Author's Note: Okay, so I'm trying to pace myself here. Problem is, I'm eager to get this one out there. Bitten off more than I can chew, perhaps. I always get too far ahead of myself. This one's out a day early, due to my appalling amount of self control. Thank you to all who reviewed, I love you all dearly.

So don't debate

Play it straight

You know he really doesn't

Get it anyway

Chapter 2.

"Ah!"

"Shit!"

Ino was knocked backwards against the elevator wall as the man turned around, now almost completely covered in scalding hot coffee. She didn't hold back on the exclamations of pain – or the swearing – as she tried to get it off.

"Shit! I'm so sorry! Here, let me -" Ino's possible victim bustled, looking for a part of her that had been wet that wouldn't make him look like a pervert if he started to try and wipe it clean.

"No! No," Ino snapped. "Just… stop. You've done enough -"

"Hey, hey! You're Ino Yamanaka, aren't you? The Nara genius' secretary! You…. Oh shit! I'm so fired! I'm sorry!" He ran a hand through his hair and looked around, as if searching for an escape route just as soon as the doors closed behind him. He looked almost animalistic – like a cornered dog.

"You're not fired…. Though you probably should be. I can't go back to the office looking like this! This suit was NEW you know!" She pouted up at him, and noticed on his badge he worked with police dogs, and wasn't only a copper himself.

"Okay! Alright, I'm sorry…"

He became less apologetic when he found out he wasn't fired. Bitch! But, Ino supposed, she wasn't really going to be kind to him later. He could take this chance to be a jerk while he still could. Ino vowed to make it so that he would be under her complete control. When she was through with him he wouldn't dare be so dismissive of her.

"Here… take this." He hadn't even pressed which floor he wanted yet. Well. She'd just have to take the lost puppy home, huh?

Ino accepted his heavy jacket smugly, wrapping it tightly around herself. Not a bad start if she did say so herself. What a good catch he was turning out to be…

"Well… I suppose it'll just have to do, won't it?"

…didn't stop her from being a bitch though. If he worked with dogs, he'd understand. The pack leader has to assert his or her dominance. He needed to know who was boss.

Their little exchange had lasted a couple of floors, and as the number eleven flashed on the small screen, Ino pushed past her new acquaintance and strode through to her desk, losing him among the bustling people as they shoved and pushed like animals in a stampede. She was used to it. He was not. He was probably too afraid that he would have to pay a hundred thousand for any suits he touched. Ha… Officers….

It annoyed the blond to find that Sakura hadn't gotten back from the coffee shop yet – which was a real shame. It would be amusing to see her reaction when she saw what Ino had picked up on the way back.

She opened her new jacket and took her nametag from her ruined shirt, placing it on her front as if everything was normal. It struck her that she didn't actually know her guinea pig's name yet.

"Hey!" she called out across the rows of bent heads, harried colleagues and slacking co-workers alike. "What do they call you then?"

"Kiba!" his voice answered from somewhere Ino couldn't properly distinguish. "Kiba Inuzuka! Where are you?"

Ino chose to ignore the question, and set to work making a pass for him – he would need one if he was a copper in lawyer's territory. She sniggered as she wrote out his name in big, over-exaggerated, curly writing, contemplating the addition of love hearts and sparkles. If he didn't like it… well….

She'd just have to train him better, wouldn't she?

During the creative nametag process, she kept glancing towards the office of her boss to see if he would come looking for the coffee she was meant to bring him. The odds weren't in her favour at all, she realised, but perhaps today was going to be lucky for her.

By the time she had finished Kiba's pass, and he had at last managed to find where she was, Ino gave up on Shikamaru's surfacing and decided to make sure the rest of the office knew about her and Kiba, even if he wouldn't. She growled to herself as the young man looked around in awe at the expensive layout of her work environment, and made the comparisons to his. It would be so much easier if Sakura was there! If Sakura knew, then it was impossible for everyone else not to find out.

Of course, she could go to the Uchiha and just tell him out of the blue – he was probably the one who saw Shikamaru the most, even though neither of them appreciated being within the same room as each other for any given amount of time. No… Sasuke probably wouldn't do what she wanted… he never actually talked except to fight with Shikamaru, so nothing would happen. Well, maybe if Sasuke wouldn't work, then….

No. She could do it herself. She would make him see just exactly what he was missing out on.

--------------

The blond sniggered as Sakura walked in to the office, and gave an absent nod every time Kiba stopped for breath. She was sitting coyly on her swivel chair behind her glass-top desk, while he was leaning against it, one hand on the surface. Ino wrapped his jacket tighter around herself and scowled as Sakura didn't even notice. The pink woman was hurrying to put down the notes and papers she had been carrying so that she didn't look cluttered when she brought Sasuke's coffee to him.

"… where I am. So what's it like working…" the young man rattled.

Ino eyed Kiba with a calculating stare and decided that she could definitely take the chance with him. It had crossed her mind once or twice that she could possibly be rejected by someone she was going to use. Kiba seemed comfortable, though. Ino was confident he would respond to anything she felt like doing.

"… is better if you can relate to the rest of the people you -"

Ino could barely remember what he had been talking about, and it seemed he wasn't thinking about that anymore either. She was practically sprawled on her desk, making sure everything that would make even the slightest noise was sent flying, just to make sure Sakura wouldn't miss it. She smiled the most dangerous smile she could with her lips pressing into another's, before breaking away, careful not to look at her pink rival just yet. Kiba's eyes were wide with shock, but his expression quickly changed into something else. Ino was guessing by the wolfish grin he had adopted that he had enjoyed it, and probably wouldn't say no if she needed to do it again. It amused her that he tried to be cocky, but there was still a hint of blush across his cheeks. She left one hand at the back of his head, buried in his hair, while her other arm rested lightly around his lower back and he opened his mouth to speak.

She was saved the trouble of the 'afterwards' conversation by Tenten, who came in scolding them angrily for fooling around and not being at work.

"And who are you? You obviously don't belong on this floor. Get out! Who gave you permission to be here? I'm reporting this straight to Mr. Hyuuga," she threatened, calling over a security guard before disappearing into the elevator and leaving them with a parting glare.

Kiba looked to Ino for support, but she just winked at him, pulling away completely and scrunching the pass she'd just finished behind her back.

"But, what about my -" he started as he was 'escorted' from the floor by the firm's number one security guard, a bubbly, enthusiastic fruitcake by the name of Lee. When Kiba had been sent back to work where he belonged, the green cyclone whirled his way back to Ino, checking to see if she was okay. Sakura left in a hurry, darting away in the general direction of the photocopier.

"Was that man harassing you, Miss Yamanaka? Such an act is unyouthful and -"

She cut him off. Otherwise he would go on forever.

"- In breach of the right to work without sexual harassment. My studies aren't all for nothing you know," she winked. "Anyway, Lee, how are things going with Sakura?"

His eyes surged with burning, crackling electricity at the sound of her name before he sighed a sigh only the most lovelorn among us could ever hope to accomplish. Poor Lee. It annoyed Ino to see how Sakura treated him.

"I think…. I think she has feelings for another man," he said solemnly, looking pained as he turned briefly to look at the closed door of Sasuke's office.

"Oh, Lee…. Really?" Ino said sympathetically. It seemed obvious to everyone but him. Sakura had never liked Lee, and had been smitten with Sasuke ever since that work camp. To be truthful, Ino had liked Sasuke a lot too, and she had dated him back in high school – not that they ever talked about it. After all, it didn't matter, she liked Shikamaru now. What had happened between her and the Uchiha in school was never to be brought up again. That would just be messy.

… Though….

She could always try to use the Uchiha too, along with the slew of other as yet unknown males that were part of her plan. If she offered him a no-strings relationship, she could sabotage Sakura at the same time. After all, Ino was sure he still had a soft spot for her anyway. She shook her head, tuning back into Lee. That was unnecessarily cruel. That was crossing a line.

Oh. Since when had she grown a conscience?

Troublesome….

Oh God. She'd starting thinking like him.

"…. But even if my affections are not returned, I will still protect her till the day I die!" Lee was vowing fiercely. He clamped a hand tight around the hilt of the gun on his belt – a weapon that everyone knew he did not need to kill someone. Ino knew Lee was telling the sincere truth when he said that. He had been in love with Sakura ever since the pink-haired girl had started working at the Konoha law firm. Unfortunately, she had already seen Sasuke.

"Sometimes, I think you're too good for her Lee," she said, standing and bringing him into a tight hug. It was the nicest way she could say 'Sakura's a stupid whore, just forget about her' so that he wouldn't get offended or angry.

An insistent cough alerted Ino to another presence near her – one she had not noticed approaching. She released Lee and gasped as she saw Neji Hyuuga himself, in all his beautiful, sleek, well-groomed glory. Wearing another guy's big, lumbering jacket and being covered in coffee, Ino felt hopelessly outclassed – well… even more that usual when in the presence of her boss. The Hyuuga gave her a blank look.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm…"

"Never fear, Mr. Hyuuga!" Lee shouted, punching the air and striking a pose. "I was just -"

"Lee. Get back to work," Neji said flatly, his peculiar pale eyes staring at the security guard with an overall air of intolerance.

"O-Of course! I'll do my best to protect the people in this company!"

With that, Lee left to return to his place he had been in before, setting himself the challenge of standing stationary for two hours straight. Ino looked after him, trying to avoid meeting Neji's stare. She focused on the area around his throat, and bit the inside of her cheek. It was impossible to look anywhere on him without her getting distracted. He had always had that strange ability. She gulped.

"Relax, Miss Yamanaka. I won't bite," he smirked.

Genuinely surprised and semi-disbelieving, the blond blinked, being, for once, completely at a loss for words. She looked up, thinking that she should show at least some form of mannerism while talking to the man that had complete control over her pay slip.

"Now, Miss Yamanaka… Tenten has informed me about what happened a couple of minutes ago. For what reason did you bring someone like that young man up to this floor?"

"Uh…"

Oh. Just kill her now. He knew about how she had kissed Kiba? Of course… that was the general idea – to get people to know – but now she felt like he was going to murder her. She felt guilty about it, while talking to him. Maybe that would pass though, with time… and numbers.

When she could not give an answer, he raised an eyebrow and chuckled darkly, reminding her horribly of the calm before a storm she knew would never come.

"I hope you realise the standard we set here," he said after a while of staring at Kiba's jacket and the coffee-covered clothes that could be glimpsed slightly beneath it. "Half of this business is image, Miss Yamanaka. I would have thought you'd know that."

"Yes sir…"

"…. But that jacket… it isn't actually yours, is it?" He sniffed and wrinkled his nose. "It smells like something someone on the very bottom floors would own…"

Ino apologised silently to Kiba before telling the big boss a super-exaggerated version of what happened – of course leaving the part about her knocking into him on purpose conveniently out of it.

Neji Hyuuga nodded, smirked, and paged Tenten, who appeared attentively at his side in less than two minutes. Ino blinked. How did she do that?

"Tenten, I'm sending Miss Yamanaka here across to buy herself some new clothes…"

"Very good, sir. That's very generous of you…. Looks like she needs it, too," the brunette frowned, looking disapprovingly at Ino's current clothes. Ino wondered if it pissed Mr. Hyuuga off that he had been interrupted. She had a sneaking suspicion it had.

"I'm going to ask you to take over her position for a while." Neji didn't give her the time to answer, and all the assistant got was a brief glance, so he did not get to see the indignant look on her face. "Thanks, Tenten."

Neji handed Ino his ID card and told her to make an account for herself in his name in the boutique across the road.

"Ask for a man called Kakuzu. He'll look after you. Get whatever you want, and how much you want, as long as it's under the fifty-thousand dollar mark. Don't listen to him if he wants you to spend any higher. You'll end up casting me into debt. Once you start with him, its difficult to stop – that is, if you're new."

Ino's eyes widened, and she actually took a step back, attempting to give him back the card.

"Mr. Hyuuga! This is too much! And I can't just ask Tenten – I mean, Miss -"

"Are you trying to argue with me?"

Ino froze, clenching the card in her hand, unsure of what to do.

"Well, are you?"

"No! I'm going now, sir!" Ino started to edge away, not liking the idea of turning her back. Suddenly, she was hit from the right by a flowery-smelling, clingy thing.

"Billboa – I mean… Sakura! Please watch where you're going!" the blond snapped angrily, trying to shake the woman off while smiling reassuringly at Neji. She was bright red with blush, realising she looked a fool in front of her handsome boss. She tried to think of what his extensive amount of money could do when applied to clothes shopping, and how getting the most amazing outfit ever would help her attract the attention of Shikamaru, instead of wandering how low the Hyuuga's opinion of her was now.

"Sorry, Ino. It's just, I heard what you were saying, Mr. Hyuuga! And I completely agree! She's looking particularly hideous today! How nice of you to -"

"Tenten!" Neji barked angrily at the brunette who had grudgingly taken a seat at Ino's desk. Sakura and Ino jumped, but the secretary looked up lazily, as if she felt she had better things to do.

"Yes, sir?"

"Why are the people on this floor dressed so shamefully? You're in charge of the women here. Why don't you reprimand such atrocities as this?" He pointed to Sakura, who turned bright red with embarrassment and indignation. Ino snorted, giving the man a mental high five. "Both you girls, get out of here, go to Kakuzu, and don't you dare come back until you've got something decent to wear. It's fifty thousand for the both of you. Just go," he told them, watching as they gibbered their agreements and took off in the other direction.

"You don't mind covering both of them, do you?" he asked lazily, sticking his hands in the pockets of his suit pants.

"Of course not, sir."

He was answered coldly, but he took no notice. Tenten would do whatever he asked. He knew that.

"Good."

"…Ino? I need you to -" Shikamaru froze as he saw the blond that usually sat at the desk had been replaced by a disgruntled, unappreciative brunette. He looked disbelievingly at Neji. "Where's Ino?"

"I sent her away. She's gone."

Neji watched with amusement as his top lawyer's face changed from lazy apathy to brilliant anger. "You fired her? For what? I'll sue the ass off -"

"I sent her shopping, Shikamaru Nara," Neji yawned, enjoying the patronizing role he had taken. "If you have any objection then please, speak normally and rationally. We're both adults after all."

Shikamaru withdrew behind his usual slouch and looked at his boss, annoyed with himself. Usually, where Ino was concerned, he tried to keep things as unnoticeable as possible. That morning… with the blouse….

She was just too good for him. It didn't matter that he was a genius. She was beautiful. He couldn't compete with that. No one needed to know how he felt about her. She was probably obsessed with that fucking Uchiha anyway, like most of the other women in the building.

"Yeah, whatever…. Why did you send her?"

"She was wearing the jacket of a young man from the lower floors, and quite frankly, that's just not acceptable."

Shikamaru looked down at his own suit, un-ironed and dirty from yesterday. He probably wasn't all that presentable either.

"Stupid pig," Tenten muttered, rolling her eyes. "Embarrassing us like that…. And the behaviour with that policeman… disgraceful…. Oh… did I forget to mention that before…?" She spoke idly to herself, jabbing at Ino's keyboard unappreciatively while considering deleting half of her files.

The lawyer and the CEO snapped around, both demanding for her to repeat what she said. When each man noticed that he was not the only one who had done it, they took their eyes from Tenten, glaring daggers at one another. Shikamaru even let out a low growl.

"Oh… There's nothing to repeat…. It doesn't matter…" Tenten yawned, grabbing some files left by the computer and proceeding to sort them out as both men proceeded to glare, each angry because of the reaction of the other.

"Don't you have work to do?"

Shikamaru snarled, turning on his heel and retreating back to his office. Everyone occupying the now-silent floor flinched as they heard the violent slamming of his heavy door, and were surprised that he had not managed to snap it right off its hinges.

Hey, hey do that crazy thing!

Hehe. The Offspring is love

And my words of wisdom, right now?

…

Life's a bitch and then you marry one?

Nah.

How about this:

It's good for a man to eat his thistles, and remember he's an ass.