Chapter 8: Looking Through Shattered Glass
Thwack-ck!!
Two kunai landed side-by-side, dead in the middle of the mark. TenTen grinned as she leisurely twirled another in her hand, a little bit of pride shining through her large doe eyes. "Looks like you owe me some soba noodles, Lee. Oh, and for dessert – I'd like some...uh, how about dango? Yeah, that sounds good." The girl smirked mischievously as Lee sobbed, counting out the coins to pay for her lunch later. He'd obviously lost a bet just now.
"Ah, the joys of Youth..." sighed Gai dreamily. "TenTen!"
"Y-Yes, Gai-sensei?" she asked a little nervously. Who knew what this lunatic would want her to do now?
"Pick me up some celery after lunch! I need to eat properly in order to maintain my manly body. Kakashi can never outshine such godlike splendor that is me!"
"Uh, sure...I'll do that." TenTen had no idea why her teacher couldn't get it himself, but whatever. She tugged at her buns in slight irritation. Yes, she'd gone back to wearing her silky tresses in that signature style only she could pull off. It was all part of being a kunoichi after all, right? After nearly two years of being absent, TenTen had returned to the lifestyle she'd come to both love and excel in. It'd take a few weeks to get back in shape, but that was no big deal. Besides...now she could be with the people she loved most – her odd but amiable teacher, Gai; that bushy-browed clone of his, Lee; and most of all, that oh-so-stoic Hyuuga...
"Lee!"
"Yes, Gai-sensei!" He snapped into a rigid salute.
"In honor of TenTen's return, let us run to the summit of Hokage Mountain...five times!"
"Excellent idea, Gai-sensei! But may I suggest running it six times?!"
"Superb! However, we shall run it seven times, just to celebrate the fact that you are in the prime of your Youth!"
TenTen's eye twitched. Yeah...that was one thing she hadn't really missed – those two and their apparent insanity. She watched as they took off sprinting. Good...now she wouldn't have anyone to bother her. Neji was unfortunately absent today, and it was her first day back too! What a jerk! "Well, no..." she corrected herself. "Hiashi probably had something for him to do again."
The kunoichi smiled a bit. They (Neji and TenTen) hadn't seen each other since "the encounter" at her tree. It'd only been a few days, but the Hyuuga family head had been lobbing assignments to Neji left and right. It was quite annoying actually...and she wasn't even the one who had to carry out these menial tasks!
TenTen launched a handful of shuriken at another target, each projectile hitting the mark as expected. She sighed. Things seemed to be getting better now. Of course, the girl could never forget what had happened to her, but now...now she had someone to help her along. She had someone to hold her close and tell her it'd be alright. She had Neji. A curious bird flitted past her and landed on the post her target was nailed to. "I suppose...I suppose it was all in how I looked at it..." she murmured thoughtfully, her eyes softening into a distant stare. "Like looking through a broken window – everything's obscured and distorted, but things...things aren't always how they look at first, right?" The bird cheeped and ruffled its tawny feathers in reply. TenTen laughed. "You can't seem to see anything, until someone comes along to help you get rid of all that shattered glass. And once that broken window's been removed, everything is even clearer than before!" The bird cocked his head to one side curiously. "Yeah...you're right. It's a stupid analogy. But hey! I'm not known for my philosophical prowess, am I? I've got another name I've still gotta live up to."
"Are you talking to yourself...again?"
TenTen's heart jumped into her throat, but the girl hid it with a scowl as she whirled around. "What the hell do you mean 'again'?! I hardly ever talk to myself – and like it's even that weird!"
Neji eyed her skeptically. "...Alright then."
"I swear! You have got to be the most –"
He raised an eyebrow.
"Oh...forget it!" she muttered walking over to him, changing the subject as she did so. "So, where have you been? It's not like you to miss training – well, unless that changed during my absence..."
"It didn't, but Hiashi asked me to escort Hinata and Hanabi somewhere...again."
"Oooh, fun!" she said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. Apparently, TenTen was beginning to get back to her old self again. It made Neji glad to see her happy, but from his stoic expression – one would never guess. The girl smiled and linked pinky fingers with him suddenly, swinging her hand and his just a little. "Thanks again, Neji. I think I'm really happy now..." she whispered.
The Hyuuga blushed furiously and looked away in what could be taken as annoyance, but it was more awkwardness than anything else. TenTen laughed – he was so cute when he was embarrassed! "I'm not looking through shattered glass anymore..." The kunoichi blushed and leaned in to plant a quick kiss on his cheek...which only made Neji's face turn a deeper shade of crimson. TenTen let go and turned to leave. "Phew! I'm starving! All this training has really given me an appetite again. Hey, Neji?"
The Hyuuga struggled to regain his composure. "Hn?"
"Would you help me train later? I think I need some help...you know, like how we used to do it?"
He nodded absentmindedly. TenTen smirked. It looked like Neji had returned to his customary stoic airs again...but she knew better. "Neji?"
"Hn?"
"I love you..." Her voice was quiet and small, the hint of a blush gracing her cheeks.
The Hyuuga looked up and gave her a small smile – one that was meant for her and would only ever be hers alone. "And I you."
TenTen's heart skipped a beat. Those words would never grow old. "Let's go Neji. I'm hungry and you've got to walk me around today since Lee isn't here. Remember? You've got to 'ensure the safety of your teammates'! Who knows? I might get attacked on the way to the restaurant..."
Neji's mouth frowned, but his eyes told her otherwise. "Fine..." he said begrudgingly, using this as an excuse for taking her hand in his own. "You'd most likely get lost anyways."
As the pair walked off into the heart of Konoha, TenTen knew that things would definitely begin to brighten up again. Her heart felt light and the aching that had taken residence was gone. She clutched Neji's hand, relishing in its gentleness and warmth. "I've found my happiness...and I've found it with you, Hyuuga Neji...You're the one I've found, the one I can care deeply for. I should have known better - you could never be a mistake..."
The two walked off together, hand in hand for the moment, but their hearts entwined forever. And in the far off distance, one could faintly make out the sillouhetted figures of a certain pair of shinobi – still on their first voyage up Hokage Mountain. Ah, the joys of Youth...
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The End
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dango --> rice dumplings
Phew! It's finally done! I had a hard time thinking up an ending to this story, and I'm not really sure I'm completely satisfied with this one. Hm...I might end up revising it later on. It just felt bland to me. Anyways, I tried to stifle the OOC-ness this chapter, but who knows? Ah well, practice makes perfect.
Thanks again to all you reviewers/readers! I really felt encouraged by all the compliments and the constructive criticism - I'm so grateful! For future fanfics, I shall work on the OOC-ness and grammatical correctness (since that's what needs to be worked on most I think...) xP
Well, thanks again for reading:3
- Hikari