AN: Oh man! I've finally gotten around to writing the next chapter of this story. For those of you who have been waiting for this chapter I want to say thank you for your patience. Lately I haven't had as much time for writing as I would have liked. I hope it was worth the wait! BTW I know that Neji isn't one of the people who was confirmed to know about the Kyuubi, but honestly I think if anyone was going to figure it out on their own, it would be him or Shikamaru.

Naruto was so lost in his own thoughts that he almost didn't notice Neji stepping back out into the hall, quietly sliding the ornate doors closed behind him.

Neji turned to look down at the blond; Naruto was sitting with his back against the wall and his legs stretched out into the hall in front of him.

He leaned down to look at the younger ninja's face and smirked, "Did you get bored already Naruto? I wasn't in there for long."

Naruto looked up and smiled happily at the Hyuuga, "Nope, I was just thinking."

Neji raised an eyebrow as his friend got to his feet, "Thinking huh?" Naruto seemed reluctant to answer so he dropped the subject, "Hiashi-sama gave us full permission to use the training gym and he sends his greetings."

Naruto grinned up at his friend, "Thanks Neji!"

Neji nodded, "You're welcome Naruto. We all have to be stronger if we are going to be protecting Konoha in the future. We should help each other as much as we can."

He turned away and beckoned to the younger man, "Lets see if Hinata-sama is awake. Hiashi-sama is right, we may need someone to help with demonstrations."

Naruto smiled at his dark-haired friend's back, then he nodded and walked to Neji's side as the older man led him through the halls of the main family's home, "Okay. I hope she's alright."

Neji smirked, "I'm sure she's just fine."

Naruto looked curiously up at his friend, "What's with that face Neji?"

He followed his friend around a corner and Neji tilted his head to smile at him, "She's much stronger than that don't you think?"

Naruto laughed mischievously, "Yeah, and she's getting stronger. You'd better watch out Neji or she'll be tougher than you soon."

The Hyuuga put his nose in the air, pretending to be offended, "I am a master of the Hyuuga style of fighting."

His companion laughed, "That may not be enough, unless you start making up new jutsus like she has."

Neji rolled his eyes, but he held his tongue and turned to one of several doors that lined the hall they were in, "Here we are."

Naruto stopped behind him and he raised one hand to tap lightly on the door, "Hinata-sama?"

There was a faint shuffling from inside, then the door was drawn open. Hinata seemed surprised to see Neji, but her face went red when she noticed Naruto standing behind him, "Ah! Neji-ni-sama, N-naruto-kun..."

Neji managed to stop himself from rolling his eyes, instead he bowed slightly to the Hyuuga heiress, "Hello Hinata-sama."

Naruto raised his hand to wave at her, "Hi Hinata! Are you feeling better?"

Hinata's blushed deepened and she stuttered a greeting. She swallowed hard, then forced herself to look away from Naruto, "Did you need me Neji-nisama?"

Neji smiled at his shy cousin, "Yes. We came to see if you were still willing to help with Naruto's training."

She blinked at the older Hyuuga, 'Oh! I'd almost forgotten about it.' She looked back and forth between her cousin and Naruto, "Of course...I would be happy to help..."

Neji gave her a reassuring nod as he watched her tapping her fingers together, "I'm glad to hear that Hinata-sama. Your presence will be very helpful."

Naruto gave her a thumbs up, "You two are the best," he smiled at her, "Thanks Hinata! You're a good friend."

Hinata put her hand on the door frame to steady herself, but she managed to smile shyly at him, "Give me a moment to get ready."

Neji nodded, "Very well. We'll meet you in the training room."

She bowed in return, "Alright."

Neji smirked as he turned away from his cousin, "Oh and Hinata-sama." he felt her watching his back so he continued, "Your father was asking me why you were brought home unconscious. I told him I didn't know."

"Oh! Father was-" Hinata bowed at his back, "Thank you Neji-ni-sama."

Naruto waved to her as he followed Neji back the way they had come, "See you later Hinata!"

She flushed with pleasure and smiled at him, "Yes, I'll be along soon Naruto-kun."

Naruto turned and followed Neji along the numerous corridors that made up the main family's estate. He recognized some of the artwork they were passing and realized that Neji was leading him back the way they had come.

Soon they were back at the side entrance; without a word Neji started donning his rain gear once more, trading the comfortable guest slippers for his muddy sandals. Naruto wrinkled his nose in distaste, "Back out into the rain huh? Crap."

Neji smiled at the blond as he held his cloak out to him, "It isn't far."

Naruto took the offered clothing and frowned, "I just hate being cold, it doesn't help that it's wet out there too."

The Hyuuga chuckled, "Maybe you're part cat. Do you always complain this much about rain?"

Naruto grinned, "Only when I'm out in it."

Neji shook his head as he opened the door and stepped back out into the storm, with Naruto following reluctantly behind him.

They moved quickly through the Hyuuga compound, staying under the eves as much as possible as the rain continued to pelt Konoha.

Lightning flashed as they slipped into the training gym; Neji pushed his hood back and flicked the light switch.

Naruto took off his cloak as he looked around at the training area, "Cool, but it's more like a dojo than a gym isn't it?"

Neji sighed, "Does it really matter?"

The shorter ninja hung his cloak on a hook beside Neji's "I guess not. It's pretty awesome that you have a place like this to train."

Neji shrugged, "It's helpful in bad weather, but other than that we don't use it very often. It's mostly for the use of the main family, but they don't really use it either."

Naruto looked around, "Really? That seems like a waste."

Neji slipped out of his sandals and set them neatly in a corner of the entryway, "Yes I suppose, but we're less likely to cause any structural damage to the compound if we train outside in the courtyard."

Naruto nodded knowingly, "I get it. I guess that makes sense."

The taller ninja turned and regarded him sternly, "That means I want you to control yourself while we're using this room. Don't over do things and blow up the gym."

Naruto waved his hands defensively, "Right, I gotcha, I'll be careful."

Neji sighed heavily, "Good. Now lets get started on the basics before Lee gets here. Once he arrives we probably aren't going to get anything useful done."

The blond laughed, "Wait. Didn't Lee say that he was going to look for Guy-sensei instead? He said he wasn't going to come."

The older ninja motioned for him to sit, and the both settled themselves on the floor of the gym.

The dark-haired nin smiled, "That's true, but I happen to know that Guy-sensei is out of town on a mission and isn't supposed to be home until late tomorrow. He'll run around looking for awhile, but once he realizes that he's on his own, he'll show up here wanting to train with us."

Naruto laughed, "Wow, you sound so sure of how it'll happen."

Neji tapped his temple with his index finger, "I know my teammates. Lee tends to forget things when he gets excited. Just wait, he'll turn up sooner or later."

Neji set aside his kunai pouch and regarded the blond seriously, "I'm sure that Genjutsu has already been explained to you several times, but I'm going to try and simplify it for you. Besides, it's always best to start from the beginning."

The blond nodded, all his attention focused on the older ninja, "Okay."

The Hyuuga folded his hands in his lap and he took a deep breath as he collected his thoughts, "Alright, so you understand that Chakra flows throughout your entire body in much the same way that your veins carry blood."

He paused to be sure that Naruto understood and the younger ninja nodded for him to continue, "Well, like your blood, chakra flows to every part of your body, giving it strength and sustaining your body. Genjutsu works by controlling the flow of chakra through an opponent's brain."

Again he paused and Naruto nodded seriously, "Okay, I think I've got it so far."

Neji tilted his head in acknowledgment, "By controlling the chakra in an opponents mind, the Genjutsu user can effect what their opponent sees, smells, hears, and feels. However, like most of the ninja arts, it requires some sort of innate talent in order to be truly effective. So even if you understand the principles of Genjutsu, it may be that you won't ever be able to cast a genjutsu that would be effective in battle."

Naruto sighed, "I was afraid of that. I don't think I have a talent for this at all Neji."

The dark-haired ninja smile reassuringly at the other ninja, "That may be true, but at the very least I think that you can learn to escape from genjutsu consistently."

He was about to continue, but at that moment the door to the gym slid open, wind whipped into the room, Hinata slipped into the room wrapped in her cloak, and quickly shut the door behind her.

She sighed and slumped against the door as a puddle formed beneath her feet.

Naruto stood and smiled at her, "Hi Hinata. That storm seems to be getting worse doesn't it?"

Hinata carefully took off her cloak and hung it beside the others, "H-hello Naruto-kun. Yes, the rain does seem to be getting out of hand doesn't it?"

She moved gracefully across the room and knelt beside her cousin, facing them both. Naruto sat once more and smiled at her, "I really appreciate this Hinata."

Hinata mumbled something they didn't understand then began rummaging in the bag that she had brought with her.

"I knew that we would need to talk a bit first and...and it's so cold outside, well I thought some tea would be nice... I brought some snacks too, in-in case we got hungry..." her head snapped up and a blush spread across her cheeks as she looked directly at Naruto, "I made the tea myself Naruto-kun!"

Naruto beamed at her, "Really? Thanks Hinata! If you made it I bet it'll be delicious!"

Hinata's blush deepened and she began setting out the snacks and pouring the tea, "Please continue Neji-nisama, I'll only be a moment."

Neji nodded, "Thank you for your thoughtfulness Hinata-sama."

"Alright, so you know what makes a genjutsu work. So rather than trying to teach you to cast one, I'd like to start by teaching you to recognize a genjutsu, both when its been cast on you, and when one has been cast on your teammate." he took a long drink of the tea that Hinata had set in front of him.

Naruto smiled at Hinata as he tasted his, "Okay, but how do I know when I'm up against a Genjutsu type?"

Neji nodded in approval, "Excellent question. In most cases, genjutsu users are long-range fighters; they will keep their distance and do their best to distract you; and at the same time they will try to lure you into their genjutsu. Less talented users will try and trap you in some sort of ninjutsu; something annoying, but not to hard to escape from to hide their plans."

The blond nodded enthusiastically, "Got it so far."

"Well then, since you understand how it works I want you to see what it looks like should a member of your team be caught in a genjutsu." he turned to Hinata, "Hinata-sama, please cast a genjutsu on me."

Hinata jumped and nearly knocked over the thermos of tea; Naruto's hand shot out and caught it before it could spill, "Hey are you alright Hinata?"

"Y-yes!" she stared, wide-eyed at her cousin, "Are you sure Neji-nisama? I-I mean that you want me to case a genjutsu on y-you?"

Neji nodded, "Yes I think it would be better that way."

Naruto tilted his head at her, "It's not like you're going to hurt him Hinata."

The kunoichi looked back and forth between them, her long hair sweeping across the floor, "I-I, suppose... If it would help..."

Neji stood in one smooth motion, "Very well, this will only take a moment. Naruto you can stay where you are. Hinata-sama, if you would?"

The Hyuuga heiress practically leapt to her feet, wringing her fingers anxiously, "Yes!" she bit her lip, 'What have I gotten myself into? I can't back down now! Not with Naruto-kun watching me! Oh no..."

She followed her cousin across the room then stopped a few feet away from the jounin, she carefully angled herself away from her crush and focused all of her attention on Neji, "A-alright. Tell me when you're ready..."

Neji closed his eyes for a moment then looked into her eyes, "Go ahead."

Naruto leaned closer to the pair, his elbows digging into his thighs as he sat cross-legged on the floor. His eyes opened wider as he watched her hands flash into a series of lighting-quick seals.

Hinata exhaled and held the last seal, as she did Neji's face went blank and he stood unmoving. He stood as still as a statue; the gentle movement of his chest as he breathed the only proof that he was a living person.

Hinata took a deep breath to gather her courage, "D-do y-you see Naruto-kun? He's very still, ...a-and a person in a genjutsu doesn't b-blink at all. You can tell right?"

Naruto's awed voice drifted to over to her and she forced herself to stay still, while her body screamed at her to look at him and to run at the same time, "Yeah! That's not too hard. Neat! I don't think I've ever seen Neji with such a blank look on his face." he laughed, "Makes me want to write something on him!"

Hinata turned to him with a horrified expression, "N-naruto-kun! We can't do that Neji-ni-sama would be...!"

Naruto laughed, "Okay, okay! I was just kidding. He's helping me out after all, and I can only imagine how mad he'd be." he winked at her, "It is a funny thought though don't you think"

The kunoichi quickly turned away with a blush spreading across her cheeks, "K-kai!"

Neji blinked several times before he looked up, "So does he understand...Hinata-sama?" she blushed and looked away so his gaze slid over to the other shinobi, "What-?" he raised an eyebrow as Naruto grinned and began snickering behind his hand.

Neji frowned, "What is the matter with you two? Is there something on my face?"

Hinata slumped to the floor, caught between embarrassment and laughter, while Naruto chuckled to himself, "Aww Neji. Do you really think we'd do something like that?"

The older ninja tilted his head at them in confusion, "I...What?"

AN: Man Hinata is really annoying to write when she's around Naruto. I kept wanting to write her with more confidence and without all the pauses and the nervous gestures. Sadly I had to in the hopes of staying in character as much as I am able. Neji is a bit out of character as it is, but I don't think it's too far from the real deal. I hope everyone liked this chapter. Take care.