#tenten likes helping people... hinata needs Help.... it's perfect

[evilkitten3]

having tenhina feels again

[gainahan]

naruto driving headcanons

Naruto - definitely not licensed. debatable whether he actually knows which one is the brake pedal. as long as Sakura is alive he will not be allowed behind the wheel of a car. unknowable/10

Sasuke - also not technically licensed, but all things considered a pretty decent driver. probably started driving well before he was legally old enough to. 7.5/10

Sakura - road rage extraordinaire. swears up and down she goes the speed limit but in truth goes at minimum 10 over. “speed limit is a suggestion” more like speed limit is a challenge. at the very least she gets them where they need to go. 5.5/10

Sai - never learned to drive until he met team 7. between Naruto and Sakura’s influences, he won’t be getting licensed for at least the next 6 years. good luck/10

Shikamaru - truly cannot be arsed. if asked to drive he claims to not have a license, but he definitely does. another unknowable/10 but I like to think in a pinch he’d be pretty good at it.

Choji - reliable driver but has a tendency to be late. gets stressed out when he has more than a few passengers. 6/10

Ino - wants to be a passenger princess soo badly. unfortunately for her, she’s the best on her team. being good at driving is her curse. woefully, 10/10

Kiba - team 8’s designated driver, believe it or not. he is…not good at it, per se, but better than the rest of them. having two sets of eyes on the road tends to help. 6.5/10

Hinata - gets so stressed out she forgets how to brake. she’ll be white knuckling the wheel going 50 in a residential while her passengers pray for their lives in the backseat. -2/10 her dad’s insurance is through the roof

Shino - morally opposed to driving. he hasn’t confirmed why but the running theory is that a swarm of his bugs faceplanted into the windshield once and traumatized him. unknowable/10

Neji - doesn’t believe in right-of-way. refuses to use his mirrors. whole heartedly believes he is god’s gift to the interstate. by some miracle has never gotten into a crash, but if any of his passengers are sensible people he is banned from the wheel. 0/10

Tenten - makes Sakura’s road rage look like divinely inspired patience. honestly she’s not even mad she just enjoys it. has to be actively talked down from brake checking people. banned from the wheel 0/10

Lee - while technically a perfect driver (obeys every speed limit, never makes an illegal turn, maneuvers like butter), having him in the front seat is such an intolerable experience he’s also banned from the wheel. those unfortunate enough to have witnessed it don’t speak of their experience, but rumors involve something along the lines of a custom-made Gai inspirational quotes driving playlist. 0/10

Temari - grew up driving her brothers around. Absolutely hates it. when she’s in a car she’s got her feet up on the dashboard and always has the aux. if she were to drive again, 9.5/10

Gaara - an…extremely calm, level headed driver? side effect of RBF is that everyone is always waiting for him to snap and run someone over. he never has. probably listens to calming classical music or something while in traffic jams. 10000/10

Kankuro - I find it funny to believe he’s the actual passenger princess. unknowable/10

[depressedhatakekakashi]

I need something to free Kakashi from the statement "he's one of the worst senseis", am I one of the few people who knows what a sensei is like or I don't understand the anime? I'm tired of always having to explain the same thing to the fandom. Sometimes I feel like I'm crazy or that I'm the only one who sees that it's not like that.

sorry about this😣

This fandom seriously has a problem understanding a Sensei’s job or even seeing things with a clear look tbh.

Like i’m not going to say Kakashi’s perfect as a Sensei, he’s not

But everything he did that people hatw, the other Sensei’s did

Kakashi entered his team into the chunin exams after only a year of training? So did Asuma and Kurenai. Sakura wasn’t prepared for the chunin exams? Neither were Hinata and Choji but their Sensei’s still put them in.

He also allowed his Students to ultimate choose if they wanted to do the exams, lying about the applications so Naruto and Sasuke didn’t pressure Sakura into doing something she wasn’t ready to do. Gai did the SAME with his team, but his team decided to wait a year. Team seven did not.

Kakashi also had two of the most difficult cases in the villages so he had a lot going on. He had Sasuke who was a ticking time bomb of anger and was being chased after by Orochimaru. He had Naruto, who was a ticking time bomb of energy and needed attention because he had a sever lack of it, and Kakashi couldn’t always provide that attention because of Sasuke’s situation.

He didn’t speak perfectly to Sasuke when trying to get him to stop fighting his teammates and calm down, but he was also trying to be a Sensei a a Konoha shinobi who was being sent away on a mission asap

He didn’t train Sakura enough but tbh that’s also a writer’s issue and Sakura issue. Writers issue because Kishi just didn’t care to give her the story she should have had, Sakura’s cuz she never reached out for more training like Naruto did. Kakashi trained her where he could, recognized her talents, and talked her up to Tsunade to a point where Tsunade happily became her new master

He also didn’t ignore any of his students. While Gai was so hyper focused on Lee after his fight against Gaara that he forgot to train Neji for his chunin exam finals, Kakashi trained Sasuke while also finding a Sensei for Naruto who could help him with his weakest point (chakra control) and that teacher was only replaced cuz Jiraiya knocked him out for calling him out on being a creep (Ebisu is a perv, but he never stepped over the line into creep territory)

Kakashi is the main Sensei we see so he gets the main brunt of crap, largely cuz it was the main character’s he was the sensei to, but his job was never to teach them

Minato didn’t pass on any of his skills to his students. From what Kakashi says he learned Rasangan on his own. If anything Minato probably told him how to learn it (which we see Kakashi say to Naruto as well) and Kakashi took off with that training on his own

Kurenai didn’t teach her students any of her jutsu’s/moves

Asuma didn’t teach his students his

Gai did admittedly try to teach Neji and Tenten his, but this is a perfect example of how a Sensei is supposed to be more of a lead. Both Kakashi and Gai had one student they taught their moves to (Lee and Sasuke) while supporting their other students in their seperate aims/goals (Naruto, Sakura, Tenten and Neji). So to shit on Kakashi for ‘not teaching his students is 1) wrong (he taught them his ‘ninja way’ aka Friends over mission which they took to heart (at least Naruto did and Sasuke did until he dove head first into darkness. He also taught Sasuke chidori, helped Naruto create his own jutsu and taught Sakura Qi release when she was a genin (it’s a jonin rank jutsu)) 2) not his job.

There’s also the fact that Kakashi is often viewed as lazy because when we see him train his students he’s hands off (laying on a bench while naruto trains, teaching the kids chakra control for tree climbing and then allowing them to practice) but that’s what a sensei is supposed to do. He shouldn’t be holding their hands every step of the way.

He’s also effective. Naruto created a whole new jutsu in DAYS because Kakashi taught him how to use his shadow clones to his advantage in a way no one else could. Sasuke improved his speed to such extreams he was on par with Lee without his weights, and Gai recognized that as being the result of Kakashi’s training. He also learned chidori in that same month, which is a difficult jutsu

Kakashi was actually a really good Sensei, he just had the world stacked against him in keeping his team together, and because we see more of his mistakes people make him seem worse than he actually is rather than… just recognizing his faults and success’. Like i’m sorry to anyone who thinks another Sensei could have done better, they would not have

Gai couldn’t have stopped Sasuke from leaving the village

Yamato would be equally hands off because of how he was raised/trained

Asuma is more likely to highlight their faults than their success’ (probably a result of being the hokage’s son and having a shit ton of expectations placed on his shoulders growing up)

Minato wouldn’t have taught them anything

Jiraiya was EVEN MORE HANDS OFF AND SPENT HIS STUDENTS MONEY ON WOMEN AND BOOSE WHILE ALSO TELLING HIS STUDENT TO STAY IN HIS SEXY NO JUTSU FORM

[whitelilynh]

Unpopular opinion: Team Guy had the MOST protagonic vibes of them all.

Seriously, they would have been a much better main cast.

Lee has major MC vibes, he is one that truly stands up for hard work, it's not favoured by any external circunstances (the opposite, actually) and has real moral values (he doesn't justify bad actions if made by people he likes, unlike Naruto). Also, they involve a relationship of TRUE rivalry inside the team, being Neji a real, healthy rival and not a straight out antagonist/enemy.

Going on with Neji, he has a compelling and complex background story that credits his behaviour/mentality even if he was wrong on his interpretation of his clan and what destiny is, AND he is able to acknowledge his mistake and grow from it, which makes him a mature person and not just a boy making tantrums each time he's proven wrong. In fact, Neji is low-key wanting to be proven wrong, which means he partially might be aware of his misinterpretations, but is so fixated on the ideas he created as a copying mechanism since he was 4 YO he can't let go, until helped by others and mainly, told the truth for once in his life (he was just such a greatly constructed character in OG)... AND the resolution of his background story doesn't significantly changes his dynamics with his team and his rival because those are healthy, well constructed bonds and he is a proper individual on his own, not attached to someone else to validate himself. Besides, Neji is a TRUE genious, who made even someone as Kakashi (who was a prodigy himself, student of 4° hokage = genius and teammate of Itachi and probably Shisui = both geniouses) question how is that someone as incredible as Neji even exists (this is canon from his fight with Hinata, but was conveniently forgotten after that in order to nerf Neji so he wouldn't outshine Naruto and Sasuke... Kakashi also states Sasuke is no close to rival Neji's genious).

And we have Tenten who is, for once, not disminished by an obsessive infatuation with anyone, but an independent kunoichi that works hard and has goals of her own, she ambitions to be a legendary kunoichi all for herself, not to impress anyone. Also, she is not biased towards any of her teammates and doesn't relies on them (and this is a major point in this team, not any one of them rely on the others, but actually work TOGETHER).

This is a team were no inner pairing is needed, may be even would be damaging, because they are perfect as teammates, so they can leave the romance triangles and so on, they would find that with someone outside themselves.

And on top, we have a sensei that actually involves in his students training and growth, in every sense and unbiased. I know, he is closer to Lee, but that is out of Lee being naturally more emotional and therefore more fond of him, also Lee respects him the most and is constantly searching for his guidance because he is committed to his goals. It comes from Lee, not from Guy neglecting the other two.

This is a true healthy team that deserves their own reboot of the series, having them front enemies and interacting with other teams without the unnecessary drama and plot armour all the time. (And I mean, a reboot of a serious series. Their spin off is great, but is comedy, so I feel I doesn't makes them justice. And they deserve some justice).

[nagipops]

hii I love your blogs sooo much you're really talented (I just needed to say it sorry) so straight to the point, I already made 2 requests to you and I really enjoyed your writing so I would like to make another again. As I'm clueless about what to request I'll just ask for random hcs for konoha 11, idk if it's too much but if so then you can do with Neji (I love him so much), Kakashi and Naruto. Thank you in advance and sorry anything ^^

RANDOM KONOHA 11 HEADCANONS!

FEATURING: naruto, sakura, shikamaru, ino, choji, neji, rock lee, tenten, kiba, hinata, and shino

WARNINGS: mentions alcohol, drugs, food, bugs, and the tiniest nsfw mention if you get the joke. hehe

A/N: AHHHH ANONN this seriously made my day, im so so glad you enjoy my work!! 💖

NARUTO

you know how we all have “the chair”, where we throw all of our dirty clothes onto?

yeah, imagine that, but from the seat to the fricking ceiling

its just a GINORMOUS MOUND of clothes, you wonder how he even goes through that many clothes so quickly???

definitely shoves it under his bed whenever guests come over (somehow)

holds chopsticks really weirdly. but it works.

asked tenten to put his hair into space buns to mimic his sexy jutsu and went around flirting with the village

jiraiya was so proud of him T-T

comes up with the WORST pickup lines

they’re so bad, its almost charming. almost

has gone AWOL multiple times, disappearing from everywhere, just everywhere

it scared you a little, so you searched the entire village for him

you finally found him sitting on the ledge of a cliff, gazing out at the vast sea

concerned and panicked, you cried out to ask him what was wrong

he turned to you with a crestfallen, devastated look on his face and said,

“i bought shrimp ramen instead of chicken ramen.”

you’ve never searched for him after his disappearance ever again.

SAKURA

100% makes origami shurikens and chucks them at you

they are deathly precise and deathly sharp. seriously, how are these not illegal weapons yet???

writes threatening motivational notes to herself on the mirror

“u got this!” “make sure to smack naruto today!” “ino sucks!”

her backpack would always be way too high up on her back. idk why but. it would

does her hair all nice and pretty before she goes out but once she arrives to her destination SHE KEEP. TAKING. IT OUT. and redoing it over and over and over again

like it’s impossible to make eye contact with her because she’s holding a bobby pin between her teeth while braiding her hair

her guilty pleasure would be hostess treats

ding dongs are her favorite. don’t ask me how i know, i just know.

eats the yellow starbursts just to spite naruto and all her haters

loves small lap dogs, she think’s they’re so cute and cuddly

but she especially loves chihuahuas

they’re so feisty and naruto HATES them, so of course she had to go and get one for herself

dresses the poor dog up in little bonnets and jackets and ties its tiny fuzzy hairs into pigtails

she and the chihuahua are not that much unlike <3

SHIKAMARU

this man is a god at shogi but he absolutely SUCKSSSS at cup pong.

is this an ick? idk. but he is absolute trash at this game.

it gets even worse when he’s got a couple drinks in him

tries to calculate the velocity and acceleration and angle and shit but his shot is always a good two feet off BYE ��

just mutters an “aw, shit” before awaiting his turn again

hates checkers, loves chess

“checkers is for WUSSIES” - shikamaru nara

i said this in another post, but he is Very Good at whistling

like that’s his hidden talent

can copy any tune with the perfect pitch and rhythm

speaking of, he can do really cool tricks with his tongue

like making a four leaf clover, touching the bridge of his nose with it, flipping it upside down, you name it

he has slanted, scrawled handwriting, to the point where it’s almost illegible

wbk he cheats in school SO OFTEN. but he never gets caught. he’s not stupid, he just couldn’t care less about his classes.

thinks weed and e-cigs are stupid, cigarettes are where it’s at

you just can’t replicate the feeling of taking a drag from a cig after a long, tiring day

plus he looks hella cool while doing it B)

INO

teaches the boyz™️ how to braid their hair

like they all gather in a circle around this feisty fashionista and fail attempt to braid their hair

sakura was just fuming in the sidelines

“OI, INO-PIG, THAT’S A DUTCH BRAID, NOT A FRENCH BRAID!!”

yeah, ino 🙄

the only one that can actually do it is neji because a) this man is talented af and b) he’s got the long hairrr

ino probably envies his thick, sleek hair because hE’S a bOy

also asks everyone for their blood type and zodiac signs and tells them if they’re compatible with her or not

and definitely judges you for your sign 😣

“oh, you’re a gemini? hmm, what a shame...”

makes bouquets for her favorite people and kin assigns everyone a flower

only assigns the pretty nice ones to the people she likes (sorry sakura, you’re out of luck)

one of her favorite hobbies is crafting! she’s really good with details and small things so she loves making those miniature dollhouses and stuff

also really good at watercoloring. especially painting flowers and landscapes

also i feel like she would be really good at playing any instrument because of her skilled hands

can play a badass flute solo. period.

CHOJI

would honestly rather die than get anywhere NEAR an asparagus

he just thinks they’re so gross and bitter and NOT SALTY

he always eats his yakiniku a little bit undercooked because he’s way too impatient to wait for it to cook fully. who do you think he is??

whenever he cloud gazes with shikamaru, when asked what he thinks a cloud looks like, he just says some sort of food

“oi, choji, what does that one look like to you?”

“a... yakiniku grill... with... pineapple rings on it! ooh, and a wagyu steak right there!”

he thinks pringles are an abomination to society. where’s the crisp? where’s the grease? where’s the saltiness?!!!

asks ino to teach him how to do his hair all fancy and the two of them devote an entire day learning different hairstyles

it’s his new favorite thing to do now :D

he really likes crayons!!!!

like he’ll write with them, draw with them, color with them, do everything with them

he’s even tried to eat them. he said they tasted good.

definitely had the 128 crayon pack WITH THE BUILT-IN SHARPENER, and everyone thought he was the coolest kid in town

he ate it UP, he even scored some bbq dates with the ladies

i also feel like he loves basketball, and he has a MEAN slam dunk

like his vertical isn’t that high, but the man can REACH

he loves when people laugh at him when he challenges them to a 1v1 and then proceeds to absolutely destroy them <3

NEJI

he seems like a cucumber kind of guy.

just cucumber

like i feel like he puts it in everything; soba, salads, sandwiches, his face, yeah

it’s mellow and cool, just like him!

speaking of, i feel like he lives for spa days and facials

it just lets him be alone in his little cucumber scented world for an hour or two and he gets damn clear skin from it as well

seriously he has PERFECT skin. flawless. not a single blemish. his cheeks feel like baby butts they’re so smooth.

i feel like he’d be a god at solving rubik’s cubes, don’t ask me why

like if anyone scrambled theirs on accident they would just take it to neji and he’d solve it in the blink of an eye

CAT PERSON!!! loves the little meow meows

who are we kidding, neji basically is a cat; agile, aloof, does silly things without trying to, very cute

he just feels akin to the little fuzzballs and he thinks petting cats are extremely therapeutic. good for the soul

he is a golf man. he would take his juniors golfing and everyone thinks he’s uncool. cmon neji let them go to the skate park at least T-T

also very good at karaoke, definitely surprised everyone once he got a few drinks in him since he started serenading you

LIGHTWEIGHT!!! do not get more than one shot of alcohol in him. he will go berserk.

i also feel like he’d really love photography; not taking pictures of people, but of nature

he loves taking a quiet stroll through a pretty forest and snapping pictures of all the unique flora and fauna

it’s so serene ︶ ‿ ︶

ROCK LEE

100% milly rocks everywhere

gai got in on it too once he asked what lee was doing

“is that what all the youthful cool kids do these days!”

they also dab together. a lot

DO NOT BE SEEN WITH THESE TWO!!! you are not associated with them.

definitely is the one breakdancing in the middle of the dance circle at a high school party

he’s mad skilled at it too

headspins and windmills galore

challenged naruto to a dance-off and completely OBLITERATED him

lee then asked if naruto wanted a rematch, this time with one hand tied behind lee’s back

naruto obliged, and he STILL lost

RIP naruto and his fangirls, they all scrambled to lee afterwards T-T

i feel like his favorite subject is science

not the boring physics equations and laws and theories but the fun EXPERIMENTS

definitely has singed all of his hair off one time and he went to gai blubbering to help him grow back his precious hair

but he loves experimenting with different combinations and chemicals to get different reactions each time

created a potent love potion and carried it around with him all day one day

and it was actually working

girls were flocking to him left and right, staring at his lips and his face

he was so abashed at the sudden attention

heck, it even worked on sakura

“oi, lee-san!”

“hehe, yes, sakura-san?”

her eyes shifted downwards to his lips and his heart thumped harder

“hey... lee-san?”

“what is it?”

“you have something on your lip. we’ve been trying to tell you all day but you just winked and blew kisses at us.”

legend has it lee has still not recovered to this day.

TENTEN

has THE prettiest handwriting. and she can write SUPER fast

it’s like a superpower

like she transcribed five pages of a report in less than two minutes with perfect handwriting

naruto is so jealous.

she is also super good at origami! those diligent, accurate hands aren’t just for throwing things

taught sakura how to make shurikens but does NOT endorse any violent uses of them

she can replicate all of her weapons with paper and they can actually function, it’s so cool

made paper kunai knives one day and the wholeee village wanted to get their hands on them

i feel like she’d listen to mitski. idk i just get those vibes

LOVES BIG DOGS!! especially fluffy wuffy samoyeds

like man’s best friend?? no, GIRL’S BEST FRIEND!!

hugs and cuddles and squishes all the big dogs

she thinks small dogs are spawns of satan

sakura and her have definitely quarreled over this

but at the end of the day, all dogs are adorable fur babies, so she lets it slide :,)

KIBA

kiba always looks SO GOOD in photos you take of him, candid or not

like you could just whip out a camera and snap a photo of him at any given moment and he would look perfect

you framed a picture of him yelling at akamaru for peeing inside the house

it’s pure artwork

i feel like he tries to swagger around with his hands shoved in his pockets but it fails MISERABLY and the girls are wondering if he broke his leg or something 😭

kiba just walk normally. for the love of god please just walk normally.

he tries to slump back in his chair really low but one time he slouched way too low so he slipped off of his chair and onto the ground LMFAOOOO

he just wallowed there... in shame...

also.. he LOVES when the girls put makeup on him!!

he tries to act like he hates it. but it secretly gives him so much confidence

not to mention the girls hyping him up are a huge ego boost

okay the inside of his jacket hood is the warmest. thing. EVER!!!

seriously, no wonder this dude is so happy-go-lucky all the time, he’s living in literal heaven 24/7

it’s like you’re sleeping on a cloud inside a warm, cozy bed during a cold winter morning

10/10 would recommend letting him give you his sweatshirt when you’re chillin with a hair tie ❤️

HINATA

always smells like lavender soap. always

also has the cutest pencil pouches with little puppy faces and kawaii things

oH and she has those mini yoobi highlighters, she thinks they’re so cute (and functional!)

everyone flocks to her to try them out and marvel at the cute tiny highlighters

and they try to steal them from her but she doesn’t even stop them because she’s too timid to 😭

naruto goes BALLISTIC over them

she lets him have all of them <3

tennis girl!!! tennis girl.

all of her opponents always underestimate her because she’s so timid and shy and quiet

but she has a KILLER serve

and then she takes her opponents to the slaughterhouse with a complete shutout ;)

she’s really athletic believe it or not, she can beat most of the boys in a mile run and she has incredible endurance

i feel like she really loves velvet scrunchies

she just thinks they’re so pretty and they keep her hair soft so they’re cute and functional

also takes the PRETTIEST notes!!

color codes, dividers, headers, you name it, it’s all super readable too its insane

everyone asks her for her notes, not to study but just to appreciate the pure artwork that it is ^w^

SHINO

shino is SO easy to prank

“how do you catch an eyemaster?” *cue naruto and kiba snickering*

“eyemaster bait. that is because—”

even when everyone’s laughing their asses off, he still continues to explain his answer since he does NOT GET THE JOKE

tried his hand at writing haikus

here’s his best one so far:

“Bugs are amazing. That is because they are bugs. Bugs are very nice.” - Shino Aburame

VERY proud of it, since it took him weeks to perfect

praise it, pls

had one of those ant farms and bug-catching kits as a kid

and he would fill the kit TO THE BRIM. LIKE IT WAS HEAVY BECAUSE THERE WERE SO MANY BUGS.

he loves the little chitters of the different bugs

he had jars of different bugs all lined up on a wall shelf in his room

collects silkworms off of trees and sticks them into his pockets (no i definitely did not do this as a kid...)

HELP I FEEL LIKE he would record a timelapse of his ant farm growing and upload it to youtube with a movie maker title screen that says

“my ants”

if you enjoyed this post, likes and reblogs are much appreciated :) feel free to request here, and make sure to read the rules first! have a lovely day everyone <3

[phoenixyfriend]

A Smattering of Ideas for a Neji Time-Travel Fic

[EDIT: okay so viewing the post on dash or sidebar blog completely ruins the bullet nesting for some reason. Please open it in a new tab.]

Okay so I actually wrote the first chapter or two of this like... almost a decade ago probably, but the concept was:

Neji, upon dying, gets sent back, and he's perfectly healthy again, pretty much exactly as he was just before getting mokuton-stabbed... except the seal damage wasn't reversed, so he's blind.

I think he ended up like riiiiiight before the Hyuuga Incident, so about of age with Kakashi & co.

But yeah like imagine telling Hiashi about it.

We have a new Jounin! It's a blind Hyuuga.

His seal is gone! He's technically your nephew.

He needs to be retrained for blindness! He needs to be protected for the information he carries.

He's a time-traveler!

Have fun.

The Hyuuga clan has like a million things going on but future Neji is just finding his younger self and Hinata to cuddle them.

He can't see shit but he Needs To Hug Baby Hinata

She's so small? She needs to be protected?

"Sir, you're blind now." "If Lee can be a ninja without chakra, I can be a ninja without eyes." "Sir. Sir that's--that's not the same thing, you can't--SIR." "I'll ask Hatake for advice." "He's still got half of his--SIR!"

Neji is a genius, if there's anyone who can pivot their entire fighting style from "I can see everything" to "I don't need to see anything" it's someone like him. Especially with the "I need to protect all these smols and be strong enough to force people to take my advice seriously if necessary" motivation

BUT But But for the first few days, it's just like. Sir. I understand you want to protect this small child, but you walked into three walls in the past hour. Please st--sir.

Fun option is "Neji spills all the beans... to Hiashi, not the Hokage."

Hiashi: Okay so like. Give me a few days to come up with a cover story for your existence. Neji: That's fair. Hiashi: Do. Do you want me to send in Hizashi or...? Neji: I'll tell him the truth if you do. Hiashi: That's, uh... that's fine. Neji: Then yes. Please. Hiashi, thoroughly unnerved for a variety of reasons: Right. I'll go do that.

Relevant: "Stop trying to convince me to put the Caged Bird Seal on a man who is already blind."

Since that's the ostensible reasoning of the seal, and like. You can't make that argument about keeping the eyes safe when the eyes don't... work.

Courtesy of @firebirdeternal​, along with a bunch of other stuff but especially this:

ooooh feels moment: Neji starts his retraining to become Strong Enough without his eyesight, guess who sees him working his ass off to overcome a disadvantage and thinks "Oh, there's a person I should Be Friends With!"

Part of me just went "Gai gets injured on a mission and, while waiting out his medical leave, gets assigned to Neji as a guide/sparring partner"

Or, well, not assigned. He's just doing one-armed pushups in the training yard with a cast on half his limbs after breaking out of the hospital and zeros in on Neji like "Ah yes, medically inadvisable training, a Bonding Activity!"

Neji goes from "I can see everything" to "I can't see shit but if you're within arms reach you're fucked"

A lot of it comes down to Neji building up non-Byakugan sensing abilities, I think?

It won't help him read, but it'll sure help him avoid getting punched.

I think that's really the crux of his New Style, however he works it out, instead of having this Massive Range of perfect perception he just trains his other senses until he still has that perfect perception effectively, just in like a two foot radius around his person

and then he goes full Rock Lee and trains speed and reaction time until that two feet is enough

I want Daredevil-style bitchiness at some point, in the "Okay, I'm sure the contract is lovely, but do you have it in braille, perhaps?" sense

And Toph-style stuff

Genma, in the Jounin lounge: "Hey guys I think I've got a design finished for the new tattoo I'm gonna get, what do ya'll think?" 'holds up scroll' Kakashi: "Why would you get a tattoo of an ugly couch?" Genma: "It's not an ugly couch it's the Hokage Monument!" Neji: "It looks perfect to me" Genma: "Thank you! I worked really hard on-..... why do you feel the need to do these things."

Also I want Neji to have the same approach as Matt to a cane. He can make do without it, but it sure does make his life easier when he's off-duty.

Like, yes if he focuses his entire, highly trained person, on perceiving his surroundings, he can sense his way around. But that is very tiring

Like that is a lot of work to be doing, when you are just trying to get to the coffee shop for a bagel

Neji learns Sage Mode solely because he wants to be able to tree-hop again

Neji visits Kakashi like "I can't ask the Inuzuka for this because their dogs are clan-specific, but do you know where I can find a guide dog that can double as a ninken in the field?"

Neji asking Gai to help him pick out a feminine yukata because if ANYONE is going to not judge...

Listen I'm just really invested in what Naruto SD told us about how often Neji cross-dresses

Someone asked me which summons Neji learns Sage Mode from, and 

I mean, Hashirama supposedly just. Learned it? Without summons?

So maybe Neji does that and just learns from Jiraiya or something

Though it's not... particularly safe.

Birdie had the best response

learning it Without a Summon is very much in the vein of Neji's past attitudes towards Special Secret Techniques, given that he learned the Kaiten with no help even though it was a Secret Technique of the Hyuuga.

"I know it's possible to do, so the hard part is already over, the rest is just figuring it out and doing it"

Neji: I'm here, I'm queer, I'm blind as fuck.

Neji hanging out with Gai and Kakashi is, admittedly, not that different from hanging out with Lee and TenTen

Kakashi is a bit more likely to join in on the shenanigans than Tenten was, but he's still just as available for "We're judging you" sessions

Neji, sipping tea as Gai yells: this is my comfort zone.

Neji with a white cane: This is my whacking stick. Hiashi: Don't you mean walking stick? Neji: No.

Because... what ninja wouldn't ensure that any normal part of their daily life was fit for battle.

Like if Karin can hide lockpicks in a photo and a knife in her glasses, Neji can ensure his white cane is suitable for battle.

(Going off the earlier Daredevil comparisons, I’d say this is similar to Matt turning his cane into billy clubs sometimes.)

Neji, assuming the role of Chief Babysitter for SmolNeji and Hinata, senses Lee and Tenten at the park. Nudges SmolNeji: "Go, be friends with them"

SmolNeji, watching Lee faceplant into the dirt while trying to jump off the swing while Tenten chases two boys around with a weird frog she found: ".... why"

Neji: "Just trust me"

Also consider older Neji giving baby Hinata shoulder rides

Baby Hinata is delighted by this whole affair.

More time with big brother, and a new even bigger brother? Best times.

Bigger brother needs help reading sometimes and Hinata is so excited to help. Hiashi even approves because helping older Neji read things like menus and the like is helping Hinata learn how to read, so it benefits everyone.

Consider also: Neji encouraging the smols to play with bby Naruto, a Hyuuga elder (or possibly Hiashi, but I want him to be a confused accomplice) complains exactly once and Neji exudes such a powerful "Do not test me" energy that he just kind of. Drops it.

Neji's attitude towards baby Naruto is somewhere between "They're good dogs Brent" and "I died for him once already, do you think I'd hesitate to kill?" and it depends entirely on how seriously he thinks you're talking shit about him

Neji plays with the smols, including smol Naruto, by just being the Perfect Straight Man. Just taking every nonsense thing Naruto says Completely Seriously and using deadpan reactions to chaos to make them giggle. This drifts into Feels for Naruto when he's the first adult who takes his "I'm gonna be the Hokage" completely seriously

"Of course, chibi-Hokage-sama"

Hiashi: "What.... are you.... doing?" Neji: "Ah, Hiashi-sama. Please exercise caution, the floor has mysteriously transformed into molten rock. I suspect enemy action, but have no further intelligence at this time" SmolNeji, Hinata, and Naruto: 'wild giggling as they dangle from rafters/stand balanced precariously on chairs'

Hiashi takes one step into the room and all the kids start screaming so loud he steps back out in shock

Neji out in Konoha just Causing Shit with plausible deniability

Listen. Neji is PETTY.

Someone describes Naruto as "the annoying blonde child with the whiskers, you know, the skin brat" and Neji says "I'm a sensor and have encountered no demonic chakra"

"okay just avoid the blonde kid with the whiskers"

"I don't know how to tell you this..." 

"Sir, I know you're new in town, but that kid isn't really good news--" "A child can't be news unless they're recently born." "No, I mean, didn't anyone tell you to avoid the blonde kid with the whiskers?" "Naruto's blonde?"

Possibly "Hinata's blonde?"

He just, aggressively misunderstands that any insinuation about Naruto is about the Hyuuga heir instead

Birdie said they like the idea that he uses the aggressive deliberate misunderstanding to force people to either be embarrassed by how they're acting by having to spell it out or give up in quieter shame

Sometimes Neji gets tired of being obtuse and just lets Gai do it for him

Gai babysits on occasion, SmolNeji is aghast, Hinata mostly just confused, Naruto is delighted

Naruto is just Stars In Eyes about Gai

Kakashi: this is not the excuse I expected to have for visiting Naruto but I'm taking it

[tentenpropaganda]

Naruto Characters Ranked On The Quality Of Their Hair

Hashirama. Just look at him.

Kushina. It’s naturally perfect, but she also cares for it when she must, if only to spite the people who mock her hair.

Yamato. The forcibly-experimented-on war orphan doesn’t fall far from the tree.

Neji. You’d better believe that he takes VERY careful care of his hair. If he can’t have social power over the main branch, he can at least be stronger and prettier than them.

Ino. She always smells really nice, too, because she uses these amazing homemade floral shampoos.

Minato. How does he never have a hair out of place or a single tangle despite running around at the speed of sound? No one knows. (ultimate good hair power couple with Kushina)

Shisui. His hair is super cute and he KNOWS it. Too bad he doesn’t have the eyes to see it anymore </3

Choji. Don’t @ me, his hair is BEAUTIFUL and y’all only sleep on his great hair because we don’t appreciate good hair unless it’s on a skinny person. But he can’t be in the top five because his hair is part of his attacks, which means there’s probably some dirt and blood in there. :/

Orochimaru. What’s the point of being immortal if you can’t be beautiful?

Itachi. Can’t slaughter your clan if you don’t have the proper hair care routine.

Sai. Not much going on with his hair, but he takes care of it. It’s probably super soft.

Hinata. Brushing and washing her hair calms her down, so she does it ALL the goddamn time. But she also plays with her hair when she’s nervous, so it’s typically a bit tangled.

Deidara. He takes care of his hair, but I’m taking a few points off for the fact that every time he touches it, he’s getting hairs in his hand-mouths.

Sasuke. No self-respecting Uchiha lets his hair go unkempt, but his clan got slaughtered before they could pass down all the tricks.

Kurenai. Her hair has to be AT LEAST as striking and beautiful as her eyes, or else it’ll look weird, so she really has no choice but to take care of her hair.

Iruka. He doesn’t care much about how his hair looks, but he does care about maintaining personal hygiene, especially in a professional environment.

Kabuto. None of Orochimaru’s henchmen can get away with improperly-maintained hair, and Kabuto took that to its extreme. So soft and fluffy. But after Orochimaru died Kabuto really let himself go. Now it’s full of shredded bits of snake skin probably.

Madara. He’s an Uchiha but you can’t condition properly when you’re presumed dead by most local and international authorities.

Karin. She takes care of her hair, but being on the run with Sasuke means constantly getting tangled up in weird shit that leaves her with tangled hair.

Tobirama. He doesn’t do anything with it but it’s probably SUPER soft.

Tenten. Her hairstyle is cute as hell, but she doesn’t spend much time taking care of it.

Killer Bee. He’s got nice hair, but it probably smells like fish because of Gyuki.

Suigetsu. It’s never dirty because it’s constantly turning into water which is basically a really thorough shower. But like he’s never brushed it once in his life, and probably doesn’t know what a hairbrush is.

Lee. His hairstyle is fine I guess, but he looked so good with the long hair as a kid... bring it back...

Gai. His hairstyle is fine I guess, but he gets points off because, were it not for him, Lee might still have the long hair.

Sakura. She cut off all her hair, realized how little maintenance a short hairstyle requires, and proceeded to never brush her hair again. But it looks cute though.

Konan. Nothing of note, like Obito below, but she looks cuter because she’s got ornamentation.

Obito. Middle-of-the-road; he just washes it when he bathes and brushes it when it gets tangled. Nothing of note.

Jugo. Hard to comb your hair when your hands sometimes grow into huge hard lumps. Poor guy. He does care about his hygiene though.

Gaara. He combs it but it’s full of sand.

Temari. She combs it but it’s full of sand.

Kankuro. He combs it but it’s full of sand and sawdust and he probably has terrible hat hair.

Kakuzu. It looks fine I guess, but points off for those weird hair fibers that come out of his mouth.

Naruto. He has never owned a hairbrush and even if he did he wouldn’t know how to use it. Iruka used to help him with his hair but now he’s on his own.

Hidan. That shit’s SMOTHERED in gel and you know it.

Shikamaru. He washes his hair exactly as often as he needs to in order to keep Ino from yelling at him, but doesn’t brush it unless ABSOLUTELY necessary.

Tsunade. Look, she’s gorgeous, but if you get too close you will realize that her hair badly reeks of alcohol and she probably just sprayed dry shampoo in there after rolling out of bed this morning. At least she can hide it, though.

Asuma. His hair and beard both smell like cigarette smoke 24/7.

Sasori. That shit’s probably full of sawdust and iron powder and if you touch it, it just feels like doll hair.

Kiba. Doesn’t wash his hair, Akamaru just licks his scalp and then he calls it a day.

Kakashi. See above, but at least Kiba cuts his hair. Kakashi just lets stray kunai trim his hair in battle which is also why it’s so lopsided. Looks like a scraggly wet cat, ironically enough.

Shino. He carefully washes and trims it. But it’s full of bugs and, sorry Shino, that loses you a ton of points.

J*raiya. His hair is probably super sweaty and full of dirt and toad slime because he’s a slob and I hate him.

Danzo. Probably has trouble washing his hair without getting soap in his stolen eyes.

H*ruzen. Greasy receding hairline bitch.

Nagato/Pein. He literally doesn’t have any free hands with which to wash his hair, and his bodies are dead. Their hair probably feels awful, greasy and stringy and the scalps are all wrinkly and dry. Ew.

Zetsu. Is that even hair.

[kishimoto-did-us-dirty]

Naruto Arts School AU

Reposting bc I love this post and bc I can lol

Character

- major

description

Naruto

-Drums

okie nobody can deny that our main boy over here is a loud soul, however, he can also carry a damn good beat that compliments his band mates’ music really well. Tbh, he sucked at music to begin with and had trouble matching rhythms and listening to his band mates when they played, however he eventually became a really good rhythm maker.

Sasuke

-Guitar (lead)

He’d be assigned to the same band as Naruto, and that’s how they met. This boy is a damn good guitarist y’all, but has attitude problems™, and used to not be able to deal with Naruto’s haphazard beat making, thus perpetuating a rivalry between the two. He constantly feels overshadowed by his elder brother Itachi, a piano major.

Sakura

- Dance

Ya girl fucking demolishes every single dance routine. Initially starting out with a focus on ballet (pre-shippuden in canon), our pink headed queen soon realized that she wasn’t getting the full experience of what it meant to dance. Her point shoes were her loves, however they hurt and nipped in places not just physical. She realized that she didn’t want to be pigeonholed into a genre of which she would be inhibited by standard, and rather to dance so as to forget technical perfection. Thus, what would partner with post-shippuden Sakura in canon, Art School AU Sakura got into hip-hop. And bitch, she goes hard. A lot of the other girls who she used to dance ballet with admire her for her absolutely BODYING her dance routines, but also for never sacrificing her femininity to dance and not taking BS for being a girl who goes so hard in a male-dominated genre. (Some people believe that hip-hop is heavy hitting and a little metaphorically “dark” so to speak, which Sakura is not. So obviously I expect a little disagreement regarding this, however if you look at people like Delaney Glazer or Kaycee Rice, that is how Sakura would dance).

Hinata

- Creative Writing

Shy and bookworm-like, Hinata can write the best poetry, romance and adventure pieces out of all the creative-writing majors. She’s especially good at writing character relationships and development, and has such a subtle sense of intelligent wit in her writing, that if you blinked you would miss it. However should you catch it, you’re sure to chuckle. Her only struggle is that she tends to drag on in important scenes, stretching them against the regular flow of the rest of her writing. Needs validation for her writing through an IV drip.

Kiba

- Drums OR Photography

Drums for obvious reasons (loud and obnoxious), although ruff boi looks good with a camera, too. Great at landscapes and street photography.

Shino

- Creative Writing OR Photography

I could definitely see Shino having fucking beautiful handwriting, and being a beast at writing anything within the sci-fi realm. I could also see him doing some journalism, and writing for the school paper. He’s very good at the logic of his sci-fi books and coming up with logical but enrapturing stories, that intermingle knowledge and mystery. He’s a very specific type of read, however, and may not appeal to all, however if you enjoy anything similar to Star Wars or Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy, then Shino is your author. If this doesn’t float your boat, though, try photography-major Shino. He can get the best angles of bugs he sees, and has an extensive portfolio with entomology-related snapshots.

Ino

- Dance

Like Sakura, she, too, began with a focus on ballet, however began to branch out into contemporary ballet a little later than Sakura. This is another reason why Sakura switched her focuses, as she and Ino had always had a fierce rivalry for dieting (ballet dancers are pressured to be as thin as possible) as well as battling for technical perfection when they were ballet focused. As the two grew, Ino focused more so on contemporary, but can certainly do some hip-hop with Sakura every now and then, just as Sakura occasionally takes a contemporary class with her. The two still have a rivalry, however, just not to the previous extent as when they were actively competing against each other. They’re more like sisters.

Shikamaru

- Guitar (bass) OR Creative Writing OR Architecture

Smart boy’s a tricky one. He would either be a bassist, a mystery and historical fiction writer, or, of his school offers it, be great at architecture. Idrk.

Choji

- ermmmmm….. maybe graphic design? Tech theatre (props)? Vocal???

Choji is hARD dwnccnpc (that’s what she said). I could see him behind a computer screen, animating and designing games/covers/posters or whatever. He could also do something in theatre, but I don’t think he would do anything up on stage. Something like props would suit him. He might do something in music, tho???? Can he sing???? Help???

UPDATE: Choji is a band kid. He plays tuba or some shit. Big boy got big lungs.

Tenten

- Dance

Always has been, and always will be a hip-hop dancer. She wanted to be like Tsunade, a legendary dancer and followed in her footsteps, taking up hip-hop. (that’s why Sakura focused on hip-hop, too, because Tsunade mentored her and taught a few of her classes, too). Tenten is fast and can keep up with any beat. Not only is she a great dancer, but she’s also athletic, and does track and field (cross country), football, and softball at another school too, since the arts schools doesn’t offer it. Overall great dancer with styl. She’s really looked up to by some of her underclassmen for her cheery, but badass style and skill.

Lee

- DANCE (hip-hop, too)

It’s sweat. It’s burn. It’s energy. It’s Lee.

Neji

- Violin

First chair violinist in his freshman year for the school’s philharmonic orchestra. He be extra like that.

Gaara

- Guitar (bass)

He had a lonely childhood with neglectful/abusive parents, and rock music really helped him with that. Emo music is emo and often made fun of, but the songs have messages and Gaara related, so self-taught himself the bass guitar to help cope, and bring him closer to the music that salvaged him.

Kankuro

-Art

Specifically sculpting. For obvious reasons.

Temari

- Acting

Girl can make you cry with some of her monologues. Total lead. Has a seriousness in her acting that makes her believable, however can falter on the less-serious roles. She may also double-major in whatever Shikamaru does. And she’s better at it than him.

Itachi

-Piano

Boy could play any etude at age 7. Performed at Carnegie Hall when he was 10. And no, he didn’t pay to play there. The hall invited him. Began composing at 9. Has perfect pitch. Owns international awards. If he’s not at school it’s because he’s traveling to play for crowds. He excels at classical and baroque, however has an ear for romantic, and enjoys playing/composing pieces either written or inspired by romantic pieces. Enjoys Schumann, Debussy, and Tchaikovsky. Hates modern classical music, though. Can only take cinematic pieces composed by people like Williams, however can’t stand Prokofiev at all. He does like modern music, though, so long as it’s outside of the orchestral/classical music realm. He likes R&B. He would have liked to do film with Shisui, particularly producing, however his parents pressure him with piano, so he helps Shisui with student films and projects outside of school (will probably pursue film after graduating, tho).

Shisui

- FILM / VIDEO PRODUCTION

Fight me on this!!! THIS BOY IS SO GOOD AT CINEMATOGRAPHY MY FILMMAKING ASS CAN’T EVEN. AS SOMEONE WHO IS IN LOVE WITH FILMOGRAPHY, TRUST ME, SHISUI HAS IT™. THE IT™. HE’S GOOD AT EVERYTHING. CINEMATOGRAPHY. DIRECTING. SCREENWRITING. GRIP-WORK. EDITING. PRODUCING. HE’S SUCH A FILM NERD TOO, AND WATCHES OLD FILMS ALL THE TIME. HE’S JUST TOO GOOD AT IT. DOES STREET PHOTOGRAPHY TOO. HE’S OVERALL A GENIUS WITH CAMERAS. Does film with Itachi outside of school and teaches him, and the two are overall geniuses at filmography. They want to start their own studio together (they do, and it becomes huge). He becomes a leading director, while Itachi becomes a producer and directs sometimes too.

Sasori, Deidara, and Sai

Guess.

Kakashi

- Saxophone

It’s the only thing that suits him and it suits him so well. Has suave.

Obito (omfg his arms y'all)

- Not to say drums or anything, but…. drums.

Narutard 2.0. But he also dabbles in other areas of music. Like, he can also play guitar and sing. He’s also pretty good at music production. Makes R&B sometimes. He wasn’t always the best musician but proved to be a late bloomer, and really harnessed his potential. Tries to be as suave as Kakashi and his saxophone. He isn’t.

Hashirama

- Vocal

OkaYYYYYY. VOCAL GOD. CAN DO RIFFS AND RUNS AND HAS PERFECT PITCH. ALSO THE SWEETEST GUY??? WAS A CHAMBER SINGER AS A FRESHMAN. EVERYONE LOVES HIM, GOOD BOY ENERGY.

Likes to belt.

Madara

- Piano

Total prodigy, but hates classical music. Once was accompanist to Hashirama for a solo vocal performance and hasn’t been left alone since.

Tobirama

- Viola or Cello

Some sort of string instrument and takes it very seriously. Probably plays cello because violas are violas and that’s lame (if you know, you know). Has almost as many awards as Itachi and Madara, but hates his usual piano accompanist, Izuna.

Izuna

- Piano

Also a piano god. The uchihas breed them. Hates being accompanist for Tobirama. They’re secretly best friends though, don’t tell anyone.

Karin

- Tech Theatre.

Idk why. Probably started out with props and made her way up to TD (technical director) in senior year.

Suigetsu

- Tech Theatre

Fucking hates theatre kids. Assistant TD. Karin hates him.

Jugo

- Visual Art

Paints landscapes and nature. Really good with oils and gouache respectively.

Yamato

- lmao Trumpet.

Met Kakashi since they both play brass, but boy he ain’t got that suave. That’s why he plays trumpet. Lmao he plays the fucking trumpet anjdwcnojdnn.

Rin

- Vocal

Sweetest voice and could also play the acoustic guitar when she sang. Died in a car accident junior year. Kakashi was at the wheel when they got hit by a drunk driver. Obito saw the whole thing.

Kurenai

- Visual Art

Can create dream like paintings that almost seem like illusions.

Asuma

- Cello / guitar

Used to play cello because of his parents, but loves to play guitar. Can sing but his voice is raspy from smoking.

Gai

Who the fuck do you think teaches dance?

Jiraiya

- Guitar (lead)

Used to major in lead guitar. Sucked at first. Probably has a couple, casual Grammy Awards (they’re actually not that hard to be awarded with, The Recording Academy award many people outside of mainstream media. My school has a few). Now teachers as head of the Band department at this school.

Tsunade

-Dance

Legendary dancer. Probably toured with a few famous people. Now teaches. Mentored Sakura, and mentored Ino but for a shorter time.

Orochimaru

- Idk, didgeridoo, or some shit

Definitely a wood wind. Flute maybe??? Teaches now but no one knows what he does. Pedophile. Has a thing for Sasuke.

[yahboobeh]

Valentine’s Day

Tenten’s kitchen was a mess. The sink was overflowing with dishes, and the counters were dusted with sprinkles and smeared with bits of melted chocolate. 

Tenten popped a tray of chocolates into the fridge and followed the mess to her table, dropping gracelessly into a chair next to Hinata. 

“Oh man,” she sighed, and leaned back in her chair. “My stomach hurts from all of that taste-testing we did.” 

Hinata laughed. 

“Same.” 

“At least we got pretty much everyone’s chocolates made. It just sucks that Ino and Sakura had to leave early.”

“I hope the guys like them.” 

Tenten watched Hinata pick at a piece of hardened chocolate stuck to the table. Hinata’s body language said what she hadn’t. 

“Was there someone else you wanted to make some chocolates for?” 

Hinata’s eyes snapped up from the table, wide with shock and embarrassment. 

“I… I…” 

“Hinata, if you want to make something special for Naruto, we can.” 

“I-I mean… wh-what would I e-even…” 

She let her words trail off while Tenten reached for the magazine they’d been using for chocolate recipes. She flipped through it until she found the page she was looking for. 

“Hot chocolate bombs are pretty popular this year. We could make a few.” Tenten held out the magazine to Hinata, pointing at the photo of a woman’s hand holding a ball of chocolate above a mug of hot milk. 

There was a brief pause in their conversation while Hinata skimmed the recipe. She looked back up to Tenten. 

“D-do you think he-he’d like that?” 

“I think he would. We can make some extras and try them out.” 

“O-okay.” 

“I bought a mold because I wanted to try them, but when Ino and Sakura said they had to leave early I figured I’d do it another time.” 

She picked up the mold and scanned the recipe while Hinata made herself comfortable at the stove, melting down more chocolate. 

Tenten gathered up the needed supplies from her pantry and sat back down at the table when Hinata brought over the pot. 

They made the molds quickly and put them in the freezer to set faster. Hinata checked on the other chocolates in the fridge, bringing over a few set trays. 

“These are done,” she said, sitting down, “should we box them up for everyone?” 

“Sure.” Tenten reached for the package of folded boxes and opened it up. Then they carefully assembled and started packing up the many boxes, one for each of the girl’s teammates and their sensei’s. Hinata had also set separate boxes aside for Neji, Hiashi and Hanabi. 

“So, have you thought about how you’re going to give Naruto his chocolate?” 

Hinata paused, tying a ribbon around a box and shook her head. 

“Do you think you could help me?” 

“Sure, just let me know how.” 

“Well, first…” she sighed, “I feel bad saying this… but please don’t say anything to Neji-niisan.” 

Tenten laughed. 

“He’d somehow find a way to ruin it, huh?” 

 “He-he tries to help… but…”

“He’s too overprotective, I know.” Tenten laid a hand on Hinata’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, I won’t say anything.” 

Hinata sighed. 

“Thank you, Tenten.” 

“No problem, anything else?” 

“I… how do I give it to him?” 

Tenten finished filling a box and paused to think. 

“Hmm… how about we take a little extra time delivering ours and we can walk around the village until we see Naruto and we can make it seem like we just bumped into him.” 

While still very clearly unsure of Tenten’s plan, Hinata nodded and they continued their work. 

Once all was said and done, Tenten and Hinata looked across a freshly cleaned kitchen and six perfect looking hot chocolate bombs. 

A pot of milk was warming on the stove, and two mugs waited patiently on the counter. 

They each took a mug and placed a ball inside. When the milk was ready, Tenten poured some into each cup. The chocolate melted quickly and clusters of mini marshmallows popped up to the surface. They stirred together the mixture of chocolate, cocoa powder and other sweet fillings and drank. 

“Oh wow, that’s really good!” 

Hinata put her mug down after Tenten. 

“It really is,” she agreed. 

“There’s four left,” said Tenten, “do you want to give them all to Naruto?” 

Hinata took a moment to take another sip of cocoa and shook her head. 

“Two will be enough. Besides, if I took all four you wouldn’t have any to give.” 

Tenten felt her face flush. 

“Wait, I don’t-“ 

Hinata cut her off with a knowing look. 

“Tenten, if I can be brave, so can you.” 

—

Tenten glared at the two remaining hot chocolate bombs. 

Hinata had left them behind for her, knowing full well who she thought Tenten should give them to.

She’d slipped out quietly, carrying a bag with Sakura and Ino’s finished chocolates to drop off. 

“He’ll be receptive,” she said before closing the door. 

And suddenly Tenten was left alone, having been lectured about bravery by Hinata, of all people. 

This time when her stomach turned it wasn’t from all of the chocolate she’d consumed that morning. 

— 

Tenten’s bag was heavy on her shoulder as she left her apartment the next morning to meet Hinata in town. 

She’d never been unnerved by Valentine’s Day before.

She dug her fists into her coat pocket and headed out into the February cold. 

Hinata and Tenten found Naruto right away. Hinata seemed to know exactly where to find him. Tenten was more surprised to learn that one could stomach ramen for breakfast than how Hinata seemed to know his schedule. 

They stepped into the ramen stand and acted surprised to see Naruto at the counter. 

“Oh hey Naruto!” 

He looked up from his bowl and grinned. 

“Tenten, Hinata! What brings you here?” 

“We’re looking for Lee, have you seen him?” 

Naruto shook his head. 

“Bummer. Well, Happy Valentine’s Day anyway.” 

“Thanks, you too!” 

Tenten elbowed Hinata whose face turned an entirely new shade of red before she reached into her bag for the package of hot chocolate bombs and bowed her head, holding it out to him. 

“Ha-happy V-Valentine’s D-Day, N-N-Naruto-kun.”

Tenten smiled when his face lit up. 

“Wow Hinata! These look amazing!” He snatched the box up and inspected the chocolates. 

“They’re hot chocolate bombs,” said Tenten, “heat up some milk and drop one in.” 

“Woah. I can’t wait to try this! Hinata, do you want to try them together?” 

“To-together?” 

Tenten grabbed Hinata’s arm to steady her, answering for her. 

“Later, we have to drop off the rest of our chocolate, right Hinata?” 

She didn’t answer. 

“Naruto, maybe Hinata can come to your place this evening?” 

“Sure!” 

“Great, it’s a date!” 

“D-d-date?” Hinata mumbled, as Tenten pulled her away from the ramen stand. 

After a bottle of water and several encouraging words of reassurance, Tenten parted ways with Hinata. 

Butterflies danced in her stomach as she set her sights towards Team Three’s training grounds. 

Lee greeted her bursting with energy. 

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Tenten!” 

She rolled her eyes at his subtlety, before reaching into her bag to hand him a box. 

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Lee.” 

“Sakura-chan gave me some chocolate too! I think we’re in love!” 

Tenten sighed, wondering if asking Sakura to give Lee some chocolate had been a mistake, even if it had been a well intentioned one. 

“I don’t know if I’d go that far, Lee, but it’s nice to hear she thought of you.” 

Tenten gave Gai his chocolate next, earning a crushing hug and praise of her culinary skills. 

She dropped down to the ground by Neji and handed him his box last, the rest of his chocolate burning at her side. She would give it to him when they were alone. 

“Thank you, Tenten,” he said quietly. Her heart fluttered as she tried to quell the wave of heat creeping up her neck. 

“Don’t mention it.” 

Neji carefully opened the box and studied the chocolates before holding it out to her. 

“Would you like one?” 

“They’re yours.” 

He shrugged.

“And I’m choosing to share.” 

“I shouldn’t,” she said, reaching for a salted caramel chocolate. 

She took her time savoring it, the mix of sweet and salty bursting over her tongue while Neji selected one for himself and put the box in his backpack. 

They both leaned back against a tree and watched Lee and Gai hype each other up. 

“Neji! Tenten!” Gai yelled, “let’s do 5,000 laps around Konoha on our hands!” 

“Absolutely not,” said Tenten. 

“But hearty exercise is essential if we’re going to be eating a bunch of chocolate!” added Lee. 

“We’re going to spar,” said Neji. 

“Ah, most youthful!” Gai exclaimed. “Come, Lee, the village calls us!” 

And the green pair fell into handstands and headed into town. 

“Thank goodness,” Tenten said. 

“Mm.”

But then the relief was gone. That little rumble of accent that hummed in Neji’s throat threw her back on edge. 

They were alone. 

Tenten fiddled with the hem of her bag, daring herself to reach in for the remainder of Neji’s gift, but she couldn’t bring herself to. 

“If there’s something you’d like to tell me, you should go ahead.” 

Tenten fumbled with her bag. Despite knowing him and how well he could read body language she wanted to ask how he knew. 

Instead she reached her hand in and gripped the box. 

“I have something else for you.” Her face burned. Neji looked at her, confused at first before realization passed over his face. 

She pulled the box out and pushed it into his hands. 

“It’s nothing special, just something extra I had.” 

He looked down at the box, studying it carefully, just as Naruto had. 

“They’re hot chocolate bombs,” Tenten mumbled. 

“Did you make these?” 

She nodded. 

“For me?” 

Her stomach flipped and her mind reeled, searching frantically for any excuse. 

“Like I said… it was…” 

She stopped, feeling his hand over her own. 

“Thank you.” 

She spread her fingers, letting Neji lace his own between hers. 

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Neji.” 

--

FFN | AO3

[depressedkakashihatake-fics]

Some Time Alone

Hatake Kakashi/Maito Gai

1903 words

Kiss: Lower-Lip sucking kiss

For: @grumpygaybaby and @temarihime​ (if you want to read some Kakagai today lol)

An escape, at last. 

Three days ago Kakashi left Konoha with his husband, and to say he was looking forward to a chance to unwind and relax after being handed the Hokage’s hat all those years ago was an understatement. He couldn’t wait to be as far away from all the responsibilities and expectations.

Unfortunately, Naruto had decided to throw a Kunai in his plans by sending one Mirai Saratobi along with them on body guard duty.

A body guard. The sixth Hokage and one of Konoha’s top Jonin, with a bodyguard.

He’d be insulted if he hadn’t spent the last three days pissed because Mirai refused to give him and Gai any space at all, citing her responsibilities as their guard whenever he tried to get her to go somewhere else for even just an hour.

Not that he blamed her. She was just doing her job.

This was Naruto’s fault and Kakashi was certain it was payback for him sending Genma to watch over the brat’s honeymoon with Hinata. Usually he’d let it slide too, but when it came to Naruto ‘trouble magnet’ Uzumaki, he had to be a bit more cautious. Genma had intercepted three different attempts to interrupt Naruto and Hinata’s honeymoon without them noticing and he should be thankful damn it.

But no, instead he was vengeful and now Kakashi was stuck with a 15 year old who was determined to prove herself and refused to leave Kakashi and Gai’s side no matter how many times he begged her for just a little bit of alone time with his husband.

Drastic times called for drastic measures.

“Are you sure about this?” Mirai looked at the bath house skeptically. “Isn’t there something else you would rather do?”

“No, this is exactly what i want,” it was a perk of being in a relationship with someone who was the same gender as him. He could go into a bath house and not have to be separated from Gai. “it’ll be good for us all Mirai. Bedside’s, if anything happens we’ll be right next door. You just can’t see us.”

The words didn’t seem to make Mirai feel any better about the situation. “Fine,” she crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a look that reminded him a little bit too much of her mother. “But if anything happens i’ll be there in an instant.

“I have no doubt about that,” he smiled, “but try to relax. That’s the point of this stop after all.”

Finally, some peace and quiet. Even if they weren’t completely alone, at least they would be able to relax a bit better without Mirai breathing down their necks, and maybe she would finally unwind a little. 

Stepping out into the bath area, Kakashi couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit excited. It was better than he could have hoped for.

Empty.

The entire bath was empty. Not a soul to be seen. 

There was no better outcome he could have asked for. A whole bath for just him and Gai. No one around to judge if he slid in a little too close. No prying eyes if he decided to take off his face towel.

No real need for the face towel at all really.

Seeing Gai coming up to his side, he glanced down towards the man he had decided to marry. The beautiful human he would spend the rest of his life with. If they were really lucky no one would show up at all until they were ready to leave.

He would get Gai all to himself. 

A small smile tugged at his lips. “You mind?” He took a step forward and turned to face his husband, one hand reaching out towards the other man.

Debating the unspoken question for a moment, Gai took one look at the bath waiting for him behind Kakashi and slowly nodded his head. With permission given, Kakashi closed the distance between them and bent forward, tucking one arm behind Gai’s back and the other under his legs. 

With his hands in place Kakashi lifted his husband out of his chair with surprising ease. Perhaps when Gai had joked with him earlier that week about how he carried him around their home too often these days as a substitute for his old morning training regimes, he hadn’t been too far off. 

“A whole bath to ourselves,” Gai chuckled as his arms came down around Kakashi’s neck. ‘What shall we do with all of this space, Rival?”

“Well first we’re going to find you the best spot possible,” Kakashi muttered, turning around in his spot and scanning the area. Picking out a small rock close to the edge of the bath, he started walking. The last thing they needed was for Gai’s cast to get wet. That always ended up being a mess that neither of them wanted to deal with.

“And after that?” 

“Once we’re settled in and the water is working its magic on our old fagil bones,” Gai roared with laughter, loud enough that Kakashi was sure Mirai could hear him on the other side of the bath house. “Well then I’ll just have to enjoy the precious little personal time I get with my fantastic husband.”

Stepping down into the water, Kakashi groaned as his body started to relax. This was already the best idea he had all day, and he hadn’t even made it all of the way into the water yet. 

“You look happy,” Gai commented, lifting his leg up over the water while Kakashi slowly submerged the lower half of his body in water. “A nice relaxing soak to recharge us for our next challenge. A grand idea you had, Rival!”

Another challenge was not something he was ready to concern himself with. Not when he had already lost the handstand race from their room to the front door of the Inn they were staying at, which surprised absolutely no one. 

No, now was the time for cuddles and kisses, not talks about challenges.

Reaching his target, Kakashi positioned himself perfectly so that Gai’s leg was hovering over the rock and proceeded to carefully set his husband down in the water. Thankfully both of them had decided to forgo their towels in the locker room, deciding it would be easier that way. A choice made much easier for Kakashi since he had been able to get top surgery shortly after becoming Hokage. 

An accomplishment made much easier to achieve without the threat of impending war or a constant need for him to be ready for missions looming over his head. 

“Mmmm, you’re right,” Gai grinned. “The water is perfect. There is no doubt we will be able to do anything we wish after a long soak.”

‘Anything’ seemed like a bit of a stretch, but he was willing to let his husband have it.

Once Gai was settled into his spot with his leg safely propped up out of the water, Kakashi took a step back to admire his work, forcing Gai to release the hold he had on his neck. 

“Are you going to join me, Rival?” Tilting his head, Kakashi thought about it for a second before reaching up to carefully remove the towel he had wrapped around the lower portion of his face. 

Leaning over Gai’s body, Kakashi set his towel down right behind his head and smiled down at the Taijutsu master. Gai was one of the few people who never reacted when he took his mask, or in this case towel, off to show his face, and it was one of the many things he loved about the man. 

“You’re cooking something up in that mind of yours,” Gai teased, reaching up to poke Kakashi in the nose. ‘Stop it. Bath houses are for relaxing.”

“And relaxing is exactly what i’m going to do,” Kakashi assured him even as he leaned in close and brushed his lips against his cheek. “Having fun is part of relaxing is it not, turtle?”

If anyone else had been in the bath with them Gai would have gone bright red at the use of that old nickname. Even after all of these years together it still seemed to embarrass him. 

He claimed it was because it was only nicknames Kakashi ever used for anyone, but Kakashi was certain that it had something to do with the fact that Gai still couldn’t believe that out of all of the nicknames he had access to, he chose to hang onto that one. The silly little nickname he had come up with when they were fourteen years old, and had refused to let go of since then. 

“A whole bath to ourselves, turtle,” He enunciated the nickname, chuckling when Gai shifted awkwardly in his spot. “There’s so much we could do.”

“If you’re suggesting what i think you are, i would like to remind you that you are a screamer and Kurenai will slaughter us if her daughter hears...that.” A fair point. The last thing Kurenai would want is her daughter finding out what the sixth hokage and his husband did when they were alone, and he did have troubles keeping quiet when he was with Gai.

Clearly the more risque activities would have to wait till later. When they were alone in a room. Perhaps Kakashi could convince Mirai to go somewhere where she couldn’t hear them. That was a challenge for him to face later.

For now though, he had a different idea.

Rubbing his nose against Gai’s cheek, he slowly made his way in towards his mouth while gently pressing smell kisses against soft skin along the way. The way Gai shivered under his assault was intoxicating.

The man who never broke.

Who had survived opening the eighth gate and lived through something that no one should ever have been able to live through.

That beautiful, unbreakable man was shivering because of him. He was weak, because of his actions. 

Kakashi held all of the power in this moment and he loved it. 

“My precious Turtle,” his breath tickled Gai’s skin, causing him to squirm just a bit under him. “So beautiful, laid out in front of me like the most delicious snack I could lay my eyes on.”

Gai snorted. “Snack? Did you get that one from Tenten?”

The answer was yes. Who else would he get such a ridiculous saying from? 

Still, that wasn’t his concern at the moment, so he continued without a word. Making his way towards Gai’s lips slowly while he continued to whisper sweet compliments against beautiful skin.

Finally reaching his goal, Kakashi pressed a quick kiss against Gai’s lips before gently sucking his lower lip into his mouth, his hands coming down to settle on Gai’s chest as the Taijutsu master arched up into the kiss.

While Kakashi gently started to suck on the trapped lip, Gai ran his hands up his arms and into his hair. His Fingers settled in short silver strands, sending shivers down Kakashi’s spine. 

Finally, Kakashi released his hold on it and moved back to admire his work. Gai’s eyes were half lidded and there was a peaceful, calm look on his face. The most beautiful picture he had ever seen. 

“Perfect,” he smiled brightly “My beautiful Turtle, all to myself.”

“And i wouldn’t have it any other way.” Gai assured him with a fond chuckle.

[lopithecusfanfiction]

We All Wear Masks Sometimes

Author: Lopithecus Pairing: Hatake Kakashi/Maito Gai | Might Guy Rating: General Audiences Word Count: 1674 Alternate: AO3 Summary: Kakashi comforts Gai after Lee gets injured during the Chunin exams Warnings: N/A Author's Note: This is for day 6 of KakaGai Week 2020 ( @kkgweek ).  I have a feeling a lot of the fics/art that are going to use this prompt are going to be Kakashi focused. So, I decided to do the opposite. This is set just after the preliminary round during the Chunin Exams. Also, it’s not made explicitly clear that Kakashi and Gai are together, but it is implied that they are. Please enjoy! Prompt: Day 6 - Mask

Gai has a habit of pretending to be okay for everyone else's sake even if he's not. He'll smile and laugh, say something with poetic prose, and then throw out a thumbs-up with a hand on his hip. Sure, on good days he actually is like that, Gai's personality having been molded very carefully and lovingly by his father, but Gai's father could only do so much. Kakashi knows this.

Sometimes Kakashi thinks he's the only one to know this about Gai.

On days that are hard, the really bad days that all shinobi get no matter how cheerful and optimistic one can be, Gai amplifies the theatrics to one hundred. No one really notices, no one besides Kakashi, because Gai never lets anyone get close enough to him to show his real personality. Sure, the man is close to his friends, closer still to his students, but he can't act weak around them. He can't let his friends' teasing bother him and he has to be the perfect role model for his students.

With Kakashi, it's different.

Maybe that is what happens when you grow up fighting a war together and lose everyone you love? You tend to latch onto the one that never left. You hold onto them like they are your lifeline and if that line were to ever get cut then you would drown.

Or maybe Kakashi is just being overly dramatic and it has nothing to do with that. Maybe it's just a testament of how long they have been friends that allows the two to be open with each other and no one else. Kakashi has never been great at interpreting attachments and he's the last person to try to make it into a healthy conclusion in his mind.

He's always been a little bit codependent on the people he's cared about.

Gai especially. 

Maybe that's why, before he goes to fetch Sasuke from the hospital to begin his training, he sets out trying to find Gai. He checks the training grounds first and finds Tenten and Neji there. Tenten is helping Neji train but Gai is nowhere in sight. Not surprising, considering where Lee is currently and in hindsight, Kakashi probably should have checked there first.

Still, just so he doesn't make a wasted trip to the hospital, he steps out of the bushes and makes his presence known to the Genin. "Yo."

They both turn to him. It's the first time Kakashi has actually interacted with Gai's students in the year that he's had them. It's shocking, really, considering how much Gai loves to challenge him. Although, Gai hadn't interacted with Kakashi's students until the beginning of the Chunin Exams either. It almost makes him want to laugh and he's kind of sorry he missed that introduction. He would have loved to have seen the little brats' faces at meeting Maito Gai.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Tenten greets him eagerly, pink coloring her cheeks, while Neji doesn't acknowledge him at all. He's not surprised they know his name. Maybe the Hyūga is mad at him for stopping him from killing that Hinata girl?

"Is Gai at the hospital?" he asks, getting straight to the point. He doesn't have all day. Sasuke is waiting for him.

"Oh, yeah! You just missed him," Tenten tells him, her smile disappearing. "He's visiting Lee but said he'd be back soon if you want to wait."

It's just like Gai to divide up his time between his students despite his overwhelming worry about Lee. Kakashi waves the invitation off. "I'll go see him there. Thanks."

Tenten slumps in disappointment and Neji crosses his arms, turning away. He waves goodbye at them anyway. He doesn't need them complaining to Gai about his behavior and then Gai giving Kakashi a huge speech about treating young Genins with more respect.

He doesn't go into the hospital once he's there. He'll be back to get Sasuke and going into the building one time is one too many in Kakashi's mind. So, he waits outside, flaring his chakra a little to let Gai know he's there. He doesn't expect Gai to come out and greet him right away and about five minutes later, he is exiting the building with a wide smile.

Kakashi can already tell it's fake.

"Kakashi! My dearest Rival, what do I owe this pleasure?" Gai strolls up to him, arms out in a gesture to hug Kakashi. Kakashi lets him, wrapping his own arms around Gai's solid frame. He has a feeling Gai needs this comfort right now.

When they separate, Kakashi gestures with his head. "Take a walk with me."

Gai's smile twitches, threatening to fall but Gai has always been a master at forcing himself to smile through everything. It stays steady on his face. "Very well."

They walk in silence and they eventually make it to outside a hot spring. Kakashi leans down on the railing of a bridge, staring at the water beneath them. It reminds him that Naruto is probably searching for him this very second to train him and a pang of guilt clutches at Kakashi's chest. He does wish he could train both him and Sasuke. They both have very different skill sets, however, and if Sasuke is going to be going up against that sand jutsu, then Kakashi needs to focus on Sasuke at the moment. He'll have to get someone else to train Naruto and, although the thought to ask Gai to do it does cross his mind, Gai has too much on his plate right now. Plus, Naruto is going up against Neji. It might be a bit of a conflict of interest.

So, instead, he settles on someone else. "Is Ebisu available?"

Gai walks up beside him and leans his arms down onto the railing, much like how Kakashi is right now. "I believe so, yes. Why?"

"I was thinking of asking him to train Naruto before the final competitions in the Chunin Exams," he says.

Gai looks out into the water. "I think that would be a great idea. Ebisu is very capable. I can ask him if you want?"

Kakashi shakes his head. "Just have him meet me at the hospital. I have to pick up Sasuke."

Gai perks up at that. "Has Sasuke fully recovered?"

Kakashi picks his words carefully, thinking about Lee. "More or less."

Gai narrows his eyes at him, suspicion playing on his face. "You don't have to be gentle with me."

"And you don't need to pretend with me." Gai stares at him and Kakashi pokes him in the cheek. "Let yourself feel things."

Gai scoffs, goodnaturedly. "Says the man who is the master at suppressed emotions."

"I think we both are pretty good experts at it, wouldn't you say Gai-kun?" Gai scowls at the honorific. It's not very often Kakashi uses it. It's mostly to try and lighten the mood a bit. It doesn't seem to work. "Gai, what I said during the preliminaries about the gates…" He trails off, biting his bottom lip. He sighs and wonders if he sounds a bit hypocritical. He’s never been a fan of the gates for obvious reasons, after all. "I meant what I said afterward. I was out of line."

Gai shakes his head. "No." Kakashi furrows his brows in confusion. "You were right. I should have never taught Lee it. He's too young."

Kakashi frowns and reaches up to place a comforting hand on Gai's back. "You were even younger when your father started teaching you how to open the gates."

Gai huffs and pulls away from Kakashi. "And maybe he was wrong, too."

"Gai…"

"He died because he used the gates and… and I'm not condemning him for it. He used them to protect something precious to him, to protect me, and that is something to be proud of. But maybe… maybe I was too young, too?" Gai bows his head. "Maybe he should have never taught me it… because now Lee has almost died from using the gates."

"Gai," Kakashi pulls him closer so that their sides are pressed together. "That wasn't your doing. It was that kid from the Sand. He is the one who almost killed Lee."

"Lee would have given up sooner if he didn't have the gates."

"No, he wouldn't have." Gai looks up then, surprise written all over his face. "Gai, that child, is exactly like you when you were his age. You wouldn't have given up, would you?" Gai shakes his head. "Exactly. So gates or no gates, there is no doubt in my mind that Lee would have fought with everything he had and would have never given up."

"So, then you're saying it's a character flaw?"

Kakashi chuckles with exasperation, laying his forehead down onto Gai's shoulder. "No, I'm saying it's admirable." He lifts his head to look Gai in the eyes. "Stupid sometimes but admirable."

It gets Gai to laugh, a real laugh, and Kakashi's heart warms at the sound. He pulls him a little closer, carding his fingers into Gai's hair. He ruffles the strands, messing up the bowl cut and Gai tries to pull away in complaint. "Kakashi!"

Kakashi lets him escape and watches as Gai tries to smooth his hair back down with his lips set in a pout the whole time. It's adorable and he's glad he's managed to make Gai feel a little better. He's not very good at it most times but when he succeeds it makes him happy. Especially if it's Gai.

"Gai." Gai stops his ministrations on his hair, looking up at Kakashi. He's much more relaxed now, genuine seeming. "Lee will be okay. He's stubborn like you. Nothing will keep him down."

Gai stares at him for a few seconds, thinking, before a real smile breaks out on his face and he sticks out a thumbs-up in Kakashi's direction. "Most definitely, Rival!"

Kakashi chuckles again and, with an amused shake of his head, he throws an arm around Gai's shoulders, walking back to the hospital with him.

—————————————————————————————————

A/N: Don't worry. I didn't forget about the fact that Gai needs to have Ebisu come to the hospital. I just didn't write it in. What I imagine happening is, once back at the hospital, Gai uses a messenger turtle to instruct Ebisu to get to the hospital. It probably scares the shit out of Ebisu at first, thinking something bad might have happened to Gai until he gets there and Kakashi explains everything to him. He is not amused. XD

Thank you for reading!

[depressedhatakekakashi]

High School Crushes

AU: High School Au

Words: 1576

Rating: General

Pairing: Sakura/Lee

Warnings: None

Summary: Sakura and Kakashi are setting up for the LGBTQ+ club when an unexpected guest shows up, and Kakashi’s forced to watch awkward high school flirting.

Completed with help from @cryptic-summons

Counting the chairs that Sakura had set out, Kakashi wondered to himself if it would be enough. Surely there would be more than five people showing up today. Even if he stood, that only left four open chairs for new arrivals.

“You’re thinking too hard about it, Sensei,” Sakura tossed a plastic cup at his head, giggling when he shot a glare towards her. “I triple-checked the signup sheet. The only people coming are Kiba, Naruto, Hinata, Choji, and Tenten. We don’t need any more chairs.”

Four people. Surely that couldn’t be it.

“I feel like I’m forgetting something,” his brain was telling him that there was someone else he should be expecting, but no matter how hard he tried to remember a name wouldn’t come to him. “Oh well, I guess if an extra shows up we can just pull out another chair.”

“An extra!?” Sakura gave him a scandalized look. “Sensei! I bought just enough snacks and drinks for the people who were scheduled to come!”

Oh, right. The snacks and drinks.

Glancing towards the table, Kakashi sighed. There were exactly Six cups, and enough pizza to feed about six people, so Sakura wasn’t lying about having just enough for the people she was expecting.

He certainly had gone and picked the most organized person in his class to lead the LGBTQ+ club. At least he knew for sure that she would always have things under control, even during those days he might not be able to be there to help her with.

Still, his brain refused to let him rest. Trying desperately to remind him of whatever it was he was forgetting.

A sharp knock on the door forced him to forget about his memory struggles and turn to greet whoever it was that had arrived first. As he raised a hand and opened his mouth to say ‘hello’, the answer to his question finally hit him.

There he was, standing at the door.

The person he had forgotten to add to the attendance list so that Sakura could account for his arrival.

Rock Lee.

“Shit.” He muttered under his breath, cringing when Sakura glared at him.

“Language, Sensei,” she scolded him before turning her attention back onto the new arrival. “Hello, Lee-kun. Are you looking for something?”

Lee-Kun? Since when did Sakura refer to any of the other kids with an honorific? Usually, she just called them by their name, or in Naruto’s case there was a fond ‘Baka’ attached to her sentence whenever she mentioned him.

“Well,” burying a hand into his short black hair, he beamed at Sakura. A small hint of a blush painting his cheeks. “I was hoping to take part in the LGBTQ+ club that you were having. I tried to write my name down on the list, but by the time I confirmed with Gai-sensei that Taijutsu practice was on Thursdays now, the sheet was gone.”

Right. Gai had mentioned changing the day of his Taijutsu lessons so that Lee and Tenten could attend the LGBTQ+ club that Kakashi had finally managed to get approval to organize. He even mentioned that Lee was afraid he wouldn’t be welcome to join after missing his chance to add his name to the list that Sakura had put up just outside of Kakashi’s classroom.

Sakura was going to be upset with him for forgetting. She had put so much effort into making sure that everything was perfect for the club so that they could all sit down, share stories, and have a fun relaxing time.

And here Kakashi was, forgetting to inform her that there was actually one more person to expect.

“Oh,” Sakura’s voice cracked, and Kakashi couldn’t help but notice that she had brought her right hand up and started drumming her fingers against her left arm. Almost as if she was embarrassed. “I didn’t realize...Kakashi-Sensei we have another chair, right?”

Usually, he’d complain about being asked such a dumb question, but he was already thinking about all of the ways he could tease the poor kid about this later. He was willing to cut her some slack.

For now.

“I’ll find a chair, you two keep chatting.” with a wave of his hand he turned his back to them and headed towards the closet for an extra chair. Though, if Sakura thought they were getting some sort of ‘alone’ time because he happened to be across the room she was wrong.

They weren’t even bothering to try to keep their voices down.

“I didn���t realize that you would be in charge of the club. Sakura-Chan,” Lee’s voice buzzed with excitement. “What made you want to volunteer?”

“Volunteer,” Sakura huffed, and Kakashi was pretty sure she was throwing a glare his way at that exact moment. Thankfully, he was focused on getting a chair out of the closet without dropping something on himself. How Sakura had done it so easily, he would never know. “Kakashi-Sensei told me that I had to do it. That there was no one else suited for the job as well as me.”

And he stuck by his words.

“Well, I think Kakashi-sensei made the right choice,” He could just imagine Lee doing the signature ‘Maito pose’ that Gai had taught him. It was cringy and horrible and he loved that Gai had passed it down to his student so that future generations would have to suffer seeing it. “You’re the most organized person in our school. Plus you’re easily the friendliest.”

Kakashi snorted.

“What was that, Sensei?”

“Nothing,” turning his head, he smiled at the pair innocently. “I was just clearing my throat. Lots of dust in this closet you know.”

There was no doubt in his mind that Sakura didn’t believe him for a second, but he considered it a small victory when she didn’t press him for a better explanation.

“Well, I hope that I’m able to contribute something to the group tonight,” Lee continued as if Kakashi hadn’t interrupted him. “I’ve never really been part of a group that doesn’t have to do with Taijutsu or Soccer.”

“You’ll be an amazing addition,” Sakura smiled. “Well we wait for everyone else why don’t you have some pizza or a drink? You’re always working so hard so I’m sure you’re hungry.”

Finally wrestling a chair free, Kakashi turned just in time to see Sakura leading Lee towards the table she had set out with snacks.

“I thought you said we didn’t have enough for any extra’s.” he teased, a playful smirk on his face until Sakura smiled back at him with such innocence that he knew only the worst of thoughts could be running through her mind at that moment.

` “You were saying you needed to start a diet anyway, right Sensei?” A diet? What a rude little shit. “I’m sure you’ll be fine if Lee-Kun eats your share of Pizza.”

Great. Now he had to rely on Gai having made something actually edible for dinner after he had told him he would eat Pizza during the club’s get-together. Hopefully, he hadn’t made his signature ‘curry of life’ or Kakashi was going to bed hungry.

“You really are the best, Sakura-Chan,” Lee complimented her again as he picked out his Pizza slices. “Thank you.”

“You know, you should try out a new outfit one of these days, Lee-Kun. I mean, if you want to of course.” Kakashi wished he could disappear when he saw Sakura poke Lee in the side and giggle. This was not the Haruno Sakura he was used to. The girl who always teased him over his relationship with Gai, or had to speak her mind about whatever was happening around her. This Sakura was...timid. It was concerning.

“A new outfit?” Lee blinked, clearly confused by her comment. “But why would I…”

“The green tracksuit is cute, don’t get me wrong,” She corrected herself quickly. “I just think, you know, you’re always wearing the same thing. Wouldn’t it be cool if you tried on a new outfit?”

“A new outfit…” Looking down at his green tracksuit, Lee smiled slowly. “I guess i could try. Then I could just wear this when I’m training in the morning.”

Well, at least Sakura was improving Lee’s sense of fashion.

“I think I have some clothes at home that I haven’t gotten rid of yet. If you want you could come over and try them on. See if there’s anything you want.”

Kakashi felt like he was witnessing the worst attempt at flirting ever. Was this how kids asked each other out these days? Was there really no romance left in the world?

“You do have the best fashion sense,” Lee whispered, a smile slowly appearing on his face. “I think I’d like to take you up on that offer, Sakura-Chan.”

Kakashi was desperate to scream. To demand an explanation for how that worked.

He held his tongue though.

Seeing Sakura smiling proudly and Lee already starting to discuss the type of clothes he liked was well worth having to witness whatever messed up version of flirting it was that the two of them were doing.

“Hey!” Glancing towards the door, he sighed when he saw Tenten walking into the room, followed closely behind by Naruto, Kiba, Hinata, and Choji. Finally, his suffering could end. “Sakura, Lee! I hope the old man hasn’t been bothering you too much.”

Right, never mind. Tenten was here.

The bullying had only just begun.

[redcameleon]

Superstar Series

Chapter 07: Red Strings Attached

Summary: The beach is a mysterious place. It has the power to bring people together, to provide understanding towards each other, and oneself. And it sure brought Sasuke and Sakura closer. 

Rating: K. 

Prompt: SSM 2020 Day 31′s free prompt

A/N: I’m particularly fond of this chapter, because I feel like Sasuke and Sakura have always had a special bond, and I want to highlight it in this chapter. They enjoy each other’s presence, without even trying. This is dedicated for the last day of 2020 Sasusaku month. 

Spring.

A comeback is in the making, which also means everyone will be busy in the next couple of months. K-4 is scheduled for an overseas photoshoot and another music video shoot. More exactly, in the warm paradise, Jeju Island.

Despite the high amount of stress, everyone is more than excited to go on their first overseas trip together. Nonetheless, with the amount of preparation that needs to be done, Sakura is constantly on the phone with a couple of designers or being in meetings with the creative director. They are determined to make this next album even more successful than the previous one, and that means making sure everything is in perfection.

Landing in Jeju, the team is greeted by the warm but cool breeze. The sun is just almost set and the sky is painted in a beautiful pink and orange hue. The drive to the hotel seems long, perhaps due to the fatigue from the flight, despite it being a short one.

According to their schedule, the photoshoot should last two days, and the music video shoot for three. The first four days is so busy that all Sakura could think about is work work work. Helping the team set up, taking care of the outfits, and making minor adjustments along the way sure made Sakura weary.

On the last day, they are able to end all activities around 5PM, and everyone gets some free time on the island before they have to go back home to Tokyo.

“Hey Sakura! Karin, Tenten, Hinata and I are thinking of grabbing dinner together. Wanna join us?” Ino offers.

“Thanks, but you guys go ahead, I could use some me-time to destress.”

“If you say so! Let us know if you change your mind.”

Being around so many people can be draining for Sakura, and she is thinking of doing something more in line with taking a leisure walk around the beach.

It’s the middle of April, yet the air still feels cool and refreshing. The breeze carries the scent of the sea, almost therapeutically.

The beach just across from their hotel attracts Sakura’s attention. No people? Perfect! She walks pass some trees and bushes and finds an empty spot, or so she thought. She spots a silhouette up ahead. Looks like someone sitting on a beach towel. Sakura recognizes the form and approaches them slowly.

“Sasuke-kun?” Sasuke turns his head to greet her. By the looks of it, Sasuke is probably here for the same reason.

“Mind if I sit here?” Sasuke nudges his chin for her to take a seat on a towel right next to him. She stretches her legs and buries her toes in the cool sand. She lets a few moments pass before speaking.

“Isn’t it so peaceful here?”

“Aa.” Knowing the members, Kiba and Naruto must be off celebrating with some karaoke and food. Suigetsu, being the water lover he is, must be off swimming either in the luxurious hotel swimming pool or in the ocean. From the amount of stuff around her, it’s more likely that Suigetsu is having a night swim in the ocean, with Sasuke accompanying him.  

“Are you cold?” Of course, she’s always taking care of him.

Sasuke shakes his head.

“Wow, it’s been a hectic couple of days. I can’t wait to soak in a tub of hot water with a glass of wine.” Sakura sighs.

“You guys did a great job! As always, us stylists don’t even have to do a lot of work, you guys already did half of it with your guys’ looks.” She lets out a playful giggle.

“Hn.” Even though it’s dark, with only the moon shining down on them, she’s sure she can see him smirk.

“It’s sad that we have to go back to Tokyo first thing in the morning. It’d be nice to enjoy our time in this island and just relax.”

Sasuke hums in agreement. They stay silent for a while before Sakura gets up and dusts the sand from her pants and legs.

“Well, I should get going. I don’t wanna take too much of your precious time alone. I know how tiring it could be around so many people for so long. Good ni-”

“You can stay...” he pauses “If you want.”

Sakura stares at him in surprise. That’s the last thing she expects that would come out of his mouth. After all, they’re just coworkers. Right?

She smiles and settles herself back on her previous spot and enjoys the sound of waves crashing. She tilts her head up to look at the stars that adorn the night sky and the cool night wind that caresses her cheeks. She feels so at peace.

She relishes in his presence. Even when there’s just silence between them, she can still feel them connecting with each other. She can also tell Sasuke is not bothered by her. In fact, she thinks to herself that maybe, just maybe, Sasuke also enjoys her around. Or maybe it’s because he’s used to having her around. She has been around them even before they debuted.

She lets her fatigue and tranquility take over her when she suddenly leans over on Sasuke’s shoulder. It catches him off guard. He turns to see that Sakura had dozed off.

“Sa-” he plans on saying something but decided not to. He can tell she must have been exhausted, so he just lets her rest her head on his shoulder, and shifts his weight so that his hand is supporting her back. Sasuke could feel as if time is slowing down between them. She watches her even breathing. She looks so peaceful, and if anything, he feels the moment between them is almost too romantic, way too romantic for two coworkers. He can’t help but feel a blush creep to the tips of his ears.

The moment is brief because not long after, Suigetsu comes out of the water and heads over to Sasuke.

“Oh? Sakura? What’s she doing here?” Sasuke doesn’t answer but motions his finger to his mouth to hush the silver-haired man.

Suigetsu crouches to get his towel and dry himself off before Sakura wakes up from her “nap”. She shoots herself away from Sasuke, shocked by how close they were.

“Sasuke-kun! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to doze off like that! Oh Suigetsu! I see you’re back from your swim. I’m gonna…. go head back to the hotel. You guys have fun! See you all tomorrow!” She dashes and doesn’t even bother to look back to see Sasuke’s startled look.

“Stupid Sakura stupid! How could you fall asleep like that in front of him?! Again!!” Her cheeks are flushed red as she keeps on muttering to herself.

Although she can’t deny that warmth inside her chest when she relishes the feeling of being by his side. That was the closest she’s ever gotten to him, outside of work. She doesn’t know if she is dreaming but she could’ve sworn she felt a connection back then. It was a similar feeling like the one she had felt back on New Years Eve when they were alone together at the office.

She feels light on her feet, all giddy.

Unbeknownst to her, Shikamaru had been watching all along.

Walking around the coastline, he saw two people sitting on the sand, leaning against each other. He didn’t realize who they were until he saw someone run off, then he was sure that the one who ran was Sakura. He glanced at the other person and recognized their silhouette. Sasuke. He does notice that those two are close, but now his suspicion grows. He’ll be sure to keep a closer eye on them from now on.

.

.

.

to be continued.

<--Chapter 6      Chapter 8-->

[nagipops]

KONOHA ELEVEN IN A ZOOM CLASS!

FEATURING: naruto, sakura, shikamaru, ino, choji, hinata, kiba, shino, neji, rock lee, and tenten

WARNINGS: mentions of food

NARUTO

definitely has forgotten that he was unmuted multiple times

or his camera was accidentally turned on

you could just see him sprawled on his bed with a bowl of instant ramen on his lap and a blanket wrapped around himself

EARRAPE SLURPS!! rip headphone users.

sometimes he notices that his camera’s turned on and you can see him freak out and scramble to turn it off

but he accidentally unmutes himself too and so you just hear panicked yelling

his device topples to the floor with a loud crash and he screams so loud istg

the next thing you see is naruto’s face hovering over the camera in fear just before his camera turns off and he’s muted again

the teacher is so confused?? naruto should i call an ambulance

but when he’s not eating in class, he’s sleeping in class

too busy sleeping to leave the zoom at the end of class so he’s always the last one left in the meeting besides the teacher

always asks sakura what happened during the zoom and she is FED UP

SAKURA

enters the waiting room 15 minutes before class is actually supposed to begin

spends the next 15 minutes rearranging her work area, making sure she’s prepared for the day

sits properly at her desk with her hair smoothed down and her face positioned perfectly in frame

if no one else has their camera on, she’s the only one with it on

seriously, she ALWAYS HAS IT ON

and she never leaves the screen somehow

diligently takes notes, uses the “raise hand” feature every two minutes to ask a question

sometimes it can get a bit annoying, even for the teacher

but she almost always gets perfect marks

acts like in angel in class, but after class... no promises, naruto!

SHIKAMARU

this man can barely stay awake during missions, so during a zoom? HECK NAH

shikamaru is literally me,, half asleep during lessons but somehow gets amazing grades

everyone’s either pissed at or envious of him (especially naruto)

obviously does not have his camera on

and rarely ever unmutes

uses the chat feature to answer the teacher’s questions but this man is basically asleep so its so incoherent

“shikamaru, what is a hyperbole?”

in chat: “a hyeprbole is a exsaggerayed phras,e”

teacher definitely thinks he’s cheating on tests

INO

either a) daydreaming about boys or b) checking herself out in the zoom camera OR c) secretly fuming at sakura’s know-it-all behavior

the two girls definitely compete to see who can raise their virtual hand first

"ahem, ahem- sensei? could i answer this question?"

her voice gets all sickly sweet and sakura HATES IT

the two of them totally got caught insulting each other in the private chat

100% the type of student to rewrite her notes after classes with various markers and colored pens and pretty fonts and patterns and whatnot

loves doodling flowers in her notebook during boring lessons!

CHOJI

another strong contender for the Loudest Student award!

not on purpose though, he just forgets that space bar = unmute, and plays some jumping game in another tab (like the no internet dino game!)

also,, rip headphone users

c r o n c h munch munch munch

are you kidding this man's chews are loud enough in person, but with a HEADSET?! hoo boy.

has conked out several times during class

just imagine the name Choji Akimichi with a profile picture of a bag of chips light up with the green box around it with a thunk

the teacher and class is so confused

but then you hear mumbles of "barbeque... chips... barbeque..."

and you realize that the man fell asleep onto his keyboard

he sleeps through the rest of class

HINATA

shy bb has never ONCE turned on her camera

the only time she's ever unmuted was to say "here" during attendance on the first day of school

if the teacher ever takes attendance again, she just uses the raise hand feature

what if naruto-kun thinks my voice is ugly? what if i accidentally turn on my camera? what if the teacher thinks i'm not paying attention? what if-

poor baby is too busy worrying about showing herself on zoom to actually pay attention

actually gets good grades though and her classmates wonder if she’s even there

her zoom pfp is definitely just a purple google “H”

KIBA

has the CUTEST zoom pfp hands down

it’s a selfie of him grinning cheerily with baby akamaru

100% has his camera on the whole time to show off his pup

he loves seeing everyone’s faces on screen melt and aww at the lil big doggo

sometimes akamaru just walks in front of the camera and blocks kiba from view and you just see a massive wall of white fur on screen LMAO

even though kiba’s muted, you can see him and akamaru bickering about who knows what

or even play fighting,, these two get into full on BRAWLS during class

just imagine akamaru shoves kiba into his desk and his camera crashes to the ground overturned so you see the ceiling and the occasional dog tail wagging in the corner

seriously, can the teacher ever catch a break with this class?

the answer is no.

SHINO

his zoom pfp is just a tick.

a singular tick

totally answers questions in chat with proper capitalization and punctuation

shikamaru’s improper answers tick him off

“A hyperbole is an expression that is greatly exaggerated. They are used in order to create emphasis.”

has never unmuted in his life either

he’s so unfazed by everything that goes down in class that it’s funny

if anything the slightest bit RELATED to bugs comes up during class, in 0.00238 seconds this man has an entire essay about them posted in chat, almost like he had it copied and READY to paste

everyone's definitely shocked that there’s actually a human listening behind a tick profile picture

NEJI

a very diligent note taker

seriously, this man writes like a printer; perfectly even handwriting that looks like a font, a million words per minute

everyone asks him for his notes after the zoom because they’re so neat (especially naruto, to neji’s dismay)

he gets excellent grades since he’s so organized and focused

just wishes the zoom would be over so he can work alone in peace

really hates unmuting so he often gives one-word answers in the chat

“Yes” “47” “Present” “Goodbye”

has used a zoom reaction ONCE in his life and he has never wanted to crawl into a hole and perish more

it was a complete accident,, mans was just trying to open the chat to type in his answer, but in a cruel twist of fate he clicked on the 😂 reaction

and he just sat there for ten excruciating seconds in complete and utter shock and shame for ten excruciating seconds as he prayed for it to disappear

tenten would never let him live that down

ROCK LEE

Zoom Reaction Enthusiast

😂😮👍🎉❤️ 24/7

naruto accidentally unmutes himself? 😮

choji falls asleep on his keyboard? 😂

neji answers something correctly? 👍

tenten received the highest score in class? 🎉

akamaru appears on screen? ❤️

unmutes whenever he needs to, but he thinks the little emoticons are so silly and cute

otherwise, he is EXTRA FOCUSED and EXTREMELY DETERMINED to learn all of the things

he’s the first to unmute whenever the teacher asks if the class can see the screen share, hear them correctly, etc.

never takes his eyes off the screen!! he could be missing out on important information

I FEEL LIKE,, i feel like he would totally keep his camera off when he’s muted but whenever he unmutes he would also turn his camera on

so when he says a quick “yes!” his camera turns on but before his camera can adjust properly to the light he mutes and turns his camera back off so his face is just super dark for a split second LMAOOO

tell me im wrong

TENTEN

exasperated by this entire class

thinks her and neji are the only sane ones in the class and it’s true

wants to tell sakura and ino to stop competing and just focus on learning, since they’re the only other girls in the class besides hinata

plus she’s just fed up with all the lazy boys

takes great pride in passing every assignment, test, or exam with flying colors

teachers pet, but the quieter type who stays after every zoom and sends lots of emails regarding assignments and grades and whatnot (unlike sakura and ino who rub it in the teacher’s face)

doesn’t like helping other people besides neji, girl’s got a soft spot for him since they have a mutual respect for each other

but if you’re a handsome prince, maybe she’ll help you out!

if you enjoyed this post, likes and reblogs are much appreciated :) feel free to request here, and make sure to read the rules first! have a lovely day everyone <3

[ofxwordsxandxletters]

Christmas Cheer

Series: Naruto

Setting: College!AU

Pairing; Sakura/Hinata

Rating: G

After an accident lands Sakura on bed rest and crutches, Hinata makes it her job to cheer her partner up. 

Author’s note: A commissioned piece for @wombatking​! So the pairing and plot are by request and the characters borrowed and adapted for this AU. Hopefully, it gives you some warm fluffy feelings this holiday season! 

*~*~*~*

Christmas Cheer The goal was in sight and this was her moment. Last game of an almost perfect season and she wanted to finish strong. Sakura had never been one to back down from a challenge, even one she’d set for herself so she barrels for the goal desire in mind. Movement out of the corner of her eye warns that things might get tricky and she leaves it up to fate as she sends the ball hurtling towards the goal seconds before there is a collision and a blinding pain shoots up her leg as she takes a tumble. The breath is knocked from her and as she lays there dazed and in pain, she can’t help but hope that the goal was good.  Watching from the stands, Sakura’s girlfriend, Hinata, is horrified at the sight of her partner hitting the ground and rises immediately so she can make her way down. As she makes her way through the throng, all she can repeat in her head is how much this could not be a career-ending injury. Soccer was Sakura’s whole world and that would devastated her to not be able to play. But she knows that regardless of all of that, she has no plans that aren’t helping her through whatever this turns out to be. And thankfully, it turns out to be a clean break. However, the doctor is adamant about Sakura staying off her foot as much as possible. Absolutely no long distance trips for at least a month if not more especially if she wants to it to heal right.  “Does he honestly expect me to cancel my trip home for Christmas?”  “Sakura,” Hinata says softly, “You know he wants you to get back to what you love doing. And I know you do, too. So maybe it’s for the best. I can decorate the dorm and we can celebrate together here.” “My parents are going to be super-bummed you realize.”  “I know. But look at it this way; at least for one holiday you won’t have to deal with Naruto.”  At that, Sakura cannot help laughing softly. “I suppose there is a plus for that. Sure your folks will be okay with you declining their invitation, too?”  “They’re just going to have to be. Besides, it’s not like it isn’t tense every year and I end up at your house within a day or two, anyway.” “Your father is still not close to being okay with things is he?”  Hinata sighs as she pushes the wheelchair. “He wanted...different things for me, that’s all. He’ll come around eventually. It’s just a matter of waiting him out.”  “Still, I think he’s a total narcissistic dick for having problems with how you want to live your life. You want to help people. That’s admirable. And as for me...well, I’m definitely a catch so he should be glad his daughter has such discerning tastes.”  Hinata giggles at her words as she guides the wheelchair into the elevator. “I suppose you are right in some ways. But my mother is hopeful that by the time I graduate he’ll have accepted it.” “Well, even if he doesn’t, you know my family adores you.”  “I do and I’m very grateful to them. So you won’t be the only one who will be missing them this Christmas but I do think it important to listen to the doctor’s orders.”  “Suppose that is what I get for dating a med student.” *~*~*~*~ Hinata helps Sakura settle into her bed and gives her the privacy to call her folks deciding that she might as well let her own know she wasn’t coming this year, either. She was sure her father would be less than understanding, he never was, but her mother would be. It’s with this hope that she makes the call and waits. Three rings and would come, “Hinata, I didn’t think we’d hear from you until you were ready to leave.”  She closes her eyes and steadies herself. “Mom, there’s been an accident and Sakura has to stay off her feet. I need to stay here and look after her.”  There’s a long pause before her mother answers, “You know your father won’t approve of this. However, I know how important it is to you to take care of her. You enjoy your holidays and don’t you worry about us. If he wants to get grumpy then I’ll point out that there would be dishonor to not take care of someone who is hurt when they need it. Give Sakura my love and the hopes for  a speedy recovery.”  “Thanks, mom, I love you.”  “And I you. We’ll talk soon.”  It was always easier to talk to her mom than her dad and she was glad he wasn’t the one who answered. Stern and aloof, he was terrifying even now and Hinata had trouble making herself heard. Even distance made it hard because she could hear the rife disappointment in his tone and just envision him before her. Pushing that thought away, she decides that a list is in order of how to make the dorm apartment more festive for  the two of them. She certainly knew shopping would be a must because she has every intention of making this a fantastic holiday season for her girlfriend no matter that they had to stay here on campus.  At least they would be alone as their other two roommates Ino and Tenten had already left on vacation. Ino and Sakura had a childhood rivalry and no doubt the blond would have made her feel quite bad about her injury for the whole time otherwise. Hinata would have no doubt intervened but she didn’t think Sakura needed the added stress as it was.  She’s mulling over the list when she hears, “Hinata!” and makes her way for her room. “Done with your call?” she asks.  “Yeah. Surprisingly they were pretty no-nonsense about me doing as the doctor ordered so long as we agree to facetime with them on Christmas. They are, as always, so proud of you and send their loves. They also said they’d send a fruitcake back with Naruto.”  “I suppose we can see if it actually arrives or not,” Hinata says hiding a grin.  “Knowing Naruto? We’ll probably have to thank them and tell them it was delicious and not really know the truth.” That makes Hinata giggle before remarking, “Well, we all know how much he loves to eat.”  “So should they. So hopefully they’ll send him with his own and he can eat that. How’d your talk go?”  “I spoke with my mom. She’s going to handle my father, which is probably for the best.”  “Yeah, no doubt. Sorry that you have to…”  “No, none of that,” she interrupts gently, “I am going to look after you. Besides, it’s always so uncomfortable anyway so I honestly consider it a relief to have a reason not to go.” “I just know that you love them despite how slow your father is coming around on things.”  “I know. But they will be fine without me.”  “Still…”  She leans close before lightly kissing her cheek. “None of that. Now, what do you want to do? We’re going to make this place festive.”  Sakura smiles at that. “You are sweet for all of this. But honestly, you don’t have to go all out on my account.”  “It’s not a problem. Besides, I know you love this holiday and so do I.”  “Well, I won’t say no to decorating...but only if you agree to help decorate this ugly white cast  first. I don’t like it all that much.”  Hinata smiles. “I’ll put some decorations but I will leave space for our friends to sign it because you know they’ll want to when they find out.”  "Suppose that is unavoidable," Sakura sighs, "but until that time, let's make it at least a little festive,?" "Of course," Hinata readily agrees. It's not too long before she has the tools she needs and she settles next to Sakura. "Let me know if at any time it becomes too much, okay?" "Don't worry, I'll let you know," Sakura promises. It's with this in mind that Hinata starts to work. She inks.and then paints a couple of holiday-themed items over the white cast. At the end, Sakura marvels at the snowman, reindeer, present, Christmas tree, and of course, a jolly Santa Claus. "Are you sure you shouldn't have wanted to major in art?" "It's more a hobby than a passion," her girlfriend replies as she cleans up and puts away the items. "Still, you're quite good." "Thank you. It'll take some time to dry so try not to jostle it too badly." “Don’t worry, I don’t plan on moving much, promise.” She gifts her with a soft smile before adding, “If I don’t say it enough; I’m so glad that I have you in my life. You bring such sunlight to my world.”  Hinata smiles before leaning and kissing her cheek. “I think those are the painkillers finally kicking in. You should rest while you can. I’m going to go out and get a few things for the apartment.” “I assure you it’s not,” she murmurs before yawning, “Okay, maybe a little. But the sentiment is still honest.” “I know,” comes the response, “but rest. I’ll be back and when you wake up it’ll look fantastic in your room.” “‘M lucky that you go through all this trouble.” As she leaves, Hinata murmurs, “It’s never any trouble for you. Promise.”

[raspberryfanfics]

La Primavera—NT Month Day 2

Day 2 - Primavera or spring

I know i’m late ok? Only 17 minutes of day 3 so making the most out of it

On FFn

Introduction

The optional part of a sonata, slower than the main theme, usually in the dominant key. May contain material later stated in the exposition.

Lead violin.

Tenten swore those words would haunt her until the day she died. She was so close. Her audition was perfect. Her music was expressive, her calloused fingers rolling across the strings with grace and her arms moving the bow with so much feeling.

And the worst part was that even if her audition was perfect, she still knew that there was no way she would have made solo violin compared to Neji Hyuga. Because the moment she heard him play, she knew he did everything she did twice as well.

To be honest, La Primavera wasn't even that hard to learn as a girl who had played the violin for 18 years. She shouldn't be so upset. It wouldn't be her most important gig. It was a charity one. She wasn't even going to get played. But she knew immediately that she lost the position very easily to him. She had never lost so badly

So the past four weeks, it had been playing the first violin leading the string quartet rather than the solo violin leading the song. Tenten had been responding to the solo violin on the music rather than asking. But what could she do? No matter how much more effort she put in, she couldn't have beat Neji Hyuga, whoever that was.

But who was she kidding? She had stalked Neji Hyuga on Instagram, Twitter, and every other social media he rarely used. He appeared more frequently on the news, awards, charities, and small albums. He wrote his own music.

Meanwhile, she was making pop covers with a violin.

Of course, Tenten wrote her own music too, but it was simple, nowhere as extravagant as his.

Tenten walked into the rented church, her case heavy in her arm. A smiling boy joined her side, he had shiny black hair cut into a bowl-shape, a case similar to hers, only larger. She assumed he was the violist.

"I'm Tenten," she offered.

"Lee," he flashed a smile, bright and glaring. It made her wince, though she thought he seemed like a sweet person.

"Are you familiar with the other musicians, Hinata, Gai, and Kakashi?" she asked.

"Not Hinata," Lee said, his voice loud. "Gai-sensei taught me everything I know about the viola, Kakashi is his husband. They are incredibly talented. Do you know of Neji Hyuga?"

Tenten nodded weakly. "Yes, I've listened to his recordings. He's great."

Fucking amazing, she meant.

And he was already sitting in the room with supposedly Hinata, tuning his violin without the help of the harpsichord or a tuner.

"Do you need me to play and 'A'?" she offered, already reaching for the keyboard.

Instead, he looked up at her, his cold pale eyes meeting her warm brown ones. A tingle went down her spine, but it didn't seem to be because of the cold not because she was intimidated.

"I have absolute pitch," he replied curtly before going back 'D'.

Tenten scoffed at his abruptness and his arrogance. Of course, he'd have perfect pitch. Who would expect?

Hinata gave a slight smile. She had the same eyes as Neji did. And last name, for that matter. "I'll take an 'A', please."

Tenten smiled at her, pressing the note so it rang out. She knew that Hinata easily could have listened to her cousin's note in reference to her own, but took the note anyhow.

Lee had taken out his viola as well, tuning his instrument. With the notes fresh in her mind, Tenten started as well.

When Gai and Kakashi burst in late, she was surprised by the similarities between the former and Lee. They really looked like father and son. More so than Neji and Hinata looked like siblings or cousins.

"I COULD HEAR YOUR YOUTHFUL TUNING ACROSS FROM THE ROOM! DO PLAY ME AND 'A', MISS—"

"Tenten," she said, her voice sounding like a squeak compared to his boisterous one.

Nonetheless, she let the note run through.

And when everyone was tuned, warmed up, and ready, they started. Just from the pure grace expressed on his violin, Tenten knew she was screwed. Neji Hyuga was too good, even with only a month of practice.

Exposition

The primary part of a sonata, the beginning, presenting the main motif, commonly repeated throughout. The key changes near the end of the section, preparing for the development.

Weirdly enough, after a few practices, Tenten met him again not at the church, but when she was performing on the street, greeting strangers as they walked by, pausing to talk after each song. So she finished her cover of Riptide and smiled at him.

"Hey," she said to him while answering the questions of a few admirers. However, his posture seemed to scare off the rest of her audience.

"You use your talent for this?" he scoffed.

Whatever was the opposite of a backhanded compliment was what he had done.

"I like talking to commoners," she replied. "Everyone should hear good music."

He raised an eyebrow, she began the next song. Tenten expected him to leave but he stuck through each one of her songs, even as she talked to the people who ignored him.

"Requests, anyone?" she shouted to her audience. They looked at him and she rolled her eyes, seeing that they didn't dare speak.

"An original," he provided.

Tenten's face reddened. Did he want to make fun of her or something? Shove his superior skills in front of her face? Make it obvious that he had better music than she?

"I don't have originals," she replied. The spring breeze seemed to bring a strangely gentle smile to his lips.

"A person like you has to have originals,"

"What is that supposed to mean?" she scoffed.

"Have you really never composed anything?" Neji inquired.

Tenten paused. Any musician playing as long as she had was bound to have written something, to have memorized something. She just didn't choose to make money off of them. "I've never played them for anyone."

"Play one for me,"

And somehow, the expression on his face convinced her.

"An original for Neji here," she announced. "I call this one, Spring."

A few cheers came from her audience.

Tenten rested her bow on the strings, her calloused fingers pressing down on the board. Everything tuned out until the first ring of the music drifted through the air. It was her own interpretation of spring. Tenten played the flowers blooming, the gentle breeze, and the birds singing. When she stopped, the tips in her case looked heavier and the look of admiration and fascination in his gaze made her breath batch.

Something was different between them after that.

—

"I didn't know you had a studio," Neji walked into the apartment, offering the homey nature of where her many students would learn from her when she wasn't practicing at charities or for the people on the street.

You don't know a lot of things about me.

"Yea, it gives me more privacy. And it separates work from home. An office, in a way."

He smiled. "Impressive that you can afford it in a place with such expensive rent."

Tenten looked at him to see if there was any suspicion on his face. There weren't any. "I have my ways."

Though her ways might be questionable.

"It's not like you'd have any trouble affording it."

He shrugged, slowly looked around, sitting at her keyboard. The score on the stand took his attention. His pale eyes skimmed through the music. Her music. She could see him playing silently in his head.

"You've added more to this," he held up the page, half littered in notes. Then he motioned the piano, making her blush. "May I?'

Tenten nodded, slowly sitting beside him on the bench, the way she would with her student. Yet usually she'd listen to her students play and judge them, but now she was listening to Neji play and he was judging her.

His fingers played the first motif, then continued, playing the simple melodies with usual grace, giving her music more of a solemn feel than playful. He went through what she had not yet composed for him and the way he brought something she had written herself to life made her fall for him just a little more.

Neji filled something that Tenten made with the life only he could give, the magic he seemed to bring with him.

"It's beautiful," he said, his baritone voice deep in admiration. While her voice was high like the violin they played, his was low like the cello. Tenten's heart stopped.

"You can have it when I complete it," she blurted without thinking. He turned to her, his expression unreadable other than the fact that he thought she was crazy. "I mean, you don't' have to, of course. I know the song is super simple and definitely nothing like Vivaldi or Beethoven—"

"You'd give it to me? Your song?"

She flushed. "Well, you'd have the original score and I'd have a photocopy to play but yea, I'd write it for you."

Her face turned so red she thought she had a fever.

Yet Neji just seemed flabbergasted. Every emotion usually masked until he played the violin was open for her to see. Surprise, confusion, captivation...though she understood the expression, she just didn't understand why.

"No one has written me a piece before," he admitted, a breath escaping from his lips. And the admiration of her music turned to the admiration of her. He looked something between wonderstruck and struck. Her heart pounded in her chest a few tempos faster.

"I—I can give you one of my scores as well," he said. "It's one of the pieces I've memorized for my next concert so I'm completely finished—"

"You don't have to," Tenten said quickly, eyes wide. "You don't owe me—"

"I'd like to," he insisted. "Should you wish to learn it one day."

"Without thinking, she took his face into her hands and pulled his jaw towards her. He was still. She could feel the shock on his frozen lips. But his surprise seemed to melt like the thawing mountain streams, growing trails of new life and magic that only music could describe.

And Tenten was slowly falling for the man who tasted of spring the more she kissed him.

—

She didn't know when or even how, but there was a point where playing the Vivaldi seemed more emotional than it was. Because now, though Neji's violin was still calling, he was calling for her. She'd answer, light as the birds, like a nature spirit. And though Hinata would answer the call, then Lee, it still felt like he was calling for her only.

There they were, six strings, making one song. And it truly felt like spring.

That evening, Neji and Tenten went back to her studio. He brought his violin. He played for her the music he was still perfecting. Tenten could barely breathe. The sweet sounds made her eyes flutter shut instantly. They played for her ears only. She believed, let herself believe that this song was for her. When he finished, there was a pause. There always was a pause at the end of a great performance.

Only when he lifted his bow from the strings, had he truly completed the song. She watched anxiously as he set the instrument down, turned to her and stared into her eyes. His pale gaze was strangely warm. She breathed slowly, he breathed over her, and their legs were a tangled mess. But their lips? Oh, what was going on between their lips was far from messy.

Tenten felt like she was on cloud nine. His kisses trailed to his neck and what was supposedly warm became heated and all she could do was cling onto his dress shirt with helpless whimpers. But he pulled back, to her dismay, and it was only the grin on his face that kept her from taking charge herself.

She slowly opened her phone and tapped, then handed it back to her.

"I want to take you on a date."

Tenten nearly passed out.

"Just before the charity recital," he added. "Wear what you'll perform in and bring your violin."

She nodded dumbly.

Neji kissed her on the cheek. "I'll see you then, Tenten."

After he left, she opened her phone and realized he had sent himself her real address.

All of the heat froze with a wave of fear.

—

The doorbell rang. Tenten adjusted her hair, makeup, threw her shade of lipstick into her purse in case the dinner messed it up. Or his lips.

Tenten threw makeup wipes in there just in case.

She opened the door and she had to keep herself from pouncing at him at the sight of how he looked in a perfectly tailored suit and somehow even neater hair. His tie probably cost her her her dress, shoes, and purse combined. There was a bouquet of flowers in his hand, not roses, but crocuses. Tenten didn't know a lot about flowers but she knew that crocuses were among the first flowers to bloom in spring.

As she stared at the thoughtfulness, it gave him a chance to look her apartment over. It looked normal, hopefully. He didn't point anything, in particular, out so she was in the clear.

"Shall we go?" he held his elbow out for her, which she took happily.

They walked out of her apartment, violins in their free hands.

—

The restaurant was fancy.

Tenten had feared these types of restaurants when she was younger because she knew it would be much too awkward to be enjoyable. Yet somehow, with the way he smiled and explained the French dishes to her, it didn't matter.

She cracked light jokes. They talked of their music, their lives, their dreams.

"You would have very popular concerts," he spoke.

"Yet I can't compare to you."

"I disagree," he said. "Your music is much more memorable than mine."

"I do not have the fluency that you play with, Neji."

"Will you consider being a composer?"

Tenten nodded. "I'll write you some music. You'll record them for me, make me famous."

He chuckled. "As you wish."

Her eyes widened. "Ooh, speaking of which, Lee and I got tickets to your next concert. We'll be listening very carefully for any mistakes."

"Thanks. You didn't have to."

"I would listen to your playing even had I not pursued you," she teased. "Lee would too."

Neji's expression changed. "With Lee—is there—I don't want to—if you and him—"

Tenten's eyes widened in surprise. "I've only known him since we came together for the Vivaldi. He's like a brother to me. You don't have anything to worry about."

He flushed slightly. "My apologies."

"You don't do this too often, do you?" she asked abruptly.

"Do what?"

"You don't do the dating thing a lot. You haven't had many girlfriends."

Neji stared down at his ridiculously expensive food. "It's easier for me that way. I can focus on my music."

"Then why date me?"

"Most of the time, dating distracts me. Yet you inspire me, Tenten."

Fuck, I love him.

She only smiled. "Why haven't you been inspired by the other girls?"

"I've never been as attached to them as I am with you."

And she could see every ounce of vulnerability he had like all of the snow melted under her. But she was worried about when it would burn.

Development

The second part of a Sonata, introducing new or varied motifs and begins in the key the exposition ended in.

The charity recital had brought in plenty of profit. Easily said, it had been their best performance. Tenten sat by Neji's side in the fluorescent lighting backstage, exclaiming opinions and admiring the way his face seemed all the more contoured, more like a god than man.

She held his hands, firm, calloused fingers on hi his right, softer ones on his left. She was subtle, only her quartet and harpsichord noticed. His pulse would quicken at certain actions. Tenten found that she liked discovering what those actions were.

Tenten was led into his car after the recital and he didn't put keys into the ignition, rather kissed her the moment she closed the door.

"You were driving me crazy backstage," he said between breaths.

"Really? Totally couldn't tell."

"You were."

"Looks like you're gonna have to sneak me backstage during your concert." she joked.

But alas, the moon started to grow tired of them making out in the car and she was yet to go home despite rather staying with him.

"I'm planning the date next time," she told him as they walked to her apartment, lingering because neither wanted to leave. His memory would still cling onto her, though it would never beat the real thing.

He was spring now. He used to be winter; cold, harsh, and thrilling, but she had melted into spring; warm, gentle, relaxing. She liked to think of herself as summer; hot, fierce, and playful, so she was able to do so. She liked to believe she was the only one to make the icy exterior thaw.

They reached the top of the steps to her apartment. She shoved her keys in her door, fumbling. And she looked back at him, let go of her unlocked doorknob, seeing his pale eyes staring at her so wondrously. They were darkened by the dim lighting and Tenten was filled with so much desire and amazement that she let the words at the tip of her tongue slip.

"I love you, Neji."

Tenten was afraid of his reaction so she quickly reached for the door again. Yet he grabbed her hand and pushed her wrists above her head. He attacked her with his mouth and fuck, spring was definitely summer now. She could only wrap her legs around his waist, accommodating his kisses by tilting her head and gasping for air.

Fireworks went off in her body. Symphonies played in her head. Even as he pulled away slightly, she could tell that he wanted to lean in again.

"Say it again," he breathed. She was amazed that he managed to get any words out.

"I—I love you,"

"Again,"

"I love you.

"Again."

"Aren't you going—"

"I love you, Tenten."

Her heart stopped. And it stopped again when he reached up to her cocktail dress and she realized where this was going.

"Wait—" her voice trailed off when he squeezed her bottom and sucked at her collarbone. "I—"

He opened the door and Tenten had to force herself away.

"Neji, I—"

But she was too late.

His pale eyes, previously filled with desire and lust were filled with confusion, slowly morphing into anger. In them, she could see the reflection of a warm light, the type that tried to imitate the sunshine but never worked, and a familiar silhouette.

"Tenten," though he was trying to stay calm, she could hear a slight quiver in his voice. "Who—"

The guy on the couch had obsidian hair and eyes. He seemed bored, a horror documentary playing on the television. In all, he didn't seem to care. "Who am I? I should be asking you, shouldn't I be? You're in my house, after all."

"You live here," Neji said, though it was quite obvious now.

Tenten wanted to hide in a corner. She was going to have a panic attack if this went—

"And you don't. Nice flowers you got for my girlfriend, by the way. I'm sure she appreciates it—"

"Sasuke—" she started, but Neji interrupted.

"My deepest apologies. I wasn't aware that Tenten had—"

"It is not your fault that she failed to inform you of her commitments."

But he was already out of the apartment.

She didn't even spare a look back at Sasuke, following after him with hasty steps.

"Neji!"

He didn't answer her. She called his name again and again yet he continued walking. He walked to his car, the door unlocking. With a burst of speed, she intercepted him from opening the door, biting her lip and holding back the tears she didn't deserve to have.

"Neji will you listen to me—"

"Why should I listen to you!" he shot, suddenly, face red, burned, scorched by her. His chest heaved up and down and though he feigned pure rage, it sounded more like pleading.

"So I can explain—"

"What can possibly explain you having a boyfriend already? I thought I was your boyfriend! What can you say that will excuse not telling me in any fucking circumstance?"

She was silent. Tenten didn't have an answer.

"Fuck," he said, voice breaking as if she had put her hand over the strings, stopping any further sound. "You said—you said you love me and I fucking believed you."

"I do love you!" she said. "I don't love Sasuke, I love you! I want you, Neji—"

"But how can I trust you!" tears started to roll down both their faces.

She shook and he pushed her away to the side roughly. Tenten didn't feel it. She could only feel regret and guilt and knew that she deserved it.

"I don't want to see you again. I don't want you in my life anymore," he said, voice too much calmer than before. He slammed the car door and drove away, not even looking at her through his rearview mirror.

And she broke down in the parking lot of her apartment building, feeling more helpless than she had ever been.

—

It wasn't like Tenten had ever loved Sasuke Uchiha. Not even a little bit. How could she have ever had an ounce of feeling other than platonic for him when that was the only way he felt for her too?

The thing was, she was his rebound friend with benefit. Two bad ideas in one. But bad ideas often outweighed each other and while friends with benefits often caught feelings and as did rebounds, being both made her even colder to him than she used to be.

Sasuke had just broken up with Sakura Haruno, a bassist under Kakashi, while he was a violist like Lee. They had known each other forever. They had loved each other for a little shorter. But Sakura wasn't someone he could just get over. Sex wouldn't change that but would sure distract.

He and Tenten took many of the same classes in university. Were they friends? Not really. But they often collaborated together and knew each other well enough. Around the same time he broke up with Sakura, she needed a studio for her students. So he let her live in his one-room apartment and in exchange, she became his girlfriend, which really just meant she was his sex buddy and warded off any other girls who wanted to be.

And it worked for her too. Like Neji, boyfriends distracted her. She didn't like falling for guys even though she knew she would cave under some of their charms. Sasuke warded them off for her as well. He wasn't bad in bed either. They only considered themself as actual friends when she was so drunk that she brought home a guy who wanted to take advantage of her in her own house, whom he nearly beat up.

Maybe it would have been easier to explain to him had she not slept with him since meeting Neji. Tenten really had done that. She felt dirty, a mistress, and Sasuke didn't know any better than to drive Neji off too. He had been right. Nothing could have possibly excused her actions because he deserved to know about Sasuke in a way better than what had happened, and he would have understood why she did what she did.

Tenten sulked around her house for a week. She emailed her students and said she was sick. She practiced the violin all day, playing the songs he had given her for hours on end.

That was when her "boyfriend" approached her.

"I think it's around time you and I broke up."

Tenten blinked, then saw he was sincere. She set down her instrument and he sat down on their bed, sighing.

"The past few weeks, you don't seem to want sex as much."

She nearly slapped him for his words but he held his pale hand out, stopping her.

"In the times we did have sex, you muttered someone else's name," he explained. "I couldn't figure out what you said. But now that I think about it, it was his. The man you brought home and cried for a week ago. I can tell you love him, the way I love Sakura. I don't want to get in the way between that."

Tenten didn't know what to say. She just stared at him. It was obvious that he still wasn't over his ex, but he had never admitted loving her out loud.

"I'll help you move out. I can loan you some money as well."

"But why? I'm the one who has been in the wrong. Why are you being so nice to me?"

He shrugged. "You were the only person who understood not wanting to talk about Sakura. And you've made me realize that I want her back."

She found herself calling Lee that day, explaining to him the mess she had gotten into. He offered her the empty room in his space.

Recapitulation

The repeat and slightly altered version of the exposition in a sonata. Usually consists of a transition to keep the tonic key so the section can conclude.

"TENTEN! DID YOU SERIOUSLY FORGET?"

It was the middle of the evening. What could she possibly forget? She was in her studio, writing music.

"Lee, what is it this time?" Tenten muttered, setting her score down as he walked in, wearing a green button-up and nice pants. His hair was neater. He looked like he was going on a date. Had he needed a ride for his date or something?

"The concert!" he shouted as if she was stupid. To be fair, she was.

"What concert?"

"NEJI'S CONCERT! NEJI'S CONCERT IS TODAY! WE HAVE TICKETS, REMEMBER?" he shoved a black dress into her hands. "GET READY."

Tenten's heart stopped. She hadn't seen him in weeks. She thought of him every day. She cried herself to sleep thinking of him. She thought of him in her sleep. "Why the fuck would I go to his concert?"

"Because even if you are in love with him, it doesn't excuse the fact that he has great music."

She could see very little resemblance between the two subjects.

"Oh, come on, Ten. Are you seriously going to miss it?"

She wasn't and he knew it. So she threw on the dress and joined him in the concert hall, blending in with hundreds among hundreds of other people, waiting in line just to see him play. Tenten didn't know what to expect.

The lights seemed to dim in what felt like years and he walked out onto the stage. Her breath caught painfully in her throat. It hadn't caught this way in so long.

He was the personification of elegance. His dark suit made him took tall, his hair drifting down his back in a low ponytail, his pale skin glowing in the spotlight. Tucked under his arm was his violin. Even though he was on the stage and she was far into the audience, she could still see those lilac eyes clearer than ever.

Neji took a spot at the center of the stage and closed his eyes, shifting as everything was so silent she could hear a pin drop. When he opened his eyes, music started to drift into the halls.

She recognized the music. She had listened to him play it over and over again, sometimes slowly, sometimes in different rhythms. She had played it over and over again, the music that he had given her the scores to. Upon hearing the sounds coming from his violin rather than hers, Tenten felt like she was going to burst because even though it was the same music, it sounded so different as he did.

And the whole concert was like that. She had to close her eyes and listen so she could be fully immersed in it. Tenten felt herself falling all over again. The music was sombre, cold, and distant. Yet she felt it all. She had been summer before and now she was turning into autumn. Everything was chilly. Shivers ran down her spine.

When he ended his last piece, it felt like no time had passed. Everyone was quiet. They could only breathe it in. Neji bowed, and she could only stand like the rest of them, clapping. He looked forwards and she felt like he was looking directly at her, but he wasn't. He only looked to a sea of faces, faces he couldn't even see, and she knew she was only imagining things. They cheered for an encore, even the staff cheered for an encore, and he slowly raised his hands, allowing them to quiet so he could perform.

Yet he spoke instead. She hadn't heard him speak this whole time until now.

"This piece was composed for me by someone dear to me. She calls it Spring."

Tenten clutched onto Lee's arm with terrifying strength. "Fuck, fuck, Lee, that's my—"

But the first note of her song filled the hall with a warmed feeling than all of his other songs. He was playing her song. He played to exceptionally beautifully, with all the emotions she had felt in her heart. She heard love, she heard spring, and she heard the beautiful thing they had developed in a heart wrenching way.

Tears slid out of her eyes as he finished and when she left, the talkative exclaims of how their favourite piece had been the encore at the end.

—

Hinata had given her his address so there she was, standing at Neji's apartment with only hope and a violin.

She rang his doorbell slowly, holding her breath as she heard his footsteps come closer.

The door opened and he met her eyes, holding her gaze for a solid second before slamming the door in her face.

"Neji Hyuga!" she screamed, tired, fed up, and terribly, terribly in love with him.

"Fuck off!"

She didn't think that such foul and ungraceful words would ever come out of his mouth. Yet Tenten had long predicted such an outcome would happen. So she sat her violin case on the opposite wall, then took out her tuner. She watched as the notes hit a whole tone below what the standard tuning was and started on the song.

Though it was awkward at first, she soon got the hang of it. The melody was the one he composed. Music in exchange for music. A song an audience had heard but only two knew to play. She mustered all the emotions she could into it. Tenten tried to play it as well as he did.

Her performance caught the attention of a few other residents of the building. Perhaps they were enchanted by the music, perhaps they were going to threaten Neji with another sound complaint. Yet they saw her, not him, playing differently, playing in the hall. They listened to her, reciting his music until his door opened once more.

Neji's eyes were brimmed red, he looked more tired than he had during his concert. She stopped playing at the sight of him and couldn't move her sore fingers. She saw his adam's apple bob and he bit his lip.

"You're out of tune," he whispered. Because of course even though her music had brought him to tears behind the door, he would only point out her purposeful mistake to flaunt his absolute pitch.

The people of the apartment watched in interest.

"It's driving you mad," she said, referring herself more than the instrument. Yet she tucked the violin under her arm, grabbing her case, and entering his apartment before he could drive her out yet again.

Neji leaned against the door after closing it, rubbing his temples. He didn't meet her gaze.

"I'm sorry for everything," she whispered, setting down her violin and touching his face lightly.

Neji leaned his head back further into the door, almost as if he wanted to escape her touch, but he tilted it and somehow his jaw fit even tighter into her hand.

"I won't make excuses. But I have never had feelings for Sasuke, only for you, and we broke up a couple of weeks ago. I still love you, Neji." Tenten inhaled sharply. "I know you love me too."

And he started to shake, trembling into her hand, clinging onto her.

"Will you give me another chance?"

Neji nodded.

She hadn't realized how badly she needed that. Relief flooded her veins and she kissed him, slowly, steadily, and never planned to let go.

Spring meant new beginnings, but most of the time it was just being revived again.