I'm taking a break from Silently Lost because the next chapter has too many feelings to deal with... Streeeeeeeessss...
Anyway this is a new story from me. I don't think a plot like this has been written... so...
And Lust is discontinued... sorry.
I do not own Naruto. Masashi Kishimoto does.
Summary: "Sakura Haruno, exclusive doctor of the Queen in the Land of Fire, is charged with the crime of attempted murder. To atone for her sin, she shall be sentenced to a lifetime in Death's Trench, the prison under the sea."
The Prelude into One's Heart
Feigned Ignorance
.
.
Konohagakure was the capital of the Land of Fire, the place where the Queen lived, where her servants lived, where her exclusive doctors lived, where she lived. This was her home, a land of peace, tranquility, order.
She was the exclusive doctor in charge of taking care of the royal family. Because of this, she received special privileges: she could wander about the castle, use the herbal garden, use the medical facility, and determine the nutrition intake of the family.
She loved her job; it was peaceful, soothing, relaxing, easy.
She didn't want anything to change.
.
.
"Haruno-san, where should we put the drinks?"
"Haruno-sama, do you prefer red or purple?"
"Haruno-san, the guests should be coming soon."
"Haruno-san, we are out of quality wine."
"Haru-"
The rosette slammed a hand on the needlessly long mahogany dinning table, the sound of it echoing across the high ceiling room. The woman stared at her interrogators with an expression of irritation mixed with indignation. The servants stood in place, not daring to move a hair.
She spoke, her voice eerily low and quiet with a smile on her face. "Why was I not notified of this event sooner?"
The servants were hesitant to answer. It wasn't like this was their fault, but she couldn't help but lash her anger out at someone else— not a good quality, but she didn't really have any intention of getting rid of it anytime soon.
One of the maids spoke, her voice lowed, her head bowed, her eyes closed. "Your Highness decided to have this event yester-"
She glared at them, her anger now boiling. "Where is the Queen." It wasn't a question.
"In her roo-"
"Well then," She started. "GET HER IN HERE NOW! WHAT AM I, THE MAID?"
Her sudden bellow stunned the servants in their place, their expressions blank with surprise. Not one moved to look for the woman in question; this irked her already thin temper even more so. She could feel her patience growing thin and this time slammed both palms on the table, the sound of her attacking the poor, innocent table menacing. "GO!"
They scattered instantly, like insects trying to achieve a common goal but unable to due to their small, pea-sized brains. The rosette huffed and swiftly walked down the table's side to inspect the food, taking small bites from each dish to ensure the safety of the upcoming guests. Next were the drinks, which she thought were needless to try as she did not have an affinity with alcohol; however, the Queen was an admirer of the vain liquid, making it a necessity to investigate.
She heard the uselessly large doors open, and she turned around to greet the person in question. A woman with silky long blonde hair and honey eyes walked in. Each step she took forward elucidated her overly large chest, her frilly green-tea dress, and her dainty feminine figure. Despite her looks, the rosette was the only person to know that the Queen was actually a 50-year-old geezer.
The rosette tried to force a smile through anger burning her eyes. "Your Highness." She began through gritted teeth. "Don't you think a party on such late notice would bother our guests?"
"Are you saying that my decision is unfavorable?" She quirked a brow in irritation. The rosette knew better than to rub her superior on the wrong side; she was a monster when she went berserk.
"I am saying that it was on short notice."
"Nonsense." She chuckled and grabbed a glass on the dining table. "I notified them two days ago."
"Your Highness, to the rest of the world, that is on short notice."
The Queen looked at the rosette. "Sakura, are you worried about my safety?"
The Queen was the ruler of the Land of Fire, so of course she was going to worry. This woman was the target of all people; she was never safe, not even in the vicinity of her own household. So, naturally, the rosette was the main principal person in charge of keeping the Queen safe. Just thinking about the hoards of guests worried the woman. What if someone tried to assassinate the Queen? What if one of the guests were injured? What if she couldn't prevent it?
"Your Highness-"
"Even if I did get injured," the blonde woman turned, her skirts fluttering, "you would immediately come to attend to me, right? Then I have no reason to worry; you are capable. After all, who else taught you than your's truly?"
The pastel haired lady huffed a smile. "Please be careful, Your Highness. Getting drunk would probably turn for the worst."
"Let this old woman have some fun before she passes." She smirked and drained another glass, her rosy lips touching the glass rim.
.
.
The guests arrived when the sun had sunken, when the moon had awoken. Carriages sprinted to the front of the palace, their wooden wheels screeching in the front to a stop. One by one, men and woman stepped out from each vehicle; the ladies' dresses astonishing and colorful. To be honest, she envied those who had extra time to wear such extravagant clothing. It was like something out of a fairy tale.
She usually didn't join the party. It was too noisy and rambunctious for her. She would just watch and inspect each tray of edible delights that entered the dining room. Anything not allowed was sent back to the kitchen.
Sending them back was too much effort, so she decided to just stay in the kitchen all together.
The vicinity was bustling with life; every person was doing their part in making this party a success. So, she resolved to ensure that no guest was harmed.
"Sakura," she turned around to face the head chef. He was a man who had been working in the palace for longer than herself, more than fifteen years. His kind and nurturing character made him a very amiable consult for her rants. He had been looking out for her ever since her first day in this lavish place. "don't look so tense. The guests will be fine."
"But just think what will happen if someone does get injured..." She sighed and ran a hand through her extensive coral locks.
"Do not worry, every guest is protected within these walls."
Nodding her head, she walked out of the bustling hub and toward the dining hall. One of the servants handed her a drink, saying that it was from the head chef himself to the Queen. She would have to deliver it later. Even if they said it was from the head chef, the rosette wafted the vile liquid and frowned in distaste at the stench of the strong liquor. It was definitely something the Queen would drink.
She found the woman chatting with long-term friends, something she had always thought was a quack. The Queen didn't really have friends, only underlings.
The rosette stepped forward somewhat boldly and put the drink the in the surprised woman's hands. "For you, Your Highness. It is from the head chef himself."
She smiled. "Dear, me. I think I've had enough to drink, but one more should be alright, if it is from the head chef himself."
The rosette almost rolled her eyes watching the Queen act mannerly and feminine in front of the other men and women thirty years younger than herself. She was such a charlatan.
.
.
Several hours passed by, and the Queen was starting to act strange, not because of her getting drunk or anything. It was something different; she looked like she would pass out. To a normal person, the answer would be she was intoxicated, but the rosette was no ordinary person. She trained to support the healthy and attend the ill.
The blonde woman swayed back and forth, her eyes somewhat frowning in distaste. She looked pained, always clenching her stomach and gasping for air. The rosette walked forward and steadied the unusual woman. "Your Highness, are you alright?"
She huffed for a few seconds, trying to find the right words to say. "I...'m... not sure..."
The rosette walked the woman slowly to a chair and set her down gently, the woman quivering in her arms. "Your Highness, what have you eaten today?"
"The roast, the fish, the soup, the bread... and..."
"Please stay here. I will be right back Your Highness." The rosette left the worried amber eyed woman and sprinted around the table, tasting each food to see what was wrong. Maybe it was food poisoning, maybe it was still uncooked, maybe it was not ready.
Maybe it was poisoned.
Nothing in the foods even hinted at danger, so she ran back to the Queen with a staggering pant. "What drinks have you had...? Did you... accept anything from anyone...?"
The Queen was drenched in sweat, her lips gasping for air still. "I've accepted three drinks from the head maid and one from you."
"Do you know what kind of drinks they were?" The rosette panted.
"White wine."
"Where are the glasses that you drank from."
She stumbled for the right words yet again and closed her eyes, trying to concentrate. "On the... front of the table..."
The rosette ran yet again and investigated each glass for poison, or some type of vile that would put the Queen into such a state. Each cup smelled sweet, the scent of White wine, but the last cup she surveyed smelled bitter and sour. Like strong wine yet not. How could she not have noticed.
She turned around with the glass in hand to see a crowd around the general area the Queen was at. She panicked. What was happening? Why was everyone gathered around her? Had something happened? Was she too late?
Three people came out of the crowd and toward her, their eyes glowering. She looked at the man standing behind the two elderly attendants and saw the Queen herself collapsed in his hands.
The rosette ran forward, not noticing the tone of her voice. "What happ-"
The elderly woman was dressed elegantly, as she was one of the attendants in charge of the council. "Take this woman."
"Pardon?" Confused green eyes stared at squinty black eyes.
Feeling arms wrapped around her, the coral haired woman looked on either side of her to see the guards restricting her. What was happening? Why was she being apprehended?
"Lock her up." The elderly man mandated.
The rosette protested. "Why am I being locked up? Let me attend to the Queen!"
The elderly man glared at her, his eyes deriding. "As if we'd let a murderer like yourself to attend to the Land of Fire's monarch. Take her away."
"Murderer?" She struggled to against the strong hands of the guards. "What murder have I committed?!"
"Shut her up." The man demanded and for a split second, she could feel the guard lift his hand and strike the delicate spot right at the nape of her neck.
Everything went dark.
.
.
The next time she awoke, her hands and legs were cuffed with metal. With her arms around her back, it was hard to move around. She struggled to get up into a sitting position; hurting herself in the process. The cell was gross, sticky, damp, moist. Everything about it was unsanitary.
She opened her lips to yell. "Let me out! I must attend to the Queen!"
"Shut yer' trap maggot." One of the guard scoffed and poked her with his spear, the tip almost touching her nose. "Yer' in no condition to be orderin' me 'round."
"Then answer me, why am I locked up here when I clearly did not do any harm?"
"The Queen collapsed. It's yer' fault if she's dead."
"I didn't do it!" She glared at the man through gritted teeth.
He smacked her with the blunt end of his spear, knocking the breath out of her. "Shuddap. Your fate's bein' determin'd by the council mem'mers."
What fate? She was fated to be the exclusive doctor of the Queen, nothing else. Her life and occupation were to be stable, so why did this happen? What had she done to deserve this?
She heard the door crack open and a man mumbling to the guard. She tried to listen but with no avail. The guard walked in front of the cell bars and took out a key. Was she being released?
She smirked, her eyes mocking. "Am I being freed?"
The man smirked himself. That stopped her sudden gleeful moment. "They're announcin' yer' punishmunt."
The color drained from her face as she was yanked up and carried on his shoulder like a sack of nothing. "But I'm innocent!" She begged.
"Not to the council yer' not." He chuckled.
He dropped her moments later and she looked up to face the council. They unchained her feet and dragged her to the middle of the court; she stared in disbelief the whole time.
The crowd of servant and maids stared at her from the back, their eyes filled with a mix of fear and anxiety. The head chef was there as well, with his hat in hand on his chest. His face was solemn.
The elderly man coughed from on the jurisdiction post. He adjusted his glasses and stared at the coral haired woman. "Today, we are saddened to hear about the illness upon our Queen. As of now, she is in her room being attended to by the exclusive doctors of the palace. Her condition is somewhat stable."
The crowd murmured in distress. The elderly man continued. "But, that is not the only matter at hand. It was recorded, that at the end of the event organized by the Queen, the head doctor of the palace handed a drink to her. That drink," he paused and lowered his eyes to glare at the rosette, "was poisoned."
Arguing came from the hoard of servants in the back ground. "Silence!" The elder ordered.
The elderly woman looked down at the victim. "Do you, Sakura Haruno, admit to poisoning the Queen?"
"No, I am innocent." Her voice was calm and steady. The crowd began to murmur again. "I did not make that drink; it was handed to me by the head maid, who got it from the head chef."
"How do we know that you weren't in cahoots with the servant?" The man surveyed.
"I was not. I do not have proof, but I am not the criminal. You are wasting your time with this trial." She glared back at the man.
The elders muttered among themselves while she stood still with her hands still cuffed. They turned around and the man slammed the book on the podium, the harsh smacking sound deafening her ears in the echoing court room. "Sakura Haruno, exclusive doctor of the Queen in the Land of Fire, is charged with the crime of attempted murder. To atone for her sin, she shall be sentenced to a lifetime in Death's Trench, the prison under the sea."
She stared in utter shock, paralyzed by dismay. The servants gasped. "D-Death's Trench? But, I've done nothing wrong!"
"Silence, you are under the holy oath of court." The wrinkly woman glowered.
The rosette bit her lip. "The Queen will vouch for me! She is my witness!"
The council members looked among themselves, a smirk on their faces. "Haruno-san, I'm afraid the Queen cannot come to your rescue. You have no witnesses. Take her away immediately to Death's Trench."
The guards came back, roughly grabbing the innocent woman and taking her away. She protested again, "I've done no wrong!" She looked over at the head chef.
He was smirking.
After all this time, why was he not saying anything? They had been acquainted for so long, and when she needed him most, he was always there. So why not now? Why was he smirking?
And then it dawned onto her— he and the maid were both in cahoots with the council. She was the only person getting in their way. She was the trusted doctor of the Queen, the one who guided the Queen into making decisions. If she were gone... they would have the whole country to themselves... The Queen was unconscious. There was no one to jurisdiction their actions, no one except her. That was why they framed her, to get rid of her. They were being kind by leaving her alive.
"You're lying under the holy oath!" The rosette yelled as the men dragged her out of court. "All of you! You are all going to regret your decisions, I'll make sure of it!"
Their smirking faces were the last thing she saw before the door slammed in front of her face.
.
.
The coral haired woman tried to avoid the eyes of the other prison inmates; their gazes like animals in heat. They stood at the edge of the bars, their hands flailing out from between the bars desperately reaching to touch her. It wasn't a real surprise, with what they made her wear: super short shorts and a torn shirt revealing far too much skin. She flushed, trying to cover herself.
"A woman?"
"The first! The first!"
"What a little Princess!"
"Did the little Lady kill someone?"
"Nice legs, little lady!"
"Shut up!" The prison guard yelled and the inmates groaned, their arms somewhat sinking back into their cells, but not by much.
She shuddered in trepidation as she and the prison guard walked through the prison to her new home. The walls were high, filled with cells upon cells. It was quite hectic, with all the inmates yelling, whistling, and cheering.
The guard felt somewhat sympathetic for her and tossed her a large gray shirt. "Sorry, that's about all the clothes you'll get. Unless you want pants that don't fit on that small waist of yours."
She hurriedly fumbled to pull the over-sized shirt over her head. "No, thank you very much for this."
He led her to the cell and gently pushed her in, not used to dealing with women. "As you can tell, we're not used to having a woman here in the prison, so I can't really treat you differently— after all, you're a criminal."
She glared at the ignorant man, but said nothing back as to give away the secret. If someone else knew of the conspiracy, she would be beheaded. "Indeed."
"For a criminal, you're quite well-mannered." He laughed and locked the cell, his face shadowed by the darkness leaking from it. "You're a lot like another prisoner here. He's quite the trouble maker though. Just don't turn out like him, Criminal-chan."
"I would appreciate it if you didn't call me that." She glowered.
He laughed, trying to ease the tension. "But it's cute."
"Then shall I call you Half-Wit-kun?" She quirked a brow before putting a hand on her hip.
He laughed nervously before speaking again. "He calls me that too... Anyway, the buzzer will dictate your daily activities. The doors will unlock and you will be guided by an officer to the designated place. Dinner is at seven and shower time is at eight. You'll share the shower with the other m-"
"What?" She stared at the other man in disbelief. "But I'm a woman."
"But I can't treat you differently..." He stated.
"Then you're saying it's okay for me to be molested in the showers?"
"Then should I come in and watch?" He smirked and she threatened to smack him through the bars. "Sorry, but there's no other time you can shower. Unless you want to shower early in the morning instead of sleeping."
"I'm okay with that." She said flatly. "It's better than showering with men."
He sighed and turned the other way. "I'll go ask the chief..."
She was left to sit in the darkness of the cell. There was a bed with a light hanging from the top. She pulled the string down and brightness illuminated her room. From outside of her cell, she could see the other prisoners watching her. It was quite nerve-wrecking.
She sat down on the bed and watched the perfunctory action of her legs kicking back and forth. They had given her shoes to wear; not really comfortable but decent.
Death's Trench, the super security prison for the worst criminals on the whole continent. They had built it on an island off the coast of the Land of Water in the middle of the ocean. The prison itself was built under the island as to cope with the irregular water levels rising and lowering; it also made it harder for inmates to escape from their demise. Every criminal in Death's Trench has killed at least five or more people at the same time, well, except for her as she was no criminal.
She was innocent.
She huffed in frustration and flopped down on the mattress. It was coarse and uncomfortable. No matter how she shifted it still felt like sleeping on the hard floor, but the bed was probably a bit warmer.
The guard came back and smiled. "Congratulations, you have to shower with men!"
She jumped off the bed and tried to hit him. "Do repeat that, I couldn't hear you through the screaming in my head."
"The chief doesn't care that you're a girl..." He shrugged and closed his eyes solemnly. "I couldn't convince him."
"Not with that attitude you can't." She huffed and grabbed the bars.
"Well, at least you're only showering with only one other person."
She perked up in excitement. "Just one? Then I can handle it!"
"It's still a man though... and he's even more dangerou-"
"I don't care; one is better than all of them."
The inmates from the other cells groaned in disappointment. "Dammit, way to ruin the fun, Dame-Officer-kun."
"Dame-Officer-kun..."
"Dame-Officer-kun."
The guard sighed and handed her a bar of soap and a towel through the bars. "These are for your shower later."
She smiled and took the handed goods. "Thank you, Dame-Officer-san."
"Please don't call me that..."
.
.
A man sat in the corner of the empty room, his face covered by his dark hair. The only light illuminating the room was through the tiny cracks under the door and the tiny window on the door blocked with bars. He sat there quietly, not moving a hair in the dark.
A guard came by and looked through the window. "You're sharing your shower room with the new inmate. Play nicely, alright?"
There was no answer from the man. Only a smirk and red eyes carved with black markings gave the guard his reply.
The guard was almost regretting his negotiation with the chief. That woman was going to die in the showers with this man.
A low, velvety chuckle came from the corner of the cell, sending chilling vibrations throughout the room. It was the first time the guard had heard him laugh or show amusement. "What's funny?"
"Being a companion with a woman." His voice was equally smooth and enchanting. He smirked and looked up at the confused man. "Indeed, I know. How wouldn't I, with all the screaming and yelling coming from outside? Attractive?"
"Of course, the prettiest woman I've ever seen. Quite sassy though... like you." The guard said honestly. The prisoner chuckled again and the guard frowned slightly. "You'd better behave yourself." The guard warned.
"Why wouldn't I? Women are so fun to play with."
.
.
Thank you for reading! I'll try to update soon!
Please tell me what you think.
EnigmaLight—9:59