Neji landed gracefully on a tree branch; just feet above the training grounds. And as he had predicted, there she was.

OooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

She was absolutely gorgeous, Neji realized with a start. Of course, he had always known she was attractive; Lee made a good point of just how perfect she was every time Neji saw the Green Beast.

But now, without the mundane barriers she placed on herself on an average basis, she was even lovelier. He watched as her short pink hair was tossed around her face, the pale skin flushed in exertion and her full lips parted to catch her breath. He watched the flow of her muscles beneath her shirt, and in her arms and legs, as she moved like an exceptional dancer.

She twisted, turned, and catapulted around the training area, destroying the straw dummies and creating fissures in the ground below, each move calculated and yet seemingly instinct.

And he knew now more than ever that he wanted her to be his.

OooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Sakura had not felt the presence of her watcher, too immersed in her own training.

But it was very hard to ignore when Neji Hyuuga dropped down in front of her and demanded in that silky tenor of his,

"Fight me."

Her eyes widened almost comically. He, ANBU captain and hard ass warrior, wanted to spar with her? Was this payback for her punching him through the wall? One thing was for sure though.

Sakura Haruno was very, very dead.

OooOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Neji watched as the emotions flitted across her face, so easy to read. First there was the initial surprise at his appearance (which was slightly disappointing, she didn't sense him earlier?), and then the suspicion, and finally it settled upon the expression you'd think the damned would ware; the sure knowledge that they were utterly doomed.

She was just too amusing for her own good.

He felt an odd swell of pride within him that she thought him so good that she had no chance herself. It was comforting, and sent a feeling of smug masculine dominance across his features and into his stance.

She became wary.

And they started to circle.