Not trying to be mean to Neji-kun, now! I just had to write this. I had the impulse to. So enjoy!
Neji was training at the usual grounds he and his team usually hung around. He did many jabs into the air, practicing the Hyuuga Taijutsu technique that had always been passed down from the Hyuuga clan from generation to generation. It was unusually quiet. Tenten was even late for training today.
--------------------
Meanwhile, Tenten jumped down her window into the busy streets of Konoha. She was late, and she knew just how strict Neji was when it came to being punctual. She gulped. She had learned in their first days as a three man cell group in their Genin rank that if she ever came late without a good enough excuse, he would overwork twice as much during training.
Training with Neji Hyuuga was like Lee and Gai-sensei doing one hundred pushups, then five hundred laps around Konoha, kicking a tree a thousand times, and finally ending their day with three hundred sit ups or something like that. Take the amount of strain someone would have to put up with when doing Gai-sensei's daily training routine with Lee, then multiply by two.
That's how tiresome it was; it was twice that amount. It did, however, benefit her greatly, and she was glad she chose to endure her pressure points and inner organs being damaged internally instead of putting up with what her two insane green-spandex clad teammate and sensei did.
As Tenten was lost in her thoughts, she suddenly collided into a figure. Before she could look up and apologize, a hand clamped her mouth. Tenten soon blacked out. The last thing she saw was a shadowy figure looking down at her and smirking.
--------------------
Neji waited impatiently for someone to arrive. Lee and Gai-sensei were not here, causing havoc and chaos by just being around. In fact, Tenten wasn't around either. He would probably deny it everytime, but he actually missed Tenten's company everytime she came late. Her lateness always bothered him.
Every time she didn't show up on time, he worried. Yes, worried. He thought up a million different scenarios of what could have happened to her, and most of them invovled her getting killed, having life-threatening wounds being tended by medic-nins, or...the one scenario he always dreaded to think up, being captured by Orochimaru for reasons he did not even want to think about.
Lee and Gai-sensei finally showed up. However, they did not do their usual welcome routine consisting of hugs, sunset backgrounds, tears of joy, and their voices shouting each others' names at an ear-drum shattering volume. In fact, they both ran towards Neji at the rate of a speeding car.
"Neji-kun! Horrible news!" Lee breathlessly gasped as he abruptly stopped.
"Yes! Promise not to cry!" Gai-sensei shouted.
Neji only stared at them curiously. What were they going to say? "Tell me the news," Neji calmly replied.
Lee took that as a good sign, even though that was how Neji always reacted, except on rare occasions. "Well...it's just that..."
Just before he could go on, Lee burst into hysterical tears of sadness. Gai-sensei comfortingly patted his back as he announced the news to Neji.
"Tsunade and other ninja reported that our beloved teammate, Tenten, was found...was found..."
Gai was struggling to say the last word, as if it were a bad word. Neji raised an eyebrow impatiently. Gai-sensei lost it and burst into tears.
"Tenten's DEAD!" He managed to shout, hugging Lee as they both cried in pure sadness.
Neji froze. It couldn't be true. She wasn't dead. She was too young to die. Trying to deny the very truth that was said, he ran off to Tsunade's office to verify the truth. When he reached the office, Tsunade and Shizune were dressed in black, crying into hankerchiefs.
"It was horrible. Tragic," Shizune told Tsunade, speaking in between sobs. "The ANBU found her limp body just outside the gates of Konoha."
"Oh? What was her condition?" Tsunade asked, finally calming down. Her eyes were still puffy and her face was still red from weeping.
"She...she had been stabbed various times by a weapon. A katana to be exact. It was horrible. Blood was all around her and she was so pale, so cold. She no longer had any life in her: her pulse was non-existant."
Neji did not even ask. Obviously, Shizune and Tsunade were caught up in their conversation to notice his presence.
"She's being buried right now." Shizune informed Tsunade, as she finally calmed and wiped away the remaining tears.
Neji silently left for the graveyard. As soon as Neji was gone, Tsunade asked, "Was Neji here?"
Shizune nodded. "Drank in every single word, that he did."
--------------------
Neji froze as he noticed Tenten being buried. Her hair was put down from the Chinese hair buns she usually fixed her hair up into. It flowed all around her shoulders. It was such a sad sight for Neji. To watch someone he secretly had fallen in tragically die.
Her eyes were closed, forever slumbering in the sleep of death. Her face showed a calm expression, finally free from the burden of being chained to life and its binding hold on her. It was here that Neji silently fell apart. His fragile soul shattered into tiny little pieces, like glass. He was nothing now.
He was nothing but an empty, cold soul. He was still living, but inside he was dead. He no longer had any ambition to move on and live. In fact, the shock of her sudden death affected him so much, he no longer wished to even fight any longer.
He just wanted to die. He no longer cared about waited for him in the future; his one desire to fight against the fate he was forced to follow no longer existed. All he wanted...all he needed was to be with her in heaven. They would both be happy there.
Neji slowly began to weaken. His legs gave way. Neji was now kneeling on the ground, hunched over. His hands gripped the dirt as he clenched his hands in his fist. He had held back the tears that threatened to flow. And finally, without caring, he just let them free.
Hinata, who had been silently watching, ran up to him. She studied his broken form intently, then lay a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Neji-kun...Neji-kun...are you okay?"
"She's dead. She's gone..." Neji muttered in a trance-like state.
Hinata fearfully retracted her hand. Neji was really scaring her now.
"Finally in my grasp...then fate becomes cruel to me once again. Released her...freed her from me..." Neji whispered.
Hinata, too scared to even speak, finally decided to walk away.
--------------------
Hinata, however, did not look frightened after she was far from the cemetary. In fact, she was laughing. Really hard. Soon, she walked to a group of people sitting around in a huge circle near the Ninja Academy.
"Okay, okay!" Hinata said, turning red from restraining herself from laughing too hard just yet as she ran over to the group. "And then he just stayed there, moping around. 'Oh, woe is me. My beloved Tenten is gone. Fate is so cruel to me.' Maybe it's not too funny. But this is hilarious. Come on, this is THE Neji Hyuuga himself!"
Then Hinata laughed. Tsunade and Shizune smirked. "So it did work after all!" Shizune shrieked.
Sakura smiled. "Wow! You're good."
Ino gave Hinata a thumbs up. "I know. Well-planned. Best of all, this is all being videotaped as we SPEAK!"
Tenten finally stood up. "Can I break it to him, now?"
The group, consisting of Team Asuma, Team Kakashi, Team Kurenai, Lee, and the four sensei all stood up.
Just wait until we see the look on Neji's face! Everyone single person in the group thought at the same time.
--------------------
Tenten approached Neji cautiously. As soon as she was close enough, she gave a thumbs up behind her. The group, hiding in nearby bushes, nodded as they spied on the scene that was going to occur.
"Neji? Are you alright?" Tenten asked.
No answer. She tapped him gently.
"Neji? Are you okay?"
"No. She's dead." Neji finally spoke.
"What a shame. Do you mind telling me what her name is?" Tenten had bite down on her tongue to restrain from giving herself away too early.
"Tenten. She's dead and I just wanted to tell her I love her."
"Oh really? What a coincidence! My name's Tenten, too!" Tenten was enjoying this.
"Really?" Neji doubted. "She doesn't have a surname."
"Hey, I don't have a surname, either! That's so weird!"
"Who are your teammates?" Neji asked suspisciously, never bothering to look up.
"Let's see. Gai-sensei, Lee, and you." Tenten smiled.
Neji looked up. There was Tenten, smiling down at him. Neji looked flustered and immediately stood up, wiping away his tears.
"Oh! Tenten. I thought you got stabbed to death! The ANBU found your body near the gates to Konoha! " Neji exclaimed.
"Stabbed and found dead near the gates? But I just left my house a while ago to look for you!"
Neji was stunned. "Bu-bu-but...I mean it, you were dead!"
Tenten signaled to everyone at the bushes. Neji's eyes narrowed and glared at everyone furiously. Tenten nodded.
"Yup! You just got tricked. Happy April Fool's Day, Neji!"
Neji only gave a growl of frustration as he walked back to the training grounds with Tenten. When they were out of hearing range...
"So I was set up wasn't I?" Neji asked.
"Yup."
"..." For a moment, it was silent. Then, finally, he gave her a hug, which surprised her all of a sudden.
"Hinata really thought up a good one."
Tenten, after receiving the embrace, got mad. "I see through your clever trick! You're going to hug me, then expect me to say thank you, only to find that I've been fooled!"
Neji only shook his head and smirked. "Hah. Not likely. If I wanted to trick you, I would think up something better. There's always next year, since I caught on so late."
Tenten stayed behind a few steps, trying to fully digest what he just told her. Then she caught up to him angrily.
"That's not FAIR! That's not fair at ALL!" Tenten yelled.
Neji smirked triumphantly. 'Nothing's ever fair when it's April Fools Day.'
Yeah. I had too much chocolate to think up this piece. You can't tell, can you? Well I get high off of chocolate, and I love chocolate! (sweatdrops) April Fool's Day, everyone, and no, I'm not kidding, I had too much chocolate and just thought this up on the spot.