Super sorry it took so long to update. : / It has been a crazy rough month with classes starting again, but now that things are getting settled, my creativity is back. Hope to update more often now!


Amare sweat profusely, her chest pounding. Perhaps this wasn't my greatest idea. I always sucked at gambling. But there is no way I can admit defeat to him! She hurriedly looked around for a way to improvise her situation. From a distance, she could hear Izuna walking closer to where she had herself hidden.

"Running away isn't going to help!" He actually found himself enjoying their little game of cat and mouse. He wasn't below admitting that her defensive skills impressed him, but as her energy left her after countless attacks, she had little choice but to hide in order to regain strength to mount an attack. This was exactly where he wanted her. Running, grasping to anything that might help. Izuna became so over confident that he stopped and deactivated his sharingan. Amare, feeling the change, decided that it was now or never. As quickly as he let his guard down, she was in front of him delivering a powerful punch that connected with his stomach. In that moment, realization hit her too late and Izuna's clone disappeared. She felt him behind her, so close to her she could feel his breath on her neck. He dangled a kunai by her face, a smug look of triumph spread across his face. "I am victorious."

Amare sighed and faced him. "Fine, you win this round. I'll "spend time" with you."

"Why say it so? Is it such a horrible thing? Girls here would kill for the chance." He scoffed at her attitude.

"Is that so? Then I am honored." She smiled at him.

"You must be tired after trying to run from me." He teased. "So we'll go out tomorrow."

"Fair enough."


Despite it not being called a date, Amare's heart pounded against her chest as the time drew near that he would come for her. Stopping in front of a mirror several times, she observed herself and frowned. "I don't have a thing here to look nice with. Or anything." Growing increasingly frustrated, she began to search through the dresser. "Why do I even care about how I look for this guy? After all, I'm just a captive..." As she dug through the clothes, most of which were plain in color, she pulled out a dark blue silk kimono decorated with a simple floral design. "That's better..." After putting it on, she stood in front of the mirror with a grin. As if on cue, there was a knock at the door and a voice that followed. "Are you ready?"

Izuna struggled with the idea of where to take her. Despite sharing everything with his brother, he had not mentioned that he decided to take her out with him alone. It wasn't meant to be a secret, but if Madara was not going to ask, he was not going to tell. It's a date, sort of...A fake one! Izuna told himself vehemently. After all, he was tasked at gaining Amare's trust. Even with himself calling it a fake date, he still felt timid about it. He never wasted time on doing these sorts of things with girls...So how did it even work? Izuna finally decided on taking her to a waterfall a small distance from their property. Once arriving, he observed the shocked look on her face as she took in the scenery.

"What's that look for?"

"I'm just surprised at your thoughtfulness. What made you think of this place?"

Izuna shrugged. "My mother always thought it was a nice place and brought us here time to time. What do you think?"

The roar of the falls echoed through the lush valley below gave Amare a sense of comfort and peace. At that moment she pondered what her brothers may be up to and how their mom may be faring. The thought of how terribly concerned her mom would be, especially after just losing her husband...Amare frowned and began to doubt her whether her actions would be effective in any way, or if this would cause greater harm. Izuna rose a brow at the lack of response. "Hello?"

"Sorry! I was just thinking. It is a really peaceful place, I wouldn't mind coming more often." She flashed him a half-hearted smile. Izuna immediately saw right through it.

"Feeling a bit homesick?" He didn't really want to sympathize with her, but ultimately she should have never had any part in this war, even despite her heritage.

"I suppose that's it. I'm tired of bloodshed, war, hate...When does it end?"

"After we destroy the Senju." This response came out naturally, however, he regretted it as soon as it came out. Yes, the statement reflected how he truly felt but at the same time, he felt remorse for saying it to her. "I didn't..."

Amare appeared unfazed by his bluntness but felt a bit of a sting that he, by extension, held that way towards her as well. "It's alright. You really feel that way...I've heard similar words before."

"By Tobirama, no doubt."

"Whether or not you succeed in destroying us makes no difference. A war bred by hatred will produce nothing more than hate and it will eventually destroy you in return."

"I have no interest in discussing these matters with you here and now. For the moment, enjoy this peace while it is here. It won't last much longer."

They sat in silence together until day began to turn into dusk. As they moved to leave, Amare froze up. "Someone's coming..." The feeling simultaneously hit them both, as Izuna already activated his sharingan.

"There's a lot of them. What now?"

"I'll handle it...Perfect practice." Izuna went to route out the enemy head on. Amare followed, even though she knew he wouldn't want any help. She watched on as he confronted seven men. Why or how did they even know to come here? They aren't Senju...or anyone i've seen before.

Their skills paled compared to Izuna's. A perfect time to show them who they're dealing with. Amare observed a sudden change in him. He was faster than before and he made a move she never witnessed the likes of before. The men before him began screaming in agony as each of them were burnt by flames. It moved slowly as each man tried unsuccessfully to quell them. Satisfied with the results, Izuna turned around to face her with a smirk. She could clearly see the change in his dojutsu, but in a moment it was gone.

"What do you think?" When he received no reply from her, he chuckled. "Lets go, we're done here now."

On the way back, she stopped him. "What was it?"

"Now you want to know? Well I'll tell you, because when you return to your brothers, you will tell them. It's the Mangekyo Sharingan and entirely superior to even that of the Wood Release."

"It doesn't concern me."

"You must put a lot of faith in them. It will be so disappointing for you, then."

Amare said nothing in return and kept walking. His arrogance made her want to flat out smack him, but the image of those horrible flames burned in her memory. It did actually concern her. Once they arrived 'home', she retreated to her room. What a terrible "date".

In the meantime, Izuna reported to Madara everything that had happened.

"That sounds like a poor date." Madara retorted sarcastically.

"In all seriousness, she or her clan may have something to do with that little attack. If it is true, we have every right to retaliate."

Madara fell deep into thought. "I highly doubt she did."

"How could you assume that?! She is a Senju, no less. This would give us a perfect opening."

"Yes, but we made a deal."

"They broke their own deal."

"We don't know that for sure, but we will..."

"What are you thinking of?"

"She will tell us everything she knows willingly."

Izuna's expression grew concern. "You don't intend to use that on her, do you?"

"Why the sudden concern?"

"It seems...excessive. And if things are as you suspect, she should have no knowledge of a planned attack."

"I know the risks involved with using it. I won't harm her wellbeing. I have an idea what extent I can use it to find out what we want to know without doing any damage."

"I trust that your control will be augmented, nonetheless. I suppose there isn't anything we should be worried about."

"It will be an excellent test run...the pinnacle of these eyes, Tsukuyomi."


Note~~

Grrr I spent a lot of time on this chapter, and while i'm not necessarily satisfied, under my current circumstances it will suffice. Still also trying to extend the lengths, but i was anxious to get this chapter up. :( Nonetheless I hope you enjoyed and I hope to have a new chapter up soon!