FicWad

Disclaimer: The Naruto series and all Naruto characters are the copyright of Masashi Kishimoto. I’m just borrowing them to write up a story with no intention of making any money. This is for fun. That’s all. :) No copying of my story is allowed. That's stealing if anyone copies my story into his/her own story. Write your own story without taking others' works! (angry glare)

Pre-chapter A/N: I thought at first that I can put everything into one chapter, but once I realized I had written more than 13 thousand words with still some way to go, I’d decided to break this chapter into two separate ones for easy reading and to post part of what I had written thus far for the readers’ enjoyment. I assure everyone that Part 2 will definitely end this mini-arc. You have my word. (Gives thumbs up and Gai smile with shiny teeth)

A great big ‘Thank you!’ goes to Weixuan18 for betareading for me! Thanks! (big grin)

Story rating: M (R)(for adult and sexual themes)
Written: February 2009-Present

Summary: Love can pop up unexpectedly with someone you least imagine to fall for. NaruTen.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Unexpected Love
Chapter 12 – Revelations of Hearts, Part 1
By JuPMod (aka JPMod)

The life of a shinobi was not what the average citizen would call ‘normal’. They learned the very basics at the Academy at a young age and graduate just before the start of puberty. Depending on how much the young ninja wanted to grow and learn, these youngsters either rose through the ranks at an incredible pace or fall behind for years and never achieve anything. Either way, most in the Konoha ninja force have a lifestyle of working and training with very little time for anything else.

Yet, for most shinobi and kunoichi, they were human like any citizen. True, that work and training took up a high percentage of their lives, but it did not mean that there was no time to play and have a social life. It was a basic misconception from those, who truly did not grow up in a ninja village, that a shinobi had little or no time for hobbies and to become part of the community. After all, how could any ninja bear children if they had no time at all to raise a family?

However, raising a family was far from the mind of Uzumaki Naruto as he jumped from a tree into the main clearing of the Memorial Stone Training Ground. His mind was focused on something that could harm him if he was not careful. Sure enough, the thing he was worried about came barreling through the forest, knocking down the tree he was on previously with a single punch.

“Argh! Will you stay still?!” shouted Haruno Sakura at the same time she cracked her glove-covered knuckles.

Laughing, Naruto waggled a finger at her, “Come on, Sakura-chan, do you really expect me to let you punch me? I’m not a fool to let you hit me with that monstrous strength of yours.”

With a ticking left eye, the pinkette shook a fist at her best male friend. “After more than three years, will you ever stop calling my chakra-enhanced taijutsu ‘monstrous strength’?!”

“Well, it’s not my fault you can’t accept the truth,” parried back the blond with a smirk.

“SHANNARO!” shouted the apprentice of Tsunade, before with she cracked the ground open with a single kick, sending huge chunks of earth flying out like projectiles towards her opponent.

Leaping into the air to avoid being bowled over by the latest upheaval of earth generated by his super strong female teammate, Naruto quickly pulled out his two kodachi while in mid flight, and soon after, both blades glowed blue as their owner poured his elemental chakra into them.

“Oh, no, you don’t!” Sakura cried out as she picked up a huge chunk of hard earth, which was ten times her size. “I’m not going to fall for your wind jutsus this time! I’ve learned my lessons!” With that said, she hurled the dirt projectile at the golden-haired man.

Naruto easily destroyed the huge threat with a flick of one kodachi, producing a wind jutsu that sliced the hard earth. However, as he landed on the ground, he was bombarded by flying rocks and hard earth that were thrown or kicked at him from Sakura, thus he was on the defense from being smashed by the airborne debris.

As she watched the blond slice-and-dice the projectiles while in retreat, Sakura knew better than to ever get close to Naruto, not as long he had those two short swords in his hands. Not only could he cut her up, but also those wind jutsus could be murder at close range. The best the pinkette could do was to knock her teammate out or get him to use only one kodachi or stop using both. Only then would she able to try and bridge the gap to take him out.

For the pinkette, it had only been a year ago when she could match her friend in a fight and make him literally feel the pain. Even with his vast array of ninjutsu, Sakura knew Naruto’s taijutsu was not even close to matching hers, which she learned from Tsunade, thus she knew she could win a fight against him in close range combat. Yet now the tables have turned, for Naruto had developed a good defense against her taijutsu with those kodachis, not to mention good long-range attacks with Fuuton jutsus. Unless she kept him on guard at all times, the blond would eventually take her out one way or the other.

After watching him retreat into the forest, a determined Sakura rushed after her foe, but not without caution. She was not a fool to just run into an ambush, and knowing Naruto, he definitely would aim for setting a trap, especially one with dozens of Kage Bunshins waiting to strike.

Sakura was only a hundred yards into the forest, when the first wave of Naruto Bunshins began their attack, just as she predicted. They dropped out of the trees in a circle toward her, expecting to engage her in hand-to-hand combat, but the young female medic was not going to allow them that satisfaction, for she launched into the air and flung kunai and shuriken at them, dispelling many of them. Once they all landed, the pinkette slammed her fist into the ground, and the up heaved ground took out the remaining clones.

Sensing immediate danger, Tsunade’s student jumped out of the way to avoid a kunai with an explosive note, which detonated right away upon impact with the ground. Yet when her feet touched down once more, she felt the earth underneath begin to tremble, so she knew what was coming. Since there was no time to jump away as a dozen Naruto Bunshins burst out from below to surround her, she had no choice but to fight them in close range as she kicked and punched in quick successions against the blond army.

However, while she was fighting, her mind quickly saw that the clones had not used their replicated kodachis. Even though the copies of the swords could not use chakra compared to the original chakra blades, they could still cut a person open. Yet none of the Naruto Bunshins even bothered to use their weapons, which meant only one thing… They were only a distraction.

After taking out the last bunshin, emerald eyes saw the incoming threat from above in the form of dozens of clone kunai and shuriken, and thus to avoid the rain of steel, Sakura once again got out of the way by somersaulting backwards and flipping dozens of times as the kunai and shuriken followed her movement. Her acrobatics stopped when the steel rain halted, and that was when the pink-haired woman took a look up and went wide eyed at what was coming right her.

Naruto or a Naruto Bunshin was falling head first with a Rasengan in his right hand aiming at her. There was only barely enough time for her to hop out of the way just prior to the spinning chakra orb passing in front of her face on its way down. Sakura could feel the wind and chakra from the technique, given its close proximity, and it reminded her once more just how powerful this jutsu really was.

While in mid hop as the Rasengan went past her neck, Sakura heard a distinctive pop. Out of the corner of her green eyes, she made out Naruto, no doubt the real one, about to slash his glowing kodachis horizontally at her. Her mind quickly figured out that Naruto must have henged into one of the thrown weapons, and when she was occupied with the Bunshin Naruto with the Rasengan, the real Uzumaki would have came out of hiding to attack her.

She knew she was screwed. “Curse you, Naruto!”

“Fuuton: Kabe Nami (Wind Element: Wall Wave)!” The blond jounin shouted before slashing his blades horizontally, creating a crescent wall of wind heading straight towards the female jounin.

Just as the Rasengan smashed into the ground, the wind wall arrived, throwing Sakura away and plowing her into a tree with good enough force to knock some of the wind out of her. She slid down the tree, until she was sitting at the base, her right hand over her left ribs. The medic didn’t even have time to open her eyes, when she felt the tip of a sword barely touching the left side of her throat.

“Looks like I win this match, Sakura-chan,” she heard Naruto said, his tone being a bit smug.

Sakura chuckled at the same time, opening her emerald eyes to look up at the victorious grinning teammate of hers. “So you did… again.” She watched him pull away the blade from her throat before sheathing both short swords into their scabbards on his back.

Moving her line of sight from the tall blond to where the falling Naruto Bunshin was, Team Kakashi’s kunoichi saw the small crater left in the ground and easily figured out that the bunshin must have dispelled the exact moment the wind jutsu struck her but not before the Rasengan made the hole. Overall, she couldn’t dispute that it was a very good tactical maneuver Naruto had made.

“Are you okay?” asked a concerned Naruto, causing his long-time teammate to focus back on him again.

“I’m fine,” Sakura replied with a reassuring grin, “Just a crack on one of my ribs.” With that said, her right hand began glowing green as she healed herself.

“Sorry about that,” the whisker-faced Jinchuuriki grinned a bit apologetically before creating a dozen Kage Bunshin, and as his copies took up the task in retrieving the many kunai and shuriken spread across the battlefield, Naruto settled down besides the woman, who was his first real crush.

Shaking her head, Sakura wryly smirked at the tall blond. “It’s not like I’m fragile, Naruto, and you know it.”

Naruto chuckled. “I know, I know. I’ve been on the receiving end of your monstrous strength many times to know you’re not weak, Sakura-chan.”

“Will you ever stop calling it that?” rhetorically asked the pinkette as she frowned, which made her male friend laugh. She snorted a laugh a moment later, knowing well that he would still likely be humorously calling her strength ‘monstrous’ when they became senior citizens decades from now.

As the two friends settled into a comfortable silence while she mended her cracked rib, Sakura mentally acknowledged that not only Naruto had come a long way since the Academy, but pretty much everyone else she knew as well, even herself. It was funny how life could change from year to year, making things unpredictable in ways that no one could have foreseen. Could her twelve-year-old self have predicted that she would become a highly respected medical shinobi and be best friends with Naruto? No, she certainly wouldn’t, but no doubt the younger Sakura would have squealed upon learning her older self would be marrying Sasuke.

Sakura mentally cringed on the picture. The pink-haired kunoichi back then sure was a fangirl. Her present self was in love with Sasuke for who he was as a person, not for some crush. The last Uchiha had changed a lot after Naruto defeated him, becoming a softer person compared to the hard-driven avenger he once was. Oh, he still schooled his emotions to make it nearly impossible for outsiders to gauge his inner feelings, but the pinkette knew deep down, the Sharingan user was not the same person he was two years ago. It was a perfect example once more that people just could not predict the future.

Letting an small, ironic smirk grace her face, the Slug Sannin’s student could easily say the same thing regarding Naruto and Tenten. A little more than a year ago, everyone thought Tenten and Neji would get hitch and Naruto might eventually date Hinata, once the Hyuuga Heiress dropped Kiba. After all, hearing that confession Hinata made to Naruto as she confronted Pain, one would have thought the two might somehow get together in the end. Nope, Neji and Tenten broke up, Hinata had not ever broken up with Kiba, and over the past year, Naruto and Tenten became closer. It had been quite an unexpected turn of events in the social lives of the Konoha Twelve.

“Everything okay, Sakura-chan?” inquired Naruto upon seeing the faraway look in those lovely emeralds on her face.

Breaking out of her reverie, the young medic shook her head with a small grin. “Just thinking how much we all have changed in the past six years,” she replied just as she finished healing herself.

“Yeah,” the blond jounin concurred prior to seeing his clones returned with dozens of kunai and shuriken to sort through. “Times have changed much.” With that said, the pair began placing their individual weapons back in their pouches, side holsters, and other places.

As they sort through the pile of weapons the Kage Bunshins dropped in front of them before dispelling, Naruto took a quick glance at his female teammate and saw the reminders of how much Sakura had changed. Like the rest of The Kunoichi Five, the pinkette had a different work outfit and look compared to three years ago.

Like Tenten, Sakura went for a dress-style outfit. The red dress, with the Haruno symbol on the back, was like an extension of her sleeveless, zip-up shirt worn three years ago, but it had a turtleneck, a black waist belt, and slide slits on the skirt, which ended mid-thigh. Instead of spandex black bicycle shorts, her legs were encased in spandex black pants that end half way down the calves. Her calf-length boots were replaced with shorter high-heeled boots, and arm guards were now on her forearms. Besides the change in her choice of clothing, the pinkette grew her hair back to the length it was years ago, styling it up in a high ponytail. The only things that were the same were her gloves, the large pouch at the small of her back, the kunai leg holster, and the large knife strapped above the pouch.

With their weapons secured back in their pouches and holsters, the two members of Team Kakashi, a.k.a. Team Seven, stood up and walked out of the training field side-by-side. No words were needed to convey their thoughts on what to do next. After so many years, they knew each other well enough to know that after training, they would either walk out of the field or stay and talk. It was the type of non-verbal communication that came only from those who were very close.

After they left the field, Sakura broke the silence as they made way toward the village. “So… Have you found anything yet?”

Naruto did not need to ask what she was referring. “Nothing. I still haven’t found anything,” he frowned.

The pink-haired kunoichi sighed. “It has been two days since you mended fences with Tenten. In another two days, your supposed ‘engagement’ ceremony will take place with the Fire Daimyo attending. If you do not find any law to nullify the engagement by then, your chances of keeping your word to Tenten will diminish.”

“I know, I know!” he nearly yelled in a bit of frustration, holding up a hand to stop her from speaking anything more on something he already knew. “Let’s see how you do sorting through thousands of scrolls in the section of the library devoted to housing all the laws in Konoha’s history up to today.”

Grimacing in understanding, Sakura nodded a few times before Naruto lowered his hand. “I know what you’re talking about. That section is not even organized. If it was, anyone would have an easier time finding what he or she wanted.”

Naruto snorted, for she didn’t need to tell him how badly organized the Law Vault was.

The Law Vault was where all the written laws of the nation, village, and every Konoha clan were stored. Copies of various village laws could be found in the private clan vaults throughout the village, but if anyone wanted to find every law there was, one could find it in the Law Vault. The Law Vault, Jutsu Vault, and other highly important written material were placed at well protected locations throughout Konoha in case of invasion or other means that could destroy the village. They were very lucky the mass destruction Pain, a.k.a. Nagato, had caused had not ruined any of the vaults as well as Konoha Library itself. The annihilation of all that knowledge would have hurt the village greater than Pain’s attack ever would have done.

As the pair journeyed past the village’s huge defense wall, Sakura changed the subject slightly. “Speaking of your ‘arranged marriage,’ is the bitch still giving you problems?”

The young medic shinobi didn’t need to hear the answer, when her friend’s narrowed eyes and frown told her everything. Yet the blond verbally replied anyway. “Obviously. She is not being cooperative at times, and she acts so grand and righteous. Yet it’s hard to believe the rumors I keep hearing about her.”

Sakura snorted in disbelief. “Rumors are just rumors, Naruto. If she were so nice, why is she so mean? I agree with Kakashi-sensei that perhaps she is up to something, but we can not just force her to tell us the truth, if she is indeed acting. Unless she breaks any laws and be taken in for questioning, we just cannot confront a member of the royal court outright.”

After a moment of thinking about it, a small determined grin appeared on Naruto’s face, one that told his teammate that he has an idea. “Then maybe it is time for me to find out what Kyoko is doing when she thinks there is no ninja watching her. Baachan had given her free reign with no guards, thus no one can see what she is doing.”

Comprehension came to the pinkette’s face. “You’re thinking that she might be doing something when you’re not watching her. It might explain the rumors going around.”

“Yeah,” admitted the tall blond man. “I have this feeling, Sakura-chan, she might not be the person she says she is, and I want to find the truth.”

Giving a bob of her head to show her agreement, Sakura knew that someone would indeed have to confront Kyoko pretty soon or later. It was like the noble woman wanted Naruto and his friends to loath her, despite rumors saying she was nice, making it appear that her hostile nature was all but an act. If she was acting, the question boiled down to why. Why go through the trouble? The only answer the young medic kunoichi could think of was the very obvious one staring right in the face of all of them.

Hearing the familiar growl rumbling from Naruto’s stomach, the pink-haired woman was broken out of her thoughts to give a small giggle. Even after all these years, her teammate still had a large appetite at times, even when he should be supposedly near the end of his growing years at eighteen years old by now. Then again, Sakura had long ago deduced his occasional huge food consummation as due to being a Jinchuuriki more than any personal physical quirks. It certainly explained why he could gobble down more than five bowls of Ichiraku ramen so easily, when the average person could only take one or two at most, unless you happened to be an Akimichi.

Giving a teasing grin at the bashful, grinning shinobi, Sakura patted her friend’s stomach. “No doubt it is lunchtime with this automatic clock of yours, Naruto.”

Naruto chuckled before pointing straight ahead with a destination in mind. “Yep! To Ichiraku’s!”

The tug on his hiori’s sleeve prevented him from rushing off, thus making him focused back on his pink-haired teammate. “Naruto, we’ve been to Ichiraku the last time we had lunch together. We’re going to another place to eat this time.”

“Aw, come on, Sakura-chan,” the blond whined a bit.

Sakura crossed her arms. “No, we’re going to eat somewhere else. No ‘ifs,’ ‘ands,’ or ‘buts’. Got it?” she finished with a raised eyebrow to drive home her point.

“Fine,” the Toad Sennin relented before gesturing for her to show the way. “Lead the way.”

With a smirk, the youngest student of the Godaime began walking with her friend besides her. “You didn’t bother to fight,” she teased. “Were it just a year ago, you would have complained to go to Ichiraku’s no matter what. I say either you matured or Tenten has gotten you trained.”

Snorting a laugh, Naruto shook his head at the joke before facing his ex-crush. “Or maybe I know that I can go to Ichiraku’s for dinner? I learned that if I can’t go to Ichiraku’s one time, I could wait for another time to do it.”

This time Sakura couldn’t help but laugh fully. He did make a good point regarding that. It was funny that six years ago, Naruto would have eaten at Ichiraku’s every day for both lunch and dinner with the exception of when he was on a mission outside the village. Yet he grew up to narrow down his visits to his favorite restaurant to least once in awhile than every day. Least she didn’t have to pull his ear these days to make him go to another place to eat compared to their rookie genin days.

“Well, least you changed that habit of yours, although you still at times eat just as much as Chouji,” she ragged with a smirk.

Naruto shrugged, not even bothering to dispute her. “It’s me, Sakura-chan,” he grinned. “That’s just the way I am.”

The pink-haired young woman smiled fondly up at the tall blond man walking next to her. “Yeah, and I know we will not want you any other way.” She witnessed his face register momentary shock at first before becoming a warm smile; one Sakura saw that was genuine and sincere.

The two friends continued on their way to their destination, where they would enjoy a good lunch in each other’s company. Times had indeed changed over the years, but each was glad that their friendship would likely remain intact for the rest of their lives, as true comradeship ought to be.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Throughout history, it was always known that war would create casualties, and despite the best attempts at keeping battles just between warring armies, civilians somehow, one way or another, would always end up dying. It was the way things were regarding the nature of war. No one was ever immune from it, no one.

One of the most innocent victims of war and death were children. Not even old enough to understand the atrocities of war, these youngsters would end up scarred for life from the horrors they witnessed. Some would withdraw from life, not even capable of coping. Others would somehow manage to move on and live close to normal lives. Sadly, there were those who would forever be angry at the world for what was done to them, and if society was not careful, these spiteful children would grow up to become new monsters to repeat the cycle of hate and death all over again, like what had happened to Nagato, aka Pain of the Akatsuki.

Konoha was no exception, when it came to housing orphans. As a shinobi village, it had its share of parents dying on missions, during wars, and any other atrocity that would take the lives of the community’s protectors. Even orphans from small Fire Nation villages, wiped out by bad guys for whatever evil reasons, were welcomed, for the Village in the Leaves did its best to take care of these young homeless and parentless souls and give them a chance to grow up to become good citizens and contributors to society.

Currently, the orphan population was not as large compared to eighteen years ago after the Kyuubi attacked Konoha. A few children became parentless after the brief Suna-Oto Invasion six years ago, but thanks to the rapid evacuation of the non-shinobi residents at the time, it was fortunate only a very few kids lost their mothers and fathers. The Pain Invasion would have really made the number of orphans soar, but due to the same person who had taken lives, the dead were brought back to life, thus sparing a huge drop in the overall population. Most of the present lost young souls were from few small villages that were totally wiped out by bandits or evil missing nins, with only few due to shinobi parents dying in the line of duty.

So, if one would happen to be looking into the main living/family room of the Konoha Orphanage, one would see roughly fifteen boys and girls, less than eight years old, sitting on the floor around a chair, which was occupied by a woman reading them a story. The few older orphans weren’t interested, thus they were in their rooms or doing something else, but the younger children were all enthralled by the story as the woman weaved the tale with voice tones that aspired mystery and adventure. There was not a young face shown not to be having fun in the entire room.

Once the storyteller finished the tale, the children began talking all at once in their excitement. The woman gently laughed at their questions and did her best to answer them within reason for the youngsters to understand.

After an hour passed, the woman bid the children good-bye for the time being, much to their disappointment, but they were happy to hear she would return again when she had the free time to do so. With that promise made to them, the children in return said good-bye to her before scattering to occupy with games, TV, and other things, like homework from school.

In the hallway just outside the living room, the middle-aged administrator of the orphanage smiled warmly at the brunette woman, who just left the children. “I thank you very much for your time, Kyoko-sama.”

Adjusting her half-kimono and pants outfit to smooth out the wrinkles after more than two hours of sitting, Kyoko gently grinned and bowed her head at the orphans’ female guardian. “It’s my pleasure, Maya-san. As I have said before, being the eldest of five children, I grew up tending to my younger siblings at times, so I’m used to telling bedtime stories and other things.”

Maya chuckled at the same time, placing a loose strand of her red, waist-length hair behind her ear. “To be honest, Kyoko-sama, I was first amazed that someone of your status would even babysit children. Of course, you’re talking about your own siblings, so it makes sense that you would be called to do the job.”

Kyoko shrugged as she began strolling toward the front door with Maya besides her. “It’s a misconception a lot of common people make regarding the royal family, thinking we are all aloof and cold. We’re a family like any other family though, and like any other family, we do love each other. I will not ever want to see my three brothers and baby sister come to harm.”

“I understand,” Maya nodded, remembering her own siblings as the two women arrived in the front foyer and the two large front double doors. With a thankful grin, the orphanage caretaker half bowed to the young noble woman. “I thank you again for devoting your time to the children, Kyoko-sama. I’m looking forward to seeing you again on your next visit.”

Returning the bow, the raven-haired noble woman smiled warmly. “You are welcome, Maya-san. Take care.”

“As do you,” Maya reciprocated before both stood upright again. Only then did Kyoko leave with a small wave of her hand.

As she strolled along the front walkway toward the main gate, Kyoko thought it was best she returned to her suite at the Hokage Tower. She had seen the time to be four-thirty in the afternoon on the living room’s wall clock, thus she might as well have dinner by herself than with anyone for the time being.

Just as she passed the steel-barred gates, Kyoko was frozen by a familiar masculine voice from her right. “Had fun telling stories to the kids, Kyoko?”

Even though the twenty-year-old woman only knew the man for a short time, it was not hard for her to recognize his voice, and turning her head, her emerald eyes verified her thoughts upon seeing the Great Toad Sennin of Konoha leaning against the stonewall, which surrounded the orphanage. Despite his friendly face, Kyoko couldn’t help but swallow.

“They’re all good kids,” Naruto said, as he took several steps to stand before the noble woman, his cerulean orbs briefly holding onto hers before training his sight through the gates to the three-story house he once lived long time ago. “They deserve whatever happiness they can get.”

Despite his own heart being sincere in his wishes for the present-day orphans, his own memories of this place were far from being happy ones. The caretaker back then had not wanted ‘The Demon’ in the orphanage, but the Sandaime insisted Naruto was to be cared properly without any harm coming to him. She had been not been happy with the so-called ‘orders’ but she obeyed. Yet she did at times make Naruto’s life miserable by not allowing him to play with the other children, telling the other children how ‘bad’ he was, etc. Only after the Hokage gave a five-year-old Naruto an apartment did the blond finally feel he had escaped Hell. Boy, how wrong he was.

With a somewhat sad grin, Naruto wondered what had happened to all the other orphans back then. The Kyuubi attack had left so many parentless that they had to put in bunk beds to accommodate the numbers compared to today, where each child had his or her own room. After moving into his apartment at the age of five, he did see the others at regular school, but he did not recall seeing any of them at the Academy. None of his current friends were orphans with the exception of Lee, who only arrived in Konoha after Naruto moved into his apartment, so the blond knew he had no connection to any of his fellow orphans. How could he? He was so busy with his life, especially after graduating from the Academy, that his mind simply didn’t develop the thoughts on the status and whereabouts of the children that had lived in the orphanage with him.

Seeing the faraway and forlorn expression on his face as he stared at the orphanage, Kyoko knew that he must have been remembering his past, for after all, she knew Naruto was an orphan. “Remembering the times when you were here?”

Naruto nodded an affirmative. “Yeah, but they’re not happy ones. The caretaker I had was not warm towards raising a Jinchuuriki, thus I had moved into an apartment when I was five. The current one, who had taken over the orphanage five years ago, holds no grudge against me.” The blond turned his eyes to look into curious green ones gazing up at him. “She said I’m welcome anytime, for the kids practically hero worship me,” he grinned a bit.

This time it was Kyoko’s turn to nod, but in understanding instead. She knew of Uzumaki’s standing as the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi, and at first, when she had first heard about it back in the capitol, she had thought he would have been treated well growing up as Konoha’s elite weapon, but she had been far from the truth. The truth she had learned, upon coming to the Leaf Village, was how horrible the demon container’s childhood had been, and as much as she tried to imagine it, the brunette just couldn’t even fathom so many people mistreating a child so badly.

Clearing her throat, the Daimyo’s granddaughter decided it was best to change the subject to something that she was curious about. “I’m surprised to see you here. You told me yesterday that you would be spending all of today training.”

“I did,” the blonde man acknowledged. “Just after lunch, something came up at the hospital that needed Sakura-chan’s help, and with no one else to train with, I’d decided to seek you out to talk.” Naruto knew that it was a lie regarding his pink-haired friend, but it didn’t hurt to create the excuse to make it looked reasonable why he sought Kyoko out.

“Oh?” Kyoko raised an eyebrow. “What it is that you need to talk to me about?”

The expression on Naruto’s face transformed into a serious one, which left no doubt that he meant business. “The truth.”

The female aristocrat barely contained to keep her shock from being displayed on her face. Was her so-called ‘fiancé’ onto her? Yet, despite being nervous on the inside, her outside features remained calm.

However, before she could voice anything, Konoha’s Toad Sage turned around and gestured for her to follow him. “Come and follow me. Sarutobi Park is nearby, and we’ll talk there.” With that said, he began strolling away.

Kyoko knew she had no choice now. Naruto had not given her a chance to reject talking to him, and since he was already on his way to the park, she had no other option but to follow him and hear what he has to say. Besides, it was clear in his face that he definitely would not brook any argument from her.

With an edgy feeling in her stomach, the black-haired noble woman followed the man her grandmother slated for her to marry.

It was not long until they reached Sarutobi Park. Named after the late Third Hokage, the park was constructed during Konoha’s Great Reconstruction after Pain’s attack two years ago. Filled with trees, flowerbeds, and a lake, which could support fish and other fresh-water aqua life, the park was a living symbol of the peace and tranquility the Sandaime believed in and dedicated his life to achieving even through the horrors of war. It was no means large compared to the couple of other parks inside the defense wall, but those two were meant for recreational use while Sarutobi was placed aside for those to find some peace and quiet within the hustle and bustle of a busy village.

Coming up to a bench situated next to the lake, Naruto sat down first, allowing Kyoko to sit on the other side. Their line of sight gave them a view of the lake, the trees on the other side, and the few village buildings that managed to rise above the trees. At this time of year, the sun was setting earlier, but they had at least another hour of sunlight left before the evening came.

After a few minutes of silence, Naruto began the conversation. “Throughout my life, I’ve mostly known from the start whether a person is good or bad from the very moment I meet the person.” He chuckled, his eyes never leaving the scene of a few ducks paddling in the lake. “I guess it was mostly survival instincts. Long before I knew that I was the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi, some villagers tried to hurt me and do other nasty things to me. They tried to lure me in with kindness, an offer of a free meal, and other things. I learned early how to read people to tell those who want to harm me and those who truly are friends, like Hokage-jiji and the Ichiraku.”

Kyoko wondered where he was going with this. She did her best to show a neutral face as her eyes looked at him, but inside she was curious even though it was laced with a sense of fear.

Naruto turned his face to lock his eyes with hers. “Well, my instincts have not done me totally wrong. Ever since I met you, you were quite puzzling with the way you act, Kyoko. Around me and my friends, you act like we’re beneath you, but there had been rumors going around that stated you’re the complete opposite, especially around children. Through the front window of the orphanage, I saw you reading to the kids, so it showed me those rumors were true.”

The woman, with midnight colored hair, remained still, her face still neutral in appearance. Yet what she heard next changed that.

“Kyoko, I have to ask this question. I should have done it days ago, but at the time, I was just too wrapped up in my own personal problems to even think of it.” Naruto paused for moment. “Do you want to marry me?”

Her jaw hung open. She was not expecting such a question from him, yet Kyoko cleared her throat a moment later upon realizing of her blunder. Turning her head to face away from him, she gave him her answer. “It’s what my grandmother wants.”

“That’s not what I asked,” Naruto immediately pointed out. He watched as she turned her head slowly back towards him, and it was clear to him that those green gems of hers were displaying some fear. “Do you want to marry me, Kyoko? Do you agree with this arranged marriage?”

Feeling trapped, Kyoko did not know what to do. If she spoke the truth, he would know and perhaps use the information against her. However, if she lied, it would go against what she sought.

Despite that emotionless face, Naruto couldn’t help but give a tiny grin upon knowing she was fidgeting a bit with her hands. Yet the blond didn’t want her to be so fearful of him. It was not like he wanted to harm her or anything. Taking a guess to why she was afraid of him now, he spoke out to try to pacify the nervous woman. “I’m not going to bite you, Kyoko,” he chuckled. “I just want to know where you stand, and if I were to make a guess, I think you do not want this arranged marriage, anymore than me.”

Emerald eyes went wide as a gasp escaped her lips. How could he be so good in reading her, or was her ruse so easy to figure out? Yet as she gazed into those expressive blue eyes, she felt her heartbeat gradually return to normal as she calmed down. He was speaking the truth in his eyes regarding the fact that he was not looking for anything to use against her. The most important question still remained… Could she trust him with the truth?

Letting out a sigh as she bowed her head and closed her eyes, Kyoko reached a decision. “You are right. I do not want this arranged marriage.”

Naruto felt relief flow through him. He may not be the smartest brain in Konoha, but he was not a fool to not easily put two and two together. “I’m glad,” he grinned, causing Kyoko to raise her head to look at him. “Least I know now that you do not want to this just as much me, so now I’ll be fighting for both of us.”

“You’ll fight for me?” the surprised twenty-year-old aristocrat asked, her brain trying to process what she had just heard correctly.

“Of course,” the Hokage-wannabe replied. “Once I find a way out of this arranged marriage, you’ll be free as well. You have the right to choose who you want to love also.”

Kyoko just couldn’t believe it, but that friendly grinning face just was too real for everything she heard to be fake. For the first time in days, her heart felt something that was taken from her the moment her grandmother told her of the arranged marriage – hope.

“Thank you,” the beautiful noble woman spoke, and for the first time, she actually gave a small grin at him. Not a fake one, not a polite one given at political events, but a true thankful grin from the heart. Upon seeing that expression on her face, Naruto knew she would be truthful from this point forward.

Taking a deep breath, the blond Toad Sage pressed onward. “So, what exactly were you trying to get with that attitude toward me and my friends? I’m not responsible for the arranged marriage, as you know.”

“You’re right, you weren’t,” Kyoko acknowledged with a nod. “I was just hoping to get you angry enough to make you storm to your Hokage and tell her forcefully that you will not accept the engagement.”

Naruto winced at that. “To tell you truthfully, I did at times thought of doing that, but my friends kept reminding me that it would have resulted in me being put in a bad position.” His lips curled into a frown. “Was that also your plan? To get me in trouble?”

Kyoko slightly flinched at the accusation. “I did not want to actually get you in trouble, Naruto, but my grandmother gave me no choice. I’d told her I did not want to be arranged to marry another man, but she was quite definite about this. So I thought that if I cannot find any way for myself to nullify the engagement, I can make my fiancé do it for me.” Seeing his disapproving expression, the brunette bowed her head a bit shamefully. “I apologize, Naruto, but I really want to see this end so I can go back to the man I love.”

His face softened upon hearing her words. She was in the same position as he, for each loved another. Naruto wondered just how many couples in the past had have their love torn apart due to arranged marriages for political or financial gains. Oh, he understood that some marriages grew into love between the partners, but as far as he was concerned, love could never be bought or forced on another, for it was earned straight from the heart.

“It is okay, Kyoko,” the blond jounin said, causing her to raise her face to see him grinning reassuringly at her. “I understand now why you did it. I accept your apology. I love Tenten, so I know how it must feel for you to be apart from your love one.” After seeing her relax again in knowing he had forgiven her, Naruto quirked a curious grin at her. “So… Is this guy you love filthy rich or something?”

At first, Kyoko blinked in surprise before letting out actual laughter, and upon seeing his bafflement, she shook her head. “Most common people would think that nobles and other high social status people will love others of the same status. Most of the time, that is the case, but it is not the case for me.” After pausing for a moment to draw out the drama a bit, she continued with a fond warm smile for the mental image of her man. “I’m in love with the son of the royal blacksmith. His name is Foji.”

Turning her head to look at the ducks, the young woman’s face took on a faraway look as she journeyed down Memory Lane. “When I was thirteen years old, I was, as anyone would guess correctly, already well verse in the ways of nobility and the royal court. I was spoiled in some ways, thus I had an attitude that common people would say was selfish, snuck-up, and rude.”

Naruto smirked at that. He certainly knew what she was saying, for he had met many people like that, yet he knew that one did not need to be rich to have such a pigheaded, egotistic manner.

“Well, one day, my father took me on a short trip to the royal blacksmith regarding a sword being made for him. There, standing besides the blacksmith was a fourteen year old boy, who was filthy with soot, dirt, and sweat, for I saw he was working with the blacksmith, his father. He smiled at me, but being who I was at the time, I turned away, thinking he was beneath me. Yet he continued to grin at me, making me feel a bit uncomfortable. So I spoke nasty back at him in order to hide my unease.”

“I asked him why he was looking at me, and he responded that he thought I was pretty. I’d thought that was stupid, telling him that he was dirty and filthy and making swords was silly. Foji frowned at this, making me feel like I won over him.”

Kyoko chuckled before commencing with her tale. “Well, my father didn’t like what I said. He frowned at me and told me that even though being a blacksmith was indeed a dirty job, it was not silly. I immediately said that making swords look easy and that I could do it. Foji’s father chuckled, while my father smirked. He said, ‘So, you think it is easy? We’ll see about that young lady.’”

“Well, the next day, my father had packed some of my ordinary clothes in a duffle bag and took me to the blacksmith. He told me that for the next three months, I will be working for the blacksmith, since I said I could easily make swords. I would be living with the blacksmith’s family, doing chores, and other things to help with making of the weapons.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Naruto interrupted, clearly stumped at what he heard. “Your father made you work for the royal blacksmith for three months?!”

Giggling, Kyoko nodded. “It sounds unbelievable, does it? Yet, it is true.”

Seeing that her single-person audience was waiting, she returned to her story. “I’d thought my father was playing a joke on me, but by the time of the third day, after doing grueling labor work in the forgery, I realized that my father was serious. I cried that night in my room, feeling betrayed and so alone, for I had never done chores or any work growing up in the royal palace.”

“Yet despite how I had first treated him, Foji was right there by my side. He was kind and did not hold any grudge against me. He did his best to show me how things worked and what to do, and even though I didn’t warm up to him at first, I slowly realized that Foji really wanted to help and teach me. I’d asked him why he would help me, and he said with a grin, ‘You didn’t know, well, I’m helping you so that you do know. Once you know, the work will be easier.’”

Kyoko couldn’t help but let loose a few tears of happiness. “By the end of the three months, Foji became a best friend to me, and as we grew older, I fell in love with him. I’d learned that none of the jobs of any of the royal workers and servants should be taken for granted, for they all worked hard to provide for the royal family, and it is the same for everyone out there who work hard to make our society function well. Each person is special regardless.”

Naruto grinned, for what she said was true. Even in Konoha, everyone has a part in making the village work. The cooks made the meals for people to eat. Merchants brought in the food, goods, and material for people to buy and use. Teachers taught the children. Secretaries kept the paper work in order. There were many professions that kept the community going, not just the shinobi, who protect the people and bring in a source of income from missions.

“Your father sounds like he’s a good man,” the blond pointed out.

“He is,” Kyoko agreed, wiping the tears from her eyes. “My mother had objected to what my father did, but after seeing how I have changed, she did not object when my father bestowed similar learning experiences on my brothers. My baby sister is not yet old enough, but given her kind attitude, it is likely she will not need such a hands-on education. I love my siblings very much, especially my sister, thus after my three months at the royal forgery, I had never taken them for granted ever again.”

Training his line of sight from the woman beside him to the lake and the trees on the other side, Naruto produced a soft chuckle. “It’s ironic. You’re in love with the son of a blacksmith, while I’m in love with the daughter of a blacksmith.”

After hearing his words, Kyoko also softly chuckled in wholeheartedly agreement. “You’re right. It is indeed ironic.”

A few moments later, after a lapse in comfortable silence as they watched the sky turn red and orange as the sun began setting, Konoha’s Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi spoke up. “Now that I know we’re on the same side, Kyoko, I’m going to continue seeking out a way out of this engagement, as I said.”

Frowning, Kyoko shook her head slightly. “To be honest, Naruto, I have no idea how. I wouldn’t have resorted to such a desperate gamble in making you angry, if there was a way. I’d searched the archives at the royal palace, prior before coming to Konoha, and I found nothing. Short of becoming a runaway and estranged from my family, I just couldn’t think of any means to abort the engagement.”

This time it was Naruto’s turn to frown. “Don’t worry. I’ll find a way. I gave my word to Ten-chan, and I’m giving it to you.”

“Well, I hope you do find the answer, Naruto,” Kyoko said with a bit of worry. “The official engagement correlation will be in two days, and what I found even odd was that despite me not being able to find ways to get out of the engagement, all the letters I’ve sent to friends and important colleagues have gone unanswered. I was hoping to gain some political support behind me to get grandmother to not press the engagement.”

This was news to the blond jounin. “You too?” After seeing her confusion, he explained himself. “I too, sent letters to everyone I know outside of Konoha, yet I have not heard any word from them - Princess Yuki from Spring Country, friends from Wave Country, and others. All of them did not even send a reply.”

“That is quite strange,” admitted the raven-haired granddaughter of the Fire Daimyo. “What’s stranger for me is that my grandmother had never before forced anyone in her family into an arranged marriage. Not my father, who is her son, nor any of my uncles and aunts. All this just sounds like some sort of conspiracy.”

Naruto narrowed his eyes in thought. What Kyoko said certainly feel like what was happening. The question was that if that were the case, why? What would such a conspiracy gain?

Sighing, the blue-eyed young man ran a hand through his golden mane before looking at his new ally. “Well, for now, we can’t do anything. After dinner, I’m going to spend several hours at the library to continue my search.”

“I understand,” Kyoko acknowledged. She knew she was not allowed to gain access despite her diplomatic status. Certain sections of the library were off limits, unless one had jounin rank or permission from the Hokage. “If you need anything from me, Naruto, tell me. I want to help, since this is as much of my problem as it is yours.”

“Thanks,” Naruto grinned sincerely, knowing he could count on the noble woman, despite what she had tried to do in the past several days.

A thought occurred to him, prompting the blue-eyed man to raise a finger. “Now that I think about it, there is something you can do.” Seeing that his bench companion was waiting for him to tell her, he did so. “You can do something for me to help clear the air. It’s best in order for all of us to work together.”

Kyoko blinked curiously. “What do you want me to do?”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

“…And that’s the whole story. I apologize for deceiving you all like this, but as I said, I was desperate since I couldn’t think of any other way to void the engagement.” With that, Kyoko finished her tale to her audience with a bowed head, awaiting the outcome.

“Well, I understand you were desperate, but if you had told Naruto from the start, we would have helped you too!” a female voice called out.

“Ino…” a lazy male voice followed. “In the end, she did tell Naruto. It makes no difference now whether she had told him from the start.” Dark eyes moved from a slightly irritated blond kunoichi to the Daimyo’s granddaughter. “Although I do agree that it would have saved us the headaches. Troublesome.”

“She has apologized for her actions,” the calm monotone voice of Aburame Shino spoke out. “What matters now is the future. She and Naruto do not want to marry each other due to the fact that each is with another. The question still remains to how they can nullify the arranged marriage without political fallout.”

A large feminine snort alerted everyone to the group’s bun-haired kunoichi, who crossed her arms. “I’m not sure whether I can forgive her.”

“Ten-chan…” Naruto spoke to her right before placing a hand on her right shoulder. “Kyoko didn’t want to say those nasty things. She’s sincere about feeling sorry for hurting everyone.”

Shiny chocolate orbs turned to gaze into pleading sky-blue ones, and after a few moments, the brunette female ninja faced Kyoko, who wore an honest expression of guilt. Tenten sighed. Truthfully, she knew it was best to forgive and move on, but her pride still was stinging from the insults Kyoko gave her. Yet if she truly wanted to press forward, it was better to accept the apology than to hold a grudge.

Sighing again, the Weapons Mistress frowned. “Oh, fine,” she groused. “Just remember,” she pointed to the noble woman, “that Naruto is still mine.” Laughter was heard around the table, and only after the black-haired woman gave a small grin and nod in concurrence did the brown-haired Konoha kunoichi withdraw her finger, satisfied that Kyoko had no real interest in her beau.

Laughter dying off, Naruto smirked before planting a kiss on his girlfriend’s right cheek. “I’m always yours, Ten-chan. Remember that.” He was pleased to see her cheeks redden up, making her look sort of cute despite her ticked attitude.

Currently, the entire Konoha Twelve and Kyoko were in Chouji’s favorite barbeque restaurant. Naruto had, the day before, sent them all a message to meet at the BBQ place for lunch the following day. Since the owner knew the twelve shinobi occasionally gathered together to eat here, he had rebuilt the building, during the Great Reconstruction, to include rooms with long tables to seat fourteen people per table – one person on either end with six fitting comfortably in each long couch seats on the sides.

Wanting her to be facing his friends when she told her story as they ate, Naruto had given Kyoko the front seat, while he sat to her left. Tenten was to her boyfriend’s left, followed by Sakura, Hinata, Kiba, Lee, Neji – sitting at the other end, Sai, Shino, Chouji, Ino, and Shikamaru, who finished the circle at Kyoko’s right.

“Despite Kyoko-sama’s admission of guilt,” Neji spoke, gaining everyone’s attention, “as Shino had pointed out, there still is the problem regarding how to cancel the arranged marriage. Kyoko-sama admitted that she had tried finding any laws to help her prior before coming to Konoha, and I presume you have yet to find anything in the Law Vault, correct, Naruto?”

Naruto nodded at the Hyuuga prodigy. “Yeah, I have not found anything.” His blue eyes scanned the faces around the table. “What about you guys?”

Hinata shook her head slightly. “I’m sorry, Naruto-kun, but Neji-niisan and I couldn’t find anything in our clan vault. All the rules and laws we found are related to the clan.”

“Same here, man,” Kiba immediately disclosed. “Sorry that I couldn’t be much of a help.”

Shino, Chouji, Ino, and Shikamaru also apologetically pointed out the same thing regarding their perspective clans, leaving the lazy Nara to once more remind his whisker-faced comrade that the answer was most likely somewhere within the Law Vault.

Sighing before putting a piece of barbeque meat in his mouth, Naruto accepted the conclusion reached in his mind. “Oh, well,” he said around his eating. “I’ll just have to continue the search at the library and hope to find something by tomorrow. I just know that there has to be something I could use.” After taking a gulp of water, he wiped his mouth with a napkin. “I’m not going to give up and go back on my word.”

Shikamaru gave a lopsided grin. “Knowing you, Naruto, you are most likely going to keep your word, even if the engagement between you and Kyoko-sama becomes official.” Rising from his seat, the Nara heir pulled out his wallet and placed some money onto the table. “Come on, Naruto. We need to get to the front gate. They’ll be here soon.”

After glancing at a wall clock, the ramen-loving jounin realized his smart friend was right. “Yeah, we better get going.” He paid for his share of the lunch as well as Tenten and Kyoko’s before standing up. “It’ll be nice to see him again,” he grinned at Shikamaru. “I’ll see you all later!” he waved to the others prior to the two shinobi leaving the restaurant.

Once the entire group bid the two good-byes and the pair left, they returned to their meal, especially an eager Chouji who began gobbling down his best friend’s share of the barbeque meat. Kyoko however looked at Tenten, who blinked in return at first before narrowing her eyes at the other woman. “What?” the weapons-loving kunoichi asked.

Kyoko shrugged a bit. “Just curious. Naruto told me yesterday that you and him have gotten back together, but if he does not find a way to void the engagement by tomorrow, what will you do? Will he actually keep trying for the rest of his life to keep his word, even after we are married? Will you stay by his side?”

The bun-haired brunette was caught unaware by the questions at first, but after a moment, she bowed her head. From the corner of her eyes, she saw that everyone else had stopped eating to look at her, wanting to know the answers as well. This was one situation that was odd for Naruto to keep his word, unless he truly did not mind ruining his career and risking political fallout in order to stay by Tenten’s side.

After taking a sip of water, Tenten lifted her head to look sincerely at her fellow brunette. “To be honest, I really do not know the answer to that.” This made a few blinked in surprise, including Kyoko. “I trust Naruto, we all do,” she gestured around the table to the others. “But it’s just that, this is something that I fear that not even Naruto might be able to keep his word on.” She paused to clasp her hands together. “I love him, but I really do not feel it right to continue to love a man who is forced to marry another. From what he told me, he does not care whether his career will be destroyed or whatever, he said he would keep his word, no matter what.” Closing her eyes, the brown-haired woman bowed her head again. “I fear he may rather do something rash than ever commit to the arranged marriage.”

Silence reigned over them, until Sakura spoke a moment later. “Knowing Naruto, it is likely he’d rather go rogue or go to prison than to break his word to a friend or to a love one.”

Tenten nodded in agreement. “It’s why we have not been intimate since we gotten back together two days ago. I do not mind the kisses on the cheek, but until the arranged marriage to Kyoko is dissolved, I feel slightly uncomfortable in anything more between us. I have hoped that Naruto will succeed, but I do not want to put too much faith in it out of that lingering doubt that my heart will end up broken again.”

Looking to her left, brown eyes caught the violet ones of her ex-boyfriend, who slightly nodded in understanding. Out of all her friends here, Tenten knew Neji would best comprehend what she was feeling at the moment. After all, they had gone through the same situation a year ago, and both knew how that state of affairs had turned out for them.

Once more silence came over the small group of Konoha ninjas with the exception of the ravish eating of a big, broad Akimichi. His blond girlfriend frowned at him. “How could you even continue to eat with everyone worrying over the current problem?”

Chouji sheepishly rubbed the back of his head with his freed hand. “Come on, Ino. You know I get hungrier when I worry.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

TBC (End of Chapter 12)

A/Ns:

1) A big cookie goes to the following reviewers in getting it right that Kyoko’s ‘plan’ was to get out of the ‘arranged marriage’ – volrath77, Badboyzkg, and Doom Lord of Waffles, yet a big cake goes to animegamemaster6 for hitting the bull’s-eye in guessing why Kyoko wanted out of the ‘arranged marriage’. :)

As for how Naruto will get out of the engagement, you all have to stay tune for Part 2 in the next chapter to find out. All I will say is that so far, no one has yet to come even close to guessing the outcome. ;)

2) For anyone’s information, ‘fo-ji’ is Japanese for ‘forge’. I figured it would be a fitting name for Kyoko’s boyfriend, who is the son of a blacksmith. I thought it would be quite ironic to have her in love with a son of a blacksmith, while Naruto was in love with a daughter of a blacksmith. ;)

3) I want everyone to know that I have started a C2 community titled ‘Fire & Wind Square’. It’s devoted to archiving the best Naruto/Tenten and Naruto/Temari fics on FF. I also posted fics of harem and other Naruto/female pairings (No Yaoi) but only if the fics are really good to read. So if anyone wants to read good NaruTen and NaruTema fics, check out the ‘Fire & Wind Square’ community to find the best without the need to search through the crap to find the gems. :)

Now, you’re wondering, “Why such a title?” Well, we know that Temari and Naruto have nature chakra that are Wind, and even though it was not mention in canon, I always thought it suits Tenten to have Fire nature chakra. So one Fire and two Winds come up with ‘Fire & Wind Square’. ;)

So if you’re interested in checking out the Fire & Wind Square community, go to my Author Profile to find the link to the community, not to mention one can also click on the tab ‘Communities’ in my Author Profile as well. :)

4) Oh, I like to say that with Chapter 12 posted, it is safe for me to say that this story has reached over the 100K words mark, and this is only from the number of words in the story and does not include all words in notes, disclaimers, etc. Woo hoo!

So other than my unfinished Kim Possible fic “A Bond of Honor”, “Unexpected Love” is the only other fic I have written that has reached over 100K written words. Now this is something for me to feel proud of. (big grin)


Weixuan18: God, this was one huge chap… took me one whole hour to beta it.