King of the Seven Seas
by Diana-san

cover art credit to my amazing friend bhavna-madan over at tumblr!

Humans were stupid creatures. He didn't understand how humans could possibly believe that the sea belonged to them. The sea cannot be conquered, the sea cannot be tamed. In the end, humans can never hope to rule the seven seas.

Only he could. As he was not only a king but an entity of the sea. He was not a human but a merman. That was the clear defining line that separated the stupid from the clever. Because when a human falls into the sea, the human will soon die. And when a merman falls into the sea, the merman lives for eternity.

He seen a lot of humans plunge to the depths of the sea and die and wither away. Some fall in by accident and sometimes were saved. Others were not so lucky and either drown or freeze to death. Some jump in on purpose and that was an even stupider move from his view. It only stumps him to wonder as to why anyone would choose his home as a death bed.

But what confuses him more were pirates. They were humans but they were also not human at the same time. They were loud and rowdy and called themselves kings of the sea. He scoffs at this because he could easily turn all their ships over if he wanted to. But he doesn't because he is a fool for curiosity and a fool for one particular pirate.

He wasn't sure if she was even a real pirate. She was often seen gazing out into the sea with a dreamy look in her emerald green eyes that were as green as the land she came from. But her hair was pink like the coral reefs beneath her feet. She was always smiling with her hair blown back despite being covered sometimes by a white bandana. The piece of cloth over her hair disturbed him. She would look much better in a set of pearls or even a beautiful seashell from the shores. Her hair would be able to flow freely in the waters.

But the biggest disappointment was not the bandana but her clothes. They were baggy both on top and bottom as she wore a plain white loose blouse over brown trousers. The sea wouldn't allow for such clothes. No, she would have the minimum which would cover enough but leave room for the mind's imagination.

And now he watches once more as it turns out that today was a stormy day and the seas were turbulent and wild, much like his own mind today from watching her. The smile on the girl's face turns to surprise and then fear and he watches in shock as she trips over the bow of the ship and falls to the sea. He hears screams coming from on board on the deck but the only scream he can remember is hers. No one seemed to have noticed her fall as the crew were busying themselves at keeping the ship steady.

He swims faster and faster as he speeds towards her sinking body. As his arms wrap around her almost lifeless body, his mind races on what he should do with her. No one on the ship had noticed her fall and there was no nearby shores to drop her body off to be found. The only thing left was to watch her die in his arms.

That or…

He shakes his head as he pushes the thought out of his head. It would bring more problems than answers if he chooses that route. He was a king after all and he couldn't just save every falling girl from every ship by turning them into a mermaid. Turning her into a mermaid would be like giving up a part of himself. It would weaken him as a king if she chose to abuse the powers and abandon him as well. He had to be methodological when choosing the right girl. He had to be smart, not foolish like the humans on land.

He watches as the girl in his arms was nearing her last moments of life. He had to make the decision now. He had to think with his head. And think fast.

Cradling her head in his hands, he sighs as he bends his head down to hers. His lips part to surround her lips as he makes his choice not with his head, but with his heart. A warm glow resonates from their kiss and he feels his energy drain a bit into her. His hand holds her back as he hugs her close to him and he closes his eyes as he never releases his mouth from hers. He could feel her legs float near his tail as it gently brushes against him. Then he could feel as her legs slowly become not legs anymore as a tail forms in its place.

Finally, he pulls away from the kiss as he watches over her shoulders. Those ugly brown trousers of hers floats away as it is torn apart. He smiles although he wasn't sure if he was happy from seeing those ugly trousers float away to its demise or the fact that he was holding her in his arms.

He looks down and sees her eyes slowly open, unaware of the life-changing event that had just taken place. She gasps as she sees him and her body naturally reacts as it tries to move backwards. He is still holding onto her so her effort was futile as she remains in his grasp.

"W-who are you?" she asks in a slight fear, still unaware of the circumstances and the situation, and still unaware of the fact that she was talking and communicating with him while underwater.

"Uchiha Sasuke. King of the Seven Seas," he responds brusquely.

She doesn't seem to really register what he had just said as her eyes wander at his upper body and roams over his pectoral abs before traveling further down to his pelvic area only to gasp at what she saw.

"A t-tail!" she exclaims.

"Did I forget to mention I'm a merman?" he comments with a smirk. "What is your name?"

"Sakura.. Haruno Sakura," she barely whispers as she whips her head back up to look into his eyes. Her response to him with her given name seems to be an automatic one as she doesn't seem to register what she was saying. Her green eyes appear to be blank as confusion reigns on her face. "Is this a dream? Or am I dead?" she seems to ask herself.

"You're alive. But as a mermaid. My mermaid princess," he tells her.

"Princess?" she echoes back as her eyes widen at the word. He has to hold back a snort from the fact that she chose to question the princess part rather than the mermaid part.

But her eyes further widens as saucers when she glances down again and sees a second tail float near his. And when she sees who was connected to the second tail, she faints. He sighs as he catches her head and holds her close to his chest again. Her warm breath, reminding him of the life he gave her, tickles against his skin. Without another glance, he carries her in his arms as he swims down, down to his kingdom in the sea.