Master at Arms
By Tetsu-Sama
Chapter 3, Confusion Continues
Disclaimer: the author is one big FAIL at owning the Naruto franchise.
Tenten would have enjoyed the fast, calculated and smooth way Neji drove her bike if she wasn't still in shock from her first gunfight. While she was no stranger to shooting guns being shot at was a different story. Back home in China her father had a shooting range built in the basement, a fact that Tenten took advantage of daily. It was nice to know that her aim hadn't suffered in the week lacking target practice, but Tenten would have chosen a different way to test her skill. She shuddered again, her mind freeze framing the image of the gun held perfectly steady, pointed in her direction. Neji shifted slightly as Tenten inadvertently tightened the arms encircling his waist.
The bike slowed, passing through an iron fence after a pin number was punched into the security system. Cutting the speed significantly Neji directed the kawazaki around the back of a large home. 'Clearly,' Tenten thought as she glanced at her surroundings, 'the people who live here have money.' The grounds where immaculate, with seemingly not even a blade of grass out of place. The house was three stories, obviously sporting generously sized rooms, and if the outside of the house was any indication all would be lavishly furnished.
Neji slowed further as Tenten recognized the Mercedes, Kiba had driven to the club along with the Beamer she had seen Shikamaru in early that day. The engine died, "we're here," Neji stated, pocketing Tenten's keys. Removing her arms from around his waist she less than elegantly jumped off the bike, wobbling a bit as her ankles fought to steady her on the four inch heels she was still wearing. Dismounting, with no problems Tenten noted, Neji walked toward a thick wooden door, pressing the intercom button.
"It's me," he said simply, releasing the button as the door clicked, unlocking.
Tenten followed him inside, "Do you live here?"
"Hai," Neji replied. They walked down a short hallway before the walk opened up into a fairly large room. Tenten paused at the threshold. To her left where three couches forming a U shape, Sakura sitting on one next to Naruto. The t-shirt sleeve on his left shoulder was rolled up where Sakura looked to be examining a cut. Hinata sat on the couch opposite them looking worried. The wall opposite Tenten's vantage spot held three state of the art flat screen computer counsels at which Shino and Ino (to Tenten's surprise) where typing furiously. Shikamaru paced behind them, seemingly directing whatever it was they where doing. The right portion of the room held a kitchenette and large dinning table. Neji, Kiba, Lee, a larger boy named Choji she had been introduced to at lunch, and another dark haired boy whom she did know sat around the table looking grim. Although that was an unfair description as Lee, from what Tenten had seen, never looked grim. A quick decision and Tenten headed toward the couches, sitting down next to Hinata.
"What happened?" She asked quietly.
"On the way out I was too slow and-"
"Bull," Naruto interjected forcefully, "those bastards where shooting at you."
"Naruto," Sakura growled in warning, "if you keep moving I'll never get these stitches finished."
"Naruto-kun got grazed by a bullet on the way out," Hinata finished sadly.
"Aww, it's nothing," Naruto stated.
Sakura poked his arm with the needle she was using, "Stop moving!"
"Did anyone else get hurt?" Tenten asked Hinata.
"No," she replied, "unless you or Neji-ni-san were injured."
"We weren't," Tenten quickly replied, "although someone dame near tried to injure us. Or Neji I guess would be more accurate."
"Can you tell me what that someone looked like?" Tenten and Hinata jumped, neither having heard Shikamaru come up to them.
"Ano, no," Tenten replied. "It's pretty much a blur, I just reacted. No time for taking in details. The Hyuuga might have a better idea."
The two girls sat in silence as Shikamaru stopped next to Neji and exchanged short conversation before Shikamaru returned to the computer consoles. He stopped behind Ino's chair, placing one hand on the back of the chair, one on Ino's shoulder.
"Are those two…?" Tenten made vague hand motions and Hinata smiled.
"Not officially."
"Baka's too lazy," Naruto added.
Sakura sighed, but nodded in agreement, "there, all done Naruto. Hinata, make sure he doesn't pull the stitches out."
"Is their anything between you two?" Tenten asked slyly, gesturing between Naruto and Hinata. Both blushed, but where spared the indignity of answering as across the room Kiba's voice rose.
"This is unacceptable, them hitting one of our places with all the girls there! I mean, Hinata would have been shot if it weren't for Naruto."
The dark haired girl hid her face behind her hands, embarrassed.
"I know Kiba," Neji said sounding tired, "but that is, unfortunately, not a new problem. Shino, Shikamaru, Ino, what do you have?"
"Iwa," Shikamaru stated.
"Since the accusation is, new, they probably think that if they try hard enough they can get the Crooked Kunai back under their domain."
Tenten listened intently as Neji questioned his…people, friends, subordinates? She wasn't sure what she had just gotten herself into, but if it involved turf wars and guns… Tenten would almost bet her new racing bike it involved gangs, exactly the type of scenario she had left China to avoid. At a lull in the conversation Tenten couldn't keep quite any longer, "is this a gang of some sort?" When no shocked gasps or indignant glares met her question Tenten's stomach dropped. "It is isn't it?"
Silence reigned as everyone looked to Neji as if asking his permission to speak.
"Hai," Neji finally let out the single affirming word.
Tenten sat for a moment, before standing abruptly. Taking the hair tie Sakura had offered her early she pulled her hair back before practically stomping across the room, stopping in front of Neji. "My keys," she stated, placing her hand out palm up. "Hyuuga Neji, you give me my keys right now!" This time Tenten did get shocked gasps. No one demanded anything of Neji.
"What makes you think we'll let you leave now that you know who we are?" The dark haired boy Tenten didn't know asked.
"Sasuke," Neji said sharply as Tenten's face turned red and her eyes narrowed.
"I am leaving," Tenten replied, "and with my bike too. If you want to keep me it'll have to be by force."
"Alright now," Lee interjected, "Neji, give the youthful Tenten her keys." He turned to Sasuke, "one should not threaten a lady," he said darkly.
If Tenten hadn't been so angry she would have laughed at the description of her as a lady. As it was she thrust her hand out again, raising an eyebrow. Slowly Neji's hand went into his pocket removing Tenten's keychain, complete with a miniature panda detail, and dropped them into her outstretched hand. "Arigato," Tenten ground out before turning abruptly and showing her self out.
Neji waited until he herd the door slam, Tenten had apparently been angrier than he thought, then spoke. "Lee, follow her."
"Of course Neji, I will make sure our newest youthful flower does not come to harm!"
"I just want to know what she's doing, Lee," Neji added. A seemingly futile attempt as Lee left the compound with a flourish, speaking of precious flowers. "Sasuke," Neji turned, "do not speak that way to her again. If nothing else I owe her a dept she did," he paused, "save me from harm early tonight."
"She didn't look like she had a gun on her," Naruto stated, interrupting the silence.
"She didn't," 'not at that time,' Neji added to himself silently. "Shino, did you finish the background check?"
"Hai, she's clean." He fell silent, but no one spoke, sensing that he was not yet finished.
"It's troublesome," Shikamaru continued, "Tenten's records where almost too clean. Yes, there was the occasional error that was most likely clerical, but they seemed almost calculated." Neji raised an eyebrow, telling Shikamaru to get to his final point. "When the organization fakes a background, this is what I would expect it to look like. No one but a professional would think something is wrong with her paperwork."
Tenten's angered subsided as she listened to the hum of the Kawazaki as it flew down the road. Neji should have told her what she was getting into when he told Kiba and Naruto to go with them to the club! 'Although', Tenten thought to herself, 'she probably would have gone with the girls even if Neji had told her. Friends were friends after all.' Tenten let out a frustrated cry, mumbled by engine noise. She probably owed Neji an apology for being, slightly, rude a moment ago. She let out another sigh this time defeated, her riding jacket and helmet where still at the club. Taking a hard right, and eliciting angry honking from the cars behind her, Tenten turned the bike towards the Crooked Kunai. Out of her peripheral vision she saw another motorcycle, this one a plainer Honda, cut through traffic to take the same turn she did. The green riding jacket, gloves and bike where a dead give away as to the rider.
"I can't believe him!" Tenten exclaimed. "Sorry Lee, but you'll have to be lost. If the Hyuuga wants to keep tabs on me he can do it himself. Besides," she smirked, "he owes me for saving his ass earlier."
Lee knew he had been spotted when Tenten gave the Kawazaki an extra boost, barley flying through a yellow light ahead. Gritting his teeth, he would not fail his mission, he sped through the red light swearing around the front end of a Sudan.
'Damn it!' Tenten cursed, seeing that Lee was still present in her rearview mirror, and gaining on her. She would ask him how he got his bike to move so fast after she lost him. Suddenly glad she had spent her first week riding around town instead of unpacking Tenten began to take sharp turns, right and then left. Used to weaving through congested traffic in China she finally lost her pursuer.
Lee frowned, pulling to the side of the rode to take out his cell phone. 'Neji,' the voice on the other end stated. "I lost her," Lee admitted, downcast, "your youthful flower rides very well." Lee faintly made out a snicker in the background, followed by what sounded like a slap on the back of the head and a loud exclamation of 'Kiba!' by Sakura. "Have I said something disrespectful?"
'No Lee,' Neji replied, 'head to the Crooked Kunai. Ino says that Tenten left her riding helmet and jacket there and that she will return for them.'
Tenten was quite pleased with herself as she pulled into the Crooked Kunai's parking lot. Lee was fast, but she was smarter. With the time approaching midnight the club should have been at full swing: music blaring, intertwining with the voices inside trying to be heard. Instead the area resembled a ghost town, not even the police where on the premises. The observation immediately put Tenten on guard and she reached under her shirt to grasp her remaining knife. There had been a shooting earlier, the place should have been crawling with cops. Engine shut down Tenten pocketed her keys, walking with purpose toward the closed doors of the club.
Unsurprisingly they were locked which Tenten confirmed with a swift kick. 'Better and better,' she thought to herself.
"Do you need to get inside?"
Tenten turned, two men stood behind her neither of which she had herd approach. The one who had spoken to her was taller by half a head, looking curiously like the boy who had threatened her earlier. The seconded had electric blue hair and towered over Tenten's much smaller frame.
"You're not the cops," Tenten replied, voice hard as she twirled the knife in between the fingers of her left hand.
"Observant," the black haired man replied his voice implying that she had made an obvious observation.
Tenten was not amused, "what do you want?"
"From you? Nothing at the moment," the black haired man's friend snickered.
"Itachi and I," the blue haired man gestured to his friend, "heard there was a tussle earlier."
"There was," Tenten responded slowly, "what of it?"
A smile slide across Itachi's face, it wasn't comforting. "Miss Xie, what brings you so far from China? Not getting involved with any groups in the area are we?"
Tenten's eyes' snapped to Itachi's as the knife flying through her fingers stopped its movement, poised for use. Her right hand itched to pull her cell phone out of her back pocket and call...well, she wasn't sure at the moment. 911 seemed appropriate, but the situation wasn't exactly dire. Calling Ino, Sakura or even the Hyuga would have been nice, but she was still mad at Neji and Ino and Sakura would be sure to tell Neji when she called.
A rider with a green jacket sped by and Tenten couldn't help but let her eyes follow Lee.
"So you are associated with them," Kisame stated, smiling.
"No," Tenten replied, "I don't even know who they are!"
"It's bad Neji," Lee spoke into the phone as soon as a 'click' announced the person on the other end of the phone had picked up, "Itachi and Kisame are with her." Dead silence emanated from the other end of the line.
"Stay where you are, Kiba and I will be there in five minutes."
Itachi smirked as Kisame laughed, "don't lie. We know you where here with Hyuga's party earlier tonight."
Tenten fought through her growing uneasiness and gave the two men her best smile, "actually it wasn't a lie. I don't know what they do." She gripped her only weapon harder, trying not to admit to herself that she was scared that someone had been watching her without her knowledge.
"Drop the knife Tenten, Kisame and I would hate to be at odds with someone we hope to do business with in the future. Have you spoken to your father lately?"
The only reason Tenten didn't release her knife directly at Itachi's head was Neji's, what she would later recollect as frantic, shout of "Tenten!" Perfect in form as she had always been Tenten's arm stopped mid throw, retracting to her side, finishing with the knife pointing down. Seconds later Neji stood on her right, Kiba on her left. Lee stayed back with the vehicles.
"I had the situation under control," Tenten told Neji, although the statement sounded weak even to her own ears. Neji didn't reply, but Tenten thought she saw the corner of his mouth pull up.
"Uchiha, Hoshikagi," Neji greeted each with a nod of his head. Tenten noticed that although he acted cordial enough both he and Kiba had one hand on the handgun worn openly at their sides. "I believe you'er finished here," Neji moved his left hand to rest lightly on the small of Tenten's back.
"Is she yours?" Itachi questioned knowingly.
"Yes," Neji replied evenly.
Itachi's eyebrow rose and his eyes turned to Tenten, "I don't owe you any explanations," she stated defiantly. Her voice came out steady, which was a relief. Her heart rate had skyrocketed and her brain was going a mile a minute trying to keep up.
Kisame's smile didn't reach his eyes, "we'll leave her alone for now, don't worry Hyuga. Might want to watch out for Iwa though, word is that they're looking for a new arms dealer. In fact, one could say most groups are." Tenten was positive that the last two sentences had not just been for Neji's benefit.
"Tell Sasuke I say hello," Itachi stated before the two turned, "oh," he rotated his head to look at Neji, "your new girl is keeping secrets from you, might want to look into that." Walking towards the black Sudan they had arrived in Itachi got into the drivers seat as Kisame walked around the car to the passengers seat.
"I hate that bastard," Kiba growled once the two where gone. Tenten nodded in agreement.
Neji turned to Tenten, "We need to talk."
"I agree," Tenten replied before beginning to spin the knife absently on her fingers again, occasionally tossing it up into the air.
"Kiba, Lee, head back to the compound, I'll be spending the night with Tenten."
Tenten's knife clattered to the ground while Kiba and Lee looked shell shocked.
So, that one took a little bit longer than the last two, eh? I could make up a couple dozen wonderful excuses as to why this post took so long, but that, in the words of Shikamura, would be troublesome. So without further ado; Big thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter: Nerd4eva, Otaku Nayami, Whitephoenix13, Ayatsure Sakkaku, Vanilla Cinnamon, GreyGryph, Death L, Aorio Kuma, Matahari, and Classic Tragedy. Re-reading reviews truly helped to motivate this chapter! (wow, a semi colon and a colon in one sentence WIN)
Reviews are always read and appreciated!