Author's Note: The second Chappie… YAY! Gosh, I'm addicted to short chapters. Especially in times of Writer's Block like now… XD Beasts of Souls is soooo damn long!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters and I also don't own any lyrics, poems, or translation displayed in this fic. All that I own is some of the OCs and the idea… Thank you.

Chapter II
Red

The sign that I couldn't read
or a light, that I couldn't see
Some things you have to believe
While others are puzzles, puzzling me

Coldplay : Speed of Sound

"It'll be held tonight…"

Neji watched as his wife served him the tea. She placed the tray then sat beside him. Her brown eyes examined him silently, gentle and affectionate.

"I truly wish I could be there too. That way, perhaps I could—"

"No."

Neji firmly cut off Tenten's statement even before she was finished. His wife narrowed her eyes.

"I understand your concern about my place. Even so, Neji, we both know that—"

"No."

"Neji, I—"

"NO."

The white eyes were open now, looking straight into his wife's dark ones. His deep voice then rumbled to her place.

"You know exactly that Hyuuga compound is a lion den for you," he said steadfastly. "I cannot let you go to the gathering, especially in a situation like this."

"But Neji, you know that… that they'll be talking about me," Tenten moved closer. "I must be there! I have enough of this tradition and I would like to—"

"Tenten."

His white eyes hardened before hers. She closed her mouth, eyes still locked in his orbs. She could see it… clearly. The emotions were all painted in his translucent eyes.

"Neji…"

"I'm the leader in this house," His white eyes flashed with power, pride, and authority. "And it is my responsibility to protect my family."

His wife felt silent by the sound of his voice. She sat back, closing her eyes. The wind suddenly blew gently outside, ringing the wind chime right by the terrace. It was a complete silence between the two, except for the breeze, the wind chime, and the pond. Her hands were on her thighs, feeling the soft texture of her kimono.

"Just… promise me you will tell me everything later."

Neji opened his eyes and looked at the brown orbs of his woman. They were strong and determined, just like how they always were ever since the very moment she met him in the early days of their childhood.

"Just like how you're our leader…" Her gaze didn't waver. "I am your wife."

And that last sentence somehow brought a smirk upon his lips. She was, after all, the woman that could make him defied the law of the clan—the only woman he would ever fall for.

"I promise."

X

"'Special Demand?"

Hanabi lowered the letter that she brought along with the other documents to her father's private living room. She turned her white eyes to the back of the room, at the silhouette of her father.

"What… does this exactly mean, Otou-sama?"

"It means exactly as it means it is," His voice was deep… but tired. He was indeed, beginning to reach his days. "We will have… some issues to take care of in tonight's Gathering. Have you contacted every adult member, Hanabi?"

"I have…" Hanabi moved a little uneasily, flipping the paper in her hand. "Although I am not sure… of… the reaction of some of the members. O-Otou-sama… If what Nee-san said was true then…"

"It still means we must settle this tonight, Hanabi."

The white eyes of the head suddenly opened, shining in the darkness of the room.

"We have no other choice… but to meet their demand."

X

"Heee… That's a bit expensive, don't you think?"

Yamanaka Ino waved the grapes by the nose of the fruit seller, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Come on! Can't you lower it just a little bit?"

"But, Ma'am… it's a fixed price…" The fruit seller broke a sweat. "I can't just…"

"My, Ino… give him a break…" Haruno Sakura patted her, sweatdropped. "It's not that big of a deal!"

"Hey, it is, Sakura!" Ino put her hands on her hip. "You still can't see the next lesson of womanhood, can you? It's 'Money Management'! We're the treasurer of the family! We must be able to control the flow of money for the sake of the whole family!"

Sakura heaved a deep sigh. Gosh, how many times she usually sighed in a day?

"Whatever…"

Ino turned to see the person beside her and said, "Isn't that right, Hinata?"

The Hyuuga Heiress smiled timidly when faced with Ino's demanding stare. She never really took care of the household's needs since the Hyuuga maid did it all but rather than meeting Ino's obnoxious rambling…

"H-Hai…"

"My, my… Still as pushing as ever…"

The trio turned back just to see Tenten smiling behind them. Ino patted her back vigorously and said, "Isn't this the old Tenten here?! It's not common to see you around the market!"

"Excuse me?" Tenten put her hands on her hip. "I must buy groceries just like you three! It sounds as if you're discarding me off the 'normal wives' society! And don't call me old! I'm just the same age as you are, just a year older!"

"Hmmm? Then how should we call a mother of four children other than 'old'?" Ino poked her teasingly. "Isn't Hiiragi-kun now a Jounin? Our children are still as young as your Hatsuka-chan or perhaps a little younger than Hiiragi-kun!"

"It's just marriage date difference! Not age!"

"Oh, come now," Sakura took Ino's shoulder. "Enough with the quarrel already… although I must admit that Tenten IS kind of old."

"Sakura!"

"Maaa… maaa! Minna-saaan…" Hinata stood between the three. "Please…"

The quarrel immediately stopped when she said so. The other women turned to look at her. The heiress smiled humbly.

"Come on…" she said softly. "It's rare to have the four of us free, isn't it? Why don't we cherish the moment? Just like… the old time…"

Silence.

And Ino was the one who break the stillness.

"Sheesh, and there you are suddenly making me feel that I am truly old now," She shook her head. Sakura laughed. She looked at Tenten.

"You're free too now, aren't you?" she said cheerfully. "We're all free of mission today and I think I agree with Hinata. Perhaps we should head out somewhere."

Tenten's eyes softened. She sighed, "Well… I guess it's not a bad idea. But where should we go?"

The four of them looked at each other. Of course… there was only one place for a little nostalgia. Ino grinned.

"Care for some ramen?"

X

The steaming pot of Ichiraku Ramen was hidden behind the body of Teuchi, the owner of the place. The ramen was as nice as ever and Ayame's kind smile and greetings warmed the atmosphere in that small and simple place.

"Naruto was being a dear that time, I saw it myself!" Sakura laughed when she saw Hinata's reddening face. "Oh my, he lifted his son and huggy-backed him around the village!"

"Oh, wow, Hinata!" Ino played with her chopsticks, leaning to the counter to see the Heiress. "I could almost picture him being with you!"

The blush on her face got even more apparent. Tenten laughed then said cheerfully, "Come on, Hinata! It's not a sin to boast about your husband once in a while!"

"… See who's talking?"

The four women quickly fell silent. Tenten turned around, and she instantly recognized the signature white eyes of the strongest clan in Konoha. Teuchi saw the Hyuuga man and his friend then waved at them with a smile.

"Yo, Hakushi!" he said cheerfully. "Care for some pork? There are empty seats over there!"

The Hyuuga sent a nonchalant look and said rather coldly, "Naah… I just lost my appetite. Let's go, Kurata. Before you get the contagious disease of treachery."

"YOU!"

Ino was on her feet before everyone knew it.

"Stop, Ino!"

The blonde haired medic stopped her movement, looking at Tenten in revelation. She was staying by her place, eyes hard and firm. Her eyes held the power, but not the rage.

"But, Tenten—"

"Leave him be."

Ino clenched her fists tighter before finally threw a grim look at the Hyuuga man and took her seat again. The Hyuuga was still by the entrance, staying as he watched the whole scene before his eyes.

"Don't you ever think I am indebted with that, woman," His eyes flashed with hatred. "I will not accept any kind of help from a woman who sell her body for our name."

"Hyuuga Hakushi!"

Now everyone turned silent. This time… it was Hinata. Her translucent eyes were hard… and her next statement was spoken in a low but hard tone.

"Say one more insulting word about her… then you will have to deal with me."

The Hyuuga man tightened his jaw by the sound of her voice. It was clear who holds the power between them. After quite a while, he gave her a low bow and spoke with formal tone.

"Pardon my disgraceful words, Hinata-sama. If you would excuse me."

He walked away after the formal goodbye, leaving an air of uncomfortable understanding between everyone in the Ichiraku Ramen Stall. But no one wanted to talk about it anymore.

X

"I understand… about the turmoil inside your clan…"

Sakura's voice broke the silence. The sun was almost setting that time and the Academy's lesson was almost finished. The garden combined with the kids' playground by the front of the Academy was still empty but soon will be filled with cheerful laughter of the children. The four of them sat by the bench, staring at the trees and the flowers; at the sun and the place where they used to study.

"… but they don't have any rights to talk to you like that."

Tenten grinned at the saying, especially when she saw Ino's vigorous agreeing nod. She took a deep breath.

"Well… there is no helping it, eh? Perhaps… it IS our fault that…"

"That is not true!" Hinata suddenly jerked forward, spilling the hot coffee by her hand. Tenten raised her eyebrows and said, "Whoa… Hinata?"

"That is not true that it is your and Niisan's fault," The dark haired girl continued. She looked away, eyes filled with accumulated feelings that it was hard for her to speak. "E-everything is not… your fault… You cannot be the one to take the blame. All that Nii-san did years ago was merely… choosing to marry you. There is… nothing wrong with that…"

The dark eyes of the brunette softened. She closed her eyes and said with a smile, "He rebelled against the Elders for that purpose though."

Hinata quickly opened her mouth again but Tenten's smile made her stop. The weapon mistress laughed gently.

"And it is not something that you must cover, Hinata… It IS the fact," she said lightly. "He—no, we—chose to be together, despite our knowledge of the Clan's wishes over him."

"There is no written rule that Branch Family Hyuuga cannot marry to outsider!" Hinata gave her a pleading look. "What Nii-san did is not illegal! In fact, I… E-even I… even I was married to Naruto-kun and…"

"It's not about rules, and you know it yourself, Hinata," Tenten closed her eyes. A gentle smile played on her lips. "It's that Neji didn't obey what the Clan requests that time, regardless of any taboo. Our marriage has been seen as a sign of betrayal… and from their point of view this will never change."

"They should have understood that Neji never meant to disobey the Clan…" Ino moved uneasily. "Why it is so hard just to understand?"

Tenten laughed heartedly. She took a deep breath then looked at the sky above them.

"If it was that easy, Ino… then everything wouldn't have to be like this, would it?"

Silence came over them once again… and it was a moment later when the front door of the Academy opened, letting dozens of children to flood the garden and to find their relatives who will bring them home. Amongst the crowds came Hatsuka—still as bright as ever with her translucent eyes.

And somehow, just as always, Tenten's brown orbs softened when she saw the smile on the little girl's face.

"We both know the consequences of our choice that time…" her voice suddenly rose again. "And we've prepared for anything that the Clan will throw at us… There is no certainty about how well we could keep up with things in the Clan… but there is one thing for sure about our family…"

Her eyes wavered with something powerful and understood by her friends. It was that same power they held, the same power that they got from the very first time they heard that loud but endearing cry in that one time of exhaustion…

"We will protect our children… and give them the best life they could afford to have—away from the dark side of the promise we've spoken, the moment we made this bond."

Just so that we could see their smile… until the time takes its hold over our lives.

X

"Nee… Neji."

"Mmm?"

"What do you think will happen if… we decide to continue?"

He didn't answer directly. Instead, his arms tightened around her waist. She laughed.

"Maaaa… just forget it then. We're still young anyway… let's decide it later on, shall we?"

But time flies… and suddenly you're in front of my doorstep… with the greatest happiness and, at the same time, sorrow that you could ever give me…

"Okaa-san?"

The brown eyes regained their focus once again when the small voice called out. The weapon mistress looked at the little girl that was holding her right hand and smiled.

"What is it, Sweetheart?"

"I want that balloon!" Hatsuka vibrantly pointed at the balloon seller by the back of Konoha's Square. "The red one! Kaa-san, may I? May I? Pretty pleaaaaseee?"

Somehow her mother knew that it was impossible to resist those pleading eyes…

"Red one, Neji! The red one!"

The young Hyuuga Neji heaved a deep sigh then took out five ryou from his pocket. He gave a look at the girl beside him and said, "Just for today, alright?"

She grinned and nodded, showing him a toothless grin.

"Just for today!"

But on her eighteenth birthday, somehow the training ground was filled with red balloons embedded with her name.

"Sure, Sweetie."

The seller turned to look at them when they went closer and said cheerfully, "Good afternoon, Ma'am! And hello there, little one! Want some of my balloons? Just ten ryou each! You can choose any color!"

"The red one!" Hatsuka said immediately. She turned to see her mother and tugged her hand. "The biiiiiiig red one, Kaa-san! The biiiiiiiiig one!"

"The red one, please," Her mother gave the seller ten ryou for a big red balloon. The little girl squealed with laughter. "Want more, Hatsuka? Don't you want the blue one too?"

Hatsuka shook her head then hugged her mother's thigh. She grinned.

"Blue is cold! Red is brave! Hatsuka wants to be brave like Kaa-san!"

Red is brave… huh?Her mother smiled.

"Green is BEAUTY!" PING! Gai-sensei's teeth glint made Tenten and Neji winced. Lee nodded in affirmation. "Blue… is SERENITY!"

Serenity somehow didn't fit Hyuuga Neji that time. Gai then turned at his last member.

"And you, My Dear Flower… Red… is BRAVERY!"

PING!

It sounded so good, but yet they, excluding Lee, still wouldn't use those spandexes.

With a sudden smile playing on her lips, she took the red balloon from the seller then bent her body to give it to little Hatsuka.

"Here! Just as you wish for, Your Highness!"

Hatsuka laughed again, little fingers curled around the small strings of the balloon. She held out her other hand and touched her mother's face, giving her a toothless grin. Her touch was pure and honest… so young and untainted…

Then with an honesty of a child, her high pitched voice rose.

"I love you, Kaa-san!"

… Hatsuka.

"Even your children will be ashamed of having you as a mother!"

A smile curved up the mother's lips. She lifted the young girl from the ground; carried her effortlessly in her arms. She kissed her gently as the little girl hugged her and squealed with laughter. Her mother's brown eyes were gentle, shimmering with affection as the little girl laid a couple of butterfly kisses on her cheek.

"I love you too."

To Be Continued

Author's Note: As you all might have guessed, this is just a transition chapter or… introduction chapter to give you a better view of what the hell is happening in Konoha. And it seems like for this little ficcie, there will be more families, not only NejiTen. One thing for sure there'll be SasuSaku and NaruHina, since they are also irresistible. 8D They would only be observers in someway though, but I'll consider deeper interaction. Maaaa… this fic includes the whole Konoha anyway… Byeeeeee… and sorry for the writer's block. ;P