Hello Everyone and welcome to my new story ! If you want to support my career as a writer and read the next two chapters as well as my next story : "Naruto, The Batman of Republic City"

Lemon in chapter 3 !

w w w . p a t r(e)on (slash) MonsieurLAH

1€ a month

Enjoy reading !

Chapter 1 : Prince Naruto

When Princess Ursa finally ended her labor and gave birth to her first-born child, she felt more relief flow through her muscles than she had ever felt in her entire life. Indeed, not only were her never-ending pregnancy and agonizing labor finally over, but she was about to meet her child, a child of her own, a being she could actually love in this Agni forsaken palace. Even if the identity of her child's father repulsed her, she was certain that she would love her baby with all her heart no matter what.

However, as her heavy breathing calmly slowed down, a horrible realization dawned on her and her eyes widen in terror. She immediately straighten up her back to make sure her baby was okay.

The servants and midwives that were present were all giving curious and/or horrified looks to the child that was held in the arms of the Royal Family's official physician. Ozai, her husband, was shaking in anger. While Azulon, her Father-in-law, was stroking his beard in wonder. But Ursa did not care about any of this, her only concern was that her baby wasn't crying !

"What's going on!" she almost screeched. "Is the baby okay?!"

Ozai's furious eyes confused her far more than they scared her.

"You little harlot!" the Fire Prince roared. "You dare…!"

"Ozai! Calm yourself at once!" Fire Lord Azulon interrupted with his royal authority. "This child's hair color is not the result of an affair, this is a spiritual intervention."

Those words shocked every person present, but Ursa had had enough.

"What are you all talking about?! Why is my baby not cry…"

She was interrupted by said baby, who bursted into tears, terrified by all the commotion around him. Ursa reacted accordingly to her newfound mother instinct, she held out her hands in order to retrieve her child from the Physician's arms. And while Ozai was still angry and Azulon ordered some servants to fetch the fire sages, the Princess looked at her crying baby in wonder when she noticed his beautiful golden hair.

But it wasn't just his hair that was out of the ordinary, his face had three whiskers marks on each cheek. Nevertheless, she was absolutely mesmerized by her baby boy, for it was a boy , a tiny adorable and beautiful boy, her beautiful boy.

A loving smile appeared on her face and she started rocking him in order to calm him down. Which worked quite easily after barely a dozen of seconds, and when the baby finally cried his last tear, he opened his eyes to discover the world, allowing his mother to discover his crimson-red pupils.

If the color surprised her, the childish curiosity she saw in his eyes melted her heart and enlarged her smile.

Azulon noticed his grandson's abnormal pupils and his smirk full of pride extended as well.

"Congratulations, Ozai." he said to his son while the Fire sages were heard running in the corridors. "It appears that your lineage has been blessed."

Before the Prince could question his father on the meaning of his cryptic words, the sages finally entered the room and approached the new mother and her baby, unfortunately for them, they found that Ursa had had enough of people trying to terrify her boy and warned them that if they wanted to examine his face, they could do so while SHE was holding him.

After the sages verified the child's hair color and eye color, as well as his whiskers, they confirmed what Azulon had already figured out : the legendary nine-tailed Spirit Fox had blessed the newborn prince with his power.

When he heard this, Ozai forgot about his anger and an evil smirk graced his lips, a smirk that sent chills in his wife's spine as she held her baby tighter to her in order to better protect him.

" Daughter in law?" Azulon called. "What is your boy's name? The people of the Fire Nation must learn this news as soon as possible."

"He was born ten minutes ago, and you already want to use him as a tool for your propaganda!"

Ursa was fuming, but there was nothing she could say or do to prevent her father in law to proclaim her baby boy's blessing. She looked at her son one more time, and felt her heart melt one more time. There was nothing that could be more perfect than this adorable little being, and it was her duty, as his mother, to name him and cherish him.

"Naruto…" she whispered while stroking his whisker marks with her thumb. "His name is Naruto."

(-)(-)(-)

In less than a week, the whole Nation learned about its new prince's birth and blessing. And everywhere, in each and every village, people celebrated Agni's gift. For such a good news could only promise the beginning of a new Age of Glory and Honor for the Fire Nation. When word of it spread among the Fire Colonies and the Army, people started to believe that the spirits had rewarded and encouraged their war effort by giving the Fire Nation it's own « Avatar. »

But because of all of this, the Earth Kingdom started to send assassins in order to murder the nation's prodigal son and destroy the Fire Nation's army's moral. All attempts failed though, worse, none of the assassins ever managed to infiltrate the Royal Palace over the years, Azulon himself made sure of this.

Growing up, Naruto ended up being the quiet and hardworking type. His firebending appeared earlier than any children his country ever birthed, and he had to be placed in a fireproof room as a baby after he accidentally burnt his father's eyebrows while burping. That's when he revealed his terrifying and deadly crimson flames to his family. Another unique ability of his that needed hard work and discipline for its destructive potential to be fully reached according to his grandfather.

Fortunately, Naruto seem to realize quickly enough that his flames were dangerous, and never firebended when he was behind walls or when someone was near him until he officially started his training at the age of three. On that day Ursa implored her father in law to wait at least one more year, but her firstborn was so gifted and intelligent, that she quickly realized that she had no real argument to present to the Fire Lord to plead her case. So she gave up, and focused on her second son that she had birthed one year prior Naruto's first day of training; Zuko.
When Zuko was born, Ozai expected him to be as gifted as his older brother, the disappointment Ursa saw in her husband's eyes when he met his second born almost made her explode in rage. But two years old Naruto's curious stares at his little brother were more than enough to calm her down and she smiled at her oldest when she presented Zuko to him. Naruto's first reaction was to be a little wary of this loud little ball of red flesh that wouldn't stop crying. So he made a little ball of crimson fire in his hands and presented it to the baby. When Zuko felt the warmth, he immediately stoped crying and looked at the fireball in awe with his cute little golden eyes. Ursa was not very confortable with this sample of Naruto's unique flames so close to her second born's face. But then, she remembered that the only person who actually got burned by those flames was Ozai, and with a smile, she decided to trust her blond boy with his brother, something she never regretted.

When Naruto was four, he got a new sibling, a sister this time, a little girl that was named Azula. On the day of her birth Ursa had been worried, for Azula hadn't cried like Zuko, and since she didn't seem to be blessed like Naruto, the mother feared the worst. The only indication that her little girl was alive was the slow breaths that escaped her nose and the royal physician couldn't comprehend what was wrong with the child, so he placed her in her cradle before interrogating her mother about her diet during her pregnancy.

None of the adults that were present in the room, not even Ozai nor Azulon, had noticed that Naruto had silently sneaked his way between them to reach the cradle. There, he stared in awe at his baby sister for a few seconds before he climbed his way inside the cradle to grab her.
At his contact, Azula instantly opened her eyes to stare at her brother's crimson pupils. Then the two siblings started tilting their heads to the side while they were giving each other curious looks. That was until Ursa finally noticed that her four year old had find a way inside his baby sister's cradle.

"Naruto?" she called, which made everyone in the room notice the blond's presence. "You need to let your sister rest. There is something wrong with her…"

Naruto furrowed his brows and looked at his new sibling one more time before showing her to everyone.

"She looks normal to me." he said without understanding where his mother's worry came from.

When he saw this, the Royal physician tried to take Azula from her brother's arms in order to check on her. That ended up being a terrible mistake, for Azula immediately started crying louder than any baby ever cried in this Palace. She made so much noise that even Ozai and Azulon had to put their hands on their ears in order to tolerate the girl's complaints.

Not knowing what to do, the Royal Physician immediately gave the girl back to her brother who started rocking her awkwardly. It took Azula a few seconds to calm down, but when she did, Naruto gave her his biggest smile and started rubbing lovingly his whiskered cheek against his sister's chubby one.

Ursa never saw a cutest sight in her entire life.

(-)(-)(-)

Naruto's childhood was… busy to say the least. With a potential as promising as his, his grandfather Azulon spent almost as much time perfecting his education as he did with Lu Ten. However, Naruto's intelligence astonished every tutor the blond boy ever had. This, combined with his natural power and his amazing skills as a firebender, were more than enough to exceed any expectations anyone had about him. But the fact was, that Naruto didn't want to be the best because he had to be the best, he needed to be the best in order to have as much free time as he could spare. Because all in all, Naruto was a family person, and there was no one he loved more than his siblings. Which is why he worked as hard as he could; so he could spend as much time as possible with Zuko and Azula.

It wasn't always easy, soon enough his younger siblings started some kind of rivalry to obtain his approval or to, at least, be the sibling that spent the most time with the eldest.

The relationships Naruto had with his brother and sister were different from one another; and that was because of their cruel difference of talent in firebending.

While Azula was an authentic prodigy that devoted all of her efforts into becoming as perfect as her oldest brother, Zuko was barely as good as any firebender his age, which was humiliating for the Royal Family, especially with the two phenomena that were his siblings. Because of that, Ozai never, ever, looked at Zuko as if he was his flesh and blood, the rare times he deigned to look at him, he saw the parasite of his lineage, a failure that was walking, talking and humiliating him with every breath he took.

Things almost got out of hand when Naruto was eleven. At that age, he had already mastered all firebending forms and had started his lightning training. While a nine-year old Zuko had failed to master the Fire-whip for the third time in a row. Naruto had decided to take it upon himself to help his little brother with his training, something Zuko was very grateful for.

Unfortunately, Ozai saw his sons training in the garden, mad with rage, he went straight to his youngest and berated him for wasting Naruto's precious time with his weakness.

In order to protect Zuko, Naruto went to his knees and begged his father to let him take care of his brother's training from now on, arguing that he could make something out of Zuko. That ended up being a mistake, for Ozai realized how much his oldest son loved his youngest. Ozai granted Naruto's request, but he also used Zuko as leverage in order to force Naruto to obey him when the blond boy showed doubt, like executing a water tribe prisoner in order to "become a man." Naruto did it without hesitate, and the guilt Zuko felt every time their father used him to manipulate his brother ended up eating him from the inside and convinced him that Ozai was right : he was a parasite to this family. Despite all of that, Zuko did become a far better firebender than his father expected. All in all, Ozai was very satisfied in his decision.

Unfortunately, this turn of events made Azula more jealous than ever.

There was no one the princess loved more in this world than her oldest brother. Naruto was her model, her hero, hers! She cherished every moment she spent with him and gave her best in order to resemble him. All of her efforts granted her her father's approval and pride, because despite the fact that she wasn't blessed by a spirit like her brother, she still managed to follow in his footsteps.

Her aggressiveness and jealousy towards Zuko forced Ursa to intervene, and she came up with an idea : if Azula was the one to help Zuko with his training, then Naruto would have more time for her.

To Azula's surprise, Zuko immediately agreed. When she asked him why he did so, he told her that he didn't want to be a thorn in Naruto's side anymore. His father's words and actions had cut deeply inside the boy's heart, so much that even he wanted to protect his brother from himself.

This turn of event didn't solve all the problems the three siblings had, but Azula was finally able to retrieve Naruto from Zuko, that's all that mattered to her.

Azula's possessiveness towards her oldest brother was nothing new, every time her grandfather threw a feast, many noble girls tried their chance to spend time with Naruto, and almost all of them ended up with burns. The only reason why this never caused any scandal was because the Fire Princess was far too terrifying for the noble girls to try to report those incidents.

When Naruto learned about those incidents, he had to have a serious talk with Azula, and she ended up promising that she would never do this again if Naruto promised to resist their advances. He did and the matter was closed… for now at least.

Being Azula and Zuko's big brother was Naruto's hardest trial by far. Sometimes, being fair wasn't always enough and their parents were no help in these matters.
Indeed, Azula's actions and violence disturbed Ursa, to the point where she started distancing herself from her only daughter and spent more time with Zuko, in order to help him deal with his insecurities.

This broke Azula's heart. Until now, her mother had always shown support and warmth towards her, and Azula had loved her, truly loved her.

But this event… it cut far deeper in her heart that she would have ever imagined.

Without her mother, the only person the Fire Princess could rely on was Naruto, and to say that she craved her brother's warmth and love would be an understatement.

He was everything to her. Every time she felt down, he was there for her, every time she succeeded in an endeavor, he would compliment her and fill her heart with pride. Her father complimented her too, but it wasn't the same. Ozai could not provide the feelings she needed, there was no warmth nor was there love in his words. And she wasn't proud to impress him like she was with Naruto. As a result Azula started pushing herself even farther in order to reach her brother's level, but Naruto had to stop her before she went too far, and made her realize that since she was four years his junior, she couldn't possibly reach his level until they both completed their training and entered their prime as warriors.

Azula accepted this explanation, but that didn't change the fact that she was addicted to her brother.

She sneaked almost every night to sleep in his bed, she always sat near him during meals, and the first thing she did when she came back from the Fire Royal Academy for Girls was to join Naruto in the training grounds.

One day though, she grew frustrated, her brother was just too good ! He generated a purple lightning in front of her and threw it in the sky. The power of this attack was overwhelming to Azula, once again she was in awe in front of her brother's power and talent. But then, out of nowhere, she got angry.

It was a strange feeling though, never in her life, had the seven year old girl felt anger towards her brother. Nevertheless, she was angry, and Naruto noticed. He always notices when something is wrong with her.

"What's gotten into you, Zula?" the Crimson-eyed fire prince asked gently.

Hearing his gentle tone cooled her temper a little bit, and her cheeks burned in embarrassment for getting mad at him.

"Ruru… how are you so good?" She asked with a hint of jealousy. "I get that you're blessed by a very powerful spirit and that you're naturally very strong… but still… How ? It feels like no matter what I do, I will never catch up to you…"

"So that's what this is about." Naruto thought while he sat next to his beloved little sister and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

Azula let her head fall on his shoulder and just waited for him to talk.

"Well… Zula. The reason why I'm this strong is because I love you."

Azula eyes widen in surprise and her cheeks burned in embarrassment.

"What do you mean?"

"When you were born, I climbed in your cradle to hold you." he told her with a loving smile. "When our eyes crossed, I instantly loved you. You became my most precious person in the world, and I swore that I would do everything I could to protect you."

This declaration melted Azula's heart in an instant, tears started forming in her eyes.

"People become strong when they have loved ones to protect little sis. »Naruto explained with his big goofy smile. « When you'll find someone to love and protect, you'll become stronger than me, believe it."

He couldn't say more, Azula jumped at him, captured him in a hug and cried tears of relief and joy against his torso.

Naruto returned the hug wholeheartedly, his smile never left his lips.

"I love you Ruru…" she said in a whisper.

"I love you too Zula. I'll always be here for you."

Azula believed him, she would always believe him.

(-)(-)(-)

When Naruto turned thirteen a tragedy hit his family, Lu Ten, his cousin, had died in the siege of Ba Sing Se, a siege his uncle Iroh was in charge of and one of the Fire Nation's worst defeat in the last hundred years. When Naruto learned that Iroh had abandoned the siege after Lu Ten's death… He was angry at first. After all, how many soldiers had perished during this siege ? All this carnage ended up being for nothing ! But on the other hand… He had never been on a battlefield before, was he really capable of judging his uncle ? He wasn't sure…

That was until he walked on a dispute between his siblings.

"Uncle's not a quitter!" argued Zuko in anger.

"Yes he is!" replied Azula just as angry. "He saw his son died and he fell appart ! A real General would have stayed and burned Ba Sing Se to the ground ! That's what Ruru would have done!"

Those words struck Naruto like a lightning bolt.

"You're lying! Naruto is not a monster!"

A grimace of rage appeared on Azula's face, she took a step forward and Zuko took a step backward in terror.

"That's enough both of you!" Naruto snapped.

His siblings were startled for a second, but Azula quickly regained her composure.

"Just tell him Ruru." She argued. "How would you have reacted if it was me who had died in Ba Sing Se?"

In an instant a horrible image invaded Naruto's mind, he imagined his baby sister, that he loved so much, laying dead in the mud, with an empty look in her widen eyes and an inaudible scream in her open mouth.

Naruto couldn't take it, he caught Azula and wrapped her in a tight hug.

He held her with all his strength as if he was afraid she'd disappear.

"Zula… " he whispered with the saddest tone she's ever heard him use. "I don't know what I would do if I were to lose you… There… there would be nothing left for me in this world…"

Azula widen her eyes at his declaration, and she realized that she had hurt her brother by making him imagine something horrible. She returned the hug with regrets and guilt.

"I'm sorry." she whispered in return.

"It's okay… just promise me that you'll do your best to stay alive for as long as possible… okay ? No matter what."

"I promise." She replied automatically.

The last thing she ever wanted to do was hurt Naruto.

Zuko looked at them in sadness and jealousy. It had been so long since his older brother had hugged him, he didn't even remember the last time they actually talked. He spent all of his time training, studying or being with Azula.

Ursa walked into the room and saw her eldest hug tightly her youngest, a smile appeared on her lips, but a glare from Azula erased it in an instant.

Indeed, the Fire Princess was very mad at her mother for ruining her moment with Naruto.

Which Ursa did by letting out a small cough.

"Your father has requested an audience with Fire Lord Azulon. Best clothes. Hurry up."

"Right away Mother." Naruto answered and put on an emotionless mask before leaving with his siblings at his side.

But Azula never stopped glaring at her mother, something she noticed.

"What's wrong with this child?" Ursa whispered to herself.

Fortunately for her, Naruto hadn't heard her.

(-)(-)(-)

The Throne room had always been Naruto's favorite place in the palace, here he was, where all the fire lords had sat before his grandfather, and now that Lu Ten was gone, where he'd sit too one day. The fate of his entire country was decided in here, the future of the ones he loved was decided in here. He needed to sit in that chair if he wanted to protect all that was dear to him.

Ozai and his family came near the throne and humbly bowed to their Fire Lord, which did not seem to be in a good mood after the loss of Lu Ten.

"Ozai." he called in a grave and deadly tone. "Before you actually tell me what brought you here in this dark hour. I want to see the progress made by your children over the past few months."

While smiling inwardly, the Fire Prince humbly bowed to his father and motioned for Naruto to get up and demonstrate his power. Which he did.

In an instant, the blond prince illuminated the room with his crimson flames. He started slowly, by reproducing the moves that had been taught to him over the years, but as he went for more advanced forms, his fire grew stronger. And he started showing off his own style of firebending. In an instant three crimson tornadoes sprang from the ground and reached the ceiling, Naruto did not stop there and started bending his tornadoes to his will with the grace of the martial artist he was, now his tornadoes were spinning around his body without even burning his clothes.

Ursa gasped in terror when she saw her son's fire almost licking his whiskers, but Ozai grabbed her by the wrist and gave her a deadly stare.

"Do not embarrass my son by doubting him in front of my father." He hissed.

Ursa gritted her teeth in anger but she couldn't cause a scene here and now, so she swallowed her pride back and kept looking. Meanwhile Azula was showing a prideful smile, she was no longer jealous of her brother's power, not since she understood that it was for her that he had become this strong. This, all of this, Naruto was doing it for her. This was, in a way, her power.

Zuko was dumbstruck, he knew his brother was powerful, he had always known he would be one of the most, if not the most powerful bender in the World. But he would have never imagined THIS. This was insane ! How ?! How could Naruto bend so much power with such ease without fear of getting burned or embarrassed in front of the Fire Lord ?! Zuko could not possibly begin to understand how his older brother was so powerful and confident.

Suddenly, the crimson flames stoped erupting and turned into a hundred whips that spread like a giant web that seemed to imprison the Fire Lord on his own side of the Throne room, then, Naruto started bending his flames back in a whirlpool between his hands. He concentrated the might of his previous tornadoes in a small yet shining and spinning sphere that he held in the palm of his hand. This crimson and spinning orb of his, looked like an authentic little sun, a sun that he presented to his grandfather as a present in order to prove his perfect control over his abnormal power.

Azulon stared in satisfaction and wonder at his grandson, a relieved smirk appeared on his wrinkled face.

"The power of the Sun, in the palm of your hand." he commented in an impressed tone. "Well done Naruto, well done indeed."

The blond prince dissipated his sphere and bowed to his grandfather with respect, he went to take back his sit within his family, but Azula suddenly stood up.

"Grandfather, in order to demonstrate my progress, I challenge Naruto to a friendly spar."

This declaration rose the eyebrows of the old Lord, he struck his beard in interest.

"Quite bold of you, dear granddaughter." He said. "I hope for you that you have the means to back your demand. For you will be severely punished if you disappoint."

Worried looks appeared on Ursa and Zuko's face while Ozai tighten his robe in frustration. The only one that didn't seem worried was Naruto, as he smiled and motioned for his sister to join him, which she did.

"Hope you're ready." he taunted while taking a stance.

"I hope you are." Azula replied with a smirk.

If Azulon suspected that Naruto would go easy on his nine year old sister, his suspicions were quickly dismissed when he saw his grandson summon a barrage of crimson flames that slowly advanced towards Azula. To the Fire Lord's surprise, the Fire Nation Princess wasn't fazed by the power of her older brother, she jet-stepped like a rocket toward the ceiling, spinned on herself and split the wall of flames with a gigantic blade of fire. Of blue fire.

In an instant, Naruto's attack was disbanded in a firework of purple flames, and the lower jaws of all the royal family, except Azula, hit the floor.

The Fire Princess landed on the ground and smiled in amusement when she saw the dumbstruck expression on her brother's face. She stretched her shoulder and neck in arrogance, and summoned a blue fire ball in each of her hands.

"You like my new trick, Ruru ?" she asked in a mocking tone.

A giant smile full of pride and love appeared on her brother's whiskered face, Azula blushed slightly.

"You are formidable Zula." he answered before mimicking his sister by creating two crimson fire balls. "Now let's see what you're really capable of."

The friendly spar between the two children could have easily passed as one of history's most spectacular battle. The fireballs that they sent at each other were exploding in purple flames when they clashed, just like their whips cracked as lighting bolts when they met.

Azula wasn't stupid enough to try to overpower Naruto, her attacks were just like her : small, precise and deadly. When she wasn't busy blocking her brother's massive flames, she sent small beams of blue fire that could pierce the blond's fire balls and reach him. Fortunately, Naruto's reflexes were more than good enough to dodge his sister's sneak attacks.

But as the battle went on, it became clear to everyone that Azula was losing. Despite her best efforts, her constant training and her incredible abilities, she was still a nine year old girl. She didn't have the stamina to go toe to toe with her brother for too long, sweat was starting to bead on her forehead. But she was Azula, and she always had a trick up her sleeve.

When the flames disbanded, she took a new stance, held two fingers from each of her hands, and, to everyone astonishment, started to generate lightning.

For half a second, Naruto froze in awe and shock when he saw lightning circling his little sister like a serpent. Finally, she released her attack, and her brother had to jump and spin in the air to avoid the bolt that came crashing the wall of the throne room.

Naruto didn't wait until the dust cleared, he jet-stepped to his sister and caught in his arms before she fell to the floor in exhaustion. But despite her tiredness and her heavy breath, she grinned from ear to ear at her oldest.

"Broke your record." she declared with a cocky smirk.

Naruto smiled and shake his head while rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, you did." he admitted with pride. "But would you care to tell me how you learned how to generate lightning?"

A slight touch of embarrassment appeared on the little girl's face.

"Hum… I figured it out?"

"You took my scroll from my chamber, didn't you?"

Azula had the courtesy to blush.

"Yes…" She admitted while looking away.

Their sibling moment was interrupted by the slow applause of their grandfather.

"Well done Azula, your performance was absolutely magnificent." he said before looking at what was left of his wall. "Though I wish you hadn't redecorated the throne room, this is but a small price to pay to admire the results of your hard work."

Azula slowly left Naruto's embrace in order to kneel in front of the Fire Lord.

"Thank you my Lord."

"No, thank you, my grandchildren, with Lu Ten gone, your performance warmed my heart. It pleases me to see that despite this tragic event, our future is assured."

Azula and Naruto bowed one last time and went to sit next their dumbstruck mother, jealous brother, and very satisfied father.

Despite her exhaustion, Azula whispered to her second brother with a cocky grin.

"You'll never catch up."

When he heard this, Zuko tried to stand up, but Naruto grabbed him by the shoulder and forced him to stay down. Now Zuko truly felt humiliated.

"Now Prince Ozai, tell me what is it you want, everyone else, go. You've deserved the right to rest."

Ursa and her children bowed one last time to the Fire Lord and left the Throne room together. But when Naruto tried to take Azula to her chambers, she almost begged him to stay and spy on their grandfather and father's conversation and Zuko followed them, for he was as curious as she was.

They hid behind the curtains and silently observed the Lord and the Prince.

"After his son's death, my brother abandoned the siege at Ba Sing Se and who knows when he will return home. But I am here father, and my children are powerful and alive."

Just like his grandfather, Naruto immediately understood where his father was going, and he didn't like it one bit.

"Say what it is you want." ordered Azulon with a glare, as if he was daring him.

And Ozai dared :

"Father, revoke Iroh's birthright. I am your humble servant, here to serve you and our nation. Use me."

Azulon seemed as dumbstruck by his son's boldness as he was angry.

"You dare suggest I betray Iroh ? My first born ? » The flames around the throne started to rise. « Directly after the demise of his only beloved son ? I think Iroh has suffered enough ! But you ! Your punishment has scarcely begun !"

Azulon's flames erupted in rage, and the heat that radiated from it terrified Zuko who ran away.

"Komodo-chicken." Azula commented.

She then looked at Naruto and was surprised to see worry in his red pupils. It seemed that he barely paid any attention to Zuko's escape or Azula's comment, his attention was solely focused on his grandfather.

And when he heard his father's "punishment", he felt a tremendous amount of rage flow through his veins. To the point where his nails started to turn into claws and his teeth into fangs. His spiky hair started to rise as if possessed and his whiskers marks deepened.

Azula stared at her beloved brother in astonishment when she noticed all of those changes, she wasn't scared of him, she could never be scared of Naruto. But she was worried.

"Ruru." she called while shaking him a bit. "Are you okay?"

Naruto let out a heavy breath and instantly calmed down, his features went back to normal and he put the palm of his hand on his forehead to diminish the headache.

"I'm fine." he lied before carrying his still tired little sister out of their hideout and through the corridors.

(-)(-)(-)

That night, Naruto stood guard in front of Zuko's bedroom with his arms crossed and his guard up.

He was ready, ready to kill his father if it meant protecting his brother. Fortunately and to his surprise, the only visitor he received was his mother, she was wearing travelling clothes.

"Naruto, why aren't you in your room?" She asked.

"I'm just waiting for father." he carefully answered in order to verify if Ursa knew about Ozai's punishment.

Apparently, she did, as she smiled warmly and proudly at her eldest.

"You don't have to." She assured him. "He has no more reasons to come tonight."

"What do you mean?"

"It doesn't matter." She said before putting a hand on his shoulder. "Naruto… I'm leaving tonight… this is goodbye… "

The blond prince couldn't believe what he was hearing.

" What do you mean? Why? What's going on?"

Ursa let out a tired sigh. It pained her to leave as a thief but there was simply no other way.

"Naruto, please listen to me…" She urged. "I do not have much time… but I want you to know… that I love you my boy. I love you with all my heart… and I am so proud of the man you are becoming."

This declaration struck Naruto's heart, and tears started to form in his crimson eyes. He loved his mother, he had always loved his mother, she inspired him into becoming the best big brother he could be for his siblings. And even if they grew distant in the past few years, he never, ever, stoped loving her.

" I want you… " Ursa whispered. "I want you to take very good care of your brother and your sister. Okay Naruto ? Can you promise me that ?"

"Of course Mother." The blond prince replied. "I will, I promise…"

"I know you will." She said before she hugged him tightly.

Naruto returned the hug, despite the violent sorrow that was shaking his body, he forced himself not to fall apart in his mother's embrace, he needed to be strong now more than ever.

"Could you…" he hesitated. "Could you see Azula… before you go?"

"I've already seen her, but she was asleep."

"Then wake her up." Naruto pleaded. "Wake her up and tell her… tell her that you love her."

Ursa frowned.

"She doesn't believe that you love her." The Fire Prince admitted. "It would mean the World to her… Please Mother."

Ursa felt as a lightning bolt had stroke her, and she widen her eyes in horror. Her baby girl thought that she didn't love her ?

"I will." She promised while tightening her hug and swallowing her tears back. "I will."

She let go of her first born, and gently rubbed his whiskered cheek, causing Naruto to purr despite his tears. She had always loved doing that since he was a child.

"Goodbye Naruto… I love you my boy."