The cursed prince

{13}

"Would you please give me your undivided attention!" The fire's king exclaimed proudly as he stood at the top of the steps by his throne. Turning to face the King, the royalty and nobility paused their conversations and introductions to listen to him. After finally gaining silence and attention, King Fugaku cleared his throat and welcomed all of the royalty into the realm, followed by a lengthy speech about honor, customs, and the upcoming coronation. "Please welcome my nephew, prince Obito, as the ceremony is about to begin," Fugaku said towards the end of his lengthy speech, leading his wife to smile slightly as she cradled her two kids in her arms.

The sound of trumpets rang through the long and spacious hall, drawing the occupants' attention to the palace entrance, where the great wooden gates opened, allowing a temple priest to stroll over the red carpet; the elderly man was clad in complete black, with scarlet streaks running through his garment. The man's gaze was fixed on the ground as he clutched a magnificent red silk pillow in his arms, which housed an item wrapped in one of the world's finest black silk sheets. Allowing the man to pass through, the occupants of the large hall bowed gracefully, showing their respect to the priest of the fire kingdom, but Fugaku remained motionless, arms behind his back, fiercely watching over the man.

Kurama kept his glare fixed on the king, who appeared to be treating a highly regarded man in such a deplorable manner. As soon as the priest arrived to the steps, he dropped to his knees in front of the king and bowed lower than a priest should ever bend. The old man handed the king the item shrouded in the black silk sheet, raising his hands above his head. The king began to unwarp the object without even changing his face features, exposing a lovely sword with a hilt encrusted with gorgeous rubies, symbolizing the kingdom's hue. The young heir recognized as the sword was unraveled that it was the kingdom's sacred sword, but his gaze remained fixed on the priest, who kept his head on the ground.

The king nodded as the priest rose and moved to the side of the throne keeping his gaze fixed on the ground. As he was prepared to rage at the king and notify him of his wrongdoings, Kurama's stare sharpened. However, the action was halted when the trumpets rang out again throughout the hall. When the prince turned to face the palace entrance, he discovered it was clogged with guards. Unlike the guard in front, who was holding a large banner with a dragon insignia, the guards appeared to be dressed in black. The guard up front was dressed in a red uniform with a variety of insignia and decorations, indicating that he was a general.

Watching in boredom, the young heir placed his arm on the table, resting his head on one arm and staring straight at the prince walking up towards the king. Finally as all the guards dispersed, the royal families met the king and the prince standing face to face until the prince bowed down on one knee, keeping his head down. Bringing the sword up to his face, the king started to speak his speech as he continued to stare at the prince in front of him. The young prince, Naruto continued to stare up ahead, clearly not understanding what is going on, however, he was staring straight into two glowing amber eyes who he caught staring back at him. Not understanding the strangeness, the prince stood up from his seat and started to follow the same color he has found back in the forest outside the fire kingdom.

Unsure how the people around don't seem disturbed by the strange whispers flowing freely around the room, the prince shook that thought and continued to follow the eyes into the dark hall. Finally snapping out of his daze, Naruto looked around the empty hall, looking for the source of the glowing amber orbs. Clearly confused, the prince turned around to head back into the hall but was stopped by a large man staring directly down at him. Looking up in curiosity, Naruto gave the strange stranger a bright smile, attempting to introduce himself. "Prince Naruto of the Wind, I have heard plenty rumors of the young prince of the Wind kingdom, the name is Orochimaru my dear boy, I am the head general in this kingdom, and a personal friend of the king," the strange man now known as Orochimaru interrupted as he decided to introduce himself before the prince could even blink.