The Chivalrous Crook

Chapter Ten

-Feast-

Gaara walked down the hallway, dressed in his formal knight armor, as was required during a war meeting. He stopped at two large double doors and sighed, lifting his fist and pounding on the wood. The door opened slowly and Hinata peered out, gasping when she saw who it was. "Lord Gaara." she opened the door fully and allowed him in. "What can I do for you?" she asked as he walked in the royal guest suite.

"Where is Sakura?" he asked, looking down at her and then around the room. "The war meeting is going to start soon and I would rather not be late."

Tenten walked in, holding a blanket, and took in the scene. "Oh Lord Gaara good morning." She smiled and walked over to him. "Forgive me, the princess is still getting read- Lord Gaara you cannot go in there!" the brunette gasped as the redhead walked through the bedroom door.

"Woman!" he demanded, looking around the bedroom. "I do not have time for your silly habits."

She looked up from her seat at her vanity with a gasp. At the moment she was currently clad in nothing but her corset and a thin skirt made to go underneath her dress. Her hair was curled and put into an elaborate bun, her bangs pinned off to the left and a set of ringlets hanging in front of her ears. "What are you doing in here?" she asked, trying to cover herself as her face turned red. She was even more indecent than she had been when he'd kidnapped her.

He just stared at her, looking uninterested. "What is taking you so long? The war meeting is about to start."

She glared at him. "I'm almost ready. I just have to put on my dress." She said, standing and picking it up off the back of her chair. She stepped into it and pulled it up, slipping her arms through the sleeves. The skirt went all the way down to her feet and was made of a cream colored material. Down the center it had a stripe made of a deep gold and brown cloth, that expanded as it got closer to the bottom of the dress. The bodice was a tight corset-like design, and was made of the same cream fabric and cut straight across on the top, barely modest. She wasn't worried about people seeing the red mark anymore, because it was so light that she was able to cover the rest up with her facial powder. The center of the bodice had the same gold material, with a vine and flower design sewn into it in a darker gold thread. The sleeves hung off her shoulders, revealing her smooth arms, and also had the vine design on them.

She turned her back on him. "Since you're here, will you lace me up?" she asked, looking over her shoulder. He sighed and walked forward, not caring about the two women poking their heads in to see what was going on. He took the strings and tightened them, having gotten better at this since his first time helping her. Once it was finished he stepped back and crossed his arms.

"Now are you ready? There are a lot of important things I have to discuss today." He let his eyes give her a once over and then quickly looked away. "You look…very pretty." He muttered out.

She turned, giving him a soft smile. "Thank you." She said, reaching up a hand and stroking his cheek. Just as quickly she dropped it, her look turning into a sassy one. "Well come on, we don't want to be late now do we?" she asked, arching a brow as the corner of her mouth lifted.

"Don't play smart with me woman, you and I both know I hold no restraint towards you." He huffed, turning and walking out of the room with her. They hurried towards the war room and entered together, drawing quite a bit of eyes. Gaara even walked her to her seat and waited until she was situated to begin. Kiba and Naruto stared wide eyed.

"What the hell is going on?" Naruto asked his brunette friend. "I thought they hated each other."

Kiba shrugged, "While they were in the cave they probably woo-hoo'd." he whistled, slowly pushing his finger in and out of the circle he made with his thumb and index finger.

Naruto looked from the brunette to Sakura, then Gaara, and then back at his friend. "You think so? I dunno… I bet they didn't go that far…" he said skeptically.

"Are you two ladies finished gossiping? We have more important matters to discuss." Sakura asked irritably, having seen the looks the two were sending her way. Naruto clasped his hands behind his back and nodded, afraid of the princess. She could throw a punch after all, and he didn't need another black eye.

Sasuke looked over to Gaara, an amused expression on his face. "Would you like to explain the situation, or shall I?" he asked, wanting to get the meeting underway.

Gaara gave him a threatening look and then focused on the others in the room. "Alright, we received another letter from my brother, and right now they have a hold on things for the time being. Farrion has engaged the fleet and they are trying to keep in contact, but they are out in the sea. But that is the least of our worries. Kalcona is keeping a good defense, and starting to break at our major point." He said, walking to the table and pointed to a few marked territories. "Here, here, and here are where it is the worst. My brother is doing the best he can, but we need an edge. We have to get more of our army into Kalcona." He sighed, looking over at Shikamaru to see if he had a strategy.

"Well…" the dark haired man pressed his lips together and tapped at the table. "For our navy we could always bring the Farrion ships closer to shore and launch a land to sea attack."

"May I suggest something?" Sakura asked, looking at Gaara for permission.

Every gaze but one turned to Sakura that instant. Then to Gaara, finally he looked over at the pink haired princess. He really couldn't believe she had actually asked. The redhead stepped to the side and gestured with his hand to the map on the table, giving her permission to speak. Everyone went wide eyed and some even gasped.

She stood and walked over to the table, picking up the dagger that was stuck in the wood and holding it expertly. "Take this army here," she said, pointing to a small group on the board. "and go through Allandria in order to reach Kalcona." She told them, gesturing with the tip of the blade the route they could take. "All you would need to do is send word to my father, and he would be more than accommodating of your request."

"He never has before." Gaara said a bit angrily. They had tried to go through Allandria before, and the king there had refused their request. "Besides, isn't there a forest between Kalcona and Allandria that has never been navigated before?"

She looked up at him. "I will write the letter myself if need be. Trust me, he'll do it or risk violating the new treaty." She said with a smile. "As for the forest, it's navigated daily. Anyone in Allandria could guide you through it safely. I bet I can even have my father send a few guides to help the soldiers through." She shrugged and returned her gaze to the map. "Head straight for the palace with the soldiers and meet with the King. Once you have the guides, go through the forest. It stops at the border between Allandria and Kalcona. They don't keep it guarded, because they believe that we don't know our way through our own land, and so will be unsuspecting of an attack from that front." She explained, showing her plan to the room with the knife.

"That, and Kalcona doesn't see Allandria as a threat." He corrected, but gave her a small nod. He took the dagger from her and faced Shikamaru and Neji, along with a few other generals. "We will do just as Sakura has suggested. She will write a letter, and Shikamaru will take what remaining troops we can spare, meet up with this battalion, and take them to Allandria." He explained, marking the spots where their troops were.

"Temari won't be happy about this." The dark haired man sighed.

"I know she won't." Gaara growled. "But it's not like we have a choice." He walked around the table and examined the map. "Yeah, then take the soldiers through the forest and aid my brother and Itachi from the north. It's where they are being hammered the most."

Sakura smiled, glad that she was able to help. Sasuke just watched in awe. He didn't know that Sakura was good at tactics, or could even understand what was being discussed while they had their meetings. And he definitely hadn't expected her to ask for permission, or for Gaara to allow her to speak and take her advice. It was…interesting, to say the least.

The meeting was adjourned then, and everyone left the room. Sasuke left, wanting to send a letter to his brother to inform him of the new plans. Sakura grabbed some parchment and a quill and sat down in her throne, using the armrest of the chair as a hard surface in order to write the letter to her father. Her brow scrunched and she began to chew on her lower lip as she phrased their request in a way that would force her father to comply. He was quite stubborn when he wanted to be.

Shikamaru was the last to leave, mumbling something about being killed before he even left the palace. Gaara walked over to the throne and looked down at Sakura, now the two being the only ones in the room. "That was very…brilliant." He said softly, she could tell he had difficulty giving out compliments. "Though, a strategy on getting my strategist out there would be useful as well." He laughed.

She paused in her writing and smiled up at him. "Well…I'm only good for one moment of complete brilliance a day my lord. The rest of them are just complete and utter genius, so I'm afraid you'll have to wait and see if I come up with something tomorrow." She joked.

He actually laughed and took the seat beside her, leaning back with a sigh. "How about you distract Temari tomorrow while they leave? That way she can't force Shikamaru to stay. After all, he's like butter when it comes to my sister…though I guess that's because they're married."

"They are?" she asked, surprised. Then she shrugged. "They make a good match. Alright, I'll have her join me for tea or some such mundane task that us simple princesses do." She said, her smile widening as she got comfortable in her chair, her letter momentarily forgotten.

"Sounds like a plan." He nodded, resting his elbow on the arm of the throne and leaning on his hand. He stared at the map, trying not to think about anything going wrong on the front lines. He hated being here while his brother was in harm's way.

She finished her letter and held it out to him. "Will you read over it and make sure I was clear in what I want?" she asked. She didn't know why, but she had come to value his opinion, and was unsure as to whether or not he would like what she had written.

He took it unenthusiastically and began to read its contents. After he read it, he nodded and placed it in his cloak. "Yes that's fine. I'll place both royal seals on it just to make sure we are perfectly clear." He glanced over at her and then forward, keeping silent about the fact he somewhat liked this set up.

She leaned back completely in her chair, letting out a sigh. Then she turned her head and looked over at him. "Gaara? Would you like to go for a horseback ride with me tomorrow?" she asked, her uncertainty at his answer evident.

"Would I like to?" he arched what could be a brow. He was about to say that no, he didn't want to, but he would if she wanted. But for the first time in his life, he actually thought about what he should say. "Yeah, I would. It'll be nice to get away from the palace and actually be outside." He said with a hint of a smile. He couldn't believe he had just taken her feelings into consideration. What was wrong with him?

She smiled at him, relieved that he had said yes. "Great. I can show you my favorite place to go when I ride." She said, excited for the day to come.

"Alright." He nodded, looking forward and thinking about what to bring with him tomorrow. He needed to make sure he was prepared if anyone attacked them while they were out. He stopped his thoughts and then slowly turned his gaze back to her. "Isn't that kind of like...me courting you?"

She gave him a thoughtful look. "Technically, I think I'm the one courting you, since the ride was my idea." She smiled suggestively at him. That's right, she wore the pants in this relationship, so to speak.

He rolled his eyes and shook his head, "See it as you will." He got up then and crossed his arms. "I have to go take care of a few things before the feast. I suppose I will see you later." He said, leaving the room shortly after that.

She watched him leave, thinking about what he had said. Did that mean that he was open to her courting him? She smiled, rising in order to go prepare for the night's dinner. So Sasuke was courting her, and she was courting Gaara. Man, this was messed up.

The whole room erupted into applause when Sakura entered on Sasuke's arm that night for dinner. He was dressed in an outfit similar to the one he had worn at the party that was held when she had first arrived, except for the fact that his navy blue tunic was trimmed with white.

She wore a long, strapless dress made of a soft, red material. The bodice was tight, causing her breasts to be pushed up a bit, showing a little cleavage. After it reached her waist it pooled out, flowing all the way down to the floor. In small lines down her entire dress there was a pattern of swirls and hearts made in a bright gold thread. On her arms were sleeves that went up her arms like gloves, but didn't attach to the dress. They were made of the same red fabric, turning into gold at her elbows and flowing freely down the rest of her arms. Where the fabric changed there was the same heart design around her arm. On her neck she wore a necklace made of gold that had a large, circular pendant in the center with pearls in the shape of teardrops hanging from it. Her hair was curled, and half of it was pulled back into a bun, leaving the rest to flow down her neck. On her head she wore a simple gold tiara with a ruby in the center.

She ignored the people that had come up to her and Sasuke, instead looking around for her favorite redhead. "You should try and be more subtle in your search for me your Highness." A voice whispered into her ear from behind. She turned around and saw Gaara before her. He was still dressed as he had been during the war meeting, minus his cloak and most of the formal armor.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I was just admiring the decorations." She said, her lie not even convincing herself. Had she really been that obvious?

He shrugged, looking over at Sasuke who was engaged in a conversation with one of the generals. He turned his gaze back down to the princess and sighed, "You two don't like each other very much, do you?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused. She liked Sasuke, it was just that there wasn't much they held in common. And whenever she had gone to any formal event with her parents, her father went off to talk business and her mother gossiped with the other ladies. It was just how things were done.

"Well it's obvious that you're not attracted to him. Physically or mentally." He pointed out boldly.

She shrugged. "I don't see how it matters either way. I still have to marry him."

"Whatever." He waved his hand through the air, "Don't be disappointed when he can't make you feel the way I can." He said a bit loudly, getting a few looks from some of the closer guests.

Her face turned as dark as her dress as she blushed at his words. "Don't say things like that so loudly." She hissed, leaning towards him so that no one would hear.

He leaned down to her level and smirked, "Why not? It's true."

"Because…because I said so." She said, unable to come up with a reason. He was right after all. She knew Sasuke would never make her feel like she was on fire, in a good way. And talking to him wasn't as stimulating.

The sound of a gong was heard throughout the room, signaling that it was time to sit down and start the dinner. Everyone began to sit, Sasuke sat in his seat and Sakura sat on his right. Surprisingly enough Gaara sat next to Sakura instead of Sasuke, and if anyone asked why, he would simply say that Sasuke had ordered him to protect the princess.

Before the food could be called out a page ran into the room. "My Prince, there is a group of traveling performers at the gate. They have requested that you see them, so that they may entertain you and your guests at this joyous celebration." He announced.

Sasuke brought a hand up and rubbed his chin. "I don't know…"

"It would be fun to watch." Sakura said, a bit excited. She just loved watching people perform.

"What do you think Gaara?" the young Uchiha asked, looking over at his friend.

"No." he said sharply.

"Why not?" Sakura asked.

He gave her a skeptical look, "Because I don't know them, I don't like it, and I don't feel like checking them out." He explained.

"It'll be fun." She sang out, smiling at him.

"I said no." he gave her a small glare.

"Please?" she begged, giving him a pleading look. "It's been forever since I last saw a troop of performers."

He leaned closer to her, so only she could hear him as he whispered into her ear. "What will you do for me? Hm, Princess?"

She gave him the most innocent look she could muster. "What do you want me to do for you my Lord?"

"Use your imagination." He smirked, boldly placing his hand on her leg beneath the table so no one could see.

Her cheeks began to turn red. She leaned towards him slightly, placing her own hand on his leg. "In that case, I'll surprise you." She said, giving him a coy look.

"Fine." He said with a small smile. He looked back at the page and nodded. "Send them in."

Sasuke gave them a suspicious look. He knew Gaara wasn't one to change his mind that quickly, if at all. The group entered then, made up of seven men, each dressed up in an elaborate outfit. Once they entered one of the men bowed as the rest set up the props.

"Your Highnesses, thank you so much for allowing us to perform for you. It is an honor." He said, nodding to the table of guests. "Tonight we will be performing the ancient and famous play, Macbeth." Then he turned and helped his friends finish setting everything up.

"This is so exciting!" Sakura squealed softly, patting Gaara's leg with her hand. Then she clasped her hands underneath the table, trying to quell her excitement.

Gaara's light expression disappeared and he focused on the men. He was still iffy about this, but, what could go wrong? He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, making sure his sword was easily accessible.

They began the play, and everyone was completely entrapped with them. When it got to the part when Macbeth was killing King Duncan, the men charged, each drawing a sword. The party broke out into panic then, everyone scrambling out of their seats and running for the doors.

Gaara's suspicious gaze turned into a glare, he turned it to Sakura, already blaming her for this. He dragged her up from her seat and shoved her into Sasuke's grasp, and finally tore his angry jade to annoyed onyx. "Take her. Now." He ordered, drawing his sword and blocking a blade that was aimed for them. He gripped his sword with both hands and pushed the man away as Sasuke dragged Sakura out the nearest door.

They got separated as the rest of the crowd ran after them through the door. In all the confusion, Sakura snuck back into the dining room and hid behind a large fern. Sasuke continued down the corridor, assuming that Sakura was in the crowd and safe.

She watched the fight going on, and, wanting to help, ran back over to the table. She climbed up to the top, heading straight for the centerpiece. It consisted of a basket containing large marble balls. She hefted one up with a grunt, and took aim. Then she threw it at one of the men, knocking him out as the ball connected with his head. She continued her actions, until she felt the table creak. She looked up in alarm and saw a large man standing about five feet from her, wielding a large, sinister looking sword. She bent down to pick up another marble orb, and gasped when she realized that they were all gone. The man laughed darkly.

"Is the little princess all out of balls? Don't worry sweetheart, I'm sure I can find some more for you to play with." He said, giving her a suggestive smile.

Completely disgusted and afraid, she began to back down the table. Looking around frantically, she saw Gaara engaged in a fight with one of the other men. She ran towards him, leaping somewhat ungracefully off of the table. Just as he brought down the man he was fighting, she grabbed onto his shoulders and turned him around, so that he was in between her and the large man that had been pursuing her. "Gaara! Kill him!" she said, hiding behind his back.

Now extremely alarmed that someone had gotten his back, he went wide eyed when the sword came down towards him. "Good God!" he yelled, barely blocking the blade. Keeping the stalemate, he glanced back at Sakura, "Are you out of your mind? What are you doing in here?" he pushed the large man back and quickly turned his wrist and thrust the tip of the sword straight into his enemy's stomach.

He fell, landing on his front. He turned immediately to Sakura and pressed her against a nearby pillar. "Are you stupid?" he shouted, keeping her pinned. The rest of the men had already been dealt with for the most part, and if not, Neji, Kiba, and Naruto were taking care of it.

Her eyes were as wide as saucers. "N-no! I was helping! See, I even knocked two of them out!" she said, pointing to the men that were on the floor. "Now you can interrogate them." She said, trying to make him less mad at her.

He slammed his fist into the hard pillar beside her head. "What if you had gotten hurt?" he glared, but she could see the worry evident in his eyes. Something he probably didn't even know he was showing.

Her gaze instantly turned into a kind one. She reached up a hand and placed it on his cheek comfortingly. "But I didn't…because I knew you would protect me. And you did." She said, stroking his skin lightly.

He didn't reply, he took the hand that was touching his face and grasped it tightly. He looked over at the room, seeing everything was taken care of, only the clean up left. "Come on." He ordered, dragging her after him. "You got lucky, you cannot just do things so recklessly Sakura. You're going to get yourself killed. You aren't trained to handle this kind of thing."

She picked up her skirts with her free hand, walking quickly in order to keep up with his long strides. "But…I don't like leaving you and not knowing if you're okay. At least whenever I'm in the room I can help." She said.

"It doesn't help if I have to constantly worry about you." He looked back at her, finally coming up to her room. He opened the door and pulled her in, shutting it and locking it behind him. He froze for a moment, it was finally dawning on him that he had just left Sasuke to make sure Sakura was absolutely safe. He grabbed onto the handle once more, about to leave, but stopped himself. Neji would handle it, right? He looked back at her then, letting his hand fall to his side.

She hugged him around the waist, laying her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry. I promise I won't do it again, if it will put you at ease." She said.

He sighed and wrapped his arms around her, "It would. If you want to help, why don't you learn how to use a weapon first." He laughed, joking.

She pulled away slightly, keeping her arms around him. "Would you teach me?" she asked, looking at him inquisitively.

"Teach you what?"

"How to use a sword." She explained.

He started to laugh, and then stopped when he saw how serious she looked about it. "You wouldn't be able to use a sword. The most I could teach you would only be the basics."

"That's fine. It's better than nothing, right?" she asked, giving him a small smile.

"Yeah I suppose, but you'd probably be better suited for a bow." He pulled away from her then, lifting one of her arms and giving it an evaluation. "Yeah, probably a bow."

She looked at her arm and then back at him. "Can you teach me that as well? Or is there someone else I should ask?" she asked.

Her question made an irritated look come to his face. "Yeah…Sasuke." He forced out. Why was he so against that? He could teach her, but in truth, Sasuke was better with the bow and arrow than he was.

Her brow furrowed as she thought about it. Would Sasuke say yes if she asked? "Well…let's just see how my sword training goes first. I mean, I know how to use my daggers properly, because my uncle taught me, so I might take to that quicker." She said, really only wanting to spend time with him.

"A sword is nothing like a dagger." He said, a bit annoyed she thought the two were even similar.

She frowned at him. "I know that, I'm not stupid. I was just suggesting we do that first, because I would rather spend my free time with you." She said without thinking of what she was implying.

Slowly, he smirked, giving her a knowing look. "Really now?"

"Yes." She said simply.

"Well then…I may just be inclined to take it into consideration." He crossed his arms and looked off, returning his taunting gaze on her.

She smirked, crossing her arms as well. "Good. Then I may just be inclined to actually give you your surprise." She said, raising a brow.

His cutting expression fell away instantly, replaced by one of interest. "Surprise?"

"You know, the one I told you I'd give you at the feast." She reminded him, smiling slightly.

He arched what could be a brow and stepped closer to her. "Oh right. So we should do this as soon as possible then." He smirked, thinking of the endless possibilities.

Her eyes widened innocently. "Do what?" she asked, clasping her hands behind her back.

"Your practice," he said simply. "So you can give me my surprise as well. Of course, we'll have to be alone."

She nodded. "Alright. When would you be free to do that then? Tomorrow I have to distract Temari, and then we have our horseback ride."

He scratched his head, running his hand through his hair. "Well, I suppose we could to it tomorrow while we are out and alone."

"Okay." She said smiling. Now she had even more reasons to be excited about her alone time with Gaara. It was then that she noticed how late it had gotten. "You should probably go check on Sasuke. He'll be suspicious if he has to wait any longer." She told him, letting her unhappiness at the thought of Gaara leaving her room show.

He nodded and gave her a small wave. "Well, see you tomorrow." He said, walking off to go find his friend.

She shut the door behind him with a sigh. Then went to go get ready for bed and pick out the dress she would wear tomorrow. She wanted to look pretty for her 'date' after all.