Getting a job in healthcare means that when a pandemic rolls around, things get serious. It's sort of a relief to come home and write a little here and a little there.


Of all times for her to get pulled into protecting humans against a rogue godslayer on the warpath, this was the worst. She had her own godslayer to guide, and she wasn't currently on a rampage either. Mizuchi sighed, thrusting a palm toward the divine sword flying at her.

The cloud of blights threw off his aim, allowing her to sweep under the weapon's reach. So much unnecessary rage packed into a mortal. It practically singed the air.

This, the goddess reminded herself, was precisely why she avoided certain bloodlines at all costs. A determined, sincere "no one" without ties to any special lineage suited her much better.

"You're Mizuchi? I've heard about you." he spoke. It didn't take him much time at all to recover, and he was already gearing up for another strike. Anticipating him, she waited for the sword to draw close. Taking to the air at the last moment as the tip pierced deep into the ground.

Drawing it back to him with a grunt, the godslayer slashed upward now, the glistening segments separating to enhance the sword's reach. Twisting through the smoke-filled skies, she evaded, diving down at him with talons outstretched. Flapping her wings vigorously generated the blast of wind she expected, ripping chunks of ground up and throwing him backwards.

The poor human village had almost been in shambles by the time she'd arrived, shortly after she felt the connection to Sakura stretch dangerously thin. Getting Hitotsu to hide somewhere didn't take much convincing. The irony of his legendary blacksmithing skills being that he was never much help in a fight beyond crafting instruments of destruction.

Not giving him time to right himself, Mizuchi zoomed at him in a straight line, turning last minutely to hit him in the stomach with her thick tail. He met the dirt with a choked noise of pain, the grip on his sword loosening. Keeping him pressed firmly in place, the half-transformed deity plucked it from his hand and tossed it absently to the side. Trailing a clawed finger down the side of his mask, she took note of the way he didn't flinch. "I would guess…you belong to Kanayago. She always favored the ones like you."

"I belong to no one." he spat. "Our goals happen to align for the time-being."

"Oh, but she doesn't bestow her divine weapons on just anyone." Mizuchi applied steadily growing pressure to his chest, and he finally squirmed.

"It's because…" One of his arms managed to work itself away from his side, and he carefully lifted his mask enough to reveal his mouth. The shock of being blasted directly with a ball of fire made her laugh.

She felt her captive shove her away, reclaiming his sword as she was engulfed in his attack. Any human would have been finished, seared to ashes in an instant. "I have what it takes to destroy you, your godslayer, and anyone else in our path." Mizuchi shook herself off, relatively undamaged.

Such confidence. A bit grandiose though. "You thrust her into The Under because you couldn't destroy her in a direct confrontation." she goaded, unable to stop herself. "You're sadly mistaken if you think that realm will do what you couldn't."

"Tch," Expecting another outright onslaught, Mizuchi eyed the boy sheathing his sword with skepticism. "There's a slim chance your godslayer will survive, and if she does…I'll deal with it myself. Now, tell me where the One-Eyed God is!"

"All this fuss over little ol' Hitotsu," she clucked. "Kanayago always was a bitter one."

"Her fire makes her a brilliant blacksmith. Better than the coward who hides in the mountains, living so depraved." Mizuchi stood her ground, her eyes sharpening. Hitotsu was many things, but he was also one of the few in the pantheon who had never treated her as the black sheep the rest of their 'siblings' did. They were two imperfect immortals who understood each other.

"You find his work so inferior and yet you seek him out." The change was beginning to ripple over her in anticipation. This angry, sword-wielding mortal had something up his cloak.

"He can't be allowed to get involved with you or your godslayer. Kanayago-sama made that perfectly clear. But you're more in danger of dying than he is. She wants a word with him. You she just wants dead."

A toothy smile split her face into a morbid imitation of glee. "Does she think she's the only one? Or has she forgotten I know her guarded secrets?" Glancing around, Mizuchi frowned at the destruction to half the town, the villagers nowhere in sight as they had all wisely chosen to hide away. "Tell Kanayago she's welcome to try defeating me herself. Sending you in her place is a pity."

The ground shook as pride took hold of the boy. Roughly Sakura's age if Mizuchi were to estimate, and yet he lacked so much of the finesse she saw in the kunoichi. That would be his undoing. Skills meant nothing if he was too inexperienced and hot-headed to use them well. 'It looks like I've done the better job preparing my godslayer after all.'

Although, as wicked energy encased him tightly and he grew to stand above the smoldering buildings, she saw this godslayer had mastered one ability Sakura had yet to reach.

Huffing, she would have to put in more than minimal effort to subdue this threat now. 'The things I do for humans.' Mizuchi gave in to her own change, scales covering her entirely as she took to the sky, a ferocious dragon once again.


The two mujina had taken up positions walking along at her feet, their thick fur brushing against her ankles every now and then. Behind them, above them, all around them, a pack containing dozens and dozens more followed closely, disguised as miniscule insects.

Sakura had inwardly cringed, wondering why they couldn't have at least been something like butterflies. Instead, droves of black beetles tracked them as if commanded by an Aburame. Eager to show off their shapeshifting abilities, when Tobirama complained that having such a big group following them would slow them down, they had transformed at Tsubute's command. All except Tsubute himself, and the easygoing, talkative mujina named Ubagabi.

Since Tobirama didn't do more than glower their way—probably rethinking his calls for a truce—Sakura had time to converse with the creatures, and find out more about their surroundings.

"This place is huge," she whispered, watching the sway of the fluffy tail in front of her. "But, the terrain here is much different than the cave where we got attacked. How do you navigate?"

"You have a lot of time to explore when you've got nothing better to do for centuries." Tsubute replied, slightly bitter. "How were we supposed to find the way out if we didn't look around?"

Sakura slowly nodded. It was common sense.

"Besides, The Under goes on forever, technically." Ubagabi added. "No way you ever would have escaped without help."

A familiar scoff interrupted. Tsubute half-turned, staring up at Tobirama, who had been walking a short distance behind them, possibly wanting distance from the mujina. "That's physically impossible."

"Oh, it's impossible!" The badger-like creature mocked. "Did ya hear that everyone? The fleshling that couldn't see through our illusion trap thinks he knows more about our territory than us." Little clicks and buzzes came from the bugs scurrying everywhere, as if they were all responding.

Wanting to prevent a possible argument, Sakura clapped her hands once in placation, smiling. "Would you mind explaining some things. You're the best source of knowledge we have right now."

That seemed to do the trick. Calmed, they motioned to a break in the trees. "This way,"

After skipping across a shallow stream, giggling all the while, the mujina turned to make sure the humans were still following. "First things first," Ubagabi climbed a nearby tree, diving down to land on Sakura's back with a squeal.

She shifted forward to accommodate his sudden weight as he climbed to rest his head on her shoulder. The rest of him latched onto her like a backpack. "We were all made to survive in different environments best. The Pale Neck's skin is sensitive to bright light, so it likes to be in caves where its moist and dark. It can't see much, so it hunts a lot through smell and heat. You almost got gulped!"

Sakura reached up to push away hair tickling her neck, only to realize it was fur. Ubagabi giggled and she quickly retracted her hand. "I don't need the reminder…"

"Sorry," he whined. "But, now you're with us. And we can protect ourselves."

Tsubute looked back, rolling his beady eyes but leaping across uneven ground and rotted out logs. Sakura picked up the pace, too, refusing to lose their new guides. "Don't keep thinkin' about us like we're cute and defenseless. We didn't choose these base forms!"

Gulping, the kunoichi smiled awkwardly. "I never saw you as defenseless…."

"Good. Beause we're not." Ubagabi's face unexpectedly popped up to completely obstruct her field of vision as he leaned over her head. The pinkette jumped, making the playful mujina laugh gleefully.

"That brings me to my own question. What are you if not rodents with a penchant for mischief?" Tobirama hadn't been saying much, but she had no doubt in her mind he was absorbing every word.

"We ain't rodents!" Tsubute growled, stopping to turn and face the Senju defiantly. "We ain't badgers! We're mujina, fleshling. Get it wrong again and we'll see how much of you there is for the next Pale Neck to eat once I take a bite first."

As if to make sure the warning stuck, he flashed teeth that had Sakura stumbling away. They were monstrous, much too big for the mouth they fit in. As if they were the result of a strange experiment to implant a wolf's jaw.

When they spoke, no one would have ever guessed. There was a healthy dose of apprehension at having Ubagabi's face so close to her neck. Sure, he had proved to be the friendliest so far, but these were unpredictable, unknown 'animals' from The Under.

Tobirama said nothing at the threat, only sizing them up.

"Don't mind Tsubute. He's just a little sensitive." Ubagabi whispered. "I mean, we came first. But, the deities said we were too dangerous to stay up top." Sakura could hear the pout in his voice, "We got booted down here and those animals they call 'badgers' got to live upstairs."

"That…makes sense. Uh, why Tsubute doesn't like the comparison I mean." They passed under the shade of a tree with low hanging yellow fruit she had never seen, pale blue spots dotting its skin. It reminded her that her stomach was beginning to make her aware of her impending hunger. Sakura fussed at herself, but it's not as if she knew this would be the day someone tossed her into a creepy dimension.

"Ohh, my favorite!" Ubagabi stretched himself, batting a fruit down with his heavy paw. There was a fragrance that made her a little light-headed emitting from it as soon as he bit into the skin. "Mm, this is perfectly ripe." Some of the sticky juice ran from his claws and dripped onto her skin.

"H-Hey," Sakura squawked. "Get down if you're going to eat that." Though he huffed, the mujina quickly obliged. She watched him set in to feast with a pear-shaped fruit between his front paws, munching eagerly.

"The hell are you doing now?" Tsubute called over, backtracking. Standing under the same tree Ubagabi had stopped to sample the fruit from, he sighed through his lips. "Is this snack time to you?"

Cheeks stuffed and the fur of his face sticky, Ubagabi nodded in delight. "Pwea?" he offered his companion the half-eating polka dotted fruit.

"Ugh, you think I need your slobber?" Even as the bigger mujina batted the fruit away, he stared up at the branches containing more.

"If you'll tell us more about The Under and what lives here, I don't mind taking a break." Sakura bargained. She'd already made herself comfortable resting at the base of the tree anyway.

One big event after another took a lot of energy, even if she was healed from her run in with the Pale neck monstrosity. The mujina appeared relaxed enough to deem the area safe to rest, and who knew when they'd get another chance?

Tobirama paused, his shadow falling across her as he looked down with barely masked disapproval.

She shrugged. "They don't seem like they're going anywhere until they eat." Already, most of the mujina had switched to their cuddlier forms, scampering to pull fruit down for themselves.

Tsubute's head popped up from the treetops. "Here," Two ripe pieces of fruit were deposited into her lap. "Can't have you frail fleshlings collapsing later on. It gets rough on the way to the iron mines."

Picking it up between both hands to examine, Sakura tried to gauge how safe it would be to eat. Sure, the mujina were having a blast scarfing it down, but they weren't exactly normal.

"What exactly is…"

A mujina so light she was almost ashen brown tripped as she tried to carry off a fruit bigger than both paws.

"Uzuki, you're as clumsy as always."

"I-I'm not usually this bad!" she defended, her meek voice cute. Sakura wanted to lean over and rub the rounded ears twitching on her head, but figured that would be an invasion of personal space. "I'm not use to…to humans and they make me nervous so—" She picked up the fruit and hugged it to her body, her damp nose pointed down as if she wanted to bury it in her chest.

It was too much, Sakura couldn't hold in her coos, and by Ubagabi's delighted squeals, she wasn't the only one. "So cute!" they said in unison.

Uzuki moved her tail to curl around her face, timidly nibbling her fruit.

"Is it good?" The kunoichi directed the question at the shy mujina in a bid to get her to open up. Peeking her face in Sakura's direction, her tongue darted out to swipe the juice on her face and she nodded.

"Um…These are some of the early fruits that never grow on earth. Kuebiko found ones he liked better to plant topside, but he didn't want to destroy his hard work with the orchids. So he moved them to The Under and said we could have as much as he wanted."

"Kuebiko would be another crazed god?" Tobirama asked, sarcasm dripping from every word. Truthfully, she couldn't blame him for not thinking highly of deities.

"He's not cr-crazed." Uzuki protested, her voice small.

"He's the god of agriculture." Tsubute scurried back up the tree and three more fruits fell in quick succession.

"So you need to eat, just like anything else?" Sakura had finally worked up the courage to take the smallest bite possible of fruit. An indescribable burst of flavors flooded her mouth despite the miniscule piece. Warm, a bit tart, honeyed, and a blend of other things she couldn't name that made it irresistible. Her next bite was larger, and she took her time to savor chewing.

"We eat 'cause we like it." Ubagabi clarified. "In The Under nothing needs to eat. If you stayed long enough you wouldn't need to either."

Needless to say, the pinkette would have choked if there was anything she hadn't swallowed.

"Explain that." Tobirama took the second fruit from Sakura's lap and turned it over again and again. It was almost like he expected to find an explosive tag stuck to the bottom.

"T-The Under is living, so, staying here means we all get some of its life energy," Uzuki mumbled. Despite her earlier reservations about eating around humans, she was on her second piece of fruit, if Sakura wasn't mistaken. "It's enough to sustain us. On earth, we needed to eat and drink and sleep, but l-less frequently than what's considered normal."

Sakura wouldn't dare express her desire to study their metabolisms for fear that they would be wary. But, they were correct that they were far and away more complex than badgers. "You use to be on earth?"

Tsubute held up a twig and began picking his teeth, scoffing. "Still don't get it flesh—human? We all were, early on. It was great. We got to run free: do what we want, take what we wanted. Scare and trick who we wanted!" A chorus of yips sounded from the others, who voiced their agreement. "But none of us passed the trial in the end. When it came down to what was stayin' topside, we got shoved back in the chest with all the other rejects."

"Why's that?" Sakura could see they were inclined to trouble, but maybe being around Naruto so often had unwittingly made her sympathetic to pranksters.

"Hm…maybe we got a little too creative with our tricks sometimes. The deities seemed to think so." Ubagabi deflated. "They made our beautiful Benzaiten-hime lock us up."

"Benzaiten…" Tobirama murmured. "I've heard the name."

"You should've," Uzuki added, refusing to make eye contact. "She's one of the Seven Lucky Gods, and very famous and revered by mortals. The goddess of flow. She created us."

"Words, music, speech, eloquence, even time!" Ubagabi sat up excitedly. He didn't notice the way Sakura stared at him with wide, awed eyes. "Anything that flows, she controls. But," he scratched behind one ear thoughtfully. "She's not the only deity that has a hand in controlling time."

The kunoichi shot the surly Tobirama a pointed look when the mujina went back to eating. Like them or not, he couldn't deny how knowledgeable they were. Getting the information from them so easily was a nice change of pace from prying cryptic answers out of deities.

"I have to say, I'm curious about what Tobirama asked you myself." Since she had gotten a better reception among the creatures, they tilted their heads in interest. Continuing, Sakura motioned around them. "You're not really…you know…so what are—"

"You get to know when we trust you." Tsubute said with finality, mashing fruit between his teeth with deliberate savagery. She couldn't get over the power in the jaws of these creatures. There was no way their intended diet had just been soft fruits with a mouth like that.

Ubagabi threw down the core of the fruit he'd consumed, tail thumping anxiously. "We're mimic yokai."

"What!" Tsubute roared, tackling the oblivious mujina. "Did I just say?!" His paws were pinning him down by the neck, but none of the many other mujina clustered around even batted an eye. So Sakura guessed it wasn't cause for concern.

"Y-You said when we trusted them, they could know what we really are. And I trust them. They're gonna let us out." Struggling, the gullible beast managed to look up at Sakura with hopeful, twinkling eyes.

Her heart sank. Could she really make the mujina a means to an end if they led them to freedom? It seemed cruel, but right now pondering the morality of that could wait.

Tsubute continued to scold Ubagabi, going as far as smacking him in the face and knocking on his head, asking if there was a brain present. Uzuki watched in silence, sucking at her fruit.

She sensed him move before she looked up and saw it. Tobirama was wandering away from the grove where all the snacking mujina were gathered, tossing a single look over his shoulder.

Understanding the meaning, Sakura arched a brow, waiting. Was this really even the time?

Apparently so, because Tobirama did not turn back around, or give any indication that he was willing to wait. Slipping away after him, she set what was left of her fruit near Uzuki. The mujina seemed to understand, her eyes grateful as she let Sakura go.

ASiT

Getting a safe distance from the rowdy bunch of beasts leading them around helped his nerves immensely. Haruno seemed almost lulled into trusting them, citing that the goddess informed her not everything in The Under would try to hurt them.

How she could believe that when she herself had almost become victim to the appetite of the hideous creature from the caves, he wasn't sure. At times like this Haruno's good sense fled her, and she was too open to the suggestions of her heart.

If he wasn't used to it from Hashirama, it would have made him incredibly uncomfortable to see in such a strong shinobi. Instead it made him frustrated.

This was exactly why he had every reason to believe that she was a perfect target for these gods, so wrapped in her good intentions that she'd inadvertently oblige them in whatever nefarious schemes they plotted.

Before they went any farther into the depths of the hellscape, Tobirama felt it was prudent to broach the topic one last time. "You can't get too comfortable with the notion of releasing them." he asserted, already anticipating objection.

"What've they really done so far besides offer us fruit and play a few jokes?" she responded. "I understand where you're coming from, but they seem like they're willing to hold up their end of the bargain. We both have to get back to earth as soon as possible."

Tobirama was ever-aware of that. It was Haruno who seemed to have found time to entertain the mujina and their antics. She also seemed to forget the teeth they'd both seen, and the way Tsubute had swiftly become incensed enough to flash a glimpse of dark energy lying underneath the cute surface. "Then why make unnecessary detours?" he leaned against a tree, looking her in the eyes.

"Getting what I need to make a divine weapon and completing the Rite once I get out of here isn't a detour." Haruno gasped, "It's our best bet in case that guy from before is lurking around."

"I'll be handling him." He meant it. The "Cat" and whoever was beneath that mask, would pay. Shamelessly taunting him about finishing the Senju off on a whim had triggered a very specific rage in Tobirama. He had disposed of countless vengeful enemies to protect his family before, what was one more? Fancy sword or not.

"He's a godslayer. That means he's made contact with some deity and he probably doesn't just have the sword." She held out her wrist calmly and rolled up her glove so he could see her pale wrist. The Senju was at first unamused, until he noticed the mark on it. Unable to stop himself, he snatched her arm, drawing the wrist closer to examine. "This was one of the first things Mizuchi did when she made contact. It infused me with her unique divine essence, and that's what creates our link and lets humans become godslayers at all."

"So this 'Cat' is teetering between divinity and humanity?" His thumb roughly stroked over the odd pattern and for a second, he felt her pulse speed. Withdrawing his hand, he started to work through how he could take the mysterious warrior on without Haruno's involvement.

"That's right." she said quietly. "I know why you want to stop him yourself, but it wouldn't hurt to have backup if we're after the same things. I…I want to protect the Senju too."

Clasping her hands together, she stared down at them. "I know what you think, but this isn't something you can do alone. And stopping deities that want to target clans like yours is half the reason I'm doing this."

Tobirama took a step closer, his chakra curling out in tendrils. He couldn't detect any lies from her, and maybe that was what he had found so infuriating in the Hokage's office that day.

Sensing an ulterior motive would have given him vindication, a reason to eradicate the threat by any means necessary. Instead he was dealing with a nosey but well-meaning girl housing incredible divine power, who said she wanted to safeguard everything he held dear too.

Tobirama had honed his sensor abilities from early childhood partially because it gave him an edge on the battlefield as a tactician, but also largely because he preferred the same upper-hand in dealing with people.

It was favorable to discard emotions behind an iron mask that couldn't be moved, but be privy to the sincerity in someone's intentions by flexing his chakra. And never before had he wanted someone to lie to him so badly.

"You said we make a good team," she began cautiously, "That doesn't just have to be while we're trapped here." Her green eyes were again far too open. The Senju had pulled her to the side with a clear goal in mind. Now he found himself at a loss.

"You're willing to go forward with trials that could ultimately destroy you."

Though they remained clear and reflective, the color of her eyes seemed to shift a shade when her lips pursed in determination. "Yes."

"The Senju are not your concern. If you're doing it for the sake of remaining allies with the clan, save yourself the trouble. Hashirama thinks highly of you already, as does Toka. Even Mei-san is convinced…" There he stopped himself.

"I'm grateful to everything they've done for me. I was a lost stranger and they helped me make Konoha home aga—make it feel like I had a home again." Haruno rubbed bashfully at her arm, smiling softly. "But actually, it's not just them I owe a lot too. I understand the danger, but a deity thinking they can twist humans around their whims doesn't mean it'll work. We're more resilient than that."

Fractionally. His eyes only widened fractionally, Tobirama assured himself. While he still couldn't puzzle together what Haruno thought she would gain by defending his clan and the village with such fierce loyalty, she had already made up her mind.

Blowing an errant strand of hair from her face, the girl began muttering to herself absently. "I'd thought about what Ippon-Datara mentioned. He said these trials are for testing the worth of non-divine beings…that, along with Cat showing up, had me thinking that gods have been using godslayers to advance their goals for a long time. Otherwise why design the Rites to ensure humans could wield weapons meant for gods? Mizuchi made it seem like it doesn't happen too often, though. It takes time to find the right people and train them."

Following with her train of thought, Tobirama could see it from her perspective. Armed with a divine weapon, divine essence, and exclusive training from a goddess, Haruno would be in a unique position once it was said and done.

If the deities counted on the humans they chose serving them obediently, an insurrection from said humans was probably the last thing they were expecting.

A rustling through the bushes had them both shifting to raise their guards. Kunai (and in Haruno's case fists) at the ready. But what stumbled through was only the shy mujina from earlier. Uzuki. Averting her watery black eyes as she approached, she stopped several feet short of Haruno and tilted her head questioningly. "E-Everyone's ready to keep going if you are." she informed.

Tobirama watched wordlessly as Haruno made to crouch, presumably to avoid unnerving the skittish creature. "That's fine. We'll be right there."

Nodding, the bushy-tailed rodent wasted no time bounding off again.

"Think about it." Haruno said calmly. Tobirama brushed by her, going after the fleeing mujina.


His muscles were the best kind of sore, and he lifted his shirt to swipe at his sweaty face a bit. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw his sparring partner pop a dislocated shoulder back into place with a grimace.

Okay. Maybe at some point he'd gotten a little too excited.

"Why don't you come inside?" Izuna offered, holding his hand out toward the Kaguya catching his breath on the ground. "It's the least I can do."

Taking the help, Jun'ichi lifted himself back onto his feet with a small nod. "I wouldn't mind that."

The two walked out of the training yard in comfortable silence, sunlight streaming through the trees and birds chattering animatedly. It was another sunny winter day the Uchiha had decided to make the most of. Originally, that had meant inviting Jun'ichi Kaguya over for tea and snacks, hoping to show his appreciation for the time he'd offered him comfort and advice.

But, maybe because he had been feeling just a little stir crazy, it had evolved into an impromptu spar. One in which they both got somewhat carried away. The bone projectiles launched at him did more than just leave superficial scrapes. The one he wrenched out of his shoulder nearly went deep enough to take his arm out of commission for a while.

They were bruised, bloody messes, and hopefully when they washed up no one would see Jun'ichi and have a fit. If he had to deal with a line of inquiry from the council right now when all he wanted was to wash up and eat, Izuna wasn't sure he wouldn't pull a sword on someone.

"Thank you for coming over," Izuna said, "Sorry about the…" he gestured to Junji's person as a whole.

Accepting the apology with a hint of a smile, the Kaguya blinked. "My apologies for your shoulder…and your pants."

Izuna laughed, rubbing at the side of his sore neck. He'd come out to the yard in pants and now might as well been wearing shorts for all the slicing they'd taken.

His shoulder throbbed but with some bandaging and salve he would be alright soon enough. One of many benefits to living in Konoha was that there was no need to rush off into ceaseless battles tired and half-healed. Between missions he could recover at his leisure.

Opening the door to his house, Izuna slipped off his shoes and stepped aside for Jun'ichi to enter and do the same. "We can wash up this way," he directed, motioning with his good shoulder.

Junji followed quietly, his footsteps nonexistent. It was because the two of them moved so noiselessly that the clanks from the kitchen were especially pronounced. Sticking his head around the doorframe revealed the sight of Madara setting out what looked to be a spread of fruits and tea. Izuna drew himself closer, too curious to move along without questioning what he was seeing.

"Madara…"

His elder brother hardly looked up, though when he did, his dark eyes lingered on their guest.

"You're going to bleed on the floor. I don't feel like cleaning that."

Izuna stifled an eye roll. Madara tracked dirt, bled, and sometimes tossed dirty clothes on the floor immediately after a rough training session. And he was not the one who cleaned it up unless hounded about it.

"Alright, if you clean your mess when you're done, I'll be sure to clean mine." the younger brother taunted.

Madara took a large bite out of one of the sliced fruits, unamused. "Who do you think you're talking to? Go change, it's starting to smell like iron in here. Let a healer know you need your shoulder looked at."

Gingerly touching the injury, Izuna grimaced, pretending he couldn't see Junji looking away sheepishly. "I can manage. It just needs to be cleaned and bandaged."

"Haruno's not around to look after you." Another bite followed Madara's pointed reminder. "Any treatment is better than none." He felt Sakura's absence just as strongly, but was always trying to play it off as if Izuna was pining by himself. Well, 'pining' was maybe too strong a word. It wasn't like he couldn't function.

There may have been some truth to the fact that he often took the long way home just to pass her house, or that when he visited the tea shop and was served something sweet he knew she'd enjoy it took him a while to take a bite…He might have searched tirelessly for Usamaro, dreading what would happen if Sakura returned and he wasn't around. But that didn't mean he was pin—

Madara was shoving at him, muttering about how he smelt awful.

"I didn't pass any flower fields to roll in on the way home, sorry," Izuna feigned disappointment as Junji followed him the rest of the way out. The two went on to the more private bathroom in the house.

"I see you and your brother have made amends," The Kaguya noted.

"If you mean he's back to being a cheeky pain in the ass, you could say that." he smiled. Whipping his shirt over his head, the Uchiha was relieved that the wound at least had stopped bleeding. Though flushing it out was a top priority. "We can wash the grime off and then go get patched up."

Jun'ichi hesitantly plucked at the strings tying his shirt closed. His shoulder length white hair sluiced down his chin as he bent his head. "Are you sure your clan healers wouldn't object to treating me?"

Izuna paused, biting the inside of his lip. He hadn't thought about that. There were some that would definitely…make an issue out of it, to say it simply. But, Hikaku's younger brother was a healer, and he kept to himself. If asked to use discretion, Izuna knew he'd get it.

"I'll ask a friend to come and look us over, but feel free to wash off in the meantime."

Jun'ichi's eyes warmed in gratitude as he finished removing his shirt, sun-browned skin as sweaty and dirty as the Uchiha's. While he sponged himself clean with soap and hot water, Izuna walked down the hall to his bedroom, and then outside. Luckily, Madara's aviary was attached to the side of the house. It didn't take much to get Tama to fly over and attach the message to his foot.

Now, while they waited on Yugo, he could wash off the day's training, and speculate with Jun'ichi on where Madara was going with enough fruit for a banquet.

ASiT

He had his offering. He had his objective. It was time. Madara tossed everything he'd prepared into a sack and tied it shut. If the dragon goddess's directions didn't work, she would never stop hearing from him. For her sake, he hoped it was successful.

While Izuna and the Kaguya he'd brought into their home were preoccupied—he wasn't sure if they were bathing together or not but if that was Izuna's true preference, Madara would give his blessings; one less person to compete with for Haruno—he slipped out the back way.

Light footed and confident, he broached the edge of the forest in no time, no one stopping him to inquire what he was doing. For all they knew he was scouting out new places to hunt to return to later.

They just wouldn't guess he was on the hunt for something far more valuable than a pheasant.


The wood floor that had once felt soothing against his sore, sticky body now felt uncomfortable. His bare skin adhered to the floor by sweat made it hard to move, not that he was trying.

One of the healers had placed a folded cloth under his chin, but his hands remained tied in an intricate series of knots up to his forearms. Trying to wriggle free would make the rope chafe and tighten.

The faint light streaming into the room alerted him to the approach of sunset. After dinner had been had by everyone else, if his father permitted, someone would bring in something light for him. The realization made him huff. He'd rather miss the meal entirely than suffer through the indignation of someone feeding him.

Letting his eyes close and breathing carefully through his mouth, he forced his mind to empty. Today wasn't the worst. He'd survive like he always did.

The prison of his surroundings had all but faded into all-encompassing, silent whiteness behind his eyelids. Nothing existed in his mindscape of meditation, not even himself.

Exhaustion threatened to drag him under completely, his consciousness on the precipice of surrender. Then, a bright, blinding presence he would recognize anywhere shattered the disassociation. Red eyes opened to soft footfalls in the hall, and then his door slid open and shut just as quietly.

"What're you doing here?" he rasped.

Warm hands gently lifted him by the shoulders as his brother propped him up. Hashirama's clothes smelt like sunshine, earth, and a little like sweat too. The feeling of a clay cup against his lips preceded the water tipped down his throat, and Tobirama couldn't fight the hearty gulp.

Normally animated, the older sibling didn't say a word as he continued to allow him careful sips until the cup was empty. Setting it aside, he eased Tobirama's bruised body down, leaning over his bared back.

"Tending to this," Tobirama resisted a groan as nimble fingers wedged their way between the tight bandaging and began to unravel it. "You know if you leave it like this it'll scar."

His mind urged him to close his eyes again, but he batted the persistent urge away to address his meddlesome brother. Butsuma had been thorough in the day's "spar", and his back had taken the brunt of the attacks. Imagining the mess it was underneath the bandages made him swallow. "It'll scar anyway."

"I've been practicing," Hashirama insisted. "So for once, don't be so stubborn!" The last of the once-white cloth was removed, stained red and discarded as the cool hum of the Shōsen at work filled his ears.

"Anija," he warned. This was the problem with Hashirama's reckless behavior. If he thought it was to help someone else, no amount of reprimanding was going to stop him. Although Butsuma expressly forbid anyone from using Mystic Palm on his wounds… here was his brother, ready to defy their father only hours after being hit for doing it the first time.

For a time, it was deathly silent as Hashirama studied the lacerations with deep concentration. Tobirama felt his muscles loosen in spite of knowing they could be caught at any time. His chin lowered back to the floor.

"This wasn't the plan, Tobi." Hashirama sounded on the verge of tears, his voice warbling out his name. "I told you to stop intervening."

Lazily cracking an eye open, he shifted his head around. "That'd be easier if you stopped shooting your mouth off, anija. You know when Father gets like that, someone has to answer for it."

"It shouldn't be you!" The older boy spat. There was a pause, the hands moving over his torn skin stilling. The telltale sniffling echoed the vehement declaration, Tobirama almost able to feel the bounce of his brother's shoulders. "Seven," he gasped, the word anguished on his tongue. "In what world did Kawarama deserve to die so young?!" he bawled. "Like that?"

There was a short burst of indignation that the white-haired boy smoothed down, not wanting his words to come across as callous. "He was my brother too…" he sighed. "We're all mourning him."

"I…I know," The muffled sound of his voice told the younger Senju his brother was scrubbing his face with his sleeve. "What a lot of good the cycle does. We mourn for dead children but then adults send more out to die and replace those,"

The bitterness tinging the sadness Hashirama was expressing made his blood run cold. Not many things could bring his brother's mood so low. All his life he'd wondered how he continued to do it, so optimistic and friendly in the face of burden after burden. "How can I not speak up? It's wrong! I'll swallow mud before I hide the way I feel."

Sometimes, at times like these, Tobirama wondered how deep blood really went. He and Hashirama viewed the world so differently, processed their emotions so differently. They were meant for different roles. His brother was never afraid to speak from his heart, regardless of consequences. In that way, he needed protection from himself.

Tobirama saw what the world did to dreamers who wore their hearts on their sleeves, and he walled his most tender feelings away.

When the Mokuton revealed itself shortly after Hashirama turned eight, their father proclaimed it was a sign their ancestors wanted them to emerge victorious over their enemies once and for all. The Mokuton would grow into an unstoppable force, its roots watered by the blood of their enemies until an entire forest grew. He had, however, gravely underestimated the force of Hashirama's deterimination.

"Has speaking out really done you any good?" he asked. "The adults are going to punish you—"

"Then let them!" Any words he had yet to speak retreated in the face of his brother's raging chakra. It filled a room at any other time, as attention-commanding and unforgettable as Hashirama's personality. The rare times he succumbed to anger— true anger—anyone in close proximity could surely feel their stomachs flipped inside out. "I'll be the one punished from now on. Every time. No more taking up for me."

"He'll kill you one day." No, Butsuma wouldn't, because none of his other children had the Mokuton. Hashirama was chosen as the vessel from which all his realized ambitions would spring, or so their father thought. He thought it was just a matter of making his eldest son fall in line once and for all. Butsuma Senju had no idea. "You're too much of a reckless moron."

"I'm also the oldest!" Hashirama ranted, far from pacified. "You're my little brother, Tobirama. I…" Flesh met flesh as the brunette hit his own thigh with a closed fist. "I couldn't protect Kawarama but I should be protecting you and Itama." Drawing an unsteady breath and blowing it out, he grit his teeth. "I don't like anyone hurting my little brothers. Even Fath—" his speech devolved into hiccups.

A dull headache in back of his skull almost kept him from noticing a chakra signature he hadn't felt in over a month. Along with Itama's more timid signature. When his door opened again, Hashirama tensed, nearly done with his work. But the warm honeysuckle and freshly flowered pear scent was not Butsuma's.

"M-Mother," Hashirama straightened, his voice full of reverence.

"This is where I find you?" she swept in like a warm summer breeze, the swish of her silk kimono a lullaby. "Itama has told me what's happened."

"Hashirama, why do you always wait until I'm gone to cause such fuss?" From the corner of his eye, if he twisted uncomfortably, Tobirama could see one of her long-fingered hands smoothing out Hashirama's fringe.

"Ka-Kawarama's…" The name was enough to break his older brother all over again.

"I know." His mother didn't sound like she was grieving, and really who could say. Part of his aloofness Tobirama had inherited from her. Her emotions were perhaps more guarded than his own, unless she allowed them glimpses. "I'll speak to your father about all this." Her eyes trailed to his healed back. The boy knew it was still littered with light pink scars despite Hashirama's best efforts.

"How was the trip to the capital, Mother?" Itama tugged lightly on her sleeve.

"Enlightening. We'll speak of it later. For now…" She crouched beside her son, her eyes meeting Tobirama's.

"Mother." he said.

"Tobirama…of all my children, you I expect to find this way least of all."

She didn't elaborate, but he knew instantly what she meant by it. Shame bubbled through him suddenly, and if he'd eaten yet, he may have vomited.

!

…!

…!

His body sprang from the ground, his face wild-eyed with nostrils flaring. Haruno was in front of him on her knees, one hand reaching for him. She was frozen in astonishment, and drew back to give him space.

The mujina were watching, some with apprehension, as he got to his feet. "What the hell was that?" he demanded. Tobirama knew he didn't just dream of those days. His head knew better than to drift there, even subconsciously.

Haruno's mouth opened and closed, speech escaping her. Impatiently, he rounded on and snatched up the nearest chubby weasel. "Answer me!"

"Hypnosis, alright?" The creature winced, its claws scratching at him futilely. "Put me down, fleshling! You smell as angry as a fire demon."

"The mujina noticed we were slowing down, and they wanted us to rest." Haruno volunteered, still looking shaken herself. His heart throbbed angrily. She'd seen. Prone and unconscious, gripped in the throes of that memory, there was no way he would've been able to stop her from witnessing his facial expressions. Had he groaned? Had he trembled? Each possibility increased his level of self-disgust.

Knowing the kunoichi still watched, Tobirama gave one stiff nod. He remembered that conversation. The creatures had claimed they would watch and protect them while they slept. But not trusting them, he had refused. That was the last thing he recalled.

"Tsubute said we wouldn't have another chance to sleep until after we reached the enchanted iron mines." Haruno whispered. There was no reason for her to, except that she was trying to avoid further agitating a trapped animal. And it wasn't one of the talkative badgers they were surrounded by.

"Yeah, you weren't budging, but I'm not dragging some half-asleep human to the mines." The mujina leader in question pushed his way forward, "So we used hypnosis on you."

"There's just a little problem," Ubagabi continued, holding up his front paws and making a small space between them. "Our hypnosis is for trickery too. Sometimes, it makes you see the thing you want most. That's funny because you wake up and when you don't have it, you're sad." he giggled. When the Senju's eyes snapped to him, all mirth fled his furry face, and he stepped back. "Uh, but not always. Sometimes what you see under our hypnosis is the last time you felt really scared and helpless. W-We don't control it."

Tobirama flung the mujina he held captive down, and it scampered away as quick as it could. Advancing on Tsubute, he got eye to eye with him. "Let's make one thing clear," His carmine gaze narrowed heavily, "If any of you intend to survive this and journey back to earth, you'll stay out of my head. There's no trick you could play that'll be funnier to me then acquiring a new set of furs to wear through the rest of winter."

The tension had formed a bubble as the two continued to stare each other down. Tsubute broke it with a hoarse laugh. "I've never met a human that makes me fear piss before. I think I'm gonna get along with you after all."

"Since we're all okay now, let's go!" Ubagabi lifted a paw. "To the mines!"

Excited chatter mellowed the mood, and most of the mujina resumed travel as insects. Tobirama made eye contact with Haruno, but she only shook her head with a weak smile, walking away.


Sakura refused to talk about the visceral reaction Tobirama had displayed in his sleep until he did. And she had the feeling that would be never.

In his own way, he'd opened up considerably in the short time since this had started, but she knew there were limits and she wouldn't push. This Senju was not his brother.

He was not Toka, who didn't mind being exposed if only someone trusted was patient enough to bear with her awkwardness. Tobirama despised forced vulnerability, and whatever the hypnosis had dragged to the front of his mind was not something wanted.

His withdrawn posture hadn't changed, and she had a feeling it was the worst possible time to attempt so much as small talk. The faint noises that had prompted her to try and wake him in the first place echoed through her head. Initially registering that they came from him and what they meant tore through her like a close range blast from an explosive tag.

In her head, Sakura had convinced herself that there were limits to Tobirama's range of emotion. He felt, but to a halved degree. Anything but anger or scorn or caution and mistrust. Those he felt twice as much as anyone else, her brain said.

The problem was she had been abruptly proven wrong and it disturbed her to see that someone as immovable as he was, could be so defenseless against his will. She was sure he resented her more than ever now.

He would think she thought less of him. That wasn't the case, of course. Discovering he had deep emotions that haunted him was as reassuring as it was disquieting.

It gave her a lot to reconsider about the reasons behind his cool demean—

The irony of that thought was that it was suddenly sweltering! Sakura plucked at the top of her garment, puffing. She peeked around to see if she was the only one effected by the rapid heat. A sheen of sweat had appeared on the visible portion of Tobirama's neck. And the mujina weren't moving as swiftly anymore.

"Almost there," Ubagabi yelped, the only one seemingly cheerful about this latest development.

He dashed through the thinning line of trees, then turned and came right back. When the group had caught up, Sakura nearly took a step through only to have the excitable mujina ram into her, forcing her back. "Wait, you don't want to do that."

It only took a glimpse down to see why.


This update came as a surprise even to me. After all, work has progressively gotten busier as things out there have continued on the course they're on. But as I said up above, writing has been a nice escape (and I guess I do it much faster than I realized when I'm focused on it), and since I'm guessing the vast majority of readers are now under some type of lock down orders, hopefully this was a pick me up from them too.

Shit gets real now that the goddess Cat is linked to has been revealed. Lemme just say strap in because the reveals aren't stopping and she's a bit, eh, messed up if I'm honest. XD Cat's agenda will also slowly come to light, along with his identity and why he has it out for Tobirama so badly. By the end of it you may or may not think it's even really Tobirama's fault this time.

In the meantime, Sakura and Tobirama still have to survive The Under with only the mujina as their allies thus far. Is there more peril in store? Most definitely. I also didn't realize what a snarky ass dear Tobi can be until I started looking at the lines of dialogue I had set aside for him. Sort of makes up for the feels-trip he was forced to take this time. #LetTobiramaTellEveryoneOff I guess.

I continue to get questionings wanting to know what Naruto, Sasuke and co are up to and how close they are. Well, you may not like the answer once you get it. They're returning pretty soon though.

Lastly, I encourage everyone to follow what they're being told by their government officials to remain safe. If you aren't on the frontlines then don't take unnecessary risks. Thank you for reading, and please remember to let me know what you thought of the chapter.