MWHAHAHA! I return! After 2 long weeks of cousin-visiting, 3 weeks of summer camp(it was a writing class, but once again my cousin was there), 1 week in Maine, and 1 week with no reliable internet, it is time. I. AM. BACK. BABY!
I hope those writing class thingies help!
On with the story!
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Naruto looked at himself in the mirror, checking to see if he was fully prepared. He reached into his jacket, and padded it down.
"Let's see, needles with explosive tags, check. Three spare kunai, check. Trip wire, check. Knock out drugs, check. Wallet, check." He checked his legs. "Shuriken, check. Two main kunai check." He moved his hands up to his upper arms. "Explosive tagged kunai, check. Notepad, check." He smiled, and put his hands behind his head. "All check! Time to go!" Naruto henged into a random new form, and then left the building. Tsunade had talked to him some more this morning, and he had been told to lay low for two more days, when she would officially announce his return. Her exact words had been, "Don't do something stupid and tell everyone."
"Oh well, it's not like you are actually going to walk up and talk to anyone." Naruto smirked, and grabbed a small package he had prepared the night before, and walked off. Now just to find the complex.
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Hyuga Neji sat in meditation in the branch family dojo. He usually would sit in meditation after waking up in the morning, thinking about whatever he thought about. Today's thoughts had led towards the village, and the changes that had happened recently. A lot had changed in the last few years, most of all changes with the people.
For one, all had become at least Chunin, all much better then before. It seemed to him that everything changed once Sauske and Naruto left. It had shocked him that Sauske left, but even more when Naruto disappeared. Then again, Hinata didn't sleep for a week after that, causing her to look like a female Gaara for a while. Neji smirked at the amusing image he had created in his mind, before continuing in his thought.
While he didn't usually hang out with everyone, TenTen would rattle on about the ones he didn't. On the subject of his team, it had gotten much better. At first, he had assumed that the only people in his team that were any good were himself and Gai sensei. But then Lee had shown an amount of ability that could stand up to Neji's skills, and TenTen had taken her mastery of weapons to a whole new level. Each one was good, each one was powerful, each one deadly.
But it wasn't only his team that had gained that power, all of the rookie nine had become powerful just as they had. The Ino girl, who he had originally assumed was just an annoying bitch, was now looking into creating new Jutsu's, expanding the skills learnable by the Leaf ninja. Shikamaru was a master tactician, and was called in by the Hokage every few day. And Choji, who he had thought was a big fat guy, was now well known for his great strength. Kiba, and therefore Akamaru, had gained a mastery of their senses that even the great Kakashi couldn't compare. And the creepy bug dude, um, Shiba, Shati, Shino, that was it…no clue what happened to him… that got him to Hinata.
She had grew in leaps and bounds, and Neji felt a sense of pride in the fact he had helped it happen. A week after Naruto had left, Hinata had asked Neji if she could practice with some members of the branch house in her spare time. Neji had been taken aback, but she had quickly explained herself, playing with her fingers. Any time she trained with the main family, she was beaten just as badly as she would probably be here, but there she was verbally assaulted as well. At least in the branch house, she wouldn't get abused as much.
Neji, after a minute, agreed, and arranged someone to help her. After only a month, Hinata had raised her skills to what Neji had been when Sauske left. In fact, she was currently on a B ranked mission with her team. Neji had attributed this to her learning the great secret of the Hyuga.
-Flashback-
"Um, sensei?" Hinata was panting, having just spared with one of the branch member elders. "Those two over there, I've only seen Neji and father fight like that, how are they so good?" The elder looked at her for a few seconds, and then started laughing. "I, I'm sorry Sensei! I didn't mean to offend!"
"It isn't that child, it is just that it should be obvious. Why would the branch house be trusted with protecting the main family if we were weaker? We merely give off the illusion that we are weaker to make the main. For instance, Neji was suppose to take a lose against you in the Chunin examine, but he ignored that order. Now, you may also have noticed that your skills have been improving since you trained with us? Do you know why that is?
"No, I don't…"
"You see, the main branch trains it's new members' one on one. This helps them move at a better pace, but they still all train in the same way. No variation, just charka control, gentle fist, control, fist. No change from child to child. Also, in their training for situations they might come across, it usually comes down to two things. Run up to enemy, hit with gentle fist. It never takes into effect that the idea won't work or a situation where the user has no charka.
We in the branch family train one on one, but we train other things. We alter the method to what they work best with. Lectures, displays using clones, written out, pictures, whatever works best. We train them in a variety of Jutsu's, and a secondary fighting style in case of charka outage. We train our members better, we train them in different situations, we train them longer, we train them differently. Do you understand?"
"Yes sensei."
-End Flashback-
"Um, Neji?" Neji flinched, and then opened his eyes. Standing at the door was a young member of the branch family, holding a small package. "A man came ten minutes ago and asked to deliver this to you." Neji thanked the child, and took the package. He placed it besides himself, and tried to return to his thoughts. After five minutes, he sighed and stopped.
"Can't regain my concentration, oh well, guess I'll be a little early to training with Gai-sensei." Neji put the package in his pouch and went off. He arrived at the training area, and waited. "Am I that early?" he said to no one in particular. He looked up at the sun. "Hmm, it is twenty minutes until I usually arrive." He decided to fill up that time with opening the package. He took out a kunai, and cut the package open, making the envelope fall out. "Who puts an envelope in a package?" Neji picked up the envelope, opened it, and started reading. He reread it.
"Hey Neji, how you doing? Why are you shaking like that? You have a fever" She started to put her hand on his head, but he knocked it away, and looked up at TenTen, putting the paper in his pocket.
"TenTen, could you tell Gai I need to take the day off. Thank you." Neji said softly, before starting to leave.
"Wait! Neji!" TenTen yelled at him, but he sped up and then ninja vanished in a poof. "Crap. What could make Neji shake like that…?"
Neji meanwhile was moving closer and closer to where the note specified, different thoughts zooming through his head. "Is this real? It has to be fake, but who else heard me say that to him? How did he get back? Why is he contacting me?" He looked once againat the note.
Dear Neji,
Hello, if has been a long time since I saw you last, and I think I need you help in something. If you don't want to help, just stop reading right now. The fact is that you are the only one I think can help me right now, I'd ask Hinata, but she seems unable to even talk most of the time, let alone teach me. If you are wondering who this is, I can't say, but let me say this, you once told me my eyes were better than yours.
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"Naruto!" Neji jumped down into the meadow, and looked at the ninja sitting against the tree. "Is that you?"
Naruto smiled, and un-henged to his normal self. "Been a while, hasn't it?" Naruto stood up and walked toward Neji.
"Last I heard you were a missing-nin, if you get any closer I will be forced to fight you." Neji slid into an offensive position.
"Tsunade is figuring it out; don't worry. She said that she would announce it in two days, so I can't help you there. But let's just say that the paperwork was never filed correctly. You must be wondering what I needed you to help me with." Neji nodded, only letting his guard down only a little. "Well it is simple."
"You see, I recently have been learning several new skills, and I need a new fighting style to use those skills with The thing is, the Hyuga style fit right into the idea I wanted, and since I had learned some of the style from watching you, I kinda thought learning a little more of it would help." It took Neji a second, but then he snapped out of it.
"You expect me to give away my family's fighting style, something closely guarded and secret, just because you ask me to?" Naruto nodded. "You have got to be kidding, but it is true. Only you would ask something as stupid as that."
"I resent that, but it won't technically be you family style. I don't have your eyes, and I don't have your control, so I won't be using it as it was intended anyway. Anyway, after I learn it, I'll be combining it with some other fighting skills I picked up. I can pull off some of it already, so it isn't complete theft."
Neji looked at Naruto. His first instinct was to reject the offer, but then the thought occurred to him, what did it matter? Without the control, the style really didn't help much at all. "But what skill would possibly work with the style?"
Naruto gave a foxy grin, and sent a brief stream of fire out of his hand. "This"
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It was later, well past sundown, the two teen stood facing each other, panting. They had worked all day, with the exception of thirty minutes of lunch. Neji eased himself out of his stance, and wiped the sweat off of his face. Naruto was panting a little, but no sweat was visible on him. "I think we are down here." Naruto blinked a few times.
"What? But you are still so much better then me at it, and we didn't go over the Kaiten!" Naruto was shaking his fist at Neji, who just smiled.
"Put me beating you down to experience, you know the stuff, you just need to train more with it, and get used to it. And the Kaiten is just spinning around like a top and letting off charka from all of your chakra points. I don't know how flame works, and you aren't working with chakra, so I don't know what to tell you. Unless of course, you can't spin in a circle." Naruto growled, and then folded his arms and turned around.
"So that's all you can help me with?" Naruto turned back around, and looked at Neji.
"About so. I have to return home, I am sorry." Naruto nodded at Neji, who then started to return home."
"Wait just a minute Neji, I have a question." Neji stopped, and looked back at Naruto.
"What is it?" Neji looked at him inquisitively,
"It's just, when you activate your Byakugan, and you close your' eyes, can you still see all around you as if they were open?"
Neji looked at him blankly, confused. "Is that really your question?" Naruto nodded. Neji put him chin in his palm and thought. "I can't remember, and I don't think I have the strength to get back home at a reasonable hour and use the Byakugan a lot." Naruto shrugged, and started back to his hotel. Neji followed his example.
On the way in, he bumped into Hiashi, literally. "I am sorry Lord Hiashi, I wasn't watching where I was going." Hiashi nodded at him, recollected the papers he was holding, and started off toward the main family's complex. "Just a moment sir…" Hiashi stopped and looked over to him. "Can a Hyuga still use the 360 degrees vision with their eyes closed? " Hiashi stopped, and dropped the papers again.
"Who put that thought into you head." Hiashi spoke in a low voice, lower, and crueler than any Neji had heard before, an aura of anger spreading out of him. "Who asked you that?"
Neji looked at him in alarm, taking a step backward. "No one, I was just curious…" Hiashi sped forward and picked up Neji by his collar.
"WHO PUT THOSE IDEAS INTO YOUR HEAD!" Hiashi swung his hand back, chakra glowing around his hand, his Byakugan eyes blazing, and cold sweat coming down his forehead.
"It, it was Naruto, he returned…" Neji was scared. Only when he had been fighting that spider freak from the Sound had he felt this close to death, he was too weak to resist.
Hiashi dropped Neji on the ground, panting. "Let me make this clear!" The other branch members who were watching all swerved their eyes from Neji laying on the ground in pain, to Hiashi standing up in fury. "No member of the branch shall talk to this Naruto, except if forced in a mission, do you hear me! And no one is to talk about him, except in telling other members not to talk to him, do I make myself clear!" The branch members all saluted, and Hiashi left.
"Are you ok Neji?" The same elder who had worked with Hinata kneeled down in front of him.
"Wha-what the hell just happened?" The elder looked at him, and started chuckling. "What is so funny?"
"You just sound like your cousin, that's it. Hehehe… Now let's get you to bed." Neji nodded, and was picked up by the elder.
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And so another chapter is finished, it's been a while, so sorry for getting your hopes up. Anyway, this chapter sets very little in motion for latter, save for the Hyuga thing, which isn't really important until later, and even then, not very important.
At my camp I took a writing course, in which we worked on poetry, fiction, and a one act play. During the random ass moments of boredom, I outlined the rest of the story, so I should have a small idea of what is happening next. One thing I know is happening is Naruto re-taking the Chunin examine. I have two ideas for tests, but if anyone has any suggestions, please feel free to submit them. It won't happen for a few chapters, so you have time.