The next time he saw her, she was trailing behind the blonde from before. The blonde was dressed in an elegant white revealing kimono which dipped low enough to show her cleavage with a scarlet lining and sash. Her wavy blond hair was flowing behind her, reaching her mid-back. Her face was coated in a triple layer of makeup, something he found disgusting. He was never a fan of makeup, even though his late mother and every other woman wore it. She was walking with purpose, most probably heading to his father's quarters. It had been pretty obvious. After losing his wife two years ago, Butsuma had never indulged in any sexual activity. Since the man was still in late forties, he was still as hormonal as every other man. Hashirama couldn't blame him, he understood his father. He just found it very disturbing. The blonde, Matsuri, was quickly making her there, no doubt also eager to meet her father judging by the almost too-excited face. Whether or not she really wanted to see him because she felt something for his old man or was just performing her duty, he didn't know.
The pink-haired girl was behind Matsuri, holding the ends of her kimono from behind so that the edges wouldn't get dirty. She had trouble keeping up with the lady as her short legs were refusing her to take long strides. Not to mention the tattered oversized green yukata she was wearing. Hadn't Tobirama owned that yukata before? He pondered whether or not he should follow her. He never got her name last time. He wanted to know her name at the very least. Yes, it was a very innocent thought to have towards an unknown four-year old little girl. With that thought in mind, he casually followed the two a good distance away from them, without having to raise any suspicions. This went on for the next five minutes and before he knew it, the duo had reached their destination. The girl helped Matsuri onto the veranda then left her as she walked inside with eager anticipation, or so he thought. He turned back into the corner he was hiding, giving himself a little pep talk to go and ask the girl her name. He wasn't feeling scared, despite his sweating palms or hammering heart.
'I can do it!' he thought. He was Hashirama Senju, never afraid of anything or anyone. Besides, she was just a four-year old war captive, nothing too scary. If it were Tobirama, then maybe he would be scared. That boy was as scary as their mother when she was mad, scary as hell. With a confident smile, he turned around the corner casually only to find the girl gone. He blinked confusedly before he felt a tug at his robe. He slowly turned around and almost jumped when he saw her, staring at him. Gosh, he had almost wet his pants. How she snuck up on him was still a mystery. He just hoped Tobirama wouldn't know of this because he was sure to tease him non-stop that a little girl had snuck up on him. "Are you…" she started and he began to panic. 'He was not stalking her! He was not stalking her! He was-' "Are you a ninja?" she asked in a clear voice.
Sighing secretly in relief, he crouched in front her. "Yes I am," he said with a warm smile. The girl was quiet for a moment as though she was having an internal debate before beaming up at him. "I'm a ninja too!" she said in a typical kid-voice. Deciding to humour her, Hashirama went along with her. "Oh really, that's great. You can show me what you can do sometimes then," he said. The girl nodded eagerly before pouting sourly. "I want to but Matsuri-sama wouldn't want me be gone from her for a long time," she said. "Is she your guardian?" he asked. She nodded. "She found me amidst the ruins from the war. I'm her only relative left so I guess she had to keep me around," she explained. He nodded in understanding. "Where are you from?" he asked carefully. "I'm from-" she stopped abruptly as her eyes suddenly widened fearfully. 'Oh no,' he thought as she began to tremble uncontrollably with a faraway look in her eyes.
There was blood and screaming everywhere. Smoke was the dominant gas over oxygen. The feeling of despair hung mercilessly in the air. She stared at the ruins of what was left of her village. The people hadn't been evacuated in time as such many lost their lives, both shinobi and civilian alike. Apparently, the Akatsuki, or what was left of it anyway, had decided to personally pay Konoha a visit. Madara had demanded that they turn in the Kyuubi container otherwise...… Of course, they had refused. No one would dare to give up their beloved golden hero. They would fight for him. And fighting meant losing a lot of lives. They had been unexpectedly attacked. Naruto was away on a month long mission with the toads. The armies of White Zetsu marching in their village was wrecking havoc. They were attacking every living thing they saw; a child, a man, a mother, a grandfather, anything. And even a tree and she chuckled dryly as she watched the Zetsu mercilessly attack a tree. She couldn't use her signature moves as it could harm the civilians in the process. There was no hospital to go as it had been the first to be destroyed. Tsunade had ordered the genins and some few chunin to evacuate anyone they saw to the hideout which was situated under the Hokage Mountain. Everyone else was on the needed on the battlefield.
She cut through the Zetsus like she was cutting butter with a hot knife, punching and kicking like she had done with Sasori's puppets a long time ago. But even that wasn't able to stop as they continued to come in numerous numbers. She heard a sharp cry to the left and turned around just in time to see Ino fall down in a boneless heap, with a Fuma shuriken stuck where her heart should've been. A single tear fell followed by a silent cry of "Ino!"
"-sorry! Please forgive me!" She snapped out of her vision, immediately forgetting what she had seen except the lingering deep guttural feeling of despair and loss. She blinked her tears away to find Hashirama kneeling before her with his head bowed to the ground. He was muttering apologies repeatedly like a mantra. "Hashirama-san," she said softly as she shook him gently by the shoulders. Said boy raised his head slowly, almost embarrassed to meet her eyes. "I'm fine. It's just a bad memory," she said with a weak smile. She took his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze which prompted the boy to look up immediately. "I'm fine. No need to worry," she said strongly. Hashirama stared at the young girl. Though her eyes were still red from crying, they were bright and aflame with determination. He was captivated by her as a single thought formed in his mind.
'The Will of Fire.'
He continued to stare at her, wondering where that thought came from. Realising that he looked like a fish out of water, he quickly composed himself. "Are you sure?" he asked concernedly. She nodded eagerly. "Don't worry yourself with me. It makes me sad to see you sad especially if it's because of me," she replied as she pouted childishly. "You get sad when I get sad? Why?" he asked, his curiosity getting the best of him. She smiled almost mischievously. "That's my secret to keep," she said with a smile which caused him to pout. "Not fair," he grumbled as she laughed. "But really, don't concern yourself with me," she said seriously, sounding more like a grown woman who was refusing to be seen as a damsel in distress rather than a four-year old kid. Hashirama nodded slowly in understanding.
Hashirama strolled casually in their room whistling softly. "You seem to be in a good mood," Tobirama said as he held two struggling boys by their collars. They looked about ready to kill each other there and then but couldn't because their Tobi-nii! was gripping their collars. He was like a mother to the two of them, three if you counted Hashirama. "I'm always in a good mood," their older said casually as he sat on his futon. "So what were you doing?" the white-haired boy asked as he dropped Itama and Kawarama unceremoniously onto the wooden floor with loud thuds. Immediately, the two boys made a jump for each other only to stop when they felt the blistering glare of Tobirama behind them. They separated immediately before starting to glare at each other. "Nothing much, just walking around the compound," he replied as he began to inspect his kunai. "I guess stalking four-year olds doesn't count as something," the boy said with a raised eyebrow. Hashirama sputtered and cut himself with the kunai he was testing on his thumb.
"I wasn't stalking anyone!" the brunette defended himself, watching as his cut immediately healed itself. "Oh really? Then maybe I should ask that pink-haired war captive-" "Don't call her a war captive! She has a name," Hashirama said with a scowl. Tobirama never thought he would live to see the day that his brother would scowl. He was the one with 'a permanent scowl on your face!'. He would tease his brother later. Then Hashirama's face morphed into one of utter despair. "I forgot to ask her name!" he cried out loud as he dropped onto the futon miserably. Tobirama held back a smirk.
I'm done with this chapter. Hope you like it. Reviews are much appreciated.
Tozoonana
AfricanFire
