"Why are you so silent?" Madara asked his brother while they enjoyed their well earned rest after training. It was a wonderful day, indeed, he noticed. Birds chirped gleefully, flying above their camp, dim morning sun shone brightly but the weather wasn't too hot. Madara felt like he could return to sleep right there on the wooden porch. The house was pleasantly quiet, save the footsteps of servants back inside the house.

The only thing standing out in that wonderfully peaceful morning was his brother's unusual attitude. Out of the two, Madara was the silent, brooding guy nobody liked. Izuna had, despite everything, managed to stay the vibrant, sweet kid he could recall thinking back to their childhood.

"I wonder what she's like…" The younger thoughtfully whispered, causing his brother to roll his eyes.

Madara sighed, offering Izuna his best judgmental look.

"You could have just picked any eligible girl you liked, and spare yourself the suspense. Who told you to leave it up to father?"

"I couldn't make up my mind! There are so many beautiful women in the clan. If I could… I'd just take all of them." Izuna grinned stupidly, but it was wiped from his face almost immediately by a smack on his head. "Ow…" He whispered, rubbing the sore spot and glancing back at Tajima standing behind them.

"Why not, father? That certainly would make a significant boost in our natality." Madara snickered, supporting his brother's silliness.

"You better behave. I don't want to hear you horsing like that when you in-laws arrive." Their father lectured, standing tall above them. "Go wash up, Izuna, and change into formal attire. We are meeting with them at noon."

As the groom-to-be left, Madara relaxed again, seemingly not minding his father's presence. Don't start, don't start with it again… He prayed inaudibly.

"It would be appropriate for the eldest son to be wed first. There's still time." Of course you started with it.

"No." Was Madara's short response, as he didn't bother to even glance at the man. Only five more days were left until the wedding, he hoped that he'd be left alone after that.

Since Tajima didn't seem to be leaving first, Madara excused himself, grabbed his weapons and strolled back to his room. On the way, servants and relatives alike brushed past him in an almost blind hurry, each carrying this or that, preparing for the wedding to be held in only a few days. Blending among them, he made his way into his bedroom, finding peace yet again.

He had handled a lot of stress in the past, that was well known, but being the object of everyone's frenzy, having such a fuss made over being assigned a woman he was to get pregnant seemed like more than even he could handle. It seemed nearly… brutish, when he'd give it some more thought. Like cattle, they were told to simply reproduce as soon as possible.

He didn't view himself as particularly romantic, but the way marriage was handled at the moment definitely wasn't to his liking. And since it caused him to feel used and disgusted, he could barely bring himself to imagine what it was like for the women. Again, he wasn't too sentimental about it all, but he definitely wouldn't want to be them.

As the in-laws were coming over soon, he also took a bath and changed his clothes. It was only expected that he would greet them too. Taking his seat beside Tajima at the long table, wet strands of his long hair still stuck to his pale face here and there, earning him a disapproving gaze from the older man. He would maybe protest if they were alone, but they weren't, other relatives sat there as well.

Why did it matter what he looked like, anyway, as long as he's clean? It's not him who they're coming to see.

"Do you think they might bring her along?" Izuna whispered in his ear, tapping his foot under the table.

"Probably not. And get a grip already. What are you, a maid?" Madara scolded silently. He didn't even really see a reason for Izuna to be so anxious about his bride's quality. Father most definitely wouldn't choose one that wasn't pretty and well mannered. Besides, for the most part it was obvious what she looked like – her hair was black, eyes dark and skin fair. She was an Uchiha, just like them. The thought was somewhat funny to him, but he got no time to share it as an elderly couple was led into the room by a servant.

Everyone stiffly exchanged greetings, the bride's father and Tajima being the only exception as they were old friends. Izuna sat proudly, keeping his eyes straight so that he could make eye-contact with almost everyone in the room. He played his role well, successfully hiding how dumb and nervous he truly was just a minute ago.

The in-laws talked about their family branch, and the dowry, and a little bit about their daughter. The men in their family were known as admirable shinobi, Madara was aware. Genetically, they were very promising. The women trained only so much so they could defend themselves if necessary, like everywhere else in the clan.

Madara recalled Iekara and Amako, the in-laws, once had three sons. All three were promising shinobi, but as many others, ended up getting killed in some skirmish or battle. Before the arrangement he wasn't aware they had any more children, but they must have had their daughter at a very ripe age.

"Mego wished to come along, but lord Tajima insisted for the children to meet only at the ceremony." Mego's mother spoke once all the important issues were cleared. "Instead, she sent this, a present for her groom." She smiled lightly, carefully handing Izuna something wrapped inside silk cloth. The boy's pleasant surprise was more than obvious as he, at first eagerly, then nonchalantly – as he remembered how he needed to act – unwrapped the fabric. Inside was a silver sun-shaped amulet, adorned with red tassels, and a handmade decorative knot at the top.

"Please, tell her I'm most grateful, mother in law." He said seriously, feeling the charm under his fingers, then went to attach the thing to the sword at his hip.

"It shall bring him luck in the mission he and I have to do." Tajima joined in, sporting the tiniest smile. "We will be back in time for the wedding, of course."

Right, Madara remembered. He'd be home alone for at least two days. Finally, he saw an opening to plan a rendezvous with Hashirama. A couple of months ago, the Senju secretly reached out to him, asking to talk. He already knew there was only one thing the two of them possibly had to discuss. Their idea of peace. Or, at this point, the rebellion against both of their clans.

He wasn't harboring any great hopes of their little meetings yielding anything useful, but he saw no harm in it. Maybe, at some point, they somehow make it work.

….

"They're coming back! They're coming!" Mego's handmaiden, Sumi, called excitedly upon seeing the girl's parents walk towards the house. She leaned over the window frame, having stood there for twenty minutes at that point. In less than a second, Mego appeared next to her, their bodies squeezed together, as they both stared out the window.

"Oh, gods. Do you think mother remembered to give him the charm?" She asked.

"Of course, lady! How could she forget?"

"You think he likes it?" Worry seeped through her voice.

"I think he loves it!" The handmaiden reassured, laughing when Mego hit her shoulder playfully, embarrassed. Their laughing fit went on for a while longer, after they tried to step away from the window at the same time, but got stuck.

For a while, both girls bothered Mego's elderly mother with this or that question they had about Izuna. It's no surprise, but every living Uchiha girl had a small crush on the leader's two sons. Not only because of their good looks and proud demeanor, but also for their position in the clan. Anyone who had a daughter of proper age has had their eyes on them, especially after Tajima declared he is searching for a bride for his younger son.

Mego considered herself immensely lucky. Her family was one of the most formidable in the clan, her dear father was a childhood friend with the leader, and she even managed to get the younger of the two sons. Not that she would complain if they were giving her to Madara, but he didn't seem very easy to get along with. Izuna seemed to be much nicer, she daydreamed.

During such hard times of war and problems every clan was going through, there wasn't much for a girl to do. They got basic shinobi training as children, and as they got more feminine, all there was to think about was marriage. Some women complained, others went beyond that and trained harder to become a full-time kunoichi. Mego admired them, but didn't feel there was enough interest or physical strength in her to lead that sort of life.

According to a few of her friends, all there was to marriage were house chores and raising children. She assumed they all just lacked sense for romance. She most definitely didn't.

Since she was old enough to care for the opposite gender, Mego was crazed with love tales. Even now, she had a whole stash of scrolls hidden in her dresser, since her parents didn't approve of her reading such literature. They considered it misleading.

Even just imagining the wonderful life she wanted filled her with excitement. A warm house, beautiful dresses, handsome husband and sweet children. What in the world could be better?

…..

It wasn't the night that Izuna and Tajima departed that Madara sneaked out, but the following one. He decided to wait out for the two to go far enough before he made his move. He could swear Tajima would kill him if he learned of where he was going, and couldn't imagine Izuna being any more thrilled.

The sun was just setting when Hashirama sat down beside him and started babbling about random things he never asked about. He listened for a while, but didn't stay engaged into the other's topics for long. Instead, he focused on his face. He was certain Hashirama went through all the same things he did growing up, and even now, yet he was able to smile like that. Somehow, he was able to look bright and kind, whereas Madara often found himself actively stopping his brows from frowning in situations it wasn't called for. How did Hashirama do it?

"Where were we last time? Education system?" He asked. Making a place safe for children and providing better training conditions was their main concern, so they focused on it almost from the start. And still Tajima had to audacity to say he wasn't thinking of the clan. He was the only one that really did! He wouldn't mindlessly breed without considering what kind of future awaited his offspring. That's where he differed.

"Yes!" The Senju adapted right away, his everlasting smile present as usual, stating this or that thought about the matter. Madara was truly perplexed by how much he could like and dislike one man. He wanted to work with him, and hope they can create great things together, yet… Their clans weren't in on it. Skirmishes would happen, again and again, until… if they manage to make something of this plan.

"After Izuna's wedding, I will try bringing it up to my father. It's pretty pointless to plan anything while the Senju and Uchiha continue slaughtering each other."

"I agree." Hashirama smiled. "I'll do the same. I'll try to get Tobirama to agree first, father listens to him more than he does me."

He removed a leather bag from his shoulder and placed it between them, going through its contents until he pulled out several paper scrolls.

"I had to write down some things so we don't forget anything important." He unwrapped a few and showed the writings to Madara. Well, he wasn't happy to have a physical proof of their betrayal, as their clans would undoubtedly see it. However, Hashirama was right to take notes. They needed to keep it consistent. "It seemed to me father's growing suspicious, so I can't hide them anymore. You have to keep them for a while."

Madara agreed and soon after they parted ways, and he headed back to the camp. It was very late by the time he arrived, waning crescent moon was high up in the sky. The camp was still, empty, since almost everyone was asleep by now, the crumbling of the papers in his arms was the loudest sound he could pick up. He slowly made his way between the wooden buildings, heading for the center, where his own household was located…

Then he heard it.

A rustling and murmuring close by, and hurried steps in different directions. He couldn't even keep up with all the thoughts that came to him at the moment. Was it enemy shinobi? Was it Senju or some other clan? Had Hashirama dragged him out just to give others a chance to sneak in? How skilled were they, and how many of them were there?

Carefully, he placed the scrolls on the ground – frowning at the tiniest sound they made – and leaned his back against the nearest wall, waiting for the stranger to come from around the corner. Their pace was unchanging, they advanced in his direction all the same – so they had not sensed him yet.

His kunai was ready in his grip, as he waited still, until a tip of the person's toe appeared behind the wall. Instantly, Madara stretched out his free arm, grabbed the intruder by their cloth – collar, he assumed – and pulled them over, having them pressed between himself and the wall, pointing the kunai at their throat. His eyes didn't leave them even after they dropped whatever it was they carried.

His piercing gaze was, however, soon replaced with a dumb stare when he got to look at his catch. It was an Uchiha woman, a servant, judging by her attire.

Her eyes were tightly shut, as well as her lips since she probably was trying not to scream. The question was: why? Wasn't that exactly what a non-kuniochi would want to do when a strange man grabs her from around a corner?

"What are you doing out so late?" Madara asked sternly, taking a step back. He still hasn't lowered his guard, though, just in case.

"Please, let me go, my lord!" She whispered pitifully. "I was just buying something for my lady!"

"What?"

"These!" She crouched down, collecting a bunch of papers. "Just some novels and drawings."

Madara could feel a headache creeping into his senses. All that stress over nothing.

"Alright. Just go." He rushed the maid, then collected his own things and finally went home.

….

The morning was bright, refreshing and nice, as they were in that time of the year. Tajima was still away, so Madara was free to take his time relaxing and minding his own business. The day went on normally. He trained, dealt with some minor issues in the household, sharpened his blades.

After lunch, as he was relaxing, it occurred to him to take a look at Hashirama's scrolls once again. If he was going to bring the matter up to Tajima fairly soon, he couldn't afford to leave out anything important.

Everything from the simplest things to important political changes they planned on making was contained within those scrolls. Again, he wasn't too keen on having it lying around for someone to find, but it was necessary. He just had to make sure to hide them well. Taking another scroll, he unwrapped it and took his cup of tea, sipping on the beverage while reading.

'Yuuki shuddered when his rough hands made their way to her obi, tugging at a single string, making the kimono slide down her porcelain-like skin, leaving her bare before the lustful gaze…'

He nearly dropped the cup and spilled the hot tea all over himself, choking when he failed to swallow it the right way. What the actual fuck?! Disgusted, he backed away from the sheet of paper as if it was a monster. Quickly going through the rest of his scrolls, he soon realized one was indeed missing. Damned woman, he cursed internally, remembering it had to be the servant girl that switched her own papers for his.

Hopefully, her lady would not pay much attention to the incoherent scribbling on the stray scroll. Huh, hopefully. He hated that word. It rarely meant things would go his way.

He took another fearful glance at the erotic contents of the stray scroll. Who even enjoys this?!