now! Attack me!"

Shino extended his arms.

"Don't regret your words."

The sound of buzzing filled Naruto's ears. A thick black cloud formed in front of Shino. But it moved… It flied… It flapped… it was… no, were…

"THEY'RE BUGS?!?!?!"

"Any objection?"

"MANY!"

"I'm sorry for troubling you."

Tenten smiled apologetically as Sakura bandaged her arms again. Sakura replied her smile and said, "What are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm talking about," Tenten grinned. "You help me out a lot. From the recovery of my hands to Hinata's training. I know you have other things to think about but you choose to help me out. Thank you, Sakura."

Sakura put Tenten's hands gently on the bed again. She smiled.

"Don't you say that again," she said softly. "It's natural for me to help. Hinata needs a hand. That is why I'm helping her. I know that you really want to make her stronger. That's what I feel too. I want to help Hinata out. I'm glad to be a part of her growth. There is no need for you to say 'thank you' for that."

"Ah well… I'm glad you're not angry at me for dragging you into my plan." Tenten looked at the ceiling. "Well… I have a long list of plans for her. I hope she won't stop in the middle."

"Oh, don't worry, she won't," Sakura suddenly smirked. "Giving up is the last thing on her mind. You can trust me on that. And… oh, you can start using your hands but not for forging. Simple things like holding chopsticks come first in the list of things you can do."

"Really?" Tenten practically beamed with happiness. "Wow… you're a wonderful medic! I'm glad we have you on our side!"

Sakura smiled as Tenten started to talk about her favorite foods and how she cooked them. She didn't really hear her though. What traveled through her mind was something that kept bothering her ever since she met the weapon mistress.

It's not me but you. Just what is happening here? What strength do you possess? What more can your brain give? How can you be this close to every one of us in just one night? Just…. What the hell are you?

"Father, look! I can slash the log into two!"

Uchiha Fugaku threw his second son a flat look.

"How many heartbeats away it stood before it fell?"

His smile disappeared. He looked at his father with a puzzled look.

"Heartbeats?"

His father didn't even bother to answer. He turned around and walked away.

"Train again. You're still too weak for battle."

"You didn't sleep last night."

He didn't reply. But she insisted.

"Nor the night before last."

He didn't even turn back. She slowly rose from her bed.

"Neji, I know." She reached her hand to touch him but he pulled himself. "Tell me the truth."

"There is nothing to talk about."

"Stop being a stubborn man, Neji. You can't fool me with your words."

"Nor by telling you the truth."

"Oh, please," She sighed exasperatedly. "I've had it."

With a move that was too quick even for the Byakugan to follow, she ripped his headband off. Her eyes darkened when she saw the seal on his forehead.

"Neji…" Her breath turned heavy. She reached for him… and now he accepted her touch. "It's extending."

He looked away and said, "I know."

"I knew it…" She closed her eyes. "You couldn't sleep because of those nightmares, could you?"

He didn't reply. He never had to. She groaned.

"You… You don't have to force yourself!" She grabbed his clothes. "Stop! Don't train Kiba anymore! It'll grow faster!"

"We have no other choice."

"Choice? Choice for what?!" She shook him hard. "Neji, look. It will take you away! You better stop training Kiba! Your body can't hold out much longer this way! The seal will take over your body and when that time comes, you will…"

"Tenten."

He finally looked at her.

"When that time comes, it will come."

"But, Neji…"

"When it comes… you know what you have to do, right?"

She closed her eyes and stepped closer.

"Neji, stop it. I hate it…"

"Tell me."

"Neji, I…"

"Tenten. Promise me."

"Neji…"

"Tenten."

She gently brushed her fingers on top of his seal. She could feel that strange jolt on her fingertips. It was evil… and it was carved on him. A fate he couldn't avoid… And when that fate would come to him…

"When that time comes, Neji… I'll kill you myself."

---------------------------

To Be Continued…

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(1) Pushing the tsuba with the thumb to free a katana from its sheath. A ready aggressive position of attacking with a Katana.

Author's Note: Minna! R&R, please! Do you think this story should be classified as M or T? Please... and consider the amount of blood in this fic. M or T? Since there will be no sexual content that reach M, really... just the violence... But... M or T?!?!?!?! Please R&R, Buddy. It's urgent.