Neji walked away from TenTen, searching for some kind of calm. He could still feel her gaze upon him for a few agonizingly long seconds after he departed.
'I kissed her.'
The thought instantly brought the slightest tingle to his lips that had touched hers, and a similar response to the hand that had reached out for her, mainly of its own accord. Gone was the silent understanding they had been sharing over the last few years; gone was the passive knowledge of feelings they knew they had for each other. He had made it as clear as glass, and had, in one instant, shed the veil and allowed her a glimpse of his heart. He had projected enough to her so that she could perceive that he was sincere, though he realized she already knew that. He had held back somewhat, out of habit, and, probably, self-preservation, but he could see that a shared path with TenTen would undeniably begin to chip away at the wall of his cool demeanor. Neji knew that, ultimately, the pieces of it would lay in ruins at her feet, and she would have him wholly. And, through a destiny of his own making, he would have her.
As startling as that realization was, the fact that part of him didn't care that he should be so exposed to another person startled him more. Intellectualizing his feelings was one thing. However, feeling, just feeling, with no logical analysis or pragmatic plan, to such depths, was unnerving.
'It was just a kiss,' the rational, distant side of him thought. 'And that's a defense mechanism,' his heretofore evenly beating heart, now jolted into panging crazily for TenTen, had countered with a thought of its own. He was a Shinobi. How could he be letting his heart do the thinking for his mind?
Neji had long thought himself to be a person who would not give himself over easily to abandon. How many times had he wondered if he would be even capable of surrendering to emotion at all, without enduring the oppressiveness of the consequences of it? Yet, here he was, walking down the streets of Konoha, his mind reeling because he had shown real affection for someone, physical affection.
His perfect restraint, his detachment, honed over the years to prevent just such surrenders, had utterly failed him the second he had reached for TenTen's small hand.
The sheer extent of the emotions within overwhelmed him, his detachment not able to withstand it. His only frame of reference for emotions this strong were his old feelings of anger and loathing, and all their negative connotations. He had not dared to feel like this. He had not dared to love like this, fearing any and all negative consequences that could go along with it.
Focusing only on the potential pitfalls, Neji had never really considered the possibility of complete joy until he had held TenTen in his arms. Not only joy, but, nervous excitement and...desire. He felt his cheeks grow warm again. He could only assume that this was what happened when a person found a kindred spirit, a soul mate, a lover. Was this what Hinata had been feeling for Naruto all this time? If it was, then no wonder her burden of being forced to marry another was so heavy. Also, Neji felt he had more understanding of his clansman; this must be what Kenta had found in the woman he loved. He understood the recklessness now, Kenta's urgency to be with that one person, casting aside duty and logic and appearances.
However, Neji was still Neji. He would find a way to exist and keep his sense of decorum intact while still allowing himself this new found joy. How, he still wasn't sure. He would meditate on it, hoping that quiet contemplation would bring some way to unify his simultaneous yet conflicting desires: the need to remain calm and cool, and the just plain need he had allowed himself to experience with that one kiss, his first.
Neji reached a conclusion as he walked toward his next destination: there was no logic in this at all.
Perhaps that's why Naruto was often seen as reckless, he mused. Naruto didn't over-analyze anything. He just felt. He felt with the abandon Neji had been disciplining himself mentally to avoid. Naruto had been hated his whole life, just for merely existing. His youth, still shrouded in mystery to Neji, must have been full of angry glares, as parents of hopeful playmates whisked their children away from him, leaving him alone, with no parent of his own to give him comfort. No one had loved him then. How easy it would have been for Naruto to use that loathsome power he possessed against the people who had cut him so deeply with their heartless gestures.
Naruto had himself confided in Neji that the Demon Fox was indeed a monster. It would have been easy for him to succumb to the evil desires of the demon, their intimate symbiosis, the delicate balance between child and monster; Neji postulated that his mind could have, and but for Naruto's own strength, should have, easily crumbled into hatred and murder.
But, Naruto was not known for taking the easy way. He took the hardest way possible: to channel the hatred he absorbed into a never-ending desire for the acknowledgement of his existence. His dream was to save, to protect even those who had wished for his death. He was a Shinobi who was ruled by his own heart's desire, and did not fear depth of any emotion, be it pain, sadness, grief, or love. Throwing consequences aside like caution to the wind, Naruto had endured his own pain, and had saved so many people from their pain.
Neji thought he might have a small glimpse now of what it meant to just experience an emotion, consequences be damned. He thought that he would be able to let his guard down fully with TenTen in time. However, as much as Neji admired Naruto, there was no way he could see himself having quite that much abandon. Neji would always be Neji, and he knew he likely would never be a demonstrative lover, at least not in front of others. But, he felt that TenTen would already know that about him too, and that she would understand. Neji dared to think that she would prefer it that way as well. For now, he was content with what he hoped was another new beginning in his life. Reluctantly, he had to put his musings on his actions aside. He needed to train, and he needed Naruto's help.
He turned a corner and sprang up to the now familiar outdoor landing of Naruto's apartment. He knocked on the door, but Neji's senses already told him that Naruto was out. Neji thought for a moment, thinking on the various places that Naruto was likely to be. 'I suppose the Ichiraku ramen stand is as good a place to start as any,' he thought.
Neji swiftly made his way toward the ramen stand, but he did not sense Naruto's presence there either. But, after asking the proprietor if he had seen his best customer, the old man let Neji know that Naruto had been by for breakfast, and that he had said he would be training the entire day.
Unfortunately, the fact that Naruto was out training didn't narrow things down very much. Konoha was littered with training fields, and, even though some were still heavily damaged from the Akatsuki attack, many were not.
Most Shinobi squads he knew had their own preferred training sites. Neji tried to search his memory to see if he recalled whether or not Team Seven had also possessed such a preference. It had been so long since Team Seven had been a functional team that Neji could barely remember the time when the four man cell had consisted of Kakashi, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke. Over the last few years of Sasuke's absence, Sakura and Naruto were trained exclusively by two of the Legendary Three Nins. Sai and Yamato were newcomers to the team, and Kakashi had taken leadership of several squads for various missions, and had also done his own independent missions.
There was nothing routine about Team Seven but for that there was no routine. As Neji made his way past training fields nine through twenty-seven with no luck, he thought he might just have to abandon the training in favor of stopping by Naruto's apartment in the evening to try and catch him at home. Deciding to check just a few more well-frequented fields, Neji prepared to alight to a tree when a puff of smoke at his feet caught his attention. He immediately went on the defensive.
When the smoke cleared, Neji saw a toad whose coloring didn't exactly conform to any kind of toad that would be found in nature. It had to be one of Naruto's summons. He released his defensive position and stared down at the creature.
"Oi!" said the talking amphibian.
"Hello," Neji began, hoping there wasn't anyone close enough by to see him talking to a frog.
"You the guy called Neji?"
"I am."
"Naru-chan knows you're a lookin' for him."
"He does?" Neji asked incredulously, crossing his arms over his chest. "How would he know that?"
The toad looked at Neji as if the answer was as plain as the nose on his face. "Because he's the new student of the Sage Arts, obviously. You might say that he's the boss when it comes to us in this dimension. So, when oyabun says, 'Go find a white-eyed guy with long hair called Neji 'cause he's lookin' for me!', I go. You're not too bright, are ya, Neji?"
Not caring to argue with a toad about who was a genius and who was not, Neji replied, "No. Will you tell me where I can find your...'oyabun'?"
"Heh! I'll do better n' that!" the toad exclaimed. Before Neji could protest, the toad leaped and landed, to Neji's extreme horror, right on top of his head.
"Get...off...of...my...hair...please," Neji seethed.
The frog didn't move. "Why?"
"Because I'm asking you nicely," Neji replied icily, not wanting to touch the frog if he didn't have to. He really hoped that no one was around now, because he felt sure that he wouldn't be able to live it down if someone had witnessed this exchange.
"Okay, okay. Touchy, aren't we?" the frog grumbled as he jumped onto Neji's shoulder. 'This is not much better,' Neji thought.
"Happy now, pretty boy?" the frog asked.
"No."
"Hmpf. You probably don't have a lot of friends, do ya, Neji-chan?"
Neji winced. No one called him 'Neji-chan'. No one. "Probably not. Can we go to Naruto now?"
The toad sighed. "You really need to lighten up a bit, kiddo. Well, close your eyes, and I'll show ya where ya can find oyabun."
"Understood," Neji said, hoping that there would be no toad slime left behind on his white linen shirt. 'Were toads even slimy?' he wondered, but decided he didn't want to know. He closed his eyes, and, suddenly, he saw a vision of Naruto sitting in a meditative pose, the Toad Sage Neji had seen on the mission to capture Sasuke by his side, in the middle of training field thirty-eight. It was one of the fields furthest from the center of the Village.
"Did ya get that, kiddo?" the toad asked.
"Yes. How did-"
"Ain't nothin' to it ya. That's what I do," the toad answered, again, in a tone that said the answer should have been obvious.
"Of course," Neji answered wryly.
"Well, later! Don't forget to tell the boss I helped ya!" the toad said as he jumped back down to the ground.
"All right. Thanks," Neji replied, inspecting his shoulder for the possible remnants of toad slime. Thankfully, there were none, which also meant there wouldn't be any in his hair. His vanity appeased for now, he watched as the toad made a quick...could it be called a hand seal if a creature didn't have hands? With a wave of a webbed foot, the toad disappeared in another small puff of smoke.
Neji wasted no time in setting out for the training field. Part of him was a little disturbed that Naruto could have sensed his intent from such a distance, but, Neji realized that this was likely part of his new powers, and he admitted to himself that it was impressive. Not even with an activated Byakugan could Neji have sensed Naruto at the current distance between them.
It did not take long for Neji to arrive at training field thirty-eight, and Naruto was still seated in the same pose Neji had seen in the vision given to him by the toad. He seemed to be deep in focus, the Toad Sage lightly touching his leg, and Neji wondered if he should just leave him be.
"Nah, Neji, it's okay. I'm almost finished. Just give me a sec, okay?"
Startled, Neji just said a soft "Hai" in response. Neji was, by a fair margin, the Hyuuga who was the most proficient at projecting neutral intent with his aura. Only Hiashi himself was remotely close to him in this ability. He was amazed that Naruto had picked up on his thoughts as if it was nothing. Again, it disturbed him a little too. If it had been anyone else, he would have been outright angered that his private thoughts were so easily perceptible to another, TenTen being the notable exception. 'Kuso', Neji cursed inwardly, as he hurriedly suppressed the passing thought of TenTen. For the second time in the same afternoon, Neji had the feeling of being entirely overexposed.
Before he could ponder over Naruto's perceptions any further, he saw a vague shimmering in the atmosphere appear in front of Naruto, resembling the rippling pattern one could see rising from a densely cobbled road or concrete surface on a hot day. Instinctively, he activated his Byakugan, not understanding what was occurring. As he watched, the shimmering air seemed to rotate and form a kind of vortex.
'What the hell?!' he thought.
"It's a new jutsu...just hang on, Neji. I'll be with you in a sec," Naruto explained.
"Okay," was all Neji could say. Neji had been so focused on the vortex appearing in the training field that he didn't immediately notice that Naruto's chakra had taken on yet another form. It was not the menacing chakra of the Kyuubi that Neji had experienced in the chuunin exams, but, rather, it was Naruto's own chakra, enhanced. It seemed that the chakra was mixing, no, being infused with something external and independent of his own body, perhaps from all the living things of the field, coalescing, intermingling. 'This must be the Natural Energy he draws from for the Sage Techniques.' Neji presumed. 'Amazing.' Neji couldn't perceive the Natural Energy itself, but he could see the affect of it on Naruto's chakra.
He could sense that Naruto was increasing his focus on the vortex. Neji quieted his own mind, not wanting to cause him any further distractions. He just observed, enthralled.
A few seconds later, one of Naruto's clones came running through the vortex, falling in a heap next to Naruto himself. He was quickly followed by another, then a third. Neji released his Byakugan. Once the three clones were on the ground, the vortex instantly disappeared and Neji could see that Naruto had cancelled his Sage Mode.
He rose and stood over his clones. It was only then that Neji noticed that there was a problem. One of the clones was holding his head at the place where his ears should have been, but his ears were gone. One was missing his right hand, but the third seemed unscathed.
"Shit!" Naruto shouted, turning to the old toad as he released his somewhat defective clones and they disappeared out of existence. "It's still not working, Gramps!"
"Naru-chan. You've only been workin' on this thing for six hours! And one of them came back just fine this time! Don't be so hasty. It's your worst habit, your worst!"
"But, Graaaamps," he whined. "I need this to work now! How the hell am I gonna send myself if I can't get my damn clones back without losing some of their goddamn body parts?!"
"Naru-chan. Are you forgetting that you have a visitor?"
"Eh? Oh, OH! Oi, sorry Neji!" Naruto yelled, casting his frustration aside, as he trotted over to Neji who was still trying to process all he had seen.
"Hello, Naruto," Neji greeted in his calm, even voice, despite the awe he felt.
"Well, I'll see ya tomorrow, Naru-chan!" the Toad Sage called out.
Naruto glanced over his shoulder, a bit of his frustration returning. "Yeah, Gramps. Same time, unless something comes up, okay?"
"All right. See ya then, kid." With that, the old toad was gone, and Naruto's attention turned back to Neji.
"So Neji, what's up?"
"Naruto, what do you mean 'what's up'? What was that?"
"Heh. Well, for some reason, that old Toad thought I might be good at some teleportation jutsu thingy, and he's been making me sit still all morning working on it."
"Ah, teleportation. Interesting," Neji's mind was racing. With Naruto out of his Sage Mode, Neji felt that it was safe to think again. The Fourth had been known as a genius with teleportation jutsu. 'Had Naruto been told?' Neji thought wildly. 'No, I don't think he would have called it a 'teleportation thingy' if he had. The Toad must know who he is too, and must be trying to see if he could master something else in which his Father had proved to be a genius.'
"Yeah, he started giving me this super boring lecture explaining it this morning, and I didn't really get it, so, well, you know me. I'm not the sharpest kunai in the holster, so I just told him to can it so I could just train already. I've always learned better with my body anyway."
"And what I saw were your results so far?"
"Yeah," Naruto said, frowning. "They're...mixed," he said with a rueful laugh.
"What were you trying to do there, Naruto?"
"Well, you know the Kage Bunshin no jutsu was originally designed for information gathering and spying right?"
"Yes."
"Well, I thought, 'hey, wouldn't it be great if I could gather information about whether Pain is gonna come back and try to bomb us out again, and stop him before he reaches the Village' and whatnot."
"Okay," Neji said, nodding his understanding so far.
"So, I was like, well, if teleportation is so awesome that you can instantly be someplace else, wouldn't it be cool if I could just instantly pop my clones around the map until I find some info on Pain's location, then, when I call them back, I'd know if they found him. Then I'd just go in myself and kick his ass!"
"Naturally."
"And also," Naruto continued, his tone growing more somber, "Kakashi-sensei told me that the other Sharingan user used some kind of teleportation jutsu. So, I thought, I might be able to figure out how to counter that too, if he decided to show up to try and get Sasuke back from us."
"Ah," Neji said. Sasuke was always at the forefront of Naruto's thoughts. "But, I guess it's not complete."
"Well," Naruto began with a sigh, "I can get them over to wherever, but it's getting them back in one piece that's tough. I'm able to get the information, but it's useless if I can't go in and follow up on my own and come back in one piece."
"Even so," Neji offered, "if they are intact when they arrive, at 'wherever', you would be too, right?"
"Yeah, so?"
"And you said that you still obtained the information, even though the clones didn't come back absolutely perfect, right?"
"Yeah," Naruto said, and Neji perceived that Naruto was genuinely interested in his opinion.
"Well, ostensibly then, you could still follow up on the info, do your 'ass kicking', then come back by conventional means, like, by foot, right?"
Naruto looked wide-eyed, the two oceans shining with anticipation. "Holy shit! I never thought about it like that!"
"You could do it that way until the jutsu is perfected, then, at least, you could use it now, right?"
"Yeah, I could!" Neji sensed Naruto's absolute elation at what, to Neji, was a simple solution. He could also see the absolute joy in his eyes, and Neji was happy to have helped him in this little way. No wonder Hinata felt so captivated by him. His energy was like absorbing life itself. "Man, Neji. You're awesome. No wonder you're a fucking genius, uh, sorry about the language. Heh."
"No problem."
"Aw this is gonna be great. Maybe I should call Gramps back here and work on it some more...but, uh, wait a minute. Why were you looking for me, Neji? Is something going on...at home?" Naruto asked seriously, the elation instantly gone and concern washing over him.
"No, not in the way you think. Hinata-sama went to visit Kurenai-"
"Hee, yeah, I saw her, or, one of me saw her earlier," Naruto interrupted quietly, a blush coming to his cheeks. "She was with Shino. I said hi."
Neji frowned in mock disgust. "I hope you don't plan on using your clones to spy on Hinata-sama, Naruto. If so, then you and I may have a problem here."
"Nonononono! Neji!" Naruto shouted, waving his hands in front of him violently. "I'm not some kind of perv like that, no way! I was just, you know, wondering if I could see her. It was totally innocent, totally!"
"Relax, Naruto. I was kidding. Sort of."
Naruto laughed a bit sheepishly, and flashed his million ryou smile. Apparently, Naruto would have to be in Sage Mode to truly know if Neji was being facetious or not. That was a relief to Neji.
"All right, Neji. So what did you want to see me about then?"
"I need your help with something. I'd like to train with you today, if possible, if you're not too fatigued from training yourself, that is."
"Eh? You want me to train with you? Don't you normally train with TenTen?"
"Yes," Neji began, willing his aura to be extremely neutral, "but I'm afraid the kind of training I require today is for a technique that I'm not normally known for using, and one that TenTen does not have the particular expertise for."
"And I do?"
"Yes."
"Well, what is it? I'm not tired."
"I need your help with Kage Bunshin, Naruto."
"Kage Bunshin? You?" Naruto asked, even more incredulously than before.
"Yes, me."
"But, why? You're absolutely lethal on your own. What would someone like you need some crummy clones for?" Naruto had a decidedly confused look furrowing his brow.
Neji sighed. "Because I am facing an opponent I'd like to give a few surprises to. I'm hoping his reaction will be similar to yours, that he wouldn't expect me to utilize that jutsu."
Understanding washed over Naruto coupled with slight anger. "Oh. Him."
"Yes. I'd like to have a little advance warning on how he's going to come at me. I've seen how you use your clones as a diversion, and we just discussed the information gathering merits of them. I'd like you to help me with my timing."
"Really?" There was still disbelief in Naruto's aura.
"Yes," Neji said, growing exasperated. "Will you help?"
"Uh, sure, no problem. I guess I'm just surprised you'd ask me."
"Is there someone else I should ask about Shadow Clones? I think not," Neji deadpanned.
"Well, sure Neji, okay. Now that you said it was to be used on him," Naruto said finally, shaking off the insecurity he felt that Neji would ask him for help.
"Good. Now, all that's left to discuss is your fee."
"Eh? My 'fee'? What the hell are you talking about?"
"Well," Neji began, "I'm quite sure a private lesson with a practitioner of the Sage Arts doesn't come cheap. And I do recall a certain unpredictable Genin ninja bemoaning the fact that the gap between his salary and my Jounin salary was...substantial."
Naruto just laughed. "God, Neji. Do you remember everything? I was only kidding, you know."
"That may be true, but I believe it's only fair, and, I'm serious," Neji said, reaching for his wallet for emphasis. "How much? And don't say a year's supply of Ichiraku Ramen tickets."
Naruto laughed again. "Neji, you just gave me a great tip for my brand new jutsu, and you've never even seen it before. You've seen my clones a million times. I'm not gonna charge you for that. Just think of it as returning a favor."
"Naruto, I insist. How much?"
Naruto sighed. "Geez, Neji I don't kno-...oh!" Neji could see that Naruto the prankster was making a return. Neji was suddenly rethinking his offer to pay for Naruto's tutelage.
"I've got it. I bet your Uncle throws a boatload of fancy parties at that fancy mansion of his, right?"
"He's had a few, yes. Why?"
Naruto laughed mischievously. "And I bet he's got a kitchen bigger than my apartment."
"He does. What are you getting at Naruto?"
"Hmm. I bet a guy like that has an entire cellar full of some really good sake."
"Naruto..." Neji started to protest.
"One bottle, Neji. No one has to know. Uncle-sama won't miss one bottle would he? I bet he hasn't even seen the kitchen of his own house in a decade." Neji ceded to himself that Naruto had a point there. However, the prospect of doing something so unlike him was not comforting.
"Out of the question. Naruto, neither you nor I are supposed to-"
"Well, Neji, you certainly managed to help me finish off my one bottle, as I recall," Naruto continued, pointing a playfully accusing index finger at Neji's nose, ignoring Neji's deepening look of consternation. "I'm not going to just drink it! I told you I don't like drunks!"
Neji silently stared at Naruto.
"I just want it for another night like that someday, or for a night to celebrate. Just replace the one the Pervy Sage gave me with one from Uncle-sama's cellar, and we'll call it even!"
"Naruto, I can't just steal a bottle of sake from Hiashi-sama."
"Aw come on, Neji. You're a Shinobi. Like you couldn't pull off a little switcheroo in the cellar. Besides, you'd just be borrowing it until you're old enough to go to the store and replace it, so it's not like you'd really be stealing it at all."
"Ah, the justifications of an S-ranked prankster," Neji commented, sensing that he was not going to win this battle.
"One bottle of sake, and, uh," he blushed, "a date with your cousin. That's my fee. Take it or leave it."
"Now your bargaining with Hinata-sama. Really, Naruto. Do you have any class?"
"Nope. Never have."
Neji sighed, returning his wallet to his pocket. He knew he was defeated. He really needed some advice with those Shadow Clones. Why was it so impossible to say no to him? "Very well. One bottle of sake and a date with Hinata-sama. But I will have to chaperone, and I choose the location, for discretion's sake, since you are the least discreet person I know. And I know Lee and Gai-Sensei."
"Deal," Naruto said with a light laugh. "Okay, you said you wanted help with timing, so I guess that means you've already studied the jutsu itself."
"Yes."
"How many clones can you use?" Naruto's demeanor totally changed again, and he was now completely serious. This was his area of expertise, after all, and he was now adopting an air of confident authority that was comforting and not condescending in any way.
"I think I should be able to use two effectively, and three if I push it."
"Hmm. You should be able to do some stuff with two or three. Are you a high or low chakra capacity type? I already know you have killer stamina, what with being trained by Gai-Sensei and working with Bushy Brow."
Neji was taken aback slightly, but he knew that Naruto needed the information since the Shadow Clone jutsu had been a forbidden jutsu mainly for the high cost it demanded of a person's chakra. From practicing it secretly on his own, Neji knew that it was an extremely tiring jutsu to use.
"I'd say it's of a higher order. Probably on the same level as Gai-Sensei, but I'm not you."
"Well, that should be more than enough, especially since I know you have expert control of it, given your Clan's normal style of combat. We can practice with two for starters. Ready?"
"Yeah, I'm ready."
Both Neji and Naruto crossed their fingers in front of them. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
A second later, Neji and Naruto were joined by two additional copies of each of them. Naruto laughed a little.
"What's so funny?" Neji asked.
"Heh. Well, I was just thinking I would have been in big trouble if you had known how to use this jutsu when we fought at the Chuunin Exams. Three people all coming at me with the Gentle Fist. Scary."
"Good," Neji said evenly. "I'm going for scary."
"Ah," Naruto said. "Now, let's train."
"Hai."
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A/N Okay, everyone. Before you decide Ceile has fully lost it with Neji using Kage Bunshin, give it a chance! I had thought about delaying the release of this chapter to release the next two together so you all could see I'm really not being ridiculous with that, but I'm still editing some fighting sequences, as there are several different fights coming as the story ends. I'll probably need at least another couple of days on the next chapter to get it right. I mean, Kishi had Konohamaru doing the Kage Bunshin and...*spoiler* the Rasengan. I'm still a little *wtf* on that one, so I understand if you are also a little *wtf* on this chapter. BUT, I humbly request that you withhold your judgment for now. There will be other "surprise" jutsu involved, the Kage Bunshin is more like...insurance. lol Neji is nothing if not pragmatic, but he deserves to be a little unexpected sometimes too.
Don't own, yadda yadda. Thanks for putting up with this chapter! Fights are coming..they're just so hard for me to write, so patience, my little grasshoppers!
C
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