AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Hey! Thanks for the reviews, harukakanata and ayuka-chan!

Harukakanata: thanks for the review! Did I say I love Haruka Kanata? Good song, actually! It's in my playlist! Hehehe…

ayuka-chan: Yeah, well, let's just say… He's changed! Anyway, he didn't love Sakura, but thought that she would be the proper mother for his kids… Don't worry, there's a sequel for A Curse to Kill, entitled Homebound. It's a SasuSaku fic, and the sequel will be out after A Curse to Kill has come to an end.

For more info on upcoming fics from me, just visit my profile page, okies? Just click on my username on the left corner of your screen. The upcoming fics have their preview summaries, some of which has quotations.

Here we go! The fic must go on! So guys and gals, without any further ado, A Curse to Kill, Chapter 5…

(From the last chapter…)

Tsunade took the necklace that she gave him and said, "You have to go home now. Prepare for your leave tomorrow. Do you want Uchiha to help you?"

"No."

"Even if you say so, you need to." said Tsunade, "Mark my word, I'll never allow you to leave this village without him."

"Fine!" Neji said, walking out of Tsunade's hut, "But he better not make my blood boil!"

"We'll see about that, Neji…" Tsunade thought, "Anything for the sake of Tenten, isn't it?"

(Chapter 5 – Nobody's Home)

Neji entered a bar and sat on the high stools in front of the counter.

I couldn't tell you why she felt that way,
She felt it everyday.
And I couldn't help her;
I just watched her make the same mistakes again

"What will it be?" the bartender asked.

"Got any strong wine?" Neji replied.

"Coming up." The bartender answered.

What's wrong, what's wrong now?
Too many, too many problems.
Don't know where she belongs, where she belongs.
She wants to go home, but nobody's home.
It's where she lies, broken inside.
With no place to go, no place to go to dry her eyes.
Broken inside

Neji was looking at the singer who had brown hair and topaz-yellow eyes; she was one of the famous acoustic singers in Konoha, actually.

The bartender gave the glass of strong wine to Neji and noticed he was looking at the singer.

"She got some nice voice, huh?" the bartender told him.

"I don't care about her voice, actually. Her song is somewhat telling me something." Neji replied, sipping an amount of the liquor.

Open your eyes and look outside, find the reasons why.
You've been rejected, and now you can't find what you left behind

"Her name's Namiki Tetsuna." The bartender said, "Yeah, the song's captivating, huh? Actually the song's from another singer named Avril Lavigne, but hey! She adopts the song like pro!"

Neji just eyed the bartender and drank more of the liquor.

Noticing his clear eyes, the bartender recognized that he was a Hyuga.

Be strong, be strong now.
Too many, too many problems.
Don't know where she belongs, where she belongs.
She wants to go home, but nobody's home.
It's where she lies, broken inside.
With no place to go, no place to go to dry her eyes.
Broken inside

"I heard a rumor about you-"

"If you go further, I'll grab a kunai and kill you right here and now." Neji eyed the bartender.

"A-anyway," the bartender stammered, "you look like you're bothered."

Her feelings she hides.
Her dreams she can't find.
She's losing her mind.
She's fallen behind.
She can't find her place.
She's losing her faith.
She's fallen from grace.
She's all over the place.
Yeah, oh…

When Neji heard that part of the song, he pictured Tenten's face when she was struggling between life and death.

"Well?" the bartender said, "Are you being bothered by a matter?"

Neji just raised an eyebrow and said, "You don't give a damn."

She wants to go home, but nobody's home.
It's where she lies, broken inside.
With no place to go, no place to go, to dry her eyes.
Broken inside

Neji placed his money on the counter as the bartender served another customer.

She's lost inside, lost inside...oh oh
She's lost inside, lost inside...oh oh yeah

With that, Neji left the bar and proceeded home, but he considers it simply as a 'house' not a 'home'.

"Is that you, Neji-niisan?" a soft voice asked.

"What do you want, Hinata?" Neji roughly replied. Then, he felt a tug on his sleeve and a hand on his left wrist.

"Come, let's talk outside." Hinata said.

When they were outside, Hinata started, "I have overheard Uncle talking about you just a little while ago. I mean, do you want to leave this place?"

"Am I even allowed to?" Neji mockingly said, "My life is hell! I'm disgraced by some rumors, disowned by my father and…"

"And?" Hinata curiously asked, "Go on, I'm listening."

"Tenten… Tenten is not feeling well."

"I thought you've nothing to worry about her?"

"That's what I thought, too." Neji replied in a lonely tone, "Of all the people I knew, she was the only one who can relate to what I've been telling her. Although I don't understand why am I mocking her so much when she has been kind to me over the years-"

"It looks like the rumor is proven false." Hinata interrupted, "Isn't that right?"

"What do… you mean?" Neji asked, facing Hinata who was looking at the full moon.

"The rumor isn't true because you love someone better than Sakura-chan."

"Who?"

"Isn't it obvious!" Hinata replied, full of joy, "Why, Tenten, of course!"

Neji blushed and realized that he IS in LOVE with TENTEN.

"I-I guess you're right." Neji stammered, "But I don't know about her."

Hinata was already married to Naruto. But tomorrow, she will go back to her and her husband's new home, she just visited her clan today.

"Love won't make you realize that it's been her that captured your heart. You will only know when you are deeply moved in a certain desperate situation. And I'm sure that desperate situation is right now, Tenten's sick and you cared for her. You will do anything to keep her away from pain, am I right?" Hinata explained.

"I… I'm leaving tomorrow with Uchiha…" Neji answered, "I've a mission to do with him in the village of the Sand. And Tenten is with Tsunade and this damned house is-"

"Do you want to stay momentarily in our home?" Hinata asked, "You're always welcome to our house. I promise, Naruto-kun will not disturb you because if he will, I promise right here and now, I will divorce with-"

"No." Neji replied, "Don't do that. But I accept your offer. I will stay in your 'home' until I find a proper 'home' for me."

"Alright. Since you're leaving tomorrow, I'll just grab your things and bring them secretly to my place, is that all right?"

"Sure. Thanks for making me feel eased, Hinata."

"I'm your cousin!" Hinata giggled, "You can always trust me!"

The next day…

Neji visited Tenten who was sleeping on the bed in Tsunade's hut. When he went outside, he saw Lee who was fidgeting around, back and forth.

"What are you doing, thick eyebrows?" Neji teased.

"I…" Lee cleared his throat as he want eye to eye with Neji, "I have something to tell you."

"Spill it out."

"I… I was the one who spread the rumor in town." Lee hesitantly answered.

"YOU WHAT!" Neji said, wrapping Lee's throat with his powerful hands, "YOU KNUCKLE-HEAD, GOOD-FOR-NOTHING IDIOT!"

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Yes, in this chapter, Hinata is not herself. Well, I made her like that in this FANFICTION. She got over her loss to Neji a few years back and they started talking like 'real' cousins… or something like that. :)

REVIEWS ARE HIGHLY APPRECIATED!