Final installment to this oneshot-gone-wild. ;) This is a darker series, as I'm sure you've realized lol. :P DMHG - The falling in love bits were also more subtle - I think Neji and Tenten fulfilled each other's "love and belonging" need (refer to Maslow's hierarchy of needs), which is what leads to their bond in this story. :)

Naruto and its characters do not belong to me. This fic is rated for mature audiences only. Read on at your own discretion.


Nights in the Sleepless Town

Part 3

vi.

It was mid-autumn of 1984, and Neji couldn't be happier.

Things were going well with Tenten - they had settled into some sort of a routine. In the day, he worked and she studied at school; at night, she worked, and he visited her, alternating between her apartment and workplace. Sometimes, they went out to dinner, or strolled in the park.

Being in a relationship wasn't as bad as Neji initially thought it would be - it still distracted him from work, but Tenten was a welcome distraction, and he saw more in the comfort he found in her than the burden of living up to his uncle's expectations.

Once, he brought her to the family cemetery, and introduced her to his parents. (Tenten showed him to her parents' graves, and claimed that they were even now.)

Another time, they went looking in the various wards around Tokyo, and talked about what they wanted in their dream homes. (Tenten wanted large windows and plenty of sunlight in their home; Neji wanted large rooms, to avoid the feeling of being constricted.)

They had plenty of time, he thought, as he held her hand and walked through bustling shopping districts with her. Times like this, he could forget that she wasn't placing herself in the hands of faceless men, who could possibly mistreat her as if she were worth nothing.

Neji savored every moment of when she was by his side. She made him feel safe, and he hoped he was the same to her in return.


vii.

Tenten didn't show up at the restaurant where they were supposed to meet, one night in early winter, 1984.

It was a few days before Christmas; the streets were bustling, and clouds hung low over the city. Street lamps shone down on the sidewalks, illuminating pedestrians huddled in long coats and fur-lined boots. Neji sat by the window of Tenten's favorite restaurant - she happened to be very partial towards Chinese food - and apologized to the waiter for the umpteenth time, saying that he was sure his date would show up in another ten minutes.

Tenten never did appear.

Worried, now, Neji hurried out of the restaurant and to the nearest payphone, dialing her home number, a sequence he knew by heart. No one answered. He swore and took the train to Kabukicho, striding into Lucky Konoha with a gust of cool air at his back.

The girls there said she hadn't shown up the entire day - she wasn't on duty. He asked Sakura if she knew where else Tenten would be - she shook her head and gave him an apologetic look.

Had something happened to her?

Neji took a taxi to her apartment. It was quiet when he arrived at her door, and entered with her spare key - the windows were shut, and everything had been neatly put away - no sign of her presence.

It had not occurred to him that he knew the meaning of fear, until he searched the streets surrounding Tenten's apartment, and saw no trace of her. Had she been kidnapped? There had been cases on the rise, and Neji had not thought about them until now.

It was with great reluctance, and a heavy heart, that he trudged home, to the family compounds in Meguro, where his family had lived for generations.

The wet chill seeped into his jacket. Neji ignored it; he had no interest in paying attention to himself as he weaved through narrow streets and between brick walls. Winter had stolen the leaves of the shrubs lining the sidewalks; all he saw were barren branches under yellow streetlamps, and the shadows that fell over the stairs by the low-rise apartment buildings.

It was almost by chance that he glimpsed a figure huddled on a set of concrete stairs just a block away from the Hyuuga estate. On every other day, Neji would pass the homeless by without giving them a second look; right now, however, he was worried about Tenten, and his eyes skimmed the streets, hoping to see some hint of her dark hair.

There was a very subtle movement just as Neji walked by the homeless person. He (or she) raised his head beneath that hooded jacket, and in the next moment, the person was barreling towards him with an unsteady gait.

Neji felt himself tense, felt his heart quicken. He had not expected to be robbed this close to home.

His body moved into a defensive stance from the depths of his memory.

When his attacker was three feet away, he heard his name carry on the wind, "Neji!"

It sounded undeniably like Tenten. Neji froze, stared at the lithe figure, that was slender and a little shorter than he was.

Tenten crashed into his chest; her arms wrapped around his waist, and she buried her face in his shoulder.

She was shaking, he realized.

"Tenten?" he asked, weak in the knees with immense relief. He pulled the hood of her jacket away from his shoulder, and froze at the sight of dried blood smeared down her temple.

She tugged the hood back over her head, and he had to pry her body off from him, so tight was her hold around his back.

"Tenten - talk to me. What happened?" he pressed, his voice low and urgent.

She stared back at him with large eyes; her pupils were dilated, and she was pale, lips pressed into a thin line.

"Take me home with you," she pleaded, casting a furtive look around herself. "Please."

He didn't urge her for more explanations, instead slipping his hand into hers and striding towards his apartment, on the second floor of the family-owned building.

When they were safe within his home (Tenten had stood by him while he locked his door), Neji turned the radiator on and sat her down in front of it, rubbing her hands in an attempt to calm her down.

"What happened?" he asked quietly, peering into her eyes.

She wet her lips with her tongue, and glanced at the windows, as if she were expecting something to show up in them. "I was- I was so scared, Neji."

"Start from the beginning, Tenten. What happened?" He leaned in to kiss her on the lips; at that, she inhaled sharply, and blinked, before pressing her face into his shoulder.

"Someone followed me home last night," she began haltingly, her voice muffled. Neji felt his insides clench.

"From Kabukicho?" he asked. Unease snaked through his veins, and his stomach turned. "When did you find out about it?"

Tenten shuddered, and clung to him. "When I left to go to school this afternoon. He- he followed me."

Neji grimaced, rubbed her back. "Did you lose him?"

She seemed to shrink into herself, and clung to his jacket. "I- I thought I did. He was still waiting for me when class ended. I was so scared," she whispered, barely audible. "He caught me and- and I thought I was going to die."

"You aren't going to die," he told her fiercely, furious that someone would dare do this to her. "I won't let anyone hurt you."

Slowly, she allowed him to remove her jacket. Neji drew a sharp breath when he saw the faint red of bruises around her arms, and her throat.

If he had been scared before, it surely wasn't as intense as the fear he felt now, that he could have lost her for real.

"How did you escape?" he asked, just over a whisper. He wanted to hug her tight, but he was afraid of injuring her further. Instead, he settled for brushing stray hair away from her face. "What did he do to you? Did he-"

She shook her head quickly, looking down. "No. Thank kami for that."

He wanted to undress Tenten, to check that she really was okay, but held back, pulling her against his chest instead. "I'm glad you're fine," he said.

She nodded. They fell into silence; Neji stroked her limp hair and gingerly ran his fingers over her arms, pressing kisses to her face. At length, Tenten continued her story.

"I- I was just coming out of class when he approached," she said. "He's one of my regulars. He wanted to know why I didn't have sex with him anymore."

Neji grit his teeth. Anger swum in his gut, prowling like a caged tiger. "One of those you thought you could trust?"

Tenten dipped her chin. "I stopped allowing it after I met you."

At that, she blushed, and Neji nuzzled her ear. "I satisfy you," he whispered.

She lowered her eyes, but did not deny his statement. "Anyway, he kept asking for more," she continued quietly. "I think he got frustrated lately - he- he didn't seem mentally stable last night."

"Yet you entertained him?" he asked incredulously, tightening his arms around her.

"I... didn't know what he'd planned," Tenten admitted with a shudder. Shadows crossed her eyes, and she pressed her cheek into his collarbone. "I wasn't expecting him at the university campus... He attacked me as I was leaving to go meet you."

Neji frowned, looking her over. "In plain sight?"

She shook her head. "I was... trying to run away from him by taking a- a shortcut to the train station, but he caught up, and-"

Tenten gulped, touched her arms.

He wasn't sure if he really wanted to know, if she wanted to relive those moments, but Tenten seemed to want to get it off her chest.

"He- he grabbed my arms and forced me against a wall - it was a deserted part of the school, behind some buildings." She grimaced. "Then he forced a kiss on me, and when I tried to refuse it, he-"

Neji swallowed, closed his eyes. Her story was getting worse by the minute.

"He strangled me, until I was gasping," Tenten said brokenly. "Then he kissed me, and his tongue..."

The fury in his gut grew, by twofold, then four. She was looking a little green and shivering when Neji glanced at her.

"You don't have to go through those memories again," he told her. "Whatever he did to you, you're still mine."

She slid him a grateful look. "I... It feels better when you know, Neji. I don't want to hide it from you."

He couldn't argue against that, and steeled himself to listen to the rest of her story.

"So... I- I screamed when he released my neck," Tenten continued, in stops and starts. "He was angry and- and slammed my head against the wall. I couldn't see straight for a few moments, and he p-pushed his hand into my pants."

Another shiver rippled through her body. He stared at her in horror, and glanced down, as if merely looking would tell him if she was hurt.

"A group of guys came along then - he was startled by them, and I fled," Tenten finished shakily. "I went to the nearest store and bought a jacket and hid in it... I forgot that we were supposed to meet tonight."

"You came here," Neji said, to complete her story. "I should've given you a key to my apartment."

She looked a little torn at that. "I- I thought I saw your family around. I didn't want to get closer - they don't know who I am."

"You're someone very important to me," he told her harshly. "They'll have to accept you."

Tenten sent him a wobbly smile. "Thank you, Neji."

Her features were still drawn, and Neji stood up, to get her food. She clung on to his sleeve; he looked at her. "I'm going to make you something to drink. Are you hungry?"

Tenten shook her head again. "Just tea, please."

She followed him to the kitchen, standing close by his side, and Neji prepared a cup of steaming green tea for each of them. Tenten glanced warily at the kitchen window.

He could understand her desire to stay completely hidden, and drew her away from the kitchen, to the living area, where he sat her down by the radiator once more. But there was no outlet to release his anger, so Neji swallowed it, and focused on Tenten instead.

"Do you want a shower?" Neji asked, when she had relaxed somewhat into his chest, sipping slowly from her mug of tea.

Slowly, she nodded, and when she'd set her mug down, he grabbed a few towels and led them to the bathroom, closing the door securely behind them.

"I don't have any spare clothes of yours here," Neji began, when he sat her down on the single low stool in the bathroom, and knelt down in front of her to undress her.

Tenten gave a little shrug. She watched as he unbuttoned her shirt, and leaned close so he could unclasp her bra. "But you have spare clothes."

"I would like to see you in my clothes," Neji admitted with a smile; the corners of her lips quirked.

"You're set on making me yours," she observed mildly, life sparking back into her eyes.

He leaned in and kissed her gently, cradling the back of her neck with his palm. "Is that wrong?" he asked against her lips.

Tenten relaxed against him, and allowed him to push her pants and panties off. "You never told me why you like me, Neji."

He stroked the backs of his fingers against her throat, then sat back on the tiled bathroom floor, so she towered above him on the stool, and leaned in, kissing each of her nipples. "Do I have to answer that question?" he dallied, taking a hardening crest into his mouth.

She gasped lightly. Arched her back towards him. Her hands flew to his shoulders, and she wove her fingers into his hair. "That's cheating."

"You're welcome to do the same to me," he answered with a little smile, and Tenten tried to frown at him, hitting him lightly on the shoulder.

"You're shameless, Hyuuga Neji." She pushed her lower lip out in pout; he leaned up and kissed her full on her lips.

It started off slow, though like the kisses they shared, it escalated quickly, and Neji found himself hard and needing her, found his fingers straying to her breasts and her hips. When they broke apart, he told her, with hooded eyes, "I want you to take control tonight."

He didn't want to remind her of what happened earlier by taking the lead; instead, he wanted her to only think of him, and this was the only solution he could come up with.

Tenten smiled uncertainly at him; he sat back and waited for her, looking over her longingly. Just when he thought he would burst from waiting, she leaned forward in her seat, and began to undress him - first his shirt, then his pants, and boxers. He throbbed when her gaze landed on his length; a tiny smirk crawled onto Tenten's lips.

She stood up to gather their clothes. Neji swallowed, looked hungrily at her bottom, when she turned around to pile the garments on a shelf in his bathroom. (Inwardly, he was relieved to see that she had not sustained any other bruises on her body.)

"You'll keep your hands to yourself tonight," she told him, giving him a small smile. "I will be the one to touch you."

"And if I don't?" Neji didn't want to imagine himself as being whiny, but she was teasing him by running her fingers over herself, and he could think of little else but her.

"I won't let you come," she answered.

There wasn't any question about it - they'd played this game before, and Tenten always kept her word.

He swallowed, acutely aware of how his desire strained obviously between them. But he was doing this for her, to help her get over that trauma somehow.

She sunk into his lap, trapping his erection between them, and lowered her lips to his, kissing him thoroughly. Her soft, wet heat ground against him; Neji groaned, met her tongue, and was left wanting when she flooded his senses with her moistness.

"Sit on the stool," she ordered.

He obeyed when she removed herself from his lap, and Tenten turned the shower on, soaking him thoroughly with its spray. She turned it off when they were both glistening, and soaped her own body first, before turning to him, spreading thick lather over every bit of him except where he needed to be touched most.

"Tenten," he pleaded, glancing down.

She followed his gaze, smiled, and moved behind him, pressing her breasts into his back. It didn't help his hunger any, when her skin slid wetly against his.

When Neji thought he was on the verge of being driven to madness (Tenten had now balanced herself precariously on his lap, and was doing very well at soaping her groin in front of him), she leaned in and kissed him again, sliding a soapy hand down his chest.

He grunted when she finally encircled him with her fingers and stroked; he leaked onto her, full and heavy and throbbing, and she licked her lips, lathering him very, very meticulously, from base to tip, and all around his balls. A little moan escaped her throat; Tenten swallowed and squirmed on his lap - it was obvious that she wanted him in her, though she hadn't had enough of teasing him yet.

It didn't help when she washed the foam off both their bodies with the shower, and she had him sit in the empty tub, his back a little ways from the end.

"You're determined not to touch me," she whispered, grinning now. He watched as she stepped into the tub with him, and straddled his lap, a hair's breadth from pressing into his arousal.

"I remember the last time I did," Neji complained. "You didn't let me come for days."

"I didn't think you remembered," Tenten returned - but the mischievous smile on her lips told him she did, and that she thoroughly enjoyed his discomfort.

Neji groaned when she finally rubbed herself over his straining length - she was touching him; he was so close to sliding into her - and leaned in, sandwiching his flesh between their bodies.

It wasn't until when he was clenching his fists in a bid to keep from pulling her onto himself, when he was so hard that it hurt, when he couldn't think of anything but being inside her, that Tenten finally sunk herself onto him, and began to move.

She felt like heaven, like all the pleasures in the world rolled into one, and all he could do was moan.

When she eventually rode him to release, Neji panted and leaned against the back wall of the tub, exhausted. Tenten curled up in his lap, facing him, and he turned the water on. Warm water splashed onto his ankles, rising slowly to fill the tub.

"May I touch you now?" he asked, leaning in to skim his lips along her shoulder.

Tenten pressed herself to him and sighed. "Yeah. Thank you, Neji."

"What for?" He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against himself, savoring the feel of her firm body against his.

"For trying to help. For caring." She encircled him with her own arms, and kissed him on the lips. "For thinking so highly of me."

He pressed his forehead to hers, so her eyes were a blur of dark brown.

"Marry me," he said.

She blinked rapidly at him in surprise. "Are- Are you sure? I'm so much trouble and-"

"I'm sure." He kissed her again. "Do you want to marry me, or not?"

"Yes, but-"

"You can move in with me," Neji continued.

Tenten pulled away by a fraction of an inch. "I understand-"

"And stop working in Kabukicho."

"Hyuuga Neji!" she snapped, frowning at him. "Listen to me!"

"Hyuuga Tenten," he said, tasting the words on his tongue. Neji decided that he liked the sound of it, a lot. "I'll listen to you."

She huffed and rolled her eyes. "Aren't you supposed to shut up when a woman is talking?"

Neji shrugged. "That sounds familiar."

"Anyway, I still don't get what you see in me," she said flatly.

He pulled her close again, and the warm water lapped against their bodies. "You're my safe place," he answered. "You feel like home. Like I don't have to worry about anything else when I'm with you."

Her lips curved in a beautiful smile.

"What do you see in me?" Neji asked, curious.

She glanced at the ceiling. "Oh, I don't know... You're proud and full of yourself and you always think dirty thoughts..."

"Tenten," he protested with a frown.

She grinned at him. "You see things in me that others don't bother to. You're always there, and you're a gentleman."

"Not always a gentleman," he amended.

"Not always," Tenten agreed, and trailed her fingers down his chest, making a soft splash when her hand sank beneath water. "But you are where it matters."

He smiled, and pressed another kiss to her lips. There was no telling how long she'd take to recover, nor whether either of them would truly be safe from aggressive strangers. Even so, Neji was glad that she was going to stop working at clubs like Lucky Konoha. He could already see their future together, and it was a warm, precious hope for the better.


viii.

It was close to the end of winter, in 1985, that the New Amusement Business Control and Improvement Act was implemented in Japan. The flourishing sex industry all but collapsed, and Neji scanned the headlines of his newspaper without much fuss. (The man who had attacked Tenten a month ago was still out at large - the local police was hardly effective, but Neji was teaching her to defend herself. She could take him down without much trouble, now.)

"You would have lost your job in a few months, anyway," he commented lightly, setting his newspapers down on the coffee table.

On the couch next to him, Hyuuga Tenten smiled and elbowed him in the ribs. "Don't dig it in, Neji."

"I've made sure that the position in my office is available by the end of next month," Neji informed her. "You'll be my personal assistant after you graduate."

She slid him an arch look. "What will I be assisting you with?"

"My schedule, and various administrative duties," he said, before he caught her eye. "Of course, there could be various issues that arise..."

"I hope your office is soundproofed," she told him evenly. "I don't think your uncle will be too pleased to hear... noises."

Neji exhaled in amusement and turned towards her. Tenten held his stare when he rested his hands on her hips, and pressed her into the back of the couch. (She was doing remarkably well recovering from that incident, and he was glad for it.) "Perhaps we need to practice, then," he suggested.

"First one to make a sound gets punished," Tenten agreed with a grin.

"What kind of punishment do you have in mind?" He lifted a dark brow in challenge - surely she would be the first to let something slip. Tenten was the more vocal of them both, and he knew a few tricks to give him the upper hand.

"A massage," she said, brightening. "I would love to have a massage."

Neji scoffed. "Then you should ask for it without it being a punishment."

"Why?" she retorted. "Are you that confident in yourself?"

"I am," he told her smugly, and she glowered at him.

"Fine. It starts now," she informed him. In the next heartbeat, she'd pressed him down beneath her on the couch, and was effectively straddling his hips.

"Not bad," Neji allowed, impressed.

But he reached between her legs, and she narrowed her eyes.

"You're going to cheat," she muttered.

"There's no such thing as cheating in sex," he returned, and found his target.

She tensed, pressed her lips shut - but her nostrils flared, and Neji knew how this was going to go down.

Tenten pulled away from his grasp and began to unbuckle his pants, her eyes bright with triumph.

Neji smiled. Either way, they would both gain from this.

Two years ago, he never would have imagined himself in love, nor married. Two years after his first visit to Kabukicho, much had changed, and Neji sometimes wondered at how easily he and Tenten both fell together, as if they were always meant to be. It didn't make him any less confident in their future together.

END


A/N: If you've got all the way through to the end, congrats!

The ending I initially had in mind was a lot darker - Tenten was going to be raped, tortured and murdered, and Neji was only going to find out about it after her body was discovered. I thought long and hard about it, and decided that this wasn't what I wanted to think about when I looked back on the fic, so there you have the happy ending. ;) Thank me for it!

All that aside, I really liked this story - it's one of my favorites. Do drop a note if you appreciated it/have thoughts/comments on it/etc! :)