Hey, so here is chapter two out of either four or five (still working on the ending). Just a few heads up: I used a term in here that is in original form to the manga and I liked it so it's there to stay. Oinins = pursuer ninja; and for some reason my autocorrect try's to change Tenten into tenets and Tsunade into stunned. I proof-read but if I've missed any speak up and I will change it. As always, I don't own Naruto.

2 Years Later…

Tenten awoke to the sound of playful yelling. She got up, made some coffee, and sat out on her small porch and watched as some kids played on the beach. She had arrived here around a year and a half ago and was immediately taken in by the local innkeeper. Everyone called her Aunt Vi and when Tenten first arrived at the village, Vi saw the young girl walking down the trading road looking tired and homeless and practically swooped her up and gave her a job at the inn. This was a small village just north of the one she visited as a ninja and was well secluded. She later found a small, run-down beach shack on the south side of the village that needed a lot of work done, but for some reason felt like home the moment she stepped foot in it. Tenten couldn't have been happier. From that moment on her life had revolved around working at the inn, fixing up her beach house, training in secret in the woods, and chasing off the occasional bad apples that would find their way to the village to wreak havoc. since there is a popular trade route running through the village to accompany their fishermen there's bound to be the occasional criminal that thinks they found a honey-hole. Tenten was actually grateful for this. These occurrences kept her developing shinobi skills sharp and since she was a missing ninja, she knew she might one day need those skills.

Tenten had changed significantly over the past two years in both strength and looks. For one, she stopped putting her hair up and let her wavy hair grow down to the small of her back. Two, she had long since abandoned her old ninja outfits (more like outgrown). She now wears a long, beige wrap around her torso that is strapless and comes down just above her belly button and a white shawl wrapped around her hips with a thin piece of beige cloth holding it on like a belt. While more ostentatious than what she prefers, it was something more traditional to her surroundings and more comfortable considering the climate. The third thing thats changed is her eyes. A year and a half of this peaceful life has created a calm, serene persona that she now unconsciously wears. A year and a half of waking up to the sight of the ocean gently rolling onto the sand has washed away the chaos that once enveloped her life. The only thing that remained the same, however, was a small silver necklace adorned with a yin pendant. I wonder how Hinata is doing? before she could continue with her thoughts, Aunt Vi came walking up to her.

"Hey T" she stated with her normal jovial attitude.

"Good morning. It's going to be a beautiful day today" Tenten replied, still a little lost in watching the waves.

"Yea, I have a favor to ask. Could you manage the inn from, say, 6 to 10 tonight?" Aunt Vi asked excitedly.

"Sure, what's the occasion?"

"Oh, ya know, hot date and all," she continued to squirm around like an excited eight-year-old and Tenten sweatdropped.

"Sure, I would be happy to." Tenten barely got completely out before Aunt Vi jumped her with a deadly hug,

"THANK YOU SO MUCH!" She exclaimed loud enough to make the children on the beach stare just before running off towards the inn.

"Looks like I'm cutting training short tonight" Tenten said to herself and continued watching the tide slowly roll in.

Konoha 1.5 Days Earlier

"Your mission is to track down and eliminate these missing mist ninja. They are responsible for a myriad of heinous crimes in the mist before going rouge, not to mention killing one of our own. This is a B-ranked mission so the three of you should be capable of handling thing. Be ready to leave by sundown." Tsunade finished

"Rodger!" The three ninja stated before quickly exiting her office. Since the departure of Tenten, Team Gai has had a personal vendetta for getting stronger. Since Sakura had neither of her teammates, she was assigned a temporary roll to fill the gap in team Gai's numbers as well as to give her the field experience necessary for training a good medical ninja. Lee was quite happy over the decision, but they still held a mutual hope that their teammates would return to them one day. The three-man team had entered the Chunnin exams a year prior and had all come out successful.

They met at the gates at sundown and immediately headed south. Not long after leaving Sakura spoke up,

"Have you guys ever been to the Southern Reaches before?"

Lee spoke up, "Yes, around three years ago. Haven't you?"

"No, the closest I've been is to the Wave country, but thats still a long ways away." Sakura stated, recalling the memories of the bridge.

Neji chimed in, "The climate is similar to the Wave country but the geology of the coastline is vastly different. There are more cliffs and headlands bordering the ocean with secluded beaches and coves dotting the shore."

"I see, and the missing ninja want to use that complicated territory to throw off potential pursuers." Sakura added

"Yes, but there are also some fairly popular trade routes running along the coastline and through the small fishing villages who utilize these routes. It would be child's play for them to utilize the complex landscape for protection while still assuming the rolls of successful bandits." Neji concluded

Sakura nodded slightly and the trio unconsciously sped up.

The Inn

"All right Auntie, your free to go now," Tenten announced as she walked in for her extra shift.

"Perfect timing! Okay, we only have two rooms available, the large one on the second floor and the single on the balcony AND rumor has it that there's been a couple of bandits just south of us so stay alert for people who may have been robbed and make sure they get taken care of." Aunt Vi rambled in one breath. Tenten swore she had an extra set of lungs, but the bandits perked her interest.

"Did someone come in after a bandit attack?" Tenten asked

"Yes, they should be coming down for dinner in, oh, about a half an hour. The poor young couple is all shaken up."

"Okay, well I'll take care of everything here. Have fun on your 'hot date'." They both giggled as Aunt Vi all but ran out of the room. Tenten was happy for her, but the idea of these bandits being so close to their village dominated her thoughts. Not long into her pondering the young couple came down.

"Hello, my name is T and I'm going to be watching the inn for a few hours" Tenten said with a soft smile, putting the young woman at ease. All three entered the kitchen and Tenten noted the bits of color on the woman's hands. Paint.

"Are you an artist?" Tenten asked.

"Yes." the woman said, a small smile appearing on her face.

"I know this may be a lot to ask, but I'm a weapons specialist and I'm normally the first line of defense for our little village. Could you possibly draw a picture of the bandits that attacked you? It would be very helpful to know what they look like in case they come wandering into the village." Tenten asked. The woman looked at her in amazement, then ran up to her room. Thinking she had crossed a line, Tenten was about to apologize to the woman's husband when she ran back into the kitchen with a sketchbook and a box full of supplies.

"It would be an honor to help put those bastards in their place." She nearly exclaimed with a rebellious grin. An hour later the woman pulled the paper out of her notebook and handed it to Tenten. She was immediately in awe over the impeccable detail. She also expected just pencil, but this was done in full color to the point where it almost leaped off the page.

"This is incredible." Tenten said quietly, still staring at every little detail the picture held.

"I spared no detail for this piece, that is exactly what they looked like as of a day and a half ago. Please, if they get anywhere near this village, beat the crap outta them." she said the last part crudely, making Tenten smirk.

"Consider it done."

Team Gai

The trio arrived at a small village around 11pm and decided to stay at the small inn on the outskirts. Upon entering they noticed an elderly woman with the "youthful" energy level of Lee radiating off her in pulses.

Once she noticed their headbands, the old lady chimed, "Welcome, are you ninja that were sent to hunt down the bandits terrorizing our town?" like it was the most normal conversation starter in the world. All three perked up and Neji spoke,

"Possibly. We're here searching for specific targets." before he could continue the elderly innkeeper interrupted energetically,

"We have a young couple here who was attacked by the bandits and one of them is an artist AND she drew a picture of the bandits. Let me show you!" She sprinted off into the kitchen, and the others followed. They were obviously their targets because of how well the photos matched the hand-drawn picture and the scratched headbands they donned. "This is them" Sakura concluded, and the elderly woman smiled.

"Thank goodness. my you children must be exhausted after traveling all the way from Konoha. I have a room on the second floor perfect for you two boys and a smaller balcony room that should suite a young lady like you. Go get some rest and don't forget breakfast is served at 7am sharp! Oh, and call me Aunt Vi. Everybody does."

"Thank you" the three said unanimously as they walked up to their rooms for a good nights sleep.

The next morning Tenten headed towards the inn to help Aunt Vi with breakfast. The night before was slow so she had plenty of time to contemplate the bandit problem. They were obviously missing ninja, which meant they could have oinins sent after them, which put her at risk of discovery. She decided that after her morning shift she would start her hunt and hopefully take them out. She walked in about 6:30 and Aunt Vi greeted her.

"Good morning T, you would not believe what happened last night after you left, I told you I was getting a feeling and that you should have stayed but oh no you just had to be all mature and go home to slee-"

"AUNT VI! Your ranting." Tenten said rather loudly

"Oh, well there are some ninja here that are going to take care of the bandits that attacked that young couple and they're the same age as you AND that one boy is kinda cute and possibly single and-"

"WHAT!" Tenten all but screamed. "Are they staying here?"

"Yes, in fact they should be down for breakfast anytime now."

Tenten was about to ask more about where they were from when she heard from behind her,

"Tenten"

Everything fell silent and Tenten could feel her heart drop out of her chest. Even after two years she still recognized that deep, smooth voice. Slowly she turned around and made eye contact with what was once her dream, but now exists as her worst nightmare.

"Neji" Tenten breathed as she took in his appearance. He was taller, stronger, his hair had long bangs that framed his matured face, but mostly his eyes were filled with pure shock. Before he could so much as speak Tenten was running away and out the door. He immediately came back to his senses and pursued her.