Author's Note: Hello everyone! I am sorry about the wait! I absolutely adore hearing from all of you. This chapter was a little hard for me to right. I'm sure people aren't really going to like this chapter but this was the image, the scene that gave me the idea for the story. I had to stay true to the original idea. There is a legitimate reason that Sakura did what she did and while most of you may not agree, it will make a bit more sense later - hopefully. Anyway, let me know what you think! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Warnings: Language, OOCness, Un-beta'd.

Word Count: 4,933

Manmaru stares up at Madara with innocent, wide black eyes. Madara has this look on his face, like he's staring at his own grave that's dated for today. His mouth closes for a moment before falling open once more, not able to really process what he's seeing in front of him.

He's not the only one, though. His brother, Izuna, is staring down at the little boy in much the same manner as his brother. Tobirama is frowning, red eyes flickering between Madara and his son, concentrating on something in his thoughts. Trying to decide on something. One of Hashirama's hands is brought up to his face, brown eyes wide. And the looks on the Uchiha and Senju with them was surprise, worry, and a lack of understanding.

Manmaru blinks one more time before the cutest smile spreads across his face and he bounces up and down, opening his arms wide toward Madara. "Daddy! Daddy, it's you!"

Madara, who seemed to already be loosing the strength in his legs and was sinking to the ground, finally dropped to a knee in front of the little boy, black eyes wide. Manmaru mistakes the action and runs into Madara's chest, wrapping little arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.

For a strained, frightening moment, Sakura thought that Madara was going to rip Manmaru's arms out from around him and throw him away, but instead he slowly wraps his arms around Manmaru, pressing his mouth and chin into the little boy's shoulder. The way his head is angled his hair is pushed out of the way so that Sakura could see both of his eyes. They are wide, blinking slowly before he closes them tightly and hugs Manmaru to him.

"Hi, daddy," Manmaru says.

Madara pulls back a bit, as if he didn't believe the little boy was talking to him, only to see Manmaru staring into his eyes. He was the one that Manmaru was talking to. "Hi," Madara says softly, dark eyes scanning Manmaru's face, as if trying to engrave it into his memory. Manmaru smiles, bringing one of his hands back and touching Madara's cheek, as if doing the same and engraving the face of his father into his memory.

Manmaru turns to look up at Sakura, the biggest smile on his face. "Look, mommy, it's daddy!"

Sakura didn't know what to say. This is quite obvious the first time that Madara has ever seen Manmaru, yet somehow Manmaru was able to pick Madara out as his father. That didn't make any sense to her. Unless Madara was really good at acting, Sakura couldn't believe that he has seen Manmaru before and is still acting like this. It couldn't just be for show, she's sure.

"I see him," Sakura finally says, but stops there. She didn't know what else to say.

"A child?" Izuna says, looking like he couldn't believe what he's seeing. "He's a..."

"Seto," Sakura says, green eyes flickering over to the younger black haired man. "His name is Manmaru Seto. He's my son."

"And mine," Madara says, staring up at Sakura with a mixture of emotions on his face. "He's mine, isn't he? He said so."

"He's a child," Sakura says simply. "But yes. He's yours."

"Why?" Madara asks softly, voice cracking a bit, betraying how upset he really is by this entire situation, making Sakura feel bad. "Why didn't you tell me about him?"

To be honest, Sakura didn't know for sure. Without having all of Sakura Seto's memories, she couldn't accurately say why she didn't tell Madara - who was obviously the man she loved - that she was pregnant with his child. It didn't make a lot of sense to Sakura, but without really understanding Sakura Seto's side of the story, then she's not sure that she can really say one way or another.

"I don't know," Sakura says honestly, staring into Madara's eyes. "I don't remember."

Madara frowns a bit, probably recalling Sakura's admittance about not remembering a lot about her life. Thankfully, he can't blame her for not knowing right now, but it doesn't mean he can't be bitter about it. A part of him seemed like he wanted to push the issue, insist that she try hard to remember what she forgot, but she couldn't. The memories are coming back with time. There is little else that she can do other than wait.

Madara looks around unhappily, hugging Manmaru close again before the little boy pulls back and stares into Madara's eyes. "Daddy, are you done with your business? Mommy says we can only be together when you're done."

Madara frowns at that. "My business?" Then he realizes, dark eyes flickering over to Hashirama, obviously having forgot that he was there. Manmaru was a very efficient distraction.

Hashirama lowers down to his knees next to Madara and Manmaru, smiling kindly when Manmaru stares at him curiously. "Hello, Manmaru," Hashirama says softly, offering his hand for him to take. "My name is Hashirama Senju, I'm a..." a moment of hesitation before he continues, "I'm a friend of your father's."

Manmaru smiles shyly, reaching out and taking Hashirama's hand, giving it a little shake. He looks over at Sakura, blushing. "Mommy's friend, too?"

Sakura nods. "Yes."

Manmaru smiles at Hashirama, who smiles charmingly back, making Manmaru blush and lean his head against Madara's. It was a very mundane but adorable action where he would turn his head toward Madara, rubbing his nose into Madara's cheek in embarrassment. He would turn a bit to look over at Hashirama, see the man still staring at him, and smiling more, and the little boy would giggle and bury his nose into Madara's cheek again, his hand still in Hashirama's.

Sakura didn't know what to think, but she's happy to see that he's not throwing Manmaru away or anything, which is great. She's actually happy to see that he doesn't appear to be planning on letting Manmaru go any time soon. It makes Sakura's heart clench in happiness at the sight of it. While her thoughts on her own feelings toward Madara are confusing when in depth thought is applies, on the most basic of levels, she likes him. At least the him that she sees in Sakura Seto's memories and the way that he is with her son.

If nothing else in the world, that she can appreciate. And so for the next few minutes she just sits there and watches them together. Manmaru was blabbing on and on in fragmented sentences, so excited to see Madara that he barely finished one thought before moving on to the next one. Madara just patiently listened to the little boy talk, occasionally asking questions or making a noise of interest but otherwise remained silent.

"We should get going," Sakura says softly, holding her hand out for Manmaru to take. He looks at her for a moment, reluctantly, before reaching out and taking her hand and stepping away from Madara. "You guys came here for a reason, right? I am sorry for taking up much of your time."

"Wait," Madara says, standing up. "You don't have to go." He sends a glance down at Manmaru, who stares up at him innocently. He obviously wasn't ready to part ways.

"We do," Sakura says. She pulls Manmaru close. "We have a ways to go to get back to the inn and this little boy needs a bath before dinner and bedtime." She looks down at Manmaru and smiles a bit when he pouts up at her.

"But mommy, I want to stay with daddy," Manmaru says, giving her puppy dog eyes.

Sakura shakes her head. "No, Manmaru, you are coming back with me. Daddy still has some things that he has to do."

"Nothing so pressing," Madara says. A pause, then he spares a glance over at Hashirama, as if remembering again that the Senju were still here with them. He presses his lips together. "Or, perhaps..."

Hashirama holds up his hands. "It's alright, Skipper. We can go for today. It wasn't something that had to be discussed right now. There is always tomorrow."

Sakura felt torn for a moment, looking down at Manmaru who was still staring up at her, begging with his eyes to be able to spend more time with Madara. In a perfect world, Sakura would say fine and let Madara care for Manmaru for the night, or even stay with them or something and spend more time with them, but Sakura got this feeling in her gut, so strongly that she couldn't ignore it.

Now was not the time. Manmaru and Madara couldn't really be together just yet.

She didn't know how she knew it or why she felt that way but she did. All Sakura could hear was Madara whispering in her ear how much he hated his father. Hated the choices that he made - whether willingly or out of necessity - and then the overwhelming desire somehow a fusion of Sakkura's desire and that of who could only be Sakura Seto floods through her being as a new voice whispers into the shell of her ear.

"I hate father. Why does he have to be a monster?"

It was Manmaru's voice. Like a sick premonition of the future, he voice was clear as day and although it sounded older, there was something about it that just screamed it being Manmaru's voice. No, Sakura couldn't bare it. She wouldn't let Manmaru within a thousand leagues of the Uchiha and Senju clans in whole so long as they were in a war with one another. Madara may have turned out to be a good young man while still hating his father but Sakura feared that lightning wouldn't strike twice.

No. There was no way that Sakura was going to allow that to happen. Being an Uchiha ruined Sasuke's life, Obito's and Madara's life - at least in her timeline it did. It won't ruin Manmaru's. She's going to protect him, no matter what.

"I'm sorry," Sakura says, shaking her head. She rolls her shoulders and hardens her features. "Manmaru is coming with me. He cannot be with the Uchiha right now. Not during wartime. I'm sorry."

"What?" Madara asks, eyes widening in surprise.

"Are you kidding me?" Izuna asks, taking a step closer.

Sakura yanks Manmaru behind her, eyeing the other Uchiha boy wearily. Madara sees the mistrusting look on Sakura's face and pushes Izuna back a bit, giving him a warning look before holding his hands out for her to see as sign of surrender.

"Skipper," Hashirama says, drawing her attention to him, standing finally. "We won't attack the Uchiha camp, I promise. Manmaru will be safe there." Sakura glances over at him, locking eyes with the nature sage, and believes him. He has no plans of attacking anybody.

Tobirama watches the exchange with keen red eyes, not speaking as Sakura says, coldly, "No, the Senju are not the problem." Then, realizing how that sounded, quickly continues, "Nor is it technically the Uchiha either. I just can't have him be with the Uchiha now. Not while you are in war."

"There is no more fighting," Madara says, a desperate edge to his voice that Sakura is almost certain she imagined.

Sakura almost wants to give in. Admit that maybe she's being too overprotective, but she couldn't. Between her own bad feeling and Sakura Seto's tugging at the back of her mind, she couldn't give in, even if she felt that she was being perhaps too cruel. She had to make him understand. She wasn't doing this to hurt him. This wasn't revenge for what the Madara of her timeline did. It really wasn't.

"I'm not punishing you," Sakura says slowly, staring at Madara, who looks like she literally ripped his heart out of his body. Not so much on his face, but his eyes. The skin around his eyes were red and so is his chest, which is partially revealed by his loose kimono, proving that there was no plans for battle this day. Only the guards were armed, not the two sets of brothers.

But it was surprising how red Madara's chest was getting. It's obvious that he's upset but it's like he's containing it so deep inside that his body is physically reacting to his pain. Sakura feels like a huge ass hole.

But she can't back down. Not on this.

"I am not punishing you," She says again. "I will not allow it to happen. I will not let him hate you."

Madara blinks a few times. Even though Hashirama and Izuna look like they want to argue with her too, her words are obviously not what they expected. As much as she really hates herself right now, she's not keeping Manmaru away from Madara just because she thinks that Madara would be a bad father. It's the situation. In a war camp, Manmaru would be subjected to who knows what, and while she's sure the Uchiha as a whole are halfway decent people, anything could happen. Any number of incidences could lead to those horrible words leaving her son's lips. She simply could not take the change while they were in war.

As if somehow being in a village made it different.

But it did. It stopped being about ideas, and about the people. It was a them or us mentality when it comes to protection that made the situation just a touch better. Sakura would always have to worry about Manmaru falling prey to the Curse of Hatred, but she knew that she was going to need Madara's help to break him from it should it ever happen. Madara wouldn't be able to help her if he's the reason for Manmaru being cursed.

"You can't simply promise me that nothing is going to happen while he's with you. While I'm sure you'd be able to protect him, and would," she says slowly. "I don't want his first real impression of his father ordering people's deaths or killing them himself. My son shouldn't have to associate his father with killing and evilness. He should love you and your family because half of him is you," Sakura says. "He won't hate you for the decisions you make during wartime that you hated your father for."

Madara's lips part, probably to protest, but his jaw snaps shut at those words.

Perhaps it was because he is so pale, but Madara's chest is completely red now, along with the skin around his eyes. He's very upset and it's showing on his body. He keeps blinking rapidly to clear his eyes and looks around, trying to settle down. But he can't hide from Sakura, especially since she is right in front of him and having a front row seat to his silent self destruction by her hands - er words.

"I'm not like my father," Madara says softly, head tipping forward so that his bangs fall to cover one of his eyes. "I won't make the same mistakes."

"I believe you," Sakura says, and she's surprised that she does. "I'm not saying that you can't come see him at all. You can come and see him whenever you want. I won't stop you. I'm just saying that he can't be in that situation right now. I know you must think I'm unfair or being a bitch, but I simply can't. I'm sorry."

Sakura wasn't sure why he was in so much pain, but when he closed his eyes, he looked so utterly defeated. Like she just told him he would never see his son ever again. There is something very obviously going on. She's close enough to see Madara's eyelashes getting wet, physically so distraught that he can no longer contain it.

And it's scary.

Sakura couldn't explain it. She doesn't understand why he is acting this way or why Izuna's hands are gripping his shoulders trying to somehow make him feel better, or how Hashirama looks like he wants to say something more but isn't sure what that is, or even how Tobirama actually looks away, like he couldn't bear feeling Madara's pain, even if it was somehow second hand.

Something very weird was going on.

But Sakura couldn't dwell on it. She couldn't allow herself to. It may not be what Manmaru wants now, but what he needs. Sakura felt like the biggest bitch in the entire world, especially when Manmaru began to protest as she walked away, pulling the little boy along. He drags his feet, he doesn't want to go.

She turns around and picks him up, no longer able to look at Madara. She couldn't look at his chest reddening anymore. She couldn't look at the skin around his eyes reddening anymore. She couldn't look at his slightly trembling hands or shuttered breaths anymore. Sakura knew she had to just turn and walk away. Walk away from Sakura Seto's friends, lover, and the broken hearted father of her child.

"Mommy? Mommy, I want to be with daddy," Manmaru says. "Mommy? Why can't I be with daddy? Where are we going? Where are we going, mommy? Mommy," Manmaru calls out as Sakura scoops down to pick up the rest of their lunch and keeps going in one fluid motion, "why is daddy crying, mommy? Why are you crying?"

Sakura wasn't crying. Sakura Seto was.

Once she is far enough away that she dare look back, she is surprised - and perhaps not so surprised - to see Madara had sank to his knees with Hashirama at his side, arms wrapped around his friend's shoulders.

Sakura felt bad. She felt horrible. She felt dirty and nasty. She felt like she would fall through the earth at any moment and into hell. She felt like she had no other choice. The image of Manmaru, eyes red with the sharingan and whispering angry words flashes across her mind. She couldn't let that happen. She just couldn't.

Something is going to happen, she knows it. She just doesn't know what.

"Sakura!" Her mother calls out to her. "Sakura, honey! I need you!"

Sakura jumps to her feet and runs out of her room and into her mother's room. "Mom, what are you - " she cuts off, seeing a mess around the room. All the newly folded laundry was all strewn about. "Mom," Sakura says, eyes widening. "Mom, what is going on in here? What are you doing?"

Sakura's mother, a dainty woman with large, doe like eyes and stringy red hair. Her feet are dirty and her hair is a mess. She looks more like a teenager herself rather than a mother. It wasn't because she was a bad person but that she simply couldn't take care of herself. For as long as Sakura could remember, she's been caring for her mother. Ever since she was a small child she's done everything for her mom.

People used to say that her mother was... different. That she wasn't fit to have children. That she wasn't very smart and never really thought all that much. Sakura didn't really understand that as a child but as she grew older all she knew how to do was take care of her mom. It was just something that she got used to and no longer thinks about it.

"Mother," Sakura sighs, walking around the room, picking up the clothes.

"I'm sorry, Sakura," her mother says, pushing her messy red hair from her face. "I... I don't know why I did that." She runs her hand over her forehead, eyes squeezing shut for a moment before shaking her head. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Sakura pauses picking up the cloths to lean down and kiss the top of her mother's head. "It's alright, mom. It's alright."

"I did it again," She says, shaking her head a little more violently. "Um... um..." she squints her eyes, trying to vocalize her thoughts, but ultimately couldn't and gave up. Distracted by something else, perhaps.

Sakura wanted to lean down and hug her mother, comfort her, because she really wasn't mad and even though this was something that has happened many times before, Sakura didn't blame her mother. She didn't hate her mother or resent her. In fact, in some ways she feels that it makes her closer to her mom, always being by her side to make sure that she's okay.

But even though it was her mother and she wanted to hug her, Sakura knew she couldn't. Her mother wasn't very good with a lot of physical contact unless she initiates it.

Sakura's mother adapts this look on her face that Sakura recognized. Her mother looks around the room without a hint of outward recognition, fingers wiggling in her hair before she thinks of something - Sakura's not sure what - and starts to giggle at it before standing up and leaving the room. Sakura takes this time to clean up the room, not bothering to fold the laundry this time and just leaves it in a pile in the corner before heading back into her room to grab a haori to put over her shoulders before heading outside to catch her mother over by her flowerbed.

It was one of the few things she was gentle with. The flowers in front of their house that her father planted for her. Sakura's dad is a traveling merchant. He's often on the street for long periods of time - until about two years ago, when Sakura was ten - when he left and never came back. Sakura has no idea what ever happened to her father. Did he get killed on the road? Did he just leave them and never come back?

Sakura didn't know.

She didn't want to think that her father would just up and leave, but she didn't know what else to think. She didn't want to think that he went out onto the road to support them only to die somehow, alone. It just didn't seem fair. It just didn't seem like that was how it should have been.

But, alas, as the years passed she is starting to lose the image of her father's face in her mind. And she's starting to lose the hope that he will somehow, someday, come back to her and her mother.

"Sakura!" Her mom calls out to her, pulling her from her thoughts. Sakura's mom waves her hand around wildly without taking her eyes off of the flowers in front of her. "Come! Come here!"

Sakura walks over to her mother, kneeling down next to her to look at flower bed to see a new flower finally sprouting, blooming into the new spring.

"Beautiful!" Sakura says, green eyes like her mother's lighting up. "It looks wonderful, mom!"

Sakura's mother claps her hands excited, green eyes wide. "Yes! It's my favorite color. Um, the purple! The purple is my favorite color!"

Sakura nods, having known this. "Yeah," she leans close to her mother, relishing in the warmth she can feel radiating off of her. "It's a very pretty purple color. I like it too."

Sakura awoke the next morning with tears in her eyes. Little Manmaru sleeping peacefully next to her. She turns into the little boy and curls around him as much as she can, feeling Sakura Seto's pain. Sakura Seto missed her mother. Sakura was starting to miss her too.

It was about two weeks since Manmaru and Madara met. To Sakura's surprise, she hasn't seen any of them since. Every day Manmaru asks if he can go and see Madara and every day Sakura says that he's going to have to wait just a little bit longer. He would whine and cry, but Sakura couldn't tell him anything else. It was just going to take some time.

A part of her wondered if perhaps Madara hated her. She would understand if he did, but she couldn't understand why he wasn't there now trying to see his son. The same boy that he was so distraught over leaving isn't here right now. It was a little strange. She has to wonder what is going on. A part of her wonders if Madara simply couldn't find her, but then she knew that wasn't true. He would be able to find her and his son if he looked. He just isn't looking right now and there had to be a good reason why.

Sakura and Manmaru were sitting in their room. Sakura was reading from a scroll she got from the market while Manmaru was playing on their bed with Kuro when there is a knock at the door. Sakura blinks in confusion, looking up from the scroll for a moment before standing up, laying the scroll down next to Manmaru and walks over to the door slowly. They don't get guests.

She opens the door slowly, peaking out of the small crack to see armor. She opens the door a bit more, surprised to see - not Madara - but Tobirama standing there, staring at her.

"Sakura," he says, once she opens the door all the way.

"Tobirama-sama," Sakura says, surprised to see the future - would it really be the future since this is a different timeline it seems like? - Second Hokage standing in front of their door, "what is going on?"

"Can you come with me?" Tobirama asks, staring down at Sakura with narrow red eyes. "You and Manmaru."

Sakura's on edge. This is the Hokage - or would he be? - of her home village and a part of her wants to immediately trust him, but her instinct as a mother made her protect of her son, especially since he's being asked for.

"What's going on..?" Sakura asks slowly, not sure how smart it is to outwardly deny his request. "Has something happened?"

Tobirama shakes his head. "Nothing is wrong, if you are worried about that. Hashirama asked I retrieve you and Manmaru. We are signing the peace treaty with the Uchiha today and he wanted to surprise Madara by having you and Manmaru there. Will you accompany me?"

Sakura blinks in surprise. "You guys are signing the treaty today?" Tobirama nods. "That's great! Is that why Madara hasn't come to see Manmaru? He's been busy with..." she waves her hand around. "Well, whatever comes with preparing a clan to ending a war?"

Tobirama nods slowly. "I would assume. It's not as simple as just leaving camp to sign a treaty. A lot of preparation has to be made before hand on both sides to ensure it goes as smoothly, and fairly, for both sides as possible. I don't claim to know exactly what the Uchiha have been up these last few weeks but if I had to speculate, that would be it."

Sakura nods, more to herself than to the white haired man. "Okay. Give me a moment to get Manmaru ready and then we will come with you."

Tobirama tips his head a bit. "Good. I will wait outside the building. Come to me when you are finished and then we can go."

Sakura quickly closes the door and turns around to look at the adorable little black haired boy looking up at her curiously. "Who was that?" He asks.

"A friend," Sakura says, unable to contain her smile and excitement. "Are you ready to go see daddy?"

Manmaru's face lights up completely and he jumps to his feet. "Yeah! Let's go now!"

Sakura catches him on his way to the door. "Wait, jellybean, you need to change out of her pajamas first. The we will go."

So, they both quickly change, Sakura tries to brush Manmaru's wild black hair a bit but the little boy was just not having it, too impatient. He's definitely ready to see his dad. Sakura puts her cloak on and helps Manmaru crawl onto her back so that they can travel faster. She makes sure that she's got a good grip on him sot hat he won't fall off of her once she starts running, before leaving the room, locking the door and exiting the inn to find Tobirama waiting for them right outside the inn like he promised.

"Alright," Tobirama says, turning to face Sakura and the little boy on her back. "Let us get moving, then."