To thaw a Frozen Heart

Disclaimer: I don't own the Naruto characters, I only wish I did.

Summary: Neji is a stuck-up king-to-be. He only cares about himself and a select few friends. His counsel of advisors told him he has until his 21st birthday to marry or else he loses his kingdom, can anyone thaw his frozen heart?

Pairings: Neji/Sakura, Sasuke/Naruto, Itachi/Ino

Prologue: I Have to What!

Prince Neji was in the middle of sparring with one of his closest friends, when he was interrupted. A servant scurried over to him and began talking,

"Sir," the servant said timidly, "The council wishes to speak with you."

Dropping his sword, Neji strode over to the castle and entered. Upon arriving in front of the council room, Neji was ushered inside. All seven of the elders were present.

'What is going on?' Neji thought looking around the room.

"Prince Neji, it has come to our attention, that you have no interest in dating or courting. Why is that?" Elder Hatake questioned.

'This is what they interrupted my sparring session for?'

"Why does my interest in women, dating, or lack thereof concern you?"

Elder Mitarashi stood up, "Neji you were supposed to have been told on your 20th birthday. Seeing as you were not at home and continued to travel around the continent off and on most of this year, this is our first opportunity. Your father left a will when he died telling us explicitly how to run the country until you came of age. However, there was one requirement that was overlooked. In order for you to inherit the throne and become king, you must marry before your 21st birthday."

"You mean to tell me, that I have one month to find a woman willing to marry me or I cannot become king?" Neji said incredulously.

"Yes, you must or else… We're sorry that we didn't tell you sooner, but we really had no opportunity in which to do so," Elder Hatake said apologetically.

Neji turned on his heels and stormed off. As soon as the door closed behind him, Elder Tsunade spoke, "Are you sure we did the right thing, forcing him to find a wife?"

"Hai, it had to be done. Prince Neji cares for no one. If he marries it'll mean he cares about someone other than himself. Until he has that kind of attitude of caring for others, he is unfit to become king," Elder Morino said, speaking for the first time in weeks, "In order to be a just ruler he must show compassion for others and by learning to care, and possibly love, he'll acquire those traits."

Okay, the prologue is up. I hope you'll read the story as it unfolds. Enjoy!

Yeah, this first bit was really short, but it's a prologue so it's allowed to be short. Its main purpose is to capture the readers' interest.

Terms to Know:

Hai—Yes