A/N: (Updated: March 10th 2021)

This story is rated R for a reason - you have been warned.

Happy Reading ^^

Chapter 16. Adachi Council

The tension. It was so thick one could carve through it with a blade. The large council hall felt so much smaller than usual — perhaps it was the larger amount of people present with the council. The daimyō remained seated in his seat along with the remaining six members of the council: Hashirama Senju, Namikaze Minato, Nara Shikaku, Hyūga Hiashi, and Shimura Danzō. Fugaku's eyes fell to the silver-haired Senju standing next to Hashirama. Fugaku knew the man very well. The two Senju brothers that slaughtered members of his family — Tobirama killed Izuna while Hashirama defeated Madara in the last official altercation between their clans. And now here they were, rekindling the conflict once more — more blood to be spilled and more lives to be taken needlessly.

For Fugaku, it seemed like eternity had passed since he was standing in this grandiose hall. His eyes traveled from one man to the other — heads of the clans. He hated them. All of them. They were all responsible for the never-ending turmoil the Uchiha clan continued to suffer. His eyes travel from one council member to the other, the anger within him festering like an old wound. The godforsaken Adachi clan and their precious set of rules and expectations for everyone to abide by. Cursed Namikaze and his unwillingness to lend a hand when needed! Hyūga and their high noses always looking at everyone else from their golden pedestal. Nara and his sickening diplomatic stance — blood demanded to be paid in blood and not empty words. Shimura, the wretch that stole the rightful Uchiha compound. And Senju! The sight of Hashirama and Tobirama made the blood in his veins boil. Gods, he was angry! These ... wretches they murdered his wife in cold blood, and they dared to summon him to answer for crimes?! They would not go unpunished! Blood demanded blood! And this moment was something he had been waiting for. He glanced up to the daimyō, his face completely devoid of emotion as he listened to the supposed charges against the Uchiha clan.

"I deny these charges!" Fugaku declared.

Hashirama was watching the head of the Uchiha intently, as if to watch his every movement. Despite his best effort to hide this, Fugaku did not seem like himself — that much was obvious to Hashirama. He did not want to be here. He did not wish to deal with this trial. For Hashirama was tired of the never-ending conflict. He was not demanding that the Uchiha pay for his son's death. Hakura died in battle against Uchiha Itachi and his fiery blade — at least that was what the remaining Senju warriors claimed post the Uchiha altercation. This farce of a trial was his brother's doing, and Hashirama only hoped that no blood would be spilled today.

Tobirama's eyes were completely fixated on the rosette standing next to Madara's spawn. The resemblance was uncanny. The young rosette physician looked so much like his late wife Ai — it was not just those emerald green eyes that easily penetrated deep into another's soul, and it was not just the soft rosy tresses that glistened in the sunlight. It was the way she carried herself — her aura was infectious … she was courageous in front of a room full of men… she…! She had to be their daughter! There was no other explanation. And today, he would have proof and reclaim that which has been long lost. His eyes shifted towards the physician's garb. She was wearing Uchiha clan colours — his face contorted in sheer disgust. How dare they sully the child of Senju with the colours of the filthy Uchiha clan?

"I am here to demand justice for my family! The Senju have slain the matriarch of the Uchiha clan!" Fugaku exclaimed, his eyes filled with fury as they traveled from the daimyō to Hashirama.

"What proof do you have that the Senju were involved in this supposed plot?" Shimura spoke up.

"Good question Danzō-san. What proof do you have Fugaku-san?" Adachi asked.

Fugaku looked down to the ground, trying to rein in his anger. His body was shaking, his nerves were going. For him, every moment was torture, for he was reliving the moment over and over again — the memory of finding his dead wife, forever haunting him, forever taunting him that he was unable to prevent this from happening. He failed Mikoto.

"It was very clever of the Senju to use a Grass mercenary to attack the Uchiha compound in the middle of the night. Thought that would make us think that it was related to the Grass's intent to invade the Fire country. But I know different. I know how the Senju operate," Fugaku replied with disgust as he spat to the side at the mention of the Senju.

"Where's your proof Fugaku?" Hashirama asked calmly.

"The only proof I have is that the mercenary spoke the Senju name before I disposed of him," Fugaku replied.

"So, you have no proof," Shimura piped in.

Fugaku growled as he glared at the Shimura clan head.

"I have seen the body of Uchiha Mikoto. I can speak to what happened to her," Sakura voiced out.

"You again," Adachi stated as his eyes fell onto the pinkette standing with the Uchiha family.

"Hai Adachi-sama. As the head physician of the Uchiha compound, I was the one who examined Uchiha Mikoto's body after her body was discovered by her husband Uchiha Fugaku," Sakura continued as she took a step forward towards the daimyō.

The daimyō was intrigued and nodded, permitting Sakura to speak. Just as she was about to start, the Senju made their way over towards the daimyō.

"Adachi-sama, before we hear anything, I demand that this woman be tested against the chakra of myself at once," Tobirama interrupted.

"I'm inclined to agree, just so we can put this behind us once and for all," the daimyō replied.

Then, he motioned for Sakura to take a step forward. Sakura glanced over to Itachi, trying her hardest to remain calm — She had courage. She could do this, despite knowing that the truth of her parentage would come to surface. When Itachi gave her a subtle nod — that it was alright, that they were going to be alright, that nothing between them would change — she took the few steps forward, reaching the middle of the meeting hall, only to be joined by Tobirama and Hashirama. She remained silent as she watched the two Senju brothers flare their chakra against one another. The palm of Hashirama's right hand was facing Tobirama's — the soft green glow of their chakra sparking into a deeper forest green hue. From their palms the chakra extended and the two collided with one another with complete ease. After a moment, the two brothers separated the chakra bond. The daimyō then looked at Sakura before he started to speak.

"You will do the same with Tobirama-san. If you are not the missing Senju, then the chakra bond will be refused."

Sakura nodded and she took a deep breath as Hashirama took a step back, joining the three Senju guards as they observed the situation. They were all watching intently. All of them. Determined, Sakura met Tobirama's gaze with confidence as she extended her right hand towards his. The soft glow of chakra spread through the palm of her hand and towards Tobirama's. A surge of a soft green chakra engulfed her entire hand. For a moment the flare of the chakra subsided, and then it erupted once more, deepening into an identical shade of deep forest green. The two chakras bonded, recognizing its kin and Tobirama's eyes widened. There it was the proof of what he believed in. That this young woman, was indeed his missing daughter.

"A Senju!" the daimyō declared.

"I knew it! Guards! Take my daughter to the Senju compound," Tobirama ordered.

The Senju guards took a step towards Sakura, grabbing her by the arm, and beginning to pull her away from the meeting hall. Sakura glanced over to the Uchiha. Itachi was holding back his father's arms behind him, trying his hardest to keep him restrained as Fugaku was attempting to pounce onto Sasuke, his anger currently directed at his younger son. Aoi took a step forward towards Sakura, ready to assist her. The guard began to pull her away towards one of the side doors.

"You brought a Senju spy into our compound?!" Fugaku exclaimed in anger, trying to maneuver out of Itachi's deathly hold.

"None of us knew father! Including her!" Itachi answered, and he glanced over to his younger brother, motioning for him to intervene between the Senju guard and Sakura.

"Don't you dare lay your hands on me!" Sakura exclaimed angrily.

She was not one to submit — hell, this silver-haired man may be her biological father, but she was her own person. She was no one's property. She was a physician. She was meant to do no harm. And yet, in that moment Itachi's evening training sessions came to mind and her hand formed into a proper fist, her chakra instantly spreading its warmth through every knuckle, completely engulfing her hand. She raised her in a defensive stance and with a quick thrust, her fist collided with the guard's chest, causing him to fly away from her and plunge through the wooden wall with complete ease.

The room was silent. As the wave of pure adrenaline spread through wildly, she glanced onto her still-glowing hand. Then, her eyes shifted to the large hole in the wall — courtesy of the Senju guard and her chakra-powered punch.

"I'm not going anywhere," she said, her eyes glancing over to Tobirama.

"You are a Senju! You belong with your clan! Think of your family! Your mother died of a broken heart because you were taken from us!" Tobirama called out.

For Sakura, the reality of being the missing Senju was still something she was getting used to. And yet, she was not simply Senju Hanae. For twenty years she lived as Haruno Sakura — that was her identity, and that was someone she was not willing to let go of, not even for her own family. She looked at her father and took a deep breath — She could be a Senju and she could be a Haruno. Then she looked to her left, her eyes falling onto the Uchiha heir still trying to keep his father in a firm hold. And she could be an Uchiha. Her eyes shifted back to Tobirama,

"I might have been stolen from you, but I am no longer the little girl you remember. That little girl was left for dead, her clothes torn and bloodied within the shrine of mercy. The goddess granted her a safe passage to a land far away from here where she was raised to be a physician. Then, one day it called her back to this place to save a life of a child. She might be Senju Hanae, but she is also Haruno Sakura, and she will not go back with you Senju-sama," Sakura concluded.

"You'd do best to listen to your father hime," Shikaku, the head of the Nara clan chimed in.

"With all due respect council member, but I listen to no man," she paused for a moment before her eyes fell back on Tobirama, "I may have been born a Senju but I belong with the Uchiha clan and that is something you will never accept."

"Hanae," Tobirama uttered.

"My name is Sakura," she snapped back.

Sakura's eyebrows furrowed. She was angry and frustrated. Yes, her parentage might have been revealed for all to know, but that would not stop her from helping to exonerate the Uchiha. She glanced to the daimyō and bowed with respect, gaining his interest.

"Adachi-sama, as a physician, I am able to explain the circumstances of Uchiha Mikoto's death," Sakura said.

The daimyō nodded and waved his hand, allowing her to continue. Sakura nodded and for a moment her eyes flicked towards Itachi and Sasuke, noticing that they were listening intently — for they did not know much of their mother's passing. They did not have the option to see her, for they rushed to battle. Itachi's hands loosened on his father's robes as Sakura began to talk.

"When I came across the body of Uchiha Mikoto, I immediately assessed the injuries she sustained. There was an even singular cut across her neck this deep," she lifted her fingers up, showing the audience the size of about an inch between her thumb and forefinger, then she continued," the depth of the wound exposed bone-"

"There's no need to go into such details young lady," Danzo started only for Sakura to interrupt him right back.

"I believe I have the word right now council member. Rudeness is unbecoming of a clan leader. Yes, there is a need to go into such details. There is a need to tell this council what I have witnessed. How I found a wonderful woman, a loving wife, a caring mother of three lying in a pool of her blood, her neck split open from here to here," she mimicked the cut on her own throat with her finger," like she was a mere animal. I watched as her husband dropped on his knees in agony as he struggled to comprehend the sight before him. I helped clean her body, and I manually sewed the deep wound on her neck because I wanted to make sure that her young daughter would remember her as she was, so that her memories of her mother would not be scarred by her tragic end," Sakura concluded, her voice like thunder as her green eyes seemed to dig into the eyes of the council members.

"Seems like Mikoto was nothing but a casualty of war," Shimura noted.

Sakura's eyes fell onto the Shimura clan head, her mind spinning wildly as she took the time to take in his appearance, carving it into her memory. He seemed like an ordinary man in his late sixties, his black hair showing whisps of grey here and there. His right arm was covered in bandages and next to him was an old walking stick — no doubt he sustained some major injuries that had permanently affected his quality of life. Was it him? Was he the one responsible for all this turmoil, for all this hate?

"It was a mistake. It was not supposed to be her," Tobirama uttered.

Sakura's eyes flashed back to her father, in complete shock over his sudden admittance of Mikoto's death. It was truly the Senju, responsible for Mikoto's death. The thought of matriarch's needless passing at the hands of the clan she hailed from made her sick to her stomach. Then as she heard the unsheathing of a sword, her eyes glanced over to the Uchiha patriarch and she knew. Fugaku was gone — in his place was the fiery Uchiha warrior, determined to get his revenge.

"Father, NO!" Itachi yelled out.

Fugaku surged forward, his blade unsheathed aiming towards Tobirama in quick haste. He raised his blade, readying to strike — only for his blade to come into contact with Hashirama's, all ready to defend his younger brother. Fugaku growled as the rest of the Senju guard unsheathed their swords and readied to help their clan leader. Reluctantly, Itachi unsheathed his blade as well, his eyes flashing to Sakura — as if to tell her to stay far away from the impending bloodshed. Aoi and Sasuke followed suit, unsheathed blades ready in their hands.

And then there it was. The clang of metal reverberating through the meeting hall.

"Enough! Put your blades away!" Adachi declared as he rose to his feet, ordering his guards to step in.

Sakura was pressed against the far wall, Aoi trying her best to shield her from harm as she cut through the Senju and Adachi guards. All the men were fighting but the daimyō. All of the clan heads erupted in a vicious dance. She was frozen. The spray of blood peppered her face. Her eyes widened in pure shock as she watched the carnage before her unfold.