A couple of months passed by and spring slowly darted towards summer. The negotiations of an additional alliance between Senju and Hyuuga were well underway, albeit still secret to the Uchiha. There was some understandable initial debate from the Senju elders who weren't as easily convinced as Butsuma had been. However, after some more persuasion from Hashirama even the clan elders couldn't help but see that they would rather the clan be a part of the strong force than the possibility of being wiped out entirely by it. Hashirama couldn't be more pleased that for once in his life things seemed to be heading in the right direction; Madara's direction. Oops, he meant the direction of peace of course… silly him.
Over at the Uchiha complex the preparations for the wedding were coming along nicely as well. The wedding was due in 2 weeks. Madara hadn't seen much of Hashirama ever since their meeting at the ryokan, but it was probably best not to act more on their rather sensual feelings. Besides, it seemed Hashirama had finally come to his senses and understood that cancelling the wedding would end up in carnage. That wasn't to say that Madara didn't think about Hashirama's words every second of the day. So, instead, he kept himself busy from thinking about the wedding with a few missions and taking it upon himself to further investigate the rogue ninjas.
His plan to gain more insight was to visit the blacksmith personally. Thus far the information about the weapons from the rogues had only been shared with his father and the Uchiha weapons expert. Nobody else was to know anything about it yet. But, that didn't mean that Madara would blatantly trust in the intel that some supposed expert provided. He would draw his own conclusions.
The walk to the blacksmith didn't take too long. Madara dressed in his usual indigo mantle and black shinobi sandals, entering the shop around midday and hearing the familiar clang of a hammer on metal. Seemed that the blacksmith was working on forging a new type of katana. In the back the furnace was blowing hot flames and the smith, probably around his mid-40s, alternated between slamming down on the steel and making sure the blade remained at a scorching temperature in the fire. For anyone it would be quite an intimidating process to watch or be near such heat, but for any Uchiha member this was a common thing given their preference for fire and great use of various weapons.
Madara walked up to the man who bowed upon seeing the Uchiha heir enter his shop, unsure of whether he should quit his work to address to his needs. Madara simply waved his hand to indicate such a formality was not necessary. "I've only come to ask you about some weapons." Madara took the kunai and shuriken from his pouch and held them up for the smith to see. "Ah yes indeed, those were produced here." The smith said and confirmed that they were indeed Uchiha weapons. As much as Madara had hoped to find out that the weapons expert had been right he also frowned at the idea that rogues had been able to obtain Uchiha weapons. Every member was instructed from a young age to never leave anything that belonged to them behind, not their eyes and not their weapons either.
The smith pointed Madara to a section of newly produced items as the raven walked over to the wooden boxes that were labelled for each type of knife. He inspected them and compared them to the weapons that the rogues had had in their possession. There was no doubt about it; they were a match. Madara asked the smith to see the cash records at which the smith finally put down the newly made katana and escorted him to the back of the shop. He showed Madara the book containing every purchase and then let the raven work in peace. Madara scanned the papers activating his sharingan in order to work faster and spot any strange indications. All the records were properly kept and every purchase made by a legit Uchiha member, nothing strange thus far. Until… he spotted a name written in a handwriting he didn't recognize. That name was T. Uchiha.
A purchase for 10 kunai and 20 shuriken, which was the exact amount of weapons that Madara had recovered from the scene after slaughtering all the rogues. It couldn't be a coincidence, right? There were no other purchases of these exact amounts in the record book. He spoke to the blacksmith about the record and procured yet another vital detail about the purchase that left him aghast. Quickly, he asked the blacksmith for a copy of the paper and then stuffed it into his pocket while he left the shop and pondered the newfound information on his way back home. If what the blacksmith told him was true, then … yabai (dangerous)!
Butsuma stood proudly by the entrance to the Senju village joined by his two remaining sons Hashirama and Tobirama. They had invited the clan head of the Hyuuga and their elders to the Senju establishment in order to talk about negotiations and to form the base of their union on paper. Needless to say there was secrecy involved about the current acquaintance due to the wrath it might bring forth when the Uchiha find out about this evolution without their prior knowledge. In order not to arouse any suspicion Taka's father Hiashi had told his daughter to remain at the Uchiha compound while he would be away on business. It wouldn't be unusual for a clan head to travel for business and even less so to not include the future heiress in it while she was preparing for her future. Even though the Uchiha didn't have an inkling about this meeting they were still known for being untrusting. It didn't surprise Hiashi, given that the Uchiha-Hyuuga alliance was in early stages, that the Uchiha sent a few hunter-nin to the shadows to follow him. Naturally Hiashi took care of it before they could extract where his route led.
Once the men had settled in the tea room they got right down to business. It seemed that the Hyuuga clan was actually very eager to form an alliance with the Senju clan. Almost too eager to the point where even Hashirama had to wonder whether there was more meaning behind it. Perhaps it was just a good sign that they wanted to expand the union between Hyuuga and Uchiha to the point where it would become possible for Uchiha and Senju to form some sort of treaty. Something that no one had ever expect to come out of anyone's mouth.
"Our only concern would be that the Uchiha will feel like they have been stabbed in the back when they hear of the new alliance between Hyuuga and Senju." Butsuma explained calmly. He had discussed this very topic with his sons a few months ago. The elders shared his concern as well. Hiashi nodded to Butsuma in understanding that it could lead to some severe issues were this not dealt with accordingly. "Leave that to us. We will make sure that the Uchiha will agree to it." Hiashi said confidently, taking some of the worry away. Not entirely though, because his words did not explain exactly how he would be handling the matter. For now though, it was enough to sign the papers and with that their new union. Soon enough these dualities between the clans would turn into a triality.
Hashirama let out a deep sigh as he strolled the garden once the negotiations were finalized. His younger brother Tobirama had joined next to him and rose his eyebrow at the content look on his anija's face. Did Hashirama not realize the possibility of the wrath of the Uchiha? Why was he so happy about this progression? He could still not pinpoint the bizarre behavior that he had witnessed from his anija in the past couple of months. Yet, he could clearly see that Hashirama was happier than he had been in a long time. And who was he to destroy his brother's happiness? They walked like that side-by-side for a while longer both of them wrapped up in their own thoughts.
As they passed a bed of purple flowers Tobirama turned to his brother. "I just remembered, tomorrow is May 4th. Are you doing anything for midori no hi (Greenery Day) seeing as you share the Emporer's love for plants and nature?" Hashirama had to smile as he overlooked the garden and the various blossoming flowers in the warm sun. The garden had come to life in all colors once again and he could feel the energy and rhythm from nature resonating in his entire being. "Perhaps I will do some tending to the garden on this national holiday." He lovingly touched some flower petals as they instantly bloomed in full potential at the touch of his fingers. Hashirama had the great ability to sprout life directly from his hands and for that Tobirama had a lot of admiration. The garden was Hashirama's habitat and watching his older brother work in it was like nurture for his mind and soul. "I'll be sure to stop by at some point." Tobirama informed him and patted his brother on the shoulder before he left.
Despite the fact that spring always re-energized him there was a bit of a side-effect that he could never share with his brother. Hashirama let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding as he was finally alone in the yard behind the Senju home. Luckily his grey hakama had a rather loose fabric and hid the secrets of the side-effect on his body well. Usually, he was able to control it, however, with the recent developments revolving around Madara his control wasn't what it had once been. His mind was filled with images of the raven, their kiss and their moment in the bath… naked. He moved to a deserted part of the garden where nobody ever came as he took a seat in the shadow of an old tree. Leaning back against the bark he could hear the leaves rustle as he willed his mind to calm down. His entire body felt like it had been put on fire by mere thoughts about Madara. Who knew he could experience what katon would feel like in such a way. It was as if Madara's energy and chakra surged through him in a way only natural elements would.
After he made sure he was entirely alone Hashirama lowered his hand palming it against his growing hardness. How lewd he must be looking sitting here, outside, touching himself to images of a forbidden love. But if he didn't handle it now it would only become worse by the day. He slipped his hand into his hakama and underneath the fundoshi touching himself directly. A soft sigh escaped his lips while he closed his eyes enjoying the feeling as he thought about the raven's hands being his own. Touching along its length, underneath, over the slit… It didn't take long to become completely engrossed in his fantasy and the moment of release inched ever closer. The sweet salvation was just what he needed to cool off and regain his control over body and mind to the point where he could function again. He handled the mess he made and with embarrassment written all over his face, made his return to his chambers.
"I heard that they've recovered the weapons from the rogue ninjas." Someone spoke in a hushed voice as they consulted with two other men. "They found out about the Uchiha brand. This is definitely a major risk that we cannot afford. If they keep digging then they might find out more." The two men seemed to understand the severity of the matter. "Let's keep moving forward and much faster than we have before. Here is the map of escape routes out of the compound that I've managed to uncover. The main options would be here, and here. If all goes well then we won't need them, but better safe than sorry. I will keep an eye on the developments in the near vicinity and I want you two to assemble the right team to execute the plan. We're running out of time so we have to get this right." The two men put their masks back on and bowed before they dashed out into the forest to report back.