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Chapter 6

You will meet a talk dark stranger

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o0o0o

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They were still standing inside the ephemeral Uzumaki compound, with Mito drying her eyes from her previous tears as the youngest Senju looked at her with his dark-red orbs. But he wasn't as gentle as you thought he would be, after all that happened to her. Because, just after she had found her voice again, she began to speak, to explain, to actually verbalize what her plan was. And because of that...he couldn't have pity any more. He just couldn't look at her and be gentle.

He may have looked very still but Tobirama was internally fulminating.

They have been talking for what seemed to be an eternity – the sun was dangerously starting to get down and soon he would have to take her home, if she still had one though – and he couldn't get to the idea that she, the woman who was supposedly helplessly in love with his brother, wanted to...wanted to...

"He is a fucking psycho, Mito. You know this better than me," he barked, nearly loosing his self control. "Don't you dare say to me that he doesn't scare you 'cause we all know he does." Tobirama really liked Mito, not to be mistaken, but she wanted to take a path he couldn't follow her in. "How can you have enough faith in him to turn your back on your own family and cancel your marriage with Hashirama?"

"I don't have faith in him particularly," she answered him, very calmly, her eyes still red from her tears. "I trust them. It's slightly different, don't you think?" Right now, after she had freed herself from her clan's blinkers, her mind seemed to have been released from all the fog that had constantly obscured her sight and she could clearly see where all of this was going, inevitably. She was looking at the whole puzzle and it didn't please her, not at all. It didn't please Tobirama, either, but, as much as she had appreciated his help and his kindness, his wise advice and opinions didn't matter to her. And she knew it wouldn't matter to Hashirama either.

Because Tobirama obviously had never fallen in love.

"Look around you, Tobirama. Look at what they had been able to achieve together. Not Madara alone, nor Hashirama alone, but both of them, together. They can do miracles. This shouldn't be harder than making a village, than bringing peace on the shinobi world. They will make it possible."

"And I guess you have a plan? I don't know if you have heard all the rumors about Madara's...night excursions lately...but to me he seems to be over Hashirama, already."

Tobirama tried to look at the bright side of Mito's ridiculous ideas but all of his efforts were vain; he knew it before he even started to consider them. The man – it would be foolish to think Tobirama would actually think of Madara by using his name in his thoughts - had nearly make his brother kill himself already...wasn't that enough proof of his bad influence?

He really couldn't take it. He wouldn't put his brother's happiness in the hands of that Uchiha. He had literally crushed Hashirama's heart and made him miserable. He couldn't forgive him. He never would. Why couldn't she understand? Why did she and his brother both refuse to see what Madara really was? He was a threat, he was unstable, he was twisted, he was unpredictable, dangerous, evil. He was an Uchiha.

They were a cursed clan, after all, and he didn't want Hashirama to be cursed either – and he really hoped it wasn't already too late.

"I am a woman, Tobirama. Of course I have a plan. We aren't brutal creatures that jumped into war easily without thinking." She fixed her hair and stood up, passing in front of Tobirama still sitting next to the door's gate she had left a few hours ago. "Hashirama is the only one who is not aware of Madara's affairs. But you're wrong about Madara. He is clearly not over him."

She smirked when she saw the frown of Tobirama's face. He was so oblivious to love matters... "He is just lost and desperate to find himself again. In fact, I think Madara's having continuous different lovers is the purest proof that they are meant to be together. He would have stopped long ago if he'd finally found what he had lost by leaving Hashirama, don't you think?"

Tobirama had no idea of what she was talking about, but Mito hadn't intended for him to understand. She softly laughed seeing his puzzled face. Poor Tobirama. Maybe he was the one who needed a love lesson the most, after all...

"Okay, fine," he finally said, getting up, too. "I know Hashirama better than anyone else, and I really think that Madara leaving him is the best thing that could have happened to him. Hashirama is tough. He would get over it, eventually..." The Senju dropped his gaze to the ground, not very happy with what was about to come next. Part of his mind was still stubbornly sure this was the best solution, but there was this very tiny part of himself that knew something was off with Hashirama. It was as if he didn't recognize him any more. And it was starting to worry him more than it should have."...But I have to admit I'm not very experienced when it concerns love matters...and I didn't expect him to be so...down. I'm ready to give your plan a chance. A single one. If it still ends up with Hashirama being broken, we will do things Tobirama style. Deal?"

"Roger," she replied with a bright smile, coming to attention, her hand on her temple, mocking his serious tone. She knew she was playing with fire but his scowl was so priceless that it really was worth the try – he was too nice to harm her anyway. He really needed to relax a from time to time.

Tobirama pouted a little bit at Mito, but soon, his worry for Hashirama came back and tore his attention away. He frowned again. They needed him to be Hokage, to rule the village, to lead it in the right direction. And both of them were agreed on that point: that as of that moment, Hashirama couldn't do it. Not with his mind so fucked up.

That's what had been decided, in the end. They needed him to be okay right now, because it was the most important time in the shinobi world's history. They'd achieved something that had never been achieved before, but their foundation was still very fragile. It was like a new-born calf, slowly learning how to walk – did that made Hashirama and Madara cow and bull? he wondered... - And if one thing was certain for him, it was that Hashirama's happiness and his ability to lead the village and be diplomatic with others would affect the fate of this world.

(And he never knew how right he was at that very moment...)

"So...what are you going to do now? I mean are you staying in the Uzumaki compound or-"

"I was considering moving in with you, if it doesn't bother the elders," she cut him off, finishing what he had meant to say. "I'm sure my father would give me all the time I need...but now that I have severed that bond, I don't want to go back there. It's too painful..."

"I don't think there will be a problem with the elders," he quickly added, not really pleased to see that hurt look on her pretty face. "They were really happy about you becoming part of the family. Speaking of which, they will be kinda disappointed now that you're not marrying Hashirama..."

"It doesn't mean I can't be part of the family anymore, does it?" She winked conspicuously and passed by him, humming mischievously at her blatant insinuation as Tobirama turned into stone, figuring out against his will what she had implied. He slowly turned his head towards her silhouette that waited for him at the end of the corridor. She was waving, urging him to come over and take her to her new home, mocking him as if she still was a child in kindergarten.

"Thank you for the offer, Tobirama. I'll start moving this evening with all my stuff. But I won't be here until tomorrow, I'm afraid - tonight there is something I need to do," she told him when he finally reached her. "Can I ask you a favor, concerning Hashirama?"

He nodded. How could he say no to her?

Tobirama realized at this very moment that they would have been great together. Mito reminded him so much of Hashirama – always smiling, never showing her weakness and pain, when she was the one suffering the most.

Life must be really enjoyable, playing with humans beings, he thought.

She curtsied and eventually left him alone. Having nothing left to do this evening, Tobirama resumed to walk his way back home. He hadn't checked on Hashirama the whole day – he was supposed to train with Hiruzen, after all, so he shouldn't be worried; or maybe he was, a little, but about that little monkey, instead. When he reached the front door, his brother was waiting for him, it seemed, sitting on the small wooden step in front of the main gate.

"How is Saru doing?" the former sensei asked, not even minding to ask about his older brother's health.

"He is doing rather fine." Hashirama sighed and stretched his arms' muscles. "But he's exhausted me! I have forgotten how full of energy kids could be..."

When he looked up, what Hashirama saw was something he had not seen in a long time. In fact, it could very well be the first time since they had made the peace treaty that he saw Tobirama's face looking sad and concerned. It was so unexpected that he had doubted himself for a second, watching his little brother closer to get a better view.

And Tobirama indeed was very worried. Hashirama was a Senju; energy he had plenty of, normally, much more than every average kid – even if Hiruzen was more than just an average kid, in his opinion – and he realized the hard way that they might need to act sooner than they had expected.

If he wasn't able to train a mere kid, then what would it be like to rule the village? And, worse, what if people from the outside knew? What if other villages started a new war, taking advantage of his poor condition?

The situation was even more catastrophic than what he had first assumed.

"Mito is going to stay with us, from now on," he told him, just as she had asked him to.

"So soon? But we aren't even-"

"About that, there have been some changes. Listen..."

Hashirama was glad he was already sitting comfortably, for he would have certainly fallen at Tobirama's revelation. He seemed quite bemused, and was lost in his thought for a long couple of minutes as Tobirama sat beside him, studying him closely. He must have felt like everything was falling apart at that point – and truly, it was – but soon, if the plan went as well as they hoped it would, Hashirama would stop frowning and resume to being the happiest man on earth again.

Tobirama couldn't wait.

"But why? This is so sudden...why now?" he kept wondering. It felt like everybody was running away from him. What had he done wrong?

"She said that she would rather marry me than you," lied Tobirama – funnily, he didn't know that that was in fact the very truth. He frowned when he heard Hashirama laugh in, oblivious to the truth, just as he was, indeed. But Tobirama couldn't blame him for his disbelief; that was very unlikely to happen.

"So I guess you're not engaged any more..."

"Yeah. I even failed that. I failed an arrange marriage. Can you believe that?"

"Yeah. You're the only person I know who failed an arrange marriage. You're such a loser, Hashirama."

"Thank you, brother. I don't know what I'd do without your support. How lucky I am to have you by my side."

"I guess I definitely can't leave you alone after that. You'll die alone with a hundred cats devouring your flesh if I'm not careful enough."

And then they laughed together, until the sun disappeared behind the cliff - the same cliff Hashirama and Madara had spent so much time on.

When they couldn't clearly see their surroundings anymore due to the sudden darkness of the coming night, Tobirama decided it was time to get inside their house and to start looking for dinner. He stood up, called Hashirama and waited for him at the doorway.

And waited.

"Where are you going, brother?" He couldn't hide his concern anymore. Damn, he hated sounding like a worried wife. Even if things turned out good, he'd make sure to make Madara paid for what he was doing to them.

"Just...taking a walk. Don't worry, I'll come back before midnight, Mom."

This time Hashirama was the only one laughing; and he disappeared into the night without a word.

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When Tobirama woke up the next morning, he checked his brother's room first. To his relief, he was there, still sleeping, his head facing the opposite wall and his blanket covering his shoulders – so that he was hardly visible.

When Tobirama went down to have breakfast, he saw that Mito was there too, holding a wooden tray in her hands which supported three steaming cups of green tea. And she was smiling, with such a great smile he hadn't seen her wear before.

"Morning!"

Tobirama found himself staring, not understanding what she was doing here so early – the sun wasn't even up yet. But soon his brain started to function normally and he remembered everything that had happened the day before. So he sat in front of the cup of hot tea she had just put in front of his chair and did not bother to ask – there was nothing else to add, anyway.

Mito was humming some old lullaby and took the tray again in her hands, heading to Hashirama's room. He wondered if this time she was hoping not to find him naked with Madara in his arms, but she was probably too pure of heart to think about it at this time of the day – in fact, Tobirama wondered if she ever thought about that at all. She must, but he was sure she would never let people know about her own turmoil.

Tobirama silently watched the steam coming from his tea before blowing on the top of his cup and raising it to his mouth. Sure, it was hot, but he liked it that way. It was truly perfect.

Still blurred from his sleep, he took his time to have breakfast and to think about what was about to happen. Hashirama appeared next to him after what seemed like seconds – actually it had been more like a couple of minutes but, Tobirama wasn't the morning person of the family after all – and Mito followed him, sat in front of them both and put some little, hand-made cakes that he didn't know she had had the time to cook.

Hashirama made a noise of approval. They were really delicious.

Mito stared at his contented face. Hashirama was truly beautiful.

He noticed the small smile on her lips that never seemed to go away. She noticed him frowning. He thought he knew why the curve on her lips – but he was wrong. Well, of course it was because of Hashirama, but not because of...Hashirama.

Tobirama looked confused.

When Mito was sure Hashirama was busy eagerly eating one of her delicious muffins, she looked at his younger brother, with her true and bright smile, and this time her wink was soft and well hidden.

Tobirama sighed a few minutes later, when he was staring at Mito's back while she was washing the dishes. He had been thinking about the previous day a lot, not even saying a word during break-first, his thoughts filled with something, something that was bugging him, something that shouldn't even be there, something he finally decided to put it out of his mind, for good.

'Of course she had been joking.'

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o0o0o

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Even if you didn't know him well, you could tell Madara wasn't an anxious person just by looking at him. His posture was always still. His gaze never drooped. His voice never trembled. He looked like a rock, unharmed in the eye of the cyclone, so confident of his own capacity that shooting a simple glance was enough to discourage his opponents.

So, the way he was chewing on his lower lips, compulsively putting his bang behind his ear, and the sight of his free hand hazardously drumming on the wooden table couldn't be interpreted as signs of nervousness; no - he was just being impatient. Madara Uchiha was not nervous. He couldn't be.

It was getting pretty late. The full moon was shining high up in the sky, and he was still tired from last night. He knew he should have taken a nap, but in his mind, taking a break meant acknowledging his weakness – or maybe, he just couldn't admit he was scared, sacred that he would miss him, because Madara Uchiha was not scared. He couldn't be. Deep in his mind, he knew Hashirama would make him wait, just as he had done last time.

Madara smirked. It was fabulous in a way, to see how he wasn't the only one who had been influenced by the other. He had managed to reveal a mischievous side of the Senju he didn't know he had in the first place – maybe he was the one who created it. Madara found this new piece of information rather entertaining, somehow even thrilling. It was a nice feeling, knowing that you had an influence on another human being – in that case it was in a bad way, but Madara didn't care. There was only one thing he cared about tonight.

What were they going to talk about?

Maybe that was why he hadn't been able to get some sleep, after all. He had been thinking about it, over and over, and he hadn't found a satisfying answer yet. He had come to the conclusion that, there were so many things they needed to talk about. Because they never really had a talk. He had always escaped when Hashirama had asked for more – before leaving him for good.

His eyes felt heavy. He sighed and crossed his arms on the table, resting his forehead against his sleeves. He was so tired, but his mind was still racing. It was over. He had left him. The man was marrying someone else.

He had left Hashirama and it was the only logical solution – what could have they done differently at that point? They hadn't thought about it, but their relationship had never had the purpose to last. It had just simply never been possible. Nothing had really changed since the day they'd first met, on the riverbank.

But, why? Why was is so hard to let go of Hashirama?

It felt like he was still with him, constantly, in his thoughts, in his dreams, when someone else was touching him – he swore one or two times he had seen his dorky face instead of another one and he had always blamed it on the sake, but now he began to wonder. Madara could feel him standing next to him; he knew he could not be physically be there, but still he could feel his eyes on him and this presence was suffocating. It definitely didn't feel like a ghost – because it was not how he felt when he had the chance to see Izuna's face, that he was certain – and Madara wasn't sure of where this strange feeling came from in the first place.

But regardless how hard he tried he just couldn't get rid of it.

And now Hashirama wasn't the only one who wanted to talk.

So, yes, Madara was feeling impatient.

His heart skipped a beat when he heard the knock on the door.

And it skipped another when he saw who was waiting for him on the other side.

Madara Uchiha wasn't anxious; he was a calm man, most of the time.

But it didn't prevent him from being surprised from time to time.

"Hey, Sleeping Beauty. Look like you've miss me."

A/N : Happy Madara Birthday and Merry Christmas HashiMada fandom :3

(Yeah so maybe I didn't forget about this story yet...maybe...I'm really happy to be able to post it for Xmas.)

You can throw me tomatoes, I deserve them (and after I could give them to Sasuke ha ha ha) and I have no idea when I'll post next chapter, so be patient okay? I have another surprise for you...soon...

Thank you for not forgetting about this story.

Thank you for reading.

We'll meet again tomorrow =)

Queenie

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