Lee
Training with Naruto and Lee was something else, she can admit. It was…not the sort of peaceful event she had envisioned. In fact, it made her grateful to train with Shikamaru and Chouji.
Turns out, Guy sensei’s ‘training room’ was nothing more than an empty room with training materials meant for those who only use taijutsu. It wasn’t miserable by any means nor any more difficult than working with a sexist alpha, though she does wish it wasn’t so hectic yet draining all the same. By the time they were done doing Lee’s usual training routine—Naruto’s suggestion, by the way; though he turned it into a never ending competition between himself and Lee that ended up in the two of them almost going through their chakra reserves—they were too tired to want to go elsewhere, but they carried on with the tour of the home anyway and wound up eating the meal Guy sensei taught him to make (it was chankonabe, but it was the best they ever had).
It has her wondering, “Does Guy sensei ever get lonely when he’s here by himself?”
Lee hums in response, being careful with his wording when informing them, “I think he does, but he doesn’t bring it up. My sensei doesn’t really like to date—too many people want to spend a rut with him and get angry when he’s not…you know…”
“Horny?”
Lee turns bright pink to this and he stammers, “N-Naruto!”
Ino was about to nudge Naruto hard, but the other omega didn’t care. There’s no point in sugar coating it in his eyes: him and Iruka are very open about sex, heats, and ruts at home. Living with Kakashi sensei hasn’t changed this either; if of anything, he’s been as equally brutally honest about sex, heats, and ruts as Iruka has.
Why tip toe around this? Why pretend it’s not something that comes into far too many people’s minds whenever they first meet him?
“What? We’re all omegas coming close to the age of our first heats; why not call it what it is?”
Naruto doesn’t understand Lee’s horror to it, but then he finally speaks when the shock escapes him, “Y-You’re comfortable talking about this stuff, huh?”
“Yeah,” he raises a brow when asking, “Aren’t you?”
“No…my clan didn’t talk about this stuff. They thought it was something I should find out during my first heat with my mate.”
To them, this is beyond the pale of ridiculousness and for good reason, “That’s beyond messed up—in my clan, we had those talks early on so we knew what to say to my parents if anyone ever tried to molest Deidara or I.”
“Yeah, Iruka was always open with me for that reason too…and he also thought I should know what’s going on when my heat does hit me.” Naruto shivers at the idea of not knowing anything about it until the first mating, “You really never spoke about it with your clan?”
Lee shook his head, “I didn’t know anything about that stuff until Guy sensei and Iruka sensei had a talk with me about it.”
To take his mind off the horror of the ‘what if’ situation that could have been had he not ever had a talk with anyone at all about this stuff, he does have to wonder, “Scary…did you ever…you know, like anyone enough to want to mate?”
His immediate answer is to laugh this off, “No, I never have!”
To which, Ino shoots this down with a mischievous grin, “Huh, that’s not what my dad said.”
His breath is caught in his throat as she asks, “What about Gaara? Wouldn’t you want to be mated to him?”
Lee doesn’t know how to answer this because, well…if he ever were to have a choice in who he would want to mate, it would be Gaara. Gaara may have his flaws, but he’s the nicest alpha he’s ever met. So many others in his position would have abused that position to take more from him than he’d feel comfortable giving and yet, as Guy sensei said, he never did. He always remained respectful towards him when many others wouldn’t have—something he deeply respects Gaara for.
It was a combination of things that have made him realize this very simple fact. For starters, without the stress of living with his mother on the table for so long, he was able to calmly assess his own feelings and talk them out with someone he trusts (Guy sensei). Before the events with Ino happened, he was free to take part in the calm of the village while doing whatever he could to help rebuild it (which wasn’t anything, since the village elders had deemed that only alpha and betas could ‘properly’ rebuild their home), thus allowing him to examine his own reactions more deeply than he could’ve otherwise. Lastly, ever since he’s been damned to go back to his mom’s place, he has been forced to think about his future and what he would want for himself should she try to force him into anything he doesn’t want to—which is a grim yet very real possible outcome that could happen to him when he goes in through the door of her new home.
Thanks to this added time of introspection, he can admit that if he could, he really had a chance to have a choice to mate anyone…he’d mate Gaara. Even if he’s not good enough for him, even if he doesn’t come from the same village as him, even if he’d have to leave everything behind to be with him—he’d be with Gaara if he could.
However, he knows this is nothing more than a fantasy with no hopes of ever becoming reality.
Gaara is an attractive, powerful alpha with a pleasant scent (if one can overlook the blood tinged to it): any omega or beta would be throwing themselves at him regardless of his reputation. Lee, on the other hand, is nowhere near his league and he knows it.
Why would Gaara want someone like him when he can get himself a thousand Deidaras?
There’s no point in thinking on it for too long. With the way Ino’s looking at him, he knows he has to answer now before he gets too lost in his thoughts, “I would—”
“Even though the jerk never apologized to you for what he did? Has he ever tried to contact you?”
He knows Naruto doesn’t care for Gaara—he’s said as much in the past—but he really wishes he’d try to understand, “No, he never did, but how was he supposed to contact me when he didn’t know where I lived before our village was attacked? How could he have gotten in contact with me when I went to live with Guy sensei after the invasion on our homeland?”
Naruto huffs whereas Ino glares at him, “Naruto, back off! My dad firmly believes Gaara likes Lee as much as Lee likes him and he wouldn’t be saying that if he didn’t think it was true. If Lee wants to like Gaara, then let him. Don’t try to control who he can and cannot like; that’s something only the most sexist of pigs would do.”
“Ugh, but Ino, he—”
Her sharp stare silenced him to submission, allowing Lee the chance to feel incredibly grateful for her in this moment as he remembers how bad it was to not have her there to keep him from fighting him too much on this.
“Don’t. Try. To. Tell. Him. Who. To. Like.” she seethes in the calmest manner possible, though it’s gone when asking Lee, “Why not try to write to Gaara? I’m positive he’d write you back if you wrote to him first. Don’t you think he feels bad about what he did, or at least very stupid for it? He and everyone in his entourage were deceived by Orochimaru—he did lose his dad in all of this because of him, like how you lost your clan. He’d probably love to have someone to talk to about it.”
Lee doesn’t meet her eyes when giving her his reason, “Because I know it’s pointless. Gaara probably moved on by now to someone better for him than I would ever be…he could be mated now for all I know…and I have to accept that. I was never going to be good enough for someone like him.”
“That’s not true!” she tried to fight him on it, but Lee shrugged it all off with a sad smile on his face that somehow managed to appear so confident all the same, “No, it is true and I’ve accepted this a long time ago. I will never be good enough for him; who would want me anyway? I’m too tall for my age, too lean, and I’m not as attractive as you, Naruto, Iruka sensei, or Deidara. Why would any alpha like him want to settle for someone like me when they could get a million Deidaras instead? No one in their right mind would do such a thing…and I’m okay with it.”
She was about to say more when he stood up from the dining room table they had been at, “If I never get to see him again or speak to him one last time, I’ll be okay. As long as Gaara is happy, I’ll be at peace knowing he’s out there, recovered from whatever bad things happened to drive him to the point he was at during the attack, and living his best life.”
Naruto doesn’t react much to this for a solid three minutes before ultimately placing on the table what he came to give him in the first place, “Lee…I want to give you this.”
“A blank piece of paper and an envelope?”
“Yeah, to write to Gaara…I got the granny to give me a way to make sure your letter would get to him.” before he can ask, Naruto sighs, “I don’t think he’d be a good guy for you, but I shouldn’t have been such a jerk about your choices. You deserve a chance to tell him goodbye properly and he deserves a chance to prove me wrong by making it up to you.”
Lee didn’t say anything at first. Then, he went over to his friend and held him in a tight hug, nothing needing to be said as the room fell into a comfortable silence for the omegas, allowing them to enjoy the brief peace they have together before the world outside tears it all away from them.
While the omegas were together, Guy sensei had been training Neji, who was more than a bit miffed to not have Lee there. He tried to hide it, but his attempts were shoddy at best and Guy sensei could tell his passive aggression was directly caused by not having the omega present.
He ultimately did get sick of it, though he didn’t confront him about it until after they were done since he didn’t want to waste his entire day with an angsty Neji when he could be with Lee instead, “Why are you so distracted by Lee?”
He tried to act as though he wasn’t, though Guy sensei always knew, “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Don’t try to hide it from me; I’m asexual, not an idiot.” he scolds his student with his hands on his hips and his annoyance showing through, “Ever since Lee got to spend time with his friends, you’ve been acting all hissy. I want to know why you’re being this way when there’s no reason for you to be.”
When Neji didn’t answer, Guy rolled his eyes, “It doesn’t matter what the reason was for—you shouldn’t have let it distract you as severely as it did. You were messy and slow to react; your attacks weren’t landing, and your form was off in all your jutsus. Next time, try to work out your issues before allowing them to cloud your mind like this.”
It was only when he was fed up and ready to head home to be with Lee before he got sent away to his mother’s home that he heard Neji admit in a gentler, almost too quiet voice, “I want to court Lee.”
Guy paused in his steps, uncertain of how to respond.
Truthfully, he believes Neji has grown exponentially ever since the whole fiasco at the exams. However, he is too cautious to let the young alpha anywhere near after what happened there. He knows he should give him good advice regardless of how he views him, but his protectiveness over Lee leaves him reluctant to do so.
“…You want to court him? That’s why you wanted him here today?”
He can practically hear the nod in the air, his voice still incredibly quiet in an already quiet setting, “Yes. I was going to ask him to go with me to his mother’s place to arrange a courting according to the traditions of his clan. It was the only way I could see a mating blossoming between us; though to be honest, it felt like the only correct way to do things after all I’ve done to him.”
This is where his confliction lies.
He wants to protect Lee, but at the same time, Neji has shown growth and not recognizing this growth could lead him back into bad habits he’d rather not have happen again if he could prevent it.
He wants to reward his growth, however, he does bring up something he believes Neji should know about Lee’s clan in an attempt to hopefully stave off any chances of courting anytime soon, “Going to her with him by your side won’t help your case. You may be rich, you may be a Hyuuga, but that’s not enough if you wish to court by her traditions.”
“How should I do it then?”
“Simple: go to her place alone and ask for her permission to court Lee before making any move. If she approves, then you can try, but remember to respect his rejection if he gives you it. Though if he agrees, keep in mind that should he ever be harmed, I will ensure your destruction for hurting him.”
Neji is silent for a brief period of time until he gives his agreement to the terms, “I understand…thank you for the help, sensei.”
“Don’t mention it.” he says before heading home, not wanting to assist him any more than he already has in courting Lee.
He knows his mother will approve of it. Neji comes from a wealthy, prestigious clan; that’s all he has to do to be approved by her.
It’s also all he has to be to be able to steal Lee’s future away from him before he got the chance to see it through.
When he does return home, he sees Lee’s friends are still there. Now, he could have kicked them out, but they seemed to be deep in conversation about something and he didn’t want to disturb them, not when Lee looked so carefree, relaxed, happy…like a normal kid his age should be.
He goes back to his room, flipping through his book he tries to think of what all he can do to help Lee when he is out of his care…though this thought is ruined when his student knocks on his bedroom door, “Sensei, Naruto and Ino want to go to this café to have cakes and other pastries. Do you want to come with us? I’d like to spend time with you.”
Right…he can think about how to protect Lee tomorrow.
Now, he should be doing all that he can to keep the smile he saw earlier on his face, “Sounds great to me! Let’s get going then, Lee!”
“You’re the best, sensei!”
As long as he is smiling, Guy is alright.
Neji was a bit miffed when he didn’t get the location of Lee’s new home with his mother from his sensei, but he didn’t complain too much. He had been able to find it out rather easily from someone in the main branch of his clan who had worked on rebuilding Lee’s mother’s new home.
Approaching her door, he was beyond confident in his being able to get an approval for courting. She had practically made her desire for Lee to mate him known to him in no uncertain terms the last time he saw her; why would he have to believe he would be given anything other than acceptance by her?
With a swift knock on it, he waits for a few moments before she opens it, seeing him standing there and immediately hearing him greet her with a too assured, “Hello, I am here to gain your permission to court your son, Rock Lee, with the intentions of courting him completely in the traditions of your clan.”
Her face blank and her voice showcased her apathy perfectly, “Ah, I see… Sorry, but I will have to decline your offer.”
“What?”
Who could blame him for being surprised? After all she did to show her approval of him, from the first time he met her to the Chunin exams where she had Lee asking him to mate him, and now she’s suddenly rejecting him?
Anyone in his shoes would be upset with the turn of events, “You heard me, I’m rejecting your offer your courtship.”
“Why? After everything you’ve done to show me you approve of me, why are you taking this all back now?”
“Because I’ve lost interest in you as a potential mate for my son.” her words are short and sharp with him, leaving the young alpha to feel as though he’d been stabbed when he hadn’t so much as been touched by the woman in front of him, “In our clan, trying to court an omega without our permission is a grave violation of our traditions. If you so much as try to court him, I will inform the head of your clan about this and I will see he punishes you to the fullest extent for such a violation of my traditions.”
The door is slammed on him, leaving behind a flabbergasted, yet confused, Hyuuga prodigy who could not figure out what had happened to make her disapprove of him.
When Lee’s friends are gone and they’re home alone, Guy has to ask, “What were you two doing when I came back?”
“What do you—” he stopped when he saw the look on his sensei’s face and comes clean, “okay. I was writing a letter to Gaara with Naruto and Ino’s help. Naruto is going to take it to Lady Tsunade’s place right now so she can send it off to him.”
“That’s great, Lee! You know I’ve always said you should be more assertive with that young man—I think once he sees your letter, he’ll be interested enough to keep talking to you.”
“I guess, maybe.” he mutters while a small blush colors his cheeks, “I hope he replies, but if he doesn’t, that’s fine too. I said what I wanted; now I can go back to my mom’s place without feeling the burden of leaving something unfinished.”
Guy doesn’t like to hear about the monster he calls a mother, yet he does want to be positive of at least one thing, “…You promise you will tell me everything that’s going on there, right? Even the bad stuff?”
“I promise I will, sensei!” he vows with all the resolve he can muster, though Guy can see the fear in his eyes, “I know she won’t like me doing it, but I know you’d hate it if I didn’t and I could never live with myself if I ever let you down. So don’t worry over me when I’m gone with her; I’ll tell you everything!”
He knows he will and he trusts him too. Lee and him have a wonderful father-son relationship full of trust and respect he can honestly say he is the most important relationship in his life. Though he won’t deny that it’d be nice to find someone out there who doesn’t want to get with him for the sole sake of laying claim to ‘being the first one to crack Guy’s shell’…but that can wait for another time.
For now, what matter most is Lee and making sure he’s safe and healthy, “I’ll hold you to it then! A man is only as good as his word—remember that.” he then grins teasingly at the young student, “Speaking of which…what exactly did you write to Gaara? Was it a love confession?”
Lee laughs to this and shakes his head, “No, it was nothing like that! I told him how grateful I was to have met him, that I’m not mad at him for what happened to the village, and I wish him nothing but the best in life.”
“You really are a good kid…” he says while heading over to the living room, “Do you wanna play a game? I have some cards or a board game if you want.”
“Yeah, how about a card game?”
“I think I know which one you will pick…” he said with a knowing smile while getting the cards set up for Lee’s favorite game to hide his own pain at what Lee told him was in the letter.
Somehow, knowing what was written makes Guy’s heart break worse than anything else he’s gone through with Lee.