Well, it has been over a month, so how has life been treating you? I dare-say I hope all has been well and I am sorry about the wait [I seriously am]. Anyway, here is the next chapter. It is pretty short, for which I am also sorry, but I was debating whether or not to put a few scenes into this chapter or not and decided against it. They will appear in the next chapter.

Thank you to those who reviewed in my absence - ayrmed, bankai777, and Kay Writes Sometimes - for their words. Every review means a lot to me.

Disclaimer [goes for both this chapter and the last]: As much as I wish I did, I do not own Naruto. Lucky Kishimoto.
Written by: 7ShadowsUnleashed
Beta-d by: Euregatto
Posted on: 27 March, 2014

Æ

Might Guy

Might Guy sat alone in his room, the shades pulled across the windows to block out the radiant sun. A room bathed in darkness seemed much more practical for what the team leader had to do: write an epithet fitting for a student of Neji's calibre.

This was the worst part about being a master: a sword that always hung over one's head waiting to sheath itself comfortably within bone and sinew. Every day, each sensai thanked whatever higher powers that be that their students were alive and able to continue learning their chosen trade.

Now all Guy could do was curse quietly under his breath, wishing pain and agony upon every deity he knew of, and listen to the logical part of himself that he had only seen a few times before remind him of the task at hand.

But where do I start? He was brave and powerful, but he also came from the Hyūga Clan, where bravery and power were expected. Thanks to his abilities, I was able to devote more time to training Lee and Tenten. I know I want to thank him for that and for being such a brilliant, youthful student, going along with our antics even when he clearly did not want anything to do with us, given what Lee and I did was not suited for his abilities. I guess I want to thank Neji for being Neji.

The Green Beast of Konoha knew what he wanted to say, but now he had to put his thoughts into words. This would prove difficult: writing was not his strong suit given it did not involve punching the life out of enemy shinobi or running circles around a city just to prove that he could. Dipping his paintbrush into a small jar of ink, Might Guy began to write, painting black upon white in a dim, grey scale room, his eyes down-cast as he already struggled to remember the words he wanted to say.

Hinata Hyūga

The sunlight touched Hinata's face like the caress of an old friend. The young kuniochi lay back under the shade of a tree's broad-fanning leaves, her violet eyes closed. She did not need to see the bright sun to feel its touch on her face, comforting and warm. It was just what she needed then, lying in the Hyūga Compound's training grounds feeling more alone and more afraid of the world than she had in a long time.

Her father had told her the news at the breakfast table that morning. From their expressions, she knew that her mother and Hanabi were hearing the terrible words for the first time as well. As one, the three women covered their mouths with their hands and wept silently.

It had been hard to hear, the news of Neji's death, and knowing that Hiashi had waited to tell her hurt almost as much as the hole left by Neji's spirit, torn away from her in an instant.

To anyone hearing her thoughts then, it seemed that Hinata was either the most forgiving girl in the nations or the most foolhardy. After all, her cousin had tried to kill her during her first attempt at the chūnin exams, but afterwards he had tried his hardest to help her: working through fighting forms with her, teaching her a better way to hold kunai, and trying to bring out her own inner power. When everything was said and done, Neji had been the one thing she needed.

Now she needed him even more to remind her how unbecoming it was for the Hyūga Clan heiress to cry.

How come you are never here when you should be? I used to think it was because you hated the main family, but now I know you are gone because someone else decided you had to go. She opened her pale eyes and looked at the sky. "How is it up there, Neji nii-san? How wide is your corner of the sky?"

The Hyūga Clan's heiress received the answer she had expected: silence, but silence was a comfort. She stood, brushed dust and grass off of her violet sweater, and left the training grounds.

I know what I want to tell you tonight, Neji nii-san.

Neji Hyūga

No one knows where the dead go where they die: it is a mystery that haunts our shadows like wolves, ready to tear our minds apart with the fear of being nothingness, which seems like a greater fear than of being forgotten. Different societies concoct different theories, everything from a grand vanishing act to resurrection and reincarnation. Neji was not sure which version he preferred, but anything would be better than standing behind Tenten as she cried over his dead, forgotten shell.

Don't you realise that I am not there any more, Tenten? I may have abandoned my body, but I'm still here. Can you not feel me beside you? Do I really have so little presence that you cannot find me? He remembered a promise he made to her after their first mission together: that he would return unharmed. I was such a fool, he thought. He knelt beside her, an unseen guardian, and reached over to clasp her shoulders and reassure her. She made no move to transform him into a pincushion, meaning that she did not his touch. How can I have such little presence?

There were many things Neji wanted to say to Tenten, but there was no way he could tell the weeping kuniochi the words on the tip of his tongue: 'I am sorry, Tenten. I know I broke the promise we made, but I am still here. I don't want to leave you yet, I never did, but I had no choice.'

A memory of the spider shinobi: his laughter as blood and curses ran from his mouth. I can blame all of this on you, Kidōmaru. You made Tenten cry and that is unforgivable. Neji turned to the room's lone window and looked at the sky. I will personally throw you into the abyss if I find you up there because, I swear I am coming to find you, Kidōmaru.

Æ

First Question: Who came up with Guy's name? Where they meaning to say "might be a guy, might be something pulled out of the sewer"?
If so, that was a brilliant joke.

Well, next up is a funeral scene, which I was debating whether or not to put in this chapter before deciding the give it its own chapter. Thank you for reading and feel free to leave a review your way out: even a few words work wonders.

- 7ShadowsUnleashed