A/n: welcome to Scandalous! Domo to all you readers! snuggles I've been writing this fic, and it started to suck so I decided to start ALL over again. So here 'tis, the new and improved, "Scandalous"!

Scandalous: by Shikanaz

Chapter One

"Help…," called the usually-tranquil-but-now-hoarse voice of Tenten Tanaka. She walked…er, limped…into the Konoha Hospital with Neji's arm around shoulders. He was unconscious. Behind her was her sensei, Gai, with Lee on his back, who was also out of it. "Help us, please," she repeated, a little more stable but still virtually drained of all her chakra, let alone energy.

The receptionist's eyes widened at the dangerously close to dead nin that were in front of her. she immediately pressed the pager that was clipped to the white belt around her slim hips.

"Hang in there, Tenten." Gai said to his barely-cognizant student. "Just a little longer, I promise."

A girl with long pink locks pulled into a braid midway down her back shuffled into the lobby. "Oh my God," she whispered, her eyes darting from Tenten, to Neji, to Gai and to Lee. "What happened?"

Tenten let out a small whimper, and then collapsed onto marble floor, landing on top of her boyfriend. That caused Sakura turn around and yell, "Gimme three stretchers, pronto!" Her voice echoed down the pasty hallways of the hospital. She then turned back around and looked at Tenten, who was still sprawled out on the floor, while her breaths came out in large, unhealthy heaves.

"You can go home if you want, Gai-sensei…" Sakura said to the jounin, biting the fleshy pad on the palm-side of her thumb. "They'll be fine soon. A week at best." She knew it was hard for him to leave his students, especially Lee, but she also knew it was best.

Oddly, he nodded, not even putting up a fight about how he didn't want to. He let Lee down off of his back and into Sakura's arms, then walked out of the hospital.

Now it had been a week. Team six had fully recovered from their mission, and could leave the hospital.

Tenten idly made her way down the blindingly bright corridor of Konoha Hospital, which had been she and her teammates home for the last couple of days. she was tossing a red apple back and forth between her right and left hands and humming a cheery tune.

When she stopped, she was infront of room 3, her boyfriend's room.

"Neji-kun," she called, knocking softly on the cherry-wood door. "You up?" when she didn't get an answer, she got a little…just a little worried. She bent down and peeked through the keyhole.

"What're you doing?" said Neji, who wasn't in the room, but right behind her. She jumped. "Oh…I was bringing you your breakfast." She stood upright and turned to face him, her arm outstretched to hand him the apple. "Eat up." Neji blinked, activating his Byakugan. "I already ate." He looked straight through the door and into the room.

Tenten raised a brown eyebrow. "What're you—"

"I'm checking to see if I left anything before I leave."

With a sigh, his girlfriend nodded. 'Was Neji trying to shut me up?' that had been happening a lot lately. He began to blow her off for meetings with his "clan." Yeah right. He was probably cheating.

'No!' Tenten mentally shrieked, out of both anger—because the though of Neji cheating just grinded her gears—and shock—because she couldn't believe she was thinking something as implausible as that.

"Tenten-san! Neji-kun!" called a voice from the other end of the corridors.

Of course, it was Lee. The other two-thirds of team 6 turned their heads to the right. Rock Lee was jogging to them, in his usual embarrassing (not to him, but to the others around) green unitard, his left arm in a cast.

A smile crept its way onto Tenten's cherry-pink lips. "Hi Lee!" she waved enthusiastically while Neji 'tsked and walked in the opposite direction, towards the exit. "Hey wait Neji," Tenten called to him. Neji didn't even turn around. With his 360 vision he could see Tenten's saddened expression. She sighed heavily, the same way she did when he had cut her off.

"Are you still coming to my Welcome Back dinner tomorrow?" hopefulness gleamed in her amber eyes, but at the same time, so did despair. Neji turned around and, for the first days in what it seemed like weeks, smiled at her. "Let me just go home and talk to my uncle about it." His smile was…genuine. Wow. "I'm sure he'll say yes. I'll be there, I promise." and with that, he walked out of the door.

It was a couple of moments before anyone spoke again.

"Oh yes, that is right!" Lee suddenly said, turning to Tenten and grinning. "To that dinner…do you mind if I bring Sakura?" the look in his eyes…something said he thought she was going to say no. But that wasn't so. With a nod, Tenten patted Lee's shoulder. "Sure thing Lee. I did say everyone should have a date anyway."

Koji Tanaka's eyes lit up when he heard the front door close and the clicking of shinobi sandals in the foyer.

"Daddy! I'm back,"

He walked out of the kitchen, only to meet his daughter's smiling face that he missed so much. "There's my angel." He opened his arms and Tenten snuggled herself into them. "I missed you," Koji closed his arms around her back. "I missed you too. How are you feeling? And how are Neji and Lee?" Tenten wriggled free and began to walk her way up the spiral-staircase. "Feeling fine, just gonna take a catnap. Neji and Lee? They're perfect." She walked all the way upstairs with a grin, leaving her father clueless.

'Thank God for my only-child-ness.' The brunette thought to herself as she collapsed back-first onto her bed. The pink comforter wrapped its silkiness around her, causing her sigh out of the satisfaction of being back in her own bed. She had spent way too many nights in that uncomfortable cause-of-back-stiffness hospital bed. Her eyes subconsciously closed and she drifted off to sleep, only for her cell to ring two seconds after that.

"Ugh…" Tenten moaned in exasperation. But when the chirping wouldn't stop, she had no choice to reach her pail arm over to her nightstand where her sidekick, that was, may I mention, still hooked to the charger, continued to chirp a vibrate. She hit speaker.

"Helloooooo?"

"Umm hi…" Neji's voice sounded cautious…and a little frightened. "I'm sorry, babe, was I interrupting a nap?"

"Yessss…" Tenten closed her eyes, removing her white shirt, then her green pants.

"Sorry. And I'm sorry about this too."

The moment he said that, she sat up. 'I should've known he wasn't serious when he "promised" to come to that dinner.' But she decided to play his game, just in case that wasn't what he was referring too. But she was pretty sure it was. "What're you talking about, Neji?"

The Hyuuga swallowed hard. "I'm not going to be able to make the dinner. It's a Hyuuga emergency. I'm really sorry."

Growling, Tenten fisted the silk sheet. She expected Neji to say something. After a couple seconds, she looked at the screen. Call ended. Her head hit the pillow faster than you could say "damn." She wasn't tired anymore. All she wanted to do now was…cut something. Hey! That was it!

She climbed out of her bed and looked at the digital clock on her phone. 10:27am. 'I have about two and a half hours before work.' Walking into her bathroom she removed her bra and panties, started the shower, and stepped in.

"…so we'll have the decision in two months, you said, Lord Hiashi?"

A brown-haired, lavender-eyed man looking in his mid-forties nodded to the group of men with the same physical features as his own.

"Yes. As a matter of fact, I will talk to him right now."

With her Byakugan activated, Hinata looked through the drywall and into the parlor. Her father was talking to her aunts and uncles and cousins and other family members.

'No…I wont…' Tears were coming to her eyes. She couldn't believe the decision her father had just made. She couldn't! I mean…with…him? But…that was…no! It was wrong! She had to go warn him before they noticed she was there. I mean, she wasn't they only one with the Byakugan after all.

When she finally stopped shaking, she made her way down the hall to the bedroom of…him. The person she would have to….no. Never.

Hinata raised her fist to the door, but before she knocked it was opened. Neji stood before her.

"What is it, Hinata? Is something the matter?" his face was rather concerned, much different than the hatred he used to hold for her. "Why do you look so…disoriented?" when he reached out to touch her shoulder, she moved back.

"N-Neji…I need to talk to you." Tears were coming to your eyes. "Quick…before m-my father comes."

'Hmm…' thought Tenten, sliding her fingertips up a long, sharp, and I'm talking sharp sword. 'It still needs sharpening…' "So I can kill Neji." She giggled devilishly.

When the entrance bell to her weapon shop sounded, she looked up. A smile replaced her evil smirk.

"Well if it isn't Naruto Uzumaki,"

A blonde male shinobi with big ocean eyes was smiling back at her, with his arms folded across his chest. "Hey Tenten." The brunette waved. "Okay listen I need—"

"Kunai, shuriken, katana…yeah, yeah." She shook her head, chuckling. "You're my best customer, Naruto-kun. I know you." The blonde shrugged. "What can I say?"

For the twenty minutes he was there, Naruto did much more than weapon-shop. He shared a nice conversation with one of his best friends, Tenten, like he did everytime he came to Tanaka's Weapons.

"Oh, Naruto! I almost forgot!" Tenten hopped over the pink wooden counter to tap her fellow chounin on the shoulder. He turned around to meet her gaze. "I'm having a Welcome Back dinner at my place tomorrow night at seven. Will you come?"

Raising and eyebrow, Naruto spoke. "Welcome back for…what?" he began to laugh softly. Tenten pinched him. "Welcoming me back from the hospital…duh!" I mean really? What else? When Naruto's eyes turned soft, she looked at him like he was crazy. "W-what? You wanna buy something else?" she tensed defensively, obviously saying "Naruto-kun, you're making me feel uncomfortable."

"We have to have dates, don't we?"

"Uh…yeah. Why?"

He paused, as if contemplating whether to say what he was going to say or to just keep it to himself. He knew Tenten was short tempered, and this would probably give him a red fist mark on his cheek, but he figured she knew and to her it would just be stating the obvious.

"Tenten…did Neji say he would go with you to the dinner?" his eyes held a certain sympathy that only his could hold. Tenten smiled. "Yes, but there was a change of plans."

"Oh…"

Silence. Ten seconds later; silence. They just stood there staring at each other until Tenten spoke. "Listen…Naruto-kun, I know you're concerned but—"

"But you love him, right?"

"Yeah…" she began to gather his three kunai, seven shrunken and one katana from the back room, but left the door open so they could talk. Naruto sighed and hopped onto the pink wooden counter. "Every one of your friends think he's," he looked over his shoulder and they're eyes met. Tenten's were watery and sad, while Naruto's were stern and serious. "…cheating on you."

While placing his weapons in a wooden box, the brunette took a deep breath. "I was thinking about that…but you have to know…Neji wouldn't.."

The entrance bell sounded, and a male trotted lazily in. his dark eyes were half lidded, and his no-lighter hair was pulled into a tight ponytail. Naruto and Tenten spoke at once.

"Hey Shika,"

The male simply waved and walked up to the counter. The other nin stared at him. "You're…buying something?" asked the kunoichi. she eyed him suspiciously. "Ok look, if you're a spy from the Sound Village or something just say so. some of Konoha's finest are standing right here." She twisted a strand of sexy auburn hair around her index finger (Neji had always told her she looked better with her hair down) while Naruto nodded in agreement. "Yeah…me and Tenten will totally kick your ass. Believe it!"

Shikamaru chuckled. "Calm down," he said in his strained, lazy voice. He was looking directly at Tenten now, who's eyebrow was arched and her glossed lips were slightly open. "I just want to buy a couple of shuriken."

"Oh…" said the other brunette in a quiet but still disturbed voice. She handed Naruto his box and turned to walk into the back room, but Naruto poked her beautifully sculpted back. "I'm gonna take these outside." Without turning, she nodded and walked all the way into the room. Outside was the training area that went with her store. The whole lot together was ten big, space-consuming acres, five for the store, and five for the grounds.

"So how many shuriken would you like, Nara?" she pulled open a drawer and stared down at all the blade and daggers. Heaven. Tenten had always had a nag for cutting things, and when she, Lee and Neji became a team, Gai-sensei had forced it out of her by training her into becoming one of the most dangerous weapon nin in The Land of Fire, along with her parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, and so on.

Shikamaru dragged his pupils to the top left corner of his lazy eyes, considering the older girl's question. "Four I guess."

"Kay," she replied in a cheery tone, wrapping one shuriken around each of her fingers, not counting her thumb. "You want them in a box?" she turned off the light and walked out of the room. Shikamaru was at first looking at her face, but lost all control and let them drift down her barely-covered body. "N-no.."

The weapon mistress giggled. "You okay over there?" she flicked her hand and the blades went flying. Shikamaru didn't even have time to think before they lodged themselves into the wooden pole and inch away from his face. He gaped at her. "Were you trying to kill me?!" as a reflex, the Nara grabbed her shoulders and began to shake her.

"Hey! Shikamaru stop!" she yelped, trying to wriggle free. He stopped, but still held her shoulders. Both shinobi took the time to gaze into each other's eyes. Dark amber meeting soft grey. Tenten felt Shikamaru's grip loosen, but he still didn't let go. They both blushed.

"Troublesome woman…" mumbled Shikamaru, letting go of her and turning away so that the pink on his cheeks wouldn't be noticed. Giggling, Tenten walked beside him and plucked the shuriken from the pole with ease.

"Here."

"Hmm?" the Nara looked up and noticed she was tossing them at least a foot in the air and catching them repeatedly. "Stop that," he scolded, grabbing the stars before they could land in her palm. "That is really dangerous." He began to walk towards the door, when Tenten cleared her throat as a sign that he was forgetting something.

"Whaaaaaat?" he dragged out of his throat.

Tenten crossed her arm over her chest. "You didn't pay." She raised an eyebrow.

"I was going to take them outside and train a bit before I do."

Tenten shrugged. "Kay," she always let her customers use the weapons outside before they bought them, just to make sure they were top-notch. "Whatever."

He walked out of the door and the brunette perched herself on the counter. She was thinking about her dateless situation. There were two bachelors at the moment: Naruto and…Shikamaru.

A/n: finished finally! This is my first fanfic…so review plz! Byeeeee!