Author's Note: Ooh! I can't even remember what chapter this is!

Can I look at it when I post it and edit it in the documents section?

Yes!

Could I be bothered?

No!

'Cause I'm a lazy jerk!

I'm seeing this girl

And she just might be out of her mind

Chapter ?

"Hey there. I'm sorry to bug you, but do you know Kiba Inuzuka? I sort of have his jacket."

Ino could hardly believe she had sought out someone on the lower levels to speak to, but here she was. It was incredibly doubtful that anyone in the upper floors would know of Kiba, so she was forced to go straight to the source. The blond she was talking to pushed aside a bunch of grisly crime scene photos and snapped around, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yeah, I know Kiba."

Ino tolerated the quick once-over he gave her. She had heard that walking through the lower floors could be really disconcerting because of the character profiles that everybody made of each other. The Yamanaka had no doubt that everything she was doing was being categorized and examined for further glimpses into her personality.

Honestly… people some days.

Let him not know that lawyers – and those aspiring for the position – did the same thing. Let him not know how similar lawyers and policemen actually were – that would put a strain on the superiority complex of her people. Couldn't have that now, could she?

"You couldn't take him to me, could you?"

Ino didn't know why, but he seemed so familiar. Something told her he had some sort of affiliation with Sasuke, but…

"Hm? Oh! Right…."

Ino sighed to herself. She'd picked a genius to show her around. Wonderful…

…

He was cute though….

Must be a blond thing.

"Hey, are you Ino?" her guide asked her suddenly as he dodged around desks and men with loaded guns. "Because Kiba told me about you before. He said you were on the eleventh floor. Is that true?"

"Darling, where do I look like I'm from?" Ino grinned, crossing her arms over her chest.

What did Kiba tell you about me before?

"Ha. Good point. I just didn't believe him at first…. I'm Naruto by the way." He offered a hand with a good-natured smile. She looked at it pensively.

"Hey."

After shaking the hand – somewhat awkwardly on her part – she continued to follow him, passing all sorts of people on their way to Kiba's desk.

"Naruto, how far away is Kiba?"

"Eh? Mm. Kiba might be with his best mate Shino, who doesn't often like to be found. It's a constant game of hide and seek around here…. He's usually at the firing range though…."

Annoyed but ignoring the fact he seemed to jolt out of a self-induced stupor every time she started talking to him, indicating that he didn't really seem to be listening, she continued on anyway. Why did Kiba spend all his time shooting?

"What for?"

"Wants everyone to know he's not just a glorified tracking system, I think. Of course, we all know he's not – fun to take the piss out of him though. He says that he should repay Miss Hyuuga."

Ino got the gist that something had happened between Kiba and the heiress, but did not want to ask about it just yet. She would find out though – there was no doubt about it.

"You know Hinata?"

If she was speaking to anyone on the floors above their current one, she never would have dared use the first name of the wealthy woman.

Naruto looked down at her and grinned. "Course I do. Everyone knows Miss Hyuuga. You lawyers think you're flash, but the community's tight down here. Miss Hyuuga owns the firm, she knows us all. She doesn't just pay attention to the high-priced bastards like Neji does."

The first name basis that he had with Ino's handsome high boss was not lost on her. Obviously, he wasn't so popular on the lower floors as he was respected on the higher. They didn't give a crap about him down here. She ignored the high-priced bastards comment. That was exactly what she was.

….Maybe they weren't all that similar after all.

Ino followed Naruto to the elevator, waiting patiently for it to come and get them. She decided she was going to find out a little more about Kiba then, instead of keeping him on her 'make-him-jealous' list without knowing if he was a twisted psychopath. Who knew about cops these days?

"So, how long have you known Kiba?" she asked, keeping her eyes cemented to the wall in front of her. Naruto had a sort of unnerving ability to want to spill your secrets to him, and as she contemplated what would happen if she told him her plans for Kiba, it suddenly occurred to her how many enemies it was possible to make if her little plan went awry. She didn't want the whole police floor on her case – that would be somewhat difficult.

…

She could just seduce them too, right?

…

Whore.

…

"I've known him ages. We went to school together. I swear I know you from somewhere else, though…." He stared at her for a minute, half grimacing as he tried to remember.

"We never dated, did we? You're not an ex of mine, right? Because that would be embarrassing, me not remembering you or anything..."

"Uh… No…."

"We should have," he said thoughtfully taking a step back and looking at her again. By the time his eyes reached back up to hers, he had realised the sudden danger he had put himself in. Ino Yamanaka was not someone to be taken lightly.

"Just kidding! I get it – you and Kiba…. Hmm….You never played soccer, did you?"

Ino raised her eyebrows, surprised. "Yes, actually. I played on my school's mixed team. Why?"

Naruto shrugged and grinned, stepping into the newly-arrived elevator. "You just seemed really familiar, that's all. I think I remember where I met you before."

Ino thought back to her high school days, forcing Sasuke to come with her to one of the soccer carnivals, strolling around with his arm firmly in her grasp, enjoying herself to no end as she showed off her gorgeous boyfriend…. Being on the field, playing defense and taking even the strongest guys head on with no real fear….

… Being smashed into the mud by an overenthusiastic winger….

"Oh my God! I remember you!" she shouted, looking at him properly. "I played you before! You knocked the crap out of me!"

He grinned brightly, not at all perturbed about her sudden indignation. "So it was you! I remember, because I had the bruises your boyfriend gave me for about a week."

Ino smiled back at him, temper coming to a slight simmer instead of an overflowing rage wave, and wondered back then about how he had actually managed to get a real reaction from Sasuke the Stoic. The black-eyed boy, as soon as Ino had hit the ground, had launched himself on the orange-clad kid, sending both of them to the ground as they proceeded to bash the shit out of each other.

All rather amusing, reall – er… No. It was horrible to see them… fighting… and… stuff….

"Don't worry, Sasuke had some of his own."

"Oh, I know. He wouldn't stop complaining. Not out loud, obviously, but I didn't get rid of the death glares for a couple of months. Bastard…"

"What? How did you – do you – know him?"

"Primary school, football team, next door neighbours," he answered shortly, wincing a bit. "And then he decides to go out on a limb and not recommend me here. Dickhead…. I mean, I got in okay enough, but after he developed that phobia of his, he wasn't too pleased that I was getting ahead of him, and dropped out early. Says policing is for the weak anyway."

Ino burst out laughing, leaning against the elevator wall. She wondered about his phobia, though. She hadn't known Sasuke to really be afraid of anything.

"Well, Naruto. I think that you've easily got to be my favourite person today. Nobody speaks like that about Sasuke Uchiha anymore – at least not openly. Shikamaru throws the occasional dart at a picture, and grumbles about being forced to work with him, but that's the farthest anyone goes."

Ino sighed forlornly. Such a tragedy.

"Darts in a picture, huh?" Naruto asked, rubbing his chin. "That's pretty open, I'd say."

"He keeps it in a box inside his desk," she winked.

Obviously, someone as good and as pure as Ino Yamanaka had not gone through her lazy boss' desk…. No. He'd told her all about that in a deep, intimate conversation they had had once.

Naruto laughed, stepping outside the elevator and striding down the hallway to find his friend.

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

Entering a room screaming with gunshot sounds wasn't the safest sort of thing Ino could have imagined doing. She subconsciously walked closer to Naruto as he strode confidently into the range, yelling for his fellow officer. Ino flinched as suddenly the blond man stopped, frozen into place, with a cold grey gun at the back of his head.

She hadn't even heard him approach.

"Gotcha."

Even though she recognised the voice, Ino didn't let herself relax until the weapon had been put away – stuffed into a holster at the copper's hip, for lack of a bulky jacket to hide it with.

"You wanna take me?" Naruto challenged, turning and pulling his own gun, pointing it in the cocky face of Kiba Inuzuka. Ino took a step back, unused to the brawls familiar around the lower floors. Lawyers fought with words. She was so out of her zone it wasn't funny. Her hand balled into an uneasy fist, buried deep in the jacket she was carrying.

In response, Kiba flashed a quick grin before focusing complete attention onto Ino.

"Oi. Loser. Put it away," he frowned. Ino thought it would be entirely justifiable if she kissed him senseless with gratitude at that point in time. She did not like guns. These two men, aiming readily at each other with loaded weapons made purposely for killing terrified her. She managed to control herself, staying completely still – even if she was wearing an expression similar to a deer caught in headlights.

"Pussy," Naruto sniggered, before seeing the expression on the secretary's face. "Oh, shit…. Sorry."

Once she couldn't see the pistol, she had reverted back to her old, confident demeanor….

Sort of.

"Ha! Why would I care?" She started to back away slowly, smiling like a freak. "Mr. Nara is probably expecting me. I'll see you two later!"

She turned tail and trotted off quickly, viewing the upcoming elevator as a haven, away from the less-than-safe lower floors of the police department. Hell, even the forensics labs and morgues above them would freak her out less. She didn't fear death so much as she feared the possibility of it. She had just stepped inside, jamming her fist against the 'close door' button when Kiba practically dived through the closing passageway, half-tackling her in a way that would have made any footballer proud, and by so doing, pinning her securely against the opposite wall.

Having a good-looking, no doubt willing, panting man pressed up against her that she had felt like snogging senseless just a moment before did nothing to help Ino's already appalling self-control issues. Kiba's elbows rested on the elevator wall on either side of her head, his body crushed up close. There was practically no space between their faces, and Kiba could make up every single shade of blue that made up her wide eyes. Ino bit her cheek subconsciously, feeling hot breath on her lips.

The moment, where both parties tried to maintain conscious thought and control, was shattered when they began their ascent to the eleventh floor. The situation was being controlled by something even more fragile than a hair trigger, and it set off both of them as Ino's arms wrapped tightly around his waist, tugging him to her as he dipped his head down and caught her lips with his own in an eager, enthusiastic kiss. She felt hands move from the wall behind her to wrap around her, tangling in her hair and running up and down the length of her back as she slipped her tongue inside his mouth. Thoroughly enjoying herself, Ino was too disappointed to really be embarrassed when the elevator stopped on the ninth floor and a slightly overweight man interrupted their little session, which hadn't really even gotten off the ground. They both stood at the back of the lift, Ino in one corner, Kiba in the other, a scowl on her face, a smirk on his.

Kiba cleared his throat noisily, determined that he wouldn't just get pushed away this time. He glanced her way, satisfied with the tousled hair and clothing she was trying desperately to smooth down. She was still clutching his much-loved jacket, and it amused him to no end to see how she refused to look at him.

"So…"

"So what? So nothing," she snapped, putting a stray piece of hair behind her ear. She hadn't meant to sound like that – she was just a little flustered. Kiba flinched at the sudden chill in her voice, and responded the way he usually would – even though she was not a usual person.

"Bitch."

"Oh? So I'm a bitch, then, am I?" she screeched. The third party in the elevator cringed, wondering what the hell he had gotten himself into. Kiba was amazed that Ino's voice could put even the loudest of banshees to shame, but wouldn't back down.

Of course, he did understand that she was a princess, separated from everyone else, up on her high, golden, jewel-encrusted pedestal. It was, after all, the common attitude of those on the upper floors – but he would be damned if he let a lawyer's secretary get the better of him. She had to be brought down a notch, otherwise he'd never see her again, and as much shit as he knew it would put him in, he wanted to see her again. Many, many times more.

"Yeah! You heard me! I can't think of any other way to describe you!" he shouted, turning to face her and raising his chin to her in a classic display of dominance.

Unfortunately, Ino had never been one to back down – not to police officers that she had met just three days ago that she was going to use to get her boss jealous….

"You prick! You are so gonna eat those words!"

She didn't even know why she was arguing with him, not to mention why she had just sounded like a pathetic little teenage schoolgirl. Ino knew exactly what she was, and bitch was a neat description. Far be it from her, though, to think about her actions.

"Oh yeah?" he snarled, aware of how things were going downhill, and desperately trying to think of ways to patch it up with her later.

"Yeah," she hissed, narrowing her eyes.

Now it struck her. Kiba was her guinea pig, and so she had to experiment with him. If he came back after an argument like this then he was worth keeping around. He was a prime contender for a loud-mouth, angry relationship – difficult to manage, but all around passionate as well. He could be her let-off-steam man, who she could hate and love but ultimately still use, as long as they stayed angry at each other. Plus, maybe if Shikamaru saw a fight between them he'd play the handsome knight in shining armour, and save the beaten-down damsel in distress.

Her. Not Kiba…

Well, she'd have to act again for that one.

Fair enough.

The tense moment was interrupted by a small beep and an announcement about the floor they were on. Ino waited first for the other man to get off, before storming off after him.

"Hey! You still have my jacket!" Kiba shouted, starting after her.

Ino swung round, shooting a glare that made him take a step back, before throwing his beloved jacket back to him with some considerable force.

"Take it, you asshole!"

The doors closed on his irritable face, and as soon as she couldn't see him anymore, she let out a pleased, "Yes! Well handled, Ino!" before turning and taking up her usual post at her desk outside Shikamaru's office.

Yeah, Yeah

Oh man, she's got issues and I'm gonna pay

Yeah, Yeah

She's says she's the victim but she takes it all out of me

Out of me

Out of me

Out of me

Out of me

Out of me

Woop

Yeah!

Woo! Offspring again! Hehe, she's got issue's. that's an awesome song. And was it necessary to put the repeats in? I'm in an annoying sort of mood right now. So yes.

Oh, and I'm going away for xmas, so I might try and get another like… one or two chapters out after this one, because I'm nice and stuff.

Is that a good idea?

Oh! And my quotes. Okay…

Flattery is the art of stroking one's mind with your tongue.

Haha… I don't think its meant to be perverted.

Well. I know its not meant to be perverted.

It's just –

Yeah I'll stop.