Scythe: 1st note- Uh... so this was sitting in my computer for liek.. a million years, as you all know.. I thought i posted it.. but i didn't. I really apologize. So here's the deal.. i haven't read over it at all... so if there are buco mistakes, sorry, get over it. I'll read over it eventually. I'm also working on a Jak and Daxter fic that you should all check out if you're interested. ;D

2nd note- IMPORTANT---- Alright, people, let me clear something up. I refer to Itachi and Sasuke as the princes because they are brothers and they ARE princes. At the moment, Itachi is not yet king, since the church has not crowned him as such- the ceremony, as you will learn, is but a few days after the next banquet... but because their parents are dead, Itachi, being eldest, is in control.

Warnings- Sasu/Naru, one sided Ita/Sasu boo hoo. Yay for drama and psychological damage. Broken Naruto... (Out of character a bit, if that explains that...) This chapter is... chapter like...

Thanks- mmm... no one really (aside from my reviewers/slightly obsessed fans ._.), as terrible as that sounds.

Long awaited Chapter TEN MILLION... just kidding...

Chapter 4

Before he could even blink, he was in the carriage being taken away to the castle... he did not want this... he didn't want to be anyone's pet... Damn princes; using their royalty to pull him from the 'no sale' rule. This was not very exciting. Although, Naruto pondered, he probably didn't have to worry since every other master he had had just sent him back right away. That's how they all felt; captivated at first, completely taken with him until they brought him home, abused him and tried to make him a slave. Well, he kind of was a slave... Ok so technically, legally, and on documents, he was indeed a slave, but never in his heart or spirit.

Never.

The entire way back to the castle, he stared out the window of the carriage at the dim setting of life, depressed and contemplating what all he could do to escape this horrid fate. It was one thing after another with him... Misfortune was his only friend, and it sure liked to help him out a lot.

He sighed softly. He really wanted to escape this time without being caught, but how in the world was that possible when he was just drafted by the princes? The entire guard would be out for him if he escaped. That is, if the prince really cared that much.

He tried to stay optimistic. Who knows? Maybe the prince was one of those "good Samaritans" and would just... let him go free or something?

Psh. Such is the essence of fairy tales, not real life.

What a pity... this wouldn't be his whole life, right?

When they reached the castle, he couldn't help but feel relieved, yet tense at the same time. He didn't know what was expected of him, but he had a feeling he would be finding out very soon. From past experience... it would start with his owner trying to be nice to him, and when he didn't obey, he would be forced to do things he didn't want to. And then, Naruto smirked inwardly, he would be free, for he would soon unleash his hellish tactics on his owner and flee! Or be sent back... either one was probably better than living under a princes rule.

Sudden fear enveloped Naruto as he realized he was finally at the palace and he shrunk into the corner. Not able to quite place a finger on the reason why, he just took the best, logical guess and assumed it was because he knew the actions in which he was going to have to perform when he finally got into said palace, and though it was Sasuke that seemed to be his master, he still knew nothing about him but his appearance. Taking an educated guess, he'd have to assume that, since he is a prince, he would be much more forceful once they had actually gone into the confines of the prison known as the palace.

He swallowed hard, reaching for the door to his left so that, perhaps he could escape, but it was foolish to think that way. The door was somehow locked and Sasuke looked into the carriage once he realized his new entertainer was not coming.

The fear that radiated from those beautiful azure eyes struck a deep cord of sympathy within the youngest Uchiha sibling. He imagined how it must have felt to be the small blonde at this moment in time- having been passed from one master to the next, and having been used for things he could only painfully imagine at this point in time. He offered a small, kind smile and reached his own, gloved hand out to him, palm upturned.

"Come."

Sasuke hardly expected the poor boy to come to him, especially after the stories he'd heard from Korayo and other gossip around the town.

Naruto- shy and fearful, but once he was in the grasp of the new master, he was wild, untamed, defiant and disobedient. Korayo, upon request, had regrettably told them all of the stories about how Naruto had driven owners to angry tears, and how they'd thrown the blonde back at his feet, drenched in the rain, having bounded all the way over themselves just to shove him away and express their distaste for his slaves. Thus, Korayo had instead sold Naruto like a common whore, no longer selling him for keeps-until now.

When Sasuke was about to call for someone to take him away, a warm, light hand gently settled in his and he looked back into the carriage to see Naruto, eyes downcast, gently gripping his hand and stepping out from the coach. He smirked in satisfaction and pulled him under the cover of an umbrella held by a servant.

The blonde felt instantaneously guilty seeing that the servant was getting drenched while holding the umbrella above them. He opened his mouth to protest, but they were already up the steps and into the great hall of the palace. His mouth gaped slightly as he looked up and around, gazing at gargoyles and symbols only the royals could understand- the red carpets and the dazzling gold statuettes and sculptures, and gifts from other countries and kingdoms and places. It was all too much to take in at once and when he looked down again, they were alone.

Sasuke guided him along, into another, smaller room in which he handed him off to be bathed and cleaned and properly fitted for attire. When Sasuke began to leave, Naruto began to panic and thrash, breaking free from the others and he made a run for the door.

Reached his ears the commotion did, causing the prince to whirl around and see such a lovely sight before him. Naruto had been again retained and had such a fierce look in his eyes of determination that the younger prince was breath taken. A shiver ran through his body, goose bumps rising on his skin as he just watched, amused and fascinated. Unfortunately, his small show ended rather hastily when Itachi suddenly seized the small entertainer, but against his instincts, Naruto struggled to free himself from the suspiciously strong grip of the soon-to-be King of Aireon. In a moment, the blonde stopped and stay tense within the grasp of the older man as Itachi whispered something into his ear. Sasuke's brow furrowed in suspicion and confusion as his brother shoved the smaller boy away.

The slave fell to his knees and held his throat gently, wincing. Sasuke's eyes widened slightly. How dare Itachi hurt him like that? The obsidian haired prince stormed forward and shot a deathly glare at his older brother.

"Do not touch him without my permission, Itachi. You may own all of this land and its entire people, but Naruto is mine, and mine alone, or will be in a few days time. Control yourself."

"Control your slave, Brother. Do not just act as a spectator as if disorder in my kingdom is some sort of play. If you cannot control him, we will send him back, which I suspect we will be doing in no time, considering all of those lovely stories we heard." Fuel the fire.

Without another word, Sasuke grabbed Naruto's arm, Itachi taking his leave, and shoved him back into the grasp of the attendants. "Take him to be cleaned. And if you cause any more trouble than you're worth, Uzumaki, it is the torture chambers for you." So it was a bluff, so what? He could never actually send such a beautiful thing to be tortured.

What was he thinking? He could not be so soft over a slave boy entertainer! Beautiful? Indeed, but that was no reason to dote upon him, was it? Never. He was a common whore that should not even get the privileges being bestowed upon him at this moment. At least, that was what his years of being brought up as royalty said.

~8~

After the incident with Itachi, Naruto had been strangely calm, but still had not said a word to his new trial owner, and this bothered him. The whole point of getting Naruto was to get to know him and find out exactly what it was that made the blonde plague his mind and dreams, and if he could get over this odd attraction for him. He was sure it was just lust- it had happened before. The young prince had a rather horrid hobby of making people fall in love with him, and then breaking their poor, frail hearts beyond the point of necessity, but for some reason he found a strange sense of pleasure in doing such. He enjoyed it most when he knew the victim was in it for money and fame. Twisted as it was, it was what he somehow taught himself, rationalizing it with his royal status. Permissibly, he would feel an undeniable attraction to someone, and as soon as he had bed them, he was satisfied with them and cast them aside. Or perhaps it was they hadn't satisfied him and he cast them aside because he had been disappointed. He was sure that it would be either possibility with this azure eyed, feral beast in his grasp- it always was.

First, though, he needed to obtain Naruto's trust.

Naruto was brought to his bed chambers after his cleaning and the attendant, before allowing the prince to see, warned, "My lord, we have made a discovery of a bruise upon his face."

Ah, yes. That's right. He'd forgotten about that bruise on his cheek. He brushed it off softly, remembering it did not look so bad when he had seen him in the marketplace.

"Send him in," replied he.

And what he saw shocked him greatly. The bruise was decidedly bigger than he had initially thought. Darkest was the center, and steadily receded as it fanned out all the way to his jaw. He moved as fluid ice to his pet and touched the bruise, earning a flinch. He gripped his chin gently, then gently shoved his face away.

"Take him to the herb specialist and get that treated immediately. I cannot bear to look upon his face with that disgusting mark." The words stung Naruto so deeply, his face visibly fell, in turn making Sasuke's chest ache.

"Yes, my Lord," and he was taken away. "Do not fret, young one. The master has been extremely grumpy lately. He and his brother have been fighting as of late."

"Over what?" The servant stared at him in wonder. The first sound that had come from Naruto's mouth and it was indeed music to her ears.

"Mostly because Lord Itachi is pressing a wife upon the young master. No one really knows why, considering Lord Itachi will be the king, not Sasuke. Some are beginning to think that he is repulsed by women and will not touch them or let him into his bed, but I think otherwise. There's hardly a night I don't hear noise in his room if you get my drift." He was rewarded with a blush. The servant continued, "Word has it Itachi might be hiding something, or planning something, I should say. No one knows what it could be as of yet, but he's calling in a new advisor as well- highly suspicious. Oh pardon me, I must be scaring you out of your wits. The name's Ino."

"N-nice to meet you." Naruto said softly, but did not gaze upon her face, still hurt by the words he'd received, even if he didn't understand why.

"Cheer up. You'll like it around here as long as you don't upset anybody. They treat us very nicely." A pause. "Just one thing, Naruto- don't fall for Sasuke. All you'll get is heartbreak."

With this, he looked up at her in confusion, but sighed softly. He wouldn't fall for someone like that.

He felt a little better, actually, now that he thought about it. Talking to this girl was nice, and he felt more at home the way she spoke to him. She was kind of a typical girl- relaying gossip and making her own conclusions about everything, but he liked that about her. She was his tie to reality at this point.

"How long have you been working here?" He asked, not sure if he should get so personal.

"All of my life, but I love it here. My mother hated it, but I don't mind it much." She smiled at him.

Her smile was beautiful, as was everything else about her. Her platinum blonde hair was tied up, but even then it cascaded down to almost her lower back. Long hair was so fascinatingly eye worthy. Her clothes were generic- a tunic and leggings and leather shoes, but she still made them look good, he had to admit.

Finally, he gave just a hint of a smile back, and this seemed to fill her with such joy she hugged him. He had to laugh softly at her joyous squeezes of affection.

"Alright! We're here."

Leading him through the door, Ino brought him to the herb specialist and quietly recited her orders to old man, who smiled kindly and nodded softly to her words. Once finished, Ino left, making Naruto feel extremely vulnerable and tense.

"Come here- give me a look at that old bruise on your face, eh?" cooed the old man, just serving to make Naruto even more uncomfortable. He swallowed hard, but did as he was told and stooped beside him.

The room smelled of earth and plants and tea. He kind of liked the smell, he noted, looking around some and tilting his head gently when asked. The room also reminded him slightly of a brothel with its dark, burgundy red and deep forest green curtains and drapes and rugs. It was comfortable-it was like his old village... Calmed him it did, so much that he did not feel the soft rag at his sore cheek covered in herb stuffs, and yet tense it made him also as he remembered exactly why he was no longer in that village.

Nine Tailed Fox...

His eyes snapped open and he looked at the old man. "What..?"

He blinked as he was placing the rag in some cleaning water and smiled. "I said, 'I'm all done.'"

Naruto nodded slowly and rose.

"Wait, wait, wait, I did not say I was finished." Confused, Naruto looked back at him and sat down again, earning a laugh from the old herb man. "There is something strange about you," said the old man- so suddenly that Naruto shot his gaze to him immediately. The smile was gone from the old mans face, and an air of seriousness now surround him, filled the room.

All Naruto could hear was his heart beating, slowly, but so loud he thought even the old man could hear. "What... do you mean?" He managed to choke out.

"Your bruise...You are not a normal child."

Faster beat his heart.

"How long have you had this bruise? A day? Yet already you have shown remarkable healing of a week. I assume the bruise covered the entire left side of your cheek, from your jaw, nearly to your nose, and yet all that is left, although still quite large, is the middle to your jaw, and even then it is not as dark as a fresh bruise..."

Naruto could feel his chest rising and falling quicker, panic flooding through him, his eyes getting wide, pupils dilating with fear.

"...and since you've come in, the size of the bruise has reduced so. It no longer spreads to your jaw. It is slowly becoming a faint purple and green mark upon your face the size of a small child's hand. Adding herbs to your face only served to, indeed, speed up the process. How is this possible, young Naruto?"

He was panting hard now, looking around the room, keeping his eyes distracted and on anything but the doctor. He swallowed against the lump in his throat, hands clenching on his baggy pants hard, as if to rib the small threads from their nicely stitched graces.

"Naruto?"

His eyes slipped to the doctor, but that was a fatal mistake. The doctor reached for him and he leapt to his feet, knocking over a basin full of water with a crash, the sound only serving to distract and make him more frightened. He was a trapped animal in this cage of a room and if he was cornered, he knew what would happen... he had to get out of there!

"Calm down, young one," the doctor said, but there was something in his tone that told Naruto he knew...

Back stepping, a trembling hand shot out to look for the door behind him, his eyes locked on the doctor, and the doctor gazed back with a knowing smile (and not a kind one). His vision began to spot, black dots racing across his eyes and his throat so dry he could no longer speak.

"You're going to..." but that was all he heard as he fainted, his legs finally giving out without the proper amount of oxygen to support them, vision going blank and he barely felt himself hitting the rub beneath him, knees first and then his upper body.

The doctor had to sigh and gently moved to the door, calling to the guards to send a word to Sasuke. They complied, and left, but not before moving Naruto to a small sick bed in the herb man's room.

Everyone had secrets. Some are deep and mysterious; others are simple and not such a big deal, but the biggest secrets are those that affect others without one even realizing it, or perhaps one does realize it, and that is why it is secret. Everyone has secrets- nobles, peasants, farmers, assassins, slaves- everyone. If one runs from it, it will only cause more pain, and no one can honestly hide a secret forever. Someone eventually finds out...

"Oh, you have the darkest secret of us all, don't you, Naruto?"

~8~

Scythe: Sooooo.... what'd you think? Fantastic? I thought it was. IF you didn't, humor me anyways... I think this is going to develop into a nice little ficcy and I'm excited you all care to join in on the fun. Thank you... Oh man, I learned I have this 14 year old fan x.x and I'm like: you're reading MY fics? They get pretty bad later.. I felt like I was robbing the cradle or something, but then I realized I was corrupted and reading these when I was ten... how effed up is that? *scratches head* Anyways, review XD and thanks!