Chapter 3: After the fourth shinobi war. Tenten is a jounin now. Here is where our story picks up.
….
Kakashi tried to convince himself that it was pity that was leading him across the room and not jealously as he watched Genma back Tenten up into a wall and lean in her personal space.
Kakashi would have done it for Sakura, really, had she been in that kind of position. He would even have done it for what's her face on Kurenai's team as well. Really, he would have, because that was just the kind of nice guy that Kakashi was. It had absolutely nothing to do with any other emotion other than being nice, and helpful, and what was that word that he was going to use again? Ah, yes, pity. He felt sorry for her. Thus the helping.
"Anko is looking for you," Kakashi explained doing a wonderful impersonation of Shikamaru looking bored as he swirled his drink gingerly in his cup, "She seemed upset, you might want to go find her." Before she finds you, hint, hint.
Genma shifted the senbon in his mouth slowly, shuffling through his options briefly in his head before he mumbled some apologies and quickly left the party.
Tenten looked impartial to Kakashi's lingering as he leaned up against the wall beside her, still trying to keep the neutral expression in his body language.
She took another sip of her beer and casually looked around the party, effectively ignoring the masked shinobi beside her.
Kakashi was reminded again that she wasn't one for frivolous banter. The air between them was comfortable as she continued to gaze around the room, but the silver hair jounin was busy eyeing her down, trying to read her mood. She could at least be grateful for his unsolicited help.
"Your welcome."
"Are you supposed to be thankful to meddling people nowadays?" Tenten didn't bother to turn to him as she spoke, but she only seemed slightly put-out. "I must be getting old, these customs change so quickly."
"Speaking of old," Kakashi cut in, "Genma is nearly ten years your senior," he admonished.
"Nice, now you are meddling and passing judgment; would you like to take my beer? I've only been able to drink legally for eight years now. My top showing too much cleavage? My skirt too short?"
Why yes, Kakashi thought, they were; he had been ogling her from the corner of his good eye since Genma left.
"Good to see you don't approve. Here, take my beer, I'll go change," she shoved said drink into his free hand and charged with clenched fists towards the door after throwing back her straight brown hair furiously over her shoulders. Several men turned their heads to watch her backside retreat and Kakashi was following her without even realizing it.
He abandoned the drinks at a nearby table and ran his way through the streets trying to find her.
Damn, how had she gotten so good at hiding her chakra signature? Really, he had only been trying to help. He hadn't at all been jealous.
Really.
….
She was sitting at a table in the jounin's lounge when he approached her, but only a split later than Genma did. That senbon mouth-toggling jerk was starting to get on his nerves.
He was leaning again, swishing that senbon casually in his mouth, a gloved hand covering the scroll in front of her with the intent to distract her attention so she could focus on him.
"Good grief, what do you two want," Tenten folded her arms over her chest and leaned back in her chair, eying the two shinobi's wearily. Genma had to turn his head 90 degrees to view the silver haired jounin behind him, and Kakashi held up a capricious hand and greeted them with a "yo."
Genma stepped back to face Kakashi head on, angling his head to one side, not altogether happy about being cock-blocked the other night.
"Anko wasn't looking for me," he began by way of telling him that he was pissed.
"No?" the copy-nin looked confused, "perhaps she said Aoba, not Genma; it was awfully hard to hear last night." He looked innocent enough. Genma exchanged a glance with Tenten, who didn't offer up much reassurance back at him, and the shinobi knocked on the table as if to state that Kakashi had won this round, muttering a "see ya round Ten" before heading out.
Tenten hadn't moved a single millimeter as she waited for an explanation from the older jounin. He slipped into a chair across from her and peered at the schematic scroll with feigned interest.
"What do you want," She cut to the chase.
"Better off without him, I assure you," he brushed off her comment and took out his book.
"Well, aren't you a piece of work," Tenten said shaking her head. She gathered up her scrolls and headed out the door, and Kakashi was hoping that it wasn't to go find Genma. Watching her retreat, he glanced at his book, then at the door, then shut his book and followed her.
He was able to catch up to her this time and he strolled along side her and took out his book and began to read. It was enough for anyone to be seething. He had expected to see one of the veins pop out in her forehead the way it did when Sakura got mad or jut her jaw out to the side like she did right before she slugged someone.
Kakashi was totally expecting some sort of reaction from her. Anything in the way of pissed off would have been nice. An angry cold shoulder would have been better. He was waiting to see if she would employ such tactics when she stopped.
"What are you doing?" he lowered his book to see the twin bunned konoichi smiling at the Hokage's secretary as she filled out some documents.
She looked up at him like he wasn't just stalking her through the halls of the Hokage tower, but had casually showed up as if a coincidence.
"Oh, hi, Hatake-san," she greeted politely, "I was just signing my name up on the last spot on this roster for the volunteer squad."
Kakashi didn't look away from her seemingly innocent look, as he forcefully grabbed the clipboard from the desk.
Shit.
The volunteer squad was being led by that senbon sucking bastard and Tenten had actually filled in the last slot on the list.
"Funny, that is why I am here too," Kakashi eyed the names on the list, "Gai wanted me to take his spot," he grabbed a pen and scratched out his name to replace it with his.