A/N: You all get a very pleasant surprise today... featuring more careless disregard of canon.
The rest of the day was spent with Naruto and Sasuke talking out the latter's feelings.
Naruto had encouraged him to speak to Shien about it, and Sasuke was too nervous. He knew that she knew she was marrying him, and he was worried that she had grown to hate him for confiding in his parents.
In Naruto's words, all he had to do was 'man up and tell her how you feel' before he smacked the prince upside the head.
All night they spent planning what Sasuke would do. Since the next night would be the full moon, he arranged to have a few candles lit on the pedestals in the garden around the bench. The little river that ran beside it was to have little petals on its surface.
He wrote out what he would say and had Naruto help him go over it. He rehearsed it again and again until he was more confident.
The next night, they set their plan into action.
Shien went to the garden at midnight, where Naruto had told her to meet him. She was concerned, as he'd never asked her to do anything past eleven.
She crept into the open air and sucked in a confused breath when she saw Sasuke waiting for her among lit candles.
"Sasuke?" She whispered, creeping closer. "What are you doing out here? Did Naruto...?"
"He helped," he awkwardly started, holding out his hand. "Can we talk?"
"Aren't we doing that now?" She joked, forcing her nervousness down as she took his warm, pale hand and allowed him to lead her to the bench. They both sat down among the flickering candles, watching the sky above glittering with stars.
"Listen, um, before you get the wrong idea," he sighed, "I didn't know that my parents were gonna act the way they did."
"Oh, no, it's fine." She shook her head. "I'm not offended. Honestly, I'm kinda glad it's you."
He nodded slowly, looking like he was processing it. "So..."
"So..." she echoed, folding her hands in her lap. The simple pale-green gown was the same one she'd arrived in, as she didn't want to go out in just her nightgown.
He bit his lip, sparing her a glance. She was gazing at the little river going around the corner of the wall, its gentle current reflecting the moonlight beautifully.
Finally, he blurted out, "Shien, I'm in love with you."
She was slow to react. But when she did, she looked up at him with a nod. "I'm well aware."
"But do you- do you feel the same way?" He asked. "I can never truly tell what you feel. You're an enigma."
"I..." she swallowed hard before continuing, "I... I have fallen in love with you."
"So you don't have a problem with the betrothal?" He searched her eyes, almost worriedly. There were so many different emotions flashing through his coal-black eyes. Fear. Curiosity. Adoration.
"Nothing would make me happier than marrying you, out of anyone," she responded with a kind smile. She reached out to take his hand, gingerly ghosting her fingers across his bony knuckles. "You're the only one in the world that I could ever want."
A light shiver went up his spine from her touch, a pleasant warmth on his cold hands. He blushed, gazing over at her with half-lidded eyes.
She was beautiful in the moonlight, her petal-pink hair framing her face just so. The soft locks fell down her back like water, and it brought out her bright emerald-green eyes. Her lips, pale pink, were curled in a smile at him.
He reached out to cup her cheek, his eyes fluttering shut as he leaned toward her.
"This is a dream... this has to be a dream..." Her heart pounded in her chest as he leaned in. "He's really doing it... I'm gonna have my first kiss...!"
She swallowed once more before leaning in, her own eyes squeezing shut as their lips touched. Feather-light, hardly even ghosting against each other's.
It was gentle, careful, both parties unsure of how to go forward. She doubted he'd kissed very many people before, and she could say the same of herself.
Gingerly, she tilted her head a little and rested her hands on his knees, moving her mouth against his.
His face was on fire. He'd never kissed a woman before, and this was totally new territory. He could just envision his mother's slightly-disappointed face watching him kiss his betrothed before the wedding, but at this point he didn't care.
"To hell with tradition," he decided as he brought her closer to deepen the kiss.
His tongue flicked against her lips, and when she parted them he slithered it inside, awkwardly moving it around her mouth. "... is this something you do during a kiss? Am I doing this right?"
She caught on and melded her tongue to his, the digits twirling in some kind of dance.
It was only after her eyes fluttered open and she caught his midnight irises that they both pulled away, faces red, stammering apologies to one another.
"I- I didn't mean to ruin the mood-"
"You were just so beautiful, that I had to-"
"I felt like someone was staring at me-"
"A- and I've never kissed a woman before, so-"
"-I'm sorry!" Both of them finished at the same time, faces burning red.
Once they'd finished rambling, they sat there, panting slightly for breath.
She caught her composure quickly, glancing over to see him touch his bottom lip with the tips of his pointer and middle fingers.
He realized that she was looking at him and he looked over, giving her a shy smile.
It sent her heart aflutter, and she didn't even have to fake the beaming expression that she returned. "It never gets old to see that expression."
"Do you wanna do it again?" She asked. "If this is just a beautiful dream, I want to make the most of it before I have to wake."
"Just kiss me." He replied quickly, leaning in for another. "I've waited far too long for this moment, and nothing is going to ruin it."
Their mouths melded together once more, her hands going to thread her fingers in his soft black hair.
He wrapped his arms about her, resting one hand on the curve of her back and the other on the back of her head, slowly feeling the strands of hair beneath his palm.
After a few seconds of feverish lip-locking, they both pulled away, faces alight in the afterglow.
"I've never done that before," he admitted.
"Me neither," she replied with a giggle. "That was kinda fun."
He stroked her cheek with his thumb, an adoring smile on his face. "I'm... just so happy that you accepted."
"I've been in love with you for weeks now," she confessed with a short laugh. "I was worried that I was reading the signs wrong."
"I was worried that I was turning you off," he replied, chuckling. "Naruto rightfully pointed out that I kinda... really suck at showing it."
They sat there together, thigh-to-thigh, Shien's head resting on his shoulder. His arm was around her shoulders, bringing her in.
After a few minutes of golden silence, filled only by the chirping crickets and the occasional breeze rustling through the leaves, Sasuke broke it. His heart beat faster than usual, a mild nervous sweat forming on his brow as he licked his lips and opened his mouth.
"Do you believe in reincarnation, Shien?" He asked, turning to look her in the face.
She thought about it for a few moments, humming in thought. "I've never really had a reason to, so I guess... not?"
She looked up at him. "Why do you ask?"
He frowned at the ground for a second before getting up and extending a hand. "There's something I need to show you."
She took his hand and allowed him to hoist her up before following him out of the garden. "Where to?"
"The tapestry room." He answered simply. "Tell me, Shien, have you ever heard the story of my family's most powerful patriarch and the woman he loved?"
She shook her head. Such a story had been alluded to a few times in her youth, but she'd never heard the actual tale.
"There exists a tale among my family, of our patriarch's long-lost wife." He said as they went. "She was the strongest and most beautiful woman in her land, and Madara quickly fell in love with her. It's said that she was the only one who could convince him to call off the feud with Senju Hashirama."
"So why didn't she?" Shien asked.
"She never got the chance," Sasuke replied. "They were secretly married a year before his little brother's death, and when she found out about his fury, she went to the childhood friends to try and reconcile them. She was too late, and when they tried to finish the battle with one attack, she jumped in the middle and took the blow for herself."
"Oh, no..." Shien covered her mouth in shock.
"She died in his arms, begging him to make up with Hashirama." Sasuke snorted. "It's safe to say that he didn't listen."
"And he swore revenge?" She wondered aloud. The tale sounded quite familiar, now that she thought about it.
"Yes." Sasuke nodded his head. "He managed to take out a large swath of the Senju in his counterattack. Tobirama, though he was the catalyst, supported his older brother and instructed the people of the village to give him strength. Unfortunately for him, not even his Wood Release was strong enough to contend with Madara's fire. He was so outmatched that he was forced to rely on his powers too much, and they ended up killing him before Madara could even get the final blow. Even still, Madara swore revenge against their clan for destroying his family… and for killing his wife."
At the weirdly sad look on Sasuke's face, she understood what he was going to say next.
"And he succeeded in the end," she hummed quietly. "How horrific."
He nodded, turning a corner. "It's lauded as a story of star-crossed lovers. I can't count on both hands the amount of times Mother told it to us as a bedtime story when we were growing up."
"It's... vaguely romantic? I guess?" She scrunched up her nose. "But wait, then how are you directly related to him?"
"They had a child before they died, one that was sent away to live with an Uchiha of high standing," he explained. "That child was my great-great-great-grandfather. He continued the line until you get to me."
"And your family believes that you're his reincarnate," she flatly said.
"Do you not believe?" He raised an eyebrow at her. "Through everything that goes on in the world: people being healed from bisection, poison strong enough to kill a sage, this is the one thing you call fake?"
"I'm not calling it fake, but it sounds... really improbable," she argued weakly as they entered the tapestry room.
He shook his head. "These are unparalleled times, Shien. Nothing can be impossible now."
The ominous tone of his voice sent a shiver down her spine. Shien looked at him warily, trying to gauge the strange glimmer in his gaze.
"Here it is." Sasuke pointed out a floor-length one.
A long tapestry depicting several different scenes hung from the wall, depicting a noir-haired man and a rosy-haired woman of great beauty. Her kind green-eyes could be felt even though they were lifeless... and the mint-green diamond upon her pale white brow certainly reminded Shien of a certain someone.
Shien stared at the tapestry, at the woman. They looked so much alike, it was kind of creeping her out.
"A tale of love and woe is that of Madara and Emi," he recited, gazing up into the face of his ancestor. "They say that I'm his reincarnation, and that I will be the one to carry his legacy and bring the land of Fire into a golden age of prosperity and peace."
"Who is the woman?" She asked, leaning against his side.
"That's Fujiyama Emi, the woman who was said to be love in human form," he said. Then he snorted. "Too cheesy, if you ask me. Only her husband would call her that."
"She certainly is... beautiful," she breathed.
"She was so beautiful - and so strong - that my ancestor fell in love within days," he recalled with a frown. "Perhaps you are her reincarnation."
"What, just because I share her face?" She snorted. "Impossible."
"It's not impossible," he reminded. "I've inherited his powers."
"Yeah, but that doesn't prove anything. Just because you got his powers doesn't mean I'm a reincarnation of her ." She pointed out.
"Your chakra feels different , somehow." He diverted. "I've no doubt that if I brought you to a chakra sensor that they would agree that your chakra feels as minty as a healer's chakra is green. Only Emi's chakra felt as fresh as mint, as the history books claim."
"So I've been told," she agreed with a hum. "Reincarnated, huh? That feels... weird."
"You and I are destined to be together," he softly said, threading his fingers in hers. "We keep finding each other through history."
"We do," she nodded.
He smiled at her, taking her other hand. "You don't need to worry. I'll protect you with my life. Nobody is tearing us apart. Not this time."
"Thank you, that's very sweet." She pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek. "Wanna walk back to our rooms? It's getting late."
"Yes, we definitely should." He nodded, his cheeks growing warm at the kiss.
The two of them exited the tapestry room, hand-in-hand, quietly discussing the upcoming wedding as they headed to their rooms.
Unbeknownst to the two teenagers, a hidden man watched them with a crimson eye.
A cruel smile curled across his lips. "Hmmm... Fujiyama Emi, huh... I can definitely see it."
Her chakra felt fresh as mint, and if he focused he could see a familiar diamond-shaped bundle of chakra centered on her forehead, just waiting to make its appearance. "Well well well... and what do we have here? A disciple of that wretched Hashirama's granddaughter?"
"Once she gains the seal, she will gain the power," he mused to himself. "Hopefully little Sasuke-chan will be able to do what he could not."
"Then again," he chuckled, disappearing into the shadows once more, "I could not even save her. His efforts will be fruitless. But I... I will not be so unfortunate. I will finish what you began."
A/N: I hope you enjoyed that kiss! Please tell me what you thought.
