[He could -would have to- put up with being some They's plaything. Could fold his pride down neatly inside of him if it was strictly the only way to return to his new normalcy. Could agonize over the surprise-that-hadn't-been of not being able to activate his bloodline limit, his eyes, the talent his clan defended even in death. But with the spider writhing dazed in a corner and the echo of new words in his ears, Neji found out he couldn't be as distant as he liked. Couldn't play the upstanding part of a war's soldier anymore. That the girl knew his name was surprising, sure. It had showed on Neji's face. But what made him turn- fully, hastily- was the other mention.

And it was a rookie mistake to show attachment in the line of vision of a stranger, but to hell with shinobi rules.] You're wrong, he can't be here. [And the thing about Neji is, the boy carried himself like he had all the certainty in the world that what he did and said was, in fact, correct. That wasn't the case now.] We don't exist in the same place anymore. [His words are, maybe, laced with alarm.] Put simply, either he can't be real or I can't, and I certainly feel like I am. Our fates were different from the beginning, he can't--

[Being dead is new to him. You understand. There's a pause. He'd said either enough or too much, but the girl had mentioned souls and safe bodies. And it was infuriating not to even know what to say next, because whatever this place was, it was wrong on a level above dating monsters and] I refuse to believe it. [Killjoy.]