Construction is well underway in Konoha. The hospital is finished and the market is almost done. Houses and apartments have been refurbished, and my building is done. I am so excited to be moving back into my condominium. Lee and Gai have moved out of my office and decided that they aren't going to ever live together again. I guess too much youthful spirit between the two of them. Did I just say that? TenTen and her father are slowly putting their place back together, however, with her injury recovering and his commission via Naruto, as chief metal worker for the village, it is a slow process. I guess we timed this rebuilding well. Our annual winter festival is just around the corner and the villager's spirits are lifting. Missions are flowing in from everywhere and many ninja's are very happy. With Gai-sensei on a mission, Lee had asked me to train with him and his genin cell. The chuunin exams had been put off until January, which was fine for Suna and us. Therefore, I agreed to meet with him and his team. Besides a sadistic side of me wanted to see how he trained, compared to Gai-sensei.
When I entered the clearing, I heard him already at work.
"OK, the three of you were late, so I want 25 laps around Konoha before sunset with all of your training weights on. Ninja's rely on strict time management. After all, on spy missions, vital information could be missed from the enemy, and on ANBU missions, the enemy could be missed completely by lateness. My sensei did not tolerate lateness and neither will I. Nevertheless, we will be training with a couple of jounin whom I respect the most. One is a clan genius, advisor, and ambassador for the Rokudiame. He is my greatest rival and one hell of a fighter. His clan's ability is nothing like you've ever seen before. The other ninja is my best friend. She's stood by me through my whole life. She is a genius in her own right when it comes to weapons. Moreover, she's one of the most beautiful ninja you will ever encounter. That makes her great for missions. After all, how could a creature so beautiful have such a dangerous job? They are always on time, they work hard and that truly makes them great."
I laughed to myself as I listened to the prep speech he was giving them. I was flattered at the praise, but then I focused on the last half of the speech, and wondered whom he was describing. Once I rounded the corner, I found out.
"TenTen-chan? What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to helping at the shelter?" I looked at Lee and I saw red. He went against her orders to not over exert herself.
"Hello, Neji-kun. It is nice to see you again. I am here strictly for criticism and technique. Don't worry, I won't strain myself."
"Lee, you know she is to have near to none physical activity." He shrugs his shoulders at me and smirks.
"Neji-kun, I am fine really. Plus, it's been three weeks since my surgery. I need to do something. Granted reading stories to kids is fun, but I am getting restless. Lee said all I had to do was critique the genin on their handling of weapons. The diversion will be beneficial for me. I know my limits and when I reach them I will stop." She reaches up and pats me on the shoulder. I gently grab her wrist and turn her around to face me.
"Be careful. That's all I ask." She glances up at me with those brown eyes of hers and nods her head.
"I will be fine. I am not weak and inept after all."
"I never said you were." She looks at me and slightly blushes. As she turns away, I slowly let go of her hand. Finally, Lee clears his throat and we break eye contact.
"If you two are done…" His cell was sniggering at us. I just ignored it and Lee got on with the introductions.
His cell was a mishmash of height, hair color and ability. I recognized the two boys for they were the same ones that helped TenTen into triage, and the girl looked familiar. She looked like every other kunoichi who had two dunderheaded male teammates, simply annoyed at their egos. Maybe it was the look of determination in her eyes, but I had a feeling this slip of a girl was the true powerhouse of the team. Her presence screamed natural leader.
"OK team 3, while they are warming up, feel free to ask any questions you might have. They are here for your benefit." I started stretching and emptying my vest. I didn't need weapons, just plain old taijutsu when it came to these kids. I felt a pair of eyes looking at me.
"Yes?" It was one of the boys.
"Um, Hyuuga-san, sensei said you have a bloodline trait. What can it do?"
"Have a seat and I will tell you. It allows me to see through your skin and see you chakra coil. I have the ability to spot the very holes that your chakra derives from and am able to completely shut down the enemy's chakra. In addition, I have almost 360-degree visibility. Two out of the many I trust guarding my back are here today. Over the years, they've helped me develop my trait and learn to use it well. "
"Cool, so you trained with Lee-sensei and TenTen-san?"
"Yes, and we worked just as hard as you kids are now. Our sensei, Gai, was a bit extravagant, but he is the top taijutsu master in the village. I still can't beat him in taijutsu. He and your sensei are very fast and strong, but they achieved that by pushing the boundaries of their limits daily."
He left and the next boy came over.
"What exactly is "springtime of youth?" I never understand when he reiterates the point."
"Ahh, that speech. Well, springtime of youth is, well, hmm… OK, you are young, able, and talented, essentially a bud who is slowly becoming aware of himself and his nindo. By rigorous training, you are cultivating your talent and becoming stronger. However, while you are growing into a man, a bit of innocence remains through your youth. Springtime of youth is essentially the boy doing a man's job but still being able to enjoy being a boy. This innocence is retained until the time of your first kill as a ninja, or your first time realizing that you must do everything to keep your comrades alive, even if it costs you your life. Once you deal with these issues, you are truly a shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Leaves."
"OH, I get it. Thank you sir."
Finally done stretching, I get up and head towards Lee-kun.
"OK Neji-kun, you will be in charge of ninjutsu and genjutsu. They have trouble concentrating long enough to mold their chakra correctly. I have a feeling they are focusing more on besting each other than what I am trying to teach them."
"Kind of like us when we were their age, huh?" He just gives me a look and walks off.
Since I got the kids for a cool half an hour, I sat them down and taught them how to meditate.
"OK, your body should be relaxed. Start from the neck and work your way down your body, slowly relaxing each muscle. Next, clear your mind completely. Focus all of your mental energy on your surroundings. All extra mental traffic needs to be released. Focus your hearing on the sound of a bird's wing flapping miles away. Become one with nature. All competition between your cellmates means nothing at this time. You should do this every day before you train. Your ability will increase. Trust me." I looked up and saw three mildly focused individuals. I glance to my left and saw Lee chatting with TenTen. Looking back at the three, I push the girl's head back down.
"Concentrate, otherwise, you are wasting your time."
"I can't Hyuuga-san. My teammate is grinding his teeth." she whispered
"Then pretend he isn't there." I had done this many times when Gai-sensei went off on tangents. Lee would be listening avidly to him, TenTen would be flipping a kunai in her hand, and I would be "meditating", pretending he wasn't there. Sad, I know. I am such a rebel. Sue me.
She finally relaxed. After five more minutes, I call a halt to it and ask them to stand up and gather their chakra. The girl did hers quickly, and the boys, well, that was another story. They were trying to outdo one another. This would never work.
"OK you two, quit showing off in front of her. It's starting to annoy me. Neither of you are better than the other one, so stop posturing and focus on the simple instruction I gave you. Focus your chakra into your feet. Now." A collective gulp was heard and they quickly did so. Amazing how that works. Heh.
"Now that you have done that, I want you to walk across that pond over there."
"Um, people can't walk on water. It isn't possible."
Gathering up my chakra, I crossed the pond.
"You were saying…? This task requires your full concentration, one slip up and you get drenched."
They gather their courage and chakra and start to cross. One boy uses too much, the other not enough, and the girl just stood in the middle of the pond clearly stating her dominance.
"Come on you guys, your letting a little girl like me beat you. How pathetic. You have to feel the water under your feet. It's a delicate feeling." Maybe she should just teach the exercise. I just looked at her and laughed. Talk about a way to get them going again. Use their ego against them. Finally, they all crossed and I gave them their next mission, get me to fall first in the water. Each was to attack me individually then as a team. Might as well drive the teamwork nail home again.
The first boy came full force at me and did a fair job, but ended up wet anyway. He expended too much energy, and lost focus. The next boy was a little faster, but not much. He too ended up wet, although he got a few good hits in. Then the girl came at me.
I waited patiently for her to take off her training weights, which the boys forgot to do. She walked across the water and stood in front of me.
"What, no full onslaught of attack?" I asked her.
"Nope. I know for a fact I can't get a strong enough hit in. I actually have a different plan of attack."
"Oh really and what might that be, hmm?"
"You'll see when you are in the water and not me."
"Full of yourself aren't you?"
"No more than anyone else I know. But I know my talent and I know it exceeds those of my teammates." She sounded just like me when I was her age. It was a little weird. Funny, but weird.
I cross my arms and wait for the attack to come, but it doesn't.
"She likes you, ya know. The whole time that kunoichi has been staring at you. Is she your girlfriend."?
"No. Is your plan to talk me to death? I can stand here all day, can you?"
"Yep. Lee-sensei trains me additionally everyday. He says that kunoichi are at a major disadvantage and that the extra will pay off in the future."
"Interesting." I still waited for her to make a move and all she did was walk around and around me.
"Are you trying to get me dizzy and to drop my guard so I will fall first? It won't work."
"Maybe, maybe not. I asked her a question earlier about you. TenTen-san said that she admires you, and for me not to tell. Boy was she blushing. She really likes you. Then I thought back to when you first arrived and it was so romantic between you two. I felt you should know."
"How do you know I'm not married or already have a girlfriend?" I was trying to use the same tactic against her but she was a sharp cookie. Did TenTen really like me? Hmm...
"No ring and Lee-sensei talks about you guys all the time I know more about you than you know."
"Oh really, and what might you know?"
"You secretly like her and won't let that emotion show because of pride and sheer male stubbornness. I know shinobi aren't supposed to show emotion, but a little never hurts."
"What do you know about this topic? You are a mere kid."
"When you truly want to understand how a woman thinks, you can talk to me anytime. I will be happy to educate you."
"I understand completely how females think.Your arrogance will get you killed if you flaunt it like you do."
"Perhaps, but for now, there is no immediate danger. But do you want to know the other thing I also know about you?"
"Sure, humor me, even though your previous assumptions have been wrong." I suddenly felt myself hit water. What just happened?
Clearing my head of water, I see her standing over me and my cellmates cracking up on the sidelines. She looks down at me and smirks.
"Just what did you do to me?"
"The other wrong assumption, as you put it, was right after all. The whole time we have been chatting, you have been underestimating me because I am a girl and a genin. But, I have been circling you placing a few bugs at a time. You never felt it until I squeezed my fist and theycreated a rope around your ankles thentripped you. You never dropped your guard, sure, but neither did I. Like you, I also have a blood limit."
"Just who are you?"
"Does the name Aburame ring a bell? I am Shino Aburame's cousin."
"Now I know why you looked familiar. Wait, you manipulate bugs, but I didn't see any coming from you like I do on him."
"Ahh, a common misconception. Unlike the males in our clan, females don't lend their bodies as hosts; we manipulate the bugs around us by increasing our chakra and activating a special pheromone. Bugs pick up the scent and happily do our bidding. It makes it a little less creepy I suppose, but very effective. Since the water is filled with bugs, you walked onto my playing field and never knew it."
"Well done. Well done. I commend you." I looked at Lee and he was still laughing.
"Lee, you could have told me who she was."
"But, Neji-kun that wouldn't have been any fun. Seeing you get bested by a genin made my year." TenTen was looking at me not sure of what to do. I just glanced at her and winked.
Read Review, yada yada. No own, no own. :(