AN: PLS JUST REVIEW! I WILL UPDATE FASTER AND IT LETS ME KNOW THAT I SHOULD CONTINUE WITH THIS STORY!

The Mission Commences

Sakura's heart was racing. Yesterday had been like something out of a dream. At first it was like a nightmare being betrothed to someone she had never met and then Lee going all psycho on her. But then…he came…Sasuke…He had rescued her like a valiant knight. He had stolen her heart as they talked with no inhibition and to complete her dream come true, Sasuke had turned out to be the one that she was betrothed to. He was her prince, and he actually wanted her as his princess. That moment was forever sealed to her heart. The whole afternoon was something of a blur. Sakura just remembered Sasuke and the way he looked at her with warmth in his eyes. She was oblivious to their joyous parents or even the fact that Naruto had discovered that Hinata was here and was practically making her faint with all his shameless flirting. The only thing that she was aware of was the feel of Sasuke's fingers interlaced with hers and the shy glances she would steal at him. Every time her cheeks would flame with embarrassment, but she simply couldn't believe that a guy like Sasuke was actually with little old her. What made her squeal was when she would catch him stealing glances at her. When she would start to look up at him, he would snap his head away and scowl. Sakura would just giggle and the he would give her hand a light squeeze.

Now here it was two days later, and Sasuke had already requested that she come to his kingdom so that they could spend some time together. Right now she and Hinata were making their way to the naga kingdom. Along with them, Sakura's personal bodyguard Neji accompanied them.

Neji was Hinata's cousin and the most powerful ninja that came from the Hyuuga clan. Neji was quiet and usually very proper when it came to the princess, but over time he had warmed up a little to the girls. However, he took his job seriously since he was only a year older than the girls but yet was entrusted with such a great responsibility. Neji had long brown hair and matching tail. Sakura thought Neji was very handsome with his pale eyes and perfect muscular build. However, her heart belonged to Sasuke. Now he was silently following them as usual.

Sakura was so excited not only because she was going to see Sasuke again, but she had never been to the naga kingdom before. She had never been outside the mermaid kingdom before in her entire life. This trip was exhilarating and new. At first, her father had been a little weary of his daughter spending a couple of days in the naga kingdom, but then again, she had to get to know the prince somehow and Neji was going so nothing could go wrong right?

Sakura smiled at the already red-faced Hinata. Sakura knew about her and Naruto, so she insisted that Hinata come with her. Right now, they were in open waters, meaning the space where neither kingdom ruled.

"So are you excited, eh Hinata?" Sakura asked cheerfully. Hinata smiled and Neji rolled his eyes.

"Y-yes and you?" Hinata responded shyly. Sakura's face lit exponentially.

"I can't wait, hey look there it is!" Sakura pointed to the naga kingdom's walled borders. Unconsciously, Sakura sped up pumping her tail faster and faster causing Hinata to speed after her unless she wanted to be left behind. All the while, Neji was scowling for some reason.

Sure enough, the naga kingdom could be seen off in the distance. Large towers and a huge city brimming with life were before them. Sakura had never seen anything like it. The size alone had to rival her own kingdom. Now they all swam in place before the great gate. When the guards saw that it was the mermaid princess, the huge three story doors were opened slowly. The three merpeople's eyes widened at what was before them. It was a grand bustling city with countless nagas rushing around with their daily lives.

"Wow, so this is what the naga kingdom is like," Sakura said in wonder. Hinata was in the same state of awe. Neji seemed to be bored and agitated, constantly keeping on the alert. Slowly, they started to swim toward the palace that was a good mile away according to the guards. But soon, the immediate feeling of wonder melted into a more intense sense of insecurity. The three merpeople had to pass through the marketplace. It seemed like everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at them especially their tails. Some gazes were out of curiosity and the others were glares of prejudice.

Although the majority of the naga race wanted to join with the merpeople, there were still some on both sides that could not look past the issue of their species. Now, it was easy to see, with their cold stares and poorly hidden gossip. Many insults were said about the mermaid princess. Sakura hung her head in shame, Hinata looked compassionately at Sakura, and Neji barely contained his anger by clenching his fists tightly.

Suddenly, they were stopped when three nagas about their age blocked their way. When they didn't seem to budge, Neji's jaw clenched.

"Move aside," he ground out. The blonde female naga with a purple tail laughed.

"And just where do you think you're going? Shikamaru, I think these fish folk are lost." The boy next to her just rolled his eyes. Neji's anger grew but instantly calmed when Sakura placed a hand on his shoulder.

"If you would please excuse us, we're on our way to the palace," Sakura reasoned. The inner Sakura was like, Yeah, move you nasty hag! Hinata nodded as well. A chunky naga on the other side of the girls smirked and was like,

"And what business do guys like you have at the palace." Neji could not hold in his anger any more.

"She is the princess of all the merpeople, and she has traveled a long way in order to meet with your… prince, now move. I will not ask you again," Neji bit out, lacing his words with an underlying threat.

The naga otherwise known as Ino snickered.

"Oh so you're the princess the king forced prince Sasuke to be betrothed to." Sakura face faulted. Forced? Sakura couldn't help but feel her heart sink. She was wrong…Sasuke liked her right? Ino continued her cruel monologue like Sakura wasn't even there.

"I heard that when he got back from visiting, he begged and pleaded the king and queen to break the betrothal. Now I can see why. Who would want to be someone with such a big forehead? I mean, look at her, I really can't blame him. " Normally, Sakura would have a fighting spirit, but the idea and visual that Sasuke really wanted absolutely nothing to do with her, broke her heart and she couldn't retaliate. Sakura looked away in shame. Hinata was at her side whispering words of comfort but Neji had had more than enough. It was all he could do not to rip these worthless serpents apart. His eyes flashed at them dangerously.

"That's it! Princess, Hinata, we are leaving this instant. If this is how the naga kingdom welcomes royalty then serious considerations need to be taken into account. You have insulted the princess; your actions will have consequences. Trust me when I say that I will tell her father, the king of this disrespectful and disgusting incident. If this is the kind of caliber that your kingdom holds then maybe it is better that our princess does not marry your… prince. Come princess, we are leaving this place now," Neji said taking Sakura's hand and swimming off to the exit with Hinata right behind them.

When the merpeople were out of sight, Shikamaru turned to Ino.

"Ino, you are so troublesome, what if you just started a war." Ino waved it off like it was nothing.

"You worry too much. They'll just call off the betrothal, and everything will go back to normal. Then, Sasuke will be mine."

"Fat chance Ino, Sasuke's already betrothed to Sakura," Naruto's voice rang out from behind the three. The three snapped around to see Naruto and Sasuke approaching apparently not hearting the beginning of Ino's sentence. Naruto was casual as always, his arms crossed behind his neck and Sasuke emotionless as always beside him.

Chouji snickered.

"Not anymore, now that Ino chased her away." Ino promptly elbowed him in the ribs. Sasuke's eyes widened in anger and disbelief. Sasuke clenched his fists with great intensity.

"When and with whom did she come with?" Sasuke asked tightly trying to assess the situation. Shikamaru shrugged.

"Like five minutes ago with some stiff guard and some weird quiet girl with purple hair." No sooner had he said that when Naruto's fist came slamming into Shikamaru's face.

"Don't ever talk about Hinata like that!" Naruto roared the threat more than evident in both his tone and facial features. Sasuke smirked. Naruto was fiercely protective of that girl, despite the fact that he had absolutely no courage to ask permission to court her.

"Naruto, let's go," Sasuke commanded looking sternly at his best friend. Naruto nodded. He knew that the more they stayed, the further away Sakura got. However, Sasuke stopped abruptly before continuing onward. He turned a dangerous narrow and hard glare at Ino and the others.

"If you ever… dare… to do anything like that again to Sakura, then so help me, I swear I'll kill you…" Sasuke warned in a slow and obviously threatening tone. The three turned white with fear. Even Naruto was shaken. He had never, never seen Sasuke act like that.

Note to self: never make Sasuke mad concerning Sakura. Naruto thought warily. In that moment, Naruto could have sworn that Sasuke's eyes had flashed that familiar sharingan crimson, but then he shook it off as nerves. Naruto shook his head, and saw that Sasuke was already heading to the kingdom's entrance.

"Hey, wait up!" Naruto called swimming after him.

Meanwhile, the three merpeople were still swimming back to their kingdom. All three had different reactions to the incident that had occurred.

Hinata was constantly worrying over her best friend. She had never seen Sakura look so crushed before. Hinata knew for a fact, through their long "boy" conversations, that Sakura had already fallen for the naga prince. Hinata glanced over at Sakura who was staring dejectedly at the ocean floor below them. What can I do to help her? Every word she thought of in order to comfort her didn't seem right or appropriate to Hinata. She felt utterly useless.

Neji's reaction was exactly the opposite. He was livid…beyond furious. How DARE they! He thought in contempt. He had always disliked the nagas. This was not the first time that he had visited the naga kingdom. He was a ninja and sometimes the two kingdoms would team up on missions. It was clear to see that their commoners thought that they were clearly the stronger of the two races. Neji's disdain for them grew. In actual reality their strengths in battle rivaled each other. Since the two races never fought, officially, the nagas just assumed they were stronger. However, their shinobi knew different. Though peaceful, the mer race was a definite force to be reckoned with. During the chunnin and jounin exams, Neji took great inward pleasure in completely blowing away any naga opponent that faced him. He was just itching to show that entire race that they were the ones that were inferior.

Secretly, and more importantly, they had insulted his princess. It was true she was the princess of the mermaid kingdom, but she didn't know that she was the princess of his heart. It was true, ever since he had first laid eyes on her; she had unknowingly stolen his heart. However, because of his duty and her betrothal, he could never reveal his feelings. It was such a struggle to be constantly around her and yet unable to tell her. It was almost unbearable. However, if anyone found out then he would instantly be relieved of his job as her guardian, and he would probably never see her again. That would be unbearable. She meant more than anything to him.

Bitterly, he recalled how he went to the king, preparing to give him his resignation as Sakura's guardian. It was a rule that a shinobi couldn't marry royalty. However, on the outside, his family or clan as they were called was the most respected of the nobility. Once he wasn't a ninja any more, he was sure that he would be granted permission to court and maybe even marry Sakura. That morning he had been so happy, but when he heard from other shinobi that the king had decided that the princess was to be betrothed to the naga prince, his heart shattered.

He hated Sasuke with a passion. That undeserving boy had ruined his dreams of happiness. He hated watching him with Sakura. That should have been him, looking at her with warm hopeful eyes. It should have been him holding her like a possession he would never share. Neji felt completely and utterly cheated. Secretly, a part of him was thrilled at what had happened today. He would just go back to the king and tell him how completely horrible they were to the princess. The king would be outraged by the time he had finished and then the betrothal would be off. Then maybe…he would finally be able to win Sakura's heart.

Suddenly, he heard the one voice that could ruin it all. It was him. Right now, it was all he could do not to rip that stupid serpent of a prince's throat out.

"Wait!" Sasuke called. Sakura and Hinata whipped around excitedly at the sound of his voice.

Sakura's heart leapt and plummeted at the same time. It was her beloved Sasuke. Immediately she looked away. If Sasuke didn't want her then she shouldn't show him that she still had hopes for him. But part of her heart yearned for him despite all of it. She just wanted him to want her, to take her in his strong arms and say that what that nasty hag had said was a terrible lie. She wanted so badly to look at him, but she forced herself not to. She couldn't bear to see him look at her with disgust in his eyes. So she waited each second seeming like a painful eternity.

The second Hinata heard Sasuke's voice, she had felt hope. Surely, Sasuke would not go so far out of his way just to tell Sakura that he didn't want her. Now Sakura would hear the truth. But secretly, she was excited because wherever Sasuke went, that meant that…

"Hinata!" Naruto's voice rang out clear as a bell. Instantly, she blushed crimson. Naruto always made her feel like she was a princess. Hinata was also glad that she and Naruto could just like each other without so many people getting involved. He was looking at her, a wide grin plastered on his face. Quickly, she shot back a shy smile, as she blushed brighter. Naruto smirked and was about to go over to her when Neji was suddenly blocking his way. Naruto scowled and a low growl escaped his lips. Neji was unfazed and glared back not backing down in the least.

"Hey man, what's your problem!" Naruto shouted getting right up in Neji's face. Bad idea. Neji's eyes flashed dangerously and Naruto backed away a little intimidated of the older boy in front of him. Neji smirked and then laughed sarcastically. But in an instant, his face was hard with anger.

"What's my problem? My problem is simply the complete lack of respect and intelligence of your people," Neji spat looking straight at Sasuke. He was about to reply but Neji cut him off. "How dare they speak to the princess like that! She is royalty and will be given the respect that is due her. You are lucky I did not deal with their impudence directly on the spot."

Sasuke spoke now. "You are right in the fact that they were being utterly foolish in their actions, and I assure you that what they said is most definitely a lie. I have nothing but the best feelings toward princess Sakura." At that, Sakura snapped up and smiled brightly at Sasuke, who in turn smiled back. It was all Sakura could do from throwing herself into Sasuke's arms. Neji seemed to notice this and became even madder.

"Still, such behavior cannot go unreported. I will tell the king of what happened today. Until I have permission from the king, this trip is over. We will head back to our kingdom. Hinata, take the princess and get going.I will join you in a moment." Hinata nodded then waved and smiled one last time at a disappointed Naruto. Sakura smiled warmly at Sasuke and mouthed goodbye before leaving with Hinata. Now it was just the three boys.

Sasuke and Neji were glaring daggers at each other for a solid minute before Neji finally spoke one last time.

"Understand this, if anyone is not good enough, it would be you before it was ever her. You do not deserve her. If ever something like this happens again, I will personally make sure you never see princess Sakura again…"

Sasuke sat up rigid in his bed, sweat permeating his body. Quickly, he yanked the bed cover and sheets off in frenzy. When he saw his legs he collapsed back against his bed in relief. That dream had felt so real. Everything about the dream made him think it was reality. The sights and sounds, the way he thought and reacted to the others around him. Most of all the way he felt; the feeling of the ocean as it passed over him as he swam, the way he could breathe in the water just like it was air, and the eeriest of all was the feeling of his…tail. In the dream, it felt natural having the one limb instead of two. The feeling of the water as it passed over the scales of his tail was unlike anything he had ever felt before.

There were other more…frightening … aspects of that form as well. He could remember distinctly, the way he ran his tongue along his fangs when he was trying to keep his calm with Ino and then there was the razor sharp claws that itched to tear into that Neji guy when he kept him from seeing Sakura.

Sakura… That was the most unsettling of all. In his dream, he had already fallen deeply in love her, craving just to see her. He had been murderously protective of her. What in the world would provoke such a dream? Kakashi's story had been no where close to that experience. It was like he was reliving some repressed memory. That thought alone sent shivers down his spine. That would mean that he actually was that…that monster. Sasuke refused to believe it.

Sasuke looked out his window to see that it was almost dawn. Sasuke sighed. Good, I can distract myself with the mission. Doing just that, Sasuke got ready and prepared for the mission ahead of him. Little did he know that at that exact moment, Sakura woke from the exact same dream. Both of them were unaware of the seals that were starting to weaken and the memories that would come flooding back in the form of dreams.

That morning, the air was cold and crisp as it wafted about. A heavy fog had settled over the village of Konoha and the area surrounding it. The sun had not yet peeked over the horizon yet and everyone was still fast asleep in their beds. Well…almost everyone. Sasuke and Kakashi quietly exited their apartment leaving with nothing but the clothes on their backs, their backpacks, and whatever weapons they had decided to bring. The silence that fell between the two shinobi was both eerie and tense. Sasuke had yet to uncover what this mission was about and the secrecy that was unified with it. By the looks of it, Kakashi was not going to disclose those facts any time soon. The two made their way down the street without a word. Only when another person was spotted far off in the distance did Kakashi stop cold.

"Sasuke, I want you to go on to the bridge, I'll be there shortly. There's something I need to take care of before we leave," Kakashi said in his low no room for arguments tone. Sasuke stiffly nodded and slowly started to the bridge without Kakashi. After a few feet, when he was sure that Kakashi couldn't see him anymore, he looked back over his shoulder to see if his sensei was still there. Sure enough, he was gone. However a few seconds later, a muffled scream was heard in the direction where that man was. Sasuke felt a pit forming in his stomach.

No…he wouldn't…Kakashi didn't just do something to that innocent man. A shiver ran up and down Sasuke's spine. What was going on here? Why was Kakashi so determined to not let anyone have knowledge of this mission that he would go to the extreme of hurting a fellow ninja? This was getting just too weird. Sensei or not, he had to tell the Hokage.

Apparently, that was not going to be the case. As soon as he turned around, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Crap.

"I thought I told you to go to the bridge without me," Kakashi said sternly. Sasuke looked at him cautiously and removed Kakashi's hand quickly.

"Hn." Without another word, the two resumed their trek to the bridge in silence. When they got there, Sakura and Hinata were chatting and Naruto was sprawled out snoring in the middle of the bridge.

"Yo!" Kakashi called to the others. The girls looked up and made their way to Kakashi and Sasuke. Naruto remained snoring totally unfazed.

"Good morning sensei," Sakura said cheerfully. It was evident that she was a morning person. Shyly, with a pink tint to her cheeks, she turned to the object of her affection.

Sakura could barely face the love of her life. The dream that she had last night was still very vivid in her mind. The whole issue of her being a mermaid was a tad unsettling, but the rest of it…the rest of it had been like a fantasy come true. In her dream world, she was a princess who had great friends and a great life. But most of all…he had loved her. She had been his princess. He had been her prince. She didn't even care that he was half snake. She would love Sasuke no matter what he was. Although… in the dream he had worn no shirt the perfection of his body was not hidden from her gaze…appealing…Sakura blushed crimson at the turn her thoughts had taken. But really, the way he had looked her with total acceptance and unconditional love; it was enough to make her heart soar. It was the happiest moment in her entire life even if it was just a dream.

Just a dream… The reality made her heart ache and she longed to return to the bliss of her dream world. Looking at Sasuke now was painful. The way he stared at her with cold emotionless eyes was a cruel reminder that her dream would probably never ever come true. Sasuke didn't care about her. All he cared about was getting revenge and becoming more powerful. He didn't love her. Part of her wished she had never experienced what being loved by Sasuke was like, when reality had to be such a slap in the face. A sad smile graced her lips before she turned away from Sasuke and her sensei. No… even if it was just for a moment in her dreams, she would treasure Sasuke's love for her.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was experiencing inner turmoil as well. That small voice that was always nagging him in the back of his mind that he and Sakura were supposed to be together was practically raging now. Whenever she was in close proximity to him, the voice screamed for him to take her in his arms and never let her go. She was his and he was hers. The need to kiss and touch her would become overwhelming and his mind would grow fuzzy. That was part of the reason he would always avoid her. His self control was tested when he was too close.

Right now was one of those times. It was like this other personality inside of him was battling for control. That Sasuke was not unlike him. He was strong, fierce, determined, proud, and stubborn. However, the "other Sasuke" had one major difference. He was completely and hopelessly in love with Sakura. The "other Sasuke" was outraged that Sasuke would not show any emotion to Sakura. That Sasuke couldn't understand why he wouldn't accept her as his. That Sasuke was fiercely protective and possessive of her. When other males dared touch her, even in the most casual of touches, that Sasuke would flare up and demand that Sasuke do something. She was his! No one would touch what belonged to him!

When Sakura had greeted him, his other personality had risen to life. He screamed for Sasuke to just accept her just this one time. Immediately, on the outside, Sasuke scowled. Sakura must have seen it, and that's why she turned away. The other Sasuke was furious that it was he who hurt the love of his life. A terrifying thought crossed Sasuke's mind. The "other Sasuke" reminded him a lot of how he acted in his dream last night. However, the thought was instantly erased when he saw Sakura's dejected smile as she turned away. He felt terrible. How many times had he rejected her? A part of him wanted to agree with "other Sasuke" and just love her. How easy that would be! But he couldn't, he was an avenger. He could not love. Love made you weak. Still, a look of longing formed on his face.

Kakashi saw the whole thing. This was better than Come Come Paradise! He could practically cut the sexual tension with a knife! As always, Sakura was obviously fawning over the Uchiha, but now him looking back at her with the same longing when she wasn't looking was priceless. Finally, it appeared as though Sasuke's feelings were resurfacing. It was about time! The scene before him was ironically hilarious. Here were two teens struggling with their feelings toward each other and failing miserably to conceal it. The kicker was that they did love each other, they just couldn't remember. It would only be a matter of time before Sasuke cracked. Watching Sasuke, would be one of Kakashi's more amusing hobbies on this mission. Speaking of which…Kakashi walked over, kicked Naruto and turned to his other students as the blonde woke with flames in his eyes.

"SASUKE YOU JERK! It was you who kicked me wasn't it! Believe it! I'm going to kick your…" Naruto ranted pointing to the now emotionless Sasuke before a hand was suddenly placed over his mouth.

"Awake less than a minute and already you're the loudest one here," Kakashi reprimanded softly. Naruto scowled and pouted folding his arms, once he was free of Kakashi's grasp. The girls giggled while Sasuke remained impassive. Kakashi took this as a sign to begin.

"Alright, our mission commences now. For now we are headed to the land of waves, now let's go!" He signaled with his arm for them to move out. The girls giggled and started walking along side Kakashi starting up a conversation like only girls could. Kakashi was immersed in the smut he was reading while keeping his senses on alert. Naruto was walking behind him, still a little ticked off at being scolded in front of the group. All of a sudden, Sasuke walked briskly past him to catch up with the group muttering "loser" just loud enough for Naruto to hear. Naruto's eyes were instantly blazing flames.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY, MORON!" Naruto hollered running after Sasuke, his fist itching just to wipe that smug smirk off of Sasuke's lips. And so, this mission started just like all of the others did. However, not even Kakashi could sense the evil presence that was carefully observing them in the distance.

"Lord Oroachimaru will be pleased…."