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Looking back, you could still remember the first day you had been taken in by Team Gai, back in your early days. You were merely a replacement, a chunin who had no other place to be shoved into. A bright eyed teen with boundless compassion, still full of skepticism.
"This is your new teammate," Gai introduced, his smile bright and enthusiasm exuding from it. He motioned to you, as if you were a new menu item on display, though his pointing fingers quickly turned to thumbs up. "Her name is Y/N, and she's already a chunin. The Hokage said that she should be a great fit, especially with us losing Ten-Ten to the medical squad."
It took mere moments for Lee to exude the same sort of exuberance that Gai had, running up to you with a shimmering smile. Taking your hand quickly without permission, he shook it ever so enthusiastically as he met your y/e/c gaze. His voice was nearly too loud for the forest itself, excitement clear in each word. "Welcome!" He said. "It's so nice to meet you, Y/N! I'm Rock Lee."
You had to force a smile upon your face, your kindness clearly knowing a little bounds as the teen took you by surprise. On the inside, you could already feel a tick growing inside your head as you looked upon the man, though your words were calm. "It's nice to meet you as well," you replied, forcing kindness into your words despite the overpowering enthusiasm by your two new teammates. The way you spoke had to have come off as cute, the bushy-browed male simply blossoming with blush as he finally surrendered your hand.
With your hand finally free, you had the opportunity for your y/e/c gaze to wander, catching the other male that had been a part of Team Gai. White eyes and a calm expression against his face, your y/e/c gaze caught the seemingly attractive teammate, meeting eyes that seemed fixated upon your own. He stood in the background of the other two, unmoving as he simply waited for your reaction, if you were to have one. The way his white eyes stared upon you was almost as if they were staring right through your very soul.
Curiosity getting the better of you, you walked over to him, extending a friendly hand. "You must be Neji," you spoke softly. At the edge of your pouted lips, you could feel the slightest tug upwards, while your heart sped in your chest. "I look forward to working with you."
Though the teen had been skeptical, his white eyes still studying you curiously, his lips curled upwards the slightest bit to match your own. "I do as well," he said simply, the two of you quickly cut off by the other two enthusiastic members of Team Gai.
Five years flew by in a fury, learning about the depth of the Hyuuga clan right along with those years. Growing close to the Hyuuga, the way he spoke of destiny, had always been daunting to you. Though your opinions of your other two over-enthusiastic teammates had not truly changed, you found yourself deeply enthralled in your teammate. Stray glances had been obvious, a softness about your y/e/c gaze whenever they would land upon the growing male. Though you had never openly spoken too harshly against his thoughts of destiny, you had a sort of sadness about you whenever his entrapment was implied.
Subtle touches, soft glances, began to tell you that the two of you had similar views of one another as you grew. Both of you being relatively astute, it had not been hard to conclude, though neither of you vocalized the attraction. By the time you turned nineteen, the Hyuuga at eighteen, you found yourself desiring to change his so-called destiny. What you deeply desired was for him to throw away the destiny of the caged bird, to fly freely as he should have.
War was unforgiving, though, and as the two of you met the front lines, you learned that quickly. One precise action, a skillful act on your own part, left the man with another destiny. You gave him something far more than he could have ever asked for...his life, in exchange for your own.
Crimson dripping from the entry wound, you could feel your life-force fading from you. The handsome man you grew to love held you in his arms, tears welling in those white eyes of his. His voice was strained, the heaviness of his heart clear with each syllable. "Why, Y/N?" He questioned. "Why did you save me?"
You moved a weak hand to his face, caressing his cheek gently as your own tears welled in your eyes. Your tears existed for two reasons, one of which being the pain that surged through your body. "Because, I desire for you to live free," you murmured softly, your voice cracking under the fading of your chakra. Though your lips parted once more, to speak those words you desired so badly, your y/e/c eyes grew cold before anything could slip past your lips. Chakra faded from your body, the hand that caressed the man’s cheek slumped weakly to the ground.
Tears dripped like rain against your skin, his strong hands clutching your chilling body with pained force. He swallowed hard, your words echoing through his mind as he slipped his arms underneath your limp body. Picking you up, he moved your body to the side, before joining the others once again for the fight. No one dared speak a word of you as the listless look upon his face had been obvious.
Those words hadn’t needed to slip past your lips. Each longing gaze that you sent his way, over five years of time, told him everything he needed to know. The fight continued on, casualties here and there, but the Hyuuga could not push those cold eyes from his mind. Your words awakened a deep knowledge he possessed, something that he knew he would take steps to accomplish. With your words, he knew that his clan would need to change. Destiny was something he built his life upon, but Y/N C/N, the woman who stole his heart, knew there was more than just destiny.
It had not taken long to be surrounded by others dressed in black, staring upon the casket of the woman he fell so deeply in love with. Why he hadn’t taken the opportunity to tell the woman until it was too late, he was unsure, and yet, he stared with regret in those white eyes of his. A gentle hand rested upon his shoulder, no words uttered from his sister’s lips as the two paid their respects. Tears freely fell in the wake of silence, though there had been a solace Neji held onto. One day, he knew inside of his heart, he would see you again.