Enjoy!
Chapter 11: Flowers
It was the night after the Fuji incident, and Madara was sitting on his couch, attempting to read his book. He had been home all day, reading away. But the further into the evening it got, the more restless Madara felt. He hadn't been bothered by Hashirama all day, and he expected Hashirama to seek him out, to come by his place and do the stupid check-in and hit him with the 'see you tomorrow?' question. What was more frustrating was that Madara couldn't help but fixate on it. It's not like he wanted Hashirama to drop by. It's not like he wanted to see him. Well, that's what he was trying to convince himself to believe.
Madara couldn't help but think about the night before; when Hashirama touched his forehead, when he told him that he cared about him, when he banged on his door in panic, and when he whispered… Madara touched his forehead where Hashirama's hand once was and could feel butterflies in his stomach. What did Hashirama mean when he said what he said? Though it was a barely audible whisper, Madara still definitely heard it. Were his ears deceiving him? Did he hear him correctly? Was he being delusional?
Madara thought back again to that night:
*Flashback starts*
Hashirama softly chuckled, bringing his palm to his face, and accidentally whispered, "You have no idea how head over heels I am for you."
Madara's eyes widened. "What?"
*Flashback ends*
What did Hashirama mean? Head over heels? Head over heels, good? Head over heels, bad? Did he even say head over heels? Madara wasn't sure how to interpret it, and he hesitated to interpret it in his favor. Besides, how is he even so sure Hashirama hasn't turned on him yet? After the Fuji incident last night? Madara groaned and buried his face into his book. He immediately looked up at the door when he thought he heard something, but after a moment of silence, he realized it was nothing. He sighed and looked over at his clock: 10:20 PM. Why hasn't he stopped by? Was Madara right? Did Hashirama really turn on him? Is this it?
Madara stood up and started pacing around his home, half-expecting Hashirama to knock on his door at any moment now. But he couldn't sense Hashirama coming near his place. Where was he? What's the point in Madara sticking around if Hashirama doesn't come see him?
Madara cursed under his breath, annoyed that he was even thinking this way. Maybe he should go see him. Madara started walking toward his front door. No, he shouldn't. For what? He turned around and walked back to his couch, sitting down and leaning his head back. He stared at the ceiling. This was fine. This is how things are meant to be. Instead of ruminating on why Hashirama hadn't come to see him, he needed to think about his plan. Yes, true peace, the Infinite Tsukuyomi. The Rinnegan. Hashirama's cells. Hashirama's cells…
"Hashirama's cells…" Madara whispered.
Madara immediately sat up. He needed Hashirama's cells. He quickly stood up, walked over to a drawer, and rummaged through his ninja tools. Hashirama's cells. Madara grabbed a kunai, tilting it until he saw his reflection on the blade. If he wanted to act out his plan, he needed to get Hashirama's cells. Meaning, he needed to go see him. Yes, that's all there was to it. He's just going to find Hashirama and collect his cells. Nothing more, nothing less. Yes. That's what he'll do.
Madara slipped the kunai into his sleeve and headed toward his front door. After slipping on his gloves, he put his shoes on and left his home. Good, no more Fuji. As he walked down the streets, he slowly left the Uchiha district and found himself walking in the direction of Hashirama's house. It was relatively quiet outside, with very few villagers around the area.
Though Madara tried thinking of the steps he would take to catch Hashirama off guard and acquire his cells, he couldn't help but get caught up in the thoughts of Hashirama in general—his smile, his laugh, his gaze, his lips. Head over heels. What did he mean by that? Madara immediately shook those thoughts off once again, fidgeting with the kunai hidden in his sleeve. He'll just catch Hashirama at the right time and slice a chunk of his flesh off. Then he'll go about his night, leave the village, and set his plan into motion. That's right. He doesn't want to see Hashirama. He just wants Hashirama's flesh. That's all he tried to convince himself he wanted. He didn't care about anything else.
"Madara?"
Madara immediately froze. His heart pounding, he slowly turned around to see Hashirama approaching him, holding a bouquet of flowers in one hand and a takeout container filled with food in the other. More flowers and food?
Hashirama smiled, pleased to have run into Madara yet curious as to why he was out so late. "Yo!" He greeted. As he made his way to Madara, he continued, "What are you doing out late? Were you looking for me?"
Madara crossed his arms as his eyes narrowed, unwilling to admit that he was. Besides, who did Hashirama think he was anyway? "What makes you think I was looking for you?" Madara asked.
Hashirama pointed in the same direction Madara was headed and responded, "Well, you were heading in the direction of my house."
Madara's eye twitched. "Is your house the only thing in that direction?" Madara retorted.
"Hmm…" Hashirama hummed, not completely convinced by Madara's words, but he decided to give it to him for now. "Fair point."
Truthfully, Hashirama was glad to see Madara. He had a very long day and was actually planning on stopping by Madara's place after he stopped to check in on Mito. But this was great, seeing Madara sooner rather than later was great. As Hashirama joined Madara's side, he said, "Walk with me?"
Initially, Madara hesitated to join him. He wanted to, but he didn't want to seem too eager. And he hated that he was even feeling that way. But he needed Hashirama's cells, right? So, he might as well. This is what he came here for… right? Madara briefly watched Hashirama take a few steps forward before finally deciding to join him.
"Hmph. Fine. But only because I'm already heading in that direction," Madara answered as he caught up to Hashirama.
Hashirama softly chuckled. "Right, right."
The two walked side by side in silence for a moment, matching each other's pace, surrounded by the sound of crickets and the soft crunches of the ground beneath their feet. Hashirama occasionally glanced at Madara, noticing he didn't seem as down as he did the day before, which was reassuring. Ever since his slip-up last night, he'd been replaying the moment in his head, hoping Madara didn't hear him.
Confessing his feelings to Madara was something Hashirama figured he would do eventually, but it still didn't feel like the right time. He still had to settle things with Mito, his wife, and still needed to figure out how to get Madara to open up to him. And even if he does achieve those things, how would he go about telling Madara how he felt? How will he get over that fear of rejection, knowing that there's a great possibility that Madara didn't feel the same way? I mean, why would he?
All of these thoughts overwhelmed Hashirama as he let out a soft sigh, catching Madara's attention.
Madara glanced over at Hashirama. "What is it?" he asked.
"N-Nothing, I'm just a little overwhelmed with life. But, speaking of life, how was your day?"
"Hmm? My day?" Madara took a moment to think about how his day went. He didn't do much. All he did was read, sleep, and wallow on his couch. What a depressing day. "It was… fine."
"Fine?" Hashirama looked over at Madara, attempting to read his face to get a better idea of what 'fine' meant to him. But Madara's face was neutral. He continued, "Come on, I need more than that. Give me the details."
"Details?"
"Details!"
Madara sighed. "I didn't do much. I just… read."
Hashirama raised his eyebrows, surprised that Madara told him about the reading. "What did you read?" Though Hashirama already had a good idea of what, since it was mentioned by Isamu during their meeting the day before.
Madara took a brief pause before answering. "I read about the Sage of the Six Paths," he mumbled.
Hashirama recognized he was being truthful. Isamu Uchiha did notice books about the Sage of the Six Paths in his hands. But unlike Isamu and Tobirama, Hashirama didn't want to assume that Madara was up to no good. Besides, if he was really a threat, would he be this honest?
Meanwhile, Madara grew suspicious about Hashirama's questions, wondering if it supported his theory that Hashirama had possibly turned on him. Why else would he be probing? Was Hashirama trying to get information out of him as part of some plan he devised with Tobirama?
"What have you learned so far?" Hashirama asked.
"Not much I didn't already know."
"What brought this about? Why are you reading about him?" Hashirama asked with genuine interest.
"…Curiosity. Why do you ask?"
Hashirama flashed a smile, "Curiosity!"
Madara stared at Hashirama before humming in response.
Hashirama then added, "Since you've taken on reading recently, would you like your childhood books back? I still saved them from the time you tried to give them away."
"No. I told you I have no use for them anymore," Madara grumbled, annoyed that Hashirama was still holding on to them instead of just allowing him to let go.
"Well, I'll just keep holding on to them until you're ready to accept them back."
"I guess you'll be holding on to them for the rest of your life."
A soft chuckle escaped Hashirama's lips. "Hopefully not."
They walked for a few steps in silence before Madara spoke. "How was your day?"
Hashirama glanced at Madara. "My day? Hmm…" He looked straight ahead. "My day was… pretty busy. I worked like a ninja hound today. I didn't know I was capable of working this much. It's like I hit a new record now and then."
Madara softly chuckled, "I feel like your standard of working like a ninja hound is doing a quarter of the work you're supposed to be doing as the Hokage."
"T-That's not true! If anything, I did way more than I needed to today. I mean seriously, ever since I've been staying with Tobi—" Hashirama quickly shut up. Hashirama still hadn't told Madara about what was going on between him and Mito, nor did he tell him that he had been staying at Tobirama's house since then. He wanted to keep Madara out of it and wasn't planning on letting him know about it until things were settled.
Madara glanced and Hashirama with a raised eyebrow. "Ever since you've been staying…?"
"N-Nothing, never mind. I just… I've been spending a lot more time with Tobirama lately and I've been working more because of that."
Madara's eyes narrowed, still curious about what Hashirama was going to say but not enough to probe him about it. "Okay…"
Hashirama hummed in response, hoping to avoid speaking on the topic any further so he didn't accidentally make another slip-up.
They both walked in silence for a little while again before Madara glanced at the flowers and takeout box in Hashirama's hands. It was a pretty large bouquet of an assortment of flowers, and it wasn't the first time within the past few days that Hashirama was carrying some around.
"Flowers and food again?" Madara pointed out.
Hashirama looked down at the items in his hand. "Yeah, they're for Mito."
"For Mito, of course," Madara thought. The painful reality hit him in the chest—the reality that Hashirama could never be his. He's already built a life for himself: loyal villagers, a devoted wife, a brother by his side, and a clan that respected him. But memories of last night quickly flooded Madara's mind again. He remembered Hashirama's words. "You have no idea how head over heels I am for you." Those words. What did Hashirama mean by it? Madara didn't want to admit that the curiosity was tearing him up inside, and Hashirama hadn't done or said anything to confirm what he heard. So does that default to denial? You know, perhaps he just misheard Hashirama after all.
Madara responded, "You've been getting her a lot of flowers lately. Is something special going on?" He figured it couldn't be their anniversary. Madara knew very well when their wedding anniversary was because he remembered their wedding day vividly. That day his heart unexpectedly felt heavy, and though he wanted to feel happy for Hashirama at the time, he couldn't help but feel like he lost something.
Hashirama nervously chuckled. "I wouldn't say special." A guilty expression slowly spread across his face, which Madara took notice of.
"Ah, so she's upset with you."
Hashirama stopped walking and was quickly overtaken by his habitual depressed demeanor. "Upset would be an understatement."
Madara stopped to face Hashirama, taking notice of his low mood. "An understatement?"
"Yes," Hashirama mumbled as he dragged his feet across the ground to catch up with Madara, swaying side to side with his shoulders slouched and his head tilted downward. He sighed and straightened up, walking alongside Madara once again. "But I don't really want to get into it right now. I just hope she'll at least accept these." Hashirama then thought to himself, "And talk to me."
Madara looked down at the flowers again without saying a word. Honestly, he never understood the appeal of flowers, he just knew that giving flowers was considered a nice gesture. "They look… nice. I'm sure she'll love them."
"Why'd you pause?" Hashirama asked.
"What do you mean?" Madara asked.
"You paused. Why'd you pause?"
"What? I didn't pause."
"Yes, you did. You don't think they look nice?" Hashirama asked as he started examining the bouquet, trying to figure out whether Mito would like them or not. I mean, he hasn't gotten any real feedback from Mito anyway. All he's been able to do is drop them off without hearing from her.
"I said they looked nice."
"Yeah, but you paused. You're lying. You don't think she'll like them?"
"Hashirama, I literally said I think she'll love them."
"Then why'd you pause?"
Madara's eyebrow twitched. "I just never understood the appeal of flowers. So, I don't know, but I'd assume she'd like them." But when Madara didn't receive a response, he turned to see Hashirama looking down at his flowers in silence. Ah, shit. He didn't mean to make Hashirama second-guess his choices. Madara started thinking of ways to make Hashirama feel better until he heard a faint snicker coming from his direction.
"What? What's so funny?"
Hashirama smirked, "So you admit you did pause."
Madara's face dropped as he glared at Hashirama. "Shut up, Hashirama. You're irritating," Madara snapped. "And here I was worrying about you," he thought.
Hashirama chuckled and playfully nudged Madara's shoulder with his own. "Am I?"
"Yes, you are," Madara grumbled in response as he nudged back.
"Mmm, if I'm so irritating then why are you still talking to me?" Hashirama teased.
"You're right," Madara said as turned around.
Hashirama paused. "Wait, where are you going?"
"Why? Are you going to miss me?" Madara taunted as he walked away.
"Oh? Is that what you're hoping for?" Hashirama smirked.
Madara whipped around and blurted out in defense, "N-No! Nonsense!" Madara huffed, trying to mask his flustered expression. He turned back around and started walking away once again, this time with more purpose. Hashirama always had a way of rattling him, in fact, he was the only one who could make him feel this way—and Madara hated it.
Hashirama giggled. "Wow, I thought you agreed to keep me company on my walk home? Didn't know my best friend was someone to go back on his word," Hashirama jokingly said, whistling as he continued walking towards the direction of his home. "I didn't expect that from him. I'll never let him live this down. You know what? Maybe I should just find a new one…" Hashirama taunted.
Madara rolled his eyes. Knowing him, Hashirama really wouldn't let him live this down. And admittedly, Madara really didn't want to leave Hashirama; he wanted to continue walking with him. He turned back around and joined Hashirama by his side again as he mumbled, "You know, if you wanted me to stay with you so bad, you could've just said so."
"You're right, next time I'll say that," Hashirama responded with a playful wink.
Flustered, Madara turned his head away. "Don't wink at me like that, it's disgusting."
"You're disgusting," Hashirama retorted.
"What are you, a child? Is that the best comeback you come up with? How childish."
"You're childish."
"You're childish!" Madara snapped.
"Oh? Is that the best comeback you can come up with?" Hashirama mocked.
"Shut up, Hashirama!"
Hashirama burst into laughter.
"It's not funny," Madara grumbled.
"I'm kind of funny."
"You're the least funny person I know."
Hashirama was immediately overtaken by his habitual depressed demeanor. "That was kind of cruel."
"Hmph."
"…Especially coming from someone who I crack up all the time." Hashirama continued with a smirk.
Madara's eye twitched. "I purposefully laugh to make you feel better about yourself," he asserted.
"Sure, Madara, sure."
Madara hated to admit it, but he was enjoying his time with Hashirama. All the uneasiness he felt earlier was slowly fading away. It just felt so… nice to be by his side. Madara recalled the reason he decided to seek out Hashirama and remembered the kunai hidden in his sleeve. He really could take a piece of Hashirama's flesh right now. Hashirama was off guard and may not see it coming. Madara could just do it, right here, right now. But for some reason, he had no desire to bring out his kunai.
"Madara?"
Madara snapped out of his head. "Hmm?"
"I said, how's Takaya doing? Has he come back around yet?"
"Takaya?" Oh yeah, Takaya, one of his hawks. Madara then faced Hashirama with slightly widened eyes. "Wait, you remembered?"
Hashirama gave Madara a confused look. "Of course, I remembered. Why wouldn't I?"
Madara could feel his face flush. Hashirama was right. Madara just never expects people to remember anything about what he says, especially now more than ever. "I don't know…"
"So, has he? Or is he still being stubborn?"
"Takaya is still being stubborn. He hasn't come back around yet. That ungrateful little bastard. He would still be shitting up a storm if it wasn't for me."
Hashirama softly chuckled. "I can't even imagine having to be the unlucky one to stand below him…"
"Agreed. Rest in peace to his victims."
"Is he violent when he's sick?"
"No, but I wouldn't want to stand below him during a violent episode of diarrhea."
Hashirama softly chuckled. "I'd imagine his victims would die from shock. That's a terrible way to go."
Madara softly chuckled, "Right."
Hashirama glanced at Madara and smirked, "See? You laughed. You do think I'm funny."
Madara turned his head away from Hashirama and pouted. "It was an uncontrollable involuntary bodily response."
"What an interesting way to admit that I'm funny."
"Shut up, Hashi. Don't let your delusions get to you."
The two continued to converse as they neared Hashirama's home, enjoying each other's company. The worries that plagued their minds slowly faded, replaced by the contents of their conversations and the occasional thoughts of admiration for each other. The occasional glances, the soft smiles, the subtle hand gestures; it was like there was nothing going on behind the scenes.
As Madara listened to Hashirama talk, the thought of acquiring his cells kept coming back up in his mind. He had to remind himself to stick to his plan, his purpose, no matter how good he was feeling at the moment. Because that was why he came, right? He sneakily slipped the kunai into his hand, gripping the iron weapon as he peered at Hashirama from the corner of his vision. He could do it right now if he wanted to. Hashirama was in his own little world, gleefully talking about a funny encounter he had with a villager. So, Madara really could do it. He could. But, why isn't he? Madara constantly told himself to make a move as his grasp tightened around the kunai.
"Oh! Looks like we're nearing my house."
Fuck. Madara quickly slipped the kunai back into his sleeve. They both came to a stop near the fence just a few feet away from the corner that turned into Hashirama's walkway to his front door. Hashirama turned to face Madara and smiled.
"Thank you for walking with me. I appreciate it."
"Yeah, whatever," Madara mumbled. For some reason, he didn't have it in him to attempt to take Hashirama's cells at that moment. And now their time together for the night was coming to an end. Madara let out a subtle sigh and turned around, walking away.
Hashirama watched as Madara walked toward the direction they came from, a grin slowly crept onto his face.
"Madara!" Hashirama called out.
"Hmm?" Madara turned around.
"Where are you going?"
"Home."
"Hmm…" Hashirama smirked. "I knew you came all the way out here just to see me."
Madara flinched. Crap. He made a slip-up. "N-No I—"
Hashirama let out a laugh. "Busted, aren't you?"
"Huh?!" Madara immediately zoomed towards Hashirama. Grabbing Hashirama's collar, Madara pushed him against the fence, their faces near each other. The only thing keeping their bodies separated was the bouquet of flowers and the takeout in Hashirama's hands.
Madara stared at Hashirama with narrowed eyes, irritated. "I didn't come all the way out here to see you. I'm simply taking a different route."
"Yeah?"
"Yes! Are you so arrogant that you think I'd go out of my way to see you? Huhh?"
"Oh crap…" Hashirama thought as he stared into Madara's eyes. He was so close. "You can't do that… Madara. You can't grab me like that. You can't look at me like that. It turns me on… You can't stand so close to me like that or else I'll be tempted to… kiss you." Hashirama fought back every desire to steal a kiss from Madara and tried to rid himself of those thoughts.
"Answer me!" Madara demanded as his grip on Hashirama's shirt tightened. "Oh, fuck. What have I done? He's so close… and he's in my grasp. The things I could do to him right now…," he thought as he fought every desire to look down at Hashirama's lips.
"I was just pointing out the obvious," Hashirama answered, trying his best to hold back any shakiness in his voice.
"The obvious?"
"Mmm. You're getting heated, Madara. Did I strike a nerve? Was I right?" Hashirama said with a smirk.
"H-Heated?! I-I'm not— You're being— Shut up!" Madara stuttered, flustered by Hashirama's words.
Hashirama chuckled as he watched Madara avert his gaze. It was amusing seeing Madara getting flustered given that he was usually a very collected man. His laugh slowly faded as his eyes wandered down to Madara's lips. Hashirama's silence prompted Madara to look back, his eyes landing directly on Hashirama's lips. They ogled each other's lips, not realizing that the other was doing the same thing.
"I want to kiss him so bad…"
"I want to kiss him so bad…"
They both thought in unison.
Hashirama was so entranced by Madara that he accidentally let the takeout box slip out of his hands. Quickly, the two men grabbed the box before it could hit the ground, their fingers in contact with each other. They both slowly lifted it back up to safety.
"Thank you…" Hashirama said as he looked down at the takeout box. Thoughts of Mito instantly overwhelmed his mind, accompanied by a heavy feeling in his chest. As the sadness settled, a frown slowly appeared on his face and his eyebrows furrowed.
"What's the point of bringing Mito something if you're just going to drop it?" Madara asked as he released his grasp on Hashirama's shirt.
He looked up to see a shift in Hashirama's face. It was full of sorrow. Not that habitual look he would get from time to time, but genuine sadness. He recalled this same look whenever he found Hashirama on the bench a few weeks ago. Is he still bothered by the same thing he was back then? Was that the reason why Hashirama had been pulling away lately? Maybe because of something going on in his life rather than his distrust in Madara? As selfish as it may seem, Madara would rather that be the case, because the thought of losing Hashirama to the other side was simply too painful. However, the thought of Hashirama hurting without reaching out was also painful.
Madara sighed and crossed his arms. "Okay, that's it. You've been very depressed lately and haven't been open about it. What's going on? And don't you dare try to turn this around and make this about me. I don't care. Tell me what's wrong."
Hashirama sighed, "I don't want to get into it—"
"I don't care, spit it out."
Hashirama softly groaned as he slid down the fence until he was seated on the ground. "It's complicated…" he mumbled.
"Telling me 'It's complicated' won't do. Tell me what's going on, Hashirama," Madara said as he looked down at Hashirama.
"Hypocrite…" Hashirama thought as he pouted. He then looked up at Madara to meet his gaze, feeling a sudden wave of pleasure wash over him. Sitting down was a mistake. The way Madara looked down at him was so… Hashirama pushed the thought out of his head. Now wasn't the time. He looked back down to prevent his mind from wandering.
Madara squatted down in front of Hashirama to meet his gaze. "I said spit it out."
Hashirama pouted and turned his head. But he then felt gloved fingers gently grip his chin, forcing his head back forward until he locked eyes with Madara's deep black pools, subtly tinged with demand and care.
Oh.
"I said, spit it out, Hashi."
Hashirama swallowed a lump that settled in the back of his throat. He didn't want to tell Madara what was really going on, that he confessed to Mito about his feelings for him and now Mito won't speak to him, that there's a potential divorce pending. But being vague won't hurt. He sighed. "Things with Mito and I are… very rocky right now. Very, very rocky… and it's all my fault."
Madara slowly released Hashirama's chin. "Well, what did you do?"
Hashirama took a moment to think about what to say. "Um… well… I… uh…"
Madara sighed and stood back up, walking over to Hashirama's side and sliding to a seat right next to him.
"Can the situation really be that bad?"
"Mmm… it's pretty bad…" Hashirama responded with a pout.
Madara briefly glanced at Hashirama before looking back forward. How can he help him at this moment? Then, his words just slipped out. "Well… whatever it is, I'm sure you will get through it. I don't know what went down between you and Mito, but you've both overcome hardships before, right? I can tell that you're… surprisingly a good husband to her, though you could be home more often. I can tell that you're very caring and loyal, and whatever happened, I'm sure she still loves you. Plus, you're resilient, this isn't something you're incapable of overcoming. As my rival, I know all too well about your resilience."
"Do you really mean all of that?" Hashirama asked.
"W-Well even though you're irritating, you're not… a bad guy," Madara said as he looked in the opposite direction.
Hashirama looked at Madara with gaping eyes, his heart pounding against his chest as if trying to escape. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips. He looked down at the bouquet of flowers in his hand and finally hummed in response. "Thank you, Madara."
Madara hummed in response as he fiddled with the fabric of his pants. The two sat in silence until Madara finally looked over at the bouquet of flowers in Hashirama's hands.
"So… you've been getting her flowers to make up for things. Are they from your garden?"
"Mhmm… partly. But, yes! They are from my garden. I picked them out for Mito. Actually, all the flowers I pick out for her in general are from my garden. I hope she likes them… even though you don't think she will."
"I never said that. I said they were nice."
"You paused!"
Madara's eye twitched. "I said I just don't get the appeal! Besides, I don't know anything about flowers anyway."
Hashirama's jaw dropped. "Clearly, I have failed you. Here, look. Let me familiarize you with some," Hashirama said as he pointed at a flower in the bouquet. He didn't bother shifting the bouquet to the middle of them because he admittedly wanted to feel Madara's touch.
Madara leaned in to get a closer look, his body now slightly pressed against Hashirama's. He listened as Hashirama gave a rundown on the names of each flower in the bouquet, along with where they typically grew and what they were most known for. He could hear the passion in Hashirama's voice as he easily spoke about the flowers. Hashirama was passionate about many things, but Madara found that Hashirama could probably talk about his gardening, wood carving, his brother, and the village for hours. Oh, and gambling of course. But Madara never approved of that habit of his.
"Wait, what about that one?" Madara asked after Hashirama wrapped up, pointing at a flower in the middle of the bouquet. "You forgot this one. I've never seen this one before."
"Oh, this? It's a Lewisia. It typically symbolizes strength and resilience. It can persevere in very harsh environments, which makes its beauty stand out even more. I'd like to think it also represents hope… that despite all the bad conditions this flower typically goes through to grow, it can still bloom into something beautiful."
"A Lewisia…" Madara whispered as he analyzed the flower. Its petals had a vibrant burst of orange and fiery red hues, a soft gradient transitioning from a deep crimson at the base to a golden-orange at the tips. The petals slightly curved outwards, appearing like a sunburst. It was like the flower was screaming 'I made it and I'm here' despite everything it went through. "It's pretty…"
Hashirama took notice of Madara's interest and smiled. He grabbed the stem of the flower and slowly pulled it out of the bouquet before presenting it to Madara. "Here."
"Huh?"
"Take it."
Madara reluctantly accepted the flower from Hashirama's hand. "Is it okay for me to take this?"
"Mhm, it's for you now."
"I see…" Madara said as he eyed the flower in silence. He then added, "What do I do with this?"
"What do you mean what do you do with it? Have you never received a flower before?"
"I have but… I usually just throw it out the next day."
Hashirama flinched. He reached for the flower in Madara's hand, "I'll just take that back then."
Madara tightened his grasp around the stem and moved it out of Hashirama's way, preventing him from taking it back. He smiled, "I'd like to keep it."
"Mmm… fine, but I better not see it in the trash the next day."
Madara softly chuckled as he twirled the stem of the flower between his gloved fingers. A flower, from Hashirama.
Hashirama watched as Madara eyed the flower. What a beautiful sight. He released the flowers and food from his hands before bringing his fingers out in front of his face, miming the action of taking a photo. He made a click noise.
"What was that for?" Madara asked.
"Nothing, just storing the picture in my memory," Hashirama answered as he tapped his temple.
Madara let out a soft laugh.
"What?"
"You have the memory of a goldfish."
"Wha— Now that's not true. That's an exaggeration."
"Yeah?" Madara teased him by asking Hashirama to recall something he'd never even said before. He watched as Hashirama internally panicked before throwing out a wild guess. "Nope."
Hashirama was overtaken by a depressed demeanor.
"I actually never said that. I was just messing with you." Madara flashed a teasing smirk.
"How cruel!"
Madara burst into laughter while Hashirama pouted. Madara's laughter slowly faded before he decided to wrap things up. He was getting too comfortable, having a bit too much fun, getting too distracted. He had to let Hashirama go to his wife and make amends after all. Hashirama isn't even slightly his. And never will be. He stood up and grabbed Hashirama's held-out hand, providing him support to stand up.
Hashirama thanked Madara for the help but would not let go of his hand when he felt him attempt to let go. It was reassuring to see that Madara seemed to be doing a little better today compared to yesterday, but he still wanted to know what was wrong, and whether that still carried on to today.
"Madara? About yesterday…" Hashirama said.
Madara could feel his heart begin to thump in his chest. About yesterday? Was Hashirama going to bring up those words Madara heard him whisper last night? Or was Hashirama going to confess to setting up the Fuji incident? Which was it? Madara could feel his body grow warm as he waited in anticipation for Hashirama to continue.
"…You seemed… off. At some points, very upset, and others, very sad. You seem to be doing better today, which is reassuring but are you really okay?"
Oh, neither.
Madara sighed. "I'm fine. I was just hangry and I needed to eat and sleep it off." But truthfully, he never really did gain his appetite back after Hashirama banged on his door, nor did he get much sleep that night.
Hashirama wasn't convinced. He studied Madara's face, still unwilling to let go of his hand. "Spit it out."
"Nice try, doing that on me isn't going to work."
Hashirama was immediately overtaken by his habitual depressed demeanor. Well, fair point. He then perked back up, still refusing to let go of Madara's hand, but noticing Madara wasn't even resisting. "Then… I'll see you tomorrow?"
That question again. These days, Madara wasn't sure how to feel about that question. He always anticipated it. It made him feel somewhat good that Hashirama wanted to see him the next day. But at the same time, he felt wary. Madara knew he had to leave the village to go after his new goal. He couldn't keep sticking around.
"Why do you keep asking me that?" Madara asked.
"Because I want to."
Because he wants to. Ever since that drunken night… Gosh, Hashirama was stubborn. "…I'll be around."
"I'll take your word for it." Hashirama let go of Madara's hand.
"Whatever," Madara responded as he walked away, not in the same direction as, but past, Hashirama's house.
Hashirama watched as Madara walked away. "Where are you going? Your home is the other way."
"I'm not going home. I'm going where I said I was going earlier," Madara snapped as he walked further and further away from Hashirama, not turning around to give Hashirama a piece of his mind this time around.
Hashirama softly chuckled. He's so stubborn. He's so cute. Hashirama decided to let Madara be.
The annoyed look on Madara's face slowly faded into a smile as he looked down at the flower in his hand, walking toward who knows where, since he was dead set on not going home now to prove a point. Suddenly, Madara remembered the kunai in his sleeve and sighed. He hated the way Hashirama made him feel.
After the sight of Madara slowly faded into the distance, Hashirama took a deep breath and slapped his palms against his cheeks to prep himself to check in on Mito. He picked up the bouquet and food and finally turned the corner into the walkway of his home.
Hashirama slammed the door open when he arrived at Tobirama's house, quickly slipping his shoes off and rushing inside. He briefly greeted Tobirama, who was cleaning up the kitchen, and rushed to the guest bedroom where he had been staying. After closing the door, Hashirama leaned against it and slid down to a seat, burying his face into his hands at the thought of Madara.
Ever since his encounter with Madara that night, he couldn't stop thinking about him—Madara being so close to him, Madara's lips, Madara's smell, Madara looking down on him from above, Madara grabbing his chin—it all drove him crazy. He failed to hold back the boner that arose. But damn it, now wasn't the time for all of that. Not when things were still unsettled with Mito, not when Mito still wasn't talking to him, not when Hashirama still hadn't unlocked Madara's heart, not when that unknown suspicious creature still hadn't been caught.
But Madara…
Hashirama softly moaned when he felt a pleasurable thrill run down his body as his boner kept rising. He tried his best to fight back the desire to indulge, but he couldn't. The more he thought about Madara, the more satisfying pressure he felt in his crotch, and the more he needed release.
Hashirama slid his hand into his pants, pulling his boner out and wrapping his finger around his shaft. As he slowly started moving his hand up and down, he leaned his head back against the door and bit his bottom lip, stifling the moans that threatened to escape. Tobirama was home, and he didn't want to be heard. Hashirama's breathing grew heavy as he pumped his cock, quickening his speed as the pleasure slowly started overwhelming his body.
Oh, how he wanted Madara to grab him like that again. How much he wanted to taste him, embrace him, kiss his smile, make love to him. A soft moan managed to escape Hashirama as thoughts of making love to Madara flooded his mind. He stroked himself faster, feeling the intense pleasure start to reach its peak. Oh, how he wanted Madara to pull his hair and moan his name while he fucked him. He wanted to slam himself inside Madara over and over again and watch how good he could make Madara feel.
Reaching his climax, Hashirama couldn't help but let out a deep moan as his body tensed and he came onto his hand and pants.
Steadying his breath, Hashirama slowly opened his eyes. "I really hope Tobirama didn't hear that…" he whispered. But honestly, he needed that release. He didn't realize how much tension had built up to this point.
Hashirama looked down at his soiled pants and sighed. "Good thing I planned on doing laundry tonight."
Thanks for Reading! Tune in for the next chapter! ^-^
Authors Yap: Sorry this chapter took a lot longer to upload! ToT. I've been going through a rough time and was feeling low but I was able to edit and upload this chapter :P. I;ll try to get the next chapter out sooner rather than later to make up for it c: I know this chapter is a lot of fluff, I knowwww, but I couldn't help it! I really enjoyed writing this chapter lol. Until next time! 3