Ichihime was excited but at the same time, feeling horrible. One, she was pregnant and starting two mornings ago, she had begun throwing up every meal she ate and that was weakening her considerably. Two, she had a very bad feeling ever since Madara went off to battle Hashirama. The tension between the two clans was intense and the young blue-eyed woman knew that whatever the outcome, one of the men would be defeated by the other.
Ichihime lowered herself in a sitting position near the window, resting her body against the wall. Her legs were tucked under her body and her left hand was placed over her stomach. She sighed contently at the thought of her unborn child. Whether a boy or a girl, Ichihime hoped that the child would be able to make Madara smile more often, if it was not too much to ask for a full-blown laugh.
Her head snapped to the door when it suddenly slid open and several guards knelt in the doorway.
"Hime-sama! We have a problem", the guard in front started with his head still lowered in respect. "Senju Hashirama is back from the battle but there is no sign of Madara-sama".
In a flash, Ichihime was already on her feet and taking long strides to go out of the main house with the five guards close behind her.
"Get prepared to defend our home in case the Senju or anyone else comes after the clan. I want every single child and non-fighters evacuated through the passageway in the main house and organize everyone else in platoons of four. Find me Uchiha Kei immediately", Ichihime ordered and three of the men disappeared from sight to carry out her orders while the two remaining guards accompanied her towards the main gate of the compound. As they neared the wooden double doors, a man in his late twenties appeared in front of them on one knee and his head lowered.
"Milady", he greeted curtly.
"Uchiha Kei", the young lady replied and the man stood up, meeting pale blue eyes that seem to shine even in the darkness. "You will take care of things in my absence. Protect the clan and defend it with all your power. Should anything happen to me or Madara, I name you the next clan leader".
Kei could not mask his surprise and his eyes were wide open from being caught off-guard. "Milady, you can't-"
"-Madara and myself have seen your prowess in battle and the fierce love you have for the Uchiha. I know that you are capable of keeping the clan strong and safe", Ichihime interrupted with the hint of a smile.
The man bowed lowly as the woman and the two guards went pass him. "Be careful, Hime-sama", he wished her and watched as they left the Uchiha estate.
Once outside, Ichihime spread her chakra out to get a feel of her husband's chakra. 'The Valley of the End'.
She immediately ran forward, pumping chakra in her legs to go faster and the guards followed her, flanking her sides. However, barely a few steps in the forest, the trio was confronted by Konoha Nins.
"Uchiha Ichihime, you are being arrested under suspicion of treason against Konoha, Please surrender yourself", one of the five men said, facing her.
"Treason?" Ichihime repeated with surprise.
"Hime-sama, please stand back", one of the Uchiha guards said as he gently pulled the short woman behind him and his comrade. They both went on the offensive when two Konoha Shinobi ran at them with the intent to kill.
Ichihime pressed herself against a tree as she watched the unfolding battle. In barely two minutes, two of her assailants were down. but the other three were quickly gaining the upper hand. Her body went cold when one of them sneaked up on her protectors who were too late in noticing him. However, the attack did not reach them. They were surprised to find that Ichihime had effectively blocked the attack and she had pushed all three Konoha Nins back, glaring as furiously as Madara himself.
"Don't you dare lay a hand on my guards or God help me I will make sure that not a single speck of your remains will be found", she threatened,
A tensed silence followed between the two parties but it was broken by the Konoha team leader who gave the signal to resume the attack. The lady Uchiha whipped out a kunai tucked in her sleeve to fend off one of the attackers while her two guards kept the two others at bay. She gritted her teeth from being forced into a defensive stance.
Where the hell was Madara when she needed him?! He may have been in a battle with Hashirama but Madara never failed to be by her side. Whenever she got into a fight, he was never too far from her to keep her from sustaining potentially mortal wounds. Now that she got into another fight and trying not to make it obvious that she was protecting her lower torso from blows, her arrogant jerk of a husband was nowhere in sight.
A sudden wave of dizziness hit her and Ichihime swayed ominously on her feet.
'Damn it! Not now of all times!'
Her opponent used this opportunity to disarm her and he placed a chakra restraining seal on her, making her collapse.
"Hime-sama!"
"Madara", she managed to say as loud as she could as she was picked up. "Find him!"
The world around her blurred as she was transported away and she was then dropped in the middle of a clearing. Ichihime jumped back on her feet, staggering a bit, and she put some distance between herself and the three men.
"I want to talk to the Hokage", she demanded, standing on her guard but with grace. Her blue eyes flashed in the dark night as the moon cast an eerie glow over them.
"I'm afraid that is not possible", one man said and he advanced on her, the young woman taking a step back. "We are to kill you here itself".
Ichihime froze, suddenly afraid.
She could not die, not now! What of her baby?! Would it not have a chance to live?!
"Don't you dare come any closer", she seethed when the men approached her. Stronger fear gripped her when the seal they placed on her prevented her from using her chakra. Ichihime felt vulnerable and the only thing running through her mind was Madara's name. She yelped when the team leader pinned her to the ground and the one closest to him unsheathed his sword, handing it to the man,
"No, no, no, please no! Oh God, please stop it!" the soon-to-be mother screamed as tears ran down the sides of her pale face. The man who had given his weapon knelt by her head and he held her hands down in an iron grip. Ichihime did her best to fight the men off but they had her in an unbreakable grip. Her heart hammered in her chest painfully when the sword was poised right above her abdomen.
"Please don't kill my baby! Don't hurt it!" she cried while still struggling.
"Baby?" the man on top of her repeated. His hand holding the sword froze.
"The baby is Madara's", the third man said coldly as he stood some distance away from them. "It might prove to be a nuisance if brought into this world. Kill it".
Ichihime screamed as the sword came down barely a second after the order.
The men left her in the clearing, under the moon that shone right over her. Ichihime, strangely, could not feel any pain and her body was completely numb.
Her baby was killed.
A silent tear escaped her eye and it fell down the side of her face and onto the moist grass around her.
He would be so disappointed, wouldn't he?
"M-Madara.."
Kakashi tensed when a wooden coffin emerged from the ground and he hoped that they would be able to handle another Edo Tensei person with Madara and Obito at their throats. He was stupefied at the person who stepped out of the coffin with their eyes still closed. Next to him, both Naruto and Gai had their jaws dropped open and Bee was openly gawking.
The person was a small woman with deep purple hair that flowed in soft waves down her lower back and perfectly straight bangs framed her face. She had a small pointed nose, and her eyelashes seem to brush her cheeks lightly. She was wearing a dark blue yukata with pale blue and white snowflakes embroidered on the soft material. Her obi was pale blue with the Uchiha symbol lining it. Her eyes opened slowly, revealing ice blue orbs. Confusion came over her face as she looked around her.
"She's perfect", Naruto muttered softly, as if scared to break the beautiful picture if he spoke too loud.
"Her power of youth is so bright!" Gai exclaimed with his eyes shining.
"Uh-oh" Kakashi disagreed, his eyes not leaving the woman's frame when he recognized her. "She's real bad news".
"Bad news?" Naruto echoed curiously. Kakashi did not answer him and the blonde haired boy noticed how his teacher was on his guard. He turned back to the woman who was looking at them quizzically.
Away from the group, the two Uchiha men tensed.
"Madara, isn't she-" Obito has no time to complete his sentence because the older man was already walking towards the newly arrived person.
Back to the group, no one made a move.
"Don't you notice something weird?" Kakashi asked his comrades.
"She's way beyond beautiful?" Naruto suggested.
"The Edo Tensei jutsu has been dispelled but here she is", the Copy Ninja said, ignoring Naruto's answer.
"Then do you have an idea who summoned her here?" Gai asked grimly.
"None".
"Hey lady!" Naruto suddenly called, startling the two Jonins and his fellow Jinchuuriki. "Who are you?"
The woman turned to face Naruto with her back erect and in a casual but guarded stance, "I am Uchiha Ichihime. Who might you be?"
"I am Uzumaki Naruto!" the boy exclaimed. "You are from Teme's family?"
"Teme?" Ichihime repeated with an eyebrow raised. "I had no idea that parents would give such a name to their child. Perhaps it's the, ah, uniqueness".
Naruto shook his head rapidly. "Teme's name is Sasuke. It's just that he's a total jerk!"
"Uchiha is a clan full of jerks", Ichihime agreed with a slight nod.
Kakashi watched the exchange with surprise. Why wasn't she attacking them? Did she even know why and how she landed here?
"Ichihime", the legendary Uchiha called from behind the woman. The latter froze at the voice, her body stiffening. She turned around slowly to face Madara.
"Madara, I waited for you", she told him softly.
"I never returned", the man answered with a frown.
Naruto turned to his sensei. "She knows him? Is she an enemy too?" he asked.
"Uchiha Ichihime is the wife of Uchiha Madara. The night Madara was defeated by Hashirama, Ichihime was attacked by a group of Konoha Shinobi where she killed herself", Kakashi explained.
"She's his wife?!" Naruto, Gai and Bee all exclaimed together and Kakashi sweatdropped. Why is he the only one who learnt of Konoha's history?!
Madara shot them a glare which was then aimed at the blue-eyed woman. "What happened to you after I left?" he questioned harshly.
Ichihime's eyes widened and her lower lip quivered as memories from that fateful night came to her. Her left hand jerked slightly but she restrained herself from wrapping her arms around her torso. She lowered her head to hide the tears that formed in her eyes. "It's shameful, isn't it?" she said softly. "It's pathetic that the first time you leave me alone I end up dead. You must be so disappointed, right? I was the only woman you deemed strong enough to stand by your side on the battlefield and yet, I couldn't protect myself nor the baby".
The legendary Uchiha froze with shock clear on his face.
Kakashi's eyes widened. 'Baby?! There was no such record!'
"Ichihime", Madara called carefully. "Tell me everything".
"A few days before that night, I discovered that I was pregnant. I wanted to tell you but you were concentrating on the battle to come and I decided that when you would come back home, I would give you the news", she explained and then paused momentarily to take in a shaky breath. "When I was informed of your disappearance after the fight, I headed out to look for you but a few men under Senju's order attacked me and my guards. They took me to a clearing where a sword was driven through my body. I died that night, Madara. I was killed".
Kakashi immediately stepped forward with a frown. "I'm sorry but the records mention something totally different. Then men who attacked you reported that they were the order of Senju Tobirama to take you in for questioning but you fought back and killed two men in the process. The remaining team members tried restraining you but you drove a sword through your heart".
He flinched when Ichihime turned around furiously. There was an intense anger in her eyes and her body was shaking from the emotion. "What is written there is bullshit!" she growled. "Those Senju bastards had to modify the real events to cover the mistake they made! There would have been an all-out war with the Uchiha if the fact that I, the wife of Uchiha Madara, was killed under the orders of a Senju!"
"No, the Shodai Hokage would not have allowed this to happen", Naruto disagreed firmly. "He would never-"
"The Senju killed me and this is a fact!" Ichihime seethed. "And why would I kill myself when I was pregnant?! I wanted to have this child. I would have done nothing to harm my baby! I wanted to be a mother. I wanted to bring up this child. I wanted Madara to have a new light in his life! But you know what? The Senju murdered my baby. For the first time in my life I begged! I begged for the life growing inside of me! I begged for a chance to let it see this world. But even that was too much to ask for. In the end, I'm relieved that my baby did not have to live in such a cruel world".
"Ichihime, you should have been able to fight off a few Ninja. You are a strong woman", Madara said slowly.
"My chakra was sealed and I was feeling sick", she replied in a wavering voice and her shoulders slumped tiredly. "I'm so sorry. I should have been a better warrior. I was not strong enough to protect our baby. I'm sorry". Tears cascaded down her cheeks and she choked back her sobs.
Madara came closer to the woman and he placed on hand on her head, pulling her in a one-arm hug. Ichihime rested her head against his armored chest and her arms went around his waist in a strong hold. The man briefly lowered his head onto the mass of purple hair, closing his eyes.
The four present members of the Shinobi alliance were surprised by this show of affection. For them, Madara was an Uchiha with a cold heart who wanted to destroy the world. Someone who was evil. But it seemed like despite being the bad guy, he had a soft spot in his heart, even if it was only for his wife.
Madara then stood straight with his most hateful glare towards his enemies. He let go of the woman in his arms and he pushed her gently towards Obito.
"Stand behind him. He'll protect you", he ordered. "And stop crying. It's unsightly for the Lady of the Uchiha clan to be shedding tears like a baby. Grow a backbone, will you?"
Ichihime stared at him and then nodded with the ghost of a smile. She walked towards Obito who gave her a curt nod and he stood in front of her protectively.
On the other side of the field, Kakashi braced himself for what was to come. "Be careful everyone", he warned his comrades. "The fight is just about to get nastier".
"We'll crush him", Naruto said confidently.
"It won't be as easy as before", his teacher contradicted.
"What do you mean?" Gai asked curiously.
"Madara is definitely a force to be reckoned with", his friend explained. "However, whenever it concerned Lady Ichihime, he just gets worse. He would do anything to keep her from harm and there is even a record of him annihilating a whole village which was planning to take his wife as prisoner. In other words, the arrival of Uchiha Ichihime has fueled Madara's need to destroy us".
"His wife is his resolve, his most treasured possession and his home. He wants to protect her", Bee realized, for once, without rapping.
"We're in deep crap", Gai concluded with a pale face.
The team braced themselves when Madara ran at them with the intent to kill.
Oh, he would kill alright! After all, no one lays a hand on his Ichihime and gets away unscathed. Konoha would pay.
Konoha will be destroyed.
I wrote this a while back and I decided to share it with all of you :)
Thank you for reading and please review :D
~IcedLady~
