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-B
Unlikely Pair
Chapter 2: Talk to Him
Of course, to avoid detection, Ino, Shikamaru and Sakura hung back quite a ways as they followed Tenten to Kakashi's home. Sakura didn't bet Tenten would go to his house right away, however Shikamaru had predicted it.
Shikamaru also groaned and griped about how troublesome the whole situation was.
Before they knew it, Tenten had been captured and her arms were pinned behind her back as though she were a prisoner. Ino and Sakura cringed as they watched their friend struggle, each of them wondering if they had perhaps made a mistake.
Until Kakashi walked out of his home.
"You see the way he's looking at her?" Ino whispered to Sakura quietly.
Sakura noticed her sensei examining Tenten's exposed body very briefly, but still giving her a good look nonetheless. She knew he was a pervert, what with his addiction to Icha-Icha Paradise, but she hadn't expected him to be so blatant about it.
Soon, Kakashi ordered for Tenten to be released and the pair began talking. From the distance that they sat, what they were saying could not be heard. At first, Tenten seemed very angry. Her body posture said it all, but then she changed. Her shoulders relaxed, and then she bowed! Apologizing, apparently.
Sakura hit Ino in excitement and Ino growled but still showed excitement herself and they smiled at each other. Shikamaru had dozed off underneath the tree they sat beside.
Soon, their brunette friend was walking home and Ino and Sakura decided they too should call it a night, both hoping that their efforts might have sparked something wonderful. But also forgetting their sleeping friend beneath the tree.
Tenten had been too tired to talk with the Hokage further about the strange matter, or explain to him that she thought it had to be some prank the youngsters in the village had pulled.
She wasn't overly concerned anymore, just grateful it wasn't real. "Damn little pranksters." She grumbled to herself as she climbed back into bed and cuddled her comforter like her life depended on it.
The following morning she woke a little later than usual, not surprisingly because of the events that had occurred the evening before.
After a morning cup of coffee, she readied herself per usual, shower, clothing and hair. She had changed up her style a little since the war had ended. It was a bit softer, more feminine and less childish in her opinion. Though, she still totted two buns on either side of her head, they were braided, and both braids met in a V shape and formed a single braid in the middle of her back. Her bangs swept to the side softly and she, like most others did not wear her Konoha leaf headband any longer.
She put on her netted stockings and her form fitting white and pink kimono, paired it with the usual sandals and over sized bengal bracelets and she was ready to go.
She wasn't really sure what to expect from The Hokage. She didn't know how seriously he had taken the strange letter that had been addressed to her, however it did bear his seal so perhaps he was rather serious. She had also replayed what he had spoken to her the evening before.
"I think you are a fine kunoichi, Tenten with a unique set of skills."
It was a lot different than the way Guy or Lee had treated her, or even Neji at times. To her very own team mates, Tenten was generally talked about as "convenient". Mostly for having their backs. And although she had conquered that mountain of insecurity, it still felt nice to be talked about in such a manor as he had.
Still, with things as peaceful as they had been since the end of the war, there was no real reason to have been that upset about a demotion in the first place, perhaps she was just acting petulant.
After she was ready, she walked out of her apartment and headed to the Hokage Tower, waving to a few villagers as she did. She spotted Sakura and Ino talking outside Ino's flower shop, and they immediately stopped what they were doing once they spotted her.
"Hey Tenten!" Sakura chirped.
Ino waved and subtlety elbowed her pink counterpart.
"Hey you two, what are you up to?" Tenten inquired, curious about their strange demeanor and their exchanging of knowing looks.
"Just talking." Sakura spurted
"Yep!" Ino nodded in agreement. She should be better at hiding things from her friends, but this was turning out to be harder than she thought. They hadn't expected Tenten to be walking by right at the moment they had met up to discuss part two of the plan.
"About?" Tenten inquired, pressing further. What the heck is going on between these two?!
"Ino and Sai just had their first time!" Sakura blurted in a panic.
Tenten's chocolate-colored eyes widened in surprise, no wonder they had been acting so secretive.
Ino's face turned six shades of beet and she looked just as shocked as Tenten. The fact that Sakura had randomly pulled that from the top of her head wasn't the issue, the issue was that she was right. How the hell did she know...
"O-oh!" Tenten giggled nervously and scratched her arm. "Congratulations?" She said with a little uncertainty.
"Thank you, Tenten." Ino played it off cooly, as she always did, flipping her hair and smiling proudly. "Anyway, where are you off to?"
"I'm dealing with some weird prank. I have to go talk with Hokage Sama about it." Tenten sighed, slightly annoyed and partly wondering just who on earth would've pranked her in the first place.
"Pranked?" Ino asked innocently, her demeanor had completely changed. She didn't seem obvious at all. Not even to Sakura.
"Yeah I'll tell you both about it later." Tenten waved her hand, and smiled. "I have to run."
"Well Temari is stopping by this weekend to visit, you should swing by Ino's place later tonight!" Sakura suggested, shrugging her narrow shoulders cutely.
"Alright. I'll swing by." Tenten said briskly before continuing on her way to the Hokage tower.
Sakura and Ino exchanged excited looks and both their smiles were wide as can be. "So, step two:Get her to talk about him; will be underway tonight." Sakura said as she rubbed both hands together deviantly.
"Stop doing that, you look like a villain in a corny film." Ino smacked her friend.
"Don't you dare!" Shizune pointed a narrow finger at the Hokage who was rising from his desk, obviously about to make another attempt at avoiding his paperwork. Which was due very soon.
"I'm just..."
"No! You need to do your paper work!" Shizune was getting exasperated, but she was snapped from her baker by the sound of knuckles rapping on the doorframe of the Hokage's office. She turned to see the bright young face of the pupil who once idolized Tsunade. "Oh, Tenten hello."
"Ah just who I was expecting to see." Kakashi smiled wide, overjoyed to have the much needed distraction from the work and he sat back down
"I wasn't aware you had any appointments Hokage Sama." Shizune looked at him curiously.
"Yes well, there's a matter that Tenten and I need to address. I will notify you if I need you further." With that he waved Tenten in and Shizune out.
Tenten heard the door close behind her and she couldn't help but feel sorry for the man before her. Towers of paperwork sat in neat and untouched piles on either side of the desk, but there was just enough of an opening for her to see him.
"Take a seat." He outstretched his hand, motioning to the chair on opposite side of his desk.
Tenten glanced behind her at he chair before sitting down. She felt slightly uneasy, and though she knew she was not in trouble, being seated before the Hokage so formally had her feeling like a troubled student in front of an angry teacher.
However, his friendly demeanor and the easy-going tonality of his voice quickly began to put her at ease. She began to realize that, although he was an incredible nin, with skills that far surpassed her own and most others she knew, he was a simple man beneath it all. Lazy, free spirited, calm, witty and intelligent.
Her hands lay neatly in her lap and she listened to him intently, nodding her head here and there to show him that he held her attention.
"Has there been anyone you've crossed paths with recently, that perhaps you didn't get along with?" Kakashi inquired, linking his long fingers together and laying them atop the desk, very careful not to disturb his mountains of parchment. He watched her delicately bite her bottom lip and her eyes darted off to the side as she contemplated his question carefully. He hadn't noticed before, but she certainly had long eyelashes.
In fact, as he thought he had come to realize that he hadn't spent a great deal of time with this particular Kunoichi alone. Certainly they had had their run-ins. Somehow he always ended up running into team Guy, but Guy typically distracted him with some challenge and they'd be off. How on earth did she emerge from that team with such a level head? She was so.. normal.
"No, not anyone I can think of." She responded after some deliberation. The Hokage scratched his head in thought, contemplating his next question. "If I may," she proceeded, "it's likely this is just some silly prank. The kids at the academy sometimes do deviant things like this."
"Initially that was my thought, but this seal is nearly perfect. See." He stated before showing her a side-by-side comparison between the forged letter, and his own seal. Sure enough it was near perfect.
"Then perhaps whoever did this works close to you?" Tenten looked up and captured his gaze.
"That had crossed my mind, yes." Kakashi sighed and glanced off to the side of the room as he thought. There had to be an explanation. Who did he know that worked close with him, that would've specifically targeted Tenten? Certainly it didn't seem like a large threat, or that either of the two were in any real danger however it was the forgery that was really bothering him. In the wrong hands, it could cause massive chaos.
Tenten could see his wheels turning, despite the mask covering his face, his eyes really said it all. She studied them closely, but subtly. Curiously wondering about the mystery behind those orbs that were dancing about different focal points of he room as he thought.
"Well then," he spoke once more, "I think it's time we take our investigation on he road, don't you?" The Hokage rose from his seat behind the desk. Tenten had to admit it was a bold choice on his part to dress as casually as he did for being the Hokage. However, he still looked professional.
"I'm sorry?" Tenten looked at him curiously, still seated as he walked around the desk, her head followed him as he walked.
"Come on, let's go ask Konohamaru if he had anything to do with this." He opened the door to his office and watched the brunette girl rise from her seat and he extended his arm so she could exit the office first and she did.
He watched as she walked slightly ahead of him, her feminine hips swaying slightly with each step. He immediately reprimanded himself for noticing and his eyes moved up quickly. From that point forward, he walked at her side.
As they stepped outside into the sunshine, Tenten squinted her eyes slightly and tried to think of where they might be able to catch Konohamaru. He was likely getting a bite to eat, or training on the grounds or perhaps even following Iruka around.
"I'll bet he's getting some ramen." Kakashi glanced at her as though he'd read her mind. "Let's head that way." Kakashi lead the way, and Tenten walked beside him. Each time she drifted away from him, it seemed as though he closed the gap between them and walked close beside her. They never touched, and perhaps it was just because he was busy waving to people and being a polite Hokage, as he should that he continued drifting closer to her.
But, strangely enough Tenten didn't mind the closeness. She couldn't remember the last time she'd spent time with someone relatively normal, and she would not likely categorize the Hokage as normal, but in comparison to Guy, Lee and even Neji, he was. Perhaps it was because she knew just how powerful he was, but she felt very safe when walking along side him. And he never let her fall a step behind.
"Ahhhh," Temari let out a huge sigh after reaching Ino's house and she stretched her back and legs before knocking.
Ino swung the door open and greeted her fellow blonde with a grin. "You made it!"
"I made it." Temari smiled and waved as Sakura poked her head out from behind Ino.
"Come on in!" Ino yanked her friend inside her apartment and closed the door behind her. She took her bag to the guest room for her.
"So how have you been, Temari?" Sakura inquired as she handed her a cup of tea.
Temari took it graciously and sat on the couch beside her. "I've been good, things stay busy."
"You gotta keep those brothers of yours in line, huh?" Sakura teased and smiled while Temari nodded her head and rolled her eyes. Sakura had been spot on. "So... I couldn't help but notice you and Shikamaru looking kind of friendly at Naruto and Hinata's wedding."
Temari tried hard not to blush, but the heat in her cheeks told her that she wasn't doing a very good job at hiding her emotions.
It was at that point that Ino had emerged from the guest bedroom and joined the girls in the living room on her plush chair adjacent to the couch.
"He is kind of cute.."
Temari finally admitted as she looked down at her hands that sat in her lap.
"I knew you liked him!" Ino chirped excitedly. "I know he likes you too."
"He does?!" Temari looked up, eyes sparkling with excitement. Just he possibility of him liking her back was making her feel like a school girl all over again.
Ino and Sakura both nodded in unison. "And since you're both in town, you might as well hang out, right? Maybe you two could go to dinner tomorrow?"
"Well, he did ask me to dinner sometime. I guess," she blushed, "sometime could be tomorrow.." this sort of thing always made her so nervous. "It really seems like everyone seems to be finding someone."
"Well we had just been talking about that." Sakura said, looking at Ino and wondering if she should mention their deviant plan.
"Ino, you're dating Sai, right? And rumor has it you and Sasuke have been talking right Sakura?" Temari wanted to turn the attention away from herself, she was getting far too flustered to keep talking about Shikamaru.
"Yep!" Ino nodded. Sakura blushed and nodded quietly.
"Well that just leaves Tenten huh?" Temari looked at her friends who were exchanging a knowing look between themselves. "What?"
"You'll think we're crazy.." Ino giggled.
"But we're trying to set her up."
As luck would have it, Konohamaru was at the ramen shop. But he had zero information, and Tenten believed him. Kakashi was still a little unsure, but had decided that since they were already at the ramen shop they should just go ahead and eat.
Tenten sat herself in between Konohamaru and Kakashi and ordered her usual, and Kakashi did the same.
He glanced at the Kunoichi beside him, and he could not help but notice the easiness he felt when he was near her. He didn't feel awkward, nor did he feel the need to put up a front for her. She struck him as a 'no nonsense' kind of girl. She was also quite a bit different than the other girls her age in the village and perhaps that was due to the fact that she was just a little older. But she never appeared to have an infatuation with a male counterpart, she seemed focused, diligent and endearing. And he had to admit those qualities were in short supply these days.
As his mind wandered, he began to wonder how she might be coping with the loss of her teammate, Neji Hyuga. If there had ever been a romantic relationship between them, no one knew about it. And Kakashi had a feeling that perhaps there were feelings, but nothing beyond that.
Tenten turned and looked at the Hokage, who was looking at her with an inquisitive expression. It caught her off guard for a moment, and she blushed and furrowed her brow. "What is it?" She asked curiously.
Kakashi blinked and shook his head and waved his hands. "Nothing, nothing." He chuckled. "I'm just trying to think of another lead." He lied, turning his attention to the steaming bowl of ramen that had just been placed in front of him. "Thank you."
Had she ever been looked at quite like that before? Tenten racked her brain but couldn't come up with anything remotely similar to what had just happened. The look on his face, was it admiration? She couldn't tell. Perhaps she was just imagining things. She shook her dark head, thanked Ayame and began to eat her ramen in silence.
Meanwhile, Konohamaru had witnessed the entire exchange between the pair and smiled to himself. It seemed like something quite interesting was unfolding right in front of him.
Tenten knocked on Ino's door and was greeted by Temari, Sakura and Ino herself.
Suddenly she was being pulled into the house with great force and she was seated on the couch within seconds.
"Woah.." Tenten looked at her friends curiously. "Hello to you too.. am I in trouble or something?"
Her friends were all standing, looking down at her with glowing faces. Their hands were clasped together, they were smiling and seemed to be waiting for her to spill some juicy information.
"What?! What?!" Tenten exclaimed waving her arms in exasperation.
"What did you do today?" Temari asked, sitting beside her brunette friend and formal rival. Ino and Sakura had filled her in on everything. The whole shebang. Sai had created the letter with his calligraphy skills and their plan had been set into motion. After some convincing, Temari believed like the others that Tenten and Kakashi, though very unlikely, would actually make a fine pair.
"Well I.." Tenten started as Ino and Sakura sat down to listen in as well. She began to feel uneasy, wondering just what on earth her friends were up to. "I went to the Hokage tower because last night I received a letter from him stating that I had been demoted. After talking with him last night, I he admitted he didn't send out the letter and today we just tried to go over some suspects to see if we can't figure out who sent it." Tenten explained. "I have to meet with him again tomorrow."
"I always thought Kakashi Sensei was kind of cute." Sakura nudged, testing the waters to see if Tenten would bite.
Tenten shrugged her shoulders. She hadn't seen his face, how was she to know? He had a good body. He was still in good shape. But cute wasn't really the word Tenten would use to describe him.
"Sakura you're into bad boys, Kakashi Sensei is the opposite." Ino giggled, continuing where Sakura left off. "What kind of guys are you into Temari?" She didn't want it to seem like they were targeting Tenten specifically.
"Smart, but not overly sensitive, but also intuitive. Someone who can read the room, you know." Temari did her best to be vague.
"Personally, I like a challenge." Ino smirked cutely.
"We know!" Sakura and Temari chimed.
Tenten knew exactly what was happening now. The girls were trying to set her up with someone. She didn't know who, and perhaps they didn't either but it was clear they were trying to get her to admit to them her type. They were all looking at her, all eager.
They were playing her, and she wasn't having it. "I appreciate what you guys are trying to do but I don't need to be set up." Tenten stood to her feet and shook her dark head. "I need to go. " With that she walked out of Ino's house and crossed her arms.
Surely if she wanted a man she could get one herself.