Akai inhales deeply as she charges with her pole in her hands. She hits the ground twice and a metallic sound starts to echo around her with intense vibrations. It's almost as a barrier of pure power, vibrations and chakra protects her as she goes in to attack.
"Gaaaah…Baibore-Shon no jutsu!
Neji looks as calm as ever as Akai approaches him even though the field of vibrations power ups her already powerful pole. When Akai is about to hit him with her new jutsu Neji uses his gentle fist to knock her pole, and her, out of balance.
"Oh!" Akai gasps by surprise. "Ouch!"
Akai doesn't get the chance to regain her balance and the albino falls to the ground quite hard. Her shining pole loses its power as it hits the ground with a loud sound.
"I failed again…"Akai complains tiredly while rubbing her sore back.
"You've power, but you can't control it properly. Do it again."
"Yes sir!" She shouts out in an over-energetic voice.
Neji smirks as she gets up on her two feet again while still complaining over her bruised skin and aching limbs. The two of them has been training for several hours and it seems that it starts to show now. Akai´s powers amuse him since by each hour they spend together on the field he gets to see them grow. Being with her makes him feel nice, it's like he has finally found someone to rely on. He knows that he can rely on his fellow shinobi but not this way, not with his emotions and thoughts. Akai has slowly become an important person to him and maybe even something so much deeper... Neji stands in his defensive pose as she runs towards him once again; his unemotional mask covers his thoughts.
"Prepare yourself Neji! Here I come…Baibore-Shon no jutsu!"
"Neji." A deep and mature voice calls out.
The sound of that voice makes the two shinobi flinch, Akai more visible than Neji, and they turn around. The sudden meeting interrupts their training somewhat and Akai is breathing hard from runing. The Grass kunoichi doesn't recognise the voice so she stays alert to get a chance to get to know who the unknown people are.
"Hiashi-sama…Hanabi-san." Neji greets them both with a polite bow of his head.
Akai bows as a silent greeting as the two Hyuuga approaches followed by some people unknown to her. The polite way Neji addressed them tells her that these people are in a very high status and that she should follow his example. Her body tenses unconsciously at the heavy atmosphere around the older man there who, Akai calculates, must be the leader of the Hyuuga clan. When she first met Neji she thought that his stare was intense and frightening and even unpleasant sometimes, but that is nothing compared to what she feels when Hyuuga Hiashi looks at her.
"If I may ask, who are you?" Hiashi asks Akai at last.
"My name is Isozaki Akai. It's a pleasure to meet you." Akai decides to act polite so she won't attract more attention than her albinism already gives her.
"Hn…The pleasure is mine." Hiashi answers in a very cold voice, he uses nice words but puts no warmth in them. He doesn't bother to pay Akai more attention than that and he turns to Neji. "Neji, Hinata is waiting for you to accompany her with her training."
"You didn't show up." Hanabi states the fact. "Onee-san got worried about you."
Akai´s eyes flicker. Was he supposed to train with Hinata after this? How much training do he attend to? It can't be good for him…
"I apologize, I lost track of time…" Neji apologises without much regret in his voice, everything seems to be an act of honour and not of feelings. Akai frowns at this, she doesn't like the great tension between Neji and Hiashi at all. The clan leader turns to Hanabi.
"Hanabi, Let´s continue on." Hiashi´s eyes travel between Neji and Akai before he turns around to leave. His cold eyes tell that Neji should follow them.
"Hai." Hanabi replies politely and follows her father.
Akai can't shrug off the tickling sensation inside of her, and she knows that this time, it's not a good feeling. She has during the time with Neji understood that he has family problems and now when she met the leader of his clan she… grasps the problem a tiny bit better. The tenseness, the politeness and their ways to behave around each other makes her believe that everything isn't as it should be. They doesn't behave like clan members should. Akai squints as she tries to see their retreating backs and the soft breeze plays with her hair. A shiver travels down her spine.
"I have to go." Neji tells her flatly, interrupting her thoughts but Akai notices a hint of regret in his voice.
Akai turn around when she feels that Neji looks at her and she tries to hide her uneasiness with a smile. She ought to know that Neji knows her too well, he won't fall for her trick and a small change of his composure tells her that she's right. A sickly pale hand pushes back her damp tresses, away from her face as she approaches her friend. Why does she feel so weak when she thinks of Neji and his problems? Her chest hurts a little.
"Mm." She nods without looking at him.
She places her free hand on his shoulder in a both comforting and friendly manner. The simple touch makes Akai´s skin tingle with electricity and a sudden nervousness, mixed with worry and maybe something more enters her being. She doesn't want him to go but She doesn't know if it's her selfish self that is talking or her worry for Neji. The sudden urge to be close to him, hug him or just be with him makes her bite her lip in confusion. Stay. With me…But she shakes her head mentally and smiles.
"Take care, ok?" Akai pats Neji´s shoulder before she withdraws herself from him.
Neji´s enchanting eyes makes her inhale air deeply, ever since he let her see his face has his every action towards her made butterflies stir inside of her stomach. Now that she recalls it, the feeling inside of her was there before that moment…A sensation she never has felt before. Neji doesn't show if he sees her inner turmoil or not and she's grateful. The small, but noticeable, smile at his lips makes her eyes widen a fraction.
"Arigatou." He tells her sincerely, in a tone that sounds relieved. "Good bye."
"Bye."
Neji´s body aches from his training with Hinata but he knows that he has during this passed days trained more than usual. He has trained with Team Gai, taught Hinata about the Hyuuga basic moves and been with Akai… He walks through the beautiful garden of the Hyuuga compound with his formal clothes floating in the wind behind him. A strange sensation in his stomach has since this morning bothered him and he just knows that something isn't right. The way Hiashi looked at Akai back then bothers him still and he can't forget his cold, underestimating and stern eyes. Thinking about Akai in any way makes him feel strongly and the mere thought of Hiashi…Neji shakes his head mentally while he pushes open the wooden door and walks into the room.
"You called?" Neji asks as he kneels down in front of Hiashi.
The two of them are sitting in an old fashioned Japanese room that looks much like the ones in the Edo period. The white walls that are made of thin paper and cloth isn't as sound proof as they could be, the floor is covered by a large amount of tatami carpets, and in a corner is a scroll hanging on the wall that represents the current season.
"You've changed, Neji."
Neji doesn't answer since Hiashi didn't give him a question, but his body becomes tense at his uncle's statement. The bad feeling inside of him grows stronger without him wanting it to.
"Who was the girl back there?" He asks him as if the girl is of no importance to him at all.
"Her name is Isozaki Akai, a shinobi of the Grass that's here to build up a new alliance between our two countries."
Neji is sure to tell Hiashi of Akai´s importance and mission here in Konoha to make him change his view on her. Neji knows that his uncle won't listen to this but he tries anyway. A kunoichi from a small and unarmed country as Grass doesn't interest Hiashi at all and he shrugs at Neji´s unnecessary information.
"Did Hokage-sama order you to train her?" Hiashi asks Neji sternly.
Hiashi believes that the reason that one of his most skilled Hyuuga spends time with a handicapped girl must be that he was ordered to do so. Why would someone at such high rank associate with someone like her if it wasn't an order or one's mission? Why waste time on her when you could train to get stronger? Neji has become quite talented to read people and he finds it very handy, but he isn't happy when he notices Hiashi´s true motives. The older Hyuuga makes Akai seem to be a bother, a hindrance.
"No." Neji answers the question sharply. Hiashi´s eyes look at him for some moments in silence before he looks elsewhere. A deep sigh leaves the man´s lips.
"…Neji, you've soon reached the appropriate age of becoming a husband." Hiashi changes the subject.
"Yes." Neji answers him in a blank tone.
"Associating with that girl will reduce your chances at finding a suitable woman." Hiashi tells him as a matter of fact. He's not literally saying it but what the man wants is that Neji stays away from Akai from now on and that he should focus on something else. It's not an advice, it's more like an order in Neji´s ears.
Neji´s eyes narrow at Hiashi´s words but he knows better than talking back. He frowns as he looks into the distance, looking quite naturally composed while his mind is in an inner turmoil. An inner rage grows in side of his chest, anger that he seldom feels and he knows that it's due to his uncle's way to talk about Akai, how he talks to him. He seems to see her as a plague of some sort, an insect or even a threat. It's ridiculous.
To marry someone hasn't been something he wanted to do and certainly not if his clan will interrupt his ways or chose candidates for him. Girls have always been around, fussing over him but he has never found any interest in any of them and if he would ever marry it'll be to someone he truly loves. And certainly not a girl, or a cousin, which Hiashi picked out for him.
"I offered Akai my help and I won't break our promise due to such matters."
Hiashi frowns as he notices the way Neji addresses the Albino girl, and the way he talks back. He utters her first name without any politeness, caution or hesitation like they've knows each other for a very long time. Hiashi knows that the young Hyuuga tries to act indifferent but he can sense that Neji´s up to something that he surely won't like and he's certain of that the girl with the eyes is the source of his disobedience.
"Is that so?" Hiashi asks him in a very cold and questioning voice. He clearly doubts that training with a girl like Isozaki, who isn't from an impressive clan, will improve Neji´s skills in any way. Neji excuses himself, after a long silence without any kind of indication of speak from Hiashi, with a bow and steps back to exit the room when Hiashi suddenly utters;
"You can't disobey the council's orders Neji."
Neji stops in the doorway for a moment as he hears this, but he pushes close the doors behind his back with a bitter expression. A hand touches his forehead unconsciously as he walks through the corridors towards his room in the other side of the Hyuuga complex. He feels like he's suffocating.
A new day has come and the orange glow bathes the training field with warmth. Two silhouettes are fighting in the light but their usual rhythm and grace is gone and their moves are jerkier than before. They've been at it for several hours now but no progress can be spotted.
A quite powerful gentle fist hit Akai in her shoulder area and this makes her fall backwards down into the tall grass. A loud gasp leaves her as she hits the ground, but she manages to avoid some damage as she cushions her fall with a simple movement with her uninjured shoulder. Grass tickle her skin as she lies on her back staring up at the beautiful sky, she squints.
"I think that's enough for me today." Akai gets up.
Akai looks up at the sky once again while squinting her eyes, she hides her face from the sun moments later by pulling her hood over her head. A warm day is ahead of them and Akai notices already that she won't be able to be outside much longer without bathing in sun lotion. She turns to Neji and notices that it doesn't seem that he heard her. He are still practesing without any sign of tiredness.
"Neji?"
"Then leave." Neji tells her in a quite cold voice.
With a voice full of coldness, he tells her to leave if she doesn't want to continue, and it surprises her. It has been weeks since he last spoke to her formally or with a certain distance between them and the thought of that returning scare the albino a little bit. It's like he's trying to create a distance between them. Akai understands that something must have happened and her surprise changes into worry.
"You won't gain anything by pushing yourself this far Neji…If you want, we can talk about…."
"Leave Akai, I need to continue." Neji interrupts her hoarsely.
The Grass ninja flinches violently by this and her eyes snap open. Akai feels very rejected by Neji´s sudden personality change and instead of feeling sad, anger starts to grow inside of her. The trust she has built up together with the Hyuuga is somewhat lost, in her point of view, and it hurts her. Showing Neji that is something she doesn't want to happen. She won't just stand there while he treats her this way.
"Fine." Akai snorts harshly. "I´ll just… go."
Akai walks away in silence but her anger can be spotted in her quite tense body language. Neji continues to practise his gentle fist like crazy, just as if nothing happened. His lips are in a thin line as he punches one of the sakura threes harder than he intended to. Soft petals fall down around him and he stops for once and breathes out loud. His dark hair frames his face as he leans against the three, the same three where he and Akai always meet, with a pained expression on his face. What am I supposed to do? Neji´s forehead protector touches the three as he stands there lost with pink, soft and sweet petals falling down.
Akai sleeps longer than she used to since her meetings with Neji are cancelled, in her point of view, and she suddenly finds her days longer that she remembers them to be. It's the fifth day that Akai sleeps like this but she still doesn't feel any better. The softness of her pillow calms her somewhat as the strong light slips through the curtains. Another hot day is awaiting her and she plans another day inside this room.
These last days have really been a bother for her since she hasn't been able to go out much except during night-time. It makes her really restless and the idea of ignoring Neji, her feelings for him and thinking about him gets harder to follow now that she has nothing to do. A groan escapes her mouth at this. Neji…Neji…Hyuuga Neji… Is the name that's always on her mind, filling her body with warmth, confusion and now anger.
"I won't ask him what's wrong again, this time it's his turn to come to me." She tells herself in a tired voice. "Why is this so…troublesome?" She finds herself using Shikamaru´s way to talk.
Her white hair is in a mess as she finally decides to get up from her sleeping position and she sits on the edge of her bed with her toes touching the floor. She's dressed in a light green dress and the large amount of bare skin makes it easy to see how red and irritated her skin really is. It's itching…Akai forces herself to not scratch or touch her skin since it'll only make her situation worse.
Akai puts on a cream that her mother told her to use when she becomes like this and dresses in a pair of short shorts and a top. She is almost never able to wear short clothes so she tends to have them in this situations, not very nice but…A loud knocking noise disturbs the silence and a familiar voice can be heard from the other side of the door.
"Hey Akai, are you ready for today's training?" Ino shouts.
Akai puts her hair into a messy bun before she walks over to the door and opens it for her friend. She can literally feel how Ino is thinking as she sees her in the doorway, her blue eyes are moving up and down over Akai´s body. A small comment on the way Akai looks slips through her lips but she doesn't pay much attention to it.
"Not really, I think I've to stay inside today too…Sorry. Where's Shikamaru and Chouji?"
"They are already at it."
Akai nods as the two of them sits down in her couch. Her eyes land on the clock near the table and her eyes widen a little as she turns to face Ino.
"Ino why are you here? Your training started an hour ago." She asks her friend in a confused tone.
"I´m worried…about you." Ino tells Akai in an honest voice. "I've noticed that you've been down lately but I can't do anything to help you if you don't tell me what's troubling you."
"So, you're skipping practise to be here?" Akai asks her in an irritated voice, while trying to change the subject.
"Akai…" Ino rolls her eyes while sighing. "I'm your friend and I think it's time for you to open up a little. You're always there when others need help but when you've trouble…"
"It's not easy for me to talk about…that kind of stuff."
"Is this about Neji?"
Akai´s eyes narrow since Ino is right. She looks away for a moment to gather her thoughts and Ino leans back in the couch as she waits. Akai starts to tell her thoughts in a very hesitant voice since she doesn't expect Ino to understand.
"I'm always there for him, I'm always trying to help him and take away his problems but…It hurts me so badly when he keeps on creating a distance between us. Am I not worthy of his trust? Am I not good enough?"
Ino looks at Akai sadly and puts her arm around her shoulders in a comforting manner. Their blonde hair mixes together as Akai leans against Ino´s shoulder with her face hidden. The flower-loving girl caresses Akai softly to calm her down as a soft sob escapes the foreign kunoichi.
"You're awesome, Akai." Ino assures her.
"…I d-don't want to force him to like me, nor to trust me… but sometimes I feel like I'm so worthless. That there's no place in this world for someone like me. Neji made me feel…safe and accepted."
"…You're in love with him." Ino whispers gently in her ear.
Akai blinks, her rant with self-pity stops.
"Eh? …What are you saying, this isn't a joke Ino."
Akai leans back to look at Ino with watery eyes. The Grass shinobi feels rather irritated by her sudden conclusion and joke since she was serious about her feelings and thoughts. Ino´s gentle and calm expression makes her narrow her eyes though.
"I am serious here. You're madly in love with him, I can see it Akai so why are you denying it? You're hurting yourself this way, believing that you're worthless…It's all an illusion created by yourself. Open your eyes, open your eyes Akai."
Akai stares at Ino but is not looking. She's searching for answers inside of her, trying to open her eyes as Ino told her to but it's hard. Do I…really love him? Is that the reason behind my sudden sadness and why I'm so…different?
"You've friends here, people who likes you for the person you are and maybe…maybe someone that likes you more than just a friend. You're loved for God´s sake."
Ino smiles at Akai´s confusion and she gives her friend a big, tight hug. The comforting warmth Ino offers her makes Akai relax at last and she returns the hug slowly. The two young women sits there in silence for a while with limbs tangled, messed hair and wet eyes.
Ino is right, she has obtained a lot of new friends during her weeks in Konoha. Naruto; a loudmouthed blonde who seems to have an inner power to befriend all kinds of people. Shikamaru and Chouji; two guys who doesn't judge her by her looks and always treats her like anyone else. Kumori; the hard working student who cares a lot and that always makes Akai smile. She has also met Kiba, Shino and Hinata a team who she thought she wouldn't get a long with but ended up to become friends somehow. Akai has met a lot of people who cares more or less about her and Akai mentally punches herself for forgetting that. She wipes her eyes dry.
One thing she doubts though is that Neji loves her as Ino tells her he does. But the mere thought of him loving her makes her body tingle with warmth, nervousness and a strange happiness. But if he likes her like that, why did he treat her that way back then? There must be a reason behind his behaviour, I just know it, but why didn't he want to talk about it? If this is love, why does it keep hurting her and making her happy at the same time?
"So…Ino. What should I do now?" Akai asks her friend in a lost tone.
Neji looks up at the sky that's full of bright stars and a large moon. The Hyuuga is lying on his back in his room with the doors open so he can see and feel the night outside. The thick blanket that's covering his body keeps him warm while his face and arms feels the chilly wind. His skin seems to glow by the gentle light from the moon and his white eyes looks paler than ever.
It has been a week since he last saw her now. He has since that day regretted the way he snarled at her ... he didn't intend to let his anger affect her, she didn't deserve it. Akai´s hurtful expression startled him and made him realise his mistake but he said it, and you can't take back what once has been said. The damage has already been done. Neji shouldn't care but he does and it makes him feel lost.
Neji shuts his eyes close.
It angers him that he unconsciously follows Hiashi´s orders to stay away from her, but it's not that thought that confuses him. He has used his extra time for training, taking more missions and helping Hinata with her gentle fist; just like Hiashi and the Hyuuga council wants him to. The cage around him is slowly getting smaller.
He has never really disobeyed the clan that directly before but he talked back at that time, like it was natural for him to react that way. Akai has something that pulls a trigger within him, she triggers something he can't control or refuse.
He opens his eyes.
Hiashi said that he has changed and Neji can't help but feel that he wants to fight his so-called fate that his clan has put up for him and; change. He wants the whole clan to change. But can one man change the world?
"I´ll always be there for you.."He hears her voice echoing.
And Neji realises that he wont get much sleep tonight either.
Ino, Shimakaru and Chouji enters the restaurant as they use to after their training with Asuma-sensei. Ino looks at her surroundings for a moment and her eyes widen as she recognises one of the guest there as Hyuuga Neji.
"Konnichiwa Neji!" Ino cheers as she sees the man sitting in the corner.
Shikamaru, who notices the mood Neji is in, decides not to bother him and he tells Ino that he and Chouji will wait for her at their usual table a little further into the restaurant. Ino nods as she walks over to the Hyuuga.
"Yamanaka." Neji greets the blonde ninja with a nod.
A smile graces Ino´s lips as she notices how Neji looks over her shoulder as if he's expecting someone to be there with her. Ino´s blue eyes soften. It's often easier for others to notice someone else's feelings than understanding your own.
"Akai is staying inside, she said that the weather today is too much for her." Ino explains.
Neji´s eyes flicker back to Ino´s face and his expression changes back to that calm and collected one. Something about that makes Ino believe that he's trying to tell her that he was not looking for the albino at all. It's easy for Ino to see how much her temporary teammate has changed the cold Hyuuga and it makes her somewhat happy. But has Neji noticed?
Ino sits down in front of Neji with a slightly sad expression on her face. She's thinking of the way Akai told her about Neji some days ago, how cold he treated her. Akai has her pride and didn't tell her any details but… Ino can't help but feel worried for the both of them. She doesn't want Akai´s first crush to end in tears, like her did.
"Are you waiting for somebody?" Ino asks him with a weak smile.
"No." He tells her flatly, taking a sip of his cup of saké.
Ino recognises the dark liquid immediately since her dad likes it a lot. Ino looks at the bottle of rise wine with suspicion in her eyes. Has Neji been drinking…?
"Just chilling then?" Ino tries once again to start a conversation.
"Yes." He tells her in a slightly irritated tone.
Ino sweat drops anime style, she has always known that Neji isn't easy to talk to but this is… a little awkward. She understands that she has literally walked in during one of his mood swings and she prepares herself for the worst. How the hell did Akai manage to open him up to her? A deep sigh leaves her slightly pink coloured lips as she decides to get to the point.
"Neji, I don't know what happened between you and Akai but…" Ino pauses, thinking about how she should continue. "Akai isn't the girl who would hunt you down to get her answers, you know? What I am trying to say is that…She's waiting for you."
Neji looks at her and Ino doesn't know it that glare is fury or something less…threatening so she decides to say something more.
"She won't always be in Konoha, so act before it's too late."