A Little Bit of Help

A soft knock at the door has him look up. A quick glance at the clock tells him that it's past ten o'clock – not exactly visiting hour.

"Yes?" he calls out. Maybe it's Hinata, or Hanabi. True enough the door slides open to reveal his eldest cousin, but she's not alone.

"Good evening, Neji," Hinata smiles. "Sakura wanted to talk to you." She steps aside to allow their friend to enter his quarters. "I trust you will be fine from here on?" She asks the medic. Sakura nods. "Yes, thank you, Hinata," she says with a smile. Hinata inclines her head. "I'll leave you to it then." She takes her leave with a polite nod which Sakura returns before stepping into his room and pushing the door shut behind her.

"Sakura," Neji greets. Her lips quirk upwards into a tiny smile. "Hey," she says, then looks around curiously. "Nice place," she comments. He tilts his head to the side. "You've been here before," he says slowly as he tries to figure out what it is she wants. "Yes, but never in your rooms," Sakura nods. She crosses over to his desk and picks up one of the many scrolls scattered on the smooth surface. "Reading?" she asks. Neji narrows his eyes at her – she's beating around the bush, and he doesn't like it. So he rises from his sitting position on the ground and walks up to her. She looks at him with wide eyes.

"Texts from the Hyuga library. Very old, and," here he gently plucks the scroll from her hands, "very much not for prying eyes, I'm afraid."

Sakura pouts a little. "That's not fair. You know how much I love to pry." "Hmhmm, indeed I do," he answers, unable to help the smile tugging the corners of his lips upwards. "Which is why I'm confiscating this one." He gently puts the scroll back down on the desk just as Sakura lets out a small sigh.

"Why are you here?" Neji asks. "Did something happen?" "No. No, nothing," Sakura says with a quick shake of her head. "I just... Came here to ask you something."

He looks at her for a long moment, taking in the way she avoids meeting his gaze and the nervous twitching of her fingers. "Would you like to sit?" he asks at length, not sure what to expect at this point. Again, Sakura shakes her head, more vehemently this time.

"No, I'd rather stand," she says, and then, with a sarcastic smile, adds, "Actually, I'd rather be anywhere but here." Neji frowns. "I'm afraid I don't follow." There is a short pause in which he watches Sakura worry her bottom lip between her teeth before she takes a deep breath and squares her shoulders. "Neji, I need to ask you a favour."

Alright, now he's definitely intrigued. Leaning back against the desk, Neji crosses his arms and gives the tiniest nod, a sign for her to continue. Sakura wrings her hands.

"I've been assigned this mission," she begins. "It's in the capital, and to be able to fulfil it I need to meet certain – requirements." She stops and peeks shyly at him from under her lashes. Neji frowns. "Still not following," he says with the tiniest shrug – an attempt to ease her nervousness. It seems to work, for all of a split seconds, there is the ghost of a smile on her face before it is replaced by an anxious expression. "This mission, it's about gathering intel. And I can't go about it the shinobi way, so I need to... I can't..."

Neji feels a stab of worry. "You can't what?" he asks, the anxiety rolling off her in waves making him twitchy. He wishes she would get to the point.

"I can't be a virgin," she blurts out, and immediately slaps a hand over her mouth, cheeks scarlet red. Neji freezes.

"I didn't know you were taking that kind of missions," is all he manages after several moments of awkward silence. "Neither did I," Sakura murmurs, scuffing her bare toes against the floorboards. "But apparently now I am." She doesn't meet his eye.

"So what is this favour you need of me?' Neji asks, confused as to what this has to do with him. Does she want advice? He's never been on a mission like that. When Sakura looks at him incredulously, he gets the distinct feeling that something very important has passed straight over his head just now. "Come again?" she asks. Her voice is firm once more despite the blush still tinting her cheeks.

"I mean, what do you want me to help you with?" Neji asks. "I can't offer any..."

He trails off when he sees Sakura's left eyebrow travel up her forehead. "Umm...," she makes. "I thought it was kinda obvious." He only stares back at her, the confusion mounting up as she waggles both of her eyebrows suggestively. What is she hinting at?

"Goddamn it, you blockhead!" she snaps eventually. "I need you to have sex with me!"

To say Neji is gobsmacked would be the understatement of the century. He is completely at a loss for words.

"What!" he yelps as he flinches back, hitting the desk hard and rattling everything on it. "Me! Why, I just... I can't... Why?" In some distant corner of his mind that is not completely out of order he realises that he probably sounds everything but intelligent right now. Way to handle this maturely, a tiny voice in his head supplies. All he can do is stare at Sakura who is watching him apprehensively in return.

"So?" she asks eventually, arms crossed over her chest. "So what?" Neji sputters back helplessly. "Are you gonna help me out?" "Why me?" he shoots back, gearing up the defence. "Why not Kiba, or Sai, or Naruto, or even –"

"Neji!" Sakura snaps. He notices her left eye twitch. "You're not thinking! How do you think that would go? I can't sleep with my teammates, that's just wrong on so many levels! And Kiba's not exactly discreet. As for the rest..." She trails off, giving a helpless little shrug. "You were the most logical choice."

"Logical!" he chokes out, still reeling. Sakura eyes him for a moment longer before heaving a sigh. All the tension seems to drain out of her, leaving her shoulders slumped and her head bowed a little. "Alright," she mumbles. "I guess I'll... Just have to find someone else. I'm sorry I put you in this position." She peers up at him, offering a hesitant smile. He can't find it in him to return it, so he gives a jerky nod.

"Right then," Sakura coughs. "I'll... See you on Tuesday for your regular appointment?"

"Oh, yes, the appointment... Yes, I'll be there," Neji rambles, stumbling over the words and hating himself for it. Sakura's smile widens a bit at that. "Good," she says as she makes her way over to the door. "I'll be off then." She slides open the door, throwing one quick glance over her shoulder back at him. "Good night, Neji," she smiles.

"Good night," he breathes when the door has already shut behind her. Somewhere down the hallway, he can hear her start running.

When Neji realises that he's been staring at the same word for the last five minutes – for the fourth time in an hour – he puts down the scroll and pulls on his shoes. This situation won't leave him alone, and if anything he knows he needs to talk it over with Sakura. Handle this the mature way. He scoffs at the tiny voice piping up again. Besides – didn't she say she'd have to find some other way? He'll have to make sure she doesn't get herself in trouble, as she is won't to do.

As quietly as possible Neji sneaks out the house and then scales the wall surrounding the compound, avoiding the main gates. He quickly finds his way through the silent streets of Konoha, and before he even knows it he is standing in front of Sakura's flat.

Taking a deep breath, he grabs the spare key and unlocks the door, then quietly slips inside.

He finds Sakura in the living room. She's sitting on the ground in front of the coffee table, arms propped onto the dark surface, and contemplatively staring at a bottle in front of her. Neji blinks. "Please tell me that isn't sake?" he says. Sakura throws him a glance from the corner of her eye. "What if it was?"

"I'd tell you you can do better," he answers as he slowly moves across the room and settles himself on the couch. "At least get some wine or something, not that cheap stuff." At his words, Sakura lets out a small snort before sending a small grin his way. "You know my wallet and I are an on-off thing," she says. "It wouldn't allow for more."

Searching for something to say, Neji picks up the bottle and takes a dainty sniff that has him rearing back. "Oh gods," he huffs as the acidic smell of alcohol hits his nose. "Hey," Sakura protests as she snatches the bottle back from him. "It's the best I could do, alright? The only requirements are that it gets me drunk and I won't remember anything in the morning, so this'll do just fine."

They look at each other in silence for a while. "You really want to do it like this?" Neji asks quietly after what feels like hours. Sakura shrugs. "Why not? It has to happen either way, so yeah... This is just as good as anything."

"I beg to disagree," Neji protests firmly. "That is just awful. You should at least get a better quality." "Not everyone of us has got your kind of coin purse, Hyuga," Sakura grins. Neji shrugs. "I'll pay for it, then." "Why?" She looks at him, her head titled to the side, and Neji is at a loss for words. Why indeed?

"I won't stand for any friend of mine frying their brains with something that cheap."

Sakura chuckles, but sobers up soon enough. "Why are you here, Neji?" she asks. "Just to lament over my choice of alcohol?" He shakes his head. "No. I'm just making sure you don't do anything stupid." She looks at him for a moment longer, then hums softly. "Well, you'd better get to it and say your piece then, because the mission starts in a week and I'm off tomorrow, so this is happening tonight."

He hesitates. How can she be so nonchalant about this? He always thought this was something that should mean something. He looks at her, and all he sees is a girl who putting aside her dreams for the sake of something greater. There's a lump in his throat. It doesn't seem fair that someone who has given so much for this village should have to give up on this last thing that truly belongs to her as well. So really, what kind of friend would he be if he just let her? "I'll help you," he murmurs. Sakura head snaps around to face him so fast he can hear her neck pop. "I'm sorry?" she asks, staring at him with wide eyes. He stares right back and the resolve in him hardens. This might not be what she deserves, and he might not be what she pictured, but he'll be damned if he lets her give away this last precious piece of her to some nameless stranger. No. He'll help her out, because he is her friend and more importantly, she is his. And friends help each other.

So, instead of answering he rises to his feet and holds out his hand to her. Sakura stares up at him a moment longer before she gingerly accepts it, letting herself be pulled to her feet. They look at each other for the briefest of moments, then Neji turns and leads her through the dimly lit corridor to her room, his fingers wrapped securely around hers.

"Just in case you're wondering, Naruto and Sai are out on a mission," Sakura mutters. Neji gives a little nod. She is lying under him, pink hair fanned over her pillow, looking at some point over his shoulder. "Sakura," he whispers. "Are you-" "I'm sure," she interrupts him. Her eyes meet his, and in them he sees the same kind of determination she displays whenever she enters a new battlefield. He can't shake the gut-wrenching feeling that they are going about this the completely wrong way. Isn't this supposed to be some kind of romantic, treasured moment? This right now is anything but as he pushes into her and Sakura lets out a strangled yelp. "Oh, fuck," she curses, her eyes pressed shut. Her fingers are wrapped around his forearms so tightly Neji is sure they will bruise. He holds his breath, not daring to move as he watches tears of pain slip down her temples and disappear in her hair. "I'm sorry," he whispers. "I'm-" His words catch in his throat when Sakura with a quick twist flips them both around so she is straddling his hips.

"I guess Tsunade was right after all when she droned on and on about the importance of foreplay."

Neji flinches. "Foreplay?" he coughs. "I thought you'd-" He is cut off when Sakura lets out a long-suffering sigh. "You really don't know anything about sex, do you?" she asks with a faint grin. Neji frowns. "Neither do you," he answers, and the words sound only faintly accusing. "True enough," Sakura agrees with a sagely nod. She moves a little bit and immediately lets out a pained hiss. "Fucking hell," she growls, and Neji can't help but raise an eyebrow. "Well, with your charming vocabulary and your amazing skills at this whole thing, that mission will be a walk in the park."

"Oh, shut up," Sakura snaps, and leans forward to lightly slap him on the chest. Then she sits back, and they both freeze. Neji's hands instinctively come up to settle on her thighs. Sakura frowns a bit, then rolls her hips a little. His fingers twitch. "Oh," she breathes, and it sounds so utterly delighted it would have made him laugh if it wasn't for the bolt of pleasure shooting through his body. "So that's how it works!"

When Neji wakes up in the early morning the first thing he sees is an unfamiliar ceiling. The sound of gentle breathing to his left has him turn his head, and he can't help but smile a little when his eyes fall on a sleeping Sakura. Memories come rushing back to him – pictures of her on top of him, brows puckered in a look of adorable concentration as she is slowly figuring out how to tear his body apart at the very seams. Sakura pressed into the mattress, strands of pink hair wrapped around his fingers as her eyelids flutter shut and her lips form a surprised 'o'. Her hands ghosting down his sides, pulling him closer, her face buried in the crook of his neck as shudder after shudder runs through her.

He blinks and rolls over onto his back. It might not have been what she deserved, but it was better than any other possible outcome. A quiet sigh next to him stops his thoughts before they can become overwhelming. Neji turns his head to watch as Sakura cracks open first one, then both sleepy eyes. As soon as she sees him, her cheeks flush red and she pulls up the comforter to bury her face in it.

"Good Morning," Neji rasps in a strangely thick voice, then coughs. Sakura peers over the edge of the blanket. "Good Morning," she whispers back, voice still rough from sleep. For a moment, they only look at each other, then the corners of her eyes crease in a fond smile. "Tea?" she asks, and Neji finds himself nodding.

"Yes," he says, "Tea would be nice."