I moved the not DMC chapters ahead of this miniseries; I promise to try and only post DMC until I have finished writing it... notice I said TRY...

Drive Me Crazy
-
Student Driver

The early morning air was just chilly enough to be invigorating. The walk from his home to the running trails wasn't a long one, and they wouldn't be crowded at this hour. He stretched and took off at a gentle pace, warming up. He arrived at the crossroads for the West trail at his normal time – a little better than his normal time, actually – but Tenten still managed to get there ahead of him. She was stretching her leg with a grimace when he jogged up to her.

"Are you alright?"

"Fine," she changed the angle of her stretch. "Just a little sore from sparring with Lee yesterday." She nodded to the trail. "Shall we?"

Neji nodded, and they fell into pace with one another, jogging in silence until they hit their stride. With the new interest in "Tian Hoshi" it was harder to catch up in causal situations. Tenten was quickly becoming friends with Hinata, so it was not difficult to meet at her home, but it was not the most convenient way to conduct business – nor could she be regularly seen going to the police department. Thus, when they discovered that they ran the same set of trails in the morning, they adjusted their run times to coincide.

"So, I think I've got something," she offered, a small frown between her brows. "I think that the reason you've been having so much trouble breaking down this ring of thieves, is that they've had inside help."

"We suspected as much," Neji allowed. "But there hasn't been a common denominator in the burglaries – no way to link them."

"I think I know why," she flicked a glance at him and then back to the path. "I don't think it was the same person each time. I think that this group of kids are rich and bored, and that they each helped in turn – but it was all part of a game. I think they were each tricked into doing different things: finding out where someone's grandmother kept her jewelry, guessing the passcode to safes, learning the household schedules… I think that there is someone using these kids for information."

"Interesting theory," he mused.

"There's more," she hesitated then continued. "I had word from someone – another stunt driver I know. He was contacted about doing a job."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. It might have been legit… but I don't think so. They outlined some general specs and asked if he thought he could do it. Trouble is he's filming right now, and under contract; that means no outside work. They asked him if he knew of some other drivers that could do it, and gave him some names. Mine was one of them."

Neji grimaced.

"He called me to tell me he recommended me most highly," she gave a half laugh. "Said I was the only person he thought could carry it off – other than him."

"And has anyone tried to contact you?"

"No," she shook her head. "Not yet."

"Good. And do you have someone you can recommend if they do call you?"

"Like, do I know someone willing to be an insider?"

"Possibly."

"Idate is one of the best drivers I know. He told me some of the other names he rejected; if he didn't consider them, it must be a pretty tough route."

"Or they were just verifying you would be able to handle it," Neji mused.

"Well I'd better be able to, either way," she snorted. "Considering I'll have to chase after whoever they get to drive."

Neji stopped in the middle of the trail.

"You're not serious."

"Of course I am," she put her hands on her hips, puffs of air hanging between them. "You don't have time to train another driver, and Kakashi warned me that this might happen."

"Did he, now," Neji narrowed his eyes.

"I sent my report to Genma and Kakashi last night. They agreed that just asking about a route doesn't mean an inevitable chase."

"This isn't the movies, Tenten," he folded his arms. "I've been investigating these crimes for a long time; the people behind them stand to lose heavily once I shut them down. You can't underestimate the severity of this situation."

"Trust me, I'm not," she snorted. "You forget that my job isn't risk taking - it's making calculated risks, with a ridiculous amount of planning and caution. How else do you think I could have been doing it for so long and from such a young age?"

"With crew to support you," Neji countered. "And with people structuring what you will do for a specific outcome. That is a luxury we currently do not have."

"True," she shrugged. "But I do have a crew and support team," she met his eyes and made sure he was meeting hers. "And I trust them."

That thought suspended between them a moment, as Neji held her gaze.

"And will you trust them to back off if they tell you to?"

"If they will trust me to step in if and when I need to." She hesitated a second before placing a warm hand on his shoulder. "I need you to trust me Neji - like I trust you. Otherwise, this isn't going to work."

There was another tense moment before Neji gave a slow nod.

"Alright, Tenten. I trust you."

"Good," she squeezed his shoulder warmly. "Now c'mon," she nodded toward the trail. "Let's see this thing through."

They fell back into step with one another, their companionable silence punctuated with the cadence of their footfall in the chill of the air.

When their trails diverged once again, and after a final assurance she would be careful, she waved goodbye, put her earbuds back in, and went on her way. Neji watched her go (ignoring the lingering ghost of her touch on his shoulder), and wondered what exactly they were getting into – on all counts.

"Better call the Captain," he muttered to himself, and picked up his own pace. If there was trouble in the air, he didn't have the luxury of time.

"This is a terrible idea."

It was probably the twentieth time Neji had muttered that to himself, and he was certain it wouldn't be the last.

As if to verify his suspicions, Kakashi was waiting on the other side of the heavy double doors, and on time. That in and of itself was tellingly ominous.

"Glad you could make it!" the Captain raised his to-go cup of coffee in a careless salute. "The rest of the crew should be along shortly. Just go down that hall and hang a left; one of the staff will get you situated.

Neji nodded dumbly, and did as bidden, the mantra still echoing in his mind. It hadn't stopped when several other officers arrived, similarly suited, helmets under their arms.

"Good morning, gentlemen," Kakashi greeted them. "You've all been selected as potential candidates for an upcoming assignment. Since you all excelled in our defensive driving course, we've brought in some special help for an advanced crash session. Do your best to make sure "crash" remains a euphemism during this assignment."

Kakashi stepped back, and two instructors stepped forward – and one was Tenten.

"This is Idate Morino and Tian Hoshi. They are going to be instructing you on the finer points of high speed driving. They will work with you individually, and you will take turns being the one chasing and the one being chased. We only have them for today, so make it count." He looked to the two of them. "They're all yours."

Idate and Tenten looked at each other, and some signal passed between them.

"Alright, then," Idate spoke first. "Let's go over the basics."

Neji flicked a glance at Tenten, who gave him a reassuring wink.

Or at least it would have been, if her dimple (that always signaled mischief ) wasn't showing.

"You did really well, you know," Tenten offered, plucking out a cheese fry from her plate.

Neji gave an unintelligible grunt.

"You did," she insisted. "You pick up on things quickly. And you almost caught me!"

"Almost isn't going to solve this case," he grumbled, reaching for his drink.

"No," she said thoughtfully. "Unfortunately, Idate was only free for today, and the Captain really wanted two of us…" she trailed off, in thought. A few more moments passed before she gave a terrier-like shake of her shoulders and she shrugged.

"Guess we'll just have to get some practice in."

"No, thank you," Neji said firmly. "I've had quite enough of that today."

"Not enough to catch me," she smiled slowly. "And we were on a closed course. If you want Kakashi calling you instead of me, I think we have some work to do."

Neji refused to admit she was 100% right. He needed more practice, and she was an excellent teacher.

"Eat your fries," Tenten sat back in her seat – the same booth they'd shared the first night they'd met. "It will help steady your nerves."

"You mean clog my arteries?"

"That is home made grease. It's probably 90% love."

Neji arched an eyebrow.

"Okay, fine," she smiled. "But I promise it will make you feel better."

Neji obliged, and she looked satisfied.

There had been another heist.

There was no sting this time; but there was no question – it had been done by the same people. Unfortunately, they were not clients of Gaara's, so they didn't have the luxury of footage this time. However, they called Gaara and his team on within five minutes of discovering the theft.

"I told my husband to call you weeks ago," the wife lamented as her husband was calling the police. "Madam Shijimi speaks so highly of you."

And with that conversation, Gaara had legal grounds to cooperate with the police in, and yet, another investigation.

"This has drummed up quite a bit of business for you," Genma shifted the long toothpick in his mouth. "Maybe we should add you to the investigation."

Gaara's smile was slight – he'd known Genma for a while now and took no offense.

"Don't worry," Kankurō piped up. "I checked. Gaara's good."

"Good thing, too," Gaara side-eyed his brother. "Because my brother is not joking."

"I have to review all of the security tapes," Kankurō shrugged.

"And you are nosy," Tenten pointed out.

"Oh, absolutely," Kankurō beamed.

"This case started over two years ago," Neji said absently. "Gaara, Kankurō, and Tenten all have solid alibies proving they couldn't have been involved in any of this."

"Do we, now?"

Neji looked up at Tenten, who sat with eyebrows raised, chin in hand.

"Yes," he said slowly. "Naturally we had to conduct background checks on all of you – especially as a rash of crime could be advantageous to a security company."

"Two years worth of background checks?"

Neji felt the heat creeping up his neck.

"Five, actually. Seven in the case of Gaara's business."

Tenten's eyes went wide, and Neji caught the way that Kankurō winced, and Gaara remained pointedly calm.

"It is standard practice," Gaara acknowledged calmly, making Neji instantly and deeply grateful.

"True," Genma shrugged. "Formalities, really, but necessarily at this level of governmental involvement. Neji," he turned to the detective. "Do you have the final list of what was taken this time?"

Neji pulled the list and handed it to Genma, feeling Tenten's eyes on his face.

"Shoot," Kankurō stood up. "Sorry – Kakashi sent that to me; I have copies for everyone just give me a sec to-"

"I'll get them," Tenten stood up, tucking her phone in her pocket. "I need a refill anyway," she shook her large water bottle, and left the room.

Kankurō watched the door swing closed and swallowed. "'Kay," he sank back in his seat.

Neji turned his attention back to the meeting, and would've ignored the phone buzzing at his elbow had Kankurō not caught his attention and nodded to the phone.

Neji checked his messages, relaying one from Kakashi before reading the one from Kankurō.

"Ten had a time of it a couple of years ago. Do yourself a favor and don't bring up her work in Kumo, or any of her coworkers."

Neji frowned at this, and Kankurō hastily added a text.

"Trust me."

Neji nodded.

Tenten returned two minutes later looking thoughtful, but not upset. She even offered a small smile as she handed around the list of what was stolen.

But as the conversation resumed, Neji couldn't help but wonder.

"What happened in Kumo?"

So good to see you again, friends! xoxox - GL