Icewater

Chapter 17: Rule

Disclaimer: I claim a disclaimer. WhaBLOOSH!

Dedicated to Chelty-chan (my like-minded fellow baus writer) and Man-chan. Mweeheehee. Enjoy, u guys!

Thanks for reading! Enjoy!

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Naruto grumbled. Already tired from dealing with unruly mobs of fleeing Pacificans, Naruto now lay down on a plush comforter of seaweed and sand. He sank into it like a rock in water; it had taken quite a bit of effort to manage to convince the manager of the Ambassador's Quarters of Gaara's castle to let him stay the night. Naruto knew if Gaara were here, the stay would cost nothing, but it had taken a promise of a large sum of pearls to sway the manager. Grumbling again, Naruto rolled onto his side, lazily staring at the parched coral walls. He realized this room must usually belong to Oceanican officials; the thought led him to King Jiraiya's murder, which made Naruto flinch.

Jiraiya had been almost like a second Father to Naruto; just as Minato had learned from Jiraiya, Naruto's lessons had been based off of Jiraiya's. Often when Naruto came to Oceanica as a boy, it was to observe a proper government leader in action, and to also put into practice his lessons in diplomacy. His father would drag him into treaty meetings or other such things, and after his father and King Jiraiya had begun suggesting improvements, Naruto would be asked to offer an idea. Looking back on it, both Kings had always led the conversation in a way that usually allowed Naruto to figure out a solution easily, but as he had gotten older it had become less structured and more spontaneous.

He remembered clearly one such meeting: a committee was in session to organize an international celebration of the oldest treaty between Pacifica and Oceanica, and King Minato had brought Naruto along. The unusual thing, of course, was that Sakura had also been brought by her Father. The two young heirs floated beside each other as their Fathers, Queen Tsunade, and other members of the committee argued.

"I assure you that our own records are just as credible as your own," said one man. Another sighed, rubbing his temple in frustration. "However, the discrepancies are-"

"With all due respect," interrupted Queen Tsunade, "I highly doubt that it took place in high summer. Remember, most records suggest that the fish were seasonal, and those particular breeds only appear in our waters near winter."

"None of the records agree with what precise species were present during the treaty signing," Minato argued. A committee member huffed in frustration. Naruto stole a glance at Sakura; she was chewing her cheek, a habit of here from when they were younger.

"In any case, most records do agree that the sun was brightest on the day it shone," another mermaid from the committee said. "Logically, that would mean high summer-"

"You could take it with a grain of sand," countered an Atlantican committee member, his bright blue fin whipping back and forth underneath him. "The bright sun could be symbolism for what the treaty represented. Besides, our recor-"

"With all due respect," interrupted a high, clear female voice. Naruto and the others present turned their attention to Sakura. She obviously looked ill at ease with the attention, but nonetheless pressed forward. "The sun is at its highest in high summer, but in Pacifican waters, where the treaty was signed, it's at it's brightest in autumn." The room became silent; Sakura pressed forward. "And the fish mentioned in nearly all the records named migrate between our waters roughly around autumn."

All present mulled over the information Sakura had brought up. Naruto looked to King Jiraiya in time to see him grin proudly.

And Naruto knew why. Sakura was not a genius, but she was brilliant all the same, with an analytical mind that processed information quickly and efficiently, in such a manner that allowed her to solve issues reasonably and skillfully. She thought outside the shell. Naruto knew she would make a fantastic ruler one day.

Now, as he lay on his bed, he wondered if he could ever be like that: a great leader who could use his brain and skills to keep his kingdom prosperous and peaceful.

He hoped so.

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When he was six, Sasuke heard a legend from his mentor, Hatake Kakashi.

They sat in the library, Kakashi on a windowsill belonging to a floor-to-ceiling stained glass window, Sasuke on the fluffy carpet near him. The library was large; he knew the rows of shelves and bookcases well, despite rarely reading any of the materials on them. Sasuke was too young to be interested in the history's of his land.

But legends were right down his aisle.

"Long ago, it was possible to harness the elements," said Sasuke's silver-haired mentor. Sasuke sat by his feet, enraptured. "Men learned to create whirlpools, disperse hurricanes, call upon rain and wind, calm raging fires. Men could create forests and crumble mountains."

"How?" Sasuke asked, eyes wide and awed.

"They had a power," Kakashi explained, "chi that could flow through their bodies. This chi was what allowed them to master the elements."

"How did it work?" Sasuke asked. "How could chi work?"

Kakashi paused, considering the question.

"Well..." he said slowly, "Think of chi like a quill. Say you wanted to control fire." Kakashi watched as Sasuke scrambled to his feet, running across the library floor to the nearest desk. The young Uchiha grabbed an ink flask, multiple slips of parchment, and a large feather before trotting back to his mentor, a horse laiden-down by his pack. Kakashi helped Sasuke, taking the flask and quill from the little boy, before sitting again on the windowsill.

"Say you wanted to control fire," Kakashi said again. The quill is your chi, and let's say that the ink is the element you want to control... In this case, fire." Sasuke watched with interest as Kakashi dipped the tip of the quill into the ink in the flask. "In the past, men would use their chi - the quill - to harness an element - the ink - and do what they would with it." Kakashi slid the feather smoothly across the surface of a slip of parchment. "They could make fire." He drew the Konoha emblem, a small but proud emblem of fire. "They could put fire out." He scratched a line through the flame. "They could combine it with other elements." He drew another flame, then added wind around it, adding in escaping flames for emphasis. "The men who could control these elements were special. They were rare, so now many believe them to be extinct, or part of a silly old tale." Kakashi looked up from the parjment and coolly met Sasuke's gaze. "What do you think?"

Sasuke did not hesitate.

"I think it's real," he said, "And I think I can control elements, too!" Sasuke pushed his arms out in front of him, willing fire to spring forth from his palms.

Nothing happened.

Kakashi laughed softly as Sasuke scrunched his face up in disappointment.

"With time, Sasuke," Kakashi chuckled, patting Sasuke lightly on the head. "Perhaps with time."

A week later, Sasuke summoned a fireball that burned a large portion of the garden he'd been practicing in.

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When Sakura woke, she woke to Ino patting her lightly on the shoulder.

"Come on, come on," Ino whispered hurriedly. "There isn't much time. Get up!"

Sakura made to yawn when the tangled hair in her face swayed from her motion.

She froze.

Pink bordered her vision.

Silently, Sakura flipped the covers on her bed back and began undressing. Ino grabbed a white, flowing gown out of the wardrobe and passed it to Sakura, who slipped into it easily. Ino passed her black slippers, and while Sakura stepped into them, Ino began pulling Sakura's hair back, splitting it in two and braiding them on either side of her head before bringing them together and (with the help of numerous pins) knotting them. Then she grabbed a headpiece with a dark red veil and placed it atop Sakura's head; it covered all of her hair, fell to her mid-back, and effectively shrouded Sakura's hair color.

"Now put on the bracelet," Ino commanded. Sakura grabbed the gift from Sasuke off of the counter by her bed (she had taken it off the night before) and sliding it onto her wrist. The emblem on it shone despite how little light seeped into her room. Ino pulled a ruby necklace out of her pocket - another she assumed the Prince had allowed her to take - and, after lifting the back of Sakura's veil, tied it to the mermaid's neck.

"There," Ino said, smiling. "You look elegant. And like you're still blonde!" Sakura made to grin to her friend, but Ino silenced her with a raised hand. "There isn't much time to explain," she continued. "Just listen."

Sakura's heart sped up.

This is probably bad, Inner said. Sakura silently agreed.

"The King is making a new declaration. A new law, basically," Ino said. "I don't know about what, but he supposedly needs your consent." At Sakura's startled expression, Ino shook her head. "I can only assume, but..." She took a deep breath. "A King needs verbal consent from no one. He rules his own lands. He would only need your permission if..."

Sakura felt her blood run cold.

"If it involves MY lands," Sakura finished. Ino nodded.

"I believe he wants to make a deal with you of some kind," Ino said. "Again, I could be wrong, but usually we only ask for permission from other countries of we either seek something that belongs to them, or we want something back that's ours."

Sakura's mind was racing. It didn't matter that she had just woken up; dread filled her, and she had a sinking suspicion she knew what the King wanted.

"Do-" Before Sakura could finish her word, there was a light rap on the door. Both girls jolted, Sakura covering her mouth fearfully. Ino made a motion to Sakura ("Shh!") and approached the door.

"The Lady is still preparing herself for Court," Ino said.

"Well, hurry it up," came a lazy, drawling voice through the door. "The King is already there. Court's nearly in session."

Ino's eyes widened and she pulled the door open hurriedly.

"Shikamaru, wait, but it's so early, most nobles won-" She cut off. Sakura rushed to her side. She looked to both sides, but no one was in the hallway.

Huffing, Ino ran a hand through her ponytail before smiling. It didn't quite reach her eyes, but it reassured Sakura nonetheless.

"Right, then," Ino said. "Let's get going!"

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Sakura looked warily up at the King. He sat in his throne, robes arranged neatly around him.

Warning bells rang in her mind, and she did her best to maintain the calm composure her Father had worked so hard for her to grasp. She had no idea if it was working, and in any case, she knew it couldn't intimidate Madara.

What was most unnerving to her was that when she'd strolled through the doors to the court, Ino standing outside in silent support, she'd ambled into a completely empty room. Her footsteps had echoed loudly, and then her eyes had landed on Madara.

"Come," he said, gesturing slightly with his hand.

She came, approaching as close as she dared to his throne (not very), and then dropped in the lowest curtsy she could manage without falling over. She knew that her lip might tremble if she let it, so she focused carefully on keeping as still as possible.

She would not show weakness to this man.

"Rise," he commanded.

She rose.

Light pooled through the windows, gold reflected on the clean, cold floor, and Sakura prayed he wouldn't notice her pink hair.

"I have a request," rumbled Madara, voice low. His calculating eyes flashed red, and it was all Sakura could do not to flinch. "You are aware of the situation with the Hyuga." Without elaboration or pause to see if she was indeed aware of the situation, he pressed forward. "Due to the circumstances, action must be taken. Criminals must be sought, but it is impossible to track enemies should they flee into an inaccessible place."

Her dread increased tenfold.

"I called you here," King Madara said, "To request your permission to hunt down the assassin who attempted to murder Princess Hinata."

Sakura's stomach dropped.

"I-I don't-" she began, but he cut her off.

"Princess Sakura of Oceanica, I am requesting your aid in the search for the merman who sent the attacker. He is also the same man who murdered your Mother and Father."

It slipped out of her mouth before she realized she had thought it.

"Orochimaru."

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A/N: Wish me luck! Me and my twin are auditioning for pre-area choir in our state! :) Hope you enjoyed the chappie!

And yes, I live. I just wanna to to college, that's all. Note to juniors and sophomores in high school: start your applications now. Or at least over summer. If you don't, you will wind up like me. And believe me... You don't want to wind up like me.

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