Thirteen

The sun was warm on her skin, the kind of warmth that spread to her body and made her glow from the inside. The Haruno kingdom was located in a region where the sky was almost always clear and the cool breeze a reprieve from the warm weather – something she had missed while being away.

It had been a few days since her arrival back at the palace, and she recalled her last meeting with Naruto. She didn't know when she would see him again, and that made her heart squeeze. She thought back to her last memory of her childhood best friend.

"Sakura-chan..." Naruto wavered, and it was the most serious she'd seen him for a while, apart from the ceremony itself. He'd been a beam of poise then, and Sakura had clearly seen the royal blood in his veins. Naruto in her eyes had been born to run through sunflower fields and help old women with their shopping. Seeing him fully embrace the burden and blessing that came with their heritage was at once melancholy and awe-inspiring.

"I will always be with you, Sakura-chan. Even if I'm miles away our connection will remain strong."

She hadn't realised it, but there were tears rolling down her face. "You'll write to me, right? Even if it's about stupid things like what you ate in the morning. Every week."

"Of course I will," he grinned, and in it she saw something of the buoyant friend she had lived with for almost her whole life. A brother. Because that was what Naruto had always been, hadn't it? If not in blood, then in spirit. The had once thought they'd end up together. But in a way, like Naruto had said, they would always be tied together somehow.

"Don't forget, baka," Sakura had said to lighten the mood, not wanting her last memory of him to be full of sorrow. "I know you've got a wife now, but that shouldn't stop you from getting in touch with your best friend!"

Naruto had beamed. "I promise!" He lifted his hand in a final goodbye, and if it was possible his smile got even brighter. "I'll see you soon!"

She couldn't believe he was really gone. Sakura had spent almost all her life with him, so his absence was a hole left in her heart. With Naruto gone, she now felt alone. Not physically, but mentally.

How was she to navigate this world without him?

Sakura leaned against the balustrade, resting her arms on the smooth stone surface. She looked out to the extensive gardens underneath, hugging herself slightly. She saw the palace gardeners at work, trimming the hedges and maintaining the flora.

She sighed, mind tired from her lesson with her tutor this morning. Fumio had allowed her a few days of rest before continuing her studies, and Sakura was grateful. The journey had took a took on her and she needed time to recuperate before she could think about politics.

She shifted, resting her head against the pillar next to her, thoughts dancing relentlessly in her mind. From her new angle, more of the garden was revealed to her that had been hidden before. A little distance away, in the far east of the gardens, she could make out a certain dark-haired commander practising with his katana in a courtyard. She was jarred by his presence, but couldn't bring herself to look away.

She hadn't seen him since the night he had gotten drunk courtesy of Neji. She had wanted to check on him in the morning before their journey back to the palace, but the thought of a drowsy, hungover Sasuke had had her blushing.

Without thinking, she began to make her way over to him, her steps quick down the stairs and through the maze of hedges.

His moves fascinated her, the precise flow of his katana as he went through a routine of stances he clearly had memorised from days of repeating the same exercise. She didn't realise she had stopped to stare at the edge of the courtyard until his sword sliced through a rose bush meters away from him. It was all it took to break her reverie.

"What did that bush ever do to you?" he voice was surprisingly playful as she gave a pointed look towards the shorn flower resting on the ground.

Slowly, Sasuke straightened from his final stance across the courtyard, chest heaving subtly from his training.

"I'm sure the gardeners spent months curating that very rose, you know."

"Hn," he intoned, but Sakura could see the slight upward lift of his mouth as he failed to withhold a smirk, the look making her insides giddy. "Sakura," he acknowledged, still without looking at her.

"Sasuke," she said in return. He didn't bring up his little drunk episode, and she wondered if he even remembered.

Sasuke slipped the katana back into its sheath, face shimmering with a sheen of sweat. He bent over to where a water cannister lay on the floor a few paces away, and Sakura watched his Adam's apple as he took a few gulps.

"I've trained with Kusanagi since I was thirteen," Sasuke said nonchalantly, closing the lid to the cannister.

Thirteen.

He had been around the same age as her when she had been thrust into the unforgiving hands of court and politics. They weren't so different, both having gained significant responsibilities at such a tender age.

She was curious about why he had started training so early, but she didn't want to pry. "You're very good," she complimented instead.

He turned to look at her now, and she thought he thought her stupid.

"I used to watch the guards train," she clarified. She left out the part about how Naruto had dragged her there when they were six, excited to see some 'real action' for once. Gods, she missed him.

Sasuke took in this information before he sighed, running his hands through his sweat slicked hair.

"How was your journey back?" she inquired.

"It was fine. I'm not much of a fan of enclosed spaces. I'm sure the horses fared worse."

She nodded, moving to the fountain at the centre of the small courtyard. She trailed her fingers on the polished stone, thoughts melancholy.

Sasuke watched her as she picked a stray leaf on the fountains lip and twirled it between her fingers. There was a lingering sadness about her. It was unmissable from the moment she walked into the courtyard. He ventured a guess why. "I know what's it's like to lose a brother."

Sakura glanced up at the confession, bewilderment evident in her expression. Sasuke's face was turned slightly away from her, and his hair partly hid his face. Was he...was he embarrassed to be sharing such information? Or maybe he was embarrassed he was consoling her?

She had never imagined Sasuke's family, but apparently he had had a brother. Sakura felt her chest ache. How much had this man lost?

"I didn't know…"

"Tch. He's not dead. I don't think anyway."

"W-what?"

Finally, he turned back toward her. "He left when I was young."

Oh. Still, the pain in her chest for him would not ease. How long had he been alone?

"I guess I'm lucky to have had Naruto for so long..." she said softly, trying to break him from his trance of his past. Why must they always bond over loss?

"Hn. He's still out there," Sasuke said to her, but he was staring up at the sky. "Remember that."

Sakura nodded, clutching her hands to her chest. She thought maybe she was being too dramatic but honestly, she missed him so much. Her father had mostly been busy with court delegations throughout her childhood, something she didn't hold a grudge against, so it was nice to have someone around who she could relate too. She looked back to Sasuke, who seemed to be thinking about a different person altogether.

She sat at the edge of the fountain, glad it was not functioning so she didn't dampen her dress.

It was a moment before Sasuke spoke. "Sakura. Can I ask you something?"

Sakura looked up at him expectantly and nodded.

"What happened to your mother?"

She was briefly surprised he didn't know. She thought back to the statue of the late Haruno matriarch, the only image she had ever known of her. "She died after giving birth to me," she said quietly. Her voice held no bitterness. She felt vulnerable in front of him, but he had opened up, too. "My father says I get my headstrongness from her," she laughed softly. It was one of the only pieces of information she knew about her. She had never shared it with anybody. Not even Naruto or Ino.

Sasuke sat next to her on the smooth stone. "Can't imagine two of you in court," he teased lightly. Sakura's laugh increased.

"I'm sure," she replied, rolling her eyes. She fell silent for a moment again, staring at her clasped hands. "I wish I had gotten to meet her," she admitted, so quietly he barely heard her. He wondered if she had meant to say it aloud.

Before he could think of something to say, Sakura's thoughts seemed to have roamed elsewhere. "I was raised differently from you. The kingdom will be under my care someday. I know you think because I will someday rule over the people that I can do as I please. It's not that easy. Not everyone is so accepting of us... The Haruno are greatly respected, but there are still some who might not be so accepting of breaking tradition," she breathed, looking down at the cobblestone beneath her feet. She had needed to get that out.

Sasuke watched her quietly, sheathed katana still in his hand. She had a point, to an extent she didn't even know. People did strange things when faced with power.

"I'm still not sure why father chose you, but it must've been for a good reason." Right? she thought.

Again, he didn't know what to say, not without admitting everything. Instead he gave her a short nod to acknowledge what she said.

Sakura looked up at the sun and startled. Fumio had only allowed her a short break before her next lesson – he was going to kill her, or worse, make her recite the monarchs four times over.

"I'm late for my lesson," she groaned, standing up. "Thanks for the talk. I feel better than I did earlier," she said softly, a small smile appearing on her lips as she looked back at him before hurriedly retreating back the way she came.

Sasuke chuckled as she left, but she was too far away to hear him.

.

.

.

Sakura wasn't quite sure what she had expected when she walked to the same courtyard she had seen him in the previous morning, but she wasn't disappointed.

Going through the stances again, was a very shirtless Sasuke.

She startled for a moment, wondering briefly if he had expected her, but put it down to the humidity in the air this morning. She couldn't help herself from trailing her eyes down his sculpted body, but immediately shot her eyes back up to look into his own when she felt his gaze on her.

She felt almost like a doe caught in the light, her heart thrumming in her chest as her stare locked onto his.

"Sakura. Back for more?"

Something about his words made the courtyard impossibly more stifling. She cleared her throat. "Do you train every morning?"

"Most mornings," he supplied, returning to a standing position. She had to move her gaze to avoid being caught staring at a bead of sweat that trailed down his chest. "What about you? Do you have lessons every morning?"

"Yes, pretty much. Fumio put up quite the tantrum yesterday," she said, laughing lightly. He was soft-hearted in nature but he could be strict when he needed to be. To be fair to him, she had been an hour later than promised.

"Really?" Sasuke asked conversationally, putting his katana away.

"Yeah. I think his old age is making him more grouchy," she shook her head but there was fondness in her tone. "Who taught you how to use that?"

"Kusanagi? My father."

"Oh," Sakura hedged. She had wanted to keep the conversation light today, they had had enough angst yesterday. But it was nice to get to know him more.

She took her place on the fountain ledge, briefly wondering why it had stopped working. "You don't have to stop because of me."

Sasuke raised a brow, and Sakura felt her cheeks heat.

"I mean – I didn't mean–" She sighed. "I just meant I did not want to interrupt your morning exercise. I hope I'm not intruding."

Sasuke scoffed. "Of course you're not."

She brightened at that, shyly turning her face away from him to twirl another stray leaf she found.

Sasuke smirked at her amusing behaviour, but he kept the sword tucked away in its sheath. Truth be told he had never really had an audience apart from those who instructed him.

"So, what are your plans for the rest of today?"

.

.

.

It had been a few days since her last visit, her duties making it harder for her to meet him. But she had to see him anyway; her father had told her to let Sasuke know of an upcoming ball they had to attend.

"Another?" Sasuke had said jokingly.

"Tell me about it," she played along. She wouldn't quite call it friendship, but it was getting there. She found she liked spending time with him. "This one will not be at the palace though. The duke and his wife in the east estate want to meet you. They couldn't make it to the last one as the duke had fallen ill."

Sasuke nodded, already losing count of how many dukes he had met. He found it quite amusing how Sakura kept all this information. It's what she was born to do, he reminded himself.

"And nobility don't need an excuse to throw a party. How else are they supposed to keep a close eye on court happenings?"

He knew she was joking, but still, he couldn't help but wonder how much of it was her true feelings. Regardless, this was the first time he was attending somewhere away from within the walls of a royal court. He was sure there were to be even more eyes on them, perhaps even lower ranked civilians got invited to these.

He and Sakura had been meeting here frequently, which is the only reason he felt bold enough to ask. "I don't know court etiquette that well. Maybe you could show me?"

Sakura blushed at his words and nodded, coming to stand in front of him.

"You have to kiss a lady's hand," she explained, offering hers.

"Like this?" he said, lips brushing gently on the back of her hand, eyes never leaving hers.

Sakura flushed harder, and he tried hard to hold back a smirk, internally satisfied with her reaction. As a princess, he was sure many had kissed her hand, it being the proper etiquette and such, and he had also witnessed it before first-hand himself. But when he did it...he noticed her pupils dilating, her focus fixing solely on him as if it wasn't entirely before. Her chest rose and fell quicker as she took sharper breaths, and the pulse at her neck was fluttering rapidly.

"Y-yes," she stuttered, "exactly like that." She had no idea why he was affecting her in such a way... she guessed it was probably because Sasuke had not been like this with her before; it was something new for him to act gentlemanly, even if she did prompt it.

"What else?"

"Um – well, you would bow to those you address who are of high status." Her voice came out a little more breathlessly than she had anticipated. She knew he already knew most of this.

Sasuke nodded, showing that he was listening to her, but he hadn't let go of her hand yet. She couldn't look away from his eyes, those fathomless pools of darkness. Their gaze was only broken when a page stopped before them.

"Your highness," he bowed. "Your presence is requested in the King's drawing room."

Instantly, Sakura put distance between them, almost as if she had been yanked back by an unknown force.

"Thank you," she nodded to the page, ignoring her pulse which thrummed wildly in her head. "I'll see you later, Sasuke," she said, avoiding his eyes as she followed the page out the courtyard.

Since when did he affect her that much?

A/N: Happy 5 year anniversary! I can't believe it's been so long since I published the first chapter of this fic, it's both amazing and slightly disheartening because of where we are in the plot... Still, thank you to everyone who's followed this far. You have no idea how much it means to me!To think the hand kissing scene was written years ago…it wasn't even my intention to include it in this chapter because their relationship was supposed to be more established, but this chapter kind of wrote itself.

Thank you thank you thank you!