AN: Well, I've updated. Um, standard disclaimer here.
Every man has one fear that consumes him. It's not the fear of bugs or snakes or heights. It's not even the fear of a woman scorned, it is the fear of having a tired nurse stick you with a needle. I am used to being used in target practice with TenTen, but that little needle which "will feel like a slight sting" still creeps me out. I guess it comes from the time when kids had to get shots for school. I was always put in a white, cool, kid friendly room and the nurse would come in and try to make small talk with me, all the while, pulling a long hypodermic needle out of thin air. Then the vile woman takes your sleeve, rolls it up and ties a tourniquet or rubber tubing around your arm. Your vein swells and they tell you it will "only hurt for a second."
I couldn't bear to look away as the big needle pricked my arm back then. Now, I still find myself in a white room, but a new pain registers in the back of my brain. This comes with getting lab work done. It's this pain that I absolutely hate. Oh yes, the vile nurse is at it again. This time this nurse looks like my cousin and a sense of dread fills me.
"Ok, Neji-kun. That should be enough to get the transfusion started. You got kind of white back there. I hope it wasn't too traumatic for you to give blood. Her father just finished with his pint, so hopefully things will work out."
"Hyuuga's aren't scared of nonsensical things like needles." In my younger days, I would have been in tears, but what she doesn't know won't kill her. My older self is sitting here listening while I act like a hypocrite. Kinda funny how that works.
I see the nurse get a cotton ball out of the drawer and press it to my arm. The tourniquet is released and then the evil woman puts medical tape on the cotton ball. Must they make it long enough to stick to you arm hairs? The adhesive is so sticky that when I remove it, it's going to pull and leave that annoying bit of residue. I hate giving blood, even if it is for a good cause. Why can't they just put a band aid on it? Damn. Then there is the bruising which doesn't hurt, but it's annoying enough that it throbs when I bend my arm. Damn.
I hop off the chair and exit the room. I have to get to the tower and start making headway on the recovery initiative. I go down the hall and see TenTen being prepped for surgery. Medic-nins in surgical gear and Tsunade-sama are hooking up IV's and taking vitals. Sakura andShizune are grabbing the necessary equipment and telling people to move so they can get to the OR.
I take one last look at my fallen comrade and a sinking feeling hits my stomach. I think I may be sick. I walk towards the exit doors and the fresh air hits me like a brick. I take a few deep breaths and lean against the brick wall of the hospital. I see her father outside smoking a cigarette and he motions for me. I stroll over and he takes a long drag and exhales.
"You know, I never smoke. I haven't smoked in 20 years and here I am, resorting back to old habits. Stress I guess."
"Where'd you cop the cigarette?"
"Oh, some jounin named Asuma handed me one. He said I looked like I'd just seen a ghost. Kinda like you."
"Yeah, well, needles in general."
"Yeah, I hate them too," he told me.
"Um, I will be at the Hokage tower working, if you need anything, send a genin and tell them it's a direct order from me. I would like to be there when she is done with surgery, so if you could let me know…"
"No problem. And, thank-you Neji-sama." He suddenly gets introspective and takes another drag. "Every father has dreams for his children. My simple wish was for my little girl to grow up, get married, and be happy. I saw her, you know, on the gurney going down the hall. I was upset that I may never get to walk her down the aisle or see her face light up with excitement when she finds out she'd will be a mom. Heck, I just want to see her when she truly falls in love and I may never get to do that. Her mother was a great ninja, but when she passed, TenTen looked up to the only other strong female she knew about. Tsunade-sama. I thought she was foolish to follow in her mother's footsteps, and after you told me what had happened, I thought history was repeating itself. My whole life I've been just a simple blacksmith, scraping a living together for us. Ninja bereavement benefits are non existent and I thought that it was simply unfair for someone to die for their village and their family struggle. I was shocked and ecstatic when Ten became a jounin and then a weapons coordinator and developer. She grew into the woman I hoped she'd be. I didn't think she could ever end up like this. Broken, bloodied, and on the verge of death. I knew it was possible, I guess I didn't want to admit that it could happen."
I stood there in utter silence. This man was pouring his heart out to me. To his daughter's best friend, he told me all his fears and secrets. This made me hate my family. We were never this close. I never had someone care so much for me after my father passed. I may have had a decent living, but TenTen was richer than me. She had love in her life. Love from family. Not political love, like us Hyuugas, but pure clean love. I wondered what hopes my parents had for me. The only words I could think of to comfort this man who was scared of losing his only child were simply,
"Sir, your daughter is a phenomenal woman. She is a fighter and won't give up so easily. If I had to pick a female to guard my back, she would be the only one. She has a big heart and is capable of compassion when her teammates see other wise. She sees the good in the world and that sets her above the rest of us. She'll make it through and you will be able to enjoy the twilight years of your life with her."
"Thank you, I guess I needed that reassurance. You truly are a great friend. I admit, I couldn't stand your arrogance when you were a kid, but you too have grown into a fine ninja, and I am proud you are her teammate."
"Thank you." I had to get to the tower. This conversation was hitting a little too close to home. I needed to get away from this hospital. The aura around it is so changing. One minute, it emanates fear and sadness, the next happiness and hope. It was just too much for me to endure. I excuse myself and head back to work.
When I reached the main doors of the tower, I see a hoard of people inside. I am bombarded by people asking about the war and others about relief efforts. I make it up to my office after twenty minutes and start brainstorming. I will need several things for this project. But how to get started. Damn, I wish this was military strategy. Economic strategies are left to Shino, but since we kinda switched positions, he is the ambassador to Leaf on his way to Suna and Wave county, while I am doing his job of figuring this stuff out. Hmm.
After three hours of formulating a reasonable objective of the program, I look up at the clock. They said the operation would take two hours. Hmm, she should be done by now. I put my pencil down and massage my temples. I yawn and stretch then stand up to leave. My knees crack and every other part of me pops. Man, I am getting old. I leave and turn out the light. I decied to head towards the Hyuuga compound to see what was left of it. I guess a part of me wanted to see the destruction. But, it was surprisingly intact. I figured it would have been destroyed like the Uchiha compound, but no, the only thing broken was a few windows and some screens were torn. Part of the roof was missing on the branch family's side, but all in all it wasn't too bad. Good. Time to put the family to work. I see my uncle pacing in the garden and I stroll up to him.
"Neji-kun. You are back. I just got back from the front myself. Where have you been? I thought one of you got captured. I still haven't seen Hinata-chan or dear Hanabi. I was fearful that information about our bloodline had gotten seiged."
"Yeah, well, I have some urgent business and I'll need a few resources."
"Resources such as….?"
"A few cooks, blankets, soap. The tower is filled with people who need help and I figured I could get some stuff from here until Rokudiame-sama can put together a relocation plan for our homeless. The tower will be converted to a shelter temporarily."
"You want me to give you those resources when I haven't even taken stock of my own compound first? Let me think on it."
"I figured you'd say that. It's too bad really. This village needs these resources, we can easily replace them."
"We provide this village with insight, isn't that enough. We are the ultimate weapon."
"We should be doing more. You disappoint me uncle. Hinata has been busting her ass at the hospital while Hanabi has been helping the children of the village and the elders. I figured as a clan head you could accommodate me on this simple request. But, I shall look elsewhere for help then, even if I have to cook the food my self from our foodstuffs." As I turn and leave, knowing I pushed his buttons right, I hear him give a sigh. I smirk to myself.
"I saw that smirk. Ok, take what you need, but, I am only doing this because the advisor to the Rokudiame asked me."
"That's all I ask. Thank you."
I gather the necessary people and whatnot and get them situated in the tower. At least the people of this village will be able to get somewhat cleaned up and have something to eat. OK part one done. Now, to the hospital.
I enter the doors and see her father pacing by the waiting area.
"How is she?"
"She just came out of recovery. They are setting up a makeshift room for her to rest into tonight. She must undergo observation for a few days, to make sure her body doesn't reject the blood, but all traces of the poison seem to be fading. I tried getting a hold of you but I didn't have any luck. Gai-sensei and Lee-kun just went in to see her. You should go up. I think she'd like that."
"Great. Sir, I think things are finally looking up."
I pass the vending machine and see several faces of our friends lingering in the hall way. I pass a few pleasantries with them and head in the room. She's sitting up in the bed, the window was open, letting the sunshine and fresh air in. Her hair is rumpled and the gown she has on is hanging off her. I can see where she's lost some weight being in here. Her face is hollow and the black circles under her eyes are still prevalent. Gai and Lee are expounding on the "springtime of her youth" and how well she looks. She smiles at them and then turns her attention towards me.
"Neji-kun. You made it. Sorry if I scared ya."
"TenTen-chan. Nice to see you are up and about."
"Look what Gai-sensei and Lee-kun got me." I see the glass with a couple of flowers in them.
"We picked them alongside the road on our way here. We'd just finished helping Kakashi-sensei and Asuma-sensei with body clean up." Lee chimed in.
"Lee-kun, we should give these two some time alone. We've been long enough, plus, she needs to get some sleep to revitalize some of that youthful spirit of hers." He leans down and gives her a tentative hug and kiss on top of her head. Lee hugs her and gives her a kiss on her cheek. The friendly kind that says, "I'm glad your OK." They leave and Gai-sensei pats me on the shoulder. I look at him and he winks. What the hell is he concocting now?
The door closes after them and I sit in a chair near the bed.
"So, have you seen your father yet?"
"Yes, he stayed for a few hours. I heard what happened to me and to our home and I'm not sure what I think. I am confused and sad, but I think I am just in shock. Thank you for donating your blood."
"Oh you heard about that too. You're welcome. I hope you'd do the same for me someday."
"Yeah, after all what are friends for? Um, yeah, um.." She turns her eyes towards the window thining of what to say next. I help her.
"This is one of those uncomfortable silences isn't it? Well, the weather has finally cleared. The town is a wreck, but we can rebuild, but most importantly, the war is over for good. I've been craving a shower for a week and my place is gone."
"That nice condo you bought? Darn. But, I've had a sponge bath and I feel great."
I stick out my tongue at her.
"Well, little miss "I've had a sponge bath," you need some sleep. I will leave you now. Glad you are feeling better."
"Hey, there is a sink that still works over there. You could always use that to freshen up. I wouldn't mind you using my sponge, unless of course you think you'd get cooties."
She smiles at me and I knew the old TenTen was back. Her smile was pure, sweet and simply beautiful and full of hope. She's back and I think I may have just seen an angel. One after my own heart. And I wasn't scared of falling. I turn to leave and she asks me to help her stand.
"I don't think that is such a good idea right now. You are still too weak from the surgery."
"Neji, please." She looks up at me with those brown eyes of hers and I grudgingly agree to help.
"If Sakura and Hinata find out about this, you will take the brunt of the heat, not me."
"I can handle those two," she says before swinging her legs over the bed. I take both of her hands and help her to her feet. She is a little shaky and a little sore from being prone for so long. After a minute or so, she takes my hands and envelops me in a weak hug.
"Thank you, truly. You and my father saved my life." She leans her head on my chest and I gently wrap my arms around her. Over her head I smile. An eternity passed and I leant back from the hug. I took her chin in my hand and ran my thumb across her bottom lip.
"You need to get back to bed. I will be by tomorrow. I have many meetings ahead of me with Naruto-sama."
She sighs and agrees. As I am leaving, she says in her weakened voice,
"Neji-kun, be sure to get a bath. You stink." I chuckle and shut the door.