This is my first story so I hope you like it. Feel free to review if you want. Oh, and I planned this out already, it's going to have at least 5 chapters and some ending chapters too, so then at least 9 to 11. Just a summary: Tenten keeps a diary all to herself, her 3rd volume in fact, but when all of the guys read her diary in a late-night prowl, her secrets are out! Where is she to turn to? Neji can't accept her, she'll be too embarrassed. Unless he feels the same way about her, she might just overcome her friends. Somewhat like, Read it and Weep, only with a different plot and a different ending.
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Lost at Sea-Chapter One
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Tenten stared vigorously at the falling rain. It hadn't rained in weeks and she anticipated it. From the corner of her eye, she saw a worn out Rock Lee sitting on a chair. She just had to grimace.
"Lee what happened? Why are you all torn up? And wet," Tenten asked willingly.
Lee put on the best smile on his face and simply replied, "Because," he showed her a thumbs-up sign, "no pain, no gain!"
"Let me guess, Gai-sensei told you that,"
"Yes, because if you listen to your sensei, they will know you respect them, and I respect Gai-sensei with authority." Lee said confidently.
Into the room came in a pair of silver orbs for eyes that Tenten knew and loved. The frown on his face was the usual leave-me-alone emotion he gave Lee all the time. The shinobi noticed that she was staring at him. He greeted her with a grin; she with a smile.
"What's up Neji?" said the young kunoichi.
"I can see that Lee doesn't care if he doesn't train," Neji eyed Lee and frowned.
"WHAT!" Lee shouted jumping out of the chair pointing at Neji. "I've been training all day long! I didn't even eat lunch or breakfast! You call that not training? Gai-sensei said that I have improved so much in so little time! I can surely run faster than you,"
"Even though speed is an important part in the shinobi's life, you still can't kill your enemy with speed," Neji saw through the point. "But just because you're teacher's pet doesn't mean you can beat me,"
That got Lee really pissed off. He turned cherry red of anger and clenched his fist. Running madly, he wanted to punch Neji. Neji was unimpressed. He stepped to the side to avoid the punch, and when Lee realized was happened, he was face-flat on the floor with his nose bleeding.
"Oh, boy," said Tenten in a high-pitched voice. She got up to see if the nose bleed was serious. In this case, Lee would say that no wound is serious, but you know that you fought with all your might and that it's time to back down, yada yada. She knelt down on the floor next to the bleeding Lee. "Nope, it's not that serious," she replied after a while, after all, she is a medical-nin and a weapons mistress, so you know you got the right stuff near you.
"Tenten," a smooth voice called to her.
She twisted her body and turned her head in the voice's direction. "Hn?"
"You're seventeen already and you still care if Lee suffers from a nose bleed?" Obviously the voice was Neji's.
"Well, what do you expect from a medical-nin?" the brown haired beauty smiled. "Besides, I want to make sure Lee's okay for our next mission,"
Neji stared at her. He noticed she was smiling. Gazing at her simple beauty, it was hard not to love her. She was the only one that could make him laugh, make him smile, have fun, do anything together and yet all from one person. Is this love, I'm feeling? He asked himself a couple of times a day. Her chocolate color hair was unresisting. He loved it when it would fall out of its ribbons' during training. He wanted to touch it, smell it, and yet he keeps a distance from her.
Do I really love her?
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Waking up to the songs of the small blue jays outside Tenten's window was heavenly. She looked down on her bed to see that her diary was open next to her. Closing her beloved book, she placed her third volume book in her private drawer. She had the key to the drawer and diary, so the kunoichi locked the drawer and laid the key down on her top bookshelf.
Tenten got dressed quickly and headed for her kitchen. She thought about yesterday and how Neji was staring at her. Why? What did I do? She asked her mind over and over. Then again, Neji is weird…
"Cocoa Puff's or canned meat," she mumbled to herself in thinking what to eat. "Not spam," she said sleepily as she took a bowl out of the cabinet, and pulled out the cereal from the basket below her. She read the expiration date, "Expires June 26" Looking at the calendar, it said, "October 7".
"No breakfast today," she spat at the box.
She walked out of her somewhat large apartment and decided to go to the training grounds.
On her way there, she passed the Hyuuga household. She wanted Neji to come, but she knew from Neji's everyday routine, he was at the training grounds a long, long time ago. Tenten also passed Rock Lee's place and decided to knock on the door. Maybe Lee's home, she thought. No one answered. She rang the door bell this time.
Nothing.
She knocked some more.
Silence.
She rang the doorbell and knocked on the door.
Nada.
Tenten was used to being patient but today, with no breakfast, waiting at least 7 minutes for Lee to open a door…She didn't think politeness would cover it. She didn't care if people would stare at her, it's not like they don't already.
"LEE! Open up this damned door! Seriously, for the love of your weird hair-cut, GET OUT OF THIS DAMNED HOUSE!" Soon the door opened with a pale Lee in rubber ducky pajamas practically standing.
"What," he said lazily. Almost wiggling from just standing.
"What? What!" Tenten repeated him only in an angrier, fiercer way. "I'll tell you what! I've been sitting on your stoop for almost fifteen minutes! And now you answer the door!"
"Well, yea, because I'm sick,"
Silence. She felt embarrassment rush to her cheeks. Poor Lee, she thought. And I made him feel bad for me… "How did you catch the flu?" Tenten asked calmly. "Was it from the cold rain training yesterday?"
"Probably," he answered with his stuffy nose. "I don't think I can make it to practice,"
"Oh, well, that's okay, I'll explain to Gai-sensei. Here," she was grubbing through the medical bag she wore on her belt. Kunai, no, shuriken, no… Of course there was some other stuff in there besides medicine. "Ah, here it is," she cupped her hands and in it, was some flu medicine.
"Thanks so much Tenten," Lee replied.
"Now, get to bed, you want to train don't you?"
"Yes,"
"Good. Let me help you." She grabbed his shoulder and he put his arm around her. "Let's go," Walking slowly up the stairs; they made it up to Lee's room in a short amount of time. "Now," Tenten instructed as Lee was tucked in bed. "I'll come over for breakfast and dinner, hopefully with some food and after that, I'll give you the medicine. You just sleep."
"Thanks Tenten, you're the best,"
She hugged him goodbye and left closing the door. She could have sworn she might have heard Lee snoring from the street and giggled a little. Imagining a cute chibi-form Lee, she saw him with a smaller teddy-bear in a bed with a purple bedspread. Aww…How cute! She thought with a chuckle.
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Once she got to the training grounds, she saw only Neji. She was enchanted by his movements. It looked like a Byakugan dance; to her, like an enchantment. He noticed her staring after a while. He lost focus and stared back at her.
"What," he asked.
She broke from the trance. "Hunh? What? Oh, hi! Sorry, that dance looked like fun!"
"It's not a dance. It was a practice routine for my Byakugan. Zero fun, Tenten, you know that," Neji said stubbornly.
"Yea, yea, yea, whatever."
"Why are you late?"
"Lee got the flu. I gave him some medicine."
"How'd he get sick?
"Well, you said that he wasn't training yesterday, but he was…All day…Even in the rain…What are you blind?"
"…"
"…"
"…"
"What?"
"Nothing," he said frowning. "Let's just practice."
"Where's Gai sensei?" Tenten asked stupidly. Obviously he's on a mission or something, she thought.
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Three shuriken flew in the air, piercing the sound.
"What the-" Neji said aloud as he dodged only two of them. The third one gushed through his arm. Blood squirted out like ketchup. Those came out of nowhere! How'd she do that! Neji thought. Ugh, how can I beat something I can't see? Even with my Byakugan! She's at least 50 meters away! Where is she?
Dust and dirt were everywhere. It was impossible to see. Tenten was nowhere to be detected.
Groaning and mumbling under his breath, Neji scanned the whole area.
"Where are you?" He whispered.
"Up here!" a female voice called out to him.
Looking up he saw Tenten falling to the ground with a kunai in both hands. Startled, he still dodged her attack. When she landed on the ground, he ran to get back at her. Trying to punch her, she covered herself and soon enough, she felt her feet moving backwards.
Idea forming! She thought. Grabbing his shoulders with the kunais still in her hands, she elevated his attacks by jumping over him. Easy but hard, she though with a smirk.
She wanted to defeat him with the kunais, but she didn't wanna kill him. She placed the first kunai to his side.
"Ahgh!" he shouted and then disappeared. "It's, it's…" she murmured. "A log? Damnit! A substitution jutsu!"
He appeared in front of her. "What?" she shouted and flipped back before he could get her. Throwing katana and senbon this time, he missed the katana, but didn't see the senbon. It pierced into his skin, gushed crimson blood.
"Argh!" he shouted again.
"Hey, hey, hey," a voice called. They looked around and saw Gai-sensei on a tree. "This practice is over. What I want to know is, where is Lee!"
"Well, its simple really," Tenten answered, rubbing the back of her head simultaneously along with Neji.
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October 7
Entry 43, Vol. 3
Dear diary,
I fought with Neji today, and Neji only. Lee got the flu from training in the rain yesterday, and thanks to someone he also got a nose bleed. That someone is known none other than Hyuuga Neji himself. Even though I have been crushing on him since like, ever, I think he's still a jerk. What, is that wrong? I don't really know.
How can you love someone and hide it from them? It's a different story for Sakura and Ino. Sakura got Sasuke, Ino got Shikamaru, and that leaves me with…no one. Even the shyest person I know, Hinata Hyuuga got Naruto! But they only have boyfriends because Sakura and Ino are super-outgoing, and Hinata…well, I don't know how she landed with Naruto, but everyone knew she liked him liked him! Well, maybe except him cause he's slow… But seriously…I just want him to notice me…
On the other hand…Neji's just dense. Sasuke talks more than him! Well, maybe not but Shino doesn't at all. He scares me sometimes. I wonder if it's legal to marry bugs…and what about Kiba and Lee then? Kiba has his dog, but are you allowed to marry a dog? So who does Lee get?
Love is so confusing. If Neji doesn't make a move soon, I'll do it. If he doesn't feel the same way? I don't know… But right now, love is out of the question. I am a chuunin and I'll stay that way unless I won't practice! I need to be a jounin.
-Tenten
Closing her most precious book she has had for a couple of weeks now, she did the same thing as she did in the morn; place it in the drawer with a lock. Hiding the key in a different place, she thought about Neji. What if he loved me back, not just as a friend, but as something much, much more? And if he did, what would I do about it?
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What if she loved me back, not just as a friend, but as something much, much more? And if she did, what would I do about it?
To be continued…
Author's note: Be sure to catch up on Lost at Sea, chapter two coming up soon!