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Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me.

Chapter 3: Dance the Night Away

"Pay attention to your opponent's movements. Anticipate their next move," Madara lectured as he swung his fist out at Hiruzen, who successfully, but just barely, dodged.

"Yes sir!" Hiruzen answered as he kicked his leg out toward Madara, who grabbed his leg, swung him around, and released him, sending him flying. Hiruzen managed to land on his hands and backflip back to a stand. With the back of his hand, he wiped the sweat that dripped down his chin and thought about other ways to land a hit on his teacher.

They had been sparring for quite some time now, and Hiruzen had yet to land a hit on Madara. Though Madara wasn't taking it easy on Hiruzen, he still looked almost bored, revealing the obvious gap in their strength. Initially, it was discouraging to Hiruzen, but he appreciated the experience he was able to get from sparring with Madara.

Meanwhile, Hashirama was sitting to the side, watching them train with a smile. He loved observing Madara train the younger generation since it was such a rare sight. He also liked witnessing Hiruzen's progress and has noticed that he's definitely gotten stronger within the past few months.

Madara stood calmly on the open field with his arms crossed; he hadn't even broken a sweat nor activated his Sharingan yet. He patiently watched Hiruzen pant heavily from a distance, waiting for him to make the next move.

"You're not going to have this much time to think in real battle," Madara announced sternly.

Hiruzen flinched and immediately started moving without a plan. "Yes sir!"

He lunged at Madara, and they started engaging in more hand-to-hand combat. Hiruzen was only able to get a few swings in before he was easily overpowered by Madara and took a few painful punches to his face and stomach. He skidded back, creating distance between them, and weaved multiple hand signs.

"Water style: Wild Water Wave."

A stream of water shot out at Hiruzen's mouth toward Madara's direction.

Madara immediately weaved a single hand sign.

"Fire style: Majestic Destroyer Flame."

A large rush of fire shot out of Madara's mouth and easily overwhelmed Hiruzen's jutsu, causing the water to evaporate instantly. Hiruzen jumped out of the way to avoid being hit by Madara's fire style, but the side of his shirt was singed, and he suffered a superficial burn along a small area of skin on his abdomen.

Hiruzen grabbed two kunai from his pouch and ran towards Madara, then jumped into the air. He threw the kunai and weaved a couple of hand signs, causing the kunai to multiply.

Madara effortlessly caught the first kunai that flew toward him and used it to counter the rest with ease. The sounds of metal clashing against each other reverberated through the air. With a swift motion, he grabbed the last kunai that headed toward him and threw it back at Hiruzen, who was still suspended in mid-air.

As soon as the kunai struck Hiruzen, he immediately turned into a log that hit the ground.

"Hmm? Substitution, eh?" Madara thought as he crossed his arms. He could already sense where the real Hiruzen was attacking from, yet remained still, not bothering to turn towards the approaching boy.

Hiruzen felt confident. He didn't think Madara caught on to where he was coming from. He took out his last kunai and gathered chakra to his feet, lunging himself at top speed towards Madara from behind. However, Madara shifted to the side and grabbed his wrist tightly, causing Hiruzen to wince and drop the kunai. Hiruzen was suddenly swung into the air. He grunted as he felt a Madara uppercut his stomach. While Hiruzen started falling back down, Madara kicked him in the stomach and sent him flying until he hit his back against a tree and slid down to the ground.

Hashirama flinched at the impact. Madara sure was being tough.

Both Hiruzen's back and stomach burned with intense pain, causing him to groan in pain. Suddenly, he felt a daunting presence appear near him. When he opened his eyes, he saw Madara crouched right in front of him, a kunai just centimeters away from his neck.

"Now, what will you do in this situation?" Madara asked, his deep voice sending chills down Hiruzen's spine.

Hiruzen gulped, he felt a wave of fear suddenly wash over him as his legs trembled. He didn't know how to get out of this situation. His breathing was heavy, but he was too afraid to move too much, knowing if he moved even an inch, the kunai would slice his skin and draw blood. Hiruzen took the time to examine Madara's face. Wow, he hadn't even broken a sweat. His aura was menacing, powerful, confident. This was Madara Uchiha.

"Okay! Okay! How about we call it a day?" Hashirama interrupted as he walked up to the two clapping his hands together to lighten up the mood.

Madara threw the kunai to the side and stood up to move out of the way. Hashirama then crouched down in front of Hiruzen and ruffled his hair.

"Hiruzen! I watched the whole thing. You did well." Hashirama then looked over to Madara. "Right, Madara?"

Madara didn't expect to be put on the spot like that. He slowly searched for words to respond with.

"He wasn't… terrible."

Hiruzen felt a bit dejected at Madara's response. Despite working so hard, he didn't even manage to land a single hit on him, let alone come close. No wonder Madara didn't have anything good to say.

Hashirama turned to Hiruzen and gave him a reassuring smile. "Believe it or not, that's a big compliment coming from Madara."

Hiruzen then felt a glimmer of hope. He quickly got on his hands and knees and bowed. "Thank you, Madara, for training me today! I promise I'll keep working harder to get stronger, so as not to disappoint you!"

Madara could feel his cheeks grow warm. He didn't really know what to say in this situation. He opted to hum in response, acknowledging Hiruzen's resolve.

Hashirama chuckled and said to Hiruzen, "Don't mind him, he's just shy."

Irritation welled up inside Madara as he pointed at Hashirama and yelled, "Oi, Hashirama! I'm tired of you doing me like that!"

"Like what?" Hashirama teased.

"You know what I mean!" Madara huffed and walked away from the two, hiding his slightly flushed face.

Hashirama laughed. In that moment he felt nostalgic, it was like their usual banter from years ago; the dynamic that slowly faded as they grew more distant. He missed moments like these.

Hashirama then dismissed Hiruzen and told him he'd train him some other day, to which Hiruzen nodded and left.

Madara sat down on the grass in the empty field and Hashirama walked over to sit down next to him. In an attempt to ignore Hashirama's presence, Madara stared straight ahead.

"So… what do you think of Hiruzen? He's pretty promising, right?" Hashirama asked with a pleased smile, proud of his student and how far he's come.

"Hiruzen Sarutobi… he's a bit of a disappointment," Madara said flatly, eyes still straight ahead.

Hashirama was immediately overtaken by his habitual depressed demeanor.

Madara could sense Hashirama's change in demeanor. He glanced at Hashirama and gave him a judging look. "You're still doing that?"

Hashirama pouted. "What's so bad about him?"

Madara blinked then looked forward once again. "Hmm… he's not nearly as strong as we were at his age. Plus, there were plenty of kids his age that were stronger back in the day."

Hashirama exhaled and leaned back against his arms, with his hands planted against the ground slightly behind him. "Times are different. They don't have to fight as much as we did back then. The caliber of shinobi is different in an age of peace."

Madara turned to Hashirama, "You think we're in the age of peace?"

"Relatively. It's better than how things were before," Hashirama responded.

Madara grew silent before gazing forward at the grassy field in front of him. He understood what Hashirama meant. Yeah, things weren't as bad as they were during the warring states era, but he didn't believe peace had been completely achieved yet. Shinobi were still dying; small wars were still being fought, children were still training and getting sent out on missions to die, and tension was still present and rising. People still faced tragedy. None of this was peaceful. None of this was how Madara wanted things to be.

Madara's thoughts were interrupted by the chuckle that escaped Hashirama's lips.

"I think you might've been a little too hard on Hiruzen today."

Madara raised an eyebrow. "Was I? I thought I was going easy on him."

Hashirama grew a worried look on his face. "You call that easy?" he thought. The interesting thing is that Madara probably genuinely thought so.

"Really. My father was a lot worse with me and my brothers," Madara added. He immediately experienced unpleasant flashbacks—the hours of training, the broken bones, the burns. Yet his father claimed it was all in the name of getting stronger for the sake of the Uchiha clan.

Hashirama chuckled, "Well, he might be a little afraid of you now, but I believe he was appreciative of your attention today."

"Whatever, add that to the list of children who are afraid of me."

Hashirama burst into laughter as he thought about the encounters Madara had had with children. He wasn't very lucky with them. For some reason, their first reaction is to be afraid. He recalled a time when a little girl tripped and fell, and Madara rushed to her aid. In an attempt to help her, she was startled at the sight of Madara.

Madara rolled his eyes.

"It's because you don't smile! It makes you more intimidating."

Madara sighed. "Please, spare me the lecture, Hashirama," he said as he ran his gloved hand through his hair, for a moment moving his black locks out of his face, revealing the other half. It was a sight Hashirama didn't dare to miss. He admired Madara as his fair fell back down over half of his face.

Hashirama responded, "I'm not trying to lecture you, I'm serious! I really do like your…" he didn't realize the last sentence had already slipped out, but decided to finish it anyway. "…smile."

For a moment, Madara could feel butterflies in his stomach. What did he say? His heart began to beat against his chest as he processed the compliment Hashirama had just given him. But was it really a compliment? Was he really being serious? Or was he just being nice? Was he just saying that as part of his lecture?

Madara turned to Hashirama, who was looking down at the grass in front of him. His eyes narrowed. "Are you teasing me, Senju?"

"W-what? No! I'm serious." Hashirama then decided to say it again with more conviction. "I like your smile, Madara."

Madara, not knowing how to react to the compliment, averted his gaze elsewhere, hiding the subtle shift in his facial expression as he was feeling both a bit embarrassed and pleased. "Whatever," he mumbled.

The conversation they were having earlier that day before they got interrupted by Hiruzen crossed Hashirama's mind. At that moment, he really did feel like Madara was going to open up to him, and he didn't want to let that opportunity slip away from him before the day was over.

"Oh, by the way, Madara, I'm sorry Hiruzen interrupted us earlier. I still want to—"

Madara immediately stood up. He knew where this was going, but he didn't want to go there. While he did almost open up to Hashirama, the interruption served as a reminder that he shouldn't. It will only complicate things. He's already made his decision, and opening up probably won't change that.

"I'm leaving," Madara said as he started walking away from Hashirama.

"Wait, Madara, where are you going?"

But Madara didn't respond. He just kept walking, not in the mood to entertain Hashirama's questions today. He wasn't really going anywhere in specific but just wanted to escape Hashirama's constant persistence.

"Madara!" Hashirama called out as he watched his best friend walk further and further away from him. He could feel some anxiety rise within him since he knew that once Madara left, it would be hard for him to reinitiate a conversation or another hangout, especially given how stubborn the man was being.

Humming to himself, Hashirama thought about how he could keep Madara's attention so as not to let their time together end. To his satisfaction, an idea popped into his head. Hashirama activated one of his many jutsus, creating a wooden pillar that emerged from the ground and attacked Madara, who successfully dodged it.

"What was that for?" Madara asked as he turned to Hashirama.

Hashirama smirked and stood up, clapping his hands together into a hand seal, causing more pillars to emerge and grow towards Madara. The Uchiha continuously dodged the pillars as they launched at him.

"Hashira—"

Before Madara could finish calling out his name, Hashirama lunged at Madara. They engaged in brief hand-to-hand combat before they clashed their hands together, their fingers intertwined with one another's and their faces just inches away from each other's, pushing with all their might to avoid getting overpowered.

"We haven't sparred in a while, right?" Hashirama said.

"Hashirama—"

"Don't tell me you're getting rusty?" Hashirama taunted with a mischievous grin.

And that's what did it. Madara felt something rile up inside of him.

"Rusty?!" A smirk slowly spread across Madara's face. Now he was getting serious. They forcefully pushed against each other and lunged backward, creating distance between them.

They immediately started engaging in one-on-one combat, matching each other's strengths, and holding their own against each other. The sounds of clashing metal, growing wood, and flames quickly pierced the air. The grunts of the two men echoed through the atmosphere along with the smells of burning wood.

Hashirama was used to Madara's patterns, and his sharingan was no problem for him. But even though Madara was smirking on the outside, Hashirama could feel the emotions of his best friend through the clashing of their fists—the anger, the sadness, the loneliness. Each physical impact between the two served as a bridge between the outside world and Madara's heart. It saddened Hashirama and only confirmed his suspicions. It was just so frustrating that he couldn't get it out of Madara.

Meanwhile, Madara felt more alive than he had ever been in a while. His racing heart rate, the adrenaline rushing through his veins, the waves of pain with each hit he took from Hashirama—it was the first time in months he felt something other than despair and loneliness. He loved it. He sank into this feeling: the feeling of combating his best friend, the only person who could match his strength, his rhythm. The only person he acknowledged. And he felt like he was having the time of his life.

"HASHIRAMA!" Madara called out with a smile as he got lost in the moment.

Hours passed by, and nighttime had arrived. By this time, the two were worn out, panting on the ground beside each other as they attempted to catch their breaths after taking a break amidst their endless sparring. They both looked up at the stars that traversed the night sky.

Suddenly, Madara broke out into a bout of laughter, his deep voice reverberating through the air. Hashirama turned his head towards Madara and widened his eyes in awe. His chest fluttered at the sight of Madara's genuine smile, the infectious laughter, and the way the moonlight shined against his fair skin, with beads of sweat that glistened. Hashirama continued to take in his beauty, his best friend, his rival, the person he loved.

Madara's laughter slowly calmed down. "We haven't danced like that in a while, Hashirama."

Hashirama slowly smiled. "Yeah…"

For a moment, Hashirama thought about bringing up the emotions he felt through his fight with Madara, but he didn't want to ruin the moment. He propped himself up to a seated position and exhaled. Madara remained lying down; he grabbed the bottom of his shirt and brought it up to his face to wipe his sweat, exposing his abdomen.

Hashirama took this opportunity to glance at Madara. His gaze slowly made his way down Madara's exposed chest, and down his lean stomach, his prominent abs glistening in the moonlight from the sweat. He then slowly looked down, following his V-line down to the band of his pants. Hashirama bit his inner lip and dared to look down further, glimpsing at the subtle bulge at his crotch, which sent of wave of pleasure through his body and down to his crotch. Hashirama's breath quickened as he thought about what he wanted to do to Madara; he wanted to climb on top of him and grind against him while sucking at his sweaty neck.

Hashirama quickly turned his head when Madara pulled his shirt back down, his face now free from the sweat he wiped off.

Madara didn't notice Hashirama ogling him earlier. He pushed himself to a seated position and looked towards Hashirama, who was looking away. He took that as an opportunity to also appreciate Hashirama in the moonlight. He noticed the way Hashirama's damp brown locks stuck to the side of his face and how his neck glistened with the sweat that slowly slid downward. He watched Hashirama as his chest slowly rose and fell as he caught his breath. Madara desperately wanted to pull him towards him, bring his neck to his mouth and bite down, suck, and taste his salty sweat against his tongue. He wanted to grab his damp hair and pull him into a feverous kiss.

Madara quickly turned his head away when he noticed Hashirama shifting his face towards him. Their silence continued. Since Madara still sensed Hashirama's eyes on him, he glanced back and met his gaze.

"What?" Madara asked.

"Nothing," Hashirama muttered.

They both stared straight ahead at the open land, its landscape altered from their battle. Both tried to contain their excitement, not daring to act on their desires with the belief that the other didn't feel the same way.

Hashirama and Madara found themselves sitting in silence for a few moments, lost in their thoughts. Hashirama's mind raced with his concern for Madara. He wished he would open up to him and tell him what was going on. He still harbored that fear of Madara slipping away from him, disappearing. Hashirama has been afraid to bring it up again because he didn't want to ruin the moment but came to the reluctant conclusion that it might be time to just ask.

In Madara's head were all the things that had been bothering him—his loneliness, the emptiness left by the death of his younger brother, the betrayal by his clan, his hopelessness in the future, the feeling that he had nothing else left to live for. He thought about Hashirma, who was so close, yet still felt so far away… so far ahead of him—a bright light that was out of reach, and he has come to accept that. But curse Hashirama for trying to get closer to him, to give Madara a sliver of hope that will probably eventually get ripped away from him with time again.

Good things never last for Madara anyway. Despite this, he started entertaining the idea that maybe… just maybe if he opened up, things would be different. Maybe opening up will help him. Maybe it'll give him some hope.

The two sighed in unison.

"Madara."

"Hashirama."

They both said at the same time. They turned to each other.

"Hmm?" they answered in unison.

Both quickly got cold feet, deciding not to follow through with their thoughts. They continued to stare at each other in silence. Despite deciding not to open up, Madara really didn't want his time with Hashirama to end.

Madara finally broke the silence and asked, "Shall we continue where we left off? Sparring?"

Hashirama's eyes slightly widened, surprised that Madara offered to continue even after he attempted to avoid him all day. The initial excitement didn't last though; a wave of sadness washed over him when he realized how late it was. If they continued, they would probably keep going until the morning. Despite Hashirama's strong feelings for Madara, he did still have a life outside of him and a wife at home.

"I'm sorry, Madara. I should probably go home to Mito before she starts to worry."

Hashirama watched as Madara's ever-so-slight smile started to fade. Madara averted his gaze and looked forward.

"Right, don't let me keep you."

Hashirama added, "B-but next time, yeah?"

If there will even be a next time. Madara turned back to Hashirama and flashed him a subtle grin that didn't reach his eyes. "Next time," he said.

Hashirama could tell the smile wasn't genuine. "Madara—"

Madara let out an exaggerated sigh as he stood up off the ground and dusted off his pants. "Oi, Oi, Hashirama, didn't you say Mito can be scary when she's angry? You better get going before she gets on you, or else I'll have to hear about it," Madara said lightly.

Hashirama could tell that Madara was trying to lighten up the mood. He chuckled while scratching the back of his head. "I guess you're right."

"Of course, I am."

Hashirama smiled and reached out his hand, signaling for help.

Madara's eyes narrowed. "You can't get up yourself?"

Hashirama flashed a sheepish smile. "The world is spinning," he said softly, a playful hint in his voice.

Madara smirked and rolled his eyes, understanding the joke behind Hashirama's reference. He reached out his gloved hand and grabbed Hashirama's, pulling him up to his feet. Truthfully, Hashirama didn't like that Madara wore gloves. He always felt robbed of his touch.

"Thank you, Madara."

"Hn, now get going." Madara then pointed at Hashirama and added, "And don't bring my name up with Mito. I don't want to face her wrath too."

Hashirama burst into laughter, "Right, right, you have my word."

Madara hummed in response and started taking his leave.

Hashirama watched as his best friend walked away. Then he felt that familiar unsettling feeling in his gut he'd been feeling for a while—the fear that Madara would disappear.

"Madara."

Madara turned around.

"I'll see you tomorrow?"

"…Maybe," Madara said as he turned back to continue walking. He was planning on leaving the village soon after all and wasn't going to tell Hashirama.

"You said you wouldn't leave me, remember?"

Madara's eye twitched, annoyed that he'd bring that up. "So, you do remember that night?"

Hashirama nodded, "Vividly."

Madara sucked his teeth. "I only said that because your drunk ass wouldn't shut up."

"But you said it."

"Because—"

"But you said it," Hashirama interrupted, a teasing smirk spread across his face.

Madara grew annoyed; he could tell Hashirama was trying to push his buttons. "Whatever."

"So, I'll see you tomorrow?" Hashirama said, hopeful that he'd agree.

"I'll be around," Madara mumbled, finally giving in.

"And that's enough for me for now," Hashirama thought as he smiled. He watched as Madara slowly walked off, disappearing into the night, and hoped that he'd still be here when he woke up the next day.

Thanks for reading! Tune in for the next chapter. ^_^