Here's chapter one of my re-write of Breaking Point! I really loved the premise of this story and so decided to give it another go now that I have more writing experience and feel a little more confident with my story telling!

Disclamer: I dont own Naruto or any of the characters involved in this story

The moon was high in the sky by the time she made it to the Hokage's office. She'd had to drag herself out of bed after a gruelling twelve-hour hospital shift at the request of the messenger nin who patiently waited whilst she put herself together into something that vaguely resembled a human. She sighed heavily as her knuckles rapped gently against the door, rubbing a tired hand through her short pink locks. She heard a small mumble from the other side and took that as her entrance.

Kakashi took one look at her and immediately felt guilty for not calling another medic. But then who else was there that could deal with this?

"Ah, Sakura-chan. Sorry about all this…"

"Good morning to you to," she huffed quietly, hiding a yawn behind her hand as she stood in front of the Hokage's desk.

"Please," Kakashi motioned to a chair, "sit."

She collapsed into it, crossing her arms as she took in the silver haired man behind the desk. Dam, and she thought she was tired. How many days and nights had he been in here in a row? It must be almost a week by now. Shizune was nowhere in sight which suggested he was holding down the fort alone.

"What seems to be the problem, Kakashi-sensei?" Still, even after all these years, she called him sensei.

"Well you see there's been a bit of an emergency down at the Hyuuga compound," He started, tapping his fingers on his desk.

She raised an eyebrow, her tiredness abating enough to allow her interest to be peaked. "What kind of emergency?"

"Hinata and Hiashi came to me today…I mean last night." he said as he glanced at the clock on the opposite wall. His eyes dropping slightly as he saw it read four in the morning. "They're starting to worry about Neji. It seems that he's been overtraining himself lately."

Sakura's tiredness immediately came flying back and she slipped further into the chair, bringing her knees up to her chest. "Is that all? Couldn't this have waited until morning?"

He could tell she was starting to get annoyed. "That's not all I have to tell you, Sakura."

Her slender pink eyebrows rose again slightly, and she shifted to a more comfortable position. "Go on…"

"I think the Hyuuga clan has been hiding something from me for a while now. It's possible that Tsunade-sama knew but since I've claimed the title of Hokage, I've heard nothing of it."

"Is it to do with the Tattoo across Neji's forehead?" She motioned with a figure to her own, the top lingering across the small diamond that was permanently inked there.

"It's possible. You've witnessed the Byakugan used yes?"

She frowned, "Yes. What of it?"

"The chakra control needed to execute this technique is incredible and all Hyuuga's are taught to use it at an early age. The amount of chakra is what is important here. If you go over that amount, however, it's not too much of a problem but you'll be out of service for a while. But if you continuously do so, you can get to the point where you lose your eye-sight."

Sakura's eyes widened slightly as the shock settled in. "But how is that possible? I thought the Byakugan was harmless?"

"All Dōjutsu come with drawbacks, Sakura. "

"Hm," she agreed silently, a picture of glowing red eyes and dark blue hair flashing across the forefront of her mind. "Since when did you become so knowledgeable about the Hyuuga clan anyway?"

"Do you really think I would be up all night for any other reason?"

She smiled, ever the copy-nin."True."

"Anyway, the point is that the clan leaders are worried because Neji has been overtraining himself lately. Hinata says he looks tired and is worried that it may cause him to overuse his Byakugan and not be able to properly control how much chakra he is expending."

Sakura rubbed her temples gently. All this information was not good this early in the morning, "What do you mean by overtraining? All ninja's are known to train every day for long hours."

"By overtraining, I mean all day. All night. On top of missions and clan work. He's being tipped to be the next clan head, which involves a lot of research and learning so there's that too."

"Baka…" she muttered.

He smiled tiredly, his one free eye crinkling. She grimaced at the sight, "So, what would you like me to do about it?"

She regretted asking as soon as the question left her mouth.

Kakashi's hands laced together neatly and he stared at them for a while, considering what to do next. "I need you to do a full physical check-up on Neji, make sure he's fit and healthy. Check his eyes for signs of any discomfort and then report back to me."

"Anything else?"

He paused. Contemplating whether to tell her what else he had planned. When a minute passed and he still hadn't confirmed or denied anything, Sakura raised her eyebrows. She could read that there was more here than what he had already asked of her, that much was written all over his expression, but he wasn't forthcoming with any more information.

"That will be all, for now."

The 'for now' had her wincing slightly, but she resisted temptation to badger him more and resigned herself to unfolding her limbs and standing on tired feet.

"Guess I'll start right now," She glanced wearily at the clock, reading four thirty am.

And when she found that silver eyed fox, she was going to punch him so hard he'd fly straight into next year.

Sweat poured from his forehead, his Konoha protector long gone revealing his trade-mark symbol of the Hyuuga branch clan. His fists punched the air as he kicked and flipped his way around the training grounds. His chakra was depleted to the point of exhaustion and yet he still felt the need to carry on. He practised hand to hand combat and relied completely on the strength of his own muscles to keep going. His breath was ragged and delayed, but he didn't stop.

The crack of a twig in the bushes off to the right immediately caught his attention.

His head snapped up and it was just enough for him to lose focus. His foot slipped on the dewy morning grass and he hit the ground with a loud thud, the air rushing out of him from the impact. He groaned, rolling over onto his back as he gripped his side. Broken ribs, definitely. He glanced around for something to hold onto, something to help haul him to his feet, but the empty centre of the training pit wasn't looking too promising. With a heave of his large shoulder muscles and the last of his energy, he pushed himself up and off the ground. His eyes nearly rolled into the back of his head as he stumbled to his feet, nausea settling uneasily in his stomach. He tried to activate his Byakugan but his lack of chakra proved it impossible.

"Shit…" he mumbled, stumbling again before succumbing to gravity and falling to his knees, his hand still gripping his side.

"There's a reason why ninjas don't train alone at night."

The biting voice in the crisp morning air caught his attention and he lifted his head to see a blurred vision of pink.

"Haruno?" He grumbled, fighting to keep his eyes from closing.

"Good morning, Baka."

"What… are you doing here?" he leant back onto his haunches, trying to keep his gaze level but his dam vision kept jumping.

She said nothing as she approached him. Her emerald eyes were sharp under the light of the sunrise that was now peaking up over the Hokage mountain. She knelt in front of him and glanced over his body, accessing his injuries and any aches and pains that seemed to be bothering him. Her gaze found his once more and he felt himself shrink back slightly at the tight pull of her eyebrows.

"What time is it?" He grumbled, his voice cracking under the sudden strain and desperate to turn her attention away from himself.

"About five in the morning," she muttered, suddenly moving forwards, and catching him as he listed towards her. His energy was all but spent and he landed with a heavy thud onto her smaller frame. She caught him with ease, letting his head rest over her shoulder as she used her strength to hold him up. Her hands wrapped around his back and glowed green, using the opportunity to fully assess the damage.

"Gomen…" He muttered, "I can't seem to find the strength to…"

His explanation fell flat as her healing chakra flowed into his body and he let out an involuntary groan of approval. So long. It had been so long since he had received any sort of medical care and he had paid the price with old bruises that never really healed and broken bones that knit themselves back together wrong.

"Oh Neji-san," She sighed gently, her mind going over the multitude of injuries she found as she searched with her chakra, "What are you doing to yourself?"

He had no answer to that, and the silence that stretched out around them as she healed him to the best of her ability was deafening. She was low on chakra and not to mention exhausted already from a long stretch of shifts at the hospital. There was little to no medical equipment out in the training grounds and even though she had the mind to bring her kit with her, she needed to get him somewhere she could have access to proper medicine.

It felt like hours passed before he had the energy to pull back away from her, his body still racked with pain and his ribs were definitely still broken. Their combined lack of chakra deserved an award in that very moment. He winced as he sat back, leaning his other arm out behind him for support. He unfolded his legs out in front of him and took in his medic with a tired silver gaze. Her hair had been cropped short, the ends just brushing the tops of shoulders. She was rummaging through her bag, bringing out a syringe and a vial of something that Neji sorely hoped would knock him out cold. Her green eyes were bright beneath a ring of dark lashes, but the deep smudges beneath them marred the perfect pale skin of her face and were a tell-tale sign of her fatigue.

They were older now. Well into their twenties and age had been kind to Sakura, he thought. She was beautiful, strong and a respected kunoichi within the village. If his fate hadn't already been decided for him, he would have taken the opportunity to ask her for dinner, but life had other plans for him. A frown marred his features as he took in her standard issue nin attire. Had she been on a mission?

"What are you doing out here so early?" He asked quietly, his voice strained from exhaustion.

His gaze was intense on her face and if she wasn't so dam tired, she would have the decency to blush beneath his attention. He was handsome; a strong jawline, straight nose, and high cheekbones that all framed those two perfect orbs of lilac and silver. His hair, although a little messy from his intense training, was pulled back into a high ponytail that swung down his back. His shoulders had broadened considerably over the years and he had grown so tall that he almost towered over her petite frame.

She flicked the needle of the syringe and moved to grab his arm.

"Sharp sting," She announced before quickly finding a vein and stabbing the thing into him. He looked away, trying to ignore the rolling nausea in his stomach.

"You still haven't answered me." He murmured.

She stilled her movements, raising her gaze level to meet his. "The Hokage sent me."

Ah. So, this was official business. He had guessed as much from her outfit.

"Hinata spoke with him?"

"Yes." She answered quietly, lowering her gaze and clearing everything away into her bag quietly.

He sighed, turning his head to the morning sky. A soft breeze washed over his face and he closed his eyes briefly, enjoying the way it relieved some of the stress he felt in his shoulders. Of course Hinata had taken this over his head; she had been berating him for weeks now about his intense training.

"I understand this looks bad, but-"

"I gave you a shot of morphine for the pain because I need to try and get you back to the hospital." She interrupted him. He could save whatever explanation he had for Kakashi. "I don't have the strength to carry you right now, so you're going to have to try and stand and walk some of the way with my help."

He bowed his head and gave the smallest of nods. Gods, he was embarrassed.

"Here we go," she reached down and moved one arm around her shoulders and with grit teeth and a strained growl, she hauled all six foot four and two hundred pounds of him to his feet. He swayed slightly, his other hand still gripping the side of his chest where is ribs where now a burning ache that was the only thing stopping him from passing out.

"The morphine…will kick in soon," She puffed as they began a slow arduous walk to the hospital. He gave a grunt in response and focused all his attention on putting just one foot in front of the other.

The deep black of unconsciousness slowly turned into a hazy grey before slits of colour and light began to slice through the darkness. A groan echoed throughout the room, a young man shifting under the white sheets of a hospital bed. His eyes finally opened fully, and he blinked lazily, the sharp light from the window made his head pound and he turned away as he raised a bandaged hand to block it.

It was only then that he noticed the other people in the room.

"Ah. You're awake."

He stared up at the Hokage cape slung around Kakashi's shoulders, leader of their hidden leaf village. He could not help the sigh that escaped his lips. He licked them gingerly before hauling himself into a sitting position. He groaned again; it felt like a thousand tons of metal were hanging off his shoulders, pulling him back down. Judging by the sun high in the sky, it was a few hours after he and Sakura made it back from the training grounds, the pair of them all but collapsing on arrival.

"How are you feeling?" Kakashi's eye crinkled slightly as he smiled beneath his mask. He noticed his Uncle's worried stare from the end of the bed.

He still couldn't see straight, his vision blurring around the edges and his head was pounding enough to make him want to slip back into a deep sleep, but he nodded his head none the less, "A little better, thank you."

"Good. So, you'll forgive me for what's coming next."

Neji kept his eyes trained on his hands as Kakashi explained how Hiashi and Hinata had come to him for help over their concern for Neji's health. He fingered the bandages, getting lost in the roughness of the fabric on his skin as Kakashi carefully picked his way through the conversation. Luckily for him, Neji didn't have the energy to argue anymore. To fight. He was beyond exhaustion, his mind a mess of emotions and worry. Hiashi chimed in every now and then, still voicing his concern for his nephew's state of mind.

"-You're lucky Sakura was there to help you and got to you when she did." Kakashi's voice broke through his pity party.

At this point Neji turned his head to the girl standing across the room from him. She had her back turned, staring out the window across the village, the red rooftops peeking out beneath the windowsill. Her hair still not brushed. Her eyes still tired and bruised from fatigue. He bowed his head, his bangs shading his face. His pride was officially crushed and his ego was feeling a little bruised.

"Gomen. I did not mean to make anyone worry." He muttered, avoiding eye-contact with everyone.

"You will stay here until further notice. You are in good hands here, son." Hiashi let a little warmth into his stare as he placed his hand gently over the top of Neji's before he turned, bowed to Kakashi and took his leave, the door quietly shutting behind him.

He stared straight ahead at the bland walls of his room. It seemed he was in a more private section of the hospital, no doubt paid for by the Hyuuga clan. It wasn't exactly VIP, but it would mean he wouldn't be bothered much and would only be seen by a handful of nurses and staff. Privacy, it seemed, was important.

God forbid he should embarrass the Hyuuga's even more.

"Sakura will oversee your recovery for the next week or so and then we'll go from there." Kakashi said, "It's time to make some changes, Neji."

He glanced at the pink haired kunoichi in the corner whose shoulders noticeably stiffened at the proclamation. Right. She hadn't been clued in on this either. She glanced over her shoulder at him, their eyes locking for what felt like an eternity. A tension that hadn't been in the room before suddenly built quickly only to be broken by her breathy sigh as she trudged over to the chair next to his bed and collapsed into it.

It seemed she was resigned to her fate just as much as he was.

"I'll be back to check on you soon." Kakashi smiled again, nodded at Sakura and disappeared in a cloud of smoke and leaves.

Ah. A clone.

Silence echoed throughout the room, the only noises coming from the distant markets in the village through the open window. Neji was still, his head bowed as he stared at his hands. His vision blurred again, but this time not from the overuse of his chakra. His body was bruised and broken, his mind a mess of anxiety and stress. Worries from every aspect of his life slowly closing in until he couldn't take it anymore and he'd cracked. That's when the relentless training had started. He would do anything to quiet the noise in his mind and if that meant working himself past exhaustion so that he collapsed into bed every night, then so be it.

He shut his eyes as a single tear ran down his cheek.

A warm hand enveloped his bandaged one and he didn't need to look to know that it was her. She hadn't shifted much, only leant over slightly to offer him this moment of comfort. He didn't pull away, merely stared at her show of comfort and let more tears slide.

She had seen it all. The bruises covering his body, the sore tenketsu points beneath his bandages as she'd carefully replaced them, the jarring pathways of his chakra that made him tense and jump in his sleep as she healed him. Bones that hadn't properly healed, months' worth of injuries that were still healing now and the total lack of proper nutrition that made him paler than usual.

God he was broken. Totally broken. And now, as she sat there gripping his hand, he was quietly crying. To her complete and utter surprise, her own broken and battered heart bled for him and she knew in that moment that despite her own pains and struggles, she would help him. She would help him through this.

With this steely resolve, she rearranged their hands, gently lacing her fingers through his as she let her head fall to the side and sleep finally claimed her.

R+R

Chapter 2 will be up soon!

Any criticism, whether its constructive or not, is appreciated!