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christmas prince two: a royal wedding

Hey, readers! Naruto writes, then backspaces it. 

Hello, dear readers. He wrinkles his nose. That’s definitely too formal.

Merry Christmas, readers! That should work. Today marks the one year anniversary of when I first met the love of my life. Of course, back then, she was just a jerk stealing my taxi at the airport! It’s crazy how much things have changed for me in just a year. I quit my job, wrote a viral article, and...oh yeah, got engaged to the Queen of Konoha!

This year was amazing, with lots of travelling between New York, Konoha, and a bunch of other places. Not to mention, my wedding is coming up this month. I can only imagine how hectic things are going to get from here. But through all this insanity, I’m still me. Even though I’m about to become king of a small country! 

To all of my readers, I hope you have a great Christmas and finish off your year with as much love and joy as I’m going to. 

Naruto stops typing and leans back in his chair, satisfied with what he’s got so far. He’ll write more later, of course, but as far as his readers go, they’ll be happy even with a small blog entry like this. His chair creaks in protest as he moves, reminding him why it’s the only item of furniture he owns that he hasn’t already shipped off to Konoha. It’ll be staying here, in his adoptive dad’s apartment. 

He writes a note on the half finished post: write more about travelling!, and closes his laptop. Then he throws it in his bag, zips it shut, and hurries out of the apartment. If he’s any later, Iruka will murder him when he reaches the airport.

-

He is late, and Iruka does almost kill him. That’s fine, though, because the flight to Konoha is long enough that he can let out most of his steam by angrily watching the two available in-flight movies. Even though Hinata had insisted on flying them out in first class, the in-flight entertainment is lacking. 

Hinata . It’s been a month since they saw each other last, a little bit before Halloween. Naruto has been too busy moving his things since then to find the time to fly out, and Hinata is overwhelmed with all of the duties she sidelined in favor of their summer together. Nothing vitally important, but according to how tired she sounds when they chat on the phone, very tedious. 

Anyway, it was a very long month. Naruto misses seeing her in person more than anything, and the thought of reuniting keeps him awake and alert the whole flight. He almost runs to the baggage claim as soon as they get off the flight, before he remembers that he’s flying as the Queen’s boyfriend and that royal attendants already got his luggage and are waiting with it outside the airport gate. 

As they make their way out of the airport, Naruto does his best to remain incognito, but he can’t help waving at people who stare at him a little too long. 

They finally get outside to the pick up zone. Naruto hangs back by the doors, trying to convince the attendants pushing the luggage cart to let him tip them with his freshly exchanged money. It’s only slightly crinkled from being in his pocket. Iruka goes ahead and flags down a taxi. 

Someone knocks into Naruto, and he stumbles, almost falling into the luggage cart.

“Hey!” he yells at the culprit, who’s already a few feet away. “Watch where you’re going, ya know!” The man, dressed in an expensive looking black coat with an indiscernible red logo on the back, is on the phone and doesn’t even turn around. Naruto fumes and almost gets bumped into again by a woman wearing an identical coat, trailed by two other guys who are all chasing after the first. 

Naruto watches, fuming, as the first man grabs the door of the taxi Iruka just called and slides in, followed by his associates.

“Um, excuse me-” Iruka begins politely from right next to the cab, where he’s been snubbed.. Naruto rushes up behind him

“What’s wrong with you! That’s our taxi!” he says. The man looks at him critically from behind oversized sunglasses.

“It was your taxi.” he says. “Now it is ours. Goodbye.” he shuts the door and snaps at the cab driver, who doesn’t even look back apologetically before speeding away. Naruto crosses his arms. 

“Great! Now we have to call another one.” he goes to wave, when Iruka taps him, staring openly down the line of cars near them.

“Is that…” he says hesitantly, “a limo?”

“Oh!” Naruto says. He recognizes what Iruka’s pointing at; it’s the royal family’s limo, flanked by two bigger cars. “Hey, that must be for us!”

“I don’t know why I didn’t expect that.” Iruka says quietly. Naruto grins and slaps him on the back.

“Hinata thinks of everything, ya know!” 

They start walking towards the limo, royal attendants following wordlessly, when they pass by a set of doors and cameras start going off. Naruto turns around, almost lifting up his sunglasses, to see a crowd of paparazzi surrounding them and steadily growing.

“Ugh, great!” he exclaims, pulling a face. Iruka slaps his arm.

“Don’t do that, they’re taking pictures.” he looks uncertainly at the crowd. “Smile, or something.”

“Mr. Uzumaki.” someone grabs Naruto by the shoulders. Naruto turns around quickly, sick of encountering people at the airport already. The guy pulls him away from the paparazzi, also grabbing Iruka. He’s got a surprisingly unkempt haircut and facial tattoos, but he’s also wearing the uniform of a high ranking Konoha castle staff member. “The queen sent me.” he says.

“Oh!” Naruto immediately relaxs. “What’s up?” 

“Get in the limo, we can talk when the press is gone.”

“Woof!” Naruto looks down and sees a huge white dog at the new guy’s side. He stops complying with the new guy in favor of gaping at it.

“You have a dog?” he says, dumbfounded.

“Get in the limo.”

“What’s its name?”

“Just get in the limo!” Naruto is respectfully manhandled into the limo. Luckily the dog also gets in, with its own seat in the back and everything.

“I’m Kiba.” the guy says from the front seat as the limo pulls away. Naruto hopes all their luggage is being stuffed into a separate limo or something. “I’m your personal attache, get it. I’m going to be closely monitoring you before, during, and after the wedding.”

“Cool.” Naruto says. “What’s your dog’s name?”

“Akamaru.”

Akamaru woofs in affirmation. Naruto grins. Iruka smiles too, a little more hesitantly.

“Doesn’t he shed in the limo?” he says.

“He’s trained not to.” Kiba answers. Iruka opens his mouth, then shuts it. 

The rest of the car ride is totally silent once Naruto finishes interrogating Kiba about every single trick Akamaru can do, every treat that he likes, and what his favorite games are. 

“You know,” Iruka says after a while, finally working up the courage to pick up one of the chocolates next to them, “this is a lot nicer than I expected.”

“I’m going to be royalty, dad.” Naruto rolls his eyes. “What did you expect?”

“Konoha is a pretty small country.” Iruka says. Naruto grins.

“Whatever.” he elbows Iruka. “Wait until you see the castle.”

Iruka raises his eyebrows, somehow still cynical, right up until the snowy hills part and castle comes into view. Then his jaw actually drops. 

“You’re going to live there?” he says, dumbfounded, leaning to almost press his face up against the window. Naruto scratches his nose.

“You can live there too, if you want.” he says. “Pretty sure there’s enough room, ya know.”

“Your parents would never believe this.” Iruka says. “Even I don’t.”

“Believe it.” Naruto says. Get it.

“You’re acting like you’ve never seen a castle before.” Kiba snickers from the front seat. Naruto leans forward and slaps the back of his seat.

“We’re from New York, asshole! Give him a break.” 

“Woof!” Akamaru says, wagging his tail for some reason. Naruto pets his head.

“It’s not even just the castle, just the whole situation.” Iruka says faintly. He turns away from the window finally, eyes watering a little. Naruto rolls his eyes. “You’re finally getting married, and to a queen!”

“Don’t start the waterworks again, dad.” Naruto groans.

“And Hinata is wonderful, just the nicest girl I could have ever hoped you would settle down with. She gave our school a grant! Even though she’s not even in the same country, and she had to go out of her way to talk to the district”

“I know about the grant, dad.” Naruto says. “And I know about how perfect she is too, ya know. That’s why I’m marrying her!”

“It’s every parent’s dream.” Iruka sighs, dabbing at his eyes and skipping to the end of the speech he’s been giving Naruto at least once a month. “I hope you’re happy here.”

“Me too.” Naruto smiles, then slaps Kiba’s seat again. “Now, can this thing go any faster? I miss my fiance!”

-

Iruka’s jaw drops again almost as soon as he gets out of the car and gets a good close up of the castle’s exterior, and it stays open as they make their way inside. Naruto stares too, even though he’s been here before. It’s been a few months, and somehow it never gets any less astounding. At least it’s not completely alien anymore. 

After all of his time here, Naruto can see it as some sort of home. There’s scuffs on the wheelchair ramp from Hanabi going down it too fast, and among the immense, professional christmas decorations wrapped around the staircase and hanging on the walls, he can see Hinata’s decidedly amateur attempts at wreath making. His smile widens just looking at their strictly symmetrical, completely clashing arrangements. 

“Naruto!” Hanabi shrieks from the top of the staircase. 

“Hey!” Naruto raises his arms, preparing for the hug he gets as soon as Hanabi rushes down the ramp. “How’ve you been?”

“Totally bored.” Hanabi says, pulling back from the hug enough to look at Naruto’s face. “Ew, did something happen to your hair?”

“I cut it a little.” Naruto runs his hand over his head. “You don’t like it?”

“Eh.” Hanabi says. “It’s not your best look.”

Naruto fake pouts. “Where’s Hinata? She’s not supposed to let you bully me.”

“She’s in a meeting.” Hanabi sighs. “I guess it was urgent.”

“Must be.” Naruto says. He stands up and grabs Iruka’s arm, pulling him over from where he was staring up at the chandelier like he was about to fall over. “Hanabi, this is my dad, Iruka. Dad, this is Hanabi.”

“Nice to meet you.” Hanabi says politely, holding out her hand. Iruka shakes it.

“Likewise, your highness.”

“Just call me Hanabi.” she smiles. “I hate titles. They make me feel totally old.”

“You’re too young to feel old, ya know.” Naruto interjects. Hanabi waves her hand at him.

“You don’t get it ‘cause you’re not King yet.”

“But I will be in a month, so make fun of my while you can!”

“Actually, you will be king in twenty days.” Naruto nearly jumps out of his skin at the deep voice that sounds beside him. Iruka startles too. Hanabi laughs at both of them.

“Jesus, Shino, I didn’t even notice you come in.” Naruto says, hand clasped over his heart. Shino, the often overlooked Head of Palace Affairs and the only person in the palace who can recite Konoha’s constitution by heart, looks unimpressed.

“I came down with Hanabi.” he says. “I’ve been here the whole time.”

“Don’t give them a hard time, Shino.” Kiba says, finally done whatever he was doing outside. He slams the door shut a bit harder than Naruto would’ve and makes his way over to playfully push Shino. Shino, being the one man Naruto would think has never condoned playful pushing in his vicinity, doesn’t move an inch. “Look, you almost gave the King a heart attack, and I’m supposed to keep him alive at least until Hinata marries him.” Akamaru barks in agreement. 

“Hey, Kiba, you can just call me Naruto, ya know.” Naruto says, scratching the back of his head. “Like Hanabi was saying earlier, titles make me feel weird.”

“Um, you must be Mr. Aburame.” Iruka says, holding out his hand to Shino. “Pleasure to meet you. I’m Iruka Umino.”

“Since we’re all on first name basis now,” Shino side eyes Kiba from beneath his severe sunglasses, “you can just call me Shino.”

“Hey,” Naruto interrupts. “If I can’t see Hinata, can I at least see Kurenai? Where’s she at?”

Shino sighs, clearly already exhausted with this much company. Naruto’s confident he’ll get over it. They got along so well last time he was at the castle, once Shino got over the whole ‘undercover journalist’ thing. Although Naruto’s sure most of that was just the other man putting up with him for Hinata’s sake. From the looks of it, his relationship with Kiba will be much the same, at least for the first week or so. He’s glad Hinata has such good friends on her staff, but they can be really tough to navigate!

Shino leads them up the stairs, down a few corridors (Naruto is embarrassed to admit that he doesn’t have much of this wing of the castle memorized. He wonders if Shino can print him a map) and into a room where Kurenai is standing in front of three large flower arrangements. 

“This one’s too understated.” she says to a nearby staff member, presumably a flower arranger. She gestures to one of the gaudier arrangements, emphasizing Naruto’s lack of understanding of design. “It’s got to be bolder, you know. My son in law has a big personality. We’ve got to show that. Should we put in more yellow?”

“Yellow would be great.” Naruto contributes. Kurenai’s face lights up and she turns around, crossing the room to hug him. 

“How was your flight?” she says. “You look tired. Did you get anything to eat? Why is your coat still on? Is it too cold in here?”

“I’m totally fine, ya know.” Naruto laughs. “See, Dad, I told you she was naggier than you.”

“He never told me that.” Iruka says. He holds out his hand for a handshake, which Kurenai accepts. Naruto wonders when his dad is going to get tired of hand shaking. 

“I wouldn’t put it past him.” Kurenai says. “And I am naggy, anyway.”

“So is he, he just won’t admit it.” Naruto says. Iruka huffs. 

“I worry a normal amount. If you were less trouble, I wouldn’t have to.”

“I thought you were proud of me for finding a perfect girl to settle down with.” Naruto mimics Iruka’s sappy tone from earlier. Iruka flushes, but Kurenai laughs.

“I was saying the same thing to Hinata earlier about you, Naruto.” Naruto blushes against his will, giving Kurenai enough silence to turn to Iruka and ask if he has any opinions about flowers.

“I’m trying to pick an arrangement for the reception tonight.” she explains. “It’s in honor of Naruto’s arrival. Yours too, of course.”

“I didn’t know there would be something like that.” Iruka scratches the back of his head. “Well, if flowers are really necessary, the one on the right looks good.”

“Doesn’t it? I was leaning towards it, but I’m not sure if the white suits the mood.” Kurenai grabs Iruka and they both drift closer to the flowers.

“Well, it’s sort of wintery, isn’t it?” Iruka says. “Although the red one might be better…”

Naruto tunes them out and glances over to Shino and Hanabi. “Once he gets started, he doesn’t stop.”

“Same with Kurenai.” Hanabi says. “I can’t listen to this. Can we show him his room?” she looks up at Shino excitedly.

“My room?”

“Suite.” Shino says.

“Yeah, I bet it’s sweet.” 

Shino sighs imperceptibly. “Alright. Follow me.”

-

Naruto’s room is in yet another section of the castle he doesn’t remember, but that doesn’t matter because it is totally gorgeous. There’s at least four smaller rooms attached to the main one, and a huge window overlooking the forest. 

The Christmas decorations catch his eye the most, though. He follows a string of low hanging christmas tree cut outs through the room, trusting Shino to hover by the door uncomfortably. (Hanabi hadn’t been able to avoid getting roped into conversation with Kurenai and Iruka). The cut outs stop just above the bed, succeeded by tinsel. Naruto looks down at the table at the foot of the bed to see a Christmas card propped up expectantly.

There’s a poem neatly written inside with green pen. Naruto reads the first few lines.

The trees are already covered in snow

And lights wrapped around them starting to glow

But I haven’t been happy with this Christmas cheer

Because I’ve been sad without you, my dear

Naruto has to cover his mouth to keep from laughing. At the same time, his smile is totally touched. 

“Do you like it?” Hinata says behind him. Naruto’s face lights up even further at the sound of her voice. His fiancee is standing in the wide doorway, dressed simply in a lavender sweater and grey cardigan. She looks as beautiful as she has every minute of her life, which is a hundred times more beautiful than she has any right to be. Naruto sweeps her into a hug, holding her tight.

“It was great, ya know.” he says, then kisses her. She puts her hand on the back of his neck gently, as sweet as ever.

“It’s my first real attempt at poetry.” Hinata says when they pull away. “I thought it would be romantic to try something like that.”

“It’s cute, yeah.” Naruto grins. “Did you decorate too?”

“More or less.” Hinata says. “Hanabi had some input on the color scheme.”

“She’s just as bad as your mom.” Naruto shakes his head. “She started quizzing my dad on flowers for the reception tonight, like, as soon as they met.”

“I guess it’s good we have the wedding coming up.” Hinata says. “To refocus their passion for design.”

“It’s going to be a busy month, ya know.” Naruto sighs, playing with Hinata’s hand aimlessly. “How’re you holding up?”

“Alright.” Hinata shrugs. “I’m glad you’re here, though. A lot of the wedding planning duties might get pushed to you-just because I’m so swamped.” she frowns. “The New Konoha initiative is experiencing a lot of wrinkles. I’m sorry to do that to you-”

“Hey, it’s our wedding.” Naruto says soothingly. “As long as whatever I’m deciding, you’re okay with, and vice versa, shouldn’t be a lot of problems. And neither of us are really picky about that sort of thing, yeah?”

“You’re right.” Hinata pushes her hair back from her face. “Sorry, I’m just...stressed out right now.”

“C’mon,” Naruto says, “I’m sure I can help with that.” he leans in for another kiss which Hinata graciously grants him.

Naruto knows he at least feels a lot of his stress about moving and the wedding lifted off his shoulders just by being here with Hinata. She always has that calming effect on him, pushing things into perspective. They’re super in love, and both have a few simple, mostly design related decisions to make. No real pressure, right?

“Excuse me.” Shino interrupts flatly. Naruto breaks their kiss, wondering when Shino even came in. Hinata steps back, blushing. “Hinata, urgent call from the Prime Minister.”

“Um, I’m sorry.” Hinata folds Naruto’s hand in between hers. “I have to take this. If all else fails, see you at the reception tonight?”

“Yeah,” Naruto says, not as dejected as he could be, because he knows Hinata has responsibilities and is capable of being mature about it. Even if it sucks. “Have fun, ya know.”

“I don’t think I will.” Hinata says as Shino hurries her out of the room. Before she turns the corner, she gives Naruto one last cute, apologetic wave. Naruto gloomily returns it. 

-

They do see each other at the reception, for approximately five minutes before Hinata is whisked away by foreign dignitaries. It’s more disappointing than when she had to leave his suite earlier because she looks amazing in her dark blue dress and Naruto had had grand plans regarding staying by her side for at least half of the evening to drink champagne and laugh at people behind their hands. Maybe even just a quarter of the evening.

Kurenai takes pity on him and tucks him close to her side like a disobedient child. She introduces him to a mind boggling amount of political figures. The only one that sticks in his mind is the Prime Minister, Tsunade, because she was the only one he wanted to meet and made herself distinct by being the only person there already totally wasted. She handled herself well, though. Naruto’s conversation with her is the longest and most entertaining of the night.

“...and, of course, those are Suna’s ambassadors.” Kurenai points across the room to a pair of simultaneously over and underdressed people. “Temari and Kankuro, aides to the King. and his siblings.”

“Cool.” Naruto says, fiddling with his near empty champagne glass. “Say, why are there so many foreign people at my reception?”

“You’re a big source of international gossip.” Kurenai explains. “Plus, the reception and wedding are good excuses to catch up politically.”

“Sure.” Naruto says. “Didn’t you say the wedding planners would be here? Let’s find them.”

“Of course.” Kurenai says, dangerously close to gushing. “I hired the best wedding planners in the world, just for you two. I want this wedding to be perfect for you.”

“My ears are burning.” a man says flatly. “Your majesty?”

This new guy is dressed strictly in black, with no deviation except a purple belt. He’s also strikingly familiar.

“Oh, yes, Sasuke.” Kurenais says, holding her hand out for the wedding planner to shake it. “This is the groom to be, Naruto.”

Naruto squints at Sasuke, imagining a pair of oversized sunglasses on his face…

“Hey, I recognize you!” he says, pointing violently.

“No, I don’t believe we’ve met before.”

“You stole our cab! At the airport!” Naruto scowls. “Not cool, man.”

“Oh,” Kurenai laughs awkwardly. “What a small world.”

“Indeed.” Sasuke says. His expression is totally unchanging; he’s even worse than Shino. “Give me a moment, your majesty, I need to gather my team so we can analyze,” he gestures at Naruto dispassionately, “him.”

“Analyze?” Naruto repeats. “Now hold your horses, ya know! Whatever that is, can’t it wait?”

“Not really.” Sasuke leans back and waves over someone. “Besides, as you’ll soon learn, when it comes to planning a perfect wedding, you can’t waste a single second. Time is everything, your highness.”

Sasuke’s associates melt out of the crowd, all dressed in similar all black attire to him, down to the single purple accent. 

“Your highness. Karin, Suigetsu, and Juugo.” Sasuke points to each wedding planner in turn. They’re also wearing name tags, for some reason, so that helps. “All at your service.”

“Hey.” Naruto waves at them half heartedly. They all look at him blankly.

“He needs a lot of work.” Karin says finally. 

“At least he’s not going to be picky.” Suigetsu says, eyeing Naruto’s outfit critically. Jugo stays intimidatingly silent.

“We’ll start tomorrow.” Sasuke says. He glances at Kurenai and Naruto. “Is that amenable?”

“Of course, whatever you need.” Kurenai says. Naruto shrugs, doing his best not to scowl at any of the wedding planners. 

“Yeah, sure.”

“Excellent.” Sasuke bows to Kurenai. “Well, it’s been a pleasure. Good night.” He walks off, and all of his assistants follow him in eerie synchrony. 

“They’re kind of snobby, ya know.” Naruto says once they’re out of earshot.

“I know.” Kurenai pats his arm. “But they do amazing work. I’m sure they’ll warm up to you. And vice versa.”

Naruto takes a noncommittal sip of champagne. He believes Kurenai, he’s just not sure the process of planning their ‘perfect’ wedding is going to be an enjoyable one. 

Kurenai is almost running out of people to introduce Naruto to when Shino pulls him to the side. It’s unexpectedly welcome. Naruto feels bad for Kurenai’s sake that he’s already forgotten everything.

“I forgot to tell you earlier. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be the head of the Palace Office of Press and Protocol.” he tells Naruto. Naruto blinks.

“Congratulations?” he scratches his neck. “Is that a promotion for you, or…?”

“That means I’m going to be monitoring your behavior carefully.” Shino explains. “To ensure that you don’t commit any gaffes that would invite bad publicity.”

“Oh, so you’re in PR now.” Naruto says. “You really have too many jobs to do, ya know. I thought Kiba was supposed to be watching me?”

“He’s security.”

“Right.”

“There’s a lot of respect you’re expected to command as King to be.” Shino says. “Therefore there are a lot of rules you will have to follow.”

“You don’t need to worry about me.” Naruto smiles. “Not to brag, but the people really like me! Or that’s the impression I’ve been getting, ya know.”

“Yes, I know.” Shino sighs. “Just be aware that your public image is not strictly your own from now on.”

“I know what I’m signing up for.” Naruto says. “Hey, have you seen Hinata around here anywhere?”

Shino sighs again. “I believe she went out to the garden.”

“Great,” Naruto pats his shoulder. “Thank you.”

Hinata is out in the garden, and, thankfully, alone. 

“Hey,” Naruto says cheerfully, walking up and wrapping an arm around her. “Long day?”

“I just need some fresh air.” Hinata sighs and leans into him. “I couldn’t find you, otherwise I would have invited you.”

“I found my way okay.” Naruto says. “Totally boring in there without you though, ya know.”

“I’m sorry.” Hinata sighs again. Naruto tucks her in closer to him, mostly because he misses her, but also because it’s more than a little chilly out here and Hinata’s dress, although conservative, is thin. “I promise we’ll have more time together.”

“Nothing to worry about.” Naruto assures her. “What’s your schedule look like tomorrow? Maybe we could go look for a Christmas tree.” he grins and rubs her shoulder. “The courtyard’s looking a little bare.”

“That’s a lovely idea.” Hinata says. “I have to deliver a speech tomorrow, but maybe the day after?”

“Sounds good. What’s the speech for?”

“Like I mentioned earlier, the New Konoha Initiative is…” Hinata grimaces.

“Rough?” Naruto offers.

“Falling apart.” Hinata confirms. Her lips tighten around the corners, pulling her mouth into a stressed frown. “I don’t know how, but we’re bleeding money. So many people have lost their jobs. I don’t know how to help, but tomorrow I have to stand in front of a crowd of them and pretend I do.”

Naruto kisses the side of her temple, wishing he knew more about economics or politics. “You’ll figure it out, Hinata. You’re the smartest queen I know.”

“Thank you.” Hinata reaches up and tangles her fingers with his. They stand in silence for a few more moments, enjoying the muted sounds of the reception and the snow settled over the garden, before Naruto shivers badly enough to startle Hinata. 

She looks up at him bemusedly. “Want to go back inside?”

“I guess we have to, ya know.” Naruto huffs. His fiance laughs and shifts so their arms are linked respectably. Then, arm in arm, they walk back into the palace.

-

Naruto is woken up bright and early to his phone’s alarm and the feeling of someone glaring at him hard enough to leave marks. 

He jerks out of bed, profoundly uncomfortable, to see the fucking wedding planner from last night standing in the corner of his room. Shino is there also.

“You overslept.” Shino says. He, at least, is not glaring, just beholding Naruto with seasoned disappointment.

“Jesus.” Naruto says, running a hand through his hair. “If I’d known staying in the palace meant you guys could just barge in here whenever you wanted I’d have asked to sleep in the barn, ya know.”

“Less talking and more moving, Mr. Uzumaki.” Sasuke says coldly. “You’re wasting my time.”

“Mr. Uchiha wants to meet with you to discuss your wedding attire.” Shino contributes. “It was in your schedule.”

Naruto squints at his phone to turn off his alarm. “It’s five in the morning. Why do we have to do this now ?!”

“Think of it this way.” Sasuke says. “There are twenty four hours in a day. You sleep for eight of them, eat for one of them, and wander aimlessly around the palace thinking about what to post on your blog for the rest.”

“What does my blog have to do with this?” Naruto says defensively. Sasuke holds up a hand to silence him, which offends him enough to leave him speechless for a second or two.

“In that remaining time you waste with your hobbies, my assistants and I sift through the menus of every catering business in this country and its neighbors, draft and design up to ten different versions of your wedding party’s color scheme, research the significance of songs and flowers you’ve never heard of, and map out every inch of this place, all so that nothing can possibly go wrong with your wedding. If you cannot be expected to wake up a little earlier than you’re used to so that I can maximize my day’s itinerary, how can I be expected to make the perfect royal wedding a reality?” Sasuke raises an eyebrow. “Hm?”

Naruto blinks at him. “Dude.” he runs his hand through his hair again. “Whatever, just let me get changed.”

“I’ll be waiting in the sitting room.” Sasuke turns on his heel and sweeps out of the room. Naruto makes a face at Shino, like ‘can you believe this guy?’ Shino just shrugs and follows Sasuke. 

After Naruto puts on a shirt and robe, he goes to his suite’s sitting room. He’s a little bit surprised to see that Sasuke’s assistants are all here, although he probably shouldn’t be. One of them, Jugo, the tall one, offers him a cup of hot cocoa with a frighteningly stern face. He has no choice but to accept.

“Alright, pay close attention.” Karin says, snapping a pointer against a huge stack of posterboard propped up on an easel next to her. The first poster is a rough sketch of the palace’s ballroom, with decorations scribbled over it and flowers lining the sides, angling the eye towards a huge display against the back wall. “The ballroom is the most logical venue for the reception. The arrangements will give the illusion of dignity while your guests get wasted. The decor will all be in shades of blue to even out your complexion-you look really orange in soft lighting.”

Naruto touches his face. “Huh? I do?”

“Next slide.” Karin snaps, ignoring him. Suigetsu moves the first poster away. The next one is a sketch of a wedding outfit that makes Naruto’s jaw drop. “The high collar and flared waist are reminiscent of the last wedding held here, implying your stature and reverence for your predecessors as you become king.” Sasuke nods along quietly from the corner. Suigetsu leans against the discarded posterboard, looking bored. “The buckles emphasize your arms so you don’t look so skinny. The bowtie doesn’t have to be pink; something like cranberry red would be just as suitable. The bride’s mother suggested black. It’s up to you to go against her, although it’s clearly tacky. I also recommend cream for the cravat.” Karin angles her pointer down, looking to Naruto sharply. “Any questions before we proceed to your wedding party?”

“Um, yeah, lots, actually.” Naruto says faintly. “I mean, for the suit, couldn’t we try something a little more..contemporary, ya know?”

Karin smiles mockingly. “Contemporary is out, Mr. Uzumaki. Period weddings are in style, especially after the Princess of Kusa’s-I-I mean-” she trails off, spluttering. In the corner, Sasuke’s expression darkens. 

“After who’s what?” Naruto asks, glancing between Sasuke and his panicked looking assistants.

“A few years ago, the Princess of Kusa held a period wedding that completely revamped the industry.” Sasuke says calmly, crossing the room. “It was a revolutionary application of style and history. Plus, it was high profile enough to put the designer on the map-and the company he belonged to, in the process.”

“This wedding will be better than that-!” Karin says. Sasuke smirks, inclining his head.

“Of course it will. After all, who better to succeed Itachi Uchiha of Akatsuki Weddings than his younger brother?” he turns around to face Naruto, the determination in his eyes a startling contrast to his usual persona. “That is why, Mr. Uzumaki, your input will be processed carefully, and your influence will be limited.”

“Hold on, hold on,” Naruto says. “It’s my wedding, right?”

“Of course it is.” Sasuke says. “And it will be perfect.”

“I think we should start over from scratch.” Karin says, retracting her pointer. “This one catered too much to his features.”

“We should still take them into consideration.” Sasuke says. “It will affect the overall look, after all.”

“Hey, listen-”

“Your next appointment is in thirty minutes, Sasuke.” Suigetsu talks right over Naruto, looking at his watch blandly. “Wanna get out of here?”

“Of course.” Sasuke bows shallowly to Naruto as his assistants grab the posterboard and easel. “Mr. Uzumaki. We will speak with you again shortly.” 

Just like that, they’re all gone. Naruto is left sitting there dumbly, with a lukewarm cup of cocoa in his hand.

-

“-and then he just left, ya know! Unbelievable!” Naruto says. 

“What did Hinata have to say?” Sakura, his best friend since middle school, says from his computer screen. He’s too flustered to pick out her background, but it looks like she’s in a cafe. 

“She wasn’t even there.” Naruto sighs. “She’s super busy with this new initiative she’s working on. We’re going out tomorrow, though.”

“Just hire a different wedding planner.” Sai, his friend/coworker/acquaintance says. He’s also on the video call, for some reason. He’s a photographer/artist who worked with Naruto on the same publication briefly, and now he can’t stop giving him unrealistic and out of touch advice on everything. His company is entertaining, at least, mostly due to his lack of social skills. “Or do it all yourself. You don’t sound terribly busy.”

‘“No, I can’t, because Kurenai’s totally got her heart set on this guy, and just-ugh.” Naruto rubs a hand over his face. “You wanna plan the wedding, Sai? When’s your flight?”

“In a few days.” Sai says. 

“If you want your wedding to look like a modern art exhibit, go ahead.” Sakura says, rolling her eyes. “Just tell this Sasuke guy off, and if worse comes to worse, I’m sure Kurenai will understand.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Naruto says. “You guys really know how to make me feel like a drama queen.”

“You’re living in a palace.” Sai points out. Naruto flushes. 

“Just because that’s where Hinata lives! If she lived in a dump, I’d move there, ya know!”

“I hope not.” Sai says. “If she lived in a dump, it would make more sense to ask her to move in with you.”

“Yeah, thanks, Sai.” Sakura says. “Look, Naruto, just rough it out until we show up and relieve you of your royal burden.”

“I guess. Anyway, Hinata’s giving a speech in a bit and I’ve gotta go. See you soon.” Naruto says. Sakura and Sai wave, and he hangs up.

-

“Yo, Hanabi!” Naruto yells, wandering through the palace. “Ready to head out?”

“I’m in here!” Hanabi yells back unhelpfully. Naruto follows the sound of her voice into a room with a few couches and a piano. Honestly, there are too many rooms in this place. 

Hanabi has Akamaru’s enormous front legs and head in her lap, kissing her face as she scratches him. Kiba is laying on the couch with an arm over his eyes, totally bored.

“Hey, Kiba.” Naruto says. “I thought you were supposed to be my security guy.”

“Attache.” Kiba corrects, moving his arm to stare at Naruto with one eye. “And only when you leave the palace.”

“Well, I’m leaving now.” Naruto says. “To see Hinata’s speech. Hanabi too, right, Hanabi?” Hanabi gives him a thumbs up. 

“Okay.” Kiba groans, getting up from the couch. “Just give me a sec.” he whistles and Akamaru regretfully retreats from Hanabi’s embrace and follows him out of the room.

“Oh!” Hanabi says as Naruto starts wheeling towards the door. “There’s something I forgot to tell you!”

“Is it Christmas related, wedding related, or Hinata related?” Naruto guesses. 

“Christmas!” Hanabi grins. “My school’s putting on a Christmas play, and I’m the lead.”

“Damn, that’s impressive.” Naruto says. “Er...don’t tell Hinata I said that around you, ya know.”

“No promises.” Hanabi winks. “Anyway, the play’s in like a week, but I still need to finish my costume, only I’m totally stuck. Normally I would ask Hinata for help, but…”

“She’s totally busy.” Naruto finishes. He feels bad for Hinata, because he knows how much she cares about Hanabi. But if Hanabi is turning to him for this, there’s no way he can turn her down. “Don’t worry. I’m a great costume designer, ya know!”

“I’ve seen some of the sketches for your wedding outfit.” Hanabi wrinkles her nose. “So I wouldn’t say that. You’re my last resort, trust me.”

“Ouch.” Naruto says. “I don’t have anything to do with those designs, come on!”

“But it’s your wedding, isn’t it?”

“That’s what I’m wondering.” Naruto grumbles. “Anyway, even if you’re gonna bully me, I’ll help you out. But for now, let’s just get to your sister’s speech. We’re way late.”

-

Naruto can tell Hinata didn’t write her own speech based on how uncertainly she grips the podium and the general displeasure of the crowd. It boils his blood to see people booing his fiancee, but it’s not as if they’re unjustified. Despite Hinata’s best efforts, something about her new initiative is moving Konoha backwards instead of forwards. As someone who’s lost plenty of jobs, Naruto understands the anger held by all of Konoha’s displaced citizens. 

After the speech and just before the ensuing press storm, Naruto manages to corner Hinata on the steps of the justice building she’s speaking at. 

“Are you sure there’s nothing I can do to help?” Naruto says abruptly after they hug. “I know I’m not politically minded, but I’m pretty good at investigating when things get shifty.”

“I don’t want to stress you out any more than I have to.” Hinata says, tugging her hat down over her ears. It’s a chilly day. 

“Well, I am going to be king, ya know.” Naruto says. “I’m not gonna be running the country, but I’ll have some pull. So I’d like to start helping out where I can. It’s more stressful for me to stand by than anything.”

Hinata glances up at him, then smiles slightly.

“You’re right.”

“I usually am.”

“It’s not much, but I can convince Tsunade to let you in our meetings about the initiative.” Hinata continues. “You’re going to be my consort. I shouldn’t keep you in the dark.”

“Thanks, Hinata.” Naruto grins. “I promise to do my best.”

“You always do.” Hinata rubs his arm, then glances past him. Naruto turns to see Shino hover as awkwardly as ever higher up the steps. “I guess that means it’s time to see the press.”

“Ugh.” Naruto groans. “I never realized how annoying reporters are. I would have chosen a different career path if I’d known how much pain I could cause people, ya know.”

“Come on,” Hinata laughs. “You’ll manage.” They walk back up the stairs together, hand in hand.

-

“Good news.” Kurenai chirps later that day at dinner. “Orochimaru is coming back.”

“Who?” Iruka says politely. Naruto nods, mouth full.

“He’s an old, old member of the royal cabinet.” Hinata explains. “He helped me implement the new initiative, but he was supposed to retire afterwards…” she looks curiously at her unofficially adoptive mother. “Why is he coming back?”

“To help you out, of course.” Kurenai says. “I contacted him, and he was more than willing to dedicate the time to make the initiative operable. He should be here sometime this week.”

“Well, I guess that’s good news!” Naruto says, glancing around the table to see if it really is. Hinata looks cheered up by the news, but Hanabi is less than impressed.

“Orochimaru is really weird.” she says, stabbing her food. 

“Then you’ll just have to avoid him like you always do.” Kurenai reprimands. “Why the attitude?”

“I don’t have an attitude,” Hanabi says, pulling a face. “I’m just annoyed. Everyone’s been so busy lately. I want things to be like last year.”

“It’s for Konoha, ya know.” Naruto says. “The royal family has to make sacrifices, right? It’s all so you can live in a palace and drive around in limos all the time.”

“I just meant that it’s been weird.” Hanabi clarifies, flushing. Naruto is glad she’s becoming more conscientious of when she comes off as a spoiled brat. “Like, we don’t even have a tree up in the courtyard yet! It’s throwing me off my Christmas game.”

“Oh, the tree.” Hinata says. “Naruto, didn’t we make plans for that?”

“You’re free tomorrow, right?” Naruto smiles.

“Briefly.” Hinata turns to look at Hanabi. “Should we go and get a tree tomorrow?”

“Obviously.” Hanabi says, trying to hide her smile.

“What about you, dad? You free?” Naruto says, even though he already knows the answer.

“Absolutely.” Iruka sighs. “The only things I have planned are sightseeing. I can’t help but feel bad for taking it easy when you’re all working so hard-even Naruto.”

“You’re a guest here.” Hinata says. “Please, don’t worry about anything. Like Naruto said, it’s our duty as the royal family to endure a little stress to help out our citizens.”

“And I’m just going to some meetings, not, like, writing new laws or something.” Naruto says. “Don’t worry dad.”

“Alright, alright.” Iruka says, waving his hand. “You’re too gracious, Hinata. You’re just embarrassing me more.”

“I’m sorry!” Hinata says. Naruto bumps her shoulder.

“He’s just kidding.” he says. Iruka looks mortified.

After dinner they all migrate to the sitting room with hot chocolate. Naruto doesn’t drink his, because it reminds him of his horrible wedding planning session. Actually, the fact that he hasn’t seen any hints of Sasuke or his team around since then is worrying. 

“Have you met with the wedding planners yet, Hinata?” he asks, tracing the shapes on his rapidly cooling mug. 

“The ones from Taka?” she says.

“I thought they were from the Akatsuki company.”

“I think Taka is a smaller company under the Akatsuki brand.” Hinata says. “Anyway, I think I met with them briefly at your reception. Why?”

“Just curious.” Naruto shrugs. “They’re a bit intense, huh?”

“Well, they’re professionals.” Kurenai interjects. “They’re not too bad, though, I hope? They have a great reputation.”

“I’ll have to wait for our next session to pass judgement.” Naruto says, suddenly imbued with Kurenai’s sense of charity. 

“I hope I can attend too.” Hinata says. “I’m not very picky about the wedding, but I want some input, of course.”

“Yeah, of course.” Naruto says. Hanabi, Iruka, Kiba, and, of course, Akamaru (the latter two had joined them after dinner) are all engaged in conversation on the opposite side of the room, but, glancing around, Naruto can’t see where Shino’s gotten to, if he had ever been in the room at all. 

“Your majesties.” Shino says, somehow perfectly and poorly timed. Naruto almost spills his hot chocolate, anyway. “Someone is here to see you?”

“Who is it?” Hinata says. 

“Your cousin.”

“Oh!” Hinata sets down her mug. “Well, let him in, then, please.”

“Neji?” Naruto asks, recovering from Shino’s shock. His question, stupid as it was (Hinata doesn’t have a lot of cousins) is answered when the door swings open to reveal Neji Hyuga himself. 

Naruto never got to know Neji extraordinarily well, but he’s unforgettable, considering that he was almost crowned last Christmas instead of Hinata. It was a complicated series of events involving forged documents brought to light by Hinata’s ex, but Neji and Hinata were equally victimized. Neji, despite his natural composure and intellect, and being next in line after Hinata, has no interest in the throne. In fact, he does his best to distance himself from it. Naruto is pretty sure he runs an orphanage with a few of his non-royalty friends, but whatever the case, he doesn’t swing by the castle often. 

“Neji!” Hanabi says, immediately turning her back on her conversation partners and wheeling towards her cousin, who bends down to hug her.

“Hello, Hanabi.” Neji says. “Hinata, Kurenai.”

“It’s good to see you.” Hinata says, getting up and crossing the room as well. 

“Hey, Neji.” Naruto says. Neji looks at him and raises an eyebrow.

“You’re still around?”

“We’re getting married this month.” Hinata says, tapping him lightly on the shoulder. “Don’t act surprised.”

“Are you just here for a visit? How long are you staying?” Hanabi says, tugging on Neji’s shirt. Neji sighs.

“Until Christmas, I assume. My friends forced me to spend time with family this holiday. They said I need to get out more.”

“You’re welcome any time.” Kurenai says from the couch. “Well, sit down! We haven’t seen you in a year, there’s a lot to catch up on.”

“Hardly.” Neji says, sitting down anyway. 

-

Neji’s return to the palace puts everyone in good spirits for the rest of the night. Even Neji himself cracks a smile or two. Naruto is just glad to see his fiancee and future in-laws happier. Plus, he likes Neji, even though they’re not close. He hopes they’ll be able to talk more throughout the duration of his visit.

By the time the next morning rolls around, Naruto’s good spirits have entirely evaporated. It doesn’t help that he’s woken up by Sasuke’s annoyed voice again.

“I know I don’t have to repeat my speech from the other day.” Sasuke says critically as Naruto rolls over, doing his best to restrain himself from violence. “You’re certainly going to make an interesting king.”

“I’ll be out in a second.” Naruto grumbles into his pillow. Sasuke makes a tch sound and walks away.

Sasuke and his assistants are waiting expectantly in the sitting room, just like last time, looking especially irritated that it took Naruto a scandalous five minutes to get changed. Just like last time, Juugo offers him a hot chocolate. He’s a lot less intimidating than the first time around, mostly because he looks the least pissed.

“Now that you’ve finally chosen to join us,” Sasuke says crisply, turning to his poster board, which is notably larger than the type Karin had last time. “We can review our redesign of your wedding. While our rough drafts were charming, we failed to keep in mind the larger impact of this event.”

“For the country?” Naruto guesses. Sasuke looks at him condescendingly.

“For the company.'' He picks up his pointer and gestures to the first poster board, which is a blank placeholder. “Now, while period weddings made their resurgence a few years ago, something can only be in style for so long. I know you were looking for something contemporary, Mr. Uzumaki,” Naruto nods along, hesitantly optimistic, “so we’ve gone above and beyond. The theme of your wedding will be…” he pauses dramatically as Suigetsu scrambles to pull away the placeholder poster board. “ Future, ”

“Specifically,” Suigetsu adds, with thinly veiled amusement, “A future where aliens from Mars take over the planet.” Karin nods soundly.

The sketch is of the palace’s gardens this time, but with completely different flora in silvers, blues, purples, and greens and incredibly confusing shapes. The aisle is lined with poorly rendered holographic fabric, notes indicate blue spotlights and fog machines in the corners, as well as ‘hedges trimmed in alien shapes’. Dangling strands of holographic and sparkling black shapes are illustrated hanging between the castle walls. The fountain is supposed to hold dry ice. Naruto, again, can’t think of anything to say. 

“Upon your brides entrance, we will release a hundred exotic birds, with reflective chips in their necks to add to the otherworldly feel.” Sasuke says smugly. “Although the cool color scheme won’t offset your complexion as well as our original plan, we can fix that with makeup.”

“Show him the outfit.” Suigetsu elbows Sasuke, looking at Naruto with insultingly blatant sadism. 

“Your suit,” Sasuke declares, switching to the next posterboard, “is comprised entirely of sharp angles and bold shapes. You will be wearing a silver mask, and all of your guests will have black ones. Your wife’s mask will be green.”

“Green?” Naruto says weakly, unable to confront the fact that the suit is supposed to be ‘sparkling, reflective silver with neon blue highlights’.

“Yes. observe.” Sasuke moves to the next posterboard. “The bouquet and train are reminiscent of alien tentacles. The high waistline transforms her shape completely. Obviously the diving neckline and high shoulders are to mimic your angular scheme.”

“Of course.” Naruto says. He rubs his forehead.

“I would like to review this design with the queen at her earliest convenience, but I’m sure she won’t have any complaints.” Sasuke says easily. “Would you like to see the bridesmaids?”

“Would I?” Naruto says. As if he has been blessed by God himself, his phone starts ringing. Naruto scrambles to yank it out of his pocket. “I’m so sorry!” he says, triumphantly holding it up to show the wedding designers. “I have to take this. It’s my dad.”

“How is your dad more important than Sasuke’s magnum opus?” Karin snaps. Suigetsu pats her back.

“He doesn’t need to sit through the presentation. He obviously loves it.” he says. Karin picks up on none of his sarcasm and crosses her arms, but seems to relax. Sasuke is overall unimpacted.

“Very well. Until our next meeting.” he sweeps out of the room, followed by his assistants. Naruto’s phone is almost finished ringing by the time he actually picks up the call. 

“You called just in time, Dad. The wedding planners are driving me crazy!”

“I think that’s just what wedding planners do.” Iruka says. 

“No, like their ideas are nuts, ya know.” Naruto insists. “They want it to be alien themed.” 

“Huh.” Iruka says. “Never heard that before.”

“I know, right?” Naruto groans and runs his hand over his face. “Anyway. What’re you calling for?”

“I’m actually a bit lost.” Iruka says sheepishly. “I’m trying to get back to the kitchen. I was there earlier, but I left for one second to go to the bathroom, and…” he trails off.

“Palace life too much for you?” Naruto teases, grinning. “Okay, I’m coming. Where are you now?”

“Between a statue of a dragon and a staircase.” Iruka says. “There’s also a chandelier in my line of sight, if that helps.”

“Sure.” Naruto makes his way to the door of his suite, laughing to himself. “I’m on my way.”

It’s embarrassingly difficult to find Iruka, but as long as his dad doesn’t know that, Naruto doesn’t think it matters. They navigate through the castle together, with Naruto only half as lost as Iruka but pretending to be ten times as knowledgeable. In the end, they make it to the kitchen okay.

“Oh, geez.” Iruka says, hurrying to the closest counter as soon as they get in. “It’s probably cold now.” Naruto looks over his shoulder to see two of the palace’s simplest bowls filled with ramen. His mouth waters at the sight of it, but he’s also completely touched. 

“Did you make that for me?” he says as Iruka shoves the bowls into a microwave. 

“One of them is for me,” Iruka says sternly. “And Teuchi outlined his recipe in painstaking detail, so it wasn’t hard.”

“You got the Ichiraku recipe?!” Naruto exclaims. Ichiraku Ramen is his favorite restaurant on the face of planet earth, but they have yet to open a Konoha branch. Leaving them behind to move in with Hinata was his biggest regret, and even Hinata can agree that abandoning Ichiraku’s for her is only barely worth it. 

“It wasn’t that hard.” Iruka rubs the back of his neck. “Teuchi practically forced it on me when he found out we were moving. I thought I’d surprise you.”

“Thank you so much.” Naruto says, tearing up. Iruka looks taken aback.

“Wait until you actually eat, Naruto.” The microwave beeps and he moves the bowls onto a table, pulling chopsticks out of a drawer somewhere. “Here you go.”

When Naruto eats it, he actually does start crying, but not too much. He doesn’t want his tears to ruin the flavor.

“It’s so good.” he says emotionally through several mouthfuls.

“Someone’s eager.”

“Oh yeah.” Naruto says. “I’m used to eating this stuff every day. Ramen withdrawal takes a toll on a man, ya know.”

“If I’d known you were that desperate, I would have made more.” Iruka says.

“You should have predicted this!” Naruto gestures violently with his chopsticks. “You know how much I love ramen.”

“Mhm.” Iruka slurps some of his ramen, unimpressed. “This really does make you homesick, though.”

“Dad,” Naruto complains, “it’s only been a few days.”

“I’m allowed to be homesick as soon as I want.” Iruka says. 

“Yeah, I get it.” Naruto sighs. “I guess Konoha kind of already feels like my second home, but I’ve gotta adapt to it being my first instead.” he glances up from his now empty bowl. “You still planning to get a Christmas tree with us this afternoon?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.” Iruka says. “Will you have time to help Hanabi with her costume? She wouldn’t stop talking about it yesterday.”

“Apparently she’s decided to ditch me for Neji.” Naruto says. “She thinks he’s more fashionable than me. Can you believe it?”

“Not at all.” Iruka says. Naruto rolls his eyes. 

-

A few hours later, Naruto, Iruka, Hanabi, and Hinata assemble in the courtyard. Nauto’s more than a bit excited; he loves Konoha’s beautiful, snow covered forests, and the idea of wandering through one with his family to find a tree is idyllic. 

“I asked for Kiba to pick us up with a carriage.” Hinata says, anxiously peering around the courtyard as if it’s going to magically appear. “I’m anxious to get on it and out of here before Shino reminds me about a meeting I’ve forgotten.”

“Does that happen often?” Naruto asks, amused. Hinata flushes. 

“More often than it should.” 

“Geez, the pressure’s on.” Hanabi says. “What is with your schedule, Hinata?”

“The Prime Minister and all of Parliament's totally obsessed with her.” Naruto informs her. 

“And we also have to put together entirely new numbers in preparation for Orochimaru.” Hinata adds. “That’s taking up a lot of phone calls.”

“Seems to me like there should be people you should order to do that for you.” Hanabi says. Hinata shrugs helplessly. That’s just not the plot of The Christmas Prince 2: A Royal Wedding.

“Oh.” Iruka says suddenly, patting down his pockets. “I almost forgot. Naruto, I meant to give this to you.” he pulls something out of his pocket and hands it to Naruto. It’s a thin golden chain with a locket shaped like a heart attached. Naruto inspects the designs carved into the clasp. “I found it when I was unpacking. I was originally going to give it to you for Christmas, but I figured since I forgot to wrap it, I might as well give it to you now.”

Naruto opens the locket. Inside is a picture of his parents, whose faces he has carefully memorized from other pictures Iruka has shown him. This picture is a new one, though, with both of their smiling faces on either side of the heart, their hands connecting in the center. It looks like they’re in a snowy field, bundled up for winter. His dad is overdressed, but his mom doesn’t even have gloves. Naruto smiles fondly.

“Can I see?” Hanabi says. Naruto obligingly turns it to show her. “Are those your parents?”

“Yeah.”

“I didn’t know your mom was a redhead.” she says, looking up at Naruto appraisingly.

“Think I should’ve landed her genes?” Naruto asks. Hanabi wrinkles her nose and shakes her head. 

The sound of horseshoes hitting the ground snaps all of their attention to the gates excitedly. Their horse drawn carriage has finally arrived, manned by a smug looking Kiba. 

“Your highnesses.” he says, half sardonically, pulling to a stop in front of them.

“Thank god.” Naruto says. He leans down and wraps his arm around Hinata. “Looks like you missed the draft.”

“Your highness!” Shino’s voice calls from behind them, with the worst timing. Naruto’s face drops, and he sees Hinata’s do the same. “I’m sorry, but you’re needed at once.”

“Of course.” Hinata says. She turns to Naruto with a heart melting frown on her face. “I really am sorry, dear. It’s alright if you just go without me.”

“I won’t do that to you!” Naruto says indignantly. 

“I’d feel awful, too.” Iruka adds. Hanabi nods. “We can go another time, Hinata. Don’t worry about us.”

“You’re too kind.” Hinata says, reaching out to squeeze Iruka’s hand. 

“Hinata.” Shino presses. He does at least sound regretful. 

“I’m coming, Shino.” Hinata says. “Goodbye, everyone. I’ll see you when I can.”

Naruto waves at her melodramatically, trying not to feel too dejected. He’ll see plenty of his fiancee once they’re married.

-

Instead of Christmas tree hunting, Hanabi invites them all to the final rehearsal of her school play. They take the carriage there, obviously, even if it does hold up some traffic. It’s not as if there’s a lot of it to begin with, in Konoha. Hanabi had already finished her costume that morning with Neji, and while Naruto, as clearly established, doesn’t have much of an eye for design, he can admit that it probably looks better than whatever he could have come up with, whatever it’s supposed to be. Hanabi had insisted the play was about a princess who gets sealed in the moon, but Naruto can’t really remember.

Watching the play doesn’t clear things up, either. Naruto’s not sure if it’s the actual script, the storyline, or the middle schoolers’ performances that makes it so difficult to follow. 

“Really makes you worry about these kids, huh.” Naruto says, leaning over to Iruka unobtrusively in the middle of a scene they keep having to do over where a shadowy black creature represented by a kid in a deflated bean bag chases around a pretend dog, trying to kill it. 

“I’m sure it’s better than whatever else they could be doing a play about.” Iruka says. “I read a book about Konoha’s founding on the plane. It’s really ghastly.”

“No kidding.” Naruto says. All of a sudden, the lights go out. Naruto can hear the confused children breaking character, and naturally a few of them scream. Naruto doesn’t panic, because even though screaming obnoxiously was one of his favorite responses to loud noises or sudden blackouts when he was younger, he’s an adult now. 

He and Iruka walk out of the auditorium and to the front office as the teacher calms the kids down. Surprisingly, no one’s there, except for a few janitors walking out. Naruto catches one of them by the door.

“What’s going on?” he says. The janitor looks at him like he’s stupid.

“We’re going on strike.” she says. “Over unpaid wages.”

“In the middle of their rehearsal?” Naruto says. The janitor raises her eyebrow, then tilts her head.

“Hey, you look kind of familiar.” she says. Naruto waves his hand, not wanting to get recognized in this situation, of all things.

“Okay, thanks.” he says, and hurries back to Iruka. The kids are filing out of the auditorium now. Apparently the teacher had caught on quicker than Naruto. 

“Well, play’s cancelled.” Hanabi says, tossing up her hands. “Tree searching’s cancelled, Christmas is doomed.”

“Tree searching is postponed .” Naruto corrects. “And who says your play’s isn’t just postponed too, huh?”

“Hinata’s nowhere near getting things under control.” Hanabi says critically. “So everybody’s going to be striking for a long time, at least until Christmas. That’s what Mr. Sarutobi said.”

“Things will get back on track.” Iruka says. Hanabi doesn’t look reassured.

“Let’s just go.” she sighs. “I wanna sulk at home, at least.” She’s trying to play it off, but nothing is more obvious and out of place on her face than downright dejection. It’s depressing enough that Iruka can’t even think of anything comforting to say. 

Naruto obligingly wheels his future sister-in-law out to the parking lot, wracking his brain for something he can do to fix this.

-

In keeping with Naruto’s recent pattern of luck (up, down, up, down), Orochimaru arrives that evening. He’s not greeted with as much royal fanfare, or, god forbid, a reception, like Naruto was, but the gravity of his arrival levels it out. At any rate, the entire family gathers in the hall to greet him, plus the Prime Minister.

Upon Orochimaru’s entrance, despite the authority he carries himself with, Naruto gets why Hanabi thinks he’s ‘weird’. He’s got a very sly, sharp look to him, and his eye makeup is extravagantly purple. But Hinata looks like a weight lifts off her shoulders as soon as he steps in the room, and Tsunade shakes his hand firmly, so Naruto sets aside his first impressions. 

“Welcome back to Konoha.” Hinata says, shaking his hand with a smile. “I’m sorry you had to break retirement so early.”

“Think nothing of it.” Orochimaru says. “It was only an inconvenience for my assistant, having to book the flight so last minute around the holiday season. Kusa isn’t known for it’s airlines.”

“Even though you’re retired, you’re still keeping that assistant of yours on a payroll?” Tsunade says derisively. Orochimaru smiles.

“I haven’t retired from everything , now.” he says. Nobody else acts like that’s suspicious, so Naruto doesn’t either.

“I’m Naruto, Hinata’s fiancee.” he says, reaching out to shake Orochimaru’s hand. “We appreciate your help.”

“I haven’t even done anything yet.” Orochimaru says. “It’s nice to be appreciated.”

“It must’ve been a long flight; I’m sure you want to unpack.” Kurenai says, her nagginess taking over. “Shino can show you to your room.”

“We don’t have any meetings scheduled until this evening, so take your time getting settled in.” Hinata adds. Orochimaru nods graciously and follows Shino upstairs after a few more lines of banter with Tsunade. 

“See, now that that guy’s here, everything can start turning around.” Iruka says to Hanabi, patting her shoulder. Hanabi rolls her eyes.

“ Orochimaru is not going to get my play un-cancelled that fast.”

“Your play got cancelled?” Hinata gasps. 

“It’s not a big deal.” Hanabi closes her eyes and stretches flippantly. “It’s just cause everyone’s on strike now.”

“I’m sorry, Hanabi.” Hinata says, wringing her hands together. “I know how excited you were for that.”

“It’s fine!” Hanabi insists. Naruto feels the sentiment behind her dismissive attitude distinctly; if a dejected Hanabi is disheartening, a guilty Hinata is soul crushing. Despite that, they manage to make it through the rest of the evening.

-

Later that day they meet with Orochimaru in the Parliament building, in what he is told is Orochimaru’s old office. Naruto doesn’t even know what title he held, (or holds?)  but it must have been important, because the office is huge as hell. He hasn’t been in the Parliament building nearly as much as he has the palace, so it’s a pleasant change of pace.

Orochimaru spends a long time reading over the documents, and then finally sets them down and steeples his hands. He doesn’t sigh though, which might be a good thing. 

“My advice?” he says, tapping his index fingers together. Naruto wonders why his manicure looks classier than Hinata, the queen’s. “Stay the course. The investments made with this plan-in roads, schools, hospitals, and the like-are long term. They need to be allowed to play out fully. Things will start to look up come next year.”

Hinata nods thoughtfully, but Naruto frowns.

“Come next year, all the workers are still going to be out of jobs, ya know.” Naruto says. “Even if things do pick up, what are we supposed to tell everyone for the rest of the month?”

“The same thing you’ve been telling them the whole time.” Orochimaru says. “It’s true, isn’t it? You’re leading the country into a brighter future.” he smiles and pushes the papers back over to Hinata primly. “I’ll have my assistant make a copy and make some notes on some of these charts.”

“Well, shouldn’t we be trying a bit harder to figure out what’s going on?” Naruto says, frustrated at being overlooked. “Obviously there’s going to be initial losses, but this is way out of control. Shouldn’t we be like,” he gestures vaguely, “investigating this?”

Orochimaru looks at him blankly for a second, then smiles serenely.

“Of course.” he says. “Of course, you’re absolutely correct, your highness. Nothing gets done unless the monarchy is willing to dig down deep into their county’s recesses.” he taps the table in front of Hinata. “You certainly chose a good king, Hinata.”

“He’s a journalist.” Hinata shares proudly. “I should send you some of his articles, they’re so clever.”

“Hinata…” Naruto mumbles, flushing. He loves when she acts like she’s the one who has to show him off. 

“They are, darling.” she says, patting his hand, before turning back to business mode and picking up some papers. “Now, Orochimaru, what about the charts?”

The rest of the meeting gets harder to focus on as it wears on. Naruto felt like he was on top of things at the beginning, but by the end he’s mostly thinking about how cute Hinata is when she’s serious and focused. She purses her lips a little and pulls her hair back...Naruto’s so in love he can practically hear Hanabi spontaneously retching in psychically induced disgust. 

Whatever she and Orochimaru work out, it must look good, because she’s in high enough spirits the rest of the day to propose a toast at dinner.

“To Orochimaru!” she says, cheerily lifting up her glass. “And his dedication to helping this country into the future.”

Everyone clinks their glasses together. Orochimaru laughs demurely.

“In that case, let’s toast to Naruto and Hinata.” he says. “However dedicated I am, they are twice that. And such a lovely couple, too.” 

They toast again and resume dinner.

“I heard the gist of your amendments from Hinata.” Neji says across the table to Orochimaru. Naruto is too busy eating to do anything but eavesdrop. “It seemed quite sound.”

“I have plenty of experience with risky investments.” Orochimaru says.

“I do have a few small questions, though.” Neji says. “For example, the inverse returns-”

“Can we not talk finances at dinner?” Hanabi interrupts. “You’re putting me to sleep.”

“I didn’t know you knew so much about business, Neji.” Kurenai says, talking right over her adoptive daughter. 

“I have a degree in economics.” Neji says. “Among other things.” If Naruto didn’t know that Kurenai was initially welcomed into the royal family as Hinata’s nanny and only unofficially raised the Hyuga sisters after their mother died and their father decided to become solely devoted to the crown, Naruto would be shocked and concerned about how little Kurenai knows about her supposed nephew. 

“Do you really need a degree in economics to run an orphanage?” Naruto says. Neji tilts his head.

“My life took a different path than I thought it would after college. And besides, my father always believed the more education I received, the better.”

“A wise man.” Orochimaru says. 

“Hey!” Hanabi says, apparently already completely uninterested in everything happening at the table and craning around to look out the window. “Is it snowing?”

It is, in fact, snowing. Even though it’s dark outside, the vague outline of the courtyard beginning to dust with snow is a beautiful, soothing sight. “It is!” Naruto says.

“The first snow of December.” Kurenai says emotionally. She turns to Iruka and adds “It’s a sign of good luck in Konoha.”

“Good luck indeed!” Naruto says, turning back to his food. Hopefully, things will get better from here. He’s already getting an idea to solve one of their problems that doesn’t involve long meetings.

-