A/N: Done with chapter 8! I hope you all will enjoy it :D
Happy Halloween by the way ^^ (Although I am a little late) - I made a Nejiten Halloween piece, you can view it on my DA account if you want too!
I apologize for any grammar errors /spelling mistakes there may or might be. I try my best to avoid as many as possible.
Main pairing: Nejiten
Side pairing(s): Naruhina and possible others
Warning(s): Possible OOCness, medieval era, mild mature hints,
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto!
A Sense of Duty
Chapter 8: A Sense of Sarcasm
Neji swallowed unconsciously.
A drop of sweat slipped down his forehead.
"S-Shikamaru? I-it is not what it l-looks like!" Neji hopelessly tried to save the remaining bits of his pride from absolute humiliation.
"Looks like what?" Tenten blinked at him confusedly. She seemed completely unaware of how wrong their position looked like.
"Hush, Tenten" Neji muttered under his breath to Tenten, who glared at him.
"Okay," Shikamaru began unimpressed, "Because it looks to me like you two are getting pretty cozy with each other" Shikamaru pointed out.
Neji blushed a deep reddish color.
"Cozy? No!" Neji shouted at Shikamaru in denial. Cozy was not the right word in this situation he had been forced into!
"Me and him cozy? No, no, no! You got it all wrong, I was merely annoying him by showing him who is the one in control" Tenten explained proudly, crossing her arms over her chest while she smiled smugly.
Shikamaru gave them both an odd look.
"Who is in control?" A sudden smirk appeared on Shikamaru's face, "Well, well, Neji, I never thought you would be into that kind of things, you keep on surprising me"
Neji's eyes twitched.
"I never thought you would be into that kind of thing"
"That kind of thing"
Shikamaru's words echoed in Neji's mind as he started to panic while he felt his face heat up.
In the moment of panic Neji managed to gain the strength to lift himself up and free himself from Tenten's body.
In a way.
"By God's holy breath, I am NOT into that kind of things!" Neji loudly claimed.
"Sure, sure, then please explain to why that girl was on top of you? You two looked like a pair of lovers to me" Shikamaru explained.
"Oh, by God's bleeding heart! No, he said the forbidden word!" Neji sighed to himself deeply.
Tenten, who had been laying on her back on the floor, stood up with angry eyes.
"Girl? I shall give you girl" Tenten angrily said before she set off to run over to Shikamaru and teach him a lesson.
"Tenten! Stop!" Neji hastily managed to wrap his arms around Tenten's legs, making the angry brunette lose her balance and fall over.
"Ow" Tenten winced at she hit the floor, face forward.
Shikamaru raised a confusedly eyebrow.
Neji looked up at Shikamaru, still not letting go of Tenten's legs.
"A piece of advice, Shikamaru. Never refer to Tenten's gender. As you can see she gets rather angry, when you mention it in her presence" Neji panted as he spoke since stopping Tenten had taking his breath away.
"My chest hurt!" Tenten moaned pathetically under her breath.
"Sorry, Tenten, but I am letting go of you so you can hit Shikamaru" Neji informed Tenten harshly.
"Awww but-" Tenten was cut off by Neji.
"No, Tenten, no matter what excuses you come up with I will not let go of you until you have calmed down" Neji explained to Tenten, who sighed and muttered:
"Stupid Hero"
Neji groaned.
Here they go again with the name calling, again.
Shikamaru, who was still standing by the door, looked at his friend and his friend's friend while thinking:
"The maids were not lying when they told me that Neji have fallen in love with this Tenten girl because he is fallen, pretty hard I might add, for her"
"Release my legs, Neji! The floor is not very comfortable lying on and I think my breasts might slip out of my blouse!" Tenten tried once again to pursue Neji into letting her go.
"Keep those things in place!" Neji shouted at Tenten with pinkish cheeks.
Shikamaru sighed.
"My father was right, love makes men lose their own pride"
"So," Shikamaru took a sip of his tea, "Have you two settled down?" Shikamaru asked Neji and Tenten, who seemed to have stopped their little disagreement.
Both Neji and Tenten avoided eye contract with each other. Arms crossed over the chest, heads turned in different directions.
"I take your silence as a yes," Shikamaru sighed, "I might as well start with introducing myself to," Shikamaru turned to Tenten, "Your friend or what else I should call her"
"Tenten" Tenten looked at Shikamaru as she spoke.
"Excuse me?" Shikamaru looked at Tenten with a confused look.
"My name is Tenten, therefore call me and refer me as Tenten, thank you very much" Tenten explained to Shikamaru.
"Tenten" Neji hissed under his breath to Tenten.
"Oh right, I almost forgot! Please call me and refer me as Tenten!" Tenten corrected herself in mockingly manner.
Shikamaru looked with shifty looks at Tenten and Neji before he smirked.
"Hn, as you wish, Tenten, my name is Shikamaru Nara and I am-" Shikamaru's sentence was stopped as Tenten butted in by saying:
"I know, the queen's advisor 's son!"
"Ahem, Tenten, it is rude to cut people off when they are speaking" Neji explained to Tenten, who stuck out her tongue out at him.
"Do not worry, Neji, remember helping you teaching her some manners was the reason why I was invited over in the first place" Shikamaru looked at Neji with a calm expression as he spoke.
"Her? This 'her' has a name, remember?" Tenten gave Shikamaru a warning look.
"My bad, I meant Tenten, not her, but Tenten, forgive me for my carelessness" Shikamaru corrected himself with a hint of amusement in his voice.
Neji looked at Tenten and Shikamaru, feeling slightly disturbed by how well the two was getting along after just having meet each other.
"If I had called Tenten 'her' she would have attacked me like a wild animal, but when Shikamaru calls her a 'her' she only warns him, why is that?" Neji thought to himself annoyingly.
The feeling he was feeling was completely new to him. What was this feeling called? And why was he feeling it now? It is probably Tenten's fault! He has only known her for a day and his life has already turned upside down. Damn that woman!
"Neji" Someone called out.
"Huh?" Neji blinked and found himself staring at both Shikamaru and Tenten.
"You spaced out again!" Tenten teaseful explained with delight.
"You kind of lost yourself in your own thoughts, is there a reason for that?" Shikamaru asked his friend.
Neji rubbed his forehead and shook his head:
"No, no reason, just remembered the past I guess"
"Your father?" Shikamaru wondered.
"Yeah" Neji dragged his answer, feeling awful for lying to his closest friend, but he simply could not lose his face.
"Huh? What?" Tenten looked at the two cluelessly.
"Nothing, just personal, private matters" Shikamaru explained to Tenten, saving Neji from having to explain a more personal matter. Tenten nodded her head and replied:
"Okay, now are you done with your tea? So this teaching can begin"
"Well you are sounding awful existed, Tenten, any reason?" Neji teased Tenten, who flushed.
"N-no!" Tenten looked away embarrassedly.
Both Shikamaru and Neji chuckled.
"Quit laughing and drink the stupid tea!" Tenten demanding yelled the two.
Neji and Shikamaru exchanged looks before lifting their cops of tea up, nodding to each other politely.
"Good seeing you again, Neji" Shikamaru said with a small smile.
"Same to you, Shikamaru" Neji responded.
The two men cheered and drank their tea with delight.
Meanwhile in a different part of the Hyuuga manor Lord Hiashi Hyuuga was walking down the hallway. He was followed by his two daughters, Lady Hinata Hyuuga and Lady Hanabi Hyuuga.
Lord Hiashi was wearing a nice tailored suit while his two daughters were wearing elegant looking dresses in different colors, Hinata in lavender purple and Hanabi in midnight blue.
"Father?" Hanabi looked at her father as she spoke.
Hiashi looked at his younger daughter and replied:
"Yes, Hanabi, what is it?"
"Who is this woman I have been hearing so much about lately?" Hanabi asked with a blank expression.
"What woman?" Hiashi asked his daughter, indirectly lying to her since he knew who she was referring to.
"The woman that the maids seem awfully interested in. The one who, according to what I have heard the maids say, have stolen cousin Neji's heart" Hanabi explained to her father.
Hinata, who had been silent the entire time, swallowed nervously as she recognized a hint of annoyance in her younger sister's voice. Hanabi hated being left out of things that concerns their family!
Hiashi rubbed his chin with a knowing smile on his lips before he looked at his daughter and said:
"I do not know about the stealing Neji's heart part, but Neji has most likely grew attached to her in some way"
"In what kind of way?" Hanabi asked with a lifted eyebrow.
Hiashi chuckled and placed a hand on his daughter head, patting her like a pet as he said:
"I am afraid I cannot tell you yet, you are far too young to understand things like that. I will explain it to you once you have become older"
Hanabi blushed out if both anger and embarrassment.
"I am not a child anymore!" She hissed at her father.
"I did not call you one, did I?" Hiashi raised an eyebrow and gave his daughter a questioning look.
"No, but you were clearly implying it!" Hanabi pointed out sternly.
"Now, now, Hanabi, I am sure father did not mean to make it sound like that on purpose" Hinata tried to reason with her sister.
"He did! Quit siding with him! You always side with him!" Hanabi shouted angrily at her sister, who flinched.
"Hanabi, no yelling at your sister! I will not have it, behave like a Hyuuga and control your temper" Hiashi stepped in, giving his younger daughter a hard look as he spoke.
Hanabi crossed her arms over her chest.
"Hmph. Stupid sister, stupid father" Hanabi muttered under her breath as she gave her father and sister the cold shoulder.
Hinata looked at her sister, feeling guilty.
"Hanabi is right, I always side with father. But I am afraid if I go against him he may stop seeing me as his daughter" Hinata thought to herself bitterly as she remembered what her caretaker had told her back when she was young.
FLASHBACK
Hinata sighed deeply as she watched the snow fall down from the sky and hit the snow covered ground. Since her uncle's sudden death the manor had not been the same.
Everything had changed.
She rarely saw or spoke with her father. Since that day all he had been doing is business and when he was not busy with other nobles he was busy training her cousin, Neji, to become a swordsman.
Speaking of her cousin, he had not spoken nor looked at her since his father's passing.
He had grown cold and distance.
She missed her cousin, the kind hearted and smiling one.
"Lady Hinata, what are doing there? You should be studying" Hinata's caretaker harshly informed the young Hyuuga heiress.
Hinata turned and looked up at her caretaker.
"But Miss, I have been studying for hours and I am really, really tired" Hinata gave her caretaker a pleading look.
"Hush, young lady, it is rude to talk back at people! If you want your father's accept you better do as I say! Now apologize and then maybe I will give you a small break" The caretaker crossed her arms over her chest as she waited for the young Hyuuga to do as she had been told to do.
"I am sorry, Miss, but I am really tired! May I please take a small break?" Hinata tired once again, this time with a more polite way for speaking.
The caretaker looked at Hinata for a moment before she gave in:
"Fine, 10 minutes, but not a second longer than that"
Hinata beamed up and gave her caretaker a surprise hug while she delightfully said:
"Thank you, miss, thank you!"
The caretaker patted Hinata awkwardly on the head:
"There, there, now use your break wisely, young lady, when you return we will walk on that posture of yours"
"I will!" Hinata replied and was ready to run off when…
"But I must remind you that if you want your father to acknowledge you and be proud of having you as his daughter, you must be obedient and never go against his wishes until you have married a worthy man, when that happens your obedience will belong to him and not your father" The caretaker explained with icy tone.
Hinata looked at her caretaker with confused looking eyes.
She did not know it back then, but that day she lost her freedom.
Just like her cousin had lost his.
END OF FLASHBACK
Hinata sighed.
"I really envy Tenten, she is not chained down like I am and she is free to do as she wishes" Hinata thought to herself bitterly.
"Hinata?" Hinata heard her father call out her name.
She blinked as she broke out of her thoughts.
"Huh? Sorry, father did you say anything?" Hinata asked her father.
Hanabi chuckled.
"What are laughing at, Hanabi?" Hinata looked at her sister.
"Just you, you spaced out! Haha! I will remember this till the day I die!" Hanabi explained while she laughed.
Suddenly something caught Hinata's ears attention.
Her father was also laughing!
"Father?" Hinata stared at her father with a shocking expression.
Her father knew how to laugh?
"Oh sorry, I could not help myself" Her father apologized while he continued to chuckle.
"Sister, is it just me or have father been in awful good mood lately?" Hanabi asked Hinata in a whisper.
"You are right and I believe I know what have caused it" Hinata whispered to Hanabi with a knowing smile on her lips.
"What?" Hanabi curiosity got the better of her. Hinata giggled and replied by saying:
"I am sorry! Forgive me, I meant I know who caused it"
Hanabi looked at her older sister with a surprised yet curious expression.
"Who? Tell me!" Hanabi demanding exclaimed.
Hinata smiled and said with somewhat teaseful tone:
"Cousin Neji's girl friend"
"No, you are doing it wrong again!" Shikamaru harshly informed Tenten as she once again failed to drink her tea properly.
"What am I doing wrong? I am doing exactly what you are telling me to do, drinking the stupid tea!" Tenten complained loudly. She did not understand why drinking tea should be such big deal! It is just tea! Stupid, boring, plain tea!
"Tenten, you are slurping while drinking" Neji explained to Tenten calmly.
"I am not doing it consciously! Therefore it is not my fault!" Tenten pouted her lips at Neji.
"It is a noise you make while you eat, just like when people says 'mmm' while eating and if you control yourself while eating you should be able to stop that habit of yours" Shikamaru explained.
"Stupid 'know-it-all' advisor son" Tenten mumbled under her breath while she crossed her arms over her chest and pouted her lips in childish manner.
"Sit up straight, stop pouting your lips like a little spoiled child and uncross your arms!" Shikamaru ordered Tenten.
"Why do I have to uncross my arms?" Tenten asked annoyingly.
"Because it indicates a closed-off body language instead of an open one and it is proper mannerism to have an open body language towards people" Neji told Tenten. Shikamaru nodded his head and said:
"Exactly"
"Proper manners by arrow" Tenten muttered as she bended forward with an annoyed expression.
"Sit straight up!" Shikamaru harshly demanded.
"What if I tell you it is because these," Tenten pointed at her chest, "Are heavy?" Tenten looked at Shikamaru hoping he would fall for her semi-lie.
"I am in a way telling the truth because they are definitely not a light-weight, but they are not a dead-weight either" Tenten thought to herself.
"Does she not wear any sort of support?" Shikamaru asked Neji in a whisper.
"As far as I am aware she does not" Neji replied to Shikamaru, who lifted an eyebrow.
"Quit whispering, especially then you are whispering about me!" Tenten shouted at the two.
"Only if you quit yelling all the time" Neji told Tenten, smirking as Tenten fell silent.
"Tenten" Shikamaru spoke out.
"What?" Tenten snapped.
"The tea, drink it and this time properly" Shikamaru moved the tea cup closer to Tenten as he spoke.
Tenten looked at the tea annoyingly.
"That stupid, stupid tea!" Tenten thought as she glared at the tea.
She reached out and took the tea cup in her hand. Slowly she lifted it up and towards her lips.
Bending her head as she took a sip of the tea.
Neji and Shikamaru watched her with judging eyes.
A small, but proud smile appeared on Neji's face.
Tenten drank her tea without a sound.
No slurping, no nothing at all!
Shikamaru clapped.
"Well done, you finally managed to drink your tea properly" Shikamaru said with monotone voice.
After drinking her tea, Tenten made an expression of disgust.
"Ewww cold tea!" She moaned in disgust.
"And that brings us to the next lesson in etiquette and mannerism," Shikamaru began, "Do not express disgust over anything at a dinner party or any other sort of gathering, it is very impolite and considered rude" Shikamaru finished.
Tenten looked displeased and sighed.
"I hate manners" Tenten mentally thought to herself before she realized something.
A catlike smile appeared on Tenten's face, but it was not noticed by either Neji or Shikamaru. She turned to Neji and looked at him with curious expression as she asked:
"So in other words, I just have to pretend I like something and by pretend I mean lie, am I right?"
"Ehmm I guess" Neji answered unsurely.
"Well then I guess pretending to like something will not be that hard," Tenten grinned, "This tea just tastes wonderful!" Tenten lied with an amused expression.
"Tenten, if you are going to lie, at least make an effect in it because now you are just being immature" Neji told Tenten, who stuck her tongue out at him.
"You know if you keep on sticking that tongue out, someone might take it" Neji teased Tenten, who blushed.
"Leave my tongue alone" Tenten muttered.
"Only if you keep it inside your own mouth" Neji informed Tenten with somewhat smug expression.
"Good God those two" Shikamaru thought as he looked at the two teasing each other like lovers would tease one another.
Tenten turned her eyes away from Neji while looking flushing. She looked somewhat angry, but unlike how she would normally act she did not scream at him, attack him or stare angrily at him.
Neji looked at Tenten, finding himself feeling a bit sorry for damaging her precious pride.
He sighed deeply.
"Sorry" He spoke in almost a whisper.
Tenten looked up at him confusedly.
She blinked, but did not say a word.
Neji decided to clarify himself further:
"I am sorry for toying with your pride, but I was only being sarcastic and I did not mean to make you angry or upset"
"Well I do not have a sense of sarcasm, so stop doing it" Tenten snapped at Neji, taking Neji by surprise.
"She snapped?" Neji thought to himself shockingly.
"Well sorry, but how should I know, you have toyed with my pride all day long" Neji tried to regain himself by pointing out Tenten's own faults.
"Hmph" Tenten replied.
"Tenten, now you just being childish" Neji told Tenten, finding her behavior to be rather child-like.
"Not a child" Neji heard Tenten muttered.
"Then stop acting like one" Neji commented to Tenten, who turned to him and looked him intensely in the eyes.
"I stop acting like a child, when you leave my tongue alone" Tenten said as she took a tight grip on Neji arms, holding him in place, while she leaned closer to his face.
Neji gave Tenten an odd expression.
"Tenten, I am not going to take your tongue, I was just being sarcastic" Neji tried to explain to Tenten.
"But I do not understand your sarcasm!" Tenten annoyingly pointed out with a loud voice.
"Well now I know, but I did not before" Neji groaned. His head was starting to ache.
Tenten began rocking, her hold on Neji's arms made Neji rock along with her.
"Stupid sarcasm" Tenten stated with pouted lips.
"I know, Tenten, I know. Now, will you please stop rocking me and let go of my arms?" Neji asked Tenten with a bored expression.
Tenten stopped rocking and released Neji's arms. She stood up, ready to walk back to the table with the tea, but lost her balance and fell.
On top of Neji.
In an awkward position.
Breasts against head.
"Oh! So, this is your girl friend, cousin Neji" A female voice, which was familiar to Neji and unfamiliar to Tenten, spoke in a somewhat cocky tone.
Neji's eyes widened while Tenten moaned in pain.
"Hanabi! Why her? Why now? Why me?"
Neji wanted nothing more than to push Tenten off him, but he hesitated because of one thing.
His head was trapped.
He sighed deeply.
Tenten was startled and lifted her body up quickly while she uttered out:
"Ewww Neji! You blew me on my chest!"
Neji twitched and blushed a deep red color.
"Great, just great! Now my younger cousin thinks a pervert!" Neji bitterly thought to himself.
Tenten got off him while she rubbed the skin around her collarbone and cleavage.
Neji stood up afterwards and while waiting for the worse to come he turned towards his younger cousin, who was looking at him with smug smirk on her face.
"I never thought in a million years that I would see something like that, my dear gentleman of a cousin is a closet pervert. Breathing on woman's chest, shame on you, cousin Neji" Hanabi lifted a finger as she spoke smugly.
"Who is she?" Tenten asked Neji while glaring at the girl for calling her 'woman'.
Neji looked at Tenten before he once again looked at Hanabi and replied:
"Hinata's little sister and my younger cousin, Lady Hanabi"
"And you must be that friend of Neji's the maids have been talking so much about," Hanabi rubbed her chin, "Tenten, right?" She questioned.
"Yes, but did you say the maids have been talking about me?" Tenten asked the younger Hyuuga, noticing that she had the same colored eyes as Neji, but had a much tanner skin than him.
"They have, they seem quite fascinated in you and I think it is because you have been able to bring out the less serious side of my cousin" Hanabi explained.
"Fascinated in me? No wonder the maids creeps me out" Tenten commented.
"Lady Hanabi, what are you doing here?" Neji asked his younger cousin.
"Well I wanted to meet the infamous Tenten in person, what else?" Hanabi replied as if it was obvious.
"Okay, you have meet her, now leave we are in the middle of something" Neji tried to make Hanabi leave, but she had other plans.
"Well, but I do not want to leave, so save your ungentlemanly desires for later, cousin" Hanabi brushed Neji's attempt of making her leave off her.
"I think it is time for me to make my leave, you know where to find me, bye" Shikamaru calmly bid his farewell as he made his way out of the room. This teaching lesson was just getting too ridicules for him, amusing, but ridicules.
"Wait, Shikamaru, we are not done yet!" Neji called after his friend desperately.
"We are, I cannot work with people watching" Shikamaru waved Neji off.
"Great, he left," Neji sighed before he turned towards his cousin, "Now, look what you did!" Neji glared annoyingly as he pointed at Shikamaru's leaving back.
"Do not blame me, it was you who decided to act upon your dirty desires, not me" Hanabi pointed out.
"I do not have any desires aside from becoming a Knight of Konoha!" Neji hissed at his cousin with red cheeks.
"These knights again? I thought you were done talking about them by now" Tenten butted into the discussion.
"Mind your own business, Tenten, this does not concern you" Neji mumbled to Tenten.
"Stop denying, father seems quite happy about, so no need to feel ashamed by yourself" Hanabi told her older cousin smugly.
"I am not ashamed of anything!" Neji snapped with flushing cheeks.
"But you are" Hanabi pointed out.
"Hanabi, stop mocking cousin Neji!" Someone else ordered with almost harsh sounding tone.
All three pairs of eyes turned and landed on.
"Hinata?"
"Sister?"
"Lady Hinata?"
One thing that surprised them all was how serious Hinata looked.
She looked at Hanabi and spoke:
"Hanabi, please stop mocking cousin Neji, it is not very Hyuuga-like of you," Hinata then turned to Neji, "Cousin Neji, control your anger. I know Hanabi is annoying you, but that does not give you the right to act just as immature as she is," Finally she turned to Tenten, "And Tenten," Hinata's face softened and she smiled, "Someone have arrived with something for you"
Everyone blinked.
Tenten smiled brightly.
"My equipment!" She cheerfully jumped up high in joy.
Taking Neji by the wrist she dragged him along with her while shouting:
"Thanks Hinata!"
Neji, who was dragged along with her, asked out of curiosity:
"Tenten, do you even know the way to the front door?"
Tenten stopped her running and turned to Neji with a lost expression.
"Ehm no" She admitted awkwardly.
Neji sighed and mentally slapped himself on the forehead.
"Follow me, I will lead the way" Neji began walking while Tenten with jumpy steps went along.
From afar Hinata and Hanabi watched the two leave.
"Sister?" Hanabi looked at Hinata.
"Yes, Hanabi?" Hinata smiled at her little sister.
"Was Neji telling the truth when he said he only has a desire to become a Knight of Konoha?" Hanabi asked quietly.
Hinata smiled and replied:
"Of course not! He is just not aware of it"
"Yet" Hinata thought to herself quietly.
As Neji and Tenten walked Neji suddenly thought of something.
"So, Tenten, how does this delivery guy know you are staying here?" Neji asked with somewhat confused look on his face.
"Good question, I actually do not know" Tenten admitted truthfully, she had no idea, but decided that it was not important as long as she got her equipment.
Neji gave Tenten an odd look before he rubbed his chin thoughtfully and said:
"Hmmm maybe one of the maids heard us back there in the garden and informed Lord Hiashi, who then informed the guards at the port"
"Maybe, I do not know" Tenten lifted her hands while she shrugged her shoulders.
The two stopped at the front door and Neji pushed it open.
Outside in the yard one of the maids stood. Next to her a guy on a horse was standing holding out a bag to the maid, who caught the bag.
The man took notice in them, recognized Tenten and waved at her before he left.
Neji watched the guy on his horse run out of the yard and took notice in the symbol on his back, it seemed oddly familiar.
"Where have I seen that symbol?" Neji wondered to himself.
Neji shock it out of his head and followed as Tenten ran over to the maid, who gave her the bag.
"Thank you!" Tenten exclaimed with happiness shining in her eyes as she hugged the bag close to her.
"You are very welcome, I will make my leave now" The maid politely bowed before she walked back into the manor.
Neji looked at Tenten, smiling quietly.
Suddenly Tenten turned around, looking at Neji with serious, but also sly look and said:
"Now, Neji, shall I show you just how skilled I am with a bow?"
Neji found himself smirking. Although he would not openly admit it, he was looking forward to watch Tenten's archer skills in action.
"Sure, why not? The garden has target plates, I hope you do not disappoint me" Neji calmly spoke while he walked back into the manor.
Tenten followed with proud smile on her face.
"Do not worry, I certainly will not" Tenten assured him confidently.
Neji smirked.
"Oh," Tenten remembered, "First I need to change my clothes!"
"Change? Why? You were fine fighting with a sword in a dress" Neji looked at Tenten questioning with a raised eyebrow.
Tenten glared at Neji before she replied:
"Because I am an archer, not a swordsman, there is a difference"
"Okay, but I did not know that" Neji informed Tenten, who said with a mocking tone:
"I figured!"
Neji stamped with his food impatiently as he waited for Tenten to finish changing.
"She is being awful slow" Neji mentioned to himself.
Suddenly the door was slammed open and Neji hastily turned around to see Tenten.
Neji paused.
If he thought her dress was showing a lot of skin than he take it all back.
Tenten was showing much more skin now!
She was now wearing a pair of dark gray shorts, which exposed her slim, long legs, a red one-shouldered blouse, which only covered the left side of her chest, with a black corset beneath. Aside from that she wore two belts around her waist, one thick and one thin, her infamous dagger was now visible on her exposed thigh and she wore a lot of leather on her exposed arms.
One thing Neji especially took notice in was that her hair had been pulled up into a ponytail. He had already found her loose hanging hair to be pretty looking, but she also looked really pretty with her hair up.
Brown, leather boots walked up to him.
"So, shall we go?" Tenten asked while she cocked her head to the side cutely.
"Ehm," Neji faked a cough, "Sure, let us"
Together the two walked out of the manor and into the garden. They stopped in front of a field filled with target plates.
The perfect place for an archer.
Tenten smiled smugly.
She liked it! It was just perfect for her!
Without giving Neji a single warning Tenten took her bow, dug down after an arrow and shoot after one of the target.
Bullseye!
Tenten smirked widely while Neji, who had been surprised by her sudden act, was staring at the target with a blank expression.
"Sorry, but I could not resist the urge" Tenten admitted with a grin.
It was true, she simply could not keep her own body from loading her bow and shooting.
She felt free.
Taking another arrow, Tenten once again managed to hit bullseye on a different target plate.
Neji just stared.
A few moments afterwards no target had been left without an arrow placed securely in the center.
She prepared herself to shoot yet another arrow at one of the already used plates, but Neji stopped her by saying:
"Wait!"
Tenten looked at him weirdly.
"What?" She blinked at him.
"What is the point to shoot at a target that you have already hit with an arrow in the center?" Neji asked Tenten out of both wonder and curiosity.
Tenten merely smirked before she took her bow forward and shoot again.
This time it not only hit the center.
No, it also hit the arrow that already was there. Breaking the thin, wood apart right on the middle.
Tenten turned to Neji with a proud grin on her face and said:
"This is why"
Neji blinked before he closed his eyes and smiled.
"Okay, then how about you show me how to shoot with an arrow?" Neji asked Tenten with teaseful glint in his eyes.
Tenten chuckled and sarcastically replied:
"Naah, I do not think so! I will never know how to properly use a long sword while you will never properly learn how to shoot an arrow using a bow"
"True" Neji smiled as he got lost in his own thought together with Tenten in a…
"Peaceful silence"
To be continued…
A/N: Done for now ^^
Aside from the love story between Neji and Tenten, the Hyuuga family's inner conflicts and struggles will also play a big role in the whole story – mainly because Tenten plays an important role in bringing the past forward and healing the scars the past has left behind. I kind of what to show the less "perfect" side of being from a noble family.
In the next chapter will take a jump forward in time. Now you all have gotten a picture of what goes on doing the days normally. From now on mayor/important events that either effects just Neji and Tenten's relationship or events that affect the whole story will be the main focus of the story!
Leave a review and tell me what you think :)