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Intertwined
Judgement

Disclaimer:Don't own Naruto.

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"...Father."

So alone, so silent, so endless.

Pallid eyes stared at the marble tombstone before them, reading every letter and every world written on the piece of stone, absorbing comfort from the serenity of the day.

Snow was falling that day, gracing the village with unusual cold and beauty. Everywhere, it was ethereal and joyous, the fierce fire of the strong village buried beneath the layers of snow. Children ran around, laughing to their hearts' content, smiling and living and loving like their life was to end the next day.

But he – he was all alone. He had no mother, no father, no sister, no brother. He had bitterness, he had emptiness, he had loneliness! He was stuck in the space between light and darkness, suspended with confusion about what to do with his life.

Tears rolled down his frostbitten cheeks, seeming to melt the thin layer of frost accumulating on his pale skin. His bottom lip was bleeding from his tough bite, filling his mouth with the familiar metallic taste. His fists were tightly clenched, trying to ease the pain of loneliness.

And then the boy felt warm hands wiping away his tears, the gentle aura filling him with warmth. He saw a girl standing next to him, a gentle smile present on her lips. Her hair was tied up in two, peculiar buns, her eyes the color of chestnut. She had gentle, flowing motions, like the weight of gravity upon her did not matter, making her seem ethereal. The girl loosened the scarf around her neck, and surprisingly threw the other half around the boy's, standing next to him for warmth.

"I don't need your help," the boy said.

He was surprised when the girl giggled and shrugged, not moving her scarf or her body from her.

"I never asked you if you needed it," came her gentle reply.

His eyes widened, while she merely looked down at the marble stone, her eyes beginning to brim with tears. He found himself angered by her kind nature, angered by the fact that she dared to venture into the Hyuuga's reserved part of the cemetery!

He didn't need her pity, didn't need her help, didn't need her warmth!

Everything that mattered to him was gone.

"Go away. You're not a Hyuuga; you're not allowed here."

She faced him, a glare burning holes into his skin.

"I don't have to listen to you," she icily said.

The boy looked at her with the same icy glare, his lips pursed into his characteristic frown. His eyes were narrowed, too irritated beyond reason and rationality.

"What makes you think I want you here? You'll never understand what it feels like –"

"– To be alone? To have the people you looked up to dead? Yeah, who'll ever understand that, huh?"

The boy's eyes widened in surprise, and he looked away, embarrassed.

"I – I – I'm sorry," he whispered.

The girl smiled and offered him her hand, unfazed by the fact that they had shared their first argument.

"Maybe," she whispered as the boy took her hand, "You shouldn't judge a book by its cover."

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"I – I'm so stupid! I can't believe I let this happen to you...oh my gosh."

The same girl, now twenty-one years old, brokenly looked down at her partner, now twenty-two years old. The two had shared a long fourteen years together, being placed in the same academy class and the same genin team. Both had grown fond of the other, knowing each other's faults, weaknesses, and joys by heart.

And so it was no surprise when she sat beside him in the hospital, tears rolling from her eyes, as she quietly cried by his bedside, waiting for him to wake up from a deadly coma from a deadly injury just a week before on an S-Ranked mission. She had grown to love the boy with all her heart, grown used to his icily arrogant nature.

"S – shut up..."

She gasped when his weak fingers moved and wiped her tears away, his touch lingering on her skin as he unconsciously held her within the palm of his hand. His eyes opened, adjusting to the new light, strength slowly seeping into him once more.

"I – oh – you're – you're okay!"

He gently sat up on the bed, his hand removing itself from her face as he held his own head in his hands. He was graced with a terrible migraine of too much sleep, his head swirling as the lights and warmth seeped into his body. She smiled and gently hugged him, careful not to touch any of his closed wounds in case they dared to open against the Haruno's strong gauze and amazing medical skills. His migraine seemed to fade away when he cradled the girl in his arms, his life feeling complete.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered into the thin fabric of the hospital gown, "It was all my fault."

He moved gently pulled her away and looked at her in the eye, his lips formed in a tiny, genuine smile.

"Shut up," he gently said, "I think you told me once to 'not judge a book by its cover'."

"I did," she slowly replied, unsure of where the conversation was going.

"I believe you were judging."

The girl's lips formed an 'oh' as realization hit her, and she looked away, a light blush on her cheeks.

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"Father."

It was winter once more, the thin blanket of snow falling onto the frozen earth. The boy once again stood before his father's grave, feeling the comfort he had once lost.

Three years had passed since he had fallen into the weeklong coma, worrying his best friend (and love interest) to tears. Both were at the peak of their ANBU career, the leading team for S-Ranked missions until the Sannin (Haruno, Uzumaki, and Uchiha) were able to get back on their feet as the legendary, now reunited, Team Seven, trained and honed their monstrous abilities with each other.

It was different now, different from the first time they met seventeen years ago. It was different because he wasn't bitter, and different because he thrived on the warmth she gave him.

His eyes slightly widened when he felt the warmth of a scarf wrap around his neck, and the same, gentle aura standing next to him. Her lips were formed in a devious smile as she cast him a greeting glance.

"Oops! Sorry! I'm not a Hyuuga, so I must not be allowed here, hmm?"

Her eyes twinkled with amusement when he lightly chuckled, an action only she was graced with seeing and hearing. She smiled when his hand snaked into hers, their fingers intertwined, the link to their salvation.

"I suppose you're allowed here," he mysteriously whispered, "Aren't you?"

Her eyebrow rose with curiosity.

"Does it matter that I love you, or anything, or do I need to –"

" – Marry me? Yes."

Her eyes widened, a light blush present on her cheeks. Tears began to form at her eyes, her heart beating with happiness beyond comprehension.

"I don't need to answer, do I? Because, holy crap, my heart is on overdrive."

The tears began to spill when he lifted the scarf from her neck and placed a necklace there, the only charm the golden ring. She smiled; he really knew her too well.

"No, you don't."

They were forehead to forehead now, their eyes deeply gazing at each other, lost in their own universe of bright suns and twinkling stars.

"Hyuuga Tenten. It has a nice ring to it," he whispered.

She laughed and claimed his lips.

"I love you, Neji," she said when they had broken away.

He smiled.

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A/N:Yeah, I sorta like this one. A lot.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed it!
I was craving some NejiTen. (:

Thanks for reading!