Title: Her Brothers' Keeper

Summary: Sakura Namikaze hated being the daughter of one of the most important men in the world, but what she hated most was that it meant she was stuck babysitting. All the time. Until she found a book about a goblin king, and everything changed…Naruto/Labyrinth

Category: General, Family, Adventure

Rating: T

Author's Note: I know this has not been updated in a very long time. However, I finally figured out a bit more about the direction I wish to take this in. That doesn't mean I'll be updating regularly by any means, but it does mean it should not be another year until Chapter Two is up. (Additionally, I have allready written much of the next chapter). As always, please review. I promise to answer any questions the best I can. I do answer timely reviews in a timely manner, which means if you review with a question within the next month I do my best to give you a written response.

Chapter Two: The Book

Sakura relaxed against the back of the wooden chair in which she was sitting. She slowly flipped through the book on children's fairytales, scanning it to see if it might be useful for her newest assignment in her English class. It was only an hour before the bell would ring to release all Friday classes at Sarutobi Academy.

The school was not at all directly related to President Sarutobi, but rather was started and currently run by one of his sons, Asuma. It was widely known that Asuma had wanted nothing to do with his father's political career, they had a rather large public fallout about the matter, and he had instead gone into teaching.

Minato told her that he had enrolled her and her brothers in the small private school because it was one of the best in the country. Sakura had just shrugged off the explanation. The school was prestigious, but Sakura held no illusions about her father's true motives. The Namikaze children were only here because it would be seen as a public show of support from the current presidential administration for the estranged Sarutobi son. It did not matter that her father had been friends with Asuma since college, or that the school had a good academic reputation. It was simply one of the well timed political maneuvers that often ruled over her life.

A loud sigh and a heavy backpack falling onto and jarring the tabletop alerted Sakura to the arrival of her best friend for the past twelve years, Ino Yamanaka. Ino made a dramatic demonstration of her currently irritated state by flipping her long blonde hair over her should and gracefully falling into a slouch in the chair next to Sakura's.

Her light blue eyes flickered disinterestedly over Sakura and her choice of reading material before turning to glare at a freshman carrying a large stack of books a bit too near their table. The freshman gulped and stumbled back a few steps, almost tripping over his feet as he hastily decided to use a table on the far side of the room. Sakura ignored Ino, knowing she changed temperaments faster than the mood rings she liked to play with as a little girl. Besides, the fastest way to ensure Ino's attention was to ignore her completely.

Sure enough, in a few seconds, Sakura's peaceful reading was interrupted by a loud squawk. "Oh hell, forehead girl, are you really going to read all this?" Ino shifted through the twenty books that lay randomly scattered on the table. "It's only supposed to be a five page paper—"

"SHH!" Ino was silenced by a sharp glance from their English and history teacher, Mr. Umino, who was standing near the information desk helping another student with some computer searches.

Ino pouted a bit, before leaning over the table and snatching Sakura's book from her grasp. "What are you writing about, again?" Ino opened the book and looked at the pictures.

Sakura gave an irritated huff and reached forward to grab her book back. "I don't know what I'm writing on yet." She tried to find where she'd left off reading, but decided against it and tossed the book back to the pile on the table before picking up another. "I'm just skimming all these to get a general idea, and then I'll return the ones I don't need."

Ino rolled her eyes dramatically. "So you checked out the entire fiction section? Oh wait, I think you missed a shelf, you better go back!"

Sakura stuck her tongue out and went back to reading.

The clock ticked on, counting down the minutes to the end of the school day as their teacher prowled between the tables, making sure everyone stayed busy with the relevant assignment.

"I hate projects," Ino bitterly muttered as she picked up a rather large book from the pile and settled it in her lap.

Sakura paid no attention and simply turned the page of Arabian Nights.

"Well, really just all the reading."

Sakura glanced up and saw a bit of color leaking over the pages of Ino's rather intimidating volume of One Thousand and One Fairy Tales. "Ino, you're reading Cosmo."

"Well, the stuff we're supposed to read, anyway."

Sakura went back to her book.

"And the writing."

"And the studying."

Sakura sighed and switched books again. "You hate school Ino."

At this, Ino looked off with a smirk. "Oh, no. There are parts I can really enjoy."

Sakura followed Ino's gaze and found her staring at the senior football star, who returned Ino's gaze with a flirty smile.

Now it was Sakura's turn to roll her eyes, but before she could comment on her friend's words a roll of paper came down on Ino's head with a light smack.

"Ms. Yamanaka, I don't believe that magazine has anything to do with mythology." Mr. Umino looked down at Ino as he stood behind and held out his hand to confiscate Ino's entertainment. Ino sighed and handed over her magazine. "One more time and its detention, Ms. Yamanaka."

"Yes, Mr. Umino, sorry sir." Ino watched their English teacher walk away and sulked in her chair. "You know, I think I hate the library the most."

"Here." Sakura pushed a stack of books over to her friend. "Try some mental stimulation."

Ino snorted, but picked up the book on top of the pile and tossed it open on the table. "Yeah, because reading Cinderella is really gonna….oh gross, that bird picked her eyes out!" Ino stared, horrified at the picture before her.

Sakura continued to take notes on the possible outline for her paper. "You must have the Hans Christen Anderson version."

"It's disgusting!" Ino continued investigating the pictures in the book despite her exclamation of distaste.

Sakura just shrugged. "Not all fairytales have happy endings or were written to inspire sweet dreams, Ino."

"Eeewww…" Ino scrunched up her face, disgruntled. "But what does this have to do with mythology, exactly?"

Sakura sighed and flipped through her English notebook. She read their project prompt straight from the page, monotonously. "Many fairytales have some basis in mythology. Your assignment for the end of term paper is to choose a fairytale and compare and contrast it with the mythology we have studied from various cultures."

"I know that," Ino snapped, " but that" she shoved a rather graphic picture of Cinderella's stepsisters receiving their just desserts in Sakura's face.

"Ino!" Sakura pushed the book away.

"Just….ick!" Ino gave a distinct head nod to finalize her point before sitting back down in her chair and choosing another book to look through. "So, forehead-girl, tonight my cousin is going to have one hell of a crazy smashin' graduation party. Wanna come with?"

"Graduation?" Sakura made some notes in the margin of her outline. "Isn't it December? Or did I miss a couple of months?"

Ino flipped her hair out of her eyes and shrugged carelessly. "So, he's a bit early. Or late. Whatever, it's gonna be a lot of hot older college age boys a big house and tons of possibility for trouble, making out, underage drinking and then random insanity. Doesn't that sound fun?" Ino wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Sakura gave her friend a flat look. "Ino, if I participated in 'random insanity,' karma would come find me and there would be a humiliating picture front and center on the most obnoxious gossip tabloid in the world bright and early the next morning."

"What? 'Politician's Crunk Daughter' not a good headline for the PR team?"

Sakura ignored her.

"Personally, I think that would be a great Christmas present."

Sakura kicked at Ino under the table.

"Kidding! Just Kidding!" Ino curled back reflexively and played with her hair. "Ok, so I may have exaggerated a teensy eensy bit about there being booze…"

"No, Ino—"

"And there probably won't be that many boys." Ino always did get whiny when she was not getting her way. "But they'll still be a couple of cute ones…"

Sakura sighed in exasperation. "No, Ino, I can't—"

"Good grief Sakura, look, I promise his family will even be home. Every single one of them, all upstanding, dignified community members down to the last little old wrinkly grandma." Ino set her book down as she saw Sakura gathering air to refuse her again. "Look, think of it as community service, I just really, really, really don't want to go to a crazy stuffed up family reunion where everyone pinches my cheeks and talks about how much I've blossomed. DON'T leave me alone!!!" Ino leaned forward over the table and clutched at Sakura's hands desperately.

Sakura just shook her head sadly. "Ino, my Dad's out of town."

"Great! He won't have to know a thing about it then!" Ino cheerfully let go of Sakura's hands and grabbed another book before plopping back into her chair.

"No, Ino!" Sakura scowled. "You know that means I have to babysit!"

Ino pouted, "But—you are always babysitting! Can't you hire a real sitter for one night?"

Sakura looked down at her notes and doodled absently on the corners. "Maybe if it was something really important, but my Dad's not going to think your cousin's graduation dinner is important. He doesn't trust most sitting agencies, and it takes a couple weeks for a background check anyway." Sakura shifted uneasily in her chair. "Plus we're running out of candidates. Naruto is going through a biting phase."

Ino looked at her in disbelief. "He's like, what, six now, right? I thought they are supposed to be over stuff like that at their age?"

"Apparently he's regressing," Sakura muttered under her breath and blushed. "I told Sasuke letting him watch that much TV wrestling was bad for him."

"Wrestling?" Ino raised an eyebrow and looked down at her book again.

"Mm-hmmm, lots of bright lights and action, it's one of the few ways we can get him to sit still. Unfortunately, he isn't really old enough to understand that what he is seeing on TV. is all staged."

"Your brother is bizarre."

"Which one?" Sakura shot back.

"Little goldilocks." Ino turned the page of her book. "Mr. Small, dark, and moody is just H-O-T!"

"Ino!" Sakura shrieked, a bit scandalized.

"Ms. Namikaze!"

Sakura blushed and muttered a quick apology to the teacher gazing disappointedly across the room before returning her attention to her best friend. "That's gross Ino, he's my little brother!! He's fourteen!"

Ino just sighed dreamily as she continued reading. "He does have great abs, though."

Sakura glared across the table. "Ino, when did you even—"

Ino smirked and hid her face behind her book. "The pool party on your birthday."

"Ino," hissed Sakura

Ino peaked over the top of her book. "What? I'm just being appreciative—"

"Please keep that type of appreciation to yourself, or I'm never inviting you to a pool party again ever." Sakura fidgeted in irritation in her chair.

"Not fair!!!"

"Life's not fair sometimes, Ino," snapped Sakura, who was promptly ignored.

"Oh, look Sakura, this fairy tales about a babysitter too!"

Sakura looked confused. "Are you still on Cinderella?"

Ino shook her head "No, this book was under that other one. It kind of reads like a medieval English tale." Ino looked up happily. "There's still a princess, a wicked stepmother, and a bratty baby brother, right up your alley, right?"

Sakura looked at the book, it was a small, unfamiliar, book bound in leather with gold print. "It doesn't sound like it has a lot of substance," she said dubiously.

"I don't know, I think I kind of like it….Oh yes, smoking hot King enters stage right." Ino leaned forward and gave a whoop of excitement.

Sakura rolled her eyes at her friend's behavior "Ino, how are going to tie that into Greek mythology? I don't even recognize that book from when I was browsing the shelves. It's probably just a regular fantasy book that got mixed in by accident; it won't even fit the assignment parameters—"

"Oh no you don't forehead girl, this one is mine, get your own—"

They both looked up as Ino's rant was cut short by the ring of the Friday afternoon bell. Ino's face lit up with a smile and she laughed joyfully before slinging her backpack up onto her shoulder, grabbing the book, and sprinting past a frazzled Mr. Umino as she shot for the back door. She looked back as she ran toward freedom, "Call you later! By the way, your bodyguard is waiting up front for you!"

Sakura waved Ino goodbye and stood to look around the bookcase blocking her view of the library's main entrance. Sure enough, Yamato, the day guard, stood looking a bit abashed at library's front desk. He noticed her and waved a greeting while he rubbed the back of his head with his other hand. Sakura held up a finger to signal him to wait a moment and went back to her table to gather her things.

Mentally, she sighed in aggravation. Their father had collectively assigned his three children "escorts" (a fancy word for very well muscled chaperones and chauffeurs who also happened to be licensed to carry armed weapons) after the convention incident. There were at least four guards of which Sakura was aware. They shared a rotating schedule so that at least one was 'on duty' at all times.

At home, the 'on duty' guard stayed in a separate guest house and monitored everything from security cameras. She and her brothers rarely saw them, but Yamato was the one who was with the kids during the school day. The school had its' own security (most of the students had high profile parents, so it kind of had to), so Yamato generally spent the day running errands and only saw them during lunch hour and when dropping them off or picking them up. However, Yamato was also the person they called when someone-usually Naruto-got into trouble.

So, the only question left was, now what?

Next Chapter: The Right Words