Hustling and bustling accompanied the decorations that were going underway on the Konoha Chapel. Weaves of expensive silks and ribbons of gold waved back and forth as planners decided where to put what. Those who passed by stood in awe before leaving the vicinity. Everyone who was helping with the wedding seemed to be on a state of alert. Everyone, except a pale-eyed beauty who stood in the middle observing everything with her bright orbs as she placed elegant flowers in a large gold trimmed vase.
He had a genuine smile for the first time in awhile. The man who became her brother figure seemed happy despite his consistent stoic demeanor. He used to be like ice, Neji did, especially throughout his wedding plans. However, there was one person who he always felt comfort with, one who Hinata truly saw he had a deep bond with. Though they barely spoke, Tenten's presence was enough to satisfy Neji and it showed. Hinata never thought that her cousin could be so oblivious to his own feelings, perhaps too immersed with clan politics. She couldn't imagine the aspect of marrying someone who she didn't love.
N-naruto…Through the years, she lost her stutter, she gained more confidence, and finally became the woman that her father could finally was worthy to bear the Hyuuga name. However, there was always one man who made her fall back into her timid state, the person who she wanted to confess her love to.
If only I could…Hinata had wanted to confess her love to him so many times, but it all ended the same. Never did she know a person who bore so much genuine emotion in their eyes like his large ocean blues did. His determination combined with his powerful words of encouragement became her source to accomplish what she wanted to be. Even during the early academy days, when he couldn't duplicate properly, he stuck his head up high.
You taught me strength…If it wasn't for him, she may have never learned so much. A man who didn't believe that fate was written down. He was the person who loudly yelled at her to not quit in her match against an emotionally abusive Neji.
You gave me courage…Whenever she trained, she thought of him smiling at her, telling her to keep going. Hinata had so much to thank him for; so much she wanted to give like he had given her. Knowing the man that he was though, Naruto probably didn't even realize the impact he had in her life.
You set me free…That's why she loved him. The way he could change a person's life without realizing he actually did something. It was the mark of a truehearted person. He may have not been the most intelligent person, but he changed more lives than any genius ever could. If she could only put those thoughts into clear words, then maybe Hinata could finally tell him the words she wanted to say for so many years.
I love you Naruto.
She watched Tenten pin long sleeves of fabric at the top corners of the main chapel room. Initially when Neji told her that his teammate was going to come help, Hinata was shocked. Eventually, after thinking through what it would have been like to take up Tenten's role, Hinata came up to the conclusion that she would have done the same for Naruto. To spend those last times with the one you truly love, a bittersweet conclusion on what could have been.
When he comes back, I'll tell him.
To say that Neji's fiancé wasn't a spoiled brat was like saying Rock Lee was lazy. Hinata turned her head to her red headed future cousin in law. Obviously for her, she always kept a quiet position on things but her high stressed sister was the opposite. It was as Hanabi put it, Miriko was dumb, bratty, gold digger. Somehow, someway, Miriko avoided the phase of life called adulthood. Even though they weren't married yet, Miriko seemed to enjoy bugging Neji just to see if he could show anything other than an emotionless stare. The future husband and wife could be seen walking circles at the chapel. Miriko dragging Neji's arm, pointing at the details that she didn't want. Hinata sighed.
Neji-nii-san, you have gone back to being caged again.
"I don't want this here Neji-kun! Tell your servants to rearrange this! Blah blah blah blah…"
He was trying to completely tune her out. Once in awhile it would work, but then her voice would ring back into his ear full force. It was as if she reverberated around the walls like a slapped ping-pong ball. Neji, at this point, would have given anything to be somewhere other than here. Heck, he would have even taken a mission with Gai and Lee, wearing green spandex and everything. Then he remembered. Facing her direction, he saw his reason to smile.
Tenten tensed up at the sound of Miriko yelling at everyone. She had heard that the woman wanted a perfect wedding but the girl seemed to be going too far with this.
Maybe I should have thought this over…Poor Neji as well, Tenten had never seen a girl drag him like her. She giggled a bit; maybe she was a bit too amused. Never did she imagine her teammate ending up with a loud popular socialite. Of course, life throws curveballs right? Lowering herself down the ladder, she wiped the sweat off her forehead and turned to his familiar face. She stared at him, intrigued.
Hinata watched them with deep regret in her pale eyes. She remembered she could feel as if Tenten's heart broke at the party they had several weeks ago. Through the midst of people, the drunkenness, Tenten probably felt invisible to Neji much like Hinata did when she was younger. If only her cousin could notice.
The one he was staring at was the one he truly loved.
One hard tug broke his concentration. Once again he was staring at the bright red hair of his fiancé. From looking at the warming glance of his teammate to the death glare of his future wife, things definitely weren't looking up. Of course, Neji just kept his cool while berating himself. Obviously very peeved, she glided in a huff, the trail of layer kimonos following her. Neji rubbed his temples, slowly relieving the headache he was given as he pulled up a chair and sat down.
Tenten had seen Miriko storming away with a feeling of relief. Did weddings do that to women or was this girl just inherently like this? Maybe it was best if Tenten never got married. Shaking her head at the thought, she then noted Hinata approaching Neji.
She watched him rise up from his chair and walk away, his back facing her as she grinned lightly. Hinata didn't have to search for her next target with Byakugan as she knew Tenten was staring right at her. She turned, facing her, taking even paces towards Tenten's direction. It was hard to stay calm, she had never done this kind of thing before.
It was strange that Hinata would ask her to grab more fabric when there seemed to be plenty in the main room. Oddly enough, the storage room that Hinata told her to go to didn't have it. Tenten had asked one of the other people around the vicinity if there would be any other area that could have held this, what seemed to be, a much needed thing according to Hinata. Now, she was following those directions hoping it wasn't some sort of wild goose chase.
"This seems to be the room."
Tenten held the doorknob in her grip and she slowly turned and pushed the door open. To her surprise she saw a lady with pins in her mouth as she stood at the foot of Hyuuga Neji.
A very topless Hyuuga Neji…It wasn't like she hadn't seen Neji topless before or anything. As his teammate, she always had to tape his wounds up. (Neji's preference really, he didn't feel secure having Lee or Gai do it.) However, this was a different situation. She hated that she looked at Neji like some sort of eye candy but the light battle scars and his body definition were too hard to ignore. How she didn't ever notice him this way, she didn't know. Perhaps back then she was too worried about the severity of his injuries to really take time to admire his body.
No wonder he was named Konoha's number one bachelor…"Umm…excuse me?"
Reality slapped Tenten in the form of a gaudy dressed, rotund seamstress.
"Are you the assistant that Lady Hinata sent? You're late!"
She raised an eyebrow with her mouth agape in shock. Hinata never told her that! Maybe the lady was mistaken but it obviously didn't matter to her. Tenten felt her hand grabbed by the panicky seamstress as she set three large loads of colored fabrics in her arms. Her brown eyes peeked through the holes of the piled mess as she noted his toned abdominal. Was it right for her mouth to start salivating a bit? Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad after all. The seamstress pushed his arm over as she inadvertently allowed Tenten to focus on how muscular they had gotten in comparison to their genin days. A heavy blush formed on her face as she closed her eyes feeling guilty for looking at her teammate like a piece of meat.
The seamstress scooted Neji into the dressing room as she took the first two loads off Tenten's arms. As she folded them, a giggle escaped her pursed lips. Tenten stared at her with curiousity, she turned away realizing that the seamstress could probably see the redness on her face due to the bright lighting.
"There's no need to be so embarrassed with looking at such an attractive man. He's your teammate after all, he's probably looked at you the same way before."
It was her turn to laugh. This woman was probably naïve to the fact that Hyuuga Neji was notorious for not giving most people, let alone his fangirls, any sort of attention whatsoever. She remembered in her genin days when Rock Lee egged her on, asking who she believed was the most attractive guy in Konoha. The likely answer from her would have been Neji, but she didn't want to create any sort of awkwardness between them so she went with her second choice, Uchiha Sasuke. Upon arriving to hear what they were talking about, Neji chided Rock Lee for bringing up such a useless discussion.
Now ironically, I'm living with Sasuke…I wonder how he is…Her attention snapped with the appearance of a dark green and gold clad Hyuuga Neji. It wasn't that the outfit was ugly, but it wasn't suited for the white-eyed man. Perhaps it was more suited for Lee or Gai. Then a thought struck Tenten.
This has got to be the seamstress who made Lee and Gai's matching green and gold kimonos!
Neji watched Tenten cover her snickering mouth, did he really look that bad? He had to get this seamstress fired. It was enough that she tried suggesting purple to him, but now Tenten was laughing at him.
Then again…It was good to hear her infectious laugh. Her voice always had a very sweet and eager tone to it. While he wouldn't admit it, it was better than the monotonous voices of his clan. He watched the sparkle of amusement in her eyes, the color so common among the populace. Neji occasionally envied eyes like Tenten's. In comparison to his white ones, her bright ones were able to convey so much emotion. There was something so warm and inviting about her. The same look she always gave him whenever they trained together. It didn't matter that she always lost to him; it was all the same to her.
If only she could always be by my side.
He played those words over and over again in his head.
Is that why?
Hesitation entered in his breath.
Can I really be?His eyes lowered as he held himself mentally. A cold tingle shot through his spine as he thought process started clearing.
What just snapped in me?Was he upset that she laughed? Suddenly she felt guilty for what she just did, it wasn't about him, it really wasn't. Tenten cleared her throat as the seamstress examined her efforts.
"Now I did something like this for two former clients, they looked amazing, but I guess green just isn't your color."
Great, I was right…"Now maybe we should try a mauve or maybe a white…"
Tenten watched in disbelief. Neji in mauve? Great idea! Choose colors that don't even suit a person. What kind of seamstress was this?
His eyes were half lit as he annoyingly stared at what was to be a fat prancing woman with needles poking out of her mouth. Gritting his teeth, he let out a sigh.
"Tenten, what colors do you think would suit me?"
She was the only person who mattered to him. Neji now knew how much a genius could be an idiot too. He ignored what he wanted and it came this far. Now he was watching Tenten thoughtfully examine him.
All for the wedding with a woman he barely knew.
Neji looked away.
Right in front of me…
I should be with her…
"Dark blue, trimmed with white and some silver threading? I think it'd work with you."
The seamstress chuckled. "I prefer more bright colors, after all this wedding is full of it, but I suppose the groom can get away with whatever he wants." Carrying herself as dainty as a bulldozer plowing through a forest, she left two very perplexed ninjas.
"Neji…I think you should know, that lady was the one who made Lee and Gai's kimonos."
He sat himself down, not surprised to hear what she had just said. If anything, it was probably Gai who had suggested the seamstress to one of the wedding planners. He watched Tenten sit down across from him. It didn't matter though; another dilemma was in his hands. It had been two weeks since he talked to Tenten in front of her apartment. Two of the worst weeks of his life dealing with so much frustration, only to find out that part of it was due to the girl in front of him.
"I heard Tsunade is quite pleased with you," his voice didn't stir.
"Ahh, she sent me back her review, she said it was a good thing that I tended to Sasuke. Even though I've been doing this for almost a month, I still have a lot of mixed feelings about this."
Neji frowned.
Mixed feelings?
It would be impulsive of him to suggest that his teammate was in love with Uchiha. However, he couldn't help but realize his growing jealousy for the shorthaired man.
It never mattered to me that he was a criminal…
The conversations they used to have under the sun and the stars, the days she would pack him food for their training. He missed those times when they would both gaze over the sun setting over the lush landscape on the top of a tree. Truer beauty was never shown through anything but nature and it was there that their friendship grew.
Truer love was never born but under the night sky.
It was under the full moon after a grueling mission was finished. As they set camp, ready to rest for the morning journey home, they watched the night sky until Tenten passed out. He stared at her briefly, noting the few strands of hair that came out of her buns. The moonlight radiating her smooth face as he admired how lovely she looked when she was asleep. He had always known her to be quite adorable, but it was always in the view of their old genin days. That night was the night that Hyuuga Neji finally saw Tenten, not as a young girl, but a beautiful woman.
The very last night I could truly face her.
He had ignored how rapidly his heart beat when he heard her sweet laughter. How he felt uncomfortable when men admired her blossoming beauty. Much like his reliance on fate back in his genin days, Neji relied on denial to put away his growing feelings. He couldn't put his finger on it, why would he be afraid of falling for her?
To be intimate…
To be so intimately in love with someone who was so close, to lovingly kiss her as if she belonged to him. Neji was no Casanova despite his status as one of the most eligible bachelors in Konoha. He wasn't passionate like Gai and Lee, Neji wasn't someone who spoke his inner feelings out loud. Guarded with the lock and key, Hyuuga Neji was like the bank safe of hidden inner emotions. Tenten just happened to be the factor that opened those feelings. Finally things were piecing together for him, the solution to his puzzle of unexplored emotions.
And there she is sitting in front of me.
He had to know, to let her know, to know if she felt the same way. What would it matter though? Neji was getting married anyways.
If I don't tell her, then it might be too late…
"It's been awhile since we've trained together. Why don't we meet up in our usual spot tomorrow?"
"Well, I told Sasuke that I would help him train…"
Neji winced at the mention of the younger man's name. He truly envied Uchiha for being so lucky to be so close to Tenten for obvious reasons. Did Uchiha manage to replace him in Tenten's life? It seemed so silly for Neji to worry about things of that nature when the person that mattered was in front of him, but it was something that he just couldn't help but wonder.
"Neji? Are you okay? You seem to be pretty out of it."
He felt forlorn despite her kindness towards him. Selfish, that was it, he was being greedy with her. Even if he could tell her that he loved her, what if she didn't love him back? It wasn't fair to her that he felt abandoned even though it was more likely that he stopped contacting her. Uchiha's appearance was the trigger that finally got Neji to talk to Tenten after so long. If the Sharingan user hadn't come back, Tenten wouldn't be in front of him right now.
I found out I loved her through the worst means.
"Tenten…"
She heard his breath draw long as he gave a deep pause.
"I've really missed you."
Maybe he said too much already.
Tenten smiled serenely at him, her lashes spread over her sparkling half lit eyes.
"I've missed you too Neji."
It had been a long time sense he felt this happy. Just knowing that she thought of him as well sent a sense of euphoria in his body. If only this feeling could last forever.
"I'll talk to Sasuke, I'm sure he'll understand, he's really quite nice once you get to know him."
He rose up as she did, walking towards her to close the gap between them. Perhaps it was a desperate attempt to keep the feelings alive. Long arms clasped Tenten's neck as she fell into Neji's embrace. His feelings towards her were no mistake, but the ultimate decision on whether or not to tell her would lie on the next day. If Neji broke off the engagement just to be with Tenten, his family wouldn't forgive her for breaking a political arrangement.
I can't do that to her…
"Tenten?"
She stood in his arms speechless.
"Thank you, for putting up with me."
He walked out the door with a bright red Tenten gazing as he became smaller with each step.
What was that?
Hinata watched him leave, wondering if her attempt at playing Cupid worked. There were more important things to handle though. Despite her dislike towards being involved with Hyuuga politics, something seemed amiss with the two clans future union. At first Hinata thought it was all because she felt her cousin was running away from true love. However, something earlier that day stayed in her mind.
"Woof! Woof!"
"Ah! Hinata!" waved the red marked man.
"Kiba, hello, what brings you here?"
A serious look entered his face. Hinata was stunned by her teammate's sudden disposition. There was no doubt that something was definitely amiss.
"I need to talk to you privately, if you have the time, it's about Neji's marriage to Miriko."
It was rare that she felt her blood boil, but if Kiba was right, then the union between the two clans had to never happen.
There will be hell to pay.
I won't back down if this is real.
Author's Note: Alright, it's been awhile since I've updated this fic and I'm sorry for that. Hinata may seem OOC in the end. However, once I reveal what Kiba told her, I think everyone's blood will boil. With Miriko, my inspiration for her? That silly MTV show My Super Sweet Sixteen, some of those kids scare the living hell out of me. I will admit this story is more drawn out than I wish for it to be. Then again, I don't like rushing the thinking process. I think this chapter signifies Neji's first attempt to show his true appreciation for Tenten. Though it seems like a defeatist attitude, right now, he just doesn't know what to do. Some definite things though in the future: Hinata will play a very big part in the story. (Quite frankly, I find her very charming.) More Sasuke/Tenten fluff, more Neji/Tenten fluff. Hope you all enjoyed. I take all critiques! Review pls!