[animal] = choose your favorite animal
"Every monster used to be a scared little lamb."
08. The Monster and the Savior
You sat with your legs crossed on top of the Hokage Rock, looking down at the Hidden Leaf Village. The sun wrapped its rays around you, filling you with hospitality. You weren't as close to the sky as you were on the mountain but the view was way better here, the clouds were whiter and the sky seemed wider.
You could see the academy just beneath the Hokage Rock. You could make out Ichiraku Ramen where you used to eat ramen with Naruto, you recognized Konoha's Hospital and you could even spot the tip of your apartment complex.
The villagers appeared like tiny ants as they traveled to and fro about their daily life. Shinobis jumped from roof top to roof top on their way to missions. Children ran about screaming and playing in the streets. Everything was peaceful.
You stood up and stretched. You had finished your year of training in the mountains.
You were back.
Jumping down from the Hokage Rock and finding your way into the village, you take in the smell of delicious food selling on the street vendors. You spotted souvenir shops, weapon shops, and even shops that sold animal masks. You smiled, proceeding to buy one with the face of a [animal] when a loud voice hollered behind you.
"ANGEL FACE!" you instantly turned your head to your left, catching sight of the familiar brunette with red triangles on his cheeks. Sitting on his head was his fluffy white dog Akamaru.
"Kiba-butt," you said with surprise. He was adorning a black jacket and grey trousers, an outfit similar to his ninja apparel.
"Wow! You're actually alive. I thought the homeless man would have killed you by now," Kiba playfully teased you as Akamaru barked in agreement," where have you been all this time?! Everyone's been wondering when you'll return."
"I've been training in the mountains with the homeless man," you mumbled, rolling your eyes at him," but I finished my training so I came home."
"Home," Kiba's grin widened at the word," yes, Konoha is our home."
"What about you? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at the chunin exams?" you inquired, glancing around, there were more Sand and Sound ninjas in the village than usual," I tried to make it back to the village as fast as I could to watch the tournament."
"Oh that?!" Kiba blushed and scratched the back of his head nervously," I got my ass kicked by Naruto during the second exam. The tournament doesn't start in another week but we should definitely go watch Naruto."
You exploded into a fit of laughter, earning a glare from Kiba," I wish I was there to see your ass get kicked! I can't believe I broke our pinky promise."
"I'm glad it was broken," Kiba muttered shamefully as Akamaru whined," I don't want you to see me lose."
"I'm kidding," you said between giggles," I would have cheered for you and Naruto."
"You should only cheer for one person."
You shrugged your shoulders coolly and reminded him," you're both my friends."
Kiba doesn't argue with the statement. He has grown to become a fan of Naruto after losing his battle to the fox boy. All his life Kiba thought Naruto was all talk and no walk. But now, Kiba knew Naruto was capable of much more,"he was amazing. You should have seen him. Naruto has came so far."
"I'm glad you've came to acknowledge him," you smiled at Kiba's kind words,"he's always trying to get everyone's acknowledgment and he doesn't even notice that Hinata's been acknowledging him for ages. "
Kiba laughed," she has had the biggest crush on that knucklehead for years."
"It's kinda cute though," you mused, remembering the pure and humble girl," where is Hinata by the way? How is she doing?"
The smile on Kiba's tanned face suddenly fell, he glanced angrily down to his left and balled his hands into fists," Hinata...well...she's in the hospital."
"What?" your face paled at the thought of the gentle Hinata lying in a hospital bed," what happened?"
Kiba swallowed the lump in his throat. He has always noticed the soft spot you had for Neji. Kiba saw the way your eyes lingered on the Hyuga boy when he walked by or the sweetness in your voice when you spoke of him. He didn't understand why you liked Neji so much. Sure, Neji was impressive when it came to close combat but Kiba thought Neji had a bad attitude. All Neji knew was hatred and all you knew was love. Perhaps, Kiba thought to himself, if he told you the truth you would be able to understand the true hatred Neji had for his own family.
He took a deep breath and exhaled. You deserved to know the truth after all. You deserved to be with someone who was as lively and as cheerful as yourself. Someone like Kiba.
"It was during the second exam. I wasn't there to watch but Shino told me what had happened. She was fighting against Neji," Kiba explained, lifting his head to stare straight into your [e/c] eyes. He had always had a crush on you. He had always been watching you, always taking care of you. If he can open your eyes to the truth then maybe he can have you.
" A Hyuga against a Hyuga. You know how Neji feels about the main family. He despises them. His hatred runs so deep that he would even try to kill his own family member. His own cousin. It was like...he became a monster... no, he is a monster. If it wasn't for the senseis who stopped him...HInata may as well be dead right now."
He studied your expression as his words sunk in. Shock, disbelief and a hint of anger was written all over your face.
"No way," you whispered, frowning," there's no way Neji would do that!"
"You don't believe me?" Kiba narrowed his eyes at you and Akamaru quietly observed. Kiba should have known it would take a lot more than words to change your opinion of Neji.
"You're lying to me!" You yelled, refraining your urge to push him. Neji wouldn't try to kill his own cousin.
Kiba gritted his teeth together. He won't back down now. He'll force you to understand, he'll make you see how evil Neji really was, " if you don't believe me then ask him yourself!"
"Fine! I WILL!" You yelled back, storming away in rage and leaving dust flying in your trail.
You had just returned to the village and Kiba was already starting arguments with you! You grumbled under your breath and took note to visit Hinata after your chitchat with her cousin. Walking around, you searched high and low for Neji. He couldn't have gone far since the chunin exams wasn't over. He had to be somewhere in Konoha.
You checked restaurants, the academy, supermarkets, and even the hot springs. You even walked into the boys bathroom to search for him (as embarrassing and scary as it was). You finally grimaced, remembering that Neji enjoyed training in the woods, where he was obscured from the world.
Typical Neji, you thought, trudging your way towards the training grounds . The very place you used to spend time with him. You shook your head.
There was no way in hell he would hurt Hinata!!!
You were so busy thinking, you crashed into a solid body and hard a loud unf. Looking up you recognized it was the girl from Neji's team.
"Hey, watch where you're going!" The girl mumbled, putting her hands on the hips," are you even paying attention to what I'm saying?"
"Oh, um...." you stammered half a minute later, you were too busy taking in her features. She was pretty after all, with chocolate brown buns and hazel eyes that reminded you of mocha in the morning," sorry!"
"Who are you anyways? I've never seen you before," she said, slightly out of breath. She was covered in dirt and scratches. She must have just finished training with Neji, you observed.
"Oh! I'm [name]!" you exclaimed with a shy smile," and you're...?"
"Tenten," Tenten held you a hand to shake hands with you. You took it and she smiled," where are you off in a hurry to anyways?"
"Er," you contemplated on whether you should tell her you were looking for Neji but thought better of it," I'm looking for someone I know. I haven't seen him in a long time."
Tenten smirked and took a step closer to you," is this person...someone you love?"
You blushed, unable to contain your true feelings," YES! At first it was just a crush but over the years...even though I haven't seen him in forever...I have really grown to love him!" you passionately told her in a rush," but I think he did something really bad! My friend called him a monster and I don't know what to do! What if he really is a monster?"
"Well," Tenten tapped her chin thoughtfully,"I'm not an expert in love but you should just be yourself. Everything will be alright in the end and if it's not alright, then it's not the end. At least that's how the saying goes."
"You're right Tenten! Thanks!" You beamed, giving her a quick hug before dashing into the woods towards the training ground.
You stopped at the edge of the woods, concealed by the trees as Neji came into view. He was training in the center of the forest, beating up a log with his gentle fist techniques.
You sighed, you didn't even have to ask him if he really hurt Hinata. You could see the answers in his eyes.
He was a flower ready to bloom in a land of hatred.
Neji straightened himself out and twisted his head in your direction, he had sensed your presence before you had even reached the clearing.
"Come out. I know you're there," he stated. You sighed and stepped into the clearing to reveal yourself to him.
"I heard about Hinata," you declared, glowering at him as you approached him bravely. Your hands were trembling, lips quivering, heart acing and you could feel the sweat trickling down your forehead. This is it. The moment of truth.
It has been a total of two years since you've last spoken with Neji and this wasn't the conversation you were expecting to have.
No, you expected a reunion filled with laughing and bliss. This wasn't the scenario you imagined or dreamed of.
He smirked carelessly on the topic," and what of it? Did you come here to lecture me?"
"No," you voice was unexpectedly steady," that's not why I came at all."
"Then what?" you were right in front of him now. The distance was small and you could feel his breath on your skin," came to tell me you're mad at me?"
"Mad?" you thought you would be mad but the moment you saw him it was replaced with something new," I'm disappointed."
Disappointment. It was a strong yet simple word. Much like the word love.
The smirk was replaced with a look of daggers and he gritted his teeth together," what could a fool possibly know about disappointment? You're always happy, always laughing, always smiling, living life without a thought in the world. What could you possibly know about me? What could you possibly know about the Hyuga clan? Did Hinata really tell you everything? Did she tell you about the cursed seal? Did she tell you that MY father was killed in order to save the life of HER'S?" Neji's voice was rising with every single word and he was almost shouting at you. You were annoying. You were infuriating. You were exasperating. Looking at you pissed him off. Even now, seeing the tenderness in your smile was enough to drive him over the edge.
And that's when you began to him for what he truly was,"she told me enough."
"You're just an ignorant little brat. You think you know everything and you think you can save me. Well you're wrong. Being told something and living it is two different reality. You don't know how it feels to be bounded by a destiny you can't escape. You don't know how it feels to live in fear. You don't know how it feels to be afraid your mind will be crushed anytime the main family wishes it to be. So you don't have a right to be disappointed when you never even asked me how I felt."
A monster.
"Can I see it Neji?"
Was he a monster?
"What?"
"Your cursed seal."
He doesn't budge. He just clamped his mouth shut angrily. He was mad at you when you were the one who should be mad. So you moved to untie his headband that always hid his cursed seal. He doesn't argue against it, doesn't push you away or shout at you. Instead he held his breath at your closeness. Allowing the fabric to slip from his forehead and into the safety of your hand. He was so still, he was barely breathing. The green symbol etched across his forehead reminded you of the cursed seal you received at the end of your training.
You knew exactly how he felt. To be bounded by a destiny. To live in fear. To be cursed.
That's why you never asked him how he felt.
But you will never tell him your story, you will never confide your fears in him because when you love someone, their feelings, their pains, and their fears came before your's.
You were dangerously close and the only thing that could be heard was the rhythm of two hearts beating in sync. So close, you thought you might do something you would regret. In fact, you did.
You stood on your tiptoes, brushing your lips against his forehead, against his cursed seal. Against the very thing that made him feel vulnerable and weak in front of you. The seal burned your lip but you didn't mind.
Because Neji wasn't a monster. He was just broken and those who were broken can also be healed.
"Neji...you're so beautiful."
And on an impulse he kissed your forehead in return.
A kiss for a kiss.
For the two years you had been gone, the caged bird lived in darkness, never seeing the sky.
For what's a bird without the sky? Nothing.
But you were back and the sky is blue and love is true and even though he wasn't free from from his cage...
At least, through the bars, he could see the sky again.
So let there be hope.