Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters. They're just fun to play with. This disclaimer applies to every chapter of the story.

NejiTen won the poll when I asked which pairing I was to write for next, and now I'm making good on my promise. I decided to take a seemingly cliché plot base and see if I could shake it up. I will do my best to update weekly, but please don't worry if a chapter is late. The story will be finished. I hope you guys will enjoy it as much as I do. :)

Voice message received at 7:47 AM on April 6:

"I-I'm s-sorry, Neji—achoo! T-The cold I have turned out to be a v-virus. My d-doctor says I shouldn't return to work for two… two months. I'm sorry—I'll have an o-official notice sent l-later today…"

Neji pressed End on his answering machine, silencing Hinata's voice. She had called in sick two days in a row, and now this. He glanced at the mass of papers that had accumulated on his desk without her to organize them.

"Told you so," sixteen-year-old Hanabi said from the corner of the room. She leaned against the wall with her arms crossed. The smirk she was wearing was an echo of her father's, and Neji had long since learned to hate it. "So, what are you gonna do?"

Neji put a hand to his forehead and closed his eyes. Hanabi was just dying for him to screw up. As head of Konoha's Fifth Avenue branch of the Hyuuga Corporation, he couldn't afford to be without a secretary for so long. He hated having extra employees on his payroll but it couldn't be helped.

"I'll have to hire a temporary replacement."

Miss Secretary

By danielie

Chapter 1: A first impression

"Now kick! Kick! Higher! Higher!"

Tenten sat cross-legged on the floor. She clenched her fists on top of the wooden coffee table in front of her and shut her eyes as tightly as she could to block out the blasted TV. "Lee…"

"One- two- three- YOUTH!"

"ONE- TWO- THREE- YOUTH!"

Tenten's eyebrow twitched. She silently cursed Gai for giving Lee these god-forsaken Youthercise videos. Her overzealous housemate repeated the workouts louder than the instructor did on max volume.

"Lee," Tenten tried again. She resisted the urge to punch a hole through the television.

"YOUTHFUL JUMPING JACK BARRAGE!"

"YOUTHFUL JUMPING JACK BARRAGE!"

"LEE!" Tenten yelled and slammed her fists down on the coffee table, sending the newspaper clippings she had spread over the wooden surface flying into the air. Lee squeaked as he toppled over mid-jumping jack. "CUT IT OUT!"

Lee scrambled to find the mute button on the remote. "Tenten!" his already-large eyes were wide with innocence. "You have my most youthful and sincere apologies! I was not aware that my Youthercise bothered you!"

"Well, when you play the same videos nonstop for three days," Tenten complained under her breath. She relaxed her hands and sighed. "Never mind, it's my fault. This really is your apartment. I have to find a job and get out."

"You're welcome to stay as long as you like," Lee said hospitably, pulling up his orange socks. He turned off the television and Tenten smiled, just a little bit. Lee was truly her best friend. He'd been kind to her, allowing her to stay for the past few months after she got her Bachelor's, but the studio apartment was really made for one. She could only crash in the sleeping bag jammed next to his bedside table for so long.

"I really need a job," Tenten said decisively, gathering the articles from the Classifieds that had fallen to the floor. She held one at arm's length and put a hand to her cheek, perusing it. The pay was meager and she didn't have the right qualifications. She frowned, laying it back on the coffee table. "If only I could find a good one…"

Lee's face lit up with recognition and he rummaged through his pockets. "I saved an article for you," he said, pulling out a clipping and dropping it on top of Tenten's pile. "I retrieved it from a newspaper a few days ago. I send my most youthful apologies for forgetting to give it to you sooner.

Tenten glanced at it, and after reading the first two words she grabbed it into her hands.

Hyuuga Corporation
Personal Secretary

Hyuuga Corporation president urgently seeking to fill secretary position for two months.*
Must have at least a Bachelor's degree and great organizational skill.**
Above-average computer literacy necessary. Salary: $6000.

"Lee, this is perfect!" Tenten said excitedly. She clutched the article, crinkling the edges between her fingers.

Lee beamed. "How very youthful! You shall apply?"

"Definitely," Tenten said. Her Bachelor's was in History with a concentration in ancient weapons. It wouldn't be put to much use, but six thousand dollars for two months of work was incredible. She needed the money desperately, and the Hyuuga Corporation's name alone would add so much to her résumé. She looked back at the article, noticing the asterisk after the first sentence. Her eyes darted down to the fine print at the very bottom corner of the clipping.

*Applicant must bring a copy of his or her résumé to an on the spot interview.

She blinked. That was out of the ordinary, but she was professional. She could handle it. Her brown eyes went lower to the double asterisk.

** All interviews will be held until noon on a first-come, first-serve basis on April 9, inside the Hyuuga Corporation's Fifth Avenue branch office.

"That's today!" Tenten yelled. Her eyes flew to the clock on the wall: ten o' clock. She scrambled into the tiny bedroom, trying to find an uncrushed work outfit in the suitcase that held all her clothes. "If I hurry, the train should be able to get me there by eleven-"

"Let me take you," Lee offered.

Tenten paused with a navy blue blouse in her hand. "Lee, it's your day off, I can't just-"

"It would be unyouthful of me to allow my very best friend to venture late into an important interview!" Lee grinned, twirling the keys to his green Honda Civic around his finger. "I shall start the car immediately!"

Chomp, chomp, chomp.

Neji's hand was planted on his forehead. He looked everywhere except at the girl sitting in front of his desk, gnawing on her infernal chewing gum. She was chewing gum inside his office during a job interview. Neji shot a million dirty looks at his Human Relations Officer, Kiba, knowing he was going to throttle him when this nightmare was over.

Chomp, chomp, chomp, pop.

The moronic redhead blew a larger-than-life bubble and popped it with her teeth. Satisfied she had accomplished that important task, she twirled a lock of her messy hair around her finger and said, "Can we work out a deal where I don't have to type much? It's really bad for my nail polish."

Kiba stared incredulously at her. She blew another bubble.

"This interview is over," Neji said decisively, getting up and pushing his chair under the table. "All of the interviews are over."

The girl pouted. "But I haven't even told you my strengths yet."

"We do not require gum chewing services at this company," Neji said icily.

She blinked. "You don't?"

"Don't be such a drag," Shikamaru said nonchalantly when Neji moved into a violent stance. "Just finish the rest of the interviews."

Kiba nodded. "All these people showed up-"

"And now they will all leave," Neji said, pointing straight at the door. "You," he loomed over the girl's chair, "get out of my office. Shikamaru, go with her and tell all of the people in the waiting room to leave."

"But they're all the way down on the first floor," Shikamaru groaned.

The girl stood indignantly, hating that she wasn't the center of attention. "Well at least I get to ditch this loser nametag!" she screeched. The three men had been so shocked by her stupidity that they hadn't even read it: Karin was her name. "If it leaves any stains, I'm suing you!"

"How frightening," Neji said sarcastically.

Karin huffed, her high heels stabbing the marble floor, attracting the attention of many current employees. When she arrived at the elevator doors, she smashed the down arrow as many times as she could. The elevator doors finally opened, and the furious redhead nearly collided with another girl who had two brown buns on her head.

"I'm sorry," the other girl said hurriedly. Karin scoffed at the old navy blue pants suit this girl was wearing when she noticed an interviewee nametag: Tenten.

"You're wasting your time," Karin said. "He might be hot, but he's a real douchebag."

Tenten put the pieces together. "Neji Hyuuga?"

Karin nodded. "I went to an interview at Uchiha Incorporated, and even Sasuke wasn't mean enough to cancel all the interviews-"

Tenten gasped, rushing around Karin and down the hall she had been told led to Neji's office.

"I told you, it's pointless!" Karin called after Tenten, but didn't try to stop her. After all, if someone as beautiful as Karin believed she was didn't get the job, Tenten simply had no chance.

At the very end of the gray, well-lit hall was a black wooden door. Beside it was silver nameplate with Neji Hyuuga's name engraved into it. Tenten hesitated for a second, about to knock on the door when she heard three voices.

"Shikamaru, for the last time, go and tell the other applicants that these interviews are finished."

Tenten heard a sigh. "I'd have to take the elevator. That's too much of a hassle."

The first man's voice was annoyed now. "Kiba, you do it."

"Come on, Neji, there'll be some good candidates-"

"You ran this recruitment ad without my permission," Neji seethed. "Bring your résumé? On-the-spot interview?"

"I was just trying to make your life easier."

"Or did you just need it done quickly so you could run back to Hinata?"

Kiba's voice was flustered. "Well at least I care about her-"

Tenten's quiet knock on the door punctuated the conversation inside. There was a moment of silence before a man wearing a suit opened the door. He had short, spiky brown hair. "Who are you?" he asked incredulously. "How long were you out there?"

"My name is Tenten," she answered courteously, ignoring the second question. The eyes of all three men in the room were on her. "I'm here to interview for the secretary position."

"Leave."

Tenten looked across the spacious corner office. Three empty walls were painted a light gray. The back wall, painted a darker gray, had two potted plants on either side of an ebony desk. Behind that desk was someone Tenten had only seen in pictures.

Neji Hyuuga's face accompanied newspaper articles and magazine interviews alike, but he was even more handsome in person. He sat behind the ebony desk, staring hard at her with his piercing, almost colorless eyes. "I've cancelled the interviews. You will receive word downstairs shortly."

"Have you already hired someone?"

"That's none of your business," Neji answered, and Tenten took that to mean 'No.'

"All I'm asking for is an interview; I would appreciate the opportunity-"

"This is a private office, Tenten," Neji said, and Tenten was shocked before she remembered that she was wearing a nametag. "Get out."

"No!"

Shikamaru and Kiba looked at her incredulously. Tenten crossed her arms and stood her ground angrily. "I have respect for this company and I put out a lot of effort to come here! I think it's unfair of you to say you're offering interviews and then not even give me a chance!"

Silence followed. Tenten relaxed her arms, worried that her outburst had set her on even shakier ground. Neji hadn't taken his eyes off of her. Kiba watched him anxiously, half-expecting him to attack her.

"Sit down," Neji said. Kiba and Shikamaru looked at each other in disbelief.

Tenten did as she was told, sitting in the mahogany chair across from Neji's desk. She sat with her ankles crossed, her hands in her lap; the briefcase she had brought leaning on the chair's leg.

"Your résumé," Neji commanded. Tenten took it out of her briefcase and handed it to him. He read it silently. She was proficient in all of the necessary software. "History Bachelor's," he commented. "Why are you interested in the secretary position?"

"Well, the job market isn't exactly booming for us History majors," Tenten joked. Neji did not laugh. She remained professional. "The Hyuuga Corporation has a fantastic reputation and I think I would be an asset to the company. My History degree has taught me how to organize large volumes of information, and the grant that the Hyuuga Corporation gave to restoring the Hokage Museum shows that the company cares about preserving Konoha's history. Our values are in line."

She had done some research on them. Good. "What would you say your weakness is?"

Tenten thought about it. "I can be too persistent," she said. "I know when I want things done, and I sometimes push myself extremely hard to finish before deadlines."

Neji looked at her intently. Tenten felt herself being examined, but refused to be intimidated. She stared back at him from across the table, noticing every strand of his long, brown hair, and the contrast of the matching dark lashes against his colorless eyes.

"Kiba, add her to the company payroll," Neji said. He stood up, pushing the chair behind him and walking around the desk. "You start immediately," he said to Tenten. "You will be working very closely with me from now on, and I expect you to be as diligent with deadlines as you say you are. Tomorrow, I will give you some necessities for the job.

"Right now," he gestured to the masses of printed emails and envelopes on his desk, "you will sort these notices into three piles: Urgent, meaning that they need to be completed within the next week, Important, meaning within the month, and Short Term, meaning within the next three months. You have two hours."

With that, Neji put his hands into the pockets of his black suit and walked out of his office, closing the door behind him.

The three people left in the office were stunned. Tenten was the first to recover. "I got the job!" she said happily, jumping out of her seat.

"He hired you," Kiba said quietly. His voice rose with excitement. "He really just hired you! Congratulations!"

"Well, what do you know," Shikamaru said casually. Rising from his chair, he looked at Tenten carefully. He had never seen Neji change his mind so abruptly before. He walked up to her and shook her hand. "Shikamaru Nara, lead accountant."

"And Kiba Inuzuka, head of Human Relations." The spiky haired man smiled at her.

"It's nice to meet you both!" Tenten beamed.

"You too, but I don't envy your first task," Shikamaru yawned. Tenten blanched when she looked at the stacks upon stacks of paper behind her. "You have one hour and fifty-seven minutes left."

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