A/N: I was kind of sad of the lack of updates. Though I am part of the guilty few, I want to make it up by giving you guys something new to read! In addition, please check out my new profile with a link to my new NejiTen story under a different account! Don't forget to vote on my poll! Well, enjoy.

Started: Thursday, April 16, 2009

Draft Finished: Sunday, April 19, 2009

Fiction: Continuation

Rated: PG-13

Disclaimer: The character and names of Naruto characters belong to Kishimoto Masashi-sensei. This story belongs to me.

Anime: Naruto

Pairings: NejiTen

Genre: Romance

Summary: Tenten's life was simple and ordinary until one night, an unexpected person appears in her apartment with a gun pointed to her head. Wounded, Hyuuga Neji needed her assistance to save him from a fatal wound in the aftermath of an assassination job gone wrong. Then, complication ensues when he decides to stay.

Job Gone Wrong

Day One

The job of an assassin was very simple. You would be assigned to a job, stick with it until the job is done. While in between, you adapt to your target's routine, memorizing their habits until you could recite it without pause. For Neji, his job description of being an assassin boiled down to one word: challenging. Being an assassin didn't necessary entitle you to live your own life. You must adapt to survive, or in this case, adapt to finish your assignment without leaving a trace.

The irony of this lifestyle was that you'd eventually become the target. When your name was the calling card for death, the last thing you'd want on your mind is the feeling of failure, but it seemed impossible at the moment when there was a bullet embedded in your gut.

For Hyuuga Neji, this was part of his job: killed or be killed. The one thing he was quite certain right now was that he didn't feel like dying. Not tonight.

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Tenten didn't live a tedious life. Every day, she would wake up, get ready for work, come home, cook dinner, take a bath, and watch television until she fall asleep on the couch. This was her daily routine, whereas the weekends were reserved to do necessary chores. Life was good. She had no worries, no family drama, best of all no trouble. Okay, maybe now and then there's some money trouble, but who doesn't? With the economy these days, Tenten counted her blessings for having good friends and a wonderful steady job she really enjoy.

Being a florist might not sound like the best job in the world, however to Tenten it was rewarding. Not everyone understand the language of flowers (aside from her coworkers Ino and Sakura), but once you do, you would see things in a new light.

"I hate slow people," commented Ino. Okay, maybe just most of the time. Closing the door, the blonde flipped the sign and pulled down the blinds. "Seriously, how long can you spend in a flower shop?" She moved toward the back, joining Sakura and Tenten. "I helped her myself and she still wasn't satisfied what my expertise. Hello, I owe this damn shop!" Tenten and Sakura chuckled while they finished cleaning up the counter filled with scattered tissue paper and ribbons.

"Oh Ino, just chill," said the pink haired girl. "Besides, it's Friday, which means its movie night! We're going to your place tonight, right Tenten?"

"Yep," she replied. "You guys can pick the movie out and I'll get a head start on making some snacks for us."

"Can't wait," Ino exclaimed cheerfully. Tenten always made the best snacks. "You can go ahead. We're finish up here."

"Are you sure?" The pair of girls nodded.

"We'll be right there after we head down to the video store," assured Sakura.

"Well, okay. I'll see you girls later," Tenten happily bid her friends good night.

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After taking the local bus route to the front of her building, she walked up the six flights of stairs and unlocked the door. The instant she shut the door, the feel of cold hard metal was placed at the back of her head. Tenten froze on the spot, unable to speak. Two things came to mind while she stood there. One, she prayed to Heaven that the person behind her wasn't a rapist and two, she should have listened to Lee about getting a watch dog. Mentally scolding herself for not turning on the lights before closing the door, she didn't have time to think about anything else when the person behind her spoke.

"Turn around slowly." Like she had a choice. Nevertheless, Tenten did as instructed. In the dark, she heard the heavy breathing of a person, as if out of breath. Then, the lights flickered on and she saw a young man pointing a weapon directly on her temple. Silver eyes bore her dark orbs while his brows knitted together in pain. He couldn't be much older than she, though she would be lying if she didn't think he wasn't the least bit attractive. Even with his hair in a mess and the less than friendly attitude, it didn't stop her from being captivated by his presence. Tenten trailed her gaze to blood that was trickling through the fabric of his shirt; crimson liquid fell onto her hardwood floors like water. Although he was applying pressure on his abdominal with a bag of ice, it wasn't enough to stop the blood from escaping, nor numb the pain.

"You're bleeding," she stated the obvious, ignoring the glare he was giving her. Sure she was scared, but with the adrenaline pumping in her body right now, she didn't care. Hell, she was furious to say the least; in denial, maybe. In her mind, the phrase "this can't be happening right now" repeated itself like a broken record. A scenario like this could only exist on television, right?

"Show me your hands," he told her. Okay, maybe not. This was definitely happening right now. Without breaking eye contact, Tenten tossed her keys and purse onto the couch and placed her hands in front of her. "How steady are you with a knife?" That question caught her off guard.

"What?" Tenten watched him flinch and realized what he meant. With all of that blood seeping out of his wound, there was no doubt he'd be needing a knife to pry the bullet out. "I can handle using knives, but shouldn't you consult to a doctor first? What makes you think I'll be able to find the bullet?" His fingers pulled back the hammer and the familiar sound of a bullet sliding into the chamber made her blood run cold. Obviously he wasn't happy with her answer. "Whoa, buddy. I get it. Bullet wound, which means it needs to be reported to the police by law, however if you think about it-" The rest of her logical speech didn't get to leave her mouth when he grabbed her by the arm. "Hey, hey!" She protested, holding back a painful cry due to his tight grip. With a sweeping force, he pulled her to the bathroom, her very small bathroom.

"Get out your first aid kit," he commanded. The brunette rubbed her arm and scowled. Great, now he got his blood on her. Gross.

"Fine," she hissed at him. Might as well cooperate with him because the sooner she gets the job done, the sooner he would stop manhandling her. Men. "What do you want me to do?" The intruder took a seat on the toilet cover, refusing to take his gaze off his hostage.

"I need you to take the bullet out and clean the wound. After that, I need you to cauterize and bandage it," he stated simply. Easy said than done when there was gun pointed to your head.

"Look, if you want me to help you, would you mind putting your gun away?" Tenten gave a small sigh when he withdrew his weapon, switching the safety on in the process. With the threat on her life almost out of the way, she was able to think a little clearly. Letting the reality of the situation slowly sink in, Tenten sterilized her hands to the best of her ability. She took out the rubbing alcohol and the necessary tools to remove the bullet from his abdominal onto the bathroom counter. Turning to him, she said, "Take your shirt off." The glare of the intruder intensified as if she was asking him to have sex with her. She rolled her eyes. "Look, it wasn't an excuse to see you naked. I just need to see your wound." He only stared at her before unbuttoning his blood-tainted dress shirt. As Tenten watched him struggle out of his clothes, she thought it was the best time to initiate some conversation. This served two purposes for her: one, she needed to know who she was dealing with and two, she needed a distraction, badly. "Do you know who shot you?" Instantly, Tenten got to work, cleaning the outside wound with the rubbing alcohol. Too bad she didn't have any liquor; it would have been less painful.

"Yes," he growled. Though he flinched a couple of times due to her nervousness, she apologized. It wasn't like she was doing it on purpose. Hell, this was the first time she had seen this much blood.

"Are you some petty criminal who got shot while trying get away or something?" Tenten threw the blood-soaked wad of cotton into the wastebasket and got a fresh piece, avoiding his stare all together. The way he was gawking made her very uncomfortable.

"Guess again," was his reply. Tenten moved her eyes to the silencer attached to the end of barrel. She knew what it was used for and which type of people use them. Looking at it, the marbles in her head clicked, pulling images from action movies that were filled with assassination plots with revenge motives.

"You're a hired killer." Her statement marked the end of the conversation. Now that she knew a little bit about him, it was enough to be sure she was safe for the time being. The two remain mostly silent with Tenten occasionally assuring him that she wasn't deliberately hurting him each time the sounds of acute hissing escaped his mouth. With much instruction and concentration, Tenten finally got the bullet out. The hardest part was cauterizing it, which Tenten was glad she didn't have to do it. That task was all his. Then, in great relief they were done.

"What's your name?" Tenten finally asked him. Her hands worked around his abdominal steadily. The last thing on her mind was the close proximity. With her arms traveling around and over to make sure the dressing completely covered the wound, she thought it was about time for an introduction.

"Neji," he finally told her.

"Neji," she repeated. The sound of his name rolled off her tongue with ease. "So, I take it we're even? I mean you're not going to kill me now, are you?" He chuckled darkly at her blunt question.

"No." A pause. "I am not going to kill you." For some reason, the brunette couldn't help but waited for him to add 'yet' at the end of his sentence. Then again, he did owe her for saving his life.

"Well, I'm Tenten." She stood up and held out her hand.

"Do you really want to shake the hand of the person who just tried to killed you?" Neji scoffed, leaning against the wall. Tenten couldn't help but stare at the sight of him. He was arrogant as ever, even after surviving excruciating pain. To think he should be a little grateful to her after what she had done, helping him and all.

"I am trying to be polite, unlike you," she retorted. "Breaking into my apartment, getting blood all over my hardwood floors, not to mention getting that ice from my freeze." The said bag of ice was in the sink, melting away into a heap of orange liquid after being mixed with his blood. While ranting, Tenten placed all the items away into her cupboard and cleaned his dried blood off her arm. "Now I need to clean the kitchen too! Did you get blood in my freezer because so help me God-" She was cut off when Neji swung her around putting them face to face. He placed his hands on either side of her, locking her in place while he moved into her personal space. She blinked a couple of times to adjust to the sudden change in vision. "What are you doing?" Her words came out in a whisper.

"You talk too much," he told her in a low tone that sent shivers down her spine. Tenten unconsciously tilted her head away, feeling the heat rising up to her face. Damn her hormones. "I need to wash up." In a blink of an eye, he moved away. Letting out a small breath, it took a second to get what he was trying to tell her. Apparently, he wanted to clean up with all of the caked blood on his hands, not to mention various places she did dare to look. Without another word, Tenten took her exit, slamming the door behind her. She took a breath to calm herself down and leaned against the closed door.

Assassin or not, he was going to be the death of her. She just knew it.

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Wiping the water from his face, Neji stared at his tired reflection for a short period of time, wondering how he had gotten into this mess. It was obviously the Akatsuki lived up to their reputation of being articulate killers. He was definitely sure he did not leave a trace, yet it was possible for the Akatsuki to track him down. Obviously, they thought he was too much of a threat to be left alive. Maybe he should have heed Kakashi's warning with more caution. Nevertheless, the Hyuuga prodigy had other things on his mind. More importantly, he needed to lay low and recover from his wound. Only then would he be able to continue and finish his job.

Searching for the owner of the apartment, Neji found her looking through a box. He watched her from a distance while she riffled through some old clothes. Inwardly, he shook his head. This girl was a piece of work. Wanting to introduce yourself to a potential killer after he held you at gunpoint was one thing, now she was trying to help him out of her own will. In a way, he was amused; even more so when he saw the huge shock on her face when she turned around.

"What the hell? You scared me half to death!" Her hands clutched her chest. He smirked. She was kind of cute when she was angry. "What are you, a ghost?" A bit annoyed, she threw him a large shirt and some sweatpants. "These belong to my friend. He stays here sometimes, but I don't think he'd mind if you borrow them." Neji looked at the color of the shirt. It was green. "I guess I'll leave you to change. You know where the door is, right?"

"I'm not leaving," said the Hyuuga male. He casually pulled the shirt over his head.

"Excuse me?" Tenten asked, hoping that she heard him wrong. "You're going to stay here, as in here, my apartment?"

"You have a problem with that?"

"Um, yes!" She exclaimed. "This is my apartment. You can't just waltz in here and decide to stay."

"Would you rather have me kill you?" Tenten gulped. She totally forgot about the part that he was a professional killer.

"No, but-but. . ." the brunette was lost for words.

"I'll take the couch," he told her. "In return, I will pay half the rent."

"Wait, I didn't ask for your money, I just think-" There he went again, entering her personal space. This time, he held onto her arms. With his stature towering over her own, his dark long hair brushed against her face.

"Don't think about it," he whispered in a low tone. Mesmerized by his gesture and eyes, Tenten unconsciously bit her lip and reminded herself to breath. Neji lifted her chin closely to his own, running his thumb over her smooth lips. As fast as the moment came, he moved away and held up his hand. A piece of her eyelash that had fallen from above was on his fingertip.

"Thank you," she said sheepishly. He smirked and the moment was forgotten. "Hey, what do you mean 'Don't think about it?'" She placed her hands on her hips. "I have a mind you know. Besides, I don't currently need a roommate, so you're out of luck, buddy." Tenten wanted to add something else, but froze on the spot at the chime of her doorbell. For a second, they stared at each other. Swiftly, the two of them went to the door where Tenten peeked into the eyehole. "Oh, crap!" Pressing her back against the door, she looked at Neji before saying, "Hide!" In a rush, she pushed him to the nearest hiding space, which was her closet and slammed it shut.

This was definitely not her night, not at all.

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On the other side of the door stood Sakura and Ino who were both ready for the movie night. As for Tenten, she totally forgot about it. In a panic, she yelled, "just a minute" all the while, she grabbed a paper towel from the kitchen and wiped the red liquid that was glistening on the floor. She threw it in the bin nearby and taking a breath, she went up to the front door to pull the door ajar. "Hey, guys!" Momentarily out of breath, Tenten was glad her friends didn't ask her what was wrong. Where would she start?

"Time to watch some movies!" said Ino, walking over to the closet. Tenten thought her heart was going to leap out of her chest.

"Wait!" Grabbing the purse and coats of Ino and Sakura, the brunette placed herself between her friends and the closet. "How about I put this away for you guys? Go ahead and start the movie."

"Are you okay, Tenten?" Sakura asked. "You seem a bit jumpy. Did something happen?"

"Oh Sakura, leave the girl alone," the blonde chided. "If she wants to put our stuff away, let her." She pulled the pink haired girl to the couch. "Let's start already!" Tenten didn't have time to breathe a sigh of relief. It took her a second to open the closet door behind her to place her friend's belongings on the floor without the need to turn around. Then, she went to the kitchen she get the snacks.

"Hey Sakura, did you get microwavable popcorn from your bag?"

"No, they're in the closet. I'll go get it."

"Ok." From the kitchen, Tenten knew it was all ready too late. If she ran into the living room right now, her friends would ask about her suspicious behavior. Since they were bound to find out, she quickly grabbed the tray full of drinks and walked into the living room to witness the damage. In the blink an of eye, she saw the scene unfold before her. Sakura had open the door and jumped back, releasing a loud yelp at the sight of Neji, who calmly emerged calmly out of the closet. Ino turned to see their unexpected guest and gasped. Both in disbelief, her friends looked back and forth between Tenten and Neji.

"Tenten, who is this?" Ino questioned in a wary tone.

"Well, you see. . ." she faltered, looking toward Neji for some help. The situation proved to be more than she could handle.

"I'm her new roommate," he told her friends. To say he was annoyed about this avoidable dilemma was an understatement. Tenten didn't have to be a mind reader to hear what he was thinking right now.

"What?" Her friends yelled in unison.

"Yep, my new roommate," she finally said lamely. What else is she supposed to say? 'He's an assassin and he'll be living in my apartment after I helped bandage him up his gun wound. Oh, and if I don't cooperate he might kill me.' Yeah, that was going to end well. Though she felt guilty, Tenten couldn't tell them the truth. If she needed to lie to them in order to keep them safe, then so be it.

"And why was your new roommate hiding in the closet?"

"He has agoraphobia?" Tenten inwardly slapped herself. A smooth liar, she was not.

"Okay," Ino replied, giving Tenten a devilish grin. "Sure he does." Ino lifted her eyebrows up and down insinuating that they were doing something that should be censored. Yeah, right.

"Maybe we should leave," Sakura suggested. Making haste, the pink haired girl didn't stand there for Tenten to reply. Instead, she pulled Ino along, grabbing their stuff at the same time. Unlatching the front door, Sakura pushed Ino ahead before the blonde can protest before adding sweetly, "Don't let us interrupt. We totally understand." With a wink, the door was shut. "Have fun!" Her voice echoed in the hallway. A few minutes past and they both remain rooted on the spot.

Finally, Tenten placed the tray on the coffee table and took a seat on the couch. "Whew, that was close," Tenten sighed.

Neji came into her view and she looked up. "Now that they are gone, I have something to tell you." Silence ate up the room before he told her in a calm, even tone, "Your life is in danger."

She raised a brow. "What do you mean my life is in danger?"

"You're about to find out." Before she got a chance to ask any further, the sound of gunfire filled the air. With lighting fast reflexes, the assassin grabbed Tenten by the arm and pushed her onto the floor. The sound of glass shattering and bullets ricocheting off the walls scared her out of her wits. Ducking and praying like crazy, Tenten berated herself for her bad luck. While she did that, Neji acted accordingly, protecting not only himself but his newly acquired acquaintance. At least he was kind enough to pull her away from the flying bullets.

Assassins: you can't live with them, can't live without them. Apparently for Tenten, this proved to be a true statement; one that she dreaded to doubt otherwise. If it wasn't for him, she wouldn't be in this situation in the first place, but one thing was for sure, her life was not going to be so simple anymore. If they could manage to survive after this, she was going to make sure to thank him, and raise his rent, most definitely, because he so owed her.

A/N: Please read and reivew! I'm not quite sure how to continue on from here. Any ideas?

Thank you for reading!