Prompt: Patience
Note: I love how all of you think Sakura's going to be a great queen. You guys are so nice. I'm here trying to set her up as someone as Talia al Ghul (think Leviathan) and you give her the benefit of the doubt. I want her to end up somewhere along the lines of Tamora. Or Azula. Or Cersai Lannister. Or Lady Macbeth. Sort of. Um. She's smart, but she's also impulsive.


iv. the cave


When Sakura turned fifteen and her brother still showed no signs of picking up on the grand game called politics, the nobles understood: Sakura Haruno would become their Queen and nothing was going to stop that. Of course, no one ever outright voiced their displeasure. Rather, the lords and ladies that had been vying for their own daughters to become Prince Naruto's wife and the future ruler of the Leaf Kingdom chose to act behind the scenes. They would bide their time. They would get rid of her eventually.

Thus, the day Sakura's instincts kicked in and she poured her bowl of soup into a potted plant and watched the liquid hiss as it hit the soil and the leaves begin to wilt, the former General Fugaku knew something had to be done. If the Princess was in danger in the company of her mother's Council – in her very own home – action needed to be taken.

With the Queen's permission, Fugaku took control of the matter. He knew he had to be discreet. The lords and ladies of the Leaf Kingdom were all snakes in pretty silk gowns graced with precious metals and glittering jewels. He knew. Once upon a time, he was one of them. However, they were all resourceful snakes so Fugaku employed only three people. He had his Lady wife to keep her eyes and ears open to the intentions of the other nobles, knowing that behind her gentle smiles was a calculating mind. He requested that Kakashi Hatake, his former subordinate in the Royal Army and Sakura's teacher, shadow the girl, a speciality of his. Kakashi was extremely proficient at hiding in the shadows as a silent, unseen protester. And lastly, Fugaku had his youngest son.

His firstborn maintained peace on the Kingdom borders while the youngest did his part within.

Despite the boy's denseness when it came to the Princess's intentions, Sasuke was smart and observant. He could read people's intentions, he was an outstanding swordsman, and he was, more often than not, at the Princess's side.

He was well aware of the girl's intentions. Fugaku knew that she was, in her own odd way, "courting" Sasuke. She had a habit of watching the boy whenever he was around and loved to challenge Sasuke, whether it be in a duel, debate, or some silly question of who could ride to the lake fastest. Moreover, whenever any girl showed any sign of infatuation with the oblivious boy, Sakura had a way of putting that girl in her place. Sakura's attachment to Sasuke was quite obvious to anyone who paid the slightest bit of attention. The lords and ladies that were smart enough to know that the girl wasn't going anywhere and that their best move would be to marry off their sons weren't particularly fond of Sasuke. Fugaku recalled the time one of the ladies who had dropped her handkerchief much too closely to Sasuke for Sakura's comfort. In retaliation, Sakura had loudly requested the girl grace the court with her nearly non-existent harp-playing abilities simply to humiliate her.

Fugaku almost snorted as he observed the silly boy below. Despite being a born aristocrat, having been raised in the company of warriors, Sasuke could be quite oblivious to courtly mannerisms. For example, had he had any common sense in this matter, he would have known that being in the company of the Princess and only the Princess was something to be frowned upon. No woman should have been alone with a man unless she was married to him.

Fugaku stood at the balcony overlooking the stables and the forest behind it. Sakura was tending to her horse despite what looked like protests coming from Sasuke.

"I'll be outside if I want to be outside!" the Princess finally yelled, throwing the horse's brush at Sasuke. Naturally, they hadn't a clue of how loudly they were speaking.

"Your life is in danger, my lady."

Fugaku knew that Sasuke rarely ever referred to the Princess by such a formal title. While in the company of their parents or her brother or any member of the court, Sasuke would address her properly, but he knew that behind closed doors he called her by name. Once, after leaving the two alone in the library, Fugaku had returned momentarily to remind Sasuke of something and accidentally overheard him say the Princess's given name.

"Leave me be, Sasuke! I can take care of myself."

"Sakura, you're a sitting duck out here."

"Yes, because it's not like people don't have access to my food or chambers, for example."

"…did something happen in your chambers?!"

He rolled his eyes and released a weary sigh. Fugaku contemplated throwing an object their way to test his foolish son. The boy barely seemed to be paying attention to his surroundings. How could he possibly protect the girl if he remained so oblivious?

"You can't possibly be going out for a ride right now!"

"Galenia needs her exercise."

"Sakura—"

"Calm down, Sasuke. I'm nearly a master of the bow! And I have my sword. I'll be fine." With that said, the Princess's horse trotted away into the forest.

A hint of smile passed Fugaku's lips when his son cursed and ran back to the stables.


Sakura had always known what the other members of the Leaf Kingdom aristocracy thought of her. She knew she wasn't their favourite person. Really, even her mother wasn't their favourite person. Still, the matriarchal monarchy that the Leaf Kingdom had lived by for centuries was to be respected and Sakura as their Queen was the only option. Unless, of course, Naruto married and had a daughter, in which case that particular daughter could very well challenge her for the throne and make Naruto and his would-be bride the Regent King and Queen.

But Naruto would probably die young, Sakura thought wryly. He would join the Royal Army, a personal dream of his, and fight and fight and fight. Or he would join the Queen's Guard and he would be knighted, either by Sakura or by their mother, and he would seek adventure after adventure but never marry. He would probably sire a good number of bastards, but Sakura doubted they'd cause her any problems. And if they did… well, she would deal with those matters if they ever arose.

"Yip, yip," Sakura yelled, giving the horse's body two quick squeezes with her legs. Almost immediately, the mare began galloping.

Sakura leaned forward and laughed, enjoying the feel of the wind in her freed hair. As the Princess, she was expected to have her pink tresses twisted and braided in some sort of elaborate up-do, much to her dismay. Likewise, Sakura was free of her heavy silk gowns, now donning a plain linen dress over some leggings. If anyone were to see her at that moment, she doubted they would recognize her despite how much of a marker her pink hair was. Passing the dingy cave she and Naruto had discovered back when they were children, Sakura knew she and Galenia were nearing the lake and pulled on the reins, signalling for the mare to come to slow down and stop.

"That's a good girl," Sakura murmured. She brushed the mare's silvery hair before jumping down and adjusting the leather strap running across her chest. She briefly considered removing the quiver but decided against it. Her so-called bodyguard wasn't around and there was more greenery to cover up any hidden killers than Sakura would have liked. While she was certainly qualified to protect herself at least somewhat, she suddenly wished Sasuke was with her.

Sakura's grip on Galenia's reins tightened as she tugged the mare towards the lake for some water. She couldn't help but looked around the quiet forest wearily.

It was too quiet.

"I think I made a mistake," she admitted to the horse, still carefully looking around. There were no birds chirping. Someone was in the area frightening them away. Sakura swallowed thickly. "Perhaps I shouldn't have run out alone, Galenia…"

She could feel it. Someone was out there in the trees watching her, waiting for the moment to strike. Sakura gulped as her eyes darted around her. The bow in her hand felt slick with her sweat and she cursed herself for forgetting her gloves. Sakura inhaled, trying to calm herself down but found that that would not happen – not while someone was plotting her demise.

"I can take care of myself," Sakura tried to convince herself.

She wasn't some pathetic little girl. She could handle her weapons and she could damn well handle her would-be murderers without Kakashi lingering in the shadows and Sasuke sticking at her side. She'd proven that three days ago when she was nearly stabbed in the heart by some masked man that crept into her bedroom, somehow slipping past the knights at her doors and Kakashi, wherever it was he had been hidden. She had woken up seconds before the man's knife made its way into her heart and was instead stabbed in the arm. She managed to grab the dagger Sasuke had given her for her twelfth birthday that she kept beneath her pillow and stab the man but it wasn't enough. Thankfully, the ruckus was enough to alert the guards, but by then Sakura had already slashed the man's throat with the jagged edges of one of her combs.

Sakura closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I can take care of myself."

She heard the crunch of leaves beneath a heavy foot and drew an arrow from the quiver and held it to the bow. She opened her eyes and saw nothing but the lush green forests that gave a name the Leaf Kingdom. Her kingdom.

She turned on her heel and let the arrow fly.

Naturally, her opponent managed to dodge it. Sakura scowled, wondering why her enemies couldn't hire idiots. It would be just her luck for her assassin to be someone of skill.

She stepped away from Galenia, not wanting the innocent mare to possibly get injured in the crossfire. She shot another arrow and her eyes widened when she realized she met her mark. The man clutched his chest frantically before falling to the floor.

Sakura was too overjoyed at having protected herself that she failed to notice that the man had a partner.


Sasuke was in a panic. He continued ordering his black stallion to move faster. He was certain Sakura was at the lake, her favourite place in the forest. It was either the lake or the cave, and judging by the lack of a large white mare lingering outside of it, he doubted she was there.

God, that girl was a complete idiot, Sasuke thought.

Nearing the lake, he let out a sigh of relief that he immediately drew back in sharply when he saw another masked man standing before Sakura. Her name clogged his throat as he leapt down from his horse and began running to her, his sword already out of its scabbard. However, the man fell to his knees with an arrow in his chest before Sasuke could do anything.

"Sakura!" he yelled.

She looked up at him immediately and the utter relief on her face made something in his heart twist. Sasuke continued running towards her, protective instincts kicking in. He needed to cover her up and drag her back to the castle and lock her in her room and make sure whatever bastards were hiring these assassins understood that he would find them and when he did, he would make them suffer. Sakura didn't deserve this. He had to help her. God, he was so glad she was okay.

"Sasuke," she breathed out. Her arms dropped, but her grip on the bow and arrow remained. Her muscles were probably locked on them still. She laughed. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for running. I—"

Her words died when Sasuke saw something flicker behind her. Another one of the masked men.

"Sakura, get down!" Sasuke shouted. He moved to tackle her or push her but ended up just covering her, and, more importantly, protecting her from the arrow aimed her way. Sasuke grunted, feeling the sharpened metal head slice through his left bicep.

Seeing Sasuke fall, Sakura immediately whipped around and let loose an arrow, killing the man that had shot Sasuke.

She turned to Sasuke and tried to smile. "It's okay! That's it. We're… fine…"

Any words died on her lips when she saw veins of purple sprouting out from the wound beneath Sasuke's skin.

"Oh, my god," Sakura whispered. She frantically tore at the hem of her dress and tied a strip of the tan linen above the wound as a tourniquet. "Sasuke?" She cupped his cheeks and examined his face. He was sweating profusely and his breath was coming out in harsh pants. She panicked. The arrow was obviously poisoned and that poison was clearly fast-acting. "Sasuke?" she called once again.

"Wha… what?"

Sakura smiled at him. "That's it. Keep talking to me, Sasuke." His mouth opened and closed but no words came out. He clawed at his throat with his uninjured arm. "Sasuke!"

He practically shouted as whatever poison had been used on him began to take its toll. His legs gave way and he fell to his knees.

"Sasuke!"

Sakura rushed forward and pulled him onto Galenia, immediately taking him to the cave. She laid him down on the flat stone floor and ripped off his sleeve to examine the wound. She wanted to take him back to the castle but was afraid that all the movement would force the poison to spread faster.

She couldn't recall the name of the poison for the life of her, but she remembered it. She'd dealt with it in the past, remembering how much pain it had caused the patient who was suffering from it. When the healers were teaching her their ways, a man had been poisoned with this thing. It caused paralysis at first, and then great amount of pain. Sakura's breathing quickened as she paced, trying to remember what she needed to make a cure.

She knew she wouldn't be able to do much in the forest. While she could certainly identify what she needed, she wasn't sure if she could find it in the area.

She cursed under her breath and ran over to Galenia. Sasuke's own horse had followed them to the cave.

She removed the sack hanging from the horse's side. She then tied the laced arrow that had wounded Sasuke onto the saddle. "Return to the castle," Sakura ordered the horse, pointing to the building and slapping the horse's body. It let out a neigh before galloping off. If her prized horse returned without her, surely someone from the royal guard would have the sense to know something was amiss.

Sakura went back to Sasuke's groaning form and she scowled in frustration. What could she do? She frowned when something wet hit her chest and was astonished to realize that she was crying.

She would make a paste for now, she decided, and would hope it would hold the same effect. She opened the sack that had been on Galenia and pulled out the small flask of water to wash the most concaved looking stone she could find to use it as a mortar. She looked at Sasuke once more, confused. Should she stay with him as he tossed and turned in pain to keep him company in the time he needed her most or should she go seek out the necessary herbs to help him?

Knowing her duty, she left the cave. She sought out the correct plants to at least ease the pain until they could make it back to the castle. She returned to the cave as fast as she could and found Sasuke unconscious.

Immediately, she got to work.


Two hours had past and Sasuke's thrashing had subsided. Sakura remained at his side, kneeling dutifully and wiping the sweat from his brow. She'd made a balm of sorts and spread it on and around the wound on his arm, and judging by his quieter behaviour, he was improving. She refused to believe his silence could mean the opposite.

She glanced to the mouth of the cave over and over, impatiently waiting for someone from the Leaf Kingdom to come for Sasuke.

"I'm to be a Queen," she stated with a humorless laugh. "I'm to rule the Leaf Kingdom, but here I am, weak, crying, and utterly terrified. I'm supposed to stand tall, Sasuke, but with you…" She pushed his bangs out of his eyes and pressed a cold hand to his sweaty forehead.

He shifted slightly and Sakura took that as a good sign.

"I met you when I was six," Sakura whispered to his unconscious form. "I was with Father. We were to meet the General at the northern borders. While Father spoke to the General, I wandered off and began to play with a sword I found. I ended up cutting myself and, pathetic child that I was, I cried and cried and cried. And then you came." Sakura smiled wryly. "Do you remember me? I don't look like I did as a girl as I do now. I looked like a little boy back then, really. Naruto had put honey in my hair as a 'joke' and Mother cut it off because taking it out was so difficult. But you found me crying and told me I'd be a poor warrior if a little cut was making me cry. Then I yelled that I was going to be a Queen, not a warrior. But you laughed at me. You laughed and you rolled your eyes. And then you scoffed and you walked away.

"I doubt you remember me from back then. I don't look a thing like that now." She couldn't help but smile vainly. "I'm a woman now.

"When I was a girl, I didn't know what being the Queen would truly mean. I didn't think about all the enemies I would be making – granted, of course, they aren't enemies. At least, not in the traditional sense." She snorted. "Rather, they are my allies simply plotting behind my back. As a child, I didn't think that the ladies that smiled at me were actually praying for my fall. I didn't think about the politics or the economics or the possibility of battle." He grunted softly, as if he was conscious of her words and Sakura grinned at him. "I—"

She paused when she heard the sound of a horn echoing through the forest. She sat up straight and looked to the mouth of the cave. That was the Horn of the Nara. Her eyes widened. The Queensguard were searching for her. She looked back down at Sasuke. They would find her momentarily, she was sure.

"Where was I?" she mumbled to herself. "Oh, alright – I've always thought about battle. Odd, isn't it? Little girls of the Leaf don't think about swords and daggers. I suppose I can blame my fixation on Naruto's?" Absentmindedly, she ran her finger along her leather boot where she knew a blade was hidden. "I didn't think about marriage either – that is, not until I turned twelve and truly had to."

When he moved once more, Sakura felt inclined to laugh.

"Of course you react now," she said with a roll of her eyes. "You're an idiotic boy, Sasuke, to not see my intentions."

She could hear them calling her name as their horses galloped towards the cave.

"I want you." The words came out in a mere whisper as Sakura gently ran her fingers along his jaw. She bent forward and pressed her lips against the corner of his mouth. "And no one will get in my way."

She stood up and stepped to the cave's opening to greet her knights.