Author's Note: Please read Shotgun Shells and Hopeless Dreams before you read this. This oneshot is entirely Madara's backstory and his POV from Shotgun Shells. This fic is mostly a narrative POV and it won't make sense without reading the other fic first. I made this a long-ass oneshot because I didn't see the point in taking a narrative like this and breaking it into multiple parts.
As usual, no beta. I've officially named this series Dreaming of Shotgun Shells and Machetes and will continue to build on this world in the same this-is-a-casual-project manner on AO3 prior to posting it on other platforms. This fic is rated Explicit entirely for torture, gore, and the less detailed version of the smut from the previous fic. Enjoy!
...
Madara's life had been anything but easy. At least, he thought that was the case. As a typical teenager, he had been convinced that his troubles were far greater than anyone else's. From not getting straight A's on his report cards to struggling to find a decent first car so he could stop relying on Hashirama for rides, he lived a relatively normal life with normal troubles.
His entire perspective on his life changed in a single night. vampires, monsters of campfire tales and lore, were real. His little brother, Izuna, was murdered in cold blood right in front of his eyes. It had been a typical night for the Senju and Uchiha brothers, sneaking out to go to a secret compound in the middle of the woods for a creepy camping trip. Frankly, he thought the place was just a rotting old summer camp judging from the flakes of brightly-colored dried paint he had noticed on occasion when they had visited the area during the day.
He didn't know why, but something that night had told him to sneak into his father's room and 'borrow' a revolver he had caught a glimpse of several months ago. He knew the code to the gun safe, his father had been adamant about teaching his sons gun safety and how to defend themselves. It had been easy to open the box the revolver was kept in and load it with the bullets kept in that same box.
The gun itself was beautiful and carefully maintained, shining in the light as if it had never been outside of its case before. The bullets, however, were just as eye-catching. They didn't look normal, yet he didn't take the time to give them a proper look. All he knew was that the revolver and the bullets that came with it would help him defend the others that night if anything happened. It was a precaution, a last minute thought.
The gun had, in fact, done its job that night. Madara had pushed himself past the horror of being covered in his own brother's blood to put a center-mass shot in the back of the monster that had killed Izuna. It had been lunging for Hashirama's youngest brother, Itama, in an effort to shut him up. To Madara's surprise, the bullet had only slowed the thing down. Hashirama didn't remember a thing about that night but, apparently, Tobirama had witnessed the entire thing. Itama would have died if that shot hadn't been taken right then.
The police hadn't believed them but Madara's father, Tajima Uchiha, did. When Madara was released from the hospital, Tajima had sat him down at the family dinner table and handed him a glass of whiskey, setting the revolver down in the middle of the table. Disregarding Madara's shocked state, he proceeded to explain everything.
Tajima Uchiha was a first-generation Japanese immigrant and he had been a hunter. In Japan, he had hunted supernatural beings that threatened the lives of humans for several years, trained from a young age 'as all Uchiha were' to combat the monsters. He had met Batsuma Senju at some point during his hunting days and they had a rivalry at the time. According to Tajima, it was simply a continuation of an age-old rivalry over several generations between the Uchiha and the Senju. Hunting in Japan had ties with the Yakuza and they constantly fought to have a better reputation in the eyes of Yakuza.
Hunting wasn't usually a paid job, after all, and the Yakuza paid well for hunts.
It was during a hunt in an abandoned shrine in Kyoto that he had found himself in a life-or-death situation. A Djinn had taken over the shrine as her own, ensnaring anyone that wandered into it in dreams so she could feed off of them. It was typical Djinn behavior, but Tajima had been unprepared to see a Djinn in Japan. They were exceedingly rare in the dense cities that littered Japan, his usual hunting grounds. He hadn't even considered the possibility.
By that point, Madara had finished his glass of whiskey and Tajima had refilled the glass. His head was a blur with information as he carefully listened to his father's story, sipping at the whiskey. The taste was rancid, burning down his throat, but he didn't spit it out and whine about it like he had done with Hashirama's moonshine at the campfire. He was listening, memorizing the moment. What he thought he knew of the world was being torn out from under him like an old rug, only to reveal a murder scene etched into the floorboards underneath it. Tajima continued without pausing.
Caught by the Djinn, Tajima had spent months in a Dream, functioning as living food for the Djinn that had taken him captive. What he hadn't known at the time was that the Djinn had been using him for more than food. She had decided to use him to procreate, not having another Djinn nearby to create life with. Tajima liked to believe that monsters were on the mental level of animals, yet the Djinn had been intelligent enough to tailor his Dream to get what she wanted.
He woke up from his dream to Batsuma Senju tearing into the shrine and a needle in his neck. The Djinn had just given birth to a human-looking baby boy with his black hair and dark eyes before Batsuma had slaughtered her with a silver dagger dipped in lamb's blood. The baby was wailing into the night air as Batsuma started to drag Tajima out of the shrine, only for Tajima to stop him and beg for him to bring the baby too.
"We have to kill it, Tajima! It's a Djinn, just like its mother!"
"It's also mine! We have to take it with us! What if it's human?!"
After as much arguing as Tajima could handle in his weakened state, Batsuma had snatched up the baby and brought it with them to a hotel room nearby. The baby was named Madara Uchiha and Tajima made the decision then to leave Japan with his son and give up hunting. Izuna was the only true son that Tajima had with his wife in America prior to her passing of cancer. Madara was never truly hers, but she also never knew his true origins. She had treated him like he was her own until the end and Tajima had never corrected her or done anything to stifle Madara's relationship with her.
Tajima eyed the gun on the table, finishing his second glass of whiskey.
"That gun is made of silver and the bullets are made with silver and dipped in lamb's blood. I would have never used it against a vampire, though it would slow it down. That gun was intended to put a bullet between your eyes if you ever turned on Izuna and I." As the words sunk in, Madara felt tears prick at the corner of his eyes for the first time that night. He'd lost Izuna, learned that the world was full of monsters beyond human comparison, and now he was being told that he was one of them.
Tajima sighed and set down his glass as Madara cradled his head, attempting to muffle his increasingly loud sobs.
"I don't know if you will ever show the characteristics of a Djinn, it hasn't happened yet, but you are my son. As long as your mind is yours and you never intentionally hurt a human, I'm here to help you. Do you understand?" Madara had simply nodded, trying to calm himself down. Tajima didn't spend any more time trying to comfort his son before he picked up the revolver and took it to his room, shutting the door behind him and leaving Madara to the silence of the house.
...
The tattoos began appearing while he was in law school, starting at his shoulders and steadily growing over his back. He hadn't noticed them until he was at a frat party, drinking beer in the pool with a couple of guys he worked out with at the gym.
"Whoa, dude! Those are some wicked tattoos! When did you get that done?" Tyler, one of the college's football players, had immediately yelled drunkenly while pointing at his back. Madara had tied his hair up to keep it from getting wet in the pool, so there wasn't anything to cover up the solid black lines that had started growing in swirling patterns across his shoulders. Despite the way his chest had frozen in dread, Madara kept a cocky smile on his face.
"Oh, these? It wasn't too long ago. They just healed enough to be able to get in the pool. I'm probably going to get more added to it soon." It had been an easy cover-up, but the damage was done. The attention on his back became overwhelming once the girls arrived, their casual touches on his bare skin making him queasy as he scrambled to come up with a good excuse to go back to his apartment near the school.
He had called his father immediately, which had been the best choice in that scenario now that he looked back on it. Tajima had explained everything he knew about Djinn, from the tattoos, to the touch-induced dreams and hallucinations, to feeding patterns. It had been a lot of information and it had scared Madara more than it helped, but at the same time he felt like he had an idea of what was to come.
...
When he returned from law school, the tattoos were sprawling along his back and curling over his shoulders, almost reaching his biceps. According to Tajima, he was supposed to be able to make them disappear at will. However, that just never seemed to be an ability he was able to grasp. He kept the collars to his shirts high and wore long-sleeved shirts as much as possible.
Tajima had started the Uchiha Law Firm when he had immigrated, somehow having the paperwork to do it forged and he functioned as a lawyer in the United States without going through the years of school Madara had gone through. When Madara questioned his father on it, Tajima had simply told him that he'd wanted Madara to have a legitimate education so he could have a normal future in America. The business was going to be passed down to Madara when Tajima retired.
During the few years Madara had been at school, a few of his cousins had moved to the United States, working as paralegals, office assistants, and lawyers under the same family business's roof. Tajima didn't have to tell him, he knew they were also escaping the hunting expectations of the Uchiha family in Japan. Hikaku, one of his second cousins, easily became a right-hand man for Madara as he slowly learned the ins and outs of running the business under Tajima's direction.
It wasn't until a few months after he'd gotten back from college that Tajima confessed that Batsuma had drank himself to death not even a week after the incident, leaving Hashirama and Itama on their own.
"What about Tobirama? Where did he go?" Madara found himself asking. Tajima had given him a wry smile and tapped his fingers gently against the table.
"Well, he followed the path most hunters do," Tajima had replied. Madara couldn't help the overwhelming feeling of guilt and pity for the quietest of the Senju brothers. It was a pretty obvious path. Nobody had believed him that night, he knew something wasn't right with the situation that had happened, and he had wanted to protect others from the monsters that had ruined his life.
With Madara back under his roof, Tajima took the time to train him to hunt, starting with vampires. They hadn't seen anything else beyond the incident that had, by that point, happened a couple of years ago, but Madara had a feeling the two that had ruined his life were still around. Tajima was helpful in showing him the process for tracking them and preparing to kill them. After a month, they were able to find a pattern of disappearances in a nearby city.
"It looks like they might have multiplied. This would be a lot of work for just two of them." Tajima had offered, pointing at several red X's on a printed map on his desk. Madara found himself nodding as he gently oiled the katana his father had just given him, explaining that vampires had to be beheaded for them to truly die. Madara felt that he was fully prepared for the hunt, yet he could tell Tajima was hesitant to send his only remaining son after a pack of vampires.
"Madara, if you find yourself in a bad situation, come back here. We'll handle it from there." Tajima had told him, putting a hand on his shoulder. Madara had simply given his father that same cocky smirk that he used to get people off of his back.
"I'll bring you their fangs as a gift," he'd said, not sure why he had a sudden feeling of bloodlust at the thought of ripping the teeth out of the vampires. According to Tajima, that was the very first time he had seen the red flash in his son's eyes. While it had scared him, he had also been reassured that his son would come out of the fight alive and ready for more.
With a nod, he'd let Madara go on his own to avenge his brother.
...
As Madara closed in on the new hiding spot for the vampires several days later, he noticed that he was experiencing new thoughts and sensations that he had never felt before. Bloodlust sat at the front of his mind, wanting to see the vampires scream and beg for mercy as he ripped them limb from limb. Another thought sat in the back of his mind, almost an instinct. He wanted them to Dream. He wanted to give them their worst nightmares before he killed them.
He had never put someone into a Dream with touch. Normal humans had touched his skin plenty of times over the years and he had held his breath nearly every time, watching them for signs that they would start hallucinating or falling asleep. Figuring out his sexual preferences had been a long and tedious process as he'd fought for so long not to let anyone touch him.
Tajima had given him an antivenom, apparently developed by Batsuma in a desperate shot in the dark to cure Tajima when he had been paid to rescue the Uchiha from Madara's… mother. The thought of where he came from still made him cringe. He kept the antivenom on him as if it were an epipen and he was a kid with a peanut allergy. It wasn't like he could tell his sexual partners that he was half monster, but having the antivenom available eased his anxiety enough to learn what he liked.
There was only one incident that stood out to him as a sure-fire trigger that required the antivenom. He couldn't bite someone hard enough to draw blood. He had venom in his mouth that had knocked out one of his partners almost instantly and he had to use the antivenom immediately. In his panic, he'd left shortly after administering the antivenom and disappeared from the other man's life as quickly as possible.
However, in that moment, he wanted it. He wanted to be able to simply touch one of the monsters that took his little brother from him and he wanted to put them through a thousand versions of hell in the second it would take him to rip off their heads. So, with that in mind, he lunged into the warehouse they were currently squatting in.
They tried to scramble, thinking a hunter had gotten in and their fight or flight instincts had kicked in. They didn't get very far. Apparently, Madara's sheer desperation to make them suffer had been enough for him to manifest the touch-induced ability he had wanted for this particular hunt. A glancing blow with a closed fist here, a grabbed arm there, and he had a pile of five vampires laying in a daze in the middle of the warehouse.
He was quick to slay the three he didn't recognize. There were only two he really cared about.
He woke them up slowly, toying with their minds as he allowed them to have sweet dreams, dreams of normal lives with families and love. While they were dreaming, he cut off their feet. They didn't budge from their trances, simply staring into space as he kicked their feet over towards where the other three bodies lay on the dirty concrete floor of the warehouse.
Their screams when they were conscious were everything he'd hoped they would be.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?! MY FUCKING FEET!" Screeches of agony and terror were music to his ears and it was enough to make him feel high. While one was screaming and cursing, the other was wailing and sobbing loudly, completely devoid of words. He'd laughed, circling them with the tip of his katana scraping the ground.
"Do you remember me?" he'd asked.
"WHO THE FUCK CARES!" the angry one had bellowed. Madara certainly remembered him. He was the one that Madara had shot after slicing Izuna's throat open. The other one had killed Kawarama and helped the angry one escape, so she was just as guilty.
He stabbed through the angry one's hand, pinning it to the ground. The vampire howled in pain and snapped its fangs at Madara. The Djinn felt oddly calm in the moment, simply smiling down at the feral monster on the ground in front of him.
"You killed my brother right in front of me a few years ago. I shot you with a nasty little bullet that was, apparently, not enough to kill you. It must have been pretty painful, though. So, again, do you remember me?" Madara teased. The vampire's eyes had widened almost comically and the female at his side started wailing even louder. Madara felt his eyebrow twitch at the sound, now growing annoying with the girl's sniveling and screaming.
Flicking his wrist in a calculated swing, her head was rolling on the ground in front of the monster he was completely focused on.
"WE NEEDED TO EAT! YOU FUCKING BRATS WERE THE EASIEST PREY THAT WEEK! FUCK! YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO KILL MARIA! GODDAMMIT!" The angry one was now crying, tracks of tears evident and clear against the vampire's dirty face. Madara tutted, clicking his tongue and making a show of thinking as the vampire in front of him broke down.
"Well, I guess that's just the difference between you and me. You chose to harm some kids that were completely harmless to you. I'm choosing to harm someone that preys on others for their terror. You know, it wasn't until I did some research that I found out you were going to scare us to death then keep one of us as a personal blood bag. Pretty damn cold, you know? How would you like to feel that kind of terror, hm?" Madara asked, squatting down to eye-level with the vampire.
"YOU'VE TAKEN EVERYTHING FROM ME ALREADY! WHAT ELSE CAN YOU FUCKING DO?!" Madara smirked, the red glow of his eyes now consistent for the viewing pleasure of the monster in front of him. The vampire kicked his legs, desperately trying to put distance between him and the man in front of him. "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU?!" it screeched.
"Don't worry about that. Enjoy this little trip." Madara ran an uncovered hand over the skin of the vampire's leg, reveling in the way the vampire's eyes glazed over and grew to the size of dinner plates. The screams started, true terror taking over the monster's mind. Madara felt the power of it rushing through him and he could feel fangs breaching further from his gums in his mouth. It was a new sensation. Yet, he was still logical. He wouldn't bite a vampire. That was a recipe for disaster.
After a few minutes, the vampire had screamed enough that he couldn't scream anymore, simply staring into the space in front of him in silent horror. Madara ended it then, beheading his final target.
...
Madara couldn't explain why he did what he did. From the torture, the use of his new abilities, and the transportation of the bodies to the old compound, he didn't know what drove him to do such things. He abandoned the bodies in the compound near the circle that had held the campfire so many years ago, ripping the fangs from the skulls of the monsters that had ruined his life.
When he returned home in the early hours of the morning several days later, he dropped the fangs on the kitchen table for his father and pulled on a pair of leather biker gloves he usually saved for when he rode his motorcycle. He wasn't taking any risks now that his touch could harm the people around him.
The fangs were gone when he woke up late the next day and his father was quick to notice the change of attire for his hands. They didn't talk about it. Madara didn't want to talk about it. Tajima didn't want to even acknowledge the change in his son.
After another year of living a normal life as a lawyer with occasional hunts to keep the area safe, his father dropped another bombshell on his life.
Tajima had cancer. It was terminal and he had months to live.
Madara was beside himself, yet he kept it carefully hidden behind his normal cocky attitude and the business they had to run. Tajima handled things efficiently, leaving instructions for Madara and Hikaku to follow after his passing. The house was transferred to Madara's name and he was given Power of Attorney on all of Tajima's accounts. A will was written and he left everything he had to Madara.
It wasn't until they were in the hospital, Tajima pale and struggling to breathe, that Madara let himself cry again. The nurses had left the room only a few minutes prior, only there to make sure Tajima was comfortable in his final days. Burying his head in his arms next to his father, he sobbed. He was losing the last of his immediate family and he felt the weight of living alone more than ever.
A hand in his hair, gently stroking his head made him pull himself up to look at his father.
"I'm proud of you, Madara. I know your life has been hard, especially these last few years, but I'm so proud of you. Live a normal life. You're old enough now that I know you'll be okay despite your heritage. If you decide a normal life isn't enough, just promise me you'll protect others and yourself, okay?" Tajima's voice was weak and Madara felt fat tears fall from his eyes. This was it. These were the last moments he would have with his father.
"Y-Yeah. I p-promise. I'll do my best for you and Izuna." Madara choked out, gripping the sheets of his father's bed. A light stroke of a weak finger against his cheek startled him enough to pull himself away sharply. His father's eyes softened.
"Give me a good dream, Madara. I'd like that right about now." Tajima's words were slurring slightly and Madara had a choice to make. He never would have thought of using the Dreams for something positive but, if there was a time to do so, that was the time to do it. Pulling the glove off of his right hand, he took his father's hand in a gentle grip.
"Sure. I think you've earned it. Sleep well, Dad." He let out a soft laugh, trying to ease the ache in his chest. He didn't have much control over the dream he wanted to give, but he knew it would be a good one. The smile on Tajima's face as the heart monitor flat-lined was enough of a reassurance for Madara as he needed. The next few minutes were peaceful, the nurses knowing not to try to save Tajima and Madara was able to find what little closure he could hope for in the situation.
...
"Hashirama! You can't just burst in here during business hours!" Madara yelled as he stood from his office chair, slamming his hands down on his desk. Hashirama had bulldozed his way through the door to his office, yelling and blubbering about Yumi. He was lucky Madara wasn't on the phone with a client or worse, in a meeting with one. It wasn't often that Hashirama disturbed him during business hours, much less at the office, but he naturally had to yell to get Hashirama to listen to reason like he did in most situations.
"B-But Madara! Yumi and I are getting a divorce! I need a lawyer!" Hashirama wailed, melting into a puddle on the floor. Madara sighed, rubbing at the bridge of his nose.
"Fucking sit down in the chair and tell me what's going on."
...
The divorce case between Hashirama and Yumi would have been pretty straight-cut if Hashirama hadn't signed a settlement prior to getting legal consultation. That settlement had included major shares in the Senju Company going towards Yumi and Madara had to fight tooth and nail to argue that Hashirama had been unfairly coerced into signing the settlement.
It was while he was dealing with the case that Hashirama had informed him that Tobirama was coming home for a week and they would be having dinner in a few days.
Word through the hunting grapevine was that the infamous solo hunter, 'The White Demon', had taken a break from hunting. Madara had kept close tabs on Tobirama, knowing just from the moniker that it referenced Hashirama's albino brother. Tobirama didn't take breaks. The man had a reputation of almost seeming like he was in multiple places at once with the sporadic and widespread hunts he took. He was a top dog in the hunting world and it made Madara a little apprehensive to see him after so many years.
A hunter and a Djinn wouldn't mix well. And if Tobirama was worth the literal pounds of salt he likely kept on him, he would spot Madara for what he was from a mile away.
Madara had connections in the hunting world, offering legal services for hunters that found themselves in legal trouble from not covering their tracks enough. It got him plenty of extra cash on the side in addition to the latest news from Ellen at The Roadhouse. It had only taken him mentioning one time that he knew Tobirama for her to unload on how badly the man was doing. She had kept an eye on him for years, watching the young man lose the light in his eyes as the hunts dragged on.
Madara wanted to help but he couldn't go out of his way to retrieve the man and drag him back to his brothers. He'd told Ellen as much. So when Tobirama had taken a break of his own volition and returned back to his hometown, Madara's curiosity and concern peaked.
When Itama called him, explaining that he'd said some terrible things to Tobirama and now the man was somewhere in the area 'clearing his head,' Madara had reassured the youngest Senju brother that he'd find him. Itama knew Madara was keeping tabs on Tobirama, the boy had taken it upon himself to look into the hunting world following the incident in the woods. Madara hadn't expected the youngest of the group to remember the encounter since he'd been drinking that night too. However, Itama remembered more than he'd let on when questioned by the police after the incident. Madara had adamantly kept Itama as far from the underbelly of the monster hunting world, yet kept Itama updated on Tobirama's whereabouts and condition from Ellen's own updates.
The years of occasional conversation had led to several deeper conversations about Itama's health and Madara had been rather harsh in telling Itama that he was in no condition to hunt. He considered it a success that Itama had instead focused on getting into medical school, keeping his nose clean and out of Madara and Tobirama's chosen careers.
Finding Tobirama in the compound wasn't surprising. The gun between his eyes was. Tobirama was quick to rectify the situation with much-too-practiced ease and Madara couldn't help but reveal his cards, teasing the poor hunter. Madara didn't like being able to hear people's thoughts. It was an unfortunate side-effect he'd acquired about a year after he'd gained the ability to administer Dreams through touch. Hearing Tobirama's over-worked brain thinking of at least three ways to kill him at any given time was enough to give him a headache.
Tobirama didn't lunge for him with any silver during their first reunion, however. Madara had carefully contained his shaking hands until after he'd gotten in his car, sending a text to Itama to let him know his brother was headed back home. Tobirama had peeled off in that old Firebird, leaving Madara to his thoughts on the side of the road.
Resting his head on the headrest, he rubbed his gloved hands over his face and let out a long sigh. Ellen hadn't been kidding. Tobirama didn't look good. At all. He was thin, not an ounce of fat on his body, just lean muscle and light scars. Tattoos that hadn't been present when Madara had last seen him were already dull around the edges and permanent frown lines were already developed on the man's face. Tobirama was younger than him by at least four years and he looked like he was at least five to seven years older than Madara.
The conversation they'd had wasn't reassuring either. Tobirama didn't consider himself human. His physical state was only the beginning. The man was falling apart at the seams and didn't seem to want to acknowledge it even a little bit. His odd interest in learning more about Madara had reminded Madara of the science nerd he remembered. However, the thoughts squashing that interest immediately after had killed the hope that had bloomed in him for bringing Tobirama back to his former self. Hunting did this to the people that dedicated their lives to it. It would kill Tobirama if Madara couldn't figure out how to change that mentality.
He wanted to do something, but what could he do? Madara was an asshole and Tobirama would never trust him after finding out the truth of Madara's status so quickly. There wasn't a chance of Madara getting close to him at this point. The best he could do was keep an eye on him when he visited Hashirama. He didn't want to watch Tobirama wither away, but he also had to keep his own interests in mind. If he pushed too hard, he could lose what he'd built in the Uchiha Law Firm. On top of that, he hadn't been lying to Tobirama when he'd mentioned how this would affect Hashirama and Itama. The White Demon did, in fact, have enemies. His presence in the town could bring those enemies to his doorstep.
Madara resigned himself to being vigilant for the next few days, just watching the situation. He would step in if things got out of control. He could do that, at least.
It would also give him time to squash down his own interest in the albino Senju.
...
His interest in Tobirama only got worse. Especially when he visited Hashirama's for dinner along with watching a game of football. He kept up the act of being prickly with Tobirama, but damn did he look good in the new clothes Hashirama had obviously shoved onto his brother. The sleeveless shirt was nice but it certainly highlighted how thin the hunter had gotten. Slightly more vivid tattoos trailed out from under the shirt to run over Tobirama's shoulders and Madara had to fight himself not to stare.
He caught onto snippets of Tobirama's thoughts and had to hold himself back from openly laughing at some of them. Lamb's blood in the pizza sauce was a good one. The hunter was probably correct that it would give him a reaction similar to anaphylactic shock. It would be a good prank to pull and it probably wouldn't kill him. Being compared to a feral cat, though? Really?
Seeing him smile and almost laugh at Madara's misery over dough on his leather jacket was worth the trouble. Tobirama hadn't smiled in his presence since they were children. Even if it was at Madara's expense, he was glad the hunter had a reason to smile.
Finding him completely zoned out on the living room couch not even a few minutes later had Madara's concern spiking again, however. He knew carrying one-sided conversations and reading Tobirama's thoughts this much was invasive, but he wanted a reaction. He got one, finally causing the hunter to snap, and he'd found very little satisfaction in the blunt honesty about how Tobirama just wanted silence for a few moments. He understood but, at the same time, he didn't. Tobirama couldn't have spent all of the years he was away in almost total solitude, right? The man's thoughts told him otherwise.
Tobirama couldn't wait to leave. He didn't want to be home. Madara knew the man loved his brothers, so why did he want to leave so badly? It was as if he wouldn't let himself even have more than a brief moment of relief during a time that was supposed to be the hunter's version of a vacation. It was depressing.
Spending time with Hashirama hooting and hollering at the football game throughout the afternoon hadn't made things any better. He wasn't picking up any thoughts from Tobirama. The glances he threw at the white-haired Senju brother told him that he was awake, but his eyes were glassy and all of his responses were clipped and entirely thoughtless.
Getting dismissed promptly at the end of the night after finally mentioning Tobirama's lankiness was the best result he could have gotten given the situation. For once, the hunter's mind hadn't immediately jumped to Madara's murder. He'd accepted that he was being kicked out without much argument.
Yet, Madara's thoughts remained on the hunter as he weaved through traffic to get home.
...
The next few days were spent trying to get himself back into his routine. It was while he was out getting dinner with a local client that he caught the thoughts of a couple of vampires walking through the street, openly thinking about 'plans' regarding 'the White Demon' taking place the in only a couple of days. Then it happened again. The next day, he caught more of them. They were coming together in a pack to take on Tobirama while he was settled down, a direct command from the Alpha.
Madara didn't really think it through, he just showed up outside of Tobirama's window late at night. He was rewarded with a now familiar gun pointed between his eyes. He was pushy, explaining the situation to Tobirama only after they were in the car. He wanted to nip this in the bud before it became a full-fledged plan and he needed Tobirama's help with how many vampires he was able to estimate were coming together in the old compound.
While he was sitting in the passenger seat of Tobirama's car, he allowed himself to take in the image of the man next to him. He was attractive. Madara couldn't deny that. Madara knew he swung both ways, yet never pursued romantic relationships. He shouldn't have allowed himself to even look at Tobirama that way, he knew he shouldn't want to fuck Hashirama's little brother and deal with the consequences afterwards. Yet, he wanted to allow himself to appreciate the hunter a little bit. It wasn't like Tobirama would be sticking around. He could indulge himself a little bit.
That thought process did have consequences of its own, however. Seeing Tobirama tearing through vampires left and right, covered in blood and snarling during the hunt, ignited something in Madara that he couldn't contain. Tobirama didn't even flinch at his own twisted way of handling the monsters.
When their lips met in the middle of the carnage, Madara felt like something had clicked in his head. He wanted to get fucked right in the middle of the compound by one of the most dangerous hunters in the world. He settled for dragging Tobirama to one of the cabins and guiding him through the trip the Senju was having just from touching him. Madara was trying his best to limit the effects. It wasn't something he had tried before but it seemed to be working from how Tobirama was still coherent and definitely not in a Dream.
Madara hadn't been laid since he'd started avoiding touches to his bare skin. Getting bent over a table and fucked by Tobirama was nearly primal and he found himself snarling and hissing, enjoying every second of it. Tobirama was entirely too careful with him, taking his role very seriously and ensuring Madara wouldn't get hurt. While Madara appreciated it, he almost wanted it to hurt. He wanted Tobirama to take out his frustrations on him.
When his control started slipping, he could tell that Tobirama was starting to get affected. His thrusts were stuttering and his words were slurring. Madara was only able to get a few glances at Tobirama with the way the man had his head pulled back by his hair, but he was able to see that Tobirama was seeing things in the corners of the room.
When Madara came, it was Earth-shattering. Tobirama had pressed himself against his back and his arm was placed right in front of Madara's open mouth. His fangs ached and he did the first thing that came to mind. He bit down. Hard.
The taste of Tobirama's blood had his eyes rolling into the back of his head and he had to force himself to let go so he wouldn't be tempted to feed from the hunter. He could tell the exact second that his venom had gotten to Tobirama because the man came with a startled groan before nearly falling over to the side, eyes slipping closed.
Cursing, Madara had scrambled to pull his pants up and retrieve the antivenom from the hilt of his katana. He knew Tobirama was only in a half-Dream-like state from the way his eyes were fluttering. It had to be a decent Dream from the fact that he seemed almost at peace for a few moments. While Madara wanted to let him continue his Dream, he couldn't let the venom keep the man unconscious for too long or the recovery from it would be worse. He injected the antivenom and waited patiently.
He felt guilty but he was satisfied. Tobirama wouldn't have allowed it to happen if he hadn't had an interest in Madara. Right? He wanted to believe he hadn't drugged the man into having sex with him.
After Tobirama was back on his feet, their mutual agreement not to tell Hashirama and the awkward interactions following the agreement did nothing to help his increasing anxiety over the situation. Rushing back to the house to get his car, he was quick to retreat. He didn't sleep after getting home, thinking over his options. Later in the day, he received a text from Itama.
'Wow. Just wow. That is a nasty bite Mads'
Mortification burned through Madara as he debated what he could do about the situation. His thoughts about Tobirama had grown exponentially in just a few hours. He couldn't let the man go back to hunting on his own. There was no way Tobirama would live past thirty if he went back now.
Making up his mind, he sent a long email to Hikaku.
...
Asking Tobirama to drive him to visit a client 'on the way' to Tobirama's destination was not the smoothest way of inviting himself onto Tobirama's road trip, but it worked. Tobirama had agreed to the company quickly and Madara couldn't help the relief that washed over him.
Revealing that there wasn't a client to meet was met with a hopeful expression that Madara hadn't expected. He thought there would be some sort of argument or threat. Yet, Tobirama had simply given him a small smile and asked if he'd ever actually been to The Roadhouse. Since he hadn't, that was their first destination.
Finding himself with his feet kicked up on the dashboard of Tobirama's Firebird on the second day of their roadtrip, eating Pringles and casually arguing about which Queen song was the most iconic, Madara found himself happy. All of the decisions leading to that point were entirely impulsive and last-minute, but Madara was happy. Tobirama seemed happy too if his thoughts were anything to go by.
"Hey, I'll hang around as long as you'll have me. This doesn't have to be a short thing." Madara told Tobirama, casually tossing another chip in his mouth. Tobirama gave him a hesitant look and Madara mentally braced himself for rejection of some kind.
"What about the law firm?" Tobirama asked, his hands gripping the wheel of the car a little tighter. Madara shrugged before putting a gloved hand on Tobirama's arm, trying his best to be reassuring. It seemed to work with the way Tobirama relaxed under his touch.
"Hikaku has it handled. I'll still do some work while we're traveling. If anything, this will make things a little easier since I won't have to do all of my meetings through phone and email. I can focus on the hunter side of things while he keeps up the legitimate cases." Madara told him, smiling at the solution he'd come up with the previous day. Tobirama fully relaxed then, giving him a small smile in return.
"I guess I'll keep you around a little longer, then."