A/N: Flinging canon to the wind once more with wedding traditions! I wanted it to be a little more special, going along with my headcanons about a person's chakra and the Uchiha's ideas of love.


Later that evening, Mikoto whisked Shien away after dinner to walk in the gardens.

"I know that look in your eyes, dear," she chuckled as soon as they were out of earshot of the others. "You know what I want to speak about, don't you?"

"It depends on what that might be," she answered carefully with a forced smile.

"The engagement duel, of course," the queen answered easily.

Shien's shoulders tensed once more. "Ah… yes, I was wondering about that."

"Don't worry, Hayashi-san." Mikoto waved it away with a kind glance. "The rules are simple, and I know my son enough to know he won't do anything to cause you grievous bodily harm. I assume you wouldn't do the same?"

"Of course not," she denied. "I do care for him. I'd never rough him up more than necessary."

"Good." The black-haired woman nodded firmly as they both sat down on the metal bench. She turned her body to face the younger woman more easily. "The first step is to clear your mind. Both of you will meditate together directly beforehand in order to properly align yourselves with your chakra nature. Are you familiar with chakra meditation?"

She nodded. It was one of the first things that Tsunade had taught her, when she first accidentally manifested a poison ivy plant that snaked its way around her arms. Had she been encouraged to explore her elements, Tsunade had told her, she would have started chakra meditation when she first realized them.

Instead, she replied, "Yes. My adoptive mother taught me."

"Good." Her face softened, and she patted her arm before bringing her hands together at the pit of her stomach. "Now close your eyes… and clear your mind…"

Shien closed her eyes. The darkness was welcoming, something she'd acquainted herself with intimately over the years. Her mind clear, she began to imagine an eternal ocean of calm, not a ripple on the water's surface.

Suddenly, a ripple appeared along the surface. It traveled outward, until the peak of a deep green vine, began to rise from the center.

Just as quickly, she shoved it back down. She tried her best to imagine a tidal wave, rising with her heartbeat and crashing over the traitorous part of her mind to wipe it clean away.

"You seem troubled," Mikoto's voice broke through her thoughts, soft and reassuring. "Come, ease your mind."

Her hand found Shien's, and her soothing warmth helped ease the tempest that was her rising anxiety. The turbulent waves of her sea slowly calmed until naught was left but a mirror-calm.

Her eyes clenched tighter shut. She could picture a soft green mist dancing about the surface, just barely kissing the water before darting away. Soft ripples followed it along its path until it began to form the petals of a delicate flower, pulsating and moving with life.

Five petals and a leaf. A gentle green light, tickling her skin and sending little ripples of warmth across her face and arms.

A barely-there smile graced her face. How ironic, and yet how fitting.

"I can feel your serenity," Mikoto whispered. "Good. You seem at peace."

She slightly inclined her head, trying not to lose the image.

"Raise your hand with me, now," the older woman instructed.

She did just that, slowly raising their intertwined hands until they were above their heads.

"Give me a pulse of chakra."

Hesitantly, she let out the tiniest pulse into her palm. It was quickly overwhelmed by a burst of Mikoto's, fire eating away at the water with a startling shock that nearly toppled her over, nearly casting away her mind's center.

She tried to re-center herself, but it took a few moments of deep breathing before she was sitting at the center of the ocean again.

Mikoto shook her head - she could feel the air moving beside her. "Not enough. Give me a little more."

Swallowing, she sent out a stronger pulse, feeling it intermingling with Mikoto's hotter chakra. It momentarily sent a shock into her system like before, but pleasantly this time, as if holding a warm cup of tea.

She heard the mother take a breath - a soft, sharp inhale of surprise. "Your energy… you truly are a healer-type, are you not?"

"Yes," she whispered. "I've been trained in the arts since I was a child."

Mikoto let out a hum of approval, a sound that sent new warmth into her chest. "Perfect. You are perfect for my son, Hayashi-san."

Slowly, Mikoto lowered their hands, and as soon as they rested on the bench again, she let go.

As Shien opened her eyes, the early evening light harsh against her eyes, she turned to quizzically look at her.

"What happens next?" She questioned.

Mikoto had a soft smile on her face as she folded her hands into her lap once more. "Can you feel the faint pulsing of my chakra in your hands still?"

She raised her hands to stare at them. She could still feel a faint, tingling thrum of the matriarch's fire, a lingering reminder of their bond.

She lowered her hands and looked again to her aged face.

"Just as I've familiarized myself with yours, you've familiarized yourself with mine," she explained. "The Uchiha has done this for decades, nay, centuries, as a part of the engagement duel. Not only does it ensure you and your intended will be in sync, but also that you will have already secured a bond for the actual wedding ceremony."

"An emotional bond isn't enough?" She questioned with a tilt of her head.

Mikoto chortled, shaking her head. "Not quite, I'm afraid. I'm sure you know of our clan's curse by now. A curse caused by our hearts, by our passionate, enduring loyalty to others. A chakra bond will help ease the pain of the curse, as well as keep the two of you intertwined emotionally and physically."

She could see that the young woman didn't quite understand, so she tried again. "Much like the bond a mother has with her child after birth, as their chakras are intimately known to each other, so will your chakra be intimately known by your husband, and vice versa. This bond has not only kept divorce rates low, but it has proven to keep happiness constant throughout the marriage."

Shien slowly nodded. "I see… so it's necessary for us to proceed."

The matriarch smiled kindly once more, patting her knee. "I know it's a lot to take in, but I know you can do it. The ritual isn't even really about fighting at all - really, it's more of a dance. A dance to prove to the elders that you are both truly in sync, and that your love is sure."

"But how is it going to work with Sasuke and I?" She questioned, gesturing to herself. "I mean, Uchihas don't really marry outside of their own chakra natures, right? And… and we're practically polar opposites."

Here, the woman frowned, cupping her chin. "That does prove to be a problem. It's true, between the marriages between Uchiha and the marriages of an Uchiha and another chakra nature, the ones between fire natures tend to last longer due to their similarities. But that also has its problems - namely, the curse. Any offspring from that marriage is more likely to end up an orphan to be raised by someone else in the clan, rather than if a fire nature married another. For example, water."

At the pinkette's distressed expression, she sighed. "Don't worry, Hayashi-san. As his mother, I only want what's best for Sasuke. I wouldn't have chosen you if I knew there was a chance that his curse would kill him far before his natural time."

"But that's not the biggest problem," she desperately wanted to say as she stared into her future in-law's kind eyes. "I'm not worried about me sending him to his death… but rather…!"

Instead of verbalizing it, she swallowed it down and shook her head. With a forced cheery smile, she asked, "Well, what about the dance? What should I expect, as someone with a different nature from his?"

Mikoto's face brightened and she winked. "Well, maybe I shouldn't tell you everything… but since I really like you, I'll let you in on a little secret."

Shien nodded eagerly and leaned in.

Mikoto leaned in as well, and whispered, "You have an advantage in being a water-nature."

When she pulled away, she laughed at the girl's confusion. "Think about it: water douses fire, right?"

When she nodded, she continued, "You have the upper hand in that water techniques are more powerful than fire. There is balance in all things: fire is easily defeated against wind, and water also has the upper hand against it. So does fire against earth, water against earth, wind against water, and earth against wind."

"What about lightning?" She asked.

"Lightning begets fire itself. All fire users began from lightning chakra. As such, they're not only even, but they also build off of one another in combat." She shrugged. "Pureblooded lightning users are very rare nowadays, however. Sasuke does have a lightning affinity, which is rare in this region, but that has no match against your water."

"So the trick is not to accidentally usurp him…" she guessed.

"But rather to try and find balance," Mikoto finished with a nod. "Sasuke will have to try and match you in sheer power alone. Anything, given enough power, can dominate even their weaknesses."

Shien nodded, interested. "I see…"

"And that concludes what you have to know about the duel," she finished. Then she brightened, grasping the younger woman's hands. "Would you like to see your wedding gown?"

"Yes!" The rosette breathed with an excited smile. "You have it ready?"

"It was originally your predecessor's, but with some readjustments it should fit you perfectly," she explained as she pulled her up from the bench and towards the castle.


"Here it is," she proudly said as she pulled off the silk from the mannequin.

Shien's breath faltered as she beheld the beautiful dress. Crisp white fabric gathered in just the right places, a tulip-shaped skirt that fell in layers to the ground. A tiny belt of black, fastened with a pin in the shape of the Uchiha crest, at the center - and as Mikoto turned the mannequin around, she could see a larger version of the fan square in the back.

"It's… so beautiful," she breathed. She hesitated to touch it, afraid that she would soil it, but the older woman gently took her hand and guided it to the sleeve. The moment she touched it, she marveled at how soft it was and wondered how it would feel as she wore it.

Mikoto smiled softly as she studied the dress. "You like it?"

"I love it," she replied, turning with wide eyes. "And you… you made this?"

"For centuries, the matriarch of the clan has been tasked with making a replica of our clan's mother's wedding garments. The art has been passed down, from mother to daughter, or in some cases, aunt to daughter, for centuries. It is an honor to continue this tradition with you, Shien."

For several moments, her breath caught in her throat. Emotion welled up in her eyes as tears as she suddenly tugged the aging woman to her body in a tight hug.

Mikoto's eyes widened in surprise at the sudden affection, but after several seconds of silence, her eyes softened and she hugged back just as tightly.

Neither of them spoke for some time. Shien's heart was hammering in her chest and she didn't trust her voice not to quiver, nor did she trust her tears not to spill down her cheeks.

Mikoto closed her eyes, smiling against her hair as she cradled the back of her head in her weathered hands.

Finally, Shien felt as if she could speak. "Thank you," she quietly said, only loud enough for her to hear. "For everything."

"Anything for the daughter I never had," the mother replied with just as much kindness.

Her tone alone made her bow her head, gripping her shoulders tighter as her own began to shake.