AN: Merry Christmas everyone! Wow, its been a long time since my last submission, and I'm working on getting the real Christmas story out, but I don't know if I'll be able to finish on time. So in the meanwhile, please enjoy this story, which is actually a belated birthday story for my beloved beta Cygnea-chan! All hail to the mighty editor-sama! Oh yeah, I tried to catch all the mistakes, so if you see any spelling or grammar mistakes, just point them out and I'll correct them, it was too difficult to find a temporary beta so I decided to wing it instead ^^;

Disclaimer: Don't own anything.

Prologue

"Aum-Hum!"

The little crowd in front of the conference room jumped up at the not so discrete cough.

Sandaime watched in amusement as his Jounin and ANBU blushed when they were caught snooping. "I was under the impression that we are supposed to have a meeting with Usagi-hime in five minutes." He looked at each guilty face. "May I ask why you are all standing here looking like guilty school children instead of preparing for the meeting?"

The old man made his way to the door, the little crowd parted in front of him like the Red Sea. His hand looked weathered and dry against the stainless steel knob, but it would've easily broken the metal if he applied the smallest amount of pressure.

"Err... Sandaime-sama."

The white robed man turned around a little impatient to a female voice he was not familiar with. His hand twisted the knob as he turned towards the speaker.

"I wouldn't go in if I were you...." The voice died off.

The door slipped open as his hand loosened.

This tobacco pipe fell from his open mouth, it landed on to the floor with a loud clack but it did not stop the two bodies from their 'activities' on the large circular conference table.

It was not difficult to identify who those bodies were. After all, there was only one blonde with Hokage robes in Konoha, and the other blonde was easily identified by the trademark Odango-hairstyle. Beyond that, it was difficult to tell which limb was attached to whom, with the way they were currently entangled together.

Strange how this upper lip was feeling wet and dripping. The old man unconsciously lifted a hand to wipe his nose and came away with blood. That was odd, he did not feel anyone punching him, yet his nose was definitely bleeding. Sandaime silently closed the door, just in time as the flame licked Hokage robe came off of one of the blonde's body and flying towards the door. He dreamily walked down the hallway, mindlessly registering the flushed faces and nosebleeds of his subordinates, who shamelessly went back to spying on their esteemed hero's amorous activities.

"Why didn't anyone warn me?" Sandaime reached out to steady himself while he wiped his nose inconspicuously. Jiraiya must be rubbing off on him.

"We did, but you didn't listen."

Squinting eyes landed on a dark haired beauty he finally recognized as one of Usagi-hime's hand maidens. Hino-san, if his memory was still serving him right.

"Yes, and I'm VERY sorry that I did not heed your advice, Hino-san. Please excuse this old man's foolishness. Now, if you will all forgive me, I believe I need to write a letter to Daimyo-dono regarding this situation we currently have on our hands." Rei watched smugly as the old man made his way shakily down to his own office, which was unfortunately right next to the conference room her princess was currently making loud noises from.

~*~*~*~

It all started five months ago, when the Daimyo suddenly announced an impromptu visit that his daughter, Tsukino Usagi-hime would be making to all five shinobi villages. It was common for the Daiymo to send ambassadors to each village to evaluate their hostile relationship with each other and solve any outstanding military problems. However, no one had ever heard of sending a Hime-sama for such a long, thankless job, one that was often filled with danger.

Then, another rumor quickly surfaced and spread across all five shinobi villages. Never had all five villages seen such a cooperative spirit before this event. According to a servant of the castle, this mission was just an excuse for Usagi-hime to escape the evil clutches of an arranged marriage. For the Daimyo wanted to betroth his only daughter and heir to a young and wealthy lord, unfortunately, Usagi-hime was adamantly against the marriage and riled against her doting Otou-sama until a compromise was finally reached. Instead of sending his normal ambassador, Usagi would assume the responsibility of visiting each shinobi village. If, after spending a month in each village, she was still unwed or companionless, then she would have to come home obediently and marry the man of Daimyo's choosing. In other words, this whole mission was just pretence to cover the real mission: husband hunting; the lucky man would not only be married to a beautiful girl, but would also one day inherit the power of all five shinobi villages from the Daiymo.

Many were mystified by Usagi-hime's abhorrence of Mamoru-sama. After all, he was rich, young, handsome, and did I mention rich? But ever since he made fun of Usagi-hime's unique hair style and her 'unprincess like' behaviours, she developed a deep and permanent dislike for the dark haired boy. Not to mention that she knew her best friend Rei had the hots for the snobby brat too. What kind of a best-friend would she be if she stole Rei's man? Even if it was for a political union, Mamoru-baka didn't deserve a loveless marriage, and Usagi definitely wanted to fall head over heels in love with her future husband.

After growing up with Minako, who would smuggle the banned Icha Icha Paradise series to the palace, Usagi had been plagued with stories of fearless shinobi who triumphed through dangerous missions. Which girl wouldn't want to be carried away in strong arms capable of jutsu of mass destruction, but so careful and gentle as they swept her against a hard, muscular chest?

So, armed with her fantasies and fierce determination, Usagi-hime set off from the Capitol and started her long journey into the lawless lands of the shinobi. Unfortunately, after four long months of unpleasant shocks and heart breaking disappointments, she finally arrived at Konoha, the last shinobi village, and her last village before her freedom was forfeited forever.

TBC...


AN: Yeap, it's a Minato/Usagi story! I've been wanting to write one of these for a long time, and it was one of the pairings that Cygnea-chan asked for, so it's like killing two birds with one stone ^_^ Hehe, and I'm sure you've all noticed how short it is. It was suppose to be a one-shot, but it didn't really flow properly, so I'm dividing it into three chapters, which hopefully will be all posted before the new semster starts ^^;

Reviews are greatly appreciated!