Dawn had barely broke and already Sakumo counted another team of four crossing through the village's gate; their excited chatter carried in the wind even after they were swallowed into the shadows. By the third team's departure, his contained frown slouched to a scowl. Tomo had yet to return from tracking the scarred-faced man; what should have taken only a day or two had turned into one of the longest weeks of Sakumo's life.
If I was just on one of those teams, I could sneak away and find him. Make sure he's all right. But every order read the same; one menial task after another and all well within the Hidden Leaf's walls.
"Why have we never gotten a mission outside of the village?" He demanded, rounding on his two teammates lying in the grass. Haruki's head did not rise from her book, but her fingers flexed tensely around the hard-cover.
Ryuu picked furiously at a blade of grass, his face turning almost as red as his hair.
"It's Ryuu's fault," Haruki finally answered, still refusing to look up from her page. "This is why no one wanted to be put on his team."
"Shut up, Haruki," Ryuu's voice cracked. "That's not why at all!"
"Oh really?" The book slammed shut. "You don't think us being stuck inside the village, helping old ladies and looking for lost fish, has nothing to do with the fact you're the hokage's son? It has absolutely nothing to do with making sure Lord Hashirama's precious baby boy doesn't hurt himself or get himself accidently killed? Really?!"
"Well…no," Ryuu protested weakly.
Haruki scoffed. "Then you're truly delusional."
Sakumo might have been tempted to step in and defend his cousin, but Haruki's words sounded so righteously certain. Was that it? Was that the reason they were stuck here? Because Ryuu was Hashirama's son? And because…he was Tobirama's?
A bitter taste fouled his mouth at the thought. His father had not invited him to train since their confrontation in the hospital, but still Tobirama somehow had managed to block his move before Sakumo had even thought of it.
Bastard.
"Must be nice." A voice called from across the road. "Sitting on your asses while others do the dangerous work." Three boys, around Sakumo's age (though even from a distance considerably larger), snickered to each other as they crossed the path towards them.
Haruki stilled like a deer caught in open meadow.
"We should run," Ryuu hissed, already scrambling to his feet.
The same voice laughed, only this time from behind, grabbing Ryuu by the collar. "Oh, you're not going anywhere, little prince."
Haruki swore, pages flying as she leapt to her feet. Sakumo grimaced, trying to hide his surprise at the boy's speed.
"Let me go," Ryuu struggled, but he could not break the larger boy's grip. By now the other two had gathered around, their large shoulders blocking the view of any concerned passerby on the road.
"Careful, little prince," the bully cautioned with mock concern. "Don't want to end up in the hospital again, do you?"
Sakumo had heard enough. "Let him go."
The boy's attention flickered towards him, but the grip did not loosen. "Get lost. I don't take orders from shrimp."
Sakumo's hand flashed out, catching the boy's wrist in a death grip of his own. "Yeah, well I don't let people beat up my teammate."
Sakumo sensed the fist flying towards his face before he saw it. He pulled his head back, watching as it harmlessly swung by. It twisted the large boy's stance just enough to unbalance him and Ryuu, sensing an opportunity, jerked free from his grasp.
The larger boy regained his footing, looking Sakumo over with an increased curiosity. "Don't remember ever seeing you around here, shrimp."
He sensed Haruki and Ryuu move behind him, but he didn't see what protection he could offer them.
"My name is Sakumo Hatake. Not shrimp."
"Ha." The large boy jerked back in laughter. "That name supposed to mean something to me?"
"Bet his parents are just civilians." One of the other boys sneered. "A little farmer's son who thinks he can be a shinobi."
"You're probably right, Nobu." The ringleader laughed louder. "I bet you wouldn't last five seconds against real shinobi, farmer boy. Should we find out?"
It was a strange time to find his courage, but Ryuu often did when he saw others in danger rather than himself. And by the way he watched Kaito Uchiha and his friends circle closer, Sakumo was certainly in trouble.
Ryuu swung a fist out at the nearest boy, managing to clip his cheek neatly. All eyes flashed to him. He grabbed Haruki's hand, shouting to Sakumo. "Run!"
He turned to make a dash towards the safety of the populated road, but a fist curled deep into his stomach knocking the air from his lungs. He heard Haruki scream his name, as he painfully fell to his knees.
"I'm gonna break more than your hand this time, little prince." The voice snarled above him.
Ryuu closed his eyes, fully expecting a heavy fist to connect with his face—but the blow never fell.
Kaito's looming figure had disappeared and somehow transformed into a crumpled figure on the ground. In his place stood Sakumo; hands curled tightly into fist and shoulders shaking in fury.
"I told you," Sakumo said with a voice eerily flat. "I don't let people beat up my teammates."
Kaito spat red into the dirt, rising unsteadily to his feet.
"I don't think so, Uchiha." Toka-sensei's voice cut in. Ryuu heard Haruki release a sigh of grateful thanks, but his own sense of relief did not last long. Another figure had appeared behind Kaito. Team 3's sensei, Yuuta Uchiha.
"Having difficulties with your team, Toka?" Yuuta's voice was pure politeness, though as he settled his hands on Kaito's shoulders, there lingered a smug smile.
Toka's eyes narrowed. "No problem with my team, Yuuta. It appears it's your students that are falling down."
The smug smile twitched. "All the same, perhaps we should both instruct our students to be more careful. Sometimes it still feels we are living in dangerous times."
Toka snorted, looking the tall Uchiha up and down with heavy meaning. "Believe me when I say, I sense no danger here, Yuuta."
The Uchiha's smile disappeared with a snap. "I'd be careful if I were you, Toka. The Senju brothers will not always be around to protect you."
"Good thing I've never needed them to."
Yuuta's eye flared, and Ryuu feared they would turn the frightening red his brother had once described, but they remained grimly black as he jerked his head towards the gate. "It's time for us to leave, boys. There is real shinobi work to be done."
Toka, not bothering to watch them leave, rounded on her students.
"I expected better from you three."
"But they started it!" Ryuu protested.
"Did I ask?" Toka snapped. "Senju do not get into meaningless fights."
"So, we should just let the Uchiha walk all over us?"
"This is not about the Uchiha."
Ryuu rolled his eyes. "It's always about the Uchiha."
Sakumo did not have the faintest idea of what they were talking about, but he could understand Ryuu's frustration at Toka-sensei. Why was she upset with them? They weren't the ones looking for a fight.
He looked back as the Uchihas disappeared in the shadows beyond the gate. He made a silent promise to himself; if Tomo hadn't returned by dinner tonight. He was going after the little rat.
AbAbAbAbAbAb
In recurring dreams, he emerges from the forest into a vast clearing; there a hole has been dug, dark and deep. Tobirama does not need to peer in to know it's a grave.
He remains in the shadows of the perimeter; expecting someone to emerge from the seeming abyss. Instead, she appears from behind, walking right past him. She reaches the edge and looks back over her shoulder expectantly.
"Don't tell me you're afraid."
The face is Kana's; but his own subconscious deepens her voice with scorn. He takes a step into the clearing; her attention returns to the grave.
"Aren't you curious to know who's in there?"
A brother. His mother. Yuri. Izuna. It could be anyone.
He has dreamed so many times of standing over the edge; he is hardly surprised anymore by whatever lifeless face stares back. It's Kana's presence that makes him hesitate. She has never appeared in the clearing before.
"Come look, Tobirama." Her legs fold neatly beneath her, she smiles into the grave. "He looks so peaceful."
He's beside her now and they look down over the edge together; two parents peering into a cradle.
"He has your eyes."
"Lord Tobirama?"
The white-haired Senju jerked awake, wincing as he was assailed by the early morning light across his desk and worse—the smell of burnt tea leaves. He didn't need to look up to know it was Ono, come to wake him from another long night at his desk with her usual repugnant tea concoction.
At least she is organized, he reasoned, eyeing the cup she set on the desk.
"Mr. Tamagashi has arrived early for your morning meeting. He's waiting in the Hokage's office."
Tobirama grunted, rubbing his eyes with the palm of his hands. It was tempting to let the spindly, little man wait. It would give him a chance to change and fix himself a tea that did not resemble old bathwater.
"What'd I tell you about sleeping at your desk, Tobi," his brother's voice chimed through the doorway. It was far too cheerful a sound to have to endure so early in the morning. "One of these days you'll hurt your back and people will start thinking I replaced you with Father."
Tobirama grimaced. "Funny."
Hashirama stepped aside to let Ono pass before leaning on the doorframe, it helped to relieve some of the pressure on his legs; they had begun to tremble in the mornings. "You look like you've been sleeping in the kennels. When was the last time you went home?"
Tobirama shrugged, running a hand through his locks—Hashirama snorted—as if that ever did anything to calm the wild mess of his hair.
"All this effort to avoid your own son."
Tobirama looked up sharply. "I am not avoiding the boy."
"Right. And my heart sings at the sight of paperwork."
Hashirama allowed his brother to stalk pass, rolling his eyes as he followed behind. He could not fathom how content his brother and nephew were to give each other as much distance as possible. He would have thought it beneath Tobirama's dignity to exert so much energy into his sensory abilities, all to avoid being trapped in the same room as the boy.
Hold him tight, Hashirama wanted to say. You never know when you will lose them.
Fuyuki Tamagashi remained seated as the two brothers entered, small eyes squinted over papers in his lap as if he were in the center of his own office. Tobirama was surprised the man had stopped short of taking over his brother's desk.
"Greetings, Fuyuki." Hashirama coughed politely for the man's attention.
The mustache twitched slightly and the little man finally looked up. "And a good morning to you, Lord First. Tobirama."
As Hashirama settled gingerly into his chair, Tobirama took his usual place, deceptively relaxed on the edge of the desk. "While we are always honored by a visit from you, Fuyuki. My secretary failed to mention your purpose."
"My purpose? My purpose is quite simple today." Fuyuki pulled stiffly at an already impressively starched suit. "I wish to discuss marriage."
Hashirama laughed. "Why, Fuyuki! I am flattered. But you'll have to give me time to explain things to Mito."
Fuyuki blinked, not in the habit of participating in jokes, less it should end with people laughing at him.
He cleared his throat to mask the discomfort. "It is obvious that the Hidden Leaf and the Tamagashi Trading Company have flourished together over the years. A beautiful partnership, much like the bonds you have formed with your fellow ninja clans."
Tobirama felt his eye twitch as the flowery court speech continued. He had so little patience for this nonsense. Better they had made trade treaties with pirates than the like of Tamagashi. At least pirates were honest about robbing you blind.
"And I wish for this bond to continue and flourish long after we have all been buried, my friends. What better way ensure such continued good fortune than with a marriage."
Hashirama could make his face impressively unreadable to strangers, but Tobirama knew that all it took to read his brother was to observe his hands. At the moment, they were curled into two fists resting lightly on his desk, but pressed together so tightly, they almost gave the appearance of hand seals.
Even if Tobirama could not read his brother, he well knew the man's thoughts on arranged marriage. He and Hashirama had been fortunate in their father's choices. Their mother had not.
Itama had been only days old when she had unceremoniously walked herself into the river's current.
"While I am just as eager for our partnership to continue, Fuyuki. Mito and I have no intention of arranging a marriage for our son."
"Of course. Of course." Fuyuki raised his hands, seemingly insulted by such an implication. "This new age has certainly brought about new ideas on marriage. Letting the young make their own decisions on the matter is quite the change."
Hashirama blinked. Taken off guard at the little man's ready agreement.
Fuyuki continued. "But we are from a different generation. We understand the needs of our families must come before our own personal desires. Do you not agree, Tobirama?"
He did. Still, the hairs raised on the back of his neck. He sensed Fuyuki laying a trap, he just wasn't quite sure yet how to spring it.
"We once shared some family ties of sorts, did we not Tobirama? My dear brother's wife was the sister of your beautiful Lady Yuri after all."
Tobirama did not like the way his words conjured the ghost of his dead wife between them. Her nose scrunched the same as it used to when he was being particularly stubborn. She looked back and forth between them, finally leveling her eyes at him as if to say; dearest, you know better than to take the bait.
Fuyuki prattled on, unaware of any ethereal presence in the room. "I will admit it brought me great comfort to have any ties at all to your prodigious clan, but I fear years have cause these ties to fray. That is why I would offer two gifts today—HINA!"
Anyone else would have jumped at the sudden shout—the two Senju brothers merely exchanged glances of bewilderment.
A tiny woman, in rather unfortunately thick glasses, appeared in the door frame, struggling under the weight of a great picture frame. She grunted as she entered the room, nearly toppling over as she set it down at Fuyuki's feet.
"Thank you, Hina." He said, dismissing her with the wave of a delicately manicured hand.
Tobirama eyed the back of the frame with suspicion. Was this the bait for Fuyuki's trap?
With the pomp of a showman, Fuyuki spun the frame around to face the two brothers.
Tobirama stiffened. Yuri's eyes gazed serenely out at him. The picture was in black and white, but he well remembered eyes so dark they felt like pools to drown in. Her hair was fixed as formally atop her head as he remembered, a single pin holding up a luscious waterfall of dark hair. She looked frighteningly young. Not yet a wife. Not yet a mother.
"A treasure we found at the Ito estates after your father-in-law passed. May it remind you of happier times."
It didn't.
Fuyuki continued, unaware of the disgust that rumbled in Tobirama's chest at the sight of him caressing his wife's picture frame like a lover. "And may it remind you of the many virtues a marriage can bring to two families—HINA!"
Once again, the tiny woman appeared, weighed beneath a picture frame equally as heavy. Tobirama could hear long, wet rasps of breaths as she settled this one next to the first.
This time the picture was in color, showing off delicate pale cheeks and wide, dark eyes.
It all clicked into place.
"So you are having my team escort your sister here for a wedding, Fuyuki." Tobirama did his best to keep the bile from rising in his throat. Distracted, he had not kept as careful a watch on the Tamagashi titan as he had thought.
"You are still a young man, Tobirama. My dear sister will be more than able to give you sons and daughters to ensure our families bond for generations to come."
Hashirama almost choked at the idea. His brother struggled with just the one son—an entire brood might kill him. He waited a moment, anticipating the exceptional explosion that had followed all such proposals since Yuri's passing.
It did not come.
Hashirama turned in surprise to his brother, but the white-haired Senju's attention was focused squarely on Manami Tamagashi's picture. He appeared almost to be admiring it.
Finally, he looked up, garnet eyes calm and pensive. "We will consider your proposal, Fuyuki. With great interest."
AbAbAbAbAbAb
Ami waited patiently in the garden after the morning meal with legs folded neatly beneath her. She had the perfect view of the compound's front gate, so she could be certain not to miss Sakumo when he finally returned from training. Ryuu had said he had forgotten something, but it was not like Sakumo to forget things.
The more she thought about it, there were a lot of things that were not like the Sakumo she used to know. There was something different in his walk, his manner and his speech. They were not as simple and pure as they used to be. They were a little more certain, a little more standoffish. It reminded her too much of the man with the white hair and devil-red eyes, the man who was supposedly Sakumo's father. Is that who Sakumo wanted to be like? So distant it was almost cruel? So cold it was almost inhuman?
She shivered, despite the warming spring air. This place wasn't good for Sakumo and it certainly was not good for her.
A shock of white hair appeared in the gateway with a suddenness that made her jump. He's a shinobi, she had to remind herself. But that sounded wrong. Sakumo wasn't a killer. He was just a simple farm boy!
"Hi Ami," Sakumo greeted, dark eyes twinkling.
She had meant to echo the same simple hello, instead a question that had been wrapped around her tongue all morning, spilled out. "Do you ever miss our village?"
The young boy's eyes widened. "Of course. It was my home."
"Was?" She repeated in horror.
Sakumo flinched. "I just mean…" He trailed off looking helplessly around the compound he had come to know as home over the past few months.
"It's just…" he continued. "Without my family, it's not the same."
"Well, I miss it," she said stubbornly. "I miss it more than anything in the world. I've never been this far away from home before."
"When it's safe, I promise I will take you home, Ami." Sakumo said, unsure of what else to say.
"When will that be?" She asked desperately.
"When I kill that bastard with the scar!"
Ami stepped back in surprise. She had never heard Sakumo raise his voice before. He had always been quiet compared to the other boys of the village who had only ever communicated in shouts and grunts.
"Please," Ami begged. "Please, Sakumo. I just want to go home."
"Ami you know if I could—." Sakumo's attention peeled away to the strange cloud of dust pluming at the entrance of the compound. As the dust settled, two men appeared, carrying large portraits between them.
"Boy!" One of the men grunted. "These are meant for Lord Tobirama's quarters."
Sakumo turned to the men, eyes carelessly looking over their burdens. "So?"
"Sakumo!" Ami hissed in surprise.
He shuffled his feet in sudden embarrassment. He had not meant to sound so snotty in front of her, but anything to do with his father had ceased to interest him.
He cleared his throat. "Follow me. I'll take you to them."
Ami stayed close to his shoulder as the two men behind carefully maneuvered the large portraits down the hall. Sakumo came to a halt in the middle of a large, but rather bare room, devoid of all ornament save for a shiny set of blue armor glinting in the corner. The men grunted as they set the portraits against the wall. Ami made to follow them out, only to stop when she noticed Sakumo remained planted in the center of the room.
Returning to his side, she followed his gaze to the two pictures leaned carefully against the wall. Two beautiful women gazed back, each with a perfectly serene expression, although that was mostly where the resemblance ended. One had dark eyes to match dark hair and a kind mouth that promised to whisper a secret if you came just a step closer. The other picture was made up of amazing color, the young woman looked out at them with eyes wide and bright; as if just about anything in the world was a delicious surprise.
She had never seen portraits painted so realistically. It was almost as if the two women were standing with them in the room, merely caught in between breaths.
Sakumo nodded his head to the dark-eyed woman on the right. "I've seen her before. This belonged to Fuyuki Tamagashi."
"Why does Lord Tobirama have it now?"
Sakumo grunted. "Not sure. Wouldn't think it be like him to keep photographs of women in his room."
"Photographs?"
Sakumo glanced over at Ami's round eyes. He had forgotten how easily it was to get lost in them. He cleared his throat. "Yeah. You stand in front of this machine and it makes a life-like image of you. Ryuu said there's plenty of chances to get your picture taken at the festival."
Ami looked back at the photographs. If she had her picture taken, would she look just as beautiful as them?
"Will you take me to the festival, Sakumo?"
Sakumo felt his mouth go dry, but still, he somehow managed to form the words. "Of course."
The smile Ami gave him was almost dazzling, so distracting in fact, he hadn't noticed the voices coming from down the hall until they were almost in the doorway.
"I see very little point in getting Fuyuki's hopes up, brother."
A grunt was the only response.
Sakumo turned guiltily to the doorway, Ami moved quickly behind him, trying to make herself as small as possible.
The two Senju brothers paused in the doorway at the sight of them, though neither appeared particularly surprised to see them there-perhaps the better word was concerned.
"Well good morning, you two." Hashirama greeted. "In here alone?"
Sakumo cocked an eyebrow, not sure what to make of Hashirama's tone. They weren't doing anything wrong, except maybe intruding in Tobirama's personal space.
Tobirama, for his part, seemed barely to register their presence. His usually sharp, tiger-eyes were circled in shadow and though he held his usual straight back stance and folded arms, it seemed like he was exerting an incredible amount of energy into remaining upright.
"We were just leaving," he said, grabbing Ami's hand before attempting to side-step pass the two brothers.
"Just a moment, Sakumo," Hashirama's hand was quick to rest on his shoulder, preventing him from taking another step further.
"Your sensei reported there was a fight between your team and Team 3 this morning."
Sakumo grimaced, he'd been hoping their fight wasn't noteworthy enough to report back to the hokage.
As meekly as possible, he looked up to Hashirama whose eyes appeared strangely hard and all together disappointed. "Nobody got hurt."
"It is the fact a fight between teammates occurred at all, is the problem, Sakumo. You are all on the same side."
"Do the Uchiha know that?"
Tobirama gave a derisive snort, almost causing Sakumo to jump. "He makes a good point, brother. That clan is always looking for a reason to fight."
"That's enough." Hashirama's voice cracked like a whip, startling the room. "You have been warned about such talk, brother."
Sakumo's eyes widened towards Tobirama. He'd never heard anyone admonish the white-haired shinobi before. It was terrifying the way the room suddenly seemed to crackle with chakra. Even Ami must have sensed the power that pushed against each other, her grip tightening around his hand.
But just as quickly as the storm of charka appeared, it seemed to dissipate. Tobirama gave a yawn, seeming to have no energy for what appeared to be an age-old argument.
Hashirama sighed. "We can discuss this further when you don't look near the brink of collapse."
AbAbAbAbAbAb
That night, as the Senju compound lay dormant, a shriek scraped against the silence, terrible and high.
Sakumo's feet hit the cold floor, a kunai already in hand. The scream rang in his ears—so close. A hand with frigid fingers rapped its knuckles against his chest. Ami.
Leaping into the hall, he almost collided with Ryuu. Mito and Hashirama were already up ahead, slashing through the tatami door as the shrieking grew even more guttural.
Sakumo pushed his cousin out of the way, scrambling to get into the room.
Mito already had Ami held tight in her arms, whispering and rocking as the girl screamed on. Her eyes shifted wildly around the room, following some invisible bird that flitted around their heads.
Hashirama was crouched at the end of her mat, his wide shoulders carefully bent, blocking whatever held his attention from sight. Sakumo caught just a glimpse of cloth, a splotch of red and white fan, held tight in Hashirama's hand before it was quickly tucked into the man's yukata.
Finally, his uncle shifted, allowing Sakumo to see a muddled ball of fur and blood. This time the cold hand balled into a fist before connecting straight into his guts.
Tomo.
The stupidest, laziest dog on the planet. A dog that should be curled safe in his mother's lap, not butchered and cold, alone on the floor. A sob, short and pitiful, shuddered from his lips.
He moved to pick up the little pug, he didn't want him to be so cold, so alone. A hand, gentle but firm, pressed against his chest, stopping Sakumo in his tracks. Hashirama, still kneeling beside the dog, looked up at him with eyes set resolute.
"I'm sorry, Sakumo. I can't have you move him, not until Tobirama arrives with the Inuzuka Squad."
Sakumo blinked, not understanding a word. He couldn't just leave Tomo lying there. What if he was scared? What if he thought Sakumo didn't care enough to look after him?
"There is nothing you can do for him, Sakumo. He's at peace." Mito's calm voice broke through the dark, downward spiral of his thoughts. He looked to her hand outstretched towards him. He wanted more than anything to settle into the warmth of her side, to close his eyes and pretend this was all a nightmare. He made to step into her embrace.
"Brother." The room turned to Tobirama, taking up most of the splintered doorframe. At his back were three Inuzuka shinobi, looking more feral than human, their ninken already sniffing the air.
Hashirama rose quickly to his full height, allowing his brother to take in the pitiful sight of his former summons. Tobirama barely glanced at the little body before snapping orders. "Move out and search the grounds. Find me a trail."
Two members of the squad disappeared in a billow of smoke, leaving one man and his ninken at Tobirama's shoulder.
The ninken, larger than any wolf, slid past Tobirama's leg, quietly trotting to where the little dog lay still. It's sniffs were loud and sharp, but so ferally indifferent, Sakumo wanted to kick the creature away.
Seemingly centuries passed before it raised it's lupine eyes, first to Hashirama, considering him for a long moment, before turning to the Inuzuka. Something unspoken passed between the two, before the Inuzuka turned to Tobirama.
"There was only one of them, sir. The scent is still fresh. Whoever it was, could not have gotten far after the alarm was sound."
Tobirama's arms folded, red eyes glaring daggers into the little dog. "There's no blood. He was killed before they brought him here."
"But how did they get in here?" Mito hissed, arms still wrapped tight around Ami, whose shrieks had subsided into hysteric hiccups. "This compound is well protected. I created the barriers myself."
Tobirama's eyes narrowed and focused, tiger-like. "I'm not sensing any strange chakra."
Sakumo felt the cold fist unfurl just long enough to allow him to choke. "It was him. The scarred face bastard."
All eyes fell on him, but Tobirama's felt by far the heaviest. Sakumo focused on his breathing, slipping his hands in his pockets so no one could see them shake. "I sent Tomo to track him down."
"And why," Tobirama gritted out the words. "Would you do such a stupid thing?"
Sakumo flinched. Tobirama could have slapped him, it would have carried a far less painful sting.
Why? Did he truly ask him why?
"Sir." The two Inuzuka members returned, faces grim.
"You have a lead?" Tobirama demanded. Hashirama hoped for their sakes they did.
The pair shared a glance, a silent skirmish between who would have to bear the news.
"The trail is a dead end. We followed a scent right up until your quarters, then…"
The second Inuzuka member picked up the thread. "Then it disappeared, sir."
Tobirama was gone from the doorway in a blink. Hashirama was not far behind, Sakumo made to match his uncle's pace, only he hesitated at the doorway. Tomo, cold and alone. Ami, afraid and shivering.
Noting his hesitation, Mito looked up with a quiet nod. "It's alright, Sakumo. I'll stay with them."
By the time he arrived in Tobirama's quarters, the two brothers were carefully examining the back of one of the portraits. Sakumo stared into eyes dark and serene as she was carefully leaned forward.
"A transportation seal," Tobirama growled in disgust. Sakumo expected the portrait to be flung to the floor, but he watched in surprise as she was carefully leaned back against the wall, upright and proper once more.
"We'll have to keep an eye on Tamagashi. He could be a dupe, but more likely he's an accomplice."
Hashirama's brow raised slightly. "Seems a great deal of effort—what does he gain from threatening us?"
"Precious little." Tobirama's furious gaze scanned the room, before they were drawn to Sakumo's unnervingly still frame. Deep shadows buried the usually sharp, keen eyes—giving a wasted, weary look to a face that should have been soft and carefree.
He has your eyes. Kana-but-not-Kana's voice whispered maliciously in his ear. Did Sakumo's mind swirl with the same thoughts of crippling failure? Did the boy struggle in tar-pits and thick vines until it hardly seemed worth the effort to fight anymore?
"MA-MA!" Another shriek tore through the compound.
"Tsunade!" Mito's voice echoed down the hall.
With a bellowed curse Tobirama disappeared from the room with Hashirama not far behind.
Sakumo put as much chakra as he could into his feet, blurring down the long hallway until he came upon Tsunade's nursery. The room was far darker than Ami's with only a single candle illuminating the little room. This time Ryuu had made it to the crying before him, his cousin's back straight and stiff in the doorway. None too gently, he grabbed Ryuu's shoulder jerking him back, only to have to dodge a fist lashing out from his startled cousin.
"It's me," Sakumo hissed. But any annoyance he may have felt, vanished the moment he noticed Ryuu's stricken face. Sakumo turned quickly to the occupants of the room, a sense of relief hitching his breath, to see Tsunade burrowed deep against Hashirama's chest. Her little shoulders seemed to tremble, as if exposed to a great northern wind, but she made no sound as Hashirama's large hand ran soothingly up and down her back.
The gentle motion of Tobirama rising slowly to his feet, caught Sakumo's attention. His father's shoulder seemed almost slumped as he lifted something heavy to his chest. Not something, he realized, catching flaxen hair in candlelight, someone. Kaede.
"Is she gonna be all right?" Ryuu's voice cracked beside him. Kaede's head lulled lifelessly against Tobirama's chest, her skin matching the pallor of the Senju's hair.
Another presence appeared at their back before Tobirama could answer.
"Sensei!" Kagami's strong, clear voice cut through the sickening fear of the room. "We received your message. Torifu and Danzo are patrolling the grounds as we speak."
"The baby." A soft groan passed Kaede's lips, bringing any plan Tobirama was forming to an abrupt halt. Mito was at her side in an instant, brushing her hand across the young mother's frighteningly pale face. Sakumo watched, bewitched, as Kaede's eyes opened briefly, a promise passing from mother to mother. "Please…save him."
Mito eyes were no longer soft as they rose to meet Tobirama. "Go. Take her. We'll handle things here."
A sharp tsk of frustration and Tobirama was gone.
"Mo-mo." Sakumo blinked at the name, turning to see Tsunade pulling against her grandfather's tight embrace. Her pretty brown eyes were rimmed red and puffy, but still she reached out for Sakumo who stood just beyond her reach. Hashirama closed the gap between them, depositing the toddler into Sakumo's arms. For a moment, he worried he was shaking too much to hold her safely, but as she pulled herself into his chest, he felt as if he could finally gasp for breath.
Hashirama's order came soft, but firm. "Ryuu, lead them back to Ami's room. Guards are posted. Do not leave until your mother or I come to get you all."
With Tsunade's hand tightly fisted in his hair, Sakumo followed his cousin out of the room. Kagami turned to watch them leave, a glimpse of red caught Sakumo's eye. The white and red fan of the Uchiha, small but proudly displayed on Kagami's shoulder.
Sakumo looked away quickly, not wishing to draw attention to his surprise. The red and white cloth he had caught Hashirama slipping into his yukata—it was the symbol of the Uchiha clan.
"Ryuu," Sakumo whispered furiously, when he could be sure they were far enough down the hall to be out of earshot. "Do you think an Uchiha could have done this?"
Ryuu stopped abruptly. "Why would you think that?"
"The attacker left something behind in Ami's room. Something with the Uchiha symbol on it."
There was a whistle as Ryuu sucked air unpleasantly through his teeth. "Don't be stupid. They're a part of the village. They wouldn't do that."
The red-head started to walk again, keeping a step ahead of Sakumo so they would not have to meet each other's eye. Even with Tsunade in his arms, Sakumo kept easily in step.
"No?" He prodded. "They didn't seem to like you all that much this morning. And it doesn't seem like Tobirama trusts them much either."
"Geez, why can't you just call him dad like a normal person?"
"Quit deflecting."
"You first."
Sakumo shifted Tsunade to his other hip, not all together certain how much the toddler could understand. Leaning in closer to Ryuu, he whispered. "If the Uchiha were involved, why would your dad try to keep it secret?"
"He wouldn't. Dad doesn't hide stuff." Sakumo levelled his cousin a look. Ryuu ran a hand through his hair, eyes looking everywhere but at his cousin. "Seriously! He wouldn't. And even if he did, I'm sure he's got a really good reason. He doesn't like all this distrust between us and the Uchiha."
"So, it's not just Tobirama who doesn't trust them?"
"I don't know, Sakumo. This all started before I was born."
"Listen, everyone knows the Senju and Uchiha were enemies before the village was founded. Then all of a sudden, they're friends. Now we're enemies again? What happened in between?"
Ryuu shrugged. "Madara, I guess. He didn't like that the village chose Dad to lead and not him. Guess he didn't like that the Uchiha didn't fight for him either. From what I heard, it led to a pretty big fight between Dad and him. Nobody ever talks about it though."
Sakumo thought on this for a moment. "Did Madara have any scars?"
"What I just say? He died before I was born. How would I know?"
"I just think—"
The light from Ami's room glowed at the end of the hall, illuminating the silhouettes of two unfamiliar shinobi. For just a little while, he had been able to forget the terrible sight that lay cold and alone within. How could he be so cruel as to forget—after everything the little dog had done for him.
The cold hand returned to tightly grip his heart, hitching his breath. He couldn't go in there.
"Mo-mo?" A quiet, confused whisper. A small hand, grabbing and releasing his hair in a soothing rhythm. He tried to take in a deep breath, but it rattled weakly in his chest. He had to bring Tsunade inside. To keep her safe.
Ami sat shivering under a blanket in the corner of the room with Koharu mixing a terrible smelling draft beside her. Sakumo blinked, confused. Koharu was away on a mission. The lookalike brushed a gold strand from her face and he realized—not Koharu—her sister, the medic.
Sakumo tried again to take in another, deeper breath. He wished it was Koharu. There was something comforting in seeing her bold, indominable stance—it wasn't warm, but it was reassuring.
Ryuu moved to Ami's side, sitting shoulder to shoulder with her on the tatami mat. Sakumo watched them as if from a great distance, feeling all together too far away to care.
"Where's Tomo?" He asked, seeing no sign of the loyal little dog anywhere.
"The dog?" Koharu's sister looked up, still mixing the horrible-smelling concoction. "I had them wrap it up and take it outside. It was scaring my patient."
Ami would not meet his eye, her attention fully focused on the grain of the floor, her body half-swallowed in an enormous blanket. Sakumo looked away guiltily, he didn't want to make her feel he was accusing her of anything. Gently, he set Tsunade down on the tatami mat. With great reluctance, she released his hair, her eyes already half-lidded with sleep.
He made for the door, before Koharu's sister sharply caught him in the back. "Where do you think you're going? We have strict orders from the Hokage to keep you here until it is safe."
"I can't leave Tomo alone out there." Sakumo snapped. The civilian, he was sure he could handle, he wasn't so sure about the shinobi standing guard outside.
Koharu's sister sighed, her gold eyes softening in a way Koharu's never would. "There is nothing you can do for him tonight. It is late and you are all exhausted. Things can be taken care of in the morning."
Sakumo glanced back to the door, sensing the two guards shifting just beyond, fully prepared to take him on in an instant.
Gritting his teeth, he let Koharu's sister lead him towards the exhausted looking lot all curled together like a litter of puppies on the tatami mat. Ryuu moved closer to Ami, giving him room to settle between him and the passed-out Tsunade. Too tired to care, he curled into the space, Tsunade's low toddler mumblings a comforting lullaby as he pretended to close his eyes.
AbAbAbAbAbAb
Tobirama left the hospital before the first rays of dawn. Overcome with exhaustion and tightly-wound nerves, he felt flung back into his childhood; enemies everywhere you looked, attacked the moment you let down your guard, no sense of who to trust.
He looked down at his hands, still covered in Kaede's blood. Was this all he and Hashirama had worked for? Just a moment of quiet respite before returning to howling war? Growling at himself, he rubbed his hands desperately against his pants—knowing full-well dried blood did not simply wipe off.
The blood had never bothered him before—It had never been something he couldn't simply wash away with a hot bath—not until it was Yuri's blood. Then it had felt almost burned into his skin.
He should return to the compound. Listen to Kagami's report, check in with the Inuzuka squad's findings, face Mito and tell her had failed her once again. In this moment, he found his usual steadiness break, allowing his doubt and loathing to seep in from the cracks. It made his steps feel heavy, when he knew he could be quick; his thoughts slow, where he knew he should be sharp.
With a detached resignation, Tobirama realized he had allowed himself to wander into the cemetery. It was a part of the village he had largely left ignored, allowing more of his brother's style of wilderness seep into the once little corner. Despite the infancy of the village, the graves numbered far more than he cared for.
He knew precisely where she lay, still he hesitated at the edge of the graves. There was something distracting, something calling him to the edge of the river that lay just a little past the border of trees.
A familiar chakra pulled at his senses. The boy, he realized. He had been searching for him and not even realized—an unbreakable habit he had since childhood. Butsuma scolded him for the waste of chakra, went so far as to try and beat it out of him, but reaching out his senses to find his brothers had felt as natural as breathing. To stop, just as painful.
He gazed over the graves before realizing his hesitation with a growl of disgust. Yuri could wait just a little longer.
Tobirama found the boy sitting beneath an oak leaned heavily to one side, its branches lazily dipping in the water. Sakumo sat up straight, his back to the trunk, arms gently holding a bundle of blankets.
Tomo. Tobirama realized with a sigh.
The boy's eyes remained downcast even as Tobirama lowered to a crouch in front of him, with hands deceptively relaxed on his knees and back exposed.
Tobirama glanced at the blue blanket in his son's lap, so transfixed by the stillness, he hadn't realized he'd begun to speak. "Tomo was a gift from my mother. She thought I was overexerting myself, using too much of my chakra to keep track of my brothers. She thought I wouldn't do it so much if I had someone else who could help keep track of them for me."
For a moment, he thought the boy would be stubborn, but then he caught the faint sound of shuddering breath. The boy was fighting to steady his voice.
"I didn't know you had other brothers."
Tobirama's fingers flexed against his knees. "Not many do. They died children."
Sakumo stroked the wrapped bundle, fingers running slowly across the blanket. A memory startled him as he watched; lying exhausted and broken in a sick-bed, in his brief moments of awareness, he'd watch Kana hold the little dog close, whispering sweet nothings in Tomo's ear, too shy he knew, to whisper them to him.
"How did they die?"
"In battle." The naturalist of deaths for a shinobi.
Sakumo's expression did not change, flat and unfathomable as staring down into a great, dark pit. "Do you ever wonder why you survived and they did not? What's so special about you?"
Tobirama finished the thought in his head. Why am I here and they are not?
It was more of a feeling, a sense of the familiar that gave Tobirama an inkling into the boy's thoughts, a certainty that they had turned as dark and unrelenting as his own. Watching Sakumo sink beneath the inky blackness of his grief, a tormenting sense of guilt washed over him. Had he done this to his own child? Written his misery into Sakumo's very bone?
Tobirama's chest tightened, seeing the little bundle wrapped in Sakumo's arms, cradled as preciously as a babe. He'd made certain Yuri held their child close to her breast, together in the little coffin, far out of his reach. Not for long, he had promised them.
Bile rose in his throat at the thought of Sakumo's pain leading him down the same dark path. Pushing him into battles he had no will to win; dangers he had no desire to overcome; enemies no longer worth the challenge.
"Tomo's death was not your fault."
"I sent him to track down the scarred-face man. If I had just gone myself, Tomo would still be here."
"But you would not."
Sakumo's laugh was mirthless. "So?"
"So?" Tobirama repeated, staring down at the unruly mess of white hair. "That would've destroyed me."
The boy's breathing hitched. Slowly, his head rises to look up at Tobirama, eyes red-rimmed and altogether too wary of him.
"But maybe it would've been easier—maybe the scarred-faced bastard wouldn't have come after anyone else if he'd just managed to kill me the first time."
"Enough." Tobirama's voice cracked across the water. There is the urge to yell—to command. To stand up and drag the boy by the collar away from the dark thoughts churning at the river bank. To make him understand that he is loved and precious to him and that his patience is at an end.
"I told you once, I had no intention of meeting your expectations of a father. But never was it my intention to make you possibly believe this world would be better without you in it."
Sakumo's mouth fell slightly open; a vulnerable child that deserved a mother to hold him, a father to protect him. Tobirama grimaced passing his palm across his chin; he was not what Sakumo deserved, but he would have to do.
Slowly, Tobirama rose to his full height, the dawn breaking across his back. Sakumo's flint eyes followed the motion, blinking against the light, but still stubbornly remaining seated.
"Is it so beneath you to explain yourself?" Yuri had demanded, gown torn and cheeks dirty, but oh so resolute. "Why should I have to guess if you love me?"
"We all know Hiruzen is your favorite," Koharu shrugged trying to appear indifferent even as her chin dropped to hide its tremble.
Tobirama raised his eyes to the heavens; taking in a deep breath, giving himself a moment to summon his patience. When would he learn from all these mistakes?
Tobirama's attention remained fixed on the horizon as he began to speak. "Sakumo, we have known each other a short time. I am sure I have appeared to you an obstacle to overcome, rather than any kind of ally."
It could have been a sniffle coming from the boy, the paranoid side of Tobirama suspects it more likely a snort; still, he continued. "And certainly, I have done little to resemble a father. Losing Tomo today has made me realize there are a great deal of changes I need to make between us."
Sakumo's mouth pulled thoughtfully in a line, considering each word, dissecting each sentence for a trap. Tobirama grimaced—he was seeing far too much of himself in the boy.
"Does this mean you'll stop treating me like a kid?"
It was Tobirama's turn to snort as he held out a hand for the boy to take. "Hardly. But I will stop treating you as a subordinate."
Sakumo's nose twitched, deliberating with himself. Slowly, he shifted the bundle into one arm before accepting Tobirama's offered hand. "If I'm not your subordinate, then what am I supposed to be?"
It was a strange instinct that overcame Tobirama, his hand releasing the boy's, only to raise it to ruffle the messy white hair, a perfect replication of his own. It hurt more than he was willing to admit, the boy didn't already know the answer.