#she was still upset about all that they had taken from her madara and the rest of the uchihas

[agenderbendnarutoblog]

Just a quick sketch of Izuna and Hashirama being friends that I actually grew to liking a lot

#they all live in the land of the dead together (in my au its kind of like another village that everyone that died lives in) #they become friends there #izuna's a good person so when she learned more about the senju clan she came to realize they weren't actually that bad #she was still upset about all that they had taken from her madara and the rest of the uchihas #but with some convincing from madara and time she came to love and defend them #she think itama is so precious and always insists on protecting her ( even if she doesn't need it) #hashi also loves izuna ( even though she's an absolute gremlin) #they like to joke around and lightly tease each other #:') #They're so cute #hashirama #izuna #hashiizu #genderbend #genderswap #genderswap naruto #genderbend naruto #hashirama senju #izuna uchiha #naruto founders #fem #my art

[electrasev5nwrites]

Ninja Daily: Vapors 97

The light of day didn't make Konoha feel much safer, even as the streets began to teem with early risers. Aiko hurried home, avoiding stares as best as she could, and found her apartment provided little sense of relief. Normally, after a night spent crusted in someone else's blood, she would have scrubbed her flesh clean for at least half an hour. This time, she felt distinctly uneasy standing naked in her own shower… which definitely did have hot water.

Did that mean Tobi had arranged that encounter from the start? He'd engineered events so that he could corner her weaponless and alone after she'd gone ba- had he watched her bathe?

Aiko shivered, feeling distinctly ill, and turned the water off before she'd even gotten all the shampoo out of her hair.

She didn't stay in her apartment longer than it took to pull on a sweater and secure a thigh holster over her standard issue pants.

It had been foolish to be comfortable enough in her home village to go without weapons… though, they wouldn't have done her any good in that encounter, so that wasn't what she was really upset about. Aiko chewed on her lower lip and just walked up and down the busiest streets as she tried to get her thoughts in order.

It didn't take a genius to recognize that she was feeling vulnerable. And that she had a good reason for that feeling, unfortunately. Tobi had played her for a fool. He had watched her for kami knows how long without her noticing. He had batted her around like she had absolutely no chance against him, and then he'd gone and proved that he could back that check up by… by…

She had no idea what he'd done, actually.

'But I know I didn't like it.'

Aiko wrapped her arms around her waist and gave a distracted smile to a woman who offered her a sample of some sort of fresh smelling bread without actually remembering to demur.

'I probably should have told Tsunade that he'd done something to my Hiraishin,' Aiko thought guiltily. But what would she have even said? She didn't understand what had happened herself. It had almost seemed like he had taken her to another dimensional space or something. It hadn't been anything like her experience with inter-dimensional interaction, but she surely hadn't been in Konoha.

If that was what he had done, how long had she been there? Her own perception had been confused, to say the least.

'That's a stupid question.' Aiko belatedly realized that she'd left the apartment in her house slippers. She took a moment to frown down at them, but at least they were just plain sandals. 'I should be more concerned with how he did that. Was it necessary to touch me? It'd be nice to know I could prevent that from ever happening again by not letting him touch me. If I knew what he was using that allowed him to travel that way, I might be able to form a hypothesis. The obvious answer is that since this is Tobi, it was somehow related to his Sharingan.'

That conclusion made more sense than assuming he had other kekkai genkai, right? She'd never even heard of a learned technique that would do anything like what he had played with, so it must be rare for a reason. A bloodline was generally the best explanation for abilities that were supposedly impossible or implausible.

Of course, to the best of her knowledge, the Sharingan did nothing so fanciful. But it made more sense to think of what she knew rather than to speculate that he must possess another kekkai genkai. However spectacular it seemed, sometimes the simplest explanation was best.

Granted, there was no rule saying that whatever he had done could only be attributed to a bloodline ability. But because it had been nothing like her experience with…

Well, that was stupid, Aiko realized with a sigh. There was no logical cause to assume that all fuinjutsu-based space time interaction was similar. Still, she had no reason to believe Tobi had any experience with sealing, so she was going to hold onto the Sharingan as her best clue.

And if Madara was wearing Obito's body, his Sharingan should be the same as the one that Kakashi had. That presented some intriguing possibilities for investigation and testing, if he would indulge her curiosity. If he already knew what she was talking about, that would be a good sign…

'Well, I can hardly up and ask him directly, can I?' She could have hit herself, if that wouldn't be redundant with her already bad mood. 'I'm not supposed to know that Tobi is really Obito's body, or even where Kakashi got his eye. It would be more than a bit suspicious. Maybe I could pretend I saw some marvelous similarity that made me think Tobi was really an Uchiha, but that's a large stretch.'

No matter. There had to be some way to direct a conversation to such a point. If Kakashi were feeling indulgent at all, he would volunteer the information. Especially if he knew what a ninny she was being.

Almost instantly, Aiko felt even worse. She wasn't supposed to be scared of anything. The idea of sharing her weakness was intolerable, and the prospect of using it as collateral to weasel help out of someone she respected was even worse.

She'd still do it, of course. Her pride was less important than her life.

'That's a good long-term plan, but it doesn't do me any good while he's out of the village.' Distractedly, Aiko ducked out of the path of some enthusiastic genin doing a morning run. 'It can't be a coincidence that all my new seals are gone, and the old ones are left.'

The thought didn't seem quite right. After a moment, she realized why. The seal in Kumo was one of her newest ones. What that had in common with the ones that Kakashi and Yamato carried was that it had been painted with sealing ink and her blood.

The vast majority of her seals had been made solely with a little bit of chakra and affixed to whatever she touched. Did… did that make them less stable than the more labor intensive kind?

When realization struck, Aiko nearly stopped in the middle of the street. Minato's notebooks had implied that the connection Hiraishin seals maintained through a constant feed off their user meant that they wouldn't be available for anyone else to use after the user died. She had thought that meant they would all be destroyed—that the seals themselves would unravel. But maybe, just maybe, a seal that had been well made enough would merely deactivate, in a way, since it wasn't feeding off its user's chakra.

In practice, it was the same thing, since a deactivated seal was nearly untraceable and the dead didn't come back to life to use their seals again. But in the odd circumstance that the chakra source that had left could be returned, it certainly made a difference. It was the difference between disconnecting a tv and dropping it off the balcony when you were done with it. The tv that had been disconnected would fizzle with static and search out the old connection once it was turned back on. The one dropped off the balcony was just gone. While the first device was off, it wasn't really present in a more significant way than the ruined device, but there was still the potential for re-use.

A seal wasn't an electrical device, of course, and disconnecting from her seal meant that the connection to the seal had been turned off from her end, not on the seal. She had obviously left Konoha for another plane of existence, but if it had been hers, she would have been able to feel her seals from there. Coming back had been uncomfortable and weakening, but the real shocking pain of loss had occurred in those moments when she was totally cut off.

Tobi had taken her to a dimension that wasn't hers.

'I think Tobi just disproved the theory that there's only one inter-dimensional space,' Aiko thought numbly.

If the space Tobi had taken her to had been the same one she used as a midpoint between herself and seals, then nothing should have happened to her seals. The space-time fold was what allowed her to step to seals miles away—the space she slipped into was equidistant to any of her seals. But her seals had either failed completely or temporarily deactivated while she was in Tobi's personal dimension, just as they would if she had been dead.

It was the first bit of good news she'd had all day. She wasn't completely crippled. If she improved her regular seals, she could retain those even if Tobi dragged her through a private dimension again. Granted, she wouldn't be able to escape from his dimension, but for all she knew he hadn't spent any more time there than she spent in hers. Maybe he couldn't just leave her there. She could only hope, and make sure that she didn't let him know exactly what had happened, if he didn't know already.

'Of course, I probably shouldn't count on improving my ephemeral seals to counter Tobi. For now, I'll count on the ones that I know work.'

Which meant she needed to make more seals and distribute them as soon as possible to restore something of her continental map.

That was easier said than done, when Tsunade didn't plan to send her out on missions any time soon, as far as she knew. Tsunade had pointed out that there was a very good possibility that if Tobi really had approached her on his own initiative instead of for Akatsuki, he might have been trying to do her a favor in his own twisted way. Aiko hadn't appreciated that theory much, especially since it implied that he had been jarred into action because of her last mission. If Tsunade was right, her retrieval of Utakata might have been the last straw that made Akatsuki want her out of the way. That would most generally be interpreted as 'dead', of course, but Tobi seemed to have come to another conclusion.

'Making Tobi my hero,' Aiko thought with more than a hint of bitter irony. That idea wasn't really much more comforting than that he'd been acting on Akatsuki's initiative. Either way, he had proved he could get at her. Did it really matter if it was for Akatsuki's benefit or his own, if the end result was the same? He'd have to get either violent or creative if he really intended to keep her from snatching back any jinchuuriki Akatsuki got their paws on.

And Tsunade's theory also meant that he might be provoked into trying again if she interfered in their attempts to collect jinchuuriki again. That made keeping her in the village an obvious way to mitigate the possibility that he would bother her again.

Aiko didn't put much stock into that idea. He had promised he would be back. Unless something changed, she hadn't seen the last of him. For all she knew he hadn't left Konoha.

She veered into the next open shop door she passed, and spent an inordinate amount of time staring blankly at the wares before she realized she had ducked into an equipment supplier.

'No one ever had too many kunai. Since I'm here, I may as well stock up.'

Besides, the proprietor was beginning to look irritated by her browsing.

It might not be a bad idea to start taking a page out of Minato's book by passing out kunai with her seal painted on them to comrades. He had used them cooperatively by having his subordinates throw dozens and hundreds of them at once and fluttering between them before they could hit the ground. That wasn't exactly her style, but it wouldn't hurt as an addition to her arsenal.

That led to another idea—even if she wasn't particularly invested in having her seals used as weapons that way, there was still merit to asking her comrades for help distributing them. She couldn't leave the village? Fine. Others were. She was sure that if she asked, at least some of the people she knew would be willing to drop a rock with Hiraishin painted on it in whatever country they traveled to for their missions. At this point, it was more important to have a map again than it was to protect against others getting her seals. She could always blow the damn things up in a pinch, if someone put their grubby little paws on something that didn't belong to them.

Didn't have to be rocks, of course. But it would be less conspicuous than kunai, and no one would know to look for them. Actually… maybe Minato had been onto something by using distinctive kunai for his Hiraishin? They weren't just blades: they were a method of making his handiwork instantly recognizable and sowing fear. Intimidation could win half the battle.

She didn't want to use the three-pronged blades that Minato had made famous. That would be too obvious, even as an attempt to coast off his fearsome reputation. Changing the shape of the blade would negatively impact her ability to wield it. So what else could she do to make her kunai completely distinctive?

"Ah, shop-keep-san?" Aiko ducked into a quick bow and then indicated the rather standard kunai she had been looking at. "What would it cost to have the handles lacquered on some of these?"

He seemed to think she was joking. After a few minutes of assuring him, he seemed to change to hoping that she was joking, but he took her bank information gamely and made one last attempt to persuade her into making his job easier by picking a color that he would have readily in stock.

She turned him down, but paid him extra to rush on getting the paint from his supplier. Yes, she was absolutely certain that she wanted orange.

No one in their right mind other than Naruto would think to get such a thing without a good cause. If she wanted distinctive weaponry, she was going to have to go off the beaten track for sensible equipment in good taste.

It took near superhuman effort to force herself to go pick Fukiko up from the Academy and take her out to practice. If Tobi was still hanging around, he might recognize her as an Uchiha. That risk made her want to stay as far away as possible from her student. But on the other hand, for all she knew he was half a country away by now. She couldn't let fear keep her from doing her job without something more solid to go on other than that she was scared.

'Besides, if I don't work with her, she'll never get strong enough to take care of herself.' Aiko somehow gritted her jaw and kept a smile plastered on her face. There was no point in letting Fukiko know something was wrong. She'd be a pretty poor Jounin if she couldn't hide her nervousness from a pre-genin.

"Aiko."

Fukiko stopped the clumsy sequence of hand signs she had been demonstrating to blink up at the man standing beside her teacher. Aiko merely raised an eyebrow and turned her head slightly. That was enough to send the girl flushing.

Only once Fukiko had gone back to pretending to be so absorbed in her practice that she didn't notice the adults talking, did Aiko turn to acknowledge Sai.

"Long time no see."

Almost twenty-four hours, which wasn't really that long. But seeing him wasn't everything. It had been so long since they'd really talked that she strangely felt distanced.

"Not really." His eyes slid away from hers almost dismissively, and he gave Fukiko a curious look. "I saw you last night."

Aiko twitched. "Ah," she replied rather unhelpfully.

It didn't take a genius to realize that he meant he'd been assigned to Tsunade's personal guard last night and had been creeping about while she had debriefed, or seen her in passing under the anonymity of an ANBU mask. Without the seal she'd planted on his back or his sword, she might not know Sai was about unless she was paying close attention. It was amazing just how reliant she had been on her seal sense, and she hadn't even realized until most of them were gone.

Either way, she probably hadn't been at her best when he'd seen her.

"May we talk?"

'Am I going to get scolded again for not caring enough about ROOT?' she thought but didn't say. Rather ungracefully, she nodded. "Alright. Fukiko-chan, pack up. We're going to walk you home." As the brunette hurriedly slipped on a backpack and fell in line, Aiko blandly narrated. "The gentleman escorting us is one of my teammates, Sai."

'And why did I say teammate instead of boyfriend? He is my boyfriend, right? I mean, we've never used those terms. What does that mean? Is that part of what's so weird with us? We never set any boundaries?'

Fukiko's "It's very nice to meet you, Sai-san," was almost inaudible, in part because she was looking at the ground when she said it.

Still, Sai replied gamely enough. But he seemed to consider that enough contribution to friendly conversation. Aiko ignored him and instead prodded the pre-genin into conversation by asking her about her academic classes until she had turned the child over to her aunt.

"So…" she began awkwardly, flexing the foot she wasn't putting her weight on and clasping her hands behind her back. "What did you want to talk about?"

He considered her for a second, and then began walking. After a moment, she jolted into movement behind him and caught up to walk at his side. "Is there cause for concern?"

It took a moment to parse that. "You mean, about what happened last night?" Her stomach roiled, and she thoughtlessly put a hand over it. At the dark-eyed glance the movement garnered, she purposefully didn't pull her hand back. That would look as if she was unable to control herself emotionally, even more so than the display of weakness in the first place. "Probably," Aiko admitted honestly. "He made a point of saying that he would be back."

"Is there nothing you can do?" Sai's lips pressed down ever so slightly, and he crossed the road to get away from the crowds.

"Not that I can think of." Aiko suppressed a sigh. "Can't hide or run. I'll just have to see what happens and be as prepared as possible." She lowered her voice, and grumped, "I can't keep ROOT out of my fucking apartment, so I hardly expect I can keep Akatsuki out."

And wasn't that galling?

Granted, after a point, traps and seals could only go so far to assure security. If they were infallible, no one would use shinobi guards. The problem was of course that the types of people who could threaten her (and therefore she wanted to be safe from) were the ones who were experienced and clever enough that her home security wasn't an insurmountable obstacle.

"Would you like me to stay with you?"

She had to stop for a moment and attempt to gauge his seriousness. It was a hell of an offer. On one hand, it might work to keep Tobi away. He had indicated that he wanted to come back when she was alone by saying he didn't want to have any more ANBU interfere. But would that really work long-term? If he saw that she wasn't going to be alone, his options would be to give up or to make himself known anyways.

Aiko might have taken his offer in an instant if she really thought it would put Tobi off. But why would it? If she gambled on that and was wrong… well, it wouldn't be that hard for a man who could spy on them unseen to forcibly ensure she was alone. She didn't want Sai to get hurt for such a stupid reason.

What good would it really do to hide behind Sai like a scared child? He couldn't keep her safe from Madara. Even the two of them together weren't a sure thing against an opponent of that caliber, especially when the encounter would be pre-determined by their opponent's whim. If they were the one attacking from shadows, it would be different. But the whole set up was that Tobi was lurking whenever and wherever he pleased…

No, it would be a significant risk to Sai with very little possibility of doing anything other than making her feel safer.

The offer did lift her mood, though. Aiko gave him a real smile, and moved to bump her shoulder against his arm. "I'll have to turn you down. But thank you, Sai." She laced her fingers behind her head and looked up, spotting a cloud that looked like a rabbit. Granted, most clouds looked like rabbits to her.

"Are you sure there is nothing that can be done?" He gave her a disapproving frown. "If you will not let me stay with you, there must be some way to ensure your safety, or at least to be sure someone will know if something is wrong within a reasonable time period."

That... was a good point, actually. One of her first fears when she'd seen Tobi in that park had been that he would whisk her away and that no one would know what had happened to her.

"I'll meet you for tea everyday or tell you why I can't?" Aiko suggested warmly.

The faint hint of approval in his eyes was enough to tell her she hadn't been too presumptuous with his time.

"Thank you," she said quietly, leaning over to wrap her arm around his torso and pressed a closed kiss against his neck. "You're the smart one, I suppose. What would I do without you?"

Sai gave her the oddest look. "I suspect you would be fine," he said after a moment. His right arm gave her the briefest of squeezes before he withdrew. "If you will excuse me, I need to report."

"Have a good night!" she called, holding an arm up to protect her eyes from the leaves his departure stirred.

'Huh. Was I imagining things there, or was he a little distant?' Aiko caught a single pine-green leaf between her thumb and forefinger and idly examined the way light moved across the waxy surface. 'I must have been imagining things,' she decided. 'He would tell me if something was wrong, right?'

Almost immediately, she felt a flutter of unease. He probably wouldn't. It wasn't like she talked to him about her problems. Not that her problems were that important, she rejected. She was overreacting. It was irrational to see Shou's face when she closed her eyes at night. She was just having a hard time forgetting the way it had been the moment trust turned to horror. That would fade. It had to. It was just a phase. And Aoto wouldn't have blamed her, would he? It wasn't her fault. It wasn't. ANBU died in the line of duty all the time. She probably would too. She only hoped that when that happened, she might be doing some good.

She managed to forget that bleak line of thought when she went home to find a vase sitting outside her apartment. She had no idea what the flowers were or what they meant, but since there was one red flower and one white flower, it was probably something simple and profound.

Pity that it was almost certainly from Tobi. Tremblingly, she picked the small piece of paper out from under the vase and read the single kanji on it. It was an apology. Aiko almost ripped it in half as a reflexive rejection of the sentiment, but stopped herself long enough to scoop the crumpled piece of paper sitting at the bottom of her kitchen garbage and compare the two.

'I'm almost certain these were written by the same person.'

She stared glumly at the apology and the note she had thought was from a landlord, as if hoping that the broad, slightly tilted handwriting would change on one of them. What were the odds that her landlord had sent her flowers?

Not good, she surmised. A little vindictively, she fed the flowers to her garbage disposal.

'He's still in Konoha.' Aiko sat the vase on her kitchen table, sat down, and buried her face in her palms. 'He didn't leave. For all I know he's watching me right now. Hope he wasn't too attached to those plants.'

She half-wished that she'd asked Sai to walk her home, but that would help nothing but her nerves. Still, she couldn't help but feel that there had to be some way to benefit from assistance in this. There was almost no one that she would trust to help keep her safe from Tobi, but wouldn't she be much better off if he could at least be stopped from surprising her?

That led to two different trails of thought. She happened to be acquainted with a lovely, fluffy canine with a nose twice as good at Kakashi's, who might be able to verify whether or not anyone was lurking about. The other idea that occurred was that it would be greatly helpful to have some sort of intelligence about whatever it was that Tobi had done to her.

'And I know several individuals who wouldn't ask me questions if I brought strange inquiries to them,' Aiko mused. She agreed with Sai that it would be wrong to put ROOT through more hell than they had already been through, but would a research project really strain those boundaries? She did have that convenient list of identities that Tsunade had squirreled out of Danzo's home… Aiko was under too much scrutiny to be caught snooping old records about the Uchiha (her most likely bet as to the source of Tobi's strange kickassery), not least because if Tobi saw, he might react violently to the hint that she knew more than she should. But a third party could accomplish that with no difficulties.

For the first time, she was the creepy bastard showing up at someone else's apartment after twilight. In her defense, Akahiso Yarou happened to live in her apartment complex. Aiko had the sinking suspicion that she knew how at least one of her ROOT compatriots had been so familiar with her home security, and the familiarity of his body build only furthered that assumption. While Mitsuo waited boredly in the entry way, she took the liberty of actually painting a Hiraishin seal on his arm.

Well, it felt like a liberty, even though she asked for permission. Aiko didn't get the feeling that the hollow-cheeked brunet had considered he could tell her no. But adding to her vastly depleted sealing network was too important to pass up, especially since she might want to be able to track him down later to see what he had found. He seemed a bit scandalized that she gave him names of a few other ROOT members and orders to figure out how to contact them, but didn't protest. ANBU level shinobi were more likely to be able to leave the country at the moment and really spread her seals. She could return the next day and hand over however many she managed to get painted during the day for him to pass on.

Mitsuo ponderously rose to his feet to follow, tail wagging ever so slightly as she passed out of Akahiso's doorway and trotted down the stairs to her own apartment. At least he hadn't smelled anyone lurking about. That might have just sent her into a fit of paranoia about whether or not Tobi was capable of hiding from Mitsuo's senses, except he'd picked out a stale scent on Tobi's notes that he identified as 'faintly cat-ish'.

Made sense. Is Uchiha.

So she was grateful for that confirmation of her memories, even if they did spell out bad news. The fact that Mitsuo wasn't familiar with Obito's original scent limited her ability to use Mitsuo's comment as evidence on its own, however. Whatever the hell Madara had done to that body had probably changed his scent, even if puberty and two decades away from the Uchiha complex hadn't.

Aiko was flagging at that point—she hadn't slept yesterday and the last streaks of sunlight were fading away. Having Mitsuo there (and then Hōseki, after a moment's contemplation) made her feel a bit better, but her sleep was still uneasy and frequently interrupted.

"This isn't going to work," she mumbled the third time she woke up sweating, staring irritably at her ceiling. It was a stupid ceiling. She had never noticed before, but she hated that ceiling.

Neither dog followed when she trailed out to her kitchen. Hōseki did trot in by the time the smell of bacon became evident. Aiko tossed a strip to the little dog—and then flushed at the glare she received for treating her friend like an animal.

"Sorry," she apologized sheepishly, before setting out two plates for the dogs and carting the rest off for herself on top of her scrambled eggs. Aiko couldn't help but notice that Hōseki hadn't been too proud to eat the meat off the floor, however.

She didn't want to stay at her apartment. At least not at night, while she was so vulnerable. But going to anyone else's home would unnecessarily endanger them, and anyways she didn't like to impose.

Aiko heaved a rather theatrical sigh that puffed her chest out to ridiculous proportions before sulkily pushing half of her food away uneaten. Mitsuo immediately stuck his face in her bowl and started making snarfling sounds. "This is going to be stupidly expensive," she moaned, cupping his cheeks and dragging his face up to make eye contact. A bit of egg dropped from Mitsuo's mildly surprised mug and plopped to the floor, and he blinked big sad brown eyes up at her. Hōseki clacked over to snap up the lost food.

"What's expensive?" she asked after she swallowed, not sounding as if she was particularly interested. She hadn't liked anything Aiko spent money on, except for fancy shampoos. Pakkun had probably corrupted her, or else she was in a competition to see who could get more spoiled by their respective partners.

"Renting a second apartment under a fake name," Aiko said blankly, already tabulating exactly what strain that would put on her finances. Sure, she had stupid amounts of money sitting around from her books, but she hated to dig into that. On the other hand that account was already under a fake name, and she couldn't put a price on her peace of mind.

The two dogs exchanged a look, and then Mitsuo seemed to shrug. He immediately went back to lapping up breakfast. Hōseki seemed to roll her eyes, backing up so that her little rear was in the air and laying her chin on her paws. "You have strange problems, boss."

She didn't bother arguing with the dog. Aiko mostly agreed, but didn't say anything. Instead, she killed time until sunrise by painting seals, on her apartment and on odds and ends like kunai.

'Do I owe Kakashi a thank-you for teaching me Kage bunshin?' Aiko wondered idly as a clone left with the two dogs to meet Ino for a pre-arranged spar.

Water clones were about as sturdy as the shadow clones, but they couldn't be stuffed into her actual clothes nearly as easily so that they would leave her real scent. Nor could they be maintained after she stopped consciously paying attention to them. Kage bunshin, on the other hand, could take orders and last until the chakra ran out or the construction was disrupted. That would take a while, and Ino would think it was just a prank when Aiko dissolved on the off chance that the clone let her get in a good physical blow. Hopefully that wouldn't happen, though, because it would be weird to just have her shorts sitting in the middle of a training field.

If he was actually watching, Tobi didn't have to believe that the clone was her all day. That just had to happen long enough for her to slip out under henge and head to the market district for a few essentials for a new apartment. Two hours later, a purple-haired woman in a lacey, conservative, and unspeakably voluminous white dress that Aiko wouldn't normally be caught dead in had withdrawn a completely horrifying amount of money from the bank Ino had set her account in.

She had spent a while thinking about the optimal location she would rent. Her initial thought had been that she should set herself up as far away as possible from her apartment to distance herself from Tobi. And then she had considered the fact that such an action was completely predictable. So she rented a tiny open flat in the building next door, where she could keep an eye on things. Metaphorically speaking of course, since the room was on the opposite side of the building, without a line of sight to her real apartment. If Tobi had any sense at all and knew what she had done, he would go to her windows and see which apartments had a view of hers and investigate those. That would be what she would do.

Aiko whiled away the time waiting for the building manager to file paperwork by internally debating whether her mind was too convoluted or just right. She ended up deciding that depending on whether or not Tobi was a similarly paranoid bastard.

It cost a sob story about an abusive ex boyfriend and an extra 25% of her rent to convince her elderly landlady to backdate the paperwork to indicate that Aiko had applied for the room two weeks prior and file it as such. She didn't want to find out that only one apartment in Konoha had been rented out the day after Tobi had sauntered into town. If he was half as sneaky as he seemed, he'd be able to piece that together.

She spent the time left until her clone failed painting her new apartment. Not in the conventional way, of course. Aiko had immediately pulled the full curtains she'd bought out of her satchel so that no one could see in and then covered the place in Hiraishin seals. If Tobi did track her here, she'd want to have a lot of mobility.

The influx of memories that hit her at that moment informed her that the clone had managed to make it through practice with Ino, but that Hōseki had bit it to end the chakra construct because it was time for Aiko to feed the dogs or they were going to go home. She snorted in amusement, but dropped the henge and siphoned chakra out of the seals on her gloves that quieted her chakra signature. Aiko took one last look around her new abode before she left via Hiraishin (she could hardly be tracked there if she never walked to the safehouse). It was quiet and decidedly unwelcoming. The floors were clean, but that was about the best thing that could be said about it.

'A safehouse isn't Barbie's dream mansion,' Aiko chided herself, turning on her heels away from the view even as she pulled herself back to her real apartment where the dogs were waiting. 'It doesn't have to be comfortable. It just has to do the job of giving me someplace Tobi won't look for me.'

Assuming he still wanted to get her alone, she was safer during the day than she was at night. Still, she didn't linger in her apartment. Mitsuo woofed happily when she nearly bolted for the door, and the trip downstairs inadvertently turned into a three-way run.

Hoseki won, so they scowled at her even as the three trekked to the market district. Unfortunately, she hadn't had time to buy food before Kotetsu found her. Aiko gave him a mournful stare, and tried not to stare too obviously at his meticulously groomed chin…beard… thing. He had to use a ruler to get it to look like that.

"Are you sure you can't tell Tsunade-sama that you didn't find me until after I'd had lunch?" she wheedled, employing puppy eyes to their best effect.

They were ineffective, though he did crack a smile. "I'm sure," he dryly retorted. "Why would I want to take a fall for you?"

She batted her eyes. "Because I'm adorable?" Aiko asked innocently.

Kotetsu rolled his eyes. "Not a chance," he replied flatly. "You can't trick me, short stuff. I've worked with Genma before. You're ten years too early to try to flirt your way out of having to report."

'What's that supposed to mean?'

Mildly bewildered by the reference to someone she didn't really know, she dismissed her hounds so they could go home to eat. There was no point in everyone being uncomfortable. Then she followed the Chuunin errand boy to Tsunade's office.

Apparently, Tsunade had wanted her to repeat her report to Konoha's spymaster. It was a bit tiresome, but Aiko understood the need. No matter how diligent Tsunade was, there was always the risk that a clue would be lost when a second person paraphrased a critical report. This was, she was available for questions.

For the first time, someone thought to ask what she had been able to see of the exposed eye through Tobi's mask to add something to their incredibly sparse physical description, which made her realize that she hadn't seen anything. Well, she had known that the eye was shadowed, but she hadn't thought about whether that was a consequence of the lighting and the way the mask blocked light or a genjutsu. Jiraiya seemed certain it was a genjutsu, and who was she to argue?

Now that she really considered it, it did seem positively bizarre that she hadn't been able to catch even a glint of red. Sharingan eyes were highly reflective, and would have caught the light at one point.

'On the other hand, Tobi would probably want to hide when he had that activated,' she thought self depreciatingly. She'd had other things on her mind, but still. She'd been staring at him so intently that she really should have wondered why all she saw was a black hole in his mask.

"I don't suppose you have anything else to add?" Jiraiya sighed.

Aiko bit her lip consideringly, and shrugged. Maybe he'd be able to make more sense of this, or point her in the right direction. Her mind was already racing ahead, trying to find a way to phrase what had happened without inserting her biases, so that Jiraiya could give an assessment that wasn't influenced by hers. "Did dad ever have a problem with his seals in a fight?" When all the man did was raise an eyebrow, she added, "Tobi did something really weird when he grabbed me."

A hard look shuttered over her godfather's eyes, and she wondered if it might have been a good idea to gloss over that part. Too late now.

Hurriedly, she continued, "It was- He took me…" Aiko frowned, and decided to just spit out her theory, since she couldn't think of a way to describe what had happened without tainting Jiraiya's impression. "It wasn't like using Hiraishin to slip between at all, but I think that's what it was." At his horror, she waved her hands. "Not Hiraishin!" she clarified, before dropping her hands and wringing her fingers together. "Another in-between space. A fourth dimension- or fifth, as it were," she added with dry humor. "It seemed like we were there much longer than I ever am in Hiraishin, so I could be wrong about it looking altogether different. But it was bizarre." She stopped to lick her lips, struggling for a way to describe what she'd seen. "I can't put it into words," Aiko settled lamely. "But anyway. When I was there, I couldn't feel my seals at all. And when we came back to Konoha, almost all of them were gone."

Tsunade went white.

"None of the ones on kage," Aiko reassured. "And I still have Naruto and Shinji tagged. The other jinchuuriki…" she made a face. "Might be a good idea to line them up and slap some paint on them, if they're willing. Probably won't be," she admitted honestly. "I don't think Fuu ever realized I'd tagged her. And Utakata probably won't want to see me again."

"Why didn't you tell me this before?" Tsunade snapped, looking more confused than actually angry.

"I was pretty disoriented," Aiko pointed out dryly. "I was in shock, and I'd just lost a sense. Not exactly my best moment. And you didn't give me much chance to offer information. You asked me the questions that were relevant to trying to catch Tobi, and then you sent me out, if you will recall."

Plus, she'd been feeling very vulnerable and not interested in sharing her weakness. Jiraiya looked at her in a way that implied he knew what she wasn't saying. He heaved a sigh and turned his chin up instead of confronting her, and put his hands on his hips. "Well," he mused, voice rumbling even lower than usual. "That is distressing. No, Minato never experienced anything like that. Why did you assume- oh, I see," he half-mumbled to himself. "It had to be a fifth dimension, counting yours as fourth, otherwise you would have been able to just Hiraishin out. Do you have any idea why he brought you back to Konoha?"

That had honestly never occurred to her. "Maybe he can't use it as a means of travel?" Aiko weakly suggested. "He seemed surprised that it hurt me. Maybe he just came back before he'd done whatever he intended to do." What the hell else would he use it for?

Jiraiya frowned. "Maybe, but I wouldn't count on it."

Tsunade had been looking a little lost, but at this point she scowled, having latching on to the last point. "I suppose that explains why we never caught him," she added grumpily.

The toad sannin just hummed in agreement, clearly not paying his old teammate much attention.

Naruto's eyes were all but closed, but he still noted a sense of warmth and presence approaching. He glanced over at the source as it knelt at his side. "I suppose you just happened to come help refill water?"

Sasuke gave him a withering glance before pulling the pack full of bottles off his back and beginning to pile them up. "Have you already checked the water composition?"

"I'm working on it," he replied shortly. It was necessary every single time they refilled water, despite being a massive pain in the ass. Once Karin had managed to stop twitching the first day they had arrived, she'd explained that the overwhelming chakra permeating the atmosphere suspiciously just inside the border indicated their opponent had control over the rain. That meant he had control over the water supply. So they had to be cautious.

'Not like Kakashi would have let us slack on securing the safety of the ration supply anyway.' Naruto had frankly been surprised to see that the older man could live up to his intimidating reputation when the time came. He had never been so stern and serious before. At least, not that Naruto had seen. Captain Yamato didn't seem surprised at all, so maybe he would have encountered this side of his old sensei if he had remained the man's student longer.

It reminded him a bit of Aiko's freaky personality change into sternness on their mission to hunt Mukade, actually. Terse and bossy and not doing a great job of hiding that they were hyper-alert and probably scared that something was going to happen to their subordin-

"Don't think so hard, you'll get a headache."

Naruto gave Sasuke a glare for that half-hearted gibe, but he couldn't really get behind the banter. The distracted and unhappy expression on the Uchiha's face indicated that he wasn't feeling it either.

It was the first time they'd had a chance to talk in anything resembling privacy since their early wakeup. Their superiors were distracted, not half-witted. If Yamato noticed them whispering a few hours after a report from home came, he would shut them down.

'If the pervert were here, I bet he'd be on our side.' Naruto rather violently shoved the next bottle under the water, half-wishing Jiraiya hadn't left with the toads' aid that morning. Jiraiya was technically the highest ranking person who had been out on the border, but he'd been there in an unofficial capacity. If he had been asked, he might have been willing to go against orders to go into Ame. The pervert had never cared much for orders. He was sort of awesome. Who else would go to work on their own initiative?

'Come to think of it, the pervert's been really serious too,' Naruto mused. 'You'd think that he would enjoy this more, since he was doing it of his own volition.'

His teammate's voice brought him back to the real world. "They'll know as soon as we cross the border." Sasuke's expression was blank.

"Yeah," Naruto acknowledged with a scowl. There had to be some way around that. "Do you think the rain technique is sensitive enough to monitor things like summons? I know that Aiko's isn't."

"If it isn't, we could send one of your toads in and reverse summon to his position," Sasuke suggested, dropping water purifier pills into the bottles one by one and then fastening them shut. There wasn't really a question that they intended to go fight Akatsuki. If they didn't have that delusional jackass with the water to worry about, Ame would have already been routed. The four-country alliance had sent a lot of firepower.

Naruto bit his lower lip and kicked out his heels, lying back on his elbows. "It takes a relatively big, powerful toad to do that," he admitted. "Gamakichi is getting pretty strong… but then it seems less likely that he'll be able to slip in unnoticed."

Sasuke grunted in acknowledgement, leaning back a little himself. "We might need Karin," he mused. "Do you think she'll be amenable? It would be preferable to ensure that no one is going to herd us into a trap."

"Yeah," Naruto said, with a little more confidence than he felt. "She's getting sick of waiting here too. I bet she's anxious to do something. Besides,-"

"I can hardly leave you idiots to get yourselves killed alone," Karin dryly finished, giving them a dirty look as both boys spun around to see her. She heaved a sigh and pulled her heavy hair off her neck, making a face at the damp. "How did I know you were planning something stupid?" she asked conversationally, before snapping her fingers. "Oh wait! Could it be the significant glances you were exchanging all day? The way you not so subtly arranged to be alone? Or was it just that you're predictable?"

"To be fair, those same clues could have been used to derive any number of possibilities," Sasuke bantered, giving her that sideways half-smile that always sent a shiver up Naruto's spine and made him think of the moment before Baa-chan said something really off-putting.

"Like what, you two were running off for a romantic tryst?" Karin asked bluntly, folding her legs in front of her and using one hand as a brace. The other hand fidgeted with her glasses, revealing that she wasn't as unaffected as she was portraying. Naruto was transfixed. He was missing something. He knew he was, but he didn't know what it was.

"Why, are you jealous?" Sasuke asked smoothly, giving a languid stretch that did something funny to the graceful muscles of his neck. "You've caught us. We came out here, to this soggy paradise, to fu-"

"Bastard!" Naruto shrieked, leaping at him to cover his mouth and make him stop saying such weird things. Sasuke had been ready for that, however, and he found himself pinned on his stomach with his wrists caught in Sasuke's hand. Naruto was oddly relieved, even as he went through the obligatory wiggling and whining when his teammate unceremoniously sat on his back. Wrestling was familiar and safe.

There was an odd sound that might have been a giggle, if Karin weren't more likely to cackle. She cleared her throat, and Naruto heard her advise mock-seriously, "I think you're going to have to try a different position, but I'm not here to judge. Either way… What do you two have to say about this situation?"

"I think we're going to have to wait until Jiraiya returns," Naruto admitted grumpily, clawing at the ground and getting mud encrusted up to his second knuckles. "He's probably the only one who can fight with our mysterious kami." The way he pronounced the last word was rather close to the way Sasuke's persistently disgruntled great-aunt might say things like 'unicorn', 'fiscal responsibility,' and 'dog feces'.

Feeling charitable, Sasuke only gave Naruto a little kick in the ribs as he got up and began gathering the equipment to return to camp. "How long can that be?" he asked philosophically. "Jiraiya might be needed in the village, but that's probably for one very specific thing, and then he'll be out here again. Tsunade-sama has a hard time keeping him where he's supposed to be when he's not invested. Since he wants to be here, it's only a matter of time."

"Are we just going to hope that everyone capitulates, or should we start feeling out who else is restless enough to make our own plan?" Karin asked with a sigh, giving a stretch that cracked her back four times. "If we can figure out a way to communicate long distance, we could actually take advantage of our superior numbers."

Naruto gave a theatrical scoff and jumped up to his feet, snatching half of Sasuke's burden away and beginning to stride back to camp. "Tactics, Karin?" he tossed over his shoulder. "Don't you realize that's the refuge of people who can't just hit their problems in the face?"

"Oh no," she droned. "Do I ever feel embarrassed."

"Well, if it makes you feel better," Naruto mock-assured her. "I guess we can try it. But I reserve the right to fall back on using superior force and yelling a lot."

"As if anyone could stop you," Sasuke sighed, sharing a mildly piteous look with Karin behind Naruto's back.

The blond gave him a hurt expression, big blue eyes quavering. "Hey, are you calling me stupid?"

"If the geta fit…"

Author's note

For those who wondered what flowers Aiko fed to the drain…

Anemone- sincerity

Poppy- comfort

Which was a nice apology gesture. Tobi is a nice guy. Definitely a very good boy. It might have worked better if Aiko was a different kind of girl.

Omake: If Ino had disrupted Aiko's clone

The ugly sound of teeth grinding was all she could hear for several seconds while Ino tried to calm her breathing and her temper.

It didn't work. "Aiko, you irresponsible troglodyte!" she shrieked, outright stomping her foot. "Come back here and fight me!"

No one emerged from the treeline to apologize for snubbing her by not even showing up to their planned spar or to claim that the joke had been in poor taste. Balefully, she directed her glare to the shorts and tanktop lying crumpled on the ground where the clone had been when she'd gotten a rather vicious kick in. Ino could see just a hint of a turquoise strap peeking out from under the tanktop. First of all, who went to the trouble of putting a bunshin in real clothes? Secondly, what kind of damn lunatic would be thorough enough to make it wear underwear?

Aiko, apparently. That was who. Ino hmmpfed and tossed her hair over her shoulder, wavering for just a second as to whether there was any point to engaging in a good stomp off if no one was here to see it. After a moment's contemplation, she decided that she was dramatic for her personal edification and not to play to an audience, so she whipped around and walked away with a straight back and high chin.

#vapors #uzumaki aiko #electrasev5n #ninja daily #fanfiction #naruto fanfiction

[sgrayonderii]

nom de guerre

SSM21 Day 17: a gentle man

In which some titles are more accurate than others. Samurai-esque AU

It is common knowledge that for a noble title and a swath of land, her mother was sold to a warlord.  

Haruno Sakura had the great misfortune of being born as the daughter of a destitute samurai family. Their master had long been vanquished and their lands long sold to make ends meet. And yet still longed for days yonder. 

But her mother also had the great fortune of being born a beauty, so when the opportunity arose; a passing hegemon looking for a bride, Sakura’s parents took a chance. 

They say that the young warlord was so mesmerized by her mother that he immediately accepted the terms of the expensive bride price and took her as his wife. 

On their wedding day, mother was dressed in her finest robes while her father arrived late in a full suit of blood soaked armor. 

The ceremony itself was a soleum affair. Her parents pledged themselves before the gods and swear to their union.

And so Haruno Sakura becomes Lady Uchiha no Sakura, the wife of Lord Uchiha no Madara.

----

Sarada has faint memories of her father; more often than not her father is sent to the battlefield and only returns a few days to weeks at a time between campaigns. 

The Uchiha clan is one of the important noble families of the Konoha and known for its long history of bloodthirsty warriors. Her father is no exception. 

Whenever he returns home, Sarada hides behind her mother’s skirt. Her father is an imposing demon-like man, larger than life, and taller than a mountain. Someone more suited for stories and legends than real life. 

They call him a man more fearsome than Susanoo-no-Mikoto itself. So violent, so blood crazed, it is a wonder that Sakura lived as long as she did when a male heir had yet to be born. 

Thankfully, it seems that as a daughter, her father pays very little attention to her. Whenever he returns from the borderlands between here and Oto, he barely spares her a glance. 

However, whenever his eyes meet her mother’s through his helmet, he beckons her over. 

“Sakura,” he commands, voice deep and low, “bring some tea to my quarters.”

Sarada always remembers her mother looking angry but determined then. Sakura dutifully follows her husband into the inner chambers. She doesn’t emerge until late morning.

Sarada is usually having lessons during this time, but one day she sneaks out of her etiquette classes to find her mother. 

She searches almost the entire unusually empty manor before finding Sakura in the kitchen brewing tea. Her mother’s clothes are covered in blood and her hands are covering her tears. 

Sarada has never seen her mother sob so terribly before.

From then on, she decides that her father must be an especially cruel man. 

---- 

Whenever her father returns from war, her Papa also comes home. 

Today she finds him on the engawa overlooking the gardens. He is sipping some tea while looking over some scrolls. He appears injured, bandages wrapped around his torso, but otherwise in good health. 

If her father is the devil incarnate, then Sarada’s papa is a handsome devil. 

No wonder her Mama is so taken with him. Sometimes when she is supposed to be asleep, she can hear her Mama fuss over Papa. They hold hands when no one is looking and share secrets no other soul knows. 

Despite the cold manor they reside in, Mama is an affectionate woman at her core and her Papa is receptive to all she has to give. 

And Papa must be someone important too; after all he is allowed to leave and enter from the inner quarters that a normal Uchiha foot soldier could not. 

Sarada pads over to him, he looks up and beckons her closer. 

“Have you been a good girl, little peanut?” 

Sarada scoffs. “ I’m not a nut.” But she holds out her hands anyways. 

Her Papa chuckles and pulls out some dried persimmons from his sleeves. “Don’t tell Sakura.” 

Sarada smiles at their little secret before taking a bite. “What are you reading?” Her Papa allows her to climb onto his lap and drapes the scroll over her. Sarada squints, only understanding a fraction of the words on the paper. She points and reads aloud the characters she recognizes.

“Good girl.” He slips her another dried persimmon.

That is when her mother finds them. 

“Sasuke-kun!” her mama enters the scene in a huff, “I told you to stop that, you’ll ruin her dinner.”

Sarada quickly shoves both persimmons into her mouth. Her papa has the decency to look sheepish. 

“You can’t keep spoiling her like that! She is going to get an upset stomach!” Sakura continues.

“Do you want me to spoil you too?” 

Her mama sputters, all red and flustered. Her hands move to cover her flaming cheeks.

Sarada meanwhile uses the distraction to hold out her hands for another treat. Her gentle papa instead leans down and kisses her forehead.

---

For the past year, her father and his retainers had been defending the borders between Oto and Konoha. After the dissenters were finally defeated, a grand celebration is held in her father’s honor. 

She remembers that her father was hailed as the second coming of Madara, the legendary clan head from the distant past. The comparison is uncanny, both bloodthirsty and merciless but dauntless in the face of adversary. Soon it becomes her father’s mantle; Lord Uchiha no Madara, the slayer of the Orochi. 

Sarada hadn't been invited to the banquet due to her age but that night she is much too excited to sleep. She has never seen so many people gathered in one place in her life. And even though her father’s presence makes her nervous, she loves the tales about his exploits. 

The banquet hall is rowdy and the envoy’s drunken singing could be heard from down the halls. The fuzzy silhouettes of her father’s soldiers line the banquet hall, she has a hard time making out who is who. Everything is quite blurry even with the multiple lanterns.

The only one Sarada could identify for sure is her mother. Sakura’s features are distinct, like a lone flower against the night sky. Her mother sits obediently at the head of the table beside the man that is her father. 

He has forsaken armor this time, but there is still a sword at his side. From the distance, her father doesn’t look particularly like he was enjoying the festivities. 

He appears bored. Perhaps his blood is not used to peace, after all a beast belonged in the wild and a warrior to the battlefield. 

Sakura every once and a while would refill her father’s sake cup or serve him more of the feast in front of him. Occasionally, when her mother would lean over and her father would whisper something into her ear. 

Her mama would stiffen and her face would become strained. At first Sarada can’t make out the expression, until a small smile blooms on her mama’s visage. 

Sarada goes to bed soon after, not quite understanding their interactions. 

---

Her earliest memory of Papa is halfway past her fourth year. 

Father had been back for a few days now, not that she had really seen him. And to be perfectly honest, her father is a scary man and she would rather not run into him. 

But Sarada is also curious so she puts on a brave face and finds herself outside her mother’s quarters.

Peering through the crack in the paper screen door, Sarada spots her mother’s figure and a man she doesn’t recognize. 

Her mama is leaning on the man’s shoulder while he serves her sake with his free hand. Back then, Sarada found it a strange role reversal that a man dressed in such luxurious robes was pouring her mama a drink. 

Sarada has seen some men in her father’s army throw a tantrum when a pretty lady wouldn’t attend to them. Even Sakura during official functions knows to serve her father first before anyone else can even eat.

But this man sat with her mama so nonchalantly and closely, breaking tradition as if it was nothing!

Her shock was audible to where her mother and the man turned to see her crouched by the entryway. 

Sarada felt as if she interrupted a private moment, but man’s expression morphed into something soft and Sakura giddily rushes over to pick her up. 

“Sarada! Come, come! Papa is here, see?” Sakura hands her over the stranger’s awaiting arms. She doesn’t want to leave her mama’s embrace but the man’s is just as warm. 

“Hello little peanut, have you been good while I was away?” 

How is she supposed to answer him? She opts for a nod and reaches for the familiarity of her mother.

“Sasuke-kun…” 

“It’s alright, she probably isn’t used to my face.” He leans over regardless and kisses her mother’s forehead. Then he looks Sarada straight in the eye. “I am you papa.” 

Sarada thinks she likes this ‘Sasuke-kun,’ this Papa. Someone so kind to her mother can’t be a bad man. 

----

As she gets older, Sarada becomes privy to the rumors about the current acting head of the Yamanaka clan. How her son looks nothing like her deceased husband but has the same eyes as the court painter. 

And Sarada has her own theories about her mama and the man that is her papa.

She just hopes that her father never finds out. 

---

Even though her mother is essentially the lady of the house, Sarada still hears whispers of her lineage. Even more so now that Sarada begins wearing glasses. 

Before her father leaves for his next campaign, he gives Sakura his inkan. 

As the wife of the lord, Sakura officially acts as his surrogate in any official business even if some of the family retainers aren’t happy about it. 

Fortunately, many would rather swallow their pride that incur her father’s wrath. 

All except one. 

Uchiha no Shin, a rather minor branch clan member, always disapproved of her father and even more so now that he left his wife in charge of the estate in his absence. 

It all comes to a head when Sakura denies him funding for a rather ill thought out building project. 

“You dirty wench! ” 

Sarada can hear the screams from her room. She rushes to the scene. Sakura is still standing her ground when she arrives. 

“I don’t see any benefit in this strategy and I doubt my dear lord husband would either.” 

“What do you know?! You are nothing but a plaything you stupid bitch, I’ll teach you some manners!” Shin chooses that moment to raise his hand at her mother. 

Sarada feels the anger seep into her bones but her mother chooses that moment to retaliate and punch Shin square in the face herself. 

Shin falls back unceremoniously. Sarada is slack jawed. 

“How dare you!” he seethes. Shin tries to get up only for another person to rush to her mother’s aid. 

Shin’s screams are agonizing and it takes Sarada a moment to realize that not only had her father returned, but he had drawn his sword and stabbed it clean through Shin’s arm, effectively pinning it to the tatami. 

“Sasuke-kun!” 

Sarada blinks once. Twice. 

“Are you alright Sakura?” Her father, her papa asks, completely ignoring their screaming relative. 

Sakura nods and he turns to her as well “Are you okay Sarada?” his voice deep and low but the same kind cadence up close as her beloved papa.

Suddenly her father’s mysterious and distant features that were always hazy to her meld with the papa in front of her now.  

Sarada adjusts her glasses. She feels really stupid in that moment. 

---

This time, Sarada is invited to the banquet. 

It’s an annual harvest festival and her father is the guest of honor. The local leaders once again announce him as ‘Lord Uchiha no Madara’ much to his chagrin. 

“I really hate when they call me that.” Sasuke tells them later when the food is being served and drinks are flowing freely. Sakura is on one side while Sarada is on the other. Habitually he is discreetly putting any sweets that make it his way and the tenderest pieces of meat onto their plates. 

“Anata,” with time Sarada notices that her mother only ever uses this term in public when her father needed more placating than usual, “they are just just in awe of how great you are!”

“I wish they had chosen something different, Madara was such a pain in the ass.” 

“Sasuke-kun!” Her mother tries to be scandalized but can’t help but devolve into a fit of giggles. 

As her father continues to look on adoringly at his wife, Sarada can’t help but agree with him. 

A name like that is unfitting of her gentle papa. 

A/N: Happy Sasusaku month 2021! My brain is mush right now so excuse the multitude of grammatical errors. Thank you for reading!

And just to note in historical Japan, men tended to change their names depending on significant life events. For example, Minamoto no Yoshitsune's childhood name was Ushiwakamaru.

@ssskmonth

#sasusaku #SSM21d17 #SSM21 #Sasusaku Month #ssskmonth

[yama-hoe]

What's your opinion on Boruto?

Ok, so I had to wait until I was on my laptop for a bit to respond to this one, because, it's complicated and long. I have only watched up to "Himawari's Ninja Trial Session" #154 so far.

On the one hand,

•I like that we get to see the characters all grown up, and seeing their children is super fun! Mitsuki, Inojin, Chocho, Himawari, and Shikadai are all a lot of fun to watch and my favorites in the show. We get to see Kakashi, and Gai, and Tenten, Ino, Sai, and other of my favorite og Naruto characters all grown up and living their best lives.

On the other hand.... (and this one will be a lot longer ghdskfld).

• The characterization for a lot of the og Naruto characters, is, let's just say, off. Naruto, after everything with his parents and wishing he could have his parents back, being an absent father? Especially with all of the shadow clones he can make and chakra he has? No. Tsunade and Kakashi AND Naruto all letting Orochimaru go free, after everything he has done to Konoha, and being able to experiment more? No. Sakura being ok with being basically a single mother, raising Sarada all by herself, never getting over Sasuke? Nope!

• But, here's the thing: I'm also rather bothered by the ending of Shippuden. The beginning of the series, there is a really strong stance on "breaking the cycle of hatred." Once Naruto becomes more mainstream, the solution for "breaking the cycle of hatred" is finally revealed: don't seek reparations, don't try and change the current system too much, and just forgive and forget.

➼ Naruto, shunned and hated by the village? There is never any reparations shown, just, now that he has saved them all and is a hero, they pretend it never happens? No one apologizes, or talks about it? There's just a small scene with Naruto accepting the "dark" side of himself that is upset with how he is treated, and it's all brushed over.

➼ Same with Kakashi, being shunned as a kid for Sakumo saving his team? Later labeled a "friend killer" and still shunned, when all he is doing is doing his best for the village and acting on their rules. And Sakumo, driven to the unthinkable because of the hatred of the village. There is never actually any action taken there.

➼ This includes the Uchiha and Sasuke. His entire clan was shunned, considered "cursed with hatred", ostracized, and eventually killed because of Danzo, his brother made out to be the only perpetrator. He, rightfully, wants revolution, an entire upturning of the current system that allowed this to happen. He went a little too far in killing others not involved in this system, but he wasn't wrong. He and his entire clan that he represents were grievously mistreated by this system, and nothing is ever really done about it. Sure, Danzo is killed, but he wasn't the only one complicit in the massacre. The only reason Sasuke doesn't get the reparations he deserves is because of Naruto, too, because he would have had to kill him, his best friend, to do it. And isn't that fucked up, that you have to even hurt, let alone kill, your best friend to get the justice you deserve? Sasuke was given the short end of the stick on that one.

• And, finally: the aliens from space were a complete cop-out on the writers part. No, seriously. Everything bad ever done is blamed on Zetsu and Kaguya manipulating from the shadows, with the exception of a couple of the worst ones (looking at you Danzo). Madara still started a war and killed hundreds over it, same with Obito. The villages still behaved terribly towards those who were different (Gaara, the kekkei genkai massacre in Mist, Naruto, Kakashi, Uchiha clan, Tailed Beasts, etc.).

➼ If they actually wanted to stick to the og message of "breaking the cycle of hatred", they would have had Madara be the actual final villain, the wronged clan leader of the Uchiha, and they would have won, sure, but barely, and recognized how their own prejudices and behavior lead to another great war. Maybe Obito would have survived, to not leave the Uchiha clan with only one member. There would be a new generation after the war, of people who realized that the previous way wasn't working; that it was wrong. With Sasuke and Obito helping lead that change, with Kakashi and Naruto as their Hokages. There would be ACTUAL CHANGE.

This all could have translated over to Boruto, with actual justice for those wronged, and not just burying the past and hoping the next generation will never find out. I hate that Sarada has no idea what happened to her own clan, that she is so far removed from her own clan and history. Boruto doesn't really understand what his dad went through as a kid. Naruto as an absent father. A scientist that experiments on a kills children, allowed to walk free, with the children he experimented on (Yamato, Karin, Suigetsu, Jugo) having to either stay with him or watch him 24/7.

So, anon, sorry that turned into an essay, ghdskflsd, but the above bullets are how I feel on Boruto. If the ending of Naruto Shippuden and Boruto actually addressed the systemic injustices and issues in the villages, I would have absolutely loved it. As it is now, I will probably still watch it, but I get upset over all the above bullet points each time I watch and rant to all my discord friends about it (sorry about that ghdskflsd)

#anon ask #this got sooo long #i could spend hours talking about the systemic problems in Konoha #i HAVE spend hours talking about all this ghdksfsd

[mira--mira]

Hi! I was wondering

How do you think Hashirama and Madara would be in a Road to Ninja version?

I remember once reading a Hashimada fic (which I never finished RIP) that was about Madara appearing in the RTN universe and the 3 things that stucked with me were:

1.- Madara was the first Hokage (something that Madara thought was horrible when he saw his sculpted face on the Hokage mountain 🤣)

And personally I think that it would not have been like that even in the RTN universe because we didn't see his face along with the other faces of Hokages in the movie (Yeah, apparently I'm basing myself on a movie which I'm not even sure if it's canon or not, even though Kishimoto wrote it) and the RTN characters didn't seem to even know who Madara is.

2.- Hashirama having his bowlcut as an adult

And I agree with the Madara from that fanfic, it looks awful on him. Hashirama, babe, I'm sorry but the only ones who can rock that style are Guy Sensei and Rock Lee, I know you just were trying to be cool but it doesn't suite you.

3.- Tobirama was a porn writer

Instead of being a fan of forbidden jutsu and creating justus, he wrote porn novels a la Jiraiya. And I'll hold that headcanon with my dead hands.

The only other fanfic that places the founders in the RTN universe is one where the protagonist is Mito (it's an interesting one-shot that pairs her with Itama 🤔)

She was kind of a shy person 🤔? And so it was Tobirama 🤣 which I found fun.

Hashirama, as the first fanfic I mentioned, was the Tobirama of the place (saddenly Madara wasn't in this fic).

So I would like to know what are your versions of the founders (or only Hashirama and Madara if it is too much) in the RTN universe! And how do you think things would be

Hmm, RTN is an interesting concept to me but, to be honest, I don't think Konoha would exist if a lot of personalities got flipped 😂 I haven't read any RTN fics with the founders, but if you, or anyone else, have links at hand I'd love to check them out 👀

1. Madara

Here's the big one and the crux of why I don't think the village would exist. Typically I characterize Madara as an extremely responsible man who internalizes things when he shouldn't, takes himself way too seriously, is aggressive and abrasive even to people he loves sometimes, but genuinely loves the people closest too him. Reversing this would make a character that slacks off, takes no responsibility, and is completely passive in life and has fleeting attachments to others around him. Assuming he wouldn't die on the battlefield, I could see the RTN "alternate" personality coming about of Madara's being so overpowered and competent that he loses interest and distances himself from things before he can get attached and lose them.

It makes building a village very hard though. (At first I was tempted to go RTN Sasuke route and maybe RTN!Madara is a little more openly flirty than canon!Madara, but the passivity and refusal to take responsibility would be the "core" qualities for me.)

2. Hashirama

Hashirama is a bit weird because he has a lot of surface-level "conflicting" traits in canon. He is optimistic but he pushes beyond his natural attitude and uses it as a mask to hide instead of addressing his feelings. He's mischievous, likes jokes and games, and can be a bit hedonistic with his pleasure but can equally be serious when necessary and will willingly sacrifice for others around him. And simultaneously, Hashirama and Madara are connected by a shared sense of idealism but also anger. Hashirama is a very kind, but extremely angry, man. I think a RTN!Hashirama would share a kind of apathy of RTN!Madara but instead of passivity his lack of anger would manifest as cruelty. Because canon!Hashirama is angry but his anger is usually a righteous kind. I don't think RTN!Hashirama would go out of his way to be cruel, but he doesn't have the empathy of canon!Hashirama, especially to others' suffering. He enjoys fighting just a bit too much and has no qualms about killing. In his mind, he should always come first in any situation and prioritizing (or even considering) others' is effort and him going out of his way to be "nice" and the other should be thankful. Similarly if he feels any negative emotion, he won't bottle it up and swallow it down, he'll immediately address it, usually confrontationally. RTN!Hashirama is as intelligent as his canon counterpart but he doesn't suffer fools and he hates it when people underestimate him. He's pretty proud and vain, tbh.

I really don't think the above would make him the "Tobirama" of RTN verse. To me Hashirama and Tobirama have different core values and perspectives and inverting Hashirama's doesn't make it become Tobirama's, if that makes sense. This one is also wordy bc I immediately knew how RTN!Madara would be RTN!Hashirama is a bit harder to pin down. But I hope it's clear why I have doubts about the village existing...maybe if RTN!Hashirama got it in his mind as a pet project for the hell of it, that he'd be a better leader for the country and not just the Senju alone, and RTN!Madara liked the idea of no responsibility and being able to detach even further than he already was? But that's still kind of grasping for a reason.

3. Hashimada

Equally I think any Hashirama/Madara relationship would be ehhh. They definitely wouldn't have the overwhelming bond of their canon counterparts, and it could be a relationship ripe for unhappiness. The closest I can think of to making the ship work is RTN!Madara would be drawn to Hashirama's absurd level of self-confidence and able to let the casual cruelty slide off instead of getting worked up about it. In a way RTN!Hashirama is stable and predictable. If he's pretty overpowered, there's less of a chance RTN!Madara would lose him, so their relationship isn't deep but it's more or less dependable and Madara knows exactly what he's going to get. In contrast RTN!Hashirama has an audience in the form of RTN!Madara and a partner that's not going to push back against his ideas. RTN!Madara doesn't ask for much and he doesn't complain when RTN!Hashirama puts himself first. He doesn't want, or might not be capable of, the deep emotional bond their canon counterparts have. RTN!Madara wouldn't leave Konoha (if it existed) in the AU, because he doesn't really care. If someone upset RTN!Hashirama and he decided to leave to 'do it right' RTN!Madara would probably follow, maybe out of some loyalty for RTN!Hashirama but mostly because it's what's easiest.

4. Tobirama

The core of Tobirama's character to me is prioritizing logic over emotion and both a conscious and unconscious failure to realize he can't completely eliminate emotion. Tobirama loves his brother, he's curious and has a desire to find out what makes things work and is willing to bend morality to get results if it'll serve a greater good. He's very aware of the unfairness of the world but believes it's an unspoken truth of humanity and can only be mitigated through logical means, but never completely erased. He'll be the sacrificial lamb, the one that works in shadows so his brother can have his utopian dream. Despite everything, he loves his genin, the strongest bonds he has aside from Hashirama, and does try to instill in them lessons he think will help them and lead to peace and stability in the village. He's still influenced by the prejudices of his time and can never find it in him to truly forgive the Uchiha.

A RTN!Tobirama would be a man ruled by emotion. Him writing erotica all day definitely could be one way this manifests lol. But overall he's sensitive and spiritual and can't stand the idea of killing. He and RTN!Hashirama don't get along and he actively tries to avoid his brother. RTN!Tobirama has equally strong principles as canon!Tobirama, but they're pacifist in nature and while he likes his studies, he prefers to be out talking to people and learning from them first hand. He's very naive and can be easily taken advantage of and he has trouble focusing on any one thing for too long. No matter how many times this happens, he never can harden his heart or be overly suspicious of others. RTN!Tobirama would most likely be the one support peace in this AU. He embraces the Uchiha and all the Senjus past enemies with open arms, almost to a foolish degree. It'd be a bad idea if he became hokage in this AU because he's a terrible negotiator and has a bad people-pleasing streak and struggles with long-term tactics. With the exception of RTN!Hashirama, who he considers an aberration who doesn't have a soul, humans at their core all have good intentions at heart.

5. Mito

I characterize Mito as a very level-headed woman. Her marriage to Hashirama is political in nature but they grow to be good friends and she never expected to fall in love and she's glad Hashirama didn't want a traditional wife. Mito is devoted to her community work (she works hands-on with people in the village), she seeks out connections with others and, despite the distance, remains close with her family in Uzushio, constantly writing them letters. She's spiritual and follows the Uzumakis' beliefs (not gonna list this OoT spoiler lol) and studies fuinjutsu in her spare time, something she's done since she was a child. She is willing to sacrifice if it meant protecting something she considered greater than herself, much to her own personal detriment. She loves and is proud of her children and grandchildren, but if she had a choice, she would have chosen to remain childless, she finds her true calling elsewhere.

RTN!Mito, similarly to RTN!Tobirama, is ruled by emotions. She dreams of one day making a good marriage for herself and centers romance and being a mother as her ideal life, but she's extremely picky when it comes picking the perfect husband. RTN!Mito knows how much she's worth and she refuses to settle and will not even entertain the idea of an arranged marriage. She has a hard time forming long-lasting, deep bonds with other people and views starting her own family as the solution to this problem. At times she can be a bit absent-minded and unintentionally selfish, but she's not actively malicious. She blusters a lot and depending on the situation can come off as cold and uncaring, but it's only to hide the depth of her true feelings and loneliness. In this AU she would absolutely refuse to marriage RTN!Hashirama. Nothing on hell or earth, could make her change her mind.

Mito is such a blank-slate character it feels like writing an oc more than a canon character, tbh. And this is something I don't see brought up a lot but a "heart full of love" to combat the kyuubi's hatred to me has never been exclusive to romantic or familial (to children) love. *cough* I want a complex female character who's not vilified for not wanting to have children and/or regretting having them *cough* Mito's "love" was for the people of Konoha and Uzushio. My personal headcanon regarding her and Hashirama's child (I don't think she had more than one) was that she was dedicated to her son, but quickly realized being a mother wasn't her dream or something she even actively liked. The kid was well-cared for and she was dutiful towards him, but Hashirama was the parent that loved and embraced him with his whole heart and it led to some tension between Mito and her son as the kid could tell the difference and neither of them were "wrong" to feel the way they did. This is why Tsunade was shown with Hashirama instead of Mito, he was a lot more present in her life when she was young (instead of Kishi just not having made Mito as a character yet). But after Hashirama and Tsunade's dad died (and then Nawaki), she and Mito grew close but it was definitely more of a friendship or student/mentor relationship rather than a traditional grandmother/granddaughter relationship but both were satisfied with it and loved eachother. Likewise I didn't want RTN!Mito's characterization to be shallow and hit misogynistic undertones with her being an "opposite" to Mito's calm, level-headed, focused on her work/passions characterization.

6. Closing thoughts

#1: Wow this got long #2: I feel conflicted about RTN because it seemed to flip surface-level characteristics instead of deep characterizations, and ignored flaws altogether. The ones above, esp. Hashirama and Madara's, are kind of dark in a way? But that's the only way it makes sense to me...Gai and Lee caring about style and being stylish is a funny joke but if you were to actually poke and prod and say their personalities were inverted, neither of them would be top-notch ninja as we know...unless I'm just completely misremembering RTN because I realize it's been years since I saw it lol. Anyway, hope this was entertaining!

#naruto #hashimada #hashirama senju #madara uchiha #mito uzumaki #tobirama senju #asks #al-stuffy #rtn au #long post

[sunnywritesstuff34]

Illusions

(Yayyyy. Another one. It’s been a while, sorry. just wanna preface this by saying that like... I usually don’t really give a shit about Obito, but I figured this was a natural progression of the story and I kinda wanted to try and dive into Obito’s psyche a little so. here we go. tell me what you think. @ghostjellyfishheart here’s the next chapter lol. pls mind the tw’s)

TW and CW for: MAJOR UNREALITY, seriously stay safe, Obito is kinda spiraling a lot, grieving, struggling with morality, drinking, alcohol, less then stellar coping mechanisms of all kinds, don’t do this kids, child death, ghost child, dead kid, you don’t like... see her die but Rin is very much not alive, references to suicide, implied suicide, the uchiha massacre is its own warning, murder, its bad. its just. its just bad. did I mention unreality? a lot of that, death of a family member, obito is having a hard time with feelings, probably dis@ssociation, pretentious symbolism, scratch that, definitely dis@ssociation

Obito Uchiha is upset. 

And that is, frankly, ridiculous. Obito does not get upset. What does upset even mean? Is he sad? Mourning, perhaps? Or is he just worried? Either way, its borderline impossible. He shouldn’t be feeling anything. Obito doesn’t feel anything. Sure, he plays at it, when he’s Tobi. He feigns and pretends, he’s good at that. That is what he is, that is all he is. To Itachi, he is Madara. To Konan and Nagito, he is Obito. To everyone else, he is Tobi. Obito has taken on mask after mask after mask on in his life, both figuratively and literally. Sometimes he doesn't know where Obito ends and another begins. Obito does not feel anything, not for anyone that isn't Rin. Never for anyone that isn't Rin, and he left her behind a long time ago. And yet this boy, this child, has him reeling somehow. Has him… well, like before, the only word he can use is upset. He is rattled. And it has been so long, so long since he’s felt anything at all, that he doesn't know what to do. He doesn't know how to fix it. He kept seeing Sasuke in his head, kept remembering memories from years ago when he thought about the kid being gone forever. He remembered the first few years Itachi brought Sasuke to the compound, he remembered spontaneously discovering his obsession with tomatoes by accident with Kisame (who would not stop laughing. He had just never seen anybody. Put an entire tomato in their mouth. And Sasuke did it like it was the most natural thing in the world! Kisame wouldn't shut up about it for at least a week). He remembered helping the boy train with his newly forged chokuto, he remembered the grim determination towards his family and how much it reminded Obito of himself, he remembered all of it. And none of that should have mattered, because it wasn't real. None of it was real, the next world would be. The next world with Rin and Kakashi and Minato-sensei still alive, a world without… without Sasuke. Or any of the other Akatsuki. And that was what he wanted. He was sure that was what he wanted. Only in his room could he show the weakness tightly coiled in his stomach. But there was a knock on his door and it made him straighten up, instantly putting the mask that he just took off back on his face. He walked to the door and opened it, only to find the older Uchiha brother staring back at him. Obito blinked. 

“Itachi-san. What are you… what are you doing here? I- uh… come in.” Obito and Itachi sat down at the small table in Obito’s room and stared at each other awkwardly. “So… how can I help you?” Obito tried to ask, unsure of whether to say it like Tobi or just let his guard down and talk like himself (whoever that was). Itachi cleared his throat. 

“You are the only person in this godforsaken place that has sake that's worth a damn,” Itachi explained calmly. He looked away. “It has… been a long week.” Obito could tell the truth in that statement just from his cousin’s voice. Itachi sounded exhausted, and the perpetual mask of indifference had begun to slip when his little brother went missing. The two of them looked at each other and came to an understanding. For the next few minutes, there was no talking. Obito grabbed some glasses and poured his strongest sake out for the both of them, and they drank in silence. They only actually picked up a conversation once they were both drunk enough for the awkwardness to melt away. 

“He’s likely not dead,” Obito commented bluntly. Itachi only sighed. 

“If he is, I have no idea what I'd do,” Itachi grumbled casually, like it was an ordinary thing to say. “Certainly wouldn't stick around here. Probably follow in Shisui’s footsteps.” Obito only nodded, knowing better than to pry on that particular bit of insight into Itachi’s life. They were silent for a few more minutes before Obito spoke again. 

“The massacre,” Obito started. “I was long gone by the time it happened. What… are you and Sasuke really the only survivors as the rumors say?” Itachi nodded, throwing back another glass. Obito thought about that bitterly, about his grandmother who wouldn't have been spared. Itachi sighed. 

“Right. I've never really talked about this with anyone, and Sasuke and I don't speak about it much. You know how sharingan awakening works, yes?” Obito nodded, mind involuntarily flashing to his own experience. 

“Well I made some genuine friends on my genin team. It was the first time I ever had any friends.” Obito closed his eyes and took another sip. Friends, sharingan awakening. Being crushed under a boulder with your crying teammates looming over you. Thinking, no, don't cry, it doesn't hurt. It really doesn't hurt. I can't feel anything, please don't cry. Watching a particular white haired individual (a traitor, that traitor) desperately try to save you. Losing a part of yourself, a part of yourself you didn't even know you had, and giving it to someone else. Forever living with that, knowing that your other eye is somewhere, because you can still feel it, but not knowing much else. The aching absence that grows from that. He opened his eyes again. “I watched them die, right in front of my eyes. That awakened my Sharingan, and when I went home, my father congratulated me. He congratulated me. It was a nightmare and he was proud. I don't know, that always stuck with me. But anyway,” Itachi paused to drink more sake as the room spun. “Sasuke’s eyes woke during the massacre. I didn't get there in time. He watched our parents die, managed to hide in the closet and keep quiet the whole time so they didn't find him. I got there in time to stop them from killing him, and realized his sharingan had awakened because of everything. I wasn't able to save anyone, but I was able to save him, and that's all that matters.”

“I understand,” Obito replied evenly. “I know what it's like to be too late.”

Itachi’s eyes slid over to him. “Yeah well… whatever. The Uchiha had been planning a coup for a while. Danzo, he gave me a choice. Either kill everyone myself and have Sasuke be spared to live happily in the village. Or, to let them kill everyone, Sasuke included. I didn't… I refused either option and tried to get there but I was too late. They killed everyone in one night, a bunch of Anbu who were deployed for the massacre. Like I said, Sasuke managed to hide. I knew that Danzo would be after us, so I grabbed Sasuke and we got the hell out of dodge. He didn't speak for months afterwards. Not a single word, other than screaming during his nightmares. It was probably a little selfish, but I… I missed him. There was no more ‘Itachi, look at the score I got at the academy!’ or ‘Itachi look, look I learned a new move!’ There was just… nothing. He was so vacant. If he's dead- if he’s dead after everything we’ve been through, I don't- I have no idea what I'll do. We have to find him, and we have to kill the people who took him away from us. We have to.” I know, he wanted to shout. I know, I feel the same way, but I don't know why! Itachi left not long after that, stumbled back to his room, and Obito fell asleep in his armchair. That night he had a dream, a dream of Rin. it had been years since he dreamed of her, usually they were memories and bits and pieces, but this was different. He opened his eyes in his dream to a dark plane filled with ink, darkness stretching in every direction. It was a frequent setting he found himself in, usually the dream would be about him sinking into the oily substance until he couldn't breath. But this time it was low enough to wade in, his feet touching the ground, whatever that was. In the middle of the expanse, there was a bone white skeleton of some creature he didn't recognize, and Rin. He staggered towards her, and she hugged him without a word. In dreams like this he was always covered in blood, the Obito from years past. But now he was just him, and he was maskless.

“Just what have you gotten yourself into now, Obito?” she asked, and it sounded just like her. It wasn't her, he was fairly sure of that, he was dreaming for god’s sake, but it sounded like her. It seemed like her, and that was enough. “It's okay to be worried about the kid,” she said, running fingers through his hair while he tried to calm his breathing. 

“It's not real,” he managed hoarsely. “None of it. Nothing in this world is real, I shouldn't feel anything. So why… Why do I…”

“Does it matter if it's real?” she asked. “It feels real. Maybe it is, Obito.”

“Obito is dead,” he whispered. “At least the one you knew- Obito doesn't exist anymore.” Rin only shook her head, looking past him at nothing at all and smiling sadly.

“I don't believe you,” she said evenly. “You're still Obito. No matter how many names you take or how many masks you wear, I know who you are. And I think you do too.”

“It's not real,” he tried again, weakly. 

“If it's not real, then why do you help Konan with the dishes? If it's not real, then why do you want to save Itachi’s brother so badly? Why do you make plans for Nagato’s dream in the supposed next world when you don't have to? Why do you stick around Deidara to make sure he doesn't get killed? Why do you help Sasori with his puppets? Why, Obito?”

“I can't be Obito,” he muttered quietly. “He’s dead. He died with you.”

“He is right here. He is sitting here with me. You're still you. You'll always be you.”

“B-But…. But Madara-”

“Madara is dead,” she said with finality, shaking her head. “Madara is a dead man now. You are the only thing that can bring him back, and you have a choice.”

“I've never had a choice.”

“You do now. Madara isn't here.”

“This is all just an illusion.” She smiled sadly. 

“I'm an illusion, Obito. Your world is not.”

His dream didn't fade out from there. One second he was sitting in a dark dreamscape with his dead friend, and the next he was in the Akatsuki lair, laying in an armchair, sitting up and gasping for breath. His back hurt and his neck was aching from the weird position he dozed off in, and Obito could already feel the nausea of an inevitable hangover coming on. Still, he sat up properly, stretching his neck and running a hand through his short hair. Itachi was probably passed out in his room or throwing up already, and Obito had a hunch that he’d be feeling the same way pretty soon. He looked down at the floor and forced his eyes to focus. He didn't have time for a drunken hallucination within a drunken hallucination. But when he turned his head, he felt himself recoil and raise his hands to his face. The orange plastic from the ground winked back at him. Obito had taken his mask off. And now it was cracked. 

#yeahhhh #lol anyway #was this short? #maybe #Obito knew most of those details about the massacre #obito #obito uchiha #uchiha massacre #akatsuki #kisame #Sasuke Uchiha #itachi uchiha #uchiha itachi #naruto #naruto fanfiction #naruto fanfic #naruto au #unreality tw #madara uchiha

[baby-the-crybaby]

Festival Nights (Madara x Reader)

Madara and I have been friends for a few years now. Well we were friends.

Let me explain.

When I heard of the new peaceful Konoha, my family and I moved here with no questions asked. We wanted new opportunities and this place reeked with them. It was new and exciting and I for one got to see the village grow each day. It was beautiful and I will never regret moving here.

My father was a hardworking ninja and was constantly out on missions most days. My mother was out trying to find other jobs for herself to bring in more money for us. That left me at the house to do the chores. I would sweep and wash all the floors. Prepare dinner. Wash the clothes. All sorts of things.

I wanted to be a ninja just like my father, but he says it’s a man’s job. There are plenty of ninja women out there and I want to be just like them. I want my name out there, but my family would never allow it.

Then one day my father became ill and wasn’t able to go out on missions anymore. His life was on a thin sheet of ice and the smallest thing could take him away from me. Seeing as how my mom was struggling to take care of us and all the finances, I took it upon myself to get a job that I could do.

At first I applied for a spot as the Hokage’s advisor, but that was already taken. I felt embarrassed for even thinking I could even do that, but to my surprise I actually landed a different job. I was supposed to be one of Mito’s, the Hokage’s wife, handmaidens. I would help her around the village and make sure she had everything she needed.

I actually got to meet Hashirama a few times.

That’s how Madara and I met.

I was at Mito’s side when we met up with Hashirama for their lunch date. He was busy with his tall, dark haired, black eyed friend it seemed. When he saw us he gave us his warm smile and introduced us. Madara and I sat afar as we watched the two lovebirds eat their lunch. We didn’t talk much. I told him who I was and he told me who he was and that’s pretty much it.

It was a continuous routine from that point on. Eventually we had gotten so close that we started meeting up on our own to talk. We would tell each other about our lives or what our ambitions were. He told me I should pursue my dreams of becoming a ninja and that was the first time anyone had ever said that to me. That’s when our relationship really blossomed. Soon our conversations had the occasional flirt here and there. We even got more serious with our conversations as well. We started watching the sunset together while talking about all sorts of different things. His cold demeanor soon melted into a soft mushy one. The occasional flirt grew and grew until our feelings for each other were pretty obvious. Then I realized I was in love with the man.

That’s when I put an end to our meetings. When Mito would meet up with Hashirama, I would avoid his dark eyes and if he talked to me, I kept it short. He was an important man, the leader of his clan. I was just some small town girl who was lucky that she even scored a job for her dying dad. His clan would shun him if they found out about our meetings. I couldn’t ruin his reputation just so I could be happy with him. When he understood I didn’t want to talk anymore, he gave up even trying.

Which brings us to today.

My father was doing much better and is even able to walk around the village all by himself. Mito has become a very close friend of mine and I get to hear all the gossip from her. Madara and I haven’t spoken in a while. I won’t lie, I do miss him, but this is for his sake not mine.

To celebrate my father’s good health getting better we decided to go to a festival that was being held in the village. I had my (f/c) kimono on and my hair was all done and pretty. Mito had ended up doing my makeup that day. I felt like a pretty princess tonight.

I separated myself from my family to go around the festival myself. While walking around I started to eye a game. It was a simple bottle toss game with a small straw doll, but I still wanted to play. I walked up to the game and paid the man behind the stall. As I was getting ready to throw the ball at the bottles I felt a warm hand on my shoulder.

“You should let a man throw this for you,” The voice belonged to a man that I had not met before.

He was handsome. I won’t lie, so why not have some fun and flirt tonight? “I can handle this like the big girl I am.” I winked at the stranger. His warm hand left my shoulder as I prepped my arm to throw. I tossed the ball as hard as I could towards the bottles and only managed to knock off the top bottle. I frowned at my failure.

He chuckled, “That’s alright, these games are usually rigged anyway.”

I let out my fake cute giggle, “Well why didn’t you say so before? I just wasted some money for it.”

“Oh my bad,” He grinned at me. “Let me make up to you. I can go buy us some food if you’d like?”

I smiled back at him, “Why not?” He wrapped his arm around my waist and started to walk down the street. As we were walking, we passed the long haired Uchiha. I could see his dark eyes glare at us. He was upset and wasn’t hiding it at all. It made me mad that he was upset at a little flirting. It’s not like we were dating before anyway. I moved the man’s arm off of me and started to walk towards Madara. “I’ll be right back.”

When Madara saw me coming towards him, he quickly turned on his heel and tried to get away from me. I was right on his tail though. I gripped the back of his navy kimono causing him to flinch. He wiggled out of my grasp and continued walking, “Leave me alone, woman.”

I scoffed and ran up to his side, “What has your panties in a twist?”

His eyes met mine, he was shocked at my language, “Excuse me?”

“Why are you upset with me?”

We continued walking even though the festival started to break off. We were soon in a secluded part of the woods as he kept trying to get away. “Is it that obvious?”

I stopped walking at his side and he stopped in front of me, “I saw you looking at me with a glare so I think it is pretty obvious.” He scoffed and turned his head away from me. “Are you jealous of me and that man?”

“Of course not,” His arms crossed over his chest. “I just think you should be careful with who you flirt with.”

I pointed at him in triumph, “So you are jealous!”

It was hard to see in the dark, but with the moon illuminating us I could still see his beautiful pale skin and the pink that was dusted on his cheek, “And what if I am? It shouldn’t bother you anyway. You don’t seem to care about other people’s feelings. You just leave with no word.”

I let my hand fall. I knew I hurt him, but I thought we had a mutual understanding of why I left. I didn’t think he would hold it against me, “Madara, I was considering your feelings when I left.”

“In what way?” His head snapped to me, his voice slightly rising with anger.

“I left because…” My eyes stared at the grass floor. “I left because I knew if we were to be together, your clan would shun you and you wouldn’t be able to produce an heir that was a pure Uchiha. I couldn’t do that to you.”

He remained silent after my explanation. It was so silent that the wind was talking for us. His eyes wouldn’t meet mine. He was deep in thought. I knew that face. I studied it many times. The way his eyes were squinted, his lips were pursed, and his eyebrows slightly furrowed. I knew him all too well.

“I’m sorry,” My eyes widened at his words. “I wish I could say you’re wrong and we could be together, but you’re right. It wouldn’t be good for my reputation and I wouldn’t want you to bear that hate from the clan. I shouldn’t have been so foolish and allowed us to get as far as we did.”

Our eyes met and we were thinking the same thing. We wanted to run into each other's arms and be together, but with our circumstances, it just couldn’t happen. His words hurt, but it was the truth.

I raised my arms up and held them open, “Can we hug it out at least?”

I could see the corner of his lips curl up as he stepped into my arms. I wrapped them around his chest and his were around my lower back. I laid the side of my cheek of his torso and sighed. His heart beat remained calm, just like mine. It felt so tranquil at that moment. His chin was on the top of my head. His chest raised and fell as he followed my sigh with one of his.

I broke away from the hug and laid my hands on his chest. His hands laid on my lower back. Our eyes were reading each other’s searching for some way out of our situation.

I went up and pressed my lips on his lips. His lips were so soft, I was expecting a hard surface but they were plump and smooth.

Wait.

Oh my god.

What am I doing?

I pulled away quickly to see his eyes were wide with shock. Mine were large as well, “I’m so sorry. I don’t know why I did that. I just...It felt right. I just felt like I should--”

He shut me up with his lips. My body froze. Shoulders were up and my arms were stiff. Soon everything melted into that kiss. My eyes slowly shut as I pressed my lips back. We continued this passionate kiss for as long as we could. We were both desperate for it. We wanted to leave our lips together forever. My heart was pounding and my hand could feel his doing the same. It was as if we were connected literally and mentally. His hands were on the back of my head and my hands stayed resting on his chest.

When my lips met the cold air again, I felt sad and alone.

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” His words were simple, but I knew he wanted to keep going just like me.

I chuckled, “Just kiss me.”

He did it with no question. We kept kissing for so long. Our lips were desperate for each other’s touch. I didn’t want to leave his touch, but I knew this couldn’t last forever.

I spoke too soon. He pulled away once more. He laid his forehead on mine while thumb rubbed my lips. His eyes darted from my lips to my eyes.

“This never happened,” He was serious this time. No underlying message in his eyes or body language.

I nodded with no questions asked.

Then he was gone for the night.

I never went back to the stranger that night. I went home and my fingers kept playing along my lips.

I wish we could say that it never happened again, but we kept meeting in secret and it kept happening. It was almost a nightly routine. We would chat just like old times and end it with our lips touching each other. I felt so open with him now. Like I didn’t have to keep holding back anymore.

When we saw each other in public, we acted as if we didn’t know each other, but at night we would laugh about our acting skills.

Soon his visits became more dispersed. Sometimes he wouldn’t show up for a whole week. When we were together, he was angry. I could tell something was bothering him, but he wouldn’t tell me anything. He sometimes would just get what he wanted from me and leave. It broke my heart.

What broke my heart in pieces was when I heard of his death. When Mito told me what happened, I had to excuse myself while I sobbed somewhere else. I wished I could have helped him more on his last days, but now he’s gone and wishing meant nothing.

One day, we’ll meet again.

#madara #naruto #naruto shippuden #madara uchiha #madara x reader

[tuliharja]

Oh, the otp asks are so interesting! Would you consider for HashiMito answering the following: 3, 9, 12, 21 and 24? I hope it's not too much, but with canonical, and so politically-involved couple those are super interesting.

Thank you so much from the ask @olliya!

Yes, I agree to you! OTP asks are always so interesting~. And I don’t mind at all, since HashiMito is one of my otps, so I was really happy to receive this ask from you! Not to mention the fact you picked very interesting ones. Thank you again from the ask. ^^

(The asks can be found from here.)

Alright, let’s put those shipping goggles on! *Cue for a very long post.*

3. If they complimented each other, what would they say?

Hashirama would probably try to write sonata to Mito and once he would realize it’s much harder than it seems, he would end up asking Tobirama to help. With the help of Tobirama, Hashirama would make most brilliant sonata ever, but once he would present it to Mito…she would be left highly unimpressed.

 “Hashirama, did you perhaps ask help from Tobirama?” Mito questioned from her husband, before she sighed. There wasn’t any reason to ask that question when she already knew the answer, yet watching her husband turn into a spluttering mess brought her some sort of amusement. Deciding to be merciful, Mito gently cupped Hashirama’s cheeks, giving him kiss to his forehead. “Hashirama, you don’t have to make me sonatas, poets, or anything that would be too elaborate. As long as it becomes from your heart, I don’t mind even if your compliments would be extremely tacky.”

She watched how her husband slowly turned into a sobbing mess, gently brushing his hair as she merely allowed him to relax in her arms.

After that incident, Hashirama would gift Mito flowers. Being the expert, anything related to plants, he would know each and every flower and those meaning. He probably wouldn’t be best with actual words, but each bouquet would hail Mito’s beauty, kindness, power and how lucky he was when Mito did choose him.

Mito would had mastered the use of words, because she would know how valuable the talent of speaking would be. She could make even most praising comment sound like most wicked insult ever. That’s why, she would rarely compliment Hashirama as she knew her husband already received lots of compliments as he wasn’t any ordinary man. Repeating those same compliments would sound just hollow, empty and she didn’t want that. She would also know repeated words would turn meaningless, so she would rarely use endearing words about Hashirama.

To everybody else she would seem cold as ice, but in those rare moments when she would compliment Hashirama, he would take those into his heart and cherish those. Such occasions would be when Hashirama would manage to genuinely surprise her, show genuine understanding about her feelings and hopes, and take into consideration her wishes. But the most cherished moment would be when Mito would finally admit to Hashirama she was pregnant, while she was a Jinchuuriki. Hashirama would reassure her he wouldn’t leave her and make his best to ensure both she and the child would be safe. After she would calm down, she would spill her heart to Hashirama, telling how blessed she was to have such wonderful husband that would still stand next to her even when she was carrying Tailed-Beast. She would hail his strength, kindness, understanding and way too big heart. Later on, that night they both would compliment each other’s bodies in very sensual manner. ;)

 9. Have they made each other cry?

Yes, since what would marriage be without any tears? There have been happy tears, but also sad ones. Happier tears have been in happy occasions, such as when they got married, when their first child did bear and when Mito would tickle the hell out of Hashirama. Who said Mito couldn’t be mischievous when she would want to? They’ve also been crying tears of joy when they got their second born (because it’s kind of their own fault they got a child, now isn’t it? xD)

There has also been tears, when Hashirama has tried to cheer up Mito when she has had extremely bad day when dealing Nine Tails just to see her wife happy. But there has also been tears of sadness as at times Hashirama’s gambling problems would be too much for the stressed-out Mito. She would hide her tears, but Hashirama would know. He would eventually weed out his gambling problem, when they were at the risk of losing their home and the tear-streaked look Mito gave? Yeah, absolute broke Hashirama’s heart. There would also been tears when each of them would get so badly wounded, they would be at the brink of death. One of such was after Mito sealed Kyuubi inside of her. Hashirama was sure Mito would perish as it seemed holding down the beast was too much for her. Hashirama’s eventual death also made Mito cry as she felt like her whole world collapsed at that exact moment, but such is life: many different types of causes which can make one cry.

12. Do they have differing political opinions?

Many people think they would have, but in reality, they don’t have expect in minor businesses. The political field can be extremely messy, especially when considering the fact Hashirama was doing something (building first ninja village) that hadn’t ever been done before.

Before Mito married Hashirama, she understood right to way for things to work she had to do some groundbreaking thinking. She knew if she married Hashirama, she wouldn’t just switch her Uzumaki family to Senju family, like in old times. No, what Hashirama was offering was that, she could still be Uzumaki and Senju. In old times, when one was wed to some more powerful clan, you had automatically become part of that clan. You had to basically throw everything that you had been before, expect your ninja talents. While you could gain a new and possible better family, there was always that fear if your spouse would die. If your spouse would die, you would automatically become an outcast. Just fodder to be used in next fight against some other clan, unless you would marry someone else or become a concubine. The option to go back to your old home wasn’t anymore an option, since you had quite literally been kicked out from there. Of course, some bigger clans treated this possibility much ‘nicer’, but the fact was, your position would still be bad compared to anyone who had born in the clan.

Now this Hashirama was offering something else. A village where you wouldn’t be an outcast, should such a thing occur. Hashirama painted all pretty pictures how they all would be one ‘big happy family’. Of course, Mito knew such thing would take time. But the possibility was tempting and since Mito didn’t want to forget her roots even if she would marry someone, she agreed upon this. She even went so far as convince Uzumaki clan to make their own village, Uzushiogakure, as the Uzumaki clan wasn’t yet ready to be part of some other village. In that way, Mito could keep one leg in her home and one in her new one. It also served as a way to ensure she wouldn’t be treated poorly in her new home, since at times when one would be married to some other clan, the new clan could treat the new spouse extremely badly. Of course, she didn’t have to worry about that (given the fact Hashirama was Hokage).

As time went on, Mito started to see better Hashirama’s views. She liked quite many of those as if those all would become true, there wouldn’t be anymore war, everybody would be treated equally and the children would be taken care of by everybody, even if their parents would die. Of course, she disagreed upon some things her husband suggested, such as sharing Tailed-Beasts between each newly formed village, but to make things work she understood everybody should have equal power at the palm of their hand. She also disagreed when some clans that joined Konoha would get some privileges such as Hyuugas, but since they were newly formed village that was striving for something new, even she understood some sort of bait was needed to get them join them. Things like these made disagreements between her and Hashirama as at times she felt like Hashirama didn’t care or see wrongness that he tried so much to weed out. Times like those, she felt like the village mattered more to her husband than anything else… in those darker times, she would deliver some cold facts to her husband that would make him despair over some of his choices. In those times, Mito would see the man behind the God of Shinobi whom she would comfort as she knew for things to work, they had to stand united together or watch the world burn.

21. How have they changed each other for the better/for the worse?

Hashirama believes his actions toward Madara did drive Mito to seal Nine Tails inside of her which basically did change her in more ways than anyone could had at first believed. While that was true, what Hashirama had hard time to grasp was the fact Mito did it willingly. Hashirama felt incredible guilt about that, because that event made Mito more prone to display her negative emotions. While that might sound like a good thing, because before that Mito tended to hide her negative emotions, it wasn’t at all fun and games when Nine Tails’ negative chakra was leaking out of Mito and she was trashing Hashirama around their house like a ragdoll. In those moments when Mito was very upset or angry, she reminded more a wild animal more than a person.

At first it was very hard, since Hashirama quickly learned Mito had tons of pent-up anger in her. His paperwork being late? Angry kyuubi-Mito. Him forgetting the dishes? Angry kyuubi-Mito. For a while it felt like there were two people inside of Mito, which was true. It took lots of patience, motivational talking and reassurance from Hashirama to make Mito understand not to hide her ire, no matter how small it would be. Eventually Hashirama managed to make Mito embrace her more ‘negative’ self that actually improved their relationship greatly. It also helped Hashirama to understand Mito better.

While Hashirama was already a stunning leader even before Konoha was founded, he was extremely poor what came to social skills. He could give motivational speeches to anyone, but if he had to make deals, small talk, simply listen or anything that would need any kind of ‘fine’ talk, he would more than often ask Tobirama’s help. Yet that behavior wouldn’t anymore cut when he become Hokage. He couldn’t anymore push Tobirama to deal with the stuffy, boring affairs and go train with their students. Which is where Mito stepped in. She put Hashirama through a mini hell to drive into his thick skull at least the bare minimum of social skills. It opened a whole new world to Hashirama. While before his overbearing personality had made some people feel uneasy and even that, he didn’t realize they might actually have brilliant ideas, he would now calm down and listen them. His relationship even with Tobirama did improve, because now he would listen his little brother giving him a speech of his latest invention, that actually made Hashirama understand Tobirama and him weren’t that different. They both were passionate people, yet because he barely before did stop to listen his brother’s ‘odd ideas’ he never knew.

While Mito’s social skills course did bring lot of good things out of Hashirama, it also brought his darker side. Hashirama could now use his ‘happy-go-lucky’ character at times as a façade to gather information and later on use it against Konoha’s enemies as most of his opponents only saw a fool front of them. But Mito teaching how to wear a mask in important meeting? Hashirama was eternally grateful to his wife about that.

 24. What is something they have each had to forgive the other for?

When Mito married Hashirama she vowed to herself she would protect Hashirama, no matter what. But to do so, she had to do it while remaining hidden. She would protect Hashirama from the shadows, even going so far as kill someone if they threatened her husband. She would even create secret service, ANBU, just to protect her husband. They were an organization that worked in the shadows, that no-one knew, especially Hashirama. Expect, Hashirama did knew. He knew exactly what his wife was up to, yet he never addressed it as he waited Mito tell him about it. When years went by and Mito still didn’t tell him, Hashirama started to feel uneasy. He would drop intentionally questions or make scenarios that could make a perfect opportunity for Mito to tell about her role in ANBU and the organization itself. But she never did. It started to eat Hashirama in and out. While he knew Mito had her best intentions toward him, it still made Hashirama feel like unworthy of the truth. Didn’t Mito trust him? Did she think he was still that fool that she had met those years ago? Hashirama wanted to trust Mito, but he didn’t want to confront her. It wouldn’t had been same as if she would tell herself the truth.

To numb the pain Hashirama turned into drinking and gambling. With a good buzz he could make his doubts away as it would leave his core thoughts: that which were love. Gambling also brought a thrill to him that he hadn’t felt ever since he had become a Hokage. Maybe Mito wanted simply feel thrill? The adrenaline that would pump to his veins when he would bet everything to win or lose was just exhilarating. Though each time when he would lose and face upset Mito, he would feel a sting of guilt just to remember his wife’s secret. So, another night with gambling it was! Hashirama’s actions were slowly spiraling out of control and he only came into a rude awakening of reality when he faced tear-streaked Mito. She told him they were about to lose their house and everything, if he wouldn’t just stop. It was that moment the two realized they had to change, or they would lose them. Mito was stressed over the fact she tried to keep Hashirama safe, but it was harder than she had first believed, while Hashirama had tried to escape his problems with drinking and gambling. This event was one of those turning points with them as they slowly started to unravel those all. Eventually Mito told Hashirama the truth which lead into his own confession, making both of them to forgive each other and slowly strengthen once again their strained relationship. But even though they had managed to tackle this particular obstacle on their married path, there was still one big obstacle that had been slowly marinating.

While Mito understood in some level Hashirama’s deep friendship with Madara, at times it was extremely hard. In most situations like these, one would pick in a heartbeat their partner. But in Hashirama’s case, it wasn’t ever that simple. While Mito trusted Hashirama, it still made her at times doubt herself and her position as his wife. When she tried to talk about her doubts, most people would dismiss her and tell her how lucky she was. She was married to “God of Shinobi”, so why she was complaining? Wasn’t it beautiful her husband was friends with his childhood friend who had been Senjus mortal enemy? It made Mito hide her doubts and concerns as she all but turned eventually a blind eye her feelings. The worst part was that, Madara was actually nice toward her. But it all came crashing down when she sealed Kyuubi and she realized hiding her negative feelings wasn’t anymore that easy. Her all doubts came flying out of the box that had been hidden deep within her heart. She knew she had to learn to forgive her foolish husband his past ignorance and be more straightforward with Hashirama as Hashirama could be at times very dense. She eventually did forgive Hashirama when he showed her, she was extremely important to him and being friends with Madara didn’t take out or lessen his love toward her.

#Asks and answers #answer #ask #ask meme #question meme #otp asks #otp #hashimito #hashirama senju #hashirama #senju #mito uzumaki #mito #uzumaki #questions #konoha #founders era #tobirama senju #madara uchiha #headcanons #naruto headcanons #naruto shippuden #naruto #long post #thank you from the ask #olliya

[raendown]

Pairing: MadaraTobirama Word count: 5280 Chapter: 29/42 Summary: Not all wars are fought on the battlefield. Some are fought at the conference table, with whispers in the shadows, or even in the bedroom.

In a world where the Senju and Uchiha traditional lands were too far apart to have ever made them enemies, Butsuma and Tajima are the ones who come together and sign a treaty of peace. Madara isn’t happy to have his life signed away for him in a political marriage to strengthen the bond between their clans. He is even less happy to have Tobirama make assumptions of him from their very first night together. What follows from there is a journey of healing, of learning, and finding the places to belong in the places least expected.

Follow the link or read it under the cut!

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Chapter 29

To say that Kagami did not take the news well would have been one of the biggest understatements Madara had heard in his lifetime. It would not have surprised him to learn that the broken-hearted crying was heard several streets away. Not to say that Kagami had broken down or thrown any sort of childish temper tantrum, he was too attached to his life goal of impressing Tobirama to do such things, but rather than his protests had taken the form of endless shouting; that he wanted to stay with Tobirama, that Tobirama meant so much to him, that he surely wouldn’t learn half as much from anyone else and didn’t want to besides. Watching his husband struggle not to let the pain show on his face had been surprisingly difficult.

More painful than that had been watching Tobirama struggle his way through trying to express how much he didn’t like this either. It was obvious to anyone with eyes that the two of them had forged quite a strong bond in only a few short months but Madara knew his husband was the sort to show how he felt through actions rather than words. Forcing himself to state his feelings out loud for young Kagami to hear must have taken quite a bit of strength.

When it became clear that there was nothing he could do to save himself from the doom of public education Kagami fled their home with shouts that if he couldn’t learn from Tobirama he refused to learn from anyone. Madara watched him go and thought it a small miracle there wasn’t a puddle left where he’d been standing from the sheer amount of tears he had shed. He kept his eyes on the door for a minute or so to allow Tobirama some time to compose himself. Only when he was sure there wouldn’t be any wet eyes in the room but his own did he turned and meet the other man’s despondent gaze.

“It had to come from you,” he murmured, knowing what was running through that genius idiot’s head.

“I broke his heart,” Tobirama said quietly. Madara sighed and stepped over to enclose them both in a tight hug.

“His heart was going to break either way. Best that he hears the news from you and knows that it was not your decision. At least this way he won’t think of it as you abandoning him.”

A shiver ran through the man in his arms and Madara sort of regretted saying that. Now Tobirama would probably spend the next few weeks feeling as though he had abandoned Kagami even though there really was nothing they could do to put things back to normal. As Tajima had said the day before, it was a clan Head’s right to decide what was best for the people under his command. Other than the council as a whole there was no higher power to appeal to and the idea of the haughty members of the council taking interest in the training of one Uchiha boy was laughable, unfortunately. They fancied themselves busy with much more important things.

Unsurprisingly, Tobirama spent much of the day moping. Since Madara couldn’t really blame him for it he chose instead to make himself scarce. He walked Tobirama to the laboratory under Touka’s home and gave as much of a lecture on safety as he had the heart for at the moment, earning himself a glare for the trouble, but he still didn’t understand enough about whatever crazy science went on down there to be sure that a moment’s distraction wouldn’t have catastrophic consequences. As far as he knew that was just how science worked.

Without work to keep him occupied Madara spent a large portion of his morning running here and there taking care of clan business that sometimes slipped through the cracks in favor of the work he did every day at the tower. Already doing his best not to think about what had happened, he was only peripherally aware that something was going on as he scampered back and forth around the compound, seeing the upset faces and hearing the murmuring voices as he passed but never really stopping to ask what was happening until he was passing by Susumu-sensei’s bakery and saw a long wooden spoon waving him in through the window. He scowled to be summoned in such a manner but he stepped inside the shop anyway. It was always nice to see her, he supposed.

“Did they find him yet?” she called over the counter, unbothered with any sort of greeting.

“Find who?” Madara set down the scrolls he’d been carrying around since one of the elders pressed the lot in to his arms and bent over the glass display case to spot his sensei.

Susumu looked up from where she appeared to be hunkered down out of sight. Looking at her, Madara realized he was fairly sure the sign on the door had been turned to say ‘closed’ when he came in, which was odd for this time of day. It was barely noon in the middle of the week.

“The kid. Did they find the kid?”

“What kid? And why are you closed? Kami you’re weird sometimes.” Madara scowled back when his old teacher crossed her arms and glared up at him.

“Kagami of course!”

“Eh? Why would we need to find him?”

Now she rolled her eyes and scooted around with some difficulty until she was on her knees. He wondered why she was bothering when her head barely showed above the counter standing at full height anyway but he wasn’t about to ask any other dumb questions when she was already looking at him like she was trying to calculate how many brain cells he had left.

“Because he’s missing,” she said, measuring her words to highlight the judgement in her tone. “He’s gone to ground in protest of being taken away from that husband of yours and no one knows where he went.”

“Wait, what? When? Surely his mother must have some idea of where he’s gone!” Madara wished he could say he was surprised but he really wasn’t. Training with Tobirama had helped calm and refine him in many ways but Kagami was still an impulsive child, probably always would be. Susumu snorted.

“You know his mother, one of those free spirit types that doesn’t care what her child gets up to as long as he comes home at the end of the day.”

He did know, though he didn’t approve. Kagami’s mother loved him as fiercely as any Uchiha might love their child but hers was a parenting style Madara knew he could never get used to. It was simply too distant for his tastes. Were he ever to have children he knew he would be asking questions as soon as the child returned home, wanting to know everything about their day and what they learned and whether they were happy.

“So why is everyone off their heads?” he asked after a few beats of disapproving silence. “Let the boy hide. He’ll come out eventually.”

“Well the issue isn’t whether he comes out of hiding, is it? You do know what that husband of yours has been teaching him lately, don’t you? Before you learn how to kill–”

“–first you must learn how to survive,” Madara finished, dread welling in his soul.

How could he have forgotten? Tobirama had mentioned it several times in passing that after Kagami finally mastered the basic kata and chakra exercises he would need to build a proper base for his abilities, the first real unit of study they began was survival skills. Sure they hadn’t gone nearly deep enough for the kid to live on his own in the wild indefinitely but he had more than enough knowledge to strike out of the village on his own and head for anywhere else in the world. And there was no telling where he might strike out to.

“Do we know for sure if he’s still in the village?” He looked to his teacher, dismayed to see her uncertain expression.

“The Inuzuka haven’t picked up any proper tracks but scent cover is one of the most basic skills and he’s constantly running all over anyway so his scent is all muddled together. Right now I think most people are working to make sure they’ve covered every nook and cranny of the village before they start branching outside of it. Honestly, how do you not know all this? Where have you been?”

Glancing over his shoulder at the scroll he’d been carrying around, Madara twisted his face a wry expression. “I’ve been running around all over the place for hours now. Anyone looking at me probably just assumed I knew and was heading somewhere else to look.”

“Mm. That makes sense.” Susumu nodded and Madara dragged a hand threw his hair.

“Right, well, new priority. He can’t have gotten far. I get why he’s pitching the fit but he’ll need to learn that no personal grievance like this should be cause to abandon one’s people.” If he told himself that enough then maybe he would convince himself he didn’t want just a little bit to join Kagami and run away from all of his responsibilities. “Why aren’t you helping out with the search?”

“Oh because I was the one that caused a distraction in the marketplace so Kagami could put the slip on everyone and disappear. I rather imagine several people would like to have some very heated words with me.” Her grin told him she did not regret her actions at all.

Madara stared at his sensei with a flat expression just to make his feeling about that known. Then he spun on one heel, gathered his scrolls, and stormed out of the bakery without another word. Susumu-sensei could be dealt with later when he didn’t have a missing child to locate.

As he walked he stuffed the scrolls in to any pocket he could find in his typical voluminous robes. In the pocket on his left sleeve he actually discovered a storage scroll he’d forgotten he was still carrying around and stopped for a moment to fiddle with that until he remembered how to seal more items inside without dumping out the current contents. Now that he knew what was going on he noticed the people passing him by were all wearing distraught expressions, sparking a little bit of pride in his chest despite the situation. His clan truly cared for each other in a way he was sure other clans could never hope to match.

Considering the man’s skillset Madara's first plan of action had been to seek out Tobirama. Even if other sensors had already been on the lookout there were none who could match Tobirama’s sensitivity or range. That plan was rendered moot, however, when Madara rounded a corner and discovered that his husband had crawled out of the lab all on his own – only to be accosted in the street by Tajima. He hurried his steps as his father’s grew audible over the sounds of a bustling public square.

“-tainted them both!” the man was shouting, much to Tobirama’s obvious offense.

“Spending time with them is not tainting either. I would suggest you try it sometime but I’m sure overexposure to you could taint just about anyone.” Already pale, Tobirama’s skin looked fairly translucent in his rage. His self-control must have been on shaky ground to yell back at Tajima in such a public space.

“You influence them with your uncouth behaviors – and now look at what you’ve done! The boy is missing and it is your fault!”

Madara felt his left eye twitch as he hurried to stand at his husband’s side, all good intentions about making peace between them falling away immediately. “It was not Tobirama who shattered Kagami’s world, father, that was you. In no way is this Tobirama’s fault. We all praised it as a good thing when he took on an Uchiha student, including yourself!”

“I’m allowed to have regrets just like anyone else,” Tajima sniffed.

“Well bully for you. I regret nothing.”

“You will live to regret some things if you continue to take that tone with me!”

“Bet I won’t!”

Pinching at the bridge of his nose, Tobirama visibly struggled to regain control of himself. Once he’d managed to reassemble to the clear, stoic expression he usually wore he put a hand on Madara's shoulder and shook his head once as those to declare the fight not worth it.

Already angry, it almost seemed like not getting any further excuse to yell at either of them incensed Tajima even further, his weight shifting as though he only barely caught himself about to stomp a foot.

“You! Aren’t you supposed to be the best sensor of your generation?”

“I am,” Tobirama replied icily, pushing aside the finger that Tajima had shoved under his nose.

“Then why are you not also looking for that boy?”

Madara opened his mouth – and snapped it shut again at a sharp flick of Tobirama’s fingers.

“Have you considered that Kagami does not wish to be found and should be allowed time to process the news? Impulsive he may be but Kagami is loyal; I can guarantee you without any sort of confirmation that he is still within the village.”

“Not good enough,” Tajima said. “I want him found. You will assist in the search.”

“Very well. I know precisely where he is.”

“I knew it! You’ve been hiding him, haven’t you!”

Tobirama lifted one eyebrow in cold judgement. “On the contrary, I did not know he was missing until you accosted me on my way home.”

“But you can sense where he is?” Madara jumped in before his father could offer any other insults.

“I don’t need to,” Tobirama replied in a surprisingly soft voice. “I know my student.”

Completely ignoring Tajima where he stood fuming, Madara scurried along as Tobirama turned away with a short wave inviting him to follow. They both continued to ignore his father when the man trailed along behind them cursing viciously under his breath. Tobirama set an unerring path for the eastern side of the compound where several private training fields had been set up for clan use only, where he and Kagami most often preferred to do their training, and Madara gave some thought to smacking himself in the face for not thinking of that the moment he learned that one half of their duo was missing.

Unsurprisingly Tajima didn’t seem to grasp the connection to where they ended up but he at least kept most of his grumbling quiet enough that Madara could set him out of mind and look around. There were several other people here already, most of them lining the edges of the open field area checking every crevice they could find, and among them was Kagami’s mother. Perhaps she knew her son better than he gave her credit for.

“I see no child,” Tajima snarled from a few feet behind them but Tobirama neglected to answer.

Silently he headed for the single tree that grew in the center of the field, full of burn scars and missing several limbs to show how long it had been since the last time Hashirama made his rounds repairing each of the training areas. With half the leaves burnt off in one spar or another a casual observer might take one look at the tree and dismiss it as a place someone of Kagami’s size might be able to hide in. Each of the branches were clearly visible. He simply wasn’t there. Still Tobirama approached with solemn eyes and tilted his head back.

“Time to come down now,” was all he said. Madara could see that several of the people around were looking over in their direction. All of them were probably just as surprised as he was when Kagami materialized as though from thin air and threw himself down against Tobirama’s chest.

“I-I did it just like you taught me!” the boy sobbed, tears coursing down cheeks already crusted with hours’ worth of salt.

“Yes, you did very well; you fooled an entire clan of adults in fact. But now it’s time to go, understood?”

Madara blinked at the boy and lifted his chin to blink at the top of the tree too. He’d never seen a child master the Chameleon Jutsu before. Paired with frankly impressive chakra suppression and this kid was well on his way to developing some enviable infiltration skills – or he would be if he weren’t also wildly susceptible to his own emotions even by Uchiha standards. That was definitely something he would need to work on.

“Sensei, he said I can’t train with you anymore! Not at all!” Kagami blubbered as the other adults drew closer across the field. Tobirama drew in a slow breath and nodded, visibly working himself up to going over this all a second time.

“It’s been decided that you should enroll in the public academy when it opens and that it would be best to sever this partnership now.” The tightening of his jaw spoke louder than words what Tobirama thought of that and Madara had to admit that he agreed.

He also had to admit that he would have very much enjoyed the chance to punch his own father in the jaw right then as Tajima crossed his arms and harrumphed, satisfaction seeping in to his expression at seeing Tobirama follow along with his orders. But really what else could Tobirama do? To refuse a direct order would be to go against his own clan head who, without a doubt, would accuse him of not having Kagami’s best interests at heart.

“You won’t let him take me away will you?” Kagami asked in a voice so small he could barely be heard. Several of the adults closing in touched their chests and the boy’s mother put a hand over her mouth, dabbing at her eyes with the other.

“Following orders is a part of being a shinobi,” Tobirama murmured.

“But…does that mean you don’t want me anymore? Sensei please let me stay! I’ll be good! I’ll train so hard, promise!”

Heart clenching in his own chest, Madara watched his husband kneel down so he could look Kagami in the eye, one arm hovering indecisively for a moment before falling back to his side. “I don’t want you to go,” he admitted softly. “Teaching you has been a pleasure and an honor. But we have our orders and we must follow them even if it is not what we want, yes?”

“Y-yes sensei.” Kagami’s bottom lip wobbled dangerously. It was such a sad little sight that Madara was seconds away from reaching out to draw the mite in to a hug and all that stopped him was Tobirama beating him to it in a fashion of his own, patting him on the shoulder.

“Good. You’ve done a good job, Kagami.”

It was those words, knowing it was possibly the last time he would hear them, that seemed to break the boy. With an expression as though his very heart had been torn from behind his ribs Kagami launched himself forward to wrap both arms around Tobirama’s neck. To Madara's surprise his husband accepted the gesture and held him tightly despite the people openly watching them.

Not just watching. Though his eyes stayed fixed on the spectacle before him Madara's ears were open and alert, listening to the crowd around them murmur and whisper to each other. It was difficult not to let himself chime in or rile them up even more but he was smart enough to understand the difficulties that would crop up later down the road if he did that. Any changes that might be stopped, any decisions that might be overturned, he was all too aware that Tajima would not accept it if he had any reason to believe Madara was in any way influencing these people.

Even keeping his silence was satisfying, though. It gave him a chance to watch the murmurs of the crowd become grumbles, discontent spreading in waves as more arrived to check the area then stop and watch the scene unfold. When they got here there had only been a handful and now there were almost two dozen people milling around and whispering already warped versions of what had transpired so far. Despite the tears still coursing down Kagami’s cheeks and the shuddering of each breath as he fought with himself to stand strong for Tobirama, Madara found it in himself to smile. He wasn’t surprised in the least when the first person stepped forward.

He was a little surprised that it wasn’t Kagami’s mother.

“Tajima-sama,” the young woman called hesitantly. “Is it so necessary to place the boy in the academy?”

“Are you questioning me?”

“I seek only to understand,” she replied, cowed, her head falling low and her steps shuffling backwards.

Her retreat was halted when a young man wrapped an arm around her shoulders and faced their clan head with a tad more bravery. “Do we not, as Uchiha, value our bonds over all else? Clearly these two have a strong kinship already. Would Tajima-sama be willing to explain for us what benefit will come from severing that?”

“I am not required to explain myself,” Tajima hissed. Several of those around him straightened their spines with instinctual rebellion. No shinobi enjoyed being spoken to in that tone, not even by their own clan head.

“You are not required to,” the young man agreed. “I asked if you were willing to. Were it my decision – yes, I understand that it is not, it was only a postulation – but if it were up to me I would think that to separate these two now would only sow discontent between the boy and any who teach him in the future. I lost my own sensei when I was around his age and I resented every adult who tried to instruct me in the years after, always comparing them to the one I had lost.”

Tajima sneered at him and Madara could hear the insult coming even before his father spoke. The young man was one of those who would never rise above the recently proposed rank of genin, something Tajima clearly looked down on him for.

Catching on to the conversation around them, both Tobirama and Kagami were looking up from their embrace now, arms still loosely wrapped around each other but eyes locked in on the discussion of their fate. A heartbreaking sort of hope that expects to be crushed shone in Tobirama’s eyes and Madara, for the first time since he was a child, quietly offered a small prayer to whatever gods were listening.

“Luckily for the good of the clan, larger decisions are left to those of us who are prepared to handle them.” Tajima lifted his chin an inch or so and Madara wanted to sigh for his behavior.

“Is he not too old?” Finally Kagami’s own mother stepped up to speak in his defense.

“Old?”

“Yes. Word of this academy is everywhere and many parents are excited about the prospects for their own children so we trade what rumors we hear, of course. But if the rumors are correct then Kagami has already reached the age you hope for children to graduate and move on to a more personal teaching experience anyway.”

“The teams,” Tobirama could be heard to murmur softly, a moment of realization.

Seeing his chance, Madara hummed as though deep in thought. “Weren’t we going to set them up in teams of three, each to be assigned an adult willing to pass on their experience?”

“If so then I should think Tobirama-sama more than qualifies. He is knowledgeable, skilled, and he has already shown himself to be willing.” Kagami’s mother sniffed at her own clan head dismissively. “What harm could it do for them to continue training alone until other members can be found to form a proper squad?”

Were it somehow not obvious before that Tajima was angered by this whole mess it would have to be now as his face grew redder and redder with every insolent sentence spoken to him. He looked like a child younger than the one whose life he sought to uproot, moments away from the most epic temper tantrum of his life. It was singularly embarrassing to watch and yet none present were willing to make themselves look away as he continued to shame himself by standing in the hole he had dug and refusing any offers of help getting out.

“Yes,” he was forced to grind out. “That is the age we had discussed as a graduation objective.”

“Perhaps it would help us all understand if we simplified the situation,” the woman said. To Madara's disgust his father openly rolled his eyes to such an agreeable statement.

“Go on then.”

She nodded graciously with more manners than he had shown her thus far in return. “In the end we all have my son’s best interests in mind, surely.”

“Yes, surely,” Tajima growled.

“Would it truly be in his best interest to rip him away from the one person who has shown interest in his development after so many in our own clan passed him over as too hopelessly energetic to ever make a fine shinobi? Is it in his best interest to give him the impression that forging bonds with the elders he is supposed to trust leads only to pain?” Canting her head to the side and staring her superior down with the steel spine of a mother scorned, she lifted both eyebrows and said, “If there is anyone here that has my son’s best interests at heart it is Tobirama-sama and if that is truly your goal then it is my opinion that they should be allowed to continue training together before their separation has a detrimental effect on Kagami’s growth.”

Never in his life had it been more difficult for Madara to resist the urge to applaud someone. Her speech itself was impressive but the paroxysms of fury crossing Tajima’s face were worth at least one deep bow for her incredible accomplishment. Red enough to be mistaken for a ripened cherry, Tajima’s face folded in to the deepest sneer he was capable of and sucked in a breath through his nose as he gave one very slow nod.

“Fine,” he hissed. “Let them continue to train. And do not cry to me when every other clan in the village questions how the Uchiha can be so boorish as to not support the ideas that we ourselves present to the council.”

“I should think the dozens of other Uchiha children who will be attending the academy would silence any talk of that,” Tobirama spoke up finally, standing up and keeping one hand on Kagami’s shoulders, supporting him while he wiped furiously at his unceasing tears.

“You–!” Tajima puffed up and up, larger and larger, until he deflated suddenly with a squawk of impotent frustration.

When he turned on his heel it took perhaps three seconds for every eye in the clearing to leave him and in less than half a minute it was as though he had never been present. The crowd pulled tighter around the two at the center of the drama while Kagami rubbed at one eye and asked in a breathless voice if that had really just happened, clearly unable to believe his own ears. Tobirama looked down at him, blinked once, then without warning his lips parted in a brilliant smile that Madara was sure very few people in the village had ever witnessed. Apparently he was throwing all social cautions to the wind today.

None of them having seen such an expression on his face before, many of the people around them were understandably stunned in to quiet stillness, gawping at an oblivious Tobirama while Madara preened off to one side. His husband was indeed quite a stunning man.

The moment Kagami understood that he really was allowed to keep training with Tobirama after all was clear to everyone present. With a howl of victory that Tajima could probably hear no matter how far away he’d already gone the boy leapt in to the air several times, both fists raised in celebration. He threw himself first at his beloved sensei and then in to his mother’s arms while a fresh wave of tears spilled from his eyes. These, at least, were tears of joy.

“Kaachan! Kaachan did you hear? I get to keep him!” Laughing, the woman pulled her son up to sit on one hip even though he was far too big for such things.

“From what I heard it seems more like he gets to keep you.”

“Okay!”

Tobirama coughed to cover what would have surely been his own spray of laughter. Doing so brought eyes back to him and he finally seemed to realize he was making what he might call a spectacle of himself, though any Uchiha would see it merely as regular emoting. He made sure Kagami was distracted before slipping over to Madara's side.

“Pleased?” Madara asked him knowingly.

“Satisfied,” he muttered.

“Ah, I see. Saving the victory dance for when no one can see you?”

“I have never in my life performed a ‘victory dance’ and I have no intentions of doing so.” Tobirama glared at him with no heat at all behind it, obviously still too happy to be mad.

Unconvinced, Madara only shrugged and dared to reach down where he could weave their fingers together. “As long as you’re happy,” he said quietly.

He wasn’t surprised to get only a soft smile in return. Even in the privacy of their home he probably wouldn’t have gotten any bold declarations of glowing poetry – thankfully. Honestly such displays would be painful to sit through.

“Are you hungry?” The question caught him off guard, stammering out a few disconnected noises before he could answer.

“I suppose?”

“Excellent. I should like to take Kagami and his mother out to celebrate. She should be honored for sticking up for her son in such a manner.”

“Oh. Yes.” Madara lifted his eyebrows in surprise. “That’s actually a very good idea.”

Tobirama heard the surprise in his voice and huffed. “I do have those on occasion. Now if you will excuse me.”

He turned away to catch the attention of Kagami’s mother but it was hard for Madara to find insult in the dismissal when his husband refused to let go of his hand or even so much as step away from his side. While he invited the two of them to dinner that night Madara smiled to himself and rocked back on his heels, looking around at the Uchiha gathered in a tight knit little group to chatter about the triumph of protecting the precious bond between one teacher and student pair. Could any other clan ever love quite like an Uchiha?

When his eyes slid over to take in his husband’s profile Madara twisted his mouth with a wry expression. He was the last person who should be allowed an opinion on how to love, barely understanding what was going on inside his own chest. Nevertheless he did understand the warmth that filled him as he watched the man trying and failing to contain his smile and if there was one thing he was sure of it was that with each day that passed he grew less and less afraid of the idea that this was the rest of his life.

#rae writes #madatobi #madara #tobirama #kagami #tajima #susumu #fanfiction

[kusunogatari]

[ Frozen Flames and Shadowed Lights || Chapter Twelve ] [ @yukaikokoro @abyssaldespair ] [ Uchiha Obito, Suigin Ryū, Uchiha Madara, Hatake Kakashi, Kottakawa Kumiko, Raziya ] [ Verse: Divine Light ] [ Previous || Next ]

“All right...remember, we need to try and catch them by surprise. Our top priority is finding Ryū and getting the hells out of here,” Kakashi murmurs as Kumiko finishes opening the crack into the cavern. Blade drawn, he pushes his meager senses to their limit.

“Easier said than done, I’d imagine,” she replies softly. “They’ve surely sealed her ven with a rite. Sensing her through that will be nigh on impossible, as it’s extremely suppressed. We could trip over her before we’d sense her.”

“She’s under a what, now?”

Kumiko shoots him a disbelieving glance. “...a blood rite. It’s the only way to disable an el’ven’s powers. Each element has their own sigil, but the process is the same. In short, you combine the sealed and the sealer’s blood, and draw the sealer’s patron Elemental’s sigil somewhere on the sealed’s body...and you’ve got yourself a sealed el’ven. They can’t manually manipulate their ven, inside or out. You can’t stop the flow of ven altogether or the sealed person would die. It’s an essential system, like...the flow of your blood. So you just take away their ability to connect it to their will. It was a big factor in the civil war between the el’ven and the el’tahl.”

The pair of them lingering in their makeshift entryway, Kakashi pauses. This...seems important to know before they try to get Ryū out. “Really…? How so? El’tahl can’t use ven.”

“No...but you technically don’t need to in order to create a sigil. Technically everyone has at least some ven in their body. But el’tahl can’t connect with it, and their amount is always very low compared to someone el’ven. But there’s enough in their blood to create the sigils. Once they discovered the practice, they used it against us in the war.”

“But...you said something about a patron Elemental. Do el’tahl have those…?”

“Technically no...but a workaround turned out to be using the sealed’s opposing Elemental. For example, I’m of ice: child of water and air. If an el’tahl wanted to seal me, they only needed to use Orenium’s sigil, the child of earth and fire. My ‘opposite’.”

Kakashi sighs. “...sounds like a major pain.”

“It’s highly frowned upon now, of course. But I’m certain they’ll have her sealed, or she’d have escaped through a portal of her own long ago.” Glancing around, Kumiko adds, “And I’m sure this place is a maze of tunnels and dead-ends. And we still don’t know how many others are here.”

“I saw at least one through the barrier.”

“Really?”

“Yeah...and I don’t think it was the one who took her. This one felt…” Kakashi shifts, clearly discomforted. “...dangerous, for lack of a better word.”

“So, at least two...I’d have guessed as much. I’d like to hope they’ve kept to small numbers to avoid a need for supplies and risk of exposure. But...we can’t afford to assume anything.”

“Then what’s the plan? I’m not sure splitting up is a good idea.”

“No...we need to stick together. No offense, but against a well-practiced el’ven, let alone one of a Tenebreon’s level, you’d be in trouble on your own. It will make us slower, but...better slow than dead.”

“Agreed,” he replies gravely. “...so once we find her, what do we do about this...seal?”

“There are only two ways to undo a blood rite. Have the one who placed it revert it...or kill them. Their blood in the seal then becomes inert, and it fails.”

“...so not only do we need to find out who sealed her...but also either kill them, or somehow ask them nicely to take it off?”

Drawing her sword with a whisper from its sheath, Kumiko replies, “I’m afraid so. It’s either that...or she remains unable to use her ven until they die some other way. And I’m sure you know el’ven are long-lived.”

“...yeah, I do. Would have been nice to know this beforehand.”

“Sorry...I thought you’d know about rites. They’re a pretty big deal.”

“Most of this trip has been ‘learning as I go’, so...can’t really blame you.”

“...I’ll focus on trying to sense ven. You focus on what you can hear, see...smell, if you have to. That should leave us as prepared as we can be. Hopefully they think we’re dead after that avalanche and won’t bother trying to hide. Are you good at repressing your ven?”

“Fairly. It’s not very strong to begin with,” Kakashi replies dryly, doing his best to dim his aura.

Kumiko just nods as she does the same, cautiously stepping out of the crack she’s carved. The cavern is surprisingly warm, lit with a plethora of slow-burning candles. Wordlessly, she signs that there’s nothing she can sense to their left, toward the barrier. But she does indeed feel two signatures of ven to their right, one further in than the other.

Acknowledging her info, Kakashi follows, keeping his ears perked and eyes scanning the environment. By now, he’s honestly lost track of how many weeks they’ve been gone. The thought of Ryū being stuck in this place for that long, let alone with the company she’s keeping and whatever plot they have in store for her...well, it upsets him at the very least.

But there will be time for temper later. For now, he needs to stay calm. While he hardly expects it to go so smoothly...he can’t help but hope they can find her, slip back out...and then deal with whoever dared leave their mark on her.

At least if there are only two...it shouldn’t take much guesswork to figure out which is which.

...it’s then just a matter of managing to kill them.

Kakashi is hardly adverse to slaying another human. He’s done it countless times before, be it on a contract during his years as a hunter, or to protect himself while on the road. But this is the first time he’s had any need to face someone of a Tenebreon mage’s level. True, he’s not alone...but he knows he’s the weak link here. Skilled in the sword as he may be, a duel of ven is one he’s sorely outmatched in with most opponents...let alone one as destructive and deadly as a Tenebreon.

So for now, he tries not to think about that part. Their first priority is Ryū. The rest...well, he’ll cross that bridge when they come to it.

The pair of them creep along silently on the soles of their boots, cautiously inspecting any branching path they encounter. Any left dark Kakashi illuminates with a small ball of flame above a palm. Most lead nowhere. And to mark their way, Kumiko leaves tiny, hopefully-unnoticeable icicles above any route they’ve taken that proved fruitless.

This place is maze-like enough without worrying about getting turned around.

At one point they freeze, Kumiko holding out an arm as an echoing voice reaches them. Unfortunately, with so many places for it to bounce and travel, it’s nearly impossible to tell where precisely it’s coming from. But Kumiko pantomimes a fair distance yet as the other mage replies.

That one, however, sounds much closer.

Grip tight on the hilt of his blade, Kakashi stares down the tunnel, heart hammering seemingly just below the flap of his throat. He hasn’t been this nervous in...well, a very long time.

“Why is it that you meddling types always forget to check behind you…?”

Wheeling around, the pair of them find an open portal to their rear. And standing just within it, arms crossed and expression almost bored, is one of the Tenebreon mages: one of a barrel chest and lion’s mane.

Unable to do much more than stare, Kakashi immediately notices the mismatched eyes not unlike his own. One of red, and one of violet.

...what?

He in turn eyes them openly. “Is this really all that’s come looking for the supposed last light mage? An untested glacial representative, and...a weakling half-breed.” The gaze turns scornful. “...and with what looks to be stolen el’ven flesh. Disgusting.”

“Is that judgment coming from someone with as much conflict in their appearance as me?” Kakashi counters. “I may not know much about the el’ven...but one thing I do know is that everyone gets one element. So where’d your second come from?”

“I’ve no reason or want to bother explaining it to you,” their foe rebukes, tone aloof. “It matters little, anyway. You won’t be leaving this cavern alive. Tobi!”

Behind them, a masked man - the one from the Summit ball - blocks the way forward, cutting off their only other route.

Trapped.

“Where is the Luxerian disciple?” Kumiko demands, posture unwavering.

“Ask whatever questions you like: you’ll receive no answers. She will remain here until her purpose is served.”

“Is it true…? You seek the thirteenth?”

At that, the man’s brows lift. “...oh? And where did you hear that…? Did that Nori fool let you loosen his tongue? I should have killed him when I had the chance...but it matters little. If all your precious Summit sees fit to send is the pair of you...then it’s clear I won’t have any further interruptions once I reduce the pair of you to dust.”

“You’d risk the undoing of everything just for a chance at a forced peace?!” Kumiko bares her teeth in a snarl. “You’re just another faithless coward who’d rather take the easy way out.”

“Is this really the time to be taunting me, glacial mage? You’ve still got your spots: I’m not about to take a threat from you seriously.”

“Appearances can be deceiving. I’m stronger than I look.”

Glancing to his companion, Kakashi catches her eye, and in a brief look, conveys a plan. They’ll likely only have one shot. But at least with Ryū missing, they can’t flee so easily. They’ll have to fetch her first.

Until then...it’s time to try fighting.

With a shift of his weight, Kakashi spins to face the man behind them as Kumiko makes to strike the one at their fore. Ice rises up from beneath the stone, cracking and forming deadly spikes that race toward the portal. It closes, her element passing harmlessly before she turns and blocks an attempted grab, her foe tearing open another hole in space.

Kakashi, on the other hand, relies fully on his blade. Twisting and slashing with all the speed and complexity he can muster, he funnels his drive into every strike. And all the while, his opponent dodges with seemingly incorporeal ease. At times he swears the steel passes right through him!

“Where is she?” he growls, wondering if this one might be a bit more vocal. But all he receives is tense silence. Something tells him that - in his own way - this one is just as driven as he is...yet it feels different than the obvious want of power his companion boasts. This feels...personal.

Which only serves to confuse Kakashi further.

Trying to keep one ear tuned in case Kumiko needs his help, Kakashi fights on, his blows becoming more desperate. “No matter where you take her...no matter where you run...I’ll follow. I won’t stop until she’s back where she belongs…! She’s not some tool for your end! I’ll kill you for treating her like a gods-damned broodmare for whatever the hells you think you’re going to achieve!”

As his temper reaches a tipping point, Kakashi feels a desperate burning in his left eye, wide and manic. Unable to fight fire’s fueling by his anger, he unleashes a torrent of flame from a palm as he lets his sword fall to the wayside. Hungry and eager, the tongues lick and reach for his foe.

But with a wave of his own hands, the enemy mage easily diverts them...something a Tenebreon disciple shouldn’t be so adept with. Remembering the other’s dual-colored eyes, Kakashi can’t help but wonder if this one, too, boasts two elements.

“Cursed words...cursed! To think a mor selfish enough to take a second blessing...what greed, what insolence! A vile mor...I’ll tear his head from his shoulders myself for such a blatant disregard for the balance!”

Suigin’s words, recalled in his mind, fit together more pieces. This must be what she and that Nori bastard spoke of: someone with two elements in one body. But how?!

“Impressive you can even use ven, given the small token of flesh you bear.” Speaking at last, the second mage stares him down, visage hidden by his mask. “Stolen from the still-warm corpse of your friend, was it…?”

At that, Kakashi feels his chest echo with a flash of cold. “...how do you know about that?”

“I know more than that, Kakashi. Enough to realize that you are nowhere near strong enough to take her back. You will fail...and she will remain here.”

That grits the hunter’s teeth. “You have no right -!”

“It is not a matter of rights. Think you can return her? Prove it. Prove to me that you’re strong enough. I took her from you once...I can do so again.”

He knows it’s a taunt. It’s plain as day. But Kakashi lets himself fall for it, hook line and sinker. A cry tears his throat as he makes to strike, easily dodged. Alternating between fire and steel, he flails in desperation for just one blow -!

“Kakashi!”

At the frantic tone, Kakashi feels his heart leap.

Ryū!

Just as drawn to the voice, the one called Tobi turns too.

And that’s when he finds his opening.

Barely managing to twist his last attempt, Kakashi - rather than a slash - slaps the flat side of his blade against the mask of his enemy. With a clatter, it shatters into countless pieces as he’s stunned and stumbles aside.

“Tobi -?!”

Heaving for breath, Kakashi nonetheless stills as Ryū calls again...this time for the man he was fighting. But -? He -?

A hand at his face as a cut from stray porcelain bleeds sluggishly, Tobi leans heavily against a wall. Further down the tunnel, Ryū stares with obvious shock...tinged with concern. Her gaze then flickers to Kakashi, just as desperate.

But Kakashi doesn’t see it. He’s staring at his foe.

“...Obito…?”

Turning and panting, another pair of ruby and amethyst eyes meet Kakashi’s. He looks startled, almost...dazed. A gloved hand falls away, revealing the mottled skin: scarred over from obvious burns.

But there’s no mistaking it. That...that is Obito. But he’s...he’s dead. He watched the light leave his remaining eye after that sword buried through his back. Kakashi could see the cremating fires as he and Rin fled with Ryū from the city that night. The Uchiha always burn their dead. And Obito, without a doubt, was -

Too shocked to react further, Kakashi jumps as the other mage teleports beside his companion, teeth bared in a hiss. “Enough. We retreat. Now.”

A hand drags Ryū to his side, ignoring her cry of surprise and pain at his hold. Obito, still stunned, staggers forward as another portal opens. Beyond, Kakashi can see marshy swampland and the edge of a city.

“No!”

Behind him, limping, Kumiko tries to dash forward and give chase. But as the trio pass through and the door closes, she collapses to the floor of the cavern.

Silence.

With a slow dissolving of his joints, Kakashi falls to his knees, sword clattering against the stone. Too many things swirl within his mind, making his skull feel full to the point of bursting. Obito...Obito is -?

“Where did they go? Kakashi, did you see?!”

He doesn’t answer, staring at nothing.

“Kakashi!”

“...he’s alive, but...she’s gone. I…?”

Crossing the gap between them with furrowed brows, Kumiko searches his face. “What?”

“...it’s not possible…”

“Kakashi, snap out of -!”

“It had to be a trick. Something to unsettle me. I -?”

With a harsh report in the dead air of the cave, Kumiko’s hand slaps against the skin of Kakashi’s cheek. His head reels back, eyes widening and springing with tears at the sudden sting. “What -?!”

“Whatever the hells took over your mind, banish it!” she barks, her hand then moving to hold his shoulder as she stares at him unwaveringly. “You’re speaking nonsense, Kakashi! What in the twelve hells happened? One moment I was fighting the twice-blessed, and then -?”

“It was Obito.”

“...what?”

“The other mage. He had the same eyes. One red, one purple. But it...it was Obito.”

“...that’s not possible. The boy who died…? Gave you his eye?”

A slow nod. “...I’d know that face. Aged or not, it was him. I’ve no doubt.”

“...but...he died as a boy. Even a Tenebreon mage can’t bring back the dead on their own, Kakashi.”

A hand lifts to cradle his brow, trying to think. “...he had a Tenebreon eye. As did his partner. And he...he knew things. From before.”

“...could Ryū have told him?”

“It’s possible, but...Kumiko, I know what I saw. It’s why I...why I froze. The disbelief stole my mind. I...I’m sorry. I let this happen…”

“But why did they leave? The mage I was fighting, he had the upper hand - he’d wounded me! Why flee? Did you overpower the -? Er...Obito?”

“...I broke his mask. At first I thought that’s what stunned him, but...I spoke his name. And he looked at me strangely. Like it...woke something in him.”

Kumiko’s eyes widen. “...maybe he remembered you…?”

“...I don’t know.”

Sighing, Kumiko shifts to sit beside him. “...let’s put together what we know. Obito, your friend, is alive...and is one of two twice-blessed we now know of. Both of them have an eye of fire, and an eye of darkness. His companion is clearly far older. What if they...exchanged eyes?”

“...even if the other mage gave him the Tenebreon eye, Obito only had one left.” Kakashi points to his face. “...I have the other. The other igni eye would have to have come from someone else.”

“...then we can assume he either got the eye elsewhere...or already had it. But how can they both have two elements…? That’s impossible, I’ve never heard of that happening. Let alone with two elements that far apart. Fire is a child of light, darkness’ mirror!”

“...how does one get their element?”

“You’re born with it. Depending on your family tree, you can either have a parent’s element, or - if they’re the right tiers - a combination of the two. Wind and water could birth the same, or ice.”

“...but what about at the beginning?”

“...you mean the first blessed? It was a gift directly from the Elementals themselves. But Kakashi...the Elementals fled over a century ago, when war broke out after the coup. That’s not possible.”

“...is it?” he replies, tone dark. “...think about it. You were Embraced. No one has been since the coup, right? Or so we’re told? What if...Tenebreos blessed them? Could it be done remotely? Like your Embrace?”

At the suggestion, Kumiko’s jaw drops almost comically, if not for the circumstances. “...I...I don’t know. But...why would Tenebreos bless someone already blessed…? Maybe...maybe they stole the eyes from a Tenebreon mage.”

“You told me yourself: my ven is weak because I’m a vom berech: a halfling created rather than born. Surely if they took eyes from someone else, their Tenebreon ven would be weak. But they were both clearly using it with no limit or inhibition. Something’s fishy here, Kumiko...and it would explain why Suigin was so upset. Stealing or receiving ven from someone else wouldn’t make you twice-blessed. What if…” Kakashi’s posture shifts, more forward. “...what if Tenebreos blessed the other mage...and helped him revive Obito?”

“...why would they do that?”

“...I was hoping you’d have an idea. I’m a stranger to most of this, remember?”

Kumiko goes quiet, thinking. “...Tenebreos is the Elemental of darkness. Death, disease, matter...and some say, chaos to Luxeria’s order. Maybe this entire plot was their doing. Remember the coup...? It was born mostly out of spite by the Tenebreon mages. For ages they were targeted as “evil”, hunted for being harbingers of death despite their necessity. Maybe...Tenebreos wants revenge for their slaughtered mages. Maybe they’re looking for a rebirth of chaos, just as the world was righting itself.”

“By bringing about the thirteenth?”

“...I don’t know. I feel like there’s still something we’re missing. This is all just conjecture and guesswork at this point. But something tells me we’re on the right path.”

After a pause, Kakashi gives a humorless scoff. “...right. The path I just brought to a dead end. I let them escape...and Twelve know where they’ve gone.”

“...did you see anything through the portal? Anything that might help us find them?”

“...it looked like...marshland. Water, muck, bowing trees. And maybe a city of some kind. It was gone so quickly…”

“No, no - that’s a start.” Mulling that over, Kumiko then offers, “...we should return to Boralis. Regroup. Maybe someone there will have an inkling where that could be. Wherever they fell back to...it has to be somewhere they’d feel secure. They seemed confident they’d be able to take us, and keep their hideaway here. I doubt they have many backup plans, given how solidly they regarded this one.”

“...all right. Can you walk…?”

“Well enough. Besides, with the mages gone, that barrier will be too. They can’t hold it over much distance. Raziya can come in and take us straight from here back to the capital.” Struggling to her feet, Kumiko lets Kakashi bear her weight, the pair of them hobbling to the entrance as she calls her drach.

The beast wastes no time in fluttering into the cavern’s mouth, a moaning sound of concern echoing off the walls. “What happened?! Where is the lux mage?”

“We’ll recount it when we get back to Boralis. I need someone to patch me up, and...well, we need to plan our next move.”

Nodding curtly, Raziya gently helps her rider to her saddle, Kakashi climbing up behind as they streak out of the cave and back into the squall.

Yet another setback...and when they were so close…! As guilty as he feels, Kakashi does his best to shove the disappointment aside. It won’t do anything for him, now. Instead, he mulls over their conjecture, and the possible ways forward.

He wasn’t lying. This quest is one he will follow until the end. He made a promise to watch over her when he accepted Obito’s eye, and the burden Ryū’s mother gave him and Rin, both. Until he succeeds, or draws his last breath...he will follow.

...hold on, Ryū. I’m not out of this fight, yet. Don’t you dare give up…!

     Another day, another chapter! Technically finished last night buuut it was 2am, I was buggered, and I...waited until today to proofread! Then life got in the way, so here it is midafternoon :’D      BUT ENOUGH ABOUT THAT. We have PLOT DEVELOPMENT! The (very obvious) secret is out: Tobi is Obito! And he seems...off somehow. We also have some guesswork on Kumiko and Kakashi’s part about what EXACTLY is going on, and why. But there’s only one way to know for sure...they’re gonna have to do...MORE TRAVELING!      Because there isn’t enough of that in this fic, right? :’D      There’s...probably more to say but I’m hella scatterbrained today so that’s all the commentary for now. Hoping to start C13 sometime today, we’ll see how more Life goes. Cuz right now it’s kinda kicking my butt, but what else is new :’D      Anywhoozle, thankies for reading, and I’ll get the next part out soon!

#yukaikokoro #abyssaldespair #uchiha obito #suigin ryū #uchiha madara #hatake kakashi #kottakawa kumiko #raziya #divine light [ au ]

[madara-fate]

Why the hell did Karin deluded herself into thinking that she was an exception to sasuke’s insanity? Like when she was taken hostage and she KNEW this guys’ chakra was black as a black hole, why did she think that he give her special treatment from the rest and even asked herself, sasuke what was I to you.

It wasn’t about Karin thinking that she would receive special treatment. Yes, she could see that Sasuke was becoming progressively colder, but she thought that he at least still considered her to be a comrade. Obviously, Karin wasn’t like “the rest” as you described them - She was Sasuke’s teammate, someone who he had been travelling with, formed a bond with, and who he desperately tried to save from his own Amaterasu flames. And yet, here Sasuke was, piercing her with his Chidori without hesitation, treating her as if she was the same as any other enemy which stood between him and his objective. It was as if everything they had been through as a team meant absolutely nothing to him:

That was why Karin asked herself that question. She hadn’t anticipated that Sasuke would fall to the extend that he did, where she would be considered nothing to him at all.

Besides, I don’t think you should be giving Karin a hard time when Sakura has also displayed similar sentiments towards Sasuke. During the war when Sakura opted to use herself as a diversion again Madara, and Sasuke seemingly didn’t give a damn about her well being, Sakura was upset at that and wondered how much she actually meant to him due to his exterior indifference:

Similarly, she displayed such sentiments again during her 2nd confession to him, where she pleaded with him that if there was even a little corner in his heart that thought of her, then he wouldn’t leave again:

All three examples were the same - Karin and Sakura could both see how far in darkness Sasuke was, and they weren’t expecting “special treatment” from him, but the fact is that they rightfully considered themselves to be more than any other random person to Sasuke, so it hurt both of them when Sasuke very clearly demonstrated just how far the Curse of Hatred had plagued his mind, to the point where he seemingly considered both of their lives to be expendable.

#Karin Uzumaki #Sasuke Uchiha #Sakura Haruno #sasusaku

[neko-shinigxmi]

Tell us about your PC, Aki!! They sound really cool, and I love D&D!

   [sLAMS MY HANDS ON THE TABLE] WELCOME TO a now split party, but a rad af tiefling and her even COOLER little brother.

   Meet Quinzy (and Carnon, to the left side!)!! (Art by the lovely @tiny-pastel-unicorn.)

   Quinzy is a tiefling barbarian who- much like her weapons- dances between a fine line of badass and princess. She loves her bow and flower crown, but her gladiator set, too. She’ll flirt as much as she’ll crave the fight, indulging in the bloodlust that had been encouraged by her demonic father. (A tall, blue demon my DM and bf ended up naming Avnas... Accidentally based him off of Castlevania’s Dracula, Naruto’s Madara Uchiha, and DMC’s Vergil tho, LMAO.)

   Her brother, Carnon... He’s more the sweetie of the troupe. Quinzy’s protective of him as all hell, but he’s STRONG. (Fighter class...and DM allowing him to be Stronk for the fun of it, bless him.) He can’t really read, doesn’t much like to, but he IS a little artist, drawing the group’s adventures as the days pass! Very much wants to make himself known to be his sister’s equal, too, since he doesn’t want to burden her with being weak and defenseless. (Despite the fact he has proficiency in Great weapons.....LMAO.)

   Full family story (plus art of the parents by the same artist!!) beneath the cut~!

   Meet Melita Valentina (the woman) and Avnas, the kid’s parents!! Avnas met Melita after a harsh fight with a blood hunter during a blizzard in her town. Thankfully, she had spotted him in the spotty darkness, forcing him to accept her help, healing him (with the aid of a friend’s potions), and eventually...the two falling in love.

   ...As it wasn’t quite a secret that Melita had a preference, and it certainly wasn’t in humans...!

   Quinzy was the first born... Born with wings, like her father. However, as she grew up and the teasing and harassment from the village kids got to her, she eventually ripped off her wings in an attempt to be more like them. Avnas took this as a sign of her strength, and began training her in various weaponry.

   Before too long, Carnon was born, though Avnas hadn’t been traveling for some time. He decided to leave them for a short while to fight more. Amass more power, and so he left.

   Unknown to him, however, is that Carnon’s horns had grown too soon. Deeply hurting Melita, though the pain wouldn’t become an issue until a month or two later. Her old friend’s potions kept her going for a time, but none had the power the old ones had; the one, for example, that had helped Avnas’ wound. She attempted to send Quinzy and Carnon for it, having staved off some of the ill effects of her injuries and infections... (Knowing the little boy til he was about 3.) However, when they came back?

   Melita had passed. Cold when they came back for her.

   They stuck around for a few months longer, avoiding the room her body lay in and eating up the food the best Quinzy could make of it. Only being forced to leave home when the villagers realized Melita hadn’t been seen or heard from in months and Avnas had been nowhere in sight, either. No sounds of training...

   The villagers burned their home down, Quinzy and Carnon taking their last, precious objects from home (a necklace Melita owned for Quinzy, and Carnon taking a toy his mother had altered for him; so it looked like a tiefling) before running away.

   Quinzy would make a few spare friends (in a brothel, of all places) steal food and money if it meant taking care of Carnon...and eventually, start fighting for money.

   This led her to the beginning of the campaign she started in, where the group would meet Carnon at the door to the underworld of Highwater (he wasn’t allowed down there), and meet Quinzy, the star fighter and the champion of a goblin-run fighting ring. Of course, the curiosity of new fights catches her ear...but considering a hasty shot by a guard caused Carnon harm?

   That goblin didn’t live much longer.

.:.:.

   Over my time playing as her, I got to learn a few things!!! First off... I’ll start with Her Song. The song that makes me think of her every time! Sweet but Psycho by Ava Max (and Youth by Glass Animals for Carnon).

   The energy... The “you’ll love her, but she’ll drive you crazy while you do”.... That’s Quinzy Energy. (And Youth? That’s pure “from Avnas/Quinzy to Carnon” right upfront. Right down to “feel your mother at your side / don’t you know you have my eyes?”) I have a whole WIP playlist for this family, but I’ll be real with ya.....most of it is Avnas pining music (he loved his wife; thus the comparison to Castlevania’s Dracula) and Quinzy’s erratic music tastes. Mostly because-

   Quinzy has HUGE self esteem issues. Being tiefling has always been something that’s bothered her, not that she acknowledges it any. LOTS of false bravado and ego boosting that’s just....empty, if you know her well enough. She’s hypersexual (though polite; if you’re uncomfortable by it, she won’t persist her flirting or sexual comments), but also lowkey repulsed by it....largely due to being exposed young (the brothel), her esteem issues, and events from the campaign. (Where her flirtations and attempts at getting the upper hand via seduction not only got her in trouble, but got her CHARMED by the Bad of the segment- nat 1 (her only nat 1 ever)- and got taken again.....but more forcefully and without her full control of the situation, shaking her up since the encounter.)

   All she wants to do is protect her brother, but during the events of that campaign, she ALSO found out about her dad’s cult. Which wasn’t a big idea until she saw him frail and missing his right eye. Wings gone. From what? Who knows.

   But what she does know is Carnon wouldn’t fight alongside him. Quinzy wouldn’t side with her father if it meant harming Carnon...and led to the first time she ever told him “no.” The daddy’s girl telling him no and the both of them realizing how far apart the other is for the first time in all of this mess.

   Quinzy, hoping her father would fix things.....and he’s essentially gone mad. The patient, honor-driven fighter is gone. Her father is gone and she’s lost. (A breakdown commenced for the first....I’d say 3 or 4 turns until she finally listened to Carnon and engaged, getting in two harsh hits before her attack rolls started slipping.)

   She’s still reeling from that. Last the campaign did, she was suddenly gaining feelings for the resident drow blood hunter, Jivan... The very blood hunter who’d given that wound to Avnas all those years ago. (The wound that was weakening him and driving him mad....but also the fact his wife was dead.)      (And yes, Quinzy likes them- typically- bigger than her, just as tough...older than her, and also has a preference for drow. Dunno where that came from, but she sure as hell does. Ah, on that note...... She’s pansexual.)

   Jivan was upsetting her for, well....existing. Pure, unfiltered emotion isn’t something Quinzy can quite handle. Despite the fact it’s what she used to sorely wish for. To be a badass, warrior princess and to fall in love with someone and be in love as much as Melita and Avnas were.

   A handsome drow shows up with his shit together, nose in a book a majority of the time (a nod to V from DMC5 by my bf, the DM), smooth lines, and a damn good fighter....and now she’s sick to her stomach. Warring with herself quietly. Something only Carnon sees.

   What’s left of a family, falling apart at the seams. And Quinzy, who can’t keep pulling it together by herself.

.:.:.

   WHEW, THAT WAS LONG, but um?? I hope you enjoyed reading this???? I know it’s super long, but I REALLY wanted to talk about all the stuff I keep thinking about regarding her and aaaaaaaa.........

   As a final note! I show you their dolls! They came in...a few days to a week ago from Apocalypse_Too and I adore them!! (Communication was horrible, tho.... Done quickly, but it was a NIGHTMARE to get in touch with them.) And combined with a LOVELY candle from @lemonyflicker (seriously, check them out; their stuff is SO GOOD I cannot praise this custom order I got enough), it makes for a wonderful set~!

   (Also note the lil Quinzy icon in her dice set; we were using those as our “figures” to map out placement. According to a weird, fourth wall breaking canon, Carnon drew them! That’s his art style!)

   ....Okay, ACTUAL last thing: Carnon doing art!!! This was the first page Carnon ever did for the campaign! We stan a little artist!!!!!!!

#thekingaboo #Aki speaks #dnd #tiefling #dungeons and dragons #[waves this around] LOOK AT MY PC I LOVE HER #SHE'S SUCH a MESS BUT SHE'S MY KID!!!!! #they're both my kids tbh #and yes Melita got my monster loving tastes.....what of it?? #skdfjghfjdk but seriously #I'm proud...even tho it's tiring to get into her headspace #the more she's grown the more I understand all her struggles #the more it hurts me to work with her #it's....hard bc I love her too but #idk.....I don't know what I could do abt it #Aki Does Art

[electrasev5nwrites]

Ninja Daily: Vapors 24

Uchiha Itachi looked once more at the picture of his target, Uzumaki Naruto, and considered banging his head against the wall. It would be most undignified and out of character, but then again, so was the fact that he had managed to overlook the fact that his otouto's sensei had taken one student before the team with the jinchuuriki. Just one—which was more than a bit unusual. Even Itachi himself had been on a genin team (if only for about a month).

He had sent a query with a mutual contact about young, red-headed kunoichi in Konoha's active forces in an attempt to figure out who that girl had been. There couldn't possibly be very many, he had thought. Only about a third of the active forces were female, only 26 percent of which were under the age of twenty, and he knew that the vast majority of Konoha's citizens were far less colorful than those of Mist or Snow.

As it turned out, there were only two kunoichi who fit his description, and both of them shared a last name with his jinchuuriki target.

When he had received the initial briefing on his target, it hadn't taken Itachi long at all to put a few pieces of information together and come to a few conclusions. He certainly hadn't missed the connection between the boy's birthday and the day that he was sealed, and his last name implied that he was a direct relative of the former jinchuuriki. Public records listed that woman as one Uzumaki Kushina who had been listed as dying on the day of the nine tails' attack. The fact that his sister shared a shade of this Kushina's unusual hair color seemed to lend credence to the theory that she was their mother and not some other relative.

It seemed most likely that the woman had died in childbirth in a Madara-assisted tragedy and it had been covered up for some reason, Itachi had surmised. Perhaps it had been intended to prevent her name from being smeared after her death by upset villagers looking for a scapegoat for the horrors of that day? If that had been the intention, it had worked well enough. Itachi remembered the confusion of the days after October tenth and the moment that fingers had seemed to point at the Uchiha clan on the basis of a legend.

If Madara was to be believed, the villagers had been onto the correct path of deductive reasoning even if the people they pointed fingers at were innocent. However, when they turned their resentment towards the new jinchuuriki after his identity became clear, they had failed to show such clarity of vision.

After all, it was obvious even to Itachi who had no memories of seeing the man in person that this Uzumaki Naruto was the child of the fourth Hokage. The resemblance was far too strong for any other conclusion to be reached. Unless Namikaze Minato was an absolute monster of a man, he would not have sealed a demon inside his own child without being certain that it was safe. Itachi was certain that both of those children were kept under tight supervision. It would explain Jiraiya's connection to the girl and why he was taking a personal interest in Naruto when conventional wisdom would have indicated that the boy should have been kept within the village while S class criminals hunted him. Konoha's jinchuuriki was a treasure of the country for more than just the contents of the ink on his belly.

That heritage meant, he concluded rather bitterly, that the twin of the jinchuuriki may well be a person of interest on her own merits rather than as a note about a possible weakness to use against Naruto. No child of the Red Chained Death and the fourth Hokage would be content with mediocrity.

Still, no amount of Uzumaki sealing or Namikaze speed (he had been doing a lot of reading up on the two figures he had previously only known about in a passing sense) would explain the girl's strange visions. Unless it was a bloodline ability that had been concealed? Very possible, he concluded. Anyone with sense at all could tell that it was a very dangerous ability that could easily be misused. If the Uchiha had really had the predictive powers they boasted about, they would have denied everything that hinted at the ability and hoarded it as best as they could.

Then again, if it had been an Uzumaki trait, their village probably wouldn't have been destroyed, Itachi mused rather wryly. He struggled not to let any irritation rise. 'This is an unproductive line of reasoning.' He blinked slowly, lifting his head to view the sunrise outside his window. 'Without more information about how such an ability would function, I cannot draw conclusions about what limitations it may possess or what a user would do with it.'

What was more important, Itachi decided, was determining if he should act on the information he had unwittingly stumbled upon or not. His initial plan had been to stall retrieving the Nine-Tails for as long as possible and feeding Jiraiya information that would hopefully lead to the incapacitation of Akatsuki personnel to prevent their goals.

It seemed unlikely that the girl would do anything to interfere with those aims. Perhaps it would just be best to gather what information he could and step carefully.

There was an awkward four-way stare off between Aiko and the three genin she would be leading on a short messenger mission as a way to get them a little experience outside of the village and give her experience with command. She swallowed, hard.

The genin just looked so… tiny. Had she really been that small only two years ago? 'No,' her mind supplied. 'I was one of the tallest kids in the Academy when I was nine. At their age, I must have been four inches taller than that.' A voice that sounded a little like Sasuke's was laughing hysterically at her somewhere in the back of her head. She resolved to never let him know about this mission if it didn't go well.

They didn't exactly look impressed with her either, to be fair. They were probably not expecting a thirteen year old Chuunin who didn't even wear her flak jacket.

She spent a moment wondering where the hell that thing was. The one they'd given her at age eleven had been far too large to wear. Maybe it was in the back of her closet somewhere.

The three children in front of her (and they seemed like children, even if those headbands made them adults) were from the group that Tsunade had bumped up into the genin corps to free up more experienced ninja to take the missions the village desperately needed to function. They probably weren't happy knowing that they wouldn't be getting a real Jounin sensei until the village found its equilibrium again, but they were at least smart enough not to voice the doubts they were obviously having. Their best chance for escaping the trap that the genin corps sometimes became was to find a sponsor in an upper level peer… like Aiko.

She cleared her throat and pasted on a smile. "Ohayo, I'm Uzumaki Aiko and I will be your team leader." There was a beat of silence while the eleven year olds glanced at each other with varying levels of skepticism and uncertainty.

Aiko committed to memory that the girl with the sleek black pigtails and blue eyeshadow in a white halter top and slit blue skirt was Akira, the dirty blonde boy beside her in a green sleeveless tee was Ken, and that the other little girl, a shy thing with shaggy bangs who was practically swimming in loose yellow clothing, was Emiko. She led them to the red bridge her team liked to meet at before folding her legs and encouraging them to sit on the sun-warmed wood as well to look over the mission brief.

"Have any of you been outside the village before?" At the three heads that shook silently, Aiko sighed and leaned back. She readied herself for a lecture. "All right then. The town we are going to is near our closest border outpost, normally manned by Chuunin," she started easily, cracking one eye open to be sure they were paying attention. "Can anyone tell me why that this mission is going to be run by a team of genin instead of a single Chuunin posted on border duty?"

Akira was apparently insightful enough to guess that the Chuunin at the border were basically glorified genin. When her teammates gave her scornful looks, Aiko cut in by ruffling the girl's hair.

"That's right, actually. In much the same way that you three were promoted before you were to normal genin standards because we desperately needed to fill the ranks, so have they been promoted. Therefore, while it is normally acceptable to take one Chuunin off patrol to run messages, we will be doing that off and on for a few weeks so that the border outpost doesn't lose any strength. Does anyone think they know what all they will need to bring for a mission like this? Feel free to ask questions."

"Um…" Emiko bit at her lower lip and looked down. "Should we bring full camping equipment? I mean, it's pretty warm this time of year, and they're so heavy that we won't be moving very fast if we carry them everywhere."

"Good question, but I think you'll be surprised by how cold it gets at night," Aiko informed in an amused tone. "I would pack a change of clothing other than what you wear out of the village, at least one of which is for colder weather. Normally you would be right about camping equipment, but I will have that under control. I need to practice my sealing anyways. So when we meet, lug your sleeping bags along if you have them. If not, at least one warm blanket."

"Weapons?" Emiko asked with more confidence this time.

"No more than you can carry in your holster, and only the kind you are most skilled with," Aiko confirmed. "I hope you all had good survival scores, because I will be making sure you can take care of gathering and preparing food within Konoha's borders on this trip." She made a face. Because the class had been graduated half a year early, they hadn't yet completed their curriculum. That meant she might be walking sobbing children through their first time skinning a bunny rabbit. Joy.

They gave each other uneasy looks, but let that pass without comment.

Then Aiko broached the topic that Kakashi never had with his genin team. "Your outfits," she started, watching with some amusement when all three of them glanced down, "are unsuitable for field work. I expect to see you report for duty with close-fitting clothing of dark or camouflage coloring and any flapping sleeves or such secured with bandages or clips that won't snag. Mesh or other light armor is recommended, and I don't want to see any polyester blends. That means cotton or other breathable fabrics. Does anyone not have clothing like that in their wardrobe?"

When two hands went up and the other wavered uncertainly, Aiko heaved a sigh and wondered why the hell the Academy didn't make this point more often.

She swiveled her ankles to place her feet flat on the red painted wood and stood up without bothering to unfold her legs, letting her left leg slide over to stabilize her weight. "Alright then, follow me kiddies. I will finance exactly one work appropriate outfit for all three of you, since I know you haven't been earning much yet. But I will be very disappointed if I don't see that you've added to it in a month or so. I know that weapons and food are important, but your clothes are ninja gear too."

The next day, she and her three mini-me ninjas (clad in long-sleeved tunics much like her own, complete with adorable little masks that Ken had been decidedly unhappy about) met at the gate. Izumo didn't bother to hide his snorts of laughter, eventually descending into desk-slapping hysterics. Aiko tapped her foot, unamused and with her lips pressed so tightly together that they were turning white.

That was about when Kotetsu looked up from his paperwork, scrunched up his face at his idiotic coworker in disgust, and then caught sight of Aiko and her three genin. His face turned green.

"Am I seeing things, or has Hatake finally figured out how to reproduce by splitting in thirds?" he half-whispered as if afraid to catch her attention.

Aiko turned bright red, cheeks coloring under the half-mask and slapped down her mission orders with more force than necessary. "Cut the crap, please" she snapped briskly. They didn't have to be such total dicks all the time. Okay, so maybe she hero worshiped her shishou a little bit. But that didn't give them license to mock her. He was actually a really freaking awesome shinobi. On his worst day, blinded and with both hands tied behind his back, he could easily put the hurt down on the two of them at once. They had no right to be anything less than reverent towards such a fine specimen. Besides, his preferences in mission gear were both practical and good-looking.

"Sure thing senpai," Izumo wheezed, not noticing his coworker disengaging from the conversation and snatching the last of his cruller.

She reached over and hit him upside the head. It took a few minutes of glowering and paper stamping to get them out of the village, at which point her ducklings tried to give her inquisitive looks. "Don't ask," she practically growled. "They're just jealous."

The eleven year olds noted her stomping and clenched fists. Wisely, none of them commented, though they did exchange looks behind her back that they probably assumed she didn't sense.

It quickly became clear that the genin were still innocent enough to be delighted by their first trip out of the village walls. Not for the first time, Aiko wondered if the strictly enforced restriction of travel was actually intended to cause children to associate the freedom outside with the glamour of being a ninja and not something that everyone should be able to experience. She said nothing, however. It wasn't a productive area of discussion, especially when she was the only person she knew whose formative ideals hadn't been purposefully engendered as part of Konoha's military culture.

She drove them at a grueling pace to the outpost more because it was professional than because she needed to work off irritation, stopping only once for a twenty minute break and sympathetically watched them struggle to get down as much water as possible with shaking fingers, flopping down onto the cool dirt.

"Slow down," she cautioned mildly after giving them a few minutes to make bad decisions. They probably wouldn't want to listen, but it would only be fair to give them the information to make the right choice. They'd remember it later. "You'll regret it if you make yourself sick. Use small, constant sips. And don't just fall over like a dead cat, stretch so that you don't get cramps."

'Wow, timid little Emiko has an unexpectedly fierce glare,' Aiko noted. Outwardly, she gave them a big silly grin that she was sure they could see through her mask. That surety was partially based on the fact that Akira grit her teeth and began breathing slowly through them as if she was counting her breaths. She forced her smile to move upwards, creasing her eyes. One of them actually managed to achieve mild killing intent.

'Hey, this is actually pretty fun,' she giggled to herself while doing her own stretches. She was just doing what she had to do—keeping them on task and moving at a respectable speed. The transition from training to be a shinobi and even introductory level shinobi active duty wasn't an easy one.

"Okay kids, break's over!" She did her best not to relish the overly-dramatic wails that came after. It was a veritable chorus of "that wasn't twenty minutes!"

It hadn't been. It was twenty three minutes, but breaks always felt too short when you were still coming down from a stomach-churning workout.

The next time that they stopped, it was for the night. It felt more than a bit silly to spend more than one day en route to the outpost. On her own, Aiko could have made the trip in about five hours. Her shishou undoubtedly could have done it in four. But luckily for her poor genins' sake, Aiko had possessed the foresight to ask Iruka-sensei as to just what speed she could safely push fresh genin to. The surprise on his face had indicated that either the common sense approach to information gathering was rare or that Iruka wasn't usually the person people asked. She wasn't sure if she should be depressed by that lack of practical habits or wonder if there was something wrong with Iruka's assessments that would lead people to avoid asking him those types of questions.

As it turned out, Ken had the quickest reflexes and brought down a hare first. When Emiko brought down the second, she had them skin and prepare them while Akira gathered wood, lit the fire, and went out on a short hunt for edible berries.

She split the watch into two-hour segments that night, taking the last watch herself and running a short perimeter check while Emiko practically crawled back into her sleeping bag with gummy eyes.

When tummies grumbled and the bags had been re-sealed back into one of the short scrolls Aiko tucked into her hip pouch, she withdrew four energy bars and passed them out. "If we hurry, we can pick up our package and stop for lunch at a teashop close to the outpost," she said mildly, knowing perfectly well that the thought of real food would be irresistible after having those terrible bars for two days in a row.

She let Ken take point and set the pace when they left again, taking the rear position so that she could keep them all in sight and keep an eye out for threats. It would be pretty terrible to have her genin swiped out from behind her on her very first command. Aiko was pleased to note that her admonishment about speed had been taken into account and Ken was setting a pace that had both him and Akira panting. Emiko took much longer to seem to give out steam, face flushing pink about the time that her teammates first had to take a five minute breather for drinks.

"We need to veer east," she advised mildly, letting Ken choose the exact path. She would have taken to a higher route through the trees, but the rookie genin were all unfortunately still bound by gravity's rules and had to take the somewhat more circuitous route around the thickest copses of trees.

Of all the people in the world who could have been manning the outpost, Shikamaru was the Chuunin who ambled out to meet them. He shook his head wordlessly, giving the panting genin a somewhat pitying look. "She made you run the whole way, did she?" Dark eyes passed over Aiko's sweat-free form. "I'm glad you weren't my sensei, Aiko-senpai."

Akira lifted her head to give Aiko a strange look, darting back and forth between the two Chuunin. Her expression was most politely described as 'incredulous'. Aiko was mildly offended. She was the same age as Shikamaru and about as tall as he was. He didn't really look any more impressive than she did. Maybe it was that damn vest? Goddamn, she was going to dig through her closet when she got home. If the smallest size fit Shikamaru's skinny ribs, hers should work fine now that she was older.

Of course Shikamaru caught the look. "When are you getting promoted?" he prodded, giving a slight smirk at the way she glowered. "If I'm Chuunin material, you're Jounin material."

"What, you want to share all the fun you're having?" she asked dryly. Then she shrugged artlessly. "It's a long story, that begins and ends with Kakashi-shishou mouthing off to a Hokage and telling them they aren't qualified to make decisions about promotions. There may have been pointed comments about someone's alcoholism and relative lack of intelligence. At this point, I think it would be best if I just let Tsunade-sama forget I exist so as not to draw any attention. I'm fine with Chuunin clearance anyway."

The boy snorted. "Bet she liked that." Shikamaru dug around in his hip pouch, extracting a brown paper bundle tied with blue string. "Here. It's too troublesome to hold onto this longer than I have to. My supervisor keeps checking to make sure I haven't lost it. It almost seems like they don't trust me or something."

Aiko snorted. "That's an adorable package," she deadpanned, unzipping her own pouch and tucking the surprisingly hefty 4x4x2 box inside.

It was in fact very cute, but the colored string was actually a message itself. It would have been yellow if the missive had been top priority. As it was, a blue stringed message wasn't worth dying to protect. More importantly, it meant that she hadn't lied to her genin about stopping for lunch.

She withdrew her own package from her thigh holster. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow but didn't comment about the fact that she had sealed everything inside a scroll instead of carrying it normally. It hadn't been an impossible amount of material—a few letters with updated orders, a package from someone's sweetheart that she suspected contained baked goods, and a few porno mags and personal items that had been unofficially entrusted to Aiko when word got out that she would be making the deliveries between Konoha and the outpost for the next few weeks. Officially, such things were contraband and personal belongings other than regular letters from family were not allowed on base.

Unofficially, it was widely accepted that border duty was magically even more fucking boring when one was off duty and extracurricular reading material was traded for prices that luxury goods were back home.

Aiko certainly didn't mind bringing the reading material with her; although a couple of the men who'd handed them to her seemed to expect to be beaten roundly about the head. She wasn't sure if the fact that they expected her to scream 'hentai' but had delivered it anyway meant that they were brave or just stupid. There was a fairly good chance that anyone who gave a thirteen year-old known for a cool head reason to scream about perverts would end up full of holes before Anko stopped to evaluate the situation. She did so love to puncture things.

Aiko did, however, mind the idea of passing adult contraband out to her bright-eyed genin to stick in their packs and carry. They were eleven, after all. Hence the sealing scroll.

"There's a 100 ryo delivery charge," she half-joked, trying not to wince at the idea of the expense she'd sunk into sealing it. That wasn't particularly cheap, and it hadn't been for her benefit.

"Ha, no." Shikamaru stuck his hands in his pockets and slouched, looking upwards like he was praying for strength. "I suppose I should get back to work now."

"Not likely," Aiko deadpanned. She turned a critical eye to her ducklings. "Does anyone need to rest a little longer, or are we ready to set out?"

Her brave trio of genin agreed that they were ready to leave (probably thinking with their stomachs) so she waved absentmindedly to Shikamaru and a woman she didn't know who yanked the scroll out of his hands and began to unfurl it before they had even set off.

The sun was cruel and yellow like the eye of a snake, sending punishing lashes down on her deceptively frail shoulders even through the material of her kimono. Temari flushed with heat, eyes darting back and forth between the two males arguing. She considered cutting in, but her newfound bravery around Gaara only went so far. It wasn't like he wanted anything ridiculous, after all. Better let him deal with it.

While all three of the siblings had been promoted to Chuunin after the far-too-eventful exams in Konoha (mostly because Gaara had informed the Council that they had been promoted and left without another word while they sputtered), they had been sent on very few missions as a team. This was in large part because the triumvirate of Sand elders jockeying for power and position placed very little trust in Gaara. She suspected that this mission was largely a trust exercise. Someone was sticking out their neck to demonstrate that the demon container could be controlled for the first time in his life and sent on a mundane mission. If they were wrong, there would doubtlessly be hell to pay. If Gaara snapped in Konoha and so much as stepped on a housewife's toes, Suna could very well be manhandled into even more painful settlements and treaties.

Of course, it was also possible that Gaara had delivered one of his once-frequent threats in order to finagle a rather extended trip to Konoha because he wanted to see his friend. Either way, it mattered little to Temari. Regardless of why, she was taking him back to the place that had changed his mind about defining himself in opposition to every other living being. Temari thought it was a bit of a hellhole- unpleasantly damp, full of loud and obnoxiously dressed weirdoes, and definitely more than a little bit hostile to Suna nin lately- but she was going to have to go and make nice with the Hokage regardless.

It still seemed strange to her that one fight could have altered her baby brother so much. It was almost a shame that she had been cowering behind a copse of trees for most of it and missed whatever the hell Uzumaki Naruto had said to convince Gaara to change his entire philosophy of life. Sometimes she woke up in the morning, saw the sand on her bedroom floor that indicated Gaara had checked on her during the night, and suffered a panic attack that constricted her throat and made it impossible for her to breathe before she remembered that he no longer wanted to hurt her. The absence of the threat almost weighed more heavily on her mind than the ever-present danger had for years.

They set off for the Land of Fire without words. Kankuro was not with them for this mission, a fact that would have worried her far more if she didn't know that he would be safely ensconced in his workroom while they were gone.

This mission was important, of course, but Temari, who had been trained in niceties since she was old enough to toddle, was really the only one being sent as a diplomat. Gaara had definitely not had many of those lessons, a fact which she had awkwardly tried to remedy in the past week when she heard he would be coming with her. With Gaara included on the team, she needed no other escort. It would have been too threatening to send another member at this delicate stage of negotiations. Besides, Sand had been so weakened by the failed invasion and Orochimaru's misuse of their forces that even the removal of a single talented Chuunin from the village could mean the difference between an adequate response force within the village walls in case of an emergency and being totally overrun.

That was probably why Councilman Shu had been arguing with Gaara about going, she idly noted. Despite being frightened of Gaara, all in Sand respected his strength.

She let him set the pace. It was no skin off her back if Gaara wanted to travel at insane speeds. Kankuro wouldn't have been able to keep up. Temari herself was misusing wind jutsu in order to travel on top of her fan while her red-headed brother sprinted like a man possessed. He didn't do things by halves, Gaara.

Of course, he didn't sweat either, she pouted when they reached the oasis where they habitually stopped to refill their water skins. It was unfair. The barrier of sand that protected his skin from even fatal glows also seemed to keep Gaara's porcelain skin safe from wind and sun burn. She wasn't utilizing the air-based jutsu that kept the hot air off her skin with a cushion of artificially cooled air—it was stupidly difficult to maintain while flying at high speeds, and the gusts she experienced on top of her fan kept her from getting too hot.

They didn't save her from minor sunburn, however, so she took a moment to withdraw her little blue pot of lotion and rub it onto her cheeks and the back of her neck while they stopped. Gaara's nose flared as if the scent bothered him, but he gave no comment.

#vapors #uzumaki aiko #electrasev5n #ninja daily #fanfiction #naruto fanfiction

[sariasprincy-writes]

Hollow Point 30

One // Two // Three // Four // Five // Six // Seven // Eight // Nine // Ten // Eleven // Twelve // Thirteen // Fourteen // Fifteen // Sixteen // Seventeen // Eighteen // Nineteen // Twenty // Twenty-One // Twenty-Two // Twenty-Three // Twenty-Four // Twenty-Five // Twenty-Six // Twenty-Seven // Twenty-Eight // Twenty-Nine // Thirty (here) 

Chapter Thirty A Shot in the Dark

"You do have an actual plan, correct? To bring down Akatsuki?"

Sakura just smiled upon Hashirama's question. This wasn't the first time he had asked her this over the course of her short visit, but rather than bring her unease or the need to sooth his concerns, she found herself amused.

"No," she answered honestly. Then she added quickly before his frown could fully form, "And that's why it's going to work. Because if I haven't yet figured out how I'm going to take out Madara and his operation, then he won't know either."

Hashirama sat across from her behind a large, oak desk in the middle of his expensively furnished study. He looked like someone of importance, someone of nobility behind it. It made her wonder if he had chosen it simply for that purpose.

"I do not approve of that idea," he told her sternly.

Sakura shrugged as she pretended to brush lint off the leather arm of her wide, plush chair. "I have your money. And Tobirama's men and my guns. There is little else I need to win this war."

"I do not like your confidence either," he frowned, his tone just short of chiding. Then he sat forward in his chair as if he had just decided something important. "I will help you strategize. Together, we can make a plan. One that I am sure will end with Madara dead and Akatsuki dismantled–"

"No," Sakura interrupted with a quiet but firm tone. "I have enough moving parts already. One more cog in the machine will complicate things. Make it easier for a part to stall. And this late in the game, I can't have any failures."

Hashirama eyed her. He stared at her so long she thought he might argue more. But then he leaned back again, the faintest glint of amusement flickering in his eyes. "You still talk like you are speaking Arabic."

"It's a pretty language. It's a shame you never learned it."

"Perhaps one day."

Sakura sincerely doubted that but she smiled pleasantly nonetheless. "Perhaps."

Then she stood, smoothing out the nonexistent wrinkles from her black, leather jacket. "Don't be too upset with me for my vagueness. I need you out of the line of fire. Once Akatsuki is taken out, someone will need to be there to swoop in to take their place before someone else can."

"Not you?"

His hard gaze didn't waver from hers but she smiled softly. "This is what I promised you, Hashirama. To take down Akatsuki so you can take their place in the New York Underworld."

His reply was a pleased smirk. A little dark, a little twisted. Knowing that he was satisfied with her words, she picked up the glass of brandy he had poured her at the beginning of their meeting and tossed it back all in one go. She didn't flinch at the burn. Simply smiled her farewell before she made her way out of the room.

One of Hashirama's staff was there to open the front door for her as she made her exit. They waited until she was down the marble staircase that led to the large, circle driveway before silently shutting it once more.

Only once Sakura was through the tall, iron gates and off the property did she finally feel Hashirama's gaze leave her. Her thoughts churned slowly as her conversation with Hashirama played over in her head. She hadn't been completely honest when she told him she didn't have a plan. She had one forming, but she'd need more information before she could organize the details and set it into motion. Something she hoped Ino could help her with.

They met at a little but busy café in Upper Manhattan. Ino was already there when Sakura arrived, sitting in the corner with a large coffee in a white, porcelain cup. The blonde drank it daintily, making sure not to spill it on her white blouse. In this setting, she looked like an accomplished businesswoman rather than a woman who knew something about everyone in the Underground.

"Any news?" Sakura asked, sliding into the seat across the small table.

"Nothing on the port you took over," she sighed disappointed. "All I know is Akatsuki is about to bring a huge shipment over, one big enough to rival Hashirama's supplies, but I don't know when. I keep listening for more information, but everyone who knows something either hasn't been given a date yet or they're keeping it all hush-hush."

"That's not surprising," Sakura said, sounding less disappointed than she was. "Madara knows that I'm speaking with the CIA. He'd want to keep that information under wraps."

Ino's eyes widened. "He does? Are you safe?"

"Never, but it's fine. Have you heard anything else?"

The blonde looked like she wanted to ask more but she reluctantly let it go. "Yeah, actually. I heard rumor that there are some Akatsuki members are in the city."

That caught Sakura's attention. "Who?"

"I don't know all their names, but for sure Deidara, as well as the arms dealer. The really big one."

Kisame, Sakura thought. It was news to her that he was back in New York, Itachi hadn't said anything to her, but she didn't say anything to Ino. It was best for everyone involved if as few people knew about Kisame's true loyalties as possible.

"Anyone else?"

Ino shook her head. "That's all I've heard. I'm meeting with another contact tomorrow night. I'll have more information later."

Sakura nodded slowly. "Let me know what you."

They lapsed into silence after that. Sakura lost in her thoughts and Ino quiet as she sipped her coffee. Some minutes passed before Sakura realized the blonde was watching her.

"What?" she asked.

Ino's gaze didn't waver from hers, unchagrined at being caught staring. "What's going on?"

Sakura shook her head, not understanding. "What do you mean?"

"I mean you're different. Something happened. Something's changed."

"Nothing happened," Sakura said. Then she let out the longest sigh someone had ever breathed. "But you're right: something has changed." When eyed her curiously, Sakura told her, "We're no longer just small time. We've moved up into the big leagues. There're greater rewards. Greater risks. So, I need to ask you something."

Ino's brow furrowed in confusion. "Ok?"

"Do you still want to stay?"

The blonde didn't immediately answer, as if a little lost for words. "You're asking if I want to leave you?"

"I'm asking if you're willing to lose everything. Your freedom. Your life."

Sakura felt her heart drop into her stomach when Ino's gaze fell to her coffee. When she raised them again, there was understanding and something strong reflecting in her blue eyes. "You're my best friend, Sakura. I know Shikamaru tried to shake you, that he blames you for dragging me back into the Underground, but it was only a matter of time before I came back myself. What I'm trying to say is…" she said with a small, unwavering smile, "wherever happens, happens. I'm not going anywhere."

Those words clung to Sakura even after she left the café. They filled her with a warmth she couldn't remember having for a long time. Knowing that her longest friend had her back and always would. She worried for Ino's safety, of course, but Ino was smart. Sakura knew she would keep herself safe. And if she did need help, Sakura would be right there. No matter Shikamaru's opinion of her.

However, her conversation with Ino had left her curious. Back in her condo, Sakura pulled her phone from her pocket. She spun the device slowly between her fingers as she considered her next move. Then she unlocked the screen and dialed out. Itachi answered on the first ring.

"I was just about to call you," he said.

"Hopefully to tell me that Kisame is back in New York."

His surprise was evident in his voice. "Yes, actually. How did you know?"

"I have every eye on Akatsuki. I know," she said, examining her nails.

"Well he has information for us," he told her, unperturbed by her lack of answer. "We need to meet. Tonight."

"It'll have to be somewhere discrete. Somewhere off the grid."

"Why?"

Sakura didn't immediately answer as her attention turned away from inspecting her nail polish to the view outside. Below, people hustled by in spring jackets, the morning drizzle likely to give way to afternoon sun.

"Madara knows about us," she eventually told him.

Itachi was quiet on the other end of the line for a long minute. Then he murmured, "How much danger are you in?"

Not exactly the response she was expecting but it made her smile nonetheless. Just a small upward turn of her lips. "None more than usual."

Sakura waited as he fell silent again. She could almost hear his thoughts through the line as he decided what he wanted to do. "Do you remember the place we first met? Officially."

Sakura's brow furrow as she thought back to all those months ago. Her first thought was Israel, but back then he had been undercover in another agency's uniform. Then she recalled that night at the club. How he had been alone in that upstairs balcony. She had bought them both shots if she recalled correctly and he had introduced himself in that utterly sexy, black button-down shirt.

"I remember," she said.

"Meet me there at midnight."

"Midnight it is. And Itachi," she said before he could hang up. "Wear that black shirt again."

Then Sakura ended the call. There was a brazen smirk on her face as she pressed the edge of her phone to the underside of her chin. Even without him standing before her, she could see the surprise that would be written on his face before it gave way to a soft smirk. It was one of her favorite expressions.

Then she chased the thought away. She needed to focus. Because she didn't doubt Madara still had a tail on her that she would need to shake if things were to go well tonight. And she wouldn't be going in alone.

xx

Just before midnight, Sakura arrived in Lower Manhattan. Ino was already there dressed in a sparkling blue dress and a pair of stiletto heels. She gave Sakura a onceover as they met on the third floor of an underground parking garage a few blocks away. The blonde took in her black, lacy dress. It wasn't Sakura's favorite but it hid the gun in her skirt and the one along her ribs well.

"You partying or working business?" Ino asked, her tone vaguely teasing.

Sakura answered with a smirk as she spun once, making the skirt of her dress flare. "Have to dress the part, don't I? How do I look?"

"Like you could be here to seduce or kill someone. I honestly don't know," she answered, making Sakura laugh. Then she sobered some. "I swear, Madara has an obsession with you if he's been following you for over six months now."

"I think it's closer to eight at this point," Sakura said unperturbed. "It's getting a little annoying. I had to drop my car off across town and hitch another one just to lose my tail."

A frown crossed Ino's face upon hearing that. "You think this is a good idea then?"

"Probably not, but I have business I have to discuss tonight. Are we ready?"

Ino nodded. "I talked to Choji earlier. He roped off the upstairs for you. Nothing too noticeable, but it should give you enough cover to do whatever you need to do. Just try not to shoot anyone. I don't think he'll welcome me back if I cause him any trouble."

"This should be a friendly meeting," Sakura told her. "Any shooting wouldn't be by me."

"Well…" the blonde shrugged, "we both know how trouble likes to find you."

Sakura couldn't disagree with that. But then again, she supposed that's what happens when someone does what she does for a living.

"Alright, we should get going," Sakura said with a glance at her phone. "I want you to watch the front door. Text me if anyone comes in that even looks remotely out of the ordinary. I don't think this meeting will take too long. I'll text you when we're on our way down."

"And you're sure you don't want me to wait for you afterwards?" Ino asked.

Sakura shook her head. "No. If someone is watching, I want us to leave separately. But don't worry. Kakashi is around."

With that said, the women left the parking garage to head towards the club. It was just as Sakura remembered with its tall windows and flashing neon lights. Deep bass spilled out onto the street and throbbed beneath their feet as they approached.

Choji greeted them at the door. Ino pressed a friendly kiss to his cheek and murmured something in his ear before he let them pass. He gave Sakura a vague warning look as she stepped past the entrance door. Not so much a threat but more of a plea for her not to start any trouble for him. She smiled comfortingly before she followed after the blonde.

Side-by-side, Ino and Sakura descended the staircase into the club. At the bottom, it opened up into a large room where guys and girls dressed to party weaved through each other. The dancefloor was already packed, as were the bathrooms and the bar, both with lines a few people deep.

Neither Sakura nor Ino could hear one another over the heavy beats or the hundreds of voices already talk-yelling over the music. But they didn't need to. Ino glanced at Sakura to which she nodded. Then they went their separate ways.

In the back, Sakura found the staircase that led to the second floor. The door was shut with a bouncer a few feet away, but he said nothing as Sakura approached. Only opened the door for her without a word.

As soon as the door closed again behind her, the music dulled. She could still feel the heavy bass pounding through her chest and under her heels, but it was muted enough that she could talk without shouting to be heard. Or eavesdropped on. Exactly what she needed.

To her surprise, the upstairs room was empty. Neither Kisame nor Itachi were there yet. Which was a little surprising since the latter was usually the first to arrive.

Nevertheless, Sakura did a single circle about the room. She paused briefly at the railing that overlooked the rest of the club, her khol-rimmed eyes scanning the faces below carefully. None were familiar to her, nor did any have wandering eyes.

She checked her phone again. There was nothing from Itachi. Nor was there any news from Kakashi, whom was perched somewhere nearby. Her silent and deadly eyes.

There was nothing left for her to do but wait. And so she lowered herself into one of the plush chairs and did just that.

Sakura didn't have to sit long before she heard the door downstairs open, followed by light footsteps on the steps. Even without glancing over her shoulder, she knew it was Itachi. She would recognize his footfalls anywhere and against her will, a small smile spread across her lips.

"Hello, darling."

He stopped behind her before he braced his hands on either side of the armchair to lean over her. "Hi," he murmured in her ear.

The warmth of his breath sent a shiver down her spine and automatically heat began to pool low in her stomach. She gave away none of this though as she peered at him out of the corner of her eyes. "You're late."

"It is twelve o'clock exactly. I am perfectly on time," he told her.

Even with the music in the background, she could hear the smugness in his voice. She shot him an unamused look. "You think you're so hot."

"I am hot or need I remind you again?"

Sakura turned her head fully to regard him, her expression torn between being unimpressed and amused, but before she could answer, another spoke behind them. "Are you two going to flirt all night or can we do what we came here for?"

Kisame's voice boomed over the music. Itachi froze for one moment before he straightened and stepped away from her.

Sakura couldn't resist her smile as the Israeli Agent joined them. She made a point of looking him over as he stepped further into the room, taking in his jeans and dark blue, button up shirt. "Don't despair, Kisame. You're hot too."

She ignored Itachi's gaze as Kisame sent her a flat look. Her smile stuck as the men joined her. Itachi took the chair closest to her while Kisame grabbed one nearby and dragged in closer. Only once they were all settled did Itachi speak, his earlier playfulness gone and replaced with only business.

"You said you had something for us. Something important."

Kisame nodded. And got straight to the point. "Akatsuki's shipped. Everything's on its way here."

Like clouds rolling in over a summer sun, Sakura's entire mood changed. She shifted in her seat, sitting up a littler straighter. Nothing but business on her mind. "When?"

"It'll be here in four days' time."

"That is not a lot of time to plan," Itachi said.

Kisame merely shrugged. "That's all the notice I have to give."

"It takes over a week for a cargo ship to cross the Atlantic. Why are we just hearing of this now?"

"Because that's all I was told. They're delivering guns, money, drugs to a warehouse in Southern New York. It'll be the biggest shipment they've sent here in years," he told them all, his expression just as solemn as both Sakura and Itachi's. "Enough to take control over the Underground. Enough for them to fully take root in America permanently."

Sakura didn't outwardly react to that as she sat back in her chair. Her mind was reeling, already racing through what needed to be done if she had any hope, any chance of overthrowing Madara and Akatsuki.

"How did you hear of this?" Itachi asked, continuing the conversation.

"Pein told us," Kisame replied. "He's ordering all members of Akatsuki not tied up in Egypt to relocate to America."

"Not Madara?"

Kisame exhaled through his nose slowly. "We already had this conversation, Itachi. I didn't know of Madara's involvement in Akatsuki. As far as I'm aware, I'm the only one who knows he's the true leader. And that is only because you told me."

Itachi frowned in reply but Sakura spoke before he could continue, "Where?"

Kisame turned to her, his confusion evident. "Where what?"

"You said Akatsuki was delivering the shipment to the south," she repeated slowly. "Where in the south, exactly?"

"To a warehouse in Brooklyn just east of Borough Park," the Israeli Agent told them. "That's where Pein has had it ordered to."

Itachi's brow furrowed. "Isn't there an Army base just south of there?"

Kisame nodded. "He figured the military wouldn't think to look for it under their noses."

"He's smart," Sakura said with a small smile.

"Incredibly," Kisame agreed reluctantly, his gaze lingering on her. "Which means that you two need to come up with a plan to intercept the shipment. That warehouse is heavily guarded and even more heavily armed. It'll take next to an army to bring it down."

"Or me."

Both Kisame and Itachi looked at her when she spoke. She couldn't help her growing smirk as she told them, "I took over that warehouse nearly a week ago. It's been under my control ever since."

Kisame stared at her a long moment before he gave an unamused laugh. "That's not possible."

In the other chair, understanding dawned on Itachi's face. "That's the other warehouse."

Sakura smiled while Kisame frowned. "There's no way you could have taken down all those men without drawing some attention. And even if you did, Pein would know it's not his men manning it any longer."

"Because of the cloud?"

Itachi's eyes narrowed upon her question. "What cloud?"

When Kisame remained silent, Sakura answered, her gaze not wavering from Kisame's. "All Akatsuki members have a tattoo. A red cloud outlined in black ink. Even you have one."

Sakura didn't have to look to know she would find one of the inside of Kisame's wrist. It was the same one she had seen on the men guarding the warehouses during her two raids. She hadn't known at the time what they were, but Temari had. A mark of loyalty towards Akatsuki.

Kisame stared at her for a long time. His eyes pinning her in place as he took her all in. Then he smiled. "You're good, little viper."

Sakura said nothing, but she a faint, arrogant smile passed her lips before her attention turned to Itachi when he sighed. "Even with the warehouse under your control, Akatsuki's going to be bringing in more muscle," he said. "You are not going to be able to handle all the incoming men and product yourself."

"Then what do you suggest?" she asked.

Itachi merely shook his head, his expression thoughtful but a little uncertain. Like a half-formed thought was brewing in his mind. "I am not sure yet," he added, his tone a little distant. "I need to make a call."

Without another word, Itachi stood and made his way towards the stairs, phone in hand.

Sakura watched him leave, her gaze tracking his movements until he was out of sight. Once he was gone, she turned back to Kisame. Only to find he was already watching her. She cocked her brow. "What?"

"Itachi is right," he told her. "Even with your men occupying the warehouse, it won't be enough. Pein is bringing dozens upon dozens of men. Unless you get more, you and all of them will be killed."

They both knew he was right, but Sakura simply smiled. She refused to show weaknesses, even if they were loosely on the same side. "I didn't think you cared so much about me," she teased.

"You just need to be prepared. I can't risk getting caught by helping you. You and Itachi are on your own, little viper."

"It's Tsunade," Sakura corrected, her mouth suddenly unsmiling.

"But you're not Tsunade, are you?" he challenged, his voice quiet but not quite threatening. "Because Tsunade should be in her forties and you don't look a day over thirty."

Sakura didn't immediately reply as she studied him. She tried to gauge his thoughts, but his expression was unreadable as the flashing lights above the dancefloor flickered across his profile.

It was at that moment that she realized how long Kisame had been tracking her. Tracking the real Tsunade. Likely since she had come into the Underground twenty-some years ago. Sakura suspected that if he didn't need her help with Akatsuki now, he would probably be working to bring her down. And who's to say he wasn't still going to do that anyway.

It was only Itachi's return that saved them from forever sitting in that moment, stuck in time. He paused, glancing from Sakura to Kisame and back again. "Did I miss something?" he asked.

Without tearing her gaze away, Sakura shook her head. "No. We're done here."

Kisame left without another word after that. Sakura continued to sit for a few more minutes, her gaze staring without seeing out past the railing where she could just see the DJ on stage below. Her mind spun as quickly as the music below them, the quick bass and house beats as rapid and interwoven as her thoughts.

It was Itachi that broke through all of that, his voice nudging her back to reality. "What are you going to do?"

"Nothing tonight," she said with a long sigh. When Itachi shot her a look of confusion, she explained, "I need to figure out what I'm going to do first. I can't make a play until I count my pieces."

And she needed rest before that. With waking up early to talk with Hashirama and staying up late to meet with him and Kisame, she'd had a long day. Only made more stressful by the fact that she only had a few days to act before Akatsuki would have nearly an entire army to take control of New York. It wasn't exactly as much warning as she had been hoping for, but she reasoned that she had been planning for this for a while now. She had everything she needed. She just needed to set the pieces into motion.

"Are you ready?"

His question made Sakura stop and look up at him. It took her a second to realize that he wasn't talking about Akatsuki. He meant right now. For some reason that made the stress in her shoulders fade and she couldn't resist the small smile that curled in the corners of her mouth.

"Yeah."

After sending Ino a quick text that they were heading down, Sakura followed Itachi down the stairs and back into the main room. Ino was already gone. Sakura let him take her hand and lead her through the crowd towards the far side of the club.

They made their exit through a side door. It dropped them out into the alley beside the building, the music only a faint throb compared to the pounding noise inside. It didn't escape Sakura's notice that Itachi didn't drop her hand but she didn't complain. Simply leaned closer to steal some of his heat as they walked through the night.

"I can hear you thinking," Itachi murmured after a few minutes of quiet.

Sakura inhaled deeply before she let out a long, slow sigh. "I'm just thinking about what Kisame said."

"He said a lot. What part?"

"Honestly, all of it," she told him. "But mostly the part where he said he didn't think we could take out Pein."

Itachi glanced down at her from where she was still leaning into his side. "You think he's right?"

"I do to a certain extent." When she continued to feel Itachi's gaze, she looked up at him. "He's right that if Pein gets here before we move, we're screwed. Akatsuki has more guns, more men, more resources than we do."

"But you have the Underground," he countered.

Sakura simply shook her head. "I have friends of friends and favors. But the Underground isn't mine to control. It's divided amongst a lot of players. I only hold power in one small part."

Itachi didn't immediately reply to that as they continued walking. Their footsteps echoing against the sidewalk as they slowly made their way. They passed another club, one with people still lingering out on the sidewalk, most drunk and stumbling down the street in pairs or groups.

"What if the CIA helped?" Itachi asked after a minute.

His question was so out of the blue, so unexpected that Sakura stopped abruptly. Itachi paused as well when she slipped out of his grasp. In the semi-darkness, she tried to read his expression. When she found only open honesty, her eyes narrowed in confusion.

"You said they wouldn't help."

"I said they would not unless they were sure they could corner Madara."

"But we don't know that Madara will be there," she countered.

Itachi shrugged. "What if the information hinted that he would be?"

Sakura stared, only one step below openly gawking. She opened her mouth only to close it once and then twice as his words registered. She didn't know if he actually believed that he could capture Madara or if he was willing to knowingly lie to his agency to get her manpower. He was willing to risk…perhaps everything and it was that fact that left her a little speechless.

Sakura opened her mouth again, but before she could speak the screech of tires pierced the night air. They both looked up in time to see a black car with its headlights blacked out screamed down the street towards them. Then the unmistakable pop of gunfire filled the air.

to be continued…

#itasaku #itachi #sakura #ino #kisame #hollow point #chapter 30 #see ff.net for author's note if youre curious #saria writes #crime au #arms dealer au #please don't forget to comment #thank you to those who did last chapter!

[365daysofsasuhina]

[ 365 Days of SasuHina || Day Four: Why Didn’t It Happen To Me? ] [ Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Hinata ] [ SasuHina ] [ Verse: A Light Amongst Shadows ] [ AO3 Link ]

With how often she’s counted herself as her only companion, Hinata has a habit of letting her thoughts run wild. For the longest time, they were her only means of escape, and entertainment. It’s grown her into a somber, quiet adult: she can sit with only their company for hours without boredom or regret.

Something most of her friends can’t quite seem to comprehend.

Well...except him.

Which is probably the precise reason why it’s him lying beside her in the wee morning hours, still asleep when she finds herself awake. Strange...she’s not sure what woke her. Anything to be sensed would have likely roused him, too. He’s too...on-guard, too careful. But Sasuke still sleeps, visage looking far younger, far more...at ease than when awake.

It’s a view she’s not often treated to, and one she takes every spare moment to enjoy.

Lilac eyes watch him silently, a bit surprised the feeling of being observed hasn’t woken him. But maybe by now he’s used to her stare. Head propped up on an elbow in their bed, Hinata’s lips curl in a soft smile, lounging quietly as she just takes in his image.

It makes her remember - as she so often does - how lucky they are to be here. And not just here - not just in these circumstances, this very moment. But alive. And having what they have. Both with brothers returned to them. Fractured, but happy families. And a loving marriage that - though not entirely without pitfalls - has still proven to make her the happiest she’s ever been.

And she hopes that - for him - it’s the same.

Returning to Konoha wasn’t easy for him. Not after all he lost - all that was taken from him in this place. His family...his home...his lineage and his sense of belonging. Even now, he often reminisces about how - if the rest of his family willed it - he would abandon Konoha in the blink of an eye. His only anchor is what little remains of his bloodline. His brother and his wife and children. Shisui.

And her.

He asked her, once. If she would go with him, should he leave. It took a little thought, but in the end she agreed. Her main concerns here - her clan, and her team - have proven able to go on without her. Hanabi is managing well, especially with Neji’s counsel. Kiba and Shino both revel in their work, and seem happy. Though she knows they would all miss her, and she them...there would be more point in her accompanying Sasuke than staying here without him. She has a future with him. The chance for a family. One outside the jurisdiction of her still rather-strict clan. True, she’s no longer heiress...but Hiashi has still hinted that her marriage and future offspring are still of great importance.

And as much progress as the Hyūga have made...she’d still have no qualms about keeping any children of hers far from them, should the need arise.

Sasuke has echoed similar sentiments, but in regards to the village at large.

Much progress has been made for the Uchiha and their freedom. Their future. Itachi’s pardon - though not supported by everyone - was a big step. And the removal of the previous council members to keep their dangerous politics away from the village’s future. The clans rallied in support, and there’s greater hope for their futures: all of them.

...and yet…

The Uchiha are now a rare breed. Any scrap of their bloodline is sure to be prized...and lusted after by any seeking power or influence. Not to mention the strange happenings around them lately. Anonymous letters of hate, threats carved into front doors, and even shouts from strangers. It’s clear they still aren’t fully welcome in a village they not only help found...but the last few of which nearly martyred themselves for.

...it boils her blood to think about.

It could have happened to any of them. Any of the clans! The mistreatment of the Uchiha - echoed down through their lines after Madara’s actions - would have made any clan seek to rebel against the injustice and cruelty. So few had been allies before Konoha’s beginnings. What if another had been in poor standing with the Senju? Could they have found themselves in the same position?

Even the Hyūga.

She used to wonder the same scenario. What would she have done in Sasuke’s shoes, clan slaughtered by one of their own, left alive seemingly out of pity? And what would her reaction have been to the truth? Would she have sought vengeance? Revenge? Justice?

...at times she almost wished it had been them. The story makes her heart ache and burn in the same breath. Struggling to keep her temper in check, a hand spares to gently tuck hair behind Sasuke’s ear.

...why didn’t it happen to me…?

A heavy breath escapes her, tranquility ruined by her own wayward thoughts. The entire subject is still a sore one...and if it feels that way for her, she can only imagine how it still torments Sasuke. Not to mention the others… Deciding enough is enough for now, she carefully slips out of bed and heads into the kitchen to start some tea.

As she guessed, it’s not long before she has company.

Standing at the kitchen sink and looking out the window with her mug, she sees Sasuke’s reflection in the panes, arms slinking around her waist. “You left me alone this morning,�� he rumbles in her ear, throat thick with sleep.

“Couldn’t sleep...didn’t want to wake you. Did I?”

“Mm.”

“Sorry…”

“S’fine.” His nose burrows against the crook of her neck, drawing a deep breath before sighing contentedly. “...something bothering you?”

“Oh, just...thinking too much.”

“You do that a lot.”

Hinata can’t help a soft chuckle. “Call it a habit.”

“What about?”

“...a lot of things. Mostly your clan. And how...unjust it all was. Wondering how I would have walked your path if it had been me.”

“Don’t even say that.”

She looks over her shoulder with furrowed brows. “...but -?”

“You don’t deserve that. Even just in theory. The only person I’d wish it on is myself...because I know I could handle it.”

“I still wish you didn’t have to.”

“But I did.”

“...I’m not sure I could have done all you did. I’m not that...resolute.”

Sasuke sighs, clearly unhappy she’s still talking about it...but indulging her for a moment. “...you’re underestimating yourself, Hinata. You’re far stronger than you think. Though...I don’t know if you’d have made all my mistakes. You’re not that cruel. That brash. But you are strong. In both your skills, and your morals. Don’t ever doubt that.”

Despite the somber topic, she manages a soft smile. “...I try not to. Not anymore. I’ve...come a long way. But I’m nothing compared to you.”

“That’s hardly a fair comparison. But…” She can feel him smile against her skin. “...you are the only one who tamed the most notorious nukenin Konoha’s known...and one of the most powerful shinobi it’s ever seen. If that doesn’t make you stronger than me, I don’t know what would.”

That earns an outright laugh. “You’re ridiculous,” she chides softly.

“It’s true. You’re one of my very few weaknesses.” He gives her cheek a kiss. “...now, I think it’s high time we ate. A day off doesn’t mean lazing about.”

“All right, all right…” She turns to return the gesture. “...I’m sorry if talking about that upset you.”

“No...not anymore. And...we should be able to talk about it.” Sasuke lets his brow lean to hers. “...because I don’t want this fading into obscurity. I want it known. Taught. So it never happens again. And that means between us...because my children won’t be kept in the dark about it, either.”

There’s a slight blush at the implication. “...I agree. Both of our clans have their shadows...and we’re working to bring them to light. So there won’t be any more wondering...it will never happen again.”

     Day four! A little late, but I had a rather busy day! Not TOO much to say about this one: just Hinata being her usual introspective self. It's a subject she thinks of a lot, honestly. ALAS sees a lot of canon issues actually worked on, like the Hyūga branch clans, and the Uchiha massacre. So they've both got experience in trying to make things better for their families.      Anywho, that's all for today! I'll see y'all tomorrow - thanks again so much for reading!

#uchiha sasuke #hyūga hinata #sasuhina #a light amongst shadows [ canon verse ] #365daysofsasuhina

[vesperlionheart]

“I know it’s already been arranged, but let me do this properly…Will you marry me?” Itasaku

They were grasping at the last lame stalks of wheat in a thrashing field, pretending that a unification wouldn’t mean her people would rise up in the year and set fire to the high walls with their blood. She could see it in their eyes as her palanquin passed through the streets. They would bow their heads and lower their teeth to the ground for a time, but they were as eager for the marriage as she was, which was not at all. If she didn’t murder her husband personally they’d burn her along with the rest of the invaders.

Sakura brushed aside the gold coins that dangled from her headpiece so that they didn’t fall in the way of her line of vision. She was a pretty doll made up in silks and rubies, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t still a lioness in human skin. Her body itched for fighting leathers and a good shield.

The palanquin stilled and then lowered. The curtains were pulled aside and two servants reached in to help her out like she couldn’t do that on her own.

“You’re scowling, I can see it through the veil.”

Sakura glared sideways at her favorite. Ino grinned back.

“Smile, or at lease smooth out those frown lines. You’re not going to die from something like this.”

Sakura tried her best to lessen her glare but felt she was failing as the other servants ducked their chins and averted their gazes. “I was prepared for death, I was never prepared for this.”

Ino hummed, gathering up a section of her train and smoothing it out. “Yes, that’s an interesting problem, but I’m sure they requested you as a bride candidate for a reason over the others. Maybe they’ve had their fill of palace girls.”

“I am not here to satisfy their appetites.”  

Ino was quiet for a moment before responding. “No, but you are here to protect your people, and I know you feel that they’ll rise up and revolt if you’re not there to lead them, but maybe there can be some peace between our people if they saw this as less of a sacrifice and more as a merger of forces.”

The pair turned up the grand front staircase of white stonework, carved and polished to blind the climbers. It only made the red of her dress stand out that much more as she climbed with only two others. Everyone else had to be left behind.

“I feel like a sacrifice.”

“You’re not. This was something both sides decided on for peace. Your people love you, but will you use their love to spark a rebellion for your own benefit, or theirs?”

The other servant opposite of Ino looked up hesitantly to watch Sakura’s expression beneath the veil, knowing no one else who could get away with speaking to their princess so bluntly. But, unlike her sisters, Sakura welcomed blunt speech, and readily rewarded those who were brave enough to share it with her. Few others dared.

“You’re an outsider, you wouldn’t understand the people’s pride,” Sakura sighed. “We’ve hated the Uchiha for years.”

“So too did the Senju, but look what happened there.”

“Hashirama Senju wanted to be friends and allies with Madara Uchiha. I’m being married off to a never before seen prince that’s likely just as much of a pig and brute as any of the others.”

Ino giggled and it sounded so much like when they were girls it made something in Sakura’s heart ache. “I don’t know,” Ino began. “I heard the Uchiha are famed for their handsome stock. Maybe you’ll actually enjoy whoever they have in mind for you.”

Sakura and her servants stopped outside the tall brass doors and felt the chill from the deepest parts of the palace not warmed by any sunbeam. It was summer, so she should have been thankful for the cool breeze, but Sakura couldn’t help but feel like a deer on alert, the way all the hairs on her body stood up.

“Here we go,” she breathed before pushing open the doors with her own two hands while servants and guards alike watched on.

It was the first of the traditions she would have to complete over the next few days before the man they picked for her could say he was her husband. And just like she had traditions to complete and see finished, he too would have to perform her rituals.

The doors opened wide and in the hall polished marble gleamed with veins of gray and pearl. The far walls were hung with tapestries as low pillows and couches were set about for the court to recline on, sipping at their wine while idle eyes took all of her in and found her lacking.

‘Not an Uchiha.’ That’s all it took.

The elder king, an old wrinkled man that had once decimated armies in a single nightfall, stood from his throne and grinned, clapping his hands together. “You’ve come unharmed and without delay. I am glad to see it,” Madara cheered. 

The court began to murmur with excitement, feeding off the old king’s joy. There was something more to his words that Sakura wasn’t getting. Still, she clasped her arms over her chest, touching her fingers to each opposite shoulder, and sank into a bow that didn’t belong to either the male or females of her people, but was a mixture of both. He wouldn’t know any better.

“Of course, Glorious One, it is as you say, I did not wish to spare any delay in our meeting.”  When Sakura rose from her bow she was proud of how blank she had made her face and how even her words came out. “I am eager to bind our peoples together in a union stronger than all others.”

“I’m excited for what this means. You traveled a long way. Would you not rather rest for the rest of the day?” He asked because he had to, but Sakura could tell his smile was too eager for her to risk refusing.

“I am well rested enough. Please don’t hold back on my account.”

“Here then,” he boomed, throwing his arms wide. “My grandsons are eager as well to see who you will be matched with.”

Sakura hesitated, feeling off balance for a moment. It sounded like they hadn’t picked someone for her. What would that mean for her?

There were more whispers than ever, as nobels leaned far over to speak with one another, sharing their thoughts on the matter. She strained to hear, but none of their words made sense.

A man came out from behind a curtain hanging down over the main dais. He carried a long wooden box with hurried authority, stopping in front of her to raise the lid and tilt it towards her. Inside Sakura saw four different items laid into velvet cushions.

“The first of your traditions, you must choose your betrothed using the old ways,” Madara boomed. “Each of my grandsons who are free and willing have put something of theirs into the box, hoping to attract your eye. Let your heart guide you here.”

Sakura kept her face unchanged. It was an old and pointless tradition, because it didn’t matter who she ended up marrying. One prince was just as good as the next and it wasn’t like she even knew anything about her choices. For all she knew one of them could have warts all over his face while the next was the size of two men in girth. Lucky her.

Sakura took a step forward and peered inside the box. There was a diamond as big as her fist, dazzling and bright in one corner. The next item was the iridescent aqua feather of the rare blue falcon, a near mythical creature with feathers worth their weight ten times over in gold. The third item was a Palace Ring, a heavy gold band to wear on one’s finger with a miniature castle cast in glass. The wearer of such a ring was the rightful owner of the castle or territory it depicted. Each gift was a bit more elaborate than the next and it made her a little upset to see how wasteful they could be before they even knew her.

She glanced up from under her lashes to the raised platform where Madara watched. Behind him the silks hung down and obscured the rest of his royal family from view, but Sakura could still make out shadows. One of the four figures had stood up and was leaning forward, trying to see better. Another boy yanked him back down and Sakura saw them turn to each other and hiss in whispers. One of the four figures looked bored, slouching in his seat, and the last sat like a princess would, quiet and still.

The last object in the box was a small book, bound by hand. Sakura turned the front cover over with her finger to peer inside and smelled the cherry blossoms before she saw them. Inside the book were pressed flowers and poems, all written in the same hand. Sakura read the first one and then flipped the page to the next one. She heard the murmurs all around her but paid them no mind.

“Has the lady made her choice?” Madara called down to her, sounding far too delighted for his own good.

Sakura let the book close again and then picked it up out of the box. She heard someone make a sound of frustration behind the silk and a young woman off to the side nearly cried when she saw the book in Sakura’s hand. Several others laughed at how she had taken the least of all the gifts and another sounded pitying.

‘The sick one,’ she heard someone say and then there was mote snickering. Maybe someone else said something about a mismatch, but she paid them no more mind.

“I have,” Sakura answered calmly.

Madara chuckled and beckoned for a servant to pull back the silks and let the young princes be finally seen. There wasn’t much to distinguish one from the other, they all had the same black hair and eyes and pale skin. The first one had his hair cut short to show off the scars on one half of his face, the second was tall and thin with curly hair and an out of place smile. The next one looked younger than the rest and he didn’t bother hiding his scowl. The last one looked even more like a princess now that she saw him and not just his shadow. His face was smooth and clear and paler than the others with only minimal signs of stress under his eyes. His hair was neatly braided and pulled over his shoulder like a tail of silk. The last prince stepped forward to stand beside Madara.

“I would like to introduce you to one of my most promising grandsons, Itachi Uchiha.”  

Sakura lowered herself into a curtsy to match his bow.

“The pleasure is mine,” she murmured, keeping his book of poems close to her chest.

Sakura eventually learned the names of the other princes the way a commander memorized the names of mountains. She didn’t want to, but she did so because it made survival easier.

Obito wanted nothing to do with her and she figured it had something to do with his history as a general in the military during the times their countries had been at war.

The youngest of the group was Sasuke, Itachi’s sullen younger brother who eventually put in the effort to get to know her. She could tell he looked up to Itachi a great deal and was loathed to share any of his attention with an outsider.

Shisui was the one Sasuke had to pull back down into his seat that day. He was the least Uchiha like of all his relatives and Sakura almost found herselt relaxing around his disarming smile, until she realized that’s what he wanted.

It didn’t take long for her to realize what the whispers meant when they referred to Itachi as ‘the sick one.’ Itachi had poor lungs and could not join in with the games and activities his brothers and cousins enjoyed so much. He was medicated each day by a unique servant, and kept out of the sun least it diminish his energies even more.

But he was soft and kind and unendingly gentle around her. She woke up to fresh cut flowers by her bed every morning, always different, always beautiful. Sometimes there were notes of poetry tied around the stalks and she recognized the handwriting from her own book of poetry.

“You were lucky,” Ino whispered one morning, pointing out the window to where the boys were swimming in the pools between the gardens. There was plenty of shade and a day off from the politics, so several young princes had decided to go ‘fishing’ in the pools, only to end up soaked and swimming.

“Why, because I didn’t pick Obito? He’d have killed me in my sleep by now I think,” Sakura grumbled without looking up from her book.They had plenty of things for her to read at the palace, and she thought that almost made up for the fact that she was little better than a political hostage in a wedding dress.

“Nah, nah, not that,” Ino absently muttered, eyes transfixed.

There was no further explanation but Sakura heard the splashing and laughter from downstairs. A moment later Sakura closed her book in frustration and stood up to look out and see what it was that had her favorite so enthralled.

The three youngest princes were wading through the waters, splashing each other or drifting on the surface, something Itachi could do without straining himself. A couple of palace servants stood off to the side holding robes and sandals for once the boys finished. 

A beat later Sakura realized what had her friend so transfixed.

“Ino…they’re not….wearing anything.”

“Yeah.”

Sakura swallowed and quickly ducked away before she could be spotted at the window. Suddenly she was the one having a hard time breathing. There were places she could go that had no princes to make her brain do the panicking thing.

“Haruno.”

Sakura stopped in the halls and turned back to see Shisui’s father, Kagami Uchiha. Like his son he was a carefree Uchiha with more smiles than he knew what to do with. He had taken a shine to her even though she hadn’t picked his son like he thought she would. He was the only one who still called her by her old name even though she officially hadn’t married Itachi. They were waiting for the next lunar cycle to follow tradition.

“You seem to be in a hurry, where are you headed to with such swift steps?” he teased, offering her his hand.

She took his hand and wound her arm around his. “You catch me at the worst times, Kagami. I had been hoping to sneak into the stables. Will you keep me from my mischievous ways?”

“I may not be able to keep my son in check, but you’re far less difficult to speak reason into. You are not dressed for riding but I will offer you a turn in my carriage if you so choose. The plan was to go hunting but a little sightseeing-”

“Hunting!” Sakura exclaimed, eyes bright. “Take me with you. I’ll be a silent as the fox.”

He looked up over her head and his smile seemed to sag. “I think that maybe someone else might like to steal your attentions away. Another time, princess.”

He slipped his arm free and Sakura turned to see Itachi at the end of the hall, dressed in damp robes and looking sheepish. His hair was still wet and draped over one shoulder, no longer held in a braid. Sakura sighed loudly and turned down the hall to approach him.

“Look at this, soaked silly. Did you fall in or is this how you fish in your country?” she teased, stopping just shy of his arm’s reach.    

Itachi’s smile was slow but spreading steadily across his face as he looked back at her. “It’s a good enough day for a swim. You should have joined us.”

Sakura felt her eyebrows shoot straight up. “Really? You would have wanted me there for this?” she asked, tugging on a wet strand of his bangs.

“I’m sure you would have enjoyed yourself,” he said.

“Your brother and cousin were both there.”

“So?”

Sakura felt her ears burn. “Don’t make me say it,” she groaned even as she felt him draw closer. When she opened her eyes he had closed the distance and stood with his nose bent towards her forehead, close enough for his lips to reach her.

“I was right, that was you in the window,” he chuckled, smelling like eucalyptus.

“Only for a moment! Why do you think I’m down here in the halls, trying to slip away? I tried pulling my servant away and gave up, unwilling to subject myself to the sight any longer.”

He laughed, bending his head down into her hair where she heard him inhale once before pulling back. “Can I steal you away then? To the gardens?”

There was no way she would be able to get out of the palace for a break on her own, and the stables had been a long shot to begin with.

“I have nothing better to do, my prince.”

Itachi grinned, taking her arms and folding it over his before leading her to the gardens by the empty poolside. Sakura made a joke under her breath about being scarred by the sight of his brother and cousin, but that only made him laugh.

“What about me?”  She felt his thumb rub circles into the back of her hand as he led her to where a stone bench sat under the heavy palm branches.

“I am nothing but faithful, naturally. I’ll never complain about having to see your junk,” she chuckled, feeling a bit too giddy for what she thought she deserved. She couldn’t help but enjoy teasing Itachi.  

“I apologize for not inspiring more anticipation for our wedding night.”

 Itachi sat down alongside her and took her hand with both of his, kissing the back of her knuckles once before holding her hand on his lap. Sakura followed his line of sight and saw a pair of red and green parrots from a land far wetter than theirs. The birds sat high up in the trees before taking off in a brilliant show of color.

“You enjoy birds?” Sakura asked, seeing his soft smile once more.

“I do, but not as much as my brother who raises them. He is the one with the falcons you see sometimes, circling the palace. I’m sure he would be willing to show you the mews where the birds are kept. They are his pride.”

Sakura nodded slowly, thinking something through. “Was his gift the bird feather?” she asked a moment later. When Itachi didn’t respond right away she looked back over her shoulder at him and hummed in understanding. “It was, wasn’t it. What’s the matter?”

She felt his thumb go back to tracing circles in her skin. “He might be a little upset with me still, that my silly poems were chosen over his great accomplishment. Both he and Shisui had been so sure of themselves.”

“You weren’t?”

“Hopeful isn’t the same as confident.” Itachi glanced up at her from under his lashes and then bowed his head again to rest on her shoulder. “Shisui conquered whole territories, so castles were his to give. Obito is rich from his own conquests but didn’t even care if he won or lost the choosing ceremony. Sasuke adventured for his prize and was so proud for how rare and beautiful it was.” Itachi lifted his head and looked her fully in the eye. “Why did you pick my book? Was it-it wasn’t just random, was it?”

Sakura thought it over, considering her words more carefully as she saw the look in his eyes. It was an old look she hated to recognize. He didn’t say it, but she knew he was thinking it; ‘Do you regret your choice?’

“When I came here, I had it in my head that this was a doomed venture, and that it would all end in flames before the year was up, partly because of how hard my heart was. I didn’t think I could happily go along with anything. I didn’t look forward to any of this.”

She felt his hands holding hers tighten but he didn’t say anything. He kept silent and listened.

“When it came to the choosing, I didn’t know what to think. I thought they would have just chosen someone for me and I’d have no say in it. It was surprising. When he opened the lid to that box I was curious but I didn’t think I’d care one way or the other. They were just gifts I’d never use or appreciate beyond being a fancy decoration. But your gift was handmade so I was interested.”

“Just interested?”

Sakura shushed him, reaching up with her free hand to bop his face. “Yes, interested. Do you remember what you put in between the first few pages?”

“A Cherry Blossom, your namesake.”      

“It was the only gift that felt like it was meant for me, that felt like the person preparing the gift actually thought about me as a person and not a hostage. And I thought, huh, maybe this is a person I might actually grow to like if he put in the effort to know my name at least. That, and I remember your words from the first poem even to this day.”

Sakura stood and crossed in front of Itachi reaching for both his hands to hold in hers as she stared down into his eyes. She leaned in and touched her forehead to his and closed her eyes.

“Deep in the ocean, dead and cast away where innocences burn in flames a million mile from home, I’m walking ahead I’m frozen to the bones, but I am a soldier on my own.”

Itachi sucked in a breath and dared to look up but Sakura caught his lips in hers, earning a moan and fluttering lashes as he melted for her.

When she pulled away she heard his voice murmur the rest of the poem.  “I am a million mile from home, I’m walking away I can’t remind your eyes, your face from the dawn of time to the end of days I will have to run, away I want to feel the pain and the bitter taste Of the blood on my lips, again.”

“I don’t regret my choice,” Sakura whispered.

Itachi tugged on her arms and stood, only to end up kneeling at her side. He touched his forehead to her navel, a promise to be there for all her children. When he looked up his eyes were glassy but bright.

 “I know it’s already been arranged, but let me do this properly…Will you marry me?”

*Poem is actually from the song Iron by Woodkid off the The Golden Age that I’ve been listening to while writing this. Well worth the listen.

#Itasaku #Sakura #Itachi #my writing #fanfiction