Chapter 35-Tenten

"Naruto's Dialogue"

"Tenten's Dialogue"

Naruto wandered the streets aimlessly—at length, he found himself standing at the door to Shikamaru's and upon the shadow user's answer, he only took one look at his friend and it seemed, the dark-eyed strategist understood as he stepped aside and let him in.

"If it's alright, Shikamaru I—I kinda need to crash here for just a few days. At least until I…find a place."

"Whatever you need, Naruto."

Naruto's back was to him and his shoulders slumped as he stared out the window. "I—I don't get it, Shikamaru I just—"

The shadow user laid gripped Naruto's shoulder. "Listen man, no one gets this; not me, not Ino, Choji or Kiba and Shino…we just…"

"So. She made a scene then, huh? Everyone knows."

"I'm sorry, Naruto. You don't deserve that shit."

The blonde let out a heavy sigh. "Well I guess I should change and…get goin; the lantern ceremony's gonna be starting in a bit…I can't miss lighting a candle and lantern for my dad and Ero-sennin."

Nara nodded in understanding and sauntered to the door. "Alright well I'm meeting Ino and Choji later so I'm headin' out. You…sure you'll be okay?"

Naruto turned to his friend, surprising the dark-haired man with a wide smile that didn't reach his eyes. "No. But hey, I've lived through plenty of hell before…this can't really compare, can it?"

Shikamaru frowned but simply nodded as he walked out.

The moment the door closed, the fake smile slid off Naruto's face and the blonde ninja felt the sting of hot tears in the corners of his eyes.

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Naruto sauntered through the village streets—hands shoved in his pockets, shoulders slumped and blue eyes focused on the ground. If it had been any other time, the ninja would have made quite the regal, handsome sight, dressed in a traditional sky blue Hakama that matched his eyes and a white, long-sleeved shirt with blue flames on the cuffs of the sleeves. He'd left his Leaf band back at Shikamaru's, opting to let his wild blonde locks go natural.

But the immense heartache bore down on the usually animated ninja, weighing down on his shoulders as he wandered down the road that lead to the lake. He passed by the cemetery on his way and would've kept on going, had he not caught sight of a slip of scarlet out of the corner of his eye.

Whipping his head to the side, the blonde saw a lone woman, dressed in a white and scarlet kimono with long brown hair that flowed to her waist. The young woman carried a bouquet of white Arbutus and red Carnations in her arms as she came to a stop before a grave.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Naruto temporarily forgot his pain and slid down the embankment, landing in the grove of trees that surrounded the cemetery.

He crept quietly forward until he stood a few rows from her and upon closer inspection, the twin buns perched atop the brunette's head, struck a chord of familiarity.

The brunette hadn't noticed Naruto's presence—far too consumed by her grief as she fell to her knees before the grave. Tears were spilling from her chocolate brown eyes and spilling down her cheeks sun-kissed cheeks as she ran a hand across the precious name carved into the headstone.

"Neji…" She whispered brokenly.

Naruto's eyes widened. Neji…then that's gotta be….Tenten?!

"Gods Neji, it's been a year since the war but I—I still feel like it was just yesterday…" She laid the bouquet of Arbutus and Carnations—symbols of Love and heartache—on the headstone, then sat back on her heels.

"It's the Temple Festival today…but you probably already know that; you were always—s-so smart." She laughed quietly, brushing away a tear that slipped off the end of her chin.

"I know I was here earlier but…well the others were here too and I wanted to talk to you freely so…here I am…" More tears filled her eyes and the brave weapons mistress tilted her chin up, trying to hold them back. "I love you, Neji…and I miss you so much more than you could know—they say it gets easier but I think whoever spouted that bullshit, never lost someone they loved."

Naruto crept closer, his eyes never leaving Tenten as he stood just a row behind her. From here, he could catch glimpses of her profile and he was amazed at how her tears showcased her beauty to him, for the first time. He'd never really paid much attention to what girls really looked like—aside from Sakura that is—and even if there was a particular feature that caught his eye, he didn't dwell on it for long.

But Tenten's beauty captivated him. Unlike most of the kunoichi's in the Hidden Leaf, Tenten's complextion was kissed by the sun, as opposed to pale and her eyes were a dark chocolate brown that drew you into their depths if you even glanced at them. Like her eyes, her hair was a dark brown but she'd always kept it pulled up into her trademark buns, leaving only a few wispy bangs across her forehead. Because of this, no one ever knew just how long Tenten's hair really was but tonight, she'd let most of it down and it flowed nearly past her waist. Naruto found himself mesmerized by her long, flowing tresses and he ached to run his fingers through it just to see if it felt as silky as it looked.

"Today would've been our One month wedding anniversary, you know that?"

The blonde's eyes widened and his feet froze.

"I know you always said that getting married wasn't going to be nearly as easy as being engaged but still…I looked forward to it every day, Neji. I know it wasn't always easy for you though; us being engaged and having to keep it a secret so your family wouldn't find out but I—I still wish we could've told our friends…they would've been—s-so happy for us, I just know it. And you would've been happier too—seeing the people you cared about pleased with your happiness, all their smiles, hugs and handshakes—"

Naruto couldn't believe his words and took a step back. A twig snapped beneath his foot and suddenly, the brunette weapons Mistress was on her feet and whirled around with a kunai held tightly in her grip.

"Whoa, Tenten, easy…" the blonde held up his hands in a gesture of surrender.

Seeing Naruto of all people did something indescribable to Tenten's insides and she found her fingers going slack, the kuani falling to the ground with a thud as all the strength left her body.

She swayed to the side. "Naruto…"

"Whoa!" Leaping forward, he caught her in his arms just in time and when he pulled her against him, he was stunned to find the brave weapons mistress shaking uncontrollably.

"Tenten? I'm sorry I didn't mean to—you—you and Neji…you were engaged?!"

He whispered softly, his lips accidentally grazing the shell of her ear and causing a shiver down her spine.

"Before the war. Yes."

Naruto adjusted his hold on her, then pulled back just enough to look down into her eyes.

Fresh tears trailed down her cheeks but the brunette's eyes were steadfast as she looked back at him. "Why…why didn't you tell anyone?"

"We couldn't. If his uncle had found out? It would've meant serious punishment for Neji; com'on me? A kunoichi with no family name and no clan? That is the last thing Hiashi Hyuuga would have wanted for his nephew—the Hyuuga prodigy."

Her face fell and she brushed away the tears with the back of her hand.

"I didn't care though. I didn't care if we had to live the rest of our lives in secret—all that m-mattered to me—w-w-was Neji—I loved him m-more than anything!" Her voice broke at the end and she buried her face against Naruto's chest and wept softly.

Naruto was stunned and overwhelmed with a deep sense of grief for the woman in his arms; she'd been suffering and no one seemed to take notice—not even him. He'd been so absorbed with his own heartache that day, yet here was Tenten, suffering an even greater loss of having the man she loved, ripped away from her by death. The man she'd been engaged to…

The man she was going to spend the rest of her life with.

A lump formed in his throat and his arms wrapped around the shaking woman, holding her close. "Gods, Tenten…I'm so sorry."

A whimper sounded from her but she only gave a slight nod as she continued to cling to him like he was her lifeline.

"I didn't even know but I—I should've been here for you, regardless; Neji was your teammate, I knew that and yet I just didn't even take the time to—"

Suddenly, Tenten was pushing back from him, shaking her head and drying her tears. "No. No don't think that way, Naruto. You've done more for all of us than we could ever hope to repay you…you did so much for Neji, you changed his life. You…you saved him in the end."

Naruto bit his lip, unable to meet her eyes. "But I didn't. He…he died because of me…because I wasn't strong enough."

A delicate hand cupped his cheek as the owner tilted his face upwards to meet her eyes.

"Because of you, Neji died a free man."

Naruto gulped and his lips parted as he stared at her in wonder. How could she be so understanding when her heart was breaking with the daily loss of the only man she'd ever loved?

The sound of the town bell, ripped the two young people from their private thoughts and they looked off in the distance towards the lake.

"The Lantern ceremony."

Naruto's eyes flickered to the woman in his arms and an idea struck him in that moment. "Listen Tenten…come with me; we'll go to the ceremony and then maybe we can go somewhere after and get a bite to eat, hm?"

Her red-rimmed eyes found his and for the first time in weeks, Tenten felt a small genuine smile curving the corners of her mouth upwards. "Hm, yeah…I'd really like that, actually."

The vibrant ninja's blue eyes lit up and for the first time since Sakura, he felt a renewed warmth spreading through his heart.

Keeping an arm around her shoulders, Naruto lead Tenten back to the dirt road and together, the two friends made their way to the ceremony, each with a flicker of hope in there hearts that this would mark the beginnings of healing.

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So….what do you guys think? Let me know in your Reviews and as always, I'm open to suggestions! Nervous about this one but I hope it's turned out satisfactory.