Chapter 80

The vessels near Neji's eyes become much more prominent. His white orbs will enable him to see his opponent's jutsu and avoid it. It's going to be a hand to hand combat and at such near proximity the foreign shinobi is at a serious disadvantage as his jutsu seems to be for midrange. Before the trespasser nin can produce the hand seals necessary and for him to kick the dirt up that are obviously needed for his jutsu, Neji can already deliver a fatal blow that can stop his chakra flow. This fight, there's no doubt that Hyuga Neji will win it.

Neji's blank face suddenly breaks into a smirk, gesturing with his hand, inviting his opponent to attack first.

Shikamaru remains in his position, going in on an attack is what the unknown shinobi wants. The shinobi whose forehead protector identifies him as one of Konoha's is probably a cold-blooded bastard intent on preying on the weak and pregnant women.

Shikamaru has to come up with a strategy. The other shinobi has already seen through his Invisible Shadow Thread Jutsu. Furthermore, that particular jutsu has a flaw. In the desert of Suna, the jutsu is easily propagated. Someone's jutsu—Gaara's, Kankuro and at times even Temari's—helps fling the sand everywhere, unknowingly supplying him with moving particles that creates shadows needed for the jutsu or he can just throw sand himself. Here, the ground is packed and only small pebbles and some dirt can be kicked into the air to create a moving shadow necessary for his jutsu.

"Damn," Shikamaru mutters to himself. If he wants to win this, he is left with just one option and that is to use his other jutsu and risk everyone seeing his shadow moves…That is simply out of the question.

Suddenly, his opponent assaults with his open palm, Shikamaru squats low to evade his attack and to take a handful of dirt then flinging the dirt into the sky before he runs away making several hand seals.

A thin tread-like black line reaches for Neji but he's able to see enabling him to evade it.

Neji is trying to gap the distance while his opponent wants to increase it.

Waving his hand again, Neji urges his opponent to be less of a coward and attack.

But Shikamaru smirks this time. He has now lead his opponent to the edge of the clearing and to the rows of trees. With all the branches casting shadows around them, he has everything he needs.

But it is only a part of the back-up plan.

Shikamaru's main strategy is to find his opponent's weakness. There should be a blind spot. Temari had inadvertently shown to him that such a flaw in his opponent's jutsu is present when she attacked with several kunais when the shinobi had his back turned to her.

If he can finally pinpoint the exact blind spot then maybe Shikamaru doesn't need to use the actual form of his shadow. Since his opponent won't see it coming, the Invisible Shadow Thread Jutsu should be enough.

With hand seals, Shikamaru makes a clone and together they throw kunai from all angles towards Neji's back, calculating each thrown projectile, never repeating and always Neji deflects it.

Standing in front of his opponent, panting, Shikamaru decides that maybe a little lower on the back of the neck lies the other shinobi's weakness. Taking out the kunai, Shikamaru realizes that he's down to his last weapon. Careful not to waste it, he calculates the angle that it should be thrown towards a tree so it will just be deflected in its flight and not embedded on the trunk then he can make a new clone that will throw it exactly where he wants it.

Just as the Suna shinobi throws his latest kunai, Neji comes closer fast. The kunai and Neji moves at the same speed but at opposite direction, missing each other by a wide margin.

Neji has finally noticed that the barrage of weapons aren't thrown at random. He gets into position to deal the fatal blow that will stop the chakra flow in the foreign shinobi but instead of moving back his opponent makes another set of seals creating another clone behind him, persistently repeating the same tactic.

Except this time, the Suna nin doesn't jump away. Neji's aware that he's using himself as bait for him not to move too wide away from the clone's target.

Neji raises his hand, his deadly fingertips about to contact his enemy's chest just as the clone throws the kunai directed towards the back of his neck.

"Stop!" a kunoichi shouts just as she runs into Neji, pushing him down to the ground.

Now that its target is removed, the kunai comes towards Shikamaru instead. He then ducks.

Trying to catch her breath while resting on top of Neji, the kunoichi with her chocolate brown hair tied in a twin bun, finally asks the man beneath her, "Uhm you okay?"

Neji, instinctively unable to move, feels acutely the female's ungenerous front pressing—squashed on his chest. "Get off," he orders while severely glaring at his teammate.

"Tenten," the Suna shinobi speaks.

Neji's eyes move up towards the foreign shinobi. Still lying on the ground he pushes Tenten to his side, the side farthest from his opponent before getting up hurriedly, putting himself before his teammate as he faces the unknown shinobi.

Tenten gets up, dusting herself while she's at it. Then going in front of Neji, she declares, "Look both of you were just protecting Temari."

The two male shinobis gaze at each other, each one gauging the other.

Tenten expels an exasperated sigh. "Neji this is Sabaku Kamaru, the husband of Temari. Kamaru this is Hyuga Neji, my all seeing teammate. And because of that let me reassure you that your baby is quite safe."

"Why do you know him?" Neji swings his cold, pale gaze and addresses the question to Tenten.

"Sheesh, I went to Suna not quite a year ago, remember?" Tenten juts her lower lip in a pout, not liking the fact that Neji seems to have forgotten such important mission. "And I met him—the Suna guide. Now, I understand better. Those two were probably having a lovers' tiff and for the first time, Temari didn't want the mission so that was why I was sent to Suna in her place."

"We did not have a lovers'—"

Tenten interrupts Kamaru as she gestures at someone coming closer. "Hmn by the looks of it somebody's mad at you…and FYI a female's intuition is never wrong."

"Tch."

The three wait as Temari strides closer. Each step she takes towards them speaks of restrained anger.

Finally at a level with them, Temari is about to snap something curt when another shinobi suddenly appears out of the blue in a puff of smoke.

"Yo," greets the masked shinobi wearing the standard Konoha jounin uniform with green flak jacket and his forehead protector slanted to cover one eye, a book dangling from one hand, a digit inserted between the pages, marking his place.

—o0o—

Kakashi, walking with the latest Icha Icha Jutsu book in one hand on the road beside the training ground, has seen Temari and Neji training when suddenly an unfamiliar foreign nin just attacks Neji and Temari.

The Hyuga genius is able to get free of the jutsu that immobilized him and turns the table at the stranger or so it seems.

Tenten has seen the danger and has come between the two combatants while Temari appears about to chew their head off.

"Yo," Kakashi greets the four shinobis. Three of which he knows and one he's getting a clearer inkling who.

Temari shuts her mouth. She's not gonna snaps Shikamaru's head off in front of a sensei no matter how tempted she is. "What are you doing here, Kakashi?" she mutters instead.

Kakashi ignores the blonde kunoichi to approach the foreign nin he has read about. "Would you sign this for me?" he speaks to the foreign nin, extending his book, The Icha Icha Jutsu, the latest one from the series of Icha Icha books written by no other than the former Hokage—Jiriaya—the master of hot, hot sultry drama. Kakashi believes he has one of the first copies published and he will have it autographed.

"What?" Temari roars at the back now turned to her as her face mirrors her incredulity.

Kakashi swiftly pivots around to face Temari, his unhidden eye is closed in a downward crescent, showing his happy mood as he waves the book on his hand excitedly. "I want his then your autograph."

Temari's eyes follow the book as it is being shaken about enthusiastically. She grunts as she reads the title: Icha Icha Jutsu. "Give it to me," she states as she tries to take the book.

"You'll get your turn." Kakashi avoids Temari's grappling fingers while still, with one hand, outstretching the book towards the foreign nin while his other hand searches his pockets for a pen—unsuccessfully.

"Oi, anybody got a pen," he hollers at nobody in particular but he knows other shinobis are currently covertly watching them or rather the foreign nin and Neji, waiting for a continuation of their fight. The training ground is still a public place even if it appears deserted.

"What's that book about, sensei?" Tenten asks, curious.

Someone with bushy brows in a green suit suddenly jumps down from a tree, excitedly remarking, "Yes, I wanna know too. I haven't ever read that kind of book! Gai-sensei had said it corrupts the youth but now I am interested! Does it teach a new kind of jutsu?"

Neji simply crosses his arms on his chest, containing his curiosity while the spectators who are watching the group at the edge of training ground are openly watching now, coming out from their hideouts.

Kiba, petting his big mutt, is grinning openly. "You're such a dog, Kamaru!" he shouts, receiving such a fearsome glare from Temari. "What? I simply meant he's such a loyal bitch, following you around. Umph." Suddenly his mouth is filled with tiny insects. Glaring at the hooded shinobi beside him, he makes a swipe at his mouth, intending to crush as many insects as he can; stopping only when the female in their team says, "Anou don't kill Shino's bugs."

Someone, a shinobi who's wearing a shirt cut to expose his midrift eventually throws Kakashi a pen.

"Thanks, Sai!" Kakashi shouts at the general direction of the pale shinobi before he offers the pen to the foreign nin as he opens his book to the first page. "Here, you can sign your name here then Temari can sign her name beside yours." Kakashi points on the centre of the first page, blank except for the title written in bold print.

Shikamaru hesitates then accepts the book and pen from the older masked shinobi.

"Don't you dare autograph that thing, Kamaru," Temari scowls.

Shikamaru shrugs. "Do you want me to write To Kakashi?" he asks the masked nin. The masked nin shakes his hands saying it's okay, acting suddenly self-conscious. Finally, Shikamaru just writes Sabaku Kamaru in his lazy scrawl on the page indicated. After which, he passes the book and pen to Temari.

Temari hastily and roughly reaches for the book, flipping through the leaves in a hurry before stopping at some random page. Then her eyes follow the words written, her emerald orbs getting bigger as she silently reads more and more.

Kakashi covers his ears. "I'm still on page sixty two. Temari don't dare give me spoilers!"

"What a load of crap!" Temari shakes the book agitatedly only to stop and seemingly can't help but read the next random page. "This! This! Wait 'til I get my hands on that pervert!" Temari growls threateningly, shoving the book back to Kakashi and marching away in a huff but Shikamaru notices the red tinge on her cheeks before she turns away, fury in every line of her body.

"Oi Temari! You haven't signed it yet!" Kakashi calls out.

TBC

~12 10 12, 1 3 13, 9 21 13AF U9 24 13~

A/N: Business as usual even if things feel like crap…

Review…it takes the sting away.