First Meeting

Being close to the Hokage had its downsides as well as ups, especially if you were a girl, and especially if you were his daughter. Just ask sixteen-year-old Naruko Namikaze. You wouldn't want to be related to the Hokage if you were watched and guarded twenty four-seven by female ANBU or if you were forced to be home-schooled because even stepping out of your home is considered dangerous. Worst of all, your overprotective father wouldn't allow you to attend the Ninja Academy because, should you ever reach Jounin or ANBU, he'd be forced to give you missions that may or may not send you to your impending death. Now what loving father in their right mind would do that?

The only friends Naruko ever had were the children and grandchildren of the Fire Daimyo, but they were either too old or too young to have as proper friends. That and they were haughty stuck-up pricks.

As much as Minato Namikaze cared for his daughter's physical safety, he was also concerned for her mental health. When he noticed the signs of loneliness in Naruko's behavior, talking to herself (he hoped against hope that she wasn't talking to the Kyuubi sealed inside of her), he realized this was one of those rare moments he would have to consult his late wife's best friend, Mikoto Uchiha.

"You called, Hokage-sama?" Mikoto kneeled down before the Hokage in his office.

"Mikoto-san," he acknowledged "I called you here on a…personal request."

The Uchiha Clan Head's wife observed the blonde man. "Is this about Naruko-chan?"

"Yes, Naru-chan's been feeling a little lonely lately. As her father, I try to spend as much time as I can with her. Unfortunately, Hokage duties are weighing me down."

Mikoto smiled. "Ah, I think Naruko-chan just needs a friend to keep her company."

"That's what I thought but…I need someone her age who could keep her company and protect her as well."

"Have you checked in ANBU?"

"There's your youngest son…"

"Then assign him that role."

"I would, but there's the problem with his personality. He's seen as indifferent and somewhat cold, not quite the person I would see associating with my daughter."

"He's like that only when it comes to work. Otherwise, he's a charming individual, really. Just give him a chance, you might never know, Naruko-chan might just like him."

"I'll…take it into consideration."

"Thank you. Is there anything else, Hokage-sama?"

"No, thank you, Mikoto-san. That is all."

Giving a final bow, Mikoto left the office. Minato thought about it for a few more minutes, and then called the Cat ANBU.

…

Naruko was enjoying her favorite meal of instant ramen and talking to the Voice Inside. He was kinda rude but it was worth it if it meant someone to talk to. She wore an orange kimono with a black obi, and on her feet she wore a pair of white tabi with straw zoris. Her bright blonde hair was held up in twin bunches with white ribbons.

"Those noodles are bad for your health Naruko-hime." A voice behind her made the blonde girl jump. Looking behind her, she saw a male ANBU with a cat-faced mask and a long black scarf wrapped around his neck. His hair was a blue-black in color and spiked up in a way that resembled a duck's tail. Apart from the scarf, he wore the standard ANBU uniform.

"Who the hell are you?" Naruko frowned. It was rare to meet a male ANBU rather than a female one.

"Such profanity is inappropriate for a lady such as yourself. I am Cat, your new guard."

Naruko scowled and crossed her arms. "I already have enough guards. What makes you any different? And why haven't I heard of this?"

"The decision was made by Hokage-sama not a few hours ago. It was decided that I alone was to be your guard."

"Fine then Cat, do your job and watch me from the shadows. I'm kinda busy here, as you can see."

"I'm afraid I can't do that."

"Huh? Why not?"

"I am required to stay closer to you than the other ANBU and be your…friend."

"Huh, is that so? Well, at least Daddy knows best. So, what do ya wanna do, new friend?" unfinished ramen forgotten, Naruko was suddenly hyper as she leaned in closer to Cat.

"I don't know. Do you have any ideas?" Cat mused.

"Let's go outside to my garden! There are lots of flowers there!" Naruko jumped up and ran outside, with Cat following at a slower pace. This girl sure had a lot of energy.

By the time he arrived at the Hokage mansion's little flower garden, Naruko was already on her knees in a flower patch full of daffodils. She held one of the yellow flowers and sniffed it, smiling as she did so. Cat stared at her. Happiness seemed to radiate off this blonde angel, it was mesmerizing to watch her.

"Hey, Cat!" said blonde angel called out to the raven haired ANBU.

Cat walked over to her and squatted down so that he saw her face-to-face, well it was more mask-to-face. Naruko handed him a daffodil.

"For you!" she smiled, the light in her blue eyes brightening up the onyx ones behind the cat mask.

"So hyped up over a petty flower, Dobe?" he smirked, accepting her flower.

The smile disappeared from the whiskered teen's face and it was replaced with mock fury. "What did ya say, bastard?!"

"Really, such colorful language is not suited for a blonde angel like you." Cat said, poking her forehead in the manner his older brother did with him.

Naruko held her forehead, blushing when he called her an angel. "Shut up." She muttered, pouting.

…

The first thing Minato heard when he arrived home was the loud and, dare I say it, furious yells of his only child. He sighed, knowing it was inevitable his daughter would not like the ANBU he assigned to take care of her.

However, upon stepping into the living room he didn't see his little blonde trying and successfully failing to inflict damage upon her ANBU guard. Instead he found his little blonde playing shogi with her ANBU guard and losing horribly, thus the need for all the shouting of profanities.

"Having fun, Naru-chan?" he asked.

Naruko jumped at her father's voice coming from behind her. "Gah! Dammit, why is everyone sneaking up on me from behind?!"

Minato raised an eyebrow at this while Cat shrugged. "So can I safely presume you like your new guard, Naruko?" Minato mused.

"Aside from being a bastard and not being able to go easy at shogi, he's okay." Naruko replied as Cat snorted.

"Thank you Cat, you may be dismissed for today." Minato waved. Cat nodded and body flickered away.

Suddenly Naruko pounced on her father, hugging him.

"Daddy, I missed you!" she mewled.

Minato laughed and patted her head. "What's gotten into you? Did Cat screw with your brain, or do you want something?"

Naruko gave her father her cutest face, meaning she did want something. "Who's Cat? What's his name?"

Minato chuckled. He was sure his daughter would ask him this question. "Hm, why don't you ask the person in question?"

The blonde girl scowled, apparently unsatisfied with the answer. "I asked him already but he said he can't show me!" she complained.

"He's an ANBU, Naru-chan; he's not expected to show his face to others except the Hokage and his family."

"So you're not gonna tell me even his name?"

"No, you sure do like him don't you?

Naruko blushed. "What? No! It's not that I like him!"

Minato stared at her. Her lie told him more than what her telling the truth would. It meant she actually liked him enough to deny the feeling, one does not simply deny one's attraction for an Uchiha (insert Game of Thrones guy). And it was undeniable that the Uchiha in question acted differently with her than with everyone else. Yes, something was up.

Like every other overprotective father, Minato did not want his daughter in a relationship until he said so. Sure, the guy was from a sophisticated family and had a pretty good shinobi ranks but one can never be too sure.

"Oh? You don't like him? Then I guess I'll have to replace him with someone else then." Minato mused.

"NO!" Naruko's yell came all too quickly. Minato raised an eyebrow. "I-I'm already used to him so it's fine. No need to get someone else."

Minato's eyes narrowed, but he wasn't about to give up. "Ah sorry, Naru-chan. Cat-kun will be busy with missions."

"I thought keeping me company was his mission."

"It was…"

Naruko groaned in frustration. "Are you kidding me? Then what was the point of making him my guard?"

"Test drive." Naruko face palmed.

"You know what? I don't want anyone to keep watch over me. Can't a girl get some privacy for once?"

The father and daughter duo argued well into the night. Minato, tired from the day's work and the late hour, decided to let his daughter win this one and agreed to remove ANBU watch on her as long as she never leaves the house. Naruko cheered in victory.

…

The next day, a certain Uchiha came back home earlier than expected.

"Sasuke, you're back early! Didn't you have guard duty?" Mikoto exclaimed.

Sasuke sighed. "The Hokage dismissed me from duty."

"Huh? Why?"

The raven-haired boy only shrugged in response and trudged his way towards his room. Mikoto frowned. She didn't expect Minato to reject Sasuke so fast. Unless…

The Uchiha woman sighed. What's done is done. If the Hokage felt Sasuke wasn't suited for the job, then Sasuke really wasn't suited for the job. Naruko could be quite the handful at times, Mikoto was surprised her son didn't snap and kill her on the spot, consequences be damned.

Dejected at her son's failure Mikoto went back to work making lunch.

Meanwhile, Sasuke flopped down backside onto his bed, still in his ANBU uniform. He couldn't believe the Hokage replaced his place as Naruko's ANBU guard. Did he do something wrong? Did Naruko complain about him? No she seemed to like him, Sasuke made sure of that. It wasn't just for the sake of the mission.

Upon laying eyes on the blonde angel, Sasuke realized that she was the one. The only person who could look so beautiful to his eyes and made his heart pound whenever he near her was certainly worthy enough to be that one person whom the young Uchiha could fall in love with. Out of habit, he may have been sort of a jerk towards her but, thankfully, Naruko seemed the type that liked his kind. Yes, she was definitely his type.

Sasuke sighed and turned his head to look outside. He wondered what his blonde angel was doing now.

…

Naruko sat in her favorite flower patch holding up a daffodil, they were her favorite type of flower but she didn't know why. She'd told her father she wouldn't leave the house without supervision but she couldn't help it. Young girls like her needed to get out more.

While thinking of a certain raven ANBU, Naruko never noticed two ninja creeping up behind her like a lion to its prey, using the flowers as a cover of sorts. By the time she realized there was someone else there besides her, a certain spot on her neck was hit and she blacked out; but not before seeing their hitai-ates proudly showing off the symbol of Iwagakure.

…

Minato realized that he might have been a little too overprotective of his daughter. She was sixteen now, and most girls her age were already in a relationship. Perhaps it wouldn't so bad if he let her hang out with the Uchiha boy; he shouldn't be so bad…

…What the heck was he doing? He was seriously over thinking this! Going back to doing his paperwork, Minato still couldn't banish the guilt from his mind. Frustrated, he called Cat.

Just as Cat arrived, another ANBU and his former student, Kakashi Hatake, barged into his office. He was insane and spouting out words so fast the Yondaime couldn't keep up with what he was trying to say. Getting up from his chair, the Hokage made his way over to the only remainder of his former team.

"Kakashi calm down. Tell me what happened slowly." Minato tried to reassure.

The sliver haired ANBU was hyperventilating. Sasuke stared at him incredulously, having never seen his laid back and easy-going former sensei looking so troubled.

"Calm down? You want me to calm down?! Why the hell should I calm down when you're the one who should be worried?!" Kakashi yelled. Minato was already getting worried, fearing his answer.

"Kakashi…"

"Hokage-sama…your daughter." Minato's eyes widened. Grasping his former student's shoulders, the blonde man tried keeping his cool.

"Kakashi, tell me what happened, RIGHT NOW!"

"I went to the mansion to check up on her. She…I couldn't find her anywhere. I looked everywhere, under the beds, behind curtains, the bathrooms, the backyard, the front yard, the left yard, the right yard, heck I even looked under rocks! I searched the whole damn village and there's no sign of her anywhere!"

"Was she kidnapped? Or did she…run away?" Minato hesitantly asked, fearing for the worst.

"There were no signs of a struggle so…" Kakashi trailed off.

Minato inhaled slowly, trying to calm down. Nothing good would ever come if he acted impulsively. Turning to Cat he addressed the raven haired ANBU.

"Cat-"The blonde Hokage realized that said ANBU was nowhere to be found in his office.

"He left when I told you the news." Kakashi informed.

Minato's eyes wanted to twitch right there. Damn that Uchiha for hogging the spotlight that belonged to the father and only the father.

"You know, sometimes you should let others take the spotlight too." Kakashi said, miraculously calm. Damn this Hatake for reading his mind. "That's mean, Hokage-sama." Stop it.

Of course Minato wouldn't let Sasuke take all the glory; he wasn't the Hokage for nothing and he was Naruko's dad, therefore the responsibility of bringing her back fell to him.

"Also, if you have the time to fantasize about rescuing Naruko, I'm pretty sure you have the time to actually go rescue her." Kakashi suggested.

"Kakashi, what are you still doing here?" The Yondaime Hokage asked out of irritation.

"Oh, that's right I should go…or I could come with you…" His words were left hanging when the blonde man used his Hiraishin and flashed out of the office.

…

It was raining and Naruko's kidnappers had gotten a fair distance away from the Hidden leaf Village. One of the Iwa ninja set the bound and squirming blonde girl on some tree roots nearby the campsite. The brat sure had a lot of energy for someone with no shinobi training, or perhaps it was the combination of her mother's Uzumaki blood and the Kyuubi's chakra flowing through her veins.

The mission seemed simple enough, kidnap the Fourth Hokage's daughter and bring her to the village for her bijuu to be extracted. Of course the girl would die but that would be a bonus, seeing as she was the daughter of their greatest enemy, The Yellow Flash. Plus, the easiest thing about this was that she had no ANBU watch over her, was this seriously an S-ranked mission?

However their victim was beginning to be a pain in the a- the neck, yes she was a pain in the neck. Not only were her wet pigtails slapping in her carrier's face annoying him but the volume of her inhumanly loud voice did not lower even with the cloth they tried to gag her with, so all she yelled were screams and incoherent grunts. The mission details said not to kill her but mutilation was all game.

Just as the other ninja was about to cut her tongue off, a kunai hit his hand with his own kunai in it. Looking up into the trees, the Iwa ninjas found a Konoha ANBU with a cat mask and scarf. Through the eye-holes in the mask they could see two glowing red circles with three spinning tomoes in each. And that could only mean…

"Shit…" the ninja who was about to mutilate Naruko swore. He and the other ninjas turned to run, abandoning the objective of their mission.

They didn't get very far. With inhuman speed and with his Sharingan slowing their movements in his eyes, Cat swiftly nicked their jugular veins. A quick and clean kill with minimum bloodshed, so as not to disturb the damsel in distress.

Cat smirked behind his mask as walked over to Naruko and cut her free of the ropes binding her.

"Are you alright, Naruko-hime?" Naruko nodded in reply, still dazed at the display of death. Waiting for her to recover, the Cat ANBU walked over to a nearby flower patch and picked up a wild daffodil. The rain stopped and the clouds were beginning to clear letting beams of sunlight penetrate the sky. Turning around to present the flower to the girl of his dreams, he found himself facing a recovered and curious-looking Naruko.

"I…want to see your face." Nothing stopped Naruko's hands as she reached for the ANBU's mask, successfully pulling it off and seeing his face for the first time. Onyx colored eyes set in smooth pale skin bore into her own azure ones, much different from the red that glared at her kidnappers. His bangs framed his face and the front part covered most of his forehead. The wind blew through his wet hair as Naruko's own slapped against her wet back.

"What's your name?" It was more of a demand than a question, but Cat was obliged to answer anyways.

"Sasuke Uchiha." He replied.

"Sasuke." Naruko rolled his name on her tongue, testing the sound of it. She giggled. "Sasuke Sasuke Sasuke Sasuke Sasuke Sasuke SASUKE!" she repeated.

"As much as I love my name, I'd prefer if it wasn't said repeatedly in one go, Naruko-hime." Sasuke smirked as Naruko snorted.

"Oh stop with the formalities, Just call me plain ol' Naruko" Naruko chided.

"Ah but I'm not calling you Naruko-hime because I have to, but because I want to. And because you are my hime." Sasuke took the blonde's hand and kissed the back of it, resulting in a blushing Naruko.

A flash of yellow and the pair heard a clapping sound. Turning their heads, they found the Yondaime Hokage clapping his hands at Sasuke's achievement.

"Well done, Sasuke-san. Not only did you rescue my daughter but it seems you've also won her heart." Said daughter spluttered strings of half-hearted protests at this. "In fact, you deserve a reward! Now what should that reward be?" Minato mused.

"Hokage-sama, if I may, I would like to be Naruko-hime's permanent ANBU guard." Sasuke suggested.

The Yellow Flash smiled at him. "Request granted. From now on you, Sasuke Uchiha, are Naruko Namikaze's personal bodyguard until the time you retire from duty."

Sasuke smirked and Naruko jumped for joy in victory of her reunion with her first true friend and possibly lover (she blushed at the thought of that).

"Alright, now if Sasuke-san doesn't have any more pickup lines for you then I suggest we get home and get you cleaned up, Naruko." The Hokage said as he grabbed the two wet teens and flashed back home before Naruko could protest she was fine and before Sasuke could make a comeback saying he actually had more pickup lines.

That night Itachi would forever wonder why the hell Sasuke was so damn smug when he got guard duty for the rest of his life.

…

AN

Hi all! This is my longest one-shot yet (WHOOPEE!) While browsing DevianArt I happened upon this amazing SasukexNaruko picture and BAM! This story popped into this coconut I call my head. And so I spent days planning out and writing the story with the end result being this.

The end! ;D

DoGB