Looking at my files, I had no idea this was going to be such a long story. Brace yourselves. Thanks so much for any reviews and follows. 3

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters, they are all property of Namco.

It was the first time in a while that she had a decent night's rest. No sleeping pills or a glass of scotch were needed to help her slip into a deep slumber last night. Then again, she always seemed to sleep better after pulling off a successful hit. It put her mind at ease to accomplish a goal, whether it was short term or long term. After she had woken up, she laid in bed hugging her pillow to her body. She didn't want to get up, but she knew she had a long day ahead of her. Her phone rang loudly and officially forced her to rouse from the bed. What time was it anyway?

Nina reached over to her nightstand and grabbed phone and answered it. "Hello?" she answered drowsily.

"Good morning, Miss Williams," a woman with a Japanese accent answered. "We thank you for your services and your reward has already been deposited into your account."

The blonde rubbed her eyes tiredly as she held the phone to her ear. She had almost forgotten about the sum of money she was supposed to receive from her last contractor. She really didn't care about the money, she supposed. "Good," she said with satisfaction. "Now, what will happen now that he's…no longer an obstacle?" Nina asked with interest. Normally, she didn't give a damn about the affairs of her clients after a contract was completed, but she was genuinely interested in how her services helped them. After all, it was this job that brought her back from her temporary hiatus and forced her to travel overseas, so she was at least mildly interested in the outcome.

"The police are currently launching an investigation, but an even bigger story is overshadowing the death of Mr. Mikage, the closure of several missing persons cases. With the girls no longer being drugged and beaten into submission, they were finally able to tell their stories and will hopefully be reunited with loved ones," the woman explained. "We appreciate your help, Miss Williams." She thanked the assassin again before ending the call.

Nina really didn't see herself as the compassionate type, but deep inside she was relieved that the death of one bad person served to improve the lives of many others. It wasn't everyday that she took on jobs that didn't involve senseless deaths ordered by greedy businessmen or vindictive mafia members. She glanced down at the phone and noticed that the time indicated that it was almost 7:30 a.m. 'Shit! I overslept! I'm going to be late!' she thought in a small panic. She dashed from her bed and quickly headed towards her bathroom to get ready for her meeting with Jin. She could only imagine his look of disapproval when she walked into his office late, but it couldn't be helped.

An incessant ringing noise broke the silence in the room, but even with the loud noise penetrating the room, he still couldn't summon the will to get up. He shifted slightly in his sleep, only turning his head towards his phone, but he made no move to reach for it or open his eyes. He slept like a rock last night, and his body was so deprived of sleep lately that it nearly begged him to forfeit everything for the day to stay in bed. The phone stopped ringing for a moment before it started ringing again. Jin finally opened up his eyes only to stare up at the ceiling. Finally, he reluctantly rolled over in his king sized bed and reached for his phone and answered it groggily. "What is it?" Jin groaned angrily.

The nervous voice of a woman came through the receiver. "Mr. Kazama, sir, there's a woman here to see you," the young secretary informed him. "I-I sent her to your office because I thought you were already there, b-but I…"

Jin's eyes widened and he sat up with a quick jolt. "What time is it?!" he demanded with a shout.

The woman let out an intimidated squeal before answering him in a panicked voice, "I-It's almost 9 a.m., sir, I'm sorry…I should have called you earlier!"

Jin hung up and hopped out of bed dressed only in a pair of black boxers. How did he oversleep for so long? He guessed he underestimated how exhausted he was for the last few days and he finally paid for it. The only bright side of this was that he was finally well rested, but now he felt slightly apprehensive about facing the assassin. He could already see her piercing him with those fierce, icy blue eyes with that ever present look of contempt on her face. 'I wonder if this meeting will go well at all if she's upset with me for being tardy. I'll have to make it up to her…somehow,' he thought as he rushed to get ready.

Glancing at her watch, she now realized that it was 9:30 a.m. She smirked to herself as she realized that she wasn't the one who was late after all. At least she wouldn't be chastised for not being prompt, but if she had to wait for him any longer she'd be the one grilling him for wasting her time. Nina sauntered around his spacious, luxurious office and wondered how he liked life at the top with so much money and power at his disposal. How long would it last? Surely his father was plotting his demise and planning to usurp him, how would he stop him? She stood by the large wall length window and looked over the city. 'What a wondrous view…he can overlook most of the city from this height,' she thought as she continued to gaze out of the window with interest.

She heard the door open and she looked over her shoulder. "Oh, there you are," she said in a bored tone. He walked in casually dressed in a nice pair of dark grey slacks and a black shirt with a few buttons undone.

Jin walked into his office and immediately noticed her silhouette standing in the window. The sunlight engulfed her figure and he didn't get a clear view of her until she walked towards him. She seemed very radiant this morning, well anytime she wasn't frowning she seemed more pleasant than normal. She was sharply dressed in a black blazer with a white silk blouse underneath and a tight, black mini skirt, and of course, an expensive pair of black high heels. Her hair no longer fell freely over her shoulders in loose curls, instead it was pulled back into a ponytail. It was quite a difference from her attire from last night. He quickly tried to prevent images of her dancing erotically on stage from pervading his thoughts again. He stared directly into her eyes and said, "I'm sorry for being so late," he apologized sincerely. "I overslept…last night was very…exhausting."

Nina folded her arms across her chest and waved her hand in dismissal. "It's fine, it happens," she said as she held back the urge to chuckle. She walked over to the leather chair in front of his desk and took a seat.

He figured that she was ready to get down to business. Besides, they were already off to a late start so they might as well get this over with. He walked over to his desk and took a seat as well. He looked across the desk and stared at her. Her body language seemed much more relaxed compared to yesterday, she seemed much less standoffish this morning. Hopefully, this change in her demeanor would work in his favor. "Would you like any refreshments?" he asked.

The corners of Nina's lips pulled into a small smile. It was strange seeing him attempt to act nice and gentlemen-like, he always seemed so aloof in past tournaments. Was he trying to develop a new corporate persona, a mask to hide his true intentions from the world? "Sure," she answered. "Tea would be nice…" she started.

"With milk?" he finished with another cocky smirk.

She raised an eyebrow at this, but she was unamused. He must've been studying her records long and hard to remember such a minute detail like that. Then again, being the CEO of the Mishima Zaibatsu gave him unlimited access to the files and records of former subjects of the horrific experiments they conducted in the laboratory. She mentally kicked herself for willingly letting herself become intertwined with these psychos again. "It seems that you know so much about me, but I still don't fully understand why I'm here in the first place. Stop beating around the bush and tell me what you want," she demanded a serious tone.

The pleasantries were over. She didn't stay in her brighter mood for long. Before he would get into that, he reached over to touch a button on his intercom and said, "Have someone bring a cup of tea with milk and a cup of coffee with cream to my office."

"Yes, Mr. Kazama, sir!" the woman responded.

He looked at the blonde again and she narrowed her eyes at him impatiently. "Nina, please don't be upset with me. I had to study your records because I wanted to know if you were right for the job," he said to appease her. "I want you to be my bodyguard." He finally revealed his true motives for calling this meeting with her.

Nina couldn't help it this time. A small sardonic laugh escaped from her lips. She brought a hand up to her mouth to ease her laughter. She looked at him and ignored the annoyed look on his face. "Bodyguard? Hm, since when did anyone in your family ever truly need a bodyguard? Besides, don't you have an entire army at your disposal?" she mocked.

Jin was displeased with her reaction to his proposal. He sat forward and looked into her eyes intently. "I'm serious," he said sternly. "The things I'm planning, the things I'm going to do will gain me a lot of enemies. There will be a lot of people who will want me dead…that is why I need you."

Nina crossed her legs and raised an inquisitive finger to her lips. "Hm, what might these "things" be, Jin Kazama? With this meeting, I was hoping to understand more about your motives, but you insist on shrouding everything in mystery."

"Does it matter what my motives are? If you're hired for a job you should do it…no questions asked, right?" His tone became colder.

There was an awkward moment of silence between them as they sat there in a quiet stare off, secretly trying to read each other's minds. Nina didn't know what to make of this situation…and Jin. He was such a strange man…strange and difficult to understand. 'A bodyguard…for a man like him? Please! He's up to something…' she thought, feeling extremely distrustful of the youngest Mishima.

Jin didn't know why she was making this so difficult for him. From her profile, he ascertained that she would be a ruthless, cold-blooded killing machine who would obey his every command no matter what the circumstances were, but she was so unlike the woman he'd thought she'd be from the files. Perhaps they were outdated. 'I can't tell her what I'm after right away…she wouldn't understand. How else can I convince her to accept this job without telling her the explicit details of my plan?' he pondered deeply.

The silence was broken by the sound of a woman's voice speaking over the intercom. "Mr. Kazama, I'm here to bring you your drinks, sir," she announced.

"Come in," Jin said.

The door opened and a woman with short dark hair and glasses came in holding a silver tray with the drinks he requested. She carefully and steadily walked towards his desk. Nina casually watched the woman walk towards the desk to set the tray down. She was visibly shaking and the cups and saucers chattered along with the woman's uneasy nerves. Nina shook her head and placed her face in her palm for a brief moment. What a sad display. 'What happens if she drops the tray? Does he fire her or kill her?' she wondered.

Once the woman set the tray down, she bowed to him stiffly and said, "Please enjoy, sir!" She turned to leave and regarded Nina with a quick nod of her head before speed walking out of his office.

Jin reached for his cup of coffee and drank from it silently.

Nina sat up and picked up her cup of tea. She blew on it for a moment to cool it off before pressing her lips to the cup to take a sip as well. She remained silent as she quietly enjoyed drinking her tea. Hopefully, this meeting would be over soon, she wanted to grab something to eat on the way back to her apartment.

Jin studied her silently, trying to piece together the puzzle before him. What truly motivated her in her line of work besides money? Did she truly enjoy killing or was it something she was forced into and had grown accustomed to doing? Was she considering declining the job because of his bloodline and her former connections to his family? He sat his coffee down and leaned back into his chair, resting his elbow on the armrest. "That man you killed yesterday…why'd you accept that job?" he asked, breaking the silence after their short refreshment break.

Nina placed her cup of tea back on the saucer on the tray and looked at him casually. "He deserved to die. He was a terrible human…a real piece of shit, I would say. Why do you want to know?" she asked smugly.

"So, it wasn't solely the money that motivated you?"

"Not this time."

"Why not?"

"I was interested in taking him down so I waived my usual hefty fee."

"I see," he said with interest. "You are passionate about your job."

"Passionate? That's a strong word, Kazama. I just like eliminating human filth from the world," Nina said frankly.

"Nina, I know my family…and this damned organization hurt you in the past," he said as he sat forward in his chair once more. "Help me destroy it."

Now this finally peaked her interest. Were his motives all along to destroy his family's company? It didn't seem like something he needed to hide from her. "That sounds intereting? How are you planning on doing that?" she asked. Taking down the Mishima Zaibatsu would be fun, a grand time.

"I'm going to start a war," Jin admitted causually.

Her blue eyes widened in shock for a moment. Was he serious? She didn't think Jin had it in him to do such a thing. "A war? With whom exactly?"

"The entire world," he answered calmly.

He was a mad man! She was hoping that the Mishima madness skipped a generation, but maybe it only took longer to manifest itself in him. She folded her arms across her chest and sighed softly. "I'm not usually picky about who I work for, but this is difficult," she admitted truthfully. "You say it's all to take down this company, but there's something not quite right about this." She heard the sound of his desk drawer opening up and wondering what he was doing. Was he going to kill her for not accepting his offer so willfully? Instinctively, she slowly moved her hand to reach behind her back for her hidden gun.

Jin pulled out a notepad and began jotting something down. When he was finished he slid it towards her. He noticed how tense she looked. She definitely didn't trust him, which meant it would be hard to form a solid working relationship with her if she did accept his offer.

Nina glanced at the notepad in curiosity and picked it up from his desk. Her eyes widened and her lips parted slightly. 'That's a lot of zeros...and it's a salary, not a single drop off! Still, do I want to help him start a war? I don't think he'll ever fully tell me everything he's after, but do I care? When did I become so concerned about morality? I can't really judge anyone...not with the things I've done…but I still don't know about this…' she contemplated with great confliction.

She was really pondering on this much longer than he thought she would. He really wanted to know her answer right away, but he figured if he pressured her she might grow suspicious and back out of the deal. "Your primary concern will not be managing the Tekken Force. As my bodyguard, I need you to get rid of any…pests that will attempt to get in my way. When I decide to announce the King of the Iron Fist Tournament 6, I'll especially need you to eliminate anyone trying to stop me," he explained in further detail.

Another tournament? That could be a fun way to pass the time. Sure, she enjoyed traveling and living abroad, and she would miss her villa by the sea, but maybe it was time for a change. Despite Jin's crooked intentions, it was a pretty solid deal. She wasn't a hero, nor was she a villian…just a hired hand. 'I can easily take out anyone coming after him, but in the end he'll be the one living with the blood of innocent people on his hands. I'm no hero, definitely not a saint, so who am I to judge him?' Nina reflected on her choices long and hard before saying, "I'll do it. I'll be your bodyguard."

She was a tough cookie to crack, but there was a weight lifted from his shoulders when she finally agreed. He nodded his head. "Thank you, your serices are geatly needed," Jin said in a tone of appreciation. He reached in his desk drawer again and pulled out a small stack of papers held together by staples. He slid it towards her. "This is your contract. I expect you to read through it tonight and bring it back signed tomorrow morning. I'll answer any questions for you if you have any."

Nina looked at the stack of papers blankly. 'Great…homework. I'm willing to bet there's a lot of bullshit I have to agree to in order to please him. I'll be damned if I end up like that cowardly secretary of his,' she thought dully. She took the papers into her hand and stood up finally. She tugged and smoothed her skirt down as she was ready to depart from his office as soon as possible. Boring meetings weren't her thing, but at least it was finally over. "Good, then I will see you tomorrow at the same time?" she guessed.

"Yes, that's fine." He stood up as well to escort her to the door.

Before leaving out she turned around to face him once more. Her usual cold sapphire eyes held a slightly detectable look of concern in them. He felt that nervous feeling returning again. 'What now?' he thought as he stared back at her.

"Kazama, I don't what it is you truly hope to gain by doing this, but I hope it's worth it," Nina said before she walked away from him.

He remained silent as she walked down the long hall, listening to the sound of her heels echoing off the walls. He closed the door and walked back towards his desk and sat down once again He stared listlessly at the silver tray on his desk and his eyes fell onto the cup the blonde assassin drank from, upon which a peachy coral lipstick mark decorated the rim. If he could tell her everything he would, but now was not the time. How would he convince her that anything he told her was true? The look she gave him when he told her about his plans for war indicated that she thought he was crazy. She'd really think he was nuts if he told her about his reoccurring nigtmares of an ancient beast speaking to him, begging to be awakened. It didn't matter now, he just needed her to do her job so that he could move forward in his plans. 'When this is all over…I'll finally be free from you,' he thought darkly.

Next chapter is going to be doubly long. If at any point any one thinks I should change the rating, please let me know. R&R!:)