Chapter Five
Lee felt lost. Distraught. Like a complete mess inside. His brain was in knots. He hadn't eaten very well for the past two days and hadn't been able to sleep properly too. His mind kept rewinding the moment his teammate had grabbed him and kissed him. Her last words echoed in his mind 'I wouldn't kiss a man I wasn't interested in.'. He touched his lips unconsciously. What could she mean? Was that a confession? His stomach flip-flopped. Was she interested in him? In which way was she interested in him? Was she romantically interested in him? Lee flinched with embarrassment and a blush rose to his cheeks. No, that was not possible. Right? Or was it? Although he knew she cared deeply about him, as he did for her, she never showed any romantic feelings towards him. Or did she? He was so bemused by the recent events he was starting to doubt his own sense of judgment. In his defence, he never noticed it at least. Lee dropped his head and scratched it frustrated. And what did she mean by 'This is 10% of what happened that night!'? Couldn't she have been more specific? That phrase could be interpreted in countless ways. He sighed and his bushy brows come together in a frown. If kissing was 10% then 100% would mean they made…? Instantly, his face turned beetroot. Oh my god, what am I thinking! He slapped his own face mortified. Get a grip! He needed to be sure and he shouldn't react on assumptions. Like Gai-sensei had told him, he tried his best to investigate the situation, but he was now more confused than ever before. The only solution at the moment was trying to recall his memories. He had to find a way to do it, whatever the cost. Yes, that was it. Try to remember, try to remember… He repeated inside his head like a mantra, touching his temples with his fingers to focus his attention. Maybe some hypnosis could help him access his forgotten memories. Or maybe... He glanced at a big ginkgo tree 2 meters away. Maybe he needed a more impactful and direct way. Yes, direct was better, Gai-sensei always said to be direct.
000
"Lee-san?" Sakura's eyes bulged as soon as Konoha's great green beast entered her doctor's office bleeding from his forehead. "What happened?" She motioned from him to sit in the chair near her, but her eyes never left his face. Even if Rock Lee being injured was not an unusual occurrence, since he was constantly pushing his limits, the situation was still awkwardly odd.
He chuckled, scratching the back of his head, and switching glances between the chair and her emerald eyes. "Oh, this?" He pointed at his own forehead. "This is nothing." He clarified feeling pathetic for bothering Sakura with such an insignificant injury. "But an old lady on the street insisted on bringing me to the hospital." He sighed. "She was quite persistent. I couldn't say no."
Sakura giggled at the odds, imagining the bizarre situation of an elder lady forcing Rock Lee with her walking stick to go and treat his wounds.
"Well, since you are already here, we might as well see that injury." She noticed how a bump was starting to form on his bleeding and scratched forehead. "Common, sit here." She patted the chair in front of her.
Lee sighed defeated and reluctantly did as she told him. It didn't take long until she started performing her medical ninjustsu on his wound. "Do you feel dizzy?"
"No, I'm fine." It did hurt a little, but nothing he couldn't handle. He had experienced worse pain in his life than a throbbing and swollen forehead.
"So," She began, moving her hands above and along his forehead. "How did you end up in this state?" Her tone denoted curiosity.
He glanced at her and then looked down. "I hit my head… on a tree." He muttered not very proud of himself, actually feeling pretty stupid right now for doing it, especially after realizing his brain still refused to cooperate and his memories had not returned. He bit his bottom lip bitterly. Why was Tenten able to recall her memories but he had to deal with permanent amnesia? It was unfair. What more could he do to find out what happened?
Sakura glanced at him after noticing him deep in thought and in utter silence. Something rare coming from Lee. "Did something happen?" She asked, concerned, even if she had a good idea of what was tying Konoha's green beast brain in knots.
His eyes met hers in distress and Sakura's eyebrows come together in a frown.
"Yes…" He confessed, his face suddenly turning pink. Lee started fidgeting and his eyes fluttered in various directions.
Sakura smirked inwardly when he blushed. It seemed her hunch was correct.
"Is this related to Tenten?" She teased. When his eyes doubled size, she knew she had nailed it. This was indeed related to Tenten and the night of Hinata's wedding.
Lee was speechless, his mouth gesticulated, floundering for words. She wanted to laugh but contained herself.
"H-how, how did you know?" He muttered bemused as if she had just performed incredible witchcraft.
She frowned and finished his treatment, his wound now completely healed. "Feminine intuition?" She put her hand under her chin feigned ignorance. Well, it was half-true.
Lee was staggered. His mind fascinated by the smartness displayed by women.
"I could use some of that right now." Sakura would have laughed out loud if his face weren't so dead serious while saying it. "Something happened that I need to remember but my memories won't come back no matter what I do." His voice was taut with desperation and she felt a tightness in her heart.
Even if she was aware of his problem, thanks to her talk with Tenten at the odango shop, she still asked "What do you mean?"
Lee looked at her pouting and quickly begun telling her everything with dramatic tears rolling down his face. She listened to him explaining how shocking was for him to find Tenten, his long-life teammate, and best friend, lying on his bed only in her underwear, how the memory loss was killing him and how desperately he had been trying to remember the events of Hinata's wedding night. So desperately he purposefully and voluntarily hit his head on a tree.
"I did what Gai-sensei told me and tried to investigate, but she wouldn't stop avoiding me." Sakura sweat dropped amazed at his cluelessness. He didn't seem to understand Tenten was too embarrassed to talk and needed space. Especially given that she had feelings for him. "When I finally had the chance to ask her, she-" his words died in his throat and he swallowed. Suddenly all his blood seemed to have concentrated on his face. "She-" he tried again, feeling his palms sweating. Sakura was now dying to know what could be so embarrassing for him to be having such a hard time speaking. Oh my God! Did she finally confess?!
"Yes?" She pressed on, in anticipation.
Lee gulped twice. "She k-k-kissed me..." Steam come off his ears and she could feel the temperature around him raise considerably. Sakura covered her mouth with her hands, and her eyes bulged. That's not subtle at all Tenten! She thought, blushing from second-hand embarrassment.
"She told me she wouldn't kiss a man she wasn't interested in." He continued in low voice. "Does that mean she is interested in me?" His eyelids fluttered and he buried his face on his hands. "What does that mean?" He looked deeply troubled.
Sakura composed herself.
"Have you ever thought that maybe Tenten likes you?" She suggested, trying to knock some sense into his confused mind. Lee's eyes doubled size and his lips parted. He looked at her in utter shock. Sakura didn't know which was more surprising: if the thought never crossed his mind before or if she had hoped the thought could have crossed his mind at least once.
"Tenten," a blush crept into his cheeks and he felt heat swirl low on his stomach. "Likes me?" He cringed at the thought. "How's that possible?" Sakura chuckled amused at his incredulity.
"Why can't it be possible?" At his puzzled expression, she added, "Tenten knows you for an exceptionally long time, she is very close to you. She knows you better than anyone. What makes you think she couldn't have feelings for you?" It was visible the trouble his brain was having processing the information, steam was coming out his ears. Sakura felt a pang of pity in her heart for him.
"Why, why didn't I notice it?" He asked distraught, in low voice. His eyes flickering and his hands scratching his head as he wrapped his mind around the subject. Because you were too busy pursuing me, she thought somehow a bit frustrated. Both Lee and Naruto had been madly in love with her while young and naive, although the Uzumaki had finally moved on by falling in love with Hinata, Lee still seemed to be stuck in the past.
"Tenten is not very canny when it comes to love affairs, I never saw her talking about boys like other girls and romance was never her top priority. She might have had difficulty processing her own feelings, less likely admitting them openly or acting on them in an obvious way." Lee felt like the ground was crumbling bellow him, swallowing him whole. He was having trouble accepting what Sakura was telling him.
"But," he began, apprehensive. His eyebrows come together in a frown. "Why me?" Sakura couldn't help but laugh which only contributed to his pain and confusion.
"I'm sorry," she said whipping the tears from her eyes. "We don't choose who we fall in love with. It just... Well, it's beyond our control, and it never happens like it should." She knew that better than anyone. "And besides, I didn't take you for a person unsure about his lovability. I mean if you pursued me it was because you had confidence in your qualities Lee-san."
She was right, he looked down at his feet. But he needed Tenten. She was his best friend and he loved her. Not in a romantic way, it wasn't like that. But she was the person he went to when he was too sad to say a word, or so troubled he could not sleep. And now the weight of the world was sitting on his chest.
"Don't you find Tenten attractive at all?" Sakura asked, curious, crossing her arms in front of her chest.
Lee turned his head startled with the question. Attractive? He blushed.
"I... I guess." He never gave a thought about it before but seeing her half-naked surely made him re-think the way he looked at her. She was a woman. Well, of course, she was, but until that day he never really looked at her that way. It was as if a veil had been lifted from his eyes. Was he that oblivious? Or had he been unconsciously avoiding looking at Tenten that way? Because if he did there was no way he could unsee it? And if he could not unsee it he could not stop his heart if it chose to fall for her, his best friend, the only girl who truly knew and understood him. Lee put his hands on his knees. "Sakura-san, what should I do?" His eyes begged for an answer and his voice was heavy with shame, the same way his guilt weighed down upon his shoulders
000
Tuff! Tuff! Tuff!
The sounds splitting out with every hit were pleasant to Tenten's ears. She was at the usual training grounds. Her usual marks. Her usual training method. Her feelings, however, were strikingly different from usual. The recent events with her teammate were setting her on edge and her heart was emotion-bombing her with all the feelings she had denied and refused to act upon for years. Her heart tightened at the thought of her lips touching Lee's and at her shabby, precipitated, mortifying, indirect love confession. She almost dropped her kunai on the ground when she cringed. Tenten rolled her eyes, cursing herself for the lack of focus.
"I must be crazy..." As she muttered herself, she raised back the kunai in her hand, and smoothly threw it. Another tuff rang out, her kunai lodging right in the middle of the mark. A handful of shuriken was flung from her hand this time, perfectly encircling the kunai that she'd thrown and pierced the bullseye with. As usual her marksmanship was marvellous, she could do it with her eyes closed. Her body, well-trained daily for years, did not miss a mark despite all the emotional chaos she was in. Her movements, incorporated for years, now could be accessed automatically. This was because Tenten always took Gai's teachings to heart and continued to diligently practice her basics to that very day. As he once said, "Anyone who neglects their basics won't see tomorrow!".
She wiped the sweat off her forehead and threw herself down on the grass, lying on her outstretched arms and legs, looking up at the sky. Her stomach was empty. Tenten usually headed out to training before she ate her breakfast. She always preferred to do this. She'd head out to the training grounds in the early morning, practice with kunai and shuriken until her body felt warmed up, and then go and eat breakfast. She usually ended up eating breakfast on the training grounds, though. Steamed meat buns sold by a nearby shop washed down with green tea were her favorite breakfast pattern. But lately, she had been so emotionally overwhelmed her anxiety killed her appetite. Still, as a ninja, she knew she should nourish herself if she wanted her body to be fit for training, so she forced herself to eat dinner at least.
Tenten heaved out an exasperated sigh. For the umpteenth time, her mind was overflowed by thoughts about Rock Lee and how she had just made a mess out of her friendship. If only she hadn't drunk at the wedding, if only she hadn't acted on a whim and kissed him, if only she hadn't fallen in love with him in the first place… Oh, if only!
She chuckled awkwardly as she buried her face in her hands. When did all her problems become about love? It was so unlike her. Since she was never one who was boy crazy, she found it quite perplexing, feeling uncertain how to address this new frontier. Unlike her other girl friends, young Tenten had lived her life without any thoughts for romance or femininity. Her dream was to become a legendary kunoichi like Tsunade which lead her to focus solely on honing her skills to the maximum, so her mind had limited space for matters of the heart. Nothing like her, Lee had always been a hopeless romantic and a quite sentimental guy. His idealistic views on love had kept him blindly crushing over Sakura even when it was obvious she wasn't nearly interested in his romantic advances. She remembered one of the thousandth times he had been rejected.
"Lee!" A young Tenten put her hands on her hips. "Why are you crying again?" Her voice harsh as she shook her head frustrated. "You know how it happens every time. You know Sakura likes Sasuke." Delicacy was certainly not her greatest virtue.
The young green beast sobbed again, glancing at her with his vision blurred with tears.
"I know." He tried to wipe his eyes but now his nose started running. She offered him her handkerchief. "But I still can't stop liking her." He blew his nose hard without any ceremony.
Tenten's heart tightened for him. She hated seeing her friend like this. Lee always exhaled endeavour and passion towards his goals. He was an inspiration to her. Seeing him so crestfallen over Sakura made her stomach turn. Then she had an idea.
"Lee, get up!" She ordered searching for something inside her pockets. "Let's eat some extra spicy curry. I heard there's a new signature dish at the curry shop and look," Tenten pulled out two pieces of paper and placed them in front of his eyes, teasingly "I have free coupons!"
Tenten smiled uppity; she knew he could not resist a good plate of spicy curry but was surprised to see him half-shrug pessimistic.
"I'm not in the mood…" Lee sighed looking down, fumbling with her handkerchief.
As shock vanished a vein popped up in her head and she clenched her fists.
"Oh, is that so?" Her voice went down an octave and he knew that tone too well. "Then I'll give them to someone else." She scoffed crossing her arms over her chest. "Why did I even bother saving them for you?" He gulped.
The weapons kunoichi turned around overacting an annoyed look and started walking away mumbling to herself. Lee felt sorry for cutting his friend off and instantly regretted ditching her offer. Afterall she was just trying to cheer him up.
"Wait Tenten!" He stood up drying up his remaining tears. "I'm going with you!" He fasted his pace and catch up with her. "Sorry for being so unyouthful today."
She uttered a hmpf still playing the annoyed act, but inwardly proud to make him stop crying.
"Then you better smile, or I'll give the coupons away."
Lee tried his best to comply but only a stoical grin-and-bear-it expression came out.
"Tsk, you call that a smile?" She sighed disappointed, shaking her head.
Now a toothy grin sprout in Rock Lee's face. The real springtime of youth full package smile.
"Now that's more like it," she giggled amused. She turned around and started walking crossing her arms behind her back. "Keep doing that and they will fall at your feet."
Lee wasn't sure what to make up of her words, but it made him smile having a friend like Tenten at this side in which he could trust and show his most vulnerable side to.
She caught herself smiling at the memory and quickly cleared her throat, rolling over her body to lay in a side position. Thinking about it now, even if it pained her seeing him sad at that time, she still supported her friend and also advised him about his crush. Something she wouldn't be so sure she could do now. When did things start changing? When did she start feeling something more? An unexpected memory popped up in her mind's eye.
Her team was returning from a C-rank mission on the Land of Hot Water and decided to spend the night on an inn on the small village of Tamagogakure to rest. To play it safe and to save some money they usually slept together in the same room in separate futons. Tenten always carried an extra futon on her scrolls for those occasions where the inns couldn't provide it and that night, she had to summon it. Lee laid in the middle of her and Neji and had already tossed his sheets aside, leaving him with a leg uncovered. Perhaps due to his hot-blooded personality, he was a restless sleeper and kept constantly moving during the night. Once she and Neji were so annoyed they tied him up with the sheets so they could get a nice night of rest.
Tenten had already managed to drift off to the land of dreams when she felt a strange breeze on her face. First, she thought she was dreaming it, but when she opened her eyelids, her posture stiff and her muscles become rigid. Rock Lee's face was inches away from hers and it took all her self-control not to squeal. Furthermore, his arm was wrapped around her waist which made her skin tingle at the sight. Oh, and he was also shirtless. Why was he shirtless? Oh, right, it was summer, and he was the type to run hot, so he took it off to sleep. Damnit! She swallowed hard trying to gradually move his arm away, but the result was him holding her closer while putting his leg around her this time. Tenten had never been this close to a man in her life before, not in that kind of situation. She was seriously convinced she would die of heart-attack right that instant if she didn't manage to push him away and back to his futon.
Then her whole body shivered when she heard him whisper against her ear "Sakura-chaaan."
Sakura-chan? Oh right, of course he was dreaming about her. His mind always thinking of her. Even when he slept. Even when he was so exhausted, he was out like a light. But what was that feeling on her stomach? Annoyance? No, it was different. It bothered her. It was so sudden, new and freaky and it was scaring the hell out of her.
Before she could register, she saw his lips coming close to hers as he fantasized about kissing the pinkinette kunoichi in his dream. Her heart dropped to her stomach and a killing aura surrounded her whole body before her clenched fist collided with his face sending him rolling backward until he hit Neji's back who woke up with a squeak.
While Lee screamed in pain clinging to his unexpectedly injured jaw, a sleepy but perplexed Neji was revolving the space around him concerned "What happened?!" He hastened to turn on the lights fearing a ninja attack, his instincts kicking in.
Both jumped at the sight of Tenten standing up huffing in anger and surrounded by an enormous murderous aura "I'm sleeping in another room!" She screamed, hastily picked up her futon and pillow, slamming the paper door behind her. Neji and Lee stared at each other puzzled.
While massaging his own sore back as best as he could, Neji turned to Lee with tented eyebrows. "What happened? What did you do?"
Lee looked at his teammate offended "What? Me?" He reached for Nejis bag and took off a kunai pressing it against his injured face. The cold metal felt good against his cheek. "I was sleeping!" The Hyuuga raised a skeptical eyebrow. Knowing how restless the green beast's sleep was, there was no way to blame Neji for having doubts. "I'm telling the truth!"
Before he could say more, the paper door flew open. Tenten appeared from the darkness like a spectre from hell. She locked eyes with him and cried "And you," she threw the pillow at his face, but his fast reflexes allowed him to dodge it just in time. "You don't ever touch me again!" She pointed a shaking finger at him, and Lee could swear she had flames behind her eyes. "I'll chop your hands off!" He gulped terrified. He didn't dare utter a sound. It was better not to play with fire. And when Tenten was this upset, it was better to play extra careful. She stomped out and Neji sighed, worried how long would take for the innkeeper to appear and throw them out for disturbing the other guests.
Lee looked back at Neji pouting "What should I do? Neji?"
"Don't ask me!" he replied getting back into his futon annoyed. Those dorks would be the death of him some day.
Oh, so embarrassing! Tenten cringed at the recollection, squirming in the grass and covering her face with her hands. She had forgotten about that time. She remembered the next day she was grumpy and untalkative all the journey back to Konoha, which caused lots of tension between her and her teammates. Lee kept looking at her, his expression a mix of worry, confusion, and helplessness. Neji ignoring the atmosphere with his stoic attitude, however greatly dissatisfied with the current team dynamic. She wasn't even sure what she was mad about, she was extremely confused at the time and had trouble fitting the pieces of the puzzle together. Her chest was full of feelings that she didn't know how to control, and she was just so scared of them. It took her a while to get a clue about what was happening.
"Tenten?"
A voice broke her concentration, transporting her back to the present moment. She took her hands off her face and found two round black eyes looking down at her with concern. Tenten jolted in alarm and abruptly sat up, bumping her head against Rock Lee's as consequence. Both saw stars with the impact.
"Aargh!" He took a hard-backward fall as both groaned in pain rubbing their foreheads. However, he still asked, "Are you ok, Tenten?"
His concern tugged on her heartstrings. "Yeah, I'm sorry." She apologized embarrassed by her clumsiness.
When the pain subsided, their eyes met like magnets and her heart leaped from her chest, now aware of what his presence meant and the effect it had on her after the recent events. Before any thought or decision crossed her mind, he stood up and walked away, increasing the distance between them. Lee settled half-behind a tree and Tenten's eyebrows tended.
"Please don't run away. I just want to say something real quick." She watched him take a scroll from his hip pouch. "I just come back from the Hokage's office. I was assigned for a mission on the Land of Water and I'm leaving tomorrow morning. I may be away for a while." Lee scratched the back of his neck and his gaze flit around the training fields. "I didn't want to go before saying goodbye and that I'm…" He stopped himself for a second. His mobile expressions registered he was second-guessing himself. "That I'm sorry…" He stared at his hands with brooding eyes, biting his lower lip. "I'm sorry Tenten." Lee's wan expression and the heavy voice with which he pronounced those last words felt like a punch in the gut. Somehow, she felt a heavy weight on her chest looking at the way he kept repeatedly avoiding her gaze as if it were a burden looking at her.
Why did that apology sound like he was pushing her away? Why did it feel like a knife stabbed her heart? Then it struck her. Of course, it hurt like that. That was the bitter sting of rejection, she thought.
Lee said goodbye once more, hesitant, and left downcast. Guilt flooded her. She had troubled her teammate with her unwelcome feelings and completely ruined her friendship and team dynamic forever. She felt so ashamed.
In a normal situation, Tenten would be asking him about the mission details, checking on his supplies, and pleading him to be careful but she had been so staggered by the downhearted way he had apologized to her no sound came of her mouth.
Tenten was surprised to notice a ray of hope had lingered in a corner of her heart, surviving despite the unlikelihood. It was so shy she barely noticed it before, but as soon as she uncovered it, it had been harshly crushed by his words. She hated herself for having that hope in the first place. She just wanted to go back to what they were before and forget all the risks. However, a part of her was unable to conform and dwelled over why couldn't it be her? Was she no good compared to other girls? Compared to Sakura? Maybe if she were a bit more feminine it would have been different. It didn't matter. In the end, she had to move on. But how would she even start undoing those feelings that she had in her very heart right now? Oddly, no tears come out.
Lee looked behind his shoulder as he left the training grounds. Things hadn't been easy since Hinata's wedding party, but he had just jumped out of the frying pan into the fire. Since Sakura made him aware Tenten most certainly had feelings for him, he had been a prisoner of conscience. How could he have been so oblivious? Everything he thought to try to help the situation gave him shooting pains from his solar plexus. He just wanted to run 1500 laps around Konoha thrice as a penalty for his foolishness. Yet, part of him could argue she hadn't been exactly obvious about her feelings too. He scratched his head frustrated. No. What kind of excuses was he making now? He knew pretty well what unrequited love felt like, so it pained him thinking he made Tenten feel that way. He felt pangs of guilt for never treating her like the woman she was, for not considering her as one. I'm sorry Tenten... I'm sorry for not noticing your feelings before.
A/N: Please feel free to leave a comment or two and tell me what you think. I'm always looking to improve, looking for ideas and feedback from all of you wonderful people!
Shiro Aliss: Gracias!
.acey: Thank you very much for enjoying this fic! I'll do my best to uptodate faster, but rest assured I'm not giving up this fic.
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Tamagogakure no sato ("Village Hidden by the Eggs", "Hidden Village of the Eggs") was a village I once created, including its symbol which is like but the outside circle is egg-shaped.
It's located in the Land of Hot Water/Steam, which is noted to have two other major products related to its many hotsprings: 1) the spring water itself, which is thought to have medicinal qualities determined by its mineral content; 2) potatoes, which grow in abundance throughout the land and which most settlements have their special way of preparing; And I made up a 3) onsen tamago ('hot spring eggs' in Japanese), eggs that were originally prepared in hot spring water to create silky egg whites and custard-like yolk.
