Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

10. Discretion part 1

It was 11:30 at night, and Madara was furiously staring at a page of math problems he had no idea how to start. Math had never been his strong suit, but he never struggled either, and the frustration quickly grew with each second of unproductivity. What the hell was happening, why couldn't he concentrate anymore?

'Is it not effective anymore-'

"WHY ARE YOU LATE IZUNA?!"

The elder brother jumped after hearing the roar of his father's voice from downstairs. He moved his hand to clutch over his chest where his now furiously beating heart was and tried to focus his hearing. Unfortunately he couldn't hear much, either the two downstairs were too tired to do any serious arguing or he just simply was still struggling to concentrate.

"Just go to bed Izuna" he heard his father growl.

Gentle footsteps echoed as their owner walked slowly down the hall, stopping in front of Madara's bedroom. The door opened and the elder found his younger sibling standing before him in tears.

So Izuna finally got caught sneaking in late after his little trysts with the snow haired Senju. Madara loved his little brother to bits but served him right for thinking he can just come and go as he pleases. "At least Dad didn't make you tell him what you were doing." Madara closed up his books and set them on his bedside table and opened his arms to comfort his otouto.

Izuna quickly made his way over to his older brother, climbing onto the bed and stuffing his face into Madara's chest, no doubt smearing running mascara all over his shirt.

"I think he very well knows what I was up to tonight." Izuna broke away from his brother's arms, the tears finally slowing, and tilted his head to his left to display a large purple and blue hickey on the side of his neck.

Madara frowned. "I thought you and Tobirama slowed down on the physical stuff?"

Izuna wiped his eyes dry. "Well we'd been pretty strong emotionally recently so I thought I'd like to try advancing our relationship a little more physically you know?"

The elder brother smiled, wiping one of his burning bloodshot eyes. "No, I don't know"

Izuna chuckled and seemed like he was in better spirits. "Well why don't you just hit up Hashirama and find out." He gave Madara a wink and a kissy face to tease him.

Madara smirked and rolled his eyes, patting his little brother on the head. "You better listen to Dad and go to bed. Goodnight!" he interjected before Izuna could say anymore and opened to door to push the boy out.

"Maybe you should sleep too Maddy" the younger added before he was forced out the room with the door closed behind him.

...

"Mada-chan, long time no talk."

The Uchiha nearly let out a scream when the familiar voice surprised him. He had been kneeling down fishing through his locker looking for copies of standtunes he abandoned after football season ended, and the last thing he needed to heighten his panic was that dreadful Hashirama.

"Yeah I suppose, can't you see I'm busy?" He looked up from his position on the ground at the standing Senju who had a sweet smile on his lips.

Hashirama had been virtually avoiding him to give him time to recover and sort out his feelings. But there was no way to be subtle with Madara, Hashirama quickly remembered, and decided to get straight to the point.

"Madara will you go to the Winter Ball with me?"

The Uchiha froze for just a second before flashing the other the middle finger, not even looking in his direction and resumed his paper shuffling. It was some sort of bluff, or a prank, but it sure wasn't funny.

"Madara I'm being serious." Hashirama bent down to get on his knees, slightly put off by the offensive gesture but felt he must've deserved it. He pushed past the locker door in his way and grabbed the Uchiha's arm, twisting it and forcing him to look in his direction. "Just hear me out, okay?"

Madara pulled his arm back but remained resting on his knees, curious and anxious to hear what Hashirama had to say.

"I know I've been very pushy when it comes to getting your attention but I feel like it's the only way. When I helped you out in the library, yes I just thought you were a cute face and decided to maybe have some fun with you. But I know that was fucked up of me. Past that rough exterior you're really sensitive... and I'm sorry I tried to play you like a game."

Some students walked by, ignoring or casting quick glances but Madara didn't notice them. All he noticed was the rapid race of his heartbeat and the tenderness of Hashirama's voice. Was the boy being truthful? He focused his bloodshot onyx eyes into the other's gentle chocolate colored ones trying to discern any false emotion behind the words.

Hashirama swallowed, nervous by the sudden shift in the Uchiha's gaze. "Uhm, anyways... I find you really cool and really interesting and I'd like to get to know you better." He reached out his hand once more and grabbed the other not by his arm but by his hand.

"Madara, please go to the Winter Ball with me. Let this be a chance for us to get to know each other better and try to see if there is anything to make of this trainwreck." Hashirama had to look away from the gaze, looking downward almost in submission with his cheeks becoming a faint pink. He'd never thought another one of his temporary crushes would become something more but the combination of Madara's stubborn different personality and unique interests made him a special kind of flavor that was worth tasting.

'He's stubborn and you're relentless...'

Madara slowly retracted his hand, not speaking a word as he placed his scattered belongings back into the messy locker and closed its metal door, and stood up off of his knees. Hashirama looked up, still slightly blushing as the Uchiha picked up his bag and turned to walk away. Hashirama's heart almost sank before Madara stopped after a few steps.

"Maybe. I'll have to let you know."

Not turning his head, Madara began moving forward once more eager to leave the scene and wipe the smile off of his face.

...

Well here is a rather fully emotional update uploaded in record time for me. 0_0

"Discretion" is going to be a multi-chapter theme over the next 2 or 3 updates since this is a major point in the story for the characters to make some important decisions so this was part 1 and I hope you enjoyed :3

The ending scene here has some more complex writing than I originally intended for the chapter and the story as a whole since it's supposed to be a casual read but idk I need a bit more to fuel my writing not just for this fic but for reviving my old fics and/or starting new ones. If you've read any of my other fics, I think Stray specifically, you'd know I strive for the dark and depraved and emotionally exhausting so it's sort of leaking through which I suppose isn't a bad thing. Unlike my other fics though I think this won't receive a mature rating.

leave Reviews & Faves for motivation