Author's Note: I'm on a hunt. Anyone wanna tell me places of good Neji/Saku fanfics and fanarts are?

I'd LOVE some of that.

Zarrah-chan

Chapter 8

Sakura rubbed her bare arms for warmth on the cool evening air. Through the corner of her eye, she could faintly make out the stoic posture of her midnight escort beside her, eyes closed and hands shoved in his sleeves. The two walked slowly and silently towards the other side of town to where the Harunos resided.

It had been a strange day for Sakura, with all of her duties suddenly ending in an encounter with a Hyuuga. It was odd knowing that in the last two days, she'd been in close contact with the family prodigy three times already. In the eighteen years of her life, she had never recalled seeing him so often. He was, after all, on a different team and a higher ninja rank than her. Heck, she didn't even think Neji would know she existed, if it weren't for his bushy-browed teammate and his infatuation with her. Neji was the type of man who never looked twice in the direction of things that had nothing to do with his success as a shinobi.

…And yet, here he was, walking her home.

Sakura chewed on that thought. Why had she been invited to the Hyuuga residence for something as casual as tea? The only member of the clan that she had shared a relationship with was her best friend, Hinata, and yet in all their years of friendship, the shy girl had never once requested a visit from her to the respected mansion.

Now, out of oblivion, the kind invitation had been offered to Sakura alone –NOT by Hinata, but by her father, Hiashi.

Out of courtesy, Sakura gladly accepted, but was a little baffled by the random invite. The pink-haired kunoichi hadn't known the elder Hyuuga very well and she didn't think the man was humble enough to ask for her company with tea (especially a Haruno, who was not part of a shinobi family line).

Actually, contrary to ALL her assumptions, Sakura found Hiashi to be a very warm man who was genuinely interested in her accomplishments as a medic. She was even surprised that he had congratulated her on her engagement with Gaara. Had Tsunade leaked out the information? Why was he so interested?

Sakura deflated upon remembering her current problem. With the difficulty of her medic monitoring and the lightness of the tea fellowship, Sakura had, for the whole day, forgotten about her dilemma. Now that it had been brought up again, the girl couldn't pry her mind off it.

Sakura thought back to earlier that day when she had taken a stroll along Konoha, after completing her regular morning work out. In her time of solitude, the kunoichi had managed to stumble upon the most breathtaking natural hot springs anyone could humanly describe. The scenery was resilient, divine, and best of all, completely deserted. To her exquisite discovery, she never once hesitated on entering, and immediately went for a dip, grateful for the towel she brought with her.

Although the bath was relaxing, the quietude was dangerous for the kunoichi's intelligent mind because it opened many topics for her to ponder uninterrupted.

When the subject of her arranged marriage with Gaara came up, Sakura couldn't help but shed desperate tears. It was terribly tragic, the fact that Konoha's most hopeless romantic couldn't even select her own husband. Haruno Sakura had been the girl whom everyone knew as the love dreamer and fantasizer. Since childhood, she'd planned the perfect wedding with the man of her dreams. Of course, back then, she had always presumed it would be the dark and mysterious Uchiha Sasuke. But as time changed her physique, it also morphed her romantic ideals.

Now that she was over the Uchiha and completely rid of him, Sakura was excited about discovering love the hard way, the long way, and ultimately the best way. However, that chance was soon smothered the moment she had discovered her obligations as the Haruno's only daughter.

Marrying Gaara tormented her, and ripped her hopeful heart to shreds. And despite her mother's helpful hint regarding the conditions of breaking the arrangement, Sakura wasn't sure if she had enough time. Two weeks was not enough to fall in love with another person who was available. Two weeks did not buy her enough time to get someone to make a good enough bargain with Gaara to suede him to reconsider. It just didn't seem possible. Not in two weeks.

The only thing left to do was to accept that her fate had been decided. She would make the best out of the future to come.

Although she had surrendered to the arrangement, she still needed to unleash the tears that so willingly tried to fall upon the announcement of her fiancée. Knowing that she would never have the chance at true love did upset her a bit, and although she had come to accept that, the tears still needed to fall.

After stabilizing her emotions, the kunoichi had reminded herself that she was strong and would eventually be ready. That was when she got up and left, resolving the inner turmoil bubbling beneath her bubblegum locks. She was prepared to marry the Sand shinobi and it calmed her a bit. She dearly thanks the hotsprings.

Sakura crossed her arms hoping to cover the series of goose bumps that had surfaced on her skin due to the low temperature of the evening. In total strain, she attempted to clench her teeth so that they wouldn't chatter. Weakness was not something she desired to openly display in front of the Hyuuga prodigy.

Ironically, he had just read her exact thoughts.

Emerald eyes widened at the sudden wave of warmth that engulfed her from shoulders to wrists. Turning her head at this gesture, Sakura caught glimpse of the Hyuuga draping an elegant silky robe over her back. The act was simple, but nonetheless very gentleman-like.

Sakura blushed at this and smiled. The guy was actually sweeter than she thought. Being raised as a respectable Hyuuga, nothing was expected any less of Neji. Family honor came first in his life and the kunoichi found that admirable. She knew from experience how difficult family obligations were…

Resting her eyes on him, Sakura tried to catch the expression on Neji's handsome face. He remained emotionless as always, trapped in that same posture as before, hands shoved into his long sleeves. Her green eyes squinted to read beneath his demeanor.

Neji was strikingly similar to Sasuke, minus the rudeness and blunt declarations of her weakness and irritation on him. Judging by the Hyuuga's manner, Sakura could somehow sense that she was not sitting so well on his bookshelf of impressions--- despite his attempt to cover it.

"Are you mad?" Sakura asked suddenly, and Neji was a little taken back by her question. He knew that he making it bluntly obvious that he was frustrated with her but he didn't think the girl would have the courage to ask him about it. Sakura had more guts than he thought…

Neji watched as the kunoichi tried to slip off the robe, as it hoping it would compensate for her irritancy on him. She was trying to keep her distance, knowing that it was probably wiser not to get on his bad side.

The Hyuuga stopped her movements by placing a firm hand on her shoulder, preventing the robe from sliding off.

"It's cold." He gruffly informed, disregarding her question. "Keep it on."

The pink-haired kunoichi was surprised by his actions and his sudden concern for her well-being. She slowly released her hands from removing the silky robe and placed them through the sleeves.

"Thank you." She spoke softly, almost reminiscent-like, and Neji had almost forgotten that he was angry with her.

Sakura cleared her throat to continue. "Thanks, I mean, for walking me home. I know you have better things to do and you're only here because your uncle forced you to escort me."

"Hm." He exhaled, unable to figure out what to say. What she said was dead-on true, but now it just made him feel guilty about it. Any anger he had towards the girl had suddenly seemed to evaporate, despite his will to remain bitter. The girl was just so hard to stay mad at.

Neji watched through the corner of his eye as she nervously stroked the material of the sleeve with her delicate finger tips…

…Finger tips that ran through his hair earlier that day…

Before Neji could shake off the thoughts, he was interrupted by the repetition of her initial question.

"Are you mad?" she asked again. Green eyes worriedly stared up into his eyes, seeking for a hidden answer through them. Neji had to admit, there was a certain lulling pull that magnetized a lock on himself into hers. He had to close his eyes to break the mesmerizing spell.

"No." he grunted. "Why."

It wasn't a complete lie. He wasn't angry with her. At least, not anymore. Containing his fury with her was like keeping a cat away from a stray mouse. Utterly difficult.

Sakura fiddled a bit, searching for words to say.

"I thought you'd be angry with me for helping you earlier at the ANBU session. You probably wanted to handle the situation on your own." She said and then looked down. "I'm sorry."

Ahh. That struck Neji in the gut harder than he wanted.

"I'm grateful, Kunoichi. You saved my life back then." He spoke emotionlessly, trying not to sound anything other than his bastard-like character. "You were doing your job. I'm not angry."

Neji kept his gaze straight ahead, trying to avoid any eye contact. The girl had a strange way of making him express words and emotions that he normally did not possess. She was the one girl that made him feel inferior at times, which frightened him a great deal. Hyuugas were meant to be in control. Situations that they could not be in command of were foreign to Hyuugas, as if stepping on uncharted territory. And this girl made Neji feel that way every moment he spent with her. He hated being so submissive.

Neji tried to speed up the walking pace to both dismiss the topic and to reach their destination faster. The quicker he was rid of the girl, the more his mind could rest in ease. He somehow could not describe what it was about the girl that made him want to run as far away from her as possible. She was extremely unpredictable, and he did not like what he could not predict.

Despite his sudden change of pace, Neji found that the kunoichi had kept up very well. In fact, she did not seem to mind.

He watched the satisfied spring in her step as she fingered the delicate embroidery around the sleeves of the robe. Neji thought the garment looked rather nice on her, the way it draped around the curves of her body. It was quite big on her, but nevertheless cute, the way she was drowned in its fabric. The robe was a turquoise shade and had been in his possession ever since his nineteenth birthday, when it had been given to him as a gift from the women of his household. The Hyuuga family crest was proudly stitched on the back and it did not look so bad on the Haruno. It was a change from the regular white circle Neji saw on her usual outfit. He then concluded that it looked much better on her than it did on him.

Unconsciously, Neji eased off his quick pace in silent admiration of Sakura's features. He really did think she was pretty, and he was finding himself struggling to deny that with every one of their close encounters. She was definitely a rare beauty, considering how he had NO recollection whatsoever of a girl other than her having pink for a hair color. Her deep green eyes had such a distinct aura in them, as if a spark of life exploded from them. She was a fiery young woman, and he'd be lying to say that he wasn't physically attracted to her. Who wouldn't be? He remembered the long list of males that had harbored feelings of attraction towards the kunoichi…

Naruto…Lee…Kankurou…Heck, even the Uchiha brat would have taken interest in her if he wasn't so consumed in blood-thirsty revenge. Even the teacher of Team Seven, Kakashi, and the perverted hermit sannin had looked dirtily her way when she passed by. Sakura had curves, and Neji would've had to have been BLIND not to notice. Especially when Byaakugan had given him the upper hand…

"Your muscles seem tense." Sakura suddenly spoke, breaking the Hyuuga from indecent thoughts. Immediately, he tensed more at her words, inwardly grateful that she did not possess slight mind-reading capabilities that he did.

The Hyuuga noticed her green eyes glued to his hand which had moved to rub the back of his neck during his thoughts. As if afraid the motion would reveal his mind's content, he retracted his hand and placed them in his sleeves.

"I've probably overworked myself today." He lied. "I'm fine."

Actually, now that it had been mentioned, Neji did feel a certain stiffness in his shoulder blades and neck muscles. It must have been due to the fact that he hadn't slept well in two days and the fatigue was taking its toll on his rippling muscles.

"You need a massage…" he heard her soft voice mumble as she reached a hand over to press her index finger and her thumb into the back of his neck. Neji nearly jumped back at this motion, surprised that she had the guts to touch him, especially when she was off-duty as a medical ninja. But when her fingers met his skin, his knees almost buckled, and he had to stifle a satisfied groan. She massaged the tense muscles very well and Neji couldn't remember the last time any touch had felt so good.

Before Neji could close his eyes, he stopped walking when her fingers met his blind spot. Instinctively, he grabbed her wrist, as if she had crossed an unnecessary boundary.

"I'm fine." He managed to growl out, despite his bodily protests for her to continue. He let go of her wrist and kept walking, rubbing the back of neck again, to remove any lingering sensations he had left of her touch.

Sakura put a finger to her bottom lip and tried to look the Hyuuga in the eye.

"You're still stiff from the paralysis earlier. If you let me untangle the knot, you may be able to sleep better tonight. You seem tired." Sakura's offer seemed so tempting for the Hyuuga and she was correct about everything. Neji now had no doubt that she was a very talented medic.

Instead of surrendering to her offer, Neji kept walking.

"It's late. I'll get into trouble if you don't get back on time." He said, trying to brush her off like a fly. She was a like a devil's temptress, sent to torment him from all the things familiar to him, and trying to lead him into a new, unexplored territory.

No, Neji was a stubborn guy. He would not so easily submit under her spell.

"You're right." He heard her sigh. "It's getting pretty late."

The rest of the way there was spent in silence, with a bit of a distance between their bodies. Neji wanted to drop the girl off and forget any of his thoughts of her, so he walked as fast as he could.

In obedience, Sakura willingly followed.

When they had reached the doorway, Neji finally slowed down.

"It's past midnight." He said, almost softly. "Will you get into trouble?"

Sakura shook her head and began removing the robe from her shoulders.

"No one is home. My parents are making wed---" she began to explain, but cut herself off. For some reason that she could not explain, Sakura did not feel like bringing up the subject of her arranged marriage with the Hyuuga prodigy. She cleared her throat to generalize her statement. "They're making preparations."

Neji nodded, not wanting to prolong their conversation. He took the robe from her and walked her up the steps towards the door, where she fumbled for keys.

At the release of heat from the garment, Neji noticed Sakura's bottom lip quivering, as she searched her pouch. Almost instinctively, and definitely before he had a chance to stop himself, he extended the robe out to her once more.

"Here, take this. Return it to me when you get the chance." He said but she put up a refusing hand.

"It's alright, I got it." She smiled, jingling her keys. She unlocked the door and stepped it, opening the entrance wider. "Would you like to come in?"

Again, that was tempting for the Hyuuga, since it was rather chilly in the air, but he managed to compose himself enough to turn down the offer. He shook his head.

"It's late."

There was no formal goodbye, and Sakura did not want to seem dismissive, but nevertheless, the Hyuuga turned around to make his way back to the mansion, clutching the robe in his hands.

Before he turned the corner, Sakura called for him.

"Neji-san." She spoke, and he inwardly liked the way she said his name. It occurred to him that she was still so polite because she did not know her uncle was talking about their marriage.

Neji turned around slowly, resting his eyes into hers, submitting into its tranquil spell.

"Hm?"

Sakura leaned against her door frame.

"I know this place, not too far… It might help relax you tension." She informed, rather nervously, and Neji suddenly became interested. Tension was one thing he had, and relieving it was one thing he needed.

"Ahh." He breathed, not bothering to hide his curiosity. "Where?"

Sakura smiled at his interest, inwardly flattered that she had finally caught his attention with something.

"You'll love it." She chimed. "These gorgeous hotsprings."

Author's note: This is a little slow in events. I wanted to get a lot more done on this chapter, but I figured, ah why let them wait longer. The next chapter should focus a bit more on Gaara and Sakura, even though I'm having so much fun with the Neji part.

Anyway, I got stumped and I didn't know how to end it, so I just ended it there. Things will move, don't worry.

Haha it's funny, I had originally intended this story to be a short (perhaps 8 chapter) story, but by the looks of it, that number wasn't even close. I foresee this as… 20 chapters? Hahaha

Hope you don't mind sticking with me for that long!

AH-RIGHT! MAKE ME SMILE!

Zarrah-chan