Mercenary

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Inuyasha.

Neji cursed darkly as he blocked a barrage of kunai that had been thrown at him. I loathe ambushes… He and his team had gotten separated by an ambush of Oto-nin and even he was hard-pressed to hold them off. He cursed again when a kunai grazed his cheek.

He saw another barrage coming from either side of him and quickly used his Kaiten to block them. He was completely on the defensive right now; they hadn't even left him room to use his Jyuuken.

He stopped spinning only to be faced with a barrage of shuriken followed shortly by ten nin. He cursed again and tried to use his Kaiten again, but his feet wouldn't move and he collapsed. "Damn it…" He had used too much of his chakre on his mission, and now he had none left for his fight.

He waited for the impact, but there was nothing. He forced his head up to see a girl with long black hair holding a barrier around both of them. She was wearing an old-style kimono and had a katana at her side. "Are you alright?"

He could only nod in reply through his shock. The barrier reached all around them in a perfect sphere and he had never seen anything like it. The girl smiled at him over her shoulder and stepped through the barrier. The ANBU captain's shock continued to rise as he watched her fight off his attackers with not only her sword, but also with whips seemingly made of light that came from her fingertips.

Within minutes, the enemies that he had been struggling to defend himself against were laying lifelessly on the ground. The girl looked around the clearing again before letting the barrier fall and walking toward him. "You're sure that you're alright?"

Neji shook his head lightly to clear it before nodded as confidently as he could. "Yes, thank you." He made to stand again, but fell over, causing the girl to raise an eyebrow in amusement. He scowled at showing weakness to someone he didn't trust.

He started to push himself up again, and finally he did, but not without her help. She pulled his arm over her shoulders and placed one arm around his back to steady him. Neji looked to her questioningly, but she only smiled. "Where to?"

He smiled gratefully at her and nodded in the direction where he had been separated from his team. "What is your name, Shinobi-sama?" Apparently, she wasn't one to stay quiet for long, but for some reason, it didn't bother him for once.

"Hyuuga Neji, and yourself?" She turned bright blue eyes to him and smiled.

"Higurashi Kagome." He gave her a small nod and tried to maintain his calm mask, his worry for his team, however, somehow leaked through and Kagome quickened their pace a little, but not so much that it would strain him. "How many were on your team?"

"Five including myself, but my guess is that I was the target, seeing as I'm a Hyuuga." His companion gave an understanding hm, but he could help but feel that she had no idea what he was talking about. "What village are you from?"

"Uh…" Kagome gave and short laugh and shrugged. "I'm not really from anywhere; I just wonder around." The ANBU captain looked at her in disbelief and opened his mouth to say something but she beat him to it. "My sensei lived west of here and he taught me all I know. I never really bothered to settle down in one place after my training. As for why I helped you, because I could."

Neji watched her fro a moment before turning back to face where they were going as they reached a clearing where his team was still fighting. With a flick of her wrist, Kagome cut down the enemies and returned her hand to holding Neji upright. "Is everyone okay?"

"Captain!" Neji's team raced over in panic but calmed down when Neji waved them off. "Captain, we all only have minor injuries; it seems that you were their target." The Hyuuga nodded and ordered them to start toward Konoha while Kagome continued to help him.

Neji could walk on his own by the time they reached Konoha, but he kept his arm around Kagome's shoulders 'just in case'. She didn't mind much, in fact she ignored it; she was more focused on their surroundings even after they had passed the gates. If there was one thing that Sesshomaru was strict about, it was never letting your guard down.

Her companions led the way to the Hokage's office as she looked at the village around her. It was fairly peaceful and she couldn't help but admire the five faces carved into the cliff.

They entered a tower and there was instantly a cry of "Neji!" Kagoem blinked and watched impassively as a kunoichi with twin buns on her head came running over to them with a worried look on her face. "Are you alright?"

Neji nodded to the girl, causing her sigh in relief before she looked to Kagome as if she had just realized that she was there. "Tenten, this is Kagome. We ran into each other on my mission and she saved my life."

Tenten nodded in gratitude to her, but the miko could see that her eyes were warning her to stay away from Neji. Feeling mischievous, Kagome arched an eyebrow and leaned into Neji's hold on her shoulders subtly. She had to hide a smirk when the kunoichi became rigid and she glared at her, no doubt wishing she would burst into flames on the spot.

Neji seemed to sense his former teammates growing rage and began to lead Kagome to see the Hokage. His team had dispersed upon reaching the tower so he was soon able to talk to the girl at his side without anyone overhearing. "You shouldn't have done that; Tenten is very… protective."

The miko snorted as they walked up a flight of stairs. "I think a better word would be possessive. Beside, after all I've been through, she doesn't scare me." If I can take out a score of powerful youkai without Sesshomaru's help, I can take out one kunoichi.

The Hyuuga looked skeptical, but he didn't push her on it anymore as they stopped in front of a set of double doors. "We're here."

Kagome was bored, even if it was her that Neji and the Godaime were discussing. She stared out the window, only catching snippets of the conversation. "Kagome?" She turned back to the Hokage, gesturing for her to continue. "I would like to offer you a place as a Konoha shinobi; with the war, we need all the help we can get."

Kagome's mind flashed to the two little girls that had tried to steal weapons from Sango's village then to a confident smirk set in a tanned face with a blue star framed with ebony locks pulled back into a braid. She blinked in confusion while appearing to consider the offer. Why was she thinking about the head of the mercenary group that had caused them so much trouble? (Though he was gorgeous like her sensei.)

"I'm afraid I can't accept, Tsunade-sama. But," she quickly added at the disappointed looks on the leader's face and in the Hyuuga's eyes. "I will take you on as a client to a mercenary." She smiled at their shocked faces. "I intend to continue traveling, but I will stay and help you as long as you need me."

Tsunade smirked as she leaned back. "And as long as I pay you, right?"

Kagome smirked back and shrugged. "A girl's got to make a living somehow."

Neji watched her with veiled fascination. This girl was powerful and could probably do whatever she wanted, yet she chose to live a simpler life and went out of her way to help him. A smirk crossed his face as Tsunade accepted then offered to take the younger woman out for a drink. He couldn't wait to spend more time with this mercenary.

AN: Okay, I got some semi-complaints about having Shippo be Kyuubi and Sesshomaru be Kagome's lover, and I'm sorry if I'm usiong that a lot, but I love those ideas and they seem to fit well. I'll try to let ou on that, but in a couple of them, Kyuubi WILL be Shippo, whether you guys like it or not, so, gomen.

Coming up: Kagome and Lee, Kagome and Naruto, Kagome and Itachi, Kagome and Kakashi, Kagome and Naruto, Kagome and Yondaime. I will repeat that not all of these are pairings, some of them are just friendship.