Through Time

The Rewrite

By: Tilunar.

AN: Rawrgoesdadion, I suffer from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which is also known as ME. It's a life-long illness that can't be cured.

Chapter Fourteen, Dark Family Secrets, Once Forbidden Love, and A Mother's Approval.

~ Hi no Kuni, Konohagakure no Sato, Senju Compound, Main Home ~

Kazuki, at the proud age of fifteen, could firmly say that no female could capture his heart. The only women that were going to be in his life were his Kaa-sama, his little sister, Honoka-san and his partner, Aburame Shinju. And perhaps Airi-san since it was somewhat obvious that Raizou was in love her and was going to marry her. He also guessed he had to include his Kaa-sama's friends as well, especially Mito-san since the previous Uzumaki was going to be his brother's mother-in-law and was technically his aunt for his mother's marriage.

He wasn't even a least bit embarrassed as he made funny-faces at his little sister, making Momo giggle happily and clap her tiny and dainty hands together, while Shinju sat beside him in silent amusement as she drank a cup of tea. Tomoya helped the little toddler keep sitting upright by laying behind her, acting like a support pillow for her.

Under the commanding voice of his Kaa-sama as she made her student perform Kation: Gokakyu no Jutsu (Grand Fireball Technique) over and over again till he could do it to her satisfaction, was the quiet voice of Makoto as he read to their little brother, Senju Takeru, who was sat in his lap with Yasu curled up next to him, his eyes closed though his ear twitched as he listened to Makoto's soothing voice.

"So this is Kaa-sama's new student?" Raizou's curious voice came before he appeared on the veranda with Hiroshi and Airi.

"Nii-chama!" Momo squealed as she stumbled on her tiny bare feet and wobbled towards her brother who knelt down and caught her before she could fall.

Raizou chuckled gently as he lifted her in his arms while Airi shot him an almost fond look before she joined Shinju at the table, though Airi would deny it if questioned.

"You all baby her too much." Came Kaname's deep voice from slightly further down the veranda where he was polishing his katana while Takumi, in his human form, lay on his back with one arm thrown over his eyes.

"She's not an Uchiha, Kaname." Raizou said sharply making Makoto pause.

Shinju and Airi watched the brothers curiously and warily as Makoto and Kazuki sat in silence watching, tense, as Raizou and Kaname stared at each other.

"When we were her age-" Kaname was cut of by Raizou, who stood straight making it so Kaname had to look up at his younger brother.

"She is a Senju, she is not us and I will not let you make her loose her childhood like we had too." Raizou said firmly, his eyes glowing much like his mother's.

"She is the first child of the current Hokage, she will become a leader in later life and she has to be strong." Kaname stated with a hint of frustration.

"You're incorrect." Makoto spoke quietly making his older brothers look at him, surprised he got involved as he and Kazuki normally kept out of their discussions. "Takeru is the first son though second child, Takeru will be chosen as a leader over Momo."

"Then she will be left alone." Raizou stated making Kaname nod with a hint of a frown before Raizou sat next to Airi, Momo wobbling her way back to Kazuki with an oblivious grin on her round face.

"Raizou..." Airi paused to wet her suddenly dry lips. "What was that about?"

She had to ask, she had to know what they had been talking about. She had seen the fury make Raizou's eyes glow so much like his mother's, seen the tension in Makoto and Kazuki as they warily watched their brothers. Seen the confusion and frustration in Kaname's eyes like he didn't understand what was so wrong about their childhood or why Raizou was so set on Momo not having the same one as them.

But it was like Raizou and his brothers had become deaf as none of them even showed that they had heard her. Shinju was also looking at her partner in silent question and worry.

She was about to ask again, more firmly to show she wanted, no needed, an answer, when she was answered by someone she had completely forgotten about.

"The Uchiha Ichizoku has never been seen as a kind clan for good reason." Sakura spoke as she watched Danzo running laps around her garden/training ground, she was somewhat amused by how he held on to the water bottle she gave him for dear life, she knew that he was taking regular sips from it to sooth his mouth and throat, but she was mostly serious with what she was about to talk about.

"Though children are precious in most clans, in the Uchiha Ichizoku you have to prove your worth even as children." Her lips twisted into a frown, she had only been able to protect her sons from becoming weapons of the Elders, she hadn't been able to let them be children though Makoto and Kazuki had more of a childhood then their elder brothers did. "At Momo-chan's age, Kaname was walking, he was talking to a higher degree that I spend a lot of my time helping him approve on, he was learning to read and to grip a weapon."

Airi's gasp of horror seemed too loud in the silence that came from the others.

"The Ichizoku was especially hard to please with Kaname's progress because he was the heir, the first son, their next leader. Kaname had to be strong, strong enough to kill Madara-kun and myself after he took a bride."

Shinju inhaled sharply while Airi seemed frozen in horror.

They had of course heard the rumours of the Uchiha Ichizoku, the Blood Stained Clan. How their Leaders were always killed after their heir took a bride, but that hadn't happened with Uchiha Madara and Sakura. Kaname didn't take a wife, he was still single, though Uchiha Madara was dead, Uchiha Izuna was the Ichizoku Leader and Kaname hadn't killed him, no it had been Senju Hashirama who had killed him.

They had never thought the rumours were true, they had never seen any proof that the Uchiha Ichizoku was so bloody and cruel. But here was Sakura, the previous matriarch of the clan, and she had said it so plainly like she was saying the sky was blue.

"They wanted Kaname-san to kill you?" Airi asked in horror, noticing just how tense said man had become.

Sakura turned towards her with a darkly amused smile that pulled the burn kanji scar tight on her left cheek.

"Of course, it wasn't just because it was tradition either." She said simply.

"It wasn't?" Shinju asked, curious despite herself.

She was curious about her partner's background, what his clan had been like, and she had been curious about his mother too. The woman whose chakra was still very much alive in the buildings of the village, even in the very earth the village sat on. The woman most people believe would be the Sandaime Hokage. The woman who hadn't seemed to age at all despite the years that Shinju knew her.

"No," Sakura said with a slight shake of her head. "It was because I was stronger then they wanted me to be and because I wouldn't bow to them."

Airi couldn't picture Sakura bowing to anyone, she of course had seen the woman bow when greeting someone but she had seen it was just to be polite to the person, not because she truly respected them. Airi thought that Sakura didn't respect many people and had always wondered who had earned the older woman's respect.

The thought that the Elders of the Uchiha thought she would bow to them was laughable and obviously Ayumu agreed with how his dark eyes seemed to be lit up with amusement.

"It first became apparent after Shizuka-dono and Hayato-sama death, I had appeared before the Elders, still pregnant with Kaname at the time, and said simply that the tradition of the heir killing his parents would end." Sakura said, turning most her attention back to her student.

Kazuki felt a jolt go through him and he knew his chakra must have spiked by the quick glances shot to him. But it was the first time he had heard the names of his grandparents, the grandparents that died before Kaname was born, and the grandparents that were killed by his father and his uncle. Uchiha Hayato and Uchiha Shizuka.

He wondered what they looked like, who his father and uncle took after. He wanted to know what they were like as people and what his grandmother had done to get his Kaa-sama's respect.

But he swallowed his questions and remained silent as he listened to his Kaa-sama.

"I didn't want to become like Shizuka-dono who could never love her sons like a mother should." Sakura frowned slightly as she thought of the woman who had always been so kind to her. "She had resented her sons even before their birth for she knew they would bring her death. For the first years of their lives, she couldn't stand looking at them and handed them off to her handmaid, who became like a mother to them. Shizuka-dono finally realised what she was missing out while being overcome by her bitterness and resentment but it had already been too late, and she had resented them too long to love them.

But when I came to the clan, she had seen me as a hope for change. That is why she pushed for me to marry Madara-kun, she wanted me to change their bloody traditions. She wanted me to love my children without fear that they would turn around and kill me. I promised I would and I did."

"How could people be so cruel?" Airi asked in horror.

"We are shinobi, we're meant to be cruel." Sakura simply answered.

It was hard for Airi to understand but she could see that Sakura truly believed it. Though not enough to allow her children to grow like the Uchiha wanted.

"But you didn't let them be that cruel to your sons." Shinju pointed out, obviously thinking the same thoughts as she was.

Sakura turned to them, an almost deeply amused look crossing her face as she studied them, like she had not been questioned so much for such a long time.

"Most just accept my words and don't think of any hidden meaning of them." She said, making an amused sound.

Airi almost shuddered; she knew her chakra spiked in her sudden fear as Raizou's hand was resting on her arm in a reassuring and protective gesture. She had just suddenly remembered as she looked at Sakura the thoughts that ran through her head the day that she had married her Uncle. This woman is dangerous.

Airi had always known that fact, she had learned much about the then Uchiha Sakura, the woman who striked fear in the hearts of armies, the woman had been named the Bringer of Death. She had always known that that woman, with the constant smile and the glowing eyes was dangerous. But then she had met the woman.

She had just been twelve, and the first meeting with the woman had almost shattered her idea of the woman. To see the woman care so deeply about her sons, coming from a clan that was known for being cold-hearted, was surprising, her bold statement about betraying her clan to keep her sons safe, to her it had seemed foolish, it had made her think that there was no way this fool of a woman who thought she could seriously betray one of the strongest clans easily could be the so-called Bringer of Death.

But then she had watched, breathless and afraid, as she and her husband fought. They never said a word, they spoke with only their eyes, and they fought with their chakra. The feeling of her burning vivid green chakra had left her shivering all the way home, the amount that had seemed to pour off her in waves of power had scared her.

That is when she knew that Uchiha Sakura was no fool, that she could easily betray her clan for her sons easily if she need to. Uchiha Sakura had refused to stand by her husband's side, to protect her sons, and she wasn't punished by the harsh Uchiha Ichizoku. Uchiha Sakura had killed an Elder to keep her sons with her and no one from the clan called for punishment.

She was dangerous. And to her it was obvious in the way she was standing and looking at them in that moment.

Sakura stood completely relaxed, her arms calmly crossed below her bust, hands gripping her elbows lightly. Her arms weren't crossed in defence like most people did; it seemed it was an almost unconscious gesture. Though she was relaxed, her back was straight and proud, not arrogant. Her head was tilted just so to the left, the light making the burn shine an almost brilliant white, her face seemed relaxed in a deeply amused look with an amused smile playing on her lips, but it was her eyes that stood out to Airi.

Glowing vivid green orbs stared at them, pierced them with their serious and wary gaze. It was a gaze of an old soldier, an old and bitter fighter, a ninja that had seen Death, had welcomed it with open arms only to be cruelly pulled back to life and force to stay in life, it was the gaze of a killer that had killed thousands and had forgotten had to feel remorse, it was the gaze of a mother who would do anything for her children, kill anyone to keep them safe, it was the gaze of a broken woman who had lost everything, forced to live while others were allowed to die, it was the gaze of a thief, a spy, a traitor, it was the gaze of a wise and bitter woman, it was the gaze of a demon amused by fickle humans with their short lives.

That strong gaze was held by a woman who looked only thirty-six, but Airi knew was so much older. This woman in front of her was dangerous.

"So you want to know my thoughts, Aburame Shinju, Senju Airi?" She questioned amused. "My thoughts on life? On ninjas? On human beings?"

"Hai." Shinju answered bravely while Airi felt like the air was trapped in her lungs.

"Danzo!" Sakura called sharply almost making Airi jump, though the young Senju scolded herself, she was a ninja and should stop acting like a frightened child. "That's enough, come and rest."

The young preteen to almost slump in relief as he headed to the veranda, still gripping his water bottle tightly.

Sakura stepped onto the veranda with silent steps and gracefully folded herself in to the seiza before the low table and next to Makoto. It seemed to strike Airi how much grace the woman before her held. It was an almost lazy cat-like grace mixed with the grace of a noblewoman and an experienced fighter; it was an odd mix but seemed to fit her.

Makoto silently poured her a cup of tea, his book laid forgotten on the floor and Takeru lay calmly in his lap, while Ayumu shifted soundlessly into his human form, standing with a stretch and leaning against one of the posts keeping the veranda roof up, and Danzo eagerly ate some ongiri, ignoring the serious air around him though he did listen.

Sakura took one sip, her slender hands carefully gripping the dainty cup, her slim and long fingers lacing together as she seemed to collect her thoughts.

"Humans can be as kind as they can be cruel; every human has the ability to be either and both at the same time, something not every being has." She said almost thoughtfully as she stared at the pale green liquid, it seemed that green tea was her favourite. "Humans are fickle beings, fearful of things they don't understand and often react in anger against those things or sometimes what they fear are people, so they treat them with hatred, anger, and of course fear. They fear death as much as they crave it, they want release of the painful way of life but are afraid of the unknown.

Ninjas are different then civilians of course. They see things differently; civilians view the world in black and white while ninjas see the world in shades of grey. But ninjas can be as ignorant as civilians when it comes to some things. They sometimes have the foolish believe that they are the good guys and enemy villages and nuke-nins are the bad guys-"

Airi couldn't help herself in cutting into what Sakura was saying with a question.

"But aren't nuke-nin bad guys?" She asked, a confused frown marring her face.

"No, the only difference between village ninja and nuke-nin is the fact that most village-nin have a Kage, though all have a leader, to hide behind when accusations come flying from the civilians of them being evil. The leader can calmly say they did everything for the good for the village, to keep them safe. The civilians satisfied, stop accusing their ninjas of foolish things and go back to their peaceful ignorant lives, untouched mostly by the hardships of the world.

In my life, I have found one thing that I hold as true. There is rarely a person that is truly evil. Of course there is some who I could happily call evil but there are few that cannot become 'good' if given the chance. The normal cause of their 'evilness' is bitterness, mental-problems, emotional problems and over-sized egos." Sakura said calmly.

Airi almost gaped at the normal list of reasons someone would go evil, but controlled herself while Shinju just went back to her tea.

"Anything else you want me to give my thoughts on?" Sakura asked calmly, her head tilting to one side almost curiously.

"Iie." Shinju answered, just as calmly.

Sometimes Airi wished she was as calm as the Hyuga, Aburame and Uchiha, calm like her father had always been. But she had always been too emotional to have the endless calm that her father had, that Sakura had, the Hyuga had, the Aburame had and the Uchiha had. She didn't have the lazy calmness of the Nara either. But Airi was mostly happy about herself, though she couldn't hold an endless calm, at least she had some control over her emotions, it's just Senju Sakura made her unbalanced and she doubted that would ever change.

But, Airi glanced at Raizou; some people were worth ignoring one of her greatest fears.

Sakura knew that Madara would be livid if he could see how in love his second son was with Senju Hashirama's oldest daughter.

She knew that her late brother-in-law, Hashirama, would of been pleased with the romance between his and his rivals second children. He would of seen such a romance as an omen of peace.

She knew that Mito was pleased with the obvious up-coming marriage, even if Raizou hadn't yet asked Airi, and knew she was secretly planning for her eldest daughter's future wedding.

She knew that Kaname disapproved. He had grown up as the heir to the Uchiha Ichizoku, and though it had been years since he held the title of the Heir of the Uchiha, such teaching didn't go away quickly. He was too much his father's son. Despite the fact that both Clans had been allied for years now, he still saw the affection that his brother held Senju Airi in as wrong, forbidden.

She knew that Makoto and Kazuki both knew of their older brother's love for the Senju daughter. She also knew that they didn't care about old Clan rivalries. She had done well protecting them when they were young, and they had always been more her sons then Madara.

Raizou loved Airi. He had always found her fanaticising, from the first moment he saw her. Sakura had worried that Raizou had taken too much after her to find love, she knew deep in her heart that Kaname would never find love like Raizou held for Airi, love that she had once held for Naruto, and the love that Tomoya obviously held her youngest Uchiha son in though her fifteen year old son was still oblivious to that fact. Raizou loved Airi as fiercely as she had once loved Naruto.

And because of that fact only, Sakura would approve of their marriage when Raizou finally spoke to her about asking Airi. Raizou was the first of her mostly human sons to have found love, she wouldn't stand by and watch as Raizou watched his love grow older, weaker and die.

She knew her son. She knew that was why he hadn't shown Airi had deeply he loved her, she knew why Raizou hadn't once tried to make her his lover. Because he didn't want to get closer to her, only to one day watch her die.

But her son was too far gone. Too in love with her. He would be crushed anyway.

So she would tell him that she could make so Airi won't leave him because of old age. Like them all, she could still be killed. Kurama was the only thing that would keep Sakura alive if she was wounded fatally. But if her Demon husband was ever killed, then Sakura would be able to be killed then.

But those thoughts didn't matter at this point in time. She had to tell her love-sick son that he could take Airi as his wife, that she, his mother, would make sure that the woman he loved didn't die easily. If Sakura had it her way, Airi would live as long as her son, and since Sakura wanted to make sure her children had forever, the Senju girl would live for a very long time.