Kei-Kei Yuki: Plus Ultra~! Finally started watching season three of Boku no Hero! Anyway, hope you all enjoy chapter four~! :)

Beta By: Ana-DaughterofHades

Chapter Four

"Reunion"

It was finally the day of Prince Sasuke's birthday celebration banquet and things were lively at the palace. Orders were being barked out; the maids and eunuchs, who worked in the palace, could be seen scurrying around, putting up decorations or helping out in the kitchen, making sure everything was prepared and perfect for when the guests arrived. All throughout the empire, those who were sent an invitation were getting prepared and ready to load up in their carriages to enter the palace.

Currently, at the Haruno residence, Sakura's mother was in her room, helping her daughter put on some jewelry, placing a pink and gold flower hairpin in her hair. "So beautiful! I just know you're going to catch the prince's attention!" encouraged Lady Mebuki, smiling at the reflection of her daughter in the mirror.

Sakura marveled at the style the maids did her hair in, which was a simple hairstyle with a portion of it in a bun on the side of her head, while the rest either framed her face or was left down in the back. She was dressed in a lovely bright pink and yellow dress with gold embroidery; matching shoes were placed on her feet. Her lips were painted a soft shade of pink that made one yearn for a kiss from her. Her nails were perfectly manicured with a gold design painted on each nail, while her makeup was light so that it brought out her natural beauty.

Lady Mebuki also looked lovely in the light green and pink lotus dress she was wearing, hair adorned with accessories as the two soon met up with Sakura's father. "My two girls look absolutely beautiful," he praised, signaling for one of the servants to get the carriage ready. Once outside, they loaded up and set course towards the palace.

Meanwhile, over at the Namikaze residence, Kushina was rushing, putting on the finishing touches of Naruko's makeup, when she finally stood back and was in awe of her work. "My Naru-chan looks absolutely stunning!" smiled the proud mother. Naruko took a look at herself in the mirror and saw that besides shaping her eyebrows, her mother also painted her lips a nice cherry red, bring out their full allure. Gold tassels flower earrings hung from her ears; the hairpin gifted from her father was pinned on the left side of her head.

Her hair was combed and tamed, framing her heart-shaped face, and she was dressed in the beautiful gown her dear mother had picked out for her. Kushina was also dressed up for the celebration banquet, wearing a violet-plum blossom dress, leaving her long crimson hair down with a simple yet elegant crown headpiece. "Alright, let's hurry and load up in the carriage!" Grabbing her daughter's hand, she led her outside where a carriage awaited them.

"Carriage? Since when can we afford a carriage?" inquired Naruko, eyeing the carriage that she knew they couldn't afford, watching her mother load up inside.

"Don't worry about the details, but just know a dear friend of your mother's was kind enough to loan us one for the evening. Now let's go and have a good time with some old friends who we haven't seen in a long time." Smiling, Kushina patted her daughter's hand as the women set off towards the palace. Sitting beside her mother, Naruko couldn't help but feel somewhat uneasy for some particular reason.

While on the other hand, Sakura couldn't fight the smile plastered on her face as she was finally going to meet the man of her dreams, the one she deemed as her soulmate. Solely believing that with this one encounter, all of her dreams would soon come true. She was unaware, however, that the girl the prince was eager to meet was not her but was a blonde with azure eyes.

The banquet celebration for Prince Sasuke's birthday was a lavish event, seeing how Emperor Fugaku only had two sons; one was the treasured Crown Prince, Uchiha Itachi, and the other was Prince Sasuke, both who the Emperor had with Empress Mikoto. Attending his younger brother's birthday banquet, the Crown Prince Itachi was a beautiful, handsome man, so eye-catching that many of the women at the celebration banquet couldn't keep their eyes off of him.

Standing at his side was a beautiful and slim blonde woman, dressed in a red and black dress with gold embroidery. Matching her husband's attire was Crown Princess Deidara. The lovely couple also brought along their two children, seven-year-old Prince Akihiko, who had his mother's hair and eye color but resembled his father more with his facial features, and their two-year-old daughter, Princess Tsukiko, who was an extremely adorable girl, inheriting her father's raven hair which was dolled up into a cute hairstyle. Being carried by him, she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Where is that antisocial brother of yours? He does know that this is his birthday banquet, un?" Deidara leaned in to whisper into her husband's ear.

"He probably wanted to get away and is out by the garden, don't worry. Mother will soon find and drag him back to socialize with the guests. See, there they go..." Itachi smiled amusingly as the couple watched Empress Mikoto secretly drag Sasuke back into the room where the guests were socializing with everyone.

"Mother, I wish to go play in the garden," asked Prince Akihiko, looking at his mother.

"Okay, but stay out of trouble and be on your best behavior," his mother sternly told him, before watching him run off. Stepping closer to stand beside her husband, she ran her hand through her daughter's hair, smiling at their little one, who seemed to have fallen asleep on her father's shoulder.

"If you want, I don't mind holding her for you, un," Deidara suggested, knowing that sooner or later her husband would have to leave to socialize with the guests, who would either try to gain favor or push one of their daughters onto him. It was always the latter that seemed to aggravate the Crown Princess's nerves, but she was able to calm down, knowing that her husband only had one woman in his heart and that was her-which was shown by him never paying any attention to the four concubines that were living in his manor, that was pushed onto him without his consent.

"I don't mind holding her for a little while longer. Plus she's sleeping so soundly; handing her over would only wake her up." Hearing this from her husband, the Crown Princess couldn't help but smile.

"You really do spoil her, un. No wonder she loves her father so much." They shared a loving look when something caught the Crown Princess's attention. "Ah, it seems Prime Minister Danzo has intercepted the Empress and your brother. Most likely trying to auction another one of his nieces off to the royal family," frowned Deidara, eyes on the older man standing on the other side of the room.

"My Empress, it is good to see you and the Prince in perfect health," Prime Minister Danzo greeted the Empress, who wore an elaborate white dress with silver embroidery and accessories. Her every move and presence was majestic. Standing by her side, Prince Sasuke had inwardly frowned; not only had his mother dragged him around to meet with a bunch of annoying girls but now he had to stand here and try to have a conversation with a man he disliked.

Who in the court didn't know of Danzo's rising power, that was starting to become a threat to the imperial family? Even his own father was starting to become weary of Danzo's power but yet was unable to do anything about it. Not if he wanted chaos to erupt in the court, which would no doubt leave behind more casualties than could be imagined. Not only that, the man had close ties to the Dowager Empress, Sasuke's grandmother, but not by blood, both were manipulative and very old tradition.

Sasuke just knew in his gut that behind closed doors this man was up to no good, but did not have any proof. "It's good seeing you as well, Prime Minister Danzo, and who is this lovely young lady standing next to you?" Empress Mikoto eyed the sweet young beauty standing next to him.

"This is my niece Akemi; she is a smart girl, who excels in singing, dancing, calligraphy, and even playing the guqin. I think her and the Prince are well suited for each other and the Dowager Empress thinks so as well." Hearing him mention the Dowager Empress, both Mikoto and Sasuke knew what he was up to, seeing how he played this same card when he offered his first niece to become a concubine for the Crown Prince. Even though Sasuke's mother was the Empress, everyone knew that it was the Dowager Empress who truly held power when it came to the imperial family and court.

"Greetings, Prince Sasuke, Akemi is so happy to finally meet you. Would this prince mind escorting Akemi to the Chrysanthemums Garden to chat?" Akemi was a cute girl, unlike the mature and grace of her older sister, dressed in a soft blue dress. Based on appearances and the way she acted, she gave off the impression of a kind, soft-hearted girl who could hold no ill-intention. Though, Sasuke knew better than to trust such a woman, who more than likely had hidden motives that she refused to reveal.

"Of course, the prince will be more than happy to escort Akemi." The silent warning look that his mother shot towards him told Sasuke to play along. Though he was reluctant, he obeyed his mother, silently allowing Akemi to follow him towards the Chrysanthemums Garden.

After being dropped off at the palace, Naruko couldn't help but stare in awe at the glamorous and grand architecture of the palace. With her eyes so busy taking in her surroundings, she was unaware of the whispering and stares they were receiving from the guests. Though, Kushina was aware of the attention they were receiving but opted just to ignore it.

Naruko was so busy sightseeing that she missed when a pair of silver-white eyes lit up when they caught sight of the blonde who she had been desperate to meet once again. Finally, it seemed that her prayers had been answered.

"Lady Hinata, is everything alright with you?" asked a handsome, long-haired man standing next to to the beautiful heiress of the Hyuuga Clan.

"Everything is fine, Neji-niisama," answered Hinata.

It wasn't long before Naruko saw a dazzling figure of a woman make her way toward them, and she saw her mother smile. "Empress, it seems you've gotten more beautiful with age. It's been a long time since we last saw each other." Hearing how her mother addressed the woman standing before them caught Naruko off guard. Stunned azure eyes stared at her mother before moving them onto the dazzling woman in white and silver.

"Kushina, you don't know how happy I am to see you again. It's truly been a long time." Tears gathered in Empress Mikoto's eyes that she tried to fight away when her gaze landed on the figure standing next to Kushina.

"Naruko?! It seems that the little ball of energy that used to run around the palace has grown into such a beautiful girl." Naruko found it weird having the Empress of the empire address her so familiarly. Such discomfort did not escape Mikoto's trained eyes, especially considering how as a little girl Naruko had been very close to her, recalling the time when the blonde used to call her Auntie Mikoto.

"As I have written to you before, Naruko does not remember the times she spent at the palace. Naruko, why don't you try to mingle with the guests while the Empress and I get caught up?" advised Kushina as Naruko was more than happy to have an excuse to escape. Bowing to the Empress, Naruko made her leave.

Watching her walk away, Empress Mikoto sighed. "She really doesn't remember me." There was a slight touch of sadness in her eyes when she felt someone take hold of her hands.

"Naruko had an encounter that made her lose her memories of the time she spent here. Though, the doctor did say that there's a slight chance of her recovering those memories one day. Now, what things have I missed out on since we've been separated?" inquired Kushina as the two walk off to somewhere more private to discuss things.

Once at the palace, Sakura socialized with a few girls, who were daughters of officials and military generals, before she went looking for Prince Sasuke. Currently, in the Chrysanthemums Garden, she was shocked to find the familiar face of the girl who had saved her a few days ago. The girl, Naruko was her name, seemed to be also in shock to have encountered Sakura once again. Though, Sakura was more surprised to see the blonde at such an event as Prince Sasuke's birthday banquet since she thought Naruko was a just normal commoner.

"Funny seeing you again. There isn't any guy bothering you again, is there?" teased Naruko, watching Sakura make her way over, her servant girl standing loyally behind her mistress.

"It's nice seeing you again as well, Naruko," greeted Sakura.

"So are you just as bored as I am? I rather I was working than being stuck here, but it was my mother who wanted me to come," grumbled Naruko, folding her arms across her chest.

"You were forced to come here against your will?" Sakura was curious to discover more about Naruko, who she found to be such an intriguing character.

"A little bit of yes and no, but as long as my mother is happy, that's all I really care about." It was obvious to Sakura how much Naruko cared for her mother, briefly noting how the blonde looked beautiful in her dress; that bright shade of orange really complimented Naruko's personality. Walking farther up ahead, the two girls spotted a bridge that connected to a gazebo sitting in the middle of a lake.

It was only until they got closer that they realized that there were two people standing underneath. It was in that moment that azure clashed with onyx, both standing there in a trance as they locked eyes with each other. Meanwhile, Sakura was overjoyed that after so many years she finally met the man of her dreams.

Akemi stood there glaring at the two girls who stole Prince Sasuke's attention, watching him leave her side and walk over to the girls; though it was the blonde girl he stopped and stood in front of. Naruko, on the other hand, didn't know why this man standing in front of her seemed so familiar nor did she understand the ecstatic feeling that overcame her, unaware when she uttered, "Sa...Sas..uke..."

End of Chapter Four

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