#51: Dirt
-Sunpies-

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto et, al.

"If you win, I'll go to dinner with you." Sakura said confidently, feeling the comfortable pull of leather against her skin as she shoved her gloves down over her hands. Flexing her fingers into a fist, her muscles were limber and tingling in the cool fall air. Konoha was beautiful today, the leaves just beginning to turn a golden yellow in the midst of all the greenery, and the weather was perfect for sparring.

"But Sakura-san! What if I was to hurt you?" Lee asked, his normally wide eyes growing wider at the thought.

"Yeah, it'd be a bummer to have to wheel your date to dinner, eh Lee?" Tenten prodded as she casually lobbed another weapon at Neji. Even standing on the other side of the clearing the Hyuuga's smirk was apparent.

Sakura fumed. This was just what she wanted everyone to stop doing! They all just assumed she was going to lose. What, did Tsunade have money on her or something? "Are you saying I'm weak?" She asked, cracking her knuckles dangerously.

If possible, Lee's eyes grew even larger. "Eh! Of course not, my beautiful Sakura-san! It's just..." He groped for the words gamely as Sakura waited with a look of increasing irritation. "It's just that Tenten's right: It isn't very youthful to have your first date take place with an unsightly injury."

Neji snorted softly at Lee's pitiful answer -earning him a glare from the taijutsu user- before turning his attention to Sakura. "You should feel grateful that he cares for you as strongly as he does. Not many are thus burdened."

"Neji." Tenten hissed, trying very pointedly to draw him from the conversation.

"What's that supposed to mean, Hyuuga?" Sakura demanded loudly, barely restraining herself from punching him /Sakura, thank you/.

He turned to face her, devoid of emotion. /I'll bring him back! Promise of a lifetime/ "What do you think it means?" He remarked as if he was commenting on the weather.

There was a single moment where Sakura's heart slammed so hard against her ribs she half expected it to fall out onto the grass with a wet smack and keep painfully beating. /With just you remaining, I'll be returning to active duty. I trust you'll be fine under Tsunade's tutelage/

"Something the matter, Haruno?" Neji asked archly, not even pausing in pulling weapons from their targets.

"YOU." This time Sakura didn't contain herself, swinging a chakra enhanced fist towards the other shinobi.

Underestimating the force behind the blow, Neji attempted to block it and went flying across the clearing, landing in the undergrowth and grass with a crash. Sakura probably would have cared more about his safety at that moment if her traitorous eyes weren't filling so quickly, she roughly wiped her eyes across the material of her gloves. The balm on her lips tasted awful but she bit down anyway until she no longer felt so much like crying.

Tenten shook her head and went to check if the other shinobi was all right when he didn't immediately come kaiten-ing his way out of the bushes. Lee on the other hand was in shock, torn between being worried for his teammate and awed by Sakura's strength.

"He's out cold. Do you think we should take him to the hospital, Sakura?" Tenten called, as she lugged the larger male out into the open.

Honestly, Sakura didn't care what they did with him. They could toss him in the water to drowned, they could burn him alive, they could... they could... they could eat him alive... well that was cannibalism, so something else equally terrible. In any event, Hyuuga Neji could crawl down a hole and die as far as she was concerned. She was about to say so too, but a look at Lee's face -an obvious mix of shock and concern- stopped her.

"I don't know." She said shortly as she stomped out of the field. "But the taste of dirt will probably do him some good."

Not that she could have heard, but neither of Neji's teammates corrected her.

#51: Dirt
-Sunpies-

For Lady Silvamord