There's something in your eyes that I'm beginning to hate. It's the way the cold encompasses everything in your way. What must I do to survive and protect this child on the way?

Two hours later Tenten became even more thankful that she wasn't born into the Hyuga clan. She sorted through all different kinds of papers, ones asking for permission to build, ones informing of new pregnancies and when their due dates are. Tenten had long since kicked off her sandals and rested her shapely feet on the now orderly desk.

Her kimono was pulled up to her thighs for easy resting and she sipped from a tall glass of orange juice. She was a step away from untiing her kimono to relieve her swollen stomach when a knock came from the other side of the door.

"Hinata-sama." Immediately Tenten righted herself and folded her hands on top of the desk. She knew that voice from anywhere and as the door slid open and a man looked in she couldn't help the breath that caught. "Neji." Said man looked at Tenten as if she was a stranger, he blinked once before straightening.

"Tenten, what are you doing in here?" Her fists tightened and she forced herself to be calm, putting on her best smile she stood up.

"Your back early Neji, here let me notify the maid so she can make an extra plate of food for din.."

"Don't bother." The smile that Tenten so easily put on vanished rather quickly.

Her arms dropped to her sides and they stood looking at each other, it wasn't long before he answered her unuttered question. "I'll be off again shortly on a five month spying mission in Iwagakure." Tenten felt like a punch was just delivered to her stomach and she put an arm around herself to assure herself that their was no bruise.

"What? Why? In five months I'll have the baby." He nodded his head that same blank face in place as he spoke the next infuriating words.

"I know." Her eyes met his and for the first time in months all that bottled anger began to leak out.

"Is that all you can say? Your going to miss the birthing, the day that your daughter is born into the world for a mission!" He remained impassive and as uncaring as usual, Tenten tried to control herself but it felt too good to yell at the source of her problems to stop.

"I'm going to march straight to the Hokage and tell her that there is no possible way that you can!.."

"Don't bother." Tenten found her fist clenching in her state of barely suppressed anger.

"And pray tell why not, Neji?" She spoke the words and congratulated herself that she didn't even sound angry.

"This mission is voluntary, I took it because I wanted too, and there's nothing you can do about it." Whatever restraint was used at that point was forgotten and too Tenten it seemed time itself for several seconds, halted.

"What do you mean by that? This is your child's life we're talking about! Why do you want to be away don't you even care!" He was quiet and it only stoked the fires of her rage. "Huh! Tell me Neji!" At this point in time Tenten's arms were shaking so bad but she didn't take any notice of them. All her attention was on her husband, so focused she was one would think that her life depended on the next answer.

At long last the first etchings of anger made it's way on to the Hyuga prodigy's face. He tilted his chin and snorted, his eyes cut a pathway to her own and with the next words spoken Tenten felt something inside her die. "No, your right, I don't care. About you, about this child, your not important. What's important is this mission and your no match when I compare the two things side-by-side."

Before any rational thought made itself known in Tenten's mind she was all ready striking out for Neji's chest. Clouded by anger she ignored the restriction of the kimono or the sound her sandals made when she kicked them off. All that mattered in this instance was too cause pain to the one who hurt her.

Tenten barely saw the hand that batted her fist away or the second one that hit her clear in the chest. She did however feel the way his chakra burned through her and the way she could hardly breathe anymore. Her knees hit the ground as she lay bent over coughing up the blood that came.

Her head was throbbing and her first worry went with the child and if the damage was severe. "I'll be gone for five months don't expect me any sooner." Even in her bent position she could imagine the cold that seeped back into his eyes brushing away all the emotions he feels.

She didn't nod, didn't reply because he turned and disappeared in the next instance. A fit of coughing over came her and she surrendered to the act of clearing out her lungs. One hand kept her balance and the other was pressed almost painfully into the spot that he hit her in.

She couldn't say when exactly she started to cry but the tears ran down her cheeks and dropped onto the floor almost silently. She remembered at that moment something she'd heard long ago about the different kind of tears.

There are two different kinds of tears, those that were warm and those that were cool. Warm tears were ones of passion, the finding of hope, of pain, of joy and of happiness.

Cool tears were different. They were of those truly despairing, of those without hope, without the chance to move on or recover. They called only sadness and pity to them. Cool tears screamed, and sobbed hopelessly.

Tenten's tears felt cool, her eyes were shut tightly and she couldn't contain the sob that escaped her, but she'd be damned if she broke down. The voice of love whispered that he was just in a crappy mood, while her instincts demanded she leave him at once.

The voice of reason spoke the loudest yet, that this marriage wasn't worth the pain and somewhere behind the hurt she agreed, whole heartedly.