Madara senses their chakra hurtling towards him long before he sees the elder four of Joe's Kids. Are they all sensory types or something?
Sazanka arrives first. He does not look much different to how he did a year ago, except for being taller. He still wears his red hair long and loose, but it looks as if it has been trimmed recently. Sazanka throws himself on Madara so enthusiastically that Madara nearly falls over. But, Madara is Madara, and he catches the boy before that happens.
"Hey brat," says Madara.
"We've been waiting forever!" Sazanka cries, tears and snot running down his face. "What took you so long, huh?!"
At that moment, Tachibana and Lucy arrive. Lucy is much bigger, and she is wearing a smart jacket with the Uzumaki symbol, and a Leaf Headband instead of a collar. Tachibana also still has his hair long, but now it is tied back in a low ponytail, with the first few centimeters wrapped in blue cloth. He has a Leaf Forehead Protector tied around his eyes rather than his forehead, which is where it is supposed to go.
Tachibana barrels into Madara, and Madara has a hard time keeping his feet. Tachibana is a lot taller and stronger than he was a year ago. "It's about time you got back," says Tachibana, his lip trembling in his effort to hold back tears.
"Congratulations on graduating," says Madara, patting Tachibana's head.
"I'm not a kid anymore," says Tachi, sticking his lip out in a very childish pout and trying to brush Madara's hand away.
"UNCLE MADARA!" Sekitei leaps down from a nearby rooftop and attaches herself to Madara's back. "Where did you go? Did you miss me? Did you? HUH?!"
"Yes," says Madara, reaching over his shoulder and pulling Sekitei over where he can see her. Aside from being taller, she's grown her hair longer and now wears it exactly the way Tsunade does. Madara frowns as he notices something. "Are you wearing Sasuke's old clothes?"
"Yup," says Sekitei, grinning. "No one minds if any of the five of us wear the Uchiha crest, cause technically we're still under your care - and the Hokage's, and he's head of the Uchiha clan - so we are technically wards of the Uchiha Clan, so we can wear the Uchiha crest if we want, so I do. Plus, Sasuke keeps giving me her old clothes, so I might as well wear them."
"I see," says Madara gravely. He is a little surprised that the Hokage didn't send the brats to the orphanage while he was gone.
"Tachi still says that," says Sekitei. "And he's still blind as a bat. He graduated and he's got Hana Inuzuka as his jounin and Burifu and Kimiko as his team mates. Sazanka and Yatsude are in the first year ninja class and they have Iruka sensei as their teacher and Sazanka takes medical ninjutsu classes and Shisui lives next door to us now to keep an eye on us and Ajisai is at his house instead of Mikoto's day care today - usually Ajisai and Karasu both go to daycare so Shisui can have a break and train - and he helps Tachi train cause they're both blind (and how come Shisui still has a blue mustache, someone told me it was supposed to disappear but it never did) and I'm really good at pranks now (the Hokage says I'd be good at infiltration and espionage tactics - it took me a week to learn to say that properly - so that's what I'm gonna do). Iruka sensei and Mei-sama had a baby boy, but now she's already pregnant with twins again, and don't tell them but I think Joe might be behind it and I wanna see how long it takes them to figure it out. Kushina san is having another baby too, but she planned that one - it's gonna be a girl and Naruto's super happy. Menma doesn't care cause he sleeps all the time. Shisui and Itachi started planning their wedding 'cause Itachi wants to get married already and the Hokage finally agreed they are old enough, and...and…"
"I think you covered everything, chatterbox," says Sazanka.
"Hee," Sekitei blushes and grins.
Madara sets her back on the ground. "Sounds like I missed a lot of drama," he says and pats her hair. Then he sees Yatsude standing a little way off, glaring at him. Yatsude is dressed identically to his twin, but his hair is still short.
"I thought you weren't coming back, Madara!" says Yatsude.
Madara crosses his arms and says, with all the gravity he can muster, "I pinky promised, didn't I?"
Yatsude's face crumples up, and he runs to Madara and throws his arms around him. He cries more enthusiastically than his twin did. If Madara's jacket wasn't already very stained, he'd be annoyed.
Sasuke skim-reads the document in her hand and places it on the 'Kakashi can deal with this' pile. It's getting to be quite a large pile. She reads the next document and laughs.
Fugaku looks up from the paperwork he is doing and raises an eyebrow at Sasuke, who is sitting on his Hokage desk sorting his paperwork for him. "I don't like the sound of that laugh," he says. "What's tickled your funny bone this time?"
"Listen to this," says Sasuke, smothering her giggles. "Lord Hokage, I am writing to you directly because the principal at the Academy wouldn't listen. I demand to know why that forest brat, Burifu Uzumaki, who isn't even from the Hidden Leaf, was allowed to graduate before she was legally old enough. My precious son wasn't allowed, and he's the same age as that muddy child. My precious boy says that girl is stupid, and can barely read - but my baby is top of his class, and he deserves to graduate early, not that half wild brat." Sasuke stops reading to laugh harder.
"If that's how you feel about it, Sasuke, you should reply to that woman," says Kakashi sensei, who is sorting a separate pile of paperwork into two piles stuff for him to deal with as the Hokage's right hand man, and stuff for the Hokage himself.
"Oh yes, let her have it," says Fugaku. It's not the first time that they have let Sasuke reply to such a letter. Sasuke started helping her Dad and Kakashi with the paperwork a few months back, when she realized that if they get through it faster, they have more time to help her train. Training with her Dad and Kakashi is no substitute for training with Madara sensei, but Sasuke has developed a few cool new chidori moves. "Remember, be rude as professionally as you can - you're pretending to be me, after all."
Grinning, Sasuke grabs a pen and paper and replies, "Dear Madam, while I am sure your precious baby is the smartest in his class, he is still too young to graduate. Burifu was granted an exception because she is the leader of a cult that worships a shinigami. Not to mention the fact she is no precious baby, and is already nearly chunin level." Sasuke reads out her letter to her father and Kakashi.
"That woman will still complain," says Kakashi. "She'll want to speak to the shinigami."
Sasuke shrugs. "Her funeral. Here, Dad, it's ready for you to stamp."
Fugaku stamps the letter and hands Sasuke an envelope. "Add it to the pile of things in need of delivery."
Sasuke dumps the letter in the pile, and accidentally knocks half of her pile of paperwork off the desk with her sleeve. "Dammit," she mutters. Ever since she had a growth spurt, she started wearing different clothes, and the sleeves are taking a while to master. She is wearing a loose white shirt with loose, long sleeves, black pants, black sandals and a large piece of blue cloth wrapped around her waist and held in place by a utility belt. All the loose, flowy fabric has a habit of knocking over her father's paper-work, but it looks damn cool when she kicks people in the face, or slices enemies with her sword (which she uses now, usually coated in lightning).
"Again? Really?" sighs Fugaku.
At that moment, someone knocks on the Hokage's office door. "Enter!" calls Fugaku.
In walks Madara Uchiha, with one Uzumaki twin hanging on each hand, Sekitei clinging to his back like a monkey, and Tachibana helping Lucy get under Madara's feet. Madara looks a little bit like a homeless man, and smells a little bit like he needs a shower.
"Ah, Madara," says Fugaku, without batting an eyelash. "How was your holiday?"
"Hokage," says Madara, carefully not answering the question. "I see you've been training."
"I have indeed," says Fugaku. "I have gotten stronger since we crossed blades. Unfortunately my paperwork keeps me too busy to train as much as I want to."
"Yeah, I'm nearly as strong as Dad already," says Sasuke.
"Nonsense," says Fugaku. "You are already stronger."
"No she's not," says Kakashi. "She still has a way to go."
"Not this again," Sasuke rolls her eyes."Are you gonna stay this time, Uncle Madara? I need someone to train with who actually knows what he's doing."
"Hey!" Kakashi and Fugaku protest, turning to glare at Sasuke.
"Yes," says Madara. "I am here to stay." he frees one hand and reaches into his jacket. "I don't suppose this is still valid?" he asks, holding out a scroll to Fugaku. Sasuke recognizes it as the scroll they wrote Naruto's plan on a year ago.
"Yes of course," says Fugaku, taking the scroll. He places it on his desk, and opens the top drawer on his right. Then he pulls out a ninja registration form and a Leaf forehead protector. "I've been keeping these for you. Just sign the bottom of that form, then we'll take your photo and the forehead protector is yours. Of course, as a regular Leaf shinobi you'll have to either take missions or teach at the Academy. It's up to you." He reaches into the drawer again and drops a stack of papers beside the registration form. "It's a good thing you brought those four with you," Fugaku adds. "They'll need to sign these as well, to say they consent to you adopting them."