A/N: This is for Rel's ShinoxTenten 100 themes contest. The theme of this fanfiction is "Perfection".
This is my first ShinoTen fanfiction, so please be honest and let me know what you think. Oh, and please enjoi!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
0-Love Tamago-0
She really didn't expect much when it came to her teammates.
One of them was at a loss when it came with interacting with anyone socially while the other was an exercise nut to the verge of being a masochist. Polar opposites, she knew, but they were the only people that she could call family.
Neji was the stoic older brother that she went to when she had problems too complicated for Lee. Lee was the younger brother who cheered her up whenever she'd feel down and always had something to say or do that would make her day at least a little brighter. Hell, even Gai-sensei had his part to take in her makeshift family; his role as their overprotective and hyperactive mother, though weird, was undoubtedly true.
They were her family, and thus, she wanted to spend time with them, but at times like these, she was swiftly reminded that they were merely her surrogate family, not the real thing.
Neji was the first to ditch them at the festival. Once he had caught sight of a few men trailing after his younger cousin with hearts for their eyes, he had given them a firm nod before striding off, ready to escort the frail Hyuuga throughout the night to ensure her safety.
Gai-sensei was the second. He had seen Kakashi, his self-proclaimed rival and didn't waste any time to challenge him to a number of absurd contests that she knew that he'd have no chance of winning; leaving her with Lee to wander around the festival.
"Cheer up Tenten-chan, I am certain that we will be able to have a splendid time, even without Neji-kun and Gai-sensei!" Lee exclaimed as he caught sight of her downcast expression when their teacher left them for the silver haired man.
She doubted that they would have nearly as much fun without the social reject and motherly hen, but didn't voice her thoughts. Instead, she managed a small, but genuine smile. "Hai! Let's go play some games, Lee."
They made it through about three booths before they spotted a certain pinkette kunoichi clad in a beautiful crimson kimono. Sakura. She was flanked by Naruto, Sai, Ino, Chouji, and a reluctant Shikamaru. There was a bright smile on her face, the carefree expression being a first for the past few months. Tenten noticed Lee freeze next to her almost immediately.
Her chocolate hues flicked to the side, regarding her final teammate carefully.
He stared at the female before them with endless love. She could see how badly he wanted to be by her side, but after both Gai-sensei and Neji left her, there was no way that he'd abandon her without a little nudge.
Tenten wanted to sigh. Why couldn't she ignore her conscience for a day? "Lee?"
The green clad shinobi's eyes snapped back to her, his eyes shining with thinly veiled guilt at having been caught staring. "What is it, Tenten-chan?"
She closed her eyes and chewed lightly on her lower lip. She wouldn't regret her decision. "Go to her, Lee-kun."
"I-. What about you?" Hope had shined in his eyes, though it was quickly overtaken by worry. For her, no doubt.
"I'll be fine. This is a festival after all. No harm in going to the booths alone." She reassured him with a tight-lipped smile.
"You can always join me and their group." Lee stated, still somewhat reluctant to leave his brunette teammate to her own devices. "I am sure that they would not mind having two extra people tagging along. As the saying goes, 'the more, the merrier.'"
"No thanks." She really had nothing agaist those people, but she wasn't really the type to just blend into a crowd while off duty. She preferred to be an outstanding individual. That is why she had spent so much of her youth training like the boys did instead of being hung up on one like the other girls. She could have many friends, but they weren't her BEST friends like Lee and Neji. She'd rather be alone. "I'll be fine on my own, Lee-kun. Now hurry up and go before you lose sight of them in this crowd." She gave him an encouraging shove forward before stepping back, watching with a small smile as the last of her team left her to join the fray of civilians and shinobi alike.
0-Break-0
She'd be damned if she missed the fireworks. She didn't care if she was alone. She'd saw off her own arm before she missed the large array of fireworks that the village only dared to use once a year because for the safety of the location of their village.
Tenten manuvered her way over a couple of uneven spots in the forest with ease, grateful for her kunoichi training back in the academy for once for teaching her how to move in a kimono while on a mission. She refused to be content with standing amidst the rest of Konoha so far back from the action. I mean, I gave up having the best time possible at the festival by giving up my best friends to others, so I might as well be allowed to see the fireworks the way that I want to. She thought, coming to a stop at a nice clearing that should only be a few hundred feet or so from where they'd be set off.
"This spot's perfect!" She grinned widely and juggled her recently won trinkets into her right arm while steadying her strawberry Ramune in her left. Somehow she misjudged the weight of her prizes, something she'd never admit to if asked and everything, Ramune included, flew straight out of her hands and onto the muddy ground.
The brunette kunoichi felt a familiar wave crash over her. The feeling that she got whenever Neji would dismiss both her and Lee with a casual wave of his hand, the feeling she got whenever Lee would encourage Gai-sensei for more laps around the village; the feeling that she would get whenever nothing was going her way in the slightest. She was pissed!
"Why the hell is everything falling apart today?" She screamed, stomping her geta all over her fallen prizes. "WHY." Smash. "CAN'T." Smash. "TODAY." Stomp. "BE." Slam. "PERFECT LIKE IT SHOULD BE?" The sound of breaking glass was heard, and it took the kunoichi a few seconds to realize that it was from her Ramune bottle.
"I was unaware that there were people besides Hinata that felt that the prizes at the festival were of any worth." A deep baritone of a voice drawled, the voice causing Tenten to drop the pieces of glass that she was haphazardly trying to clean up.
She straightened quickly and brushed off imaginary dirt from her light pink kimono before turning to face her new companion.
She stared.
And stared...
The voice in itself was familiar, but that's where it stopped. The male was wearing a deep blue kimono that showed off his broad shoulders, his forehead free of any hitaiate that would signify that he was a shinobi-but then again, most shinobi were without them this evening... He had pale skin the color of warm milk, his features set carefully blank with a strong jawline. She couldn't tell what color his eyes were, for the male was wearing sunglasses at the present moment for some reason or other, and finally, he had a wealth of thick, shaggy brown hair that stuck up every which way.
"I'm sorry, but who are you?"
The area was immediately covered up with a thick feeling of gloom. The male staggered back ever so slightly, the corner of his lips pulling down a little at the corner. "Am I really so forgettable?" He murmured softly, probably to himself, but the kunoichi couldn't help but hear. She was glad she did, for no sooner did the words leave his mouth did she remember exactly who the tall male before her is.
"Shino-kun!" She exclaimed, a faint 'aha!' grin on her face as she slowly moved closer to the younger teen. "Well, you can't really blame me for not being able to recognize you. After all, this is the first time that I've seen you without your large overcoat or your hitaiate..."
The male stilled for a second, inclining his head towards the young woman. "I see... I apologize for my emotional outburst. It will not happen again, I assure you."
That 'outburst' was about as emotional as the majority of the Hyuuga clan. Tenten thought, hiding her smirk as she stepped aside to allow the male to enter the clearing. "So what brings you out here, Shino-kun?" She asked politely, watching with curiousity as he examined the pile of dirty festival prizes on the ground.
"I am not comfortable with social functions such as these." He responded in his monotonous voice. He lifted his head to peer up at the kunoichi. "Did you really want these trinkets?"
"Hai." She sighed and walked over, knealing next to the pile of damaged goods as well. "I was going to save them for keepsakes. I'll have nothing to do but look at these whenever I get old. Memories will get foggy before long, so these really will be all that I have left from my youth."
Shino cocked his head to the side, regarding the female with a sidelong glance. "You do not plan on having a family?"
"Not really." She frowned and placed her hand on her chin. "Men without clans dedicate their lives to being shinobi and they usually don't last long enough to need wives. On the other hand, men from clans plan on marrying women with clans to tie the two of their families together for mutual benefits. I am not a part of any clan. Who'd want that?"
"You would be surprised of who would be willing to take you as their wife, Tenten-san. You are a very beautiful woman."
Tenten's lips parted. What...What was he trying to say? She glanced up, only to see a stuffed figure presented to her. Her chocolate hues flicked up to meet the male's steady gaze, her cheeks heating up a bit.
"I believe that this suits you much better than myself." His soft words tickled her insides as he gently placed the stuffed figure in her hands.
When he released it, she managed with great difficulty to tear her gaze long enough to stare at her present. A wide smile stretched her lips as she stared at the sushi stuffed doll. "A Yammy Yammy Love Tamago plushie."
"I won it at the first booth that I ventured."
"Shino?"
"Hai?"
"Arigato."
It didn't matter that her entire team left her on her own. It didn't matter that she dropped all of her prizes.
The fireworks had never been brighter.
0-Love Tamago/end-0