06-14-2007, 11:59 PM
The Dark
A Naruto Fanfiction
Post II
Come. I am waiting and I am not afraid.
And, of course, they did come and, as soundless lightning flashed, Neji descended into the trees to greet them. He and Tenten fought long and hard that night, Tenten flying through the branches as Neji spun within the Kaiten's green and silver. It was a dance they had perfected long ago in the agelessness of their childhood, before katanas were strapped to their backs and tattoos imprinted on their shoulders. Neji knew that he never had to spare a thought for his blind spot, that Tenten watched his back. And Tenten knew that when she dropped into his protective circle, nothing would ever harm her.
In the end they stood in the center of a battle zone, covered in blood and holding clean blades and neither of them had to say a word.
~~~~
Once, in their first year as teammates, Tenten broke her arm while sparring with Lee. It had been an accident - Lee's enthusiasm being what it was - and Tenten had reacted as a ninji should. She had turned white as a sheet and immediately sat down to avoid passing out, but she hadn't cried. Oddly enough, this seemed to upset Lee who wailed and cried buckets next to her, apologies tumbling out of him.
Gai-sensei had almost the same reaction but Neji later blotted that particular memory from his mind.
As for himself, Neji remember being irritated. It was at a time when Tenten was becoming his faithful training partner, especially with her new technique. The idea that she would now be unable to train with him due to Lee's over exuberance was especially annoying. As satisfying as beating Lee into a bloody pulp would have been, however, Neji knew that if Tenten could hold in her obvious pain without making a sound, so could he.
That day he'd stood quietly by Tenten's shoulder, arms folded over his chest until the medic arrived. Afterwards, with Gai about to take her home, Tenten had paused and turned back to him, favoring him with a gentle smile.
"Thank you," she said, and years later Hyuuga Neji still wondered what she had been grateful for.
|