Hello all and welcome to my next Naruto short story! :)

My lovely requestee, Maryellen S., who had originally asked for me to write this for her, has actually decided she didn't want this typed out anymore so I had taken it down and stored it away until now. I was enjoying the story line behind this one, so instead of it being posted as a request, I am posting it as a regular miniseries. :)

For those of you who may have read this before, the character's name was Addison Kaida (based off the show Z Nation) but I have decided to change it to Kirei instead. :)

LONG TIME COMING | 01

Kirei Kaida

Madara Uchiha and his younger brother, Izuna Uchiha, stood before their current contracted employer as the lord of the estate stared down at them with a solemn expression.

"We have news of enemies invading our territory," The lord began to explain, "There are no reasons to believe that they have any connection to the Senju clan, but we chose to hire you, the Uchiha, just to be safe in case of a surprise attack."

Madara listened to the man with a bored expression on his face, having heard the same thing from another contract several weeks ago. This would be the fourth man who summoned the Uchiha for hire for another petty case of disagreements between lords again, and it was beginning to way against the fine line of Madara's patience.

"Fine," Madara ground out, "We will head the front lines and destroy your opposing enemies," He glanced around and counted sixteen guards of the lord's army, "Your men will not be needed on the battlefield, so you may command them for your protection as you wish."

The lord nodded and agreed to Madara's advice, "As you wish. Now, I have one particular request," The magnificent Uchiha leader's brow rose, "We have a clan who specializes in medical ninjutsu, and will be having them accompany you on the front lines."

"Why?" Izuna was the one who beat Madara's to voice his distaste, "We have our own medical ninjas in the Uchiha clan."

"Not like these ones," The lord shook his head, "These ninja are highly skilled at all different types of injuries, as well as internal damage due to jutsu able to block chakra points, much like the Hyuuga. Come to think of it, there's not much that they have seen that they can't cure or heal. That is why they are considered an invaluable clan in regards to wars."

"You speak of them so highly," Madara scoffed, "The Uchiha will not need their assistance."

The lord smirked, "Are you so sure? They have a woman, which is unusual for clans on the battlefield that is impervious to any genjutsu, visual prowess or abilities. She has fought against the Uchiha before and had proven the theories correct."

Izuna and Madara narrowed their eyes slightly, but it was Madara who spoke first, "You are speaking of the rumored woman from the Kaida clan?"

"Yes, but she is no rumor," The lord stood up from his chair and began descending the stairs towards them with his arms comfortably folded behind his back, "She is the youngest of the children fathered and born to Nobuo Kaida, but is the most gifted the clan has ever seen. I implore you Madara, to take this clan with you," He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and stared at Madara, "If the rumors about her are falsified and are not to your own personal satisfaction, then I promise to not only pay you the agreed price for hire, but I will triple it."

There were soft murmurs and gasps around as the court and the guards talked amongst themselves at their lords' extremely generous offer. Madara, however, was still unimpressed but Izuna beside him seemed to be more agreeable to the situation.

"Heh," Madara sneered, "You would go to such an extent to have me allow a woman on the battlefield?"

"Brother," Izuna looked at Madara, "What could it hurt to just give the client what he wants and allow the medics to join us? The most they will do is sit on the sidelines and you can command them to stay out of our way."

Madara eyed Izuna and listened to him speak before directing his attention back to their client, "Fine, I agree to allow them to accompany us to the battlefield," The lord was about to speak before Madara silenced him, "However, either Izuna or I will be the one who gives the orders over their unit, not their own commander. That is not up for negotiation so let that be known."

"Very well," The lord nodded and walked to him with his hand extended, "I will have Nobuo Kaida and his battalion here within two days."

Madara nodded, "You will have them escorted to the Uchiha stronghold and that is where we will begin preparations."

With the agreement finalized, Madara and Izuna turned to make their leave while their fellow clansmen who had accompanied them followed silently.

"I wonder who this woman he speaks so highly of is," Izuna questioned aloud, "I don't think I've heard of any women born to the Kaida, or at least not for forty years."

Madara continued to walk a head, "Whoever this mysterious gift to medical ninjutsu is, we shall be the ones who will put her real skills to the test."

- x -

Two days later on point, several Uchiha soldiers met a group of ten ninja with the Kaida clan symbols on the right breast of their dark clothing. It was the leader of the Uchiha soldiers, Achino Uchiha, to steps forward and extend his hand to the leader of the ninja approaching.

"Welcome," Achino said, "Uchiha Madara has been waiting for your arrival."

The tall man leading the group accepted the hand and offered a tight smile, "Pleasure to make the Uchiha's acquaintance finally," He confessed, "I am Nobuo Kaida."

"This way," Achino wasted no time in leading the group to the stronghold without further discussion, "You and your second hand will be meeting our leader in the main conference room while the others will be sent to rooms where you will be staying before we will set out."

Nobuo glanced back at a particular ninja with a hood shielding their face in the group following at a close pace, "Understood."

It took them approximately fifteen minutes to reach the Uchiha stronghold, where they entered and walked through several long hallways before reaching the conference room. Three Uchiha women bowed and walked forward, while two guards ushered the rest of the Nobuo medics down another hall where the women would settle them into their rooms and see to it they accommodated as much as possible.

"This way," Achino opened the sliding door and stepped aside, ushering Nobuo and a cloaked ninja into the room before walking in himself and closing the door behind him.

The one whose face was obscured by a hood quickly scanned the room and made assessments of all their individual chakra signatures before looking forward at the two who seemed to peak the highest. Eyes narrowed at the man who took his spot at the head of the table, noting the dark aura that seemed to radiate around his entire being like a fog while the one seated beside him offered a more pleasant feeling.

It was the one who wreaked of malevolent chakra that spoke first, his voice rough and stern.

"Welcome Nobuo," Madara spared no glance to the hooded ninja, "Be seated so we may proceed with our plans against the enemy."

Nobuo looked down at his companion and ushered forward with his hand before seating himself down second to Izuna, while his partner sat directly beside the younger Uchiha.

Izuna eyed the ninja curiously as Madara narrowed his own red eyes, "You will remove that cloak in the presence of the Uchiha warriors and elders."

What sounded like a scoff was heard from the person in question, but they complied as hands reached up to untie the knot holding the cloak together. All eyes watched curiously as the hood and cloak opened up to reveal similar attire to Nobuo, only it was plainly obvious that it was being worn by a woman. As the hood fell to her shoulders, all eyes stared in disbelief as her green eyes narrowed towards Madara.

She had her chestnut hair pulled up into a messy bun to keep off her back and her fringe pinned back to expose her face, to which Izuna noted was speckled with little light brown freckles. Decently fair complexion although not as snowy colored as the Uchiha, and looked to be rather petite for her title as a medical ninja.

"So, you must be the one our client spoke of," Madara smirked mockingly towards her, "The magical female whose medical abilities are unrivaled."

Much to Madara's surprise, she gave a rather indignant snort and crossed her arms below her rather voluptuous bust. Nobuo, who was sitting beside her silent, gave her a warning glare before looking at Madara.

"I apologize for her rudeness," He gave her another wayward glance, "Kirei lives up to her reputation. You see, her mother was from the famous Uzumaki clan and between both the Uzumaki clan's exceptional medical ninjutsu as well as our own, she has inherited extraordinary abilities. You will not be disappointed."

Madara eyed the girl before looking passed her to the head of the Kaida clan, "I will be the one who will decide whether she will accompany us in battle," He narrowed his eyes, "It is not only extremely uncommon, but almost unheard of for women to be present outside of the compound at times of war. I will not have her become a casualty."

Kirei's eyes narrowed dangerously at the man but she made no comment.

Izuna took notice to this, highly intrigued at the fact she could stare Madara down without any fear in her eyes.

"I can assure you that she will not disappoint your expectations," Nobuo assured.

Madara gave her one more glance before looking at one of the guards, "You will escort her to the women's quarters and see to it that she is bedded down for the night. I may allow her to assist during the war, but I will not have her nose where it does not belong in this room."

One of the guards bowed respectfully and began walking towards when Izuna suddenly shot up, "I'll take her," He looked at his brother, "I'm getting bored of sitting here anyway."

Madara's brow rose as Izuna walked towards the entrance to the room and waited for Kirei to follow.

"Be respectful, Kirei," Nobuo took her arm to stop her before she left, "I will not speak to you about this again. We are allies and you will treat them as such."

Kirei did not look at her clan head as she brushed off his hand and walked towards Izuna, who opened the door for her and followed her out.

"Now then," Madara regained Nobuo's attention, "Let us begin talking strategy."

- x -

"You must either be extremely brave, or have no fear of death to disrespect Madara like that," Izuna walked slightly ahead of her as he lead her down another hall, "He usually doesn't react well to that kind of behavior, especially from a woman."

Kirei looked up at Izuna before looking forward again, "I've heard of Madara Uchiha many times and am aware of what that man is capable of," She paused only when she felt his eyes glancing at her from over his shoulder, "As well as you, Izuna Uchiha. I am aware that you live up to your title as second in command and are not to be underestimated."

Izuna chuckled and grinned, "I see. So there isn't even any ounce of secrecy between us then, hmm?"

Kirei eyed him carefully, "Are you always this way?" His brow rose so she clarified, "You seem much more relaxed and almost cheery compared to your clan head."

"Ah yes," Izuna slid his thumbs under his belt and relaxed his arms, "My brother can be a bit abrasive, but he's just a little insulted that our client insisted that we have a woman on the battlefield. Madara likes to think that having women in a place of war is bad luck."

"Of course," Kirei snorted, "I live with men who think the same as him, so these comments don't particularly insult me but it does get irritating listening to them continuously."

"Understandable," Izuna nodded.

The two continued walking down another set of hallways before they reached the woman's quarters. Izuna turned to face Kirei before he allowed her to walk passed him.

"If you need anything, ask for me," He instructed, "You will be resting here tonight and if there isn't anything, I will be here to see you in the morning. Madara will want your skills tested before he makes his final decision, so I will be the opponent you face for ninjutsu and taijutsu skills before we lead you to where several men are recovering from previous injuries to see those impressive skills you supposedly have."

Kirei scoffed at the taller man and crossed her arms, "Fine," She was beginning to walk passed him before she stopped and looked up at him, "Thank you, I suppose."

Izuna winked before disappearing in a cloud of smoke, leaving Kirei to stand there at the entrance to where she would be sleeping. She sighed and dropped her arms before walking forward, eventually being stopped by a very kind, middle-aged woman and shown to her room.

- x - x - x -

"Alright," Madara stood at the top of the hill with his arms crossed over his chest looking every bit intimidating as his reputation made him out to be, "We will observe your taijutsu skills first and then you will be tested on ninjutsu."

Kirei, who had been standing beside Nobuo, walked towards the center of the field where Izuna himself stood opposite to her. He wore a dark grey short sleeved top with a large neck like the rest of his clansmen, and wore the usual black ninja pants with black sandals. Around his waist, he had two beige belts that Kirei assumed were for attaching a large weapon to be carried behind his back.

"I feel a little bad for you," Izuna taunted, "It's a shame that I have to put a scratch on a beautiful face like yours."

Kirei suddenly smirked, "I'd like to see you try, Uchiha. We medical ninja aren't pushovers."

"We'll see about that," Izuna returned her smirk with his own.

"Begin!" Madara's voice boomed loudly.

Izuna was first to move, gathering chakra in his feet to use his speed to dart forward towards her. Kirei anticipated his strike and got into a stance that would allow her to either defend or counter his attack and strike with her own. Izuna appeared beside her and dropped down to swipe a leg at her legs when Kirei jumped up and back-flipped away from him.

Hmm, Izuna grinned, Not bad, not bad... But let's see how you handle this.

Kirei's eyes widened slightly as Izuna shot forward for a frontal attack before disappearing from view. Her green eyes quickly scanned to see if she could pick up his chakra, but was surprised when she felt it spike from behind her. Before she could turn to defend, Izuna was able deliver a harsh kick to her back and sent her flying forward, only to disappear in a cloud of smoke.

"I should have figured it wouldn't be that easy," Izuna mused, using his sensory skills to track where the Kaida heiress was going to strike from.

Suddenly she was in front of him and with her bare hands, began attacking him with powerful taijutsu moves that even Izuna seemed to have difficulty predicting. The man blocked and fought back with as much speed and accuracy as she delivered.

Madara observed her particularly and found himself smirking down at her, "She's better than I anticipated at taijutsu," He watched as Izuna took a sharp blow to the stomach before he shot her back a few feet with a kick to the stomach, "To be giving Izuna this much difficulty, she must have been trained mercilessly."

Nobuo Kaida, who had been standing behind the Uchiha head silently, finally spoke, "As a woman and a medic, she needed to know how to defend herself even in the direst of situations. I trained her like one of my sons instead of coddling her like a female."

Madara's eyes briefly flashed back towards him before he put his full attention on the sparring match in front of him.

The two continued their sparring and eventually, a playful grin broke out on Izuna's face much to Madara's surprise. He's actually enjoying himself? Kirei narrowed her eyes as Izuna aimed a direct punch to her face, to which she easily dodged when his other arm came out of nowhere and knocked her to the ground. Not even two seconds passed as Kirei stared up at Izuna, who pinned her to the ground and stared into her eyes with his own.

"This is the first time someone other than Madara caused me to break a sweat," Izuna mused with that grin still on his face, "I'm impressed, Kirei."

Kirei felt her cheeks heat up only slightly as she shoved the Uchiha off her, "Yeah, yeah. You cheated during a fair fight."

"Cheated?" Izuna feigned shock, "I would never do such a thing!"

"Enough!" Madara's voice cut both of them off and demanded their attention, "We will test your ninjutsu next."

Kirei suppressed a grumble in the back of her throat as she sat up, only to see a hand extend itself down to her. Izuna looked down at her expectantly as she stared at his hand.

"At least let me help you up?" Izuna asked, "And then you can continue to glare at me as much as you want while we test your ninjutsu skills."

Kirei glared furiously at him but accepted his hand nonetheless, letting the Uchiha easily haul her up to her feet. She noticed that his hand seemed to linger before his fingers slowly slipped from around her palm and released her hand finally.

From his perch, Madara also noticed this exchange.

Deciding to intervene, Madara appeared beside his brother and stepped forward as he pulled his gloves off his hands and slapped them onto Izuna's chest, "I will be your opponent this time," Kirei's eyes narrowed, "I shall put these rumors to bed about your resistance to genjutsu by testing your skills against my Mangenkyou Sharingan."

Izuna narrowed his eyes slightly at Madara, "Why go so harsh, brother?"

"She must be tested," Madara shot a narrow eyed stare behind him, "Do you have any complaints or objections against my ways, Izuna?"

"Of course not," Izuna mock bowed, much to their guests' surprise, but it was merely something the Uchiha expected from the younger brother with their difference in personalities, "She's all yours, Madara."

"I am already aware that the Kaida clan is predominantly training medics, but it would render you useless in battle if you could not defend yourselves," Madara spoke as he circled Kirei, "So, what exactly do you know and what extent is your capability, I wonder."

He struck without warning, his hand signs weaved at lightning speed as an army of fireballs launched themselves towards her. Kirei fell to the ground to avoid getting hit when Madara aimed another onslaught of fireballs at her. Having no choice but to use her jutsu, Kirei weaved earth hand signs and sunk down into the ground.

"So she's an earth style user," Madara mused, "Let's see what else she's capable of."

Kirei pulled out of the ground and quickly weaved more hand signs, which Madara quickly realized were for lightning style.

Madara whipped around and countered her jutsu quickly, only to have giant spears shoot up from under his feet forcing the Uchiha to jump back several feet with haste. His eyes narrowed slightly at her, before he closed his eyes. Kirei narrowed her own green ones to match. Here he goes. Madara's eyes opened sharply to reveal the Sharingan blazing back at her.

"This little game ends now," He spat angrily, weaving signs furiously, "You will not make a mockery out of me."

His chakra levels just bolstered tenfold. Kirei grimaced as she forced chakra into her feet, I have to move fast in order to dodge this, and if he succeeds, he'll completely incapacitate me.

The determination to dethrone her from the outrageous claims on her superior ability to nullify even the Sharingan's genjutsu was clear in his eyes, even as he took a very large intake of breath with his fingers in the appropriate hand sign before releasing a magnificent wave of orange and red flames.

Kirei inhaled sharply before biting down on her thumbs to draw blood and quickly weave signs, "Shit! Is he seriously trying to kill me?"

As she yelled out her jutsu, the ground shook and suddenly a thick wall of rock shot up towards the sky as the flames hit. Kirei grit her teeth as she added more layers to the wall, watching as some of the rock crumbled and melted under the intense heat of Madara's flames.

His chakra's getting closer!

In the blink of an eye, Madara was behind Kirei. She quickly spun around to face him but was caught off guard as he shot forward, pinning her to her own stone wall.

"This ends now!" Madara's voice was low and venomous.

Kirei felt the breath leave her body as she watched his Sharingan spinning furiously in activation. His yes bore into her own as he began a genjutsu, only to find that her chakra remained stable and undisturbed.

His eyes narrowed dangerously, "How is this possible..."

"You heard that part about my resistance to genjutsu, did you not?" Kirei used as much force as she could muster and swung her legs up, her feet instantly connecting with Madara's chest to send him flying several feet back, "Satisfied now that you've proven a point?"

Madara dug his heel into the ground and stopped from skidding too far from the girl.

"Enough, brother!" Izuna was suddenly in between the two, his back to Kirei and his eyes locked on a frustrated, angry Madara, "You've made it obvious by the display that she's worthy to bring along on the battlefield, haven't you?"

"Step aside, Izuna," Madara stood erect, his posture rigid from top to bottom.

Izuna shook his head, "Remember what happened the last time you decided to play a game with another ally? The feudal lord was this close-" Izuna's hand lifted to show emphasis to his index finger and thumb being only centimeters apart, "-to terminating the contract with us. Do you really want to break off another contract just because you're upset that a woman has shown you that she is able to keep up with you?"

Madara was more than furious at this point, but chose the latter and turned around, "Fine, she will join us in battle," He looked over his shoulder towards his brother, "But if she becomes a nuisance, I will end her miserable life myself."

Izuna couldn't help the grin that slowly spread on his face, "Understood."

So here we have it! The first chapter to this previously requested short story turned into a regular miniseries! I just love Izuna too damn much to not post this~ :)

I know Madara and Izuna may be slightly out of character, but I suppose I can boast that it's a part of my creative process for this miniseries. In the real data books regarding the brothers and their personalities outside of war, I guess Izuna was the complete opposite of Madara and was a little more on the pacifist side and had a more cheery personality. Not that I'm going to make him all sunshine smiles and unicorn giggles, but I'm not going to make him an ass either. I have an idea of how I'm going to play with his character, so just bear with me! ;)

Next chapter is before the battle, and we see a lot more of Izuna's rising curiosity towards Kirei and we learn a little more of our lovely OC. :)

I love you guys so much and thank you for reading! :D