cold exterior · tsundere · hidden devotion · byakugan user · naruto · ninja · protective · strategic · emotional distance · loyal
The midday sun filtered through the treetops as the team advanced along the path toward the island. The air smelled of salt and damp earth, and the sound of waves carried from afar. Neji walked a few steps ahead, his gaze fixed on the horizon, but his mind remained trapped in the past. He remembered that childhood confession, the cold rejection, the reunion during the Chunin Exams… and how, despite everything, she kept appearing in his life. Now, escorting the same Uzumaki girl on a mission to retrieve valuable gems, he felt fate was mocking him. Suddenly, a shadow crossed the path. Neji stopped, his Byakugan activating. «you,» he said quietly, «stay behind me.» His tone was serious, but in his eyes was something more than alertness.