NejiTen Oneshots And Drabbles

Sacrifice

He saw the thorns slicing the air, and knew Hinata would never beat them back. He crouched to leap between them, protecting them both, but felt himself jerked backward as something else flew forward.

And as he fell to the ground, he hoped it had been a trick of the lighting and that he hadn't seen what he thought he had seen.

The sickening sound of wood piercing flesh echoed ominously around him as blood splattered, warm on his face. He clutched his arm, sliced from a stray projectile, that left him otherwise unharmed.

He scrambled to his knees, eyes wild, blood dripping through his fingers. Immediately, his eyes sought out his cousin - still unharmed and standing defensively in front of Naruto.

Her eyes were wide and her face was flecked with blood and he followed her gaze to the figure suspended in front of her and Naruto....

The arms were still flung wide, the head thrown back. The back arched then collapsed with the impact of impalement.

A Sacrifce.

He felt his world slow to nothing.

Because it was not him that had taken the undoubtedly final blow.

It was her.

He scrambled to from knees to feet and stumbled over to her, just in time to catch her collapsing body.

Two gigantic thorns pierced through her, and the color had already drained from her face.

He called out for the medics.

"Tenten," he gasped, disbelief and despair raw in his throat. "Why?"

"Because," she gave an exasperated half-laugh. "You...you were about to die, you idiot," her eyes drifted slowly over to him. "I knew you'd try and do the noble-sacrifice-yourself thing."

"Why did you stop me," he harshed out - a broken sob barked rather than breathed.

"Because," her words were low on labored breath. "Because you've come so far... too far to stop. You are important in this fight, Neji. You have a destiny to change your clan - I believe Naruto will win," she gave a quick glance to the stricken and saddened man struggling to his feet with Hinata's help, "-and he will need you after the war." She tried to lift a hand, but couldn't, and settled for winding her fingers in his.

"No," he shook his head, "We need you - we - you can't-you belong-"

"My place," she interrupted, iron sealed in her words just as it had been in her scrolls, "has always been at your back. You have others at your side now," she met Naruto's eyes over Neji's head. Both he and Hinata gave her solemn nods.

With her last shreds of strength, she rested her forehead on his, and whispered something only he could hear.

He gave the barest of nods before capturing her lips, and the last of her breath, in promise.

Her eyes became vacant, even as Lee came running over to them, dropping to his knees at their side.

Neji expected him to weep openly.

All that met him were eyes of fathomless sorrow that hardened into grim determination.

Their war had changed.

They fought for their village.

For their comrades.

They fought for her.

And when Neji followed after Naruto into battle, cloaked in chakra with heart burning in fierce defiance of death's shadows, her final words rang in his soul.

"Fly, Neji," she whispered. "I will be watching."

A caged bird no longer, he roared into the fray.

~

OK so like, maybe I shouldn't have started this book with some sad ending.

But anyways, the next one will be better. I promise.

Not sure if the picture above portrays the oneshot, I couldn't find any picture of her death but you all get the idea.