5. A month. They had a month to prepare themselves…

A month. They had a month to prepare themselves before the crucial battle would commence. In the meantime, Sakura came to consider the Senju compound more and more as home and she developed a comfortable routine with Tobirama and Hashirama. Her life in Konoha had been one of routine; of training, missions and working in the hospital. The only spare time she allowed herself consisted of having dinner with her teammates or visiting Kakashi at the memorial stone. The amount of time she spent in her apartment for other reasons than showering or sleeping was non-existing.

The life of the Senju brothers ran along the same lines. Work and training dictated their days. Their meals were sober but in the evening, they would drink tea and sip from small sake bowls while talking clan business. Even though she did not have her own quarters and missed the busy street life of Konoha, this simple routine made her feel like home. And to her delight, they naturally involved her in all the daily business of the clan, treating her more and more like an equal.

She did not partake in any missions, since her battle with Izuna would need the benefit of surprise. If she ran into trouble while on mission, news of a new powerful kunoichi with pink hair, would spread easily throughout the clans. She was too exotic looking and her techniques were not subtle enough to go unnoticed.

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Her average day started with a simple breakfast in Tobirama's quarters on the engawa. Afterwards she sparred with him or Hashirama depending on who was available. While she thought sparring with Kakashi and Team 7 or Tsunade for that matter was challenging, fighting these Hokage brothers was a completely different level.

The fact that Tobirama underestimated her the first time was painfully clear in her second fight with him. He did not fall for the same traps, kicked her merciless to a bloody pulp and outsmarted her in every way possible. Her ego was seriously bruised, even though she noticed afterwards that his own injuries were more severe than he let on. Stoic bastard!

After this punishment, she took revenge and victory did not come easy for him or his brother from then on. It was clear that they enjoyed sparring with her, she was a quick learner and her knowledge and skills were surprising and sometimes intimidating. The learning process worked both ways.

Sakura felt honored that these Gods of shinobi would take their time to fight her. They were truly amazing. Tobirama's agile and graceful movements never seemed to amaze her. His body flowed like water. Power and beauty combined, she thought he was a sight to behold. His use of the hiraishin almost made it seem like he could do magic. His strategies were calculated through into the absurd. She was certain that he would bring Shikamaru to desperation in a game of shogi.

Hashirama was a friendly teacher, he took his time to explain techniques or things that she could improve. He was quick to laugh and treated her like a younger sister. Tobirama was the opposite. He was a harsh teacher, had no patience and the way he taught her things was always through experience and actions. He pushed her towards and over her limits constantly, never satisfied, never faltering, never going easy for a second on her. When he was teaching her, he would stand, arms crossed over his chest on the side of the training field, grumbling his orders to her, impassively assessing her progress. She cursed at him regularly, but he wasn't fazed by her remarks, he just upped the training to annoy her. But to irritate him she never complained and suffered in silence.

There was no brotherly companionship between them. In the past weeks he treated her more and more like an equal shinobi and less and less like a fragile female. But there was no friendship nor sibling natured affection. He was all male, his voice, his musky scent, his muscular body, a powerful and dangerous beauty and she was falling for him fast. The tension between them was a natural tension between man and woman and it was ever present. She was definitely not on a brother-sister basis with him.

When she was not sparring, she managed to gain the position of leading healer in the compound. The Senju developed a natural respect for her and slowly grew fond of her. She was a polite and friendly healer, with an eye for her patients. At first she was modest, following orders of other healers, but when the first emergency arose, she naturally changed into her professional self; barking commands, delegating tasks and saving lives. They gladly accepted her as their senior in knowledge and experience, however unlikely it seemed at her age. Hashirama had made the decision to keep her advanced healing techniques hidden. But Sakura instisted, that within a case of emergency the priority was to save lives. Reluctantly Hashirama relented.

Tobirama liked watching her in action, leaning with his arms crossed against the door frame of one of the healing chambers. He was amazed at how natural leadership came to her, how she could mobilize the entire team into an efficient working machine. He admired her for this. She was an amazing woman.

After healing duties she would do some light exercises on the engawa until her muscles were warm and she was sweating again. She claimed that this routine would lessen her muscle ache the next morning, after which she would tend to her weapons; cleaning, oiling and sharpening them.

Often Tobirama joined her in these afternoon routines. He followed her exercises with curiosity. They were a type that he was not familiar with, but it stretched his body and cleared out his chakra channels nicely. " What did you call this again?" "Yoga, it is a foreign meditation technique".

They would chat, sitting on the engawa while cleaning their weapons. About her own time-line, or clan business. They were comfortable.

In the evening she would have dinner with Tobirama and Hashirama. The food was always simple; rice, fish, vegetables and some seasoning like soy or miso. They would discuss clan matters and their private daily issues. The constant bickering between the brothers became normal and she enjoyed their verbal sparring. Their words performed an intricate dance and as she got to know them better, she started noticing the deep feelings that were hidden behind their petty fights.

And like in their interactions their characters were hidden for the casual onlooker. Hashirama could be discarded as quick to laugh, silly and melodramatic. But she started to notice that he was not unfazed by the death that surrounded them. Like his brother, he hid his feelings behind an ever present facade of cheerful happiness, while Tobirama chose to hide what he felt in plain sight by not expressing any emotion at all.

After dinner they would help Hashirama with his Clan duties, processing paperwork, preparing agenda's, and making decisions. And when the night was halfway done, there was time left to drink some sake on the engawa and look at the stars.

She relived her war memories daily still. And when Tobirama was away on mission, it was Hashirama who held her and comforted her. The intensity seemed to fade little by little, but she kept sleeping next to Tobirama. She could not imagine sleeping alone at all.

Her bond with Tobirama grew steadily. They would spar, talk and tease each other. But the flirtatious remarks from the beginning of their friendship, did not occur again. From her part, she was afraid that it would cause a tidal wave of emotions, that she tried to keep at bay while living so closely with him. In her desperation, she sometimes tried to see him as a father figure, but this became more and more troublesome while their bond intensified during their weeks of interaction.

Keeping her distance was especially difficult during their sparring sessions, when their bodies touched and she could smell his musky scent mixed with sweat and dirt. A small voice in her head told her that the inevitable would happen. She was racing towards it with every night she lay her head on his shoulder, every sparring session, every touch, every look, every kind word, every time she saw his chest, or felt his body underneath her healing hands. She was falling for him.

One exceptionally hot afternoon she ended up trying to kick his abdomen with her foot. But as always he was slightly faster. Taking her foot he flipped her over, forcing her to turn in the air. Cursing, she escaped with a backward flip. She stared at him with narrowed eyes, when she thudded on the ground, kicking up dust. He was drenched in sweat, smirking.

"You have to be faster than that Sakura-chan!" He cleared the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and then without warning, took off his shirt, showing off a glistening sixpack, covered in scars.

She swallowed. Audibly. Blushing she yelled: "Are you trying to distract me with that?"

He smirked, noticing her uneasiness: "Like what you see?"

She grumbled, charging him with three kage bunshin trying to punch him into the dust, but he evaded her gracefully, kicking her against a tree. While he stood watching her slide down, he seemed unaware that he was watching a clone and the real Sakura was standing behind him with a kunai. Or so she thought.

When she tried to strike, he ducked fast as lightning, kicking her feet from underneath her, making her crash into the ground. Then he straddled her, holding a kunai against her throat, panting. Within the sudden pauze, she was suddenly very aware of the close proximity of his body to hers. She felt the heat of his lower body on her pelvis and hips and she blushed deeply when she felt a familiar flurry of butterflies in her stomach. Kami! He was the Nidaime! It was impossible! He lowered his head towards her face, his features devoid of emotion. She held her breath, heart thudding against her ribs.

The moment passed suddenly and he stood, reaching his hand to hers. She took it and he pulled her up to her feet. He walked towards the river and she followed him, eager to cool off her face. Standing on the side, she squatted to reach the water with her hands.

A push against her back and the cold water enveloped her, not an unwelcome feeling. She came up for air spluttering: "Baka!, you baka!" He smirked, taking off his leg bindings and sandals.

Then he stared at her, in thought. His gaze was intense and serious. Then he suddenly took off his pants and stood a few seconds totally relaxed and unfazed on the riverbank and then dived into the water. She froze on the spot. He stripped before her eyes! And he was gorgeous! Had she been blushing before with butterflies, she felt like she was on fire now.

She saw him swim easily. As a water user he had control over the current and it seemed to follow him wherever he swam. She felt envious and wanted to swim as well, but her wet clothes were a hindrance. Pay-back time.

Hoisting herself out of the water onto the grass, her back towards him, she started to peel off her wet clothes. She could almost feel his gaze burning a hole in her back. She smirked, two can play this game… Taking a deep breath, she turned around. It was just like she suspected, he was staring at her, eyes burning. There was something in his expression, he looked almost hungry, but he tried to hide it with indifference. But his mask was crumbling.

She smirked victorious: "Like what you see, Senju?" When she dived in, the water was cold and refreshing and she felt reborn while letting herself float in the depths. Coming up for air, she pushed her pink strands out of her eyes in search of him. But he had not moved an inch and was still staring at her. Then she felt cold water rise up around her legs. She fidgeted, trying to escape the current. But the cold water was inescapable, caressing her legs, slowly circling upward towards her thighs and more intimate parts, then her belly and breasts. Realisation dawned upon her and she stared at him, feeling her core heating up.

He smirked…. "This fight is not over yet, kunoichi…" She felt the current pushing her towards him and she let herself float towards him, her heart hammering in her ribcage, butterflies in her stomach. What was he up to now? Then one small lack of attention and she was unable to locate Tobirama anymore. Where did he go?

Suddenly she was pulled with force under water by her ankle. One strong arm encircled her waist, the other guided her head and then his lips crashed onto hers. She eagerly kissed him back, fire erupting in her body. They came up for air panting. He looked at her again through rivulets of water cascading from his grey hair, his eyelashes wet, a strand of hair in his eyes. Then he kissed her once more, softly this time, holding her body reverently but grinding himself against her deliberately.

She moaned when she felt his hard member against her skin. His gaze darkening, passion took them over. They were oblivious to the world, there was just his hands on her skin, his lips on hers, his rock hard body against her.

His deep voice made her shiver: "Sakura…. "

She could only moan in reply. His kisses ignited her body. Even though they were soaking in the water, she could feel the callus of his hands, leaving a burning trail on her skin.

They pulled away, trying to catch their breath. He smiled a genuine smile, caressing her cheek, cupping her chin. "I wanted to do that the first time I met you…." he confessed. She smiled back at him: "What took you so long?"

He looked surprised at her, then looked away: "Well, this is not proper behavior, you must forgive me. I just found not one resistant bone in my body today. But this is no proper courting, I do you injustice."

She looked at him seriously: "Tobirama, in my time courting is valued, but the physical part of a relationship is more unattached than you are accustomed to. It is common for couples to 'date', try out the relationship to test the match of personalities. Often the relationship will be physical as well. After 'dating' the relationship can be terminated or prolonged into marriage. So, I do not think you do me injustice or don't treat me honorable. I think that the only thing that matters is that we both feel comfortable with the situation."

He blinked. "Really? Your time is very odd indeed. Have you done a lot of 'dating'?"

"Hmm, yes. The relationship became only physical with one person though."

He looked puzzled: "So you decided not to take the relationship further?"

"No… " she felt strange confessing this to him. "He turned out to be an asshole to be honest."

"What was his name?"

She hesitated, but decided to be honest with him. Blunt honesty worked best with him. "Uchiha Sasuke".

He frowned. "Did he hurt you? This Uchiha?" He spat the name. She cringed at the venom in his voice, but then looked sad: "Yes, but only my heart…."

He cupped her cheek again: "I won't hurt you Sakura and I will not apologize for my actions if you are comfortable about this situation…I do not regret it. Still, I think I will start to feel uncomfortable staying here naked in the water with you, so close near a public training ground. Let's head back shall we?"

She nodded. They exited the water and dressed, their clothes clinging to their wet skin, drenching them. They walked back to the compound. She silently slipped her hand into his. He gave her a small smile. Near the entrance gate, they released hands and walked through it separately. Twilight already set in. They went to his quarters where cold dishes were waiting for them.

After washing and a change of clothes they sat down to eat. She chewed her food thoughtfully, watching the night fall in the garden. Something had changed in the atmosphere between them, the silence wasn't comfortable. They caught each other staring constantly and she had a silly smile on her face that she almost couldn't hide.

After dinner, their silence gave way to nervous chitchat. She kept talking about nothing and everything. He grunted and hmmmd often as was his custom.

Suddenly he felt her putting her head in his lap, her face looking up towards the starry night, her body relaxed. He looked surprised, but then smiled and caressed her hair slowly, letting her pink strands slip through his fingers. It was a new kind of intimacy and they took their time getting used to it, relaxing into the posture and the marvel of touching each other outside of their sleeping arrangement. They stayed like that until it was time to slip onto the fuuton to get some sleep.

Suddenly her throat was dry. They crossed an invisible border this afternoon and now she could feel that it was awkward lying next to him as if nothing had happened. She wanted him. Her desire for him burned her insides to ash and she could see that he felt the same, his glowing eyes following her every move. He was a man of his time though. To make love before marriage was probably an impossibility. Their intimate sleeping arrangements would become agony if he was adamant in those customs.

Besides this predicament, she only knew that she wanted him, desire burning a hole through her body. She wanted to hold that rock hard muscled body against her own, feeling his warmth, kiss him, caressing his unruly hair and let herself drown in his red eyes.

Instead of acting on those desires, they lay in bed at some distance from each other, just staring. They both relished the fact that they did not need to hide it anymore and this freedom was almost enough at that moment. But she kept thinking of their kiss. What was he thinking? Did he want to cross that last boundary just as bad as her?

Then she made a decision. She slowly sat on her knees next to him, and took off her shirt. She felt the cold air enveloping her upper body, giving her goosebumps. She was shaking due to the tension and desire that gripped her.

He looked up at her, impassive. She stared back at him, slowly taking off the bindings around her breasts. She let them slowly slip off her skin, strand by strand, until her perk nippels peaked out of them and then her breasts were released. He was watching her all the time intently, emotion started to fill his eyes, a small smile on his lips, hands behind his head.

"Like what you see?" A trace of insecurity escaped with her words, but he smiled and reached up to slowly trail his hand from her face downward to her breasts.

"Yes…" he murmured. Then his hand cupped her breast, her nipple in between his fingers, rolling softly. She moaned.

This woman! He felt his body getting hard, painfully hard. She was so beautiful. He wanted her, wanted to make her his. He wanted no other man ever to touch her. He faintly realised that it was highly improper to lay with her like this, and disrespectful to her, but he did not have any restraint left. She had brought him to his knees and he would see this through.

He pulled her down towards him, kissing her, slowly kneading her breast in the process, making her moan. She heard his breath hitching.

"Sakura….. I want you…" He sounded at a loss.

She moaned in his ear and whispered: "I am yours…"

A bell started clanging loudly.

They both shot up. Tobirama cursed. The alarm! They knew what this meant. WIthout a single word they slipped into their shinobi routine. Silently dressing and choosing weapons with care.

Within a few minutes Tobirama was fully dressed in his blue armour, staring down at her. He looked majestic and dangerous. His happuri glistened in the moonlight, his eyes dark slits. His grey hair complemented by the white fur around his shoulders.

He took her in. She was dressed in shinobi black, wearing a Senju hitai-ate. She had wanted no armour plates, afraid that it would slow her down. A katana stood out on her back, her pouch rested on her lower back, emphasizing her lean waist. Her hardened eyes made he look serious and dangerous. She stared back up at him, jaw set.

They held each other's gaze for a few heartbeats. Then he walked towards her slowly until he was standing close looking down at her. "You are mine, kunoichi. I want to finish what we started."

Then he grabbed her waist, pulled her into him and kissed her with force and then left her breathless.

She gasped her words. "As do I. Let's kick Uchiha Izuna's ass!"

" Hnnn." Bending towards her for the last time, he grunted in her ear. "You. Take care and be safe."

She looked him in the eyes, her features grim. " Hai! I will."