Ice cream with Sakura

Author's Notes: The after-effects of Neji's conversation with Shikamaru.

Again: I LOVE Shikamaru's character and the pairing of Shika and Neji. I also figure Shika would be the kind of person to NOT want to approach a troublesome conversation with someone about emotions.

Why Sakura? I figure under all that insane temper she's got a soft side and is brilliant when it comes to people's emotions and life in general. Why? Hm, she's the ONLY other shinobi who's mastered Strength of One Hundred seal and the Ninja Art Creation – Strength of a Hundred seal. Not even Shizune's done that and she's been under Tsunade's tutelage for way longer.

Rated M for sex scenes between male characters, some gore, and swearing.

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

He had stayed in the red dragon room crying for what seemed like days, weeks even. It had been two hours, enough for the sun to set and for Neji to be able to walk the streets of Konoha without being disturbed. The owner had been startled when Neji walked out of the room and had been about to speak but stopped with a choking sound at whatever expression Neji had on his face. Neji had used the washroom, snorted at his red-rimmed eyes, cleaned up as best he could then left.

The night air was cool and he walked with his thumbs hooked through his belt loops at a measured pace. His eyes hurt from crying and his head throbbed from the tears. His throat was dry and his nose felt plugged with sand but he did not care. He had his heart broken for the second time by the man he loved. At least he had his stupid closure.

Neji sighed as he continued his walk. He did not care where he went so long as it was not home. He could not stand to look at anyone he cared about right now. Neji let his feet take him out of the main streets and into the training fields. He did not go to field twenty-seven where he and his genin trained. No, he went to field fifteen where he, Lee, and Tenten had trained with Guy-sensei.

The field was empty as even Lee had gone home for the night. Even so the posts were still there as were the training dummies Guy-sensei set up every morning and replaced every week since the three of them normally rendered a set of three training dummies useless by week's end. It had been so odd the Third had come to watch a training session one day to see what the Hell they did and left impressed and understanding.

Tsunade-sama had done the same when she spotted Guy-sensei's weekly training dummy requests. She merely shook her head, smirked, and walked off while telling them to keep up the good work. Sakura had almost fainted. Shizune had deadpanned.

Neji went to one of the training dummies now and got into a fighting stance in front of it. He lashed out with chakra laced hands and beat the training dummy over and over. When he began to run low on chakra he fell into a sort of mimicry of Kuma's taijustu. He could not perform the same sort of kicks but it was nice to punch, kick, knee, and generally beat the living shit out of the straw man in front of him.

Straw had started to flutter to the grass below but Neji did not care. He kept hitting the dummy over and over again, not noticing when his Byakugan de-activated on its own or when he had beat the dummy so much his hands were not being as protected from the straw. His gloves did keep his knuckles from getting bloody but at the rate he was going Neji might even destroy this barrier.

Neji did not notice the chakra signature behind him, nor would he have paid it much attention as he knew this person and well. Neji's sole focus was on destroying the training dummy and he had done a fine job of it in the hours he had spent beating it up. Neji only stopped because tears were blinding his vision.

He strode the step and a half forward so he could rest his tired arms over the post holding the training dummy in place then putting his hot, sweaty forehead on top of his arms. Neji took several deep breaths and closed his eyes, panting as he tried to stop crying and caring at the same time.

"Wow,"

Neji did not turn or activate his Byakugan to see who had spoken. He had a good idea of who it was. The person made no sound as they strode up behind him and stood two feet away. Neji still did not turn or indicate he knew the other was there. Neji did smell flowers and finally sighed before turning.

Kankuro stood there with purple and pink blossoms in his hand. Neji raised an eyebrow and wanted to get mad at Kankuro but found it difficult. He had worked out all his rage.

"This is from one friend to another, geraniums for comfort and peonies for healing," Kankuro said.

Neji heaved a breath and took the flowers. He could not find it in him to sniff them or hold them up for long, instead letting his arm drop to his side with the flowers facing the ground. Kankuro said nothing to this.

"I would give the same to Kiba, actually I did once when this chick he kind of liked broke it off with him," Kankuro said.

Neji blinked. He remembered Kiba walking around with a small bouquet of the same flowers two years ago. Neji managed a little smile. Kankuro grinned at him.

"Want to talk?" Kankuro asked.

Neji shook his head. Kankuro nodded, understanding.

"Want to just sit?" Kankuro questioned.

Neji let out a breath and ran his free hand through his hair. Here was a good looking man who loved him, treated him with respect, showered him with affection and was willing to slow things down for him and Neji could not even say a word to him. Damn Nara.

Kankuro waited for Neji and Neji settled on the ground in front of the training dummy. He leaned against the post and rested the back of his head against it, closing his eyes and sitting with his arms loose at his sides. The flowers were on the grass, mostly against his thigh. Neji heard Kankuro sit but said nothing.

"You looked exhausted," Kankuro said.

Neji hummed. Kankuro kept quiet and Neji found the silence oddly comforting. He did not doze, simply listened to Kankuro's breath and the light wind through the grass. He could feel the roughness of the post on the back of his head and the cool smoothness of the grass under his hands. The paper used to wrap the flowers was somewhere between rough and soft. His hands throbbed from the punishment he had given him and his eyes stung. His throat was dry and his head pounded.

Neji did not care how long he sat out there as he had no intention of going to the Hyuuga Compound tonight. It did not seem to matter to Kankuro either. Neji could sense him sitting a few feet away, enough to be close if Neji wanted to reach out but far enough away Neji had his space. Perhaps Kankuro knew Neji better than Neji thought.

When warmth began to tickle against his face and light penetrated his eyelids, Neji opened his eyes. Kankuro still sat in front of him, eyes half closed in a sort of meditative state, legs crossed in a lotus position and hands on his lap. It was coming on five in the morning. Neji needed to go meet his genin but did not want to get up.

Neji said nothing as Kankuro sighed, opened his eyes all the way then got to his feet. He looked down at Neji, thoughtfully and Neji met his gaze. Neji frowned when Kankuro reached down and pulled Neji to his feet. Neji stumbled but backed up before falling into Kankuro's arms. Kankuro made no remark.

"Come on, I'll walk you to field twenty-seven," Kankuro said.

Neji inclined his head and followed Kankuro. Neji kept a distance between them but still held the flowers in his hand. They got to field twenty-seven and saw Kuma kicking at the right post. Tora used the left post for target practice. Akino was not there yet which meant Neji was not late.

"I can't do this," Neji said.

Kankuro stopped and Neji stilled along beside him. They were far enough away that neither girl could hear them or detect their chakra yet. Neji said nothing when Kankuro moved to stand in front of him.

"Hey, if you need the day off then I'll tell them you're sick and do some training with them," Kankuro said.

Neji blinked at him and the urge to cry was back. If he started crying then Kankuro would take Neji in his arms and comfort him. A part of Neji (the biggest part) wanted Kankuro to hold him while he cried. Another part wanted to kick Kankuro in the balls and stalk off. Neither part won so Neji was stuck staring stupidly up at Kankuro.

"I mean it, go get some sleep, think about everything and I'll deal with your genin. It's Friday so you can have three days before meeting up with them," Kankuro said.

God he would need the three days. Neji forced his head to nod. Kankuro patted his shoulder then turned on his heel to approach Tora and Kuma. Neji did not wait around. He teleported out of the field and landed in the middle of a roof somewhere in the main city.

It happened to be a pitched roof and Neji almost lost his balance and fell off. He managed to catch himself at the last moment without looking too stupid and stood there holding Kankuro's flowers for several minutes. He still didn't want to go to the compound.

He knew he should talk to someone but the person he could talk to about all this was the person he wanted to kill. Neji snorted at the irony. Hinata-sama wouldn't know what to tell him and she was as emotionally stunted when dealing with love and crushes as him thanks to the Hyuuga clan. Hanabi-sama would get pissed off and go on a war path. Hiashi-sama, no that, would be too embarrassing.

Kankuro was busy with his students and Neji thought it would be unfair to talk to the man who liked him about the mess of Neji's heart. Ino was a blabbermouth and best friends with the person Neji wanted to kill. Choji was best friends with Nara though he would have good advice. Neji hated Sasuke and Naruto wouldn't get it. Lee would cry which would make Guy-sensei cry and they would talk some insanity about youth.

Tenten would understand but once Neji was finished talking she would go make Shikamaru a porcupine. As much as it would make him smile they did need Konoha's War Leader in one piece. Besides, Tenten, Lee, Naruto, Kiba, and Shino were out of the village. Kiba would understand and probably have decent advice too. It was a pity he was gone.

It left Sakura. Neji frowned and considered. Sakura knew about the situation as she had been the one Temari went to. Temari had to have some reason for going to Sakura first before any of the other kunoichi she knew in Konoha. Neji activated his Byakugan and extended it as far as it would go, looking for Sakura.

He found her at what he assumed was her home, puttering around her kitchen. The Haruno symbol hung on a wall in the living area. Neji took off into the direction of Sakura's home while scanning the living space to make sure no one else was there. There were three rooms in the home, one belonging to her parents, one to her and one being an office. The living area was spacious, the kitchen large enough, and the decorations comfortable, homey. Neji almost stopped at the thought of interrupting Sakura in her comfortable family home but forged ahead.

He landed on her doorstep as she was drying a bowl and putting it away. Neji had no idea where her father and mother were but he knew they were both alive and well. Her father was a genin, her mother part of the Allied-Mother's Force and both likely had friends they could speak with or things they had to do. Neji de-activated his Byakugan and knocked.

He heard Sakura shout out a confused sounding "coming" and her footsteps as she came towards the door. Neji almost bolted but Sakura opened the door and blinked at him, her mouth stopped in whatever greeting she had been about to give him and her brows furrowing in confusion.

"Neji, hi," Sakura said. "What brings you here at six in the morning?"

Neji opened his mouth then closed it. He let out a breath and ran a hand through his hair. Sakura frowned and grabbed his wrist. He saw her eyes flit to the flowers in his right hand but dragged him into the front entrance. She shut the door behind him, told him to take off his shoes (or her mother would kill her) so he did. She took the flowers from him and dragged him into the sitting room.

"Yours?" She asked.

Neji nodded. Sakura gave him a once over then put the flowers on the coffee table in front of him. She walked off towards the kitchen and Neji heard the familiar sounds of someone putting on tea.

"My mom is helping Ino's mom open up the shop and with a few big orders. My dad decided to go along for the hell of it. Neither will be back until dinner time and it's my day off at the hospital," Sakura told him.

He said nothing but knew she did not mind. Sakura came back into the living room and sat a tray with two immense mugs of tea on it on the table. One mug was pink, the other a deep purple. Sugar, milk, and cream were on the tray as well as a plate of dango. Neji blinked at the tray but said nothing as Sakura sat beside him.

She took the pink mug, dumped in half a teaspoon of sugar and a splash of milk before stirring her tea. Neji picked up the purple mug and held the tea between his hands letting its warmth seep into his body. He had not realized how cold he felt.

"The flowers are from Kankuro, right?" Sakura asked.

He nodded.

"Comfort and healing, obviously he knew you talked to Shikamaru about everything and he figured it would not go well for you. Ino told me Shikamaru was meeting you last night," Sakura said.

Neji inclined his head in the positive but did not look at her. He kept staring into his tea cup and letting the steam flutter over his face. He did see Sakura put down her tea cup out of the corner of his eye. She took his out of his hands and hugged him hard.

Neji wrapped his arms around her slender waist and for a moment did not think he had the ability to cry considering it was all he had done. His body proved him wrong and he began crying into Sakura's shoulder.

She rubbed his back gently and hummed something into his ear. He did not recognize the song but it was pleasant. Neji kept crying with his eyes squeezed shut and hands clutching at the back of her shirt. She smelled not of cherry blossoms but of strawberries which Neji felt suited her. Her hair tickled his cheek softly and her body was giving his back the warmth he had lost during the horrible conversation with Shikamaru.

Neji's tear subsided and he pulled back, sniffling. She offered him tissue and he took it, wiping his eyes and blowing his nose as a flush rose to his cheeks. The people who had seen him cry like that were Lee, Tenten, Shikamaru, Kankuro, Hinata-sama, and Hanabi-sama. He hated feeling so weak.

"You still have feelings for Shikamaru?" Sakura questioned.

He nodded. She hummed.

"And you're developing feelings for Kankuro?"

Another nod. She sighed this time and brushed some stray hair out of his face. He let her and tossed the used tissues into a waste basket she offered. He did take another tissue to get some stray tears then held it between his hands, fiddling with it.

"But you don't want to use Kankuro as a rebound because he's liked you for a while and you don't want to hurt him."

Neji sighed and inclined his head again. It had been a good idea to come to Sakura. He did not even have to talk.

"Lee, Tenten, and Kiba are all out of town, Ino's a loudmouth, Choji's Shikamaru's best friend, Hinata is as emotionally stunted as you when it comes to this sort of thing, Hanabi would freak, Kankuro's the guy who likes you, you don't trust Sasuke or Sai, and your team is too young."

Neji flushed. Sakura snorted at him and rested a hand on his shoulder.

"But I come with the knowledge of knowing exactly what you're going through because Temari came to me and I all ready know who you've been with. And you probably know Temari came to me because of Kankuro and figured she had good reason for coming to me instead of going to anyone else."

Damn she was as good as Shikamaru, Kankuro, and well, any shinobi with a brain. He was kind of obvious in his actions. Stupid Hyuuga ways with not showing love or dealing with the emotion in the open.

Neji met her eyes when she sighed. Sakura leaned backwards on the couch, falling against the arm behind her and looked at him with one eyebrow raised. Neji blinked.

"It's too early in the morning for this and I didn't even get to sleep in cuz my mom and dad were yelling at each other," Sakura said.

"Sorry, I'll try to schedule any emotional break-downs at a later time," Neji muttered.

Sakura chuckled.

"He speaks! Drink your tea before it cools off cuz I'm not getting up to warm it up so its scalding hot like you like it and I'm not wasting tea," Sakura said.

Neji huffed at her but did as he was told. She sat back up to drink her tea and Neji finished half his cup. She offered a stick of dango at him but he shook his head. Sakura sighed and almost poked him in the eye with the stick. He scowled but took it a moment later. He bit the first dango and noted it was Mitarashi flavored.

The dango did not sit well in his stomach but he finished the four dumplings. Sakura did not force any more on him so Neji sipped his tea. The tea helped but the cold feeling did not leave his chest. Neji sighed. He watched, half interested, as Sakura kept her cup on the table but took the tray away, muttering something about screwing the rules.

He stared at she cleaned up the tray and put things in their proper place. Neji said nothing as she opened the freezer, took out an un-opened tub of ice cream, opened it, then grabbed two spoons and came back to sit beside him. She took his tea from his hands and gave him a spoon. Neji stared at her until she rolled her eyes, made him take a scoop, and shoved it in his mouth. Neji swallowed his ice cream, noting it was chocolate, marshmallow with some kind of nut and chocolate chunks. She ate a spoonful and Neji used a tissue to get the excess off his face when she had almost smashed it on him. Neji decided to screw the rules and took another spoonful.

"There you go. Ice cream makes everything better," Sakura said.

Neji chuckled and she grinned at him. They ate ice cream on her couch, neither caring it wasn't even seven in the morning. Neji found she was right. Ice cream did make him feel a bit better.

"You know what sucks?" Neji found himself asking.

"Hm?"

"Kankuro lives in damned well Suna and he's Gaara's body guard. Even when we do get together it'll be a pain in the ass trying to be in physical contact."

Neji raised his eyebrow at her giggle. He ate another spoonful of ice cream. It was good. Screw the calories. Besides he hadn't had dinner or breakfast. He deserved the extra in-take.

"Well, he won't leave your ass in literal pain, but yeah the distance will be rough. You do like him though, right?"

She took a spoonful of ice cream. Neji flushed. He considered his answer over another spoonful of ice cream.

"Yes, well, I think I do," Neji said.

Sakura licked her spoon then began waving it in the air as she spoke:

"He makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, right?"

Neji nodded. Sakura smirked.

"And you feel this, charge, when you kiss? Like you never want to let him go?"

Neji flushed but inclined his head in the positive.

"You miss him when he's not around?"

Neji blinked then raised an eyebrow at her. He ate more ice cream. She giggled.

"I think yeah, you should wait until you're not so upset about Shikamaru then go out with Kankuro. Trust me, everyone heard about how he approached Hiashi in the traditional fashion and took you to Kozue's. Ino's a blabbermouth," Sakura said.

Neji agreed with a hum and noticed they had taken out a quarter of the tub of ice cream. He ate another spoonful without worrying too much about it. So did Sakura.

"And the distance?" Neji asked.

Sakura hummed but kept her spoon in her mouth. Neji waited. She removed her spoon and waved it in the air.

"Letters will help and I'm sure Kankuro will order flowers for Ino to deliver to you. I'm also sure Kankuro will come down at least once a month to visit, if not longer. You'll have to see how it goes," Sakura replied.

Neji sighed and ate more ice cream. It had started to melt a bit but it still tasted damned good. Neji noticed it was called Heavenly Hash and would remember to buy some on his next shopping trip.

"And what happens when the clan elders decided to arrange my marriage to some distant cousin?" Neji questioned.

Sakura smirked. Neji raised an eyebrow at her as she finished the ice cream on her spoon before chuckling.

"You'd be dating Gaara's older brother. You think Kankuro won't be able to take on the Hyuuga clan?"

Neji chuckled and ate more ice cream. This could get addictive.

"There's an issue with that as well. Kankuro or I would have to move if we wanted to be permanent—" Neji started.

"It doesn't mean you can't visit people from your original villages. Yeah, the Hidden Sand Village is a three day trip if you're with a team. You traveling alone at your full speed could probably make it in two days, same with Kankuro. So you visit once every other week for a week. Besides, you still have genin to train right now and you'll be doing that for at least a year, if not a little longer. It's something you guys will have to discuss when or if it gets to that point. Don't worry about it now and just enjoy the moment," Sakura said.

Neji licked his spoon and nodded. She was right on everything. He had to wait, get over Shikamaru properly then try to convince Kankuro to take it at a little slower pace. If they got to the point where they wanted to live together they could cross that desert when it came to it. Hell, it could take them years to reach that point and a lot could be different in the clan, with Gaara, and everything else by then.

"Thank you," Neji said.

Sakura beamed at him.

"No problem, feel free to come vent anytime," Sakura said.

They tapped spoons full of ice cream to that sentiment. Sakura giggled and Neji managed to keep a small smile on his face.

"And I'm sorry but seeing you sitting here with me eating ice cream like this is really damned cute," Sakura said.

Neji flushed and chucked his semi-clean spoon at her head. She yelped but laughed and held the ice cream away from him. Neji attacked and they almost fell to the floor but he got the ice cream and her spoon in the process, both of them chuckling in merriment.

Neji ate a victory spoonful once he sat back and she snorted at him. She got to her feet and grabbed the two cups and Neji's original spoon. Neji gave her the spoon in his hand and put the lid back on the ice cream. He followed her into the kitchen and put the ice cream in the freezer for her.

"If you want to chill out here I can get you a blanket and some pillows for the couch," Sakura said.

Neji raised an eyebrow at her and she snorted at him.

"I'm going back to bed and no, you can't share. The yelling match that would ensue from that if either of my parents came home early,"

She shook her head. Neji kept his eyebrow raised and she smacked him the arm with a wet spoon. Neji pouted and rubbed the damp sore spot. She smirked and finished with the dishes, wiping her hands on a towel.

"You're cute and all but I get the bed," Sakura said.

Neji sighed but shrugged. She strode away towards the hallway and Neji followed. She went to the hallway closet and Neji smirked before slipping into her room. She threw a pillow at him but he was quicker and it landed on the floor. Neji jumped into her bed (pink duvet be damned) and stretched out.

She stood in the threshold of her doorway, hands on her hips and glared at him. Neji yawned and grabbed one of the bears on her bed, turning on his side and curling up with the bear. He heard Sakura snort and tried to keep his eyes from closing. It was a losing battle.

"You're so damned lucky you look so adorable right now, Neji. Have a nice nap."

"We come home and there's a boy in your bed! We've taught you better than that Sakura!"

Neji opened his eyes and blinked. All he could see was a pink duvet and a brown teddy bear. Neji lifted his head to see an unfamiliar room with white walls, dark wood night tables, a half open closet, and a vanity dresser with an army of hair supplies and make up atop it.

"One: that boy has a name and it's Hyuuga Neji!"

That voice he recognized. Sakura. Neji sat up in the bed and rubbed his head. Right. He had come to see Sakura after the conversation with Shikamaru and leaving his team in Kankuro's hands for the day.

"Oh, a Hyuuga boy,"

This was said by a male voice. Neji raised an eyebrow and wondered if he should venture out. Nah. He liked his head (both of them) intact.

"Two: Neji likes guys, not girls."

Neji flushed at this. At least it was true. Besides, half the village likely surmised he preferred men over women.

"Aw,"

The male voice again, likely Sakura's father.

"And third: he's had a rough couple of days emotionally and didn't want to go to a compound full of people who think it's standard practice not to talk about your feelings."

Silence. Neji thought about activating the Byakugan but decided against it. He yawned before he could stop it and blinked again. At some point Sakura had removed his vest and unbuttoned his pants so he could sleep more comfortably. His vest sat on a chair in front of the vanity dresser. Random bears were on the floor and Neji flushed when he realized he had been the one to toss the bears off the bed while he slept.

He had kept the one, the big brown fluffy bear half the size of his body with him and half wrapped the covers around his body. His bandana was on the night stand beside him. Neji rubbed the grit out of his eyes.

"He's half naked," Sakura's mother groused.

"And I've seen him naked and touched him in intimate places because I'm a medical shinobi who routinely does physicals on the opposite sex," Sakura said.

Neji chuckled to himself. He could imagine Sakura's mother (Mebuki, that was her name) getting angry and her father, Kizashi, becoming upset his daughter was growing up. That was what the shouting went around a moment later and Neji smirked.

"You've touched him while he's naked?"

"Mom, I'm a med-nin! It's my job and besides he trusts me!"

"But you're still a little girl!"

"Dad, I'm eighteen!"

The shouting continued. Neji shook his head and let out a breath. He yawned again and jumped when his stomach protested. All he had eaten in the past twenty-four hours was one dango stick and a quarter tub of ice cream. Not exactly nutritious.

Neji ignored the voices coming from the kitchen and slipped out of bed. He did up his pants, pulled on his vest, bandana, gloves, and arm wraps (damn he was a heavy sleeper when emotionally drained), and straightened out his hair in her mirror using his fingers. Neji pulled the covers into some semblance of order before gathering up the bears and putting them back on the bed.

The Haruno women were still yelling while the man kept adding odd comments in every so often. Neji shook his head and found the bathroom. He relieved his begging bladder and splashed some water on his face.

"Of course I informed his clan! I'm not an idiot!"

Neji blinked, the towel held up in front of his face. He would have to do something major to thank Sakura later. Explaining all this to Hiashi-sama would not have been fun for her on her day off. He finished drying off his face and hung up the towel before using his index finger as a toothbrush to brush his teeth.

Neji spat, rinsed with water, washed off his hands and dried up again. Sakura and Mebuki were still yelling back and forth. Kizashi added comments here and there. Neji shook his head and strode towards the shouts. He peered into the kitchen to see the women facing off directly across from each other but neither facing the door he was standing in. Kizashi had his back to the door as well.

"Good evening," Neji said.

Silence. All three stared at him. Sakura let out a breath and ran a hand through her hair. Mebuki scowled and crossed her arms over her chest. Kizashi grinned at him, walked over, and draped an arm over his shoulders.

"Good nap?" Kizashi asked.

"Kizashi!" Mebuki chided.

Now Neji knew where Sakura got her set of lungs from. Kizashi rubbed an index finger in one ear and smiled. Mebuki huffed. Sakura rolled her eyes.

"I apologize for my unannounced visit," Neji said.

Mebuki hummed and seemed to consider. She smiled and lowered her arms. Sakura snorted.

"No problem! So, you're good friends with Sakura?" Mebuki questioned.

Kizashi snickered and let him go. Neji inclined his head then flushed when his stomach rumbled again. Mebuki gaped then went into action, starting on dinner and asking him what he liked. Neji mentioned he disliked spicy food and pumpkin and she nodded at him.

"Good, good, Sakura, go chat with your friend, Kizashi get back in here and help me. Neji, you can stay for dinner," Mebuki said.

"Oh well, that's—" Neji tried.

"Thanks mom," Sakura broke in.

He forgot how strong she was and quickly remembered when she grabbed his bicep and dragged him out of the room all the way into her bedroom. Her door shuttered in its frame when she slammed it.

"Stop slamming your door," Mebuki said with a shout.

"Didn't mean to," Sakura said with fake sweetness.

She huffed. Neji took a few steps back. Sakura turned to face him, opened her mouth then closed it when she saw he had tried to tidy up her room. She smirked at him and gave him a friendly swat on the arm before flopping onto her bed.

"What a day," Sakura muttered as she flung an arm over her eyes.

Neji sat beside her and frowned. It had been his fault she had a rough day.

"My apologies," Neji said.

She lifted her arm and looked at him. A little smile came to her face.

"It's okay. It's not every day calm, cool, emotionless Hyuuga Neji comes into your house and starts crying over his love life," Sakura said.

Neji flushed. She chuckled at him.

"Nor is it every day you get to see Hyuuga Neji eating ice cream from the tub while talking about emotions then cuddling up with a teddy bear on a pink blanket."

Neji coughed and crossed his arms over his chest. He would not pout. He probably all ready was.

"Your uncle wasn't mad, frantic you hadn't come home and worried as all Hell but relieved when I explained what happened. Turns out I didn't have to explain much which saved a lot of awkwardness. He told me if you need a few more days to let you know to go see him first so he can help arrange something."

Neji inclined his head in acknowledgement then rested his hands on his knees.

"Then I had to go to Tsunade-sama and explain no, you didn't go missing-nin and no you're not going to kill our War Leader."

Neji smirked.

"Then I ran into Kankuro and your students at Ichiraku's and had to explain to Kankuro in whacked out code that you were okay. I think Tora figured it out. She's brilliant you know, amazing chakra control. I should train her."

Neji was glad he did not have to bring that up.

"This was between Kuma asking so many questions she reminded me of Naruto after he ate four pounds of chocolate which contrary to popular belief, was not as fun as people make it out to be."

Neji inclined his head in apology and she smirked at him.

"Then I ran into Ino who asked me what was going on between you and Kankuro because of the flowers he's been buying. So I had to explain over lunch. I didn't even get to take my nap because I was dragged over to the Inuzuka compound to help out Hana with something. Then I come home to find my mom's come home early and discovered a half-naked boy in my bed."

Neji flushed again and she shook her head at him.

"Sorry," Neji said.

"I didn't even get to take a picture of how cute you looked hugging that teddy bear," Sakura mused.

Neji was glad for that. She met his eyes and he immediately lowered his eyelids a bit so his eyes were not as chilling. She noticed and grinned.

"You owe me, Hyuuga," Sakura said.

"Noted," Neji agreed.

She grinned. Neji did not like the look of the grin and gulped. She looked like Tenten when Tenten was about to make a human pincushion out of someone.

"First: I'm training Tora because I think she's got the makings of a great med-nin, three times a week to start, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons from thirteen hundred hours until I'm done."

Neji nodded and kept the smirk off his face. Tora would be ecstatic. He did not even have to convince Sakura to train Tora as a medical-shinobi now. That was one thing off his mind.

"Two, you come to my house every Friday night unless you have a date with Kankuro which I won't take as an excuse more than twice by the way, for the next six months," Sakura said.

Neji blinked at her and opened his mouth to ask what the Hell she was going to do with him for a night.

"During this night I will get to play with your hair, take a few silly pictures, and we'll chat over ice cream while watching romantic movies."

Neji gaped. She grinned at him. He opened his mouth to protest then realized she knew too much about too much. Neji groaned but nodded.

"Don't worry I won't cut or dye your hair. Any pictures we take will also include me doing something silly so nothing can be used for blackmail. Nothing you say or do will leave this room and no one else will be invited unless you want and I approve."

Her words made Neji feel a bit better. Wait. They would be chatting. Neji grinned. He would have someone to talk to once a week about everything. Plus hey, ice cream.

"I will provide the ice cream on those nights," Neji said before she could keep talking.

She grinned.

"Done. And third: you have to date Kankuro once you're ready which I'll know because our chats will include talking about your emotions," Sakura said.

Neji stared at her then started chuckling. He inclined his head in agreement. She held out a hand and they shook on it. He laughed when she went so far as to write out a contract and they went over everything together. He signed it and she said she would keep it in her room for future reference. Neji agreed.

"Now, I prefer Heavenly Hash, Strawberry Vanilla, Caramel Cream, and Chocolate Fudge ice cream. I'll let you know when I pick up Tora for that day's training what flavor for that night," Sakura said.

"Agreed," Neji told her.

Sakura gave him a hug and he let her. She giggled at him and they pulled apart. His heart still hurt and he did not want to face Kankuro yet for any kind of serious talk but he would mend. Sakura of all people would help him and Neji had a feeling she would replace Shikamaru as the friend who knew all. Neji found he did not mind in the slightest.

Reviews welcome and next chapter coming soon.