The Arrangement
Disclaimer: I don't, sadly nor will I ever, own the Naruto characters…
In this chapter: Naruto and Sakura are 7 years old and Sasuke is 8. Forewarning: I will be using masculine and feminine terms to reference people (these include: blond (M)/blonde (F), pinket (M)/Pinkette (F), etc.)
Blonde hair bobbed as little hands played with the loose white threading on his outfit. A nervous aura could be felt miles from the castle's stoop.
"Naruto" A commanding queen called.
Said boy froze, at mid pull, at his name. Letting go of his newly tailored vest, Naruto glanced at his royal parents. The king, Jiraiya, wore a long robe bathed in red, which matched the ceremonial marks upon his face, and decorated with gold embellishments. His mother, Tsunade, wore a similar colored gown with a large silver ringed belt hanging loosely from her hips. A blue crystal pendant sat on her collarbone, above her large chest. Long blonde hair was tied into a large braid, crimson and white ribbons were woven into the hairstyle.
"So, are you excited Naruto?" His royal highness asked, slightly ruffling his son's spikey hair.
"Yeah, I'm tired of playing with Neji. All he ever does is talk about horses or the latest carriage model…" He pouted at the idea of being with the coachman's son. "These guys better be fun or else I'm running away!" Both parents rolled their eyes at their son's common threat.
A hazelnut carriage approached the castle's gates, its decorative jewels glistened in the afternoon sun. A brunet coachman brought the white horses to a halt before jumping down to hold the door open for his employers. Two adults emerged, both sporting extravagant yellow outfits with green embroidery. The madam strode out, a serious look on her face. Her blonde hair was pulled back tightly into a bun, except for a tuff of bangs which hung between her eyes. Her husband followed close behind, a smile forming at the sight of his hosts. His spiked pink hair faintly swayed like a flower touched by a breeze.
Following, a young girl stepped out flaunting her new green dress with yellow flower petals embroidered on the breast.
"Friends! Welcome!" Jiraiya bellowed with extended arms, a toothy grin stretched from ear to ear. Tsunade smiled politely while slightly elbowing her speechless heir.
"A-ah… Hi!" The blond child exclaimed, his cheeks warming at the sight of his new playmate.
A gust of wind caused her medium length hair to brush her collarbone, much like her father, the pink color radiated in the sun's rays. She started to stride towards the other child with a polite smile. "Hi, I'm Sakura." A mixture of confidence and curiosity shone in the youth's emerald eyes.
Mimicking this mixture, the little prince marched up to the pinkette with his chin held high and blurted "YOU'RE GOING TO MARRY ME!"
Sakura stopped in her tracks, caught off guard by the sudden exclamation. All four adults stood aghast and astonished in mid-greeting. Jiraiya smacked his forehead and sighed with exasperation. "Smooth…" he muttered to no one in particular. His wife smirked and cast a cocky glance at Kizashi and Mebuki, the young princess' parents.
"I WOULDN'T MARRY A MORON LIKE YOU IN A MILLION YEARS!" She replied through gritted teeth.
While the two started making faces at each other, a black carriage passed through the main gate. Small clinking could slightly be heard from the dangling gold trim. A slender man in a formal suit hopped from the driver's seat to open the coach door. A man and woman of pale complexion stepped out from the shadows inside the carriage, both sporting navy blue apparel. The raven woman appeared with her hair loose but a decorative headband held control of her bangs, giving way to a kind face. However; her husband held his medium length hair back in a simple, loose, ponytail. Following suit, a young raven-haired boy came into view who was also wearing a navy ensemble. All three wore a gold fan accessory, both males had embroidery done upon their collars and the wife displayed a broach on her chest.
"Fugaku! Mikoto! Welcome!" The host king greeted them, extending his hand to his stern guests.
"Hi! I'm Naru-." Naruto started towards his other new guest, following Jiraiya's example he extended a hand and a smile. Only to be interrupted when Sakura pushed him aside and scurried to the boy in blue.
"I-I'm Sakura, w-what's your name?" She stuttered making her cheeks turn a color similar to her vibrant hair.
"Sasuke" The small raven deadpanned, sparing a glance at the blond. Said blond was glaring sharp, sharp, sharp daggers at the boy who captured the heart of his crush. Sasuke looked at the fawning pinkette, then back at the riled Naruto. An arrogant smirk grew on his face which sent the other boy into a rage.
"Why are you smirking?" Naruto yelled, stomping towards his target.
"Idiot."
"GAAAAAHHH! I'M GOING TO MURDER YOU!" The blond lunged for the raven, who stepped aside in time. Sasuke dashed into the castle with Naruto hot on his trail, Sakura closely followed behind with hearts in her eyes.
A slight chuckle came from Mikoto at the sight of the boys' confrontation.
"Jiraiya, Tsunade, thank you for the welcoming." Mebuki started, "While the children are busy let us get started."
The three couples headed into the grand building, stopping in a small room which overlooked the gardens. Through the windows the three children could be seen conversing. Naruto taking pride in his humble abode while Sasuke looked unimpressed and constantly pushing the blond's buttons. Sakura sat near them admiring the flowers and picking out which one would impress the raven more, never receiving the reaction for which she longed.
"So where is your elder son Fugaku?" Tsunade asked seating herself next to her husband.
"He is off being educated by the best tutor in the next kingdom over." He stated while his wife smiled proudly.
"He should accompany us next time, we would love to see him once again!" Jiraiya suggested, fixing his white mane into a loose ponytail before calling over a servant and ordering drinks for his guests.
The group made small talk as they awaited their refreshments, the wives glancing towards their children once in a while. Eventually kitchen workers came into the room, bringing bread and alcohol. After eating and joyously drinking, Jiraiya spoke up about the meaning to the gathering.
"As you know, our kingdom would like to ally ourselves with your kingdom Kizashi. We understand that Fugaku desires this as well." The host king announced, watching the reactions of the others. "So, I would like to offer my son in a marriage with your daughter, Sakura."
"My son Itachi would be a better fit and honorable son-in-law." The elder raven piped up, agitated at the suggestion.
"Or Sasuke!" Mikoto added calmly.
"I refuse to give my daughter away at such a blossoming age. But if this is your suggestion, then we can work something out. Since either of you would make loyal and dependable allies, I will give this chance to the both of you." Kizashi decided, fiddling with his moustache. A feeling of relief was shared between Fugaku and Jiraiya.
"Since your sons will be future leaders I will have my Sakura pick whom I ally with, I trust her judgment. You both have until she turns the age of 18, which is when I will ask of her this question. Now let us be merry while our children bond!" He finished.
Once the sun had set some days later, the guests left to carry on their royal duties. After seeing them off, Naruto came to his working father with a worrisome look.
"Will I ever get to see Sakura again?" The youth asked looking at his father with big blue eyes.
"Of course! You guys are going to become the best of friends." The king happily said, smiling big for his son and ruffling his hair. The blond boy smiled back under messed up spikes.
"I hope I see Sasuke too! I want him to see with his own eyes how skilled I am by winning back Sakura!" He clenched his hands near his face and smirked at the imagined reaction of the young raven, his blue eyes hardened with determination.
"Ha ha ha ha, I will see what I can do Naruto. Now go find your mother and get to bed." He directed, pointing towards another room.
"Ok! Goodnight papa!" The blond boy yelled while running happily into the next room.
A feeling of sorrow clutched Jiraiya's heart, anguishing guilt and sadness dripped from that fatherly term. Morosely he stood from his table, gathered his parchments and left to prepare himself for slumber.
Now we are getting to the real story! :D I am going to be pretty swamped with my classes this week, but I will work on chapter two whenever I have time! See you then and I hope you enjoyed! :)