Less than a week later, the new revivals were brought into the village by the person Tsunade had sent to retrieve them and bring them home from Kirigakure and considering who they were Tsunade made the decision to place the two brought back shinobi with Team Seven.
"Brats you home" Tsunade entered the shared house with the revivals on her heels, she got no answer, making her grumble because she should have known those brats would be out at this particular time.
Making it harder on her because now she had to go searching for them and they'd gotten into the habit of masking their chakra, "Lady Tsunade" Minato Namikaze inquired when her eyes widened in realization.
She shook her head however but led them back out of the house and down the streets "What would they be in there for, I thought the Uchiha Clan had been killed off" Sakumo Hatake frowned when they came upon the mostly abandoned compound.
Tsunade snorted "It's where they train most of the time and the only reason I know their here is because of those bloody cloud shinobi that are attached to their hips right now" Tsunade scowled pushing open the gates.
A loud explosion immediately filled their ears "Are they using a sound-proofing seal" Minato raised a brow curious since they hadn't heard anything until they had stepped into the empty compound, it was very likely with his son if he was honest.
Even if he didn't know where the boy would have learned fuinjutsu "Probably Minato, try not to be to shocked and be careful about how you reveal the news to blonde brat, he won't take it well and his teammates are quite well protective over him" Tsunade scoffed.
Knowing that each of the brats were equally protective over each other it went three ways and could frustrate the best of them "Is my boy Kakashi really their sensei though" Sakumo asked just to be sure because he couldn't imagine his straight laced Kakashi being a Jonin sensei.
"Yes, unfortunately you'll have to wait to see him as he's investigating the cause of these spontaneous revivals, which could take him several months" Tsunade nodded, imparting the rest with a wince.
Because Kakashi had been extremely reluctant to leave his students for that long but his skills were crucial to the mission, moments later they came upon the training field that was used consistently by Team Seven.
Far off she could see Naruto on the back of a horse that was galloping full speed around a hand made track specifically for the horse probably, Sakura stood on it's back shooting arrows with deadly precision at targets and Sasuke sparring against a clone of his, sharingan blazing in his eyes.
Minato felt like his eyes were about to pop out of their eye sockets in shock, then he noticed the two Cloud Shinobi who were leaned lazily against posts and watching the trio train as if it was an everyday occurrence.
"Don't underestimate them Minato, Sakumo, their brats, but vicious, especially the girl" Tsunade felt the need to warn the two men as they cautiously started across the field and their approach was immediately noticed by Darui.
Who turned and nodded at them briefly, Sakura must have been watching Darui or something because she signaled for Naruto to slow the horse down and hopped gracefully to the ground once it came to a full stop.
Before meandering over with a smile "Shishou what brings you here….." Sakura began only to trail off as she noticed the two with her, her eyes went wide and shot over to Naruto, then back again before narrowing as she made the connection between the two blue eyed blondes.
Tsunade snorted at her "Brat meet your new house guests, Minato Namikaze, Sakumo Hatake" the busty blonde gestured to Minato and Sakumo, introducing them without skipping a beat, though she wasn't holy surprised Sakura had caught on so fast to Minato's connection to Naruto.
Naruto and Sasuke inched their way over at that "Hatake like Kakashi Hatake or of no relation and just coincidence" Sasuke narrowed his eyes on the silver haired man who looked somewhat like his sensei but wanting to make sure he wasn't wrong.
Sakumo dipped his head in acknowledgement "Kakashi's my son, won't it be a surprise for him when he comes home and finds me living with his students" Sakumo chuckled, amused at the surliness coming from the boy.
Minato forced a smile on his face when Naruto simply stared at him suspiciously "Please take care of us" Minato requested politely, sensing that now was not the right time to reveal who he was related to, his son might not accept it.
"Of course, Sakura-chan wouldn't let us be anything but perfect hosts after all" Naruto teased with a grin in the next moment aiming his elbow at her side only to be neatly dodged, frustrated blue met glittering emerald before the two were off.
Sasuke on their heels, eager to get in a better spar as Naruto made a hand sign and created a clone after Sakura not that it lasted very long as Sakura simply punched it, while ducking under the weapon that Sasuke threw at her.
"Right you know the way to the house and I'm sure their training won't be to much longer so here's where I leave to get back to work and don't forget brat in three days will be our first training session with you as my official apprentice" Tsunade yelled at the brat.
Just as she obliterated the ground causing her teammates to jump back further to avoid getting stuck in the hole she'd just made, Sakura gave her a wave and with that she was gone "Is this normal for them" Minato winced when Naruto got hit.
And he flew back several meters, the ground cracking when he impacted with it "We're use to it, but yes it's normal, the names Darui, your the Fourth Hokage aren't you, I heard you died a long time ago" Darui gave him a lazy wave.
Launching into a small interrogation of sorts, Minato simply nodded having no words to give, the other cloud shinobi wasn't as disillusioned however "Naruto, he's yours isn't he, Cee" Cee asked nonchalantly but only got another nod.
"If you think that's strange, listen to this, Kakashi's my son, and I'm Sakumo Hatake" Sakumo chimed in, paying attention to the genin who seemed to be coming to an end of their spar as they all flopped down, sweating profusely and covered in cuts and bruises.
They probably even had broken bones thanks to the lone girl who jumped up a second later and started healing her teammates before herself sporting a satisfied smile "What's that look for" Darui chuckled when the trio neared.
Kuri following after them slowly, taking her sweet ole time since she stopped every few seconds to nibble on some overgrown grass, Sakura's smile widened "I'm getting better, my chakra reserves have grown, I can heal for longer periods of time and I can heal fractures" Sakura said.
Proud of herself obviously due to all the hard work she'd been putting in lately with that the lot of them started heading for the exit of the compound Sakura just chattering away to Darui "Attached to the hip indeed" Minato muttered to himself.
Just a little suspicious over the Cloud Shinobi's presence in the village even though he'd been told they had an unbreakable alliance that had been going strong for almost ten years now, even his son was yacking away to the blonde Kumo-nin, Cee he'd called himself.
Sasuke however was the silent one a typical Uchiha to his relief as they got back to the house "We should get them set up on Kakashi's floor" Sasuke grunted once they were inside, still frustrated over the fact that he had no one to teach him how to wield his sharingan.
"Grumpy much, better be careful Sasuke or your face will freeze that way" Sakura snickered still having plenty of energy as she dodged away from the playful shove at her teasing, Sasuke rolled his eyes at her before cracking a small smile.
Then she turned to their guests "But Sasuke made a point, if you'll follow me please I'll show you the way to Kakashi-sensei's floor" Sakura smiled pleasantly at the duo before heading up the stairs them on her heels.
Until they reached a little hatch and a step ladder came down for their use and soon they were on the third floor "This is all Kakashi-kun's" Sakumo whistled in appreciative awe and Sakura smiled softly in response.
A wistful expression on her face obviously missing her sensei "Sakura about Naruto, I won't try and deny that he's my son and that you already picked up on that fact, how would you suggest going about telling him" Minato rubbed his hands together a little nervous.
Emerald irises focused on him "I'm sure Naruto's already noticed some similarities himself and is suspicious, so I would try to take it slow, if you tell him to fast he'd just hide away probably" Sakura grimaced.
Proving Tsunade right, Naruto didn't deal well with things he didn't understand apparently, Sakumo was just about to say something when a knock sounded throughout the house "Sakura-chan its for you" Naruto called up to her a moment later.
Sakura shook her head lightly in amusement "Go on Sakura, we'll be fine to get settled on our own" Sakumo shooed the young girl off as she vanished down the step stairs, only to be very surprised at her visitor, or visitors.
"Nidaime-sama, Shodaime-sama, Father" Sakura greeted, a little shocked at the last person standing outside the house, but the former two she hadn't seen in almost three weeks so she wondered what had brought them there randomly.
Tobirama tipped his head to her in greeting "Well we saw your Father here walking along with a horse and when we asked he told us that you requested another horse to be a companion to the other one you have so we thought you might need some help making room for him" Hashirama chattered.
Her eyes lit up in response "Thank you for offering Shodaime-sama and it's good to see you both again and welcome home Father" Sakura smiled brightly, facing her Father who gave her a kind look in return.
Before gesturing to the horse behind him "His name is Hiraishin coincidentally, only the best stallion for my daughter and should you be of the mind for it, quite the breeder" Juhi informed, a little amused that of all times now his daughter got interested in horses.
As she went up to Hiraishin who was a coal black the opposite of Kuri, dark colored irises but it was the strange pattern on his side in the shape of a lightning bolt in white that had her fascinated "By the way you can just call us by our names" Tobirama grumbled.
The girl was irritatingly polite "Oh of course if that's what you want Tobirama-sama" Sakura beamed at him in response still polite but a little less stiff on calling them by their titles now thank the kami.
Just then they were joined outside by Naruto and Sasuke "That the new horse, can we name him this time since you got to name Kuri" Sasuke huffed at her, Sakura sent them an apologetic smile indicating that the horse had already been named.
Their Feudal Lord shook his head with a chuckle "Hiraishin is his name boys, he's in your hands now so take care of him" Juhi nodded at his daughter then headed for the house next door to be with his pregnant wife and son after a long couple of weeks.
"Come on we'll show you the backyard" Naruto grinned while Sakura led Hiraishin by his reins to the gate that led into their huge backyard, Kuri was already in her stall but she started whinnying in excitement upon seeing the new horse.
Perking right up "I see your Father brought you the horse you requested" Darui poked his head out the back door trying to figure out why Kuri was making so much noise, only to notice the new horse that was grazing on some grass away from Sakura's garden.
She tended that thing meticulously "Mhm his names Hiraishin Darui-kun" Sakura informed cuddling into his side when he came to stand next to her as Hashirama made another stall and expanded the stable to comfortably fit the new horse.
"You should send some clones Naruto to get him what he needs, we already have an extra saddle, rein and bits, the grooming stuff we can use on him to, he just needs his own feeding and watering troughs" Sasuke suggested.
Once Hiraishin was all settled in and the two horses were checking each other out essentially, Naruto did as requested and sent a few clones off with a list even to get other things like more food, and hopefully something Hiraishin would enjoy as a snack, like Kuri had sweet chestnuts.
Hashirama and Tobirama watched Sakura out of the corner of their eyes as she rubbed the horses necks until they'd settled before glancing to them and bowing "Thank you Hashirama-sama and again it's nice seeing you" Sakura really was to sweet.
Though she could be equally as frightening "We'll have to join you for dinner sometime if that's alright" Hashirama suggested, eyeing Darui since he was Sakura's betrothed, Darui shrugged at their request indicating he didn't care what they did really.
"Ah there you are" Sakumo poked his head out the backdoor having wondered where everyone was until that moment, though his eyes widened a little bit upon seeing the backyard, filled with training equipment and other odds and ends.
Like a massive garden, a shed off in the corner probably stored with weapons and the like, and a double barn with two horses inside of it "We were just getting Hiraishin in here all settled in to his new home" Naruto pointed his thumb at the black horse.
"On that note we'll be going" Tobirama declared, leaving with his brother in tow, they'd already gotten permission to come eat dinner so there was no need to stick around longer, Sakumo watched them go before glancing to the kids.
Who didn't move so he stepped out into the backyard himself, Minato on his heels "I hadn't realized you had just a huge backyard" Minato commented, very surprised indeed, it seemed the genin of Team Seven had themselves sorted out properly.
Behind him Cee snorted "The only reason their living in this house is because Darui chose it for them" Cee explained, Darui rolled his eyes in response but was interrupted as the clones Naruto had sent off came back.
And with a small water jutsu the water trough for Hiraishin was filled, as was the feeding trough while the rest was put away, only then did Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura head back in to the house others on their heels.
It was awhile later near dinner time that Ino returned from whatever missions she'd been on with her team "Whoa uh who are these guys" Ino froze seeing the two unknown men in the house and not liking it one bit that she hadn't been warned.
"Our new house guests Ino-chan, sorry we weren't able to tell you, since you were off doing missions" Naruto apologized wishing they had been able to tell the blonde, Ino thankfully relaxed and dropped onto the couch next to him with an exhausted sigh.
Rubbing her calf muscles as she did so "Here ointment to take away the soreness in your muscles, this is the good kind, made by Sakura" Sasuke passed over a petri dish that Ino took gratefully and smeared liberally on her aching muscles until the pain had faded mostly.
Fifteen minutes later they were all called in to eat "Eat up, some of these vegetables came straight from the garden" Sakura grinned proud of herself for growing a good crop of veggies, having a green thumb apparently.
So they all dug in "I swear every time I turn around Sakura you change the way you cook" Sasuke groaned in the next moment as the flavors burst on his tongue and he had a hard time simply not inhaling his food like an Inuzuka would it was that good.
Sakura giggled behind her sleeve, she'd been doing that a lot since the tea party he realized, he even caught Ino doing it sometimes "My Aunt Mebuki taught me so of course" Sakura sniffed, nose in the air.
Before the three of them cracked up laughing at her ridiculous antics "Aunt, what about your parents Sakura" Minato frowned, seeing as Tsunade hadn't told them hardly anything about Sakura so he wondered if she was an orphan just like Sasuke was.
"They live next door, but from the time that I was six up to about three or four months ago I lived with my Aunt and Uncle, did Tsunade-shishou not tell you…oh well, err…my Father's the Daimyo of Fire Country, surprise" Sakura frowned then smiled awkwardly.
When Minato froze fork midway to his mouth, Sakumo in a similar predicament, Darui realized what was coming when the latter of the two men opened his mouth "What are you even doing as a shinobi, you should be in the Capital learning how to lead this country" Sakumo scolded.
Darui sighed as did Sakura, Cee wanted to hit something when Sakura lost her appetite and pushed her plate away, followed by simply leaving the table, Darui on her heels "Great you just had to hit her sore point" Cee rubbed his temples feeling a migraine coming on.
"Excuse me for having valid concerns over the fact that she might be incompetent in leading this country when its time for her to take over" Sakumo frowned just trying to make the young princess see that being a shinobi wasn't a life for one so sheltered.
Cee shook his head "Juhi-sama and Madam Sayuri released her from the position, not that she would have ever led being second in line of course, with her youngest siblings who have yet to be born being considered should anything happen to Musubime-san" the blonde explained.
Sakumo opened his mouth then shut it with a wince "How is it she wanted to be a shinobi in the first place" Minato questioned, having had the same concerns as Sakumo only to find they weren't necessary, Sakura was pretty much integrated into shinobi life.
"Darui, she wanted to learn how to protect the person most important to her, hence the reason she took up the shinobi mantle and even should anything happen and Sakura have to lead, she wouldn't be incompetent in any capacity" Cee nodded towards the living room.
Adding the last bit because he knew it was true, Sakura had been taught everything about being this country's princess, meanwhile "Come on Sakura don't let this get you" Darui whispered soothingly to his sulking betrothed.
Who had her arms crossed over her chest until she heaved a long suffering sigh "I just wish people would stop judging me by what I am, rather than my merits, I'm a good shinobi Darui-kun and it's so frustrating some people can't look past my princess pedigree" Sakura frowned.
On the verge of crying, the one thing Darui hated more than anything "I know, I know" Darui soothed, trying to prevent tears at all costs so he pulled one of his moves on her and kissed her forehead again.
Until she was blushing like mad "Geez at least warn me before you do that" Sakura pouted, face red like an apple but thankfully the urge to cry had faded which had been Darui's intent probably as he smirked lazily at her.
"What and give you time to dodge, don't think so Sakura, now lets go back in there and finish eating alright" Darui stood smoothly, Sakura huffed at him but with her appetite back she was all to happy to eat the rest of her dinner.
Naruto and Sasuke let out inaudible sighs of relief when she rejoined them at the table "Sakura are you blushing" Ino saw the red tint to her friends cheeks and couldn't help but wonder at what had happened between the engaged couple.
Sakura blushed harder in response "Darui-kun just teasing me like usual is all Ino-chan" Sakura explained simply not going into details because she doubted telling them that he'd kissed her forehead would go over well with Sakumo or Minato.
Eventually all the food had been eaten and everyone returned to the living room for some downtime, reading or playing games in the case of Naruto and Sasuke before they all headed up the stairs to get some shut eye for the night.
Three days later the day Sakura was to officially start her training as Tsunade's apprentice, she woke up feeling extremely crappy with the mood of a temperamental dragon "Can you argue somewhere else" Sakura snapped when Naruto and Sasuke's argument got to loud.
Both boys froze hands in the air because they certainly didn't want to be snapped at again "Are you alright Sakura-chan" Ino inquired warily, never having seen Sakura be so well grumpy or snappy to anyone.
Even Darui wasn't exempt when he attempted to cuddle her and Sakura decided she didn't want to be touched, it hit her just then, so she grabbed Sakura by the hand and drug her up the stairs despite the girl protesting every step of the way.
"Sheesh I wonder whats gotten in to her" Darui rubbed his face with a heavy hand, though he did find it mildly amusing that she could be as grumpy as a dragon sometimes, though it was first time it had ever been directed at him.
Upstairs "Ino the hell I have breakfast to make" Sakura growled, abdomen hurting like someone was taking a hot knife and stabbing her over and over again in the same spot, making her cranky as all hell.
Ino winced "You hurt here right, well congrats Sakura you just started your first menstruation ever, it comes with cramps that hurt like a bitch, bleeding from your vagina, and mood swings, lucky for you I have supplies until you can get your own" Ino explained quickly.
Lest she get hit and Sakura wouldn't hold back "Joy, today's going to be a massive pain what with having a training session with Shishou and having my birthday all at the same time" Sakura curled her lip in frustration.
Prompting another wince from Ino though this one was of sympathy "Don't worry, this medicine here will help relieve you of any cramps for, my Mom made it for me and it's especially strong without any lethargic after effects and happy thirteenth Sakura" Ino smiled.
Handing over a small bag of pills and Sakura popped one in her mouth right there and felt her abdomen muscles relaxing "Sorry for snapping and thanks" Sakura apologized once she could think a little more rationally without pain clouding her mind.
Only to be waved off "Nah nothing to worry about Sakura-chan, by the way those boys can cook since you did last night, it is your birthday after all" Ino snickered as they headed back downstairs to find Naruto and Sasuke doing just that.
Darui eyed her a little warily though and Sakura realized she had even subjected Darui to her temper "I'm sorry, I was just a little extra moody a bit ago" she cuddled into his side like he'd wanted earlier to express her apology properly.
His gaze softened while he curled an arm around her shoulders tucking her closer now that she was allowing him to touch her again not quite catching on to what she meant apparently, Cee however wasn't stupid.
As his eyes widened in horror "You know I think I just realized there's somewhere I have to be this morning, if you'll excuse me" Cee beat a hasty retreat from the house intent on staying away the next few days until what was wrong with Sakura was over and done with.
"The hell was that all about, I was coming in here to tell everyone that breakfast was ready only to see Cee running like mad out of the house" Naruto asked, scratching in his head in confusion over the mans sudden departure.
Ino and Sakura shared an amused look with one another but didn't give him an answer as the rest of them headed into the kitchen to eat "By the way Happy Thirteenth Sakura" Sasuke greeted, glad to see her in a much better mood than half an hour ago.
Passing over a little gift as he did so "It's your birthday" Sakumo inquired when Naruto, Ino and Darui put little gifts in front of the girl as well and Sakura nodded with a small smile, not opening the presents just yet.
Since she didn't really have the time "Yeah, my thirteenth and if you find Cee-san, tell him he doesn't have to worry about anything and that he can come back to the house" Sakura snickered to Darui's amusement.
Though he did wonder what she was talking about and immediately after they got done eating breakfast Tsunade stormed into the house "Okay Sakura time for training" Tsunade barked, grabbing the girl by her shirt collar and dragging her off for training.
When she returned nearly two hours later at ten she looked like death warmed over, clutching her abdomen as it had started hurting again twenty minutes earlier "Sakura-chan" Naruto stared at his teammate in horror.
But Sakura shook her head "Just need a bath Naruto, it's mostly my clothes that are in bad shape" the pinkette soothed as she disappeared up the stairs to take a bath and have another one of those pills Ino had given her that morning.
To prevent being as moody as she was earlier that morning then when she was dressed in non-tattered clothing she went back down stairs "These just came for you via messenger bird" Darui gestured to the pile of presents at the low living room table.
Sakura grimaced but started opening the gifts one by one, a couple of them were betrothal proposals that she sighed at, ninety percent of the rest was expensive jewelry and the remaining ten percent were from those girls who she'd had a tea party with.
Hiretsuna sent her a pretty dagger made out of diamond with an emerald encrusted sheath and arm harness for whenever she wore long sleeves, Kirin sent her fashionable foot wear, in off white, calf length open toed boots.
Chikyu's gift was a little less usable as a shinobi, being a simply hairpin, Kokurui sent her dark pink gloves and Mizumi surprised her by sending a unique curved kunai from Kirigakure, then she opened the gifts from her friends.
Sasuke and Naruto got her books, while Ino had made her a medical pouch out of some dark colored material, Cee gifted her with herbs from Kumo and Darui's gift was her favorite, a beautiful pure white kimono with pink cherry blossoms as its pattern.
"For you to wear when it's time for the coming of age parade" Darui admitted, having only thought the kimono would be perfect for Sakura during that particular milestone of her life, Sakura blushed and looked to her feet.
And then it hit him the reason for her moodiness that morning and Cee's retreat, Sakura gave him a sheepish smile when his eyes widened in horror "Looks like we're going to have to have that sooner rather than later huh Sakura" Darui grimaced.
His betrothed shuffled her feet without looking up at him but nodded "I'll mention it to my Mother when I go over later after my shift at the hospital" Sakura said, forcing herself to look Darui in the eyes.
Telling him about having her menstruation wasn't all that embarrassing if she thought about it "Right but for now rest up, you had a hard training session with Lady Tsunade and you deserve to enjoy your birthday" Darui settled her against his side.
The two older men eyed him disapprovingly but there wasn't really anything they could say since neither of them were Sakura's Father, two hours later after lunch Sakura was gone from the house again "Quite the busybody isn't she" Sakumo cleared his throat.
No one in the house could disagree with that "She's not coming back for dinner is she" Minato commented when the time ticked down to the dinner hour and Sakura still hadn't returned from wherever she'd gone after lunch.
Sasuke and Naruto shook their heads "Because her Mother and Father live next door, they requested ahead of time Sakura have dinner with them" Sasuke explained, not jealous in the least that Sakura had her entire family.
"Yeah and it's not just her Mom and Dad and brother but Aunt, Uncle and two cousins, Koeda-chan and Eda-kun" Naruto added, the betrothed's of both Sakura and Musubime however had been exempt since Darui was eating with them.
Meanwhile next door Sakura had managed to maneuver her Mother away from the others "Might want to mention to Father about having that coming of age parade soon" Sakura whispered quietly not wanting to blurt out to everyone that she'd had her first menstruation.
Sayuri covered her mouth "Dear girl your growing up way to fast on us but yes that might be wise, it will keep those rather pesky suitors who don't know about your engagement to Darui from asking for your hand in marriage any longer" Sayuri sighed.
Wondering where the time had gone "There you two are" Mebuki spotted his sister in law and niece hiding in the corner a moment later, their conversation over for the most part as she dragged the two back to the dinner table.
Placing a gift in front of Sakura "Here Sakura-chan, a handmade kit for feminine needs made myself in case you get your period soon" Koeda was next as she put a neatly wrapped present in front of her cousin though she whispered that last bit into Sakura's ear.
Causing the girl to blush hotly in response, Koeda understood instantly that Sakura had gotten her period that day in fact and she couldn't help but wince in sympathy for her cousin "Mine turn Nee-chan, this is something I picked up during our travels" Eda declared loudly.
Setting his horribly wrapped gift in front of Sakura and got a hug for it, Musubime was after Eda "Found this down in the market, thought it'd be useful if you can crack the code" Musubime said, placing an unwrapped gift down before his sister it was a scroll in code.
"Excellent idea Musubime-ni this will challenge me on my intelligence in cracking codes, plus whatever is on it has to be useful, thanks" Sakura hugged her brother tightly since he was right next to her, to the adults amusement.
Kizashi presented her a new medics outfit to replace the old one that Mebuki helped pick out "We thought you'd like it" Kizashi shrugged when as per the ritual they both got hugs from their sweet little niece.
Until it was finally Juhi and Sayuri's turn "My dear princess I cannot tell you how proud of you I am to not only become a shinobi but to protect your home and country with that I gift you with this, a sword passed down through the Haruno Family generations" Juhi smiled.
Reaching under the table for the Haruno Family sword, it was one of pair the other sword had gone to Musubime "And from me my precious daughter, a new kimono to wear, hand sewn of course" Sayuri set the kimono in front of her daughter.
As she looked over the Haruno Family sword with awe though she thanked them equally with hugs and then as soon as dinner was over and had been devoured it was back to her own house with all the gifts she'd been given.
Immediately Sayuri pinned her emerald orbs on her husband "Pardon us but Juhi and I need to talk" then she pulled Juhi up and up the stairs to their glorious bedroom "Sakura has come of age we need to speak with Raiun about that parade" Sayuri informed.
Juhi looked shocked "You mean she's come of an age already how did that happen, how did you find out" Juhi frowned having hoped for a little more time before his daughter became a woman but it seemed the kami liked to throw curve-balls at him.
Sayuri nodded sagely in answer "Then it shall be done my dear, Darui and Sakura will have their parade" Juhi sighed after a moment, kissing his wife on the cheek before heading for his home office to write the letter to Raiun.
Meanwhile upon Sakura's return she was also writing out perfectly neat thank you letters for everyone who had sent her gifts it was a tedious task "How do they look" Sakura asked Darui when she was finished, hand hurting for it.
Darui looked over the elegant swoops and swirls that was her handwriting "Perfect, you can send them off tomorrow Sakura" Darui nodded in acceptance, before he ushered Sakura up the stairs after Ino and the boys to get some rest.
A week later Leaf got another important visitor "Sakura I swear to all kami known to man you have to tell me when I'm going to get random Daimyo from other countries in my office" Tsunade snarled at her after cornering the girl one afternoon when she had the day off from training.
She'd been simply going around with Darui, making it harder on her to find the girl since both had been masking their chakra "Huh…oops sorry, hehehe is it Raiun-sama, yeah he's probably here to speak with my Father" Sakura blinked only to remember what had happened last week.
Thankfully it had only lasted three days and next time she'd be better prepared for it "It's Raiun, Ay is here as well so the both of you are needed, I'll go inform Juhi-sama you just go on to my office" Tsunade sighed.
Nudging the duo off "Brat, Darui, getting that parade finally huh" Ay greeted with a snort, Samui and Atsui behind him while Raiun the Daimyo of Lightning was stood right next to him, eyeing Fire Country's Princess with an unreadable look.
"Hard to believe that you've grown up from the three year old I remember, this is our first meeting since then isn't it Sakura Haruno" Raiun stepped forward, holding out his hand, Sakura took it with a little curtsy.
Before answering his question "Yes it is Raiun-sama and yes finally Raikage-sama" Sakura nodded, speaking to both males then stepped back to stand at her betrothed's side as Juhi made his appearance in the office.
Sayuri on his heels and they were all ushered into a large meeting room down the hall alongside Tsunade "Lets say we have this parade in a few days and have it last for a single day" Tsunade suggested after a long drawn out silence.
On how long the parade should last, the Daimyo of Fire and his wife shared a look "Might be for the best, we don't want to take our hime away from her shinobi duties for to long after all" Sayuri agreed with the older woman a moment later.
"Now on to other matters, how should we announce them, what sort of music, should there be a feast as well" Raiun inquired, wanting to move the planning process along since they didn't have such a long time to prepare what they needed.
Sakura and Darui shared a long suffering look with one another "A small feast" Sakura added her own input to the planning process because it was her parade mostly, Juhi eyed her in understanding because a large feast would just be to troublesome in the words of a Nara.
"As for music lets go with soft, like flutes and wind-chimes or such" Darui chimed in himself not wanting uproarious music, it was just suppose to be a simply announcement of his betrothal to Sakura who had come of age at long last.
Those suggestions were quickly scribbled down and the meeting lasted clear to dinner "Just have to get the horse and cart and the parade will be all ready to go in a couple of days" Juhi declared, ending the meeting.
"Go on I'll speak with you tomorrow Darui, bring Cee with you" Ay waved his shinobi off and Darui hurried after Sakura the both of them looking like they'd had the life sucked out of them over this whole planning business.
Their wedding would probably be worse if he was thinking about it, in the time he'd made it to the hotel escorts on his heels Darui and Sakura had made it to the shared house "There you two are its past dinner time" Sakumo frowned.
Wondering what had taken them "Are you two alright, I notice you seem a little tired" Minato commented seeing the lifeless expressions as the duo slumped onto a couch to sit and rest for a few minutes.
Before answering "Ever planned a parade, probably a good thing cause their like hell" Darui snorted lightly when Minato shook his head, understanding dawning on him in the next moment as he remembered a week ago.
And he couldn't help but eye Sakura "Its my coming of age/our betrothal announcement parade, thankfully I will be able to avoid having anymore parades for a long while after this one" Sakura grimaced, truly despising being in the spotlight.
Shinobi were supposed to fight in the shadows and in a couple of days nearly every eye in the village would be on her and Darui "Betrothal" Sakumo gaped, looking between Darui and Sakura in horror.
Though he had sort of guessed something was going on between the young princess and the Cloud Shinobi "Was this something your parents set up Sakura, surely with being fully integrated as a shinobi you don't need to honor such a contract anymore right" Minato frowned.
Darui sat up at that "Technically Sakura was the one who requested the contract and while she has the power to call it off, I'd like to at least say she won't because I know her pretty well" Darui admitted.
Hoping that nothing happened "Of course I won't Darui-kun" Sakura smiled up at him sweetly until her stomach rumbled, prompting his to grumble in hunger as well so they headed in to the kitchen to eat what was left of dinner.
Two days later after a chat with Ay who gave Darui and Cee a choice to become dual citizens between Konoha and Kumo, Darui woke up the morning of the parade still indecisive only to get a kimono thrown at him.
It was embroidered with his country's symbol "Don't lag Darui, Madam Sayuri is waiting" Cee informed, having already made up his mind on the whole matter, Darui grimaced but grabbed the kimono and vanished into the downstairs bathroom to change.
Sayuri was indeed waiting for him "Go find Juhi and Raiun, I'll bring Sakura along in a bit" the woman commanded easily as she marched up the stairs to her daughters bedroom to find Sakura already awake but struggling to deal with her hair.
"Mother help" Sakura pouted looking pitiful and the girl had yet to even put on her kimono so Sayuri took pity on her daughter by pulling back the heavy pink tresses and pinning it in place, the headpiece signaling her status as princess was placed on her head next.
Along with the crest necklace, followed by the kimono that Darui had gotten Sakura for her birthday "Perfect you look beautiful my darling" Sayuri smiled pointing to the mirror and Sakura let out a gasp due to how she looked.
Her eyes even watered a little bit before they were wiped with an embroidered handkerchief "I'm ready" Sakura declared after a moment, drawing herself up confidently, back straight as a board and hands folded neatly into her sleeves as she glided after her mother gracefully.
Naruto, Sasuke and Ino all felt like the wind had been knocked out of them when she trailed gracefully past them "That's the first time I've ever seen her in full princess mode" Sasuke shook his head to regather his bearings after that shock.
"Mhm me to Sasuke but wow I can't believe Sakura-chan has to wear such heavy looking things on her head and neck I mean did you see the size of that necklace" Naruto whistled as they hurried after Sakura to watch the parade.
Ino nodded silently in answer "Yeah but we should be quiet now I think Haruno-sama and the other guy next to him are about to announce Sakura-chan and Darui" Ino shushed the two boys on either side of her.
When Juhi stepped forward and cleared his throat "Everyone today signifies a very important event, my daughter, Sakura has come of an age at long last, everyone your princess" Juhi announced stepping out of the way.
His daughter took center stage by giving the prettiest bow she could in her kimono "And introducing her betrothed, Darui from the Land of Lightning a Shinobi of the highest caliber in Kumogakure" Raiun introduced.
Darui steeled his nerves and took his place next to Sakura feeling a little uncomfortable with all those eyes on him and if he was a little uncomfortable then Sakura had to be massively uncomfortable but he did his duty by giving an equally as low bow before the gathered.
Cheers erupted from the crowd "All hail Princess Sakura and her betrothed" the masses chanted a mass majority of the chanting coming from shinobi of the village since she was one of them which amused him and made him feel a little better about the whole ordeal.
"We will now commence with the parade before ending this day off with a feast amongst family and friends that my daughter invited personally at Yakiniku Q" Juhi informed, watching as Darui helped Sakura into the carriage, pulled by Kuri and Hiraishin before settling in next to her.
Starting the parade that went all around the village before they came to a stop before the aforementioned restaurant "Th..Thank you for inviting my team S..Sakura-chan" Hinata stuttered once they had all sat in one of the private party rooms that could fit probably fifty people.
Sakura still in her kimono, headpiece and necklace bowed her head "Your one of my best friends Hinata-chan so of course, and your team is like family so where you go, they follow am I right" the rosette giggled softly.
Hiding her mouth behind her sleeve, counting down the minutes until she could end this and go back to being plain ole shinobi Sakura instead of princess Sakura "Still who would have thought you were a princess this entire time" Kiba stabbed a piece of meat with some chopsticks.
Before realizing he was being rude "I mean not that it's a bad thing, I just never guessed you were pretty good at hiding your true self but we're glad to have you" the Inuzuka heir rushed out, making the girls laugh at him.
Though Sakura got the gist of it until finally the feast ended "Thank god" Sakura breathed out once they were back home and she had stripped herself out of the kimono and put it in her armoire to probably never wear again but once in a blue moon.
Minato and Sakumo shook their heads still not sure what to think but Darui who'd been thinking about the choice given to him yesterday all day while the parade was going on knocked on Sakura's bedroom door.
Only to find Cee in there "I thought you might come here, Sakura, Darui and I have something important to tell you" Cee said getting the ball rolling essentially, Sakura who was looking pretty tired until that moment straightened giving them her full attention.
Darui swallowed thickly "Boss gave us the choice of becoming dual citizens/shinobi between Leaf and Cloud, I was thinking about it all day and I think I made my choice, but I want to hear what you think about it first" Darui explained.
They both should have known however that the news would excite her "Really that's great isn't it Darui-kun, Cee-san, as long as its what you two truly want I mean but I would be happy to have you here and I bet you could get a house nearby and..." Sakura slapped a hand over her mouth.
To stop herself from rambling on any longer, cheeks burning hot in embarrassment because it wasn't up to her but up to them "Ease up there Sakura, I already made my decision, I'm going the dual citizen/shinobi route" Cee declared.
The day just full of surprises apparently "And I have chosen as well, the same as Cee, now we'll be able to spend more time together and possibly even go on missions" Darui chuckled, especially when she threw herself at him.
Hugging him tight before the exhaustion caught up with her again, he was equally as exhausted as he and Cee headed back down the stairs and pulled out the couches to lay down on and go to sleep like the rest of the house already had.