Undercover Feudal Princess Chapter 23, a naruto fanfic

On their only day off that Tsunade had given them, Sakura went across the street to visit Darui and make a request of him "Will you help me refine my skills with Nuibari" Sakura requested of her betrothed.

Emerald orbs displaying her determination to him "Alright but we're going to that compound to do it" Darui relented slightly reluctantly because he'd never sparred with Sakura, he was extremely hesitant to do so actually.

Sakura gripped her Nuibari tightly as she and Darui made the walk to the empty Uchiha Compound until they stood facing one another "I ask that you don't take it easy on me" the rosette pleaded wanting to know her limits with the weapon.

Darui wanted to groan "You know sometimes I wish I could tell you no" Darui dragged a hand down his face but readied himself by pulling his own weapon from his back and unfolding it, Sakura gave him a sheepish smile.

But it was clear she had no intention of holding back against him either for she lunged in the next moment pointy tip of Nuibari coming at him, he swung his cleaver knocking it nearly out of her hands "Ahh" Sakura gave a little startled shriek.

Then maintained a proper grip on her weapon as she used chakra to make her next swing faster in order for it to be harder to dodge "Not bad but your widening your stance to much" Darui informed kindly.

Helping her as she wanted, Sakura changed the width of her stance, readjusted her grip on Nuibari to give her more range and came after him again just a little faster than the previous two times and what was worse was that she was actively trying to bring him down.

What with throwing a shuriken at him and he nearly tripped over the wire attached to her weapon "Hehehe almost got you there Darui-kun" Sakura giggled prompting his lips to quirk up into a smile at her amusement.

Partway through their training Minato came to find them, the Prince of Fire on his heels and Musubime's own betrothed Hiretsuna who must have come for another visit and he signaled to them that the spar was almost done.

Case and point Sakura got a good jab in with Nuibari and made a long thin scratch on his arm tearing his sleeve "Crap" Darui cursed realizing his mistake in taking his eyes off of Sakura who had seen his distraction.

It signaled the end of their training session "Oops sorry Darui-kun" Sakura apologized as she hooked Nuibari on her back and came forward with glowing green hands to heal the injury she'd caused him "Bring your shirt by later I'll sew it up for you okay" she requested.

Before turning to her brother and future sister in law "Sakura-chan" Hiretsuna pounced instantly tackling the younger girl in a hug, Sakura smiled radiantly at her in return and gave her a hug back as well that was almost equal in intensity to Mebuki Haruno's hugs.

"Imouto, boy do I have a surprise for you, tomorrow Hiretsuna and I are your mission clients, we'll be going to her country for a small celebration of sorts that I was invited to as her betrothed" Musubime greeted.

Patiently waiting for the news to be processed by his sister who once she'd understood lit up like a beacon and threw herself at him with an excited squeal "How on earth did Kakashi get stuck with such weird children" Minato sighed.

And it didn't help that one of them was his own son even Naruto was an oddball "Let me tell you it wasn't easy in the beginning, Sakura was near tears over what he was doing to her" Darui commented from next to him.

Eyeing his shirt in a small manner of amusement "Right they told me a little bit about that, was Kakashi really trying to keep her out of all fighting" Minato glanced to the dual Konoha/Kumo-nin wanting to get some questions answered.

While Sakura was busy with Musubime and Hiretsuna "Yes and she was furious about it every step of the way, if I recall, it was their first mission outside the village that had Kakashi re-evaluating the entire matter" Darui nodded.

Minato sighed again and pinched the bridge of his nose trying not to get to frustrated "So how did them all living together come about" Minato questioned next having found it odd for an entire team to share a house with one another not that it didn't happen he supposed it was just strange.

Darui chuckled "Sakura, she cares for them like brothers, saw their loneliness going home to an empty house/apartment and wanted to give them someone they could say I'm home to, Kakashi joined them later on after they'd been living together for awhile" Darui explained.

"Quite the self-sacrificing girl isn't she, completely shatters what one expects of nobility by forcefully carving her own path that others strive to follow her on" Minato said, watching Sakura poke Musubime and dash away.

Older brother on her heels, Hiretsuna rolling her eyes at their antics "Indeed, she makes people truly think, it's to bad she won't ever have to lead, I honestly think she'd have made an excellent ruler of this country no offense to Musubime of course" Darui admitted.

Though he wasn't complaining that he still got to be with her in spite of that "Right, one more thing were you aware of her acquaintanceship with the rogue Zabuza Momochi" Minato asked, it having bothered him when they'd met the rogue yesterday.

Earning a snort "Sakura never hides things from me so yes I knew, but you don't have to worry, he's basically reformed after meeting her what with her having healed him when he was at deaths door and he rescued Hiretsuna there from bandits that kidnapped her" Darui informed.

Nodding at Hiretsuna who was shaking her head now out of amusement mainly as the two siblings chased each other back and forth acting like the kids they were instead of a prince and princess "Joy I ask questions only to get more confused in return" Minato rubbed his temples as they throbbed.

Maybe he should just give up on trying to understand the genin under his temporary control if it was going to cost him his sanity and give him continuous migraines "Believe me I'm still trying to figure them out" Darui added.

Chuckling when Minato rubbed his forehead some more, only stopping when Sakura approached "So how are we escorting them considering we'll have to bring Hiraishin and Kuri" Sakura inquired of Minato.

Already making preparations for the next day "We'll rent a cart for the duration of the mission Sakura, just this once unless a need for it arises in future missions" Minato explained, glad that she was so serious about missions.

Sasuke and Naruto as well, it made things easier on him "Okay, come on Musubime-ni, Hiretsuna-chan lets go pick out a cart" Sakura declared facing her brother and future in law and so all three vanished from the training grounds at that.

Leaving Darui and Minato to head back to the shared house, there Minato found Asuma and the rest of Team Ten "Lucky you huh Minato, getting to have Team Ten help you escort those two nobles tomorrow, along with Team Eight and Nine, Tsunade-sama's demand" Asuma announced.

All three teams having been called into the Hokage's office "The mission is only C rank, why are four genin teams needed" Minato frowned confused over the admission because it really didn't make any sense to him.

"Team Seven's not the only ones who need to meet the mission quota in order to participate in the next Chunin Exams, plus neither Teams Eight, Nine or Ten are use to dealing with nobles, so Tsunade-sama thought it would be a good experience for them" Asuma said.

Refraining from lighting up a cigarette as he sat on the couch, Naruto and Sasuke shared a humorous look with one another poor Minato looked like he was about to tear his hair out in frustration while Ino scowled.

Obviously remembering the tea party "Keep in mind Shikamaru, Choji, noble girls with the exception of Hiretsuna and Sakura are worse than Ami Himekari on one of her good days and I don't know about noble guys seeing as I haven't met any" Ino warned.

Shikamaru frowned "Just how would you know that Ino, considering we haven't had any diplomatic missions with nobles" Shikamaru raised a brow on his teammate and Ino curled her lip, across from her Naruto bit his cheek harshly to keep from laughing.

Especially when Ino explained "Being friends with Sakura of course and I had the unfortunate displeasure of meeting four noble girls at a tea party they demanded she host, though I suppose the worst part about the whole tea party was sitting with my back as straight as a board" Ino scoffed.

Naruto lost it at that and burst out laughing "Dobe your not helping" Sasuke chimed in fighting down his own laughter and thanking the kami that he had been born a guy otherwise he would probably have had the unfortunate displeasure of participating in the tea party himself.

"I know, I know but still" Naruto laughed, clutching his stomach when he was unable to stop, Ino sighing finally calmed him down enough a few minutes later and Darui realized that Sakura needed to know about the extras going along on the mission.

So headed out the door to find her before they got a cart only big enough for them of Team Seven "Oh hey Darui-kun I was just coming to ask if you would give us your opinion on which cart we should get, Musubime, Hiretsuna and I are torn between that one and the one over there" Sakura greeted.

When he popped up behind her in a poof of smoke, Darui aimed a brief smile at her and ran a critical look over the carts "Neither seeing as more than Team Seven is going on the mission, Teams Eight, Nine and Ten are as well so you need to get a bigger one" Darui informed.

Relieved that a cart hadn't already been rented due in part to indecisiveness "That one then" Hiretsuna pointed to the horse drawn cart that had a visor to protect them from the sun and was big enough for several people to rid in the back of it.

Musubime instantly agreed "Good enough for me" the blonde prince shrugged lightly as the cart was rented for the next day and they all trekked back to the house, well he and Hiretsuna split from the other engaged duo as he greeted his parents.

While Sakura and Darui continued on into the shared house "Carts rented" Sakura announced, plopping gracefully down in between her teammates for once to Darui's slight chagrin though he did get a small kick out of their disgruntled expressions since they were forced to scoot over.

"Am I the only one confused about the reason a cart is even needed" Choji piped in, taking a break from munching on chips due to said confusion thankfully he wasn't made to wait long before he got an answer.

From Naruto surprisingly "Nobles don't walk very much in fact rarely not counting Sakura, but neither Musubime or Hiretsuna are use to strenuous exercise is the point I'm trying to make and I'm going to go pack a few feed bags for Hiraishin and Kuri" Naruto hopped up.

Once he'd finished explaining and disappeared from the living room, Asuma rubbed his chin in thought "Does that mean you know the two nobles that we're escorting tomorrow personally" Asuma asked directing the question to the remaining genin from Team Seven.

Both of whom nodded "Musubime is Sakura's brother and Hiretsuna is his betrothed" Sasuke admitted deciding that he better go pack for a slightly longer trip than the previous mission which had lasted for only three days, so he to vanished from the living room, up the stairs.

Prompting Sakura and Ino to do the same "Their a serious bunch in case you didn't realize Asuma" Minato chuckled, slightly amused at the man's dumbfounded expression, before he shuffled Shikamaru and Choji out the door so that they could prepare for the mission as well.

"How long do you suppose you lot will be gone anyway" Sakumo inquired suddenly realizing that he was going to be alone in the house, the first time since he and Minato had arrived in Leaf to be precise to his chagrin.

Light blue eyes snapped to him at the question "Approximately five days depending on how fast everyone walks, could be less than that to, considering the two nobles in question won't cause trouble for Sakura, Naruto or Sasuke" Minato shrugged.

Soon enough Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura and Ino returned from where they'd disappeared and Darui bid them farewell "I'll see you in the morning before you set off, I'm sure Cee will come see you off as well" Darui waved, heading out the door and across the street to his own house.

Cee absent as he expected since the blonde had picked up quite the workload at the hospital in Sakura's stead who wouldn't have much time during the next couple of months to work there due to all the missions that were being thrown Team Seven's way.

And the next morning all four genin teams on the mission arrived at the gates ready for their mission "Here take this, it's a new concoction I came up with if you have a chance to take a shower or bath use it to alleviate any aches or pains you feel" Cee said.

Handing over a bag with dried herbs in it to Sakura who would be walking that time wearing brand new weights, Sasuke and Naruto doing the same "Thanks Cee-san, and we'll be back before you know it Darui-kun" Sakura smiled at the two males.

Tucked the bag in her pouch and set off after the others who had already started down the path towards River Country "Dawdling already how unprofessional" Neji scoffed unimpressed with the pinkette who was their country's princess.

Since he didn't know her as well as the other genin did, unfortunately for him Sakura had a thick skin towards smart-ass comments like that "Now, now we're all on this mission together Neji-kun which means we all have to work together to complete it" Gai clapped his hands.

Reigning in his student "Yeah that's right Neji and our youthful princess caught up rather quickly displaying her youthfulness" Lee chimed in missing the weirded out looks he was getting by mainly everyone.

Next to him the lone kunoichi on Team Nine sighed "Why couldn't I have had normal teammates better yet a normal sensei would have been nice" Tenten mumbled to herself out of pure frustration as they headed down the path getting further away from Leaf as they went.

"Sheesh, this is going to be one hell of a mission isn't it Akamaru" Kiba asked of his ninken companion who yipped in agreement, the both of them on the lookout for trouble that could be headed their way.

Up ahead of Team Eight, Sakura smiled at the chatter and walked a little closer to the cart carrying her sibling and future in law "Ah Imouto…no that's not right is it, let me try again, Ah Sakura come to check on us have you" Musubime greeted with a smile.

Trying not to act to friendly since this was a mission and Sakura had to act in an official shinobi capacity this time "Exactly…the carts not to uncomfortable is it, we did try to pad it with all the pillows we could find but we weren't sure it was enough" Sakura inquired.

Grateful of her brother more in that moment than ever before "It's fine but thank you for taking the time to try and make us more comfortable Sakura" Hiretsuna spoke up next, with that the conversation ended and Sakura moved away from the cart.

Pacing alongside of Minato now "Oh w..watch ou..out there's a hole" Hinata tried to warn a couple seconds to late, wincing when a startled gasp came from within as the cart got stuck to nearly everyone's annoyance.

"The pains of using a cart" Minato grimaced, nodding at Sakura who headed over to help and a few seconds later the wheel was no longer stuck thanks to her strength so once again they were marching along undeterred.

Sasuke glanced over his shoulder at the engaged couple he was escorting but they waved him off indicating they were fine despite the little accident "If your sure" Sasuke prodded only to get another wave from the duo.

About an hour later he noticed Naruto suddenly frowning "Got a bad feeling" was all Naruto said and Sasuke realized how quiet everything seemed so he cast a look at Sakura who was already tensed in preparation.

Musubime and Hiretsuna caught on as well that something wasn't quite right about the situation just as they were attacked by a large group of bandits "Kiba, Hinata guard the mission clients, Shino use your kikaichu to pin them down" Kurenai ordered of her students.

Capturing one of the bandits in an illusion "Understood Kurenai-sensei" Shino nodded, sending out a wave of kikaichu all of which were hissing up a storm, out of the corner of his eye one of the bandits went flying past.

Via a punch from Sakura as she pulled a long needle like weapon from an unconventional sheath that was on her back "Hah take that" Sakura smirked as she tied two more bandits together with the wire of her Nuibari.

Eliciting pained whimpers from the idiots just before they were cracked over the heads by Lee and before to long every bandit had been dealt with or not as one fell out of the back of the cart "Idiot" Hiretsuna sniffed delicately behind her sleeve.

Finally having had to use her dagger "Well seems we don't have to worry as much about you two as I thought we would seeing as you know how to defend yourselves" Asuma commented, taking a drag from a cigarette and releasing the smoke away from them.

As it was Ino had a hard time not just snatching the cancer stick away from him "Of course, Sakura taught us just in case of emergencies" Musubime admitted, resettling himself on the pillows that padded the cart.

With that they started forward again hoping to get in plenty more distance before it was imperative they had to stop "By the way don't think I didn't see what you did with those bandits Sakura, what the hell is that weapon of yours anyway" Kiba whispered.

Walking apart from his teammates for the time being, eyeing the odd sheath on Sakura's back warily as he remembered watching her sew two bandits together with ninja wire "Nuibari, one of the legendary blades from Kirigakure and I used its wire to sew them together" Sakura explained.

Kiba choked on his spit at the answer "Then you were the reason we got a treaty with Kirigakure" Tenten pointed an accusing finger at her, glad she knew how it had happened since no one had bothered to explain anything to the rest of them.

"Not just Kirigakure, Kumogakure as well, cause Sakura's set to marry one of Kumo's shinobi remember" Ino chimed in making them all remember the coming of an age/betrothal announcement parade the village had had not to long ago.

Neji curled his lip in slight disdain over that "You know he's just going to end up betraying you right" Neji commented ignoring the small voice that told him it wasn't wise to piss this particular girl off.

Case and point Sakura aimed a rather vicious glare at him "So says the person who tried to kill his own cousin, I don't care if Hinata-chan says you've changed Neji but you almost killed one of my friends over your pettiness so don't talk to me about things you don't know" Sakura snipped out.

Leaking just a tiny bit of KI that had Kiba edging away from her warily "A..And for the r..record Ne..Neji-nii-san, Da..Darui-san would never be..betray Sakura-chan" Hinata stuttered, confident about that much at least.

To his irritation as others agreed with Hinata's assessment while Sakura further ignored him for the time being "So any idea as to what we'll be doing when we get to our destination" Shikamaru questioned wanting to go in with as much information as possible.

Immediately the prince of their country poked his head out of the back of the cart "Probably patrolling the grounds or such, some of you might even be asked to provide some entertainment what do you think Hiretsuna" Musubime peered at his betrothed.

Hiretsuna creased her forehead in thought "It's really up to my Mother and Father but I would love to see Sakura dance at some point" Hiretsuna giggled, having always been curious to see how far the younger girls gracefulness could get her.

Sakura rolled her eyes lightly in mock annoyance "You just want to see me suffer in another kimono" she snorted to nearly everyone's amusement including Hiretsuna who let out peals of laughter in response.

Obviously taking no offense to the accusation as they continued padding along until stomachs started gurgling in hunger "Any chance we're going to stop soon, I'm hungry" Choji complained and Minato decided that they'd made it a good distance so called for a stop.

Sasuke and Naruto helped the two nobles out of the back of the cart relieved for a quick break "Once we're on the move again want to switch places with me Sakura so that I can walk for a bit" Sasuke asked needing to get in a little exercise.

Fortunately Naruto shared the same sentiments as he did "We all have to pull our weight so it's our turn to walk and guard while you direct the cart" Naruto exclaimed not to sure about how Sakura would respond.

Thankfully their teammate was the understanding type "Lee will join you, just in case the horses get to rowdy" Gai declared not realizing that Sakura would be able to handle both horses on her own but she didn't argue merely nodded.

Surprising Minato at her complacency "Just to be sure I think Hinata should sit with Musubime-sama and Hiretsuna-san" Kurenai chimed in not wanting anymore bandits to slip through and try to attack the mission clients.

"Okay if you feel that's for the best" Hiretsuna shrugged lightly, sitting on a pillow that had been put down for her while they waited for lunch to finish cooking, Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke were in charge of meals thankfully.

And they had decided to make a delicious soup in a large pot that could feed everyone three times in just one sitting "Ever the prepared one aren't you Sakura" Shino noted, remembering the time when she'd charged after her idiotic teammates when Sand and Sound had attacked.

She shot him a brief smile in response "Of course, because you never know what your going to run into while outside the village so it's better to be prepared for everything possible" Sakura informed calling the soup and handed bowls to Musubime and Hiretsuna first.

Waited for a moment then skillfully snagged a bowl for herself and Hinata before letting everyone else have their chance to get some soup "Thanks Im…Sakura" Musubime nodded, reminding himself once again to not be so friendly.

Probably the second most frustrating thing he'd ever had to do, eventually the soup was polished off so they all packed up ready to get in some more walking "Lets go" Asuma announced, leading the way down the path this time.

Quickly so they weren't left behind Sakura snapped the reins urging Kuri and Hiraishin into a quick trot "How youthful Princess the way you handle them is like an artwork" Lee gushed suddenly seeing the ease in which she controlled the horses.

"Can you just call me Sakura please Lee-san" Sakura requested awkward about constantly being called by her title considering she was a genin just like he was, the only one who wasn't a genin was Shikamaru actually.

But like the rest of them besides Team Seven none of them had dealt with nobles, Musubime and Hiretsuna didn't count "Very well Sakura-san" Lee nodded, sensing that she wasn't to happy about being called Princess by him so easily relented to her request.

Hours later by the time it was dinner, they'd made it past the border into River Country so they stopped for the night, made camp, set up traps to protect themselves during the night, cooked dinner, ate, chatted about this or that and finally headed to bed to get some sleep.

And right at the end of the following day reached their destination "Thank god I thought we were never going to make it" Tenten breathed a sigh of relief, not realizing that things were about to get worse for them the following day.

As Hiretsuna's parents came to greet them "I wasn't expecting so many of you to escort my daughter back to me, on that note I'm afraid I'll need the girls yes you as well Sakura-hime to provide a little entertainment during tomorrows party" Reina Zankokuna informed.

Sakura and Ino wanted to sigh while Hinata merely nodded, Tenten however nearly refused but didn't in the nick of time "W..What kind of en..entertainment w..will we be providing e..exactly" Hinata inquired.

Knowing that they all had to do their best on this mission "Dancing of course, I can only hope that each of you have received instructions on how to dance, thankfully the celebration isn't until tomorrow so you'll all have a chance to rest" Reina stared down at them.

Eyeing their expressions closely and the only one who looked reluctant about this was the brunette of the group "Please allow me to offer my help providing entertainment as well if you will" Kurenai stepped forward being the only left out female.

Reina nodded and so the four of them with Hiretsuna on their heels were gone into the massive house "As for the rest of you, four of you will be patrolling the grounds and the rest will be helping serving our guests tomorrow" Akiba Zankokuna announced.

Doling out the rest of the orders "Understood please give us a moment to decide who will be doing what however" Asuma nodded putting out the cigarette he'd had lit and turned to the remaining genin with one Chunin.

It was immediately decided that Gai would be one of the four based on his eccentricity, Neji being another, Lee of course was a given and Shikamaru "What a drag" Shikamaru groaned because he'd been hoping they would get to be lazy no such luck apparently.

"Just leave patrol to us, we'll make sure no one gets by us as it's our solemn duty to protect Musubime-sama and Hiretsuna-san" Gai declared in a loud voice leading the ones assigned to patrol away to get started on their duty.

Neji the only one who didn't see a point struggling to keep his opinion to himself until they were out of earshot "This whole thing is useless seeing as they already have guards to patrol" Neji scowled not happy that the mission was so low ranked anyway.

Lee was surprisingly quiet for once as they walked around while the rest of the large group headed in to be shown their rooms for the night and the next morning after breakfast, Choji, Kiba, Shino, Sasuke, Naruto, Minato and Asuma were shoved into waiter uniforms.

Gai, Lee, Neji and Shikamaru left to get started on their patrol while the girls were shuffled off to be dressed in kimono, the house was full up with guests of noble status already and the day had hardly begun.

An hour in Kiba wanted to rip off the waiter uniform the only thing that stopped him was the sound of music and a sweet voice echoing through the house "That's Sakura-chan" Naruto immediately recognized who the voice belonged to.

Looking at ease with his roll feeding guests of the noble variety "I didn't know she could sing" Minato commented enjoying the song much like many others no doubt were doing keeping them all relaxed if he wasn't wrong.

"We didn't either actually we know her voice however and that's definitely Sakura" Sasuke admitted tapping his foot along to the music as Sakura pitched her voice into a high soprano that sounded like wind chimes, the song was hauntingly beautiful to and he couldn't help but sing along under his breath.

"Spend all your time waiting
For that second chance
For a break that would make it okay

There's always some reason
To feel not good enough
And it's hard at the end of the day

I need some distraction
Oh, beautiful release
Memories seep from my veins

Let me be empty
Oh, and weightless, and maybe
I'll find some peace tonight

In the arms of the angel
Fly away from here
From this dark, cold, hotel room
And the endlessness that you fear
You are pulled from the wreckage
Of your silent reverie
You're in the arms of the angel
May you find some comfort here

So tired of the straight line
And everywhere you turn
There's vultures and thieves at your back

The storm keeps on twisting
Keep on building the lies
That you make up for all that you lack

It don't make no difference
Escaping one last time
It's easier to believe in this sweet madness
Oh, this glorious sadness
That brings me to my knees

You're in the arms of the angel
May you find some comfort here"

After that the singing ended and by that point they were all in the main room the party was happening in just in time to see Sakura begin dancing gracefully with a fan, Ino, Hinata and Kurenai keeping up with her surprisingly, Tenten was failing miserably though.

Clearly not having had experience with dancing before but she was doing her best and that was all that mattered to the guests hopefully, Sakura must have seen them as a radiant smile spread across her lips and she did a little twirl.

Moving onto the next step of the dance effortlessly by spreading the fan using it as an extension of herself "Kami" Asuma whistled lowly his eyes mostly on Kurenai but he did send a praising look at Ino who wore a look of utter concentration on her face as the dance continued.

Until finally Reina came to let them have a break from providing entertainment "That was excellent Hime-sama, if you could do a couple more songs after lunch that would be wonderful" Reina requested.

Relieving the extra waiters before sending someone to find the patrolling quartet and inform them that lunch was waiting for them, Sakura nodded complying to the demand "By the way Sakura since when could you sing" Ino grumbled when the woman floated off to elsewhere.

Sakura startled lightly then answered "From when I was little, my Mother had me in voice lessons, practising speeches mostly sometimes I had to sing I haven't had to sing since I decided to become a shinobi so that's why no one knows" Sakura grinned.

Dragging Hinata and Ino along with her to the table to sit next to Hiretsuna who was surrounded by other noble girls, it was then that the males of the mission besides Naruto and Sasuke heard what they were like for themselves.

As one of them recoiled away from Sakura "Eww stay away from me shinobi scum, I don't know how you can stand having that as your future sister in law Hiretsuna" the girl sneered, glaring down her nose at Sakura and the other kunoichi.

Naruto and Sasuke bit their cheeks harshly expressions as flat as a pancake while Kiba's eyes nearly bulged out of his head it was Shikamaru who opened his mouth however only to receive a painful warning pinch from Ino.

Who shook her head (Not A Word) Ino mouthed at him, pupil-less cerulean orbs glinting with a promise of pain in their depths, Shikamaru's mouth snapped shut with an audible click effectively reigning in the others.

Before they all eyed Sakura to see how she'd handle this development "Tell me then Numachi-chan how was it you got here, oh that's right you were escorted by shinobi scum as you called me and my friends and you know what I'm proud of that fact at least I know how to protect myself" Sakura snipped out in a dangerous tone of voice.

Nothing like the sweet voice she'd used earlier to sing "So I suggest the next time you think about insulting those protecting you, don't, I don't take kindly to them nor does anyone else" Sakura announced harshly.

Immediately Numachi bowed her head whispering apologies for disrupting the party somewhat as the noise level had died down some during the conversation "Well your as scary as ever Sakura" Musubime randomly appeared at his sister's side.

Having witnessed the whole confrontation, Sakura's lips curled upwards into a decidedly wicked looking smile, with her emerald orbs glinting in satisfaction "I have to be scary Musubime-ni in case you've forgotten" Sakura sniffed delicately smirking when Numachi flinched at the realization of who it was she'd insulted.

Putting her hand in his as he led her away from the table until it was time for her to sing again as Ino, Hinata, Tenten and Kurenai took up positions behind her launching into a dance that befitted her singing.

"What would I do without your smart mouth
Drawing me in, and you kicking me out
Got my head spinning, no kidding, I can't pin you down
What's going on in that beautiful mind
I'm on your magical mystery ride
And I'm so dizzy, don't know what hit me, but I'll be alright

My head's under water
But I'm breathing fine
You're crazy and I'm out of my mind

'Cause all of me
Loves all of you
Love your curves and all your edges
All your perfect imperfections
Give your all to me
I'll give my all to you
You're my end and my beginning
Even when I lose I'm winning
'Cause I give you all, all of me
And you give me all, all of you

How many times do I have to tell you
Even when you're crying you're beautiful too
The world is beating you down, I'm around through every mood
You're my downfall, you're my muse
My worst distraction, my rhythm and blues
I can't stop singing, it's ringing, in my head for you

My head's under water
But I'm breathing fine
You're crazy and I'm out of my mind

Cards on the table, we're both showing hearts
Risking it all, though it's hard

I give you all, all of me
And you give me all, all of you"

Her second song drew to a close and she curtsied looking more regal than ever in that moment in the fancy kimono she was wearing, and if Minato wasn't wrong all the males in the room were staring at her with interest.

Then without skipping a beat she leapt straight into another song that entertained the nobles at the party further including one young noble boy who got it into his head that she would be his as he approached when Reina finally let them enjoy the rest of the party as it winded down.

Sasuke and Naruto were the first ones to notice the extra boy in their group followed by letting out matching groans when he tapped Sakura on the shoulder pasting what he probably thought was a charming smile on his face.

"Excuse me Princess but I believe fate has led us to meet at this party today so I'm taking the initiative in asking for your hand, shh shh, no need to speak I already know your going to say yes so just come away with me my darling and we'll be married on the morrow" spewed from his mouth.

Before taking Sakura's hand and attempting to drag her away with him, attempting was the key word as she grounded herself in place with chakra shooting him death glares "If you had let me speak a minute ago you'd know I was already happily betrothed to someone" Sakura cleared her throat.

Making sure to enunciate properly to get it through the idiots head this was the worst part of being nobility, the male nobles thought they could claim female nobles like they were mere possessions, not all of them of course but the worst ones were the ones her age.

Like this moron who stared back at her in confusion "My darling Princess say it isn't so" he gasped dramatically as her words processed in his brain and completely horrified over the matter in the process his grip slackened on her hand.

And she snatched it back hastily before folding her hands into her sleeves to prevent anyone else from grabbing her hands when she hadn't given them leave to "Unfortunately so off with you" Sakura said from behind her sleeves.

Watching in relief as the boy scampered away from her "Now if no more idiots are attempting to ask for your hand Sakura-chan I'd like to get some sleep before tomorrow when we begin our trek back to Leaf" Hiretsuna snorted.

Leading her future sister in law down the halls to her bedroom so they could have a sleepover of sorts, "Hinata-chan, Ino-chan your welcome to join us" Sakura called delicately over her shoulder, meeting their gazes.

Ino squealed, grabbed Hinata then hauled ass after the other two girls, Kurenai shaking her head at their antics "I'm just grateful that nothing to stressing happened" Kurenai said on her way to her own guest bedroom that she'd be sleeping in alone that night.

Since her roommate was going to sleeping elsewhere, of course come morning she immediately regretted saying that what she had last night as one of the nobles came up missing when it came time for them to leave.

The noble in question happened to be Numachi "You four did patrol right" Akiba looked to Gai, Lee, Neji and Shikamaru "And didn't see anything out of the norm" he pressed worried about the disappearance of one of his guests when they shook their heads.

Sakura wanted to scream and tear her hair out "We can go out and look around but there's no telling where Numachi-san is at this point" Neji grimaced, hating having to do work for nobles it reminded him entirely to much of his clan if he was honest.

Minato eyed Sakura "Can you and Sasuke track her Sakura" the blonde inquired knowing that if anyone could find the girl it was the two in question, Sasuke glanced to his teammate who nodded in resignation.

Though she wasn't fond of the girl in question it was her duty to help find Numachi "Lets go then I should be able to track her chakra trail" Sasuke sighed and the first place they went was Numachi's guest bedroom.

Where he activated his sharingan easily picking up two chakra trails one was unknown but both led out the window "She was kidnapped" Sakura guessed easily hearing the groan in answer Sasuke nodded so they grabbed Kuri.

Climbed into the saddle on the horse to everyone's surprise then she snapped the reigns in her hands and Kuri took off "One of us could have gone with them" Asuma realized not liking that they were leaving the retrieval of one noble to two genin.

Before Minato could warn him Asuma had grabbed Hiraishin and attempted to climb into the stallions saddle only to be bucked off viciously in return "Yeah Hiraishin doesn't like guys riding him that's why they grabbed Kuri" Naruto chimed in late on the warning like his Father was.

Kurenai pursed her lips before ultimately deciding that it was up to her so she warily climbed into Hiraishin's saddle and the stallion snorted but accepted her and with that she was off after the two genin leaving the others to wait for their return.

"Totally ungraceful Asuma-sensei and look you even got a cut from that reckless act of yours" in the meantime Ino was scolding her sensei something fierce for trying to ride a horse who wasn't use to males yet.

Asuma heaved a sigh but righted himself on his feet after a moment sure that Sakura would heal him when she got back with Numachi, during this Kuri had gone a great distance in the opposite direction of Leaf.

Heading straight towards Amegakure actually "We're in a pickle aren't we" Sakura winced seeing the camp of about thirty dead ahead of them as she pulled on Kuri's reigns and the horse skidded to an unexpected stop.

Behind a group of rocks not to far from the camp "Undoubtedly Sakura, thought it seems someone decided to join us" Sasuke pointed his thumb over his shoulder where Hiraishin was speeding towards them, Kurenai on his back.

She saw what they saw and hurriedly joined them "Is Numachi-san among them" Kurenai questioned not sure she liked riding horses all that much even if Hiraishin lived up to his namesake by getting her to the genin quite speedily.

"In the lone tent" Sasuke answered, arms crossed over his chest as the three of them stood around trying to figure out what to do in order to get the noble who'd insulted Sakura yesterday back without further harm.

Sakura worried her lip then thought of something "Kurenai-sensei you're a genjutsu mistress right…well I happen to be a genjutsu user to, what if we cast an illusion on them and Sasuke snuck around to get Numachi-san" the pinkette suggested.

Crimson orbs widened "That's actually quite brilliant Sakura, hmm but the only problem left is what if they figure out what's going on and start breaking out of the illusion" Kurenai commented trying to come up with more to the plan.

"Just keep them distracted or Sakura can make a knock out gas, enough for the lot of them" Sasuke shrugged knowing that the illusions his teammate usually came up with scared away anyone so that was probably all it would take.

Kurenai and Sakura nodded watching as he cloaked himself and suppressed his chakra and scent while the pinkette set to work making a large batch of knock out gas not that it took her very long and by then it was time to cast their combined genjutsu.

She thought of the most horrid illusion ever and screams erupted from the enemy as their minds were tormented by what they thought were brain eating monsters chasing after them, Kurenai eyed the younger kunoichi warily.

Afraid to ask but also curious "What did you think about making them see" Kurenai asked watching as the enemy started fleeing from camp forgetting all about their captive, they were still in a genjutsu if she wasn't wrong.

"Creatures the likes of which have never been seen that eat your brains it's funny what a little imagination can do right" Sakura grinned not in the least bit guilty about terrifying fully grown men as Sasuke returned Numachi clinging to his arm.

Tear filled grey eyes met vivid emerald "Forgive me Sakura-hime I was wrong being a shinobi at least allows you to protect yourself while I was utterly vulnerable to being kidnapped" Numachi cried.

Prostrating herself before Fire's Princess uncaring that her night clothes were getting absolutely filthy, Sakura sighed softly "Numachi-chan hold your head up high you survived that's what matters and it can only help you become stronger" Sakura pulled the girl into a standing position.

Giving her a little speech to help ease her frightened mind then the four of them were on their way back to the Zankokuna mansion and then it was all the Leaf Shinobi's turn to leave after being thanked profusely by Numachi's shinobi escorts.

And a day and a half later they were back in Konohagakure where they reported in with little incidences to note in all it was a mostly easy mission then Tsunade dismissed them all giving the entire lot of them three days off.

Sakumo was glad to see the genin of Team Seven, Ino and Minato back at the house as they cooked dinner, chatted about their mission then headed to bed early because the four of them were exhausted.