The Sex Talk and the New Rival

Author's Note: Another genin, this time FOR LEE! Mori Doi is his name and, well, you'll see. Yes he's an original character again.

Where does a sex talk come into this? Neji's genin discover Neji and Shikamaru are more than just friends in a sort of unconventional way...twice.

Rated M for sexy scenes between characters, swearing, and some blood and guts.

I don't own the characters but I am taking liberties with them and their universe.

WARNING: NAKED MALES DOING SEXY STUFF TO EACH OTHER AHEAD

Neji flung Kuma over his right shoulder but saw she landed on her left foot. She spun on her toes and aimed a kick to his hip with her right leg. Neji smirked but blocked the kick. Kuma did not let this detour her and flipped in the air again, sending her left foot towards Neji's back. Gods the girl was unconventionally amazing.

"Good," Neji told her.

He caught her left foot and she flicked her right up. Neji had to let go of the left to make sure he was out of range of her right foot. She landed then performed some kind of spinning sort of kick which flung both her feet towards him with such speed he had to keep backing up or be smacked. She lost momentum but sprung back, landing on her hands and back-flipping a few times to put some distance between them.

It had been a month since Neji had gotten his first team of genin. Kuma had improved drastically with his tips about her footwork. He had a feeling she trained when she got home and kept it up until she had to get ready for bed. He knew she was on the field for four in the morning, practicing her taijustu as well as kicking.

He had decided to focus on kicks in her personal style of taijustu. Kuma was quick, balanced, flexible, and agile enough to rely solely on her legs in combat though he did work on her upper body and punches. The punches came from the ground because if a leg ever got injured she needed back-up. Kuma came at him again from the air with a sort of spinning kick and Neji winced when he had to knock it aside with his right arm. Damn the girl could kick.

Akino had sped up by twenty-five percent and Tora was slowly learning to take a hit. Her stamina had improved thanks mostly to Kuma's teasing. Tora had become a bit more fluid but not as much as he would have liked. Akino occasionally lost to Tora because she used his inability to focus on his surroundings during a fight against him. She was doing this now.

Kuma came in with a low slashing kick and Neji jumped over it but had to back flip as Kuma's other leg flung up to smack him in the chin. He blocked the next kick in line with a smile. Neji did not want to play favorites but Kuma was easily winning the position.

"Excellent," Neji told her.

She grinned and kept going, front flipping this time with both feet aiming to take off his head. Neji had to move backwards but caught her right foot in his hand. Again her left foot came up to hit him as she spun in his grip. Neji flung her away but she flipped away on her right hand and came up on her feet five yards away.

The issue with such a high-impact fighting style was it ate away at her stamina. Kuma had stamina in spades and even after an hour of sparring was hardly winded. She did not stay away from him long and flew into the air, tiny body shifting in mid-air so she could kick him in the top of the head. Neji dodged and the foot slammed into the earth, leaving a dent. Kuma was all ready moving, opposite foot drilling her upwards and Neji blocked.

Gods, he would have bruises by tonight. Neji called for a stop after another hour and Kuma skidded to stillness, arms up to guard her face and left leg forward and slightly bent right leg back, perfectly in line with the left and slightly bent. Neji let out a breath as Kuma panted.

"You're doing exceptionally well," Neji said.

Kuma beamed then dropped out of her fighting stance. Neji patted her on the shoulder before they began to walk over to Tora and Akino. The duo still fought and Tora had managed to keep up the entire two hours without calling for a small break. She grinned when Neji called for it.

"Let's take a small break," Neji said.

Tora did not complain and began sipping her water. Akino sat in the grass and let out a long breath. Kuma leaned against one of the training posts with a smile. Neji sipped water from his canteen and saw someone coming towards them. Neji focused his Byakugan and blinked.

"My Eternal Rival!"

Neji's students gaped and turned as Lee came running towards Neji at top speed. Neji did not flinch as Lee came to a stop six inches from Neji while a cloud of dust forming around their feet. Kuma and Akino coughed but Tora had been wise enough to put a hand over her nose and mouth when she spotted Lee's speed. Lee gave Neji's students the nice guy pose. They stared with wide eyes and dropped jaws.

"What is it, Lee?" Neji questioned.

"I have a student in the Powers of Youth," Lee said in a shout.

Oh God. There would be another one. Neji managed to repress a shiver and nodded. Neji spotted a smaller form coming towards them and gaped. A mini-Lee stopped short beside the bigger Lee and Neji stared.

Mini-Lee had the same green tights, orange leg warmers, bandages around his forearms, bowl-shaped dark hair, thick eyebrows, and wore his forehead protector (in red) around his waist. Oh Hell. Mini-Lee gave Neji a nice guy pose and Neji held back a groan.

"This is my precious student Mori Doi," Lee said.

Neji bit his lip to keep from laughing. Kuma sniggered behind a hand. Tora coughed to hide her laugh. Akino smirked. Lee and Doi did not seem to understand the joke. Lee started going into his (loud) rant about youth. Doi looked up at him, stars in his eyes and fists trembling in front of him in pride.

As the speech continued on, Kuma, Tora, and Akino kept staring in awe. Finally, Lee finished and flashed another thumb up. Neji raised an eyebrow.

"Congratulations," Neji said in monotone.

Lee hacked and Doi pouted. Lee began chuckling and patted Neji on the shoulder a few times. Neji's students had no clue what to do.

"So calm, cool, and collected, Eternal Rival! Now we may rival in teaching the next generation about the will of fire in their Springtime of Youth! I will produce a wonderful shinobi who cannot use ninjutsu and genjutsu like me, you will see. The name Mori Doi will be known throughout the lands just as Might Guy and Rock Lee! We will be synonymous with hard-work, heart, and the Power of Youth!"

"Lee-sensei!"

"Doi!"

Neji felt his left eye twitching as the two began hugging and crying. Neji let out a long breath and wished Tenten was in the area to smack Lee upside the head. She wasn't. The two hugged themselves out and flashed him a nice guy pose.

"We are off to run around Konoha 500 times on our hands! Come Doi! To Youth!"

Lee took off with Doi following behind in a quick sprint. Neji blinked a few times before looking at his students. All three had their shoulders sagged, were pale, and looked like they had seen something they would rather forget.

"That was my teammate and one of my good friends: Rock Lee," Neji said.

Akino was first to recover and pointed in the direction Lee had run off in.

"THAT? How are you friends with, with, with," Akino tried.

"Konoha's Beautiful Green Wild Beast?" Neji offered.

They gaped at him. Neji smirked.

"That is what he calls himself," Neji said.

He chuckled when all three fainted. When they came to a minute later they stared up at him in wonder. Neji ruffled Kuma and Akino's hair affectionately and they grinned. He patted Tora on the shoulder and she smiled at him. He all ready knew Tora hated her hair touched. It was odd he had to reach up to pat Akino on the head.

"Let's call it an early day. Come on, I'll treat you to ramen at Ichiraku's," Neji said.

Kuma let out a whoop with a fist pump. Akino shrugged and Tora smiled and thanked him. Neji nodded to them as they gathered their gear. They strode out of the field at a good pace and entered the village proper. A few people glanced over as they passed but not in malice. They made it to the ramen restaurant without issue and saw it was oddly empty.

Neji settled in with his students and Teuchi smiled at him. Ayame gave him a wave. His students ordered and were stunned when Neji did not have to. They gave thanks anyway and began eating. Neji almost choked when he saw Kuma ate like Naruto. Tora gave the red-head a glare but chewed with lady-like precision. Akino ate slowly, savoring each bite. Neji shook his head at his thoughts and enjoyed his ramen.

"So, when do we get our first mission?" Kuma asked.

Her mouth was full of ramen and she had a naruto stuck on her cheek. Neji tapped his cheek and she wiped both cheeks to get the stray topping before devouring it. Neji did not blame the girl in wanting a warm, well prepared meal. The bento box was always the same: white rice on lettuce with string beans and mushrooms. Sometimes the toppings varied but not often and there were more times than Neji wanted to count when all Kuma had was white rice.

The girl's snacks included more rice or dry looking oatmeal. Akino always had a bag of fresh vegetables or fruits with cheese and crackers for a snack, all cut up to be fancy. Tora had vegetables with dressing. Neji normally went the cheese and cracker route for simple proteins. Neji let out a breath and pulled away from his thoughts.

"Well, today is Thursday," Neji began.

Now he had all three's devoted attention. Neji kept his smirk back.

"We will have a full training day tomorrow, take the weekend for a break and modify our training Monday so we can take a mission in the afternoon," Neji said.

"YES!"

Kuma jumped out of her chair with her fist pump and Neji smiled at her. Tora giggled happily and Akino nodded with a smile on his face. Neji caught Teuchi looking at Kuma with a smile, likely remembering how exuberant Naruto had been and still was.

"We likely will not be leaving Konoha," Neji said.

Kuma sat with a thunk and pouted. Neji smiled at her.

"D-rank missions are within Konoha's boundaries and include: finding lost pets, gardening, trash collecting, dog walking, farming, protecting people in the village, and repair."

All three stared at him in disbelief.

"They are meant to help you work on your team-skills. If you can do well in D-rank missions then we will move up to C-rank which can include a bit of danger. I worked on 26 D-Rank missions before moving up to C-Rank," Neji told them.

They sighed but nodded. Neji smiled at them as they went back to their ramen. Neji heard his name and turned to see none other than Naruto coming towards them. He heard his team sputter in wonder as the would-be Hokage half-hugged Neji in greeting.

"How're doing, Neji?" Naruto asked.

"I am well, you?" Neji returned.

"I'm great! Oh, hi! Are these your students?"

Neji inclined his head in a nod as Naruto introduced himself though the introduction was not necessary. None of his students could speak so Neji pointed them out to Naruto who shook their hands with a grin.

"Mind if I join you?" Naruto questioned.

"We don't mind at all," Neji replied.

Naruto took the seat beside Kuma who had taken Neji's right side. Tora had sat to Neji's left while Akino settled beside Tora. Tora and Akino looked disappointed with their choice in seating arrangement as Kuma beamed.

"Oh! Miso ramen with extra chashu! That's my favorite too," Naruto told Kuma.

Kuma gaped, nodded lightning quick, and flushed all at once. Neji chuckled as Naruto's first bowl of miso ramen was placed in front of him. Naruto enthusiastically gave thanks and began digging in. Kuma went back to her ramen and Neji could not help but watch them as they mimicked each other. Naruto noticed this after a moment and grinned.

"Good thing you've know me, huh Neji?" Naruto cheekily asked.

Neji snorted but nodded. Kuma looked between the two with some ramen noodles hanging from her mouth. Naruto laughed as Kuma sucked up her noodles. Neji shook his head at the two and went back to his meal. He, Tora, and Akino finished their ramen but Naruto bought Kuma a bowl on his instance. Neji did not mind in the slightest. The chat was idle and it was nice to spend time in a relaxed setting with his team.

Neji still had a suspicion Kuma's mother and sister relied on whatever money Kuma could bring in. The girl did not eat well at home and being treated to ramen with plenty of protein, vegetables, and starches would do her well. Perhaps Neji would make an effort to treat his students to ramen once a week for Kuma's sake.

"So, what do you have planned for tonight, Neji?" Naruto asked. "I hear Shikamaru's had a rough day."

Neji almost choked on the water he sipped. Naruto was waggling his eyebrows suggestively and Neji cursed the day Naruto finally clued into sex and everything it entailed. Damn Sasuke and Kiba for this.

"Then I will have to pay him a visit," Neji said.

"A visit or a visit?" Naruto questioned with a smirk.

"What's the difference?" Kuma enquired.

Neji gulped and felt the heat come into his cheeks. Damn idiot.

"Well—" Naruto began.

"Ah, nothing, nothing," Neji said to her. "Shut up Naruto."

His students gaped in wonder. Naruto laughed. Neji glared but Naruto was immune to it and had always been.

"Ah, sorry, sorry, but Shikamaru will appreciate it either way," Naruto said.

Neji hummed in agreement as Naruto moved onto his third bowl of ramen. Kuma still worked on her second, watching Naruto put away ramen in awe. He heard his and Naruto's names called out and turned to see Kiba and Akamaru coming towards them. Neji students stared at the big nin-dog in wonder.

"Hey, so this is your team, huh?" Kiba asked.

"Yes, Rinji Akino, Junji Tora, and Takenaka Kuma," Neji answered.

Kiba nodded to them all and they looked up at him with wide eyes and open mouths. Kiba took the seat beside Naruto and Kuma watched.

"Inuzuka, right?" Tora asked.

"Yep, Inuzuka Kiba," Kiba answered.

Tora adjusted her glasses and half stood in her stool so she could look at Kiba. He grinned wolfishly at her.

"You were on a team with Neji-sensei's cousin and Aburame Shino," Tora said.

Kiba nodded then he and Naruto burst out laughing.

"Wow, Neji-sensei. Neji, you tell Shika to call you that yet?" Kiba questioned.

Neji hated his cheeks heating but glared at Kiba. Kiba balked but the smile came back and he shook his head in amusement.

"What's he mean?" Kuma asked.

Neji rubbed his forehead before shooting Kiba another glare. Kiba hid behind Naruto who had moved onto a fourth bowl of ramen.

"Never mind," Neji told her.

Kuma pouted. She went back to her ramen with a smile though and Neji let out a breath. Tora wasn't done talking.

"Your sense of smell is said to be the best in the Inuzuka clan," Tora said.

Kiba blinked at her then looked to Neji.

"She read my file?" Kiba asked.

Neji opened his mouth to answer but Tora beat him to it.

"Of course!" Tora said. "Once I knew Neji-sensei was my sensei I read the files of all his close friends and clan so I could know more about him."

Dead silence. Neji had not known Tora had read all the files on anyone Neji was close to. Talk about information gathering.

"Why?" Akino asked.

Tora stared at him and repeated the reason of knowing more about him. Akino rolled his eyes and muttered "annoying." This made Naruto and Kiba snicker.

"I mean why go through all that trouble when you could've just asked Neji-sensei what you wanted to know. It's not like he's hiding his life from us," Akino said.

Tora grunted and fell into her chair. She rubbed her forehead and started arguing with Akino who simply started to focus on whatever his inner thoughts were part-way through. Kuma finally finished her ramen and Neji let out a breath. He stood which prompted Tora to stop talking and Akino to snap back into attention.

"You three know where to meet me: same time, same place. Kiba, Naruto: you tell them anything that would be awkward to explain and I will kill you. I wish you all a good evening," Neji said as he paid.

His students gaped at him with his pronouncement but a glare at the two in question made them chuckle. Kiba muttered but nodded. Naruto grinned.

"Have fun at Shikamaru's," Naruto said teasingly.

"You know I will," Neji said with a smirk.

This caused the two adults to burst out laughing. Neji's genin asked what it meant but Kiba and Naruto didn't answer. Neji left his students in the care of the older shinobi with a smile. Neji's Shikamaru needed some tender loving care and Neji had no issue giving it.

Neji dropped into Shikamaru's sunroof and landed quietly on the bed. He heard the sounds of some show or movie on the television in the front room and peered out of Shikamaru's half-closed bedroom door. Shikamaru laid on the couch, Neji could see the top of Shikamaru's pony-tail over one armrest. Neji smirked.

He took a moment to take off his shoes, his hitai-ate, and his bandana. Neji paused and wondered if he should make this easier on Shikamaru. He shrugged and stripped down until all he wore was the small black thong. Neji strode out of Shikamaru's room to see the genius had fallen asleep on the couch.

Neji grinned before shifting to kneel beside the armrest Shikamaru's head rested on and lightly began messaging the genius' scalp. Shikamaru groaned and his eyes half-opened. His lips curled into a smile and Neji returned the gesture.

"Naruto told me you had a long day," Neji said.

Shikamaru hummed in agreement. Neji continued the scalp message, pulling out Shikamaru's hair tie and running his hands through the thick, dark, unevenly cut hair for several moments. Neji allowed his hands wander down the sides of Shikamaru's face then onto his shoulders and chest.

"You realize I'm not moving, right?" Shikamaru asked.

Neji hummed and nodded. He got to his feet and saw Shikamaru's eyes go wide. Neji shifted to straddle Shikamaru's waist and began rubbing Shikamaru's chest over the thin black tee-shirt Shikamaru wore. Shikamaru grinned, his hands coming up to hold onto Neji's waist. Neji rubbed some more, shifting his hips slightly with his ministrations.

Shikamaru kept smiling and started lifting his hips to match Neji's pace. Neji licked his lips before pushing Shikamaru's shirt up and off. Neji lifted his body upwards to undo Shikamaru's pants before sliding the pants down Shikamaru's toned long legs. Shikamaru, as normal, wore nothing under the pants. Neji smirked.

"Lazy ass," Neji said.

"You love it," Shikamaru told him.

Neji smiled and tried to steady his heart. Neji did love it, a lot of it, but had no idea how to tell Shikamaru how much Neji loved him. Neji put the thought aside before shifting again to remove his thong. Shikamaru's hands began rubbing his hips but Neji did not mind. They shifted against each other, groin to groin, slowly, methodically, and Neji couldn't help but began to gasp in pleasure.

Their cocks leaking pre-cum helping with the sliding against each other but Neji wanted more. He made to get lube but Shikamaru's hands clenched on Neji's hips. Neji raised his eyebrows in question but Shikamaru shook his head.

"Sorry, I don't want you moving," Shikamaru said.

"Even to get lube so you can be inside me?" Neji questioned.

"Too tired for that," Shikamaru said.

Neji frowned but kept shifting his hips against Shikamaru's. Neji moaned when Shikamaru reached a hand up to tweak Neji's nipple. Shikamaru used one finger to tease Neji's begging hole. Neji picked up the pace and saw Shikamaru squeeze his eyes shut. Shikamaru's brow and chest were damp with sweat, his mouth open to allow him to gasp and his muscles flexed seductively with every thrust of his hips.

Shikamaru did not last long and came within a minute with a little grunt. Neji scowled as Shikamaru trembled out the last throws of his orgasm. Shikamaru's eyes stayed closed and he did not open them. Neji let out a long breath and ran a hand through his hair. He was hard, turned on, and it looked like Shikamaru had fallen asleep.

Neji shifted until he got off the genius and grabbed some tissue from the side table beside the couch. He wiped up Shikamaru's release before gathering the man's clothing. Neji tossed the tissue in the garbage in Shikamaru's bedroom and the clothing in the laundry hamper. He found the extra blanket in its place in the closet and strode back into the living room to cover Shikamaru with it.

Shikamaru had not moved and slept deeply on the couch. Neji sighed before covering his friend. He grabbed an extra pillow and placed it under Shikamaru's head before bending to grab his thong from the floor. Neji smirked before placing the skimpy underwear on Shikamaru's coffee table. The television was turned off and Neji made sure the front door was locked. He strode back into Shikamaru's room, dressed, and left the same way he had come in. At least Shikamaru could rest happily.

"Again," Neji commanded.

Kuma nodded and launched another one of her flying spinning kicks. She got more altitude this time and Neji nodded. Kuma landed on the toes of her right foot, spun into a kick off her left leg, delivered said kick and landed on her left foot, the right coming up again for another kick. This time she over-spun and landed in a heap on her ass with her legs open in front of her and looking dizzy. Neji let out a breath.

"Are you all right?" Neji questioned.

She had trouble focusing on him and Neji frowned.

"There's two of you," Kuma replied.

Neji sighed and shook his head. He settled on the ground beside Kuma and ran a hand through his hair. He had been pushing the girl (Akino and Tora as well) a bit hard today. It was because he had not reached release last night with Shikamaru. Still. It did not mean he could take it out on his genin.

"Let's wait until there is only one of me, okay?" Neji said.

"Okay," Kuma agreed.

Neji patted her shoulder before looking to where Akino and Tora sparred. The two were not fighting with the energy they normally employed and Neji knew why. He had made them run laps this morning before going into strength drills and speed drills. At 9AM they had not taken a break as normal and instead he made them do their individual drills: Akino on speed, Tora on aim, and Kuma on charka control until lunch. He had given them half an hour for lunch then sparring for all of them which had started two hours ago.

"Akino, Tora, come here," Neji shouted across the field.

The two stopped, looking more relieved than he could imagine, and came to sit in front of him and Kuma. Both were coated in a fine sheen of sweat and Neji felt horrible.

"I apologize for drilling you three so hard today," Neji said.

Tora shook her head. Akino shrugged. Kuma gaped and got to her feet, or at least tried to. She fell over after a second.

"But we're going on a mission on Monday," Tora said. "You're preparing us."

Neji sighed but held Kuma down when she tried to get back up. She pointed to Tora and nodded but apparently this too was a bad idea as she almost fell back. Neji held her head still and she pouted.

"No, it's not because of any potential mission we have Monday. I was being an ass and I am sorry," Neji said.

They looked at him then to each other and blinked. Neji wanted to laugh but kept it down. Akino muttered his favorite word but Kuma grinned. Tora smiled and shrugged.

"You must have had a fight with Shikamaru-sama last night then, right?" Tora asked.

Neji managed to keep his blush down but nodded. Tora giggled at him and told him it was okay, he was only human. Akino yawned and repeated his catch-phrase of sorts. Kuma grinned at him.

"You should go talk to him to—" Tora started but stopped.

Neji followed her line of sight to see someone walking towards them. The slouch of the shoulders and smoke wafting towards the sky was immediately recognizable. Neji gulped as Shikamaru came closer to Neji and his genin. Tora grinned. Akino flopped back onto the grass with a sigh and Kuma giggled at Neji.

"Hey," Shikamaru said when he was close enough.

"Hello," Neji said.

Shikamaru rubbed the back of his neck but his dark eyes flickered to all three genin. Shikamaru settled to meeting Neji's eyes and Neji felt the heat rising in his body. He could not keep it from entering his cheeks and could only hope his cheeks did not go too red. He also wished he wore looser pants but it was too late now.

"Sorry about last night," Shikamaru said.

His eyes said he was embarrassed about leaving Neji hanging like that. Neji smiled softly and shrugged.

"Do not worry about it," Neji said.

Shikamaru nodded, catching the look in Neji's eyes telling Shikamaru all was forgiven. Neji loved they could communicate without words. Shikamaru again gazed at the three genin.

"I'll make it up to you tonight. Come by around eighteen-hundred hours," Shikamaru said.

Neji smiled and inclined his head once in agreement. Shikamaru gave him a short wave before walking away with the cigarette still dangling between his lips. Neji watched him go before turning his attention back to his team.

Akino had closed his eyes and looked to be sleeping. Tora and Kuma had both gone red and were giggling. Neji raised an eyebrow at the girls. Tora got control of her laughter before Kuma.

"Neji-sensei has a date tonight," Tora teased.

Neji felt his ears heat and every bit of his face. His flush made the two girls break into fresh chuckles and Neji groaned before covering his eyes with a hand. He lowered his head and tried to force his cheeks to stop heating.

"Two guys can date?" Akino asked.

This helped his blush go away. Neji put his hand down and looked up. Akino had sat up and frowned. Tora and Kuma gaped at him. Tora swatted him.

"Of course two men can date! Why wouldn't they be able to?" Tora questioned.

Akino shrugged.

"I don't know. I've just never heard of it before, that's all. Besides, doesn't it take a man and a woman to make a baby? I didn't think two guys could," Akino said.

Neji had been hoping not to have this talk so soon. He sighed and shook his head.

"Yes, it does take a man and a woman to make a child," Neji said.

All three focused on him and Neji let out a breath. Talk about tackling a problem head on.

"No, they do not have to be married and yes it does take more than a kiss. You did pay attention in the biology classes at the academy?"

They nodded.

"What does biology have to do with making a kid?" Akino questioned.

Neji bit his tongue to keep from laughing. When he had heard about the female reproductive system and the male reproductive system he had put two and two together. It looked like Tora had too, judging by her blush.

"You do remember the woman releases an egg once a month and the male produces sperm, correct?" Neji asked.

Akino nodded. Kuma blinked.

"The egg and sperm carry half of that person's genetic material and when they meet its called conception. The fertilized egg then travels into the woman's uterus and if it sticks then the egg develops into a fetus which continues to develop into a baby during the nine months," Neji explained.

Akino's eyes went wide as everything began clicking in his head. Kuma's jaw dropped and she kept blinking rapidly. Tora had covered her face in both hands in her embarrassment. Neji waited.

"That's what sex is? A man putting his...thing in a woman's...thing over and over so the sperm can fertilize the egg?" Akino questioned in a sputter.

Neji coughed to stop from laughing then shook his head.

"There is a lot more to sex than inserting peg a into slot a over and over," Neji said.

Tora groaned and sagged. Kuma kept gaping at him. Akino's eyes were going to fall out of his head with how wide he had them.

"There is kissing, any kind of touching, some people get exceptionally creative, you discover more as you go along," Neji said.

Akino nodded slowly. Kuma blushed.

"Anyway, you are correct: two men cannot make a child, nor can two women but sometimes a man loves a man in the same kind of way a husband and wife love each other. Then there are people who do not necessarily want to ever have sex or a child. There are people attracted to both genders. Some people feel like they are the wrong gender or neither gender. Sex and gender are complicated, not entirely black and white.

"The best method to apply is to do what you feel is right in the situation and if something makes you uncomfortable then tell your partner about it. Do experiment though to see what you like and what you dislike but again, do not be afraid to talk to someone, even someone besides your partner, about anything having to do with sex and gender. Okay?"

Akino nodded. Kuma hugged him. Tora gaped at him, the high points of her cheeks still pink. She latched onto his other side for a hug. After a moment both girls tugged Akino into the hug (Akino rolled his eyes) and Neji chuckled. They broke out of the group hug after a minute and Neji smiled.

"Let's stop early and go get some ramen, my treat," Neji said.

Kuma fist-pumped with a shout, jumping high above Neji's head. Akino rolled his eyes at her saying his word. Tora sighed and shook her head, holding her forehead with one hand. Neji chuckled before getting to his feet and leading his students towards an early dinner. Tonight would be a good night.

Neji felt warmth across his eyelids and opened his eyes. The sun was bright, coming in through a window above his head. Shikamaru had one arm draped across Neji's chest and both of Neji's legs trapped in Shikamaru's. For several moments, Neji enjoyed the feel of the mused bed-sheets under his back, the warm sun on his face, and even the smell of (exceptional) sex in the room. Then he panicked.

"Shit," Neji exclaimed.

He tried to sit up but Shikamaru grunted before pulling him close. Neji groused. His students were going to kill him. Neji tried to push the genius away but Shikamaru hung on tighter, forcing Neji back down and shifting until he was atop of Neji. Normally this was not a horrible thing. Neji groaned in frustration and pushed against Shikamaru's shoulders. Finally the genius raised his head off of Neji's chest and blinked at him.

"Go back to sleep," Shikamaru said.

"I'm late for training with my—" Neji tried.

"It's Saturday," Shikamaru said with a smirk.

Neji opened his mouth then closed it. Shikamaru was right. It was Saturday. Neji had been kind and given his students the weekend off before their first mission Monday afternoon.

Neji let out a long breath and relaxed as Shikamaru chuckled at him.

"Shut up," Neji said.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru said with a yawn.

He put his head back on Neji's chest and snuggled into him. Neji smiled before wrapping his arms around Shikamaru's waist. Neji closed his eyes and felt Shikamaru's breathing even out. Neji was a few moments from falling back asleep when a clatter from above made his eyes snap open. He gaped and felt his entire face turn red.

Shikamaru must have felt Neji's body stiffen (and not in a good way) as his head came up and he stared at Neji. Shikamaru turned his head and blinked up at his sunroof to see the same horrible sight Neji was looking at.

Kuma stared into the sunroof with a smile on her face. Her red hair was ablaze from the sun, her yellow shirt, orange vest and shorts practically glowed because of the light. She waved down at Neji and kept smiling.

"Neji-sensei! Sorry for bugging you but I wanted to know if you could help me with that move we were trying yesterday."

Neji had no clue what to say. All he could do was stare at Kuma with his eyes wide, jaw dropped, and wishing he could sink into a hole and die. Shikamaru muttered his favorite word and ran a hand through his loose hair.

"I guess this is why having a sunroof above my bed is a bad idea," Shikamaru said.

Neji groaned and closed his eyes. He heard Kuma giggle but worse was the feel of her landing on the bed. At least she had aimed well and settled beside them and not on top of their naked bodies. Neji peeked out from under his lashes to see Shikamaru was covered from the waist down by the mused blankets. The War Leader was also staring at Kuma with a bored expression on his face while Kuma sat cross-legged on the bed with a smile.

"Well, I was going to make Neji-sensei breakfast—" Shikamaru began.

Kuma stopped him with a grin.

"You can still do that. I can help! Where's your kitchen? I'll find it!"

Kuma front-flipped over their bodies, landed on her right hand then flicked her body forward to land on her feet in a dead run out of the room. Shikamaru blinked then smirked.

"Impressive," Shikamaru said.

Neji nodded. Shikamaru snorted at him before getting out of bed. Neji was distracted by Shikamaru's naked body until Neji's pants hit him in the face.

"Get dressed. We'll have to have a shower after breakfast," Shikamaru said.

Neji grinned before getting to his feet. He was dressed in a few moments as was Shikamaru. They both heard clatter coming from the kitchen and Shikamaru raised his eyebrow before lighting his first smoke of the day.

"This could be troublesome,"

"Hn,"

Shikamaru smirked and Neji followed him out of the living room. At least it couldn't get any worse.

Neji tried not to laugh as Kuma sat on the ground, obviously dizzy. It was almost time for lunch but the girl did not look to be giving up any time soon. She had done well to start on breakfast, not making too much of a mess, and chatted happily with Neji and Shikamaru while they cooked and ate.

Shikamaru taught her the basics of shoji while Neji showered and Neji had left with Kuma while Shikamaru bathed. They had hit the training field by 9:45. They had not stopped since.

Kuma got up, no longer dizzy and smiled at him. Neji returned the smile but stopped her from trying the series of kicks she was attempting to perfect. She tilted her head at him in curiosity and he wanted to laugh.

"Let's try something different," Neji said.

Kuma nodded eagerly. Neji had thought up a few kicks as they ate breakfast this morning and wanted to see if his most enthusiastic student could add to her repertoire.

"All right, do a kick off either foot towards my head. I'm going to catch your ankle and instead of spinning to kick with your other leg, kick forward to hit me in the face," Neji said.

Kuma blinked at him, mouth open and eyes wide. He raised his eyebrows at her when she shook her head and began fiddling with her fingers, hands raised above her heart.

"I don't want to hurt you, Neji-sensei," Kuma said.

Neji refrained from groaning or rolling his eyes.

"I am a jonin who trained with Rock Lee and Might Guy. I can take it," Neji said.

Kuma nodded then launched into the air. Neji caught her right ankle at the side of his head and her left foot slammed into his forehead, heel first. Neji let go of her right ankle and the force of her kick threw Kuma backwards where she landed on both hands and flipped back. She grinned.

"That is exactly what I wanted to happen," Neji said.

Kuma squealed, jumping up and down happily. Neji motioned for her to come in and this time she kicked with her left foot. She flipped off the same way, perfectly and Neji smiled.

"Again, but this time instead of kicking me in the forehead, slam your foot into my shoulder and try to head up," Neji said.

Kuma nodded. He caught her left ankle and her right foot whammed into his shoulder she went upwards, spun in mid-air and landed behind him on her feet in her ready position. She beamed. Neji nodded to her, ignoring the pain in his left shoulder. She came at him again, using the opposite foot as normal and landed perfectly.

"Now, those will be evasion moves. They will let you stun your enemy so you can get away if your captain calls a retreat for whatever reason. You will also be able to stun a weaker enemy to deal with a strong one while whoever is coming up behind you can take down the weaker enemy.

"You are much faster than Tora and Akino so it will be likely you'll be using both those moves a lot when we go into higher ranked missions. Take away the leading kick and lighten your foot action and you can use Akino's height to launch yourself upwards. Understood?" Neji questioned.

Kuma nodded vigorously. She looked thoughtful for a moment and Neji waited.

"If I launch off a person's shoulder, I could spin and kick them on the top of the head, right?" Kuma asked.

"Let's see," Neji said.

Kuma leaped into the air. Neji caught her left ankle and she slammed her right foot into his shoulder to fling her body upwards. He glanced up to see her coming down and she landed on the top of his head, balancing on her toes. Neji chuckled and she laughed before jumping down and landing on her hands, flipping forward and coming up on her feet.

He wanted to try a few more concepts with her and was glad she had come to find him this morning. He knew she would come find him tomorrow too and decided it might be easier if he simply told her to meet him in the morning instead of making her run around the Hyuuga compound.

"All right I want you to balance on your hands," Neji said.

Kuma nodded and flipped so she balanced on her hands. She looked up at him from her position with a smile. She did not have the curve to her spine most people employed to stay upright and Neji grinned.

"Good, now, I know you can walk on your hands. I want to see if you can spin on them," Neji said.

Kuma nodded and bit her lip to think. Neji watched as she spun on her hands. Neji smiled. Kuma grinned at him then understood what he was trying to get her to do. Her legs opened and she began spinning on her hands, moving left and right to attack multiple invisible enemies. After ten spins she fell over and Neji bit his lip to keep from laughing at her dizzy expression.

"Are you all right?" Neji asked.

"There's two of you again," Kuma said with a pout.

Neji chuckled and sat beside her on the grass. She shifted until she was flat on her back, arms and legs spread out from her truck. She was breathing a bit heavily but Neji did not blame her. He had not expected her to get ten rotations in. With the way she had improved the past month she would be hitting thirty rotations in another month.

"When you are spinning, keep your focus on one object and your head up. It's best if you can keep an eye on an enemy instead of blindly spinning on your hands and hoping your kicks land," Neji told her.

Kuma nodded in agreement and a breeze blew across them. Neji smiled at the wind tickling through his hair and let out a breath.

"When you get the hang of spinning on two hands then I want to try to get you spinning on one," Neji said.

"Why?" Kuma asked.

Her brows had furrowed and she had a frown on her face. Neji chuckled at her.

"This way with your free hand you can use your excellent aim to throw senbon, shuriken, or kunai. You would also be able to throw dirt into your enemies' faces. And if you can do thirty spins on one hand and thirty on the other," Neji trailed off.

Kuma grinned happily and Neji shook his head at her joy with a smile on his face. Her fighting style would not change much if she grew to be taller. The extra height would help her as her legs would be longer. Even if she did not grow she would not be impeded. Her arm reach would never be great but her legs would make up for it.

"You do realize you will have to start doing some upper body and core strength training," Neji said.

Kuma nodded. She did not move but Neji did not mind. This was not a formal training session and today they would go at Kuma's pace.

"I would suggest handstand push-ups: as many as you can do until your arms get sore, rest for five minutes then again until your arms get sore. Three sets. For core you can do squats as it will help your legs as well. We'll get you holding a weight for those. Also, we could get you some leg weights to start building up more leg strength," Neji said.

"Awesome," Kuma said.

Her grin was wide enough to show teeth. Neji heard someone running and looked up. He raised his eyebrows in question as Lee and Doi came running up to him. They skidded to a stop two feet away and Neji blinked. Kuma sat up and her eyes went wide at the appearance of the two. Doi pointed to Kuma who tilted her head to a side.

"I challenge you to a fight," Doi said.

He grinned as he shouted the words and Neji wanted to groan. He shrugged when Kuma looked up at him and Doi gave her the nice guy pose. Neji got to his feet and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Lee, did you put him up to this?" Neji asked.

"Yosh! I am your eternal rival so Doi should have one of your youthful students be his eternal rival," Lee replied.

Neji watched as Kuma got to her feet. She stared between the two green-clan Beasts of Konoha then again met Neji's eyes. He grinned and nodded.

"Fine, but I can assure you you've never seen Kuma's style of taijustu," Neji said.

Lee began laughing and Neji spotted Guy-sensei and Tenten coming towards them. Neji gave Kuma a wink before walking away from the two genin who bowed to each other and shook hands. Doi was promising he would not hold back because Kuma was a girl and Kuma said she wouldn't hold back on him either.

Lee and Neji stood ten yards from their students. Guy-sensei took up a position beside Lee and Tenten beside Neji. Kuma and Doi looked over and Neji activated his Byakugan. Lee told Guy-sensei about what Neji had said.

"Ah, my genius, I have seen every taijustu form and taught Lee them all! There is nothing that will surprise us," Guy-sensei said.

Neji knew both would bet him they had seen Kuma's style but he did not want to listen to a rant about the joys of youth or being right today.

"Let us not bet on that," Neji said.

Guy-sensei hummed but nodded. Tenten raised her eyebrows in curiosity but Neji would not indulge her yet. She would love this. Lee and Guy-sensei would be floored, so would Doi but for the genin it would be literal.

Neji nodded to the two genin. Kuma grinned and fell into her fighting stance. Neji heard the confused sounds from his former teammates. Doi had been running in for an attack but stopped. Kuma decided to take this advantage and launched her petite form into the air. Her right foot slammed into the side of Doi's head and he stumbled backwards.

Kuma kept spinning in the air, landed on her right foot as she kicked Doi in the head again with her left foot. Neji kept back his laugh as she started spinning on her hands, each kick pegging Doi hard in the head.

She finished by flipping her body into the air by her hands, spinning in mid-air and booting Doi with both of her feet in the face, sending him rolling away and landing in a sprawl, completely defeated. Kuma landed on her hands again, back-flipped then settled into her fighting stance. The grin on her face told Neji all he needed to know and he could not help but smile.

"Well that was quick," Neji drawled.

Lee and Guy-sensei were sputtering. Lee had fallen to his knees and had his hands up and trembling in front of him in an open-palm position. Guy-sensei was pointing at Kuma and trying to speak. Tenten showed her shock less dramatically: a dropped jaw, sagged shoulders, and wide eyes.

"Neji-sensei, I think I kicked Doi-san too hard," Kuma called out.

Neji kept his laughter back but shrugged for Kuma. She jogged over to him and smiled. Doi was starting to come around now and Neji wanted to chuckle at the look of utter disbelief on his face. Doi did stand (likely too quickly) and pointed to Kuma. Kuma tilted her head and blinked at him.

"Takenaka Kuma! You are now my eternal rival! I promise one day I will beat you as this is my shinobi way," Doi said.

His words echoed across the field and he gave her the nice guy pose complete with pinging teeth. Kuma blinked then looked up at Neji for advice. Neji patted her on the shoulder.

"There is no way out of it," Neji said.

Kuma huffed but nodded to Doi. Lee had finally gotten to his feet and ran to where Doi was standing. Lee started going on about more hard-work, dedication, youth, but Neji toned him out. Guy-sensei had finally gotten over his shock and stared at both Kuma and Neji with his arms crossed over his chest and a serious look on his face.

"That is a very interesting style of taijustu you have taught your student, Neji," Guy-sensei said.

Neji inclined his head in thanks.

"I noticed she has exceptional balance, flexibility, speed, and agility so I decided to make a style using all these concepts which also reflects the fact she has much stronger kicks than punches. She may grow taller still but on the off chance she stays less than five feet then she will have the advantage as her leg reach is longer than most people's arm reach," Neji explained.

Guy-sensei smiled, a real smile, and Neji returned the gesture. Tenten shook her head but patted him on the shoulder in a friendly way.

"Plus I've got a lot of stamina and can spin a lot without getting dizzy," Kuma said.

"That as well," Neji agreed.

Guy-sensei chuckled and placed a hand on Neji's shoulder.

"Good job, Neji. She is learning to punch though?" Guy-sensei asked.

"Of course but most of her punches come from an on the ground position assuming the fact if she has to punch one of her legs would be injured," Neji replied.

Guy-sensei gave him a nice guy pose and Neji smirked. Lee and Doi were hugging and crying but Neji decided not to stare. Kuma jolted when the duo finished and took off to run laps around Konoha.

"Ah, where would I get a set of leg weights?" Neji questioned.

Guy-sensei chuckled, took a notebook out of his vest, and wrote down something. Neji took the paper and saw a shop name, grinning before putting it into his vest. He all ready knew the leg weights would not be thick and be able to be hidden by leg warmers. They would also be much heavier than a typical weight and Kuma would gain exceptional strength and speed in her legs using them.

"Good, Kuma, let's go get some ramen then go shopping for leg weighs and leg warmers," Neji said.

"Awesome," Kuma said.

She fist-pumped and jumped. Neji chuckled at her and began to walk away with Tenten and his former sensei. Guy-sensei excused himself to go observe Lee and Doi but Neji did not mind. Kuma lead the way through the village once she knew where they were headed and Neji took the opportunity to ask Tenten a question.

"How much chakra is needed to summon your weapons?" Neji asked.

Tenten grinned.

"You've never been interested in that before. Why ask now?" Tenten returned.

Neji smirked.

"Kuma reminds me of you when she throws weapons, perhaps not as quickly but she rarely misses dead center on a target and can throw weapons quickly. I was thinking if she can summon weapons then it would give her a distinct advantage in a fight while she's employing some of her spinning kicks," Neji said.

Tenten's eyes lit and Neji knew he had her. She launched into an explanation of her summoning scrolls and how much chakra she used and Neji paid complete attention. He would write it all down later and make sure he had it right.

Even so, Kuma had to learn to control her chakra before she could think of summoning weapons. Neji had a good feeling he could turn Kuma into one of the best fighters Konoha had seen in a long time and smiled. Becoming Neji-sensei had been an excellent career move.

This was a really awkward place to split this chapter up. When I started writing this story I didn't include breaks for chapters so...yeah. Anyway, comments welcome, next chapter coming soon.

For the reviewer who was worried about this being abandoned: haha, no worries my friend. I've written about 50 chapters so far and it's still going. I'm not entirely sure how long this will end up being. *shrugs* we're in it for the long haul. ;)