I'm jaciie(:

and i love my readers!

please read and review my story, and i hope you enjoy reading it

warning! this is a sasusaku fic =)

but i didn't forget the other sets of pairs as well, no worries

Disclaimer: i don't own anything naruto.

Absolute Rule. This was a monarchy. And the only one who could give say, other then the king himself, was the priest. But in these times, religion was faltering. New ideas were being spread far and wide; theories that made people question their faith. But that's not all this point in time was.

It was the Uchiha Rule.

Absolute Power.

They held gigantic forces, no one dared to start war with them, and neither did they attempt to anger them. And no one would dare go against them either. Maybe their allies, The Hyuuga Family, could step in every now and then, because the two families were that close. Both together made an impenetrable force, maybe even to god himself. But to make matters even better, the Uchiha were far better looking then the best of the best. They were inhuman, godlike, and almost untouchable.

Yet just the mere sight of them would make even a man's heartbeat faster. Woman flocked to their sides like deprived and starving lions that had finally found a piece of meat after days and days of wandering. However, they were also the most feared, they killed mercilessly and showed neither emotion, or pain. And still, even with all this power, Fugaku was the only man to have had only one wife, while many other kings went through multiple different women in their lifetime.

"Not just any woman is good for the blood of this family." Fugaku would always remind his sons as they grew up. "I can't just have children with any woman, they have to be better then the best of the best to hold a vessel with our blood running through them." Fugaku strongly believed in such things, and never allowed anything less.

He made all the decisions that made the country run, and was well known for his amazing rule. Yet he grew old, and as the days continued his oldest son became engrossed in the power he held in people. Uchiha Itachi was the hottest and as everyone had believed, the most suitable for the next heir to the throne.

He had advanced in everything faster then anyone had ever before. He had graduated at the age of 12, which still astonished the people to the day. And to top it off, he was a ladies man. He knew his ways with words and always managed to get his way through conversion and debate. He was the smartest of his generation, and held proud to that fact. But to top it off, he was also the strongest, the quickest, you name it and Uchiha Itachi would always achieve better and greater things.

The Uchiha's rule was long and demanding. Yet Itachi sought for more, and before anyone knew it, they were all deceased.

Killed from the inside, because it was impossible for even a friend to see the king in the dark night hours. It was impossible to even hit him with a far ranged weapon in the day. Yet the king lay there, dead on the floor by his bed and bleeding severely.

And there was Makoto, right beside her husband. Her long black hair stuck with blood and her eyes laid half lidded and her body was limp as it soaked up the blood around her. They weren't the only ones though, the whole Uchiha family, which had lived in the kingdom, was each brutally murdered. The castle stunk for weeks on end after the event, and maids were made to not stop cleaning until the smell had dispersed.

And even after all the commotion, not even Itachi was left. He was gone, far from his people, his throne. For whatever reason, nobody knew, or could understand. But all that left of this great empire, this enormous power, was laid down to the little boy of eight. Uchiha Sasuke.

The boy who couldn't catch up to Itachi, no matter how hard, or long he tried. The boy his father paid no heed to. The boy no one noticed because the rest of the family held an aura of great power that he didn't. This boy, held the largest power in the world.

And yet he sat in the garden, crying nonstop, what was this boy supposed to do? Having not learned anything other then the lessons he had been having and the occasional direction he would hear father or Itachi giving others. But the tears were quickly wiped away. He needed to get back at Itachi, needed to regain control of his kingdom. Maybe this was all a test. But still, he spent most of his days after that in the garden, where he could barely smell the stench of his family blood smeared against the walls of his castle.

But the stench was slowly fading, yet the scar etched across his heart stayed. Sasuke would become strong. Yet he still wondered, why would Itachi kill his own family when things were going better then ever?

"Are you okay?" Sasuke jumped up, and glared behind him towards a small girl who looked at him with big eyes.

"What do you want? Go away!" He shouted angrily, yet the little girl just stood there and watched him. His anger increased slowly as she didn't budge an inch. "Didn't I order you to leave?" he yelled angrily. She smiled and approached him carelessly. Sasuke flinched and clenched his fists, holding back the urge to punch her angrily.

"I heard something bad happened here." She said flatly. "You're a cute boy," She said quietly, her face bright red, "Why are you like this?"

Sasuke didn't reply, clenching his teeth, he just wanted this girl to go away, that's all he needed.

"I hope you don't mind, my mother is a temporary maid here and I had no where else to go."

"Guards shouldn't let a single person in here without consent from me!" He shouted.

"Aa…" She replied quietly, her face was pink as she spoke and she avoided his eyes that glared daggers into her soul. "My mother has been cleaning all day and at night, I came to ask if she could come home. Things have been busy lately."

"Yeah, they have been." He stated bitterly. His little hands clenched even tighter.

"How old are you?" She asked. He stared at her suspiciously.

"8."

"You're my age!" She beamed suddenly. "All the kids in my village are either too old or too young to play with me, and those that are my age look at me funny because I am the way I am. And I travel a lot anyway, so I don't get to make friends with many people"

"That sucks." Scoffed Sasuke. He didn't care about a single one of her little sad stories.

"It's important to me, okay?" She said bitterly.

"And you wonder why they look at you funny?" Asked Sasuke sarcastically, rolling his eyes. He turned away and waited for her to say something more, because until then it seemed the little girl wouldn't stop talking. He turned slowly back around to see her slowly crying.

Sasuke froze, what was this girl doing? He had never, ever, not once, seen another person cry. What did people normally do in this type of situation? Until then it seemed he was the only one in his family who came closest to shedding a tear in front of another person.

And right then his anger was lost, everything was forgotten under this girls sad face, where water dripped out of her eyes and her face was a deep shade of red. Sasuke just stood there, observing her like a foreign animal he'd never seen before.

"You're mean!" She shouted suddenly. "You're just like the rest of them! I hate you!" She sat in the grass and cried. Sasuke wondered about just walking away and letting her deal with it on her own, he hated when people wouldn't leave him alone. And why should he care anyway? It's not like he'd see this girl again if he simply fired her mom.

Yet he found himself crouching, leaning his arms on his knees and watching her cry. What else was he to do? How was he supposed to deal with it? But then, how did you deal with girls in the first place? He had no experience in that at all. And there was 0% chance that he was about to apologize over something so stupid.

"Why is your hair pink?" He asked, trying to change the subject. Yet she only wailed harder.

"So you can make fun of me about that too?" She shouted bitterly. Sasuke admitted, he was scared, scared of this person disliking him, and going on to other people wherever she traveled to tell about him. "You're mean!" She shouted again.

Sasuke awkwardly looked around the garden, what did he do? What should he do? He saw a small daisy coming out of the ground and plucked it, remembering his mom's love for this garden.

She felt a tug at her hair and the girl looked to see Sasuke putting a little white flower in her pink hair.

"My mom liked this place." He said, "I always thought she looked more beautiful whenever she placed a big flower in her hair. She would smell better too."

Sakura's wails ceased yet she still hiccupped. Wiping her cheeks of the tearstains she looked at him with tear filled eyes. "You're saying I stink?" She asked with a frown on her face. Sasuke's heart seemed to stop, why wasn't this girl ever satisfied?

"No! I'm…" He fidgeted a bit before laying back against the grass, "Trying to apologize." He muttered. Sakura hiccupped and a smile grew wide across her face.

"You really are a nice boy." She stated and swung her arms around him. Sasuke grimaced, first she cried and hated him, and now she was complimenting and touching him? The only person who had ever touched him was in the family, no one dared to come close, even though he was the one who was least looked up to.

Yet he found comfort, his mothers warm arms embracing him. And he just sat there thinking of it as the girls hiccups faded away.

"Arigatou." She muttered, finally pulling away from him, Sasuke was still as stone until she pulled away and he quickly stood up.

"You should go away."

"Why?" She asked, "I'm here for the whole summer with no one to be with." Sasuke groaned inwardly, this girl was too persistent. Yet he found himself keeping her around whenever she would randomly show up. And the weeks passed quicker then he wanted to admit.

They would usually stay in the garden and he would name flowers to her while they walked through the large area. And she would tell him of her travels and they would share their favorite plants.

"The tiger lily is a sign of girl courage. That's why I like it." Sakura said with a smile as the two sat on the steps eating lunch.

"Girl courage? I've never heard of it, men should be the one to take care of everything." Said Sasuke rationally. Sakura shook her head, her pink hair flowing in the light breeze.

"Everyone is equal. I think girls should be the same as boys! They're not any different, everyone is human." Sakura stated. Sasuke shook his head in disagreement.

"I only like tiger lilies because they were my moms favorite flower. But female courage isn't needed." Sakura became furious at Sasuke and stood up, hands on her hips.

"Girls can do anything boys can." She stated simply.

"Then why do I have lady maids? Or men butlers? Why is it called King, or queen?" Sakura raised her eyebrow at Sasuke's ignorance.

"You're so close-minded."

"You're too far from reality." Said Sasuke bluntly.

"I'm leaving." Said Sakura, stomping her foot down.

"Go." Sasuke tilted his head towards the gate. Sakura stood still for a bit before angrily stomping away, her food was left untouched on the stairs.

They didn't talk for a few days after that, until Sasuke saw her sneaking looks into the palace from outside the gates. He smirked and continued with his day, knowing she would be there by the gate at the end of the day.

And sure enough, she was. He gave her a single orange tiger lily when they started hanging out again and things quickly went back to the normal routine.

The chef would cook them both lunch and they'd eat it on the steps or inside. Occasionally she would wait outside his class while an elder gave him lessons and then she'd run up to him and talk to him during his short break periods.

Then they'd climb the largest Cherry Blossom tree and sit on its trunk, watching the birds. And she'd never stop talking, he didn't need to say a word, but he listened. And they'd watch the sunset go down, usually in a comfortable silence, before she would leave.

But one day, she wasn't there anymore. Disappeared, gone. He hadn't noticed the summer days were long gone, and inwardly he was disappointed, but showed no emotion in the subject. And the days got busier and busier as he got older. Approving, assigning, loaning, collecting, trading, fighting, it was all on his agenda. The Hyuuga family as well as a local priest had taken care of many things for him while he was taught the basics and more. But now it was his turn to take control over the kingdom as the last Uchiha heir.

Normal kingdoms would have had the heir immediately ruling, but his father was strict about education, and the household had kept to Fugaku's wishes, waiting for when Sasuke would be ready. And not long after his sixteenth birthday, he was crowned as the king, the absolute ruler of the entire area. It was immediately known, because although the Uchiha name had gotten very quiet after the mass family massacre, they still held to the largest power and force in the world. And when he was crowned, millions surrounded the area to watch and hear the event. There was wild cheer as he finally had the crown on his head after years of being silent.

And soon Sasuke found himself attending royal parties and conversing with many different people. Alliances became closer and his power only grew more and more. And that aura that had surrounded his entire family had soon engulfed him in it. It was the aura that held fierce power and a scary being, an overbearing sense.

And woman now flocked to him, begged him, and tried to seduce him. But like his father, not just anyone could have his body. He only talked to the prettiest and the strongest and the ones with the best reputation as well as power. And he found himself lost in the game of lust, but no one was to hold his son in their body. None were worthy.

He'd taste and touch and see and feel to his desire, but not one would ever have his child.

As Fugaku had taught him, she has to be worthy to hold an Uchiha heir in her body. An Uchiha was the most important being.

CRASH!

"What the hell are you doing? You break another thing and it's your head." Threatened Sasuke bitterly. A cheeky grin stretched across a blonde haired tan boy.

"It was an accident, relax!" He said, carelessly. Sasuke rubbed his forehead; his white robe billowed around him, only wearing boxers underneath after forcing another woman out of the house.

"It's always an accident." He said angrily.

"Hey, I'm paying you back, aren't I?"

"Yet you keep breaking everything you touch." Sasuke reached into his robes pocket and pulled out some money. "Leave before you break something else."

"How harsh." He stated, shoving his hands deep in his pockets. "Was the lady not satisfactory?" The boy raised his eyebrows and grinned in a mocking way.

"Shut up Naruto. You don't know shit."

"Yeah, yeah." He muttered. Naruto turned his back on him and started walking away when Sasuke grabbed Naruto's arm and slipped the money in his hand. Naruto turned to face him expectantly. "What?"

"Whit-"

"Don't talk to an Uchiha like that!" A yell came from behind Sasuke; suddenly Naruto was on the ground and holding his face in pain.

"What the hell are you doing?" Shouted Naruto fiercely. "The fuck Suigetsu? BAKA!!" Yelled Naruto as he staggered onto his feet. Sasuke caught the arm that had gone up to strike Naruto back down.

"Leave it." He said with a deadly glance to the young light haired boy. His hair glistened with every slight movement and his teeth were sharp and white like a shark.

"This kid?" He asked, glancing to the furious blonde haired guy next to him. "I've always wondered, what is he to you?" Sasuke glanced at Naruto and released the arm he held in a tight grip.

"More of a rival if anything." He said slowly. Naruto scoffed and turned on his heel to walk away.

"Then it would make sense to kill him now."

Sasuke was silent and turned to go back into the building with a confused boy closely following behind him.

"You don't have any left at all?"

"Sorry ma'am, those are gone really fast during this time of the year. We're all out."

She groaned and ran her hand through her soft locks in annoyance.

"Thanks anyways." She muttered bitterly before going on to the next cart that held flowers. It was March; so many people were selling seeds on the streets, yet none of them had any tiger lilies. She was frustrated to say the least. She had walked all day and hadn't found a single store in the entire area that sold a tiger lily.

She found a small place and entered the building; a fresh flower fragrance filled her senses as she stepped inside.

"Ohayo!" Yelled a voice from the back. The girl responded back happily and headed toward the voice. Her heart pounded in hopes that the tiger lilies were in the store and hopefully on sale.

"Ohayo." She said again, a girl around her age turned to face her and gave a bright smile. She froze at how stunning this girl was, her golden hair shined even in the dim lighting and her bright blue eyes sparkled with anticipation. She didn't seem dead broke, but she wasn't entirely rich either.

"I'm Yamanaka Ino, how can I help you?" She asked gently as the girl scanned the store, it was overflowing with multiple different flowers and smells.

"I'm Haruno Sakura. I'm looking for tiger lilies." She said. Ino smiled brightly. Sakura's heart pounded as she anticipated what the girl would say.

"You're in luck. They're the last one." She said.

Sakura smiled, "Really?" She felt heart become filled with relief. No more walking, looking, asking. She could go home and plant them now.

"Yeah. They're already in the pot and starting to bloom." Said Ino, she motioned for Sakura to follow her into the back. They walked past rows and rows of blooming flowers; white, red, yellow, orange, it was all there.

"Yamanaka-san, where do you get all these flowers?" Sakura looked astounded at the overflowing amounts that filled the air with a familiar fragrance.

"Call me Ino, and my families been running this flower shop for generations. We get them from traveling and trading and the seeds they produce." She explained carefully. "Flowers can reproduce just like any other animal, it just takes the help of getting one to the other." She shifted through the pots of flowers and came out with a small batch of large orange flowers. "Your Tiger Lilies."

"Thank you Ino." Said Sakura with a bright smile on her face.

"Want it as a bouquet?" Sakura nodded her head and they quickly headed to the front to cut and wrap the flowers.

"I think it's ironic how your name is Sakura, you have pink hair, and yet you're here getting tiger lilies." Laughed Ino. Usually this topic upset Sakura, but today, it wasn't to mock.

"I get the whole cherry blossom thing a lot," said Sakura.

"It's natural?"

"Yeah." She laughed, as Ino's eyes scanned over her long pink locks. "My mom had strawberry blonde hair. My dad had dark brown hair. Don't ask me how it happened."

"Nice." Replied Ino, finishing the wrapping of the flowers. "Here you are." Sakura took the bouquet and smiled at the beautiful blonde girl.

"Arigatou." Said Sakura, searching for her money. She left it on the counter and smiled at Ino.

"May I ask what it's for?" asked Ino curiously. Sakura shifted uncomfortably before showing a large bright smile.

"Today is my mom's death date." Said Sakura, "I never knew what her favorite flower was, but this is mine, and it's all I can share for her." Ino nodded sympathetically and sighed.

"I'm sorry. Is she buried near here?" Sakura shook her head, her mouth in a straight line.

"You could say that." Said Sakura slightly off tune. Because she wasn't rich or anything her mother didn't get a proper burial. Ino just smiled and ran her fingers down the long strands of blonde hair.

"Well have a safe journey." She said. Sakura nodded and began to walk out the door.

"Come again!" shouted Ino as she left the building. Ino slumped across the counter, her hot forehead against the cool marble. Today was a long day for her. And she still had to find the perfect dress for the dance coming up to get him to notice her.

BANG!

She jumped back and stared wide eyed at the door only to replace it with a furious look.

"What the hell Naruto?! Can't you come in like a normal person!" she shouted angrily.

"Haha… Gomen." He muttered, strolling over to the counter. "What's up?"

"You piss me off." Said Ino darkly.

"Is that anyway to talk to someone who can hook you up with the Uchiha Sasuke?" Naruto grinned and raised his eyebrows.

"I don't care anymore. Just because Kakashi took you in, doesn't mean you're actually a part of Sasuke's family." Said Ino harshly. Naruto flinched but shrugged.

"I guess you're right. But hey, I'm a lot closer to my goal then you are to Sasuke." Said Naruto, smirking at how furious he made Ino.

"And what is that?"

"To be Hokage of all this land! To protect it and make it better then ever! And exceed Sasuke!" He shouted happily. Ino rolled her eyes. Hokage held respect and a large amount of power. He or she led a giant organization to protect the land, and was like an advisor to the king.

"I'm pretty sure you've got more work cut out for you then I do." Naruto scowled and leaned across the counter towards Ino.

"You going to the ball next week?" He asked Ino. Though she ran a little flower shop, her family extended to great lengths and held a sort of title in the area; enough title to be invited to special events.

"Of course." She said bitterly.

"Cool. I can tell you something about the ball and Sasuke if you give me a few white roses." Said Naruto sheepishly. Ino raised her eyebrows.

"Tell me why white roses first."

"Give them to me first." Said Naruto. "And I'll tell you all you need to know." He stated simply, grinning from ear to ear. Ino's heart pounded with anticipation of his secret; she couldn't lie, she was the gossip queen. Nothing got past her.

"Fine." She grumbled, disappearing in the back. "How many do you need?"

"Your entire stock."

"Are you fucking crazy?" Shouted Ino, appearing again. "I'm going to need atleast some compensation, I'd lose too much money." She said, tapping her foot. Naruto rolled his eyes and pulled out the wad of money Sasuke had given him earlier. Even though they were like rivals, they were also like brothers, and best friends in a way. And though neither would admit it, they understood each other more then anyone else could.

Ino turned and slowly brought out a batch after batches of roses.

"Now what?" She asked Naruto as she thumbed through the money. He was a bit short but she didn't mind if what she heard was juicy enough.

"Sasuke is turning 17 soon, so he needs to find a girl." Said Naruto simply. Ino nodded her head expecting more. "The white roses will be given to every lady at the first ball and at the last one; not by Sasuke himself. And there will be a lot of ladies. I'm actually stopping by a few more places to pick up more white roses."

"I can't believe you're doing Sasuke a favor." She said suspiciously.

"He's treating me to all I can eat ramen for the next whole month." Said Naruto simply. Ino sighed and nodded for him to continue.

"Anyways. You know what white roses mean?" he asked. Ino rolled her eyes.

"Love, a goodbye, a new start, innocence, sympathy, honesty, pureness-" Naruto covered her mouth.

"Yeah, yeah. I should have known you'd already have this down." Ino slapped his hand away and urged him to continue telling her what he knew about the ball.

"So every girl will get a white rose, as a symbol of what you said, at the entrance-"

"It's formal right?" interrupted Ino.

"Duh." Stated Naruto. "Anyways, it's just to spice up the party a bit. But Sasuke has his work cut out for him. He's going to be dancing the entire night with every girl."

"Including me?" Asked Ino with a grin.

"If you go." Said Naruto in an obvious tone. Ino rolled her eyes. "The lady he picks at the end of the week won't have a white rose, but another flower."

"Which is?" asked Ino impatiently.

"No clue. Probably a red rose." Ino sighed, Naruto told her nothing at all. "And that lady will spend a month with him to see if she's really capable of an Uchiha wife position type thing." Said Naruto, waving his arm around. "But no one is supposed to know that's the reason he's holding it. They all think it's like an early weeklong birthday celebration. Don't tell anyone." Naruto threw in, though he knew it was almost impossible with Ino.

"So he's having a ball every night for a week?" Said Ino in a disbelieved tone. Naruto shook his head.

"No way. The ball is the first night, and the last night. He's also holding a cocktail party in-between then, and a get together activity with games and all that, as well as a lunch. Sasuke's obsessed with which woman he makes his, so he needs to know all aspects, in and out."

"God." Muttered Ino, Naruto nodded his head.

"Lucky for me I just need to get the white roses for the first and last night. The other people are making a giant racket, there's so much to do." Ino nodded her head as Naruto rambled. But this could be her lucky break with the Uchiha Sasuke. She had to make sure to be perfect all around before she went.

She didn't even hear what Naruto was saying as thoughts of what she'd wear filled her mind to the farthest corners. No one was about to step in her way.

The wind whirled her pink locks around her head and she clutched her hands from the cold. A bouquet filled her right hand and she held that bouquet close to her heart. Just outside these walls was where her mom had passed away. She kneeled on the ground, saying a silent prayer to herself.

No. This was not where her mom was buried, if she was even buried at all. This was where her mom had collapsed during that fatal day they had left the land ruled by the Uchiha's. She was only 8, with nowhere she could possibly have gone.

And yet there she stood, stronger then ever. She slowly took out each tiger lily placed it in the ground just by the gate. Was she allowed to do this? She wasn't sure. But she stayed and planted each flower carefully.

"Senju Sakura." A voice came from behind the girl; she turned to face a beautiful busty blonde woman with hands on her hips and her eyebrows furrowed. "WHERE THE HELL IS YOUR HAIR?"

Sakura grinned sheepishly and stood up to face the woman in front of her. "Gomen-nasai Tsunade-sama." Tsunade stayed in her position and waited for an explanation to come out of the girls' mouth. "I lost it when entering the land. I had it on when I went in the bathroom but forgot it when I came out."

"I can't believe you can be so careless Sakura. Do you know what kind of danger could occur if you were found, what trouble I would be in too if they found out I have been harboring you for the past 8 years?"

"Gomen."

"I could take care of that debt in a-"

"No." Sakura said sternly.

"It's a pretty big debt Sakura. And if they were to find you they'd probably make you a prostitute or kill you off." Said Tsunade, shoving Sakura's hood around her head.

"By the time they find me I'll have enough money to cover it." Replied Sakura. Tsunade shook her head. "Besides, I'm almost there."

"Yeah, but you still have a whole half to go." Sakura sighed.

"I'll get another job tomorrow, I'm looking into it."

"How many jobs have you had already?" Tsunade thought about all Sakura had done to get that debt out of the way the past few years and couldn't even remember half of it.

"A lot."

"You can't keep running for much longer while you get that money. And I can't keep hiding you forever." Said Tsunade. "Especially when you're this careless, do you know how rare pink hair is? No one has it."

"I know. Gomen, I'll be more careful." Said Sakura. Tsunade eyed the tiger lilies in the ground and sighed.

"You know they'll die." Sakura only nodded in response. Tsunade shook her head and took Sakura's hand in hers and led her away from the spot to the small carriage that waited for them.

YAY! It's finally up(: I hope you guys enjoyed reading this chapter. i liked writing it!

i reread it 20millions of times to make sure i didn't miss anything, though i'm positive i probably missed a bunch of stuff.

anyways, please support me, and be a good critic.

no flames---!!!

the next chapter will be up probably in about 2 weeks. Sorry for the long wait with that.

School gets out for me June 19.

This is so you guys can expect more soon :D

READ & REViEW

i love my readers(:

-jaciie

i'm your biggest fan, I'll follow you until you love me

papa, paparazzi

baby there's no other superstar, you know that i'll be

your papa, paparazzi

Promise i'll be kind

but i won't stop until that boy is mine

baby you'll be famous, chase ya down until you love me

papa, paparazzi

P.S the songs i put at the end i guess could signal what would happen in the next/future chapters

:D