The Monarchy
Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Chapter Notation: The Civil War in the Sharingan Kingdom is going strong and there are heavy causalities on both sides, but these are only "extras." No main or supporting characters were killed in this chapter.
Mad: In the old days, mad used to mean crazy. So generally, whenever someone says something like, "He's gone mad," they mean, "He's gone crazy."
Chapter Nine
Sasuke had never met anyone like King Gaara and Prince Naruto before. The Sunaese King's hair was red as blood and his aqua colored eyes were framed by fearsome black tribal markings, giving him a permanently angry look. It was difficult to read his emotions thanks to those markings his eyes. That was probably what made the meeting so unnerving.
Naruto was the opposite. His hair was as bright as the Sun and eyes bluer than the sea. He wore his heart on his sleeve. He supposed in a way, the two Monarchs balanced each other out.
"Your Majesties, may I present to you Itachi and Sasuke Uchiha, the rightful rulers of the Sharingan Kingdom. May I also present Princess Hinata of the Byakugan Kingdom and Sasuke's intended wife?" Shisui inquires.
"You may. Well you certainly look like Uchihas." Gaara muses.
"Gaara, be nice." Naruto says in a gentle chiding of the red head's comment.
"I am merely making an observation. You wish to take back the Sharingan Kingdom from Danzo? I know the man well enough to realize that he will not just hand it back to you. Even if your claim is a rightful one, he has tasted power. Some men can not let that go. They are like dogs that have smelled blood on a hunt. They can't help themselves." Gaara continues.
Sasuke nods. He decided to let Itachi do the speaking for the most part. He would be the King. It was most important that Gaara liked him. Sasuke was secondary in this case. Though his betrothal to Hinata, likely helped their case greatly.
The Sunaese King wouldn't just be allying with the rightful heirs of the Sharingan Kingdom. He would also be helping the intended of the Byakugan Princess. That was two alliances for the price of one. Thus making his gamble, more attractive.
"That is most certainly true. We already have a force of rebels. They had won many small victories. But unfortunately, they are not formerly trained and their provisions are not entirely suitable for a real war. With your backing, I do believe we could defeat him." Itachi states smoothly.
"You know it's the right thing to do. If Danzo is willing to lie to take one throne, he'd probably do it again." The blonde warns his friend.
Gaara nods. He did have concerns about that. It was still a great gamble though. He smiles when he notes the princess and younger prince were holding hands. It was a love match then. Those were rare.
"Don't make me regret this decision, but I will send your people the supplies and military commanders they need to equip them for this war." Gaara says.
"We won't. We will forever be in your debt." Itachi replies and the Sunaese King nods.
There were certainly worse things than having two Kingdoms owe him. The Sharingan and the Byakugan Kingdoms were both rich in resources. If nothing else, new trade agreements would likely spring out of this alliance. (That was assuming of course, they won this war.)
"You must all be exhausted from your journey. Gaara, you mind if we let them be escorted to their rooms for some rest?" The blonde asks good naturedly.
"Very well. The hour grows late anyway." The red head agrees and soon servants arrive, escorting them all off to their respective rooms.
Hinata sighs as she casts a longing look at Sasuke as they arrived at their rooms. They weren't married yet. So they were given separate quarters. At least they were across from each other, but still.
She would have preferred to share a room. The bluenette would have felt safer that way. She knew she would have slept more soundly, if she was in her future husband's powerful arms. Perhaps a few more kisses and caresses would have been stolen. It would have been nice, but it seemed that was not to be on this night.
"Don't worry, soon we'll defeat Danzo and then we can get married. Once we are wed, we can share a bed. But for now, I'll see you on the morrow." Sasuke whispers and caresses her cheek, before heading into his room.
She smiles and touches her cheek, where his hand had been only moments before. It still felt so warm. Sasuke was always so warm. She supposed there was a reason why the Sharingan Kingdom was sometimes called the Fire Kingdom. Perhaps all of its people were naturally warm, like Sasuke was?
She sighs and heads to her room. There was no help for it now. Their reputations were too important to risk by acting improper right now. They were resigned to sleeping in separate quarters.
"Damn Danzo." Sasuke mutters for the 1000th time, as he shuts the door behind him. If it wasn't for that snake, his parents would still be alive and he might have already been married to Hinata. Itachi would be being groomed to be King of the Sharingan Kingdom and he likely would have making love to Hinata right now. But no, that traitor had to go and take everything from them!
He felt his eyes bleed red with unsuppressed rage. One day soon, Danzo would pay for everything he'd done to their family. Sasuke looked forward to it. He would probably personally mount that son of a bitch's head on a pike and display it for all of the Sharingan Kingdom to see.
"Hinata probably wouldn't like it though." He mutters.
His future wife likely wouldn't respond well to such gore. But Sasuke felt it was more than deserved. Maybe as long as she didn't actually see it, he could say one of the rebels had done it, if he asked? In a way, he was a rebel. So he wouldn't be lying.
Sasuke grumbles as he slips into bed. Instead of Hinata in his arms, his only companion was his pillow. Oh yes, he was definitely going to mount Danzo's head on a pike!
Meanwhile Hiashi was back in the Byakugan Kingdom and being briefed by his military advisor. He had asked the man to carefully monitor the situation in the Sharingan Kingdom. It was easy to justify. They had sent aide to Danzo and he wanted to monitor his investment.
"I'm afraid, I have bad news. It seems the rebels are growing increasingly bold. They have scattered across the Sharingan Kingdom. No one seems able to locate where they are headquartered. We don't think they have a singular base of operations, but likely dozens scattered all throughout the countryside." He explains.
"I see and how heavy are Danzo's causalities?" Hiashi inquires.
"Heavy. The rebels are sneaky. They attack in small groups, cause as much damage as they can, and slip off before much of a counterattack can be made. If this continues, Danzo may just lose his crown." The military advisor says.
Hiashi nods. Thankfully, after being a King for so many years, he had become a skilled actor. He kept his expression somber because he had to do so.
It would be far too complicated to explain the truth. His advisor might think he had gone mad, if he did. For now, it was just easier to pretend that he was actually supporting Danzo.
"Thank you for keeping me abreast of the situation. For now, you are dismissed. I shall send for you, when I have need of you again." He states.
"Of course, My King. I live to serve you. I only wish that I could bring you better news. The Monarchy is not to be trifled with and these rebels are certainly trifling with it. They'll find out the hard way that one doesn't go up against the throne and live to tell the tale." He says and Hiashi nods, watching as the other man heads off.
He sighs and wonders how Sasuke and Hinata were doing. Where they safe? The King disliked not being in control of the situation, especially when it involved his daughter.
Hiashi knew that Sasuke would do everything in his power to protect Hinata. It was clear the boy did love her. Well he wasn't a boy anymore. He was a man by almost any measure. But still his heart was uneasy.
"I pray they are safe and well." He says and looks upwards as he does so.
Hiashi still couldn't believe he had been so easily fooled. Danzo was a good actor. He had to give the man that much. Anyone would have easily been led to believe that he had been heartbroken over the deaths of the Royal Family. It had all been a power grab though. How a twelve year old boy, had the foresight to realize what Danzo was up to and he didn't, King Hiashi honestly didn't know. He supposed sometimes children just had good instincts.
"He served King Fugaku faithfully for years. It's difficult to believe he was capable of such treachery all along." The Byakugan King mutters to himself.
Truly, it was a disturbing thought. If Danzo was capable of such a thing, what was to say that there wasn't someone currently in his service who had similar ideas?
What would Hinata and Hanabi do in such a situation? They were older than Itachi and Sasuke had been. Perhaps they would be clever enough to get away. But would they make a play for their throne again or just focus on protecting each other?
He honestly didn't know. Would they have even been able to escape at all? He didn't know that either. And that thought made his blood run cold.
"All I can do is pray for their safety now." He says to himself.
Back in the Sharingan Kingdom, Danzo snarls. He couldn't believe it. The men that Hiashi sent him were defecting in droves. Half of them had run straight into the forest and the other half were as likely to turn on each other, as their actual enemies.
"What the Devil is going on here? Hiashi would never train such incompetent forces." He mutters in disbelief.
"They are Byakugan soldiers. Perhaps they just don't want to fight for a foreign king?" One of his ROOT members suggests.
Danzo frowns as he considered that answer. It was certainly possible. But they were under orders from King Hiashi. Surely, that should balance out any uneasiness about fighting on his behalf?
It just didn't make any sense. The Byakugan King was well known for keeping his military well trained. Why then? Why then had he been saddled with such an incompetent lot? His ROOT soldier's suggestion was the only thing that made any sense in his mind. It was all he had to go with for now.
"Send them out in small groups. These rebels are all over the countryside. We are fighting them using the wrong tactics." He states.
Just then he hears a loud THUD. He blinks as he hears it again. Over and over, he heard it.
"Sire! Some of the peasants have felled a mighty tree and appear to be trying to ram down the castle doors!" A servant runs in, yelling.
"What?!" He demands.
"We must get you to safety! These peasants are mad. The lot of them are mad. To attack the castle itself? They've all taken complete leave of their senses! Don't worry, My King. We shall protect you and put them down like the insects they are!" His royal guard assure him.
Danzo sighs. He allows himself to be escorted out. He trusted that his guards would be able to defend the castle. What disturbed him is that the peasants actually had the nerve to attack these sacred grounds!
"FIRE!" The leader of the ROOT guards says on top of the roof of the castle and soon it begins to rain arrows at the crowd below.
Peasants were falling like flies. Some dropping right where they stood. The castle grounds were beginning to run red with blood. Still some peasants persisted with the tree and the ramming.
"TIME TO DROP THE STONES!" A Root member says and they begin shoving small boulders off the roof, some landing on peasants and killing them instantly.
The other members of ROOT swiftly take Danzo through a secret passage. It was a good thing they did to for Danzo's sake. The few survivors had finally succeeded in ramming down the doors of the castle and charged in.
The fighting was brutal. Those that decided to back Danzo fought against other members of the palace staff and the rebels. There were also some members of ROOT that stayed behind.
The Root Members were able to retake the castle, but not without heavy losses. The fact that peasants had managed to breach the palace walls was especially troubling. But as long as no one found out about it, it would be alright. Too bad for them, they didn't see a blue haired woman slipping off amidst all the chaos.
"That should put a little panic in the Ruling Class." She murmurs as she heads off to the nearest tavern, carrying a chunk of ROOT armor with her as proof.
No one would notice if a servant went missing after such a bloodbath. She was free of having to serve Danzo. She wasn't going to get anymore valuable information off of him anyway. God only knows what safe space his guards had whisked him off to.
"The castle walls were breeched!" She says as she heads inside the tavern.
"What? Have you gone mad, wench?" Someone asks.
"I have not. I hold proof in my hands. Behold, ROOT armor!" She says and holds it up and loud gasps were heard in the room.
"They were defeated, but they will be back. The King has fled!" Konan exclaims.
She watches the crowd for their reaction. Most were stunned into silence. It was almost unbelievable. The Sharingan Castle hadn't been breeched in well over a thousand years. How could such a thing be possible.
"King Danzo, must have sinned greatly to have fallen out of Heaven's favor so swiftly." One murmurs.
"THAT'S TREASON!" Another roars.
"OH BE QUIET! HE'S CRUEL! HE'S HAD THIS COMING FOR YEARS." Konan slips out of the tavern as a fight breaks out and sighs.
Well she had accomplished her mission. The blue haired woman knew that such establishments were excellent at one thing, spreading rumors. She expected that word of the break would spread all throughout the kingdom by night fall and maybe even link into the neighboring Byakugan Kingdom.
Meanwhile in Suna, Itachi heads to his bedchambers. On his way there, he is stopped by Izumi. He raises an eyebrow. Itachi knew the woman well enough to realize she had something on her mind and she was going to say it before he even opened the door.
"What troubles you?" He asks gently.
"Everything. The death of the King of the Queen. Danzo's rise to power. You and Sasuke having to hide for years. This war. Mostly, I worry for Sasuke and his princess though. They are so happy together. What if one of them dies in this fight?" She asks.
"Let your heart be at peace. You and Shisui have done wonderfully. Without you, we wouldn't be anywhere near as close to reclaiming our thrones as we are. We will find a way to defeat him. Everything will be as it should be. You'll see." He says.
Izumi hugs him tightly. At that moment, she forgot that he was supposed to be her King. She forgot about what was proper. They were just children again, when titles mattered little. She had needed to hear that.
Of course, Shisui always did have lousy timing. He chose that moment to walk down the hall and blink. Naturally, he couldn't resist teasing them.
"Starting on heirs a little early, huh?" He asks.
"SHISUI!" They both yell at him.
The leader of the rebellion chuckles. He wisely departs in a rather swift fashion. Izumi chases off after him. Itachi blinks at her rather creative string of curses and threats. Honestly, she could make a sailor blush with that filthy mouth of hers.
"GET BACK HERE AND APOLOGIZE!" She roars at Shisui.
The mischievous Uchiha just laughs and shakes his head. It was so much fun to tease her. They all needed this distraction. The rebellion had been going on for ten years, off and on in various forms.
Until recently, had had almost given up hope. Shisui knew that it was a miracle he was alive. And he was going to enjoy every extra minute of time that had been granted to him. This of course, included teasing them both.
"What on Earth is going on here?" A servant asks he heads into the hallway, only to see Izumi chasing Shisui.
"It's a very long story. Please forgive them. It has been a long, hard day." They are just releasing a little tension by acting as if they were still children" Itachi says.
The man looks at Itachi in disbelief? Releasing a little tension? It looked as though the woman was trying to kill Shisui. Had he gone lost his mind?
"Peace. There is nothing to worry about on this night." Gaara says as he comes down the hallway with Naruto at his side.
"Unless you are Shisui." Naruto adds with good humor, seeing Izumi was still chasing the man.
"They do produce rather…feisty women in the Sharingan Kingdom." The Sunaese King note with open amusement and his blue eyed friend nods in agreement at this assessment.
Sasuke and Hinata peek out of their respective rooms to see what was going on. Itachi just shakes his head. Honestly, there was never a dull moment with these people.
"It's fine. Shisui couldn't resist teasing Lady Izumi. She of course, can not resist taking the obvious bait. We did not mean to disturb anyone's rest. Everyone can go back to their chambers, if it pleases them." He says softly.
"Good night." Gaara says, as he heads off.
"Yeah, night. Lady Izumi, try not to kill him." Naruto says with a wink as he darts off laughing.
Itachi chuckles. Well Izumi and Shisui certainly knew how to make an impression. Fortunately, the King of Suna and Prince of the Whirlpool Isles seemed to have a good sense of humor. Otherwise that could have ended disastrously.
Meanwhile back in the Byakugan Kingdom, Kakashi raises an eyebrow. His wife was knitting something. What was she making?
"Shizune, what are you doing?" He asks.
"I'm making a baby blanket. They are engaged after all." She says with a smile.
Kakashi rubs the back of his head sheepishly. Well that was putting the cart before the horse. He sits next to her and wraps his arms around her. Perhaps she merely wanted something to do while they waited and this gave her an excuse to keep her hands busy.
"She's not pregnant." He chuckles.
"I don't know. Sasuke is a good boy. But Sharingan men tend to be a rather passionate lot and it would explain why King Hiashi made such a quick engagement." She muses.
Kakashi blinks. He couldn't tell if his wife actually meant that or if she was teasing. When she put it that way, maybe he should speak to Sasuke on this matter…just to be sure.
"Peace, husband. I was only jesting. Princess Hinata is not pregnant, to my knowledge." She replies with a giggle.
"Oh good. I mean, I'm sure that Sasuke will make a good father. But it would be much better if he waited until after this war was over and they were wed." He says and sighs in relief.
She nods. The brunette couldn't help but smile. Sometimes it was so easy to rattle her husband, that she couldn't resist. The expressions he could make, were rather priceless. The Duchess leans over and places a gentle kiss upon his nose.
"I am sure that he will be a most excellent father. He learned from the best." She says with a gentle smile.
"You are too kind. I still have no idea whatever possessed you to marry me." Kakashi says and smiles and he holds her closely.
"Oh you have your…talents. Most of them are displayed in the bedchambers best. But you have a kind heart as well. You just are a little rough around the edges sometimes. Oh and if you could be on time now and then, that would also be greatly appreciated." She says and snuggles into her husband.
Kakashi chuckles. They both knew that he couldn't be on time to save his life. But he always said that he would try to be better at it. (As long as he tried, it still counted…even if he failed.)
"I shall try to be more…punctual." He murmurs.
"Good. Do you think they can really do it? Can they really defeat Danzo?" She whispers.
Kakashi sighs. That was a difficult question. As much as he despised the snake, no one could doubt that he was intelligent. He wouldn't have been able to usurp the throne, if he was dim witted.
"I hope so, my love. I hope so. God knows the people of the Sharingan Kingdom have suffered under his rule greatly. Itachi will be a far better King than Danzo ever was. The same is true of Sasuke." He states.
He wished that he could be more optimistic. But he was realistic enough to know that they all faced some long odds. If they weren't successful, this could lead to all of their deaths.
That was why he decided to cherish these peaceful moments while they lasted. The silver haired man was well aware that they could disappear in the blink of an eye. He notes that the baby blanket was a combination of the royal Byakugan and Sharingan colors.
"I see you decided to display pride in both Kingdoms." He says with a smile and his wife nods.
"Yes, we don't know the gender. I didn't want to make a pink blanket and find out it was a boy later or to make a blue blanket and find out it was a girl. This way, it is suitable…no matter what." She replies and seems rather pleased by her own cleverness.
"I married well. Beauty and brains." Kakashi muses and kisses the top of her head.
"You are too kin-" Shizune begins to say and then rushes outside.
Kakashi blinks and follows her. His Shizune was barreled over and currently losing everything she had eaten that day. It couldn't be the Plague. There were no markings on her. Could it be the flu?
"Shizune? Perhaps you should see a physician." He suggests and his wife nods, once her sick spell had finally subsided.
She headed off with Kakashi. She was fortunate to have such a caring husband. The brunette knew that there were many women, who were far less lucky than she. The Duchess could only hope that Sasuke and Hinata's marriage would be as happy as theirs was.
