Tsume sat two mugs of tea down in front of Rin as she took her seat across the table. Tsume watched Rin as she didn't reach out for it immediately. She looked so sad and miserable. Tsume hated this side of Rin. She was a sweet girl who saw the best in other people. She would do anything for anybody and didn't deserve to be emotionally tortured like she had been. Tsume hated not having any other option with agreeing to Rin's surrogacy. Rin was the only female of the right age. The other Inuzuka women were married or still children. She still felt like she had betrayed Rin and the trust that Rin had in her.

She hated that feeling.

In her heart, Tsume knew it went beyond that. It was beyond what she had done. It went beyond everything. It went beyond the deal she had made with the Nakaue's. It went beyond Kakashi's injuries. It went beyond anything that had been happening lately. She had kept it all inside while taking care of Kakashi and what he needed, medically or not. She had gone above and beyond her limits, and it had finally taken it's toll. She missed Obito.

"Rin. What's wrong?"

"I can't do this anymore, Tsume." She said quietly, picking up her tea and taking a sip of it.

"I know that I should have talked to you before I held the meeting with the Nakaue's.-

"Why Tsume? Why me? Why now?"

Tsume sat her tea down and exhaled slowly.

"I'm sure that you've noticed how expensive things have been getting around here." She paused for a minute. "Medical supplies, sheet metal for kunais, food, everything. The Land of Fire can change that for us. Their village is full of raw materials. It'll help Konoha's economy immensely."

"I can understand that. I guess. Why do they want a baby? I can't figure out why they want a baby from us. There's the Uchiha. The Hyuuga's. The Yuhi's. The Aburame's. Why an Inuzuka? Even more, why can't they have their own children from their own village women?"

"The Nakaue family has a history of death during child birth." She told Rin calmly. She also decided that she should explain their fascination with the clan. "They are also highly fascinated by an Inuzuka's natural abilities. You know how strong our children are compared to the other clans. We are a very strong clan, Rin. It's really no surprise that they want an Inuzuka for their village environment. The Inuzuka's have a huge advantage in a battle situation. In fire, it doesn't matter how well you can see or hear- it's about how fast you can move and how fast you can know something on the battle field.. With an Inuzuka's sense of smell..."

"What? What do you mean a history of child birth death?" She asked shocked.

"It's nothing genetic and Collin Nakaue has no children yet, so I chose him for you. It's also a possibility that it's because of the medicine in the Land of Fire. The medicine there is very primitive. They don't even have anesthesia. Of course, you won't leave the village and you'll have the child medically supervised here in Konoha."

"This close to Obito's death and you want me to have some stranger's baby." She said with a sigh before resting her head on the table.

"I just want you to realize that I didn't have a choice. It's our duty to Konoha to make sure it is safe. Without this we could very well be in a depression in the next few years."

"Okay. It's not like I can say "Give me some time to think about it", but I need some time to tell Kakashi and to get used to the idea. He can wait a couple of weeks right?"

"Of course. But Rin, don't think you can keep him waiting forever. The deals done."

"I know. Good night, Tsume." Rin said as she got up from her chair and walked towards the door.

"Sit down." She commanded. "We're not done."

Rin sat back down at the table obediently, looking at Tsume curiously. She rarely ever spoke to Rin like that, especially not after asking something of her. It was rude, even if you were the Elder.

"I want to ask you something."

"What?"

"You don't have any dogs at your apartment so I was wondering if you would mind training a puppy for me."

"Sure. I guess I could use the distraction. Which one?"

"Kiba's puppy. The one Hana showed you. He's small, so he'll need some work." Tsume told her, taking a sip of her tea.

"What are you calling him?"

"Akamaru. His mother's breed turns red under the soldier pill. I have the feeling he will too."

"Akamaru. Sure, I'll raise him, but Tsume, shouldn't Kiba? Hana raised her three."

"Kiba's still too young. He doesn't catch on to things as well as Hana does. I want him to have an older dog to train with. He's taking a different approach than Hana anyways."

Rin didn't have any reason to turn down the request. It was true that she needed the distraction. Kakashi probably could too. She loved dogs anyways. They were literally a part of her family. She didn't have a squad dog, but she didn't need one. She was a Medic Nin. She rarely left Konoha on missions, her place was in the hospital treating fatal injuries. There was no reason to have a dog in the hospital, and cruel to make a dog witness them.

That didn't mean that she couldn't raise one for her younger clan member.

"Okay. Sure. Just let me know when he's ready. I've got to go. I left Kakashi at home by himself." She said getting up and heading for the door.

"Rin."

"Yeah?"

"No matter what happens, you'll be fine. You're strong, and I proud of what you've turned out to be. You're a valued member of the Konoha medical squad. You're the Fourth Hokage's student. You're a strong Kunochi. You've made a good life for yourself. My sister would have been proud of you. Your mother would have been very proud of you."

"Thanks, Tsume. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."