Chapter Two
A series of multi-hued colours gleamed against a silver blade as it whipped through the air. A broad figure whirled around the garden swiftly, spinning the long sword with a set of capable, agile hands whilst performing a sequence of complex moves. The figure then threw the sword into the air, where he caught it with ease. Then, without a moment of hesitation, he twisted his body and leapt again into the air, flipping twice and giving one last kick before landing on the ground gracefully.
Hyuuga Neji didn't pant the slightest bit.
He instantly resumed his training, sitting back into a traditional Hyuuga offensive stance, preparing to try a newer technique that he had recently taught himself. Sliding his sword smoothly back into its sheath, he closed his eyes to concentrate. As a Hyuuga, mastering his chakra flow was imperative. Needless to say, he knew very well that he had already used up most of it, but he wasn't going to stop anytime soon. It was only a little past noon with the sun shining at its peak. Albeit sunny, the late-summer weather was cool and offered him the perfect opportunity to train. He hadn't even stopped to eat lunch; in fact, he had been training non-stop since the crack of dawn.
"Hakke Kūshō!"
A focused burst of chakra instantly formed at the palm of his hand. Neji inwardly smirked, knowing fully well that he would soon master this technique. Veins rippled across the sides of his face as his eyes suddenly snapped open, focused intently on an imaginary opponent. He promptly thrust his palm at it while expelling all the chakra he had left in him. The ball of chakra sliced through the air, whipping and whirling like a tornado before hitting a wall of trees.
The prodigy watched in satisfaction as multiple trees simultaneously collapsed. He then paused for a moment when he heard faint footsteps heading towards him.
"Neji-nii-san! Neji-nii-san!"
The prodigy's head tilted downwards to face the younger sibling of the oldest Hyuuga heiress. Although he was cross at the annoying interruption, he acknowledged her presence with a polite nod. And then, in a formal tone, he asked, "What is it, Hanabi-sama?"
The little girl was breathless and huffing for air. Ignoring his growing impatience, she began flailing her arms everywhere and nearly hit him in the stomach. "Please tell me," she panted angrily, "that you did not agree to marry so early! Tell me you didn't invite that woman over! Just tell me that you did not agree!"
Neji raised an eyebrow at her outburst. "I haven't agreed to anything."
"Then why," Hanabi ranted on, waving a crumpled advertisement inches before his face, "is this girl coming over to live with us in our mansion? Father said that she was the perfect candidate for you, mumbling something about fate! But that's not the worst part—look! She's a commoner! She's a nobody! I don't want just anybody in our mansion! She's probably poor and looking for a sugar daddy, so she's selling herself with a pretty picture because she's secretly an ugly, old hag who's going to rob us! I've seen this in movies before. She'll start ordering me, and she'll eat all our food, and then life will become a living nightmare. Father even started saying stuff about marriage and—"
"Shut up."
Hanabi instantly quieted, immediately noticing that Neji's hands had balled into fists. An angered Neji was a rare sight, and a frightening one at it too. She took a step backwards even though she knew her cousin wouldn't lay a finger on her; it was simply an instinct to back off someone who was as dangerous as him. She couldn't blame him for being so enraged, though. It was a only natural reaction since Hiashi had blatantly dismissed his wishes. And on top of the unwanted engagement, Hiashi had paired him with a commoner which, in her book, was the ultimate insult. Who was this "Tenten", anyway? Was she a ninja? What if she was an enemy in disguise?
Before Hanabi could voice any of her concerns, Neji walked past her, pushing her out of his way. He tore past the hallways of the main family's section in the Hyuuga mansion. He didn't even notice an Elder's glance of disapproval.
The sixteen-year-old stormed towards the incensed room where Hiashi meditated everyday before lunch. Ignoring the fact that anybody could have been in there, Neji slid the door open and demanded, "What is the meaning of this?"
Every sense of logic within the teenager dissipated as his blood boiled with rage. He didn't know why his voice was louder than normal, or how he had lost his cool demeanour so easily, or why he was even jeopardising his position as the Hyuuga clan's most elite shinobi. After all, practically every male Hyuuga had to choose his fiancée by the age of sixteen. The engagement was something everyone had to go through, but something about it made Neji feel extremely unsettled.
Taking a deep breath, he willed himself to calm down but couldn't quite do so. "Who is this commoner whom you've chosen for me? If I refuse to marry a lord's daughter, what makes you think that I'll accept some filthy commoner?"
Hiashi stood up from his kneeling position. "Do not speak of such profanity, my nephew. Calm down."
"I don't understand," Neji stated bluntly.
"What is there to understand?"
"Hanabi-sama told me that you're considering a commoner."
Hiashi raised his eyebrows. "I thought you never pay heed to Hanabi and her antics."
"What she said makes sense. Either way, I'm not going to engage to—much less marry—a woman whom I don't even know. I said that yesterday, did I not?"
"Yes, you did. However, the Elders are planning to bring Mikya over nonetheless. Neji, you know the benefits yourself." Hiashi gazed both pleadingly and steadily into his nephew's eyes. "Regardless of what you feel or say, your engagement to her is still expected."
"That's—I don't—if I'm forced to marry Mikya anyway, then why are you bringing over some pathetic commoner?"
"The girl I've contacted is neither a 'pathetic commoner' nor your future wife. I just do not believe that you will be able to survive without some peers to help you along the way. Friends, Neji. You need friends."
"Friends," the prodigy repeated incredulously.
Hiashi simply chuckled.
"You hired a friend for me?" Neji continued disbelievingly, doubting his uncle's sanity.
"Relationships are very important, and you never seem to get along with your teammates. That is why—"
"That's why you want me to become friends with a commoner. Who is she? How do we know she's not an enemy?"
"Her name is Tenten. I have done a background check on her and she doesn't seem to be suspicious. Besides, the clan can defend itself easily."
"Tenten," Neji repeated, however more to himself than anything else.
"That is right. Neji, think about it: the advantage is mutual. She needs to make a little bit of money and you need someone to train with. I hired her because I think she can teach you how to be more sociable and admire things. She will be your peer tutor, in a sense."
"No." The young Hyuuga found it unusually hard to regain his composure. "I will absolutely not carry through with this. Call this fool right now and tell her that the deal's off."
Hiashi cracked a smile. It wasn't one out of true happiness or a crooked one, but rather, it was a sympathetic smile, with the hopes of changing his cold-hearted nephew. "I cannot do that, Neji. She's already coming."
If Tenten had to make a list of the weirdest jobs she had ever accepted, babysitting Hyuuga Neji would probably top the list. She had received a myriad of requests after handing out a stack of flyers last weekend; from making trips to the market for elderly couples to performing missions for people who couldn't afford the Hokage's services, Tenten had done them all. Granted, they were all relatively small tasks and didn't require her leaving the country, but she had made enough money to last her a month.
The sixteen-year-old brunette stopped in her tracks when she spotted the Hyuuga mansion in the distance. Even though she was still quite far away from the actual entrance, she couldn't help but gape at the extravagance of it all. It was a known fact that the Hyuuga clan was one of the richest families in Konoha, but Tenten hadn't expected the manor to occupy an entire street. Everything outside the ornate, iron gates seemed to pale in comparison.
It took a moment for Tenten to snap out of her daze. She still couldn't believe that Hyuuga Hiashi had hired her to be a prodigy's peer tutor. She didn't know what to expect—or rather, what was expected of her, since she was only a self-trained ninja and didn't have much experience. "My nephew needs to communicate more," Hiashi had said. What did he mean by that?
Tenten bit her lip, suddenly feeling apprehensive. Was she in over her head? She wasn't some kind of psychiatrist. How was she supposed to help Neji break out of his shell? She wasn't exactly the most sociable person herself. In fact, the only reason why she had accepted the job so readily was the money Hiashi offered; anybody in a similar financial situation would have agreed in a heartbeat.
"Welcome," a relatively short man said as she reached the main entrance. He opened the gates for her, which swung open flawlessly.
"Thank you."
No, Tenten thought again after gazing into the guard's pearly eyes—a distinctive trait of all Hyuugas. There was another reason as to why she had to come to the Hyuuga mansion: he could be here.
Neji's eyes blazed with vehement hatred.
He had no idea as to how he had been waiting so calmly in one of the clan's many guest rooms, or why he had agreed to meet this girl in the first place. Perhaps it was the pleading look in his uncle's eyes, which was something he hadn't seen before, or maybe it was the threat that a six-year-old Hyuuga had childishly posed. The little girl was a hopeless romantic and wanted the chance to witness a real-life fairy tale between "a prince and a peasant". Regardless of the idiotic way she had done it and her unrealistic expectations, everyone knew he could die easily—and instantly—at the hands of the main household. He inwardly sighed. He was known as the clan's prodigy, but he would always be ultimately powerless.
"Maybe she's morbidly obese, or really stupid," Hanabi snickered. "You know, she might look pretty in that picture, but you never know. That could be her friend or something."
Neji glared at his younger cousin upon hearing her words. If there was anything worse than being forced to wait for his future "friend", it would be being ridiculed while doing so. Everything about this arrangement was laughable; if it weren't for Hiashi, this girl would not be coming at all. The clan would never allow a peasant to set foot on Hyuuga grounds. The clan would never hire a friend for him, either.
"M-maybe she won't be so b-bad." Hinata's words of assurance weren't much of use. The Hyuuga heiress instantly gasped when she saw his hauntingly dark eyes and she quieted at once.
"There's no doubt that she wants our money," Hanabi concluded in triumph. "I'm telling you, she's going to rob us at night. So everybody, keep an eye open when you sleep."
"That is enough," Hiashi interposed gravely, casting a pointedly significant look at his youngest daughter. "Hanabi, I will ask you to leave if you continue with your antics. I asked you to greet our guest, not judge her."
The entire room was then engulfed in uncomfortable silence. No one uttered a word after Hiashi had spoken; Hinata was naturally quiet, Neji wasn't verbose, and Hanabi simply pouted from having been scolded. However, being the mischievous child she was, she began formulating a plan that included voodoo dolls to sabotage the new girl's chances with Neji.
The heavy silence was suddenly broken when Neji abruptly stood up. He muttered something incoherent before leaving the room, leaving the three other Hyuugas to wonder by themselves. Hinata and Hanabi exchanged puzzled looks.
Neji's heavy footsteps were heard throughout the corridor. He walked with his head hung low, unaware—no, he was rather careless as to what or whom he might bump into. His emotions were cleverly concealed by his emotionless eyes but inwardly, he was smouldering with rage. Everybody knew that Hiashi had gotten him a "friend" because he wanted her to become his wife if the engagement to Mikya were to fall through. The only thing that would make the implication more overt was if Hiashi were to voice his intention aloud. Did he really think he could fool anybody? If he did, then it was a pathetic attempt to cover a plan that would never work. Neji refused to even glance at her.
His train of thoughts were suddenly cut off when he collided into someone. Knowing that he was still in the territory of the head family, he instantly apologised but stopped short of offering a hand when he realised that he couldn't recognise the girl that had fallen to the floor.
Even though her head was still angled downwards, Neji could tell that the girl did not belong to the clan. She wore Chinese-styled clothing that loosely fit over her slender figure, and it was evident that she was a ninja since she had scrolls that stuck out of her pocket. An attacker, maybe? No, that was impossible. There was no way she could have gotten through the guards without a scratch.
Then realisation hit him like a jolt in the spine: this was Tenten.
She responded to the apology by raising her head upwards, opening her mouth to apologise as well, but no words came out. Their eyes met, aligning their visions, and that moment was long enough to crack the layers of emotions hidden within them both.
Neji's eyes widened for the briefest moment, ephemeral ivory boring into infinite chestnut. His hands were resting still by his side as he stared at her, breathing silently yet unevenly at the same time. The fact that she was still on the ground did not cross his mind.
The girl felt her breath hitch. Something about this young handsome man made her throat go dry, dry enough to make her unable to find any words to say. Something about his dark long hair, strong jaw line and his depths of ivory made her heart flutter—and it certainly was not because he was so handsome.
It was like time itself had stopped; they both stayed there motionlessly in their positions, completely paralysed from an invisible force, waiting for a needle, a pin, something to drop to break the silence. They waited for something to change—for the clothing to melt into their skin, or the floor to catch on fire, or a star to fall out of the sky where they couldn't see from inside the elaborate Hyuuga mansion.
The girl's voice trembled with emotion. Whether it was from happiness or sorrow, she didn't know. At last, she whispered something quietly: two words just loud enough to reach to his ear before trailing off into the distance.
"It's you…"
A/N: Ouuuu cliffhanger! The story is starting off a bit slow but I don't want to miss anything! Details are important in my opinion, so bear with me. :) Reviews are greatly appreciated!
Much love,
Chigiri Sasaki
Posted May 2007, edited July 2013.