#graysuns

“and what does she talk to you about?” sakura’s footsteps are soft, steady. the heels of her boots echo, softly in the emptiness of their bedroom as she heads to where he stands at the balcony. “to me, she speaks of too-serious fathers and worrisome kings. i don’t know…” she trails off, tone light and almost playful. “sounds like you, don’t you think?”

she comes to a stop right behind him, her front pressed to his back as she leans close for sarada to pat her chubby palm to her cheek.

“what a traitor,” sasuke comments. “treason. by my own daughter, no less.”

sakura laughs and takes her from his arms, brings her close and rocks her. he watches her watch her, the warmth glazing her green eyes, the love pulling at the corners of her lips.

the oracle has never looked so beautiful.

“i come to tell you ino and naruto seek your presence in the council’s chambers.”

“oh for indra’s sake,” sasuke mutters. “i don’t want to sit in another meeting.” he leans close to sarada. “grow up so you can take my place and save me from all this.”

sakura laughs again, full hearted and sharp like wind chimes. sasukes grins, lopsided, as sarada gurgles and babbles in reply.

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“princess!”

sarada groans as she pauses from descending the rest of the stairs of the palace. she lolls her head back as she turns, watching as naruto stands at the entrance, holding the door open for–her father.

king sasuke’s steps are slow. no one but the royal family, the council and the crownguard know of the king’s slowly, steady deteriorating vision. sarada presses her lips together and turns to spare her friends a glance before jogging up some of the stairs she’d just descended.

“sarada,” he says as they finally near each other. 

“your majesty.” she bows, only half-heartedly kicking herself for the inability to extract all mock from her tone.

king sasuke looks at her with the seriousness of a king and the annoyance of a father. she likes the latter but she ignores it, raising an eyebrow and smiling.  

from her peripheral, she watches as her mother comes to stand next to naruto at the palace doors.

“you’ve been granted the privilege to leave the crown city and help those in need among whatever it is you desire to find. you’re dragging your friends along with you on your self-indulgent quest, you know this, right?”

“i do,” she replies, turning to look at inojin, chouchou and boruto. “’m sure they’ll get a kick of all this too. getting away from here and all these rules.”

she turns around and lazily waves with a flick of her wrist. the sun begins to set and the breeze picks up. she calculates they won’t get too far before they’d have to stop. 

“don’t forget who you are out there,” her father calls out.

sarada pauses again.

“as if i could!” she turns to him and bows. “your majesty as engraved it in my brain.”

“so act like it,” sasuke says.

sarada rolls her eyes, adjusting her glasses and turning her head, watching her mother. the oracle is patient and it shows in her smile. she gives sarada a slow nod and sarada turns back to her father.

“is there anything else you’d like to tell me?” sarada asks, hope in her tone. wish me well, she urges, not as a king but as a father–my father.

instead, she feels a poke on her forehead and she sucks in air, reaches up to rub at the sore spot.