I do believe this is the longest chapter in the story right now. May be the longest for the rest of the story too. Mostly in Nagi's POV, switching between her and Tsuki many times. Enjoy!

Chapter 37:

~Nagi's POV

After tussling with the big idiot for a little bit, Chouji convinced us to go on ahead. Shikamaru hesitated more than once, but eventually led the rest of us after Sasuke while Chouji stayed behind to fight the guy.

Shikamaru tossed the bag Chouji gave him to Naruto. "A parting gift from Chouji. Eat up."

Naruto opened the bag and took a food pill. "We owe you one, Chouji." He looked ahead. "Kiba!"

Kiba caught the bag Naruto threw him. "Thanks, Naruto."

"Shikamaru, that certain pill we saw Chouji take back there," Neji voiced. "It seemed like some sort of last minute trump card. Do you really think he can win?"

Kiba gave Akamaru one of the pills. "Yeah, I mean, he said he had some sort of secret weapon on him."

"Don't worry," Shikamaru assured us. "Chouji's got a plan up his sleeve. He brought along with him the Akimichi Clan's secret triple threat. Pills that grant a person explosive power. There are three of them: Green, yellow, and red. The amount of energy that each of those pills contains is absolutely massive."

"Oh, I gotcha, so that's why he was acting so confident," Naruto said.

We continued along. Kiba had mentioned the possibility of Chouji not being able to win with just the pills to help him, and Neji agreed that the chances were low. But didn't turn back. We had a mission to complete before we could go back at all.

I glanced around as we kept on the move after Sasuke. When my sight passed my cousin, I noticed the pendant hanging from his neck.

'So that's what he was holding earlier,' I thought.

"What is that?" I asked him.

The others heard and turned their heads to see. Kiba realized it was nothing dangerous, so he turned back and kept watch up ahead. Shikamaru was watching from the corner of his eye.

"Tsuki gave it to me," Neji answered after a moment. "It's the pendant she was given when she was born."

"She gave you her necklace?" I asked in wonder.

"I heard that's a pretty big honor coming from the Senjo Clan," Shikamaru mentioned. "They kept to themselves a lot, so when one of the members gave their necklace to someone outside the clan, it was a pretty big deal."

"What does the necklace do anyway?" Naruto asked.

"Tsuki told me it formed a bond between us that allows us to know when one is in need of the other, or how far away they are from each other," Neji said.

"Well, look at Neji, moving on up in the world," Kiba joked.

I narrowed my eyes. "Is that all she said?"

Neji gave me a look. "Should she have said more?"

I sighed and faced forward. "I've been hanging out with her cousin, Konjou, and his girlfriend, Tejina, every since we came back to the village. They told me about the significance of the gems they're given at birth. The bond is stronger than Tsuki lets on, and I'm guessing that she just didn't want you to worry. Probably didn't want you to deny the exchange."

"What would I have to worry about by her giving me her pendant?" Neji asked skeptically.

"The Senjo Clan was a clan of magic. They created things based on their belief that Nature beheld all beauty and soul. The gems in their pendants signified that. But when an exchange is made between female and male, the bond is permanent, whether one removes the necklace or destroys it. There's no way to break it."

"What makes that a bad thing?" Shikamaru asked.

"The bond is so strong, that if one is hurt, the other is hurt. I'm not talking about scratches or bruises. I mean severe injuries, fatal wounds. Blows that may kill you if not treated right away."

"What are you saying?" Neji pestered.

"I'm saying, Neji, that Tsuki didn't tell you that if you happen to be hurt enough to the point you're near death, then she'll feel all of your physical pain. Her body won't be damaged, but the pain is as real as anything. And the same is for you. You'll feel her pain if she's ever fatally injured. But the tricky part is that if one is killed, the other won't die with them, but they will feel pain that led to the death."

Neji's shock registered on his face as he reached up and grabbed the crescent moon hanging off his neck.

"Well what about getting sick or old age?" Naruto asked frantically.

I shook my head. "According to Konjou, it doesn't count. Only injuries are effective. They don't really understand it themselves; this is what they were taught as children. Their ancestors, the ones who first created this type of power, kept their abilities a secret. Their ancestors made it this way to allow their clan to be in tune with their loved ones, but also to save as much of the population as possible. The exchange in the Senjo Clan is as big of a threat as the Senjo Gekido. That's why Tsuki didn't tell you. But I think you should know now that we have an idea of how strong our opponents are. As long as you avoid fatality, Neji, you won't have to worry about her."

Neji nodded. "It actually encourages me a bit more to stay alive on this mission."

I smirked. Shikamaru grinned.

"Let's keep moving," he ordered.

We sped up, trying to catch up to our targets. We stopped a few times along the way to leave markings in trees for Chouji to follow when he beats the big freak.

It's been a while, and I was starting to get a bit worried. Was Chouji okay? Were we going to catch up to Sasuke at all?

One of my questions was answered a second later. Shikamaru suddenly turned his head to look behind him, a scared look on his face.

"What's the matter?" Naruto asked.

Shikamaru hesitated. "It's nothing."

I refrained from using my Byakugan to look back on Chouji. If I did, I might just confirm the worst.

We kept moving.

"We're getting close," Kiba announced.

My cousin activated his Byakugan to look ahead. "That's strange. It's been quite a long time and we still haven't encountered a single trap. Well, Shikamaru? What's your assessment?"

"It looks to me like we're underestimated. They're cocky, and they think we're all dead now. And they think that big guy's the only one following them. They don't need to set a trap for their own man, do they?"

"Those idiots!" Naruto scoffed. "They think we're so weak."

"It seems you're right about our enemy, Shikamaru," Neji said. "And it's insulting to be underestimated like this. But still, this could be our chance."

We ducked lower into the trees and kept going.

"I hear ya," Shikamaru agreed. "Now we can take them by surprise."

Shikamaru had me and Neji keep a constant lookout up ahead until we finally caught up to them. Cue plan number two.

"This is a pretty big risk," I muttered. "We have no idea how well this group knows each other."

"We have to take it," Shikamaru told me. He transformed into the big guy and caught up with the enemy group. The rest of us hung back a bit.

The group bought it for a few minutes, but then they figured it out. Six-Arms threw the coffin to the girl, and she and White-Hair took off.

Shikamaru, still as the big guy, attacked Six-Arms with a kunai. The guy caught him and smirked.

"The real Jiroubo was always scolding Tayuya for her coarse language," he said, then started chewing something.

Shikamaru turned back into himself. "You got me." He kicked the guy, but he only blocked with one of his arms.

Then the freak did something really weird. He shot a web from his mouth, pinning Shikamaru to a tree.

Naruto and his Shadow Clones fell down on the guy, who saw it coming. He jumped off the branch, spit some web into his hands, and made a giant web to catch Naruto and his clones.

Kiba's turn. He and Akamaru appeared from their hiding place. "Fang Over Fang!"

But the guy used his threads to pull himself out of the way and dodged easily.

"I won't let you get away!" Kiba shouted.

The freak laughed. "You stole my line, punk. You should look down at your feet."

"You coward!" Kiba shouted, seeing the webs trapping him below. "Do you really think you can stop us that easily?"

"Why don't you shut up?"

I charged the guy from behind. 'Gentle Fist!'

I don't know how, but the guy heard me coming. He turned to dodge my blow and kicked me in the stomach. Next thing I know, my hands were bound to the tree behind me by spider web.

'Gross,' I thought disgusted.

"Now what could a pretty thing like you be doing with weak losers like these?" the freak asked me, advancing toward me.

"My best guess would be to avoid ugly things like you," I snapped.

I drifted my gaze to my cousin. Neji tried to do the same as I had and attack with Gentle Fist.

The freak ducked again, and Neji was in midair.

"Neji, no!" Naruto shouted.

Six-Arms spit out more web, and this time it was bigger. It was enough to trap Neji for good.

"He's stuck!" Kiba said.

Neji was caught by all of his limbs.

"Damn it!" I cursed, trying to break free.

"How would you like to see the inside of an air-tight cocoon?" Spider-Freak asked. And just like that, his web surrounded my cousin in a cocoon.

I gasped and struggled against my restraints.

Six-Arms hung upside down from his threads of web and laughed. "It's useless. My web is so powerful, nothing can break it. Not even elephants could pull it apart."

I looked back at the cocoon. 'Byakugan!' Using my kekkai genkai, I tried to see through the shell and see if Neji was alright. He was more than alright. He was focusing his chakra to certain points in the body. It was then I realized what he was trying to do.

I looked at the web trapping my hands. Spider-Freak's chakra was still running through the threads. Neji, you're a genius.

I was distracted when Spider-Freak pulled out six yellow threads from his mouth. He unattached them from each other and the threads hardened into spiked weapons.

The freak motioned to Naruto. "Hn! Since you'll be my first victim, let's make this entertaining. I'm gonna play a little game to find out which one of you is the real one."

"What did you just say?" Naruto growled.

"Contestant one, let's try you at the end." The freak threw one of the weapons and hit one.

"No, Naruto!" Shikamaru called.

Luckily there was a puff of smoke following the blow.

"Oh well, looks like he was a clone," the freak sneered. "No problem, let's try another!" He hit one of the clones in the stomach, causing it to disappear. The guy laughed. "Whichever you are, you're pretty lucky. Next, let's try two at a time. The odds will be doubled in my favor!" He hit two of the four remaining, and they disappeared. Now all that was left was Naruto and his one clone. The guy laughed even louder. "You are a very lucky guy, you know that? But this time I got a fifty-fifty shot! Here it comes!"

This time he hit one in the back of the shoulder. That particular Naruto cried out in pain, making the rest of us think it was the real one. But it disappeared, revealing the real Naruto to the enemy.

"Well, weakling, it was fun playing with ya. But unfortunately, the game's over for you now. Now die!" The guy threw the last weapon, and hit Naruto in the side. "One down, and four to go."

Naruto suddenly disappeared.

"Wait, where'd he-"

The true real Naruto ambushed the guy from behind. But he quickly countered and blocked the punch Naruto threw at him. Naruto flipped back away from the guy while Spider-Freak used his thread to safely land on a branch below him.

'Way to go, Naruto.'

But Naruto was still caught by a thread.

"It looks like you're at the end of your rope!" Spider-Freak pulled on the thread, forcing Naruto to fly towards him.

Cue the amazing style of the Hyuga Clan. Neji appeared out of nowhere and cut the thread and caught Naruto midair, jumping back to the safety of a branch far away from the guy.

"Naruto, thanks for stalling him for me," Neji said.

"Neji!" Naruto said in surprise.

Neji turned to me. "Stop fooling around already."

I shrugged and pulled my hands forward, ripping the threads apart. I smirked at the freak's face, one full of confusion and surprise, and jumped to the branch the boys were all standing on.

"Cool your jets, brat," I grinned, dusting myself off.

Akamaru started whining and rubbed against Kiba's leg. "What is it, buddy?" Kiba asked, kneeling down. Akamaru jumped into Kiba's jacket, shivering. Kiba looked up at us. "Well, looks like this guy's stronger than the big guy we fought before. Much stronger."

We stared the freak down, each of us determining the best plan.

"We're going to have to go one-on-one for any chance of success," my cousin said. "Isn't that what you said?"

"Yeah," Shikamaru answered. "That's what we agreed."

"And besides, if we all stay here, we won't be able to catch up with Sasuke."

I looked at my cousin suspiciously. He, of course, avoided my gaze.

"What about Chouji?" Kiba voiced. "He hasn't come back."

Neji responded. "We all embarked on this mission to find Sasuke and bring him back home to the village. But that's not the only reason that we've come. We are on this mission to protect a fellow shinobi, to defend the bond of the Hidden Leaf Village. At the 3rd Hokage's funeral, when Iruka spoke, do you remember his words?"

I thought back to that day.

"Iruka-sensei?" Naruto began. "Why do they do it? Why do people risk their lives for other people?"

"Well, when someone passes away, it's the end. His past, his future, all the dreams he once had. They disappear along with him. This is true, even if he dies honorably in battle, like so many have. As Hayate did. All the ties that bind him to the living are severed. All but one, the most important of all. People. Parents, siblings, friends, lovers, the people who were important to him. And these people, the ones who are left behind, are joined together in a great circle by their shared memories of him. A circle of friendship, trust, and sacrifice that grows larger and stronger as time passes. It's hard to explain it. We remain in the circle together. We have no choice. It's important to us."

I looked back at the Sound ninja, who was smirking up at us, waiting for our move.

"Listen," Neji continued. "Sasuke's out there right now, heading toward Orochimaru. We can't allow such evil to take someone from our village. That is not our way. What's more…"

Neji turned to look at Naruto. Then he smiled and closed his eyes. "Naruto, sometimes your eyes are even better than mine. Wherever he is, Sasuke is in the darkness."

I smirked and stepped up to stand beside Neji. "Get going, you guys. We'll be right behind you."

Naruto nodded.

"Alright, let's do this thing," Shikamaru ushered.

"When you catch up with us, make sure you bring Chouji too," Kiba told us.

"Of course we will," Neji promised.

The three of them took off while Neji and I stayed behind, staring our enemy down.

"Don't going dying on me today, Neji," I warned him.

"Nor you, Nagi-nee-san," he replied.

The freak below spit thread into his hand and shot it towards us. We both activated our Byakugan and covered our front as some of the web caught us. The web passed us and went after the boys.

"Incoming!" I heard Naruto shout.

"Enough playing games," I growled.

Focusing my chakra to my hands, the two of us both tore through the threads. The boys were safe.

"If you want them, you'll have to go through us," Neji said.

Spider-Freak shot a web at Neji, who used Gentle Fist to tear through it. "Not good enough!"

"Well, that's just fine by me," the enemy said. "Besides, you two are by far the strongest ones in the lot. Ah, man, I'm really itching to play with you. And we should play slowly, or else the game's not as fun."

"You really have no idea how much of a freak you really are, do you?" I asked rhetorically.

Neji and I both got into our stances, the Hyuga Style.

"Okay, the game is I'll kill you both in three minutes or less."

I observed the guy's chakra network. 'Damn, he has a lot more chakra points than the average person with those six arms of his.'

The guy started spitting webs at us. We dodged and tore through them, but they were coming at us fast. It was enough to separate the two of us to opposite sides.

Spider-Freak managed to catch Neji in a web, pinning him to a tree, and shot two more webs to pin his arms.

"Neji!" I called, going to his aid.

"Oh no you don't!" Six-Arms caught me in a web when my back was turned, and I landed on a branch with a thud. Damn did it hurt. "Heh! You're not going anywhere. For a couple of wimps, you're pretty good at handling chakra, aren't ya? And those eyes of yours are pretty sharp. You fire off chakra from the chakra points in your hands like a sharp needle. Then you target the thin part of my thread with chakra running through it, and strike there." He laughed. "Yes, I heard this from Lord Orochimaru. It's the technique you call Gentle Fist, right? But, if you can't use those annoying hands of yours, then you won't be able to cut through my silk!"

He jumped onto a branch closer to Neji. "That was way too easy. Once you figure out your opponent's rules of engagement, games like this one are no longer amusing. It's only been a minute or so, and I'm already tired of playing with you."

I closed my eyes and relaxed, focusing my chakra throughout my body. The web ripped apart and I spun to see what was happening.

Spider-Freak shot a long spear of solidified thread from his mouth, aiming for Neji's torso. I jumped up. Not a second later, Neji broke free of the web trapping him and jumped just as the thread nearly hit him. He ran along the thread and ducked below it to stand right in front of the guy. Then he got into a stance I knew all too well.

"I suppose you want me to explain how we broke free," Neji offered. "You see, it's not just my hands. There are chakra points all over me. And I can make chakra from any one. And now, as you would say, game over! Gentle Fist Art: 8-Trigrams, 64-Palms!"

Neji began hitting every chakra point he could on the guy's body, forcing him back. The blows were strong enough to force this guy's back against a tree, break a hole through the tree, and send this guy falling to ground floor.

Neji and I jumped down and landed in a crouch. We waited for the smoke to clear before moving.

The guy was alive, standing, and glaring at us. His body was covered in some kind of shell that began to break apart and fall. It was the same thread he used to make the weapons before.

"Well, well, that was close," the guy chuckled. "I know that if I take just one hit of that Gentle Fist of yours, my whole chakra network goes out of whack. You keep me on my toes, kid."

"That material," Neji said. "Where does it come from, you monster?"

"Impressive, yes? My Sticky Spider Thread is actually a type of metal that hardens the instant it leaves my body. It's impervious to chakra. And what's more, not only can I seclude it from my mouth as you see, but from every sweat gland in my body." He made the material form on his hand as demonstration, then let his arm drop to his side.

"This might be an impossible battle," I whispered. "We counter his attacks, and he counters ours. It's deadlock."

"Just keep caution and don't make any mistakes," Neji warned me.

The freak suddenly vanished. Neji and I stood and kept quiet. We looked around for the guy, listening for any movement behind the wind.

We spun and both moved out of the way just as a kunai hit the ground where we were just standing. A paper bomb was tied to it, but it never went off.

"Quick!" Neji said, turning the other way. I turned my back to him.

On all sides, the metal-like material the freak told us about were coming at us in numerous numbers, all sharp and deadly. Too many for any normal ninja to dodge or block.

"8-Trigrams…" Neji and I started spinning, focusing our chakra around us. "Rotation!"

The two of us spun at impossible speed, too quickly for nearly anyone to track. We batted away every weapon that came at us and slowed to a stop once they were all down. We both stood in our own craters, a bit of smoke rising from the friction.

I stood completely still, searching for the guy and his hiding spot.

'Found you!'

I threw a kunai behind me. The freak ducked soundlessly.

"We know you're there," Neji called. "Come out!"

A few moments of silence later, the guy revealed himself.

"Okay then!" He hung himself upside down with his thread. I was taken aback by the strange marks that were travelling over his body. "You've made this more of a challenge than I thought it'd be. Time to start playing for real."

I looked at the chakra network running through this guy. The marks were helping his chakra flow increase along with his power. Lovely.

He bit his thumb, drawing blood, and began making hand signs. Pulling out a small web with two more of his hands, he slammed his bloodied hand on top. "Summoning Jutsu!"

Out of a huge puff of smoke came a giant spider. I stepped back, ready to avoid any kind of attack. Neji did the same.

"I warn ya, kids," the freak said, looking down at us. "No matter how strong your defenses are, I can always find a way around it."

The giant spider started laying a sack. It was pretty gross. The guy upchucked another one of those yellow weapons and cut the sack open.

"Scatter!"

Smaller, but still pretty big, spiders fell from inside the sack.

"Shit," I cursed.

"Rotation!" My cousin and I started repelling as many spiders as we could as they came at us. What we didn't anticipate was the webs slowing us down every time we batted away one of the spiders. We were caught.

"Now you die!"

At last second, Neji repelled the freak's weapon before it could strike through him.

We both freed ourselves from the webs sticking to us.

"Neji, he's going after you," I said quickly. "You have to get out of here and meet up with the others."

"Don't try to convince me, Nagi-nee-san. You know as well as I do this is my fight more than yours. If anything, you should go back to the village and send for a medical squad."

"No chance, brat," I scoffed. "But if you die, I'm kicking your ass."

Neji smirked.

We jumped out of the way as a hoard of those knives shot at us. I jumped to the side and skidded to a halt. Neji was in midair, vulnerable to the swarm of knives flying at him now.

"Neji, no!" I screamed.

Neji hit one of them away and skillfully positioned his body to avoid the rest. He landed on a tree branch, and a swarm of spiders rained down on him again. Neji used the 64-Palms technique to hit them away and avoid the webs. Clever.

But there was no end. Just as I was about to jump in to help, Neji paused. He got into the stance to perform 64-Palms. But then he lowered himself closer to the ground.

"8-Trigrams, 128-Palms!"

Neji was moving quicker than ever and hitting away a lot more spiders than before.

"No way," I whispered in awe. 'I haven't even mastered that level yet. Neji truly is the Hyuga prodigy.'

The giant spider let down more spiders. Neji didn't have enough time to perform the 128-Palms again. His Rotation failed.

Seconds after Neji freed himself from the webs, knives shot at him from behind. All of them missed except one, which cut his upper arm.

"No!" I jumped up to stand beside Neji and guard his back.

My cousin clutched his arm, blood oozing onto his hand.

"He's figured it out," I muttered. "Damn it!"

But Neji's thoughts were on other things. "Tsuki…" I looked at him in surprise.

~Tsuki's POV

Taiyou had finally calmed down and joined the rest of us in the field. Now she was sparring with Tejina while Konjou explained to Lee each of our specific weapons and how they worked. Lee was quite fascinated with the stories of our weapons and how they came to be.

I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my right arm and clutched it tight, cringing.

"Tsuki, what's wrong?" Konjou asked, turning his head back.

"What happened to your arm?" Lee panicked.

I took a glance at my arm and saw blood. I froze, fear taking over my mind.

"That's not her blood," Konjou said slowly, eyes wide.

"What?" Lee asked. "If it's not her blood, who's is it?"

"It's Neji's," I answered softly, gripping my arm even tighter.

What you think about that twist? Damn, the Senjo Clan is pretty complicated and different from the other clans, huh? I love how my mind works. 8) Next two chapters will be up tomorrow!