The White Fox: Naruto Fanfiction
By: Catclass
Chapter 1: A King and a Problem
"Greed destroys men; men destroy nations." An aging man sat with his head in his hand, distraught by the foreboding actions of his eldest son. "How am I to protect my family and keep my home safe from him? In my greed, I made him."
This old man was not a beggar or a merchant; he was Fugaku Uchiha, King of the Fire Kingdom. He looked as many of his blood ancestors have for many generations: black hair and eyes, pale skin, slim frame, and the legendary Uchiha scowl. For Fugaku, his peppered long hair and ferociously etched scowl were his outstanding features They say he got his first grey hair as a child due to stress, and that his scowl was a mask that only the Queen saw behind.
Now, this is partially true. He did love his Queen enough to lighten his glare before her, but that was a private weakness that even Her Majesty barely witnessed. The Queen had retained her youthful image, his beloved Mikoto, with the exception of light crow's feet. In fact, she was an exception to most Uchihas he had known, for she was always smiling and motherly. She looked much the same as the Uchiha clanswomen, though he found her beauty far greater. He would send ten thousand ships to fight for her, dress her in a hundred thousand diamonds, or give up the crown of his Kingdom should she ask. But, all she would desire is a hand-picked flower or an embrace from her King. The Queen was beloved by everyone, including their two very capable sons.
"What have you become, my son?" The King thought back on his eldest son's childhood. "Drowning in my paranoia and gloating in my greed, I was a fool to enforce perfection." As most citizens of the Fire Nation, the Uchiha's excelled in energy based magic. And perfection Prince Itachi became. He excelled in cartography, geography, math, science, language, and more; however, with every success, victory meant less.
Eventually Prince Itachi became desperate to find subjects which challenged him. One year, the neighboring Kingdom of Blossoms started marching on the Fire Nation. They were not content with the export taxes placed on them by Fugaku. It was described that Prince Itachi took seven men against two thousand and had them admitting defeat in one month. First, he had three men stationed around the enemy encampments using a steam technique to make the area horribly hot and muggy. Then, two of the men were to act as cooks to slowly poison groups of the camp so that the soldiers became fatally ill in waves as though struck by a mysterious virus. Finally, Itachi made it known to a couple officials that he and his men would be watching them from the trees. Though this may seem foolish to some, the officials started panicking under the pressure from the heat, decreasing men, and enemy surveillance. They even tried moving the encampment every few days, thinking they escaped that eerie dark gaze. Then Itachi would allow himself to be seen, and the panic would resume. After a month of this torture, the enemy Kingdom had not only surrendered and sent a written treaty to never attack the Fire Nation again, but also offered their only little princess, Sakura Haruno. Of course, the Uchiha reevaluated their trade tax so not to spark more hostility with the usually peaceful nation. It was also an unspoken promise of betrothal placed on Sakura and Sasuke which kept her safely and unquestionably with the Uchiha family.
After this achievement had ceased to entertain him, nothing could satiate his craving to reach new levels of his father's desired perfection. Well, it seemed that way until King Fugaku fell ill with a cold that following spring. When all were worriedly sitting by the royal bed side, Prince Itachi was busy at work within the King's office. He took over so swiftly that the counselors didn't stand a chance of profiting from their Lord's weakness. While it was expected of him to rule the Kingdom in his father's absence, he seemed unusually compassionate. For the Queen and young Prince Sasuke, his smiles and gentle touches towards their possibly dying husband and father were terrifying. And, for a few days, Sasuke took it upon himself to stay with the King at all times, just in case his brother tried anything. Due to the high fever, King Fugaku had no memory of the whole week. However, the thought that his youngest would act against his brother was enough to cause him great worry.
His youngest son Sasuke Uchiha, the second Prince of the Fire Nation, was always trying to be just as cold and calculating as his brother, but he had far too much of Queen Mikoto in him to truly be apathetic. He looked as any Uchiha, but to King Fugaku, Sasuke had the Queen's eyes, complexion, and heart. Sadly, everyone expected more from Prince Sasuke simply by his being the younger brother of a genius.
"Have I driven one mad and one heartless?" The King had not seen any emotion but ugly fury and jealousy from his youngest in so many years; he could only cling to fading memories of a half-forgotten smile. "I can choose death or retirement, but avoiding both would be best. How?"
"My King, might I present a trouble that weighs heavily on my heart?" Queen Mikoto startled him from his thoughts. She stood before him, her hand maidens left outside the door to wait. "What ails you, My Queen?" He motioned to a chair for the distraught woman to join him.
"I'm frightened for Sasuke. With Itachi striving for perfection, I fear he has turned his eye to your throne. He spends hours poring through laws and history. He talks to councilors, farmers, and enemies to gain alliances. What will we do about his Akatsuki Organization, should they turn against us? Are they not the best warriors we have? Am I so horrible a mother that I fear my own son?" She wept in fear and self disgust. He moved to touch her hand to comfort her as she continued, "A perfect coup would be the assassination of all who stand in his way, and while I can accept my life becoming forfeit, I could not stand either of my sons being harmed."
She was a beautiful mess with blushing cheeks and tears glistening like diamond earrings as they slipped down her cheeks. Though his expression never faltered, he gently held her hand the only means he knew to comfort his Queen. "How would we protect our sons, our lives, and our home from an enemy so perfect?" She sighed
"Perhaps, I should require a quest." He quietly muttered. Their eyes met. Her black eyes quickly shifted from despair, to confusion, and then to hope.