With this Ring...(Prologue + Ch. 1) A Battle of Wills
Title: With This Ring…
Summery: Iruka reluctantly agrees to an arranged marriage in order to save his adopted family from financial ruin, and is horrified when Hatake Kakashi rises to the offer. No one had ever said that being the son of the Hokage would be easy, or that responsibility could bite you in the ass.
Rating: PG-13, rating my go up
Genre: AU, Humor, eventual romance.
Notes: Special thanks and dedication goes to Anon for finding my Prompt on kakairu_kink and writing this drabble/prologue to get this plot bunny running :3 *showers mystery writer with virtual cookies* (I would love to give proper credit if the mystery writer would like to step forward!)
*~*~*~*~*~
Prologue (by Anon )
Iruka stared in disbelief at the papers spread out on the dark oak table before him. 'This could not be happening.'
The clearing of a throat brought his attention back to the other occupants of the room. He felt numbly cold as he stared into the eyes of his foster father, the Sandaime Hokage. “Please, tell me you’re joking.”
“If it were entirely up to me, Iruka, I would indeed tell you it was all a joke, but as you can see, the choice is not mine.” Sarutobi lifted his aged hand to gesture at the four other elders in the room.
“Iruka-kun, I understand this is not an ideal situation, believe me,” Sarutobi Akemi interjected quietly, lifting her head to meet Iruka’s eyes firmly. Her face still bore signs of the beauty she had been in her youth, though age had softened it to a kind of noble dignity. “However, we are all agreed, you are the last chance we have to rebuild the family fortunes. You are the only child of bindable age remaining in the clan. Though you are not of our blood, you have proven yourself a true son of the Sarutobi clan.” She reached out and rested a weathered hand over his. “We ask this of you in the name of your clan. Help us.”
Though her words of praise lit a warm glow in his heart, Iruka couldn’t help but feeling like he was floundering. “Forgive me, Sarutobi-sama, but is this truly the only option?”
Her brown eyes softened. “I am still your aunt, Iruka-kun. I know you are unsettled, but do not put such distance between us, please.”
“I’m sorry, obasan,” Iruka relented, all too aware that this was the woman who had acted in stead of a mother when the Hokage had brought a parentless child into the clan.
She brushed her lean fingers over his cheek. “Of course you are forgiven, my boy. Please understand, we would not ask this of you had we any other choice in the matter.”
Iruka sighed and looked down at the papers resting on the table. Each of the plain folders was a prospective match arranged by the Nakodo of the Sarutobi clan.
“We are not so heartless, my boy,” the Hokage spoke, drawing Iruka’s attention back to him, “that we would deny you the chance to make your choice among those we present.”
Iruka willed the fingers that reached for the folders to not shake. Bowing his head in defeat, he gathered up the thin stack of folders. “Please excuse me. I will look these over and bring my choices before the Nakodo. For the good of the clan.”
He left the room with every pretense of dignity, but sagged as soon as he was out of the doors. The doors did not close completely behind him and he was just lifting a hand to push them the rest of the way when a voice from the other side stayed his movement.
“He is angry,” Sandaime said sorrowfully, sounding older than Iruka had ever heard him sound before.
The quavery voice of Sarutobi Eiji replied, “But he will do as he is told.” The thump that followed told Iruka that the old man had rapped his cane against the table. “We cannot afford for him to do otherwise.”
“Iruka-kun will do what is best for the family, as he always has.” Akemi interjected, her voice gone cold and disdainful. Iruka could imagine the withering look he knew she would be directing at the other elder. “He is a good boy and a truer son of this clan than many actually born to it. Now, if you will all excuse me, I fear this all has left a bad taste in my mouth.”
Iruka swallowed the bile in his own throat and fled the tower that had been his home since the horrible night his parents died. His fingers were clenched so tightly around the papers that they ached, but he paid the niggling pain no mind, distracted by the greater pain of knowing that he was being used to rebuild the clan’s shattered fortunes.
~*~*~*~*~*~
He was eerily calm that night as he pored over the information contained in the packets, coldly assessing the candidates and what the monetary gift they would offer his adopted clan would likely be. He wasn’t fool enough to believe that this would be anything more than a way to provide support for his clan’s crumbling financial situation. Frozen, he carefully selected the three that were most likely to offer his clan the most.
He knew the Hyuuga’s were maneuvering for more political power, and that’s why he was holding a folder for the eldest daughter of their main house. Sweet little Hinata would do as her father commanded, but Iruka felt utterly nauseated by the thought of wedding one of his students. He could not see her as a potential partner.
The Mori clan offered their clan head’s youngest daughter, who was a good six years older than Iruka and as perfectly brought up as would befit the clan. She had been groomed toward an advantageous marriage since she was a child. Iruka knew she would calmly accept anything that improved her clan’s standing. She was pretty enough in her portrait, but the look in her eyes was so blandly biddable that he had to suppress a shudder.
The last folder in his lap had no attached portrait, but the name on the manila paper was all too familiar. Hatake, one of the most influential clans in all of Konoha. They longed to ally themselves with the Sarutobi clan to erase the scandal of the famous White Fang’s suicide. Surprisingly enough, the folder contained only one or two carefully written sheets delineating everything they were willing to give if their candidate would be considered for marriage. There was almost no information at all on the candidate, but Iruka was under the impression that there were no daughters of anything near marriageable age in the clan house. Still, what they were willing to offer moved them up to the top of the list.
Iruka put the papers aside with a sigh. He would do what was best for his clan. As he always had.
Iruka had turned in his candidates to the local Nakodo, and endured an interminable interview with Mori Junko and the inevitable meeting with her parents, grasping creatures.
He had hidden the Hyuuga’s file under a mountain of old paperwork and handed off another folder in her place, but the young woman was taken ill and asked if they could reschedule their meeting for later, so that left only...
Iruka stared numbly across the interview table at his “prospective” marriage partner.
Hatake Kakashi, master of a thousand Jutsu and infamous reader of brightly colored pornography, glanced over the cover of one of those garishly colored books and offered him a little wave. “Yo.”
If this were hell, Iruka wasn’t sure what he had done to deserve it, but it must have been something truly unspeakable.
He’d been sitting there, being utterly ignored for bad pornography, for over half an hour. Kakashi had occasionally looked up and smiled in that strange, one-eyed way of his, before returning to his book. Iruka had just made up his mind to leave when he saw a terribly annoyed group of Hyuuga’s heading his way, brandishing the folder he had hidden among the papers on his desk in the mission room.
Iruka saw the glare in the leader's eye and knew that they were about to be mortally offended at him for the next three hours.
On impulse, he plucked the book from Kakashi’s hand and grabbed his collar, hauling the Jounin across the table. “Congratulations. I’m marrying you.”
Kakashi blinked at him slowly and a smile curved the thin lips behind the mask. “My, this is all so sudden, Iruka-sensei. I just showed up in the hopes of a free meal.”
**************************************************
Ch. 1: A battle of wills
The Hyuuga party stopped dead in their tracks upon hearing Iruka's declaration. The most elaborately dressed of the three visitors pointed to a small silver-haired woman as their leader. Iruka could not place her name, but he instantly recognized the hard face as belonging to that of the head Matron of the entire Hyuuga clan, and grandmother to both Hinata and Neiji.
The Matron raised a thin eyebrow at the two men stretched frozen across the table. She was not amused at the spectacle before her. The silver comb that ran through her bound hair bobbed slightly as she spoke. "I am Matron Yukari of the Hyuuga clan. I come on behalf of my family to demand an explanation for why you, Sarutobi Umino Iruka, have not made an arrangement to meet with my granddaughter." Her voice carried a tone only reserved for disobedient children, but also held the conviction of a woman who was used to being obeyed.
Iruka gulped. He should've known better than to hope to be rid of the Hyuuga clan so easily. Kakashi's lips stretched further in amusement as the color drained from Iruka's face. Iruka wondered if the Hyuuga party would leave if he started throttling the Jounin, but instead he tightened his grip on Kakashi's collar until his knuckles turned white. If he was going down, then Kakashi was going to join him.
Kakashi broke the tension in the tiny room with a syrupy voice that practically dripped under his mask. "Now, now, my dearest," Kakashi murmured as his hands gently clasped Iruka's wrists. "Where are your manners? Yukari-sama must be offered a chair." His fingers stung painfully at pressure points to force the Chuunin to release his hold.
Iruka snatched his hands away and resisted to urge to rub his wrists. "Err, yes. Please have a seat Yukari-sama." He shot Kakashi a glare for using such a dirty trick. If anything, Kakashi's grin became even broader. Asshole.
But before Iruka could speak further, Kakashi clapped his hands to get the attention of everyone in the room. "Well now, it's very nice to see you again Yukari-sama." He bowed to the old woman respectfully. "Iruka-sensei, I will soon have the contract ready for you to sign." He leaned over the table to tap Iruka affectionately on the nose. "You have made me a very happy man."
The breath caught in Iruka's throat at the unexpected gesture, and for a brief moment he could almost believe the sincerity behind the Jounin's words. His expectations were utterly dashed when Kakashi disappeared into a puff of smoke.
Iruka's jaw dropped in disbelief. 'He…ran away? That BASTARD!' He was brought back to earth by a disdainful sniff from the Hyuuga Matron. Iruka tore his eyes away from the empty chair and pulled his lips into a semblance of a welcoming smile that was utterly wasted on his present company.
"Now that he's out of the way, we can get skip the pleasantries and get down to business." Yukari tapped her mahogany walking stick to summon a willowy female assistant to present Kakashi's empty chair for her to sit. The other, a tall grizzled bodyguard, fingered a dagger thrust through his yukata belt as he scowled about Iruka's cramped office. Both servants possessed the dark hair and eerily pale eyes that designated them as part of the Hyuuga clan.
Yukari smoothed the embroidery on her lavender kimono when she lowered herself onto the rickety chair. The light color of her dress seemed to intensify the determination in her silver eyes. She folded her hands and regarded Iruka as if she were seated on a throne. "It has been nearly five days since I had sent my granddaughter's proposal." She sniffed again to show what she thought of the delay. "It would give the union a shaky start if your lack of etiquette were to become publicly known to the other clans."
The polite smile faltered, and Iruka decided then that it was probably best to be frank and to the point. "Madam, I never sent the invitation because I had no intention of marrying your granddaughter."
"Nonsense," Yukari scoffed. "I can see right through your ruse. The arrangement with Hatake Kakashi is a fraud and made only because he was conveniently in the room. It's as plain as a bee-sting that you can barely stand the man!"
"I can assure you that is not true." Iruka was hard pressed not to sound disgruntled as he lied through his teeth. "I hold nothing but affection for him, and after much consideration I have found that a union with the Hatake clan would be the most beneficial to the welfare of my family." He was tempted to add that he would rather be wed to Lady Tsunade's pet pig than to a former student, but he wisely withheld that remark.
Yukari made an impatient gesture, and her female servant dutifully presented a carved scroll case from her white robes. Yukari waved a hand over the case. "I have here the full details of Hinata's dowry and a monetary contract to help rebuild the Sarutobi clan's financial assets. I am sure that my Clan's offer would be far more fruitful than one made with the disreputable Hatake family."
Iruka did not bother to hide his frown. The stubborn woman obviously did not like being refused. "I have personal reasons for my decision."
For a moment the old woman was silent. Her eyes flickered between Iruka and Kakashi's file that laid forgotten on the table. Her shrewd expression made Iruka shift uneasily in his seat. "If Hinata does not suit your needs…" her middle fingers tapped the pommel of her walking stick. "Than perhaps my grandson Neji would suffice?"
It took a moment for the full implication of Yukari's words to sink in, and when it did the callousness of her offer stunned Iruka into silence. His expression did not change, but a cold fury bubbled in his chest to spread throughout his limbs and into the very marrow of his bones. A muscle in his jaw began to twitch--Iruka had not realized that had been gritting his teeth, which was a sure sign that he was on the brink of losing his temper.
Matron Yukari took Iruka's silence as a pause to consider her offer. "I am sure in time that a suitable couple in my clan could provide an heir for you and Neji to adopt--" Both Yukari and her servants jumped when Iruka slammed a fist onto his desk as he rose to tower over the seated old woman.
"How dare you treat your own kin like bargaining chips!" Iruka strained to keep his voice a growl, but despite his best efforts his voice rose in both fervor and volume. "However you may try to wheedle yourself into the Sarutobi clan you will not get in through me! It is my right to choose whom I will marry, and my decision to wed Hatake Kakashi is FINAL!"
Yukari had stiffened with indignation at the outburst and she glared daggers at Iruka, who matched her gaze defiantly as they stared each other down. Yukari's scandalized servants stared in open-mouthed amazement that someone had dared to show such disrespect to their Matron. The minute hand on the wall clock ticked as the silence stretched.
"Very well." Yukari's lips pulled in a wry smile. "It pains me to admit defeat, but I can see when there is no prize to be gained."
Iruka's eyebrow rose in surprise. He had not expected to repel the Hyuuga Matron so easily.
Yukari seemed amused by his expression. "I am happy to see that the Hokage's adopted son has a little backbone," she chuckled. "You may be worthy of the Sarutobi's noble name after all."
"Um, thank you?" Puzzled, Iruka sat back in his chair. He was unsure of what to make of Yukari's strange change of mood, but he was no fool. He had sat with the Third Hokage during negotiations and had seen firsthand how diplomats could switch tactics in order to tip a situation into their favor.
Iruka watched Yukari warily as she addressed her female servant. "Hanako-chan, could you please fix us some tea? I fear that I need to explain the full context of my presence here."
Iruka declined the offer of tea. It had not gone unnoticed to him on how the Hyuuga Matron had subtly made herself into the host, and not the uninvited guest in his crowded office. With some effort Iruka smoothed his expression as Hanako pour hot water into a blue-chipped mug.
"I did not come here today with only the Hyuuga Clan's proposal in mind." Yukari accepted a the mug from her servant. "I wanted to take this opportunity to explain the formalities that will be a part of your marriage ceremony. As you are aware, arranged marriages among the shinobi nobility is an ancient tradition that predates Konoha's history, and were originally included in treaties." She paused to sip her tea, which was made from the finest leaves Iruka owned. "Are you familiar of the role a Nadoko plays in these arrangements?"
"I know that they are matchmakers." Iruka pushed Kakashi's folder into the one cleared corner of his desk as a gentle reminder to Yukari of his decision. He did not like the smooth edge her voice had took.
"Other than being a matchmaker, a Nadoko acts as a mediator between clans. Shinobi custom dictates that a couple marry in three day's time to ensure that the contract is honored, as it has been done so since ancient times. The Nadoko for the elite shinobi clans help to prepare the young couple for the ceremony, and supervises the bride over the wedding plans." She shook her head pityingly at Iruka. "I can sympathize with your ignorance of our traditions, given your humble background."
Iruka felt his eye twitch at the slight. "We no longer live in the past. I can hardly see the reason for having a Nadoko in this day and age." It was preposterous for him to be married in three days. Married. To Kakashi! Iruka wanted to scream!
"Nonetheless, tradition must be kept, and I intend to see that it is so." Yukari held up a wrinkled hand to display a silver ring engraved with the symbol of the Konoha leaf. "I am Nadoko among the Konoha elite; and I will be overseeing your union with Lord Kakashi, Head of the Hatake clan. Anything less for the son of the Hokage would only bring disgrace to our village."
Iruka gaped openly at the old Hyuuga woman. Yukari sat with a smile that bordered on becoming a smirk. Sarutobi Umino Iruka, adopted son to the Third Hokage, was going to be punished for refusing the Hyuuga clan's offer. And judging by that damnable woman's expression, Yukari was going to be anything but pleasant.
Yukari's smile widened to reveal her teeth. "I see that it is only proper to assign Kakashi as the groom for the ceremony, since he is the rightful heir and head of the Hatake clan." Her voice turned sickly sweet. "I assume that you have no objection taking on the role of the bride?"
At that moment it finally dawned upon Iruka that his personal hell had only just begun.
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TBC
Ch. II: The Burden of Duty
Summery: Iruka reluctantly agrees to an arranged marriage in order to save his adopted family from financial ruin, and is horrified when Hatake Kakashi rises to the offer. No one had ever said that being the son of the Hokage would be easy, or that responsibility could bite you in the ass.
Rating: PG-13, rating my go up
Genre: AU, Humor, eventual romance.
Notes: Special thanks and dedication goes to Anon for finding my Prompt on kakairu_kink and writing this drabble/prologue to get this plot bunny running :3 *showers mystery writer with virtual cookies* (I would love to give proper credit if the mystery writer would like to step forward!)
*~*~*~*~*~
Prologue (by Anon )
Iruka stared in disbelief at the papers spread out on the dark oak table before him. 'This could not be happening.'
The clearing of a throat brought his attention back to the other occupants of the room. He felt numbly cold as he stared into the eyes of his foster father, the Sandaime Hokage. “Please, tell me you’re joking.”
“If it were entirely up to me, Iruka, I would indeed tell you it was all a joke, but as you can see, the choice is not mine.” Sarutobi lifted his aged hand to gesture at the four other elders in the room.
“Iruka-kun, I understand this is not an ideal situation, believe me,” Sarutobi Akemi interjected quietly, lifting her head to meet Iruka’s eyes firmly. Her face still bore signs of the beauty she had been in her youth, though age had softened it to a kind of noble dignity. “However, we are all agreed, you are the last chance we have to rebuild the family fortunes. You are the only child of bindable age remaining in the clan. Though you are not of our blood, you have proven yourself a true son of the Sarutobi clan.” She reached out and rested a weathered hand over his. “We ask this of you in the name of your clan. Help us.”
Though her words of praise lit a warm glow in his heart, Iruka couldn’t help but feeling like he was floundering. “Forgive me, Sarutobi-sama, but is this truly the only option?”
Her brown eyes softened. “I am still your aunt, Iruka-kun. I know you are unsettled, but do not put such distance between us, please.”
“I’m sorry, obasan,” Iruka relented, all too aware that this was the woman who had acted in stead of a mother when the Hokage had brought a parentless child into the clan.
She brushed her lean fingers over his cheek. “Of course you are forgiven, my boy. Please understand, we would not ask this of you had we any other choice in the matter.”
Iruka sighed and looked down at the papers resting on the table. Each of the plain folders was a prospective match arranged by the Nakodo of the Sarutobi clan.
“We are not so heartless, my boy,” the Hokage spoke, drawing Iruka’s attention back to him, “that we would deny you the chance to make your choice among those we present.”
Iruka willed the fingers that reached for the folders to not shake. Bowing his head in defeat, he gathered up the thin stack of folders. “Please excuse me. I will look these over and bring my choices before the Nakodo. For the good of the clan.”
He left the room with every pretense of dignity, but sagged as soon as he was out of the doors. The doors did not close completely behind him and he was just lifting a hand to push them the rest of the way when a voice from the other side stayed his movement.
“He is angry,” Sandaime said sorrowfully, sounding older than Iruka had ever heard him sound before.
The quavery voice of Sarutobi Eiji replied, “But he will do as he is told.” The thump that followed told Iruka that the old man had rapped his cane against the table. “We cannot afford for him to do otherwise.”
“Iruka-kun will do what is best for the family, as he always has.” Akemi interjected, her voice gone cold and disdainful. Iruka could imagine the withering look he knew she would be directing at the other elder. “He is a good boy and a truer son of this clan than many actually born to it. Now, if you will all excuse me, I fear this all has left a bad taste in my mouth.”
Iruka swallowed the bile in his own throat and fled the tower that had been his home since the horrible night his parents died. His fingers were clenched so tightly around the papers that they ached, but he paid the niggling pain no mind, distracted by the greater pain of knowing that he was being used to rebuild the clan’s shattered fortunes.
~*~*~*~*~*~
He was eerily calm that night as he pored over the information contained in the packets, coldly assessing the candidates and what the monetary gift they would offer his adopted clan would likely be. He wasn’t fool enough to believe that this would be anything more than a way to provide support for his clan’s crumbling financial situation. Frozen, he carefully selected the three that were most likely to offer his clan the most.
He knew the Hyuuga’s were maneuvering for more political power, and that’s why he was holding a folder for the eldest daughter of their main house. Sweet little Hinata would do as her father commanded, but Iruka felt utterly nauseated by the thought of wedding one of his students. He could not see her as a potential partner.
The Mori clan offered their clan head’s youngest daughter, who was a good six years older than Iruka and as perfectly brought up as would befit the clan. She had been groomed toward an advantageous marriage since she was a child. Iruka knew she would calmly accept anything that improved her clan’s standing. She was pretty enough in her portrait, but the look in her eyes was so blandly biddable that he had to suppress a shudder.
The last folder in his lap had no attached portrait, but the name on the manila paper was all too familiar. Hatake, one of the most influential clans in all of Konoha. They longed to ally themselves with the Sarutobi clan to erase the scandal of the famous White Fang’s suicide. Surprisingly enough, the folder contained only one or two carefully written sheets delineating everything they were willing to give if their candidate would be considered for marriage. There was almost no information at all on the candidate, but Iruka was under the impression that there were no daughters of anything near marriageable age in the clan house. Still, what they were willing to offer moved them up to the top of the list.
Iruka put the papers aside with a sigh. He would do what was best for his clan. As he always had.
Iruka had turned in his candidates to the local Nakodo, and endured an interminable interview with Mori Junko and the inevitable meeting with her parents, grasping creatures.
He had hidden the Hyuuga’s file under a mountain of old paperwork and handed off another folder in her place, but the young woman was taken ill and asked if they could reschedule their meeting for later, so that left only...
Iruka stared numbly across the interview table at his “prospective” marriage partner.
Hatake Kakashi, master of a thousand Jutsu and infamous reader of brightly colored pornography, glanced over the cover of one of those garishly colored books and offered him a little wave. “Yo.”
If this were hell, Iruka wasn’t sure what he had done to deserve it, but it must have been something truly unspeakable.
He’d been sitting there, being utterly ignored for bad pornography, for over half an hour. Kakashi had occasionally looked up and smiled in that strange, one-eyed way of his, before returning to his book. Iruka had just made up his mind to leave when he saw a terribly annoyed group of Hyuuga’s heading his way, brandishing the folder he had hidden among the papers on his desk in the mission room.
Iruka saw the glare in the leader's eye and knew that they were about to be mortally offended at him for the next three hours.
On impulse, he plucked the book from Kakashi’s hand and grabbed his collar, hauling the Jounin across the table. “Congratulations. I’m marrying you.”
Kakashi blinked at him slowly and a smile curved the thin lips behind the mask. “My, this is all so sudden, Iruka-sensei. I just showed up in the hopes of a free meal.”
**************************************************
Ch. 1: A battle of wills
The Hyuuga party stopped dead in their tracks upon hearing Iruka's declaration. The most elaborately dressed of the three visitors pointed to a small silver-haired woman as their leader. Iruka could not place her name, but he instantly recognized the hard face as belonging to that of the head Matron of the entire Hyuuga clan, and grandmother to both Hinata and Neiji.
The Matron raised a thin eyebrow at the two men stretched frozen across the table. She was not amused at the spectacle before her. The silver comb that ran through her bound hair bobbed slightly as she spoke. "I am Matron Yukari of the Hyuuga clan. I come on behalf of my family to demand an explanation for why you, Sarutobi Umino Iruka, have not made an arrangement to meet with my granddaughter." Her voice carried a tone only reserved for disobedient children, but also held the conviction of a woman who was used to being obeyed.
Iruka gulped. He should've known better than to hope to be rid of the Hyuuga clan so easily. Kakashi's lips stretched further in amusement as the color drained from Iruka's face. Iruka wondered if the Hyuuga party would leave if he started throttling the Jounin, but instead he tightened his grip on Kakashi's collar until his knuckles turned white. If he was going down, then Kakashi was going to join him.
Kakashi broke the tension in the tiny room with a syrupy voice that practically dripped under his mask. "Now, now, my dearest," Kakashi murmured as his hands gently clasped Iruka's wrists. "Where are your manners? Yukari-sama must be offered a chair." His fingers stung painfully at pressure points to force the Chuunin to release his hold.
Iruka snatched his hands away and resisted to urge to rub his wrists. "Err, yes. Please have a seat Yukari-sama." He shot Kakashi a glare for using such a dirty trick. If anything, Kakashi's grin became even broader. Asshole.
But before Iruka could speak further, Kakashi clapped his hands to get the attention of everyone in the room. "Well now, it's very nice to see you again Yukari-sama." He bowed to the old woman respectfully. "Iruka-sensei, I will soon have the contract ready for you to sign." He leaned over the table to tap Iruka affectionately on the nose. "You have made me a very happy man."
The breath caught in Iruka's throat at the unexpected gesture, and for a brief moment he could almost believe the sincerity behind the Jounin's words. His expectations were utterly dashed when Kakashi disappeared into a puff of smoke.
Iruka's jaw dropped in disbelief. 'He…ran away? That BASTARD!' He was brought back to earth by a disdainful sniff from the Hyuuga Matron. Iruka tore his eyes away from the empty chair and pulled his lips into a semblance of a welcoming smile that was utterly wasted on his present company.
"Now that he's out of the way, we can get skip the pleasantries and get down to business." Yukari tapped her mahogany walking stick to summon a willowy female assistant to present Kakashi's empty chair for her to sit. The other, a tall grizzled bodyguard, fingered a dagger thrust through his yukata belt as he scowled about Iruka's cramped office. Both servants possessed the dark hair and eerily pale eyes that designated them as part of the Hyuuga clan.
Yukari smoothed the embroidery on her lavender kimono when she lowered herself onto the rickety chair. The light color of her dress seemed to intensify the determination in her silver eyes. She folded her hands and regarded Iruka as if she were seated on a throne. "It has been nearly five days since I had sent my granddaughter's proposal." She sniffed again to show what she thought of the delay. "It would give the union a shaky start if your lack of etiquette were to become publicly known to the other clans."
The polite smile faltered, and Iruka decided then that it was probably best to be frank and to the point. "Madam, I never sent the invitation because I had no intention of marrying your granddaughter."
"Nonsense," Yukari scoffed. "I can see right through your ruse. The arrangement with Hatake Kakashi is a fraud and made only because he was conveniently in the room. It's as plain as a bee-sting that you can barely stand the man!"
"I can assure you that is not true." Iruka was hard pressed not to sound disgruntled as he lied through his teeth. "I hold nothing but affection for him, and after much consideration I have found that a union with the Hatake clan would be the most beneficial to the welfare of my family." He was tempted to add that he would rather be wed to Lady Tsunade's pet pig than to a former student, but he wisely withheld that remark.
Yukari made an impatient gesture, and her female servant dutifully presented a carved scroll case from her white robes. Yukari waved a hand over the case. "I have here the full details of Hinata's dowry and a monetary contract to help rebuild the Sarutobi clan's financial assets. I am sure that my Clan's offer would be far more fruitful than one made with the disreputable Hatake family."
Iruka did not bother to hide his frown. The stubborn woman obviously did not like being refused. "I have personal reasons for my decision."
For a moment the old woman was silent. Her eyes flickered between Iruka and Kakashi's file that laid forgotten on the table. Her shrewd expression made Iruka shift uneasily in his seat. "If Hinata does not suit your needs…" her middle fingers tapped the pommel of her walking stick. "Than perhaps my grandson Neji would suffice?"
It took a moment for the full implication of Yukari's words to sink in, and when it did the callousness of her offer stunned Iruka into silence. His expression did not change, but a cold fury bubbled in his chest to spread throughout his limbs and into the very marrow of his bones. A muscle in his jaw began to twitch--Iruka had not realized that had been gritting his teeth, which was a sure sign that he was on the brink of losing his temper.
Matron Yukari took Iruka's silence as a pause to consider her offer. "I am sure in time that a suitable couple in my clan could provide an heir for you and Neji to adopt--" Both Yukari and her servants jumped when Iruka slammed a fist onto his desk as he rose to tower over the seated old woman.
"How dare you treat your own kin like bargaining chips!" Iruka strained to keep his voice a growl, but despite his best efforts his voice rose in both fervor and volume. "However you may try to wheedle yourself into the Sarutobi clan you will not get in through me! It is my right to choose whom I will marry, and my decision to wed Hatake Kakashi is FINAL!"
Yukari had stiffened with indignation at the outburst and she glared daggers at Iruka, who matched her gaze defiantly as they stared each other down. Yukari's scandalized servants stared in open-mouthed amazement that someone had dared to show such disrespect to their Matron. The minute hand on the wall clock ticked as the silence stretched.
"Very well." Yukari's lips pulled in a wry smile. "It pains me to admit defeat, but I can see when there is no prize to be gained."
Iruka's eyebrow rose in surprise. He had not expected to repel the Hyuuga Matron so easily.
Yukari seemed amused by his expression. "I am happy to see that the Hokage's adopted son has a little backbone," she chuckled. "You may be worthy of the Sarutobi's noble name after all."
"Um, thank you?" Puzzled, Iruka sat back in his chair. He was unsure of what to make of Yukari's strange change of mood, but he was no fool. He had sat with the Third Hokage during negotiations and had seen firsthand how diplomats could switch tactics in order to tip a situation into their favor.
Iruka watched Yukari warily as she addressed her female servant. "Hanako-chan, could you please fix us some tea? I fear that I need to explain the full context of my presence here."
Iruka declined the offer of tea. It had not gone unnoticed to him on how the Hyuuga Matron had subtly made herself into the host, and not the uninvited guest in his crowded office. With some effort Iruka smoothed his expression as Hanako pour hot water into a blue-chipped mug.
"I did not come here today with only the Hyuuga Clan's proposal in mind." Yukari accepted a the mug from her servant. "I wanted to take this opportunity to explain the formalities that will be a part of your marriage ceremony. As you are aware, arranged marriages among the shinobi nobility is an ancient tradition that predates Konoha's history, and were originally included in treaties." She paused to sip her tea, which was made from the finest leaves Iruka owned. "Are you familiar of the role a Nadoko plays in these arrangements?"
"I know that they are matchmakers." Iruka pushed Kakashi's folder into the one cleared corner of his desk as a gentle reminder to Yukari of his decision. He did not like the smooth edge her voice had took.
"Other than being a matchmaker, a Nadoko acts as a mediator between clans. Shinobi custom dictates that a couple marry in three day's time to ensure that the contract is honored, as it has been done so since ancient times. The Nadoko for the elite shinobi clans help to prepare the young couple for the ceremony, and supervises the bride over the wedding plans." She shook her head pityingly at Iruka. "I can sympathize with your ignorance of our traditions, given your humble background."
Iruka felt his eye twitch at the slight. "We no longer live in the past. I can hardly see the reason for having a Nadoko in this day and age." It was preposterous for him to be married in three days. Married. To Kakashi! Iruka wanted to scream!
"Nonetheless, tradition must be kept, and I intend to see that it is so." Yukari held up a wrinkled hand to display a silver ring engraved with the symbol of the Konoha leaf. "I am Nadoko among the Konoha elite; and I will be overseeing your union with Lord Kakashi, Head of the Hatake clan. Anything less for the son of the Hokage would only bring disgrace to our village."
Iruka gaped openly at the old Hyuuga woman. Yukari sat with a smile that bordered on becoming a smirk. Sarutobi Umino Iruka, adopted son to the Third Hokage, was going to be punished for refusing the Hyuuga clan's offer. And judging by that damnable woman's expression, Yukari was going to be anything but pleasant.
Yukari's smile widened to reveal her teeth. "I see that it is only proper to assign Kakashi as the groom for the ceremony, since he is the rightful heir and head of the Hatake clan." Her voice turned sickly sweet. "I assume that you have no objection taking on the role of the bride?"
At that moment it finally dawned upon Iruka that his personal hell had only just begun.
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TBC
Ch. II: The Burden of Duty