From the fact that Hashirama was still in one piece after passing by Madara's katana, to the outspoken proclamation, to Madara's reciprocated gaze at Hashirama's retreating back. It was all seen by a pair of red eyes hidden between the tree canopies. At last, it all made sense to him why his brother had been acting strangely ever since news reached them about the betrothal of Madara. And boy was the older Senju in for a scolding once they were out of public eyes!
Tobirama crossed a few branches moving closer towards his father and anija whom were making their way back to the Senju compound. He jumped down onto the ground not far from them followed by a group of shinobi dressed in battle armor to the max. As promised, he had rounded up the best men they had available as back up in case all hell broke loose. It was a risky move having both the leader, the heirs and the strongest shinobi leave the Senju compound, but it was a necessity regardless because of the sheer destructive capabilities the Uchiha were known for. Fortunately, it turned out that the Uchiha were not the ones to blame for this ordeal and he wouldn't have to condemn them for having more of his relatives' blood on their hands.
"I take it there's no longer an immediate threat?" Tobirama addressed his father. Butsuma commended him for his speed in following the trail and informed him that matters were indeed settled. Hashirama wouldn't have agreed to such a statement normally, but decidedly didn't open his mouth after witnessing a hard glare from his younger brother when they came face to face. Tobirama relieved the group of shinobi from their duties and watched them disperse and head back home while he joined his father and Hashirama on the walk back. He had been just in time to hear the explanation of Taka's betrayal and understood that they had been played and used by the Hyuuga for their power. If he had known about their dislike for the Uchiha, well… he might have enlisted them sooner.
The rest of the walk back was filled with silence; each of them consumed by their own thoughts of what to make of the situation. Butsuma was infuriated with his oldest son. Centuries of war and slaughter and now he was told by his own flesh and blood that he met with the enemy secretly from childhood onward. How could Hashirama go behind his back like that? Especially considering whom were the very reason for the deaths of two of his other, younger, deceased sons. Not to mention that the heir to the Senju would be seen as a traitor or a spy by the clan if anyone else uncovered this newfound truth. The elders would surely accuse Hashirama of spilling secrets to the Uchiha or god forbid indict him for every single lost life because of it. The more Butsuma thought about what just took place the darker his mind became.
Tobirama didn't fare much better. Despite keeping his calm exterior, he was dealing with a variety of emotions ranging from angry, to shock, to sadness and back to angry. At first, the anger from the discovery was at the forefront quickly followed by the shock of the situation and confession that whirled through his mind. This, however, reverted into sadness that his only brother didn't feel comfortable enough to share such secrets with him. The sadness made place for anger when he realized that his brother would keep him out of the loop and straight up lie to him for all of his life, even if he could also see that there was a good reason for it. On top of it all he couldn't believe his own thoughts when he came to the conclusion that Hashirama and Madara were involved beyond what his brother had said out loud. He could see it, but that didn't mean it was real, or so he was telling himself.
Lastly, there was Hashirama. A thick, violet cloud was hanging over his head while he dragged his feet to follow his family back to the compound. A dreary aura emanated from all around him while he thought about the outcome of today. His plans were only just starting to come together with the potential formation of a triad alliance, but were prematurely shut down before they could blossom. He could already grasp at the very notion of a hidden village of peace together with the man he knew was his soulmate, but now? And all because of Taka. Why did she have to come between them? Now he would have to find another way to pick up the shards of his broken dream. This would set it back so, so far but the restoration was all he could think of. Needless to say he was completely blind to the severity of his confession thrown into the world.
Once they arrived back at the compound sounds of relief at the return of the men was heard all around. They made their way to their own estate before Butsuma turned to face his eldest son. "A word." He demanded sending Hashirama a sharp look that did not allow for him to decline. Hashirama wordlessly followed into the room only used for political conferences. This could only mean one thing; his father was going to give him a harsh talking-to. The purple cloud thickened.
Butsuma told Tobirama to leave them alone and make sure no one disturbed them while he shut the door after Hashirama. Despite the fact no one was allowed to enter the room the entire house could clearly follow what happened inside during the hour that followed. Shouts went back and forth between father and son as neither of them was willing to back down and defended their own viewpoint. The migraine that Tobirama had worsened from it. He couldn't understand why Hashirama wouldn't back down and just accept the fact peace was never an option in Butsuma's mind when it came to the Uchiha. But then again, he had some questions for Hashirama himself about the reason he wouldn't back down. They had to do with a certain black-haired individual Tobirama despised.
When the door finally slid open a worn-out Hashirama stepped out and dragged himself to his private quarters down the hall. Butsuma looked similarly frustrated when he let out a long sigh and rose from his cross-legged position on the floor. He made his way to the head servant as he notified them that Hashirama was under house arrest. Indefinitely. The servant took note and bowed while they went on to instruct the other servants. When Butsuma walked back he passed by Tobirama who was sitting in the main living area having overheard most of the argument. "I can't seem to talk sense into him. I hope you will be more successful." Butsuma placed a weary hand on Tobirama's shoulder before retreating to his own quarters. Tobirama was sure that Hashirama already received an earful, but that didn't mean that Tobirama was going to let him off the hook easy. He made his way down to Hashirama's room.
Tobirama was usually quite well-mannered, but today it seemed his control slackened as he forsake to knock and simply walked in. Hashirama laid face down on his futon grunting because he thought he had been so lucky as to escape his demise, but apparently one Senju family member cussing at him wasn't enough. Luck was definitely not on his side today. He pushed himself up to sit because he knew his brother wouldn't leave until he had his opinion stated. Tobirama crossed his arms at the childish behavior of his elder brother and asked, "How long?".
"How long what, Tobi?" Hashirama asked with a sigh, moving his fingers through his hair to brush it back.
"How long have you been in love with him?"
Hashirama could instantly feel his cheeks discolor at such a bold question coming from his younger brother. It was kind of awkward too given that he was the older one of them. Shouldn't he be asking or lecturing Tobirama about relationships instead? And besides, how did Tobirama even know that he was in love with Madara? His first thought was to refute the matter right off the bat, but then maybe it would be better to be honest now that he had the chance to openly talk about it. Hashirama felt really ashamed too all of a sudden when he realized that he had never before spoken to Tobirama about Madara. He had done everything he could to keep this information under lock and key. It made it very difficult to choose the words he wanted to say, because either way he would hurt Tobirama.
"I want to apologize Tobi… for keeping this all to myself for so many years. I know that I've betrayed your trust and have let you down as a brother and for that I am deeply sorry." Hashirama glanced over at his otouto and displayed his sincerity in his eyes. He momentarily lowered his head again in embarrassment before determination welled up inside him once more. "But you have to understand that what we were taught all our lives does not equal the only truth imaginable. Madara and I have shown that it's possible to leave behind the past and start anew. We don't have to forget, but we can forgive." Hashirama took hold of Tobirama's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Madara and I … we have dreamed of a village where people can leave peacefully among each other and where children are not sent off to die in vain like our brothers have. We believe the world can change, I believe we can change." Hashirama almost felt teary-eyed pronouncing his life philosophy out loud. His father would likely never see his way, but maybe there was a tiny chance that his brother could. "For Kawarama and Itama."
"You've lost your mind Anija. Kawarama and Itama died because of the Uchiha." Tobirama's eyebrow twitched in annoyance at Hashirama's blatant disregard of the past actions of their enemy. He could never forgive the fact that grown up Uchiha killed his brothers whom were still mere children. Even if the favor was returned. Tobirama's upbringing had been the same as Hashirama's and they were drilled to remember that those red-eyed demons were nothing short of hell incarnate. This hatred ran so deep within him that he could probably never neglect it. His battles to the death with Izuna were living proof of that. It was like a current; always rippling within his veins ready to crash into a waterfall and drown every enemy within reach. It was not simply 'put aside' like Hashirama suggested he should do.
But the truth was that Hashirama did not divert his question. He did not answer it either, not directly at least. But it was enough for Tobirama to know that there was indeed something going on between them, something more than just a friendship. It was also the first time that Hashirama had openly talked about what was going on between him and Madara and for that Tobirama was grateful. He finally felt included and like he understood his brother and his actions. Nonetheless, at the same time, he felt that the valley between his brother and himself span even greater. Hashirama was a dreamer, Tobirama a realist. Hashirama dreamed of something that couldn't exist, and Tobirama existed in a world without dreams. Those two would not go together well.
"Both sides have done enough damage, Tobi. Please, think it over." Hashirama pleaded with his brother. He could sense that he was on the verge of losing what little hope he had left to instigate change within his younger brother. Furthermore, today had been a rough day and Hashirama desperately needed some rest. He could spend his abundant time at home over the next weeks during his house arrest to come up with a way to fix the dream and, more importantly, try to regain his brother's and father's trust.