AN: Same thing, no own no sue

Inside the medical tent, it was a circus. There were medic-nins everywhere and wounded ninja as far as the eye could see. Chakra healing was going on everywhere. Due to the short supply, some medic-nins were over exerting themselves by healing more than their body could sustain. Why doctors don't take their own advice is beyond me. Don't over exert your chakra supply, it is dangerous., they tell us, yet here they are. It takes guts and bravery to do that. I am ushered to a table set up in the back. It's covered with blood and her body is laying there. I am taken aback for a few seconds. She has never looked so vulnerable until now. Her shirt was cut away and her gear is laying in a pine on the floor. Her pants are torn and she is badly bruised. Tsunade-sama looks up at me and motions me over.

"I've done what I can, but her blood has been thinned by the poison from the kunai that went into her back. I need to prevent blood flow from the T6 region to the L3 region of her spine so it doesn't spread to her brain and cause swelling. I also need you to close off her chakra in her intestinal organs. The kunai cut through several layers of muscles and vital tissues. This will slow the flow long enough for us to get in there and get her closed up."

"T-6 to L-3?" I asked.

"Yes, you spine is divided into three sections. The cervical vertebrae , the thoracic and the lumbar. Each is numbered. C1-C7, T1-T12, and L1-L5. This is too intricate for our supply here to clamp the veins, so I called you in. Now get to work."

I performed the required hand seals and lightly touched her. My hands were shaking as I lined my fingers along the designated route. The control of the chakra that I needed was seriously lacking. A wrong move and I could kill her or shut her chakra down for good. This is harder than it looks. I am so tired and I am near to collapsing myself. I suddenly gained a new appreciation for the chuunin and Godaime that were present. I feel her spine under my fingers and am told when I got to her organs and L3. I breathed a sigh of relief. Ninja are not supposed to show emotion, but I was glad that ordeal was over.

"Well, you surprise me every day, Neji-kun. Good job. Now, tell those guys out there to help in anyway they can. If they know how to perform stitches and what not, any help they could give would be greatly appreciated. I nod towards her and Sakura smiles at me.

"She'll be OK. It's the promise of a life time."

"Now you sound like Naruto-sama."

"Well, he is my teammate. Now get." She pushes me towards the door and gets back to work.

On my way out, I see Hinata-sama working on Konohamaru. His head is gashed open and he's hoping this leaves a scar. Ahh, to be 15 again. We pass each other the familial look of "Are you Ok?" and she replies silently with the familial look of "Yeah, duh.".

Outside things were finally settling down. Fires were being started, camps were being erected. I trot over and Naruto-sama approaches me for a mission report. He hands me a bowl of soup and we sit a distance from the team. Over the last two years of his reign, I've acted as an advisor to him. It's considered quite and honor."

"Ok, first things first, Neji-kun. I am thinking of forming a small contingent of nins to scout the out lying perimeters for any possible threats. This was ended a little too quickly. Something just seems off. When Shikamaru gets out of recovery, I am going to need an economic recovery plan to be implemented as soon as possible. Get the genin to help with clean up. Make it mandatory for nins not on missions to assist in rebuilding. I will need a budget formed. Ask Shino to delegate funds appropriately and have him gather a team to travel to Sand to acquire additional help and funds. We need to coordinate with Suna so that we can both be rebuilt and become the economic superpowers we were. Now that that's out of the way, I want a report. Neji, you were on the left flank. Tell me."

"Well, we were forming a crescent shape formation when the ground below us gave way due to a mudslide from the recent rain. We were systematically bombarded by Sound and behind their lines was Kabuto. I kept an eye out for Orochimaru, but I didn't see him. I killed Kabuto before he got to TenTen. The Sand nin on my other side put up a wall of sand to support the ground and could only supply enough chakra for five minutes. We recovered and ended up outnumbering the other side. They surrendered and because they quit, Orochimaru's dealt with them by providing for their deaths. Apparently, if you turn you back on the devil you will get burned. We regrouped, grabbed what comrades we could and made it back to the MNSU like you requested. I had just got done shutting off TenTen's chakra points when you arrived."

"Hmm, that little bit of information may come in handy later. Get that team together as quickly as possible. I want this war over. I mean over for good. Now, how are the women doing? I haven't seen Hinata-chan yet. Gaara-sama and I have been so busy with others reporting in, we just got done assessing damage. Hinata-chan will be mad if I don't go see her soon. Females. What can I say?"

"The women are doing fine. Sakura has been worrying for you and Sasuske, so you might want to see her also. Hinata-chan was healing your old apprentice Konohamaru, but she looked exhausted like every other medic-nin in the tents. OH, Godaime said to tell you to tell the others to pitch in and help with aid and rescue."

"Obaa-chan still thinks she's in charge. That's funny. But she's right. Get some rest, I will talk to the others." He gets up and leaves. My sensei strolls over while I am enjoying the rest of my soup.

"Gai-sensei."

"Neji-kun, glad to see you are alright. I have something to say to you. I've known you long enough to where I know you think all I say is bologna, but take this to heart. I am proud of you. You and Lee are the sons I never got around to having and seeing you excel makes me very proud. TenTen is the daughter I've always wanted. You three are like children to me. You remind me of the good things in this world. You did a hell of a job on your strategy. There were times throughout this fight, that I've wondered about you guys and how you were doing. I am glad you all came home. You all are my equals and always have been. I would be honored to fight with any of you three in the future. Your old genin pals did an awesome job and are still in the spring time of your youths and will be able to appreciate the hard work you've exhibited. I heard about TenTen and Lee. This is what scares me the most. Losing one of you. I've never lost a teammate before, but, Kakashi-sensei has and I saw what that did to him." He shakes my hand and grabs me in a bear hug. Somewhere in the pit of heart, I feel the urge to shed a tear. It is the most heartfelt thing anyone has ever said to me. Finally, fate smiled on me.

"Gai-sensei, don't get all emotional on me now. To be honest, I don't think all you say is crap. You are far more seasoned and I like to think I'm right. But don't tell anybody. Besides the one thing you taugh us, teamwork, kept us all well. I actually look up to you and the other sensei's and you've always had my highest respect. But, now that that's out of the way, I have to go back to being the fatalistic ice cube. I do have a reputation to maintain, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, I know, but really, you are such a teddy bear on the inside. You can't fool me, Neji-kun. But I respect you for trying. Well, I am going to the MNSU to check on our flower and beast. See ya."

I think to myself, I may not be able to fool you, but I can fool myself and others and I am happy with that.

OK, be sure to R&R. Thanks