again and again and again and again and again

[xiaoshouu]

rock lee roleplay, written by shou. sideblog, following back from @lvyeshou. mainly a private, secondary muse for mutuals!

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[reikiwie-art]

✨⭐️braid ⭐️✨ (it's Lee trying his best)

[unmeikatte]

Let me sit with you. I don't need to talk. I just don't want you to be alone. [from an apologetic, guilty @xiaoshouu]

It’s early in the morning when Neji first wakes up.

The first thing he notices is that his body is warm.

The second thing he notices is that he’s conscious.

The third thing he notices is that he’s no longer on the forest floor.

The last thing he notices is another person in the hospital room he’s in.

His vision is blurry. He blinks once then twice. The world is still blurry. It’s hard for him to move – the muscles through his shoulder and through his hips were ripped apart by the arrows that went through them. His body is stiff. His throat is dry.

He can feel wires attached to him. Devices attached to his fingertips. An IV drip placed in the crook of his elbow.

Somehow, he had given it his all and made true on his word. He would not die so easily. He thought he had simply been placating his own fears of an untimely death at fourteen.

The person in the other room must notice that he’s awake. He sees the movement – and then he realizes who it is as their shape comes closer to the bedside. A sheen of black hair, green t-shirt, and white hands.

“Rock Lee—” Neji starts, his voice hoarse. He coughs quietly – and Lee is already handing him a cup of water that sat somewhere next to him. Neji tries to sit up but his own weight is too much for his shoulder to carry and Lee is actively trying to keep him lying down. He feels a sharp, searing pain tear through his shoulder. His hip follows, the same sharp agony, that causes his breath to catch and heart to skip.

“Neji, I will help you.” Any other time, Neji would have stubbornly pushed him away, grabbing the cup from him, and drinking it on his own. He wasn’t a toddler to be doted on. But now, with the stiffness in his body and weakness in his muscles, he relents. He lets Lee tilt the cup to his lips, letting him drink the entire cup’s worth of water down.

“Lee,” Neji’s voice is stronger now, the rasp gone. “…” He reaches up to Lee’s face with his right hand. He touches his cheek – and his eyebrows furrow as he feels the warmth of Lee’s skin under his fingertips. He half expected his fingertips to go through him, as if he was a trick of the light. Lee looks at him, with an expression that Neji never wants to see again – wide eyed concern and tenderness.

“Neji. The Medic Nins found you after your fight,” Lee starts. For once in his life, he was soft-spoken. Neji looked over his face. Lee’s eyes had bags under them. The tiredness was evident in the soft squinting of his eyes. The lack of energy in him… How long had Lee been in his room?

“They brought you here. You were rushed into surgery – and you’re going to be alright!” Lee shot him a confident smile. Despite the exhaustion that pulled at him, Lee was still trying to be upbeat for him.

Neji could only give him a small stare back. He was far too tired; far too exhausted. The IV must have contained pain killers. As he looked at his face, he realized that his fingers were still gently settled onto his cheek. He moved his fingers to the side of Lee’s cheek before lowering again. The warmth of his skin made him believe that this was reality – not some after life that waited for him, with only a hospital bed and Rock Lee to keep him company.

He closed his eyes. He was more peaceful than he had been before. Unconscious – but still putting up a fight. His injuries had been severe. Large impalement wounds, twisted from the arrows’ spin and trajectory. A massive amount of blood loss and his body had started to go into shock.

By the time he had hit the ground in the forest, his body had already started to numb itself.

He felt the bed dent near his feet. He peeked a single eye open to look towards him. Lee had sat next to him, just close enough to radiate some warmth.

“Let me sit with you. I don't need to talk. I just don't want you to be alone.”

Lee’s voice was always so earnest. He cared so much – too much – about him, for whatever reason. Neji had yet to figure out why. He was his rival but this wasn’t what rivals did for each other. Rivals weren’t in each other’s hospital rooms before the crack of dawn. On Lee’s face, he could make out a forced smile on his lips.

Neji moved his leg to press against Lee’s side.

He was alive.

Lee was not to blame.

Neji closed his eye again.

[niobil]

retouched some old doodles

[valtsv]

guy looking up "i think i like men" on his phone immediately after losing a fight with another man

[havingapoemwithyou]

Against Empire by Jim Moore

[reblogthings]

The first 5 Asks to send 💋 get a kiss

[unmeikatte]

His arms slide around Neji's waist until they're pressed chest to back and hip to hip with not a single pocket of air to spare. Hooking his chin over Neji's shoulder, Lee swallows, his throat working against Neji's skin. Eyes pressed into crescents and lips pursing in that happy-Lee way, he hums. "I feel rejuvenated just by being with you." [from @xiaoshouu]

Neji simply lets Lee do whatever he has to do to get comfortable. He's far too used to his teammates essentially manhandling him to get some amount of physical affection from him. The woes of being the introvert in a gaggle of extroverts with a knack for physical touch.

He, still, at times has to will power himself to let the touch not raise the fight in him. But Lee was safe and Lee was trusted. It wasn't like Lee was going to randomly inject chakra into the soft spots on his body... He puts a hand on Lee's arm around his waist, just settling there as if to give an acknowledgment.

"A nap would be better."

He's in the middle of reading - a collection of classical poetry and commentary on it. It's not something that Lee would be interested in, he doesn't think, so he doesn't bother him with it. He merely slides in a bookmark - never a dog ear - and then closes it.

He's hoping his signal was loud and clear.

[thvie-e]

Team Gai

[xiaoshouu]

[ direct ]  your muse taking mine by the chin and telling them to look yours in the eye .

He descends on the ground with a huff of relief, releasing his weight from the arm that was looped around Neji's neck, and leans back against the tree. Neji settles to his right and just slightly in front of him so that they're facing each other, legs sprawled in opposite directions. The air fills with the chirping of insects. Leaves rustle overhead, overlaid by their heavy pants as they catch their breaths. Lee still has his ears out, but thankfully, they seem to be in the clear.

With his heart rate slowing and adrenaline fading, cognisance of the numbness in his lower torso returns. He's glad to be sitting down; his legs feel weak and heavy, yet jittery and restless, as if there's energy in them that can't decide where to go. A wave of nausea hits him, and Lee folds forward, groaning.

His teammate leans forward in concern. "Still?"

Nodding, Lee looks up at Neji with wide eyes. "Yeah. Neji, maybe you can help me take a look--"

He doesn't complete his sentence before the veins around Neji's eyes protrude. It goes like this fairly often, that neither of them really need to explain everything to the other. It hadn't even taken years for them to get to this point; even at the chunin exam, when Shino had surprised them all with the sudden dismemberment of Zaku, just a mention of Neji's name and he already knew what they'd wanted from him.

Lee keeps silent and still as Neji scans him from head to toe.

"Hm. You're..." Neji touches a hand to Lee's midriff, cool even over the spandex. "Your chakra pathways are clogged. Your chakra is circulating erratically, and there is nearly none in your legs. But..." He frowns. Lee shivers. "Your third gate. It's still open."

"What?"

"I said your third gate is still open."

Lee blinks at Neji. "How is that possible? I closed all of them just now, and it's been nearly half an hour, I don't feel it at all, it's just in my legs that feel really weird, I think it's in--"

"--Shut up."

Obediently, Lee falls silent.

"It isn't a big deal at all," Neji explains. "It's not exactly wide open -- it's as if there's a wrench stuck in the hinges, preventing it from closing fully. I can fix it very easily. It is just strange that this happened at all, and now I'm wishing we had captured the enemy so we could understand his techniques and how he did this to you."

Lee nods. Neji's hand is warming up over his torso. "I'm closing the gate now."

A surge of chakra, and lightness washes over his body as he feels the tenketsu release. Neji was right -- the third gate was still open somehow. The Hyuga moves his hand upwards now, over Lee's chest.

"Now I'll balance the circulation of your chakra."

The way Neji manipulates the chakra in his body feels like worms writhing and untangling inside him. Squirming uncomfortably, Lee tries to still himself by dragging his focus, instead, to Neji. How Lee's flesh dimples lightly under his slender fingers. The angry bulge of veins at his temples.

There is a particular way that Neji's eyebrows tug when something's wrong. It's not the same as his focus-frown, his angry-frown, or his battle-frown. It's in the way he forces back the twitch, and in the way his lips press together.

Somberly, Lee's hand rises to brush against the veins on his temple. Neji's frown deepens -- annoyed-frown, don't-touch-me-frown, I'm-fine-frown -- but his labour doesn't falter. It's still uncomfortable in Lee's gut, but there's something soothing about the way his chakra is evening out in his body.

Lee knows that Neji is perfectly capable of multi-tasking, so he grasps Neji's chin with his other hand, and lifts it in a silent request. He doesn't need to explain. Neji accedes, and lifts his gaze to meet his.

"It hurts, right?" Lee murmurs, his dark eyes boring into the Neji's ivory-white ones. He could stare forever, seeking the ends of the depths of his gaze. "It looks like it hurts."

His silence is all the confirmation that Lee needs. Releasing his chin, Lee reaches to the back of Neji's head, and undoes his headband, drawing it gently up and away before setting it on the ground beside him. The cursed seal sits on his forehead, impassive and stark as ever. He feels the veins in Neji's temple throb under his fingers, and the seal is hot under his thumb when Lee brushes over it.

Neji sucks in a breath, but betrays nothing else.

Lee's body is growing pliant and relaxed while Neji balances out his chakra circulation, and his heart rate slows under the firm hand on his chest as he matches Neji's even breaths. His thumb is still running soothing arcs over the seal as he cradles the side of Neji's head, while his other hand rests below his jaw. He offers up a tentative smile -- sufficient for now, he hopes.

raw hands heart-beating to the smoky view

[greelin]

you can never escape a weird little freak that loves you

[greelin]

this was meant to be romantic but now i’m realizing it reads more like. a threat

[unmeikatte]

( soak ) : shivering and drenched to the bone in a rainstorm [from @xiaoshouu]

@xiaoshouu

They’re lucky to be able to find a cave when they do. A sudden, torrential rainfall in the Land of Fire wasn’t unusual. The day had been humid, making Neji’s clothes stick to his skin without any exertion. At least now that it had rained, the trek home would be less sticky and like trudging through the air alone.

The cave provided shelter, albeit not an enjoyable one. But a cave is a cave, they can’t exactly be picky out in the wilderness.

Neji’s first line of action was wringing out his hair. He was soaked to the bone, his hair clinging to his neck, face, and around the curve of his back and hips. It was times like this where he cursed the fact he had such thick, long hair. But no matter how much he complained, he refused to cut it.

Lee on the other hand was content to wipe himself off with one of the small towels from Neji’s knapsack. It was easy enough, with his short, cropped hair and his “moisture wicking” body suit.

“Whenever you’re ready, here’s this!” Lee handed the towel to him. Neji took it, looking at the small towel. He glanced down at the heavy locks of his own hair in his hands and set the towel aside.

“There’s no point in trying to towel dry it.” It wasn’t necessarily a problem. He ran his hands through his hair, pulling it up into a ponytail, then around itself to secure it in a messy bun at the top of his head. Next, his hands undid his hakama, then his white linen kimono underneath.

“Can you start a fire, Lee?” He turned his head towards Lee, prepared to hand him the flint and tinder from his bag.

But when he turned his head, Lee was giving him a peculiar look. It was almost as if Lee was seeing him for the first time again. He wasn’t unused to people giving him wide-eyed looks upon meeting him, particularly civilians. They usually have never seen someone with eyes like his.

But Lee has known him since they were six years old. Sure, when he first met Lee, Lee had blurted out how strange he thought he looked. He remembers Lee staring at him – but after he blurted it out… he never said it again. Rather, it seemed like Lee attempted to avoid him all together. Which was fine, because Neji was avoiding the rest of the class.

He folded his kimono in half before placing it on a rock standing up right to attempt to dry it while they waited. Lee’s eyes followed him – regardless of whether or not he knew Neji could see him. Then suddenly, Lee snapped back to life, standing up to his full height.

“FIRE! ON IT!”

Neji looked at him in silence, eyebrows raising only slightly. That was a more normal Lee reaction. Delayed. But normal.

As Lee went to start the fire, Neji went about stripping off more of his wet clothing. His hakama was next. He folded it as equally as carefully as his kimono, setting it on a similarly oriented rock. Next were the pants he wore underneath. He pulled off the kunai harness and settled that gently on the ground. Then stripped off the wet white pants. Another neat fold and hanged garment. He was left in his boxer briefs – simple gray ones.

He raised his hands in the air, clasping them together. A small stretch of his hamstrings up, then a curve of his back.

“I got the fire going, pretty – pretty b- pretty good!” He heard Lee’s voice echoing in the cave. Neji looked over his shoulder at the fire- a small campfire smoldering to life. That look again. Lee looking at him as if he had somehow become unfamiliar.

“… are you feeling all right, Lee?”

Lee had seen Neji naked plenty of times. They had been on missions together since they were twelve years old. They went to the bath houses together, both as a team and with the other members of Konoha 11. It wasn’t a strange situation for them to be in.

As they had gotten older, their bodies had changed. Over the years, he had gotten fuller. His waist curved into his hips. His thighs and arms were defined by lean muscle under pale skin kissed orange by the fire. His shoulders were strong and paired well with the poise that he carried himself with.

He padded his way to the fire before sitting down on the floor of the cave. It was a horrible situation they found themselves in but it wasn’t the worst they’ve been in.

“Are you going to stay wearing your vest and clothes?” Neji peered at him with a curious eyebrow raise.

“Oh. Right! I should definitely get out of these clothes!”

And Lee stayed right in his spot.

“…” Neji looked at him. White eyes reflecting the burning oranges and reds of the flames.

Lee’s black eyes reflecting Neji.

Both said nothing.

[zappchamp]

So about Rock Lee and sadism.

Every taijutsu specialist likes punching people, it just comes with the territory. You can't be a master at hurting others physically and spend your life doing that if you dont enjoy it. I keep thinking Lee probably has some guilt about his "sadism", and thats part of the reason why he's so adamant about stopping fights during the chunin exam (we are not animals people!!) even though its extremely hypocritical of him, since he started like three fights when he wasnt supposed to.

fight against Naruto (in Lee's defense he kinda didn't want to fight Naruto at that point, but im still counting it)

fight against Sasuke, legit assault by Lee lol, this was fully unprompted Lee just wanted to kick his ass shh I know this fight is way deeper than that for both characters but its funny to explain it this way

and kick against Temari, which I count as a fight (or at least a hostile encounter?) cause Temari could've taken the bait

also about the Sasuke fight, he was literally gonna Primary Lotus him? like thats gotta be sadism! come on! It's not explicitly stated but the Primary Lotus is meant to kill, or at least that's what i gather from the way it's performed and the fact that you have to open the first gate to do it. (and if not kill, its meant seriously harm someone)

ah yes, Rock Lee, my sweet innocent boy that has violent urges he can barely control <3

[zappchamp]

Yes! you bring up great points!

I understand that Lee NEEDED to prove himself during the chunin exam arc. I mean hell, Gai literally says (paraphrasing) "that boy has something important to prove". He's ITCHING for approval and being recognized for his strength. But i don't think this goes against my own point, it in fact reinforces it.

Because how would Lee not take pleasure in taking these people down? Being belittled his whole life and suddenly feeling strong would be the cause, and a violent sadistic outbursts against those he sees as his symbolic enemies, is the effect.

It's the hypocrisy that I mentioned earlier that turned a cog in my brain. It's the way he preaches something and then completely goes against it that makes me think what he was experiencing those times were violent compulsions (fueled by obsessive thinking patterns, which is something i would like to explore in another post maybe).

I know the word "sadism" can sound pretty sinister, but as i see it all ninjas have a degree of sadism in them (otherwise i don't think you could withstand a ninja lifestyle lol) I don't mean to imply I see Rock Lee as some insane maniac.

But yeah, I do think he likes punching people. hard. lol.

I agree so much.

i kinda wanted to write about Gai and Lee's relationship, and the things i think are pretty questionable about it. But that would be in another post. I should also probably finish naruto before i delve into that oops

[zappchamp]

So about Rock Lee and sadism.

Every taijutsu specialist likes punching people, it just comes with the territory. You can't be a master at hurting others physically and spend your life doing that if you dont enjoy it. I keep thinking Lee probably has some guilt about his "sadism", and thats part of the reason why he's so adamant about stopping fights during the chunin exam (we are not animals people!!) even though its extremely hypocritical of him, since he started like three fights when he wasnt supposed to.

fight against Naruto (in Lee's defense he kinda didn't want to fight Naruto at that point, but im still counting it)

fight against Sasuke, legit assault by Lee lol, this was fully unprompted Lee just wanted to kick his ass shh I know this fight is way deeper than that for both characters but its funny to explain it this way

and kick against Temari, which I count as a fight (or at least a hostile encounter?) cause Temari could've taken the bait

also about the Sasuke fight, he was literally gonna Primary Lotus him? like thats gotta be sadism! come on! It's not explicitly stated but the Primary Lotus is meant to kill, or at least that's what i gather from the way it's performed and the fact that you have to open the first gate to do it. (and if not kill, its meant seriously harm someone)

ah yes, Rock Lee, my sweet innocent boy that has violent urges he can barely control <3

[unmeikatte]

❝ I’ll let you guys talk! I’ll just close my eyes. ❞ [from @xiaoshouu]

@xiaoshouu

They were on a mission together. A regular, typical escort mission. Leading a small group of merchants from Konoha to the Land of Whirlpools. Escort missions were one of the easiest ones for them to do and complete successfully.

But this one was more complicated. Well, not really in the logistics of it. It was still a cut and dry mission. But one of the girls in the band of merchants was their age. And she had taken to trying to be as close to Neji as she could, trying to talk to him, put her sleeping bag next to his during their rests.

Neji wasn't completely unused to the attention of girls in that way. Even during the academy, he had been popular with the girls - at least, his appearance had been. Personality wise... he wasn't keen on returning any of the attention that they gave to him. Rather the opposite.

Even now, as the the girl, Rika, tried to sit next to Neji at the camp fire, scooting up to him as he sat, resting on the large log they decided to use as cover. He looked at Lee, hoping that the other could understand the expression in his face.

But of course he wouldn't.

He was Lee.

"You know you don't have to sit so far away from everyone," Rika said with a lopsided smile growing on her face. She sat with her legs folded to the side, resting her elbow on the log behind her.

Neji gave her the slightest acknowledgement of a nod. "The purpose of this mission is to escort you and your crew. Distance is useful for that. It allows me to see you all. Right, Lee?"

Neji shoots another look at Lee - who gives him at least a response to his look. But ... he smiles? And he give him a playful salute, before closing his eyes tightly.

"I’ll let you guys talk! I’ll just close my eyes."

At that moment, Neji wishes that Lee could be just ... slightly - ever so slightly - smarter.

[xiaoshouu]

what part of "i don't need help" do you not understand?

“I understand it perfectly! I’m saying I want to help.”

Lee is crouching over the back of Neji’s head while he grumbles. He thinks it says a lot that Neji hasn’t shoved him away yet. He’s never seen Neji’s hair get this tangled and scruffy, but it’s what happens when one gets thrown into a stream and then bashes through a shrubby clearing.

“I’ve got to take it out one twig at a time if we want to preserve your luscious locks!” He hops onto his knees and studiously examines Neji’s hair. Where to start? He finds a knot that looks a little friendlier, and threads his fingers through Neji’s hair to work at the knot from the bottom.

“Don’t move,” Lee instructs, although Neji isn’t moving.

[absolmemes]

☾ tension action prompts.

hostility, provocation, you name it. featuring both actions and scenarios where tension can fester; add +reverse to reverse the roles.

✧ sender grips receiver's wrist long enough to make a point. ✧ sender laughs in receiver's face. ✧ sender grabs receiver by the collar. ✧ sender refuses to break eye contact with receiver. ✧ sender "accidentally" bumps into receiver and doesn't apologize. ✧ sender grips receiver's jaw. ✧ sender pulls receiver back by the waistband. ✧ sender shoves receiver into a surface. ✧ sender clenches their fists at receiver. ✧ sender tilts their head condescendingly at receiver. ✧ sender straightens to their full height in front of receiver. ✧ sender follows receiver outside after a blow-up. ✧ sender gets in receiver's face and won't back off. ✧ sender cracks their knuckles while holding eye contact with receiver. ✧ sender lowers their voice when receiver raises theirs. ✧ sender blatantly sizes receiver up. ✧ sender stares silently at receiver. ✧ sender presses on receiver's bruises. ✧ sender shoulder-checks receiver hard enough to knock them off balance. ✧ sender bumps receiver's cue while lining up a shot at a pool table. ✧ sender knocks receiver's phone out of their hand. ✧ sender kicks receiver under the table. ✧ sender wipes something off receiver's face. ✧ sender corners receiver and refuses to give them space. ✧ sender drags receiver into a bathroom to talk privately. ✧ sender pins receiver while roughhousing. ✧ sender deliberately spills their drink onto receiver. ✧ sender begrudgingly tends to receiver's injury. ✧ sender challenges receiver to a drinking game. ✧ sender steps closer every time receiver tries to disengage. ✧ sender is stuck sharing a bed with receiver when the motel overbooks. ✧ sender has to work overnight watch duty with receiver. ✧ sender challenges receiver's story and makes them prove it. ✧ sender competes with receiver at a shooting range. ✧ sender argues with receiver while trying to put up a tent. ✧ sender is trapped with receiver in a stopped elevator. ✧ sender challenges receiver to arm-wrestle. ✧ sender and receiver are snowed in overnight together. ✧ sender is stuck with receiver on a stalled ferris wheel. ✧ sender tries to one-up receiver at carnival games.