The Slug Sage - Lady Sakura Uchiha

Sakura and Madara spent their first year of marriage in a manner that wasn't intended or expected. For eleven of twelve months, they didn't see each other once. They had no problems as a married couple, and both of them wanted a family one day, but children meant putting the things Sakura wanted to accomplish on the back-burner, and she wasn't ready to do so yet, despite the intense disapproval from her new clan elders.

The day Sakura departed from the village to begin her training with Lady Katsuyu was kept a secret from everyone, except Madara. All the preparations were made; Madoka was in charge at the hospital. Shouta would take on some of Sakura's work, but mainly begin research and study the medicinal herbs and about poisons. Hikari was to be given a place on a new guard unit Tobirama was in the process of forming. Tobirama was to make sure none of Sakura's standards at the hospital fell while she was away, and Madara would inform them of the day she left.

She left before dawn, and it was harder than she expected, but at the same time, she was filled with nervous determination. Madara watched her go until she was far from sight, led by Lady Katsuyuu into the forests of the world. They walked and spoke quietly about many things until Sakura started to feel like her mind was foggy. She ignored it at first, but it persisted until she realised she no longer knew where they were. The forest warped and changed around her and she felt the subtle touch of a powerful and intricate genjutsu.

"You must keep walking," Lady Katsuyuu said in her quiet voice.

She found it harder and harder to keep her chakra flow disrupted and not let the genjutsu overtake her, but it pressed in and in on her, making each step feel like she was being weighed down. Still, Sakura persisted through the building mist and forbidding forest around her. She grit her teeth and pushed forward because that was who she was and that was what she knew.

She saw things, people from the past, from her present. They called out for her, in pain, in anguish, in fear and hatred. She saw a terrible battle between Naruto and Sasuke where they both destroyed each other. But she kept walking, tears stinging at her eyes. She realised faintly that it was a test. She was being shown images of things that she was fearful of, that she longed for, that she hated, that she loved. She was being tested on her resolve, and it hurt her so much, but she kept going.

When the mist suddenly parted, and the forest suddenly disappeared around her, Sakura collapsed to her knees, gasping for breath and clutching at her chest. All the oppression of the genjutsu was gone in an instant.

"We have arrived," Lady Katsuyuu told her.

Sakura looked around, saw a forest so unlike anything she'd ever seen before. The trees were bigger than any she'd ever see before, and sunlight filtered through them, casting speckled light across the grassy ground. In the distance, she saw a rock formation, that Lady Katsuyuu informed her was the entrance to her home, and where her true form resided. Sakura made her way there, and took shelter in one of the entrances to the caves, sighing a little when she realised she was about to spend an indefinite amount of time living in a cave.

She missed Madara, and her village, Masturi, Mito, and Asami, but she didn't let it distract her.

The genjutsu forest was a test of her resolve to get there, to start learning senjutsu. But the training was far more difficult than Sakura had imagined. Sakura could hardly imagine how someone as energetic as Naruto had managed to master the stillness needed to absorb nature energy. She wasn't as energetic as him, but she definitely didn't like being still. It was only the thought that she couldn't let a moron like him show her up that kept her from giving up. She'd spent every day meditating in stillness, sitting in precarious positions on the edge of branches, on a board above a spiked canyon on stone, and remaining balanced. The first time she absorbed the nature energy, and felt the immensity of the world, she was so shocked that she lost the connection immediately.

Her training continued daily. She spent the mornings meditating and maintaining stillness, and after lunch she trained with Lady Katsuyuu and revised her medical jutsu. The evening she spent trying to connect with nature energy again. It was five months of that before she managed to hold the nature energy inside her for one minute without moving and without the energy taking her over. That was, Lady Katsuyu told her, Sakura's limit. Sakura cried out in displeasure at hearing this.

"If you wish to hold Sage Mode for longer, you will not be able to use Creation Rebirth. You will have to choose, you don't have enough chakra for both," Lady Katsuyuu told her apologetically.

Sakura was quiet and accepted it reluctantly. She was not like Hashirama with his monster charka reserves, or Naruto, with his naturally enormous chakra and the benefit of Kurama. Nor was she like the Uchiha, who possessed naturally large chakra reserves. She resolved to find a way around this, however, and forge her own path forwards like she always did. Sakura used her seal and naturally good chakra control and created a secondary pool of chakra. The theory was that she would have two chakra reserves to dip into. Lady Katsuyu was concerned that it would be too much for her, and if it overwhelmed her faculties she would have no recourse for regaining control.

"I can do it," Sakura said to her firmly. "I will do it. I'll find a way."

Sakura returned to the Land of Fire at the eleventh month, with far better chakra control, and the ability to enter Sage Mode for a minute and fifty-two seconds. She made her arrival at midnight, going directly to her home with Madara.

He met her in the village before she could get to his house, embracing her in a tight hug. They spent the night talking and touching and smiling and holding back tears of joy. Her return was long wanted and overdue, and Madara told her that he was going with her next time. No matter what. Sakura had laughed and assured him that it wasn't necessary, she wasn't going away for that long again.

Several months after she'd returned to the village, Sakura had grown frustrated with her lack of progress. Her patience was wearing thin and she was considering returning to the Shikkotsu forest. Tobirama had other ideas. He cleared four hours of his day for four months to train her, and it helped. Sakura kept focused and pushed herself, unwilling to let Tobirama look down on her at all. She pushed her time in Sage Mode to two minutes.

Sakura hadn't fully mastered her senjutsu before the Land of Fire became involved in a war between the Lands of Wind and Earth. The Land of Fire protected their borders, but when an ill-advised invasion into their land by the Land of Wind drew them out into a full battle against them, Sakura and Madara were dispatched to the frontlines. It was in that battle that Sakura made herself and her prowess known. The shinobi of Wind were not to be taken lightly. Madara had been facing off against a formidable opponent and struggling to gain the upper hand. His forces were getting injured, the medics were getting overwhelmed, and Sakura had had enough. She put guards on her body while she entered Sage Mode. The three minutes of stillness was incredibly difficult, and she only had three minutes to act. Her seal released, and created a light blue cross over her forehead, and ran down her cheeks. Her green eyes became blue.

Sakura cut through the Wind forces, elevated by her increased powers. They retreated when she took on their leader and threw him across the field of battle like he was a pebble. They left just in time to miss Sakura's transformation back. The blue faded from her face and her eyes, and the seal returned to its regular shape. The Leaf shinobi cheered for their victory, shouting her name, and the legend of Sakura Uchiha, the Slug Sage, was born.

She rarely used the power of the Sage. It was mentally and physically exhausting for her, and replenishing her chakra took time. It was something she used only in the direst of circumstances. Only once did she fight side-by-side with Hashirama, the two of them in Sage Mode, in a battle that was remembered for years to come, and for that, she commemorated in a way she never expected.

Her past and her memories called it the Valley of the End, where the final battle between Madara and Hashirama took place.

In the battle against Zetsu and the Nine-Tails, when they saved Madara, the once great lake that spanned the area had become a waterfall during the battle. Instead of the statues of Hashirama and Madara, Tobirama had commissioned the likeness of Sakura and Hashirama, and it was called The Valley of Sages.

Love and Pain - Hikari Shimura and Shouta Uchiha

Hikari slowly blinked. Her eyes were heavy and her head ached. It took a moment to adjust to the light and for her to figure out where she was. Something felt wrong. There was too much of… everything. The light, the noise, the movement. Nothing was clear. Not until she felt it.

Pain.

There was so much pain, it came to her slow and then all at once. She gasped and convulsed. The actions hurting her more. Her vision blurred, she didn't know where she hurt. She just knew she did. She could feel someone holding her down, the muffled voices around her slowly came into focus.

"Hikari, Hikari, look at me."

A stern, worried voice. Familiar white hair. It was Tobirama-sensei.

"We have to get her out of here - "

"She's going to die - "

"Don't take it out - she'll bleed out!"

"MEDIC!"

Hikari felt panic rise as her eyes clenched shut and her mouth opened in a wordless scream as another pulse of pain hit her.

"Hikari." Tobirama-sensei's giant hand wrapped around hers. "Focus on me and me alone, all right?"

His voice was like an anchor and she opened her eyes and stared at him, her body jerked, her eyes were wide. She had a sudden moment of clarity. She was dying.

"What happened?" She tried to ask, but her voice was little more than a rasp, a bloodied rasp.

He spoke, but she didn't really hear him. His mouth opened and closed and the world started to turn dark. Hikari's eyes fluttered open and shut, before she felt herself being lifted, heard the barked orders from her sensei and felt herself be pulled through space with him. Hikari saw a flash of white, of red, of blinding light and then the whole world faded to black.

Shouta thought he'd seen war. He thought he'd lived in and survived hell. He had been thinking for some time that everything he'd imagined before was wrong. The fighting between the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth was slowly becoming a conflict unlike what he'd ever seen.

The injured and dying were his company. He often worked without sleeping, running back and forth from the frontlines to the village to the medical outposts in the field. Lady Sakura was split between the village and the frontlines, going into battle when the Hokage called her. When she was gone from the village, Shouta was inside. As one of the senior medics, he was needed to ensure the communication between the hospital, the medical outposts and the frontlines were running smoothly.

So when he saw Tobirama appear in the lobby of the hospital, having used his Flying Thunder God to return, Shouta's stomach dropped. Tobirama Senju didn't leave the frontlines when the fighting was fierce - and all the reports said that it was. His voice bellowed out and around.

"MEDIC NOW!"

Shouta sprinted from down the hall towards him, noticing as Tobirama turned, he was injured and bleeding, but also that he was carrying someone, and blood was dripping to the floor creating a pool. The whole world tilted when he saw who it was. He hadn't seen or spoken to Hikari Shimura in two years. Two medics with a gurney appeared and Tobirama laid Hikari on it, before collapsing to his knees. Shouta, frozen for a moment, ran to Hikari's side. She was deathly pale, her skin cool and clammy, her heart rate low and almost gone. From her stomach protruded a broken blade.

"It's spiked, and poisoned," Tobirama said gruffly, getting to his feet, as Shouta reached for the blade. "Move it and you'll tear her open."

Shouta's eyes spun and he assessed her, calling for the medics to take her to surgery immediately, and for someone else to take care of Tobirama, who looked like he was going to pass out.

"I have to get back," he shook his head.

Shouta ignored him, seeing that Miho Izu had taken command over Tobirama and that she was strong enough to order him around.

The next few hours passed in a blur of time and Shouta could hardly recall any of it. They'd stopped the bleeding first, from Hikari's multiple wounds. She'd been caught in a blast, Tobirama told him later. They'd been ambushed, and the blast was weaponised with poison. She'd saved the life of two of their comrades, but put herself in the way. Her stomach, chest, back, and side were torn and burned. Her ribs were broken, her lung had been punctured and shards of bone were threatening to pierce her heart.

Shouta and a team of medics worked on her for three hours until she was as stable as they could get her, which was just barely alive. One of Shouta's students studied the poison in her blood as Shouta was treating her most threatening injuries. The poison was slow acting, but the longer it was in her system, the more damage it would do to her. Shouta didn't sleep for two days as he prepared an antidote, and in the breaks he took from preparing the antidote, he worked with the medics repair her bones, skin, chakra pathways, torn muscles, and organs.

They'd sent for Lady Sakura, but she'd put her trust in them, stating that there were too many wounded for her to return yet. Shouta knew it would be killing her that she wasn't there for Hikari. It wasn't until Madoka forced Shouta to go home and sleep, that after three days, Hikari was finally stable, that he finally collapsed from exhaustion.

Hikari drifted in and out of consciousness, seeing faces and hearing voices and feeling pain and relief. She was hot and cold, thirsty and sick. She had no comprehension of where she was, only that there were hands above and on her, and the people whose hands belonged too were helping her. The frenzy around her whenever she woke slowly faded until there was only one.

Hikari blinked slowly, adjusting to the dim lighting. She heard soft beeping from somewhere in the room, and vaguely recalled it was a new machine for monitoring patients in the hospital. She breathed deeply and winced when pain flooded her again, her intake of breath was sharp.

"Hikari?" A deep, masculine voice said her name gruffly. "Hika, are you awake?"

Hikari opened her eyes and looked down her body to see dark hair, pale skin, and red and black eyes staring at her. She hadn't noticed anyone else in the room and in the back of her mind, fleeting she understood that she was more out of it than she realised. Her throat was dry and her voice cracked when she said his name.

"Shouta?"

Shouta stood suddenly and leaned over her. Hikari could only blink and watch his worried face as he checked over her. He started asking her questions, and she could only answer with a nod or shake of her head.

"Here," he said, handing her a little cup of water.

She drank gratefully.

"Go back to sleep," Shouta said quietly. "You need rest."

Hikari could only answer with the closing of her eyes, and drifting off again.

Shouta had never been more relieved in his life. As Hikari slept, he treated her with chakra and increased the pain medication in her drip slightly. He looked at her sleeping face and leaned forward, brushing her hair back from her face, and kissing her lightly on her temple, feeling his eyes fill with water. He stepped back, straightened his posture and left her room. He stopped one of the genin assigned to the hospital and told him to tell Hiroko Shimura that Hikari was awake, and to get a message to Lady Sakura and Lord Tobirama, saying the same thing.

Not long after that, Shouta escaped the noise of the hospital, the people who asked him questions about things they should know the answer too and went up to the roof of the hospital. He took one of the cigarettes he rarely smoked from his pocket, and sat against the wall, taking a long drag from the smoke. It was a startling and horrible way to see a person after two years of nothing. Two years. He inhaled slowly and released it even slower, watching the smoke rise in the air, remembering the last time he saw her.

It had been her seventeenth birthday. She'd been so happy, so happy and smiling so bright and beautiful that he'd actually hurt when he looked at her. Those feelings he'd had for her, that he'd pushed down and away and ignored, were threatening to spill over. Then she'd kissed him when the night ended, and shocked, afraid, Shouta had left her, ignored her and cut her from his life.

It wasn't as hard as he'd thought it would be. She was busy becoming one of the best young shinobi in the village, Lord Tobirama's protege, part of his elite unit, learning his jutsu. He was in the greenhouses and the hospital, out of sight, and after a while, she'd stopped looking for him. Shouta snuffed out the cigarette on the ground beside him. Seeing her half-dead had been a shock and had only reinforced that he couldn't stop feeling for her, no matter how hard he tried. He didn't want it. He didn't want to know what it would feel like to have her and then lose her.

Now that she was okay, he resolved to stay away again. She didn't need someone like him. Inoyuki was always a better choice for her than him. Even Shikata was better, although Shouta knew that would never happen; if Shika had his way, he'd never be married. Too troublesome, he imagined Shikata would say.

Hikari's conditioned worsened a few days after she'd woken. She went back into surgery, and Shouta stayed by her bed. She'd woken, after hearing something, and when she realised it was him, she stayed quiet and pretended like she was still asleep.

"Hika, please…" he mumbled, sounding pained. "Don't die, don't die, please. You can't…I can't…"

It sounded like he was crying, or close to it. Hikari continued to breathe deeply, her heart starting to race. She hadn't seen him since the time she'd first woken up, and before that, not for two years, not after he'd rejected her and broken her heart. She'd worked hard, so she'd be strong enough to go back to him one day and tell him how much he hurt her and how stupid he was.

"…Please be okay….I can't lose you," Shouta murmured. "Hika, I can't lose you."

Hikari clenched her jaw, hearing enough, and feeling annoyed through the haze of pain and medication.

"You're a fool, Shouta Uchiha," she rasped.

She opened her eyes to see him looking at her with shock.

"Why did it take me almost dying for you…"

She trailed off and turned her face away, not willing to let him see the tears that were coming.

"Get out," she said in a low voice. "Just get out."

He left without a word, closing the door behind him, and she let the tears fall, wondering why she still had to love him so much.

"She's going back to the frontlines," Madoka said to Shouta.

He froze.

"What?"

He pulled his eye from the microscope and looked at Madoka.

"She's healed," Madoka shrugged. "She'll stop by Sakura's outpost before she rejoins her unit. But she's an elite. She was never going to stay here long."

Shouta looked at him in disbelief.

"She was almost dead two weeks ago," he exclaimed.

Madoka just shrugged again and ran his hand through his hair.

"She's a medic too. She knows the risks, and Sakura won't let her go until she's given the all clear, so I wouldn't be too worried about her. Hikari's strong."

Shouta knew that. She was strong, she'd always been strong. But the thought of her going send a cold spike into his heart.

"Where is she?" He asked.

"Leaving," Madoka said. "She was on her way to the gate."

Shouta shot up from his chair and left immediately, not bothering to take off his white coat or tell Madoka where he was going. He caught her at the gate. She was standing still.

"I felt you coming," she said, turning to face him, her eyes narrow. "Why are you here?"

Shouta took a moment to catch his breath.

"You need to rest. You can't go back yet."

Hikari scoffed.

"I know my limits," she said. "Besides, I'm not going there directly."

"You can't!" Shouta shouted in frustration.

"Why?" She cried back. "Just tell me, Shouta! Why don't you want me to go?!"

They stared at each other. Hikari's face pleading with him and Shouta swallowed the lump in his throat and didn't answer. She laughed, mirthlessly and it was more like a cry.

"I can't die because you don't want to lose me, I can't leave because you don't want me too."

She gripped the straps of her pack tightly.

"Why can't you just say it, Shouta? Why can't you just…" she trailed off, turning her face away.

"I'm going," she said quietly. "I have a place I'm needed, and it's not here. Goodbye, Shouta."

He reacted instinctively, reaching out for her, and wrapping his arms around her from behind, holding her tightly. She was stiff in his embrace, silent.

"If you don't have anything to say, get off," she said, her voice shaking.

"I've never been so afraid as I was when I saw you in Tobirama's arms," Shouta said quietly. "I thought you were dead, and everything turned upside down for me."

He let out a breath, squeezing her a little tighter.

"I can't let you go, no matter how much I try. I didn't want to… I didn't want to feel anything for you, but you're so damn annoying."

Hikari shifted with irritation at that, and Shouta chuckled lightly despite his nerves. Getting the words out was hard, but every word he spoke lifted some kind of pressure off his heart.

"You made me love you," he whispered. "And it terrified me because I can't lose you. So I don't want you to go, and I don't want you to die."

He glanced at her profile and saw her lips were trembling. Shouta released her.

"I - I'm sorry, for everything," he said, stepping back.

Hikari's fist clenched.

"You're so unfair," she whispered, turning around with her fist raised high and threatening. "You stupid Uchiha," she sobbed, lightly punching his chest.

She looked at him with eyes filled with a fix of longing and determination.

"I don't forgive you," she said.

He swallowed and nodded.

"I understand," he replied.

She sniffed.

"You can spend the rest of your life making it up to me," she said, turning away.

Shouta's eyes widened slightly, then his face softened into a smile.

"I'm not going to die," she said, her back to him. "I'll definitely come home."

She turned her face, and he saw her cheeks were red, and she was smiling.

"Since you finally admitted you're in love with me." Her smile turned cheeky. "I'll give you my answer when I get home."

Then she walked off and left him standing at the gate, watching her walk away.

"Same old annoying Hikari," he murmured, smiling to himself.

He scratched the back of his head and walked back to the hospital, waiting for the day he'd see her again. Hikari walked away from the village with a smile on her face, waiting for the day she'd come home and see him again.

The Uchiha Clan - The Family of the Clan Leader

Izara gripped his father's hand tightly, and Madara glanced down at him.

"Are you worried?" He asked quietly.

Izara looked up, his dark eyes wide.

"Mama is strong."

Madara nodded.

"She is," he replied.

He crouched down and looked at his eldest son. Paler than normal, with swallow skin, and constant dark bruises under his eyes. Madara knew what Izara was afraid of, and he was afraid of it too.

"Everything is going to be okay," he said, as reassuringly as he could.

Izara looked unconvinced, but gave a small smile and let out a little breath.

"Mama is strong," he repeated.

Madara patted his head and stood again, keeping hold of Izara's hand.

"Uncle Madara! Izara!" Kagami Uchiha called from down the hall and ran up to them.

"Don't run in the hospital Kagami!" Matsuri called after her son.

Madara felt a wave of relief wash over him at seeing her. Kagami beamed at them both.

"Is it happening? Is it finished?" He asked.

"Not yet," Izara answered, smiling happily at Kagami, who was like an older brother to him.

Madara didn't miss how perceptive the ten-year-old Kagami was. He saw the boy glance at how tightly Izara held onto his hand and then ruffled Izara's hair.

"Uncle Madara, is it okay if I take Izara for a walk to find Shouta?" Kagami asked.

Madara nodded.

"But Mama…" Izara looked uncertain.

"I'll send Sakiko to fetch you both when it's time, all right?" Matsuri told them.

Izara looked up at Madara for confirmation and Madara nodded to him.

"Know your limits, Izara, but enjoy yourself," he said.

"Yes, Papa," Izara responded.

Kagami grinned at Izara.

"Come on, Turtle. Get on," he said, crouching down and turning so Izara could climb onto Kagami's back.

Izara did so happily and Kagami ran off.

"I just said no running!" Matsuri cried out in fond exasperation.

"Boys," Sakiko muttered, sounding scarily like her mother.

"You finally arrived," Madara said to Matsuri.

"I had to pick them up from the Academy first. How long has it been?" She asked.

"Six hours," Madara sighed, feeling helpless.

Sakiko looked between her mother and Uncle.

"What's happening?" She asked, frowning. "Where's Aunty Sakura?"

"Having her babies, remember?" Matsuri said.

Sakiko, who was a miniature of her mother, nodded.

"I remember. Twins. Two babies. It's special."

"It is," Matsuri agreed. "Can you fetch us some water?" She asked.

Sakiko pursed her lips.

"If you want to do grown-up talk you can just tell me to go away," she said.

Matsuri raised a questioning eyebrow at Sakiko, who sighed and gave in.

"Fine. I'll get your water."

Madara watched the seven-year-old walk off.

"She's just like you," he said.

"Scary, isn't it?" Matsuri replied with a smile. "So, how is Izara?"

Madara grimaced.

"He's doing fine," he said gruffly. "He's worried the babies will be like him."

Matsuri gave him a pitying smile.

"He's a good-hearted boy."

Madara had to agree, Izara was far kinder than any other child he knew of.

"Sakura's been working herself ragged to find a way to help him," he said, a touch of sadness and concern in his voice.

"I know," Matsuri replied quietly. "Sometimes there's just nothing you can do."

Madara clenched his jaw. He knew that, rationally, but emotionally his body burned with regret and frustration. Their firstborn son, Izara, was sickly, with a weak heart and it took four years for Sakura to finally face the fact that there wasn't any way to cure him. It was inborn and connected with other smaller issues that affected Izara, like his underdeveloped lungs, and smaller than average frame. Even Sakura's knowledge of medical procedures not even invented yet hadn't helped her. She'd laid awake at night crying, and feeling like a failure of a mother and a doctor for her inability to even cure her own son's afflictions.

At any point in his life, before he'd met Sakura, Madara knew full-well that he likely would have put the child out of its misery the moment its condition had been revealed. But he couldn't do that to Sakura, nor he discovered, to Izara. His son was still his son. Izara would never be a shinobi or lead the clan, but as Sakura said to him:

"He will always be the son of Madara and Sakura. He's an Uchiha, and that is something."

When Madara finally understood what she meant, and how he truly felt about his son, he was ashamed at even considering the possibility of disposing of him. Madara could no longer imagine Izara not existing, and now they were about to be blessed with two new children. Twins. Sakiko returned with two cups of water in her hands.

"Uncle Madara, guess what. I'm getting almost as good as Kaga with my shuriken jutsu," she said proudly as she handed over the water to him.

"Indeed?" Madara asked. "That is impressive."

"Yeah," Sakiko grinned. "But you know, I think I want to be a medic."

"A medic?" Matsuri asked, surprised. "When did you decide that?"

Sakiko frowned in thought.

"I don't know exactly, but I decided that if Kagami's going to be a better shinobi than Uncle Madara, I'm going to surpass Aunty Sakura. Kagami thinks he's sooo much better just because he's a boy and he's older, but I think Aunty Sakura's the best. She's a Sage."

Sakiko looked at Madara with narrowed eyes.

"Sages are way better than normal shinobi. Lord Hokage and Aunty Sakura are the strongest."

Matsuri grinned at her daughter and then at Madara.

"Sounds about right, Madara."

Madara scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Think what you will, Miniature Suri. You'll never surpass Sakura."

"I will so!" Sakiko pouted, clenching her fists by her side. "And don't call me Miniature Suri. I'm Sakiko."

"I'll call you what I like, Mini Suri."

Sakiko started to go red with anger while Matsuri just laughed. Madara pretended to be serious, but he was enjoying teasing her.

"Lord Madara!"

There was a call from down the hall. Madara immediately left Matsuri and Sakiko behind.

"What is it?" He asked.

The doctor smiled.

"She's asking for you."

Madara paused. Behind him, Matsuri told Sakiko to go find Izara and Kagami.

"Are you ready?" Matsuri asked him, patting his back. "You're going to be a father again."

Madara nodded.

"Thank you," he suddenly said, causing Matsuri to look at him suspiciously. "For being here, for Izara."

Matsuri smiled.

"Go see Sakura," she said. "I'll bring him in after you have some time together."

With that, Madara walked swiftly down the corridor to the room where Sakura now resided. She looked over at him, exhaustion on her face, but a peaceful and happy smile on her lips.

"Madara," she said quietly. "Come meet our son and daughter."

Madara closed the door quietly behind him, his heart pumping rapidly in anticipation and joy. He walked to the bed and kissed her on the forehead, before glancing down at the two swaddled babies in her arms. He looked at them, so small, so red, and smiled. He took the one closest to him, giving Sakura a break and held the baby in his arms.

"That's the boy," Sakura whispered.

He had a tuft of black hair on his head and smacked his lips sleepily. Madara looked at Sakura, who was looking down at their daughter, her finger lightly poking the tiny nose, and pressing the lips. Madara sat on the bed.

"Where's Izara?" Sakura asked quietly.

"With Kagami," Madara replied. "He'll be here soon."

Sakura smiled tiredly.

"Are you happy?" She asked.

"Of course I am," Madara said, leaning over and kissing her forehead.

"What should we call them?" Sakura asked.

Madara looked down at the sleeping boy in his arms.

"Something strong," he said, frowning to think. "Ryuu."

"Ryuu," Sakura breathed softly. "Ryuu Uchiha. I like it."

"And Ayame," Madara said, gazing at his daughter.

Sakura smiled.

"Ayame. Okay. Ryuu and Ayame."

The door creaked open, and Izara shyly poked his head around.

"Mama? Papa?"

"Come here, Izara," Sakura called softly. "Come meet your brother and sister."

There was a brightness in Izara's eyes as he came into the room and clambered onto the bed between them.

"This is Ryuu," Madara murmured quietly.

Izara kneeled and leaned forward to look at his brother.

"He's little," Izara said with childish wonder.

"He's a baby," Madara said.

"You were that little too," Sakura said softly. "Littler, even."

"Really?" Izara asked, eyes wide.

Sakura nodded.

"Come and meet your sister," she said. "This is Ayame."

Izara looked over and gave Ayame a little wave. Sakura put one of her arms around Izara and hugged him.

"Are you okay, Mama?" Izara asked.

"Perfect," Sakura said, smiling fondly and kissing his cheek. "I'm perfect."

From outside the room, peeking in through a crack in the door, Matsuri, Kagami, and Sakiko watched silently the moment between the family.

Kagami stepped back first and looked up at his mother.

"I've never seen Uncle Madara look like that," he said.

Matsuri smiled at him.

"That's the way your father looked when you and Sakiko were born."

"So it's a parent thing?" Sakiko asked.

Matsuri nodded.

"Yes," she replied. "So. This is a special moment for them. We'll wait a little while longer before we go inside."

"Okay," Sakiko nodded.

"Kuku looks happy," Kagami said. "Izara was really scared the babies would be sick, but I told him they'd be okay. It's not his fault."

Matsuri smiled softly.

"Good boy, Kagami," she said. "Make sure the two of you take good care of Izara, all right?"

"It's a promise," Sakiko said. "He's nice for a five-year-old."

"You're only seven," Kagami snorted.

"And you're only ten," Sakiko snapped.

"And both of you are children and will behave when we're inside the hospital," Matsuri said sternly.

They both looked at the ground guiltily. Matsuri peeked back in the doorway and saw how intimate the moment inside was. Sakura looked exhausted and ready to sleep, so she decided to interrupt with a soft knock. Sakura met her gaze over her children's head and Matsuri felt her eyes fill with tears.

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked, sounding alarmed.

"Nothing," Matsuri replied with a chuckle. "I'm just happy. Happy that you came here, that I met you, all of it. I'm happy for you, for you both."

"Pull yourself together, Suri," Madara said with a roll of his eyes.

"Oh, hush," Matsuri pouted. "I'll never get used to seeing you hold a baby. You refused to touch Sakiko or Kagami back then."

"I prefer them now," Madara said, smirking.

"You're so mean, Uncle Madara," Sakiko pouted.

"You're a better conversationalist now, but sometimes I wish you wouldn't talk so much," Madara teased her.

Matsuri watched with fondness as they bickered, and as Izara excitedly told Kagami about his new siblings. Matsuri felt a welling of contentment, seeing Sakura look so blissfully happy and smiling. It was the start of a new era, a hitch in Sakura's timeline. Whatever changes would come from Sakura and Madara, Matsuri knew that they could only be good, and she couldn't wait to see how the future would unfold.

Taming the Sarutobi - Asami Senju and Haru Sarutobi

There was always gossip about Haru Sarutobi in the village. He was handsome and charming, a strong shinobi and very popular with women. So it was a little disconcerting for Asami Senju when she realised that she had a small crush on him. Matsuri and Sakura's teasing didn't help things either. Still, Asami didn't have much hope of anything coming out of her crush. She rarely saw him, and even if she did, she didn't really consider herself noticeable enough to garner his attention. The fact that she and Izuna Uchiha had been in love before he died also hampered things, according to her brother. There were people who thought it would be like stepping on Izuna's memory, especially since Madara had continued to be so kind and supportive to her family. In the end, Asami decided to let things come as they may. She was sure she'd meet a nice man and settle down one day, and there was a fairly handsome merchant who often dropped into the shop for a conversation with her.

It really was mere coincidence that Asami found herself taking care of the drunken Haru at Sakura and Madara's wedding. She really hadn't intended to do it herself, but in the end, she had little choice. He practically passed out on top of her when she'd left for a short walk to refresh herself. That was what had started the strange affair over the next year and a half. He'd been told or discovered himself about what Asami had done that night, and found her to apologise.

Then he just kept appearing. Asami was pleased and flustered. It was good for her shop, at the very least. He often brought his shinobi friends to eat the sweets she made. It wasn't until about six months into this that his friends began to tease him openly in front of her. Then a month later instead of the flippant comments he usually made, he instead asked her on a date in front of them. They were shocked into silence, and Asami, confused and uncertain, rejected him. He laughed and pretended he was all right, that it wasn't a big deal. That hurt her feelings a little, and she didn't see him for a few weeks. Until one day he appeared out of nowhere when she'd decided to go for a walk to the park.

"It's because of the rumours about me, isn't it?" He asked her. "That's why you said no."

She flushed with embarrassment.

"Are - are they true?" She asked, scared to hear the answer.

Haru was quiet.

"Yes," he said eventually.

Asami felt her stomach drop.

"I see," she murmured.

Haru scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.

"I'd like to be friends, at least," he said, smiling at her.

Asami, who saw the slight tremble in his lips, smiled back.

"I thought we were friends."

The tremble disappeared and he grinned with familiar cheekiness.

"Good. So we should know more about each other then."

"I suppose so," Asami replied.

From that moment on, Haru and Asami began to spend their free time together. As friends, he told her. Doing what friends do. They walked, they ate, he helped her with her shopping, and she sometimes mended the clothes he tore while training. It was dangerous for her heart, Asami knew since she wanted to be more than just his friend. But she couldn't really help but want to be close to him. Still, she was wary, and she listened to what people said about him, and then they started to talk about her.

Asami was shocked when she heard from Sakura that Takuma had confronted Haru, after hearing some blatant lies and gossip about her. Their encounter had ended in a fight and reprimands for both of them, and much to Asami's disappointment and sorrow, Haru didn't see her again for four months, and she didn't speak to Takuma during that time at all either.

Over that time, new things started to be said about Haru Sarutobi. He'd stopped frequenting the bars and pubs around the village. The girls wondered where he'd been. They said he was different now, that something must've happened for him to get serious. Asami had butterflies in her stomach at all the possibilities and hopes at what this change meant, not that it was about her, but she wanted it to be. She'd missed him, desperately. It took Matsuri telling her to just go after what she wanted, that Izuna loved her because she was stronger than she looked. How else could the stubborn Izuna have gotten over his prejudices against her clan?

"As much as I'm sure he'd love to beat up Haru, I think he'd rather see you live happily and courageously, rather than like you are now: sitting back and waiting," Matsuri said, not unkindly, but it was the kind of tough love that Asami needed.

She dreamed of Izuna, a good dream, a happy dream and woke up feeling purposeful. She told her mother she couldn't work, and since it was so rare for her to do so, her mother didn't ask any questions. Asami instead walked to the Hokage Tower and asked to see Madara. He was surprised to see her, and she was glad he wasn't particularly busy.

"Is something wrong?" He inquired. "You seem distressed."

Asami grimaced.

"I apologise for interrupting you, but I think - well, it's a little difficult to say, but I wanted to talk about Izuna."

Madara raised an eyebrow.

"What about him?"

Asami opened her mouth and then closed it, frowning. She didn't know how to put it into words.

"Izuna was the first man I ever loved," she said eventually, her cheeks tinged with pink. "It was hard when he found out I was a Senju. He," she paused. "I was really happy that he cared enough for me to overcome his prejudices. I know it wasn't easy for him."

Madara stayed quiet.

"I wondered how he would feel if I… had a second love," she said quietly, looking at the desk between them instead of Madara.

Madara didn't speak for a few moments, and then he sighed.

"It's not necessary to ask the dead for permission to live," he replied. "Nor is it necessary for you to ask me for permission to move on."

Asami swallowed and nodded.

"I will not tell you again, Asami," Madara said. "You will always be someone my clan and myself will honour. It doesn't make you beholden to us."

Asami clenched her hands on her thighs.

"You should show more of this side of you to the village," Asami said with a smile. "People don't expect the amount of kindness you possess."

Madara scoffed.

"It's not kindness, it's common sense." He paused. "The people who matter know, and that's all I care about. The village can think what it wants."

Asami was honoured to be among the ones that mattered to Madara. When she discovered Haru was on a mission, she spoke with her brother, who was relieved that she was speaking to him again.

"Why are the men you fall for always so difficult," he muttered.

Asami narrowed her eyes.

"It is not your decision nor place to interfere unless I ask," she said haughtily.

Takuma looked at her seriously.

"Are you - " he sighed. "Fine, fine. I won't interfere. Just know that if he does anything to hurt you, I will chase him out of the village."

Asami scoffed a laugh.

"As if you could."

Takuma grinned broadly and pulled her into a hug, and Asami had to admit she had missed her stupid big brother. With his blessing, she sought out Haru. Finding out when he was due to return from his mission, and waiting for him at the front gate. Asami was amused and nervous by the expression on his face as he walked through the village gates to find her waiting. He looked the most bewildered she'd ever seen him and even stumbled slightly.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, frowning, leaving his teammates.

"I have something to say to you," she replied simply.

Haru looked around, presumably looking for her brother.

"We'll wait for you at the tower," one of his teammates said.

Asami swallowed anxiously. Haru nodded at them.

"Asami, I'm dirty and I need to report. Can this wait?"

She knew that if she let him go, he'd just go back to the way he was before. Always keeping out of her line of sight, not speaking. Disappearing.

"Haru Sarutobi, you are a complete fool," Asami said firmly.

He was taken aback by her sudden outburst. They were unusual for her. She looked up at him with determination.

"I am quite in love with you, so if you disappear for fear of my brother, or for damaging my reputation, or whatever it was that kept you away for the last four months, you will be responsible for the breaking of my heart," she said, her voice wavering slightly. "Are you willing to bear that on your shoulders, Haru Sarutobi?"

She stared at him, and he looked back at her, blinking rapidly and looking blank like he didn't understand her.

"Asami…"

Haru, for the first time since Asami had known him, blushed. Haru Sarutobi, who was masterful at keeping cool in any situation, lost it and Asami felt a lift in her heart. He swallowed and looked back at her.

"So, shall we start again then?" He asked, recovering enough to have a small smile on his lips. "Friends?"

Asami shook her head.

"No, Haru, I don't want to be friends with you."

"Good," he replied. "I don't want to be friends with you either, I never did."

He stepped closer and reached out with a dirtied, dusty hand, and caressed her cheek. Asami's eyes fluttered closed at the touch and she felt it all the way into her toes.

"You're so cool, Asami!"

Asami froze and jolted, and Haru jumped, startled at the sudden shout from somewhere near them. From a tree above, Sakura and Matsuri dropped down and grinned sheepishly at the pair of them.

"You're so manly," Matsuri said approvingly to Asami. She turned on Haru. "I can't believe you let her confess her feelings first. What kind of a man are you?" She asked, mostly teasing.

Asami stared at her friends in disbelief, shocked but not surprised to see the two of them. Haru stared at Matsuri.

"I was getting to it," he muttered, blushing again.

"I'm going to tell Natsuo I saw you blushing!" Sakura called to Haru, as she started dragging Matsuri away. "Well done, Asami. You tamed the Sarutobi!"

"Don't you dare!" Haru cried back, alarmed.

Asami started to giggle.

"Sorry for interrupting, Asami!" Sakura waved as the two of them disappeared.

"Kiss her!" Matsuri yelled before they were out of sight.

Haru let out a groan and then joined Asami in laughter. He first kissed her on the forehead when they finally stopped laughing. He didn't kiss her on the lips for some time later. He wanted to do things differently, he told her. Because she was special, and she made him want to be better than he was before. In the end, it was Asami who drew him into their first real kiss, and he was astonished by it and her.

"Asami," he breathed raggedly after she drew away. "I think we ought to get married."

She blinked.

"I love you," she replied.

"Yeah," he said, looking awestruck. "I love you too."