A/N: Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
…..
Neji breathes deeply, his grip tightening on his shuriken as he prepares to throw. He releases the weapon only to have it lodge itself a disappointing three inches from the center of the target board. He almost lets out a growl, perspiration building at his temples, as he grows frustrated with his inability to maintain a perfect aim.
For the first time in his life, someone has proven to better at a skill than he. It infuriates him to no end and so everyday, he comes to the Academy training grounds an hour before Tenten to practice. Then he quietly slips behind the shrubbery when he senses her approach.
Today is no different. He quickly retrieves his shuriken and dodges behind a bush just as the female comes into view. He watches her carefully, cataloging her every movement so as to imitate it when he's alone. He keeps a mental count of how many of her kunai hit dead center. She eventually has to stop because the number has become too large and there is no more room on the tiny bull's eye for another perfect throw. She plucks out the weapons one by one then resumes her position fifteen feet away.
He never says a thing to her and he's sure she isn't aware of his presence, but today something impels him to talk.
Just as she's about to take aim, he speaks:
"How do you do that?" Tenten stops mid-throw and whirls around, alarmed for having been caught in the Academy's training ground so early in the morning. She relaxes once she recognizes Neji's form stepping out from underneath the shadows of the trees. He is clad in his usual garb, a white shirt and dark shorts, not a strand of hair out of place. His lilac eyes are watching her intently. "Well?" he presses.
She blinks dumbly. "Do what?"
"Never miss." She turns her gaze back to the target board, then towards him, and lifts her shoulders in a shrug. "Practice I guess." The Hyuuga's eyes narrow, but he nods at her reply, stuffing his hands in his pockets and kicking a pebble with his shoe. Tenten gives him one last wary glance before reeling back to take aim.
A few minutes pass and it becomes apparent that Neji is content to stand and observe her train. Tenten doesn't really mind all that much and instead reaches for another kunai.
Thwack. Thwack. Thwack.
"You're holding it too tight. You need to relax." The hair on the back of Neji's neck stands on end. He has been too preoccupied trying to hit the target that he has failed to notice the girl's approach.
Her brown eyes do a quick scan of all the weapons littering the training grounds; some are lodged in the target boards, others are nestled in the grass, glinting in the early morning sun. She places her hands on her hips as her gaze comes to settle on him. After a moment, she smiles.
"Watch me." And watch he does; she tries to ignore the way her ears burn under his intense scrutiny and forces her mind to focus. Throwing kunai has become like second nature to her and she hits the bull's eye without thinking. "That's how you do it," she says, turning to him and motioning for him to give it a try.
He mimics her position to a T, but she can tell by the way his knuckles whiten that he's not going to hit the center. She moves behind him and hovers her arm over his, stretching to lace her fingers with his. "Relax," she whispers quietly, forcing his hand to slacken his grip. He does not resist when she pulls his arm back and leads him through the motions.
It's a perfect hit.
"Get it?"
Neji is not able to breathe properly, much less form a coherent response. He simply nods silently.
"Good. We should probably go inside before the other kids find us." This snaps him back to reality and he manages a "right". Together they collect the weapons. Neji holds the door open for her as they head inside the Academy to their classroom.
"Hey," Tenten says, flashing Neji a grin as she comes to stand beside him. It is now part of their normal routine to meet up at the training grounds before school. She inspects his work then nods in approval. "You're getting better."
Neji smirks. "Do you feel threatened?"
Tenten scoffs. "Not a chance." And just to prove her point, she launches a kunai with a lazy flick of her wrist and smiles in satisfaction when she hears it imbed itself in the target board. She hadn't even been looking.
This effectively shuts him up.
Iruka warily eyes the two twelve year olds throwing kunai in the training grounds. He holds back a laugh as Neji flashes a taunting smirk. It quickly disappears, however, when Tenten moves menacingly towards him, a kunai in each hand, poised to stab. The Hyuuga puts his hands up in defense and the two bicker before the female resumes her target practice. Iruka chuckles when he notices the faint pink blush marring the boy's features. He has been watching them for several days now while he drinks his morning tea and sets up the classroom.
They are proving to be quite the formidable pair as they balance out each other's weaknesses (and personalities) quite nicely. He is sure that they will grow to be an outstanding shinobi team.
As for now, he concludes, as Tenten corrects Neji's posture and demonstrates her technique, they are just kids slowly learning from each other.
…..
A/N: The ending was a little abrupt I think, but still fairly decent.
Thank you for reading and please review!
~M.I.