So sorry for the long wait this time, but unfortunately final exams are almost here ^^". I thought I'd finish this chapter now so I'm not tempted to write when I'm supposed to be studying.
IV - Clear as Fire
His brother hadn't returned by evening and it was clear that he would be spending the night out at the southern borders of Hi no Kuni with the few men he'd taken with him. Meanwhile, Hashirama was dutifully dragged out by Toka, who took him to the borders of the land they'd claimed as part of their village. She was a shrewd woman who knew how to get him to work.
"A village isn't just a place," she informed him as they stood under the shade of the forests' oak trees. "It needs a wall. We need to build a wall, and decide where the boundaries will be. You can't let just anyone enter."
"I know. I'll build one. But first we must wait for Madara to clear the forests." He sunk back against a tree trunk, ignoring his advisor's disapproving look. The roughness felt wonderful against the back of his sweaty shirt.
"How is he going to 'clear' it? The Uchiha don't have enough men to justify not using your mokuton." She stood with her arms crossed, watching him expectantly.
He grinned. "I'm sure Madara will find a way that will satisfy his pride. We made a deal that he would take care of it as long as I took care of meeting with other clans. Although I've left Tobi to do that too, so I suppose I've just slipped out of my work."
With that Toka sighed and took a seat on the ground beside him, folding her legs beneath her in a way that would definitely make her regret the position within minutes. He knew the inevitable question would be asked and waited for it patiently.
"Hashirama... is it true? The rumors that you had been Madara's friend once?"
It hadn't been revealed by his father, or his brother. Both of them had wanted to avoid the shame of having a family member known to associate with the Uchiha. As a result, no one had known, no one except one Uchiha traitor who he'd told almost absent-mindedly on the battlefield, without thinking of the consequences. But Hashirama was someone who focused on ideas instead of details, and some things had been let slip. Rumors had inevitably spread, and Toka had been giving him interesting looks since she'd come to meet him at around noon to discuss land boundaries.
"Yes," he nodded. "I was his friend. And we were good friends. Good friends who didn't know each other's last names. If every child in the village I build has the opportunity to have a friendship like that, all of my work will be worthwhile."
The sternness of her expression softened, but there was still some lingering mistrust. That would take time, and he was nothing if not patient. It would only be beneficial if she spread the word that their clan heads had once been friendly. It would mean they knew how to be friendly again, and the people worried more about that than any other triviality.
At that moment, they heard a snap echo through the landscape.
A shouted voice came from the far side of the forest, deep and bellowing until it reached their small clearing. Toka leapt up immediately with her hands already together, eyes seeking any wild animal or presence of an enemy clan. Hashirama spent a moment with his shoulders stiff and then relaxed when he recognized the presence in the distance.
"Hashirama that was a jutsu I heard!"
"I know, calm down. He's over there," Hashirama stood slowly and pointed up at the face of the cliff. Halfway up, at a solid ledge jutting out of the cliff, stood Madara, a small figure in the distance. His hands were carefully balanced together, and his expression was skewed with concentration. He stood shirtless, with a barely distinguishable pile of cloth beside his feet. As they watched he leaned forward into his hands and blew through the space between them.
"I suppose this is how he's going to clear the are. We don't need to move, we're at the border so we should be fine."
"Is he mad!?"
"Well, maybe. But he'll do it anyway."
And he did. They had to avert their eyes to avoid the raging flames that shot down from the cliff face, magnified by the strength of his jutsu. They spread out over the thick forest in a blanket of red. Animals rushed away and hid underground as quickly as they could and Hashirama felt indignant for all of five seconds before realizing that at least his men would find hunting much easier for the next season. He looked back, blinking the heat from his eyes, to see most of the trees before him razed to the ground.
Nearby, Toka gaped. Her mouth opened and closed with some mixture of awe and discomfort before she finally settled on a neutral look, leaning down to press her hand against the ground. "It doesn't harm the soil too much, at least. We'll need it for the people who want to farm."
"Of course," he replied absently. "Go back to the compound, I'm going to see if he's free to discuss some other things."
"Be careful, idiot leader of ours," she muttered at his back as he walked away.
~o~
He only caught Madara halfway back to the Uchiha compound, right where the forest met the stream-like remnants of the Naka River. The place where they once met as boys, where Madara still visited almost daily, maybe because it was where the river was clearest. When he pushed aside the trees to make his presence known, Madara was standing barefoot in the river, wiping the glistening sweat off his chest with the cloth he'd brought with him. His head shot around as soon as he noticed Hashirama, and he raised an eyebrow.
Hashirama went to sit by the bank, fingers loosely twined. "That was impressive. Even I'd be hard-pressed to make my jutsu work at that scale."
"Then you must have grown weaker," Madara replied tonelessly. He returned to dipping the cloth in the river. His every muscle was guarded, as if he still expected them to launch into battle at any second, and was cursing himself for having revealed himself at low energy.
And yet it was hard trying to convince himself that he wasn't admiring the planes of his friend's chest. "I don't think so, my brother tells me otherwise and he's an embodiment of harsh truth so I think I can trust whatever compliments I drag out of him. He's gone to see the Uzumaki now."
"Unloading your duties on someone else? Typical." For some reason he wasn't using the cloth. Only holding it in his hand, dripping over his feet.
"No, no, I'm here to accomplish another duty. I wanted to ask you if you had an idea for the name of the village yet."
Madara paused. "I'll tell you later, when I have time for a meeting."
"No," Hashirama frowned. "Now is just fine. We're friends, and friends don't need to book meetings with each other. Don't you remember how we used to meet at the most ridiculous times? Once during Tanabata I couldn't get away until two in the morning and you'd already fallen asleep against that rock over there," he pointed, almost nostalgically. "Why does that have to change just because we're ten years older?"
"Because we're ten years older, dolt-
"Oi! Wake up! If I can't get a rest then you can't either, Madara!"
The boy wakes up slowly, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and wincing at the kink in his neck. Hashirama looks down at him tiredly, determined to drain whatever's left of the day of its entertainment before he goes to sleep.
"You told me to wait here if you were late," Madara yawns. "I didn't expect you to be this late, so I thought I'd at least rest to have energy for our spar."
Hashirama looks vaguely disturbed. "Spar? Now? It's two in the morning, I have no energy to spar with even if you do." He shuffles forward until he's sitting beside Madara, with both of their backs against the same sturdy rock.
"If we're not going to spar, then why did you come? I can't even sleep in peace..."
"I came to protect you from the bugs," Hashirama announces. He then helpfully adds, "they're the reason why we don't sleep outside near bodies of water."
Madara glances over his clothing. "I don't see how those tiny things can actually hurt me. There aren't any poisonous ones until you reach where the forest is thicker, thick enough that you can't walk through it anymore. Here is fine."
"Well then I came to keep you company, because that's what friends are good for."
"You're terrible for it. Or maybe I just have a bad case of second-hand embarrassment..."
"Oi! I don't make a fool out of myself that often!"
"You do."
Hashirama rests his head against the rock, with his growing hair tickling the base of his neck. He looks up at the blackness of the sky. "You know, I only act like a fool because oka-san once told me that fools never receive great reputations of intimidation. I didn't really want to be known as intimidating, so I decided that I'd make myself known as kind of a fool just so I can still talk to people like they're on the same level as me."
"That's... a pretty condescending thought for a kid."
"It was a true thought, though!" He protests. "I can't say too much, but I was born more powerful than most of the children of my clan."
Madara's brow is furrowed slightly. "Yes, I can imagine, if you're able to keep up with me."
"Then you should try it. Try being a fool sometimes. Otou-san always told me that people are born with different levels of power and it's not always fair, but those like us should at least make use of what we have to be strong for the others who are born weaker. I didn't agree with him on lots of things, but some of what he says makes sense, in a weird sort of depressing, adult-ish way."
"Stop saying things like that. They sound so weird coming out of your mouth," Madara huffed. He then adds, in a quieter voice, "your otou-san sounds just like mine, though."
They didn't realize when their hands had started overlapping, but neither of them take any notice of it when they stand up to leave.
-and my clan no longer celebrates Tanabata. It's a useless festival."
"Was draining the happiness of your people the first task you took on after you were appointed, or the second?" He asked, not without a hint of cheek.
Madara frowned. "Your horribly familiar sense of humour aside, I will book an appointment to discuss the name of the village. The day after tomorrow at five in the morning." The cloth stood still in his hand, and his bare back glistened with sweat.
"Fine, we'll discuss it then. For now I'll stay here and reminisce while you finish so we can head back together."
His friend looked distinctly uncomfortable. "At least face a different direction."
Understanding settled in and Hashirama grinned widely as he glanced at the cloth and at Madara's bare chest. "Oh, you still can't do these things when others are watching?-"
"Just be quiet and look away."
So he hid his smirk and turned around.
~o~
Tobirama returned late the next morning, halfway through Hashirama's morning kata. He waited patiently by the training grounds until his brother had gone through every impeccable stroke and then approached with a sealed letter in one hand.
"You're back," Hashirama smiled warmly and wiped the sweat off his forehead. "I hope the Uzumaki kunoichi didn't chew you out."
"They did not. In fact, they accepted our proposal," Tobirama replied. "Along with another proposal."
"Hmm?"
"A marriage proposal. I thought it would be wise to unit our clans by having you marry the Uzumaki princess. She's an agreeable girl, you'll like her."
Hashirama's mind froze. For a few seconds, he remained still, trying to silence his internal screaming. Then he gave a strained smile. "An... agreeable girl?"
"Yes. And somewhat pretty, in that strange and unconventional way that non-Senju women are."
The morning around them was clear. Clear as Hashirama's mind as he sifted frantically for an excuse and failed to find once, still wiping absently at the sweat lining his forehead.
A girl. Marriage.
The only women he knew were those among his counselors, and his mother had died too early for him to achieve a semblance of what married life was like. He was too drenched in the world of battle and politics where shinobi soldiers blurred before his eyes. All he had to offer were brief nights with half-drunk older women on festival nights. He attempted to convey this to Tobirama with the blank look in his eyes, and he could tell that he was failing.
"You can't get out of this one, nii-san," his brother told him dryly. "I've already told her about you, and she seems interested. Although she's such an absentminded girl that she seems interested in almost everything... nevertheless, make sure you look somewhat pleasing next week when her clan arrives. We've made preparations to escort them into the village as soon as construction begins, and you'll look horribly underdressed beside her if you appear in your usual clothes."
Hashirama placed a soothing hand on his brother's shoulder. "Look, Tobi, I don't think it's such a good idea to marry your brother off at the drop of a pin like this. Maybe we should consider-"
"You're willing to sacrifice your life for this village, but you won't sacrifice this decision?" Tobirama shook his hand off and raised an eyebrow. "It's unlikely that you'll find someone you like in any other way, and for the sake of the female population I really hope that you won't turn out to be one of those men who start chasing marriage at the age of sixty."
His brother usually had a point to make when he was like this. It was generally a pointless point – the sort of point that never crossed a mind like Hashirama's – but a point nonetheless. He had no interest in marriage anyway, and maybe the girl would be a nice person. The Uzumaki were a good ally. He would have preferred to marry a Hyuuga if his marital position had to be used for an alliance, but the Uzumaki had many powerful secrets as well.
He sighed, and gave him a mournful look. "Fine... how old is she?"
"Eighteen, I think. But she looks slightly older, and maybe you'll like that."
Hashirama rubbed his temples. "Stop pretending that you're taking any of my interests in account."
"Fine, I'll stop," Tobirama replied bluntly. "Just make sure you're ready to leave to meet the Aburame clan. We leave in five hours."
With that he left his newly engaged and thoroughly depressed brother behind.