"Madara Uchiha, this is my daughter Princess Isabella Shijimi." My father announced proudly to the titan in the room.

His onyx eyes shifted to me, they were hardly amused. With quite a bit of visible reluctance he bowed to me, "Princess."

We located ourselves in the sitting room, a white and purple themed room with several couches and chairs. You could fit a small army in here and still be comfortable.

The walls that wrapped around the room reflected the light from the windows making the room glow brightly. My father liked to do his business here for it made way for pleasant optimistic news.

The old Fire Daimyo that stood parallel to I, was in fact my father; although from first glance you would have never guessed. The only similarity we had to one another was white hair, but his snowy tresses were due to age and mine were an albino trait that had passed through the gene pool. Ancient as he was, he took good care of me. I could tell though, that he had aged significantly in the last year, those saggy wrinkles of his, I recalled, didn't hang as low last Christmas. He was weak and on occasion lethargic, not someone who was capable of raising a 17 year old daughter. The old man was firm in his resolve to marry me off by my birthday next month so that someone capable could take over his role as caretaker.

"Looks like we're stuck together," I bluntly stated to the Shinobi.

"It appears," his sulking voice whispered. It appeared he too wasn't pleased to be my babysitter.

I hadn't been ecstatic when I first found out that I would have a bodyguard watching me 24/7, but when I reassessed the situation I saw that now I had a handsome man to admire day and night. I took a slow play by play of the man. He was chiseled, bold, and hulking- that long spiky black hair of his reached just above the hip in an untidy fashion;I couldn't help but notice how similar he was to my type of man.

There were several servants around the room, pretending to clean and such. The three women who dusted gawked at Madara, staring obliviously at his body and Godliness. The men who lingered by preparing refreshments were pretending to pay no attention to our conversation, but were secretly listening to every word. Such nosy servants they were.

My father sipped on his cup of tea as we awkwardly stood in the center of the room. "As you know Madara, we've had a few incidents occur recently- unhappy suitors and such."

Unhappy, that's how my father puts it? I clearly remembered a knife to my throat and fire being thrown on my bed while I slept. If he wants to sugar coat it, I suppose we could call it unhappy.

"Yes, I'll be sure to keep her safe." Madara leaned towards my father and muttered lowly so I couldn't hear. I'm not deaf. "As long as you keep your end of the bargain."

"Of course," my father's icy blue eyes narrowed. The old Daimyo finished his cup and snapped his fingers. Instantly a servant dressed in gold attire was at his side refreshing him.

"Now to review the terms, I'm to keep your daughter safe from others, but you mentioned something about keeping her safe from herself. Enlighten me." He requested. His arms crossed. He had relaxed his composure, resting his weight on one foot.

I sighed and sat down on the sofa in the corner of the room. My white and purple dress ruffled up and exposed my bare feet.

My father glared at my rudeness and chided me, "Bella, again! Why must you refuse to wear shoes?"

I looked down at my toes and propped them up on the expensive coffee table. The servants gasped at my fearless act of defiance. "I have only heels, I don't like heels, and they hurt my feet."

My father groaned and looked back towards Madara, "she's a wild one. Always defying me and pushing the limits. She's disappeared a multitude of times, and she does not illuminate as to where. She's come back with bruises and cuts- but does not say how they were earned. It's worrying, and I'd like you to make sure she does not leave the grounds without my say so."

The Shinobi nodded in understanding, "I assume I start immediately."

"Please," my father promptly surrendered. "I will be in my office accomplishing my paperwork if you need anything. Bella." My father turned to me. "Please come to dinner tonight. I'd really like to see you more often." With my father always surrounding himself with his wife and their children, I never felt welcome to eat with them- which I wasn't. "Promise me, Bella."

"Fine, whatever," I snapped. My arms were crossed and I pouted as he walked out of the room.

Madara was still standing in the center of the suite, staring at me threateningly. I could feel a tone vibrating off his demeanor; I dare you to try something, I felt. On the outside he appeared to be a brute, but what was he like on the inside?

"Madara Uchiha, aren't you ashamed to take on such a ludicrous assignment." I daringly asked.

"You have no clue how far the extent of my embarrassment goes. Your father assures me though, that I will be accommodated for my sufferings."

He seemed loquacious, I wanted to take advantage of it. "You're a Shinobi I hear, a very good one at that. Someone to be feared, I bet." my boasting appeared to have an effect on his mood. He began to strut closer to where I sat. He rested his back against the wall adjacent to me. "I believe my father has hired someone thoroughly overqualified for this position."

"I'd agree," he grunted.

"You are a warrior, someone who has taken many lives?"

"Yes, where are you talking this, Princess?" He didn't seem the patient sort.

"Bella, please." I corrected. "I was merely attempting to familiarize myself with the man who was to be incessantly watching me." I explained. "Do you mind, or am I intruding."

He shrugged, "if you keep the questions trivial and avert from the personal."

"Personal can be interpreted differently from person to person." I challenged.

"Stay away from home."

"Yet, in these upcoming weeks you will indulge yourself in mine…? Hardly fair."

He rolled his eyes at me, "Fine, what do you want to know."

"Mmm," I pondered. "What do you like to do?"

He hung his head in annoyance, "uh, train I guess. I practice falconry as a hobby."

"Oh," I grimaced. "Birds…"

"You don't like birds?" He muttered- sounding nearly insulted.

"Animals to be exact, I don't particularly enjoy animals." My hate towards animals was a mystery; I couldn't put it into word why I didn't like them. I knew It was an irrational phobia and something I was eventually going to have to get over.

He was staring at me, "Unfortunate."

I nodded, "Indeed, do you have a wife?"

"No." Good, now I can stare without shame.

"Favorite color?"

"Blue." That question I could have answered myself. He had on him a blue shirt with his family crest on the back. It was collared low to show off his toned glory and bandages wrapped around his waist to keep everything in place. Blue pants dressed him underneath and a sash wrapped around his hip to hold what I presumed to be his ninja tools.

"Why are you being so short?" I moaned. Darn it, I was hoping for someone entertainment.

"I don't really care to answer your childish questions." Well then.

I sighed, "Well then this interview has reached its end." I surrendered and stood up from my seat.

"Where are you going?"

I passed his post and walked into the main hallways that led to the heart of the palace. "I'm not going to be rude, you need a tour!"

The overly energetic girl had me towing behind her all throughout the house. She pointed out several rooms that posed no great significance to me, and attempted to plot out the premises. The palace she lived in was a large one, with several unoccupied bedrooms, a library, a study, a personal bath house, kitchen, dining room, and a recreational ballroom. I wasn't a man to be swayed by extravagances though, this house didn't impress me.

"My favorite part of this manor is the kitchen," She smiled as she dragged me through the vacated cooking hall.

"As should it, you are a woman."

The Princess snapped her head around and glared at me with her honey gold eyes, "that was a very rude thing to say." She attempted to educate me.

I was firm on my standing when it came to women. "It's fact, it shouldn't insult you."

She opened a cabinet and pulled out a few ingredients, "Oh what in the world am I to do with you?" She smiled and amused herself. It didn't appear that she let our difference in opinion provoke her.

I watched her dance around the room, removing objects from locations and building a plate that was visually appealing. Her long wavy alabaster locks swung over her shoulders as she jumped up to reach something on a high shelf. It was comical to watch the little girl struggle with her height.

Once done with her running around she ended up with a simple meal of a sandwich with a side of sliced fruit. She picked the plate up and handed it over to me. I took it bemused, "what?"

She smiled at me kindly, her eyes melting the wall I had built between us. I couldn't help but regard how her smile lit up the room with exuberance. "You've traveled a long way, and dinner isn't for a few more hours. You should eat something to replenish your strength."

I couldn't deny her generosity, although I found it peculiar to see a princess being so considerate and able in a kitchen.

I followed the strange woman into the dining room and sat across from her on the large 16 person table. It appeared whoever had decorated the building was aiming for extravagance with a color scheme of white, purple, and gold. Every room I had seen had been decorated accordingly.

"Tell me a story," she asked childishly. Her voice wasn't demanding, but filled with curiosity and wonder over my life.

"I don't have any," I stated in between bites of her abnormally appetizing snack.

"Oh, sure you do." She snapped feverishly, "a man as seasoned as you in battle and in life. You have many stories!"

"None good enough to tell." I pushed.

"Hmph!" She crossed her arms and pouted the same look she gave her father earlier. The Princess seemed unyielding in her desire to know me.

"Well then," she paused, "tell me about the Senju than." she pressed further.

I growled at her and her audacity. To mention that name in front of me was equivalent to disrespect in my mind. "Woman, don't go there. I will not allow you to agitate me, no matter how much your father pays."

Her firm face lit up in shock, she threw her hands up in surrender. "Oh no, I didn't mean to offend you. I was curious. I don't know much about them, other than that they rival you. I assumed it would be a subject you'd be inclined to comment on."

She took my clean dish and scurried off into the kitchen.

I felt a smidge of guilt surge my conscious, but I waved it off. She needed to be put in her place. I was her bodyguard, not her entertainment. She had no right to know my life.

She returned seconds later. "We do not have to talk anymore if you are not willing to. I really don't mean to abuse you."

She stood at the head of the table and smoothed down her dress. I had to admit, I did find something likeable in the princess. She was warmhearted and genuine, something that wasn't found often in this war torn era.

The day ticked by slowly. With my bodyguard and I on non-speaking terms, I found myself trapped between boredom and comatose.

We walked the grounds throughout the time between our disagreement and dinner. He was a ninja, someone who was meant to be active and busy. Doing my typical princess tasks would make his job only harder to endure.

I had promised my father I'd eat dinner with him and the others- I always kept my promises, but this one was a particularly painful one to keep. I usually waited until everyone was done eating and I'd sneak in the kitchen and eat whatever was left over.

Madara and I were energized from our long travel through the gardens. "Would you like to take another walk after dinner?" I purposed to my escort.

He shrugged, "Aren't you tired?"

I snickered and facetiously nudged him with my elbow, "No I'm quite well right now, but if you need to take a nap-"

"-trust me, I have plenty of energy left in me." He interrupted.

I put on a victorious face, "then we'll walk the outside grounds next. Perhaps I'll show you where I disappear to."

"Hn," he sighed. "You need your father's permission to leave the grounds- remember?"

Great, he's a rule follower. "I'll get his permission at dinner." I had wished he would be my partner in crime. Oh well.

"Good," he stated as we entered the dining room.

My family was already seated at the table with my father at the head of the table and his wife to his right. They appeared to be in a deep discussion, most likely about me- they were always talking about me. My three sisters sat side by side on the right side of the table, my eldest half-sister, Beniko, sitting closest to their mother; she was scowling off into space like usual. Emi and Kaori, the twins, were giggling innocently to themselves, oblivious to all that went on around them.

Everything stopped abruptly as I appeared in the doorway. My father's wife braced herself in her seat as if she were about to get smacked. "Oh, you're eating with us."

My father smiled happy to see that I had kept my promise. He patted the seat on his left that had been reserved for me. "Bell, sit dear."

I could physically hear my eldest sister groan in disappointment that I had made it for dinner and the maids scramble behind me- I had led a trail of dirty footprints all the way to me.

"Oh no!" I gasped, "I'm sorry, I forgot to wash my feet off." The maids were use to me apologizing for my messes, although my family was not. Kaori and Emi laughed at me while Beniko scoffed,

"you're ridiculous- they're supposed to clean up after us." Her mother chimed in, "If you would just be a civilized woman and wear shoes, they wouldn't have to clean up after you."

I bit my cheek, saying something would only make it worse. I took my seat on my father's left hand side while Madara stayed back and posted himself at the dining room entrance. Help was not allowed to eat with us, and it appeared Madara found himself confused on whether this rule applied to him.

My father noticed his hesitation, "Oh Madara, sit please. You are a welcome guest in this household." Madara satisfied with my father's invitation sat to my left.

"Who's he, Daddy?" Emi asked.

"That's the man who's going to be keeping Bell safe while she looks for a suitor. Remember we talked about this last week?"

"Oh yah," She mused. Kaori giggled with her, "why does Bella need to be safe?"

My father's mouth slacked open, he was at lost for words. "Well- uh- Kaori, Bella is a precious family member and we care if she's safe. Why would you question that."

Kaori shrugged and went back to eating. Emi answered, "Mama says we don't care." My father flashed his wife a dirty look.

"Don't teach our children such things." He snapped at her.

She glared back, "I will teach my children what I want, as you can yours." My father fell silent.

Beniko grunted, "She's perfectly able to take care of herself, I don't see the need for a Shinobi." In this neck of the woods, Shinobi weren't regarded highly- mainly because they had torn down much of our land with their wars. There were actually several laws enacted to allow citizens to lawfully kill a Shinobi if spotted. This is why it was particularly strange for my father to hire one, especially a Uchiha.

"I agree with, Beniko." I dutifully stated.

She shivered as I said her name. Her frosty blue eyes that were identical to our fathers narrowed, she puckered her lips just like her mother's did when she was disgusted. She was my elder sister, but she held no sibling love towards me. "The sooner you're married off the better." She hissed.

"Now girls," my father attempted to mediate.

The servants entered with the food distracting my father. We had courses upon courses of food served to us, and my family dug in a starved fashion. They fished as much on to one plate as they could, and reeled in for a second helping. Madara appeared dazed at the feast lied out in front of him, like he'd never seen so much food in his life. He put a portion of everything on his plate and ate slowly allowing himself to taste it- something my family never did.

I decided to stay on the light side and placed a modest ration on my plate. Beniko rolled her eyes, "What are you on a diet?" She snapped.

I don't understand why you care? "I never really indulge in these colossal meals, but I'm holding back more so in hopes of staying light on my feet after dinner."

My father's wife grimaced her cold eyes on me like a hawk. She was her usual nasty self today. "Why would you want that? Are you hoping to sneak out, again?"

"No," I snapped. "I was just about to ask my father if I could show Madara around outside."

"I just don't see what the point in that is-" she sneered.

My father jumped in, "well darling- that doesn't sound safe."

Oh my... UHHH! "How is he supposed to keep me safe when he doesn't even know the grounds?" I threw my plate on the table and slacked back in my chair. Everything was so much more difficult when I had to speak in front of her.

My father tossed the idea around in his head, "mhm, well that does sound reasonable. Alright, but be back before dark."

For a moment I thought my step-mothers head had spun around. She growled at my father and challenged his decision. She knew I loved to go outside, and doing so gave me enjoyment; and my happiness just couldn't be allowed. One of the old woman's favorite past time was to take away thing that I loved, such as painting, poetry, music, and of course everything that made me laugh.

They bickered back and forth as Beniko gawked at Madara and I. She obviously didn't approve of Father giving me my own personal guard, and not her.

"Father, may I be excused." I pleaded.

He nodded, ignoring his wife's ranting. I stood up from my seat and left, no bow- no apologies. I wasn't about to give my family any form of common courtesy. I was excited to be married off; I would no longer have to endure my hateful half family.

Madara and I exited the palace and made way for the gates, it was gorgeous day out. 70 degrees, light wind, not a cloud in the sky.

"Your family isn't a loving one it appears." Madara observed.

I shrugged, "I'm the bastard. Not exactly the welcome princess."

Madara looked at me out of the corner of his eye, Shock? No he's smiling.

"What's so funny?" Do I have food in my teeth?

He chuckled, "It just explains a lot."

I suppose to and outsider it does, doesn't it.

"So are you the oldest or the youngest?"

This is so not fair, "you first." I demanded.

He furrowed his brow, "Oldest."

We took a turn outside the wall and followed down the gravel path. The trees were in full bloom; soon their leaves would die as winter breached the season.

"Middle."

Madara abruptly stopped our journey. I turned around to inspect the hold up and saw my escort- eyes wide and mouth agape. A maniacal laugh surged from him, forcing him to hunch forward from the sheer power of the cackle. "That old man cheated? I didn't think he had it in him!"

I rolled my eyes at the man, "you have a macabre sense of humor."

He quickly finished his bellowing fit of laughter and caught up to me, his face now plastered with indifference. "Don't get your panties in a bunch, I was just messing around." We wandered off of the gravel and into the thick forest, Madara eyed me peculiarly. "What is a Princess doing marching in the mud?"

I lifted a branch out of my way and strutted over to a hollow tree trunk and pulled out folded clothes that I had placed there earlier. "I'm not a typical princess, I don't like to lie around the house and torment the maids. I like to work out. Do you mind?" I asked as I hinted for him to turn around.

He did accordingly with a smirk on his face, "A fit Princess? Sounds absolutely fictional. Pray tell, what do you do in your work out?"

I dressed myself quickly and folded up my dress, hiding it back inside the trunk. "I imagine nothing close to your caliber; I basically run around and pick heavy stuff up. I don't exactly have any equipment to work with." He was laughing at me, I knew he'd laugh. He turned around and faced me in my black shorts and tank. I could see an expression of bewilderment grow across his face as he eyed my toned physique.

"Well you're doing something right if you have those muscles."

I smiled at the compliment, "I'm sure you have plenty you could teach me. Would you mind being a sensei for a bit?"

He placed his hands on his hips and expressed a wide smile, "Sensei a Princess, that wasn't exactly in the job description."

Is he asking for compensation? "Well if you would like to get paid more, I can arrange that."

He shook his head, "No, I think the amusement will be payment enough."

Amusement?

This is going to be fun.

3 hours later the sun began to set and my little pupil was lying on the ground panting- drizzled in sweat. "What," -pant- "are you?"

"Come on Princess, we have to get back." She lazily stood up, wincing with every movement. I turned around as she dressed herself. I couldn't stop grinning; I hadn't been this entertained in a long time. "You did a good job today; you surprised me. You actually kept up with me in some places."

When I turned back around she was taking her hair out of a pony tail and her color less tresses messily fell from the bun to frame her sweaty tired face. I could tell in the tone of those yellow eyes of hers that she was exhausted, I had overworked her.

The woman disregarded the compliment, "I have a lot to work on, and even after, I sincerely doubt I'll ever be as strong as you."

"Don't be so self-defeating." She reminds me of someone… Wow it's been a long time since he's come to mind… Hashirama

"I've been meaning to ask you," I began as we walked back to the palace. "What exactly happened between you and your past suitors?"

She sighed, "Hmm, Well I had a few suitors- but only two felt the need to turn psychopathic. It's a long story, but they found something unnaturally unsettling about me and decided I needed to die." She says it so nonchalant, like it's the equivalent to "shit happens."

"What was so unsettling?" I observed the female who struggled to walk beside me. She was cheerful, eccentric, and amusing with an athletic side and complete sense of modesty in everything she endeavored. It was unnatural for a woman to be this perfect, at least in my own personal definition of perfection. What could be wrong with her, why would any man want to kill her? Rape, now I could see a man wanting to rape her or even smack her up a bit for pushing too far into their personal life, but murder was too far fetched for me to believe.

She was silent, "I'd prefer not to talk about it, please."

"Ok," the mystery is eating at me now…

While we walked back I felt her hand snake into mine, I gave her a quizzical expression. "Thank you for being so kind to me, and exercising with me today." She smiled indolently giving my hand a quick tight squeeze before letting go. It was the first time a woman had showed affection towards me outside of a bedroom. It was uncomfortably satisfying, which perplexed me.

I was attracted to her. There was no point in trying to deny it. She was different and refreshing, someone who surprised me at every corner. I couldn't entertain this fantasy though, there were far more barricades in this relationship than there were open doors. I was embarrassed that the thought had ever even crossed my mind. Impossible childish little fantasies- not something a man of my caliber should indulge in.

Friendship of any sort was thrown out the window in my mind…. Although…why not have a little fun while I'm here?

I entered the house undetected, thankfully. I was an awful mess, and more questions would be asked about my state than I could ever want.

"I'd like to take a bath; I'll only be a short while." I walked in the direction of the bath house, with Madara following my every step.

When we got to the door I opened and attempted to shut it behind me, but found a force keeping me from doing so. Madara's hand had withheld me from moving forward. "Not so fast Princess, I'm not supposed to keep you out of my sight."

I blushed, "I think my father would make an exception, don't you?"

His lips stretched out in a slow and menacing smile, "orders are orders."

I took a deep breath and let go of the door, keeping my eyes on the floor as we entered the tiled room. "Can you at least pretend not to enjoy this?" no reply.

The bathhouse was my second favorite part of the manor. It was a room that was always steamy and hot, the most desirable place if trying to relax. The water was always the perfect temperature, although today it appeared one of the servants had added too much soap to the tub- the water was utterly opaque with cloudiness.

There were some day's where all I needed was a nice hot smoky room to vitalize my spirit, but today was not one of those days. Today I desired something that resembling a cold shower.

I attempted to be as modest as possible about undressing, but it appeared impossible to get naked modestly. "Can you like, turn away or something?" I begged the increasingly intimidating man.

He shook his head keeping his eyes glued on my weak tired body. "There might be someone hiding in the water waiting to attack you. If I turn away, how will I know you're safe?"

"The splashing and screaming would alert you." I reasoned.

"I can think of several ways to mute you, I'm sure an assassin could too." Elation elevated his typically frowning face. Oh, that is a daunting thought. What happened to Mr. Stay-Away-From-Home or Mr. I-Dare-You-To-Try-Something. Now I had Mr. Let-Me-See-The-Boobies.

"How about you go in first and check out the water, make sure no one's hiding." My dress was falling off my shoulders in an undesirable way. I was so sore, and my dress had never been put on correctly after we had left the forest. This was a recipe for disaster.

"As you wish, Princess," Madara graciously excepted the advice and took off his shoes along with his shirt and threw both nonchalantly on to the ground.

Most women would have noticed the rippling muscles or the ideal way his body was shaped, but I just couldn't get past the scars that marked up his body. Stab wounds and burn scars decorated him, but before I could ask how- he started to undo his pants.

"Woah, ok, what are you doing."

He pivoted his head in my direction. "I don't want to get my clothes wet."

"Well as much as i'd enjoy the show, I don't think it proper for you to undress in front of me." Oh God my face is getting red.

"Then," He continued to pull down his pants. "Don't look."

I took the suggestion and turned around quickly, but not fast enough. The image of his bare ass would forever stain my virgin mind.

I heard a splash and turned around. He was searching the spring for unwanted visitors- like he said his original intentions were. Although by the way he held that chipper expression on his lips, I knew he was trying to entice something out of me.

He dunked his head under the water and came up quickly with his black hair swinging over his shoulders. "Nobody's in here, looks like you're all good to go." He stood up from the water and I quickly looked up at the ceiling. I could hear his wet footsteps exit the spring as he moved closer and closer to me, up until he was just a couple of feet away. I grabbed a towel from the rack to my side and handed it to him- still looking up at the ceiling.

"Thank you," oh I can even hear you smiling. He grabbed the towel and began to dry himself off.

"What am I going to do with you," I nervously laughed.

"Nothing your father would approve of."

I gasped and gawked at him. He had already put his pants on and was sitting down in a chair off to the side, still no shirt. "You are so naughty, Madara!" The laugh he simulated earlier came back, but this time with the acoustics of the bath house. I went on to lecture him, "shouldn't you be averse to speaking to me in such a tone?"

He slacked back in his chair. He was slouched in a lazy position with both of his legs open and his elbows resting on his thighs. His sopping wet hair stuck to his body, leaving it to drip down his chest. It was a provocative pose. "As I see it, you don't look like a Princess- nor act like one. So I don't see you as a Princess."

"Should I be offended?"

"-Definitely not," he was looking at me outrageously, a way I wasn't use to. I gave him a grimace and he shot it down. "Don't look at me like that; you don't want to be a Princess. I can see it in the way you act. You like it when I say the wrong thing, because you hate pretending to abide by what's right. You want to be naughty too." He was so right, and I hated it. He went on, "you're like an open book, you really give yourself away with the simple things you do."

He's so audacious. He straightened his composure and leaned forward in his seat, "Can you guess what else I know?"

"What?" Shinobi- only a Shinobi would talk to a Princess like this… actually no, I think Madara Uchiha is one of a kind.

"I know that you like me." he jubilantly stated.

I looked around the room to see if anyone had heard him. "I think you should keep these thoughts inside your head, Madara." I warned abruptly.

"Why, am I wrong?" He tilted his head with a crooked expression.

I walked closer to him, past the few meter mark that we usually stayed at and into an intimate foot away. I bent down to meet him eye to eye. "No," I whispered, "but if my father's wife found out that I actually enjoyed having you around, she might take you away from me."

I had taken one of the most modest baths of my life, I wasn't thrilled that this is how I would have to bathe myself in the upcoming weeks.

Madara and I were getting ready to sleep before I finally realized a rather unfortunate fact, "Madara, how are you going to sleep?"

He sat himself on a velvet white chair that was stationed next to my bed. He was making himself as comfortable as possible in it. "I'm a light sleeper; I'd wake up to your sister opening her door down the hallway."

I glided myself under my velutinous covers and laid back. I didn't particularly like my lavish room, more so for conscientious reasons rather than personal, but I loved my bed. Although this was a replacement, my ex-assailant had started my previous bed on fire. What a dick.

"Are you sure you don't want me to have a cot brought in?"

"No," he waved it off. "Sleeping in an upward position enhances my senses. If I lay down I might not wake up if something happens."

"Ok," I said unsure.

"Don't concern yourself with me; I'm use to sleeping in uncomfortable spots. When you're in war you don't necessarily get a pillow top."

I sighed, "What's it like to fight in a war?"

Madara groaned, "Do your questions ever end, you're like a toddler. Go to sleep."

"Please," I begged.

"I don't want to give you nightmares."

"Don't worry about me," I mimed his earlier expression.

I was sitting up in my bed, propped up by my elbows, staring at him resolutely.

"hn," he sighed. "War is a place where young men go to die, and a few strong become legends. I've lost many of my brothers there and several friends."

I frowned; "I'm sorry." I slid my legs over the edge of the bed and sat up in full attention. "If you don't like it- why do you participate?"

He rolled his eyes rudely, "don't start acting like a Princess on me now." He complained. "You don't get a choice to join in war. Either you lose what you love and hold, or you fight for it."

"-Ever thought of a truce?"

He paused for several seconds, as if remembering a very bitter time. "Yes, once. When I was an unrealistic child, and I didn't understand the tidings of war."

"-but"

"No," he interrupted. "Princess go to bed. I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"I'm sorry, Madara. I didn't mean to anger you." I tucked myself back into bed and laid there in shame.

He was relaxed back into the chair, reassembling his sleep pose. "I'm not angry, I just don't want to taint you. I'd prefer if you didn't know these things."

"Why?"

"Because, Goodnight." He cut me off.

I pouted, "Goodnight, Madara." I rolled on my stomach and pulled the covers over my head, suffocating myself with the thick blankets.

She was asleep, but I found myself wide awake. For some reason I was once again lost in thought about Hashirama again.

I remembered the world Hashirama and I had conjured in our innocent minds. It was a dimension of infinite improbabilities, all with happy outcomes. A day the Senju and the Uchiha stopped fighting, an eternity without war, a utopia where everyone got along. Every time I thought of something that made me happy- but was impossible- I would store it in our dream world.

I watched the young innocent beauty sleep soundly- trustingly, Maybe I'll put you there too.