Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

I keep getting pessimistic thoughts. Woe is me. And Me is a big, big procrastinator.

There’s a sentence in the previous chapter; Shall we eat and then no continuation. I need a beta, but well… I won’t be in ffnet for most of the time now, I think. So… emm… mind my mistakes T.T

Ever since I used the computer in Taiwan, my story chapters become a little strange... or is it just me? Some chapters' bold and italics become randomized (i.e. I used bold for a sentence but it ended up normal; no bold) or something... oh well. -_-

Thank you for all the reviews. =D

Oh yes, I must say that my story has an UNCLEAR civilization (what kind of technologies does this story have?). I realize that, and please bear with the strangeness. -_-

--

Chapter 17

“Hoaahm…” Sakura gave a big yawn.

It was morning already. Sakura slowly opened her eyes, sitting down on the bed with still-drowsy eyes. She didn’t set an alarm, and looked for a nearby clock.

She saw a clock just next to her bed. There’s a small cabinet with two drawers just like in hotels, separating her bed and Itachi’s. She stared at the clock. “Seven,” she mumbled.

She looked to her right, where a sleeping prince is on the bed. The bed is indeed too big for only a person, and so it left much space in both right and left sides. With Itachi sleeping in the middle of the bed, she climbed the bed from the right side.

Relaxing herself on the king-sized bed, she smiled as she looked at Itachi’s peaceful sleeping face. She smiled at him, resting her elbows on the fluffy bed and her chin on her palms.

‘You know what my outer self? I’ve got something to tell you,’ Inner Sakura popped.

‘Huh?’

‘You see, since the both of you are engaged now, you can give him a romantic morning kiss!’ Inner Sakura beamed.

BOOSH.

Sakura felt her cheeks burn. ‘This is certainly a good chance… however...’

‘Why do you hesitate, my outer self? I’m sure as hell you wanted that. You know I’m your inner self… khu khu khu,’

Sakura imagined how it would be if she did give Itachi a morning kiss. Back in the competition, Itachi nearly gave her one because of his sleeping habits. She giggled slightly remembering that time. A kiss really isn’t a big deal, but back then she was being hyperbolic.

Slowly, and carefully, she approached Itachi by face. Closer and closer; she paused for a while; feeling the even breaths he exhaled. After the short pause, she proceeded to close their proximity when… a pair of eyes opened two centimeters in front of her.

“Kyaah!” Sakura gasped, covering her mouth with her right palm.

Itachi, who guessed the situation, only smirked.

“W-What?” Sakura tried to evade (hopelessly).

“No need to be shy in front of me,” Itachi continued. He pulled her hand, drawing her closer to him. “A kiss is normal between lovers; I suppose you already know that,” he said sarcastically.

‘He’s right, darling outer self. You know that soon you’ll be ah-oh-ah-oh plus mwa-mwah,’ Inner Sakura said, emphasizing on the ‘ah-oh’ part with acting.

‘Inner self!!’ Outer Sakura protested; with red cheeks of course.

Sakura agreed to his statement; however, she didn’t say a word. ‘Kiss…’

Sakura circled Itachi’s neck with her arms, and slowly moved forward to close the distance between them. Gently, she pressed her lips against his. Then she backed away slightly, though her arms are still encircling his neck.

“Thank you,” Itachi whispered in her ear.

“Y-You’re welcome…?” Sakura answered, unsure of what to say.

Itachi smirked again, and then got off the bed, walking towards his wardrobe. He opened it, and took some clothes. “Would you like to?” Itachi asked, pointing to his back.

“Err… okay,”

‘It seemed normal to me now,’ Sakura thought.

‘Don’t you feel the slight—no, feeling of happiness or satisfaction when you are close to him?’

‘I-I do… but—‘

‘Tee hee,’

‘What?’

‘Nothing,’

--

A man with long brown hair walked towards the king. Then he bowed and said, “Good morning, Your Majesty,”

The king replied, “Good morning, Prime Minister Hyuuga. What has brought you here?”

“I would like to tell Your Majesty, that I would like to give Itachi-sama and his future wife, Sakura-sama, a celebration party,” he replied.

“Why thank you very much, Prime Minister Hyuuga. When will you hold the party?”

“I will hold the party a week from now. It will not be a very big party, only for some nobles and relatives,”

“I see. Thank you, Prime Minister Hyuuga. I shall summon them here to let them know,”

The Prime Minister nodded.

--

Knock-knock

“Come in,” Itachi said.

‘Breakfast?’ Sakura thought. Her stomach hasn’t growled yet, but she felt kind of hungry.

Then the door opened, revealing a man bowing politely. “Itachi-sama, Sakura-sama, Your Majesty has summoned you,”

“Thank you. We will be right there,” Itachi replied.

Then the door closed. ‘What could it be?’ Sakura wondered. Without saying anything, Itachi got off the bed, and walked towards the door with Sakura following behind.

--

Arriving in front of the throne room, the guards opened the door. “Your Majesty, Itachi-sama and Sakura-sama have arrived,” The guards said.

Itachi and Sakura walked towards the middle. Sakura saw that there’s another person besides the king. She wondered who he is.

‘He has… white eyes? Wow. Cool,’

Itachi bowed first. “Good morning, Your Majesty, and Prime Minister Hyuuga,”

Sakura then followed, although she just saw the man Itachi called Prime Minister Hyuuga. “Good morning, Your Majesty, and… Prime Minister Hyuuga,” She bowed, her voice sounding hesitated.

“Good morning, Itachi, and Sakura-san,” Fugaku said.

“Good morning, Itachi-sama, Sakura-sama,” The prime minister said.

“Ah yes, Sakura. You haven’t seen Prime Minister Hyuuga before, have you?” Fugaku asked.

Sakura replied, shaking her head, “No… not yet,”

“My name is Hyuuga Hiashi, and I am the Prime Minister for this country. A pleasure to meet you, Sakura-sama,” He said, bowing politely.

“Er… uh—Pleasure to meet you too, Prime Minister!” Sakura stammered.

Hiashi only smiled, and then glanced at the king, signaling him to tell why he had summoned the couple. “Itachi, Sakura-san, I would like to inform you that Prime Minister Hyuuga will hold a celebration party for the both of you, a week from now,”

Sakura felt butterflies inside. ‘Party! Yaaay!’

“Thank you very much, Prime Minister Hyuuga,” Itachi said.

“Ah—thank you very much, Prime Minister Hyuuga!” Sakura followed.

“You’re very welcome,” He replied.

Then Sakura began to space out. ‘A party… I wonder what dress should I wear… wait! Is my dress formal enough for a princess-level party?’

Inner Sakura is sleeping. Zzzz….

‘….’

‘I don’t see Queen Mikoto here. I wonder where she is…’ Sakura thought.

“The both of you may go now,” Fugaku said.

Both gave a bow before walking away, when something popped into Fugaku’s mind. “Ah, I almost forgot. Sakura-san, Mikoto is waiting for you in the library,”

“Thank you, Your Majesty, I shall go there,” Sakura replied.

Fugaku only nodded, and then both walked outside the room.

--

Both walked awhile in silence.

“Itachi, where… is the library?”

Itachi chuckled. “I’ll escort you,”

‘That’s unusual… for him to offer…’

‘OHH… I am melting…’

“Thanks!” Sakura then grabbed Itachi’s arm, hugging it. ‘Celebration party... I wonder how big it would be,’ Sakura thought, excited.

Itachi glanced at her, and saw that her face looked really happy. Excited, too; anyone could tell with the ‘currently in cloud nine’ expression on her face.

“You seem happy,” Itachi said.

Turning her head to look at Itachi, Sakura answered, “Is it that obvious? Tee-hee. I can’t wait to see how the party would be!”

“Hn,” he replied, smirking.

--

Sakura said thank you to Itachi, and then entered the library. The library was spacious, with tall, wide wooden shelves filled with books of every size. There are some ladders, to help get the books needed.

The carpet was of terracotta color, and then there were many pot plants placed in certain places. The library smelt of wood, old books, and also paper. Sakura looked up, and there was a second story.

‘How many people are there in this castle? For books to be so many…’ She thought as she looked at the high shelves.

Then she looked around. Shortly after, she found Mikoto, reading a book. A bit far from where she is right now, considering this library is enormous. “Er… Mikoto-sama…?”

“Ah, you’re here, Sakura-chan!” Mikoto said cheerfully.

“Is there something you wanted to talk about, Mikoto-sama?” Sakura asked.

“You can address me Mikoto-san; soon I will be your mama!—Oops, I got a little carried away; sorry,”

Sakura giggled, then said, “It’s okay, Mikoto-san,”

Mikoto smiled. “Your Majesty has told you about the upcoming event, hasn’t he?”

Sakura brightened. “Yes!”

“You seem very happy. Good, follow me,” Mikoto said.

--

Both reached a certain room. At first Sakura wondered why is it so far from the center, but the trek wasn’t really tiring. Then, Sakura looked at Mikoto unlocking the locks. The number of locks is unusually many. And also unusually shaped; the lock has some parts, like levels. First it was a button, and then password, and then fingerprints, and then finally, the old-fashioned key lock with a keyhole.

(A/N: Is it too strange? Oh well. :p)

Sakura couldn’t help but stare in awe as Mikoto unlocked the various locks. After the key lock gave a clicking sound; signaling it has opened, Mikoto entered the room and gave a gesture to Sakura to come in.

“Whoa…” Sakura mumbled, seeing the inside of the room.

The room wasn’t a modern high-class room; it was more of an old fashioned chamber. The walls contain beautiful paintings, all women with beautiful gowns. Sakura guessed that this is a room exclusive to the queens.

“It’s… unique. And antique. Wow,” Sakura said, observing the surroundings.

“This room was built very long time ago. One of the oldest part of the castle,” Mikoto smiled. “The king also has its own room, similar to this one,”

“What is this room for?” Sakura questioned.

“We Queens store our most precious belongings here. Or maybe valuables, if we do have,”

“What kind of belongings?” Sakura asked again.

“Many things. Can be gowns, jewelries, gifts from person you love, and many more. This room is incredibly big, even after countless generations passed, this room still has space,”

‘Gifts from person you love…’ Sakura thought.

“Usually we ask an experienced tailor to make dresses for us. Or maybe, do it yourself. Most of us queens are able to sew, now it’s even a tradition for us, but making intricate designs will take some time,” Mikoto explained further.

“Wow,”

“And of course, as I said, sewing is one of our traditions. Do you understand what I mean?”

“Not really—wait, it means I have to sew at least one dress?” Sakura asked.

“Yes. And, your first one will be your wedding gown,” Mikoto added.

“W-WH-WHAAAT?” Sakura nearly screamed out loud. Mikoto put a finger in front of her lips, and Sakura immediately closed her mouth and slowly calmed down.

“B-But… why?”

“It is a tradition,” Mikoto said.

“Can I break that?”

“Unfortunately, no,” Mikoto said, still smiling.

Sakura’s head was downcast. “Oh well,”

Mikoto giggled. “Considering that your wedding is near, I suppose you start from now,”

“Can I… see your wedding gown?” Sakura asked.

“Sure. Follow me please,” Mikoto said, walking away.

Sakura followed her and reached a beautiful wardrobe. It was fully made of wood, with beautiful antique decorations covering every side of the wardrobe.

Mikoto opened the wardrobe, revealing a big, long, and white dress. Sakura was amazed at the sight of Mikoto’s handmade wedding dress; it was white and filled with intricate designs, but somehow, different. Sakura couldn’t really say what that is, but the designs aren’t what you usually see.

“I finished it right before the deadline day,” Mikoto said, smiling.

“Wonderful… it’s somewhat… unique…” Sakura said, examining the details.

“Thank you,” Mikoto replied calmly.

‘I-I’ll make a dress… like this? Impossible! Doll… I can make, but…’

“Are you worried you won’t be able to finish?” Mikoto asked.

“Eh? Err… kind of… I’ve never sewn a dress before…” Sakura replied.

“Don’t worry. I trust you will finish the dress. As for having never sewn a dress before, most of us are like that. You see, if we are not working as tailors we don’t sew gowns a lot. It takes time, and is hard,”

Sakura felt somehow reassured. However, she still felt nervous and worried. What if it turns out bad? What if—?

“Thank you… Mikoto-san,” Sakura said, smiling.

“You’re very welcome,” She answered. “Oh, and now, we’re going to choose which fabrics you are going to use,”

“Wha—where?”

“We’re going outside the castle,” Mikoto said. “I know a place that has excellent quality fabrics,”

--

The place wasn’t very far from the castle, so Mikoto didn’t ask for a chauffeur. It was about ten minutes walk from the castle.

“Did you go there for your fabrics too, Mikoto-san?” Sakura asked while walking.

“Yes, the previous queen introduced this place to me. The owner is also a close relative to the royal family, and we have kept this relationship for years already,” Mikoto explained.

Sakura nodded. ‘Everywhere near the castle are good-looking houses… wait, that house seemed to stand out. It’s big but it’s not decorated with many things…’

“That is where we’re going to go,” Mikoto said, pointing to a house.

It was the house Sakura just thought of. Mikoto knocked on the door, and then an old woman answered.

“It’s been a while, Reika-san,” Mikoto said.

“Why hello there, Mikoto-san. Hmm… This girl will be the next queen, I assume,” The old woman smiled warmly.

“H-Hello. My name is Haruno Sakura. Nice to meet you,”

“My name is Ayano Reika. Nice to meet you too, Haruno-san. Now please come in,” Reika said, giving two pairs of slippers.

Then they followed Reika, who is going towards her product room. Entering the room, Sakura gasped in awe; the fabrics she created looked wonderful. Their colors also vary, so it’s not only white. “You may take a look, Haruno-san,”

“Thank you,” Sakura replied before walking forward to examine the fabrics.

Sakura touched the fabric, and let her fingers touch them. The first fabric she touched was a white color, and then next to it was an ivory-colored fabric, then a soft pink, light pink, baby blue, black, and many others. There’re some mannequins too, modeling some possible wedding dress styles. The model of the dresses is like usual wedding dresses; the skirt goes as long as your feet, and bloomy skirt.

The different styles include a slightly tight dress, body-hugging and have a mermaid skirt; there are also the simple ones, from the chest to the feet.

Inside, her mind battled.

‘That ivory-colored fabric rocks!’ Inner Sakura said.

‘But I don’t really like it! I want a color that looks good with my skin,’

(A/N: I don’t know if ivory looks good on Sakura’s skin. _ Randomness…)

(A/N: One more thing, I am not an expert in sewing, wedding dress or whatever relates to it. Don’t blame me if something is unusual… -_-)

‘Whaat? So you prefer the commonly-used white? No fun,’

‘Hey if it looks good why not white? It’s not about unique or whatever,’

‘Fine. Let’s see.. that light pink would do good. It has gradated colors; looks really soft,’

‘Hmm. Not bad, I’ll see,’

And then Sakura approached the said light pink colored fabric. Examining the fabric using her fingers, she felt this would be the one she’ll choose. “I want this one,”

“Okay then. Will it be the usual length, Mikoto-san?” Reika asked.

“Yes, thank you,”

“Wait a second,” Reika said, and went over to the fabric. She pulled out five big sheets of the light-pink fabric, and gave it to Sakura.

“You will need some other fabrics for the details. Please choose which kind of fabric you prefer,” Reika said.

“Okay, thank you,” Sakura replied, and then she started looking for complementing fabrics.

(A/N: I don’t think I have a good sense in combining colors. Forgive me T_T)

Taking the pink fabric with her, she put another fabric on top of it to see whether it looks good or not. She tried purple, it’s not bad. She’ll keep a mental note on it. White, it looks pretty good, but Sakura didn’t really like it. Then she tried other colors, until she finally decided she will pick the rose-colored fabric, white colored fabric, light red colored fabric and then the violet colored fabric.

“Are you finished?” Mikoto asked.

“Yes, thank you,” Sakura said. “How much… will it cost?”

“Ah, don’t worry. I will pay for you,” Mikoto said.

“Thank you very much, Mikoto-san!” Sakura said gleefully.

“You are very welcome, Sakura-chan. Reika-san, please give me the bill,”

“Right here,” She said, handing the piece of paper.

Mikoto wrote her signature, and then took the piece of paper. “Thank you very much for your help, Reika-san,”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m glad to be of help,” She replied, smiling.

“Thank you very much, Ayano-san!” Sakura said.

“Don’t worry darling. I wish you the best in making it,”

“Thank you!”

--

Going back, Sakura brought a big bag containing the fabrics. “Mikoto-san, can I ask you something?” Sakura asked.

“Sure, what is it?”

“How did you feel…? While you were in my position…”

Mikoto smiled warmly. “While I made the dress, I felt many feelings, from love, happiness, curiosity, worry, anxiety, to sadness. You wouldn’t be able to name it one by one,”

“Sad?” Sakura questioned.

“How would you feel, if you won’t be able to have freedom in your youth?”

Sakura was taken aback. She forgot; she won’t be able to see her friends that often any more. And after the competition, she only met Ino. She hasn’t met her old friends yet. And after marriage, it would be harder.

And her family. She would miss them, a lot. She is still a normal teenager, after all.

Sakura didn’t realize she wasn’t saying anything, falling deep into her thoughts. “Sakura-chan?”

“E-Eh? Yes?”

“So, I suppose you haven’t thought of your future yet,”

“I-I’m sorry…”

“There’s no need to apologize, dear. It’s normal. So, if you would like to meet your friends, it’s best that you make a schedule of when to meet them, as you currently have a tough assignment,”

Sakura laughed nervously. “Thank you, Mikoto-san,”

“No problem,”

--

Sakura brought the big bag of fabrics into her room. Opening the door while holding the big pack was a little hard; the castle doors were kind of heavy, so she had to put down her bag, open the door and then pick it up before entering her room.

‘Itachi’s not here. Where did he go? Oh well…’ Sakura thought, and sat on her bed.

She put the big bag next to her bed and sighed.

“What should I do first? When to meet friends, and oh! Next week’s party… what should I wear?” Sakura said, talking to herself.

Quickly she opened her wardrobe, looking for a decent wear. She took some dresses and then, because the inside part of each wardrobe door has a full length mirror attached to the door, she tried one by one and looked at herself.

“Hmm… I think it’s good enough… but… I don’t know…” She said to herself, while holding a violet

Then Sakura heard the door open. “Itachi?” Sakura called, making sure.

“Hn?”

“Do you think I look good?”

“Huh?” Itachi replied, confused. He walked towards the wardrobe, and understood what she meant.

“Does it look good on me?” Sakura asked.

“I don’t know,” He replied.

Sakura sighed. She decided this dress will be one of the candidates for next week’s party. Then she put it back to her wardrobe and closed the door.

Itachi went towards the bed and rested himself on it. Sakura followed him, jumping on his bed then crawling towards him. “Itachi…” She mumbled.

“Hn?”

“Will I… will I stay here forever? Am I going to be away from my parents and friends?”

Itachi stared at Sakura for a moment, then said, “You really went into the contest for fun, didn’t you?”

“Well… my parents said I should enter… I…” Sakura stuttered.

“So you don’t want to be with me?” Itachi questioned.

Sakura gasped. “I want to! But I…”

Itachi only smirked. “Why do you want to be with me?”

“I…” Sakura blushed deep red. “I love you…”

“Love… huh,” Itachi mumbled to himself. “But you don’t want to be separated from your family and friends?” He asked.

“Y-Yeah…” Sakura answered reluctantly.

“You should know that being my wife will prevent you from having your family and friends close to you,” Itachi said again, stressing the wife part.

“I…I know that… but I…”

“If you would like to give your position away—” Itachi said, but was cut. “No! I’ll stay with you! I promise, I won’t run away!” Sakura said, clutching Itachi’s shirt tightly.

Itachi smirked, and then embraced her. Sakura gasped, but quickly relaxed. “Have you made up your mind now?” Itachi asked.

“Yeah. Thanks. I’m sorry for being childish. I…”

“Hn,”

--

The next day, Sakura bought a big calendar, with each day’s square big enough to be filled with large handwritings. Going home, she picked a pen and then filled today’s square with ‘START’ and then moved to three months later, writing a NEAR DEADLINE on the first day of the month.

Taking a deep breath, she looked at the big bag of fabrics, “Okay, here goes nothing!”

--

AAAAAA!! I don’t know. I just blurted everything my mind told me. T_T

I don’t really feel like writing as diligent as before, with writing Chinese characters becoming my second routine (after normal daily routines). I hope this chapter doesn’t suck -_- if it is, oh well… I’ll go along and finish it first so my mind won’t worry over this anymore T_T

Please R&R! Thank you!