Apparently Looks Could Kill

A NejiTen fanfiction

By screwitall

Summary: It was then that Tenten decided that watching horror movies isn't so bad after all.

A/N: I got this idea while watching The Grudge 3 with my younger brother and sister. My sister and I couldn't sleep for days! But the ending was awesome! Really scary like the previous The Grudge movies. I didn't even know Rose died! And why did she turn into the ghost? And remember the boyfriend (did you see him? Talk about hot!)? He went into the cursed room. DAMMIT. And he had such a gorgeous face…

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, I'll SO make Chouji and Ayame canon! She's older but it's so adorable! She'll cook for him for every meal! *Squeee~*

Tenten threw the kunai behind her. She was relieved to see the kunai lodged to a tree and not to a bluish lady with long hair and broken bones.

"Damn," she muttered. "I shouldn't have watched that stupid movie."

The night before, Sakura invited her, Ino and Hinata for a little sleepover. They started their night with stories and updates on their love lives (Naruto remained painfully clueless, Sasuke was still cold and refused to ask her out or accept her invitations to a date, Shikamaru was caught between Ino, Temari and Shiho and as for Neji, he treated Tenten as nothing more than a friend). Before sleeping, they watched the movie Ino brought. Not one of them had watched The Grudge 3 before and they all agreed to watch it, saying that they were tired of chick flicks. The other girls slept fine but Tenten was up all night, sure that Kayako was lurking in the shadows, waiting to break her neck.

Tenten sighed and got her weapon back, trying not to look behind her in fear that the lady was crawling towards her.

"Tenten."

The kunoichi screamed and threw the weapon behind her again. Looking behind her, she saw Lee holding her weapon and giving her a bewildered look.

"Are you okay?" he asked slowly.

Disoriented, she nodded and claimed her weapon. "Sorry, Lee. I'm kind of jumpy today."

"You watched it, didn't you?" Lee said in an accusatory tone.

"I didn't know it was that scary, okay?" Tenten shot back.

Lee shook his head disapprovingly. "Neji would be disappointed in you. He'll say this would get in the way of your training."

"Don't tell him," Tenten pleaded. "He'll think I'm such a child and say I'm not as mature as he thought."

An amused smile made its way to Lee's face. "I didn't know you cared what Neji thought of you."

"I don't. I mean, of course I do. He's my friend. And would you like it if someone thought you were immature?" Tenten said.

"Everybody already thinks I'm immature."

"No, they think you're weird."

"Does that ever stop me from being myself?"

Tenten stomped off, annoyed. Sometimes, Lee could be sadistic in this innocent kind of way.

She froze when she heard a low throaty croak she learned in the movie that was the signal Kayako was present.

"I don't wanna die!" she screamed, hurling random weapons everywhere and running at the same time.

"Jeez, Tenten, you have it bad!" Lee called behind her in between boisterous laughs.

The weapons mistress sulked as she slowed down to a walk. If Neji was there, she would die of embarrassment. Not only would he think she was childish, but he might even smirk at her dorky act.

Just because I'm afraid Neji would see me being that stupid doesn't mean I have feelings for the guy. Silly Lee!

When Tenten reached the training areas and saw no sign of Neji, she prepared her scrolls so she would be ready when he came, though she is a little puzzled. The Hyuuga was usually the earliest among them, even being the one who pesters her to come earlier.

She was sharpening a blunt kunai when from her peripheral vision, she saw something that resembled a human body move.

"Hello?" she called. "Neji, is that you?"

No response. She shrugged it off, thinking it must be her imagination.

Seconds later, she saw someone move again.

"I'm not kidding!" she called out angrily. "Who's out there?"

Her frustration grew when nobody heeded her call.

Okay, this time, it's not my imagination.

Tenten paid close attention to where she saw, or at least, thinks she saw someone move. Lee was her top culprit. Gai's favorite student could be as mean as he wants, Tenten discovered. Blood drained from her face when she finally saw the object of her annoyance.

"You have got to be kidding me," she muttered, still scared out of her wits.

Trudging its way towards her is someone wearing long robes and whose long dark hair covered its entire face all the way down to its knees. He/She was moving slowly and looked like he/she was limping. The manner of walking and its entire appearance closely resembled, as Tenten observed, Kayako from the movie.

"Aw, hell no," Tenten said, still frozen by shock.

Then she chuckled nervously. "Lee, this isn't funny, okay?"

She ignored the fact that Lee did not have long hair, did not wear long robes and would not carry the joke this far. Lee may be sort of annoying but he was aware that Tenten was scared to death by the movie.

She was replied by a sound similar to Kayako's death rattle.

"Stay away!" she cried, grabbing a shuriken from her weapons pouch. "Think you could take me on?"

Tenten was horrified to see that the apparition barely flinched.

Ohmygodohmygodohmygod, she's gonna break my bones like what she did to Jake. This is bad, I'm gonna die!

The Kayako-like figure continued to limp towards her. Tenten threw the shuriken, which lodged itself in the person's knee. Its body bent forward and let out a pained moan. Tenten almost laughed at the sight. She was a skilled kunoichi. And her opponent was a defenseless ghost? Puh-lease.

"Bring it ON," Tenten challenged. "Ghost vs. Kunoichi, bitch! Imma kick yo blue ass right here and right now!"

She took one of her scrolls and summoned several weapons. After which, she tossed some of the weapons at the apparition.

"No freaking way," she said.

Her opponent managed to dodge all her weapons and even put up a fighting stance.

Tenten was baffled. Kayako is a ninja?

"O-Okay," she stammered. "So you're pretty good yourself. B-But what about this?

Tenten summoned more weapons. 'Kayako' dodged them and even managed to deflect some. There was something familiar about her fighting stance, Tenten noticed. Regardless, 'she' was still good. Even with a shuriken in 'her' knee.

"Oh, come on!" Tenten cried after she was almost all out of chakra. "I didn't even go to the where the curse was born!"

Tenten watched the previous The Grudge movies and she was aware that the only people who were being haunted or killed were those who were dumb enough to go to the place of death or where the curse was reborn. Or got too involved. She did neither of those things.

"Why the hell are you trying to kill me?" Tenten continued. "I wasn't the only one who watched the damn movie!"

The figure moved closer. Tenten was starting to give up.

"Okay," she said. "Fine. You're so bent on killing me, then fine, break my bones. But come on! This is so unfair! This is the lamest death ever! Can't you even have pity on me enough to let me die an honorable death? Oh, I could see it now! Someone comes along and takes me to a hospital. Tsunade-sama will proclaim me death on arrival. Cause of death? Fucking hallucinations that broke every damn bone in my body! Not a war or an ambush; not even a freaking fever!"

Tenten sulked. "You can't even let me live long enough for me to fall in love nor have some kids! You know what? You are the meanest ghost I know."

Then 'Kayako' lifted 'her' head. Tenten almost collapsed when she saw the pale eyes she knew so well from the curtain of hair.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Neji growled. "Nor do I understand why you had the intent of killing me, but would you so kindly remove your weapon from my knee?"

NO. I was afraid of Neji? NOOOOO.

Tenten stared at her teammate. I…am royally screwed.

"Tenten."

Hurriedly, she took out the roll of bandages she always carried along with her and kneeled down next to Neji.

"Neji, I am so, so sorry," she said, avoiding his eyes. "See, I watched this dumb horror movie. I thought you were Kayako."

She said the last part ever so softly.

Neji, however, seemed to get past his foul mood and now felt nothing but amusement.

"Why were you walking like that anyway? Your hair covering your face and limping and you were moaning or something…" she muttered.

"I had a stomachache," Neji said, explaining his moaning noises and why he was bending over, which was why his hair covered his face.

"And your limp?"

"Made even more obvious with the shuriken." Neji pointed to the bloody weapon.

As Neji explained, Tenten was blushing fiercely. She almost wished Neji would've just seen her get scared by Lee, instead of this.

"And what did you say?" Neji asked, still very amused. "You thought I was Kayako?"

"Shut up!" Tenten hissed. "I watched the movie, alright?"

Neji seemed to be considering something. "Hmm. Perhaps you need a break."

Tenten looked up. Never did she hear the wonderful five-lettered word from Neji's mouth.

"I should take you to eat to calm your nerves," Neji said, his face empty of any expression. "Come on."

As Tenten stood up, her emotions were still ruled over by shock and embarrassment.

It took her a while to realize that Neji's fingers were entwined with hers and that he said moments ago, "You won't have to be afraid again."

A/N: BLECH. Fluff ending. I'm still prone to fluff endings. Neji was sorta OOC here, wasn't he? I tried to avoid it by making him say 'You won't have to be afraid again' and not 'Don't worry, I'm here', which would RUIN this story. But I liked the ending. I just need something right for him to say. This was done on a whim but I should've done this better. Thanks for reading!