Unexpected Hero
Warning: A bit of cursing, and a bit of sexual content, not too graphic.
Edit: I forgot I made Tenten a non-virgin in a previous chappie.
Chapter 8: Interference
Tenten ran first to Sakura's apartment. She slammed her fists against the door, and the door opened to reveal a groggy Sakura.
"Sakura-san!" Tenten gasped, panting for breath. "I'm late!"
Sakura glanced at the bags and instantly took her clothing and other necessities, all sleepiness lost. Quickly, Tenten strapped the scrolls carefully over her back, and suddenly Sakura's arms were around her in a rushed hug.
"Good luck!" she breathed giddily and Tenten smiled, before taking off out of the window and into the rain.
Tenten jumped over buildings all the way to the beginning of the exams, her hair and skin damp from the rain pounding outside. Her eyes were of a muddy color, consistently matching the strands sticking wetly to her shivering skin, her shoulders drooping.
The entrance was at the lobby of the ANBU Interrogation and Torture Headquarters, and she eyed Morino Ibiki carefully. He glanced at her and not a hint of recognition passed his impassive features. That man's composure resembled Neji's almost identically…
She wasn't going to think about that selfish bastard now.
There was a clearing of throat and Tenten looked up to see three ANBU open the door to a dark dimly lit room. One by one, they called names off. She twirled the kunai casually, before sliding it into her holster.
"Let the games begin."
---
For twenty-four hours, Tenten went through hell. It seemed like that, but she knew it must have been only a few seconds, but it was so unreal, painful.
She was called with the handful of others into a dark room, each person in one room. Then she was locked in, with little chances to escape in the tight area. A voice boomed out to her, and she was carefully given a secret code. She was to crack it, and then an ANBU would try to break it from her.
Tenten smirked. This was different than the years before, but she liked it that way, she got to try her hand on an ANBU and if she passes, then only Tsunade will stand in her path from becoming Jonin. Her ANBU was indigo-haired, pale, a male. His porcelain mask was of a bird, and Tenten chuckled, recognizing him immediately.
"You're my personal proctor, eh, Sasuke?"
The ANBU did not respond, raising the mask to reveal the red eyes. His Sharingan.
Tenten frowned. To her knowledge's extent, Sharingan could copy her moves, her techniques. However, if Tenten wasn't going to go into a full-out battle, the Sharingan wouldn't prove much help except intimidation.
"What was the code given to you?" he said.
"Not going to tell you unless you say please," Tenten retorted, smirking.
Sasuke frowned, obviously not amused by Tenten's humor.
"Will you tell me?" he asked calmly.
"No."
"Then I will destroy your mind," Sasuke allowed the tiniest of smirks and his Sharingan spun onto new swirls, one different from the three black paisleys, and Tenten fell into a world of black and red.
---
"Uchiha?"
Neji glared at Ibiki. The interrogator smirked, sadistically, "To your girlfriend?"
Pointedly, Neji nodded. His fingers gripped tightly around his arms, his frown dipping lower. Tenten wasn't his girlfriend.
"Are you planning to ruin her mind here?"
The Hyuuga offered no explanation, and Ibiki sighed. Must be some freak testing Hyuugas do for potential mates. Of course, it was obvious that Neji and Tenten were together, Ibiki was one of the few that knew about Tenten working for the ANBU dorm, and only one of five (Shikamaru and Sasuke included) that knew Neji put her there. Shikamaru was one to crack when drunk and Ibiki's interrogation skills have not failed yet. Ibiki glanced at Tenten's report; he had seen her here for the past few years, failing each time. Neji had approached him before for the same reason, to fail Tenten, however, this time he seemed ready to kill Ibiki if he denied.
Neji activated his Byakagun, and Ibiki noted, "No kekkai genkai can see through those walls."
Frowning, Neji growled, his glowing a faint blue of chakra, "Send the Uchiha."
"Very well."
Signaling the mask of the hawk, Ibiki pointed towards the door on the far left. Neji nodded, staring at the door. He glanced at the ANBU, and he smirked.
If anyone was going to stop her in this round, only Uchiha Sasuke could.
---
"What was your code?" Sasuke said calmly when Tenten returned, on her hands and knees, panting. She coughed, blood splattering the floor, tears pricking her eyes. The scrolls rolled off her back, useless. She had seen cruel things, horrible things, things that killed Neji, that killed Naruto and Tsunade and Sakura and everyone. She had seen and felt Neji stab a sword through her heart, her heart ached terribly and she was dying.
Do not cry. Do not cry. Don't you dare fucking cry.
Wiping the blood from her mouth, she looked up, eyes of mud. The wheels of the Sharingan slowed.
"The… bird," Tenten coughed again. "The bird…"
Sasuke waited patiently.
"The bird is a fucking idiot to think he can stop me like that," Tenten hissed, coughing more. If she was to die, it was better to die with honor than keel over and tell the bastard her code.
"Then I will destroy your body," Sasuke promptly kicked her in the chest and her sides burned as she skidded to the floor, head throbbing as it slammed against the corner of the wall. A katana was held over her throat, blood staining the collar of her ripped shirt. Uchiha Sasuke was indeed a killing fiend that surged for blood, he could easily kill her now, and Tenten knew he desperately wanted to.
Tenten's wrist reached weakly for a kunai in her holster but his boot slammed antagonizing on it, and her hand cried out in terror. There was a soft crack, as she lost all circulation in her hand, only a numb presence.
She did not scream, nor did she thrash. Her eyes opened, and one hand grabbed the sword at her throat, shoving it around by its blade. The katana cut deeply, and she wrenched it out of hand, biting her tongue from crying out in pain. He flicked his wrist carelessly and the ties for her buns cut instantly, as her hair unbounded in her face, blocking her view.
Letting out a battle cry, she aimed a low blow, providing distraction as she grabbed one scroll. Instantly, the small cramped room seemed smaller as her weapons flew from all angles, nipping strands of her own hair as she looked haggard, insane.
He was behind her, his katana pressed icily on the back of her sweat-drenched neck. His hand curled into a fist of her hair, tugging.
"What was your code?" he whispered tantalizing.
"Shove it up your ass," she repeated, and Sasuke tugged harder.
"Then I will destroy your dignity."
His lips burned against hers, his teeth digging into her skin and his hands were rough against her body. Tenten winced at the pain, and his hands trekked southward. Her eyes widened. Sasuke was going to-
No.
Tenten bit her lip and closed her eyes. Then her fists curled and she hurled her body weight on him, attempting to imbalance him. Her nails dug into his skin, her one working fist slammed against his armor.
Instantly she felt lighter and she spun around. In Sasuke's hand was her hair, all her sleek blood-matted hair. Instantly her hand fluttered to her neck. Her hair was cut short, shorter than even Sakura when she cut hers in their first exam in the Forest of Death, back when Sasuke turned demon the first time. Her hair must have been as short as Sasuke's own, but she wasn't to dwell on it.
"What was your code?" he smirked, eyes dark and intimidating. Tenten shivered. Her pants were unbuttoned, her shirt open. Sasuke had attempted to rape her, Sasuke had attempted to steal-
"Go fuck yourself!"
"Then I will destroy your worth."
The Uchiha smirked, and his hands formed signs, and her eyes widened. No… he was aiming for…
She lunged, but her scrolls were on fire. Tenten's cringed, tears finally falling.
Sasuke was destroying her. He was fully destroying her mind, if not only her body. Her wrist hanged limply at her side and his katana was once more at her neck, accompanied by a large bruise of his mouth.
"What was your code?" he hissed in her ear, one hand shoving her shoulders to the floor. She slumped heavily, head down and ashamed.
She did not answer, fists curling in her hand.
Sasuke chuckled, "Then I will have to kill you, finally. Tell me, and then you can fail and stay alive. You may take the test again next year."
She cringed, and then she glared back up at him, eyes of a storm. She went through 24 hours of hell, bolts of pain were slowly killing her, she lost most of her hair and her valuable scrolls, she almost lost her dignity as an honorable shinobi… Her hands gripped the katana again, opening the wounds already inflicted earlier.
"Then kill me."
The Uchiha smirked, and he pulled his arm back. Tenten shut her eyes tightly, tensing for the final blow. Instead she heard the rustle of the katana's sheath. Tenten stayed wide-eyed at the burnt room and Sasuke sighed, "You pass."
"…" Tears sprang back into her eyes and then she cracked and began to silently sobb. Everything was destroyed, but she passed. Tsunade would pick if she became Jonin or not. Tsunade was the one to decide now.
When she finally stopped, Sasuke was still there.
"These are tactics interrogation uses against a prisoner. You managed to survive the worst of it all, inflicted by me, who has more strength than any torturer in any of the Great Villages."
She allowed herself a weak smile, attempting to stand, but pain coursed through her body and she finally cried out. She then found herself supported by the lean body of Sasuke's and her eyes wandered tiredly up to his face.
Sasuke was much like Neji. They both had prominent cheekbones and angular faces, prodigies in each and every right. Both were silent and demanding, infinitely strong and fighting against their destinies. She wondered which one she liked more now, the man that allowed her to pass, or the one that made her fail before…
"Hey, Sasuke-kun," Tenten mumbled, ready to drift off to sleep in the comfort of Sasuke's arms. "Want to know my code?"
"Hn," he seemed uncomfortable with her unfamiliar weight practically sleeping in his arms, the scene obscenely romantic if not for the fact that Sasuke almost destroyed everything she was.
She leaned up and whispered, "'For the love of a loner, one will resist all depths.' I think it means that I will continue to resist all obstacles until I finally pass his."
Sasuke bristled awkwardly, and then she kissed him.
---
Neji stared at the door, and it creaked open warily. Tenten was unconscious in Sasuke's arms, and Neji's heart stopped. Her hair was short, almost as much as Sasuke, burn marks covering her skin. Blood trickled from her palm, dripping on the tiled floor. Her shirt was opened as was her pants in an indecent way, and his heart pounded. The damn Uchiha touched her like that…
Tenten did not move at all, silent and… dead. His eyes widened, and all the blood seemed to stop, chilling. Medical nins instantly took her away, and Sasuke glanced at the Hyuuga.
Instantly the younger man was against the wall, and Neji slammed his fist against the Uchiha's cheek, protruding blood.
"You bastard!" he hissed. Tenten was gone, Tenten was…
Sasuke did nothing to stop it, as Neji panted, and he gave the Hyuuga a sickly smirk.
"You're the bastard," he stated sadistically, because he obviously had the upper hand. "I did nothing, you were the one."
"You fucking killed her," Neji cursed, his fist glowing a faint blue of intense chakra. He didn't need his Byakagun; he wanted to see the face on the man that destroyed Tenten. He aimed another blow, watching unsatisfied as blood trickled from the man's mouth. Sasuke wouldn't be able to eat for a while after than chakra-enhanced punch, and he was doing nothing about it.
"She's not dead. Not yet."
Neji's fist connected to the wall behind the Uchiha's ear, and the rock crumbled. "What the hell did you do?"
"If you had a single shard of a heart," Sasuke started. "You would realize the girl is fighting to catch up with you. She wants to be with you, and your pathetic excuse of a being to stop her is shit."
Neji stared at the Uchiha standing with blood trickling from his mouth. The boy smirked knowingly. Neji shoved himself away, and instantly disappeared.
---
Tsunade smirked, shuffling through the progress papers of the prospective Jonin.
"You're here for Tenten," she said into the darkness, her blue eyes looking up to the shadows. They did not respond and her eyes flipped to the leaflet with Tenten's information. The Hokage quickly analyzed her performance, fingering the sake bottle beside her.
"She failed three years in a row."
The shadow stirred. Tsunade smirked.
"No doubt of Hyuuga Neji's doing."
Finally the man stepped out of the shadows, hands shoved in his pockets. Tsunade let out a low amused chuckle, taking a swig of her sake.
"He's taking the hard way, stopping her himself," the man grunted, lazy eyes turned upwards towards the ceiling. "He's really troublesome. Not worth the energy."
"And you come to the high chief, the one that appoints them in the end."
The shadow ninja coughed, and then drawled out, "Neji likes the chase, that's all."
Tsunade's eyebrow rose intently, before polishing off her sake and nonchalantly leaning back in her chair.
"You're here to ruin her too?" she smirked.
"No, I'm here to personally recommend her to be Jonin."
"There is nothing in the shinobi conduct for recommendations."
"Troublesome," Shikamaru sighed. "Hyuuga Neji will pay you a visit no doubt. He'll be frantic, and will lose his temper easily. He'll attempt to persuade you to decline Tenten from being Jonin."
"Fair warning. I thought he liked the chase," Tsunade chuckled, head resting in her hand. God, did she want more sake.
"It will be too much for him," the ninja smirked, turning to leave. "Tenten has changed a lot since we first hired her."
---
Frantic, of course, was highly an exaggeration. Brooding was more like it, but Neji brooded most of the time on a daily basis, this was like no other, this was instantly dangerous, instantly murderous. He glared daggers at her, arms crossed and eyes narrowed. Onyx hair stuck damply from his race here, his clothes hanging loosely from his body. His shoulders were stiff, his mouth curled downwards in a perpetual frown, and an aura protruding out of him to make anyone except the Hokage (and a few others) cringe.
Tsunade addressed him formally, "Neji."
"I am here to discuss Tenten's status," There was no small talk, Tsunade did not expect any.
Tsunade's brow rose, and she chuckled, amused. "I thought you liked the chase."
Neji stiffened, a frown deepening on his lips, continuing in a wary voice, "Tenten's appointment for Jonin."
"You can't stop her, Neji. I've reviewed her work, and she is a high candidate for appointment."
Neji smirked, and Tsunade instantly was cautious. If she had to knock the boy out personally… there would be trouble.
"I understand."
"Then…"
The serious frown broke to a knowing smile. She shuffled her papers again, blue eyes fixed on ivory.
"Very well, Hyuuga Neji. I will do as you ask, however you are indebted to me."
"I owe you deeply, Tsunade-sama," he murmured smoothly, bowing and pulling out a bottle of sake from his pouch. Tsunade eyed it hungrily and grinned. Hyuuga Neji knew her well, presenting her some of the finest sake the Hyuuga clan owned, its placement set back when she was still young and didn't need genjutsu for her features.
"This will be fine, for now," she said quietly, as the bottle clinked heavily against the wood, a clear indication it was full to the brim.
A/N: Oh noez… it almost became a SasuTen! Ahh! Well, when I start writing, I cannot control my impulses to add competition, and of course, who would be a better match against Neji then dear old Uchiha Sasuke? Yay the hormonal rage! How did you like the battle part? It was really weird, even for me, but hey, Sasuke is mentally twisted. I'm sorry it's not that original and quite detailed, but I can't detail battles, I'm no good at that. ); And yes, Sasuke has the Mangekyou in my story. (;
Comments will be appreciated, and if I have enough for my heart's desire, the next part will come out as soon as possible. I'm sorry this is so late, my schedule is packed.
