Fated to Meet You

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hello, Friends! Here is Chapter Seven! Notice that I did a three year time-skip and that there is not yet any tobiramaxmai moments yet. They're coming soon though, dont worry.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything, character or plot, from Masashi Kishimoto's Naruto.

Chapter Seven: War

Mai clamped her fingers together and stretched her arms above her head. The layering bones in her back popped from the action. Dropping the rag into the wooden pail of dirty water with a plunk, she stood up and looked back at her work. The entire hallway lay wet with a sheet of water. It had been three years since she entered this home, and it was starting to seem like home for her. Although, in the back of her mind, she still considered the house in the outskirts of the Uchiha Village as home also. Throughout the past three years, she made sure to return once every few weeks to dust and clean the uninhabited home. The Uchiha clan had gotten back on its feet after the inauguration of Lord Madara. It wasn't a surprise to the elders that he would quickly increase the morale of each Uchiha shinobi and the village. She had formally met the new clan leader when he summoned her for a mission in his first year. Lord Tajima's name was not spoken between them, but she knew that he knew of her connection with his father. The man held a large and powerful aura that she couldn't help but almost shrink in the presence of it.

She was officially acknowledged as an Uchiha shinobi and began completing missions in Uchiha teams. It didn't surprise her that she would be the only female. But the Uchiha girl couldn't help but feel intimidated by her fellow Uchiha shinobi. She noticed their glares on her bare Uchiha crest-less back and the way they would turn with their back face to her as an act of isolation. But she shrugged it off. It wasn't that she held any anger to her clan to not wear the clan symbol. But by not wearing her clan symbol three years ago saved her. Elder Mio had told her that the white haired man she clashed with was a Senju, and she had admitted she was scared. Living with Elder Mio, Mai frequently saw Uchiha shinobi enter and leave the village. She noticed that as time went by, missions required more and more Uchiha shinobi, and they would come back days after exhausted and sometimes smaller in number.

Turning back to the pail, Mai picked it up and headed off to the water quarters. The maids returned from their child leave, and housework lessened for Mai. But she still insisted on cleaning during her free time. Sumiko had returned the latest. But she made sure to bring her child to show. Mai remembered Sumiko showing Elder Mio her infant son and proudly telling the elder that she named him after her suggestion: Kagami. The small infant fit in Mai's small frame just perfectly when she held him. She was only busy when she was training or meeting with Elder Mio. The apprentice found out that her elder teacher enjoyed company when she was drinking tea. Most of the time, Elder Mio drank her tea silently with Mai, and Mai enjoyed the calming silence. During one of their silent tea conversations, Elder Jirou popped in. Mai did not notice until Elder Mio turned her head, and she almost choked on her tea. Just like his teacher, Hikaku would also show up when Mai ran errands for Ayaka and Elder Mio. She couldn't help but compare Hikaku and his elder teacher as reflections of each other. Both of them seem to laugh with ease and yet at the same time hold the image of a guarded Uchiha shinobi. He would ignite short conversations with her. Throughout the three years, Mai gradually replied with an average of twenty words.

Dumping the pail of dirty water in the creek behind Elder Mio's home, Mai washed her hands and the rag before hanging it up to dry. Sumiko's head poked out of the door as Mai fixed the rag hanging on the line. "Mai," Sumiko called.

"Yes," Mai answered and turned to the girl at the door with her hands still attempting to hang the rag.

"Elder Mio wants to see you." Sumiko said with her head still poking out of the door.

Fixing the rag so that it wouldn't fly away, Mai walked into the home afterwards with Sumiko tailing behind her. "I finished wiping the east hallway on the second floor." Mai said after Sumiko caught up with her.

Sumiko nodded. "Thanks, Mai." She smiled genuinely before leaving the apprentice.

Announcing her arrival, Elder Mio gave the signal to let her student in. As per usual, the female elder was drinking tea. Mai bowed before sitting in her usual spot in front of her teacher. "You called for me."

Elder Mio silently gulped her sip of tea. "I did." She set her cup down on the table. Her old, immortal eyes looked at Mai before saying, "Lord Madara summoned you."

. . .

To her surprise, Hikaku was also in the clan leader's office. After bowing, she made her way to sit beside the fellow Uchiha, but also partially behind him. She cautiously looked up at the Uchiha clan leader behind the low table.

Uchiha Madara glanced at the two Uchiha shinobi in front of him. He'd known Hikaku since they were young and they had fought many battles together. His younger brother was especially close with him. The girl, on the other hand, he'd only found out about her existence three years ago when the Council of Elders informed him of her. He was surprised to know his father trained the girl, but he knew his father was that kind of man- a man that would take advantage of an opportunity quickly when it presented itself. He assumed she probably had the Sharingan. But he had his doubts that the girl was as strong as he and his brother were. There were reasons as to why the Uchiha shinobi population was dominated by men. "I have a mission for you two." Madara stated. He placed a scroll onto the table and gestured for them to read it.

Mai let Hikaku take the scroll. Even after knowing her clan's leader for three years, she still felt tense around him. The man was strict and to the point, and she felt intimidated. In every meeting with the Clan Leader, she always seemed to sink her shoulders in and look down. Mai carefully peered over to Hikaku as he read the scroll. He showed no signs of emotion on his tanned face. And she watched as Hikaku handed the scroll to her. Feeling the eyes of Lord Madara on her, she quickly took the scroll and read it. If it wasn't for the presence of Lord Madara, her brows would have furrowed and straightened. The scroll was an approval from the Uchiha Clan to fight in a war for the Land of Fangs. Rolling the scroll back into its original form, she set the scroll back on the table.

"Deliver the scroll to the Land of Fangs' Daimyou." Lord Madara assigned.

Mai watched as the scroll became engulfed in Lord Madara's hands and sealed with his official clan leader seal.

"Lord Madara," Hikaku began. "Why did you allow us to read the scroll's contents?" In most missions, shinobi were not allowed to look into the contents of deliveries.

"When you two come back, we will be going." Uchiha Madara said to the point. "The clan will need as many Uchiha shinobi as possible."

Mai watched Hikaku nod his head and she did the same. The war was going to be on a large scale. The two shinobi made their exit, although it seemed as though Mai was following Hikaku's moves, and walked out of the room and the Uchiha Center.

"Something bothering you?" Hikaku tilted his head slightly to the young girl beside him.

"..." Mai didn't answer immediately, and when she did, she merely shook her head. Snapping her head up, Mai looked up at Hikaku wide eyed, "-The scroll!" She had forgotten to grab the scroll on her way out!

Hikaku's lips stretched and curved and brought his hand out of his pocket with the scroll in hand. "Don't worry." He put his hand and scroll back into his pocket.

Mai blinked, multiple times, and nodded. She sighed a breath of relief before looking back at the Uchiha Center. The large-but-not-large building became very normal for her over time. This was the place she would receive her missions, accompany Elder Mio to and from the Council of Elders' meetings, and meet with Lord Madara. It wasn't extravagant, and it didn't need to be. This was a shinobi village. It was necessary to keep things, especially the Uchiha Center which held important documents, concealed as much as possible. Turning back to the fellow Elder Apprentice, Mai asked, "When do we leave?" She looked up at the man.

"Before sundown today." Hikaku answered. "The faster we complete the mission, the better of an advantage we will have."

Mai looked up at the sky, it was maybe only midday, and nodded. "I'll meet you at the gates."

Mai made her way back to Elder Mio's home. As per routine, she met with Elder Mio to discuss her mission. And as usual, the elder already knew of the mission. She, however, was seemingly surprise her student was ultimately chosen to deliver the scroll. "The Land of Fangs is a half day trek from here." the elder stated.

Mai nodded. She notified her teacher that she and Hikaku were planning to leave at dawn. Being active in the night was better than day for a mission of this paramount importance.

Elder Mio hummed before picking up her tea. The elder woman looked at the young Uchiha in front of her. She no longer could describe her as a child anymore. The girl had lost the fat in her cheeks from her three years of training- although, her cheeks still held their inherited soft definition. The young kunoichi just looked older than the first time she met her. "I don't want to keep you away from gathering your necessities." The female elder lifted her tea cup to her mouth.

Mai's eyes widen a fraction of an inch before bowing and making her leave. "Excuse me, Elder Mio." Sliding the door shut, Mai headed to her room.

Behind the door, the female elder quietly drank her tea. She glanced to her right where Jirou would enter through a secret door before looking away and set her tea down. She knew without a doubt that the Senju Clan would be hired as the opposing side once word gets out. To be in fact, word probably had gotten out already. Elder Mio let out a soft sigh that if you hadn't known her well enough and long enough you would have thought it was a normal breath. She had fought against accepting the clan's participation in the war, but many elders had voted against her- Lord Madara included. It would make the clan appear weak, they said along the lines many times.

"Something on your mind?" a familiar voice asked.

Bringing the tea cup to her lips, Elder Mio replied, "I was told Hikaku was also assigned to go."

The male elder smiled. "I assume your student is getting ready." Elder Jirou sat himself to the right of his female friend.

"The war will begin a week from today." Elder Mio stated after she set her cup onto the table.

Elder Jirou reached into his sleeve and brought out his very own tea cup. Momentarily, he played his memory of the previous Council of Elders meeting in his head. More than half of the elders forwarded their decision to accept the war request, whereas the rest that included him and Elder Mio protested. Even with a divided Council of Elders, the Uchiha clan leader made his and the clan's final decision to participate in the war. "We tried our best." The male elder commented before pouring tea into his cup.

Once Hikaku gave the scroll to the Land of Fangs Daimyou, Mai felt something overcome her. The power that the scroll possessed made her hands shake from glancing at it. They decided to rest for the day after traveling throughout the night. Hikaku was on watch for the next two hours before Mai took up the shift. The older Uchiha decided it wasn't a smart idea to rest in the Land of Fangs in case of speculations, especially since his back bore the Uchiha fan. He knew that if the war wasn't against the Senju then it would be an easy war. And less lives lost on his side. Hikaku glanced at the girl sleeping with her back against a tree behind him. The girl never wore the Uchiha symbol. But he never asked her why. He had to admit he glared at her back when he found it empty but stopped himself short before she could see it. Why wouldn't any Uchiha not want to bear the Uchiha symbol and pride on their back? He just couldn't understand it, and he knew other Uchiha shinobi were bothered by it. They would talk of it in their free time with distaste when Hikaku worked with them.

In the past three years, he helped her train. And he felt like an older sibling to her, especially since she lacked in the shinobi areas that he was proficient in and he liked to show off. The girl was very easy to read sometimes, and it amused him because Elder Mio was not. The female teacher and student duo had a lot of things in common. He never noticed until Elder Jirou mentioned it. Changing his thoughts, Hikaku looked up at the sky and said, "Mai-chan, rest is up."

Mai opened her eyes and squinted at the excess sunlight that poured into her eyes before looking down. Clearing her throat, she shifted her weight off of the tree and brushed off any dirt and particles off her shirt and pants. She looked over to Hikaku, who had his back towards her, sitting a distance away in the shade of another tree.

"Let's head back." Hikaku rose up from where he sat.

Mai nervously rose before asking, "What about your rest?"

Hikaku was fine. While Mai took her break, he also took his break- although, he was still on alert. With only a few more hours left before they reached the Uchiha Village, he doubt that he wouldn't last that long. Besides the upcoming war, kept him from actually closing his eyes. He looked over at Mai, who was already standing, brushing at her pants. The girl dressed differently from Uchiha shinobi. While the rest of them wore high-collared overalls that reached the ground with the Uchiha clan symbol proudly on their back, the girl wore an absent fan symbolled kimono shirt with an obi tied around her waist and black pants that skimmed her legs. Every Uchiha wore a high collared garment but her. Even her teacher and the maids in the home wore one. "I'm fine." Hikaku stopped his observations to reply to her question. She had stopped brushing at her pants and stood staring at the man before nodding at his answer.

Mai didn't understand how the older Uchiha was "fine". They had travelled for over half a day awake, and he was okay? But she brushed those thoughts away like she did with the dust on her pants and nodded at his response. The man was more experienced than her, and she assumed he probably had more stamina than her. The two Uchiha's walked towards the direction of the Uchiha Village. Three years of knowing each other, Mai walked comfortably with Hikaku's pace. She looked up at Hikaku beside her. His hair that was tied in a high tail dangled in the air and his purple Uchiha symbol embroidered overall exerted the Uchiha pride along with his own. She couldn't see the chain that hung around his right shoulder because she stood on his left, but she knew it was there- although, she did not know why it was there. Maybe it was his taste.

"This is your first war, isn't it?" Hikaku asked with the two of them walking.

Mai nodded before turning her head to look ahead. "It is."

"Are you nervous?" Hikaku glanced at the girl standing beside him. She sure grew in the past three years. He remembered he towered over her and he still did, but she lessened the height difference by growing to reach a little above his shoulders.

"I am." Mai answered truthfully. Was she strong enough to survive war? She had gone on many missions risking her life, but this was war not a mission.

Hikaku gave her shoulder nearest to him a few pats. "Don't worry." He patted on. "You're strong, Mai-chan."

He gave her a smile that Mai rarely saw unless he was helping her train, and she smiled back. "Thank you."

"The Land of Forests has asked us to fight for them in a war against the Land of Fangs." Hashirama told his younger brother. He pushed a scroll containing the official proposal over the table towards his white haired brother.

Tobirama took the scroll into his hands and read its contents with more depth. He scowled and frowned before putting the scroll back down. This was their first war offer in a while. "We have to accept it." He bluntly stated with hidden difficulty. Tobirama did not want to go to war again. But changing the shinobi system will not come from declining war from just the Senju Clan. As much as he wished it would.

Hashirama sulked in front of his brother before taking back the scroll. His childish facial expression contorted to a grim one. "Do you think the Land of Fangs will hire the Uchiha Clan?"

"Once the word gets out, they will." Tobirama answered after crossing his arms over his chest.

Hashirama ran a hand over his face. He still held onto Madara and his dream of their shinobi settlement, but where they were now was no where near to achieving such dream.

A/N

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