T h i e v e s A n d B e g g a r s

A hand clamped firmly over his mouth, and her other one grabbed his arm and pulled him into whispering range. "Blurt it out for the whole ship to hear, why don't you?" She hissed in his ear as he struggled against her grasp in alarm at her sudden actions. "There is a reason why I keep my name hidden, and I would be much obliged if you'd do so also." She let out an exasperated sigh and released him, putting a finger to her lips to stress the importance of silence on his part. "God, I was hoping that you wouldn't recognize me."

She put a thumb and a forefinger to the temples on either side of her head and kept her eyes hidden, letting out a mournful groan. "What a disaster." She muttered. "If only you hadn't picked up that handkerchief, none of this would have happened." He blinked in astonishment, staring at her in an open-mouthed silence.

Once he had shaken off his surprise enough to speak, he did so. "It... really is you? But they said you were dead! Otherwise, we'd still be..."

"Engaged, yes." She spat out the word with a distasteful grimace. "But here is not the place to talk, we've attracted the attention of the crew. You should know that if word slips out of my identity, every ship in your entire armada will be hot on my heels. So I would highly suggest you keep your voice down, lest I decide to rip out your vocal chords." Her words were snappy and impertinent, but he did not feel the least bit threatened. Whether it was foolish self confidence on which he raised himself to her pedestal, or pride, he did not know.

She walked briskly towards her room, beckoning him to follow her with a motion of her forefinger. He trailed after her hesitantly, his mind filled to the brim with questions that had suddenly sprung and ravenous for answers. This time, he was certain, he would get them. He stepped into the quarters and shut the door behind him, trying to catch her eyes with his own. Their gazes locked, and he held them there. "Now." He said with authority, disregardful of her position above him. "Explain."

C h a p t e r V I

Fools Gold

My father put a hand to my back and gently, but firmly pushed me forwards. "Married?" I repeated, staring upwards into the downcast eyes of Uchiha Fugaku. My father wore a hard expression, but not a mean one. It was impassive, as blank as the empty pages of a book. His flat, emotionless eyes held none of the adoration or affection that I desperately worked towards gaining.

"It means one day, you and she will be like your mother and I. You'll have children and a family of your own, and carry the proud name of our family into the next generation." He said, and his stare wandered back up to meet that of Mr. Haruno's. Mr. Haruno was a shorter, less built man than my father. But he had a kind smile, and there was something about his presence that put you at ease. "Be polite to young Ms. Haruno, son."

It had always seemed to me that wealth divided the happy from the unhappy, and that is why although this was the first and only time I would meet her until our fateful reunion on her vessel, she made a strong impression on me. I stared at her scrutinizingly, squinting my eyes to get a better look at the fine details of her childish face. The first thought that struck me was of her peculiar hair color, the next was of her remarkable eyes. They reminded me of large, round leaves. And then I noted how unfriendly she seemed in comparison to her father. But I took her hand and brought it to my mouth anyway, kissing it like my mother had taught me was proper to do when being introduced to a lady, and muttered a quiet: "Pleased to make your acquaintance."

She did not reply, and instead let her hand drop to her side.

At the few social gatherings I had been brought to, people danced and chatted gaily with each other while eating off of crystal plates and with silver forks, dressed in high-brow, flamboyant outfits and strutting about like peacocks. This was the world that I belonged to, that of those who were born blessed, and it was difficult to imagine that misery existed in such a place. I had come to the conclusion that money, in fact, could and would by happiness, and it had for all of those seemingly blissful people.

And how could I not when I looked out onto the streets and saw people dressed in tattered rags and cloths, dirty humans with nothing but skin on bones, and shudder when I tried to put myself in their shoes. How bleak their lives seemed in comparison to the color of mine.

"Go play, children." Mr. Haruno said, shooing us off to the courtyard with a wide sweep of his hand and a smile. "Lieutenant Uchiha and I have important matters to speak of. Don't get into too much trouble, mind you." Neither of us willing to disobey our fathers, we made our leave. I didn't much know how to 'play,' seeing as I had devoted much of my childhood to studies and working hard to get ahead. I had few friends, if any, and instead spent most of my time practicing my fencing.

I scampered up a tree, which I recalled seeing other children my age do once in a nearby park, careful not to scratch my clothing on the rough surface of the bark. I climbed upwards, using the branches as a ladder, until I made my way half way up the broad trunk. I looked below, surprised that she hadn't followed, and was instead staring uninterestedly at the ground and nudging dirt with the toe of her shoe. "Well," I said impatiently. "Are you coming, or not?"

She looked up at me, and it was the first time I saw it. The bitter, brooding scowl. The immeasurable sadness in her expression, topped off with a wistful longing as she visibly ached to join me.

"I can't." She replied. "I'll dirty my dress."

--

"First," she said as she sat down on the foot of her bed, inadvertently avoiding my eyes. I sat across from her on the cot from her and waited impatiently for her to continue what she had to say. "You will not interrupt me, or you will get no answers. Are we understood?" I nodded. "Well, before I explain to you about my life as Haruno Sakura, I'll have to give you my history as Captain Hokage. You are aware of this name, am I correct?"

"Yes." I replied. It brought back to me my initial surprise and confusion upon discovering that the face of the pirate lord, for so many years kept hidden, was young and female. Through all the other events that had occurred since my arrival, it seemed to have been buried beneath the piles of other concerns. "The name has been around for over a century. You can't honestly claim to be such a person and expect me to believe it. You're not a day older than I am."

"Actually, if I remember correctly, I'm five months older than you are." She said with a cheeky smile, adding quickly: "But that's beside the point. I thought I told you not to interrupt me. You are quite mistaken, Sasuke. I am indeed the one and only Captain Hokage, as of right now, but I was not the original. The first Captain Hokage died a great many years ago, after retiring with his riches and passing the title on to a successor. The name 'Captain Hokage' is an heirloom, one that has been passed down through many generations."

Now that she had explained it, it was so simplistic that I found it unbelievable that nobody had considered the possibility of their being multiple Captain Hokages that had proceeded each other. "My predecessor was a lady by the name of Tsunade, who is a brilliant woman. Not only was she capable of commanding a crew with such respect I will only ever be able to dream of receiving, but she did it with class and dignity. She is also the owner of the most innovative medical mind you will find alive today. I was honored to be her subordinate."

As she wound her tale I found myself entranced by her words, pulled into her story, and infuriated all at the same time. Here was someone who had come from what I had, and had turned into such an abomination. The way she spoke of the pirates sickened me. But I would not speak, because I could feel the missing link in her past growing closer to being revealed. I nearly urged her onwards, but she seemed to be choosing the right words to use.

"When I was sixteen years old my father decided to take my mother and I to France with him. While we were traveling overseas, our ship was attacked by Tsunade's. They raided the boat and looted all of our belongings, and although they sunk the vessel, they did not harm any of its passengers. I was trapped below the deck and near drowning when she saved me and decided to take me on as one of her apprentices. I woke up in the brig of this ship, and she explained to me the rules and lifestyle, and offered a place as a member of her crew. I jumped at it."

Here was where I could no longer contain myself. "Why?" I demanded, jumping to my feet as the anger surged through me. "How could you betray your family like that, your friends? Trade up what you had for the life of a liar and a thief? Your father was a respectable man who made a good living. You could have had anything that you asked for! Why would you choose this over that?"

She remained silent until after my outburst, keeping her eyes focused on the ground. How odd it was to see her calm and collective, even after being yelled at. It seemed that the topic which we spoke of called for some solemnity and seriousness, even with someone as boisterous as the Captain. "How could you possibly know anything?" She muttered spitefully, her brows knitting together. The sheets of her bed crumpled, clenched in gloved hands. "You, who have been free to do as you desire from the day you were born. You, who was expected to strut around flaunting your uniform and your shiny sword. You, who won't be looked at funny for wearing pants."

She slumped back onto the bed, letting her legs dangle off the edge. Her hair splayed out across the covers and the skirts of her dress crept upwards, exposing the pale, bare skin of her calves. I tried my hardest not to pay them any mind. But still, they drew my eyes towards them like an uncanny, undeniable force. Such immodesty, and she didn't even seem to notice. How cruel for her to put me into such an awkward position and not even notice. My heart beat loudly in my chest.

"Cover yourself." I mumbled. I could feel the heat rush to my cheeks as I spoke. If only she were not so foolish enough to move so carelessly around me and preserve her decency. I wasn't one of her girlfriends. She wasn't a man. This was not a harmless and innocent action caused by her naiveté, it was teasing. Surely, she was more aware of herself than she put out to be. Surely, she was sending my pulse racing on purpose. "You shouldn't..."

She interrupted my hushed, abashed speech with a loud sigh. "See, this is what I'm talking about." She said, standing so that we were both on our feet, and approached me slowly, her eyes still directed downwards. With each step she took forward, I took one back, until I found myself with my knees pressed against the metal frame of the cot. And then she pushed me, with a hand on either shoulder, forcing me down into a sitting position. "Does this bother you?" She lifted her foot and placed it precariously in between my legs, tugging her skirt up over her knee.

The answer to my question was obvious, and I therefore did not voice it. Instead I turned my head away, from the uncovered skin of her thigh, and glowered at the wall. "Why?" She asked, nudging me under the chin with her knee. I recoiled, blushing furiously. "How is my leg any different than yours? A leg is a leg. A man walks around like this, and he is given no second thought. But if a woman even so much as accidentally lets her ankle slip from under her skirt, there of course is something morally improper with her."

"I was not made for that kind of living." She said, and much to my relief, removed her leg from close proximity. I let out the breath that I wasn't aware that I was holding. I still refused to meet her eye as she spoke, feeling too disconcerted by her shameless action. "The pretty dresses and tight corsets. Eating off of expensive dinner plates with expensive forks. The glamor, the strictly prudish behavior that is expected of you. I am not a puppet. I refuse to be put on strings. I am not an ornament. I refuse to do nothing but sit and look pretty when I am capable of much grander things."

"This is your definition of grander things?" I repeated with disgust, once I had found my voice again. My eyes followed her as she paced across the room guiltlessly. "This is an insult. What you are doing is dishonorable and disrespectful. It goes beyond my understanding that two people as honest as your parents could have raised you with such a twisted view of reality."

"I am the dishonorable one? I am the one who lives a disrespectful life? Oh yes, I am a thief. I take what is not rightfully mine and use it to my own advantage." She span on me, her eyes ablaze and furious, and stalked forwards. "But you" her finger prodded against my chest. "Are no different. You sit on your silk seat cushion, paid for by the taxes of people who are so poor they can scarcely afford to feed themselves and their children, people who are starving and sick in the street, and people whose money you will grow fat off of."

"I was glad to escape that hell. I will never be able to thank Tsunade for saving me from it and showing me the life that I was intended for. For the first time, since I was born, I feel free. Do you know what that feels like, Lieutenant Uchiha? Freedom? The ability to do what you want, whatever you want, however you want to? I pity you, who is trapped beneath your ignorance and your pride, and will never be able to taste it. So, you desire to return to your old life. What awaits for you there? Shackles! Oh no, not the literal sort. The government would never imprison their own precious advocate. You will remain a slave to the mutilated laws of the land. You will be kept closely under their thumb, shielded from the horrible truth. I pity you!"

She let out a huff of relief, as if a weight had been lifted off of her chest, and took a moment to calm herself. I sat and stared at her, at a sincere loss for words. I was dumbfounded by her explosion. "What would have become of me if she had not pulled me from the wreckage of that ship? I would have married you. We would have been married, even now, probably." She laughed bitterly. "Can you imagine? I wonder which one of us would have tried to do in with the other first. I guess you should be grateful to me. Once I was out of the picture, you were free to marry the first pretty little thing that struck your fancy. Hinata is just the type you like, isn't she? Kind. Quiet. Easily frightened into being obedient. She'd marry you and have your children and expect nothing else of you."

I still could say nothing in response to the speech that had left me awestruck, but her comment about Hinata snagged me back into my senses and brought words back to my tongue. "I didn't choose to marry Hinata." I said. "She, like you, was chosen for me by my father. After the Harunos, the Hyuugas were financially the next best choice. Hinata is a good person, but I hold no romantic interest in her. And if the decision was mine, I would not have chosen to marry her."

Why I had told her this, I did not know. I felt compelled to clear myself of any misunderstandings and attachments that the Captain might have thought I had with her, to mark myself as single and uninterested. I did not love her, and the idea of the Captain believing that I did was offensive. But this also had sparked a question, about myself, that I had never really thought much about before. If it were my decision, who would I have chosen to marry? Never, in all my years, had I felt like indulging myself in a woman. None of them had ever made a lasting impression, if any at all. With the exception of the Captain, but she was a different matter.

I did believe in finding love, against my better judgment. It was something that my mother had drilled into my head, that somewhere in the infinite universe was my destined soul mate, that even after her death I had never been able to let go. But what kind of woman would I love? Well, only someone who I could respect and consider equal. Someone kind and gentle, but spirited and smart. Someone remarkable. Someone outstanding... Someone...

Who was nothing like the woman who stood before me, naturally.

The Captain blinked a couple times, letting the message settle into her mind. "You mean... your marriage really was arranged?" She asked. "You mean, you don't care for her?"

"Yes." I replied curiously. "That is true."

"Well then, why are the two of you still engaged? You can break it! Oh, this is wonderful... That's just too..."

"No." I said firmly. "She is still my fiancée, and I still intend to marry her."

The corners of her mouth turned downwards, her eyes dulling in disappointment and restrained anger. "But, why? If you don't love her, why on earth would you still want to marry her? You hold no obligation to her! She has defied your will and joined our crew. You should let her go, you should let yourself go."

"I cannot ignore the will of my father." I said. "What does it matter to you?"

"...She... Naruto..."

Speak of the devil.

He burst into the room, red faced and flustered, his blue eyes wide with panic. "Captain!" Naruto panted. "We're under attack!"

N e v e r S h a l l W e D i e

Alright, so you guys totally ROCK.

I ask for fifty reviews, and I get sixty-eight!

Do you have any idea how completely and totally thrilled that made me feel? I seriously was walking on clouds for days afterwards! My inspiration sky rocketed!

... Unfortunately, I have a bit of a case of writers block, and was having a bit of trouble getting this chapter out. Hence its shortness and poor quality of writing. I hope you will forgive me, as I intend to lengthen the chapters again and hopefully get them out a little faster. Your reviews can only help, so please, for the sake of all things holy, keep 'em coming! Donations to the hopelessly addicted! I need reviews like I need AIR.

Scratch that, air seems quite unnecessary in comparison.

Once again, I'll just throw out that I have a couple other stories posted that you might be interested in reading. -shameless self advertisement...-

And I'm looking for good SasuSaku reading material, so if anybody has recommendations, send 'em in to me!