The Prince Saga, Book 1

- Princely Trouble -

(A Naruto Fanfiction by Moiraine Lendreth)

Disclaimer: All Naruto names, places, and related indicia are copyright to Masashi Kishimoto.

Warnings: This story is rated T for language, violence, and mild sexual content. This story also contains yaoi. If you are uncomfortable reading such, please click on the back button.

The author's notes, her replies to unsigned reviews, and her announcements will be placed at the end of every chapter.

~ princely trouble ~

Arguably the largest kingdom in terms of land area, Earth Country is aptly named for its wide expanse of desert and traitorously shifting dunes, making it nigh impossible for anyone to traverse its entirety without getting lost. Many of its people live in or around the capital city of Suna (pronounced soo-nah), built in the middle of the waterless wasteland.

Though they live in such an arid and merciless land, Earth people have long ago learned how to survive and, against all expectations, thrive in the desert. Being born and raised in the harsh environs of Earth, they have grown to be shrewd merchants and traders, their upbringing making them suitable to the long, wearisome journey between kingdoms to peddle their wares of leather, stone, fabric, and tempered steel in exchange for books, gold and silver, silk, and wood (their most precious commodity).

Hardy and cunning though they may be, the people of Earth are peaceful by nature, raising no sword against the other three nations in the Continent without good cause. Surrounded by the formidable heights of the Blackteeth Mountains in the South and the ocean to the North, Earth Kingdom seems content to settle within its borders, trade being their utmost concern.

—Excerpt from "Beyond the Spellstorm: Kingdoms of Outside", written by T. Winterthorn

~ princely trouble ~

Chapter 1

Earth Country

He was simply not ready to become king yet.

Gaara Sabaku frowned pensively as he sat on the large, heavily gilded chair, the headache throbbing in his skull making his mood turn foul. The throne room was silent save for the occasional hiss and flicker from the oil lamps in sconces along the walls. He had ordered the guards to leave his presence and sent away the servants, leaving him alone. Even his older brother and sister were not there. It suited Gaara just fine; he needed to be alone to think.

For the past ten days he had allowed people to push him, pull him, dress him in brocaded silks and put him through the torture of enduring endless ceremonies and meetings, his mind still trying to cope with the fact that his father had been found dead in his own bed, the cause unknown, and the kingship of Earth handed over to him as the rightful heir. Everything had been a whirlwind of faces and voices offering advice and consolation, all of them sounding hollow to his ears. There had been so much to do that he was barely able to exchange two sentences with his siblings since the funeral, both of whom had set themselves almost immediately to work, doing everything they can to help run the country.

But now things were slowly starting to have some semblance of order, and Gaara had finally managed to have this moment alone, though for how long he can savor in it he was not sure. His political advisors were probably outside the door already, contemplating on whether they could go against his direct order not to disturb him without actually incurring his anger.

Gaara stared longingly at the balcony, at the night sky shimmering a dark velvet beyond. Ten days ago he was just a prince; he was not concerned with running a kingdom or with troubling news of war, or politics. He thought he still had years ahead of him before he would even think about how to address his people, or conduct himself in the presence of ambassadors. The death of the king, however, changed all that.

It did not change the hard fact that he was not ready to be king. But did he have a choice? Earth could ill-afford to be leaderless, especially not now, with uneasy rumors that Orochimaru was once again on the move. The Snake tyrant, rumors went to say, was going to strike at Earth and Water next.

"So this is where you were."

Gaara blinked. Someone was standing atop the marble railing of the balcony, a dark shadow against the night. Beyond the balcony was the sky and a five-storey drop to the private gardens below. Unworried, the young king sat up on his throne and eyed the newcomer with a cool, unperturbed gaze. "Thank you for coming on short notice."

The stranger shrugged his shoulders, hopping off the balcony and into the throne room with easy strides. The light illumined the grinning face of Naruto Uzumaki, his spiky blond hair bright against the lamp light like old gold. "Nah, it's no big deal. It was about time I returned here anyway."

Gaara nodded, knowing not to press for reasons why. Naruto was his friend—the only one outside of his siblings, in fact—even though his identity was mostly shrouded in mystery. He was, however, trusted completely by the royal family; Naruto had saved Gaara's life once, when the prince had been stuck in the middle of a desert sandstorm while out hunting with his older brother Kankuro. The king had, in gratitude, offered Naruto chests of gold and jewels, but the young traveler only asked for a place to stay while he remained in Earth. The king gladly gave him a guest room in the palace, but Naruto rarely used it. He did, however, make use of the king's hospitality and made himself quite at home in the palace, hanging around Gaara and his siblings. Eventually, inevitably, they became friends. Gaara insisted they were only acquaintances, but Naruto only rolled his eyes.

Aside from saving Gaara's life, however, Naruto had proven himself invaluable to the king when he showed them that, aside from being a traveler, Naruto was also very talented at sniffing out information. He confessed that his trade mostly relied on peddling knowledge, but that he was also somewhat of a historian and a thief, and capable of doing magic. An odd combination of skills to be sure, but Gaara did not see any problems with it, as long as Naruto did not steal anything from the palace. To which Naruto promised that he never would, and never did. And from what Gaara had learned of Naruto in the past year, he knew that Naruto was a man who kept his word.

"Did you find anything?" Gaara asked at length, when Naruto had settled himself comfortably on the carpeted floor beside the throne. An odd thing about Naruto was his refusal to use chairs of any kind, instead favoring the use of cushions or—if they were not readily available—the ground. He also detested staying in a room with no windows. When asked, Naruto would only shrug and say he was claustrophobic.

It was one of the many strange things about Naruto, but neither Gaara nor his siblings ever questioned Naruto about it. He had a right to his secrets, just as they had a right to theirs. Besides, it was none of their business.

The sound of Naruto gusting out a breath brought Gaara's thoughts back to the present. "Nothing you have not heard of already, I'm sure." He gestured with a hand. "Mercenaries are flocking the Uchiha Castle gates by the hundreds, with thousands more camped around Sound city. Orochimaru placing a thousand gold pieces as reward for finding the Uchiha princes, because they are actually out there. The Uchiha princes are long-dead." He glanced up at the king. "Orochimaru planning an invasion of Earth."

Gaara nodded. He had heard of the rumors, all of them brewing unrest among his people. It was one of the things worrying him. The other one..."Is that all?"

Naruto sighed, scratching the back of his head. "Er. I heard rumors in sound about your father's death."

Unconsciously, Gaara gripped at the fabric of his robe in one hand, his shoulders stiffening. "And?"

"They say it was Orochimaru who killed him."

Silence followed his words. Gaara pretended to stare at the orange flame of a lamp nearby as he tried to even his breathing. "I see," he rasped. He paused, taking a deep breath. "And is it true?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Naruto flinch. Gaara's eyes immediately swiveled to him, icy teal and unblinking. "Tell me."

There was no mistaking the order lining his voice. Gaara almost regretted saying it; Naruto was not under his rule, and he was no servant. He was a friend. But Gaara wanted to know. He needed to know; none of his advisors or any person in the palace would tell him. Even his siblings had no idea of the truth.

He saw the hesitation on Naruto's face, and for a moment he thought the blond would not tell him anything. But Naruto shook his head, his mouth set into a grim line. "When will Kankuro and Temari be here?"

Gaara did the calculations in his head. "If all goes well, they will arrive the day after next."

Naruto nodded. "I'll tell you everything then. Even the bits your advisors don't know."

Gaara's eyes widened. "They know?"

"They suspect, but they're too afraid to point fingers." Naruto leaned back, propping himself on his elbows, his legs spread out, sprinkling a fine layer of yellow sand on the rich scarlet carpet.

Gaara leaned back on the throne, his eyes closed. He could feel his heart beat loudly in his ears, the anger underneath his skin simmering. His advisers knew...and they did not tell him? The impudence! Why would they keep something so important from him? To make sure he would not forget his duty to the country? To keep him from fighting against what they want? Gaara gritted his teeth. He'll show them a piece of his mind. More than one head will roll after—

"Hey! You listening to me Gaara? Or have you fallen asleep?"

Gaara opened his eyes. "I can hear you," he answered, his voice calm despite the turmoil in his head. The anger cooled somewhat. "You were saying something about those orphans...?"

Naruto gave him a funny look, but then shrugged and continued. "War orphans," he corrected. "There was only three of them when I last went to the capital, but now there's a whole ton of them!" He gesticulated wildly with both arms, his face a look of incredulity.

"You said six," Gaara pointed out, remembering. "Six people do not make a 'ton'."

Naruto pouted at him, slightly put out, but then said, "Do you know how expensive it is to feed six people? And one huge mutt?"

"It's not your responsibility to look after them," Gaara replied smoothly. "If they trouble you so much, then why do you keep visiting them?"

Naruto opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again. He frowned. "That's harsh, Gaara."

"No. It's logical."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "It's heartless. Would you really leave them alone when you know they're practically helpless?" He turned blue eyes at the king, challenging him.

Gaara looked away. "No," he admitted after a while.

Naruto grinned. "See? And anyway, they're pretty useful." At Gaara's questioning look, he added, "They keep tabs of the rumors around the city for me."

"That's it?"

"Yeah." Naruto tilted his head. "What did you think I was letting them do? Steal?"

Gaara did not answer, only gave Naruto a look. The blond snorted. "Please. It would ruin my reputation if I let amateurs do the looting for me. And anyway, they need more training."

Gaara only nodded. He wasn't one to question Naruto's morals at this point, since he knew his father had exploited Naruto's 'skill' several times in the past. In fact, he had asked for Naruto's help more than once before, too. "Have you found them a place to stay?"

He let Naruto talk, his story about finding a good, sturdy house in the outskirts of the city washing through Gaara as he thought. So. His suspicions were true; his father did not just die. He was killed. And the one responsible for it was probably just as the rumors said. The Snake tyrant was not known for his gentle nature, nor his straightforward dealings. Gaara remembered his father had sent an emissary to Sound not long before he was killed; he would have to order them to return with haste. They were in danger.

"You know, it's bad manners to ignore people who're talking to you."

Gaara blinked. "My apologies," he said, sincerely, and stayed quiet.

Naruto stood up, dusting his hands. "Well then. I'd better go get some shut eye. You should rest, too."

Gaara nodded. "I'll try."

"What? You still have trouble sleeping?" Naruto peered at his face and sighed. "Looks like it. Have you been drinking that tea I brought you?"

Gaara frowned slightly, annoyed at the attention his insomnia did not really warrant, at least from his point of view. A lot of people had trouble sleeping, didn't they? "I'm fine."

Naruto scowled. "You'd better be drinking it you arrogant sod or—"

"I've already drunk all of it," Gaara quickly interceded, not wanting Naruto's rant at such a late hour. It would make his headache worse.

Naruto's face was a look of confusion. "They didn't work?"

"The tea works well," Gaara replied. "But when I stop drinking I have trouble sleeping again. And I have headaches."

This time Naruto's frown looked troubled. "How long has this been going on?"

"A few days," Gaara answered. "But I can manage. You said the tea was from Water Country?"

Naruto shook his head. "I'll go get some more. Don't worry, it's on the house," he added with a grin when Gaara opened his mouth.

The Earth king frowned. "It's not like I cannot afford to buy the tea myself, Naruto. I have enough servants, and more than enough gold." He paused, eyes narrowing. "Don't tell me that you steal it."

"Like that's possible," Naruto snorted. "The old lady who makes it keeps a close eye on her merchandise. And that's saying something." He clapped his hands together. "Well then, time to leave." He turned to the balcony and whistled.

Gaara watched as a bob of green light descended from the roofs and landed on the balcony railing, in almost the exact same spot Naruto had been earlier, before floating near Naruto's head. The light dimmed and was gone, to reveal Naruto's constant companion, Cesly.

Cesly was a fae, the only one Gaara had seen (and will probably ever see) in his lifetime. All the legends, all the books, all the stories about the fae told Gaara that it was impossible for Cesly to be here, on the Continent, when her kind had fled to the magical and secret kingdom of Hidden Leaf, which had been closed off from the rest of the world for the last three thousand years. Cesly was the stuff of myths, and yet here she was, grinning and giggling at something Naruto was whispering conspiratorially to her.

Naruto had explained that he found Cesly near Fire Country, unconscious and on the brink of death. He had taken her under his wing, and now they were inseparable. When asked how she had come to the Continent, the fae would only shake her head and say she could not remember. "And that's all she ever tells me," Naruto told him once.

As astounding as she seemed, Cesly was completely devoted to Naruto. She never ventured far from him, and was as tight-mouthed as Naruto about his activities. When Naruto first introduced her to Gaara and his family Cesly was timid and shy, but now she had no qualms about being in their presence, or sitting on their shoulders. She even played pranks on them when she got bored. Naruto explained that Cesly was playful by nature.

"How did you know?" Temari had asked him once before.

Naruto only grinned his silly grin. "That's a secret between Cesly and me."

But whenever someone else was present Cesly would hide or flee, not wanting to be seen by other humans. She said they frightened her.

Now though, Cesly was floating in front of Gaara's face, her tiny lips in a frown. "Something troubles Gaara-human, yes it does. His forehead is all ickly-wrinkly."

Gaara gave the fae a small smile. "It is nothing for you to worry about, Cesly."

The fae hummed as it twirled in the air, her near-translucent wings shining against the lamp light. "You are sad, Gaara-human. Very, very, sad. And angry. Cesly does not like it if Master Naruto's friends are not happy, oh no." She seemed sad, too, her shoulders drooping. "Why are you not happy, Gaara-human?"

"I..." Gaara swallowed. "Nothing. It will pass." He turned to Naruto.

Naruto walked up to the fae with a smile. "Don't worry your little head over it, Ces. Remember what I told you? Something really bad happened to Gaara's father."

Cesly nodded. "Oh, Cesly remembers now." She turned to Gaara and hovered lower, until she was so close that Gaara could have touched her dress made of yellow-gold leaves with his nose. "I am very sorry for your loss, Gaara-human. Earth king was very very kind to Cesly, he was. He will be missed." And she lowered her head and kissed the tip of Gaara's nose.

Gaara took a sharp intake of breath. A surge of comfortable warmth spread from his nose down to his toes, and his headache was suddenly gone. The anger he had felt for his advisers had numbed considerably, and he felt lighter than he had for days. Cesly was smiling at him, a comforting smile, and Gaara smiled back, wider than he had before. "Thank you," he said earnestly.

Cesly laughed, her light voice tinkling. "No thanks needed, Gaara-human. You are Cesly's friend, too." And she flew off, out the balcony and out of sight.

Naruto was smiling at Gaara. "Better now?"

Gaara nodded. "Yes."

"That's good. At least I won't worry about you killing anyone tomorrow."

"How did you...?"

"Sometimes you're just like an open book Gaara, especially when you think." Naruto clapped him on the shoulder. "I'll see you in two days then, eh?"

"Alright. Same time?"

"And same place," Naruto added as he walked to the balcony, his boots tapping soundly against the floor. He raised the hood of his dark cloak, again obscuring his head of bright yellow hair. "And tell Temari and Kankuro to come with no weapons."

"Why?"

Naruto turned to him one last time as he stood on the balcony railing, balancing himself on his toes. "Because after what I'm going to tell you, you might be tempted."

~ princely trouble ~

"How could anyone do such a horrible thing?"

Temari's screech was followed by tense silence. Neither Gaara nor Kankuro could look her in the eye. Only Naruto watched her, his eyes sad, the frown on his face deep. Cesly was sitting atop his head, looking forlorn with her wings listless down her back. Even the fae could feel the distress and anger coming off the Sabaku siblings in waves.

They were in Gaara's study, alone and secure behind shields that Temari had cast herself. No one would be able to enter the room or even hear what they were saying without any one of them knowing. Temari clenched and unclenched her hand, wishing she had brought along her fan even when Naruto told her not to. She shot Naruto a narrow-eyed look. The idiot probably knew she would react like this.

Which was a good thing, now that Temari could think clearly, her anger slowly being reined in by the rational part of her. If she had her fan, Gaara's study would be nothing more than a large heap of rubble. She was a princess, albeit one with a sharp tongue and with a fire-lash of a temper. She sat back down on the chair and counted silently to ten. "Are you sure about this?"

Three pairs of eyes swiveled to Naruto, who grimaced. "Yes. The king had been caught in a very strong illusion that warped time. He could have been trapped there for days even though only an hour has passed."

"Days..." Kankuro repeated, his face an ugly mixture of anger and disgust. "Father had been...but how come nobody noticed?"

"The illusion was very well done, and the spell inverted," Naruto explained. "So even if Temari had been passing right by the king's door, she never would have noticed it. The spell was so strong that some shred of it still remains in the room." He frowned disgustedly, rubbing his arms.

Gaara looked at him, eyes sharp. "You could sense it?"

"Yes, now that the spell has done its job and unrolled itself right side up. An animal familiar was used to boost its power."

Temari leaned over. "What animal?"

"A snake." Naruto took something from under his cloak and put it on the table. "This one, in fact."

The Sabaku siblings stared. Naruto had placed a glass jar the size of a human head on the table, screwed tight with a wax lid. Inside was a foot-long snake, thin and black, coiled at the bottom. It had beady red eyes and a scarlet forked tongue. When it saw the humans staring, it reared its head up and hissed menacingly.

Temari peered closer, uncaring of the snake that was now striking at the glass, venom trickling down the jar's inside. "It's not a snake that I am familiar with. Certainly not something that can be found in the desert."

Kankuro eyed the snake warily. "I haven't seen one like it, either."

Gaara meanwhile, glared at the snake, as if daring it to come and bite him. "Neither have I."

"It's not really an animal." Naruto tapped at the lid. The snake hissed even more violently, and was now striking at the lid from underneath, as if it wanted to get at Naruto. "It's also a spell."

"That's impossible," Temari blurted out.

"Difficult, but not impossible." Naruto shook his head. "Very few people could conjure a spell and turn it into a familiar, and none of those I know would ever dream of creating something this nasty."

It did not take long for the three of them to figure it out. One person stood out in their heads. The Snake tyrant, Orochimaru, powerful dark sorceror and once-advisor to the Uchiha family, now self-proclaimed king of Sound Country.

"I am going to kill that son of a bitch," growled Kankuro. Even without saying anything, both Temari and Gaara shared the same sentiment. Their faces looked decidedly murderous, all of them wishing they had brought along their weapons.

Naruto sighed. He snapped his fingers, and the jar was gone with a pop. "Listen. I know what you're thinking—"

"And you can't do anything to stop us," Kankuro interrupted him. "We'll declare war on Sound even if we have to, right Gaara?"

The young king did not say anything, but he did not shake his head either. Naruto scowled at all three of them.

"That's suicide and you know it. Sound has an army ten times larger than yours, and right now that army is filled with savages and cold-blooded mercenaries who have no concept of mercy. Declaring war is something that Orochimaru expects. In fact, he's betting on it."

This news troubled Gaara. "Why would he want to fight Earth? We have done nothing to provoke him."

Naruto frowned. "I don't know," he bit out grumpily, obviously annoyed that he did not really know anything of the Snake Tyrant's motives. "I could not get close enough to the castle to do a bit of spying. Too many guards, and too many shields. It's like a landmine. One wrong move and I'll either be swamped by guards or explode into tiny pieces. Not a pretty sight."

Cesly hummed her agreement, patting Naruto's head with a tiny hand.

Temari harrumphed, crossing her arms in front of her. "What should we do, then? Don't tell me we ought to let this slide?" The tone of her voice and the look on her face held a hint of danger.

Naruto shook his head. "No. I'm just saying there are other ways."

"Like what?" Kankuro asked.

Naruto shrugged. "Finding the missing Sound princes, for instance."

Kankuro snorted. "You mean dead princes. Those are just rumors, Naruto. They've been dead for eight years."

"Missing," Naruto insisted. "Nobody has found their bodies yet."

Temari looked at Naruto. "I heard they had thrown themselves off a cliff when Orochimaru's men finally surrounded them. Orochimaru himself saw it."

Naruto made a frustrated noise against his throat. "But don't you see it? It could have been an illusion! The Uchihas were masters of the art, and they have the Sharingan! They couldn't have just died without leaving bodies behind! Even Orochimaru's looking for them."

Gaara blinked. "I thought you said that was a rumor."

"It's a rumor, but now I'm positive it's true," Naruto insisted, though he did not go into details on how he knew.

Both Kankuro and Temari looked to Gaara, who watched Naruto pensively for a moment. Finally, "Very well. If what you are saying is true, what do you propose we do?"

Naruto sat back, smiling again. "We look for them."

Kankuro snorted again. "Are you kidding? If they managed to hide without being caught for years, how the hell do you think we can track them down?"

This time Naruto's grin turned mischievous, almost vulpine, stretching the whisker-like marks on his cheeks. "Catch one of their spies, of course."

~ princely trouble ~

And Moiraine is again signing ON.