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Enjoy. ^_^

…
Chapter Six.
...

Sakura stood on the balcony of her room, horrified, as the procession carrying Gaara's imminent fiancée crawled up the main street, making its way toward the palace. The banner held the Oto royal emblem and the sight of the gold and black colour scheme made it all feel so much more real. Her heart raced as she rubbed her clammy hands together, trying to pull her eyes away, to no avail.

This was Gaara's problem the night before. This was why he pulled away from her. But as much as Sakura might admire another man for being honourable about not sleeping with another while promised to another, she couldn't help but hate Gaara for clinging to this sense of duty.

His idea of honour could go fuck itself.

As much as it pained her to admit, she wanted to kick his arse only slightly less than she want sleep with him. Even if only once, she wanted him. Needed him. Gods, she'd break every law in this country and her own to make it happen. And therein lay her own problem: her emotions. She was so easy to string along, it was disgusting. And for her own sakes, she needed to let him go.

She ignored the knock on her door and forgot about it as she kept vigilance over the procession down in the streets. The sounds of the people celebrating was muffled noise in the background. Servants of the Oto royal court had arrived moments before, in the palace, to help prepare for their princess's stay.

Stay.

Sakura snorted at that thought. As though this was some long weekend celebration and the woman would be going back to her real home when it was over. She sighed, forcing herself out of her self-pity and shook her head, trying to shake these thoughts from her head. She started suddenly when a hand touched her shoulder gently; Ino had let herself into Sakura's room and shuffled up behind the pinkette.

She'd been working on the new rooms as well, and leant closer to Sakura, conspiratorially. "Wanna know what I found out from the handmaidens?"

Sakura sniffed.

"Lord Gaara's never met her," Ino said. "And some biddies are saying that she has been fighting this arrangement tooth and nail. Rumours from Lady Karin's own handmaidens is that they don't think she'll even go through with this."

This was little comfort to Sakura, who was imagining all manner of scenario where she was forced to live as a kept woman in a tower, to a man who had no use for her, and became a spinster and the laughing stock of the Suna noble ladies. It was a depressing scene. She let out a loud sigh.

I need to get out of here.

She had no claim to him. She had no right to be jealous. She hadn't known him long enough to have this strong a desire for him. He wasn't hers.

Ino handed a handkerchief to Sakura as she lost control of her tears.

"I'm so pathetic."

"You fell for someone who was out of your reach," Ino said. "I did that too."

Sakura turned to face her, as Ino stepped up next to her, glaring at Lady Karin's carriage. "Who was he?"

"A fire noble named Sasuke Uchiha."

"Naruto's friend."

Ino's smile was twisted. "Yes. A beautiful man. Grumpy. Standoffish. Made all the girls want to 'save' him from his emo self."

Sakura chuckled, despite herself. "Naruto did say Gaara and Sasuke were alike."

"I see the resemblance. In personality," Ino added, when the pinkette's eyebrows rose in disbelief. "They're both attractive of course, but in different ways. It's hard to explain. But… Sasuke has this allure to him that makes you want to take care of him."

"You sound like you still love him."

"Perhaps I do."

Sakura turned in time to watch the procession disappear. They were now in front of the palace and would soon disappear into the receiving hall.

"Maybe… you and I." She sighed. "We could leave here together."

Ino snorted. "Oh," she said, when Sakura frowned. "You're serious."

Sakura froze at the sound of a horn blaring in the distance.

"Wait!" Ino called after her as Sakura took off, throwing her door open and not bothering to close it behind her. Ino did it for her, quickly, then ran after the pinkette. It was soon clear where Sakura was headed when the blonde caught up with her, ducking her head as she found herself among nobles with their noses in the air the moment they saw her.

Ino stuck close behind Sakura, making it look like she'd been ordered to follow here, struggling to control her own emotions at what was about to happen. The pinkette was her friend, regardless of the difference in their current social status. And Ino was nothing if not fiercely loyal to the few people she could stand to be around.

She hated that Sakura was going through this. And it hit very close to home from her own experience. Arranged marriages and political duty were the death of love. And somehow, she doubted either Gaara or Sakura would be the type to use each other once he took his vows.

Ino risked a look up without raising her head too much.

They were on a balcony, overlooking the throne room. By protocol, all arriving noble guests greeted the king here before retiring to their room. And there was no way that Lady Karin would be exempt from that. Ino glanced at the sorrowful look on Sakura's face when she saw that Gaara and his siblings stood by the king and queen on the throne dais. The pinkette swallowed heavily at the sight of him, decked out in royal attire, far more proper and lavish than the usual, fine silks he wore.

It really drove home how important his position was.

Hushed whispers from those gathered preceded Karin's arrival; the double doors opened dramatically to reveal a large man practically dragging a woman behind him. The Oto emblem and ostentatious wardrobe left no doubt who either of them were.

"The honourable King Zōsui and Lady Karin," a servant just inside the room announced, bowing.

Karin was beautiful; a redhead like Gaara, her skin was naturally pale. Her footsteps were uncoordinated as her father pulled her along, but Sakura imagined she normally walked as regally as the people in the balcony she herself was currently surrounded by. There was something about the way people held themselves when they'd been raised in high society their whole lives.

Sakura couldn't look at Gaara again, her eyes transfixed on the sour face of Lady Karin and remembering the rumours Ino had heard that she didn't want this engagement. The situation was horrifying for her too and hope blossomed in the cherry blossom's heart.

The royals put on airs and greeted each other, but Sakura's eyes were glued to Karin. She was struggling with some sort of internal battle, clenching her fists, pulling faces, and the moment her father finally let go of her wrist, Karin stepped backward, turned and fled from the room with all the dignity she could muster.

Immediately, everyone started whispering and King Rasa looked enraged as he started in on this Oto king; Karin's father looked just as angry. The formal atmosphere broke and the twittering nobles openly gaped at the situation. If this had been someone else's life, Sakura might have laughed at how ridiculous they were all being. She struggled not to smile.

And behind her, Ino was fighting her own grin. It would not do to reveal how Karin's public disrespect of the king and his family made her happy. She was happy this was turning out this way, and not just for Sakura's sake. Arranged marriages were the devil.

Ino glanced down at Gaara who looked unruffled, wondering if he was glad of this too. From Sakura's description of his actions the night before, he'd be more than happy to replace Karin with someone else.

With Sakura, she thought wickedly. If she could do anything to help with that, she would. But for now, she remained quiet as the king didn't seem to be slowing down in his rage at Lord Zōsui about respect and laws and dishonour, her mind whirring with ideas.

Sakura inhaled deeply, controlling her emotions as she contemplated what this might mean.

A moment later, her eyes drifted and green met jade, and the rest of the world disappeared around them.

...

King Rasa did not have a bulky kind of muscle, but nor was his body reedy or lanky; his imposing nature came from his arrogance, stubbornness, abrasiveness, and the fact that he towered most people. Even those who were taller than him. His reputation cautioned the same care that one would expect of a legendary warrior—and he was a great warrior. As he paced in front of his youngest son and wife, he reminded them of that reputation by delivering cutting insults and admonishing them about the obligations they'd all agreed to in order to make this arranged marriage with Oto happen. And what would happen if they failed.

They needed this trade partner if Wind was to survive. Short of Fire, Oto had the best farming land and didn't hate them enough to attack them. For now.

Rasa glared at Gaara as though this was all his fault. "I don't care if her father has to drag her down that aisle, you're getting married. The Oto region is not involved in this war right now and when winter comes, we will need their support."

Or they would die. If they had a hope of salvaging their economic problems, they needed to expand into other lands, and there was no better way to do that than through treaties and marriage. It was all about strategy.

Why am I surprised? Gaara thought.

His father was a brilliant strategist, and this was hardly an odd occurrence; Kankuro's marriage was a loveless, arranged affair, which explained his other affairs. It was just the way things were.

Gaara tuned him out, staring out the window as his mother flipped through the latest wedding catalogue because she knew he didn't have any interest in planning this charade of an event.

He could see the training grounds from this window—but not the balcony one. Naruto and that bastard Kakashi were training Sakura down there. It was clear even from this distance who was whom. He watched her form as she struck toward Kakashi and felt immense pride as the copy ninja didn't evade the blow, regardless of the fact that he guarded well against her strength.

She was incredible, despite her inexperience. She was the epitome of a warrior woman and it pained him to know she'd been born in a backwater region, where she couldn't receive the training she deserved.

"Gaara, dear?" His mother asked gently. "Would you favour a waist coat or chángpáo for the reception?"

An image of Sakura in her cheongsam the night he'd worn a chángpáo to dinner popped into his head.

"Waist coat."

Anything that reminded him of the one he really wanted would not do. The cheongsam and chángpáo would be relegated to the back of his mind just as they sat, ignored, in their respective closets. He continued to watch the cherry blossom, torturing himself even though he'd decided to keep his eyes off of her from now on.

And as the sun began to set and Rasa was finally done lecturing Gaara on what was expected of him—as though afraid Karin's stubbornness was contagious—the three fighters began to wind down. Gaara watched as they chatted and laughed and packed the weapons away. That blonde maid appeared and escorted Sakura out of Gaara's sight. Kakashi and Naruto remained to talk for a moment before going their separate ways as well.

It hit Gaara hard then, like a stabbing wound to the stomach, and he held an arm over his midsection instinctively.

Sakura deserves better than what I've done to her.

Come tomorrow, he was going to give her the green light to stop those ridiculous tutoring sessions and start training alongside her kin in the Wind army. He needed her out of his sight and mind and somewhere where she could thrive.

Kankuro is right.

Gaara was trying to turn Sakura into a proper Wind noble in that vain hope that he could claim her. It had happened unconsciously at first, but now he was doing it on purpose—he didn't have such designs the moment he saw her in her village. It was just an admiration of her beauty on top of the shock of this warrior he'd acknowledged had innate skill, was a woman. But the more he watched her and heard about her through those that deigned to spend time with her, the more he realised she was everything he'd avoided over the years—the kind of woman he did want to share his bed and his heart.

One who was easy to respect because she had a mind of her own, goals of her own, and shared his desire for the battlefield. He could only imagine how provocative and riveting life with someone like that would be.

Gaara didn't get to know her more personally because there was one glaring problem.

She would never be a noble. She would never be like Karin or any of the simpering ladies of court. And while that didn't bother him in the slightest, it created a barrier between them in the eyes of society and duty. In his father's eyes, she would never be worthy of him, and Gaara had to accept it. He would accept it. Even as it tore his heart into pieces and shattered what hopes and dreams, he might have entertained.

...

A week later found Sakura dressed up again, but for a reason she'd actually been looking forward to.

All week she'd been training with her kin, the warriors from her village, and had caught up with her friends amidst tears and hugs. She had no idea what had changed Gaara's mind, but she was grateful. They told her how Gaara had honoured part of her original challenge from that day in their village. He didn't need to do it, but he'd had their friends and families settled into better land (an arrangement with the free cities) where they could begin to farm and start a better life.

He'd done this, despite the fact that he'd beaten her in their challenge. And her father was doing very well.

Why didn't he tell me? She'd thought, tearing up.

Maybe he wanted to maintain a sense of superiority or pomp. Or maybe he'd felt guilty because he had taken advantage of her ignorance in that duel. But either way, what damage would it have done to him to let her know? She was moved by this show of respect, but also annoyed that he'd let her fear for her people in further ignorance.

"Ready, my lady?"

Sakura giggled, taking Naruto's offered arm and pretending to be prim and proper as he led her out of the palace, a grin on his face. The guards watched them pass through the checkpoints but said nothing. Everyone knew the blond best friend of Gaara had taken the pink haired savage girl under his wing. And everyone knew she was training with their soldiers now. The difference in the level of respect for those in the court between the respect for soldiers was startling. But her position was unique, as she had been given official command of what was being nicknamed (apparently fondly) by the regular Wind soldiers as Regiment Riffraff.

She sighed, pushing that out of her head. Today was about the markets and hopefully finding a weapon of her own among the vendors. It was too expensive for her to go straight to the blacksmiths, so a premade sword would have to do. She'd always dreamed of having one custom made, but that could wait.

When they made it to the markets, Sakura let Naruto lead the way, as he'd clearly been down here before. The vendors waved to him and he grinned and greeted them. They took the time to try some free samples before moving on to the arms district of the markets and Naruto introduced her to the best source of high-quality weapons in the whole city.

Buki Masutā Emporium.

Excited and almost as bubbly as Naruto, Sakura perused the wares with vigour. She'd never seen so many weapons in her life! She had to check the labels to figure out what a lot of them were; there were spears, battle axes, great swords, bows, scimitars, crossbows, flails, halberds, batons, daggers, and numerous more. She felt like a kid in a candy store. But because she'd only ever trained in swords, she reluctantly pulled her eyes away from all the other weapons and hovered over the one-handed sword displays. Each and every one was beautifully crafted, and it made Sakura realise she wasn't going to be able to afford any of them.

Yet.

She frowned as the proprietor scurried over to them and Naruto engaged him in conversation like an old friend. But one of the swords did stand out more than the others, to her. It was Wind designed but had a size and shape similar to the one she'd been trained on back home. There were additions of gold inlay on the hilt and symbols carved on the steel itself—meaning it was perfect for chakra wielders—but she could see herself easily adapting to what differences there were.

"Would you like to feel it's balance, milady?" the proprietor asked.

Despite her lack of funds, Sakura nodded her head. And she was right. It felt powerful and light in her hands, the weight and feel reminiscent of what she was used to. The storekeeper prattled on about this particular item, selling its beauty and versatility as well as its craftsmanship. It had been forged by the best blacksmith in the city. A renown Wind craftsman that was unmatched by all others. Apparently. But, giving the sword a few practise swings, she could definitely believe the hype.

"Don't you want it?" Naruto asked as she handed it back to the proprietor, who looked disappointed at her.

"I'll have to save up for it."

"But Gaara gives you money, yeah?"

"Not enough."

She received a stipend from Gaara, which was the defining part of what made her a kept woman, but it was not a lavish amount. Probably because he didn't have permission from the king to dig into the coffers of the royal vault. But it was more money than she'd ever had in her life, and the amount didn't bother her.

"I could—"

"I don't want to rob you, Naruto."

He looked sheepish. "I feel like I'm just parading things in front of you that you can't have, then."

"I'll have to save up," she insisted. "But I'm grateful to see what I'll be getting."

He nodded, then bowed and apologised to the storekeeper before leading her out. "You'll have the best sword in the city by the time you challenge Gaara and kick his arse!"

Sakura giggled. She'd forgotten about that. But since he'd returned and she was still training, she'd assumed it was off the cards. Gaara certainly wouldn't take her seriously if she challenged him right now. No matter how far she'd come and how confident both Naruto and Kakashi had become in her skills, she still needed more time. If she challenged him now, Gaara would still win. But maybe it wasn't completely out of the question to happen, one day. It was a good goal to have, despite everything else.

"Yeah," she agreed. "Until then I'll just have to keep training."

"Yeah!" Naruto threw a fist in the air, making her laugh. "Where to now, my lady?"

They ambled back to the food market and took lunch at Naruto's favourite ramen stand before heading to the clothing vendors; the blond was so bored as Sakura picked out a cheongsam that was basically a cherry blossom version of the one she'd worn to that dinner months ago, that he almost fell asleep against the stall. She remembered that night sadly as she laughed at the blond but couldn't help but buy the dress.

Just in case.

With her dress wrapped up and Naruto now wide awake, he complained about being hungry. Again. Before they could take a step further, a young female voice caught Sakura's ear and she turned her head toward her instinctively.

"She's beautiful and ma says that's all you need to be a Wind princess."

Someone nearby was discussing Gaara's fiancée. Sakura stilled, tilting her head again, but Naruto urged her forward.

"Don't torture yourself," he said, and she reluctantly kept walking.

Until this reminder, Karin had been out of her mind for hours; Sakura took to avoiding her in the castle, not wanting a reminder of the person that she felt was stealing Gaara (though she knew it wasn't true). But rumours abound and there was no way of avoiding it. Sakura was a masochist and so let Ino tell her everything that was spreading like wildfire among the servants.

Karin made Naruto seem mature. She wasn't handling this in a lady like manner, lashing out at everyone; and her demeanour got worse as her father left her to return home, taking all their servants with him and leaving it to Wind servants to keep an eye on her. She was alone in the palace. Among people that either hated her or didn't care that she was being held against her will.

Sakura swallowed heavily and pushed down that surge of sympathy, forcing herself to focus on the fruit stall in front of her.

Naruto picked up a piece of fruit Sakura didn't recognise (must be a Wind delicacy) and tasted it, talking around his mouthful. "Mm. This is good."

"And it's also ten ryō," the vendor said gruffly, and blushing at the reminder of his candour, Naruto fished the money out of his wallet, and handed it over to the man.

When they were finally done—and Naruto's appetite was satiated—Sakura insisted they return to the palace. They parted at the entrance, Naruto claiming he was supposed to meet up with Gaara soon anyway, and she gave him a grimace goodbye instead of a smile, at the reminder of the redhead.

It had been a great day, and Sakura was riding high as she took her usual route past the gardens, but then stopped suddenly at the sound of someone sobbing. She looked around, trying to find the source, and it took her a few minutes, as the person in question was hunched between the chrysanthemum beds on the north wall, which was more like a hedge.

Karin.

Instinct made her take a step backwards in revulsion but Sakura's natural tendency toward sympathy took over and before she knew it, she was striding over to her and crouching down next to the sobbing woman.

Karin started at the feel of Sakura's hand on her arm but then surprisingly relaxed at the sight of her.

"Sorry," Sakura said. "I'm Sakura."

Karin nodded but said nothing. She obviously didn't know who she really was.

"Are you okay? Can I help you with something?" The pinkette pushed.

Maybe it was because she'd asked so nicely or perhaps because she just hadn't heard a single nice word from anyone since arriving here, but Sakura's question opened up a new flood of tears from the beautiful woman. She grabbed the pinkette's arm and pushed her face into Sakura's shoulder.

Sakura felt so bad for ignoring her and hating her on principle. Here was someone who was suffering, and all Sakura had been thinking about was herself. She wrapped an arm around her in a half hug, squeezing her shoulders tightly in a show of solidarity.

Karin settled down long enough to let out a long sniff, like she was trying to breathe through water instead of air. "I don't want this," she said, and Sakura stiffened in the redhead's arms. Karin didn't seem to either notice or care, continuing. "I can't marry that beast. I'd rather die. I was supposed to be with…"

She broke off, realising she'd said too much.

"You're in love with someone else," Sakura said. She didn't need to ask.

Karin nodded, seeming to relax. After a few minutes, she pulled away, muttered, "thank-you" then curtsied and walked away.

Sakura was speechless.

She quickly retreated to her room, where Ino was waiting, pretending to be disappointed in Sakura that she'd returned later than she'd promised, and told the blonde what happened.

Ino smirked. What an interesting turn of events.

…

XXX

...

AN: In canon, we only know about Karin's mother. I took her father's name in this story from the leader of Kusagakure – where Karin's mother had moved them to, before her death in canon. It won't impact anything in this story, but Karin's mother still came from Kusagakure, but had moved to Oto where she became queen. She's also deceased here. And just like his canon inspiration, this Zōsui is also an unfeeling bastard.

Unnecessary backstory explanation but I wanted to share that.

R&R

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