I do not own Naruto, nor do I make any money off of this.

"talking"

'thinking'

Dream/Flashback


Chapter 10: Rhododendron

Naruto was helped down from the horse by Itachi while Sasuke helped Sakura down. Naruto smiled as he watched Fugaku take Mikoto's hand. The six of them went into a giant tent where the servants set up a bunch of refreshments. Slowly, several nobles walked into the tent. The men were dressed up in their hunting outfits while most of the women were dressed in lighter clothing since the temperature was increasing. Only the Alpha female knights were dressed in hunting uniforms. Both Sasuke and Itachi were going to participate in the Hunt. Sasuke wore a dark blue tailcoat with purple swirls embroidered in the sleeves. Itachi's was black with red swirls. They both wore black breeches, boots, and gloves.

Naruto was wearing an orange, red, and black long shirt with a black corset. He was wearing black pants and boots. Ino handed him a quiver filled with arrows. She helped him strap it to his back before handing him a bow. She stepped back and nodded in approval.

"You're joining the hunt?" a voice asked. Naruto turned to see Sakura wearing a light green dress with off the shoulder straps. She had a peach colored shawl around her shoulders. She looked Naruto up and down, clearly judging him.

"I am," Naruto said.

"I can't believe they are letting an Omega join the Hunt," Sakura said. "Do you even know how to use that bow?" A couple of the noble ladies around her giggled.

Naruto clenched his fists. "I…"

"Naruto," Itachi called. The blond turned towards him. "The Hunt will be starting soon." Naruto glanced over at Fugaku who was getting ready to give a speech. Everyone that was joining the Hunt gathered into one spot. Sasuke, Itachi, and Naruto stood at the front of the group.

"Over this past year, many great things have happened," Fugaku said. "And many more great things are soon to come. My youngest, Sasuke, will soon marry Lady Sakura Haruno." Almost everyone cheered. "As the Crown Prince, Sasuke will be taking on more duties after the wedding until he eventually takes over as King." He raised a glass. "So let us celebrate all of this upcoming good fortune with a great Hunt!" Those with a drink raised their own glasses with the toast. Those participating in the Hunt began to leave.

Naruto walked over to his horse. "Are you ready?" Itachi asked.

"Yes," Naruto said.

"Alright," Itachi said. They began to ride towards the forest. "We aren't going to go far into the forest." Naruto frowned. "I know I shouldn't worry about you since you've trained in toxophily, but it's my duty to make sure you don't get hurt."

"Why you and not a knight?" Naruto asked.

"Would you rather I ask Kakashi for one of his men?"

"No." Naruto shook his head. "I just feel bad. It is an honor to participate in the Hunt, especially if you want to present it to someone."

"There isn't anyone." There was an awkward silence for a few seconds before Itachi spoke again. "What about you? Who are you planning to give your offering to?"

"I haven't really thought about that."

"What about Sasuke?"

"He'll probably give his to Sakura."

"That's not… nevermind." Itachi suddenly stopped his horse. "This should be a good place." He got down from his horse and tied the reins to a tree before helping Naruto down from his. Naruto tied his horse to the same tree. Naruto followed Itachi down the path. Upon hearing the rustling of leaves, Itachi stuck out an arm and raised a finger to his lips. Naruto nodded. They crouched down and waited. Itachi began to draw his sword only for Naruto to stop him.

"Don't!" Naruto yelled. Itach looked back to catch the small creature running away. He then turned back towards Naruto and saw the sad look in his eyes. A look of realization flashed through Itachi's eyes. He mentally cursed himself for not being more careful. Foxes were a sacred animal for the Uzumaki Clan, even being on their family crest. It was easy to forget that not only was Naruto a Namikaze, but he was also an Uzumaki, mostly since Naruto didn't have the red hair that all other Uzumakis have. Naruto clearly loved foxes just as much as any Uzumaki would. To kill a fox in front of him would have been sacrilegious.

Itachi gave Naruto an apologetic smile. "We'll go after something else." Naruto nodded. The two of them continued through the forest. They came to a stop a few minutes later. "A boar. It's a little far from where they normally roam." He paused. "Aim for its head. I'll back you up if necessary."

"Right," Naruto nodded. He aimed an arrow at the spot between the boar's eyes before firing. Naruto let out a cheer when it hit its mark. The two stepped towards the dying boar. "My first prey! That went a lot easier than I thought."

"It was an excellent shot," Itachi agreed. "We'll have to carry it back to the horses."

"Ok." Naruto pulled out some rope from his bag. He began to tie its legs together. "Do you…"

"Naruto!" Itachi yelled. Naruto turned to see Itachi jumping in front of him. At first, Naruto was confused about what was going on. Was there another animal nearby? Then he saw the arrow sticking out of Itachi's back.

"Itachi?" Blood dripped out of the wound and Naruto began to panic. Then he heard an ominous chuckle. He looked up to see several men walking towards him.

"That's a bit annoying," one of them said. "He got in the way." He grinned. "Oh well. It doesn't matter. We'll just have to kill both of them."

Naruto's heart sped up. It was clear that they were after him. Several questions came to mind as Naruto held on to Itachi. The older man was barely conscious, his breathing coming out in shallow pants. "Naru… run."

"I… I can't just leave you here." His whispered voice was filled with dread. He didn't know what to do. There was no way he'd be able to carry Itachi to their horses, especially if he had to outrun these assassins.

"G-go!" With strength that Naruto didn't know Itachi still had, he pushed Naruto away. On shaking legs, he stood facing the assassin, sword drawn. "Now!" Naruto gulped. He looked from Itachi to the assassins. Tears filled his eyes as he began to run. Maybe if he got help fast enough, Itachi could be saved.

A few men slipped past Itachi and began chasing Naruto. The blond ended up taking the wrong turn, running across some knights. Thinking luck was on his side, he called out to them. One of them came to Naruto's side to hear him out, only to get slashed by one of the assassins. A small battle started as another person tended to Naruto's minor wounds.

"Don't mind me," Naruto said. "Prince Itachi is back there, fighting on his own." He pointed to where he had come from.

"Prince Itachi?" the knight asked. With a nod of confirmation from Naruto, the knight turned towards another. "Inform Captain Kakashi immediately. He should be nearby with Prince Sasuke's group." The man ran off quickly. "Let's get you somewhere safe-er." The knight fell to the ground and Naruto looked up to see an assassin laughing. They had succeeded in taking down the four other knights.

"These are knights of the Uchiha Kingdom?" an assassin asked as he kicked the other Naruto had just been talking to. "So weak."

"T-they're not weak!" Naruto yelled.

"Oh yeah?" the man asked. "Then why was it so easy to take them out?" He kicked the knight again.

"S-stop!" Naruto yelled.

"Telling me what to do now?" the man asked. "An Omega like you should know its place." He slapped Naruto. "You know, we've only been ordered to kill you, but that doesn't mean we can't have some fun first." The men behind him laughed. Naruto grabbed the knight sword and stood his ground. The assassins just laughed. "Now that's funny. An Omega holding a sword." He stopped laughing. "Put it down before you hurt yourself, though that would save us some time." He took a step towards Naruto. The blond swung the sword wildly, but the assassin just grabbed it with his gloved hand. He yanked it out of Naruto's grasp, causing it to fall to the ground. "Enough games." He raised his own sword. Naruto closed his eyes only to hear the sound of metal clanging. He opened his eyes to see dark blue and black.

"S-sasuke," Naruto said. The man gave an acknowledging nod before he flicked his wrist, causing the assassin to step backwards. Naruto looked around, but there wasn't anyone else here. That meant that Sasuke had some alone. Said raven managed to knock the assassin into his partners. He let out a grunt as he stood before Naruto in a protective stance. Naruto took advantage of the situation to quickly tend to the knight that had protected him. The wound was deep, but Naruto had some healing salve that should help. He cut the man's shirt with his short knife before applying the salve to the wound. He wrapped him up the best he could. Naruto wanted to help the other knights, but he didn't have time.

Sasuke grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to his feet. Taking on four men at once wasn't easy even for someone like Sasuke. He had managed to take one of them out, but the other three kept approaching them. Sasuke backed them up to gain more space between them, but there wasn't a lot left as a cliff was behind them. "Get behind a tree." Naruto nodded, doing just that. Sasuke blocked a knife one of the assassins threw towards Naruto's fleeing form.

"Enough of this," the leader of the group said. "Just kill him too." The other two nodded at his order. They charged at Sasuke and the prince did his best to fight them off. The leader tried to make his way towards Naruto, but Sasuke got between them again. The battle intensified when Sasuke struck another assassin down. The remaining two seemed to no longer care about their mission as their focus was now completely on Sasuke.

During the fight, Sasuke got closer and closer to the edge of the cliff. Naruto saw the signs of what was about to happen. Sasuke realized just how close he was to falling over, giving the two remaining men a small opening. Sasuke was hit in the side and he took another step backwards, one that ended up being on a patch of unsteady ground. It broke beneath his foot, causing Sasuke to slip. Naruto called out Sasuke's name as he lunged towards him. He caught the raven in his arms, but it was already too late.

The impact was enough for Naruto to black out. Sasuke managed to stay awake, but he noticed that they were sinking fast. With what little strength he had left, he grabbed Naruto and swam up. He saw an opening in the nearby rocks and swam towards it, carrying Naruto with him. He managed to drag them into the cave and onto dry land. Panting from the stressful swim, Sasuke got to his feet. He swayed a lot from the lack of energy, so he had to sit down for a minute. Then he noticed that he could see the rise and fall of Naruto's chest. He rushed towards the blond, finding him not breathing. Letting his medical knowledge kick in, he maneuvered Naruto into a better position before beginning to give him mouth-to-mouth. When it seemed to not be working, Sasuke feared the worst. Then he remembered what he'd overheard some noble ladies complaining about rain and corsets. He ripped Naruto's corset open before returning his lips to Naruto's cold ones. He pulled back and pressed a few times on Naruto's chest. "Come on." He gave another hard push and suddenly Naruto began to cough up water. He made sure to tilt Naruto head to the side so he would choke on the coughed-up water. Naruto's blurry eyes opened. Sasuke's name slipped out of them before they closed again. Sasuke panicked, but then relief filled him as he noticed that Naruto had just fallen asleep. He let out a sigh before he took off his tailcoat. He ripped up his undershirt and used the pieces to wrap his side wound. It wasn't perfect, but it would do for now.

Getting to his feet, Sasuke began to look around. He found some dry plants including a small tree. Using a small knife, he cut the leaves off the small tree before cutting it up. He dug a hole and placed the wood into it. He cursed as he realized that he didn't have anything to start the fire. With a glance towards Naruto he came to an easy decision. He held out a hand. Fire sparked up from seemingly nowhere. He lowered the flame towards the hole, dropping it onto the stick. A small blast was heard before the fire shrunk. Once Sasuke was satisfied, he removed his boots, socks, and pants and laid them down near the fire enough for it to speed up the drying process, but not enough to burn them. He hesitated about removing his underwear, but he knew he couldn't stay in wet clothes. He looked at Naruto. And neither could he.

Taking a deep breath, Sasuke took off his underwear. He spread them out before gaining the courage to walk towards Naruto. He tossed the remaining pieces of Naruto's corset to the side before he began to undo the straps of Naruto's bracer. Once that and the rest of Naruto's hunting gear, boots, and stockings were removed, Sasuke stared at the next part of his clothing he had to remove. He swallowed before he carefully pulled up and off the blonde's shirt. Sasuke did his best to not stare at the beautiful tan skin. The pants were next and it would have been easy had it not been for the panties under them. Sasuke saw the edge of them and froze. He calmed his heart, reminding himself that this was not the time nor place. He placed the shirt and pants near the fire. The panties were the only clothing left on Naruto. Again he debated leaving them on the Omega, but he really didn't want him to get sick. With one last burst of courage, Sasuke took them off. He forced himself to look away. He laid out the panties, choosing to stare at them instead. A sneeze pulled his attention back to the naked blond.

Sasuke's eyes widened. It was the first time he'd seen such a welcoming sight. His Alpha growled at him to claim the Omega, but Sasuke ignored it. Instead, he lifted Naruto into his arms and brought him closer to the fire. He did his best to ignore the fact that both of them were naked as he sat down with the blond in his lap. He mentally yelled at his lower half that now was not the time to get up. Using the warmth from the fire and his own body heat, Sasuke tried to warm Naruto up. When it seemed to not be working, Sasuke lowered Naruto to the ground. He dug an even bigger hole and used the last of the wood to start a second fire. He spread the leaves on the ground between the two fires before laying down on them with Naruto on top of him. He filled his mind with thoughts on different things, avoiding the thoughts of a certain naked blond. Fully, his body gave into the exhaustion and he fell asleep. Unknown to Sasuke, Naruto's dreams were filled with memories of the past.

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Naruto's first heat was right after his presentation. Presenting as an Omega wasn't something he'd been happy about and his first heat made his hatred of being an Omega only skyrocket. It had been miserable, the pain something he'd never felt before. It also made him feel gross at the mess it left behind. Once his first heat was over, Naruto was pulled into the bathing chambers where he was roughly scrubbed clean. He was brought before the royal doctor who gave him his suppressants after checking to make sure he'd really been alone during his heat. It was uncomfortable, but Naruto stayed silent during all of it. Once the doctor gave his approval, Minato escorted him out. Kushina gave Naruto a collar. She explained what it was to the exhausted boy. He ended up in a different room to rest in while the maids cleaned up. He was too tired to be embarrassed. His Omega was dissatisfied at the treatment his newly presented self received, but it allowed Naruto to sleep. When Naruto was better rested, Kushina came to go over everything again. Naruto took notes, wanting to make sure that he didn't do anything wrong.

After that, each heat he had got worse. His suppressants got stronger and he was given medicine to lower the pain. He still had a long time before he could finally mate with his Alpha, relieving that pain once and for all.

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The first heat he had after he had turned fourteen was the most painful. He had been forced to spend tea time with Sakura. Sasuke and Itachi had come by to say hello, but Sasuke had been foolish enough not to wear his scent blockers. Ino and a few maids instantly pulled Naruto away while Itachi and the guards restrained Sasuke. Sakura was left bewildered about what had happened until Mebuki explained it. Sakura grew jealous that Naruto and Sasuke could get those reactions out of each other. She distanced herself from Naruto who didn't even remember the incident. Sasuke's memories about it were also blurred. All he remembered was stepping out of a carriage only to awaken in his bed. Itachi said that he went into a rut suddenly before Mikoto and Fugaku reprimanded him for not wearing his blockers. Sasuke never forgot to wear them again. Since Naruto didn't remember anything, Mikoto ordered Ino and the others not to tell him. Naruto and Sasuke continued to go through life never remembering that incident. Although there were times that they smelt the other and the scent felt memorable, neither questioned it.


Rhododendron is a symbol of temptation, caution and danger.