Naruto waited impatiently for breakfast to be over so they could set out for the pond. It wasn't that far of a walk but Naruto wanted to hang around outside the palace walls as long as possible, and with Iruka and Kakashi joining them it was bound to be fun. Naruto even debated bringing his sister and some maids but decided against it since this was supposed to be a thank you to his husband.
"Husband..." Naruto thought aloud as he munched on his oatmeal.
"Yes?" Sasuke asked looking to the blonde.
"Ah! I'm sorry! I didn't... It's weird to say I have a... Spouse. I just- Sorry I'm gonna just shut up now." Naruto rambled out and hid his face behind his hair.
"Hm. Well I never thought I would say that either. Having a husband. It is a weird thing to acknowledge." the raven replied while looking out the window at the clouds blowing by.
Naruto looked at the other prince and felt a smirk creep on his face, he was a husband too. As weird as this all was, it felt nice to be called someones husband. He always thought that whoever would call him that would cherish him and he would do the same.
Although their relationship was on the mend he couldn't say he loved the raven, but he did appreciate him.
"Would you like me to call a painter?" Sasuke asked while taking a bite of his own oatmeal.
"What?"
"Well I feel uncomfortable with you staring at me this long. If there is painting you can memorize my face that way and I can be left alone." the Uchiha replied with a smirk.
"You- Shut up! I'm done eating, I'm going to the kitchen to have them make our lunch. Find Kakashi! I don't even wanna look at your face! I didn't mean to- I- Shut up!" Naruto spat out and grabbed his bowl heading to the kitchen with a heated face. He thought he heard chuckling but refused to turn around or acknowledge it.
"Ready?" the white haired solider asked the two princes as they all met at the gate.
"Ready! Iruka-sensei do you have lunch?" Naruto asked excitedly.
"In my bag, yes." the brunette man replied with a kind smile.
"Let's go!" Naruto exclaimed and started out of the palace grounds and onto the path out of town.
Not even ten minutes later though he was dragging his feet and regretting not taking horses. He knew they weren't far now, maybe they were a third of the way there. How did he make this run as a child so quickly without tiring?
"Do you need a break?" came from Naruto's left while placing a hand on his shoulder. The blonde looked up and found concerned onyx eyes looking back at him.
"Ah, no I'm fine! See? I'm good to go. Just getting over that sickness! We're almost there. I can tell!" Naruto piped up and made sure to keep his back straight and look forward. He had gotten himself so excited for this trip, he didn't want this stupid sickness to ruin it before they even got halfway there.
"Your highness please let us know as soon as you feel fatigued and we will take a break and refresh. We have all day." Iruka chimed in with concern laced in his voice.
"I will! But I'm totally fine now. Just got lost in my thought was all!" Naruto lied and marched on, hoping he'd make it without causing any more suspicion.
Luckily, he made it with no other stops or comments about his pace, and a couple of clouds had rolled in providing shade when they approached the large pond.
"We're here!" Naruto exclaimed and jogged the last bit of distance, looking at the trees that surrounded the area in wonder. This place was so special and seemed to have not aged at all from his memory.
"A pond?" the other prince asked, sounding less amused.
"Yes! I told you about it before. The pond were the magical beast showed me myself for the first time." Naruto explained this time a softness in his voice.
The two that were watching over them made themselves less prevalent and set up a small blanket and pulled out books across the pond.
"I wanted to... Thank you. You don't have to do what you do for me. But you do, and I can tell now it's not out of guilt for your brothers actions. It's you. I wanted to... Share this with you. This place that means to much to me. As a thank you." Naruto explained looking out at the water, seeing life around and in it.
The raven didn't reply at first but then nodded, "You're welcome. Thank you for sharing this with me."
They sat around the lake, enjoying the shade and eating the rice balls that Naruto had the kitchen pack and when they weren't engaging in playful banter they were reading the books that were brought.
Naruto smiled to himself and thought about how grateful he was to have thought of this when he suddenly felt a familiar aura and heard a low growl.