"I can't do it anymore. It's your turn, Neji."

"No, I only have to chaperone Lee around the circus from noon to two. Right now, it's eleven hours, forty-nine minutes, and thirty-three seconds. It's still your turn, Tenten."

"Neji! We had a deal!"

"Yes, I will take over for you at exactly noon. Not a second earlier."

"You wanna know what I had to deal with just now?"

"No."

"Well, too bad. I'm telling you anyway. It was the kunai toss, Neji, the kunai toss that's weighted against the player. You'll never be able to land a perfect hit, you know that?"

"Yes, it's a cunning ploy for these circus people to get you hooked onto the game and make more money."

"Yeah. Tell that to Lee. He doesn't get it. Just now, he said that if he doesn't win me a cute dragon plushie as a prize, that he'll eat ten thousand pounds of wata-ame as punishment."

"..."

"Exactly. You have to help me stop him. Tsunade-sama will flip if she sees him in the hospital after the squirrel incident last week."

"...It's only eleven fifty-three and forty seconds."

"Neji!"

"I covered for you from eight to ten. Think of my trials and tribulations for a change."

"You incapacitated his arms for five minutes when we reached that super-spicy food stall. He yelled at you for trying to stifle the flames of his youth. Even I didn't go that far when he suggested we take a trip to wata-ame world."

"I didn't want to do it."

"Oh, really?"

"Believe me, I have no desire to interfere with Lee having fun. But drastic times call for drastic measures."

"Neji."

"It's...it's eleven fifty-five. Can't you hold on for five more minutes, Tenten?"

"Wait a moment, where did he disappear to while we were talking?"

"He can't have wandered too far away. It's only been six minutes."

"On this team, six minutes is a lifetime."

"...That's true."

"So? Check with your Byakugan and find out where he is!"

"See, Tenten, I told you that he couldn't have...oh, my."

"What? What happened?"

"It's...I, um..."

"Is it bad? Please don't tell me he did something bad."

"Well...not really..."

"Thank you for your clear and concise explanation. I was really worried for a minute there."

"Very funny."

"So what is he doing?"

"He's...playing a game."

"Does it involve sake?"

"No."

"Okay. Then I have nothing to worry about for...what time is it now?"

"Eleven fifty-eight."

"'Kay, after two minutes, it's your turn."

"Very well."

"...Seriously, though, what kind of game is he playing?"

"Kunai toss."

"Neji! You said he wasn't doing anything bad!"

"Playing kunai toss isn't bad."

"Yes, it is. Remember what I said about him not understanding that kunai toss is rigged? He said he'd eat ten thousand pounds of wata-ame if he didn't win."

"He's winning."

"Wow, Neji joking. What else will happen today? Tsunade-sama winning the lottery?"

"I'm not joking. Lee is winning at kunai toss."

"The game is rigged! He can't be winning."

"The game is only rigged if you use nothing but your hands."

"What...what exactly is Lee doing?"

"A creative use of Severe Leaf Hurricane. He's hit the target seven times already."

"Isn't that an illegal move?"

"If it was, I would assume that the stall owner would have stopped him by now. That hasn't happened yet, but..."

"Why wouldn't the stall owner stop him? And what do you mean, 'but?'"

"He...he seems to have destroyed the stall. And scared everyone away by mistake. Including the stall owner."

"Neji, remember what we were just discussing?"

"Yes?"

"It's twelve hours, two minutes, and fifty-three seconds now. You are officially Lee's chaperone for the foreseeable future."

"Wait a moment – "

"Think of my trials and tribulations, Neji. Think of them."

"I..."

"I'll take over for you at exactly two. Not a second earlier."

"Tenten – "

"Oh, look, here comes the stall owner. He looks mad."

"You're evil."

"I asked you for help and you didn't help. This is what happens when people don't help Tenten."

"Wh-why are you speaking in the third person now?"

"TENTEN!"

"Lee? What are you – are those all dragon plushies?"

"Yes! I got you not only one cute dragon plushie, but ten! Your favorite, right?"

"Lee, you are the best, most youthful teammate I could ever ask for!"

"TENTEN! THANK YOU SO MUCH!"

"Yeah, yeah, don't mention – Lee, oww, oww, you're squishing me. Lee – don't – hug – so – tightly – urk."

"Oi! You in the green jumpsuit! Using ninja moves to score in the kunai toss is – "

"Neji, this is your problem to deal with now! Bye!"

"TENTEN."

"TENTEN."

A/N: Written for Day 12: Circus! An experiment I tried to write only in dialogue. Tell me what you think in the reviews! :)