Chapter Eighteen
A/N: Ahh, Calculus is such a boring class, the perfect inspiration. Sadly, this is another relatively short chapter, but stuff does happen…I promise.
It was approaching the fourth hour of the morning and Neji was still awake. The girl was slumbering peacefully beside him, and he was grateful for that, but it would not do any of them any good if he was fatigued during the exam. The conversation he had with Godaime after the written exam kept running through his head.
"It's an experimental surgery and it's very likely that it won't be successful, but it's better to try than not attempt it at all."
"What's the risk?"
"Well, your optical nerve is severely damaged, and I'm going to attempt to repair it by substituting in nerves from other parts of your body. The optic nerve is specialized, so it may not work, but there is the chance that it could."
"You want me to sacrifice one of my body parts for my eyes?"
"It's your choice Neji. If you truly want to see again, the risks won't matter to you."
"Where do you want to take the nerves from?"
"Your weaker arm is the most likely choice. I would not like to impair you by paralyzing one of your legs."
"I will be able to consider this, right?"
"Of course, you have until the chuunin exam is over."
He wanted to have his sight back, but did he really want to lose the ability to use his left arm? He flexed the fingers of his hand carefully. What would it be like not to be able to feel his fingers anymore?
His throat was scratchy and dry. He was suddenly very thirsty. He shifted in the bed to climb out and head to the kitchen, but he was halted by a hand pulling the back of his shirt. Was she still awake?
"Don't go Neji."
He managed to push the irritation out of his voice. "I'm just going to get a glass of water."
"You don't have to." She sat up and pushed him back down onto the bed. "I'll get it for you. Just try to rest."
"TenTen, I am perfectly capable of getting water for myself. I can find my way around."
"Please. I want to get it for you."
He decided wisely not to push the issue. He heard her feet hit the floor and then pad over to the door. It opened and then closed as she exited the room.
Why did she insist on doing such small things for him? He may have been blind, but he wasn't helpless. Maybe after all the things that happened, she felt the need to care for him to ease her guilt. The only problem with that was that she had nothing to be guilty about. Sure, he made a big deal about losing his eyesight and being dragged out of Konoha, but none of those events were completely under her control. It wasn't her fault. In fact, she was the one who'd saved his life, even if it put them in a pretty tough spot.
The door opened again and after a few seconds he could feel a glass being pressed into his palm. "It's not that cold, someone forgot to refill the pitcher."
"It's okay. I just needed something to wet my throat. Thank you." He lifted the glass to his head and downed it. When he was done he felt her fingers wrap around his and pry the glass from his hand. There was the soft clink of glass on wood as she rested it on her nightstand.
A long silence passed between them and Neji was certain that the girl had fallen asleep. He leaned his head against the headboard and sighed. A voice came from his right, nearly startling him out of his thoughts. "Try to sleep." She breathed softly. "And don't worry about what Tsunade-sama told you. We'll have lots of time to discuss your options after you become Chuunin."
If sleep were to come as easy as she wished, he wouldn't have spent so much time agonizing over its arrival.
He felt her arms encircle him and her forehead press against his. "Don't say anything. Just sleep."
Neji refrained from protesting, and on a whim tightened his grasp on the girl. She gasped softly, but after she had recovered, snuggled closer to him. She was soft and warm, and he could feel her gentle heartbeat through his fingers on her bare arms.
In spite of himself, he soon found himself succumbing to sleep.
A woman was waiting for him outside the door of what he recognized as his house. Her brown eyes lit up with excitement when she saw him approach. "Ah, so you finally made it home darling. She's been asking for you the whole day."
"Who has?"
She laughed at him. "Being away from your family so long has been playing games with your mind." She turned and headed into the house. "Come on. Dinner is getting cold." She led him to a table and sat him down, warning him sternly not to touch the food until she returned. He sat in silence, wondering who this woman was and how they had gotten to be intimate. There was something about her eyes that was vaguely familiar, but nearly impossible to place.
The woman returned moments later with a little girl in tow.
Neji nearly fell over when he saw the girl's face. White eyes, black hair. This girl was a Hyuuga, and her living in his home made her his daughter and the woman his wife.
"Daddy!" The girl tackled him mid-thought. "I thought you'd be gone forever."
The woman smiled. "Don't be silly angel." She ruffled the girl's long hair. "Daddy would never leave his little princess."
He couldn't hold back his curiosity any longer. "Who are you?"
"The missions have gotten to you." She sighed. "I thought Godaime would've lightened up after Haruka's birth, but she still seems to think that our talents are quite useful in battle." She rolled her eyes. "It's me TenTen."
"Wow." His eyes danced appreciatively over her figure. She'd grown up well.
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Neji, you're looking at me like you're seeing me for the first time. "Did Kiba hit you over the head again?"
He shook his head. "The mission was difficult."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Later." He didn't want her to curse Godaime in front of their daughter, so he changed the subject. "Dinner looks good."
"I helped!"
He smiled at his daughter. She was nearly four, nearly old enough to get the Hyuuga clan's curse seal.
TenTen passed the platter of rice to her husband. "I went to the doctor's today and I got some good news."
"Really?" Neji questioned. He couldn't ever recall getting good news from a doctor.
"I don't want a baby brother!" Haruka pouted.
"Now, sweetie, we both agreed that I would be the one who would tell him."
The girl jumped onto the table. "I…DON'T…WANT…A BABY BROTHER!" She pounded her bare feet on the table to accentuate each forceful shout.
TenTen began rubbing her temple with one of her hands. "Honey, your brother is coming whether you like it or not. I thought we had an understanding."
"I DON'T CARE!"
Neji tugged the girl off the table, kicking and screaming. "Calm down Haruka. Your mother has no control over the fact that she's pregnant."
The girl continued to fight against his grasp. "LEMME GO!"
Neji rolled his eyes. "I'll take her to bed." Haruka suddenly started to feel very warm in his arms and by reflex, he dropped her to the ground.
The girl bounced up to her feet. "I hate you two! I told you not to have any more children!" Suddenly, her voice wasn't her own, it was a deeper, more evil voice, one he often heard in the deep recesses of his mind. He raised an eyebrow. The Phoenix had a foothold on his daughter? He didn't have a chance to react before the fire shot out from his daughter's arms, one streak headed towards him, the other engulfing her mother.
Neji jerked awake, sweating profusely. He had gotten the message from the Phoenix clearly, touch TenTen, and risk a painful death at the hands of his own child.
TenTen was awakened moments later by the sound of knocking against their bedroom door. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. "Who is it?"
"Kotetsu."
She groaned but called for him to enter anyway.
The door swung open and her brother walked in, looking harried, as if he hadn't slept a wink.
"What's wrong?" She questioned.
"Congratulations. Your team passed the written exam."
"That's a good thing, isn't it?" TenTen wondered.
"Why do you sound so grave?" Neji voiced the question that was undoubtedly on her mind.
"Last night, Shiratori Ryoji and Shiratori Kenji escaped from the jail. They may be on the loose and we fear for your safety as well as for that of Yamanaka Ino and Nara Shikamaru."
Neji clenched his fist. "You just let them get away? AFTER ALL THEY DID?"
Kotetsu's jaw tightened. "I didn't let them do anything. I wasn't even the one watching them. I just heard the news from Tsunade-sama." He shook his head. "Anyway, you two should consider dropping out of the Chuunin exam. Staying in it would only leave you vulnerable to attack, especially when traveling in the forest."
She spoke up. "We're ninjas Kotetsu. We can take care of ourselves."
"I don't think you can. If you could you wouldn't be in this mess. Ninjas or not, you're still children, and it's about time you listen to the adults in charge of you."
"I don't need to listen to my failure of a big brother. Am I supposed to trust you to protect me when you couldn't before and all you cared about was getting me out of the way?" She turned her head away from him. "Get out."
"TenTen, you really should listen to me—"
"GET THE HELL OUT!" She screamed.
Kotetsu swallowed whatever he was going to say next and walked out.
"Are we really supposed to believe in justice Neji?" She stared out the window. "How can we believe when justice continues to let us down?"
"Are you okay?"
She sniffed back tears. "I'll be fine. We should get dressed. Temari's going to be waiting for us."
