a/n: Egad! Over a week between updates? *bows head apologetically* Lots of homework, quizzes, tests, projects and the like. What can you do? Some teachers are obsessed with making you work your arse off and have no time to write.

Oh well, here's Chapter Five! Hope you like it? (I was kinda losing interest during the middle...)

disclaimer: My birth certificate does not say Masashi Kishimoto. Nor am I a man. Therefore, I do not own Naruto.

Ahnyongg
~Cel:D

BUTTERFLY WINGS
CHAPTER 5
~Stay~

By the time noon rolled around, Neji found himself situated in front of the television screen, staring at the screen without quite processing what he was watching. His feet were propped up lazily on a plush ottoman and he sunk even further into the cushions as the talk show host began to ramble about the death of her guest star's cousin.

Tenten had yet to emerge from her room, although the clothes had disappeared from outside her room the last time Neji had checked. He couldn't fathom what she was doing up there; the room held no source of entertainment. She could always wreck the room just out of spite, but then he would have heard a commotion and so far, the house was quiet.

Maybe she had left, escaped because she was afraid to face him. But no, that wasn't logical to him. She was brave, braver than he'd ever be, and would surely stay to confront him.

So why was it taking so damn long for her to show her face?

She was angry. That was a given. Neji supposed it took time for females to get over their various grudges and resentments.

But he was pleasantly surprised when Tenten walked in just in time to see a commercial for a documentary about the rare Peruvian butterfly later that evening. Neji held his breath, waiting for her breakdown, and observed as she got quite still.

It's not a real butterfly. I'm safe. I'm safe. It can't hurt me. I'm safe.

She closed her eyes and began to murmur inaudible words of reassurance to herself yet Neji made no move to comfort her. When, at last, the commercial had ended and the opening theme for a soap opera had come on, she opened her eyes and grinned at Neji.

He straightened up and narrowed one eye, muting the television. "You should be here to apologize," he stated.

"And if I'm not?" she countered.

Neji stood up threateningly and edged closer to her – Tenten resisted the urge to take a step back. "Then we can compromise that we were both at fault. Of course, neither one of us have to apologize because we both know we're not brave enough to do it."

"I'm brave!" Tenten insisted, unaware that she was being tricked. "I have the guts to apologize! I'm sorry, Neji!"

He smirked and sat back down. "That's always nice to know. Good to see that you have some pride."

"You should apologize too," Tenten suggested.

"I find that requests for forgiveness are a sign of weakness," he told her. "I'd never stoop so low."

"But…when you apologize," she began, struggling to find the right words to express her feelings, "you…become the bigger person. Because you can accept your faults and admit when you are wrong, you become stronger."

"Hn."

Neji glanced at the screen as a pair of lovers embraced passionately and hit the power button in disgust. He looked at Tenten, who was still standing in the same spot, and motioned for her to come closer. She hesitated, then obliged, taking timid steps, apprehensive as to what he would do next.

Rolling his eyes, Neji gestured to the couch and she sat down rather reluctantly about two feet away. "God, woman," he muttered, shifting in the seat, "can you at least pretend that you don't feel awkward? You make me feel like the bad guy."

"No, you're not the bad guy," Tenten reassured him. "You're…a good guy! A very good guy!"

He barked out a harsh-sounding laugh and shook his head. "No, no, I'm not. I'm a very bad person." Neji continued before Tenten could have a chance to respond. "I'm going into town today. We need to get more food because there are now two people living in this house and you need clothes." He eyed his clothes on her disapprovingly.

"I don't need new clothes," she insisted. "I'm perfectly fine in yours."

"But then what am I going to wear?" he inquired. "Whether you want new clothes or not, we're going. And even if I agreed with you, we still need food."

Tenten glanced down at her borrow clothes and sighed in resignation. "Fine."

"We can go now," Neji decided but stopped to think. "Unless, you want to eat something?"

"No, I'm not hungry," she lied, her cover blown when her stomach rumbled loudly.

His smirk reemerged as he grabbed for his car keys and wallet. "We can pick up something for you on the way."

Her mouth twitched and she followed him out the door and into the garage, where a dark blue convertible sat, waiting to be used. "Haven't driven her in a while," Neji muttered, climbing into the driver's seat as Tenten scrambled unceremoniously into the passenger seat.

Neji opened the garage door and backed out before getting onto the main road. "The closest town is about ten minutes from here," he explained. "We live in the outskirts."

Tenten didn't bother responding, instead closing her eyes and enjoying the feel of wind rustling through her hair, as if she were soaring miles above the ground, free, weightless, at peace…

Now that she was perhaps more civilized – a home, clothes to wear, food to eat – the world outside seemed very different to her. It no longer seemed as if everything and everyone was out to get her. In fact, it was tranquil, dabbed with a touch of serenity.

She faintly heard the radio switch on, the DJ announcing the top ten songs of the year, but tuned it out, preferring to listen to her own symphony of rushing winds, rustling leaves, and chirping birds accentuated with a splash of sunshine.

Only when Neji slowed to a stop in front of a supermarket did she open her eyes. Wordlessly, he motioned her to follow him inside and she shuffled after him, suddenly anxious to be around so many people.

During the years that she had spent as a homeless person surrounded by poverty, Tenten had tended to stay away from other, wealthier people, finding the scorn and disrespect that she received near unbearable. Those people were so terribly heartless to those with less that she had grown up with a warped sense of the world: nobody loved her.

But seeing the friendly smile that an old man gave them as Neji held the door for him to enter first, she relaxed a little. "So, uh, shopping," she began awkwardly, watching as Neji grabbed a shopping cart and headed down an aisle full of dairy products.

"Yes, something I expect you have no experience with?" he commented coolly, setting a gallon of whole milk into the cart.

"I…remember shopping with my mother," Tenten stated suddenly. "She'd push me around in the…shopping cart…and we'd laugh until our sides ached."

Neji looked at her curiously for a moment before heading over to the aisle three. "As tempting as that sounds, I think you are a bit too old for that kind of horseplay."

"It was only a memory, Neji," she laughed, unabashed. "I know how strange of a scene that would make."

"Hn." He surveyed the loaves of bread wrapped in their transparent blankets, his hand hovering over each one as he scanned the labels. "Do you have a preference?"

Tenten laughed nervously. "No, I'm not very picky."

"Thank heaven for that," he muttered, grasping a package of whole wheat bread and motioning for her to follow him into the fruits section.

She trailed after him – like a duckling follows its mother – all throughout the store as he chose the juiciest peaches, greenest lettuce, and freshest chicken, among others, but slowly grew tired of watching him scan the shelves for multi-grain pasta.

Silently, she slipped away, promising herself that she would return before he even knew she was gone, and began wandering around the supermarket. Tenten passed families – a mother and her son; a father and his daughter – but felt her heart ache especially hard when she caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a ghost of her past life: a dark-haired couple with their young daughter squealing between them, her hair done up in two pigtails.

"That should have been me," Tenten muttered to herself dejectedly and found herself peeking around aisles so as not to lose sight of the happy trio, unaware of their stranger stalker following them.

So intent she was on not losing the family that Tenten had bumped into someone by the cosmetics. She stumbled back and apologized profusely before getting a good look at the lady.

She held her head with a dominance and authority that made Tenten's knees quiver slightly. Her green eyes bore into Tenten's hazel ones as she apologized once more. "I'm terribly sorry. I wasn't looking."

The lady sniffed and raised her nose to the sky before nodding curtly and striding away to the check-out line. There, her partner was waiting for her, loading the last of the groceries on the conveyer belt. "Find anything you wanted?" he asked amiably.

"No, although a girl ran into me," she answered tartly. "Really, the youth of these days."

"Relax; I highly doubt that she was contagious with anything," the man said, just to humor her. "Help me get these bags into the car. I want to head back to Suna as soon as possible."

"You're an idiot. Why not stay in Konoha where you'll be closer to your daughter?"

"It doesn't matter where I stay. I know I'll find her, Sayuri."

"I never said you wouldn't, Hotaka."

Neji slammed the trunk shut, satisfied that he had managed to fit all of the bags inside. He entered the car and gave Tenten a stern look before starting the engine. "Next time, stay with me."

"Yeah, I will." Tenten thought of the family again but quickly shook her head. There was no point in wishful thinking, knowing that it would never come true.

"Now, we need to get you some clothes," he announced, heading out of the parking lot and onto the freeway.

"You shouldn't spend your money on me," Tenten protested.

"I want my clothes back," he answered, smirking when she scowled.

He took the next exit and pulled into a parking space at Kunoichi, the high-end department store for women that Konoha was infamous for. (Its brother store, Shinobi, was across the street.)

Tenten reluctantly tagged along and outwardly winced when they stepped inside and were greeted with flashes of bright fluorescent light reflecting on the white marble floors and clouds of name brand perfumes that had congregated together and floated throughout the building.

"Cosmetics," Neji muttered, leading her over to the elevator. "We have to find the clothing department…Looks like it's on the third, fourth, and fifth floor." He looked visibly pained as he pressed the button with the silver '3' engraved on it.

"Never been shopping for women's clothing before?" Tenten guessed, teasing him slightly.

"Not really," Neji answered, frowning as he tried not to let the perfume befuddle his mind.

"Well, neither have I, so it'll be the first time for both of us!" she concluded brightly.

Neji made a noise of disbelief but didn't credit it with an answer. Instead, he signaled over a smartly-dressed saleswoman in her thirties and gestured to Tenten. "She needs a new wardrobe."

She smiled warmly and smoothed the lapel of her jacket, her fingers running over her golden nametag. "That's quite a tall order but I'm sure we'll be able to find something. My name's Naomi. Shall we start with some pants?"

"You're the expert," he deadpanned.

Still smiling, Naomi led the two to a whole section devoted to jeans and pulled out a pair of dark-wash skinny jeans. "I think you'd look very nice in this," she told Tenten. "What's your size?"

"She doesn't know," Neji interrupted without skipping a beat.

"If I had to guess," Naomi began smoothly, observing Tenten, "you would be about a size one. You have a very slender figure, dear. Why don't you run to the changing room and try them on?"

Ten minutes later, Naomi had brought over a large shopping cart and piled their selections onto it – four pairs of jeans, two khakis, one pair of yoga pants, three pairs of Capri's, and six pairs of shorts. Tenten's eyes widened at how much it would cost but Neji was unruffled as Naomi brought them to a section for shirts.

"You'd look wonderful in blue," Naomi commented brightly while holding up a turquoise shirt in front of Tenten. "Yes, very wonderful…"

Naomi was a very pleasant soul, able to make Tenten feel at ease as she brought down many different shirts to show her and Neji – floral, plaid, striped, paisley, solid – and quickly got acquainted with Tenten's sense of style.

Into the shopping cart went three camisoles, ten shirts of different color and design, two floral blouses, four tank tops, and five assorted jackets and cardigans. And after that, Neji mentioned the subject of shoes and Naomi made a fuss about coordinating outfits, finally emerging satisfied with six pairs of shoes.

"I think we also need a dress," Naomi said as she stacked the last of shoeboxes into the overflowing shopping cart. "Would you care to take a look?"

Neji, despite looking very pained at such tedious shopping, nodded. Tenten, however, wanted to protest but closed her mouth when he threw her a glare that clearly said 'Don't be so ungrateful.'

Naomi managed to find three dresses that fitted Tenten's liking – a light yellow eyelet sundress with spaghetti straps and a cinched waist, a light green halter dress with light pink and yellow flowers, and a simple black dress that Tenten doubted she'd ever have use for.

Finally deeming their shopping escapade completed, Tenten followed Naomi into the check-out line. Neji's face was impassive as the total came to over two thousand dollars. Naomi's eyes sparkled as he wordlessly handed over a shiny credit card and swiped it with deep satisfaction. Her commission would be greatly looked forward to.

As she checked the photo ID, her face grew sympathetic and looked at the boy in front of her kindly. "Hyuuga, Neji Hyuuga," Naomi muttered, oblivious to Neji growing rigid, "I'm sorry about your cousin. You are so brave, so noble, so charitable for…"

"Be quiet," Neji ordered. "You've mistaken me for someone else."

"Of course, my apologies," she answered, unperturbed. "Here's your receipt. Shall I send someone down to assist you?"

"No," he said shortly.

Neji took most of the bags into his own hands and shoved the last two at Tenten. Avoiding Naomi's friendly wave good-bye, he stalked to the elevator and said not a word until they had clambered back into his car.

"Don't you dare ask me what that was about," he said gruffly.

"But, Neji, what's wrong with your cousin?" Tenten shrank away at the murderous glare that he threw at her and instantly cursed her curiosity.

"That doesn't concern you. I don't want you to know." Neji turned on the radio in an attempt to discourage Tenten from any more inquiries. However, it hadn't worked as well as he had wanted it to.

"But why? What if I want to know? Is it really that bad?" She bit her lip as a sudden thought struck her. "You're not a criminal, are you? You didn't do anything to your cousin, did you?"

"Nothing, I did nothing, Tenten."

"Then it's all good!"

Neji shook his head.

"No, it's not. I should've done something."

Sakura shuffled through the papers on the clipboard, pausing to scribble down a note to herself now and then. She constantly swiped at the lock of bubblegum pink hair that had come loose from her messy braid and came to rest right in her line of sight.

It had been a busy day at the hospital and she had not yet had time to check-in with Tsunade, though it was well past her curfew. Ignoring a few more calls from her impatient mother, Sakura knocked on her boss's door but stopped when she heard footsteps.

Shizune, one of the hospitals more proficient surgeons, came around the corner, looking shocked. "My God, Sakura, you're still here? It's almost eleven! All the other interns left around three hours ago!"

"I haven't turned in my report to Tsunade-sama," Sakura explained, tapping her clipboard with the end of her pen.

"Well, she's with the Hyuuga girl," Shizune answered, already heading off. "If you run, you'll be able to catch her?"

Sakura shouted her thanks over her shoulder and took up a pace that was much faster than walking but couldn't yet be labeled as running. When she finally paused outside of Hanabi Hyuuga's room, she had to force herself to stop in time to avoid running into Tsunade's chest.

"You should've left ages ago," the medic-nin told her apprentice bluntly.

"Medical charts and records," Sakura panted, handing the clipboard to Tsunade. "You told me to give them to you in person, remember?"

Tsunade groaned, snatched the paper, and rubbed her temples while reviewing the papers. "Damn hangover," she muttered, "and that Hyuuga doesn't help at all. She's insistent on dying."

"Neji hasn't come back yet?" Sakura guessed.

"He will be back soon," Tsunade said with conviction. "From what Hanabi has told me, Sasuke left to go find him just this morning."

Sakura blinked, hoping she had heard wrong. "What?"

"She wouldn't give me any more details. You should talk to her," Tsunade suggested. "She might be more apt to tell you and give you more details. And convince her that death isn't her destiny."

"Very well."

With shaking hands, Sakura pulled open Hanabi's door and frowned at the girl lying motionless on the bed, her bedside lamp still on. It was obvious that she was feigning sleep as her breaths were too even and her eyelids fluttered every so often.

"I know you're awake, Hanabi. Stop pretending," Sakura advised, closing the door gently behind her.

Hanabi opened one eyes and looked at her with such an intense gaze that Sakura felt her heart suddenly race with apprehension. "So many visitors in one day," she commented lightly, as if conversing about the weather. "I really appreciate how much you all care. However, if the pattern continues, you'll storm out of here angrily. They always do."

"Is…is Sasuke really going to look for Neji?" Sakura murmured, afraid of the answer.

"That's very tactless of you, Haruno," Hanabi deadpanned. "Come to a dying person's room and ask about a perfectly healthy person's well-being?"

"You're not dying. Neji will come back," Sakura contradicted at once, unable to stand it when patients insisted on their own destruction. "He'll come around soon and then he will apologize for ever ignoring you."

The Hyuuga smiled wryly, enjoying a private joke. "Do you really believe that?"

"Yes, I do. But I must go now. It's late, I need to sleep, and so do you." Sakura walked over, flipped off the lights and backed out of the room. "Remember, I wholly believe in that."

Hanabi scowled at the darkness but couldn't conjure up the strength to turn the lights back on. Instead, she lay motionless in her bed, thinking about what Sakura had said.

He'll come around soon and then he'll apologize for ever ignoring you.

"Is that what you tell yourself every time Sasuke doesn't notice you?" Hanabi scoffed. "Stay in your fantasy then, but I've come to accept reality."

a/n: Wahh? So what do you think? Yes, Neji probably wouldn't spend two thousand dollars on just anyone. However, there's no price for love. Shoot me, that was terribly corny. XD

This chapter was a bit of a turning point, of Tenten crossing the threshold from poverty into the life of a financially-stable person. She's got a handsome man paying for her expenses, people treating her warmly, and more food than she could ever dream of. But not very informative concerning all the random little plot hints I've thrown in. Haha, I'll definitely talk about that later. ;)

So close yet so far away, eh? Tenten bumps into Sayuri and they go their seperate ways, not knowing that they're both tied together by Hotaka. You should have realized by now that he's Tenten's dad. XD

Anyway, PLEASE REVIEW. :D

Ahnyongg~
Cel:D