Time Heals All Wounds
Summary: The day Tobirama died happens earlier, during Hashirama's time as Hokage when they are at war with almost every new village but years after Madara's death. Only he didn't die. He somehow ended up in a time not his own and met a familiar face he though gone forever. Can he get back? And what of his new friend?
By the time he had his priorities straight, he was already out of the club and crossing the street, into an ally where no one can see him as he gently set Madara down and put his now green medical chakra glowing hands on the teen's stomach and tilting him to the side. He was grateful to Madara for putting his hair up as it was easier to keep out of the way when he succeeded in making the teen vomit, purging out most of the substance that had already done so much damage without whoever had put it in his drink - Tobirama was willing to bet on Konoha that it was someone paid by Asama if not Asama himself - being even aware of how much. Uncontrolled chakra could do some serious damage in one's body, which is what made the Hyuuga's technique so dangerous when they targeted chakra points.
Someone like Madara's chakra being out of control was not only dangerous for the teen himself but also for all those around him. The sheer volume of it if it were ever to get completely out of control could burn a third of the city down in seconds.
When Madara was dry-retching, Tobirama deemed his stomach clear enough and focused his chakra into healing mode, searching out the drug in Madara's blood and trying to destroy most of it. It wasn't easy. Yes, Tobirama was probably the best medic nin after Hashirama, but he didn't have his brother's instinctual ability to do it. He had studied the art long and hard and only his impeccable chakra control and sensory abilities allowed him to be as good as he was. He'd never attempted dealing with poison or drugs ingested orally and with no open wound through which to attempt and guide it out. Blood is still mostly water and Tobirama would have been able to redirect small portions of it to bring the poison/drug to the wound and then wrench it out. This was out of his league or spectrum of knowledge.
Thankfully, Madara seemed to still be a natural survivor and his chakra, while lashing out throughout his body, was still being useful. Tobirama had never felt an unconscious person's chakra burning through a harmful, foreign substance on its own. The closest he can compare it to is perhaps Hashirama's incredible healing ability or the Uzumaki's chakra-rich blood that healed them almost astronomically fast. This, though, wasn't healing. Madara's chakra was just purging its vessel from that which it deemed harmful. It was burning it out and Tobirama had the unique privilege to front row seats to 'see' how it happened. He had no doubt only the Uchiha can do it like this,as only he had the reserves and the volume for it to happen. He was just glad that not even a minute later, Madara spat out a small fireball that stank of something unpleasant with a groan and fell fully unconscious. Tobirama had to catch him before he toppled over into his own stomach acids and their light dinner.
"Well, would you look at that," he murmured to himself as he felt another shift in Madara's chakra, the patterns and fluctuations finally snapping into place. It was exactly as he had thought. A single katon - even if it had been unintentional - and Madara's chakra was finally back to how he had always known it to be. "Could have happened in a better set of circumstances, but I'm not complaining."
After checking one more time on his friend, Tobirama hauled Madara onto his back, threw the Uchiha's arms over his shoulders and got a good hold under his knees on either side of his own waist. With one cautious check to make sure no one was around to see him, the Senju jumped onto the nearest rooftop and followed the path he had mostly memorized towards Madara's parents' home. He was no Uchiha, but he was a sensor and Madara's chakra, unchecked, left a powerful trail that he could follow when he is uncertain of which way to turn. The trail won't last long - it was only because of Madara's ridiculously massive chakra reserves and its nature that it lasted this long in the first place - but he hopes it will last long enough for Tobirama to come within sensing distance of the minimal chakras of the Utahas. He wished he had had the foresight to leave a Hiraishin marker in the teen's room but he had made sure to pack all of his things into storage scrolls and had it put into the storage seal on his left arm so no one who might end up being too nosy for their own good could end up hurt or finding out Tobirama was more than he seemed.
He sighed in relief when he recognized the street of Madara's childhood home, jumping down from the rooftops and swiftly approaching the house in question. Madara seems to have developed a slight fever, though Tobirama could not check as to its cause while they traveled. Healing chakra was by nature very intense and is mostly visible to the naked eye. Something glowing jumping from roof to roof? Someone would have noticed. He knew he'd get a chance to check it out once they get into Madara's room.
He would have preferred sneaking into said room immediately - he wasn't sure as to why, but he had a feeling he could get Kurama to open the window for them even without him resorting to any shinobi tricks to get in - but he could feel that one person was still awake despite the hour and the chakra signature was one he would actually be glad for the help of. So he instead knocked lightly on the door and waited a moment as Sakura-san hurried to open the door for them. The crease of worry already present on her forehead only deepened with alarm and increased concern when she saw the state of her son.
"He's fine, mostly," he was quick to assure, even as Madara whimpered on his back for whatever reason. Probably the light in the entry hallway. "Someone seems to have spiked his drink while neither of us was looking, but I managed to make him throw it up. Whatever little managed to get into his blood stream will probably give him some problems tonight but the dosage couldn't have been that bad. He just needs rest."
The woman understood his hint and immediately ushered them into Madara's room, pulling the covers of his bed off so Tobirama could settle him there. They pulled off his shirt and shoes but left his hair loosely tied in case he needed to throw up again. The mother hurried out of the room to find a bucket or something in that case scenario, which Tobirama used to let more healing chakra into his palms. The fever was from the stress of his system from when his chakra may as well have turned into actual fire to purge the drugs out and Tobirama was relieved to note that the temperature was dropping steadily. Though opening the teen's eyes to check on his pupil nearly had him trapped in a defensive genjutsu as the Sharingan was still active. Good to know. He'll have to make sure Madara's eyes don't flutter open around Sakura-san lest she realize her son isn't exactly normal by present day standards.
He nearly jumped from the teen and into a defensive stance when he heard a vicious growl coming from the doorway. He looked over his shoulder and cursed for who knows which time that night when he saw Kurama standing there, tail raised in threat, teeth bared in promise of violence for being so near to his human when Madara was so vulnerable. The noise caused Madara to whimper again and the animal stopped growling, instead snapping its jaw at Tobirama in warning to get away lest the fox attack.
Tobirama rolled his eyes at it. "He's fine. Just an unfortunate accident at the club. Fucking Asama."
"Asama?!" Came the shocked cry from Sakura-san, who was just returning, making Madara whimper again. She immediately dropped her voice as she quietly entered the room, bringing over some sort of medicine, a couple of bottles of water for them both and the bucket Madara probably wouldn't need but was best to have at hand if his stomach gets upset again.
"I have a bad feeling it's something to do with him. The entire thing was his idea and he seemed to know most of the people at that club. It's possible he had just wanted to mess with Madara, but whoever ultimately spiked his drink went a bit overboard. Luckily, I noticed quickly enough that it seems there won't be any adverse side effects after this wears off."
What he hates most about the situation, though, is that he hadn't even noticed when someone got too close to their drinks to do something to Madara's. He was a sensor, damn it! He should have noticed! Damn the logical reason (excuses, excuses, as far as he was concerned) that these people have less chakra than the civilians of his own time and thus went about as noticed as a rock if he wasn't specifically focusing, especially in the presence of an inferno that is Madara, Madara had asked him to specifically monitor his drink! Obviously the teen knew that something like this could have happened in the club but he had trusted Tobirama to keep an eye on his drink so he could avoid this. Who knows what would have happened to the Uchiha if Tobirama hadn't been there at all. Or if he had been distracted by something. The threat obviously wouldn't have been just internal. Madara was vulnerable.
He was broken out of his rage at himself and his own stupidity for letting something like this happen when Sakura-san set a hand on his shoulder where he was kneeling by Madara's bed. "It's not your fault." And that just made him feel guiltier and all the more angry, but he was distracted by that, too, when Kurama jumped onto Madara's bed and curled by the teen's head, giving Tobirama a challenging look, as if daring him to remove the fox. Given how Madara curled into his warmth as his temperature dropped evenly but rapidly to his normal levels, the white haired man knew he wouldn't even try. The familiar companion was obviously a comfort for the Uchiha. "We can take turns," Sakura-san suddenly said, making red eyes look up towards her in surprise and confusion. "Through the night, to make sure nothing more happens."
"Ah," he said in understanding but shook his head. "It is fine, Sakura-san. I have no issue with watching him until morning. It would not be my first allnighter and ever since I've moved in with Madara, I've been getting regular sleep, something which I can't say is usually the case. I am more than fine with watching him through the night. You should get some sleep, though. You have plans for tomorrow - or, well, today already." It was well past midnight, after all. The twenty fourth of December had started a couple of hours ago.
The woman hesitated, indecisive. "It's his birthday," she blurted, though Tobirama didn't so much as blink in surprise. He knew that. He planned on getting the teen a gift as soon as he left with his mother to spend his special day with her and giving it to him when they come back. He has some raw materials, he just needs to find a silversmith somewhere. And hopefully a jeweler to cut some of the pyrope he has on hand - they're surprisingly good for breaking down for red inks for fire fuinjutsu - but he thinks he can do something about it himself if he can't cut it properly. The red color is what's important and, of course, it's meaning. 'Living fire' indeed, for Uchiha Madara. It's not like he'll be needing all that many fire seals in the future, after all.
"I know."
"He doesn't celebrate it. When he was little, his siblings often forgot about it in the Christmas rush-" 'That must be something like Winter Solstice.' "And he was too good a kid to ask for anything special. I never understood why he'd never been bothered by the so-called combo gifts for both Christmas and Christmas-time birthdays, but he'd always tell me when I asked that he only wanted his family together and happy as a present. I don't understand him, I don't understand how his siblings could so easily turn on him just because-" But the woman cut herself off before she could spill just why Madara's family situation was so strange. Tobirama frowned and Sakura-san looked away guiltily. "I just ... I just make sure every year to do something with him on his birthday. Give him his birthday gift and before we part his Christmas gift, like last year. I know it's too much to hope for it to be different this year, for us all to be family again, but ... "
"You hope anyway."
"Yeah. But he'll have you this year, too, Tobirama-kun!" She sounded both excited and as if she's comforting herself with this knowledge. "He's never had many friends. He was always so different and kids didn't seem to understand why. Hell, I don't understand why, but it had made it pretty difficult for him to have friends. He'd spent most of his childhood alone, especially after he turned eight and his siblings all decided not to call him brother anymore. He'd been lonely for a while but he'd taken it all fairly well. Eventually, he didn't even seem to care anymore. I couldn't do anything about it but he'd stopped needing me to a long time ago. He's just always been so ... special and independent."
"Hm. Hardheaded, driven, confident, talented in various things or picking them up with ease? Photographic memory and great eye-hand coordination? Stamina above average, incredible intellect?"
"Y-yeah," the woman replied and Tobirama just nodded.
"A bit loud but loves so deeply that it hurts just thinking about it? Would do anything for those he considers his own, even if they treat him like trash? Not violent unless given a good reason to be?"
"Y-yes!" The mother definitely sounded surprised someone knew her son so well. Tobirama sighed, looking (fondly, whether he would admit it or not) at his roommate. He couldn't help the way his expression gentled.
"Sounds like the Madara I know."
"You're a very good friend to him." She surprised him by bowing so low, she was actually bent a bit more than ninety degrees. "Thank you for being friends with my son, Tobirama-kun." She left with a soft 'Good night' before he could respond in any way, leaving him wondering if Madara's fierce Uchiha mother, the infamous Ryukyu-sama, would have ever thanked him - or Hashirama, as was more likely in that lifetime - for being Madara's friend or if she would threaten him - Hashirama - to treat him well or be burned by the Uchiha Dragoness.
He sighed and settled in to watch over his friend even as he pondered of what all of this will mean for Madara now that his chakra has come into its own. He'll definitely need more training, that's for sure. Tobirama wasn't certain if the teen's chakra, now the same as Madara's had been as an adult, fully mature and developed and with its incredible volume, would be a problem to control for a person who had, no matter what soul they were, spent their entire life doing nothing to hone control over it. That was a lot of power to suddenly be dropped in a kid's lap between falling unconscious and waking up the next day. The Senju cursed Utaha Asama again before falling silent and just watching over the teen in silence.
It was not an easy night. Madara would start trashing around in his bed, distressed sounds spilling from his lips as his chakra churned and lashed out, knocking things over from time to time. More than once, the teen had managed to break his hand on the headboard of his own bed before Tobirama just unsealed one of his traveling futons from a scroll and relocated the teen there. He had spent at least a total of two hours healing broken bones and new wounds made by all of the Uchiha's trashing about. He also spent at least a total of half an hour healing his own scratches, either made by a sharp whip from Madara's chakra at random points in the night or those two times the boy had managed to cut him with the fingernails of his own broken hand. Once had been across his face and the other time had been on the hand he had been just about to place over Madara's own. Neither was deep but he knew if he didn't tend to them by morning, Madara would feel extremely guilty for having hurt him even when he had not been aware of it or in any condition to control his instinctual reaction to lash out at a foreign presence near him when he was in such a vulnerable state. It would be useless to try and fight the teen on it so Tobirama tended to his own few wounds after he managed to calm Madara down and heal his broken hand.
The trashing stopped sometime at around three o'clock in the morning but he would have preferred it to the whimpers that fell from Madara's lips in their stead. Whatever he was dreaming about, if anything specific at all, was not pleasant in the least and was evidently torture to the younger male. Tobirama had had to pinch the boy several times when his distress grew great enough that he seemed ready to bite his own tongue off in an attempt to wake himself up or something. Tobirama had made sure his chakra signature was as steady as he could make it to sooth the teen but it proved to be a nearly fruitless endeavor. He learned that his presence did indeed help calm Madara down but the teen's chakra control was so shot that even whatever instinctual part of his sensory abilities that remained could not feel him close enough despite being literally seated next to the teen. Tobirama was glad he had enough reserves to keep up sending small amounts of pure chakra that had no intent nor purpose other than to allow it to be recognized and identified for several hours straight as Madara only seemed to calm down around dawn-break. His proximity was still preferred and at this point Tobirama himself was rather tired. Even if this was usually the time he'd usually be waking up for the day ahead, he found himself laying down next to the futon, a hand on Madara's hip to reassure the teen that he was not alone. Kurama, for once, made no fuss about his proximity to the fox's human and just settled against Madara's other side.
After the long, tiring night, sleep came blissfully swiftly.
(An hour or so later, Utaha Sakura poked her head in to check on them and melted at the cute scene they made. She made sure to be extra quiet so as not to disturb them since they all looked so tired and worn. It had been a rough night. They deserved their rest and seeing as her other children had only now crashed on the couch upon their return from the club, the day can still be utilized how she and Madara had planned. For now, her son seemed content to sleep between his two housemates and recover from the drug finally completely burned out of his system. She quietly closed the door and went about preparing for the day.
If she happened to take a picture or two, no one needs to know.)