This chapter is one of my personal favorites so far, so I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Footsteps echoed through the empty hall as the man made his way to the meeting chamber. The granite of the halls made for a very cold, empty feeling to the headquarters of the Guild. Something that fit in very well with its inhabitants.

"Fujimoto!" the man heard his name echo, falling in line with his footsteps. He made no movement to hurry to the meeting room. Why? Because he had no respect for the man he called Boss. The large marble doors opened up before him and the man walked into the room.

"You called boss," Fujimoto replied. His boss gave him a deadly look and then he relaxed. Fujimoto could only begin to imagine what this was about.

"Seeing as Zare and Rime failed to accomplish the simplest of tasks, I am sending you on a mission," the man said. From his dimly lit throne of sorts, Fujimoto had a hard time making out his face. Not that he needed to. "You are to observe Maia Yomanai in her home village of Konoha. But only observe her. Zare and Rime got caught up with a friend of hers and wound up dead," the man explained. Fujimoto nodded and made to leave, but stopped when his boss cleared his throat. Turning his attention back to the man before him, Fujimoto waited for what he had to say. "Hisoka, do not disappoint me. You leave tonight," and that was when the assassin left to pack his things.

Maia looked into Kiba's eyes, not knowing what to say. He had asked her so suddenly. And while she did have the ring that could be considered an engagement ring, she couldn't form the words she wanted to say. And sitting there, with the sun setting at the place when they first admitted their feelings for each other, it made everything feel so surreal.

"Oh Kiba," she stuttered. "I don't know what to say." Maia searched his eyes for any hint of hesitation or fear and saw none. She only saw love. A love so deep she found herself drowning in it.

"Please say you will Maia," he murmured, running his hand through her hair. "The way I feel for you is something I've never known before. And I don't want to ever lose it. I want you, right here right now. Forever and always. Maia, I love you. More than you could possibly imagine," he told her. Maia's eyes began tearing up and she smiled. Nodding she kissed the man before her.

"Okay Kiba," she said smiling brightly. "I will marry you." Kiba smiled and kissed Maia, holding her close to him. He would have her, forever.

Lying alone in her bed, Yuuki could sense Maia's happiness. A feeling she'd never truly felt until she found her. And now, the Spirit Host had a chance to feel that same happiness by just telling Neji how she felt. But what if he didn't feel the same way? What would happen? Would he turn his back on her? On the other hand, what if he held the same feelings for her?

"You shall never know until you try, young one," Sapphire told her in her mind. The blond nodded, resisting the urge to cry. There had to be some way to let her feelings out. To let them be known. Sitting up, Yuuki wanted to tell herself that she would let Neji know. That she would somehow find it within herself to tell him just how she felt. But, she couldn't do that. It wasn't true, all of it. They were lies that she wanted to tell herself so that she could feel better. "You may very well feel better if you just tell him Yuuki." Sapphire never usually called her by her true name.

"North, you must tell him. I may embody hate, but I know that what you are doing to yourself is not healthy. And worse yet, it will not help Maia's situation to know that you are hurting," Rubi told her. Yuuki's head perked at that news.

"Maia is in a bad situation?" she asked out loud. Sapphire nodded her head in confirmation and that was when Rubi fabricated inside her head.

"My host's father died while the four of you were away," she said sadly. Yuuki's eyes widened at this news. Her father died? And she hadn't come to her? Of course, she'd gone to Kiba instead. Because he was so much more important to her. Yuuki cast her glance down and across the room, not wanting to acknowledge that Rubi and Sapphire were both waiting for her response.

"Yuuki do not let this get to you. Do what you will my young one, but do not let Maia's going to Kiba get to you. If anything," Sapphire said, her voice holding concern. "Use it to help you tell Neji how you feel." Yuuki still didn't respond. Even after hearing an annoyed Rubi make her exit. That spirit was seriously annoying. Yuuki got up out of her bed, put her black shinobi sandals on and grabbed her flak jacket that looked more like a corset and left her apartment. She needed to tell him.

"You did well Neji," the Hokage said after hearing his report. Neji nodded his thank you and turned to leave. "Just don't hurt her. She has a fragile heart, and a fragile past," Neji grew a puzzled look and paused in his steps.

"Pardon me for asking," Neji began, turning around to face the Hokage again. "But what do you mean by fragile past?" Tsunade shook her head and sighed.

"If you want to know, you need to let her tell you in her own time." Neji nodded and then left the office. Walking slowly down the hall by himself, he was left to his thoughts. What had the Hokage meant by that? Did she know something he didn't? Neji shook his head. He knew everything about Yuuki. Or, maybe what she wanted him to think was everything. Was it really that big of a deal that he knew? Sighing, Neji opened the door to the Administration Building and left.

"I," Yuuki couldn't stop the choking feeling from coming to her throat. "I need to tell you something," she said. Neji didn't know how to react to her tone of voice. But he knew she was being serious. Yuuki looked up, fiddling with her thumbs. How would she tell him this? It was impossible for her to see how Neji felt by looking his cold eyes. They never showed a hint of emotion, something she wished would happen. She wanted to know how he felt. Yuuki wanted to know he felt something for her before she put herself out there. All these thoughts swarming in her head made her think twice about telling him. What should she do?

"Tell him," Sapphire whispered in her head. Yuuki sighed and wished she could pull her stare away from Neji, wished she could look anywhere but his beautiful face.

"Neji-kun!" that pulled both of their gazes away from the other. Neji turned to look toward the voice that called out to him. He nodded to the girl running up to them. "When did you get back?" she asked as she reached the two of them.

Was that what she'd been trying to tell him? Was she afraid to talk about her past in front of TenTen? No, that couldn't have been the problem. If it was, she would've asked to talk to him later. Maybe it was something else then. Her reaction to TenTen gave Neji a clue, but he wasn't sure what it was just yet.

"Neji-san," a quiet, familiar voice whispered off to the side. Neji turned to see Yuuki standing under a nearby tree. He walked over to her, his face void of all emotion as per usual. "I'm so sorry about earlier," she murmured, refusing to look at him. This was going to be hard for her, and she knew that. But she needed him to know exactly how she felt about him. This inner turmoil she was facing was almost unbearable for her. Neji shook his head and sighed. It had always been strange to him that he could loosen up around this girl. And he had never been able to figure out why. This short, blond, hyperactive, hurricane of passion and emotion drove him crazy time and time again. But he felt comfortable around her.

"It's alright Yuuki-chan," he replied, moving closer to her. The girl looked up at him and her eyes cried out for him to just know what she was feeling. But he couldn't make out the emotion they held.

"No, it's not alright. What I have to say is important," she said, her voice stronger now. "Neji, I," her voice failed her again and she almost slapped herself. Looking into the eyes that she'd grown to love over the past two years, Yuuki remembered everything that they'd been through. He'd allowed her to fight her own fights alone, without interference. He'd held her when she'd needed it. Neji had always been there whether it was within his character or not. "I," a tear brimmed at the corner of her eye. No, she wouldn't cry now. Not now. "Damn it Neji," Yuuki felt the tear fall and then everything poured out. "I love you!" she cried. Neji's eyes widened, realizing what she had just told him.

"Good job, young one," Sapphire said quietly, a happy tone to her voice. Yuuki smiled softly to herself and to Neji.

"Yea, I love you. I've loved you for a while now," she lowered her voice and her head, not wanting to look him in the eye. "I just never knew how to tell you," Yuuki murmured. Neji didn't quite know how to react to this. She'd just confessed her love to him and he wasn't able to find the words that would make her feel better about it. Worse yet, did he love her back? He didn't know for sure. Thinking back on everything, he'd always felt so out of place holding her to make her feel better. So out of place when she'd talked with him about her feelings. But as time went on, he'd grown more comfortable around this girl. She'd grown on him and at this point, he didn't know if he could bear seeing her get hurt. But love? Was that even a feeling in his arsenal of emotions? "I don't expect you to feel the same," she murmured after his long silence. "I just wanted you to," she was cut off by his hand gently caressing her cheek and his forehead resting against hers.

"Do not expect such things from me, Yuuki-chan," he told her quietly. With his eyes closed, it was hard to tell what he was feeling. Hell, with his open it was hard to tell. Looking up at the man she'd grown to love, Yuuki realized one thing. It didn't matter if he loved her back. He was amazing and precious and everything so much more important in the world. If that even made sense to anyone but herself. And when he opened his eyes, Yuuki, for the first time, knew what he was feeling. "I do not know how to love, I've never felt such things," he murmured. Neji buried his hand deeper into Yuuki's blond hair. "But I do know that you are precious to me." A crack of thunder sounded above their heads and then the rain began to fall. A steady downpour of rain, hitting their partially bare skin.

"But you've never," Yuuki began, again cut off by Neji. Only this time, it was with a kiss. Yuuki's eyes widened. Her first kiss. It was a small, gentle peck on the lips. But it meant everything to the kunoichi. When he pulled back, Neji kissed her on the forehead and then pulled her in for a hug.

"As I've said Yuuki-chan," he murmured into her now soaked hair. "Do not expect such things from me."

Hope you liked the chapter! Please keep reading and reviewing! Stay tuned!

XOXO, Alaska