"Many things?"

Kumiko had her hands on her hips, frowning down at the smug looking Uchiha. He was simply staring back, his lips curved faintly in a show of superiority.

"When we were married, we didn't consummate the marriage."

Kumiko nodded, having expected as much. Madara continued, his gaze shifting from Kumiko's eyes to the hands resting on her hips.

"Kiyomi and Izuna have some sort of… affair."

"What? Bee would never-"

"Cut it Kumiko, it's the truth."

He was staring at her now, his eyes burning through her. Her frown deepened.

"She's so young though."

"She's only two years your junior Kumiko, I don't know how you reduced her to a ten year old. When you laughed at me for being betrothed to her I thought I'd be dealing with a girl just out of diapers."

"You don't need to wear a diaper after 5."

"That wasn't my point." He mused, tilting his head slightly as he watched her chew her lip. It was a habit of hers.

She glanced down at him, feeling the weight of her eyelids suddenly as if someone had doused her with exhaustion.

"I think I should go to bed right now. I'm really sleepy."

Madara nodded, staring up at her now that she was standing. She took a step closer and cupped his face, leaning down to press her lips against his forehead. His hands went to her thighs and suddenly, he was standing, his hands slid up her legs to her waist. He pressed his forehead against hers, their breaths mingling.

"You should just sleep here." His voice was a whisper, his dark hair tickled her face. Nervous and unsure, Kumiko's hands found the hem of his shirt and she twisted the cloth between her fingers.

"I won't force you to do anything you don't want." He whispered again, moving away from her slightly. She shivered when his hands left her waist and turned to walk back to the door. Madara had dropped himself onto the bed wishing there were some sort of cure for his recently developed insomnia. He heard the door slide on its hinges and then a few moments later, the light 'whack' as it shut. He sighed and pressed his palms to his eyes.

"Niisan, have you seen my-"

Izuna walked in to an empty room. The bed had been made, the curtains drawn and the shutters open. He frowned, it was too early for the maid to have come in and on closer observance the blanket had been carelessly thrown across the bed to cover it. Madara had done it himself.

'Why would he ever bother?'

Curious and suspecting, he moved to the room across to find Kumiko sleeping under her own blankets, her legs sticking out as the blanket twisted messily around her. Sighing, he shut the door, retreating downstairs to search for his brother.

Madara had risen a few hours after he had fallen asleep, his mind whirling with thoughts of the eerie dream he had. He realized he needed to question Kumiko about certain things she had either failed to reiterate to him or Hashirama hadn't thought of altogether.

Tobirama was running a hand through his hair, staring at Mito in exasperation.

"You know I can tell you're pregnant right?"

She frowned, and looked away, pink dusting her cheeks.

"How can I be when your brother has no time for me?"

Tobirama raised an eyebrow, shaking his head as he poured her a cup of warm green tea. It would help with the nausea. He rarely understood how women could be so demanding. It was annoying and troublesome.

"You know he has important stuff to do-"

"He should come home a little earlier, I am important to."

Tobirama gave her a sideways glance, a quizzical look at what she was implying. He heaved a sigh and moved to the sink, rinsing out the little ceramic teapot. Mito and his brother had been a little odd lately, sometimes cold and harsh to each other. It was the tension, Hashirama had received word from the Sarutobi about something that deeply worried him and he wouldn't tell Tobirama what it was.

Kumiko had woken up feeling groggy, unsure of what exactly she was meant to do today. She was jolted by a memory of Hashirama dictating some instructions and she sat up, scrunching her eyebrows, trying to remember.

'The Sarutobi have reported that the Tsukinowa clan has been acting odd. They might be trying to push the Uchiha to go to war so that they can extend their territory further across the vale.'

She blinked, comprehending his words and the task at hand and shot out of bed. Her legs were still sore and she hurriedly combed through her hair with her fingers and washed up, changing into another pair of black under-armor clothing that had been provided to her.

She debated over the best route to take, wondering where she would find Madara. When she stepped out into the hallway she was greeted by the usual silence that hung about their home. She descended the steps just as silently. The downstairs was empty, there wasn't a soul in sight-

"Kumiko?"

She jumped, turning around defensively. Madara was staring coolly at her with his lidded eyes, an eyebrow raised.

"Hey I was looking for you."

He wasn't dressed in his usual clan-leader attire, his hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail and he was casually drinking out of a small cup, what Kumiko suspected was sake.

"Looking for me? How come?"

He moved past her to make himself comfortable on one of the floor cushions. She watched him move across her and lower himself, making note of how he wasn't drunk yet.

Kumiko followed, taking a seat on the cushion next to his.

"Well, I heard something about my clan wanting to go to war with the Senju. Is it true?"

Madara seemed to be staring off into another dimension and responded a whole minute after the question had been asked. Blinking slowly at her, he spoke. His voice seemed deeper than usual and the nonchalance of his expression had lessened. Maybe Kumiko was wrong.

"It is true. I know Hashirama sent you here with the agenda of 'making peace' but I really doubt any such thing will be necessary, we're bound to go to war again soon."

Kumiko blinked at him, anger stirring within her.

"Why?"

"Because the daimyo demands it and he will stop at nothing." Madara took another swig from the cup, dropping it onto the floor. It took Kumiko a few seconds to comprehend his action, realizing that he was indeed already drunk. He smiled at her, it was a gentle sort of smile that didn't seem to have been possible for Madara to make with all his stiff facial muscles. He continued talking, his low voice reverberating through the air. He was staring down at the wooden paneling, fingering the small cup with his left hand.

He cleared his throat, blinking slowly at the ground before looking up at the girl that was curiously staring at him.

"Madara-sama you shouldn't be slacking off."

"Am I your sama?"

Kumiko flushed, backing up slightly in surprise. "No, no you're not."

He hummed, one corner of his lip turning up as he stared at her.

"We've done some weird things together haven't we?"

Kumiko blinked back at him, unsure of what he was getting at.

"Madara I think you've had too much to drink."

"Have I?"

"Mhmm"

He moved then, leaning a little closer to her, his eyes narrowed. There was a smug sort of intelligence in his eyes that he rarely revealed.

"Do you really think I would be such a light weight?"

Tobirama was chasing down the target, its chakra getting further and further. Without a second thought, he used his hiraishin, flashing from one spot to the other until he was close enough to tackle the assailant.

He straddled it, smashing his fist once into the persons face and knocking him out. When he ripped off the mask, it wasn't anyone he recognized. Suspicious, he stood up, rolled over the body and tugged the collar down, ripping it slightly. On the shoulder blade was a mark of a moon, a single thin crescent. He growled.

Madara wasn't drunk, he was just slightly elated. He was pacing the living room now and Kumiko felt dizzy watching him walk back and forth.

"I believe your attacker was from your father's clan."

"Why would they want me dead?"

"Because you were returning to the Uchiha and they want you out of the picture."

Kumiko raised her eyebrows, "They want me out of the way for what?"

He scoffed, turning to her. She noticed how straight his nose was.

"You are a foolish peasant."

"That's why?"

"No, they want to hamper any prospect of peace with the Senju."

"Actually, I think they just want more territory for the clan. So that they can establish a more independent status, get cultivation into the picture."

Madara paused, glancing curiously at her. He recognized that the information must have been provided by Hashirama, there was something familiar in the wording she had used. He nodded, moving back to the cushions and holding out a hand to her. She took it and he pulled her onto her feet.

"There is a lot going on that we haven't shared with the Senju yet. Does Hashirama know about the daimyo's decision?"

Kumiko shook her head. She was often fascinated by the way Madara spoke of Hashirama. There was a hint of reverence in his low voice. A quietness that rarely accompanied his stiff speech.

Madara eyed her then turned away, heading to the stairs. "I have some work I need to do. Don't leave the house."

She scowled, moving to the steps as well. She figured she could take another hot bath to rejuvenate her senses.

When she was done, she silently returned to her room. When she was opening the door of her room though, Madara's door opened and he reached his hand to hook under the collar of her shirt as he pulled her in, shutting the door behind him.

"WHAT ARE YOU-"

Madara pressed a finger to his lips, frowning.

"You women are so noisy."

He moved away from her, picking up a scroll from a desk in the corner of the room.

"This is what I was going through. Do you want to read it?"

"What is it?" She silently walked to him, her bare feet feeling the chill through the floor boards. She took the letter from him, their fingertips brushing as they exchanged secret sparks. Kumiko wondered if the feeling was one sided. She began reading, her eyebrows raised in surprise. She sat down on the chair by the desk, Madara hovering over her shoulder for a moment before moving around her to lean against the desk.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"They want war and they know your cousins will go to no end to save your life if it were under threat."

Kumiko stared at the paper, the writing, the purple-ish ink her father used.

"This isn't right."

"Unfortunately, his treatment of you has never been right."

"But he's my fath-"

"Like I said, he has treated you like a pawn in his game. You and Kiyomi were never much to him."

"No, no he-"

Madara's gaze shifted to her as she silently pushed the parchment onto the desk and buried her face in her hands. He felt a slash of guilt and his hand went to rest on her shoulder.

"Kumiko, look at me."

She looked up, wiping a small tear before it made its way down her face. Madara was leaning close enough for her to see some small lines on his face. Little scars and nicks. There was one on the corner of his bottom lip.

"Fine women never deserve such treatment. You should have stayed with your mother." His quiet words brought her little comfort and her shoulders quivered.

"Kumiko, you are safe here or with Hashirama, nobody will harm y-"

"I died yesterday."

He was a little surprised, his eyes widening slightly.

"You saved me. It was you."

He blinked at her, holding his breath for a moment at the look she was giving him. Her eyes were livid with tears and boiling anger.

"Now you're going to kill me too?"

"I just told you I won't."

She stood up, shoving him away. He took a step away from her, not in the slightest bit phased by the weak shove.

"What won't you do for your clan? For your family? You'll kill me the second I close my eyes tonight!"

"You speak with so much conviction of my villainy, but I have never hurt you. Where is your proof?"

"This letter is proof enough! He wouldn't have written to you if he didn't think you could do it!"

"Your father was wrong about a lot of things!"

Madara had taken a step towards her and she let out a choked sob, her vision blurred slightly by the tears of anger and hurt. She wished he hadn't revived her, had let her die so that she would remain ignorant of all this.

"Why did you tell me? What pleasure do you get out of making me feel worthless?"

He took hold of her shoulders, staring at her with an intensity that bordered on rage but she pulled away from him, her ego stinging at his touch.

"Don't."

Madara took another step towards her, taking hold of her arms. His grip was firm this time, he had no intention of letting her go.

"Kumiko, I will not hurt you. Nobody will. You needed to know, you always have but now you should realize that you can't be his puppet anymore. You don't need a purpose."

She sobbed again, turning her face away from Madara as she wept. He pulled her towards him, one hand knotting itself in her hair as he pulled her to his chest.

"You are an Uchiha by name. Stay here."

She sobbed harder, wanting the warmth of her mother. But she had been a pawn to her too.

"Kumiko, stay with me."

He was whispering in her ear until her sobs subsided and she was leaning heavily against him. He pulled her to the bed, sitting her down as he crouched in front of her.

"You'll be alright. You do have family, here and back with Hashirama. You know this don't you?"

The sincerity in his voice was almost alien to her and she gave a small smile at the mention of the Senju. He stood up, moving to the door. He glanced back at her, a strained expression crossing his usually relaxed face.

"Take your time to decide. Nobody will hurt you here. I promise."