The Springtime of Youth

{4}: small smile

notes: neji's so close to tenten that i wonder how someone so cold formed a friendship with her.

disclaimer: can i just skip this part?

dedication: anyone trying to get someone to get out of their shell.

Neji is brooding.

Sure, the Hyuga normally keeps his distance from others and wears a serious expression on his face. He doesn't enjoy interacting with others, not even his own teammates.

Well, especially not even his teammates.

But this is different. He's sitting by the river, frowning and watching the water flow right past him. Tenten wishes she knew what he's thinking.

Lee edges closer to her, also watching him. Tenten is much closer to him now than she was before, even if she still secretly thought that he stood no chance against Neji. He's still annoyingly cheerful, but they're friends now, and she's starting to love him the way you love a brother.

"I think this is because of what happened this morning," he whispers. Tenten nods a little, even if she isn't really listening to what he's saying. It's not because she doesn't care- it's just because Neji is capturing all of her attention. "Yeah," she answers. "Probably."

"Are you upset?" Lee asks, quietly. Neji is as silent as a stone, and there's nothing that can be heard besides the rustling of the trees and the ripples in the river. "Because you shouldn't be. Neji may be a genius, but that doesn't excuse him from losing. And losing isn't a good reason to sulk."

"I guess," she shrugs. "He doesn't seem to be very used to losing."

That morning, Gai-sensei had decided to pair two of them up for a sparring session. Lee was busy practicing his push-ups, leaving Tenten and Neji's battle as the only option.

Tenten had been a little nervous- Neji is a genius, after all, and his skills had wowed her right away- but prepared her weapons, anyway. Forfeiting isn't ever acceptable.

But Neji had just looked over her head and inspected his nails. "I don't want to waste time fighting girls."

And then he turned around, his dark locks of hair swinging behind his head, and walked away. Simply, as if it was just that.

Tenten didn't remember thinking about what he said; she didn't remember processing his words. All she can remember is the heat bubbling in her stomach. The next thing she knew, she was lunging towards him with a kunai in her hand.

It was well-aimed, just barely missing shooting his ear off. Some time later, when they would develop a closer relationship, she would learn how close it was to his blind spot.

Neji whipped around, activating his Byakugan. His palm swung itself towards her, but it's too late. Whatever it is that motivated Tenten to attack him had also quickened her speed. He missed her upper arm, and then her kunai was suddenly this close to slitting his throat.

So now Neji won't even look at her.

True, he doesn't care much about her- or Gai and Lee, for that matter. He just wanted to become a jonin and get away from them, Tenten could tell. But this is just... different.

"But you're right," she says aloud, causing Lee to glance over at her. "He should get used to losing. I mean, he'll have to lose eventually, right?"

He nods in agreement. "Losing should only encourage you to work harder. You should be aiming to do better next time, not just sit aside and waste time that could be spent training."

"I think he should smile more, too. Might even improve his looks a bit," Tenten remarks.

Lee stares at her. He stares at her until she stares back at him.

"Smile more, you say?" he grins like an idiot, gesturing towards the river in front of Neji.

Tenten blankly eyeballs the water before catching onto what he was saying. She covers her mouth in order to muffle her voice. "So you think we should..."

"Speed is the key," Lee whispers back. "Neji could be watching us, even now. And his fast reflexes might throw it off. But I don't think he can push back both of us, not if our timing's on point."

Ready.

Tenten shifts towards the right while Lee shifts towards the left.

Set.

Quickly, both of them dart towards the Hyuga. They go so fast that he doesn't catch on- at least, not right away. But it's too late now.

Go.

Tenten grabs one of his arms while Lee grabs the other. Then they hurl themselves into the water, laughing out loud as Neji goes down with them.

There's a huge splash of water, followed by lots of laughter.

A while later, Lee flails around in an effort to cry out for mercy. Neji finally releases him from a headlock, allowing him to breathe. Tenten almost chokes on the water filling her mouth from how much she was laughing.

She drags herself out of the water, soaked to the brim. Lee clings onto her, his own clothes weighing him down. His hair is practically glued to his face and his eyes are closed shut, but he's still grinning as brightly as ever.

Tenten watches Neji stomp out of the river, flipping droplets everywhere. She expects him to send one, last poisonous glare in her direction, but he doesn't.

Instead, she sees the corner of his mouth curling upwards into a smile as he walks away.