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cataract: Opacity of the lens or capsule of the eye, causing impairment of vision or blindness.

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She was flustered with the rain, and the wind spinning the clothes on the line, so she didn't notice when he landed softly beside her. When she turned, her head bumped against his chest and she gasped in shock.

"N-nii-san!"

He didn't respond as he lifted the basket of wet clothes from her fingers. He ducked past the balcony door, and she had no choice but to follow him in. As she entered, he set the basket down on the floor and turned. Her fingers jumped to her lip, the old nervousness buckling in.

He was watching all this, and was not the least bit surprised that she was still uncomfortable in his presence.

How long has it been?

"Ne-Neji nii-san?" she had found her voice as she grew older, but it still managed to fly from her when she was near him

Only him.

"Hinata-sama," his voice was quiet and blunt as always. He had apparently just returned from a mission; he was still in his ANBU uniform, the mask dangling against his leg. It was a hawk; he had smiled sadistically at the irony of it when they had given it to him.

She stood silently before him, pressing her fingertips together and her eyes flickering uneasily from his face to the floor.

Old habits die hard. He almost smirked, but instead was taken off guard when she spoke first.

"Nii-san, will you please wait?" she motioned to the sofa, and without waiting for his answer retreated to the kitchen. He soon heard her searching for teabags in the pantry, and then the soft fwoosh of the gas being lit for the kettle. He sat stiffly, not wanting to get the mud from his uniform onto the upholstery.

He had mistake coming here. What was I thinking? But really, he hadn't been able to think straight since he'd left Konoha.

How long has it been?

Three months, four days, and two hours since he'd been assigned to that God-awful mission of protecting that Feudal Lord, who in actuality was little more than a petty, corrupt landowner.

...Three months, four days, and two hours since he'd last seen her.

Well, actually, it ran deeper than that.

Six years.

It had been a long time since the chuunin exams (The chuunin exams), but he couldn't forget, and knew that she hadn't, knew that she couldn't ever forget, that she was reminded of it each time blood from her lips colored her small fingers.

"Nii-san..." she entered with two teacups and a plate of sweet biscuits balanced on a tray. She set it on the coffee table and sat beside him. The hand on her teacup twitched nervously; her back was rigid and she stared stiffly, unseeingly beyond the glass of the balcony door. Her cheeks were too flushed and her expression was carefully controlled to prevent any emotions from surfacing. The little light that filtered past the curtain of falling rain rested on her face, like a muted, cold parody of a solitary candle flame.

She looked altogether radiant. How a person could look serene when she was so obviously tense with discomfort he would never understand. But he knew that he loved it; that he loved this about her.

Love? Is that what it is?

Surely not; surely Hyuuga Neji was too cold and proud to love so easily.

Oh, Kami...he sank back against the soft cushions, no longer caring about the mud, as his body suddenly realized the extent of its exhaustion. He vaguely noticed the soft scent of violets envelope him, and then he was gone.

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