Hyuuga Neji desperately twisted and dodged, cursing inwardly as razor sharp stakes of wood rained down from the hands of the Juubi. There was no time for Kaiten as spears pelted the entire force of the Shinobi Alliance. A stray spear clanged off his forehead protector, and he winced the force of the blow knocked the plate of steel loose, splinters and shards of wood pelting his face. He felt the force of air on his exposed forehead and Caged Bird Seal as spears continued whizzing by, embedding themselves in the hard ground and the bodies of other shinobi.

A familiar shout rang out from the side, and Neji saw a streak of whirling bright blue fly through the air. "Thanks, Neji!" Naruto shouted. "I made it into Sage Mode!" The Rasen-Shuriken sliced through dozens of wooden spears at once, exploding into a brilliant ball of chakra, instantly disintegrating hundreds of the deadly Wood-style attack. But it still wasn't enough.

Even as hundreds of shinobi took cover behind the earth walls the Iwa shinobi had erected, Naruto's shadow clones flung two more Rasen-Shuriken upward, dispelling as their chakra was exhausted by the massively powerful attack.

Neji started forward, the beginning of a shout of warning leaving his throat. It died away in relief as he watched Hinata knock away another spear aimed towards the exhausted Naruto, who was now on his hands and knees.

One of the massive hands of the Juubi came crashing down, sending dozens of shinobi flying. Cries and screams of pain rang out through the air as the monstrous creature rampaged through the ranks of the Shinobi Alliance. Whirling towards the new threat, Neji watched in amazement as Hiashi fired an Eight Trigrams Air Barrier Palm towards the hand, proving once again why he was the undisputed strongest of the Hyuuga.

Although the immediate threat of the Juubi was neutralized, a new one quickly became apparent. A concentrated barrage of Piercing Wood blasted out of one finger, the Juubi's full firepower concentrated on one person: Naruto.

Desperately, Neji sprinted towards the blonde Jinchuuriki that was the key to this war, but the distance between them was far too great. A cold chill ran up his spine as Hinata spread her arms, standing protectively over Naruto, her back turned towards the rapidly approaching spears of wood.

In an instant, Neji knew what he had to do. Mustering the last of his exhausted chakra in a desperate gamble, he focused it on the soles of his feet and pushed.

Pain shot through his body as he leapt into the air above Hinata and Naruto, and instantly the Hyuuga genius knew that this was the end. Despite the heavy padding of his flak jacket, at least two of the wooden spikes, one through the lower back and the other through the abdomen, had pierced his torso.

Landing heavily upon Naruto's shoulder as shinobi rushed around them to attack the Juubi, Neji coughed heavily, blood pouring from both his wounds and his mouth as his heart struggled to circulate blood through his mangled upper body.

"We need a medic!" came Naruto's panicked shout.

"No…" Neji murmured, struggling to remain conscious despite the pain and blood loss. "It's… too late…"

He felt another presence at his side, and turned his head slightly, gazing intently at his younger cousin with quickly fading eyes.

"Neji-niisan…" the gentle Hyuuga heiress murmured in shock.

Neji turned his attention back to the blonde and found that Naruto's body was shaking. Whether it was from fatigue, anger, or sorrow, he didn't know, but the one thing Neji knew for certain was that he had to say something to the shinobi that had woken him from his selfish, arrogant delusions of fate.

"Hinata-sama is…" Neji choked as blood welled up in his throat. "…willing to die for you, Naruto…" He coughed again, more blood dribbling from the corners of his mouth. "So keep in mind…" he continued weakly, "that your life… is not… your own… anymore…" His vision was beginning to fade, the Caged Bird Seal on his forehead beginning to activate in order to destroy the Byakugan, the precious bloodline limit of the Hyuuga Clan.

"It also… includes mine now… as well…" he said with a tiny smile. He felt Naruto stiffen beneath him, and chuckled weakly, blood splattering against the ground.

"Why?" Naruto asked, his voice tiny amidst the clamor of battle. "Not in a place like this! You're the Hyuuga's…" the Jinchuuriki's voice trailed away, and Neji was reminded of the moment that Naruto had changed his life.

"Losers will always be losers. That will never change. Let me just ask you this… why do you try so hard to fight against your destiny?"

"Because I… was called a loser!"

"Why would you go this far for me? Sacrificing your life…" Naruto's voice was choked, and Neji smirked at the irony of the situation.

A quiet sizzling filled the air as the Caged Bird Seal began its final stage of activation, and Neji's vision went dark as the light faded from his white pupil-less eyes, the last image imprinting itself in his mind one of a certain Konoha kunoichi.

"Because…" Neji said, smiling as death claimed the Hyuuga prodigy. "I was called a genius..." Slumping over the shoulder of the man who had saved him, Hyuuga Neji's body went limp.

#

Tenten hurled a brace of kunai through the air at the monstrous Juubi, the exploding tags attached burning brightly as they exploded against one giant arm. The smoke faded, only to reveal that absolutely no damage had been done. As wooden spears began raining down, the weapons mistress unsealed a long staff from one of the many scrolls on her body and smacked one stake from the air.

Wiping sweat from her forehead, the young Konoha chuunin suddenly felt an ice-cold chill run down her spine. Deflecting another stake with a loud clack, she spun, trying to find whatever had caused the sudden shiver. Her eyes locked on a horrifying sight, and Tenten's breath caught in her throat. No…

"Neji!" she tried to scream, but it came out in a strangled sob as her eyes locked on her teammate's body, draped over Naruto's shoulder. Unbidden, tears welled up in her eyes as she stared through the chaos at the dull, lifeless ones of the prodigy that she had so admired and… and maybe even loved.

Blinded by shock, sorrow, and tears, the young kunoichi sprang through the air, ignoring the cries of her comrades around her. Despite not having completely recovered from the use of the Gold and Silver Brothers' fan, Tenten reached over her back, her groping fingers wrapping around the trailing edge of the massive sealing scroll slung around her hips.

With all her strength, Tenten flung the scroll through the air, pouring all the chakra she could into unsealing the hundreds upon hundreds of weapons stored inside the scroll, and they shot out of the paper with such force and speed that the deadly rain of iron appeared only as streaks of white. They pelted against the Juubi, raising clouds of dust and smoke as the exploding tags attached to each and every weapon detonated.

Still not done, Tenten released the large scroll, letting it flutter, empty to the ground as she pulled two smaller scrolls from a hidden pouch at her pack. Tossing them upward through the air, she leapt between the two spiraling sheets of paper. Pouring the rest of her chakra into her hands, she began to spin. "Twin Rising Dragons!" she screamed, her voice hoarse, her eyes blinded by tears as she flung weapons indiscriminately in the general direction of the Juubi.

Tenten watched in despair as the razor-sharp weapons clattered harmlessly off the Juubi. Exhausted and chakra-depleted, the young kunoichi let herself fall back towards the earth. Limply, she watched as the ground rushed up to meet her, and she shut her eyes in defeat.

Because of her shut eyes, the weapons mistress failed to see the wooden spear streaking through the air until it was too late. With a sickening squelch, the stake buried itself in her midriff, the force of the projectile sending the young kunoichi flying through the air. With an explosion of dust, the bloodstained stake embedded itself into the ground, with the Konoha chuunin's body impaled upon it.

Blinking her eyes open, Tenten looked over at the peaceful face of Hyuuga Neji, lying only feet away from her own body. As she felt the strength ebb from her body, she raised a shaking hand, reaching over to Neji's body. Letting it fall limp, she felt the cold flesh of her teammate's hand beneath her own. She smiled, letting her eyes fall shut.

I was all alone in life, other that you. Nobody truly loved me. I had no family. But I loved you. And although in life we weren't able to be together… maybe… maybe in death we can. Maybe, just maybe, we can leave this world hand in hand. Together.