Madara considered himself lucky that he had only moved twice in his life.
The first time he had moved had been when he had moved from his parents' house into his cheap, one bedroom apartment on the edge of town. It had been shortly after he began to work at the Uchiha MC's mechanics shop and after he had earned his first few paychecks. He had lived there for a handful of years until he had finally become a patched in member of the club and had been able to pay off his first set of student loans using money he earned taking jobs for the club.
He distinctly remembered how all of the belongings from his and Izuna's room at his parents' home had fit into just a handful of boxes and a few garbage bags.
The second time he had moved, it was into the house he had lived in for the past fifteen years. He could remember that, even then, he had been able to move all of his belongings in just three trips with his truck, the last two trips having been just his bulky furniture.
Madara considered himself lucky that he only had to move twice. More so now than ever as him and Sakura worked to unload his truck and her jeep, both loaded down with her belongings, for the fourth time that week.
For the life of him, he could not wrap his mind around how his old lady had packed so much stuff into her one bedroom apartment. It had taken two whole days just to box up all of her things and, even though they had gotten distracted a number of times, it had taken an absurd amount of time to pack all of her belongings.
Grabbing the final box from the bed of his truck, Madara carried in the container of what he assumed was more books into their house. After closing the bed to his truck and checking the back of her jeep for any remaining things, Sakura followed behind, shutting and locking the front door with soft clicks. Both of them maneuvered around the boxes and bags that lined the hallway leading into the crowded living room, careful not to trip over the stacks that had become more and more haphazard as they had quickly become impatient with the process of moving.
After dumping the final box on top of one of the many stacks near the kitchen, he wearily made his way to the couch. He moved one of her bags of clothes from the couch to the floor before flopping down onto the couch with a groan. Leaning his head back against the cushions and closing his eyes, he felt as Sakura settled down next to him.
"I can't believe we're finally done," she sighed dramatically as she laid out across the couch, kicking off her boots on the floor next to them.
"Have you seen this mess?" he laughed, not even opening his eyes, "We have to unpack all of this still."
"But that will be the fun part!" Sakura asserted, resting her feet in his lap.
"Where do we even start?" he thought aloud as he grasped her foot, absentmindedly massaging the soles of her foot and drawing a sigh of contentment from his lover.
"Hmm… The bathroom? At least it'll be the fastest," she suggested, Madara humming in response.
Madara's eyes finally slid open as he raised his head to look out at the boxes and bags that surrounded them both. "I had no idea that you had so many things in your apartment. Do you ever throw anything away?"
"Shush you! You never know when something is going to be useful!" Sakura argued back, poking him in the side with her toe.
"Even that blood splattered dress in the back of your closet?" he teased, tickling the arch of her foot in retribution and making her jolt back with a squeak.
"Hey, that was the dress I was wearing when we first met. I couldn't bring myself to throw it away," she grumbled, returning her feet to his lap so he could resume his attentions.
"I know, love, I'm just teasing. How could I ever forget that dress when it was the one you wore on that day," Madara chuckled, tilting his head to level her with a smouldering look, "I'll still never forget the sight of it bunched up around your waist. Or those little lacy panties you wore..."
"You ruined those panties I'll have you know."
"A worthwhile sacrifice to get to what was beneath."
Sakura laughed aloud as she settled back against the cushions, tucking a throw pillow beneath her head as he worked to massage the tension from her sore feet.
"I suppose that there are some things I could do to let go of…" she finally sighed in agreement, "I just struggle to throw things out sometimes. When I was living by myself, working and going to school at the same time, money was tough to come by. I held onto whatever I could because it was safer than maybe needing it in the future and not having the money to afford it."
Madara ran his hands up Sakura's calves in comfort, drawing her attention back to him. When their eyes met, he assured, "I promise you that we'll never struggle like that. I'll always be here and we'll work together to make a life where you'll never have to want for anything."
Sakura's returning smile was bright and warm.
"I believe you," she replied in a heartfelt tone before tacking on with a serious expression, "I'm not getting rid of any of my books though."
Madara laughed. "I wouldn't dream of it."
The lovers settled back against the couch, Madara once again beginning his gentle massage of Sakura's feet. She sighed in contentment before stretching out, her hands reaching far behind her and the edge of her shirt lifting to reveal a thin strip of skin, the tattoo of a cherry blossom on her hip peeking out. She relaxed back against the cushions contentedly, folding her hands behind her head.
Sakura hummed in thought, her gaze lingering on the stack of boxes that contained the majority of her books.
"What are you thinking?" he asked as he watched her eyes flick up to the handful of bookshelves already loaded the the brim with his own collection.
"We're going to need more bookshelves," she commented offhandedly, a thoughtful expression on her face.
At hearing Sakura's words, a sudden joy spread throughout Madara, a warmth and an excitement that tingled in his chest. As he gazed at her profile, a smile spread across his lips, unable to be contained in the face of the sense of bliss that had enveloped him. The silence stretched between them and, as if feeling his eyes on her, she turned her head to face him. She blinked at his contented smile before an embarrassed half smile of her own formed in response.
"What?" she prompted, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear.
"Say that again," Madara replied.
Sakura's eyebrows furrowed in confusion before she laughed, "What? That we're going to need more bookshelves?"
His smile only widened as he slid across the couch, settling between her thighs as he held himself above her. She readily accepted him into her embrace, her hands smoothing up his chest as her heel hooked around his knee to draw him closer.
Gazing down at her, he repeated, "Say it again."
"We need more bookshelves? Do you have a fetish I don't know about that you've decided to reveal to me now that we live together?" she teased, playfully tugging at the zippered edges of his leather cut.
Madara chuckled as he leaned down to nuzzle her neck, his hands sneaking beneath her waist to wrap around her. Her arms looped around his shoulders as he settled against her with a contented sigh, his sense of satisfaction only magnifying as she pulled him close.
"I just like hearing you say 'we'," he admitted easily, pressing a kiss to her collarbone as she began to card her fingers through his long hair.
"I love you, Dara," Sakura whispered in response, her breath warm against his hairline.
"And I love you," he returned with a smile, basking in the sense of bliss and warmth that he had never once thought he would one day feel.
For the first week that Sakura and Madara had finally begun to live together, Madara had basked in his bliss. Every day, his joy at sharing a home with the woman he loved grew. Even the struggles of having to unpack all of her belongings failed to diminish his mood, the process of integrating all of her things into his own being a task that only served to further his elatement. Seeing how her things mixed with his own showed him how their worlds were coming together and how they were well and truly beginning a life together.
The only thing that finally put a damper on his near constant state of happiness had been him beginning to notice the times that he had been unable to spend with his old lady. When she had first moved in with him, he had thought that they would be able to spend far more time together but, as the days went on, he became disappointed by the scant amount of time they actually did.
In order to make the time to actually move all of her things from her abandoned apartment to the home they now shared together, Sakura had taken nearly a week off from work - something that she had to repay in full. With her working twelve hour shifts at the hospital, and with his own work and his obligations to the club, they found little time to actually spend together aside from falling asleep, exhausted, in each others' arms at night.
While Madara found himself unendingly satisfied at never having to sleep alone again, with being able to fall asleep wrapped around the woman he loved every night, he frequently found himself discouraged when he would wake up in the mornings.
Every morning, Sakura would wake up and slip out of bed at the absurd hour of five thirty to begin to get ready for work. Before she would leave for the hospital nearly an hour later, she would always stop into their bedroom to give him a kiss goodbye. Each time he went back to bed to sleep until his own alarm, his rest would be fitful. He had quickly acclimated to sleeping together in bed and, without her there to wrap his arms around, his sleep was less than tranquil.
At first, Madara had attempted to rectify this discomfort with a few failed attempts to simply drag his old lady back into bed with him. When that course of action proved fruitless, and with him having earned more than one scolding from Sakura, he decided that he was tired of missing out on the precious little time he could be spending with the woman he loved.
When Sakura's alarm had gone off that next morning at the unholy hour of five thirty, Sakura had quickly shut off the melody from her phone and slipping out of bed. When Madara dragged himself into a sitting position, utterly addled, as he attempted to get up with her, Sakura looked to him in confusion.
"That was my alarm, Dara, yours doesn't go off for another two hours," Sakura spoke softly in the darkness of their bedroom, assuming he had thought her alarm was his own.
"I know, I know…" Madara muttered as he pawed at his nightstand, flipping on his bedside lamp and basking the room in a warm glow. He blinked against the light to try to clear his vision before grabbing his glasses and slipping them onto his face. Even with his glasses on, his vision was still bleary and he found himself struggling to not simply lie back down and go back to sleep.
How she did this every day, he would never know. He only hoped that he could acclimate to it quickly
"Are you waking up with me?" she asked, confusion and hope coloring her tone in equal measures.
His eyes finally met hers and he smiled drowsily. "I thought we could make a habit of spending a bit of time together in the mornings."
"That… That means a lot to me… I've missed spending time with you and I feel as if we haven't been able to be together much lately with me making up my hours at work," she answered sweetly, smiling brightly as she leaned over their bed to press kiss to his lips. His reaction time was sluggish in his half awake state and he hardly coordinated himself enough to meet it.
"Of course, love," was all he could come up with to say in his sleep muddled state as she pulled back and once again slid off of their bed.
As Sakura delved into their shared closet - one which was dominated by her own clothing which relegated his own wardrobe to one cramped corner - to search for an outfit to wear that day, Madara rubbed at his face, trying to fully wake himself. He finally found the energy he needed to drag himself out of bed, yawning widely as he planted his feet on the carpet. While she worked to find a matching outfit, he sluggishly trudged out of the bedroom, using her distracted state to steal away time in the bathroom to relieve himself.
By the time Sakura made her way into the bathroom, carrying a blouse and a skirt which she hooked onto the shower rod by their hangers, Madara was already brushing his teeth while simultaneously trying to keep his eyes open. The feeling of her gentle hand affectionately brushing down his back forced his eyes open once again.
As he watched Sakura smear a dollop of toothpaste onto her own brush, he found himself curious as to what her morning routine entailed when she was preparing herself for work. Even after he was finished brushing his teeth and his hair, he lingered behind to watch. At least until, after she was finished washing her face, she kicked him out of the bathroom so she could relieve herself.
Staggering into the still dark kitchen and flicking on lights as he went, Madara stopped in front of their coffee maker to begin preparing a fresh pot. Staring blearily at the bubbling coffee maker, he yawned widely once again before realizing it would be better to keep himself busy and moving if he wanted to stay awake.
Returning to their bedroom to get dressed for the day, he paused next to the bathroom and peeked in through the open door. Distracted by the sight of Sakura's reflection in the bathroom mirror as she worked to apply her makeup, he paused in his path to the bedroom. He smiled in amusement at the sight of her perched on the bathroom counter alongside her beauty supplies, perfumes, lotions, and soaps spread out across the now cramped space. Her box of makeup was open and various containers of all shapes and sizes were strewn around her, only adding to the chaos.
Leaning against the doorframe to watch her as she continued to get ready, her eyes met his in the mirror.
"I don't think I've ever watched you put on your makeup," Madara commented simply, watching curiously as she traded the container in her hands with another laid out across the counter.
"It's not much since I don't have much time but it makes me feel prettier and more confident," Sakura answered as she unscrewed the thin container in her hands and withdrew a spiral brush smeared with black pigment.
"You're always beautiful to me," Madara replied, his eyes following her hands as she swiped the brush across her eyelashes.
Sakura paused for a moment, turning to smile brightly at him. She crooked a finger at him and he readily followed, stepping forward so she could pull him into a tender kiss.
"Coffee will be ready soon," he whispered against her lips, her humming in approval.
"You spoil me," she purred in response, smoothing her hand down his bare chest. Her fingertips lingered on her favorite tattoo, his hawk, inked across his chest.
Madara smiled as he lovingly ran his hand down her side before pressing one last, lingering kiss to her lips. He pulled away, leaving so she could finish getting ready for her day and so he could get dressed.
While he stripped off his fish print pajamas and dressed in his regular attire, pulling a pair of dark wash jeans onto his hips and a black, long sleeved shirt onto his chest, he could smell as the scent of coffee drifted throughout the house. His cut remained hanging in the hallway closet, unneeded until he would finally leave the house much later that morning.
After he returned to the kitchen and poured both him and Sakura cups of coffee, mixing in just the amount of cream and sugar he knew she liked, Sakura finally emerged from the bathroom, ready for her day of work at the hospital. He greeted her with a smile as he passed her her cup of coffee, silently marveling at how his sleepy hellcat had transformed into the professional and well dressed doctor who would help save lives at the hospital that day.
Sakura accepted her cup with a returning smile, taking a slow sip as she made quick work of loading up the toaster with a couple slices of bread. Madara went to sit at their kitchen table, relaxing into his chair with his own cup of coffee, content to watch as his old lady continued preparing for her day.
Snacking on a handful of strawberries from the fridge and checking her phone for any messages that may have been left for her overnight, she filled the time it took for her breakfast to pop free from the toaster. Grabbing the toast, she smeared a layer of preserves onto both pieces before gesturing to the toaster with her knife.
"Would you like some?"
"I'll make myself something later." He gestured to the seat next to him. "Come sit with me."
Sakura took her light breakfast to their table, pushing aside some of her still unsorted kitchenware before sitting in the seat next to him. As she took a bite from her toast, Madara couldn't resist the tide of satisfaction and contentment that washed over him from being able to spend this quiet morning with Sakura.
"Izuna has been saying how he wants to come visit soon," Madara broached, "Even Obito has been hinting at wanting to stop by. I suspect he's finished his most recent borrowed book."
Sakura glanced over at the stacks of boxes and bags still dominating their living room. "We'll have to clear out more of the boxes in the living room to make room for company. And I keep telling Obito to just get a kindle but he's so opposed to the idea for some reason."
"I'm fairly certain that the majority of the boxes remaining in the living room are your books and kitchen supplies," he replied, "And I'd be willing to wager he simply appreciates having a friend to talk to about his romance novels. No one else at the club has the same appreciation for his books and he doesn't exactly have numerous friends outside of our family."
"Heh, I get the feeling not many people appreciate trashy romance novels as much as we do. Even Ino gives me slack about it." Sakura popped a strawberry into her mouth, gazing thoughtfully at the stacks of unpacked boxes. "If I stop by the furniture store on my way home today and pick up a couple more bookshelves, would you put them together for me?"
"Of course. Although I will ask that you give me executive authority on what kitchen supplies to keep and what to donate."
"A fair trade," she laughed as she plucked the final strawberry from her plate.
Madara reached beneath the table, brushing the top of his foot up her calf affectionately. "Are you working a full twelve tonight?"
Sakura nodded mournfully before releasing a weary sigh. "Yeah, the forth one in a row. Luckily tomorrow will be the last night I have to work to make up for my time off. I'll finally be back on my normal schedule from then on."
"We should go get dinner tomorrow to celebrate," he suggested, taking another drink from his coffee.
"You're just saying that since our kitchen is almost empty," she returned with a knowing look.
"That too," he admitted with a shrug.
"Tomorrow then. It'll be fun," Sakura agreed with a smile before checking the time on her phone, "I have to go though, I like getting there a bit early so I can get a head start on charting."
"How industrious of you," Madara teased lightly, watching as she stood and gathered her plate and unfinished cup of coffee.
"It makes it so I don't have to stay late to finish it," she explained as she placed her plate in the sink and transferred her unfinished cup of coffee into a travel mug.
"I'll be home later tonight. I love you," Sakura hummed as she returned to him, coffee and toast in hand.
Leaning down, she pressed her goodbye kiss to his lips, something that he enjoyed much more actually being awake to receive it.
"I love you too. Go save some lives, hellcat," Madara purred in response.
Biting into her toast to hold it in her mouth, she grabbed the keys to her jeep from the bowl on the kitchen counter. Stepping over the row of boxes in the livingroom to reach the hallway, she stopped to grab her purse and her lab coat from the coat rack next to the front door.
After maneuvering all of her supplies into her hands and opening the front door, she called out, "Just don't throw away any of my vases!" before exiting into the dim morning light.
When the front door clicked shut, Madara leaned back into his chair, taking another sip from his coffee. He listened as her jeep sprung to life and as she left before finally checking his own phone to see the time.
Only six seventeen.
He still had nearly two hours before he had to head to work at the clubhouse where he would meet Izuna and where they would continue working to rebuild a classic car for their most recent employer. A job that he found himself doing most of the manual labor for as Izuna continued in his recovery from his gunshot wound.
Feeling the beginnings of hunger building, Madara finally stood from his seat with the intention of making good use of this free time and prepare himself a decent breakfast. Stepping over a row of boxes, he stopped at his entertainment center to flip on his stereo. With the sound of a popular rock station playing in the background, he returned to the kitchen to begin cooking.
After tossing a frying pan onto the stovetop, he delved into the fridge to find the materials he needed to make himself an omelet. Setting out the ingredients on the counter, he paused as he stared at the carton of eggs cradled in his arms. He smiled as an idea occurred to him and he became all the more grateful for the sudden free time he had to enjoy.
That next morning, after he had gotten ready for the day and while Sakura sat on her usual perch on the bathroom counter applying her makeup, Madara made his way into the kitchen. Setting a frying pan onto the stovetop and pulling out the supplies he needed from the fridge, he set to work.
Sakura emerged from the hallway with a cute yawn shortly after, already dressed for work, this time in scrubs. He watched her approach with a smile and, when she tried to go to the toaster to make her usual, simple breakfast, he instead handed her a plate.
He watched as she groggily looked down at the meal he had prepared for her. A meal she had asked him to make for her the first time that she had spent the night at his home and one that he had spent the entire previous morning learning how to master: sunny side up eggs.
When a slow, sleepy smile spread across her lips, one of the cutest he had ever seen, Madara couldn't help his returning smile. She slowly set down her plate onto the counter before wrapping her arms around him from behind, pressing her cheek against his back as he continued to make their breakfast.
"I can't believe you remembered," Sakura purred against his hair.
"How could I have forgotten?" he chuckled in return, lacing their fingers together with his free hand.
Bringing her hand up to his lips, Madara pressed a kiss to her fingertips.
After Sakura had finally returned to her normal schedule at the hospital, and after Madara rearranged his own schedule to allow for more time at home with her, both of the lovers had finally put a dent into the boxes and bags that had overrun their living room. Their shared home finally began to come together, the mix of both Sakura and his things making for an entirely new home.
Sakura knelt next to the row of bookshelves which now dominated one of the walls in their living room, digging through boxes packed with her books and neatly arranging them on her bookshelves. Madara, after spreading out all of their cookware onto their kitchen counter, worked to try to organize the startlingly vast mess. A box destined for the trash, already filled with rusted, warped, or otherwise unusable equipment, already overflowed at his feet as he considered the pile with a critical, and aggravated, eye.
As Madara struggled to find a suitable location for a breadmaker, one which would not fit into any of the cabinets they owned, the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it," Sakura stated as she stood to her full height, stretching out after having been hunched over for so long, "And maybe on top of the fridge?"
Glancing up to the location she had suggested, Madara tossed the bulky piece of kitchen machinery onto the empty, makeshift shelf. He watched carefully as Sakura padded over to the front door, his mind already working to map out his quickest path to the nearest handgun he had hidden in their home.
Despite the peace he felt at home with the woman he loved, he knew better than to think that they were safe.
He watched as Sakura peeked through the peephole in the door before smiling widely. Unlocking and swinging open the door, she revealed their surprise visitors: Izuna and Obito.
"Sakura! How's the moving going?" Izuna immediately asked, greeting her with a grin.
"See for yourself," she replied, stepping to the side to open the door wider and invite them both inside.
"Good to see you," Obito greeted with a nod, following Izuna inside.
"You too, Obito. Come on in," she invited, closing and locking the door behind them.
Izuna whistled as he stepped into their living room, his eyes flicking across all of the new changes to the space he had once been more than familiar with. He nodded approvingly at her paintings which now hung on the walls, appreciating the prints of old classics.
"Wow, Sakura, great job with this place," he complimented, earning a wry stare from Madara.
"What's the supposed to mean?" the eldest Uchiha hissed from the kitchen.
"It means you have the style sense of a dead fish, brother, you always have. She actually makes this place feel like a home and not a museum," Izuna returned with a dry look.
"That's funny coming from you," Madara returned sharply before jabbing a finger in his direction, "I refuse to be judged by a man who still has the same band posters from when he was a teenager hanging on his walls."
"Just further proof of your terrible sense of style. At least one of us was born with taste that didn't revolve solely around war memorabilia and the club," Izuna taunted before turning to regard Sakura, "Part of me wishes I had gotten to see your apartment before you moved in."
Sakura shrugged. "It wasn't much different, honestly. Just different furniture."
"That's an impressive sword," Obito complimented, gesturing to the katana which hung on the wall.
"Thank you. That was actually a gift from a friend of mine when I graduated med school," she explained, the sword having been gifted to her by her friend Tenten just a couple months previous.
"A good friend to have," Obito laughed before his eye caught on Sakura's collection of books.
He made a beeline for the bookshelves half filled with her collection, considering the books already organized on the shelves and discerning where to return his own two borrowed novels. After tucking the two paperbacks onto the shelf, he brought his hand to his chin as he studied the other stories on the shelf.
"There's more in those boxes by your feet," Sakura pointed out, Obito glancing downwards at the overflowing boxes on the floor.
"And Izuna," Sakura broached as she perched on the arm of the couch, "Do you mind if I take a look at your wound while you're here?"
"Of course, Dr. Haruno," Izuna returned cheekily before lifting his shirt and allowing Sakura to investigate his injury.
She leaned down to check on the progress of his injury, her sharp gaze following the circular edges of the still reddened wound.
"Looks like you're healing up very well. Although this will leave behind a nasty scar," she commented as she sat back up, Izuna pulling down his shirt as she did.
"I wouldn't expect anything less. I'm just glad you took the stitches out last time, they itched like hell," he replied, "Speaking of, what about the next layer of stitches? Do those come out?"
"I could take them out for you if you want but I'd have to cut you open again," Sakura explained, Izuna anxiously clearing his throat in response, "I'll take that as a no then. Normally I'd use dissolving sutures for the layer I used to sew up your peritoneum but that wasn't really a choice at the time."
"Looks like you got a nice souvenir out of it," Madara commented with a smirk as he leaned against the kitchen counter.
"Oh, and speaking of a souvenir, I've been meaning to ask you: could I have the bullet?" Izuna asked before grinning, "I want to keep it as a memento."
"Don't you know better than to keep evidence around?" Madara chided with a sigh.
Sakura just laughed. "Sure, you can have it."
"Great! Where are you keeping it?" Izuna returned.
Sakura pointed at his stomach, Izuna's gaze slowly drifting downwards in confusion. "I wouldn't get into any MRIs anytime in the future."
His jaw dropped as he openly gawked at her before blurting out, "You left it in me?! Isn't that bad?"
"I'm sorry, who spent eight years in university training to become a doctor? You?" Obito scolded with a flat look from his spot digging through Sakura's half empty boxes of books.
"Yeah, yeah, my apologies for being concerned that there's still a bullet in me!" Izuna bit back, returning Obito's stare with a glare.
"Don't worry, Izuna, surgeons rarely take out the bullet when people get shot unless it's in an easy place to grab. They tend to become pretty harmless once they stop moving," Sakura explained in a placating tone, "It was more dangerous to go digging around for it in your case."
"I suppose that's kind of comforting," Izuna sighed, walking around the couch and striding into the kitchen. Stopping in front of the fridge, he helped himself to one of Madara's beers. When Madara snagged the cold brew from his hands, he huffed before grabbing another.
"Sakura," Obito began as he continued to stare into her collection of romance novels, "Which book do you suggest next? I've already returned Guilty Pleasures and Lover's Tempest."
"Did you like the one before it? Whispers of the Heart?"
"It was well written."
"Try Master's Caress, that one is written by the same author. Second shelf."
Obito nodded in response before plucking her suggestion off of the shelf, flipping the paperback over to read the summary on the back. Izuna narrowed his eyes at the image printed onto the front cover of the book: a borderline pornographic image of a gloved hand running down a naked and bound woman's chest.
"I will never understand your fixations on those trashy books," Izuna sighed, shaking his head as he popped the caps off of his and his brother's beers with a bottle opener on his keys.
"Maybe if you read something other than the backs of microwavable dinners you could learn something about pleasing a woman," Obito jeered, Izuna bristling in response.
"Oh, I'm sorry, how many partners have you had in the past year?" he mocked in return.
"I believe the question you're looking for is how many partners have I had that have bothered coming back? Maybe you should reevaluate your approach if your pride comes from the number of women you've disappointed."
Madara snorted in amusement before hiding his laughter behind his beer.
"You little-!" Izuna growled, depositing his drink onto the kitchen counter before storming out of the kitchen to advance on Obito.
"Hey!" Sakura yelled, startling the men with her fierce tone, all three Uchiha whipping around to face her, "If you want to stay for dinner, you better not mess up all of my hard work!"
"Er, yeah. Uh, sorry, Sakura," Izuna apologized, shooting one last glare at Obito which he ignored.
"Thank you for the invitation, I'd love to stay for dinner," Obito thanked, tucking his newly borrowed novel into his leather cut.
Madara smiled at his old lady, marveling at the fierce expression on her face. He was impressed with her ability to so easily corral two of the rowdiest members of his family and, not so ironically, two of his closest and most precious companions. Sakura was good not only for him but for the members of his club. She had the kindness and the strength to both care for them and keep them in line, something that was an uncommon but cherished experience for all of those who came into Sakura's life.
Both Obito and Izuna, in a silent armistice, remained calm for the rest of the night, even going as far as to refrain from their subtle jabs at each other. Instead, they happily enjoyed the free beer and - once Sakura and Madara both realized that their kitchen was in absolute disarray and unsuitable for any type of cooking and had ordered takeout - the free food.
They had all settled onto the sectional together although Obito deigned to plant himself on the couch next to Sakura while Izuna chose to seat himself next to his brother. Sakura and Madara happily sandwiched themselves between the two, all four helping themselves to the boxes of fried rice, stir fried noodles, and orange chicken laid out on the coffee table. While they all enjoyed one of the new horror flicks that had recently come out, a pirated copy gifted to Madara by Kagami, a slowly growing pile of empty beer bottles accumulated on the table alongside glass bottles of Sakura's favorite tea.
Madara felt a sense of contentment as he spent time with three of the most important people in his life: his brother, his closest friend, and his old lady. Even with Izuna, Obito, and Sakura loudly quibbling over the proper way to battle a poltergeist, he found that nothing could disturb his happiness.
When Izuna and Obito finally took off later that night, after they had polished off all of the food and all of his beer, Madara and Sakura laid out across the couch together, wrapped up in each other's arms.
"You know, you're going to be seeing a lot more of my family now with us living together," Madara commented as he ran his hand across the dip of her waist and the rise of her hip.
"I don't mind. I enjoy spending time with everyone," Sakura returned softly, happily nestled against his chest and twirling a lock of his hair between her fingertips.
"You say that now but you might change your mind when they start revealing their medical concerns to you. None of us seem to know how to make an appointment with a doctor," he laughed.
Sakura perked up from her spot laid against his chest, pushing herself onto her hands so she could look down at him with a serious expression on her face.
"I knew what I signed up for when I chose to become the doctor for the club. I'll take care of them no matter what horrible things have happened, I don't care. I won't let anyone suffer while I'm around," she asserted, unwavering in her commitment to both him and his family.
Madara smiled warmly, something he had been doing more of than ever with Sakura fully in his life, as his love for her made his heart swell. He reached up, brushing her bangs away from her eyes, before cradling her cheek.
"What I meant was that they're going to be pestering you with problems like rashes and indigestion now."
Sakura's serious expression suddenly morphed into one of surprise before she began to laugh, settling back against his chest. "I'm fine with that too. I'm basically a part of your family now and I'm happy to tend to them."
Madara happily hummed in response as he looped his arm back around her shoulders.
"Honestly, I'm more worried about you," Sakura added on with a chuckle, "You're going to be seeing much more of my friends now as well."
He couldn't help but tense in response to her revelation. "I didn't exactly make the best first impression."
She snorted in amusement. "They like you just fine. They're a big fan of your abs."
Madara just groaned in response.
Over the next couple of weeks, his predictions regarding his family members turned out to be spot on. Nearly every day, one or more of his clubmates found some reason or another to drop by their house. To Sakura's credit, she handled the barrage of complaints about strange rashes and suspicious freckles in stride, more than happy to tend to anyone who approached her with a problem.
After a long and difficult day at the clubhouse, Madara just wanted to relax.
His day had been spent both finishing up the rebuilding of the classic car by himself and then taking part in a lengthy meeting with his officers. The Senju had been making a series of very suspicious plays on the east side of town, something that could spell even more violence in the future and something that had them all on high alert. After everything that had happened at the ambush of the weapons deal between the Senju and the Fuma, after they had massacred over two dozen men and women, they were all waiting for the other shoe to drop.
After a day of nothing but stress and with the knowledge that the war was about to get much worse doing nothing to help his rising dread, Madara just wanted to relax. Once he had finally gotten home late that afternoon, and after taking a shower and changing into his pajamas for the night, he had decided to indulge in an old hobby.
Pressing the power button to his NES, he unlooped the controller and flopped down onto the couch. When the opening song for the game began to play, he felt as the troubles from the day already began to fade away, instead making room for the joy from one of his oldest hobbies.
He couldn't count how many times he had harassed Izuna into fixing his ancient system, his little brother being the one more skilled with the delicate electronics that made up his favorite gaming console. The family members that knew of his hobby had gotten together to gift him with one of the newest gaming consoles and a handful of games - some of which still remained unopened- but, no matter how many times he had tried to enjoy the newer games, he always found himself enjoying the classics far more.
As Madara fought through the first handful of levels, the game still challenging despite how many times he had beaten it and with it still living up to its title of being one of the most difficult games on the NES, he heard as Sakura's jeep pulled into their driveway. It wasn't long before the sound of her key sliding into the lock met his ears.
"Ugh, I need a shower…" Sakura grumbled as let herself in with a weary sigh, haphazardly flicking off her shoes next to the hallway closet before hooking her purse onto the coat rack.
"Long day?" Madara called out from his spot on the sectional, sitting up to peer over the back of the couch.
"Yes," she groaned as she shuffled over to press a brief kiss to his lips, "I'll be back. I really, really need a shower. I shouldn't be touching anything right now."
"Anything I should be worried about?" he questioned with a quirked eyebrow.
"You got your influenza vaccination, right?"
"You made me get it a couple months back."
"Okay, good, good," she muttered in response, blearily shuffling into the back rooms.
Shaking his head in amusement at his old lady, and knowing that she'd return soon, Madara returned to his game. It wasn't long before he heard the sound of the shower and not long after before Sakura emerged from the back room, dressed in one of his old band shirts and a pair of shorts that barely peeked out from beneath the shirt. After flicking the cotton swab she had been using to clean her ears into the kitchen trash, she settled into his lap, the scent of her floral soaps washing over him.
"Feel better?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her but still keeping his controller in his hands.
"Much. But I have to ask, what on earth is this?" she questioned as she watched the screen, unimpressed.
"What do you mean 'what is this'? This is Ninja Gaiden!" Madara returned, shocked that she didn't recognize one of the most famous games created on this system.
"This has terrible graphics…" Sakura criticized as she leaned more fully into his embrace, relaxing against his chest, "What are you even supposed to be?"
"You're a ninja named Ryu. You're avenging your murdered father but come across a person named The Jaquio who plans to take over the world by using an ancient demon."
"What system is this even?"
"It's a NES."
"What is a NES?"
"Such little respect for the classics…" Madara sighed, shaking his head.
"When I think of classics, I think of Mario and Zelda. This is just ancient," Sakura returned.
"Mario and Zelda started on this system!" he declared, "And this came out when I was ten!"
"I keep forgetting you're so old," Sakura teased with a smirk.
He nipped her shoulder in reprimand, making her squeak in surprise.
"You should try it before you go slandering it, you little witch," Madara growled playfully against her neck.
"One condition," she purred in response, turning in his lap so she could meet his eyes.
"Oh? And what would that be?"
She smirked mischievously. "You eat me out while I try it."
Madara tensed in response, his breath catching in his chest in his surprise.
Returning her sly smile with a smirk, he answered, "Absolutely."
After passing Sakura his controller, his smirk still stretched across his face, he lifted her to drop her back against the couch. She laughed as she fell backwards onto the cushions, gazing up at him with a flirty smile which she tried to hide by biting her lip.
"Well," he prompted, canting his head towards the television and the game waiting for her.
Sakura laughed before turning her attention to the controller in her hands, memorizing the layout of the buttons, before looking to the television and beginning to play. As she began to play, slowly learning which button synced to what action and seeing how the character moved in the environment on screen, he gazed down at her. He watched how her expression slowly turned into one of concentration as enemies began to appear on screen to battle the pixilated character she controlled.
Madara was impressed with how easily she picked up the mechanics of the game before chuckling as she began to take damage, her expression morphing into one of both frustration and focus.
Focus he promptly broke when he slowly ran his palms up her thighs.
Resisting the urge to chuckle when he heard the all too familiar sound of the character taking damage, he focused on his end of their little bargain. Slipping his hands beneath her top, his shirt far too large on her and pooling around her, he ran his hands across the soft skin of her sides. Lifting the edge of her shirt, his eyes settled on the delicate tattoo of a cherry blossom on her hip. He brushed his thumb across the familiar tattoo, drawing a sigh from his lover, before pushing her shirt up even farther, revealing her breasts.
Madara's hands drifted downwards, his fingertips hooking around the waistband of her shorts and her panties. She lifted her hips to more easily allow him to slip both garments off of her hips, down her thighs, and off of her feet where they fell to the ground, forgotten.
Sitting up at the edge of the couch, he gazed down at his lover, his eyes dragging down from the cute blush dusted across her cheeks as she tried to focus on the game to his controller held in her hands, from the rise of her breasts down to her toned thighs and the rosy lips between them. He could already feel himself growing hard from just the sight before him, his nude lover presented to him as she continued to play his game.
Sinking down, he pressed a kiss between Sakura's breasts, his broad hand sliding up her side. He captured one of her nipples in his mouth, running his tongue across the sensitive peak as he rolled the other between his fingertips. She released a soft breath as he delivered the same treatment to the other, this time gently nipping at the perky nub before sinking down her chest.
Kissing an unhurried line down her chest, Madara lingered on the sensitive skin of her belly. He pressed a kiss to her tattoo, his hand caressing her side and tracing the curve of her waist before sinking between her legs. He drew a line with his fingers on either side of her passage, drawing a shiver of anticipation from Sakura. Settling his fingertips against her clit, he began to draw gentle circles.
As he played with her, continuing to press kisses to the tender skin of the cradle of her hips, he noticed how her skin smelled different, somehow sweeter and all the more appealing. He briefly wondered if she had switched her soaps before her gentle moan as he increased pressure brought his wandering thoughts back to her.
Madara wondered if she would taste different too.
Continuing his line of kisses down Sakura's body, he removed his hand so he could instead sink his face between her legs. He settled her thighs across his shoulders, allowing him better access to her core, as his hands glided across her skin before gripping her hips.
When he kissed her clit, she gasped, her strong thighs tensing on either side of him. He smiled against her center, the scent of her sex washing over him and making his cock throb. Deciding he wanted to taste her more than tease her, he finally dragged his tongue across her sensitive nub.
The sounds of the character on screen taking more damage met his ears shortly followed by the all too familiar tune that played when the character died. When he gazed up at Sakura from between her thighs, he saw how her eyes were already closed, her lips parted sweetly.
"Keep going, love," Madara purred, her eyes sliding open to meet his before her cheeks flushed.
When her foggy attention returned back to the game, he returned his attention back to her center.
He lazily lapped at her clit, gradually increasing in pressure as he slowly and meticulously stoked her passion. He felt as her strong thighs parted wide for him, her hips canting to better allow him to slide his tongue against her most sensitive place.
The heady scent of Sakura's growing arousal washed over him, overwhelming him and making his head spin as he pleasured her. Her soft gasps as she arched against his mouth, silently asking for him to be rougher, sent a rush of satisfaction through him. He happily obliged her, gripping her hips in his broad hands as he ran his tongue across her clit hard.
As Madara continued his rougher treatment of her, he could hear the tune that played when the character died repeating yet again, his lover's attention having slipped away from the game and instead settling on him. Her hands slipped down her chest to tangle in his hair, dragging him closer to her center and drawing a groan from deep in his chest.
Her hips rocked against his mouth, begging him for more, making his cock ache. He continued to draw out her pleasure before finally giving her what he knew she wanted. He sealed his lips around her clit and sucked, circling his tongue around her exposed nub and making her moan aloud.
Running his tongue across Sakura's swollen clit unforgivingly, he brought her closer and closer to the edge, her thighs trembling as she ground herself against his mouth. He could feel as her finish approached, her breathy gasps filling the air as her rocking against his lips become more erratic. When her orgasm washed over her, her body trembled beneath him. Her hands tightened in his hair to an almost painful extent as she bucked against his lips, accepting his continued attentions as he pleasured her through each wave of her orgasm.
Even when she settled back against the couch, Madara followed her, drawing out her finish as far as he could. When the last lingering twitches of her pleasure subsided, he released her clit from his lips, instead sinking down to taste her slick arousal. Dragging his tongue across her now soaking opening, he greedily lapped up the product of her passion.
As he tasted her pleasure, he thought of how this arrangement of theirs had turned out in his favor. He had won on two fronts since he loved to taste Sakura's heady arousal and loved getting to see her play his game.
When Madara finally pulled back, pressing one final kiss to her hypersensitive center, he met her eyes from between her thighs. Sakura gazed down at him, dazed and flushed from her pleasure.
A sultry smile spread across her lips before she purred, "Your turn."
He met her smile with a wolfish smirk, thinking that he had absolutely come out on top in regards to their little bargain.
On one of the rare days that both Madara and Sakura had the day off from all of their commitments - from work, from the club, from errands, from all of the tasks that would separate or distract them for the day - both of the lovers decided to allow themselves a cherished lazy day. A day which, more often than not, was spent sharing a breakfast before taking a nap on the couch together and spending the rest of the morning watching Sakura's television shows. That is, if they didn't get distracted by their passion for one another and fall into each other's' arms, not to be torn apart until they were both sated and considering another nap.
Madara suspected this morning would be no different.
After dragging himself out of bed, not even bothering to change out of his pajamas, he made a quick stop in their bathroom before making his way into their kitchen. A half smile quirked at the edge of his lips as his eyes scanned across the new decorative jars that dotted the counter tops and the succulents in the kitchen window, all Sakura's touch.
Filling the coffee maker with water, he brewed himself and Sakura fresh cups, enjoying the calming smell of their morning coffee. After adding in the cream and sugar that they both liked, he took both of the steaming mugs down to the living room table. Sitting against the back of the couch with a relaxed sigh, he brought his cup to his lips, taking a slow sip.
As Madara enjoyed his morning drink, his eyes flicked across their living room, taking in how much the house that he had once lived in alone had changed; how different their home looked with Sakura's influence. He thought of how he had always considered Sakura's apartment to be the more homey of their living spaces, something that he was thrilled had transferred over when she had moved in. Even when he was alone, the house they shared felt infinitely more like home than it ever had.
Their house hadn't only changed drastically in its atmosphere, but it had undergone a dramatic shift in decoration. Many of his old war memorabilia had been relocated, instead making room for prints of classic paintings which hung on the walls. The most notable and most complimented decoration continued to be Sakura's katana which stood on display, mixed in with Madara's displaced antiques.
One section of wall had been devoted to nothing but bookshelves, their astounding collection of books quickly becoming the centerpiece of their home. Textbooks and manuals were proudly on display next to romance novels and medical journals, everything in between mixed in with their meticulously organized collection - one of the few things in their shared space that received such careful categorization.
Sakura's plush throw blankets and decorative rugs added splashes of color throughout the house that once had known little besides his club colors. Their shoes overflowed the hallway closet, a place Sakura rarely bothered to return her shoes to after work, her heels or her sneakers more often than not haphazardly kicked off next to the door.
With Sakura finally living with him, and with all of her things finally mixed in with his in loosely organized chaos, the house he had lived in for decades felt more like home than it ever had.
Basking in his sense of contentment, Madara sunk into the cushions and his warm sense of satisfaction. The last month had been absolute bliss and finally being able to spend every day with the woman he loved felt like a dream come true. Not only did her presence fill his life with joy but he felt as if he could finally protect her like he needed to.
Now that the Senju knew that they were together and that she was working as a doctor for the club, Sakura had become a target. With the war rapidly escalating between the clubs, having her not only living with him but having her so much closer to the clubhouse kept her closer to the people who could keep her safe. While he knew that his hellcat was more than capable of defending herself, he still feared for her and having her close settled his nerves.
Even more than that, Madara couldn't ignore the juvenile satisfaction he felt at so effectively infuriating her parents. Sakura had been relieved that, after she had told her mother about the good news, the elder Haruno had returned to outright ignoring her. He felt as if he should be above such childish amusement, considering he was a forty-one years old, but the fact that the people who showed so little love and respect to their daughter were so enraged sat very well with him.
He couldn't imagine his life without Sakura and he couldn't respect the people who could. Especially the people who were supposed to be her family and who were supposed to support her.
Madara never loved anyone like he loved Sakura. He had never been happier, waking up with her every morning and falling asleep with her every night. He strove to find every spare moment he could to spend time with her and relished every second he got to be with the goddess of a woman who had appeared in his life so suddenly and so forcefully.
Sakura herself sought out extra time to spend in his company, often joining him in his garage when he worked on his bike or one of his many projects. His garage, one half of which once housed his displaced truck, now contained their own combined collection of workout gear. With the garage door often swung open to allow in fresh air and to allow quick greetings to the polite neighbors, Sakura would do her exercise routine. Even once finished, she would happily plant herself in a chair she had moved out into the garage and read one of her many books.
Madara found himself picking up a surprise hobby in the surplus of time he had to himself in between Sakura leaving for work in the morning and his own commitments: cooking. It was a necessary skill with him having lived alone for the vast majority of his life but he found the activity infinitely more satisfying with a lover to please. Sakura was always thrilled when she was able to return from an arduous day of work at the hospital to a home cooked meal. She would often return the favor for him when he had to stay late at the clubhouse, something that warmed his heart as much as the hot food at the end of a cold day warmed his bones.
The surprisingly large garden that Sakura had tended to, one which had filled up the scant space on her porch, had found a home lining the concrete patio in their backyard. Her curious collection of herbs and medicinal plants added a homey touch to the mostly unused space that, until that time, only served as a place to keep the fire pit which he used to burn bloodied clothes and other incriminating evidence.
The neglected space found much more use when they found themselves enjoying training together in the soft grass, even partaking in the occasional spar – an activity that more often than not ended in sex when she teased him by calling his sensei and an activity that made him enormously grateful for the concealing wooden fence surrounding his property.
The sex. The absurd amount of sex. He had thought that, with them living together, that they would have left the honeymoon phase of their relationship. If anything, she had become more insatiable than ever, something he was glad to assist with. Whether it be in the backyard, against the washing machine in the garage, in the shower, on the floor of the kitchen, on the coffee table in the living room, against the bookshelves... At the very least, they rarely struggled to fall asleep at the end of the night after tiring each other out.
Even with the war escalating around him, and even with violence making itself more and more at home in his daily life, he had never been happier. He felt as if he had finally found who he was meant to spend the rest of his life with.
With a suddenness that jarred Madara down to his bones, Sakura's voice cried out his name from the back of the house. Her scream shattered his warm contentment in an instant, his blood running cold at the sound of fear in her voice. Panic surged through him alongside a burst of adrenaline, his mug of coffee falling from his hands and spilling across the rug as he surged to his feet in a heartbeat.
Had the Senju gotten into their house, like the night that his brothers had been murdered? Like the night he had lost Kuma and Shisa? Had someone come to hurt Sakura, to take both her and his happiness away from him as recompense for everything he had done? For the torture of that man those months ago, for the massacre of the Senju and the Fuma not long after?
He would never allow it. He would never allow anyone to be taken from him again.
Throwing the cushion off of the couch to get to the handgun beneath, Madara grabbed the pistol before vaulting over the back of the sectional and running towards the back rooms. Loading a bullet into the chamber of his gun with the decisive sound of metal sliding against metal, he threw open the door to the bathroom, his heart racing.
"What's wrong!?" Madara yelled, not finding any attackers in the bathroom with Sakura but just his old lady standing in the middle of the bathroom, tears streaming down her cheeks.
Sakura looked up at him with watery eyes, even more tears bursting free as her eyes met his. His hands shook with the adrenaline coursing through his veins, every muscle in his body still taut from the aftermath of the panic that had overwhelmed him just a moment previous. Confusion and a different kind of fear settled within him as he tried to understand why she was so upset in his panic muddled state, his heart still pounding in his chest and his breath still coming fast.
Reaching up to wipe her cheeks, Sakura took a ragged breath to try to calm herself before she finally was able to speak.
"I'm pregnant."
For a handful of heartbeats, Madara struggled to understand what she had just told him. He stared at her, baffled, as his jumbled mind sluggishly pieced together her words, processing what she had said at a snail's pace. His eyes slowly dropped down to the object in her hands: a pregnancy test. He blinked once before his gaze migrated to the other two pregnancy tests, different brands than the one in her hands, sitting on the counter.
The tension that wrought his frame slowly abated, his shoulders relaxing as his addled mind finally processed what she had told him. Although not quite fast enough to quell the fears of the woman crying in the middle of the bathroom.
"I don't know how! I-I mean, I'm on the shot, I-" Sakura stuttered through her tears, messily dropping the test in her hands onto the bathroom counter with the others – a pile of plastic that he could not tear his eyes away from.
Sakura was pregnant.
"-shouldn't have been able to! I never thought that I would get pregnant, this-"
Sakura was pregnant with his child.
"-shouldn't have happened! I-!"
Sakura was going to be a mother. He was going to be a father. Sakura was going to be the mother of his child.
Madara finally huffed out a laugh as he came back to himself, startling Sakura from her babbling. A smile stretched across his face as he shakily set his handgun down on the bathroom counter, his hand trembling for a much different reason as elation rushed through him.
He was going to be a father.
Finally tearing his eyes away from the pregnancy tests on the counter, his eyes met hers. Sakura gazed up at him, worry and hope coloring her features in equal measure. Tears stained her cheeks and her face was a blotchy red from crying but, in that moment, she was the most beautiful person he had ever laid his eyes on.
Madara reached out to her, cupping her wet cheeks in his hands. Her hands came up to grasp his forearms as he brushed his thumbs through the tear tracks, an overjoyed smile still spread across his lips. He slowly came forward to press his forehead against hers, closing his eyes for a long moment to gather himself before he opened them to gaze into her eyes.
"Marry me."
Sakura's eyes widened. "W-what?"
He kissed her deeply in response, wanting more than anything to show her in that moment that he loved her more than he had ever loved anyone. He couldn't come up with the words he needed to express to her how much she meant to him, how happy he was in that moment, and how desperately he needed her in his life for the rest of his days.
He could feel Sakura trembling as they kissed, her hands clinging to him desperately. He pulled back, unable to tear the smile from his face, as he pressed his forehead to hers again. More tears slipped free as she gazed back up at him.
"Marry me, Sakura."
Madara knew this wasn't the most romantic marriage proposal, standing in their bathroom in their pajamas with messy hair and a pile of positive pregnancy tests sitting on the counter next to a loaded handgun. While it wasn't the most romantic marriage proposal, it was one that still caused Sakura to burst into tears.
She surged forward, wrapping her arms around him and clinging to him as she began to sob. Her wet cheek pressed against his bare chest, tears streaking down his skin as she continued to bawl. He looped her arms around her, one of his hands threading into her hair as he held her close.
"Is that a yes?" he asked in amusement as she hiccuped against his chest.
"Mhmm," she whimpered, unable to form words through her tears.
Madara's arms only tightened around her at her response, a wave of bliss settling over him as he basked in the happiest moment of his life. Not only was the woman he loved, the woman who had so easily made a place in his heart and soul, pregnant with his child but she was to be his wife.
Finally, finally, finally... He would be able to have everything he had wanted so desperately, everything he had secretly dreamed of but everything he never thought he'd find. Everything he never thought he deserved.
As he held Sakura, a sudden thought had him laughing aloud, his entire body shaking with his amusement as he continued to hold his fiancée to his chest.
"What?" she sniffled in response.
"My hellcat is going to have a kitten," Madara laughed, pressing his face against the crown of her head.
"Shut up," Sakura muttered in return, nestling farther into his embrace as she fought to hold back her tears and her laughter.
A/N: Finally, after all they've gone through, they get a little slice of happiness. It's important to cherish the good times while you can. After all, you never know when they're going to end...