Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, even the title of the story and the name of the chapter isn't mine.

His pale lavender eyes watched the faint rise and fall of her chest under the sheets of the hospital bed she lay in, his hand placed gently over her limp one. It was cold, too cold for his liking; even so, he refused to let it go.

He recalled hearing about what had happened from Lee upon his return from his mission yesterday. He had rushed as fast as he could to the hospital where he found her in this state.

He hadn't left the room since.

Absently, he reached over to brush a few strands of her long hair away from her face, taking care not to touch the bandages wrapped around her head. He knew that she hated it when her hair got into her eyes. "It's distracts me," she explained after a particularly long sparring session when she noticed him looking questioningly at her while she was fixing her buns. At the time, he had agreed, ignoring the pointed look and raised eyebrow at his own long hair.

Distractions during battle could be as lethal as a well aimed kunai. Even so, he privately thought that she looked better with her hair down.

Her face was calm, even peaceful. If he hadn't known better, he would have thought that she was just sleeping. It felt as if she would wake up any minute and say 'good morning' to him with that cheerful smile that he knew so well playing on her lips.

It was supposed to be a simple mission, he found himself thinking suddenly. The hand that was on his lap clenched into a fist.

He was angry. Angry at the men that had attacked her, at the incompetence of the shinobi that had been her partner, at the ANBU team for not finding her sooner...

A tiny part of him was almost angry at her for not being strong enough to look after herself.

Almost.

But most of all, he was angry with himself for not being there to protect her.

Then the door opened and Lee entered; neither of the room's occupants acknowledged his presence.

"Neji, Hokage-sama wants to see you."

"Aa."

Tsunade was digging through the piles of forms and scrolls stacked on top of her desk. At times like this, she wished she had her two protege's expertise at magically unearthing exactly what she needed from any sort of pile, regardless of its size or contents.

Unfortunately, Shizune was currently away on a mission and Sakura was helping out at the hospital. Neither of them would be back for quite some time.

Then again, if either her assistant or apprentice had been here, she probably wouldn't even be looking for what she was trying to find in the first place.

"Where the hell is that damned sake!"

There was a knock on the door and Tsunade quickly sat back down on her chair and picked up a scroll, pretending to read it.

"Come in," she called out, unaware that she was holding the scroll upside-down.

"Hokage-sama," Neji greeted. "I apologise for not reporting here immediately after returning from my mission."

"Yes, but that wasn't what I wanted to see you about," Tsunade said.

"We've recently received information that Iwagakure is planning something. The council has decided to send in someone to find out whether Konoha is their target, highly likely since we aren't on very good terms with them. Unfortunately, due to the circumstances, we cannot afford to send in more than-"

BAM!

"Hokage-sama!" Lee shouted, panting as he clutched the doorframe. "It's Tenten, she-"

Without waiting to hear the rest, Neji ran out of the office, closely followed by Lee and Tsunade.

In her the first few moments of consciousness, all she heard was a soft, familiar beeping. A light ache pulsed in her head and her body felt as if it were made of lead. The only thing that she could discern was the feeling of someone else's hand on hers.

The sound of conversation drifted into her mind. In her semi-conscious state, she couldn't make out any of the words.

She didn't even realize until much later that the warm weight on her hand was gone.

Her eyes fluttered open for a second but the fluorescent lights above made her close them again. Eventually, she grew accustomed to the brightness and her vision gradually swirled back into focus.

She turned her head slightly to get a better look at the person sitting beside her bed. He wasn't facing her so she couldn't really tell who it was at first, but the absurd amount of green he was wearing made it obvious.

"Lee?"

"Tenten!" he exclaimed loudly. Behind him, a pink haired girl looked up from the medical chart she had been examining.

"Oh, Tenten-san you're awake." Sakura walked over to her bedside. "How do you feel?"

"My head hurts," she whispered, her voice hoarse from the lack of use. Sakura placed a glowing hand on her forehead.

"Lee-san, could you go get Tsunade-shishou?"

Tenten watched Lee dash out of the room as Sakura pressed the rim of a cup to her lips. She swallowed the cool liquid gratefully.

"How long have I been here?"

"About three weeks," the medic replied, holding up her other hand in front of Tenten's face. "How many fingers do you see?"

Once she was finished with the rest of her check up, Sakura jotted down her notes as she informed Tenten of her condition.

"The dizziness and headache should fade soon. You'll be able to leave in a few more days," Sakura smiled. The other girl returned it weakly, letting her tired eyes close for a minute.

"Everyone's been very worried about you, Neji-san especially."

Tenten's eyes snapped open.

"Neji...? Who's that?"

Outside, the hand that had been reaching for the doorknob froze.

The resounding silence was broken by a loud clatter as the clipboard Sakura had been holding hit the tiled floor.

Lee's initial euphoria at his teammate's recovery was gone, his happiness replaced with wide-eyed disbelief. Beside him, Tsunade's frown deepened. She had been afraid that this would happen.

Her gaze shifted from the door to the boy standing in front of it. His hand had fallen away from the knob and was now hanging loosely by his side. His pupiless eyes were still staring at the door, face devoid of emotion.

None of them said a word.

"Wait here."

When Tsunade motioned for Lee to follow her, the Hyuuga prodigy stepped aside to let them pass. The Godaime opened the door and both of them stepped into the room. Then, the door slid shut.

An hour later, Tsunade was sitting behind her desk re-reading the notes she had taken during her medical examination, her brow furrowed in concentration.

The facts Tenten had given her matched up with the ones given by her teammate and the ANBU squad that found her. The only thing remotely unusual was how the bandits had been strong enough to capture her when she could escape so easily.

But that wasn't what was worrying her right now.

"How is she?" Neji finally asked.

"Well, her physical injuries have healed. She should be fine after some rest," Tsunade explained. "However, it seems that the trauma to her head has caused her to lose her memories of you."

"Is that possible?"

"Inability to remember a specific event or person is uncommon but not unheard of. However, in all the cases that I've seen and heard of, selective memory loss only happens with things that are either easy to forget..."

The Godaime's serious amber eyes looked up at the shinobi standing before her.

"...Or things that the person wants to forget."

She paused to glance down at a sheet of paper before saying, "I've decided not to inform Tenten of her condition. Her attempting to force herself to remember isn't going to do any good. It's best if we let her recall her memories on her own. We'll reintroduce you to her gradually so that she won't be overwhelmed."

The Hokage set down the papers she was holding onto her already cluttered desk before placing her elbows on her desk, propping her chin on folded hands.

"Neji," she continued, "considering the severity of her amnesia, there is a possibility that she may never regain the memories that she lost."

By this point, the Hyuuga genius' expression was completely unreadable. Tsunade selected a scroll from the stack on her desk handed it to him. "The details for your mission are in here. I'll be temporarily transferring someone into your team to cover for your absence," she said, her voice businesslike but not unkind.

The shinobi in question merely nodded in response.

"Is there anything else?"

"No, you can go."

Even after he had left, Tsunade continued staring at the place where he had stood. As a medic and a fellow ninja, she too knew how hard it was when her comrades were injured in the line of duty. Especially when it was a case like this one.

After all, no matter what some liked or wanted to believe, shinobi were still human.

Tsunade sighed, reaching for the latest addition to her already mountainous pile of work.

I need a drink.

Hinata made her way along the corridors, coming to a stop in front of a paper and wood sliding door. She knocked gently on the sturdy wooden frame, calling out softly.

"N-Neji-nii-san, I'm going to visit Tenten-san. Do you want to come?"

There was no reply. Hinata was about to leave when she saw her father approaching from the other end of the hallway.

"C-Chichiue," she greeted. The Hyuuga patriach nodded before speaking.

"I heard that you were going to visit Neji's teammate. Give her my regards."

"Hai." Hinata bowed as she excused herself.

Hiashi watched his eldest daughter as she walked towards the main entrance of the estate. She had grown a lot in terms of both courage and strength over the last few years. However, he knew that she wouldn't have gotten this far if she had been without the right support and encouragement from the people around her, something that even he had not been able to provide.

His nephew's teammate, he had found, was an especially good influence on his daughter. Despite her lack of a clan or kekkei genkai, she was an admirable young woman and a fine kunoichi.

Any man would be a fool to give up someone like her.

Hiashi glanced briefly at the door on his left before heading back towards his study.

"Hinata!"

"T-Tenten-san, how are you feeling?" she inquired politely, closing the door behind her. "H-Here, I brought you something."

"Hinata, you're a life-saver," Tenten said appreciatively as she took the proffered container before proceeding to devour its contents.

Her appetite seems normal, Hinata thought. Then she noticed the bag at leaning against the stool she was sitting on.

"A-Ano... Tenten-san, w-why have you packed your things?"

"I asked Tsunade-sama to let me leave earlier," she explained between bites of her food.

"Why?"

Tenten swallowed her mouthful before answering, "It's the anniversary of my dad's death so I wanted to visit the memorial today."

"O-Oh... D-Do you want me to come with you?"

The other girl shook her head.

"It's okay, I'll be fine."

Hinata suddenly found herself beginning to twiddle her fingers; one of the habits she still retained from her younger days. Despite her best efforts, she had found that she simply couldn't mask her nervousness, uncertainty and all her other emotions the way her cousin and everyone else in her clan did.

"It's the way you are," Tenten said, setting down the kunai she had just polished.

From her seat at the low table, Hinata watched her friend select a katana from the array of weaponry spread out on the bed. Her father had arranged for the weapon mistress to have a room set aside for her use on the grounds that she and Neji often trained late into the night and it would be far more convenient for her to stay at the Hyuga estate when they did.

Hinata continued staring at her reflection in the katana Tenten was holding; the latter's inverted image separated from her own by a slant of light that cut across the blade.

"Actually, I think it's cute," Tenten grinned, looking up from her cleaning. "Unless you'd rather end up like Neji."

The sneeze from next door caused both kunoichi to dissolve into fits of poorly-stifled giggles.

"Winter's come early this year."

Hinata looked up at her friend who was looking at the grey, overcast sky outside. The chopsticks and half empty container lay forgotten on the bedside table.

The Hyuuga heiress looked back down at her hands that had settled onto her lap.

"Hai."

It was early evening by the time she reached the Hyuuga complex. Before she had even touched the handle, the main door of the estate slid open.

"N-Neji-nii-san," Hinata gasped. "W-Where are you going?"

"I wanted to do some training before my mission tomorrow," came the terse answer, following it a short pause.

"How's Tenten?" Hinata didn't miss the way his eyes softened slightly when he said this.

"She's being discharged today," she replied with a small smile.

"I see," he said quietly, stepping outside.

"A-ano.. N-Neji-nii-san," she stammered, unsure of whether or not she should ask. She decided to try.

"D-did something h-happen between you and T-Tenten-san b-before...?" she trailed off when she noticed that her cousin was no longer meeting her gaze.

It was silent for a moment, and then, "You don't have to worry, Hinata-sama." She almost opened her mouth to say something but Neji cut her off, "Hiashi-sama is waiting for you to start dinner."

"Oh." Hinata headed into the house and watched him leave.

How can you ask me not to worry, Neji-nii-san?

But, even though she was extremely concerned about her cousin and his teammate, she knew that it wasn't her place to interfere. This was between the two of them and the only thing she could do now was believe in them both.

Over the years she had known them, Hinata had come to realize that the bond between Neji and Tenten was beyond the simple friendship she shared with her own teammates. However, it wasn't the sibling relationship Sakura had with Naruto; neither did it have any of Ino and Shikamaru's casual flirting.

Theirs was... different.

Deeper...

One that wouldn't be broken by something like this.

Everything would be all right in the end.

She gently eased the door close.

Night had fallen. The usually busy streets of Konohagakure were quiet, especially that particular area that he was walking through. The almost unnatural silence didn't bother him. In fact, he preferred it that way.

The last three days had been spent inside his room. Meditating. Trying to clear his thoughts. It was during this time that he had, for the first time in his life, found himself flooded with indecision.

What could he do? What should he do? What should he have done? There were so many questions that he couldn't find the answers to no matter how hard he tried.

But there was something else; another foreign feeling that he could not place. It made his chest feel tight and gave rise to an uncharacteristic lump in his throat. It hurt, but the pain was unlike that of any physical injury he had ever received during his years as a ninja. He could deal with those easily enough, but this...

This was beyond him.

It was because of this undeniable fact that these twin novelties frustrated him, someone who hid all his emotions behind a mask of apathy and coldness. He was a prodigy, the epitome of what a shinobi was expected to be. He did not respond emotionally, only with the serenity and indifference that those of his clan had been bred with.

The question that his younger cousin had asked was still echoing in the back of his mind. At the time, he hadn't felt any need to answer her.

It was something that had been in the spur of the moment; something bound to eventually happen that did. Nothing more.

At least, that was what he had been telling himself for the last few weeks.

Although he wouldn't admit it, in actuality, he had been afraid.

Afraid of losing her.

Afraid of losing a teammate, his mind immediately corrected, but even he himself didn't quite believe that.

But now he had lost her, and he didn't have anyone to blame for it other than himself.

He was heading for the third training area which was the nearest one. His usual training area was closer, but he couldn't bring himself to go to the clearing in the woods. Their clearing.

He pushed open the wrought iron gate before entering.

Someone else was already there; a slim, unmistakably feminine figure in a cream sweater and black slacks, standing in front of the memorial stone with her back towards him.

His breath caught in his throat when he saw her dark hair, flecked with white, gathered on the top of her head into a pair of matching buns.

It was only then did Neji realize that it was snowing.

She gently brushed away the snow that had fallen on the greenish blue marble, lost in the memories of her younger days.

She missed them. She missed them both so much...

Tenten determinedly blinked away her tears. She refused to cry. Not here; not now.

She turned to leave and saw him.

He was around her age, judging from his height alone. The symbol etched on his forehead protector told her that he was a fellow Konoha shinobi, but one that she hadn't met before. He was standing about three meters away and she was surprised that he had gotten that close without her even noticing his presence.

The white hakama and pants he was wearing blended perfectly with the snow-covered ground. The coffee-coloured hair that framed his handsome face reached his lower back. At first, she had found it unusual for a boy to have such long hair. Her sentiments were immediately forgotten when she saw his eyes.

They reminded her of the silver moonlight reflecting off the snowflakes as they drifited down from the heavens and the cold steel of the weapons she used. She admired the way they mirrored the pure, all-encompasing whiteness that enveloped everything around them.

Yet, she could sense a loneliness in his empty gaze.

For a long while, the only sound was that of the wind whistling as it whipped through the near-by trees. Tenten realized that she was shivering, but it wasn't because of the temperature.

She decided to break the increasingly uncomfortable silence.

"Err... Did you lose someone? A family member?"

Another long silence.

"A teammate," he finally replied, his voice low and thick with emotion. "She was-" He stopped short and seemed to contemplate his answer before saying, "A friend."

She...?

Out of pure curiosity, Tenten asked.

"Did you... love her?

Just as she was about to apologize for her thoughtlessness, he replied.

"I don't know," he said quietly, staring at the ground. Tenten didn't know what she could say to him, to comfort him. She found herself blurting out the first thing that came to mind.

"Well, I'm sure that she must have felt the same way."

He looked up abruptly, his eyes meeting hers for the first time that night. She tried, in vain, to fight the heat that was creeping over her cheeks.

"Is something wrong?" For a moment, she thought she had seen surprise hidden somewhere in the depths of his white eyes.

"No." The hollow baritone of his voice was strained, but nothing showed on his face. He was looking right at her now, looking but not seeing.

"Thank you."

It was as though everything had fallen silent, frozen in time. She stared, wide-eyed, into the pearly white orbs of the stranger standing in front of her. Even though he never said it, she had heard the unspoken good-bye in his whispered words.

They both had.

Then, he turned around and started to walk away, never looking back. A part of her wanted her to call him back and ask him what he meant, but her voice had deserted her and all she could do was stand there.

As she watched his retreating figure, she felt a strange emotion welling up inside her along with her tears.

This time, she let them fall.

Author's Note:

I hope you liked it. Took a while to get all the emotions and phrasing right. Don't worry, I won't just end it off like that. This IS a NejiTen after all. ;)

Beta read by my wonderful friend, Midnight Memories.