A/N: I want to thank everyone that added this story to their favourites and follows as well as everyone that reviewed the last chapter.
Emma tilted her head and stared at the dress, which laid on her bed, while the maid bit her lips as she waited for her reaction. Why did this maid bring her a dress? And not just any dress but a beautiful traditional qipao. From what she could recall, these dresses weren't cheap in the Xing market. In the olden days, these dresses could be afforded by anyone and were very good for combat. As Naruto Uzumaki, she did not wear them but Tenten tried to convince her to wear these things. She always refused to wear it because Naruto Uzumaki hated anything girly. As Emma Elric, she hated dresses because it reminded her of her mother.
"Why did you bring me a dress?" Emma finally asked.
The maid smoothed her skirt. "Master Ling ordered me to bring this dress to you."
"And why does he want me to wear a dress? My clothes are perfectly fine." Emma fingered the silkiness of the dress while the maid blinked at her question. Did the prince not know she hated people buying stuff for her? He even said it himself that she might kill him if he brought anything for her.
"Aren't you pleased with the dress?"
Does it look like I am pleased with this stupid dress? Had this woman ever see me wear a dress? Her annoyance and anger must have been shown on her face as the maid flinched at her. There was no reason for her to take her anger out on the poor woman. The woman was just doing her job…but it infuriated her that the boy thought she needed an expensive dress. The dress might be the price of ten months' worth of paychecks.
"I know the prince well enough to know that he isn't doing this from the goodness of his heart. I might be nine but I am not a fool," Emma replied calmly. "Now tell me is there a reason for the dress?"
"Didn't Master Ling inform you about the party being hosted by his father?"
Party? Did he mention anything about a party to me? She chewed on her bottom lip as she tried to recall her conversation with the prince. She would remember if he talked about her attending a party with him. There was no way she would be willing to go with him to a party, not when she hated small talk. She hated the thought of dances and wearing dresses. As Naruto Uzumaki and Emma Elric, she hated the thought of anything remotely girly.
Ling wouldn't know that unless…
Sasuke must have hinted to him that it would be better to spring it on me.
"Is it compulsory for me to go to the party?"
"All bodyguards are required to attend as is the order of the Imperial Concubine," the maid replied automatically.
Emma could only pinch her nose as she dismissed the maid from the room. Not only was it a party hosted by the Emperor but Ling's mother also wanted her sons' bodyguards to be present. It meant that if she was to find out about her disappearing act then the woman would be pissed off. It also meant that all of the Emperor's children would be present along with the Ministers and the clan leaders.
It seemed like she was going to be surrounded by snakes.
"All eyes are going to be focused on you as well, Naruto." Kurama reminded her as she unbuttoned her blouse. Emma frowned. "No one in this blasted country has your hair or eye colour."
Emma grimaced at Kurama's words. It was easy for her to forget about her status in this country since she had been so focused on her job and her research of this country's alchemy. It did not help that she did not care about how she stood out from these people.
"Not all eyes will be on me," she slipped into her blue dress. "Ling and Sasuke are used to my appearance, but you are right that there might be a lot of eyes on me."
"If I didn't know any better Naruto, I would think that you are not happy about the attention." Kurama commented as she took a seat in front of the table mirror. The whiskered girl chewed on her lips, but did not try to deny his words. Naruto Uzumaki was a girl that craved attention, but Emma Elric was not that kind of girl. She stared at the butterfly hairclip that Edward gave her on their first birthday without their mother. Her past self craved attention because she never had people, who cared for her.
It was different now because Emma does have a loving family.
"You are not happy with the idea of the attention, are you?"
"I might be Naruto Uzumaki but my life as Emma Elric is shaping me to be a bit different from her," Emma explained, weaving her hair into a bun before slipping the butterfly hairclip through her thick hair. She traced her whiskers cheeks, which forever reminded her of her past life. If she did not have Kurama then it was her birthmarks, which reminded her of her past. "My brothers love me and I have a best friend that cares for me, so I never really needed attention."
"You haven't really answered my question."
"I don't like the idea of people jumping to conclusions about my relationship with Ling," she admitted. "If his grandmother thought I had a romantic relationship with him, then I don't want to know what they will think."
"Since when do you care about what people think of you?"
"I might be a twenty-six in mind but my body is that of a nine-year-old," Emma scowled. "It is sick that they think a nine-year-old can have a relationship. Now if I was a fifteen then it was a different story…even then I don't think I can be a relationship with someone that is the same age as my physical body."
It wasn't just because of her mental age too but her experience in life. When her mother died, it had been her job to take care of her brothers. If it was not for the fact that she cooked food, cleaned their clothes and reminded them to do their homework then they would be lost. They spent most of the time doing their research that they didn't have the life skills needed to survive in this world.
"It had been a month since you came here and yet you still miss them." Kurama stated as Emma took one final look at the mirror. Her hair was more golden then sunshine and her eyes might be blue, but there were still tints of green in them. When she ignored the whisker marks on her cheeks, it was easy for her to see how she differed from Naruto Uzumaki.
"They are my brothers, Kurama," Emma whispered, pulling out the last family photo that they took of each other. She traced her twin brother's features before doing the same to her younger brother. "Until just recently, we only had each other to rely on. We had never gone a month apart, so of course I will miss them. For goodness sake, I argued with them because I love them to the point that it isn't healthy. You can't expect me to make my heart become cold when it comes to my brothers."
"You chose to leave them."
Emma closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Do you think it was easy for me to make that decision? A part of me debated for a whole day to go with them and see what they will experience. I wanted to know that they would be safe with that woman but I was scared about the things I would tell that woman. If I went with them then I would tell her about my brothers' plans and I don't want her to refuse them because of my actions. If she denied them their chance because of me, then they would never forgive me. I don't want them to hate me…I don't think my heart can afford to have my brothers hate me."
"You still have that fear of abandonment."
Maybe her second father's abandonment, their mother's death and Sasuke's actions had affected her more than she was willing to admit, because Emma did not want her brothers to leave her like they did.
She did not want her younger brothers to resent her.
"Now you actually look like a girl." Ling commented as Emma took her spot beside Huang, not like she had a choice since Lan Fan took her preferred seat, in the car. The blonde felt her eyebrows twitched at Ling's comment while Huang and Lan Fan snorted at the boy's comment. You are lucky that you are my boss or else I would punch you in the face for that stupid comment. It seemed like if it was not for her feminine features and long hair, then everyone would think she was a boy because of her clothes. Now she did not care about her appearance but she certainly did not like being mistaken for a pretty boy.
"What did I look like before?"
"You looked like a pretty boy," Ling tilted his head at her. "If it was not for your outfit on your first day in Xing, I would never think that you were a girl. Most girls care about their appearance, act ladylike and will try to get a boy's attention."
"I'm nine."
"I am also nine but it never stopped the girls from trying to get my attention."
The blonde blinked and twisted her head to look at Huang, who nodded his head in agreement. This childish prince was nine? He was taller than Ed by a good couple of inches and looked a lot more mature than him too. She always thought the difference between the two of them was a year or two, but it seemed like they had a smaller age gap then she believed.
"Wait a second if you are nine then how old is Huang?"
"I'm thirteen."
Emma frowned at her teammate's response. She knew that they had an age gap but it never crossed her mind about how big the age gap was between them. Why did they have a huge age gap? If she recalled correctly, she had been the first to die from her wounds. The length of time between their deaths was just a matter of seconds, so why did Sasuke reincarnate first?
Was there something that she did not understand?
"I can understand why you are surprised about Huang," Ling said, snapping her out of her train of thought. "He doesn't really act his age so everyone forgets that he is still thirteen."
Emma could only smile tightly at the boy's words while Huang turned his milky eyes on her. It really unnerved her that Huang could keep his emotions in check. When he had been Sasuke Uchiha, it had been somewhat easy for Naruto to read him. However, she did not have the same luck now. She could not imagine what went through his head as he processed the age gap between them.
Was he just as confused as her?
"The life of a prince means that we can't afford to act our age," Huang traced his cane. "The people of this country must always come first before our own needs."
Ling sighed at his brother's comment, telling Emma about the number of times that her former teammate must have had that talk with his younger brother. Would Ling act this annoyed if he knew just what his brother did to their village? Would he know that Huang was starting to act like Itachi, who always put the village first? He would never believe of the things that the boy did.
If Emma did not knew about Huang's previous life then she would never believe.
"You always talk about the country needs but what about our happiness?" Ling complained. "We have so many duties to this country that we never get the chance to wander around the city, unless we sneaked out. We never get to have fun because of our boring duties."
"If you wish to become a good Emperor then you must endure those boring duties and learn to become wise."
The boy grimaced. "Why don't you become Emperor? Mother might not have given you the same lessons as me but you understand better than those boring tutors and you care a lot about this country."
Huang doesn't want to become Emperor because he still feel guilty for what he did in his previous life, Emma thought as her teammate could only give an amused smile to his brother. She might not be close to the boy like she was in their previous life, but Emma could understand why there was guilt flowing in his eyes. If Truth allowed Huang to remain clueless about his previous life then he would never remember about all those deaths he caused. He wanted the boy to always suffer for his actions.
Yet why did he allow her to remember?
Wouldn't it have been easier for her to forget about her past.
"Do you wish to forget about who you were, Naruto?" Kurama asked her as she stared out of the carriage. Emma curled her lips at the question. In all these years of living as Emma, she never stopped to ask that question to herself. Would she be happier not knowing about her previous life? Would she be more at ease if she thought her memories were nothing but nightmares or dreams?
The smiling faces of all her friends and acquaintances flashed through her mind. Did she wish that she forget them? Each one of them shaped her in their own way. Kakashi was the one, who taught her about not judging a book by its cover. Gaara made her realize of what she could be if she didn't give up on herself. Hinata had been her first female friend. Sakura might have been jealous of Naruto's relationship with Sasuke but she had been there for her.
How could she wish to forget them?
"I don't think I can ever forgive myself if I forget them," Emma admitted. "Truth must have known that I would rather be in pain and remember them, then to live a foolish life where I forgot about how these people shaped me."
It seemed like Truth knew from the beginning that she was the opposite of Sasuke.
Emma tucked a strand of her blond hair behind her ear as the car slowed down, hinting that it would not be long before they reached the palace. A part of her felt skittish at the knowledge that all the important people of this country was going to be at the party. They might not pay attention to her because of her young age but they might also pay attention since she came with two princes.
Unconsciously, she linked her arm around Huang, which earned a surprise look from the people around them. Ling raised his eyebrows at her while her former teammate tapped his finger on her arm. To everyone, it might seem like he was annoyed with her actions but Emma knew better; he was trying to tell her that everything would be fine.
"What? It is obvious that Lan Fan is going to protect Ling," Emma lied as Ling and Lan Fan stared at them. "So it makes sense that I am protecting Huang."
"Since when did you fear attention? Is your fear for attention so great that you are willing to forget the fact that you can't stand my guts?" Huang whispered in her ear.
She smiled tightly and answered quietly. "I might not be able to stand your guts but I don't want to look like a fool in front of these people. I never learned politics when I was her because I was always so busy. You might not have learnt politics but you still remember how to weave your way through these people."
"You want to use me," Huang guessed.
"Don't sound like a hurt puppy," Emma whispered harshly, digging her nails against his arm. "Did you forget when you were him that you begged me to save you from those crazy girls? Did you ever hear me complain about how crazy they were?"
"Yes since you never let me forget it."
She scowled while Ling stared at them with confusion. Why was he confused? He couldn't hear their conversation since the two of them were speaking in very low voices. Was it because she wasn't acting like a complete bitch to his brother? Or was it something else? A part of her felt tempted to ask while another part of her wanted to leave this car and go back to her brothers.
"The two of you almost look like an old married couple with the way you guys were talking in hush tones." Ling said with a large smile on his eyes. A part of her could only laugh at the irony of his words. Would he ever believe that his older brother and bodyguard had a history in their past life? As Naruto and Sasuke, they thought that they would marry each other. When they had been Naruto and Sasuke, they argued like an old married couple.
"Who knows? Maybe in another life, we were an old married couple that couldn't stand each other." Huang commented, flickering his milky eyes on her. She felt her heart clenched at the sight of the longing in his eyes. Did he understand why she could never accept their relationship? It was for their own good. At this stage of their first reincarnation, it would be a bad idea to be together.
No matter how much she cared for him, she must never let herself make the same mistake again.
"We would have been the old married couple that would have told the young couples of what not to do when dating someone." Emma commented lightly as the car came to a stop. Huang snorted at her joke while Ling stared at them in confusion.
She shrugged her shoulders and stared out at the window, where several people seemed to have their eyes focused on the car. Emma smoothed her face into a blank expression as the doorman opened the door for them. She loosened her grip on her teammate as Ling took a step out of the car, arms linked to Lan Fan's arm.
Hopefully, no one would pay much attention to them.
"What made you think I know how to weave my way through the politics of my family," Huang whispered in her ear as they stepped out of the car. "I might still have Sasuke's memories but it doesn't necessary mean that I have used his skills."
Emma chewed on her bottom lip as Huang dragged her to the entrance of the palace. Would it be too much if she admitted that she felt the most comfortable with him? Despite his terrible actions as Sasuke, Huang was like her. He was a reincarnated soul of someone that Naruto loved dearly. The part of her, which solely belonged to Naruto, wanted to protect her bastard of a teammate from the people who hurt him.
She would rather die than admit this to him.
"Because Sasuke was always protective of his family members, you became crazy when you learnt what Konoha forced your brother to do," Emma whispered. "I would like to think that trait of yours still shines through you. No, I know that you still have that trait because you love Ling with all your heart. You must have put spies in all of your half-siblings' houses because you want to prevent his death. I think you will blame yourself if anything ever happens to him. I know it because I would do the same for my brothers."
Huang stared at her for a good couple of minutes before letting out a sigh. "You should have been sharper when you were Naruto since the world was a lot more dangerous at the time."
"You don't think I realize that, bastard!"
The black-haired boy chuckled at her comment. For a moment, Emma forgot about the problems they faced. For just one second, she was reminded of why Naruto felt so comfortable with Sasuke. The two of them might have their problems, might be toxic for each other but there was no denying that they always felt at ease with each other.
If the past didn't haunt them then maybe things would be different.
She shook her head and flickered her eyes at their surroundings. Almost everyone seemed to be focused in not looking at them, with only two or three people who seemed to give her looks of pity. She gritted her teeth but held her tongue from saying something spiteful. She might be angry with Huang but it does not mean she deserved to be pitied for having him accompany her.
"You should act like an airhead." Huang whispered. "Don't show them your anger."
The blonde narrowed her eyes. "How can you be so calm? Aren't you furious that they look down on you for being blind?"
"How were you able to pretend to be happy when you were her?" Huang fixed his cloudy black eyes at the men, who seemed intent on staring at them. The men flinched and quickly looked away from them. "The villagers used to look at you like you were a monster but you were always able to keep your head high. I always thought it was easy for you to do it but it isn't as easy as you make it look."
"It was different because I didn't know why they hated me until I was twelve." Emma whispered, taking a glass of juice from the servant. She frowned when the servant did not bother to offer Huang a juice. The blonde opened her mouth to snap at the servant, only to shut her mouth when the boy grabbed the juice from the tray. "I had no choice but to smile because I didn't want to go crazy. I wanted to show them that I am better than what they make me out to be."
"It is similar for me." Huang took a sip of his orange juice. "Acting calm is a coping mechanism for me because I can't allow myself to make the same mistake again. Truth took away my sight, took away everything that I valued so that I understand just how much pain you went through."
"Are you blaming me? Because it sounds like you are blaming me."
"I can't blame you because it is my fault that you died." Huang whispered. "If I hadn't been so consumed by my revenge then none of this would have happened. If Obito hadn't told me the truth then I might have been able to go with Itachi's wish."
Emma closed her eyes at his words. Obito Uchiha had been one of the reasons that Naruto Uzumaki never knew her parents. She should hate him for his actions but she could not hate him for his actions. He wanted Rin to come back just like her brothers wanted their mother to come back. However she could never forgive him for destroying her life, for letting Sasuke live the life that he did.
"It seemed like that bitch is coming," Huang muttered as a black-haired woman walked towards them with a smile plastered on her face. Emma frowned at her former teammate's words. She opened her mouth to question him, only to close it when she felt the wave of anger and disgust radiating from the woman, who was approaching them.
"Why is she so angry with you?"
"Probably because I'm a reminder that she gave birth to a useless prince." Huang commented airily. "It is okay because I will never consider her my mother."
That confirmed her theory about her former teammate's feelings towards his second mother.
Emma forced herself to smile as the woman glided her way towards them; eyes focused on her arm which clung tightly to Huang's arm. The hatred and the coldness in her eyes reminded her of the villagers. The villagers, who never saw Naruto as a human being but a monster that deserved to die. Bile rise to her throat as she imagined the number of times that Huang had been forced to endure such eyes.
She would never wish it on anyone, not even on her enemy.
"Who did you bring with you, my useless son?"
The whiskered girl felt her temper rise at the woman's insult. Useless? Would this woman say those words if she knew that Huang had been a powerful shinobi in his last life? Would she say those words if she knew just how smart he was. Did she really believe his disability make him useless? There had to be a better way to teach Sasuke a lesson than to make him have this bitch as his mother.
"If you weren't so busy trying to get the Emperor's attention then you would know that Ling hired Emma as his bodyguard," Huang paused and added sweetly. "Mother dearest."
His mother blinked and blinked at the news before robotically turning her head to look at her. Those cold eyes soaked in her appearance, eyes focusing on the butterfly hairclip, which clung to her hair. Anger slowly seeped into those icy eyes as the woman realized what her youngest son had done.
"How could he hire a little girl to protect him? She doesn't even come from our bodyguard's clan!" The woman snarled. "Did Ling develop hormones and decide to make any pretty face, his bodyguard! If he wanted another bodyguard then he should tell me! If he wanted someone to warm his bed then he shouldn't make it obvious!"
Emma felt her temper rise at what the woman implied.
"You are sick if you think that your nine-year-old son will bed me since I am only nine!" She replied, subtly digging her nails into Huang's arm. There was no way she would allow her teammate to protect her. "Secondly, I have a name and that name is Emma. Another thing, the boy beside me is Huang! His name isn't useless boy and you should remember that when you are in public. Lastly, Ling isn't an idiot. He made the best decision in hiring me to be his bodyguard, just because I'm a foreigner doesn't mean that I can't defeat assassins."
"Little girl, do you know who you are talking to?"
"I'm talking to the Fourth Imperial Concubine and not the Empress." The woman bristled at the reminder of her status while Huang curled his lips into a smile.
"I believe that I need to go and greet father, Other Mother." Huang smiled widely. "I do hope that you enjoy your evening in trying to get father's attention. I do hope that he could pick you from the crowds of women."
The woman could only glare at their backs as Huang directed her towards the corner of the room. Emma felt her lips turned upwards at the insult that her teammate used for his bitch of a mother. As Sasuke, Huang would never make such catty remarks since he always thought it was beneath him. Her smile faded when she realized that he had no choice but to make such remarks to his mother.
If he wanted to survive in this world then he needed a way to handle these people.
"You know that it was not a good idea to insult her."
"If you want me to apologize to her then I should inform you that nothing in the world would make me want to apologize to that bitch."
Huang frowned. "You do realize that she can make your life hell, right? I thought that you have gotten smarter when it comes to dealing with powerful people! What the hell were you thinking when you insulted her! I don't think even Ling could calm her down."
"You wanted me to stand there and listen to her insult you! I am a lot of things but I won't stand for this injustice! How can I apologize to her when she hurt you? I might be angry with you for what you did when you were him, but I can never apologize to someone that hurt my precious people." She snapped.
He stared at her for a good couple of seconds before twisting his head away from her. Emma felt her lips curled to a smile at the sight of his relaxed shoulders and the corners of the cheeks, which was turned upwards. He did not want to show it to her but Huang seemed to be relieved to know that she still considered him as someone precious to her. She could never forget his actions but a part of her would always remember their good times.
A part of her would always care for him.
"Brother Huang, who did you bring with you?"
The blonde blinked her eyes when she saw a little girl standing in front of them. Brother Huang? Was this one of his half-siblings? She knew his mother had only given birth to him and Ling. There had been no sisters or if they had sisters then their mother must have discreetly killed them. It would not surprise her if the woman had done this since she seemed to only care about power.
"Emma meet Mei Chang. Mei Chang meet my clan's temporary new bodyguard." Huang knelt down to the ground and ruffled the little girl's hair, which earned a smile from the young girl. "She is my parental half-sister born from the Chang's clan imperial concubine. Mei Chang is a genius when it comes to Alkahestry."
"Brother Huang, I'm not a genius." The girl blushed and the blonde felt her heart clenched as she recalled Hinata. Her best friend could never take a compliment even when it was well deserved. Maybe the girl was an outcast like Huang, which was why the two of them could bond. Maybe she reminded Huang of someone in their shared past because it was not easy for him to give compliments.
Emma curled her lips as Huang pointed out that it was difficult to master the art of Alkahestry. A small part of her felt tempted to ask the girl to teach her, but a large part of her felt her heart clenched. While most of Huang's family seemed ready to avoid him, Ling, his grandmother and maybe even this little girl seemed to care for him.
He still had people, who made his life bearable.
"Mei Chang, Emma is someone really important to me." Emma blinked her eyes and the blind boy stared at her with so much trust that she felt guilty for her behavior. "I know that you are here for a few days but can you teach Emma some Alkahestry."
What? Why was he doing this? She couldn't help but asked herself as the girl stared at her with wide eyes. He had no reason to do this. How did he know about her plans to learn Alkahestry? Did Ling tell him? It was the last time that she read Alkahestry in front of him.
"Brother, Alkahestry isn't something that can be taught in a week." The little girl commented. "Do you really think that a foreigner can learn our alchemy in a matter of days? She would have to be a genius when it comes to alchemy to master it in a week."
Huang smiled. "Have I ever been wrong, Mei Chang?"
The girl chewed on her bottom lip and stared at her for a good couple of minutes. There was doubt shining through her eyes but there was a curiosity in her eyes. Curiosity to see what made her half brother care for her? Or was it curiosity to know why he seemed so certain about her talent? Maybe she would know if the girl accepts the boy's request.
"She must come to my hotel if she wants to learn Alkahestry." The girl smiled. "She must be something for you to show so much faith."
"She doesn't care about the status and who knows maybe one day she will be of use to your clan. Actually, I am certain that she will be able to help you one day to help your clan rise in our bastard father's eyes."
It seemed like in no matter what life, Sasuke was always going to believe her. He seemed to always know what her dreams were and Emma could only feel grateful for him.
They might never be together but they would always have each other's back.
Q&A:
Q: Are you going to make Emma and Huang's relationship better?
A: It can be seen from this chapter that their relationship is improving but it will never be like their past relationship.
A/N: What do you think about this chapter? What do you think of the relationship between Huang and Emma? And do continue to tell me about your ideas for this story and your thoughts in general.