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You never could face me, could you? Could never look me in the eye and tell me what you truly feel inside. The only question that remains: Why is it that I still stay?

--

Tenten rolled her shoulders while sliding her hand down her face, stopping over her lips she leaned against the wall and evened out her breathing. What was she doing? Reacting to another man's touches? Like she just did!? The hand on her stomach tightened into a fist.

No...what was he doing? Touching her so...what angle was he trying to play at? What did he want from her? She wasn't a Hyuga by blood, she wasn't a weakling who would easily give away Konoha's secrets...

No. It wasn't possible...was it? Tenten looked down upon her swollen stomach watching as her fist shook uncontrollably. She may not have the Byakugan but the child growing in her stomach would have it. Be blessed with it. If that was what he wanted...

She forced the lingering touch of his skin on hers from her mind. If he dare think he could ever...ever take her child from her and take the Byakugan as well... Tenten straightened, her chin and jaw set so evenly that it hurt her...she paid no mind as she calmly dropped her hands to her sides. An expression of motherly protection taking over her features.

She continued on down the hall. Every branch member and maid in a ten foot radius turned tail and disappeared, none wanting to come face to face with an armed and hormone driven kunoichi of Konoha. Even the man responsible for her clouded mood felt the cold fingers of dread run up his spine at the chilling chakra she radiated.

Tenten felt her lips turn upwards as she thought of Kinmotsu's true intentions. If he ever dared to remove her child from her...he will have to face a kunoichi worthy of her title, because Tenten the weapons mistress...number one shot in Konoha...is not a push-over.

It took a few more minutes of walking and rational thinking before Tenten brought both her chakra and temper under wraps. That and if you let your mind wander you could find herself in the Hyuga pool or even worse out on the eastern side of the complex when the branch rooms were on the western side.

Tenten found the hallway and its' darkness chillier when walking alone with your thoughts plaguing your mind. The only thing she had left to ponder was that gardener and his true purpose here. It should have eased her mind that Lady Hinata herself picked him out of a stack of twenty but it didn't.

The man was strange, a foreignness that invaded Tenten's routine of the usual. Living in monotony for any amount of time makes you hesitant to embrace something that is not of the normal routine. Tenten stood both resisting and slightly encouraging to the attention Kinmotsu bestowed upon her.

No...she didn't trust him and no she wasn't stupid. Coincidence is naiveness unbefitting of a kunoichi at her status. They weren't just randomly running into each...he was seeking her out. Looking for her and Tenten decided that a leather holster and weapon was going to be strapped to her wrist from then on.

She had questioned Lady Hinata earlier about the man but all she received was reassurances of his safety. Tenten remembered the shy smile the leader gave to her before waving away what she thought was just nervousness. Scoffing to herself Tenten turned a corner stopping immediately at the sound of yelling up and ahead of her.

She looked all around her and noticed she had crossed into the guest section of the house. Tenten reminded herself to concentrate better next time but for now. She suppressed her chakra even sending it off in a different direction making it seem as though she was walking away instead of coming closer.

The voices, while indistinct down the hall, became clearer with every door she passed. "You can't treat her this way cousin she is not your servant she is your wife!!" The voice itself stopped her in her tracks..it wasn't possible, it wasn't...never mind the fact that the voice was yelling but...Hinata sounded so angry.

Tenten was bowled over by the fact that she had never ever in all of her years heard Hinata raise her voice but too reprimand Neji?! No not ever. It was Neji's voice that had her flattened against the wall bringing her breath to as shallow intakes as she could and not pass out.

"Hinata-sama with all due respect I don't think--"

"That's right you don't think that's why Tenten is as unhappy as she is!" There was silence and Tenten held her breath, the fear of being found rising in her throat.

"If the only thing wrong with Tenten is her unhappiness then it is a small price to pay for my protection."

Tenten felt the urge for a sharp and strong blade at that moment but quelched the urge. "I have done what I could to protect her." She heard him slump to the ground as all anger dispelled from Hinata's voice.

"Cousin?" The urge for violence rose once more. The manipulative bastard how dare he?! How dare he play the victim in this relationship!!

As if he was the one left at home for months on end! As if it was she who barely looked at him when he was home! As if he was the one who stayed up late at night and wondered where she was and hoping to a higher entity that she would come back!

She heard him sigh loudly and it took all of her willpower to not barge in there and beat him within a bloody inch of his life!

"Hinata-sama this information is top secret and will not be repeated to anyone. Am I understood?" There was such a silence that Tenten feared they would hear her breathe.

"I understand cousin." Tenten's stomach twisted anxiously as Neji began speaking once more.

"A year and five months ago an underground criminal organization threatened to murder the head of the Hyuga clan. This organization is made up of elite assassins from various villages, mercenaries if you will. There have been different attempts to breach their ranks but all efforts have failed." By the sound of his voice Tenten could visualize him combing his fingers through his hair.

"What did Hokage-sama order?"

"The Hokage ordered this as top secret and restricted knowledge of it as best she could. There was plausible reason that they had spies in Konoha." Spies? Here in this fortified city? It was over a year ago that they had threatened the Hyuga clan why would anyone stick around? Surely the threat had passed by now and there was no need to worry. Without even noticing it, Hinata voiced her own thoughts.

"That was seventeen months ago cousin where are you going with this conversation?" There was a pause and Tenten was a hairs breadth away from the door before she heard Neji's whispered reply.

"Because we believe that they are still out to get you."

"What? Why would they still be active--"

"Silence." The room quieted and Tenten soon heard what Neji must have sensed. Someone else was listening in. She could sense chakra close by and the floorboards creaked beneath their shifting weight. That's when Tenten heard Neji stand up. Without even thinking she slid the door open behind her and jumped in.

She leaped across the room propelling herself out the window of the guest room just as she heard a door slide open. Leaping from trees to buildings Tenten slid within the sanctuary of her darkened room. Her quiet pants calmed her racing pulse, as she laid down on her bed to sort through all she had learned. Some elite assassins were out to kill Hinata-san but for what reason?

The reason would have made this situation easier to understand but it didn't change the fact that she was going to protect Hinata even if she was pregnant.

"Hmm..seventeen months ago is a long time to be waiting to kill someone. I wonder what everyone was doing at that time." Interlocking her hands behind her head Tenten let her thoughts wander. "Well Naruto would have been eating ramen, Sakura would have been working in the hospital while Sasuke would have been angsting over Itachi." The mental image that came from that thought brought a giggle to her lips.

"Yeah that sounds about right around that time Hinata would have been named the clan leader. Kiba would have been promoted to Jonin along with his friend Shino. I would have been on a diplomatic mission to Waterfall at that time."

Tenten sat up and removed the robe from her body before tossing it to the foot of her bed. She then preceded to slip the night gown off. "Hard too think seven months before that Neji and I were married and happy." She froze as realization struck like a kunai and through her fingers the night gown slipped unnoticed.

Two years ago they had married, seven months was what it took to make him open up to her. They became closer and Neji had smiled more often when they were together. But after that month he became cold, so bone-chillingly cold that Tenten thought he had all of a sudden suffered from a split personality disorder. That was roughly seventeen months ago. A year and five months was when the threat was issued.

Neji would have been called out to investigate but that would only account for his freguent missions and twenty four-seven weariness. Not for the fact that he treated her like a plague and ignored her when she tried to reach out to him. Whenever she tried to guess at what was going on in his head he word hurt her with his words and give her a cold shoulder.

He would keep her at bay and-- "No. He can't possibly think that!" Before she even finished her thoughts the robe had been secured around her and she was out the window. Did he think he was keeping her safe by keeping her at bay? Her bare feet hit the cooled dirt as she raced towards his chakra. Did this mean he still cared about her? Did this mean all of his hateful words and actions were fake? A ploy to confuse his enemies?

She now knew what was wrong! She knew now what to say to make him feel comforted! She knew how to save her marriage and Tenten rounded the corner to see Neji ready to depart.

I know now, so Neji you don't have to hurt me! I know what your going through so please don't leave me out anymore!

Hinata bowed before both eyes turned to see her. She must have looked odd as hell running towards them without shoes and a thin slip of a robe covering her naked, pregnant form. Her soul was at it's peak her heart matched the rythmn of her feet. Her mouth opened to form the words that would bring them both happiness.

"What are you doing woman? Get back inside before somebody sees you!" That stopped her dead in her tracks. This wasn't what he was suppose to say but not to be deterred Tenten spoke up.

"Neji you don't have to worry about--"

"What you? I don't need to worry about anything especially you. I'm much too independent for that."

"But Neji I know--"

"You know what wench? That your wasting my time right now?"

"Shut up and listen!" She was down right pleading her fears and doubts came crawling up her throat. This wasn't going the way she imagined, this wasn't what she was expecting. "Please Neji just.." His looked turned back to it's stony composure before he spoke for the last time.

"The day I stop and listen to a useless wench like you..will be a frosty day in Suna. Go back to whatever you were doing and put some clothes on damn it!" Stone cold, with the shock filling her body like concrete, Tenten didn't know how she stood with the weight of panic crushing her too death.

"Cousin!" Before Hinata could let her furious tone lash out at him Neji turned and bowed to her.

"Take care of yourself Hinata-sama." Then he was gone and Tenten finally saw the rage on the young woman's face. But it didn't matter, Neji was gone and she was choking on her tears. Hinata faced her fully and her face was so sympathetic that Tenten couldn't take it.

"Goodnight Hinata-san." Tenten left, right now she couldn't take sympathetic. She didn't want pity, and this was the last straw for her. Neji didn't love her and that was it. Because you don't speak to the ones you love like that. You don't intentionally hurt them not even when your angry. Neji had said and done things to her that she put up with because her lying heart said it was just a phase. No more though, never again.

Silently slipping through her window Tenten collapsed onto her bed and cried. She sobbed and cried so hard her whole body shook with it. Her heart hurt, her head hurt, her whole body felt like a giant had picked her up and wrung her out. She felt so drained and she knew deep down this was it. Either swim or drown. Live or die.

"No more. Please don't hurt me anymore." Tenten sobbed into her pillow as night dragged on, eventually sleep claimed her. And her worries of Kinmotsu and that strange dream vanished beneath the crushing weight of her reality. The darkness never looked so inviting compared to the light of her newly discovered nightmare. A nightmare she had no doubt she'd never escape from.