Ahh…I finally get the title involved. That feels good.
Chapter Five
Gai-sensei hadn't shown up yet for his training session, but Neji was making good use of his free time. He'd decided to spar with the fighting dummies blindfolded and so far had managed to knock a few of them down. With each passing day he felt himself grow stronger and he yearned for the four weeks to quickly pass so he could test his skills by defeating Uzumaki Naruto and then Uchiha Sasuke. Every time Gai saw him practicing he commented on how much Neji had grown as a ninja since he saw him last. Most of the time he never took the man's compliments seriously as Gai-sensei was prone to using many idle words, but it did feel good to have someone acknowledge his hard work.
He loosened the black blindfold and let it fall unhindered around his neck. His breath came in ragged gulps as his body tried hard to replace the oxygen it had lost.
"There you are Neji." A voice in the trees drew his attention to TenTen standing on a branch. "I've been looking all over for you."
"Shouldn't you be in your bed hiding under the covers?"
"Nice try Neji. I know you don't think I'm pathetic anymore." She jumped down from the tree and landed right in front of him. "I also know what it is you want from me."
Neji didn't look the least bit uncomfortable. "You've come to make this easier then?"
"A Bloodline Limit can only be passed on to one's children. You of all people should know that."
"Your people were confused. You don't have a limit, you're just possessed, and anyone can be possessed." He replied. "That's why I'm interested in it."
The girl clenched her fist. "I can make you cursed just like me. I can make you the object of hatred, ridicule and scorn."
"You can also give me power." Neji continued to stare TenTen down, matching angry glare for angry glare.
"I can if I want to."
Neji turned his back on her. She was trying to make him beg.
"Why didn't you tell me something?" TenTen's voice cracked. "Anything? Didn't you think I deserved to know?"
"It wasn't my place to say anything."
"You're just as bad as Kotetsu."
He faced her again. "I'm not looking for your approval TenTen."
That shut her up.
"Are you finished? I have to get back to training so I can become a Chuunin."
TenTen was incensed. The past week and a half had meant nothing to him. The caring, warm, friendly person he was in her home was a front, an act that he put on just to get closer to her. "You want my power?" She gripped his forearm. "You got it."
Neji felt the searing heat burning through his skin one second before he saw TenTen's hand burst into flames.
The fire engulfed her entire body and then spread quickly onto Neji. He fought off the drowsy feeling that threatened to consume him and watched with morbid fascination as the flames ate every fiber of his jacket and shirt, but miraculously left his bare chest unblemished.
TenTen's eyes rolled up into her head and she fell forward into Neji's open arms. Because she was no longer controlling it the flames were extinguished as abruptly as they were created.
Neji considered flinging the girl aside and going on his way, but his legs suddenly decided that they didn't want to support his weight and hers and he fell to the ground, one hand awkwardly wrapped around her waist. He continued to try and fight off the tidal wave of unconsciousness that threatened to wash over him and drown him in its black depths, but even he could tell it was a losing battle. He leaned back and lay flat on the ground, arranging the girl's limp body next to him. Perhaps succumbing to sleep wouldn't be such a bad idea, since he hadn't paused for sleep since TenTen had been assaulted. Yeah, maybe sleep was good. Neji closed his eyelids slowly, plunging the world around him into darkness.
~~~
"Our team came across them in the middle of the forest with hardly a shred of clothing between them. The doctor says that both of them were passed out as a result of exhaustion."
"Don't forget the burn marks all over their bodies." Izumo added.
"How much evidence do you need before you move in on them?" Kotetsu questioned. "Will you stand by and wait until all of Konoha goes up in flames?"
"Whether or not these children mean us any harm remains to be seen." The third participant in the conversation, a woman, walked the halls with the two male Chuunin. "Until then, this hospital will treat them with the respect we'd give any other patient."
"But Tsunade-sama, this boy isn't the most mentally stable kid there ever was." Kotetsu protested. "Maybe TenTen won't start anything, but Neji definitely will."
"You want me to refuse treatment to two of the brightest young genin Konoha has on what grounds? That you suspect they might be a danger to us down the road?" Tsunade stopped outside a hospital room. "They are still mere children and we have no idea what they'll grow up to become. They may be legendary jounin and the mere mention of their names will send pride coursing through the veins of every Konoha resident."
"Or they may be treacherous villains like Orochimaru and Itachi." Izumo pointed out.
"But we don't know that for sure, and until we do these two will be treated as any other genin, not as someone to be feared. Am I making myself clear?"
The two Chuunin bowed to her. "Hai, Tsunade-sama."
"Until this village is threatened by them I don't want to hear anymore on the subject." Confident with her decision, Tsunade smiled at the two younger ninjas and entered the hospital room.
The small room was mostly bare and contained little furniture other than a pair of twin beds. The beds themselves weren't much to look at. In fact, if both beds weren't currently occupied they'd probably be thrown onto a trash heap and burned.
"Sorry about the accommodations Neji-kun." Tsunade apologized to the wide-awake boy. "It was the only room available."
"What was so important that the Hokage herself decided to come down and see me?"
"It almost seems like too much of a coincidence that all three of the members of your squad are constantly checking in and out of the hospital."
"We're still alive aren't we?"
"You're damaged goods Neji. I strongly recommend that you and TenTen meet with an advisor to get you over this event. Obviously you've been internalizing all of your feelings and that has led to self-destructive behavior."
"You know nothing."
Tsunade sighed. "Neji, you're free to go once your mother arrives, and tell TenTen when she wakes up her brother wants her to stay overnight."
Neji swung his legs over the side of the bed. "What about the investigation?"
"Which one?"
"Into what happened to her." Neji glanced over at the comatose girl.
"I have the best men working on it. They'll find the perpetrators soon enough." Tsunade smiled knowingly at the concerned look the boy gave his teammate. "For a child as bitter as you are you seem to care a lot about her."
"I need her to teach me her jutsus and to keep me eligible for the chuunin exam."
"Right." Even if the boy didn't have much in the way of personality, his focus was impressive. "You'll be one of the greatest ninja this village has ever known as long as you keep to a path free of distractions." On that note Tsunade left the boy to ponder what she had just said.
Izumo and Kotetsu were still standing guard by the door where she'd left them. "How are they doing?" Kotetsu questioned.
"The boy is awake but your sister is still asleep."
"What did you think?" Izumo looked in on Neji who was now standing over TenTen's bed.
"It's amazing that most of the burns you and the hospital staff reported have vanished from their bodies. They seem to have extraordinary healing capabilities."
"Are they still wounded?"
"TenTen isn't, she just seems to be exhausted."
"And Neji?"
"He has a very interesting burn on his lower forearm. It matches one on your sister's back and if examined in a mirror I'm sure it is the symbol for fire." She smiled at Kotetsu's stunned expression. "You recognize the significance?"
"It's the mark that identifies her as a member of the Fire clan, but I don't understand. Why would she invite him into her clan? That's usually only reserved for people entering through marriage."
"You're jumping to conclusions Kotetsu. Neither she nor Neji are interested in getting married or having children at their age." Tsunade began walking towards the exit, Izumo and Kotetsu following at her heels. "The best thing you can do for her is be her older brother and start trusting her to be herself."
